Who are you?

This is Pilate’s question for Jesus.  Not in the sense that he didn’t know the name of the person standing before him or anything about the details of his life.  It’s a question about identity. Read Mark 15:1-15 It’s the night before his crucifixion and Jesus has been handed over by the Jewish leaders to… Continue reading Who are you?

Complementarianism and Egalitarianism -the practical overlap and the real difference

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There’s been another flurry of conversation about complementarianism on social media recently. I think this has been prompted a little by this article in Premier Christianity. As a side note, I think that the article doesn’t do a bad job of trying to reflect the different views and provide balance. However, I am not convinced… Continue reading Complementarianism and Egalitarianism -the practical overlap and the real difference

Headship is not about hierarchy

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My friend, Steve Kneale has written a few articles about complementarian theology and practice. This follows someone misrepresenting his position in this article as being egalitarian not complementarian. I can certainly vouch for Steve as a fully paid up complementarian. It seems that what some people are doing is taking the term and narrowing down… Continue reading Headship is not about hierarchy

Desire and Rule – handling a difficult and controversial text

Aimee Byrd, author of Recovering from Biblical Manhood and Womanhood has caused some further controversy with the release of her latest book “Sexual Reformation.” As with her previous book, at least part of the focus is on challenging some of the presuppositions behind the Biblical manhood movement.  Her most recent target is how Genesis 3:16… Continue reading Desire and Rule – handling a difficult and controversial text

Laying down your life for your friends in a pandemic

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Throughout the pandemic, pastors have found themselves under fire from two sides. For some, every decision to conform with guidelines, providing online services, introducing social distancing, asking people to wear masks has been seen as an act of compromise with the state driven by fear of death. Thy are told that they should not fear… Continue reading Laying down your life for your friends in a pandemic

Have we misunderstood Romans 13 -do we really have to obey the authorities?

I saw this article the other day. I suspect many of us will be a little surprised at its claim because surely Romans 13 is exactly about whether or not we should obey the authorities isn’t it?  So how can the author claim that it isn’t when Paul says: “ Let every person be subject to the… Continue reading Have we misunderstood Romans 13 -do we really have to obey the authorities?

Do you take the role of pastor/elder seriously enough?

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What exactly does it mean to be a pastor or an elder in a church?  First of all, you will notice that I am in effect using the words “pastor” and “elder” interchangeably because we are essentially talking about the same thing. An elder is someone who carries leadership authority within a family/clan/tribe linked to… Continue reading Do you take the role of pastor/elder seriously enough?

Calvin on marriage

I’ve been sharing Calvin’s thoughts on the relationships between slaves and masters, parents and children and, wives and husbands with a little bit of commentary. I’ve been doing this because despite presumptions that the concept of mutual submission is a modern egalitarian idea, we find that Calvin writing 500 years early understood Ephesians 5:21 to… Continue reading Calvin on marriage