Exodus and Leviticus - Whose Service is Perfect Freedom
Exodus and Leviticus - Whose Service is Perfect Freedom
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Whose Service is Perfect Freedom EXODUS 5:1- 6:1 Tomorrow I shall preside at a “service” in church. In what sense do we “serve” God by singing hymns and so on? Indeed, is it God that we are serving? Yesterday, one of my colleagues on the seminary’s chapel committee asked me what …
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - Who Will Entice Ahab?
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - Who Will Entice Ahab?
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Who Will Entice Ahab? 1 Kings 22:1-23 I’ve recently started rewatching the television drama series The West Wing from the beginning, and last night I saw a couple of episodes about the Democrat-run White House offering a job to a lawyer who is a totally convinced Republican who h…
Isaiah for Everyone - Who Would Want to be a Superpower?
Isaiah for Everyone - Who Would Want to be a Superpower?
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Who Would Want to Be a Superpower? Two days ago the news reported that for every soldier who dies on the battlefield in Afghanistan, twenty-five veterans commit suicide at home. It’s such an unbelievable statistic I have just checked it again. Yesterday the news reported that the…
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - Wives and Adversaries
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - Wives and Adversaries
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Wives and Adversaries 1 Kings 11:1-43 When my sister was abandoned by her husband just after the birth of their son, she moved back to live with our parents for a while to find a way of getting her life back together, and eventually met a nice young man (also called John, as is h…
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - Will God Really Dwell on Earth?
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - Will God Really Dwell on Earth?
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Will God Really Dwell on Earth? 1 Kings 8:10-30 An hour or two ago I was sitting not at my desk, as I am now, but in my recliner chair, where I start off the day with my coffee, reading the Bible just for my own benefit and praying for people, and I sometimes picture God sitting …
Job for Everyone - Will You Just Listen?
Job for Everyone - Will You Just Listen?
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Will You Just Listen? Job 13: 1-28 This afternoon I was on the phone with a friend who had moved to another city because he believed he had a call to go and work in a tough area there. He had joined a tiny church and had started a coffee bar that might be a meeting place for peop…
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - Wise Advice Treated as Folly
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - Wise Advice Treated as Folly
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Wise Advice Treated as Folly 2 Samuel 17: 1- 19: 40 In the 1990s there was a political crisis in the state of Israel over King David’s good name. The Foreign Minister had been accused of slandering David in a parliamentary debate, and his words prompted three motions of no confid…
Joshua, Judges and Ruth for Everyone - Why Were They So Stupid?
Joshua, Judges and Ruth for Everyone - Why Were They So Stupid?
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Why Were They So Stupid? JOSHUA 11:16- 12:24 The night before last I ate dinner early, drank a glass or two of wine, didn’t eat dessert, and then had a cup of coffee later. This pattern works if I want to sleep well, so I try to stick to it. Last night I ate late, and the server …
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - Yahweh's Good Spirit and Yahweh's Bad Spirit
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - Yahweh's Good Spirit and Yahweh's Bad Spirit
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Yahweh’s Good Spirit and Yahweh’s Bad Spirit 1 Samuel 15: 34- 16: 23 I was recently reading a profile of Clint Eastwood; it was this profile that made me think about his movie Unforgiven in connection with 1 Samuel 13. In that and other later movies he is both actor and director,…
Genesis for Everyone Part 2 - Words that Cannot Be Undone
Genesis for Everyone Part 2 - Words that Cannot Be Undone
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Words That Cannot Be Undone Genesis 27:34- 28:5 In lots of ways, words are powerful things. We can say things and wish we had not said them yet be unable to get out of their implications. A woman I know stood at the front of church and made her marriage vows, then subsequently di…
Numbers and Deuteronomy for Everyone - You Are What You Eat
Numbers and Deuteronomy for Everyone - You Are What You Eat
by SPCK - John Goldingay
You Are What You Eat Deuteronomy 14: 1- 29 Three nights ago I got very sick just for a little while after eating out; what I ate was salad, halibut, rice, and vegetables. I should doubtless have complained to the restaurant or reported the matter to the city, but I was too busy b…
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - Work Becomes Toil
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - Work Becomes Toil
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Work Becomes Toil Genesis 3: 17-22 As I cycle to the seminary to give an evening lecture, I pass a particular bus stop where there are always a number of people waiting for the bus to take them home, and I am always struck by how weary they look. Whatever they have been doing all…
Exodus and Leviticus - You Are What You Eat
Exodus and Leviticus - You Are What You Eat
by SPCK - John Goldingay
You Are What You Eat LEVITICUS : 11 1- 12: 8 We had squirrels in our garden in England and on our patio in California, and in both places I have threatened to make squirrel casserole. Ann protested because she likes the squirrels; other people protest because they are repelled by…
Exodus and Leviticus - You Know the Feelings of an Alien
Exodus and Leviticus - You Know the Feelings of an Alien
by SPCK - John Goldingay
You Know the Feelings of an Alien EXODUS 22: 15- 23: 19 There are aliens who freely choose to live in a foreign country, and there are aliens who felt they were driven to do so (and then there are the aliens who come on spaceships). I am an alien and that occasionally causes me a…
Psalms for Everyone - You Have a Choice
Psalms for Everyone - You Have a Choice
by SPCK - John Goldingay
You Have a Choice Psalm 1 It’s Independence Day today in the United States, and our visiting preacher on Sunday more than once referred to our freedom to make choices as a reason for rejoicing. I imagine that as well as the freedom not to have one’s destiny shaped by guys the oth…
Numbers and Deuteronomy for Everyone - You Don't Deserve It
Numbers and Deuteronomy for Everyone - You Don't Deserve It
by SPCK - John Goldingay
You Don’t Deserve It Deuteronomy 9: 4- 10: 22 I spotted an advertisement for a “You Deserve It!” event, “a quality day for women to relax, have fun, learn some new things, and spend time with other wonderful women.” The last phrase is a giveaway. In inviting everyone to see thems…
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - You Can Disguise, but You Can't Hide
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - You Can Disguise, but You Can't Hide
by SPCK - John Goldingay
You Can Disguise, but You Can’t Hide 1 Kings 22:24- 2 Kings 1:1 A friend of mine recently became attracted to a woman I also know, and he arranged to have lunch with her last week, taking with him his mental list of questions he felt he needed to ask of a potential wife. Being sm…
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - You Can't Mess with the Covenant Chest