We seldom talk about the devil. Many people are afraid of the devil. Many are so afraid that they don’t even want to talk about him. If someone mentions him, they quickly take their stuff and go somewhere else. Others say you shouldn’t mention the devil at all, because that gives him unnecessary honour. But […]
Read moreOne of my best friends is a missionary in the Ukraine. They are assisting the church there to get back on its feet and to make a difference wherever they go. The small congregations that already exist have nothing. Actually, they can’t survive, but still they are driven to proclaim Jesus’ message wherever they go. […]
Read moreTall trees catch the most wind. A lot of wind. If you give yourself out to be a toffee, somewhere along the way someone will chew on you. This is what happened to Paul. A group of false prophets in Corinth was spreading lies about Paul and worst of all, some members of the congregation […]
Read moreSome preachers “sell” Christianity to unsaved people in a way that makes everything sound wonderful and nice. Sort of pie in the sky where everything go swimmingly. Make a couple of corrections in your life and see the blessings of the Lord rain on you. Your present suffering is simply the result of your own […]
Read moreWe read in Chapter 9 how Paul was teaching the people of Corinth about giving. He gave good advice like: 5I want you to have all the time you need to make this offering in your own way. I don’t want anything forced or hurried at the last minute. Or like: 7I want each of […]
Read moreThe money that had been collected in Corinth had to be taken to its destination. The money was handled very carefully. Paul and the others did everything possible to ensure that the money reached its destination safely and that nobody could suspect them of taking some. 19… The churches handpicked him to go with us […]
Read moreI don’t know why this happens, but if you have a sore toe or finger you keep bumping it against things. Or someone touches that sore spot. The you want to go through the roof. I suspect it’s the same when you talk about giving, money and gifts. People get easily upset when you talk […]
Read moreMy friend and I were sitting on the stoep having a chat. We had moved from people who found it difficult to give to stories about people who cannot stop giving. I wondered out loud whether people who give easily were happier people. As he left he summed up the evening’s conversation with a simple […]
Read moreWe’re going to talk about giving for a while. Paul tried to encourage the people of Corinth to be generous towards those who were less fortunate. To convey this message he used the congregation of Macedonia as an example. They were a remarkable group of people, because even though things weren’t going well for them, […]
Read moreIt’s not easy being admonished for doing wrong. When someone confronts me, everything in me kicks into defence mode and I defend myself to the utmost. You too? I wonder why we behave like this. Maybe the fear that others will see that we’re not as perfect as we pretend to be, or maybe we […]
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