Yesterday I wrote about the “five solas” of the Reformation. These are things we rely on for specific aspects of our faith and were coined to describe specific challenges the Reformation identified. Because of this I think that it should be possible to identify other “solas”, so long as we don’t try to get those… Continue reading A sixth Sola?
Tag: The Holy Spirit
What isn’t consumed
When Moses is in the wilderness, he spots a bush on fire, the famous burning bush. However, it’s not the fact that a bush is on fire that gets his attention. This may well have been a normal sight for him. What really is the miracle there? It’s the fact that the bush itself is… Continue reading What isn’t consumed
Handkerchiefs and healing
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
Why Pentecost is good news
Today is Pentecost Sunday. Fifty days after Easter, Acts 2 tells us that the disciples were gathered together when God’s Spirit came down filling the place and then. This was accompanied with dramatic signs: the building shook, a strong wind ripped through the place, the appearance of tongues of fire in their heads and the… Continue reading Why Pentecost is good news
The Toronto Blessing in retrospect
Thirty years ago, something significant happened in the life of the church around the World. Reports started coming through of something spectacular happening at the Airport Vineyard Church in Toronto, a possible move of the Holy Spirit accompanied by both spectacular and weird phenomenon. At the one end of the spectrum people were reported to… Continue reading The Toronto Blessing in retrospect
Spiritual Warfare in Ephesians
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase “Spiritual Warfare”? You perhaps think first of all about demon possession and exorcism, perhaps too about witchcraft and sorcery. Perhaps you will have in mind some famous secular films like the Exorcist or popular level Christian literature. Well you would not be wrong to think about… Continue reading Spiritual Warfare in Ephesians
Strengthened in love (A sermon on Ephesians 3:14-21 for Pentecost)
What is love? Famously, a set of cartoons back in the 1980s offered the answer “love is…” with lots of examples. Perhaps, given he was not too sure himself at the time and what was to follow, they were unwise in one suggestion “Love is Charlie and Di” We might suggest that love is our… Continue reading Strengthened in love (A sermon on Ephesians 3:14-21 for Pentecost)
The Spirit in Ephesians
A central theme in Ephesians is the work of the Holy Spirit. If this is a letter about God’s purpose for his church, about how to be united in love as his alternative society and about standing firm in spiritual warfare, then the Holy Spirit is crucial to all of that. But before Ephesians is… Continue reading The Spirit in Ephesians
Sealed in the Spirit
This Sunday our church begins a new teaching series going through the book of Ephesians. A key theme of the book is the work of the Spirit. We learn early on that we are sealed with the Spirit and so, we are to be filled with the Spirit which becomes the launchpad for the closing… Continue reading Sealed in the Spirit
On the frequency of dreams and visions in the early church
I wanted to pick up on something I saw in a recent article looking at the question of dreams and visions. I’m not going to unpack the whole question of dreams and visions here except to say that I believe that these are available for Christians today. As I’ve mentioned previously, we talk about God… Continue reading On the frequency of dreams and visions in the early church
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