When the wise men arrived in Jerusalem asking to see the new king, Herod’s spiritual advisors consulted Scripture and identified that the messiah would be born in Bethlehem. The basis for this was these words in Micah 5:2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,from you shall come… Continue reading The Shepherd of God’s People (Micah 5:2)
Category: Bible Study
Finding favour with God
In Luke 1:28, the angel Gabriel addresses Mary as a “favoured woman” in case she (and we) don’t get then point, he again tells her “you have found favour with God”[1] What does it mean for Mary to have found favour? Roman Catholic tradition seems to put the focus on her and her life. Mary… Continue reading Finding favour with God
The Promised Word (2) God
Here’s the next in our Advent look at John 1. Don’t forget you can also subscribe directly to the YouTube channel.
Choose Life (Deuteronomy 30)
There’s a young man, he has travelled far from home. He has had a great time but now he has spent up and is bankrupt. A famine hits. He gets a job but it still isn’t paying the bills and so he goes hungry. There’s a sheep out on the hillside. It had been wandering… Continue reading Choose Life (Deuteronomy 30)
Responding in faith
Luke 1 sets two angelical visions against each other. In the first vision, Gabriel appears to an old priest named Zechariah to tell him that he is going to have a son. Six months later, the same angel appears to a young girl called Mary who is betrothed to be married.[1] She too will have… Continue reading Responding in faith
Blessing Bringer (Genesis 12:1-3)
This week, we looked at the second part of our series “The Promise”. The following short reading is massive for our understanding of Scripture and God’s purposes “The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into… Continue reading Blessing Bringer (Genesis 12:1-3)
A promise has been kept
The response of God’s people to deliverance is praise. After the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, Miriam led the people in dance and song, at the heart of Scripture are the Psalms – a whole book of songs, some lamenting, some interceding but many telling the story of God’s saving acts. So it should be… Continue reading A promise has been kept
Rumours, fear and scepticism
Imagine living in Judea or Galilee around about 4BC. The gossip trail will have been working overtime, rumours of angels showing up and appearing with words from God after 400 years, reports of an elderly priest struck dumb in the temple, claims about an elderly woman giving birth having been infertile all her life and… Continue reading Rumours, fear and scepticism
Unbelief and silence
Here’s another little perspective on the account of Zechariah and the angel. Sometimes we see the key people in the Gospels in effect acting out or recapitulating Israel’s history. So, here we have the story of a man who serves God in the Temple, who is a representative of the people and a spokesman for… Continue reading Unbelief and silence
Land Ahead (Deuteronomy 29)
The two places where we are likely to see examples of covenants today are in our wedding vows, marriage is described as a solemn covenant and in the exchange of property. Within the exchange are likely to be mini covenants so that many deeds have what are known as restrictive covenants against them meaning that… Continue reading Land Ahead (Deuteronomy 29)
