Category Archives: The Book of Acts

Be ye Baptized

Be Baptized Every One Of You Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are […]

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John 20:19-31 – The Honoured Guests and Their Servant Leaders

Blessed are those who have not seen… Ever wonder why some people got a “bolt from the blue” encounter from God, and you didn’t? Jesus says that you are the one who is blessed, not them. How does that work…? I preached this message on Sunday, April 12 2015.

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Acts 17 – Paul’s address to the Athenians – That moment when God made foolish the wisdom of the world.

Paul in Athens The Book of Acts tells the story of the early church in Jerusalem, and then follows Paul’s missionary journeys. In chapter 17, Paul addresses the wise, the powerful, and the religious of Athens. What he said there is often misunderstood or misrepresented. This was, however, arguably the moment that Paul would later refer […]

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A Theology of Community

God invests His Spirit in a Community It is easy to miss the Biblical emphasis on a group as the recipient of God’s promises. We, in the modern Western world, are so used to thinking in individualistic way about everything else that we have been reading the Bible primarily in that dimension for generations, and […]

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Reflections on the Trip of a Lifetime: Day 13 Assos, Alexander Troas, Troy

Assos, Alexander Troas, Troy Today we visited three sites, and all were impressive. It was another big day for all of us. He didn’t let on, but I reckon it must have been a long day for Bariş, too. He did a fantastic job!

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Reflections on the Trip of a Lifetime: Day 12 Smyrna, Thyateria, Pergamon

Smyrna (Izmir), Thyateria, Pergamon (Bergama) It’s a big day when you visit three sites. On top of that, two out of these particular three were quite spectacular! All three are among the Seven mentioned in Revelation 1:11. It was helpful to review the photos, and ensure that my memories of the sites are distinct from […]

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Reflections on the Trip of a Lifetime: Day 10 Ephesus

  Ephesus Just when you think you’ve got no more “wow”, there’s Ephesus… The whole site is like a visual feast. It reminded me of those expert gardens, where there’s a new story around every turn, and through every narrow gap there’s a whole new open area with it’s own exciting new part of the […]

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Reflections on the Trip of a Lifetime: Day 7 Mevlana Museum, Pisidian Antioch

Mevlana Museum, Pisidian Antioch Beforehand, I would have expected Mevlana Museum to be irrelevant, and Pisidian Antioch to be somewhat interesting. At the end of the day I had been somewhat disappointed by Pisidian Antioch, but was incredibly grateful for the visit to Mevlana Museum.

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Reflections on the Trip of a Lifetime: Day 3 Corinth and Athens

Corinth and Athens We drove down the coast to Corinth in the morning, and returned to Athens after lunch to see the Parthenon and the Areopagus.

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What is Christian “Worship”?

Worshipping in Spirit and in Truth Mike_tn / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND Let’s look at where Christian worship began, what it was like then, and what it meant to the first Christians. Much has happened through subsequent church history, but how much of what we now call “worship” is directly related to what the first Christians […]

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A journey through Handel’s “Messiah” – George Frederic Handel (1695-1759)

Messiah, G. F. Handel Welcome to my happy place: Handel’s “Messiah”. There is lots I could say about this. I could talk about the art, the theology, the subtle interpretive cues that make this a sort of “Gospel according to Handel”… But I won’t. I’ll just stand aside and put this here for you to […]

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