Tag Archives: God
Are we “Born of God”, or “Adopted”? It can’t be both.
Does the Bible say we are adopted by God? I am quite certain that the Bible does not say we are adopted by God. It does say that we are born of God. Many commentators seem awfully confused about this, but that’s because they are reading an English translation of a Greek document, written in a […]
Read MoreIn the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was gone…?
Lost in Translation So I was reading the New Testament in Tetum, the language of East Timor. I started to discover some interesting things that happen in translation. I thought I would blog about them, both to make notes, and to aid my fledgling comprehension of Tetum. The Tetum New Testament I am reading is […]
Read MoreIf there’s any “Church life” in twenty years’ time… what will it look like?
The Church will not be the same in 2035. What will it be like? I have great confidence that the Church will be healthy and strong in 2035, because Jesus will still be Lord. I am under no illusion, however, that it will be the same as it is today. In fact, the way church life […]
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 […]
Read MoreJesus’ strange sayings about God: Not so strange after all
Jesus is sent by God, and is God, and is equal to God, yet prays to God…? I was in discussion recently, and this topic arose. Some of the Christian rhetoric around the “Trinity” doctrine and other Christology can be hard to follow, and I get that. In fact there have been some fairly substantial […]
Read MoreEternity in their Eyes
God has one Story, one Plan I recently found myself explaining to my friends why I am always so passionate and excited about what God is doing around me. It’s because I see eternity in their eyes.
Asking the right questions about what “Son of God” means
What does it mean when Jesus says he is “Son of God”? Jesus claimed to be God’s son. He claimed to be both equal and subservient to God. This mystifies theologians today, because they find it hard to reconcile these two things. It isn’t supposed to be that hard. Let us ask not how Jesus […]
Read MoreIt Starts: The Kingdom of God is Germinating in Ipswich
October 2013: It Starts. I need to record some of the things that have been happening because God is making himself known in remarkable ways in Ipswich at the moment. I think I need to just blurt it all out without structure, because otherwise I will make a dozen or more separate blog posts!
John 1:29 – What does “Lamb of God” actually mean?
What does it mean: “the Lamb of God”? Property#1 / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND John (the Baptist), in the Gospel according to John (the Evangelist), uses the expression “the Lamb of God” to introduce Jesus (John 1:29). Scholars debate the origin and intended meaning of this phrase.
Read MoreWho are these “angels”, and what do they want?
The heavenly host Who are all those angels, and what’s going on in the throne room of God? I wrote this as part of another article entitled, “The Angels at Christmas time: What’s with that?“. I pulled it out as a separate item in the interest of keeping all my posts a little shorter. This is […]
Read MoreWhat’s Your Story?
God’s Story, and your place in it. The Universe is a Story. It is the Story of God, His Creation, and His plans for that Creation. Those plans include two parts, although these are two sides of the one “coin”: the redemption of all that is of God, and the destruction of everything else. You […]
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! […]
“We are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses” – Hebrews 12:1
Who are the Witnesses? Aren’t all those people dead? Hebrews 12:1 assures us (the faithful), that “we are surrounded by … a great cloud of witnesses”, referring to the saints whom the whole previous chapter had been listing. But they’re all dead. What’s with that?
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 […]
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. […]
The Angels at Christmas time: What’s with that?
Why is there so much about angels in the Nativity narratives of the Bible? The Biblical account is a narrative. It is constructed in the form of a story. So if the whole story of God is being told through the history of God’s dealings with creation, who is the story for? Who is the […]
Read MoreI have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. – Jn 16:12
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. – Jn 16:13 What is Truth? An exasperated Pilate poses the question, “What is truth?” (Jn 18:38). He did so because Jesus said, “Everyone on the side of truth listens to me” (Jn 18:37). So what is this “truth”? And why […]
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The Trumpet shall Sound, and the Dead shall be Raised – The Good News of Resurrection, Judgement, and Justice
“Do you hear what I hear?” I recently preached this message about the Resurrection, Justice, and Judgement. It focused closely on “hearing”, so this blog entry is mainly about audio. Blessed are those who have ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.
- April 29, 2014
- / Category 1 Corinthians 15, Audio - Preaching, Commentary, Resurrection, Revelation 21, Revelation 4, Revelation 5, Revelation 6, Revelation 7, Revelation 8
- / Posted By Kevin Bennett
- / No Comments.
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