1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - A House and a Household
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - A House and a Household
by SPCK - John Goldingay
A House and a Household 2 Samuel 7: 1- 29 One of my colleagues likes to remind people that Jesus never talks about our establishing God’s kingdom or furthering it or building it or extending it. In the Gospels, the only things we do to God’s kingdom are wait for it, see it, enter…
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - A Last Act of Loyalty to Saul
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - A Last Act of Loyalty to Saul
by SPCK - John Goldingay
A Last Act of Loyalty to Saul 1 Samuel 30: 1- 31: 13 When I first came to California, students would sometimes ask how long I would be here, thinking it might just be for sabbatical. At first I would reply, “I want to die here,” which was a way of saying, “I am here permanently,”…
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - A Journey and a Settlement
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - A Journey and a Settlement
by SPCK - John Goldingay
A Journey and a Settlement Genesis 10: 21- 11: 2 A decade ago, we moved from Britain to the United States, and an Indonesian joined us to share in caring for my wife, Ann, with her disability. When she and her husband went home, a Kenyan took her place. When she and her husband w…
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - A New Start
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - A New Start
by SPCK - John Goldingay
A New Start Genesis 4: 23-26 Why does anyone want to have a child? A year or so after the birth of our first son, Ann had a miscarriage, and she was deeply grieved about that, as happens especially to a woman (it is easier for a man—at least it was for this man—to shrug his shoul…
Isaiah for Everyone - A Sign of Hope
Isaiah for Everyone - A Sign of Hope
by SPCK - John Goldingay
A Sign of Hope My wife’s son-in-law returned yesterday from one of his recurrent trips to meet with Darfuri refugees in Chad to encourage them, show some interest on the part of people from the United States, and look for ways of advocating for them. The focus of activity on this…
Isaiah for Everyone - A Singer-Songwriter's Strange Song
Isaiah for Everyone - A Singer-Songwriter's Strange Song
by SPCK - John Goldingay
A Singer-Songwriter’s Strange Song When we are going out for the evening, and if the time of year requires it, I will put a sweater on top of whatever I have been wearing all day. It’s a delight to me when, in contrast, my wife disappears into the closet and reappears in her fine…
Job for Everyone - And They All Lived Happily Ever After
Job for Everyone - And They All Lived Happily Ever After
by SPCK - John Goldingay
And They All Lived Happily Ever After Job 42:1- 17 I have often asked people whether they like the ending of the book of Job. The majority do not because it seems unrealistic, in that they know many people who do not have a happy ending to their story in the way that Job does. My…
Exodus and Leviticus - Anticipatory Celebration
Exodus and Leviticus - Anticipatory Celebration
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Anticipatory Celebration EXODUS 12: 1-27 I am sometimes asked, “What do you miss about England?” One of my joke replies is that I miss a magnificent chocolate-and- cream pastry called an “elephant’s foot” that they sell at a bakery where we often had Saturday lunch. Another reply…
Psalms for Everyone - Answer to Prayer Phase Two
Psalms for Everyone - Answer to Prayer Phase Two
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Answer to Prayer Phase Two Psalm 30 In connection with Psalm 16, I have mentioned how a few months ago I met, fell in love with, and proposed to someone, then discovered I had prostate cancer and arranged to have surgery. We had a very moving prayer time in church, and I knew God…
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - And God Shut Him In
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - And God Shut Him In
by SPCK - John Goldingay
And God Shut Him In Genesis 7: 1-24 One of my sons works for the U.K. Environment Agency in the department concerned with flood control, where he oversees projects designed to avoid flooding. In the past there have been occasions when terrible storms have caused the sea to flood …
Genesis for Everyone Part 2 - Another Deceiver Deceived
Genesis for Everyone Part 2 - Another Deceiver Deceived
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Another Deceiver Deceived Genesis 38:1-30 It can seem as if every month some new sexual scandal is reported involving a prominent politician or pastor. It is common for the men (it’s nearly always men, but the more equal the playing field becomes, the more it may become women) in…
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - And a Time for War
Genesis for Everyone Part 1 - And a Time for War
by SPCK - John Goldingay
And a Time for War Genesis 14: 1-13 On the first Martin Luther King Jr. commemoration after I came to the United States, his daughter Bernice King preached in the seminary chapel. As I walked to chapel that morning, I remember wondering whether she would be the kind of person who…
Psalms for Everyone - Another Interim Closing Act of Praise
Psalms for Everyone - Another Interim Closing Act of Praise
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Another Interim Closing Act of Praise Psalm 72: 18-20 As the last verse of Psalm 41 is actually the close of Book One of the Psalter, the closing verses of Psalm 72 are not part of this psalm but are an act of worship at the end of Book Two of the Psalter, a little like the “Glor…
Psalms for Everyone Part 2 - Another Amen
Psalms for Everyone Part 2 - Another Amen
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Another Amen Psalm 106:48 Whereas the amen at the end of Book Three of the Psalter stands in contrast to Psalm 89 to which it is appended, this amen at the end of Book Four follows nicely on Psalm 106, though perhaps it issues a challenge in that it involves recognizing that our …
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - But the Thing David Had Done Was Displeasing in Yahweh's Eyes
1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone - But the Thing David Had Done Was Displeasing in Yahweh's Eyes
by SPCK - John Goldingay
But the Thing David Had Done Was Displeasing in Yahweh’s Eyes 2 Samuel 11: 1- 27 There is a news item today about a state governor who had to resign because of a sex scandal a couple of years ago but is now trying to rehabilitate himself in the eye of the public. As governor, one…
Job for Everyone - Can a Mortal Be in the Right in God's Eyes?
Job for Everyone - Can a Mortal Be in the Right in God's Eyes?
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Can a Mortal Be in the Right in God’s Eyes? Job 4: 1-21 In the heyday of the charismatic movement in Britain, like many people I used to receive short messages from God from time to time for passing on to other people, and sometimes I used to be given such messages by other peopl…
Joshua, Judges and Ruth for Everyone - But Samson's Hair Began to Grow Again
Joshua, Judges and Ruth for Everyone - But Samson's Hair Began to Grow Again
by SPCK - John Goldingay
But Samson’s Hair Began to Grow Again JUDGES 16:22-31 The first time I went to Israel, I took part in an exciting archaeological dig. Just next to a tennis club in the big modern city of Tel Aviv on the Mediterranean, where people started playing at 6:00 a.m. because it would be …
Genesis for Everyone Part 2 - Brothers United and Divided