Haggai. Whereas most of the other prophets had a very clear and blunt message of destruction and judgement, the message of Haggai is more about encouragement for the Lord’s people to get their priorities right. There is an element of rebuke included in that the house of the Lord was being neglected in favour of […]
Series Introduction – Throughout the span of the Old Testament, God used different ways of relating to His people to enable them to hold and live by His word. Judges were appointed to hold in place and administer the details of God’s covenant with His people. Kings were to protect the relationship God has with […]
Psalm 29:2; Psalm 95:1-7; Psalm 136 So many of the Psalms reflect delight in the Lord for who He is and what He has done for us. To be able to pray with delight in the Lord needs us to take time to notice His goodness in our lives, communities and the world. That begins […]
2 Chronicles 7: 1-22, Acts 2: 42-47. It’s clear in 2 Chronicles that something is wrong. The people need to “turn from their wicked ways” and seek God’s forgiveness. As we read further into the passage it becomes clear that the Lord is calling His people back to total devotion to Him as they turn […]
John 13:1-17; 21:1-14. There are two significant moments in John’s gospel when Jesus serves His disciples in a way that they were not expecting. In John 13 that was as Jesus stooped down to wash His disciples feet. In John 21 it happened as He cooked them breakfast. Both occasions point towards mission. In John […]
John 20: 19 – 31. We said on Easter Sunday that there really should be no more room for doubt or disbelief as the full revelation of the gospel is seen in our risen Lord and Saviour. Yet, John takes some time in the rest of chapter 20 to detail the times and places where […]
John 20:1-18. If Jesus’ prayer in John 17 can be described as “one of the mountain peaks of revelation in this gospel”, then the resurrection is another one – the main one that stands high above all others! There really should be no more room for doubt or disbelief as the full revelation of the […]
John 12:12-19; 14:1-31; 16:5-23. In moments of distress and bewilderment, John shows us Jesus as the giver of comfort and hope. Jesus showed His own distress as He approached Jerusalem (see Luke 19:41), yet was soon surrounded by crowds of people jubilantly celebrating that He was there. Soon after, emotions would swing back to distress […]
John 6:25 – 59; 7:1 – 8:59; 10:1 – 21; 12:1 – 11; 15:1 – 17. With our modern-day mantra that we are free to be people of our own making through a freedom to choose being so prevalent, it’s perhaps challenging for some to hear that themes of direction and instruction are included in […]
John 3:1-21; 4:1-42; 4:43-54; 5:1-15; 9:1-34; 11:1-44 John uses two contrasting examples of a person’s standing in community to make a point. The first is Nicodemus (chapter 3), a member of the social elite of the time, the Sanhedrin, and a respected teacher. He came to Jesus under the cover of darkness so that his […]