John Wesley

PAUL’S SOUND ADVICE

(May 15, 2023) Dr Jim McClure shares on 1 Timothy 6… 

One of our favourite shows TV shows is the old British comedy series, As Time Goes By (1992 – 2005). In various ways it demonstrates how different life was then compared to today.

But can you imagine what life would have been like 2000 years ago – no cars, trains, planes, TVs, mobile phones, computers or credit cards! Basic comforts would have been minimal, food scarce and dining with friends at a local café or restaurant not even a consideration. There were no government welfare schemes, health benefits, or public schools.

In Jesus’ day, houses were generally very small, very basic with dirt floors, and extended families often lived under the same roof. At night oil lamps provided the lighting. Life was very difficult and often very brutal. The poor were frequently exploited and intimidated.

And this was the world into which the early church was born. The first Christians were confronted with the enormous challenge of impacting that world for God.  That was what Jesus was saying when He preached, ‘You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden’ (Matthew 5:14).  If we are followers of Jesus Christ, truly Christians, there must be some visible evidence in the way we live and in the values we hold.  The challenge Jesus gave 2000 years ago continues – to us today in 2023.

Personality challenge!
Of course, meeting that challenge becomes very personal! It requires us individually to address our own characters and to ask ourselves, ‘What do I need to change in my attitudes and behaviour?’ When we become Christians, we are forgiven but we are not made perfect human beings! In His relationships with others Jesus gave us an example to follow.  Sometimes we forget that! Jesus’ ministry and mission was not just about securing for us personal salvation. It was also particularly about changing the world for good and for God. Who we are and the way we live has a significant role to play in that challenge.

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LEVELLING MOUNTAINS – NOT BY MIGHT, NOT BY POWER BUT BY MY SPIRIT! (Part 1)

(August 28, 2022) Dr Jim McClure, noted theologian, shares encouragement…

Facing mountains in these dark times?

I’ve been reflecting on a character in the Bible who faced a big mountain and discovered God had gone before him in an amazing way. His name was Zerubbabel – not the easiest name to say, nor would it be likely that you would give your new born child that name.

Most Christians know little about this man, but I find him to be inspirational and also encouraging as we cope with the ‘highs and lows’ in living in these days.

Contemporary scene
We are living in disturbing times. In my lifetime I have never known such worldwide hostility, political instability, social confusion and moral corruption. And according to medical researchers the global rates of anxiety and depression are soaring. News articles and television reports can often be quite troubling as they confront us with a stream of disturbing incidents.

Of course ours is not the only generation that has been confronted by tragedy and emotional stress. Historical records reveal many periods when war, oppression and disease have had a crushing effect on people.

God does not provide a protective wall around His people to prevent their experiencing the pain and struggles of life, but His presence in our lives gives us hope.

In the Bible, living in hope doesn’t mean that we whistle in the dark to keep our spirits up. No, biblical hope means looking to the future with assurance because we know that, regardless of conditions and circumstances, when it seems that everything is spiralling out of control, God has never lost His control! Jeremiah succinctly declared, ‘Our hope is in you’(Jeremiah 14:22).

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ARE YOU CRAZY? I’M NOT DOING THAT!

(August 22, 2022) Robert and Maureen McQuillan ask…

Ever had a challenge, even a simple one and your decision was along the lines above? Huh? Even though it had to do with your ministry, current or future?

Or simply a life choice.

Decisions… choices!
Life is full of them! Every new day we have to make them! Right from the moment we awake… deciding to get up, what to wear, which brekkie, then decisions whether at home or at business about this and that throughout the day!

Come to think about it, we had to decide to write this article!

Dictionaries tell us that ‘decision’ means ‘a choice that you make about something after thinking about several possibilities.’ So decisions and choices link together. Scripture too mentions this word ‘decision’… as you’ll find in various versions.

Decision-making isn’t always easy… but it has to be done for various reasons, some easy, some difficult. 

Even Jesus had to make hard decisions
There came a moment in His life, His ministry, when Jesus had to make a very hard decision – whether or not to move ahead, even at great personal cost.

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THE ‘BIG QUESTION’

(October 11, 2021) Dr Jim McClure, noted theologian, shares in-depth on what can be a distracting issue…

Here is a topic that has often distracted Christians and divided home Bible study groups – Did God select in advance those who would be saved or is the exercise of our free will to accept Jesus as our Saviour the deciding factor?  How many fruitless hours have been wasted in argument that has often been dogmatic, hostile and divisive!

The ‘Big Question’ which often stirs people is this: Is our salvation determined by God’s decision or by ours? The problem is finding an unambiguous and unequivocal answer because there is an apparent conflict between the biblical concepts of God’s sovereignty and human free will. Does God decide in advance who will be saved and who will be lost? 

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This is a massive theological issue that has been addressed in multiple books by many profound theologians so I admit that my comments here are most inadequate.  However I hope that they may be of some help.

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