John 21:1-17, I Peter 5:1-4 — A minister of the Gospel may have the requisite gifts but what will sustain him over the long term? How can he endure the hardship and the suffering that inevitably comes with the office? The key is his love for Christ. If a pastor loves Jesus he will persevere in preaching…
I Timothy 1:14 — “And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.” Paul went from blaspheming the name of Jesus to believing in the name of Jesus. He went from hating the followers of Jesus to loving them. How did this happen? It was because he…
Luke 9:51-56 — “But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” As Jesus made His way to Jerusalem there was a Samaritan village that refused to receive Him. In response to…
I Timothy 1:12-13 — “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious…” The elders in the church at Ephesus had lost their focus on the Gospel. They’d become enamoured with other subjects that were not…
Luke 9:49-50 — “Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us.” The disciples had tried to stop a man from doing ministry in Jesus’ name because he was not part of their group. Jesus rebuked the disciples and went on to tell them how they ought to think…
I Timothy 1:10b-11 — “…And if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust.” How should we think about the moral Law given in the Old Testament and the teaching of the Apostles? How do we judge if the…
Luke 9:46-48 — “Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me…for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.” The disciples were arguing over which one of them should be the greatest in the Messianic Kingdom. Their idea of greatness was shaped by the world around them and by…
Luke 9:43-45 — “Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them…” Jesus told His disciples plainly that He was going to die and yet they didn’t understand. This was because the meaning…
Proverbs 25:14 — “Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift is like clouds and wind without rain.” As our region experiences a long dry spell, the image in this proverb is on that has become all too familiar. We have seen many clouds appear in the sky with the promise of rain but then dissipate…
I Timothy 1:9-10 — Critics of the traditional Christian view of homosexuality will sometimes raise the issue of slavery. They will endeavour to highlight the inconsistency of rejecting what the Bible says about slavery while affirming what it says about homosexuality. How do we deal with this objection? Is it valid? What does the Bible…