devotion | Psephizo

The material evidence of early Christian devotion

July 7, 2026

Dr Tim Murray offers this review of Bruce Longenecker’s latest book, The Materiality of Early Christ Devotion Our historical imagination matters Most of what we know about early Christianity we know from texts. Indeed, the degree to which these Jesus-communities engaged in textual activities (reading, writing, memorising, teaching, copying) and the variety of their literary …

What do the letters of John teach us about faith, hope, and love?

October 27, 2024October 23, 2024

The letters of John form a remarkable collection of writing, usually place towards the end of the New Testament. The imagery is powerful; the language is engaging; and the teaching is immensely practical. I can still remember the impact of studying these letters in a small group not long after I came to faith as …

How can we journey with God through the wilderness this Lent?

January 18, 2024January 17, 2024

Mark Broadway is vicar of a seaside parish in Wales, and has just had his first book published: Journeying with God in the Wilderness: A 40 Day Lent Devotional through the book of Numbers. I read the book pre-publication, and found it very engaging—and had a chance to ask Mark about what led him to …

The annunciation to Mary in the Gospel of Luke

December 20, 2023December 19, 2023

The lectionary gospel reading for the Fourth Sunday in Advent is Luke 1.26–38; though this year’s gospel is Mark, there is (of course) no annunciation in Mark, so we plunder part of Luke’s narrative to fill the gap. I have previously posted on the annunciation in more general terms, noting that the account is rooted …

The annunciation to Mary in Luke 1 video discussion

December 19, 2023December 18, 2023

What can the letter of Jude teach us today?

May 8, 2023May 5, 2023

I write Bible reading notes for several organisations, and at the moment am writing for BRF’s Guidelines series. I recently wrote these notes on the Letter of Jude, which is a much neglected short letter, and offer them here for wider use. I have added in some questions for group discussion. Introduction The letter of …

The annunciation to Mary in Luke 1

November 10, 2022December 18, 2020

How do we give and receive love? (John 13)

April 6, 2017April 4, 2017

The new edition of Scripture Union’s Encounter with God has just been published, and this is the third part of my contribution reflection on John 11–13. Acceptable service (John 13:1–17) Why do we find it so difficult to be served by others? Because it draws unwelcome attention to us? Or because we don’t feel we deserve the attention? …

What costly devotion does Jesus call us to (John 12)?

April 4, 2017April 3, 2017

The new edition of Scripture Union’s Encounter with God has just been published, and this is the second part of my contribution reflection on John 11–13. True Charity? (John 12:1–11) John did not tell us anything about the timing of the raising of Lazarus. But he now returns to his usual practice, and links the anointing at Bethany …

The compassion of God in John 11

April 3, 2017March 31, 2017

The new edition of Scripture Union’s Encounter with God has just been published, and this is the first part of my contribution reflection on John 11–13. Even to the casual reader, John’s gospel seems to be in two halves. In the first, we have a series of seven ‘signs’ performed by Jesus (including the water into …

Love Story with a difference: Ruth

March 14, 2011February 12, 2011

I am working with Celia Kellett at BBC Radio Nottingham on an idea to present most of the books of the Bible, one a week, during 2011 as part of the celebrations of the King James Bible. The plan is to read some verses from the book, to give a one-and-a-half minute summary, to hear a human interest story which relates, and then include a short discussion making the connections.