Category Archives: Reflection on Ministry
Reflections on Ministry as I experience it.
Sonny with a Chance
The Bible: A Book of Comfort My friend Sonny saw me in the Mall today and we had a bit of a chat. He said something very wise, which I pointed out was similar to something Jesus had said. At that point he produced a well worn, well loved Bible, and began reading it to me.
Read MoreEvangelism: A View from the Inside
A State of Being: Freedom I was reflecting, as I often do, on what the chances are that I will be able to impart my joy to others before I die. What a tragedy it would be if I, having received so indescribable a gift, should die without having shared it. May it not be so! […]
Street Theology: Justification by Faith
How Biblical Justification Looks “On the Street” Everybody loves being right. It’s even better when you are recognised as being right in front of other people. When those other people have scoffed and mocked you, the victory is all the sweeter. But the ultimate prize is when you are declared right, and your mockers declared wrong, and […]
The other side of the “No Smoking” sign: discrimination by Social Cleansing
Is this Social Cleansing? I’m a non-smoker. Indeed, I am even an ex-smoker, and I support the principle of removing cigarette smoke from the lives of those who don’t smoke. But the recent (1st Feb 2013) ban on smoking in some of the public spaces in Ipswich has made me uneasy from the start. Today […]
“Mission to the Marginalised”…?
How many roads must a man walk down before they call him a missionary? I was invited recently to talk under the heading “Mission to the Marginalised”. (I frequently wrestle with the appropriateness and definition of words like “mission” and “marginalised”, but at least the other two words in the heading were pretty straightforward) I […]
Christian Conversion: What’s it like?
Christian Conversion: A view from the inside I thought I’d just whack down some thoughts about my own conversion to faith. It’s not expert poetry, it’s constructed with the simplest of metres and most elementary rhyme, but it suffices to carry the message.
Read MoreWhy do innocent people suffer?
What would your response have been? I was aware that my friend had been grieving the death of her adult daughter, who had been murdered by White Supremacists. They left her hung by the neck, in a room covered in blood from obvious signs of struggle. The police declined to investigate, deeming it a suicide. […]
Big Fella and the Promise
“This life is very real to me, God” How many of us can stand with Big Fella and testify: “The promise is calling out to me to be a witness”? That’s precisely what the promise does, if we are to understand it properly.
The Book of Job: (not so?) Friendly Advice
What does the Book of Job say about counselling our friends? A key message of the Book of Job is that, when someone is suffering, there may be things going on that we are unaware of. Rather than badger the person to amend their behaviour, or drag them into a theological debate, we should comfort […]
Read MoreBig Fella is “Justified by Faith”
Neither Death nor Life In a track that cries out about the ongoing toughness of the spiritual journey, Big Fella takes comfort from the sure knowledge that he is “justified by faith”, and concludes that “neither death nor life can separate us”. This is precisely the point! We do indeed have that assurance. Praise God.
Big Fella is “Seeing the World Through God’s Eyes”
“No more jail cells. Bill’s been paid. No more ticket to hell” “I’m like a dealer on the street corner, pushing Christ to the junkies and the dope pushers: people I used to run with…” For Big Fella, it’s personal. He’s still got friends in the drug scene, and he wants to pluck them out, […]
The Naked Gospel
What is a ‘Christian Culture’? No matter how we define a Christian culture, it must begin with Christ himself, in who’s name it stands. By definition, everything that we find in “Christian culture” must be found in him, otherwise we are badly mistaken. That’s just common sense, right? So why is it that almost everything that […]
Read MoreTogether we stand, with Big Fella
The problem isn’t skin, it’s sin, and everything that lies within Another (fairly early) track by Big Fella, with plenty in it that we can all learn from. A notable subtext is that the racial divide is very much a reality for Indigenous Australians, certainly in Ipswich. There are parts of Australia where you could […]
Read MoreCan Christ “get a witness” in Big Fella?
Is your heart ready to deal with this? Here is a man who was so good at crime that his friends and family assumed he would be in it forever. Jesus took him out of that life, and now the call of Christ is: Are you built for this? Can you handle this? Is your […]
Domestic Violence: He fractured my skull, but I love him.
That awkward moment when you fracture your pregnant girlfriend’s skull In the Mall this week, we had the privilege of providing support and encouragement to a young pregnant woman with a fractured eye socket. It seems her boyfriend had become enraged in a drunken fit of jealous imagination, and pummelled her with punches resulting in […]
Big Fella lays it all down, “In these Rhymes”
In These Rhymes Here’s another one from Big Fella. Notice in the lyrics that producing this work is part of the way in which God is working on the man: “Just layn’ it at your feet in these rhymes”.
Homosexuality: The Stumbling Stone of Modern Christianity?
Christian, why is it so hard to love homosexual people? Christian churches have developed a series of dogmatic teachings that culminate in Christians wearing T-Shirts bearing the theologically inaccurate statement, “God Hates Fags”. No wonder many Christians find it hard to reconcile this with their spiritual discernment, which prompts them simply to love and accept […]
Criminal Minds
What does the heart of a career criminal, converted to Christ, sound like? This friend of mine has been part of the Ipswich Mall ministry from the beginning. He knew nothing about music but was called by God to discover, learn, and create Gospel Rap music. It’s lonely In this song you will hear selected […]
The Psychological Gospel
Can the Gospel be described in Psychological terms? The Gospel is not a matter of psychology. It is a message about the Kingdom of God: “Jesus is Lord”. But the contemplation of this, and the comprehension of it, can have profound psychological effects on the person concerned. This is because it matters that Jesus is Lord. It […]
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- What Happens When We Die, and Where are my Loved Ones?
- Seeking the Kingdom
- If it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you – Matt 12:28
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On Earth as it is in Heaven
To What shall I Compare the Kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is coming to the street subculture of Ipswich. How can I describe it? How can I document it? Just thinking about it brings Jesus’ refrain to mind, “to what shall I compare the Kingdom of God?”, and his declaration to Nicodemus, “very […]
- July 10, 2013
- / Category Commentary, Exodus 19, Isaiah 42, John 3, Leaven, Light of the World, Mark 9, Marketplace Evangelism, Matthew 10, Matthew 13, Matthew 16, Matthew 5, Mission to the Marginalised, Salt of the Earth
- / Posted By Kevin Bennett
- / No Comments.
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