I met with a group of men this week, and the topic of conversation swung around to what we did to recharge our batteries (so to speak). Each and every one of us were recharged by reading the Bible, or hearing the Bible preached (among other things), but many of us felt the need to add … [Read more…]
Is Swearing Sinful? Swearing is an interesting question, and one about which Christians need to be careful we don’t grab the wrong end of the stick. Because for many people in our society, Christianity is just about rules, and what you can and can’t say. Many people think that Christians are hung up on what … [Read more…]
I’ve been thinking about building renovations – in particular the decisions you need to make in order to decide whether to do them or not. Sometimes the decision is forced on you because the building is now in a state or at a size where it can no longer do the things it has been doing … [Read more…]
I think this is an important idea to get our heads around, and understand the issue of same sex ‘marriage’ for what it is and means – without going overboard.
This is a question that every Christian wonders about at some point. What about people who haven’t heard of Jesus? Does God hold them responsible for rejecting Jesus? Why are they guilty? This question is answered in Romans 1:18-20. “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of … [Read more…]
A couple of times every year there is another call for euthanasia legislation somewhere in Australia. It receives quite a bit of press attention, the radio stations all pick it up, and then it goes away again until the next time someone puts a bill forward in some parliament somewhere. I think Christians need to put … [Read more…]
I’ve been thinking about our society’s attitude towards offence, and what that says about our values. I’m not talking about the fact that what causes offence has changed. Sure, things that used to cause offence (like swearing and nudity) are now common-place, and things that used to be common-place (using ‘guys’ as an a non-gender … [Read more…]
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…]
I have had many people ask me about the differences between different churches. What is the difference between a Baptist Church and an Anglican Church? A Uniting Church, or a Community Church? Are they all the same? Are they different? How do you tell? Does it matter? The answer is not always a nice 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…]