One of my favourite stories involves an eccentric English missionary priest with an equally eccentric name, possibly the most majestic name you’ll ever hear? The Reverend Ethelsten Cheese (b. 19/11/1877 - d. 5/6/1959) Reverend Cheese was walking through the wilderness in the middle of no where. A British Army soldier was passing in a car,... Continue Reading →
Here is an article from The Baptist Times by Baptist pastor Ian Stackhouse: I confess that I have been quite vociferous in my disdain for the government’s persistent use of lockdown as a way of dealing with covid. In my opinion, the ‘collateral damage’ will be significantly greater than anything arising from the virus. I... Continue Reading →
The first thing and the last thing that Jesus said to Peter was the same—“Follow me!” The first occasion was when Peter and his brother were casting a net into the Galilean Lake. Jesus passed by and called out, “Follow me, and I will teach you to fish for men” (Mk. 1: 16-18). Peter quickly... Continue Reading →
A friend of mine describes the Christian life using a military metaphor that is both helpful and enlightening....I know - what a bargain! Being a Christian is about learning the basics: Prayer; reading (i.e. exegeting and interpreting) scripture; Christ-likeness; learning the Fruits of the Spirit; living the sermon on the Mount; renewal of the mind;... Continue Reading →
The Christian life is not easy. It takes determined, hard graft, long-term view of life. Many people fall under the spell of easy-living, and for some unearthly reason, when some people become Christians, they expect their life to be one of ease, one sweet breeze. Where oh where did they get that from? What dark... Continue Reading →
One of the things that the Reformers wrestled back from the Catholic Church was how to do church! From complexity to simplicity, from pomposity to humility, from monotone to multi-coloured, from virtual blindness and deafness to 3D vision with surround sound. The Sacraments took centre stage in the raging debates of the 16th century from... Continue Reading →
"When Jesus described [what it means to follow him], often his invitation to it sounded more like a warning than a sales pitch. He spoke of 'counting the cost' of selling all and 'taking up the cross' to follow him" says Dr Paul Brand.Wes Brown's song "Fisher of Men" captures this and more quite exquisitely,... Continue Reading →
In his brilliant book The Way of the Heart, Henri Nouwen outlines the difficulty many churches face in the genuine need to disciple followers of Jesus. He writes, "We simply go along with the many 'musts' and 'oughts' that have been handed on to us, and we live with them as if they were authentic translations of... Continue Reading →
Gralefrit Theology 