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Sermon on the Plain

Jesus gives us a stern warning. It comes in the last part of Luke 6:37, followed by v38: “Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap.” Then comes the crunch. “… for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” These words could be daunting, but, if the following guidelines are observed, then we should have no problems …. [too read more, click on title]

Get off the Grass

The hundreds of people churning up the Parliamentary lawn are unlikely to read this blog. If they did, I’d want them to know that they are blinkered and selfish and, in some cases, misled and entitled. They’d want to punch my lights out for saying so, which possibly makes the point, but I’ll amplify.
The baseline of their cause would seem to be that in the name of their freedom and rights they would blithely stifle the freedoms and rights of others. …. [To read more, click on the title]

The Sermon on the Plain

Luke’s version of the Beatitudes is very different from Matthew’s. In fact it is a much harsher and demanding set of statements, and is not just about blessings, but also about woes. The poor are blessed, the hungry are blessed, the people who weep are blessed and anyone who is excluded, reviled or defamed because of their belief in Jesus is also blessed; BUT if you are rich, your stomach is full and you are laughing and having a good time, or people speak well of you – well – woe to you … [To read more, click on the title]

Luke, Fishing and Waitangi

I love the idea of Jesus, desperate for a little space from which to speak to the crowds pressing upon him, just commandeering Simon’s boat.
And I love that Peter just lets him. I mean, he’d been fishing all night and probably wanted to finish cleaning up and get home to bed. But he takes Jesus out anyway. [To read more, click on title]