It almost comes as an anticlimax when Paul arrives in Rome.  He has been talking about it so much and for so long.  After a big spiritual battle in Ephesus, Paul had said that he needed to go to both Jerusalem and Rome.  Jesus Himself had told him that he must testify in Rome.  When…

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It has been described as one of the most informative accounts of an sea voyage by ship in ancient literature, and you can certainly tell why.  Luke tells us about the wind directions, the coastline they were following, the ports they visited.  He describes the ships they sailed in, the anchor that the sailors hauled…

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Are you being obedient to your heavenly vision?  If you don’t know what your heavenly vision is, how would you find out?  Could you find it in the Bible?  Would God reveal it to you if you spent a day or a weekend by yourself in prayer and fasting?  Could you catch a glimpse of…

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I remember sitting there, trying to work out which knife and fork to use to cut the cheese amongst the array of cutlery that lay before me.  I had been invited to the High Table with the Fellows of Trinity College at Cambridge University.  If you were to walk over to the window, you could…

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When Paul was writing to the Ephesians, he described how communication within the Christian community would occur as we become spiritually mature:  “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.” Ephesians 4:15  It is a powerful concept—speaking the truth in love. …

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It is an age old military strategy that still works, even when you are faced with a bristling Jewish Sanhedrin who are revving up for your stoning.  Paul, looking across the sea of faces, spotted the partisan divide between the Sadducees and the Pharisees and throw the theological spanner into the fray:  “Brothers, I am…

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There are three stories that retold a number of times in the book of Acts.  The story of how God led Peter to share the gospel with the Roman centurion Cornelius is told twice.  The story of how God claimed the zealous Jewish terrorist Saul is told three times.  And, of course, that story that…

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Congratulations! You are 75% the way through the book of Acts! Check out the video invites by Jorge Munoz and Gary Krause to the Mission to Sydney Week of Spiritual Emphasis starting 10am Monday 27 June 2016.  One of the things that I have noticed is that church planters like myself sometimes tend to be really determined and unwavering…

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Have you ever tried rounding up sheep?  It can be a very humorous, if not downright frustrating, experience.    I remember being invited by my school Zenon to his farm near the foothills of the Southern Alps in Canterbury, South New Zealand.  It was a picturesque setting, framed by snowy peaks, and a beautiful sunny…

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Dr. Luauna Stines tells the story of her second morning in Korea:  Second day in Korea, a young Korean woman stopped me to share Jesus, as I was walking out of my hotel. I said, “Yes, I know Jesus!”… She said, “I share everyday about Jesus, many people do not know Jesus. They go to…

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