The Greek word agape was used often by the New Testament writers. In the AV (KJV) Bible it is translated 86 times as love and 27 times as charity. In the Louis Segond French translation it is translated 60 times as amour and 55 times as charité. Agape, as used in the New Testament, is … Continue reading Why charity is not what it used to be
Faith and life
Visit from a government auditor
One of my bookkeeping clients missed a few payments to the CRA (Canada Revenue Agency). Since the relevant financial records are stored on my computer I received a call from a lady at the CRA about two weeks ago wanting to make an appointment for an audit. That visit took place two days ago. The … Continue reading Visit from a government auditor
Temperance
Fifty years ago, I was the manager of a country grain elevator in a small Saskatchewan town. It was a very small town, the only businesses were two grain elevators, two service stations, and a small building containing the town's café, general store and post office. Bill Alcock, an eighty year old retired farmer, lived … Continue reading Temperance
The quest for health
Some trust in doctors Folks today seem to accept it as fact that this life is all they have. They turn to doctors for help in staying alive as long as they can.Sometimes people blame the doctor when someone dies – it would not have happened if the doctor had done his job. People also … Continue reading The quest for health
How a Biblical worldview can make life better for everybody
There was a school shooting a few days ago at La Loche, a small community in northern Saskatchewan. A teenager who had been relentlessly bullied took a gun and killed two people in their home and then went to school, killed two more and wounded a number of others. It appears that the young man … Continue reading How a Biblical worldview can make life better for everybody
But what do they think of us?
The city of Saskatoon has been growing rapidly aver the past fifteen years. Among the many newcomers, there is a high percentage of people Of Asian and African origin, including several thousand Muslims. Two large mosques have been built and are reported to be full to over flowing. Many of these people are showing up … Continue reading But what do they think of us?
Don’t second guess your repentance
To repent is to rethink, or change your mind. In religious terms, repentance toward God means to reconsider the way you have been living, ask God to forgive you and resolve to live differently with the help of the Holy Spirit. This is a complete change in a person's way of thinking and is not … Continue reading Don’t second guess your repentance
The weakness of God
As I reflected on the latest atrocities, in Jakarta and Ouagadougou, perpetrated by those who claim to be followers of Allah, my mind went to a well known quotation: "A fanatic is a man who does what he believes God would do, if God really understood the facts of the situation." I don't know the … Continue reading The weakness of God
Hitherto hath the LORD helped us
What is it that prompts us to want to make resolutions about all the things we want to do better in the coming year? Isn't it the consciousness of all the ways that we have failed to live up to what we wanted to be and do in the past year? Why do we think … Continue reading Hitherto hath the LORD helped us
In the world, but not of the world
With the launching of the New Testament vision a new idea was being launched; the world was being treated to a new and very revolutionary concept of society, namely that men can get along peacefully in the market place even though they do not worship at the same shrine. The New Testament conceives of humanity … Continue reading In the world, but not of the world
