SPCK - N T Wright
2 Corinthians - No, They are False Prophets!
2 Corinthians - No, They are False Prophets!
by SPCK - N T Wright
No, They Are False Apostles! 2 CORINTHIANS 11.7-15 The door to my study was open when the telephone rang in the hall, so I couldn’t help overhearing the conversation, or rather this end of it. And what I heard was quite disturbing. ‘How could you think I imagined that . . .?’ ‘Bu…
2 Corinthians - Super Apostles?
2 Corinthians - Super Apostles?
by SPCK - N T Wright
Super-Apostles 2 CORINTHIANS 11.1-6 Many movies have as a stock theme the marriage service that goes wrong at the last minute. The famous 1960s movie, The Graduate, ended up with the hero dashing into the church where his true love was about to marry someone else, and snatching h…
2 Corinthians - Boasting in The Lord
2 Corinthians - Boasting in The Lord
by SPCK - N T Wright
Boasting in the Lord 2 CORINTHIANS 10.12-18 I took my son to school on a snowy morning. He was wearing boots, gloves, a woolly hat and a thick coat. When we got there – he was about five years old – we had quite a struggle to take it all off and get him ready for classes. To help…
2 Corinthians - The Battle for the Mind
2 Corinthians - The Battle for the Mind
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Battle for the Mind It was pitch dark, and the prickles from the bush I was hiding behind were sticking through my clothes and into my skin. I couldn’t see anything, but I could hear, very faintly, someone coming along the path. All chance of reaching my own goal had disappea…
2 Corinthians - God Loves a Cheerful Giver
2 Corinthians - God Loves a Cheerful Giver
by SPCK - N T Wright
God Loves a Cheerful Giver 2 CORINTHIANS 9.6-15 Imagine trying to pack an umbrella into a cardboard tube. If you try putting the handle in first it will be difficult. Even if the handle is straight, you will find that the metal tips of the umbrella’s struts get caught on the edge…
2 Corinthians - Please Have the Gift Ready!
2 Corinthians - Please Have the Gift Ready!
by SPCK - N T Wright
Please Have a Gift ready! 2 CORINTHIANS 9.1-5 I knew there was something wrong the moment I walked into the shop. I used to go in two or three times every week, and knew the regular assistants quite well. But this morning the one I saw behind the counter looked as though she was,…
2 Corinthians - Paul's Companions Are on Their Way
2 Corinthians - Paul's Companions Are on Their Way
by SPCK - N T Wright
Paul’s Companions Are on Their Way 2 CORINTHIANS 8.16-24 The smart white van pulled up outside the college one afternoon, and two men got out. Three or four students were in the common room, watching television. The men, wearing white coats like technicians, walked into the colle…
The Pastoral Letters - Watch Out For Disputes and Divisions
The Pastoral Letters - Watch Out For Disputes and Divisions
by SPCK - N T Wright
Watch Out for Disputes and Divisions Titus 3.8b-15 We received a charming wedding invitation today. In it, the young couple, both of whom are already working full time in the church, insisted that they didn’t want ordinary presents. Instead, they urged guests who wanted to do so …
The Pastoral Letters - God's Kingdom and Generosity - and Ours
The Pastoral Letters - God's Kingdom and Generosity - and Ours
by SPCK - N T Wright
God’s Kindness and Generosity – and Ours Titus 3.1-8a I went to a spectacular birthday party last weekend. Our host, who was turning 70, had laid on a lavish evening. Nothing had been spared to make his guests comfortable and happy. The food was terrific; the wine of the highest …
The Pastoral Letters - Grace, Hope and Holiness
The Pastoral Letters - Grace, Hope and Holiness
by SPCK - N T Wright
Grace, Hope and Holiness Titus 2.10-15 Soon after the Russian revolution, a group of journalists and social commentators paid a visit to the newly formed Soviet Union to see how the revolutionaries were getting on in establishing a new type of society. They were shown the model c…
The Pastoral Letters - Commands to Households
The Pastoral Letters - Commands to Households
by SPCK - N T Wright
Commands to Households Titus 2.1-10 I was at a meeting yesterday of the governors of a local school. The head teacher was presenting his annual report. With pardonable pride he described how the school choir had gone on a tour around three Canadian cities, singing in cathedrals, …
The Pastoral Letters - The Problems in Crete
The Pastoral Letters - The Problems in Crete
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Problems in Crete Titus 1.10-16 There is a famous puzzle which young philosophers love. Imagine a postcard, blank on both sides except for a single sentence on each. You pick it up and read it. The side you’re looking at says, ‘The statement on the other side of this card is …
The Pastoral Letters - Appointing Elders
The Pastoral Letters - Appointing Elders
by SPCK - N T Wright
Appointing Elders Titus 1.5-9 The worst moment was when we realized the pilot had no idea what to do next. We were travelling in a light aircraft, going north from Pretoria in South Africa into Zimbabwe, or Rhodesia as it was then called. There were five of us in the plane: the p…
The Pastoral Letters - God's Revealed Plan
The Pastoral Letters - God's Revealed Plan
by SPCK - N T Wright
God’s Revealed Plan Titus 1.1-4 ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ It’s the standard question children face from well-meaning adults. Often the answers are surprising. A ballet dancer. A gardener. This girl wants to run a bookshop. This boy wants to play the oboe. Sometim…
The Pastoral Letters - Come To Me Soon
The Pastoral Letters - Come To Me Soon
by SPCK - N T Wright
Come to me Soon 2Timothy 4.9-22 One of the accidental spin-offs from early Christianity was the invention of the book. There may have been some primitive books before, but these were different. Most writing in the ancient world was either on clay tablets or on parchment scrolls, …
The Pastoral Letters - Waiting For The Crown
The Pastoral Letters - Waiting For The Crown
by SPCK - N T Wright
Waiting for the Crown 2Timothy 4.6-8 REWARD: £100,000. The sign stared at me across the road. There was a photograph underneath, and I crossed the street out of curiosity to have a look. It was, of course, a murder suspect. The police were fairly sure they knew who had committed …
2 Corinthians - Copying the Generosity of the Lord Jesus
2 Corinthians - Copying the Generosity of the Lord Jesus
by SPCK - N T Wright
Copying the Generosity of the Lord Jesus 2 CORINTHIANS 8.8-15 A few months ago there was a news item about a woman crossing the Atlantic Ocean single-handedly in a rowing boat. At least, she ended up doing it single-handedly; to begin with, her husband had been with her, but he h…
2 Corinthians - The Generosity of the Macedonian Churches