Modern discussion and debate is full of unanswered questions. Prime Minister's Questions, First Minister's Question and BBC Question Time produce many examples of questions that are ignored and not answered. People respond, but they do not answer; they reply, but they do not answer. An answer addresses the question, but the person responding may reframe …
Category: Personal development
Reviving the Christian Church
How do we revive the Christian church? Many people can see the decline in the Christian church, although there are not so many that are able to diagnose the problem. There are two things that are urgently needed for the revival of the Christian church. The first need is exegetical preaching, with emphasis on both …
Evangelical errors
Evangelical Christians pride themselves in believing the Bible and in preaching the Gospel. However, this self-assessment does not completely stand up to scrutiny. I have heard many an evangelical preacher who is rather niggardly with the Gospel and sometimes I wonder if they know how to preach it. As for their biblical teaching, I have …
Experts and professionals
What is the difference between an expert and a professional? A professional may not be an expert. An expert may not be a professional. A professional has professional standards and an external professional body maintaining these standards. An expert may not behave professionally. They may have no external standards to live up to and their …
Christian care is not the same as secular care
Just as Christian morality is not the same as secular morality, neither is secular care the same as Christian care. Secular care is very choosey; it picks and chooses. On a recent walk I met two runners who identified themselves as atheists. Having established that they were open to discussion, it was immediately apparent that …
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What is your morality?
People make the mistake of thinking that there is only one morality. There are multiple moralities and people choose the one that they want. Christian morality is different from secular morality, which is different from Jewish and muslim morality, etc. People choose the morality they want to follow, and they are responsible for their morality …
My spiritual diary
Do you keep a diary? What big events have taken place in your life over the past year? This month witnesses the 45th anniversary of my graduation as a medical doctor from Glasgow University and my 40th wedding anniversary. This year witnesses the 40th anniversary of my licensing to preach the everlasting Gospel of the …
What is the nature of faith?
Faith is a personal judgment. You cannot believe something that you do not think is true. You have judged it to be true, so you believe it. If you judge it to be false you are not able to believe it. Therefore you are personally responsible for your own beliefs because they are your personal …
Reserving judgment
Public discussion is polarising society into the familiar "us and them" mantra. "Are you one of us?" Current discussions too often resolve into binary choices, and many people expect you to subscribe to one or other – left or right, for or against Donald Trump, for or against the Russo-Ukrainian war or the coronavirus vaccine, …
Is true Christianity confrontational?
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 …
Donald's Thoughts 