The previous post was about “Following Jesus: Our purposes”. We found that God wants us to become more like Jesus. He wants us to have purposes that reflect His general purposes for believers (above) and our individual strengths (below). We serve others when we apply our purposes to people’s needs. Then like Esther, we will have a meaningful and significant life that brings fulfilment. Read the rest of this page »
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Following Jesus: Our resources
Following Jesus: Our purposes
Esther was a Jewish girl in the palace of the king of Persia in about 460 BC. When the lives of all the Jews in Persia were threatened, her cousin Mordecai told her that she alone could save all their lives if she spoke to the king. He said, “perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Est. 4:14NLT). What would she do? Bravely she spoke to the king and the Jews lives were saved. This is a great example of how God can give us a purpose in life. God used Esther to fulfill His purposes. She was in the right place at the right time. That’s an example of God’s providence (His wise and purposeful sovereignty); it wasn’t an accident. And she made the right decision. That’s an example of human responsibility.
As human beings we want our lives to be meaningful and significant. How can we make our life count? The Bible implies that God made us for a purpose. And as we live for that purpose, we will find fulfilment. Read the rest of this page »
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The themes in the book of Acts
The overall theme of the book of Acts in the Bible is the growth of the early church. And the key verse is “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (1:8NIV). That’s the mission of the church. Believers are to be God’s witnesses.
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A time line for the book of Acts
The book of Acts in the Bible describes the first 30 years of the church. It’s an historical narrative that was written by Luke who was a companion of Paul (Col. 4:10-14; 2 Tim. 4:11; Phile. 24). He wrote it to educate Christians about the early church.
The main point of Acts is that God’s witnesses spread the gospel message and established churches.
A time line of major events in Acts (concentrating on Acts 1-12) is given below. And it is followed by a summary of the book (also concentrating on Acts 1-12).
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Life saving blood
Throughout history, there has been a growing understanding of the remarkable properties of blood. In 1628, a physician named William Harvey published his theory on the circulation of blood – it was amazingly accurate. Soon after, the first blood transfusion was attempted. It was discovered that blood could save lives!
About 200 years later, the ‘International Committee of the Red Cross’ was founded by Henri Dunant in Switzerland. Henri had witnessed wounded and dying soldiers left to suffer without medical care on a battlefield in Italy. He started a campaign to reduce the suffering and casualties of war regardless of which side they belonged to. Read the rest of this page »
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The real climate change
Weather change is not climate change
“Climate change” is mentioned often today in a context that means “weather change”. There is a difference between weather and climate. Climate is the long-term weather pattern. Weather influences what clothes you wear on a given day, while the climate influences the contents of your entire wardrobe. Read the rest of this page »
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Is there a climate crisis?
Heavy snow has disrupted normal life in Athens. And more than 245 million Americans are expected to face temperatures below freezing in the continental U.S. over the next seven days. The Arctic air from a polar vortex has already set temperature records in numerous states. Record low temperatures are making life miserable in the U.S. The severe winter weather has sparked emergency declarations in at least seven states, including Alabama, Oregon, Oklahoma, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi and Texas. Air traffic was halted at a number of airports. Across the country, at least 36 people have died since the punishing winter weather began last week. It must be global cooling! That’s like what we hear when high temperatures are attributed to global warming. But of course this is weather not climate (which is the weather averaged over 30 years). Read the rest of this page »
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Speak up when you have something to say
Esther and Mordecai
A former Crown Resorts employee exposed the company’s conduct in China and helped spark a year-long inquiry in New South Wales. The inquiry found that Crown Resorts had breached the state’s gaming regulations by engaging in international money laundering and is no longer suitable to hold the licence for its new Sydney casino. The whistle-blower lost her job and her mental health has also been affected, as well as her job prospects because she now has a criminal record in China. Read the rest of this page »
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Sooner or later?
Procrastination is delaying or postponing something. It’s saying, “I’ve got too much else to do right now”; “Something came up”; “It’s not really that important”; “It’s not the right time”; “I’m not ready yet”; “I’ll do it after…”. This is a post about something we all need to do, sooner or later.
Philippians 2 is about the humility and exaltation of Jesus Christ. It says that He went from the highest place (equality with God the Father), to the lowest place (death as a criminal) and back to the highest place (the right hand of God the Father). After describing Christ’s incarnation and death, Paul writes, Read the rest of this page »
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When science caught up with the Bible
The universe had a beginning
The pagan Greek philosophers thought the physical universe had no beginning. To Plato (428-348 BC), the universe was perfect and unchanging. And Aristotle (384–322 BC) argued that the world (matter) must have existed from eternity. If the universe could never have gone from nothingness to somethingness, it must always have existed. For this and other reasons, time must stretch eternally into the past and future. Aristotle taught that the world was eternal.
Medieval philosophers also wondered whether the universe is eternal or had a beginning. And medieval authors debated that point in light of the Christian creation story. Read the rest of this page »
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