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The Limits of Logic, or When God is Weird, or My Lost Battle

I never want to become a ‘weird’ Christian. Some of you may think that its too late for that. Some people may think that just by being a Christian its too late for that. But what I mean is, I never want to be the sort of Christian to lay down my brain at the door, or the sort of Christian that buys into every conspiracy theory going, or to become so tied to my ‘Christian culture’ that I stand up for things that aren’t all that relevant to the gospel message itself. Not to preach on this, but God isn’t a Republican or a Democrat, he doesn’t vote National or Labour, and even if the conspiracy theorists are right and the Illuminati are controlling everything, how does that impact our call to “live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness” while praying “for kings and those in authority” (1 Timothy 2:2)? God created logic, He made our brains for a reason, and He expects us to use them to think logically and rationally. But on the flipside, we shouldn’t be limited
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Echo Charis

 A YouTube Devotional for 16 March 2021. ~~~ A verse I mentioned on Sunday was Romans 12:28, which in the New Living Translation says: “Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe.” The same verse in the New King James Version says: “Since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.” The wording of the second translation has really struck me, particularly the idea that we need grace in order to serve God acceptably. In Greek, the phrase translated as “grace” or “thankful” (or in other versions “gratitude”) is echo charis . Echo means either to have, hold or keep something, or to be something. And that something that we are to have, hold, keep or be is charis . Charis means “grace, the state of kindness and favour toward someone, often with a focus on a benefit given to the object. By extension it also
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Obedience in Action

Another YouTube devotional I did, for 12th January 2021. ~~~ There is a lesser known parable in Matthew 21:28-32 that has always greatly challenged me. Jesus is talking to the chief priests and elders and says: “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. Which of the two did what his father wanted?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe in him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.” This parable has always challenged me because I am quick to say I will lis
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Undesirable Events

It has been 6 years since I posted anything! That's ridiculous! So, in order to get myself producing some content again, over the next while I'm going to upload a few talks or devotions that I've produced for other forums recently. Starting with talks I've done for our church's YouTube devotional page. These are meant to be 3 minutes or less long (give or take) so they'll be fairly short posts.  But, in no particular order, here is one I wrote for 24th of November 2020.  ~~~ In the Garden of Gethsemane, in Luke 22:42, Jesus prayed: “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me, yet not My will, but Yours be done.” This was when God was asking Him to suffer the horror of a death on the cross in order to bring salvation to the world. Jesus knew this was His calling. In fact, it was the very reason He came to earth in the first place, but it also was something that was not at all desirable to go through.   When we face troubles in life, unpleasant or unc
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Elijah and Elisha, or, Following the Master

This post is based on 2 Kings 2:1-18, and is taken from a longer sermon I wrote. The bible is full of stories. Histories. Stories about people. Some of those stories are about good people, and some are not. Not every action taken by every person in the bible is good, but then, the bible is not just a story book. If we think of it as just a book we grossly undersell it. The bible is the word of God. And there are always layers to his living word. Jesus tells us that the Old Testament points to him. There is so much in this story, and I am sure that the bit I am sharing here is just a part of that. Elijah was the great prophet of God, possibly the greatest prophet who ever lived, one who, along with Moses, appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration and met with Jesus. Elisha was his servant, who also went on to become a great prophet in his own right. The master, and the servant. We are called to serve God. To follow him. To reflect him in our lives. We are the servant. He is the master. A
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Arms

So, I have some friends who are in to what I would broadly call ‘Conspiracy Theory’. Some Conspiracy Theories seem more plausible than others, but the overall gist seems to be that some shadowy organisation is working behind the scenes to conceal the truth from the rest of the world. Maybe they are! If there is a shadowy organisation working behind the scenes, then by design most people wouldn't know they existed. That ‘most people’ would in this instance include myself. But, this post is not so much about whether or not I believe that the Illuminati are secretly attempting to install a New World Order or not (because in the end I'm not sure it really matters!) but about one of the sub-theories that I have heard come out of this. Gun control. There seems to be a common idea (especially but not uniquely among Americans) that any form of gun control is wrong, immoral, and dangerous. The argument in a nutshell is this: if the government registers firearm owners, they then know wh
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Prologue (or, In the Beginning)

I am a little hesitant to begin this blog. I have thought about beginning it numerous times, but I have always been held back by a few things. Firstly, and most importantly, I am concerned that I will say something that later on I realise I was wrong about. This is highly likely. Whenever I think I have my theology all sorted out, God does something to mess it up. Funnily enough, an infinite and omnipotent God refuses to be boxed in by my own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6). But, I suppose, that is what grace is all about. If I make mistakes, as I undoubtedly will, God can cover me, and will look at my heart. Hopefully, my heart is one that is always seeking to serve Him. Though, sometimes, I doubt it. Secondly, as soon as someone begins to write theology, they will inevitably find that people disagree with them. I know  that people disagree with me on a lot  of issues, and if I undertake to write about them, then there is a chance I will receive some flack for my views – that is, assum
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