End Times
In our church landscape, we tend to accept a structure where our church leaders are paid workers who draw a salary that comes from the tithing of the fellowship. However, it is worthwhile to see how this measures up to NT teaching on church function. What does the Bible teach about paid ministry? Furthermore, did the early church set a precedent where leaders made a career of paid ministry?
Those who use Scripture to support the concept of paid ministry tend to lean heavily on one seemingly obscure verse from the OT which would attract very little attention were it not quoted twice by Paul in the New Testament:
‘Do… Continue reading
Steve recently preached a sermon on Matthew 10 where Jesus sends out His disciples. Jesus gave them a clear message of what to do and what to expect. It would have been a difficult message to hear for the disciples but one that they needed as Jesus wanted them to be prepared for what they will face. This message applies to us 2000 years later, now is the time for us to be prepared for conversations with people about the gospel and be ready for the prowling wolves. Now is the time for courage.
Alfred Roberts (Margret Thatcher’s father) gave a sermon 80 years ago titled ‘The Inner Life’ where… Continue reading
As we approach the end of 2020, we reflect on what has been a monumental year. A year we will believe that will prove to have greatly accelerated the world towards the coming end-time climax as outlined in Scripture. Our respond to Covid-19 has been the main catalyst to this and the mainstream media has been bombarding us with worst-case scenarios and gloomy predictions.
This is led to a variety of negative responses within society such as increased anxiety, worry and tension. This is all epitomised by a climate of fear. Fear is defined as an ‘unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain or harm’.… Continue reading
There may not be a year in recent history that we’re more glad to get to the end of than 2020! As we are in December and approaching Christmas, people know that the end of the year is near. Typically, once their Christmas holiday starts, the festivities begin, and then not back at work until a New Year begins. For this reason, and particularly this year, people have been wanting Christmas to start sooner, encouraging the decorations to go up in November to help the ‘Christmas spirit’. The real reason for Christmas is all but lost in our society, advent time is now more about Christmas parties and having a… Continue reading
2020 will go down in history as one of the most eventful years of our generation. While it is a year that most people want to see the back of, it should really act as a catalyst to grab our attention! 2020 has seen major events that will undoubtedly shape our future – there will be no going back to ‘normal’ as new ways and ‘rules’ will be introduced that will be here to stay. This should be a wake up call to each of us to look at what is happening around the world and see that we are heading to events of Biblical proportions.
Natural disasters
The year… Continue reading
Over the last year or so, there has been a scramble within the pharmaceutical world to produce a vaccine for Covid-19. This is seen as the great hope in combatting this virus and returning to a sense of normality. However, vaccines are seen as controversial by some people – should the discerning Christian take a Covid-19 vaccine?
Why are vaccines controversial?
There have been some safety concerns over the side-effects of vaccines in recent history, the most notable example being the suggested link between the MMR vaccine and autism in the 1980s (which has never proven despite a huge number of studies).
The reality is that there are likely to… Continue reading
The book of Daniel is one of the most incredible in the Bible for those with an interest in prophecy. However, there are also some interesting passages about the lifestyle of a faithful follower of the Lord. Daniel 1 outlines the extreme faithfulness of Daniel and his three companions who refused to compromise on the tiniest details of their faith when taken in exile to Babylon. This even included following a religious diet, despite the fact that the temple and holy city were completely destroyed and they had every reason to believe their God had abandoned them.
The account in Daniel 3 contains another example of faithful living in an… Continue reading