Word of Life
As a child, I learned the proverb: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” I suppose teaching that phrase to kids can help defuse fights on the playground! But, as I have learned as an adult, the saying isn’t entirely true. Proverbs 18:21 hits far closer to the mark […]
God Be in Your Face!
We say that someone is ‘in our face’ when they invade our personal space, are always ‘on at us’ about something, make us feel uncomfortable, and particularly when they keep ‘pushing’ all our annoyance ‘buttons’. They insist on getting our attention and forcing us to respond them. Our gut reaction is to hold them at […]
At Home With the Holy Trinity
God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not like three stone statues sitting far away in heaven. The Father loves His Son. He gives Him every good gift He has, and He delights in Him and praises Him (Matthew 3:17). The Son loves His Father (John 14:31). He freely and joyfully gives everything He […]
A Day of Thanksgiving
This week we celebrate Pentecost, sometimes referred to as “the birthday of the church.” Acts 2 describes the Holy Spirit filling the disciples as they gathered on the day of Pentecost, enabling them to speak the languages of other Jews visiting Jerusalem from far away and proclaim the gospel. Thousands of people were saved and […]
Happy Mother’s Day
I had the privilege of growing up with a fantastic mum. She was caring, reliable, strict when she needed to me, but my siblings and I always knew she loved us and was looking out for us. Even today, visiting her (and my dad, of course) puts a smile on my face and I never […]
The ANZAC Spirit
Yesterday we celebrated Anzac Day, in honour and remembrance of the Australian and New Zealander soldiers who landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey on April 25, 1915, as well as all who have served in the armed forces since then. More than a century later, Anzac Day is now our most widely observed national […]
Gift Horses
On the road to Emmaus, two disciples walked beside Jesus Christ—the risen Son of God—who had conquered death, paid for sin, secured salvation, and now offers life, hope, and the Holy Spirit. And they didn’t recognise Him. Are we any different? We try to live as Christians—sometimes succeeding, often failing—yet miss the reality that the […]
Love That Reversed Death
Many Christians are familiar with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. According to all four gospels, the week Jesus was crucified, he entered Jerusalem for the Passover festival riding on a donkey’s colt. He was acclaimed by crowds of followers who laid cloaks and branches on the ground before him and proclaimed him as “the one […]
A King On a Donkey
Many Christians are familiar with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. According to all four gospels, the week Jesus was crucified, he entered Jerusalem for the Passover festival riding on a donkey’s colt. He was acclaimed by crowds of followers who laid cloaks and branches on the ground before him and proclaimed him as “the one […]
100% Us
So, we are saved and justified 100% by God’s grace. Does that then mean that the Christian life is 0% us – do we just sit there, like a bowl of cold porridge? If so, who would want that? There’s nothing attractive about it. No! Grace is not just a teaching or a doctrine, but […]