Kate Forbes: ‘There’s a complete illiteracy about faith and religion and what it means for someone who believes’
This was a really interesting interview with Kate Forbes about religion in public life. Not only relevant for Scotland, but very much a snapshot of wider-UK cultural context.
Know the Gospel
‘Pastor you need to know the gospel not theoretically, not just theologically, but really, deeply, and intimately. It’s the good news that refreshes the parts of the soul nothing else can reach. It alone brings life from the dead. And we must minister out of a deep intimacy with the gospel not once way back when but as a daily ongoing reality.’
Know your people
Doubling up on Al Gooderham, he offers a follow up in his latest series on church planting and speaks about the importance of planting models and knowing your people.
God’s Emotions?
This is an excellent one by Guy Davies on Divine Impassability and whether we can rightly talk about God having emotions. If that sounds like abstruse theological nit picking, Guy does a great job of pointing out where some seemingly small missteps might lead us.
“The Next Pope Will Be John XXIV”. Will He?
‘In the traditional inflight press conference on the papal plane returning to Rome from Mongolia (September 4), Pope Francis hinted at his possible successor. Being asked what his plans are for future international journeys, Francis showed awareness of his frailty, due to age and poor health conditions. This is why he cannot plan long-term. He also indicated the name of a possible successor who could replace him after he is gone. Of course, he did not refer to a specific individual, but to the papal name he wished the next Pope could take.’
What Old Testament promises are for me?
There are lots of ways you could answer this one. Here is John Piper’s effort.
From the archive: Failure to welcome isn’t so much cultural as human
‘All of us – whatever our culture – have a tendency to fall into forms that are comfortable for us. It is much easier to talk to my friends, to hang back with the people I know, to not invest in new people until they show themselves worth investing in. The list of ways we fall into comfortable things is mammoth. Most of us are simply not good at welcoming new people – especially new people who are nothing like us – and that is what we need to get better at doing.’