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Genesis for Everyone Part 2 - On Letting Your Son Die
Genesis for Everyone Part 2 - On Letting Your Son Die
by SPCK - John Goldingay
On Letting Your Son Die Genesis 22: 3- 10 What on earth does it do to you to have your father go to the edge of killing you? What does it do to your relationship to your father, and what does it do to your view of God? A seminary colleague of mine in England, who (like me) was al…
Psalms for Everyone - Death Cathches You When You Don't Expect It To
Psalms for Everyone - Death Cathches You When You Don't Expect It To
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Death Catches You When You Don’t Expect It To Psalm 49 We recently buried the second-oldest member of our congregation, who until she faded away quickly at the end had regularly attended church. We drove quite a way to the cemetery, and I wondered why, until I discovered that her…
John for Everyone Part 1 - Bread from Heaven
John for Everyone Part 1 - Bread from Heaven
by SPCK - N T Wright
Bread From Heaven John 6.26-35 The historian was in a hurry to finish his Ph.D. There was one chapter to go, which concerned the painting that had been so important during his period, and the influence the artists had had on the wider thought and culture of the time. He went hast…
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - What do You Most Want?
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - What do You Most Want?
by SPCK - John Goldingay
What do You Most Want? 1 Kings 3:1-15 I used to ask a friend of mine from time to time, “What would you like to do?” The question would usually relate to concerts; I would outline possibilities to her, but she would usually ask me to decide. Just last week she protested that this…
Hebrews for Everyone - Warning of Judgement
Hebrews for Everyone - Warning of Judgement
by SPCK - N T Wright
Warning of Judgment Hebrews 10.26-31 It was said of the Roman emperor Gaius Caligula, who went mad and did all sorts of bizarre things, that he took to inventing new laws, and having them carved in small letters on tablets and then placed high up on walls, too high for people to …
Matthew for Everyone Part 1 - The Magi visit Jesus
Matthew for Everyone Part 1 - The Magi visit Jesus
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Magi Visit Jesus Matthew 2.1-12 I was convinced it was a helicopter. It was a dark night, and a bright light was shining just above the nearby town. Surely, I thought, the police must be out looking for a criminal; or perhaps there had been an accident. We had just come from …
Luke for Everyone - John the Baptist Confronts the Crowds
Luke for Everyone - John the Baptist Confronts the Crowds
by SPCK - N T Wright
John the Baptist Confronts the Crowds Luke 3.10-20 A cartoon shows a sceptic shouting up to the heavens, ‘God! If you’re up there, tell us what we should do!’ Back comes a voice: ‘Feed the hungry, house the homeless, establish justice.’ The sceptic looks alarmed. ‘Just testing,’ …
Luke for Everyone - Opposition to Jesus in Nazareth
Luke for Everyone - Opposition to Jesus in Nazareth
by SPCK - N T Wright
Opposition to Jesus in Nazareth Luke 4.14-30 The commentators were ecstatic after the game. ‘He played like a man inspired,’ they said. What images does that conjure up for you? A sports star, perhaps, running rings round the opposition and scoring a brilliant goal. Or, from a di…
Matthew for Everyone Part 1 - On Murder and Reconciliation
Matthew for Everyone Part 1 - On Murder and Reconciliation
by SPCK - N T Wright
On Murder and Reconciliation Matthew 5.21-26 It happened again the other day. It is sadly common. A leading politician makes a gesture of contempt towards the opposition. Someone on the other side reacts angrily. Soon dozens of people are on their feet, shouting. Insults fly to a…
Revelation for Everyone - Look! He is Coming
Revelation for Everyone - Look! He is Coming
by SPCK - N T Wright
Look! He Is Coming Revelation 1.1-8 The house lights went down, and the excited buzz of audience chatter quickly subsided as well. Soon it was quite dark in the theatre. Then music began, softly and mysteriously at first, but soon building up, swelling and rising. Just as it reac…
Luke for Everyone - The Distress of Jerusalem Predicted
Luke for Everyone - The Distress of Jerusalem Predicted
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Distress of Jerusalem Predicted Luke 21.20-33 At school we were sometimes made to write stories which included several very different characters and objects. ‘Write a story,’ the teacher might say, ‘including a rabbit, a telescope, a cathedral and a man with a wooden leg.’ Of…
Paul for Everyone The Prison Letters - Celebrate in the Lord!
Paul for Everyone The Prison Letters - Celebrate in the Lord!
by SPCK - N T Wright
Celebrate in the Lord! Philippians 4.2-9 You never know when it’s going to happen. Two people who one day are good friends, working alongside each other in the church or community, can suddenly get across each other. A sharp word from one, half-heard by the other; a bitter respon…
John for Everyone part 2 - Mary and her Ointment
John for Everyone part 2 - Mary and her Ointment
by SPCK - N T Wright
Mary and her Ointment John 12.1-8 I always hate it when, in a movie or a novel, a social event suddenly becomes tense and fraught. People who write novels and screenplays seem to like them: anger and bitterness bubbling to the surface, family members losing their tempers with eac…
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - The Low Murmuring Sound
1 and 2 Kings for Everyone - The Low Murmuring Sound
by SPCK - John Goldingay
The Low Murmuring Sound 1 Kings 19:1-21 I am inclined to think that nothing I do in seeking to fulfill my vocation achieves anything. My vocation is to help people understand the Old Testament and let their thinking and their lives be shaped by it. I am passionately committed to …
Hebrews for Everyone - Outside the Old City, Seeking the New
Hebrews for Everyone - Outside the Old City, Seeking the New
by SPCK - N T Wright
Outside the Old City, Seeking the New Hebrews 13.9-16 I mentioned earlier that I had been reading the diary of a clergyman who had been a prisoner of war from 1940 to 1945. It was both fascinating and frustrating. Fascinating as a firsthand, day-by-day account of the life such pe…
Hebrews for Everyone - The Practical Life of God's People
Hebrews for Everyone - The Practical Life of God's People
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Practical Life of God’s People Hebrews 13.1-8 ‘Sex, power, money, suffering. Tomorrow morning’s newspaper will be full of it; it’s what sells, it’s what some people think makes the world go round. Meanwhile, you can look through the newspaper from end to end for a mention of …
Luke for Everyone - Jesus and the Pharisee
Luke for Everyone - Jesus and the Pharisee
by SPCK - N T Wright
Jesus and the Pharisee Luke 14.1-11 Luke’s gospel has more meal-time scenes than all the others. If his vision of the Christian life, from one point of view, is a journey, from another point of view it’s a party. Several stories end with a festive meal – like, for instance, the p…
Isaiah for everyone - The Man Who Kept His Mouth Shut