Scholarship • Serving • Ministry – Ian Paul
The lectionary epistle for Easter 4 is 1 Peter 2.19–end. Peter sees out a challenge call for us to endure suffering following the example of Jesus. But to make proper sense of this, we need to read it in its context, and notice the different language that Peter uses of us as slaves of God, …
Lent 4 is also Mothering Sunday in the calendar, and the readings for Mothering Sunday in Year A are 2 Corinthians 1.3-7 and the dedication of Jesus in Luke 2. In 2 Cor 1, Paul begins this letter by exploring the inter-relation between experience affliction (tribulation), and receiving comfort from the God of all compassion. …
In the Fourth Sunday before Advent in Year C, we are starting a short series reading through 2 Thessalonians, and this week’s reading is the whole of Chapter 1. It is a challenging reading, talking of the suffering of the Thessalonians Christians, and their steadfastness as a sign of God’s favour. But it also speaks …
Andy Mason writes: I’ve been a vicar on a council estate in central London for about 17 years, and have been married for 25 years. During that time, my wife has suffered from a number of distressing chronic conditions. Accordingly, life has, at times, been very unpredictable, very stressful and pretty traumatic. Firstly, my wife …
I was asked by the London Institute of Contemporary Christianity (LICC) to write a short series of three reflections on Revelation: Faithfulness in Testing Times for their weekly email Word for the Week which is sent out on Monday mornings. This is what I said. 1. The Word We Need The revelation of Jesus Christ, which …
Last week, in our mid-week church group, we were reflecting on what God has been teaching us during 2020. Various people shared experiences, and particular biblical passages or verses—but one person shared a word, not from Scripture, but from reflection on the year and a sense of what God was forming in this person, and …
