God has provided us with powerful encouragements to prayer (writes J.C. Ryle in Practical Religion).
I summarise.
Here are thirty lessons on spirituality, drawn from Peter Adam’s study of Colossians:
I have returned, from time to time, to the question of what the preacher can learn from the greatest teacher of them all.
Mark Stibbe explores this in his chapter ‘Learning from Jesus’ in Preach the Word! (ed Greg Haslam, 2006, pp87-97).
Stibbe identifies ten characteristics of Jesus’ preaching. Here’s a summary.
Notwithstanding some formal similarities with rabbinic teaching, in content Jesus’ message was completely original. It came from the Father.
…Jn 12:49f – “I have not spoken from my own authority, but the Father himself who sent me has commanded me what I should say and what I should speak.
Video and notes of a sermon preached at Holy Trinity, Norwich, on 21 March, 2021.
Text: 1 Samuel 28:3-25
The Bible contains a number of ‘strange but true’ stories:
What follows is closely based on this article by Gerado Alfaro. (But see note at the end*)
Good teaching:
There are several reasons for exercising caution when planning to preach from an OT character:
A further challenge arises from our difficulty in separating out the narrator’s point of view and that of the character his/her self. …
1 Samuel 28:7 Saul instructed his servants, “Find me a woman who is a medium, so that I may go to her and inquire of her.” His servants replied to him, “There is a woman who is a medium in Endor.”
28:8 So Saul disguised himself and put on other clothing and left, accompanied by two of his men. They came to the woman at night and said, “Use your ritual pit to conjure up for me the one I tell you.”…
Matthew 10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Luke 12:4 “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more they can do. 12:5 But I will warn you whom you should fear: Fear the one who, after the killing, has authority to throw you into hell.…
Romans 10:1 Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God on behalf of my fellow Israelites is for their salvation. 10:2 For I can testify that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not in line with the truth. 10:3 For ignoring the righteousness that comes from God, and seeking instead to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law, with the result that there is righteousness for everyone who believes.…
From Genesis to Revelation – and especially during the earthly life of Jesus – the Bible witnesses to the reality of evil supernatural beings who oppose God and seek the harm of his good creation.
In addition to this plain witness of Scripture, a number of other factors should be considered.
Clinton E. Arnold writes:
