Sermons, Articles, and Other Things

Paul is explaining to the Galatians aspects of God’s programme of salvation. In the previous verses, he has summarised what life was like during the period when God’s kingdom was mainly found in Israel. The apostle does this because he wants his readers to understand the contrast between those days and the present time. We know that a change in circumstances can cause issues and that a big change can cause major issues. It is important in such circumstances to know what the change means for us and whether it is for the better. The divine intervention In Paul’s explanation, he highlights two divine sendings that involve God the Father. The first was the sending of his Son into the world. Paul says that this happened ‘when the fullness of time had come’. This expression indicates that the Father sent his Son at the right time, at the time when all necessary preparations had been made. What did those preparations include? Several answers could be given: First, there was the global spread ...

Who does Peter mean by the pronoun ‘his’ at the start of verse 3? It could be the Father, or it could be Jesus, because both are mentioned in the previous verse. The answer is probably Jesus because the ‘his’ is likely connected to what is said about him at the end of verse 1 – ‘our God and Saviour Jesus Christ.’ Another reason for concluding that ‘his’ refers to Jesus is the other references to him in this paragraph, in verses 9 and 11. Peter says in verse 3 that his people know who Jesus is. No doubt, there are many details that could be said about him, and indeed it is difficult to mention him and not say something about him. Even his names say a great deal about him. But what does Peter say about him here? Two details seem to sand out. The first detail that Peter mentions is that Jesus is sovereign . That word is not in the verses, but the idea is there. When we speak of earthly rulers, we know that their power may not amount to very much. But when we speak of divine power, we ...

David now describes a list of four comfortable and pleasant experiences. Perhaps they all mean the same thing, but when we look at them, we can see that they are not all the same. For example, in the first one, the shepherd makes the sheep lie down, a statement that indicates a certain amount of compulsion by the shepherd and a certain amount of reluctance on the part of the sheep. In the next description, the sheep is moving, as it is in the fourth when it is led along the paths of righteousness. The kind of situation described here, of lying down in green pastures, would have been quite unusual in Judea where David grew up and later reigned. Most of the countryside there is desert, and for much of the year there is not much water to be found. No doubt, David was aware of more lush areas throughout his kingdom where there would be large supplies of water for most of the year, if not all the time, as there would be beside the Sea of Galilee. So it looks as if David is saying that th...

A question I have often been asked is, ‘And who are you?’ No doubt, you have been asked it as well. Normally, the question is asked because the other person wants to know your background. But imagine if you were in a line of people, one of whom was an atheist, another a Moslem, another a Buddhist, another a Spiritualist, and each of you had to say who you are. What would you as a Christian say? No doubt, there are many verses from the Bible that Christians could use to explain themselves. One of them is Paul’s words in Galatians 2:20: ‘I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.’ Why did Paul say these words about his identity? Because some among his listeners were saying something very different. If someone had asked them who they were, they would have replied, ‘I believe that Jesus is the Messiah and as a follower of him I am...

David here means that he shall not lack what is needed for his journey through life. It is certainly a statement of confidence, but is it merely wishful thinking on his part? What grounds does he have for making it? Two qualifications To begin with, we can say that one of the grounds for this claim is that he is a sheep in the flock of the shepherd. This means that his statement is not a general statement. Rather it is a statement that describes a specific people, those who have brought into the flock when they trusted in Jesus. If someone expects this promise to be fulfilled before they belong to Christ’s people, then they are mistaken because they will not experience it. A second introductory point is that he is a sheep who is following the Shepherd. This is obvious because the needs will only be met if he goes to the places that the Shepherd goes to. The Shepherd does not go everywhere in the sense of leading his people to them. The places where he leads them are described in ...

Sometimes we get an invitation to an important event and are surprised to discover when we get there that we have been given a prominent seat in full view of the audience. However, the audience don’t usually show much interest because they know that such things happen all the time. So the prominence is marked by ignorance, both in the person given it and in those watching it. What would change if the person and the audience knew it was going to happen? Or what would change if the person and the audience did not want it to happen? Or what would change if the person and only some of the audience wanted it to happen? The event described here by the author of Hebrews, when he says that Jesus sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, is called theologically the enthronement of Christ and is part of his exaltation. This enthronement is the third stage in his exaltation. The two that happened previously were his resurrection and his ascension. We know that there was a time gap betw...