The Bible begins with the earth in total darkness and covered with water and ends with a new earth which has no sea and no night. (Genesis 1:2; Revelation 21:1 and 22:5) Everything that comes between is there to tell us how to get from the first place to the last. Darkness is where the … Continue reading In the beginning
The Church of God is not racist
But members sometimes do and say inappropriate things Several weeks ago the French news magazine Le Point carried an interview with a man who had come to France in his youth from Togo. The title of the article was France is not racist, a point of view staunchly upheld by the man being interviewed, although … Continue reading The Church of God is not racist
What are we afraid of?
I was afraid of a lot of things as a boy, the two main ones being girls and dogs. Girls were different, mysterious; they didn’t look, talk or act like boys. The thought of actually speaking to one crippled my mind and my tongue. Yet there was always a girl or two that I could … Continue reading What are we afraid of?
Why Nit Picking Should Be Part of the Church
A touchy subject, introduced kindly. Why is it touchy? Wouldn't most of us say we long for closer relationships within our church family? But the idea that someone might get close enough to notice a nit or two frightens us.
Questions
The techniques for evangelism known as the Church Growth Movement, were first introduced to North America in 1961. I use the word techniques deliberately, as the movement sought to use sociological research to select social groups that could be reached through the use of modern marketing methods. The key assumption of the movement was that … Continue reading Questions
The Quiet in the Land
Throughout Christian history, there has always been a united, visible body of believers who professed much the same faith regarding conversion and a personal relationship with God but who refused to conform to the state enforced form of worship of their day. The Martyrs’ Mirror catalogues the faith, and the persecution of these people because … Continue reading The Quiet in the Land
In Search of the Age of Gold
From postmillennialism to the social gospel to saving the world from weather For lo!, the days are hastening on, By prophet bards foretold, When with the ever-circling years Comes round the age of gold When peace shall over all the earth Its ancient splendours fling, And the whole world give back the song Which now … Continue reading In Search of the Age of Gold
Worthy of contemplation
While eating breakfast this morning, I worked at deciphering a page of cryptograms. It seemed to me that the these short thoughts were worth sharing. So, without further comment, here they are. History will see advertising as one of the real evil things of our time. It is stimulating people constantly to want things, want … Continue reading Worthy of contemplation
Are you a deist or a theist?
If you are a deist, you believe: - that there must be a higher power because this complex world could not just have happened; - that there are moral lessons in the Bible that will help us to find happiness; - that the Bible as a whole is mysterious and confusing and better left alone; … Continue reading Are you a deist or a theist?
It took twelve years
The photo is from Shutterstock, not from our garden, but we finally have a rhubarb plant worthy of the name. We moved onto this yard in the fall of 2007. The house had been placed here a few years earlier and trees planted around it — poplar, caragana, lilac, Manitoba maple — the kind of … Continue reading It took twelve years