Jesus Christ was a radical teacher Who astonished even His own disciples Mat 19:25. Yet crowds of people heard Him gladly Mk 12:37. He appealed over the heads of Jewish officialdom to teach the people publicly. He contradicted Jewish officialdom and called them hypocrits Mat 23. Yet there are those who want Christians to be …
Category: Congregational life
The content of Christian fellowship
Having noted the nature of Christian fellowship, I now turn to the content of Christian fellowship. Christian fellowship is Christocentric, meaning that it centres on the Lord Jesus Christ because He is the centre of everything Col 1:17. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last Rev 22:13. Different people focus …
The nature of Christian fellowship
It might surprise you to consider these biblical passages about the nature of Christian fellowship. Christian fellowship is eternal and does not come to an end. What does this say about your relationships with other Christians, far less about your evangelizing zeal for the lost and perishing? If you don't know about Christian fellowship, how …
The prejudice of offence
Some of the most prejudiced people are those who take easy offence. How is this so, and so what? This is very relevant in our politically correct era when those in public life and on social media are busy taking offence at their opponents' opinions. So what is the connection? Both prejudice and offence are …
Dr John Kennedy (1819-1884)
Scottish Highland Christianity has been unique in preserving the biblical and spiritual attainments of the 16th-century Scottish Reformation to the present day. Foremost in the ranks of 19th-century Highland Christianity was Dr John Kennedy (1819-1884), the renowned minister of the Free Church of Scotland in Dingwall for 40 years. Dingwall (Tingwall) was considered the Viking …
Adequate modes of Christian baptism
There are a variety of opinions on how Christian baptism should be performed or administered. Who should do it, where should it be done, by whom and in what circumstances? In recent times, Roman Catholicism experienced an internal controversy particularly in America in which people changed the words used in baptism so that the Roman …
A Christian funeral and burial
Yesterday my wife and I attended a funeral in a small community on the west coast of the Scottish Highlands. The usual practice there is to conduct family worship and then the minister gives a short address at the local cemetery after the burial. The hearty singing of the praises of God from the Scottish …
Impoverished conversation and free speech
Misunderstanding is common in conversation, but what really impoverishes speech nowadays is the subjects that are off-limits. Political correctness has made everyone aware that some topics are off-limits and even particular words have now been banned. Free speech is under attack but let us notice that it began long ago with the supposed rule for …
Failings in the Christian church
Thankfully, the Christian church acts as salt and light throughout the world but it could be more effective. The primary failure is in its leadership Eph 4:11-16, which fails primarily because of the lack of exegetical preaching. Nationally: the failure to witness to the nation Isa 56:10. The national churches have failed the UK nations. …
Reformation and flying kites
Reformation and revival are not the same thing. We need both. We regularly hear about the need for revival but not often about the need for reformation. Revival without reformation is likely to be man-made rather than arising from the Spirit of God. Some people try to generate revival by flying kites. Flying kites is …
