Tag: love

Scripture, sovereignty and suffering: Where might that conversation with a rabbi have gone?

Remember my aborted conversation with the Rabbi.  The dilemma that was put to him was that if God had done the great deeds recounted in the rest of Torah building up to the point in Deuteronomy when the people are about to enter the land of Canaan, then why do does it fall onto the… Continue reading Scripture, sovereignty and suffering: Where might that conversation with a rabbi have gone?

Divine Love and the case for Open Theism

The crucial question when making a decision about Open Theism is whether or not it faithfully points us to the God of the Bible.  As I mentioned in my previous article, a key starting point for Open Theism is 1 John 4:8 where the apostle says: 8 But anyone who does not love does not know… Continue reading Divine Love and the case for Open Theism

Abandoned? How do we square the difficult bits of Song of Songs?

I keep coming back to the question that Mike Ovey frequently asked his students at Oak Hill, “Will you let God disagree with you through his word?”   The point he would make was that we can tell the difference between an imaginary friend and a real friend by whether or not the friend disagreed with… Continue reading Abandoned? How do we square the difficult bits of Song of Songs?

Notes on Song of Songs

Genre Wisdom Literature and Poetry.  Wisdom literature is a specific genre within Scripture.  My definition is that “Wisdom Literature enables us to discover God’s wisdom for life by reflecting through poetry on God’s Law (Torah) and the redemptive history of God’s people.” For Christians we must first of all see this applied to and through… Continue reading Notes on Song of Songs

Saying goodbye to mum: Between joy and grief

On December 2nd at just around 4am in the morning, my mum went to be with her Lord and Saviour.  It has been a roller coaster 10 days prior to this.  Mum had gone into hospital the week previously for planned surgery knowing that at her age there were risks but confident in Jesus that… Continue reading Saying goodbye to mum: Between joy and grief

The sheep with a broken leg? The danger of embellishing Scripture

I’ve only heard the claim once from a pulpit but perhaps that was already one time too many. I’ve since come across other people who have heard the claim.  A preacher talking about the Lost Sheep in Luke 15 claimed that after finding the sheep, the shepherd would then break one of its legs. The… Continue reading The sheep with a broken leg? The danger of embellishing Scripture

What do I owe Him?

Jesus is engaging all comers in debate, there have been Pharisees, Sadducees and Herodians. One lawyer has been hanging back, observing. Now, he steps in with his question. Mark leaves open the question about whether this is intended as another trap but observes that this man has been impressed by Jesus’ answers so maybe there… Continue reading What do I owe Him?