For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of lightEphesians 5:8Cool Runnings is an old favourite. There’s a bit where the Jamaican Bobsled team were trying to be just like the Swiss. And it wasn’t working. Sanka (dreadlocks), fed up with trying to be something they aren't, says, “I didn't come up here to forget who I am and where I come from.” It’s a great sta...  Read More

Blessed is the one    who does not walk in step with the wickedor stand in the way that sinners take    or sit in the company of mockers,but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,    and who meditates on his law day and night.That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,    which yields its fruit in seasonand whose leaf does not wither—    whatever they do prospers.Psalm 1:1-3There are...  Read More

17 Pharaoh said, “Lazy, that’s what you are—lazy! That is why you keep saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.’ 18 Now get to work. You will not be given any straw, yet you must produce your full quota of bricks.”Exodus 5:17-18I try not to read politics into the Bible. We all have a tendency to want to polarise our times into good guys/bad guys but as the American election shows, sometimes i...  Read More

When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the Lord above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, “He is good; his love endures forever.”2 Chronicles 7:3 In the history of Israel every now and then God did something that showed people His glory. That would cause them to look on in wonder a...  Read More

Q.33. What is justification?A. Justification is an act of God’s free grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone.Westminster Shorter CatechismFor all those that keep track, I did skip a question. Q32 is a summary that is then unpacked over the next few questions. One of the mos...  Read More

I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;    I refused my heart no pleasure.My heart took delight in all my labor,    and this was the reward for all my toil.Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done    and what I had toiled to achieve,everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;    nothing was gained under the sun.Ecclesiastes 2:10-11I think all of us deep down suspect that if we had...  Read More

That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and overseers in charge of the people: 7 “You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. 8 But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don’t reduce the quota. They are lazy; that is why they are crying out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Make the work ...  Read More

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.Ephesians 4:1-3If you have missed the past two Mondays, we have been memorising three verses. Now we are at the final step. If you are just jump...  Read More

See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.Hebrews 3:12-14Post-Covid lockdowns (and being able to li...  Read More

Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”11 The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”13 B...  Read More

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.1 Timothy 2:1-3I don’t think Christians know how to think about pol...  Read More

Q. 31. What is effectual calling?A. Effectual calling is the work of God’s Spirit, whereby, convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills, he doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel.Westminster Shorter CatechismWe saw last week that we need God’s Spirit to give us new hearts to be able ...  Read More