Have we lost the idea that people without Christ are lost? Authors Win and Charles Arn think so: “The biblical concept of ‘lostness’ has disappeared from the conscience of most churches and most Christians … Little remains of the first-century Christian’s burning conviction that without Christ, every person is forever lost.” That idea of...
Read moreIn 1924, the Olympic Games were held in Paris. One race in particular has been immortalised for us by the film Chariots of Fire. It is the 400m, in which Eric Lidell beat the favourites and set a new world record in the process. You can watch the Pathe newsreel of the event on YouTube
Read moreYesterday morning the UK celebrated “I am Team GB”, a spectacular occasion advertised as ‘the nation’s biggest sports day’. It was an opportunity to feel part of the Olympic glory of the successful British athletes from Rio. From the comfort of our armchairs or even the playing fields of Birmingham, we could never hope...
Read moreAugustus Toplady wrote a great hymn called the Rock of Ages. In it we sing that Christ, the Rock of Ages, is “the double cure”, cleansing us from sin’s guilt and power. We thought about applying the first of those last week: Christ takes away our guilt. How marvellous! But we all still struggle with
Read moreHow often do you feel guilty because of something you have thought, said or done? One of the Holy Spirit’s jobs is to makes us sensitive to sin in our lives, which means we will as Christians often feel guilty as we confront sin in our hearts. But what do we do with that guilty
Read moreJohn Newton is famous for writing the wonderful hymn “Amazing Grace”. Before he started following Jesus he was a slave trader, indeed, the captain of a ship transporting slaves from Africa to America. He became a Christian on March 21st 1748, during a long, stormy voyage back to Britain. He went on to become a
Read moreIn the morning services we are beginning our summer series of sermons on Acceptable Sins. What are “acceptable” sins, you ask? The idea comes from a book by Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins. Bridges explains: “We who are believers tend to evaluate our character and conduct relative to the moral culture in which we live. Since we usually...
Read moreThis past week we have been looking after our neighbour’s chickens. I say we, but really I mean Amanda with a bit of help from our girls, which is the case when it comes to most sorts of garden-related activity. As I write this Amanda is round there putting them to bed and tucking them
Read moreWhat a great summer of sport this could be! Already, England have trounced Australia in the rugby, Murray is still in contention at Wimbledon (at least, he was on Friday morning), the (cricket) test match begins on Thursday, the Rio Olympics are starting in less than a month. What a feast for the sports enthusiasts
Read morePsalm 133 is a very short, rather quirky Psalm. It begins straightforwardly enough: “How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity.” So far so good – and I hope that this weekend at home together has been “good and pleasant” in all sorts of ways. It is the next verse which
Read more