Why had the woman at the well had five husbands?

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Jesus meets a woman at a well and asks her for water.   Then, when she expresses surprise at a Jew asking her for water, he offers her living water. When he tells her to get her husband,  she explains that she cannot and he confirms she has spoken the truth.  She has in fact had… Continue reading Why had the woman at the well had five husbands?

Demons, disease and death

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What ties together the three events in Mark 5? We have the casting out of a demon, a woman who is healed and a dead girl who is raised.  The answer is “uncleanness.”  The Klaw distinguished two categories. First there was the category of holy and profane or ordinary.  Secondly, there was the category of… Continue reading Demons, disease and death

Handkerchiefs and healing

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In Acts 19:12, people are described as taking handkerchiefs and aprons that have been used by Paul to the sick and the demon possessed with the result that they were healed. Presumably this refers to work clothes from his trade as a tentmaker including cloths used to wipe sweat away from his face (rather than… Continue reading Handkerchiefs and healing

The preacher

Jesus’ baptism and temptation mark the beginning of his public ministry.  Jesus returns from the Jordan river and begins preaching, visiting synagogues on the Sabbath and addressing the crowds which begin to be drawn to him as he starts to do miraculous signs and heal the sick.[1] Note that Matthew specifically links this with John’s… Continue reading The preacher

The answer to judging

Our church have been working through the book of James recently through Sunday sermons and discussions at our life groups.  We recently came to James chapter 4 and the strong instruction not to judge one another because that is to place ourselves as judges over God’s Law.   This led to a good question “If we… Continue reading The answer to judging

Faith, suffering and healing

One of the most common questions we tend to ask is to do with faith, suffering and healing.  That’s probably because our health can be so often where we face suffering and where faith is tested.  Even if we don’t face persecution, we are likely to face ill health at some point and will know people… Continue reading Faith, suffering and healing

A receiving church (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)

Having discerned that it is God’s Holy Spirit at work and not an evil Spirit, we can move to see what the Spirit is doing and saying.  One of the key things that the Holy Spirit does is to give gifts to the Church. Prioritise the giver (v4-6) We can become focused on the gifts… Continue reading A receiving church (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)