Jonah as allegory

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The book of Jonah is sometimes regarded as an allegory, in which:

‘Jonah represents disobedient Israel; the sea represents the Gentiles; the great fish is Babylon; and the three days in the fish’s belly symbolizes the Babylonian captivity of the Jews.’ (Ryrie, who does not think that the book is an allegory)

Most conservative scholars rejectthis interpretation on the grounds that the book is historical, and not fictional, in nature:

According to 2 Kings 14:25, Jonah was a real prophet.…

Genesis 21:1-7 – Promise fulfilled (sermon notes)

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[Notes of a sermon preached at St Andrew’s Eaton (Norwich) on 6th September 2026]

“It shall greatly help ye to understand the Scriptures if thou mark not only what is spoken or written, but of whom and to whom, with what words, at what time, where, to what intent, with what circumstances, considering what goeth before and what followeth after.”  (Coverdale, prologue to his 1535 Bible translation)

1. What goeth before?

The birth of Isaac ends the suspense that began in Gen 11:30 — ‘Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.’…

Psalm 59 – ‘You are my fortress’ – sermon notes

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[Notes of a sermon preached at Holy Trinity Norwich on 20th September 2026

‘In this world you will have trouble. (Jn 16:33).

This was true of Jesus himself, whose life was in danger from the very beginning.

It was also true of his first followers.  If tradition is to be believed, only one of Jesus’ disciples died peacefully of old age in his own bed.

It is true of many Christians today:

Bulbula (Ethiopia); Atahar (Bangladesh); Zaira (Central Asia); Somayeh (Iran).…

Psalm 56 – From fear to faith – sermon notes

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[Notes of a sermon preached at Holy Trinity Norwich on 30th August 2026]

Have you ever been afraid?  (Examples of phobias: arachnophobia, acrophobia, arachibutyrophobia.)

Have you ever felt under threat because of your Christian faith?

Worldwide, over 200 million people are living in fear because they are followers of Jesus Christ.

Bulbullah (Ethiopia): Once a persecutor of Christians himself, faced intense hostility from friends and family after converting to Christianity.

Atahar (Bangladesh): Attacked and driven from his market stall by a mob of 500 people.…

‘Soul Sleep – An Unbiblical Doctrine'(?)

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I summarise, and then comment on, this short work by Hiram R. Diaz III, published by Scripturalist Publications.

According to the doctrine of soul sleep, the soul, after the death of the body, exists in a state of unconsciousness until both body and soul arise at the Day of Judgment.

The image of death as ‘sleep’ is prevalent in both the Old Testament and the New Testament Scriptures.

Many Christian thinkers – both ancient and modern – have taught that this image, understood metaphorically, indicates that the soul has some degree of conscious existence between death and the final resurrection.…

When did Jesus pray?

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Jesus’ life was saturated with prayer.

He prayed:

  1. In the morning, Mk 1:35
  2. In the evening, Mk 6:46
  3. Before great crises
    1. his baptism, Lk 3:21
    2. calling his disciples, Lk 6:12f
    3. Peter’s confession, Lk 9:18, 21f
    4. his Transfiguration, Lk 9:28ff
  4. Before great achievements
    1. feeding the multitude, Mt 15:36; Jn 6:11
    2. healings, Mk 14:23ff
    3. raising Lazarus, Jn 11:41f
  5. After great achievements, Mk 1:35
  6. When under great pressure of work, Lk 5:16
  7. When in great sorrow, Mk 26:36ff
  8. When dying, Lk 23:46

(After J.…

Eph 2:10 – ‘You are God’s poem’

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Exclaims the apostle: ‘We are [God’s] workmanship’, (Ephesians 2:10).

Explains the preacher: “The Greek word translated ‘workmanship’ is the source of our English word ‘poem’.  We are God’s ‘poem’ – isn’t that a lovely thought!”

Objects this kill-joy blogger: I’m sorry, but that explanation, attractive though it may be, is just a little bit fanciful.

The word in question is poiema, which, according to Wright:

‘sometimes has an artistic ring to it. It may be hinting that what God has done to us in King Jesus is a work of art, like a poem or sculpture.

…

Stewardship of money – discussion starters

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The following was  prepared for discussion within our small group.

Remember

What are your childhood memories of saving, spending and giving money?

Reflect

How do you feel about being invited to think about and discuss your stewardship of money?

Discuss

Read 1 Chronicles 29:14-16

What is the difference between an owner and a steward?  What are the qualities of a good steward?

Read 1 Timothy 6:17-19

It is said that people with little money are often more generous than those with much. …

Genesis 16 – (Im)patience (sermon notes)

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Impatient?  How do you feel when you join the supermarket queue that looks the shortest turns out to be the slowest?  When the other person just keeps on talking, giving you no chance to interrupt?  When that car journey that was supposed to take 3 hrs turns into a 5-hr nightmare after you decide to try a short-cut?

Of course, there are other more serious occasions when our patience is tested.  How the time drags while we’re waiting for exam results, or for the outcome of a scan, or trying to start a family?…

Philemon – ‘Freely you have received, freely give’ – sermon notes

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Well, not a sermon really, but the notes of a talk given at a midweek meeting.  A revised version of something I produced many years ago.

Delivered with two voices (a) Philemon himself, and (b) Apphia, his wife, reading the text of Paul’s letter to Philemon (in italics).

I want to take you back to the year AD 61. My name is Philemon.  It is early evening, and my wife Apphia and I are looking out from the veranda of our home in Colossae.…