Streams of Living Water

Malaysia is a dangerous place to live – it has all the same problems we have in Britain – murders, robberies, muggings etc – but added to that, it is the ambulance accident capital of the world. In the space of 9 months of last year, 112 ambulances were involved in 120 accidents, killing 2 people and injuring 29. Isn’t it ironic (and not just a little bit worrying) that the very agencies which are meant to save people, end up killing them! What is true of ambulances in Malaysia is true also of man-made religion – that kind of religion which talks a lot about good works, and being nice and keeping up appearances; or that kind of religion which talks about meditation and getting in touch with the spirit world. Mankind makes up these religions in order to provide a rescue line from the feelings of emptiness and guilt, and the moral degradation of this life. But the effort involved in living such a good life, and being nice all the time, and keeping up appearances, or in burning jo-sticks and chanting mantras doesn’t save the human soul – rather, it destroys it. They are Malaysian ambulances – killing the very people they have been created to save. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever laughed at a joke, not because it was funny, but just out of courtesy and because that is what is expected? That’s what happened at a recent diplomatic banquet held in Seoul, South Korea, according to the Reuters News Agency. An Asian diplomat was busy telling a long joke; his Korean interpreter was lost but he did not show it. Rather, he uttered a few sentences and the audience laughed and applauded. Later on, after being complimented for his translating skills, the Korean interpreter confessed to the real reason for the laughter – “Frankly minister, I did not understand your joke, so I said in Korean that the minister has told his obligatory joke, would you all please laugh heartily and applaud.” Do you ever say things, or do things, not because you understand them, but because that is what is expected of you? Read the rest of this entry »

Read: Hebrews 11:1-6
Perhaps the most vexed question of our generation is that concerning the existence of God. Atheism – the belief that there is no God - has become fashionable. Now I would hope that none of us here are atheists – wouldn’t it be strange to find atheists in a prayer meeting, praying to a God they don’t think exists. But, what really do we know about God? Are we able to rationally set out what we believe concerning what God is and what God is like? Read the rest of this entry »

Read: John 4:19-26
Has there, in the history of Great Britain, ever been a time when people have been more interested in ‘spirits’? Many people have ‘spirit guides’; newspapers don’t bother with agony aunts any more – they just get a psychic to answer people’s problems. There is even a whole channel on Sky TV devoted to spirits. Now I don’t want to talk about these kind of spirits at all tonight, and I would urge you to steer well clear of it – not just because it’s demonic and dangerous, but because we have the greatest of all Spirits, God Himself, to worship and to be interested in. Read the rest of this entry »

Read: Psalm 139:1-24
Psalm 139 is, at the same time, the most uncomfortable, and the most comfortable chapter in the Bible. That’s because it talks about the infinity of God – the God who you cannot get away from. Wherever you go, whatever you are doing or thinking, God is there. God is everywhere – He is infinite. Sometimes you might want to get away from Him, but you can’t. Sometimes, you just want to know that He’s with you – and He is. God is infinite. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever had to give a talk about something you didn’t understand? Perhaps in School or Uni, you had to give a presentation about something you didn’t even begin to grasp. Tonight is a bit like that – we are finite, mortal humans – how then can we understand what God being an infinite, eternal being means? If it were not for the Bible, we wouldn’t be able to say anything about Him at all.
The fact that God is eternal forms the fourth in our studies into Q&A #4 of the Shorter Catechism – “What is God? God is a Spirit – infinite, eternal and unchangeable, in his being wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.” I want to divide our study tonight into two sections: first, God and His eternity, where we will look what the phrase “God is eternal” means; and then secondly, Man and God’s Eternity, where we consider some applications of God’s eternity. Read the rest of this entry »

Although I’m not an artist, I have heard of the most famous sculpture in Coventry. It is called ‘reconciliation’ and it depicts two former enemies forgiving each other. Coventry had much to forgive, since the Luftwaffe destroyed it in World War II. Bronze reproductions of this statue have also been placed in the peace Gardens in Hiroshima, Stormont Castle in Belfast and as part of the Berlin Wall Memorial. It is one of the most famous modern sculptures in the world, and it shows the importance, the indispensability of reconciliation between enemies. Read the rest of this entry »

Makeover – that’s the name of the game. Whether it is a 30 minute facial makeover from a plastic surgeon, a 60 minute makeover of your house on ITV or a 90 minute makeover of your business by some guru, everyone is now in the market for a makeover. Change the way you look and you’ll change the way you feel – change the outside and the inside will follow – that’s the message of our advertising generation.
But what does the Bible say about makeovers? Read the rest of this entry »

On one hand you have Joel Osteen – handsome, well-spoken Texan, addressing thousands in a football stadium somewhere in Bible Belt America – whitened teeth and Armani suit. On the other hand you have Jonathan Edwards – scrawny old Yankee addressing only a few in a run down 18^th Century building in hardened New England – immaculately dressed but the jacket is beginning to show signs of its age. Which of these two should a young man in the ministry try and be like? What kind of ministry and minister should you expect? One who goes for regular teeth-whitening and takes elocution classes or what? Read the rest of this entry »