The Discipleship Blog
by Steve Green
Seventh Sunday after Easter – Sunday, 16th May 2021
The Gospel reading assigned to today is the account of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples. Jesus prays to the Father that his disciples will not be taken out of the world but kept safe from the evil one. In this context the author of this Gospel is using the word ‘world’ to represent human society...
Sixth Sunday after Easter – Sunday, 9th May 2021
Why do some people in our society accept the Gospel message while others do not? This was a great historical debate between, amongst others, John Wesley and George Whitefield. John Wesley was adamant that all people could be ‘saved’ while George Whitefield had different views. In our Gospel...
Fifth Sunday after Easter – Sunday, 2nd May 2021
One of the mantras of the modern age is that you end up enjoying the lifestyle that you have earned. Work hard and you will be successful in life. Is this true? The Gospel reading assigned for this week is the account in John’s Gospel of Jesus as the true vine. In one verse, we come across the...
Fourth Sunday after Easter – Sunday, 25th April 2021
How many wars or conflicts are caused by one group of people believing that they are different from others? In the Gospel reading assigned for today, Jesus addresses this whole issue of exclusivity. In Ancient Israel, many of the Jewish religious leaders believed that Israel was the only nation...
Third Sunday after Easter – Sunday, 18th April 2021
The Gospel reading appointed for this week is Luke’s account of Jesus’ appearance to his disciples in the upper room. Luke includes the detail of the disciples actually touching Jesus and then Jesus eating with them. What is the significance of this? Perhaps there was a heresy circulating in...
Second Sunday after Easter – Sunday, 11th April 2021
Have you ever considered how debilitating intense fear is? Our brain responds to this type of fear in one of two ways: fight or flight. That is, attack or run away. Once this part of the ‘reptilian’ brain ‘takes over’, all higher order functions of the brain close down and we cannot show love,...