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7 Ways Jesus Reverses the Curse From Eden

Everything about the Kingdom of God is a reversal of worldly powers (servant leadership, first shall be last, etc.). God’s ways are opposed to the World’s ways. Likewise, everything about the Gospel is a reversal of what went wrong in the beginning of creation and nowhere is this highlighted more than during the Passion, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. So here are seven ways in which Jesus reverses all the mistakes and curses from creation. 1. The disobedience in the Garden of Eden is now rectified by the obedience of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Genesis 3:11Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat? Luke 22:42...

Unveiling the Trinity: Exploring the Nature of Jesus and the Incarnation

I recently received a question about the nature of Jesus and the incarnation, which delves into the mystery of the Trinity: "Sorry to trouble you, but I have only one question: Is God the Father and Jesus His Son the same, God Himself in the flesh when He walked the earth? I am still struggling with this concept. When Jesus asked His Father, was He essentially talking to Himself?" Thanks so much for the question, and it is a good question when asked genuinely. It is obviously a very deep and complex topic that covers a lot of Scripture (and history) to fully make sense of, but I’ll try and keep this brief to cover the key points. To gain a better unders...

Fasting: A spiritual and physical discipline

...ncient “Jesus Prayer”: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” When words fail you and your mind is busy and cluttered, I have found this to be most helpful in stilling and focusing the mind completely on God. This practise dates back to around the 4th century when monks endeavoured to do as Paul instructed when he wrote to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). The Prayer is simple and easy to remember, with the point that you can pray it anywhere, anytime when you want to focus; or during contemplative Prayer when you have time to really focus on each word and phrase and its meaning. It is said that this Prayer con...

I am one with the Force; the Force is with me – A Star Wars theology

...is is the Jesus Prayer:   "Lord Jesus Christ Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner"   This Prayer is short and repetitive much like the Star Wars Force Prayer, and was also first introduced by a monk (though a hermit monk rather than a warrior monk!). From the history of the Jesus Prayer I once read, it was the quest of a young monk who wanted to fully understand Paul’s encouragement to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess 5:15-18) and he came across a hermit who taught him this method. The purpose of this Jesus Prayer, much like Chirrut Imwe’s use of the Force Prayer, is to constantly bring to mind, and keep it focussed on, God at all times, hence “...

Great Lent: The Season of Fasting

...ncient “Jesus Prayer”: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” When words fail you and your mind is busy and cluttered, I have found this to be most helpful in stilling and focusing the mind completely on God. This practise dates back to around the 4th century when monks endeavoured to do as Paul instructed when he wrote to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). The Prayer is simple and easy to remember, with the point that you can pray it anywhere, anytime when you want to focus; or during contemplative Prayer when you have time to really focus on each word and phrase and its meaning. It is said that this Prayer con...

Why do bad things happen to 'good' people?

...A question most often asked by Christians and non-Christians alike is "why do bad things happen to 'good' people?" I say 'good' in quotations because, as Paul writes in Romans 3:10, "There is no one who is righteous, not even one". In light of that this question is technically, fundamentally flawed, as it presupposes that some people are better or more worthy than others. We all do wrong one way or another, so at a base level and in comparison to a Holy God, no one is any more 'good' than another, which is Paul's argument I believe (but that's probably a whole other blog post for another day). But that aside, taking the question as it is, and assuming tha...