Matthew
Living In Exile: “Resurrection”
Defeat is swallowed up in victory, death is swallowed up in life; the gates of the realm of the dead (hades) will not prevail against God’s assembled people because Jesus [&hell...
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Living In Exile: “Homecoming”
How does God come to us? Not in wrath, not in raw power, but lowly riding on the colt of a donkey. The king comes but with peace not war […]
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Living In Exile: “Glimpsing Glory”
C. S. Lewis talks about a mistake we all make; we glimpse something in a sunset, for example, or a piece of music and it reminds us of a longing, […]
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Living in Exile: “Cost of Discipleship”
There is something fundamentally challenging in the Christian gospel: those who want to be saved must die. Any attempt to avoid this central truth is merely religion that cannot...
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Living in Exile: “Securing the Church”
Churches like Northview can feel very fragile; there’s budgets, volunteers, time constraints, and personality conflicts to navigate. Not to mention the sidelining done by the cu...
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Living in Exile: “Rendezvous”
The wilderness can be a terrifying place. Whether it is wind and waves, hunger and temptation, or loneliness and rejection the place of exile is unsettling. In that place God’s ...
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Living In Exile: “Multiplying Gifts”
The eyes of the flesh or the eyes of the kingdom; with which set of eyes will we look at life and ministry? Its an essential question to ask and […]
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In All Things Charity: First Things First
“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity,” is a phrase that sums up John Wesley’s practical theology. Charity in Wesley’s day means “love.” In s...
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Faithful Presence: “Prayer”
The Lord’s Prayer is not simply a pattern of prayer or a recommendation of prayer. Somehow, the Lord’s Prayer is the DNA of the church. This prayer must be both […]
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Living In Exile: “The New Family”
Families have been the backbone of human history. It has been by having children that we’ve carried on and have had a future. However, in the kingdom of God, the […]
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Living In Exile: “Least in the Kingdom”
Jesus is a new moment of salvation in God’s history with his creation. As a result those who enter through him enjoy a greater privilege. This grace is truly awe-inspiring!
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Living In Exile: “Dangerous Dining”
Our work, at its heart, is invitational. And, as Jesus reminds his opponents, the kingdom is coming to those who have typically been excluded from entry. While this grace refuse...
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Living In Exile: “Defeating Satan On His Turf”
When we do our work of kingdom witness to our neighbours we have an enemy that is working to disrupt that work. Belief in the devil is at an all […]
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Living In Exile: “Preparing For Ministry”
In this scene we have the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit all acting and moving. This is the moment of Jesus’s baptism and the preparation for his ministry. […]
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Living In Exile: “Preaching Fire”
When the moment of God’s rescue arrives it is never just a rescue from our dire circumstance. No matter what our situation is, when God moves he moves to change […]
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Living In Exile: “A New Beginning”
Certain details seem very familiar: Joseph, a dream, and salvation, but other parts are strangely different: a pregnant virgin and a human saviour who is “God with us.” Sometime...
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Almost Christian: “Unrepentant”
We all run the risk of shifting in our thinking and living from claiming the grace of God for our inclusion into the kingdom to thinking we’re in and stay […]
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Almost Christian: “Real Forgiveness”
What would stop you from extending forgiveness to someone and why? Of course, the very language of forgiveness is quite foreign to our culture and, as a result, often to […]
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Almost Christian: “Do You Even Know Me?”
Christianity is not simply ticking a box for our preferred religion, nor is it merely holding the correct beliefs. Jesus came announcing that the kingdom of God had come. At [&h...
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Breaking Idols: “Seeing New Things”
What is the source of new creation? The same one who created the heavens and the earth promises to remake them. To bring about the new heavens and the new […]
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