If God knew that Adam and Eve were going to sin, why did he make them that way? Or, why did God allow sin in the world? These questions came from the Sunday School class last week, and they are good questions. When we read the Bible, and hear how God intended to make things, and … [Read more…]
This is quite a common question, and in some church cultures the answer is ‘of course’. There is a strong culture in some churches and Christian circles which insists that tithing is what all Christians should do. ‘Tithe’ means ‘a tenth’ or, in more modern terms ‘10%’. Its what God instructed the ancient Israelites to … [Read more…]
A was taken flying today. I even got to do the ‘steering’ for quite a bit. For someone with a largely sedentary job, which involves a lot of writing, speaking and thinking, I sometimes get to do slightly different things. Placing lambs in the cradle for marking, riding in tractors, and today, flying. And I’m … [Read more…]
This was a good question that came up this week. If you look at a lot of art throughout the ages, and in popular media today, you see angels depicted as handsome and strong men (and sometimes women) with wings and white robes, and an occasional halo. Demons are, however, depicted as terrifying monsters, misshapen, … [Read more…]
Travelling as much as I do on the Albany Highway, I get to spend a lot of time at road works. Every year there are a couple of sections that have an extra over-taking lane added. These provide much needed improvements and safety, and they are greatly appreciated. But the time I spend slowing down … [Read more…]
Weddings and funerals are things that all ministers come to know fairly well. We are called on and privileged to serve people in these events. It is true that that is changing a lot – the percentage of weddings and funerals officiated by ministers of religion is declining. Civil wedding celebrants are increasingly doing funeral … [Read more…]
In Australia, out-side of birthdays, Christmas is about the only holiday that families come together for. For that reason, Christmas is sometimes described as the loneliest time of year for many people. People who have lost their families, who are estranged from their families, who have been part of broken families, or people who live … [Read more…]
Q6: Every year I see articles on Facebook that say Christmas was just a pagan festival that Christians took over. Is that true? This is a situation where it appears a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing in the hands of people on the internet with very little knowledge! Because a very little knowledge … [Read more…]
Q+A 5: The Year of Jubilee? Last Sunday we sang a song (Days of Elijah) which included the line Its the year of Jubilee. The question was asked: what is the year of Jubilee? In the OT Law, God gave different sorts of instructions for how his people were to relate to him and to … [Read more…]
The difference between ISIS and the West just got smaller. I was reading an article on news.com.au (I know that on most days it seems like a cross between Cosmopolitan and a ‘lads mag’ with a bunch of news headlines thrown in – the sad state of on-line news providers ) which headlined the despicable new low … [Read more…]