Reformation Day Address
Also, don’t forget to check out this short video about Martin Luther, made entirely with Playmobil!…
God is our Refuge and Strength (Psalm 46)
Psalm 46 speaks of the sovereign goodness of God, the troubles of the world, and the peace of the believer (46:1-2). The historical setting may be Sennacherib’s attack on Jerusalem in 701 B.C. (2 Kings 18:28- 30; 19:16, 35). But the Psalm is expressed in more general terms.
- God is
Godliness in the Last Days (2 Timothy 3:1-5, Part 2)
We will look briefly at sixteen of the nineteen vices listed here. To make this more manageable, we will look at them under the last ‘love’ heading, at the end of verse 3, which is a negative ‘not loving good’.
- When ‘not loving good’ takes over.
- 3:2-5. We will content
Spurgeon and Infanticide
Some time back I was preaching on Psalm 74:20, which reads in the ESV: ‘Have regard for the covenant, for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.’ In the KJV, however, the reading is ‘Have respect unto the covenant: for the dark places of …
Healing from a Distance (John 4:43-54)
Verses 43-45 have led to much debate. Bishop Westcott says that ‘his own country’ refers to Judea, but Ryle is probably right that it refers to Nazareth. Jesus utters what seems to have been some kind of proverb (cf. Matt. 13:57; Luke 4:24; Mark 6:4). This is the second sign …
Godliness in the Last Days (2 Timothy 3:1-5, Part 1)
Paul lists nineteen character flaws here, which make it difficult to preach on. There are four references to ‘love’ so this week we will look at the times, the right love, and disordered loves.
1. Understand the times.
– 3:1. See Acts 2:17; Heb. 1:1-2; 1 John 2:18. Christianity has …
Knowing the Saviour of the World (John 4:39-42)
The disciples are scratching their heads, but many Samaritans come to faith in Jesus as the Christ.
1. We should always want to know more of Christ.
– 4:28-29, 39-40. Thomas Chalmers called this ‘the expulsive power of a new affection’. The Samaritan woman may not know much at this …
Preaching Repentance (2 Timothy 2:23-26)
John Stott: ‘The combination of unbiblical speculations and uncharitable polemics has done great damage to the cause of Christ.’
1. Avoid foolish controversies.
– 2:23. Paul has said this sort of thing repeatedly throughout the Pastoral Epistles – 1 Tim. 1:4; 4:7; 6:4, 20; 2 Tim. 2:14, 16; Tit. 3:9. …
How the Kingdom Grows (John 4:35-38)
Evangelism is full of missed opportunities.
1. Evangelists are to seize every opportunity.
– 4:35. If this is literal, it must have been December or January, about four months before the normal spring harvest. J. C. Ryle and Leon Morris understand this as a proverbial saying which means ‘There is …
Fleeing and Pursuing (2 Timothy 2:22)
Richard Baxter: ‘O brethren, watch therefore over your own hearts: keep out lusts and passions, and worldly inclinations: keep up the life of faith and love, and zeal: be much at home, and be much with God.’ In Eph. 4:22-24 there is ‘put off/put on’; in 2 Timothy 2:22 it …