Matthew 2:1-12 On his recent royal tour of Australia, King Charles got a mixed reception. So did King Jesus from the moment he came into the world, but how we respond to him is a good deal more significant, given who he is. In this passage we encounter three responses. Which best represents our own?
Matthew 1:18-25 We’re born, we live, we die. We all conform to this universal pattern. If we’re going to get out of the hole we’re in, it’s going to have to be an outside job. We need someone who breaks the chain. Someone not ordinary but extra-ordinary. And that is what we find in Jesus – a unique birth producing a unique baby.
Matthew 1:1-17 ‘Go and tell everyone everywhere they need to become my disciples and start following and obeying me’. That’s where Matthew’s Gospel ends. An outrageous thing for anyone to say, never mind a carpenter from Nazareth. Why should we take him seriously? Who even is he? That’s where Matthew’s Gospel begins.
Psalm 19 If the atheist is right, then we live in a world with no ultimate meaning, no purpose, no hope. But the world of Psalm 19 is very different – and this is the real world – a world in which God is there and is not silent.
1 John 5:13-21 We live in an uncertain world, and so much in our lives is uncertain too. What do you really know for sure? These final verses of the letter give us five things we know for sure, if we trust in Christ – five certainties to celebrate.
1 John 5:1-12 There’s a lot of talk nowadays about ‘people of faith’, as if it doesn’t really matter what you believe. But this passage makes clear that our faith must be in Jesus Christ. Such faith is transformational, rational, and essential.
1 John 4:7-21 What does our world need most? Surely, love would be up there on
anyone’s wish list. But how’s that going to happen? Where’s that going to come from?
The Bible claims that Christianity has the answer.
1 John 4:1-6 There is growing interest in all kinds of spirituality – astrology, reincarnation, psychics, the healing power of crystals. What do you make of all this? Is it encouraging that at least people believe there is something beyond the material world? This passage tells us to beware – we need to test the spirits because not all are from God.
1 John 3:11-24 Do you have assurance that you know God and are saved? If so, why? Is your assurance built on a firm foundation? Some have false assurance, whereas others lack the assurance they should be enjoying. This passage tells us the right basis for assurance.
1 John 2:28-3:10 If you’re a Christian, does it matter how you live? If we’re saved by grace, not by our works, does that mean we can just live as we want? Do we have diplomatic immunity when it comes to sin and prosecution? This passage makes very clear that isn’t the case. If we don’t practice righteousness, we’re not part of God’s family.
