# Series (Page 92)

James and John had fire in their bones. Somewhat misguided fire, but being backward in coming forward with it, they were not! Their desire to call down fire from heaven upon the Samaritans earned them the nickname, “Son’s of Thunder,” from Jesus (Lk.9:53-55; Mk.3:17).These brothers came from a fishing family. Zebedee was of sufficient means to carry on the business when his sons went with Jesus to catch men (Mk.1:19-20; Lk.5:10).Who could miss the leadership potential in their business partner,…

(Mt.10:3; Mk.3:18; Lk.6:15, Acts 1:13; Jn.11:16; 14:5; 20:24-29; 21:2) Doubts come out of nowhere. To say you have never had a doubt is to kid yourself. Rock solid conviction on every fact presented, every belief taught, and every experience had, is a tall order for a human being—we with feet of clay. Thomas expressed his doubts about the risen Christ in these famous words:“Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were,…

(John 3; 7:45-52; 19:38-42) Justin Bieber came to Auckland years ago. There I stood amidst a crowd of teenage girls ‘just dying to catch a glimpse of him—them, not me. As if one, with each slight movement at the arrival Gate, the crowd surged forward and screamed at fever pitch. That was the night I understood the power of a crowd. Nicodemus was faced with an emotionally charged crowd of Pharisees and Chief Priests. When spewing hate for Jesus he…

(Acts 28:1-10) Fourteen days in stormy seas and shipwrecked on a strange island is likely to make any act of helpfulness appear out of the ordinary. Luke describes the reception that he, Paul, the other prisoners, and the ship’s crew received after being washed up on the shores of Malta, as ‘extraordinary kind.’But their levels of kindness appeared to be rivalled by their degrees of superstition.The next three days or so must have been a theological roller-coaster for these locals.…

(Acts 6; 8; 21:8-11) The Lord’s church has an abiding relationship with the Seven Servant-leaders of Acts Six. Elders and Deacons in our churches are selected by the members in like manner as they were. The evangelists Philip and Stephen were chosen with the other five brothers.Tragically, Stephen’s life was cut short in martyrdom in Acts seven. Philip, after ‘serving the tables’ of the neglected Grecian widows (Acts 6), went down to Samaria to preach (Acts 8). It was Christian…

(Acts 9:10-19; 22:12-16) Ananias of Damascus is inextricably connected to the conversion of Saul of Tarsus.When God told Ananias in a vision that Saul was in town, he was unsurprisingly concerned. A visit to that man was considered dangerous for one’s health. His reputation for harming Christians naturally preceded him.But visit him he must. Saul had been blind and praying for the last three days. God told him in a vision to expect Ananias, “a devote observer of the Law…

(Acts 6-7; Acts 22:20) There are some people of whom “the world was not worthy” (Heb.11:37).Stephen was one of these!The apostle Paul would look back on the day that he gave hearty approval to the mob-murder of the first Christian martyr (Acts 22:20). The man that Paul and the others hated from the depth of their being was to be the kind of man that Paul would one day strive to be.The neglect of the Grecian widows was a potential…

(Luke 24:13-35) Hope will inspire you to persevere under the most difficult of circumstances. A sense of meaning will focus your mind and heart on the outcome, despite the present trials.By contrast, disappointment and despair will debilitate you. When disillusionment sets in, the heart goes into crisis mode.Cleopas and his friend were discussing Jesus when Jesus joined up with them on the road to Emmaus. Why Jesus didn’t reveal himself to them we’ll never know. But what is obvious is…

(Gen.3:20; 4:1; 1Tim.2:13; 2 Cor. 11:3) Eve, the mother of us all, is the only person created who permeates our every thought and plagues the regrets of our hearts. And all this without her name ever needing to be spoken. Her beginnings were perfection, her end desolation. Her duty a simple command, her rebellion a world of confusion. In the Hebrews Eleven Hall of Faith we do not find her. Rather, Paul holds her forth to illustrate the grave concern…

(John 1:43-51; 21:2; Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14). Philip had found the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. News he was not going to keep from his friend, Nathanael.Nathanael would have been familiar with the small and insignificant town of Nazareth. So, asking: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (Jn.1:46), was probably said more out of surprise than anything else. As Nathanael approached Jesus, the first thing that Jesus did was to expose the pure thoughts and intentions of his…