Who is in the room and how does that shape the conversation?

I was reflecting further on the recent “Lesson learnt” Symposium on the Church and COVID and it struck me that one of the main lessons presented to us was unstated but highly visual for those who had eyes to see.  You see, as I looked at my fellow panellists and as I watched the feed… Continue reading Who is in the room and how does that shape the conversation?

Embodied or virtual?

 I would like to return to one of the big questions from the pandemic.  What is embodied worship and does it really matter?  As I wrote recently, there seemed to be an assumption in debates that there were those who cared passionately about Scripture’s injunctions to gather or assemble for worship, who believed that this… Continue reading Embodied or virtual?

God is love and God is Trinity

Mike Reeves opens his book “The Good God” with this comment: “God is love”: those three words could hardly be more bouncy.  They seem lively, lovely and as warming as a crackling fire.  But ‘God is a Trinity’?  No, hardly the same effect, that sounds cold and stodgy.[1] But like me, Reeves is firmly convinced… Continue reading God is love and God is Trinity

Talking about God –starting in a surprising place

Lies about God lead to mess and destruction in our lives.  So we will want to respond to those lies with truth in order to re-orientate and correct our view of what God is like.  Where to begin? Now here’s the surprise: we’re going to start by talking about the Doctrine of the Trinity.  That… Continue reading Talking about God –starting in a surprising place

The COVID inquiry should have been narrower and more focused … here is why

I’m not sure that the current COVID public inquiry in the UK is proving to be very useful.  So far, we seem to have discovered the following big pieces of information.  I say “seem to …” because I suspect that like me you are thinking “but we knew that already.”  AS I’ve commented previously, the… Continue reading The COVID inquiry should have been narrower and more focused … here is why

Love God, love the saviour -lessons from a typo

When reading through my article on a theology of risk, a friend spotted a fascinating typo.  I had intended to write “One way in which I love God with my whole heart is by loving my neighbour as myself” Instead I’d written: “One way in which I love God with my whole heart is by… Continue reading Love God, love the saviour -lessons from a typo

Divorce and Re-marriage

One of the big questions I’ve been asked frequently is what the Bible teaches about divorce and what the implications are for divorced believers. This paper surveys the different approaches taken and offers some practical advice.

Did Jesus really not care about doctrinal orthodoxy?

A comment I frequently hear/see is that “Jesus of Nazareth” wasn’t much interested in doctrinal orthodox, especially when it comes to our doctrine of God and the Trinity.  It tends to come from those quarters where people want to place an emphasis on following Jesus’ example and teaching, especially when it comes to social agendas.… Continue reading Did Jesus really not care about doctrinal orthodoxy?