Sermons, Articles, and Other Things

Matthew now records three encounters Jesus had with Gentiles. The first is with an individual and the other two are with large crowds. Obviously, his involvement with Gentiles indicates a change of direction in the public ministry of Jesus and one reason why he did so was to show to his disciples that they too would soon be involved with bringing spiritual blessings to such people. The disciples may have wondered why they were taken by Jesus into Gentile areas, but we can see from the recorded incidents that they learned amazing truths about his kingdom. The Canaanite woman Matthew points out that the woman was calling loudly and persistently, perhaps an autobiographical detail on his part because he was there when she approached Jesus and his disciples. One question that is often asked is, ‘Why do people come to Jesus for help?’ So we can ask why this woman came to him on this occasion. Here are three reasons why she did so. First, she loved her daughter who was in ...

In the previous verses in this letter Paul has extolled the greatness of Jesus as Creator and Saviour. His description is of a majestic Person who engages in incredible activities. It is not surprising that Paul expects a response of dedication by the Colossians to Jesus, and he therefore challenges them now in a very personal way. At the same time, since his words are part of the divinely-inspired Bible, they challenge us with regard to our relationship with Jesus. Reminder of who we were In verse 21, Paul provides a brief, yet comprehensive, description of an unconverted person from God’s perspective. After all, God is the only one who can see what a person is like on the inside as well as on the outside. Here Paul points out what our mind is like before we come to trust in Jesus and also he points out what our activities are. Inwardly, we are separate from God and opposed to God. This should not be a surprise for us. We know that is the case if we are not followers of J...

​ Saul had now become an established leader in the Christian church. It was a kind of roundabout journey that he had, with what had taken place in his life after his conversion, whether he was living in Damascus, Jerusalem, Tarsus or Antioch. Although he had been very diligent in his service for Jesus and made many contributions to the progress of the gospel, his main years of service were still ahead of him. Luke describes here an important step in how Saul moved from a static ministry in one location to an itinerant ministry in numerous places. A leader in Antioch It looks as if this group of five individuals named by Luke were the leaders in the church in Antioch. Since no other information is given we cannot say whether there was also another group similar to what we call a kirk session or whether this group functioned as the kirk session. Who were these men? We know about Barnabas and Saul, but not about the other three, which is a reminder that usually church leaders ...

We are often told to be careful because we do not know who is watching us. This is true in all walks of life. After all, when we drive along the road there may be a man with a speed checker around the corner about to tell us the truth. Children often think their parents have more than two eyes because they seem to observe lots of things that the children try to hide. Jesus told his disciples that they too were under observation spiritually. In the Sermon on the Mount he told them that their heavenly Father watched what they did in secret when they prayed and fasted or gave alms. The Gospel writers often mention that Jesus looked at his disciples when they were engaged in different activities. And we know that it is impossible to be an example without others looking at us. So, there are good ways of being observed. There are also sinful ways of being observed and we have an example of such in this passage. Representatives of the more conservative religious group in Israel – tha...

We know that it is not possible to describe people fully with one word. An individual may be a son, a husband, a father, a lawyer, a football supporter, an athlete and other things. Those who only know him as a football supporter would be surprised to discover that he was a lawyer unless someone had informed them. Yet if they did not know all his roles they would not have a valid understanding of who he is. When people think about Jesus, they may have a similar problem. Some know that he was a great teacher, others know that he made disciples and sent them into the world with a message of God’s love, others know that he is risen from the dead. Those details cannot be discovered by people unless someone tells them who he is. Thankfully, we have been told who he is, and the place where the information is found is in the Bible. There are many descriptions of Jesus in the Bible. In some places, maybe one or two things are said about him while in other places several things are ...