When Paul wrote 1 Corinthians he promised to send Timothy to them (1 Corinthians 4:17; 16:11). First Corinthians was a difficult letter for Paul to send as things in the church in Corinth were not well. There were divisions in the church threatening the unity the Spirit gives (1:10–17; 3:1–23). They were proud of sexual…

We’ve been working our way through the Apostles’ Creed on Sunday mornings, examining what has been believed “everywhere, always, by all” Christians. (See here for more about that.) Last Sunday we looked at the Creed’s claim that “We believe in the holy catholic church, the communion of saints”. (You may watch or listen to the…

When God brought Israel out of Egypt and then placed them in the land he had promised Abraham, his intent was that he would be the King of Israel. The people would be largely self-governed, for if they would keep the law of Moses, God would protect them and cause them to prosper. If they…

Last Sunday we looked at the ascension of Jesus, which worked out quite well given that last Sunday was Ascension Sunday—the Sunday after Ascension Day. Since Easter is always on a Sunday and since Jesus ascended into heaven 40 days after his resurrection, Ascension Day is always on a Thursday, yet many churches celebrate the…

During our topical sermon series on the Apostles’ Creed, we end our gathered assembly by reciting the Creed together. Many of us come from a variety of traditions and in these different traditions the Creed may be recited differently, which has raised this question of the version we use: why does it say Jesus descended…