Many people claim to represent God. There are many religions in the world. For the most part Christians are not fooled into thinking that these are true paths to God. There are cults which Christians generally recognise as cults and … Continue reading
In John’s Gospel, Jesus makes a statement which seems quite strange at first sight. “Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind”” (John 9:39). This … Continue reading
Sometimes the Christian life seems to be something too difficult to live. Sometimes there is too much pain, emotional or physical or even spiritual. It seems as if God is just ignoring our prayers for the difficult times to be … Continue reading
In the Book of Revelation the Old Testament images are given new meaning in the context of the creation brought into being by the Lamb of God who reigns forever and ever. The Old Testament temple worship is seen in … Continue reading
Introduction I set out to understand the difference between the conscience of a believer and that of an unregenerate person. Along the way I decided that something which Jesus has done must have transformed the conscience, because there are differences … Continue reading
A word about this post I wrote the first version of this in July 2007. When I opened this I was surprised by the fact that I had these thoughts so long ago. Some of the ideas found here are … Continue reading
In the book of Revelation there are letters to seven churches. In my most recent reading of Revelation one of these letters stood out as something rather scary. The words of Jesus to the church must be heeded as they … Continue reading
In the book of Revelation there are two significant arenas of action – heaven and earth. One thing which seems particularly significant about this theme is the idea that what goes on in heaven is not visible to those who … Continue reading
Towards the end of the book of Revelation there are two significant “women”. The first “woman” is discussed in chapters 17-18 and the second in chapter 19 and 21. Both the “women” have glory and splendour, but the one is … Continue reading
Last week (18/7/14) a Malaysia Airlines plane was shot down by yet unknown persons by a missile over the Ukraine. 298 people, the full complement of the plane’s passengers and crew are dead. Among the dead from W.A. are three … Continue reading
Recently I have begun to think about the work of Satan. This is the second in (possibly) a series of discussions as a result of my contemplations (the first is ‘Doctrines of Demons’). In this I am concerned to consider … Continue reading
Introduction In recent days I have been drawn to a consideration of the devil. It is quite clear to me that Satan is by no means neutral towards us. He has an agenda and that is to take the people … Continue reading
In the middle of the book of Revelation we find an angel who proclaims the eternal gospel. “Then I saw another angel flying in midheaven, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth– to every … Continue reading
On the weekend 11-12 Jan 2014 it was 43 and 41 degrees respectively. Many plants in the garden did not fare well. When I went out to water them to see if they could be revived, I noticed something interesting. … Continue reading
This is not so much a theological discussion as a confession that my view of God has been somewhat distorted. Having spent some time thinking about what it means to be “in the Father”, and hence about intimacy with God, … Continue reading
“There are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood, and these three agree” (1 John 5:7-8). A couple of weeks ago I dreamed about this verse. I therefore believe that it is significant. As a result … Continue reading
Jesus promised that those who believe in him will do the works he did and even greater works than those (John 14:12). Pentecostals seem fond of this verse, because it seems to suggest that Christians should be going about doing … Continue reading
Introduction I have been meditating on the behaviour of schoolies over this week. Several have been arrested by police over drugs, a parent was caught taking alcohol to her daughter for schoolies celebrations, and schoolies in Bali have embarrassed other … Continue reading
John 4:34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and … Continue reading
In part 1 and part 2 I examined several passages in the Gospel of John, the epistles of John and the Revelation of John about being ‘in the Father’. There are three more passages which are important to examine about … Continue reading
I was made curious about the expression ‘in the Father’ by an article by John and therefore I wrote something about John 14, where the most concentrated discussion about being ‘in the Father’ is. But there are other passages where … Continue reading
This exploration began as a result of a mention of being “in the Father” (1 Thess 1:1) in one of John’s recent articles.[1] I wanted to understand further what it means to be “in the Father”. I have heard much … Continue reading
Introduction In two previous articles I explored the darkness of the cross, first in terms of the meaning of the darkness for Jesus, and second in terms of what the Holy Spirit was doing in the darkness. In this third … Continue reading
The Gospel of Luke begins with a statement that the writer has written the Gospel with the intention “that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught” (Luke 1:4). Throughout the Gospel there are many people … Continue reading
Introduction Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard recently gave an interview, which I watched some of. Towards the end a child asked her a question: “Why did you not let gay people get married?”[1] Her reply was that she did not … Continue reading
Having spent time thinking through the darkness of the cross, the question now arises as to where the Holy Spirit was during the darkness of the cross. This question is not easy to answer, because the Gospel accounts of the … Continue reading
Transgender children This topic is something which I find intensely distressing. I have recently watched the SBS program ‘Insight’, which this week was devoted to transgender people. On this program there was a seven year old boy who is now … Continue reading
The Gospel accounts record three hours of darkness while Jesus was on the cross. Matthew 27:45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. Mark 15:33 At the sixth hour darkness came over the … Continue reading
Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this was your … Continue reading
Recently I read about the infancy narratives in Luke in a book about John the Baptist. This listed the extensive parallels in Luke between the birth of John the Baptist and the birth of Jesus. But today, reading Mark’s account … Continue reading