Posts

Learning the wrong lessons: virtual church and remote pastoring

What happens to church during lockdown?  There are essentially * answers to that question Option 1: Physical gathering never mattered much, the spiritual was always what mattered and therefore virtual online church is great. It is at least the equal if not better than physical gathering in buildings. Option 2: It is impossible to physically… Continue reading Learning the wrong lessons: virtual church and remote pastoring

Assurance and Security – Can I be sure I am saved and can I lose my salvation?

In today’s “Afternoon Tea” session we were talking about assurance. We had a couple of questions about salvation. “Can I know that I am genuinely saved?” and “Is it possible to lose your salvation.” When we are talking about these questions we tend to use two terms. Assurance is about knowing for certain that I… Continue reading Assurance and Security – Can I be sure I am saved and can I lose my salvation?

Learning the Wrong Lessons: Lies damned Lies and Statistics

Every day brings more news about new coronavirus cases and a rising death toll.  The figures are put under intense scrutiny. Questions being asked are Is the rate of infection increasing or slowing? Is the figure accurate, does it confuse those who die from an illness with those who die with?  Does it include all… Continue reading Learning the Wrong Lessons: Lies damned Lies and Statistics

Rest: Sabbaths, cycles, recessions and plagues

I remember listening to a lecturer at University argue that you could track world economic activity against 50 year cycles. Each cycle would include a period of growth and a period of decline.  He argued that in fact there was little that government intervention could do to change the overall direction of things. In his… Continue reading Rest: Sabbaths, cycles, recessions and plagues

Who is the Holy Spirit?

Whilst working through Mark’s Gospel in early 2015 at Bearwood Chapel, we kept coming  back to some questions that followed a theme: “What stops me?” “What stops me from seeing God for who He is?”                                                                   “What stops me from worshipping?” “What stops me from truly knowing God?” “What stops me from trusting and taking God… Continue reading Who is the Holy Spirit?

Have we lost the Holy Spirit?

Matthew Mason has set out the provocative suggestion that conservative evangelicals in the Church of England have neither a functional doctrine of the Holy Spirit nor a meaningful experience of the Holy Spirit and that has led to a number of deficiencies in their churches. I intend to interact with his proposition over a number… Continue reading Have we lost the Holy Spirit?

In the beginning (Matthew 1:1-17)

Introduction Two things that have been coming up in my Bible reading and in the thoughts we’ve been sharing online over the last few weeks have been The cry of ‘how long oh Lord’  expressed by God’s people in the face of suffering Can we trust God to keep his promises? These questions are deeply… Continue reading In the beginning (Matthew 1:1-17)

How Long ?

Do you find yourself asking “Why hasn’t God stopped the pandemic yet?” How would you respond to someone asking that question? In John 11, we read that Jesus gets word that his friend Lazarus is ill in Bethany.  Yet, Jesus decides not to go immediately to him.  Later, Jesus says to his disciples that they… Continue reading How Long ?