tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58863622011-09-30T14:26:12.500+01:00A place for ponderingPaul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.comBlogger621100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-12621297137059782712011-08-31T21:30:00.002+01:002011-08-31T21:40:38.751+01:00

I've decided to move the blog from Blogger to Wordpress. Blogger have looked after me very well over the last few years but I think that he features at Wordpress may suit me better. The view on an IPad is particularly pleasing.Http://www.paullintott.wordpress.comNew siteDon't forget to update your google reader if you follow from there.

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-19799971605720559512011-08-31T11:00:00.001+01:002011-08-31T11:00:59.068+01:00

I had a few more thoughts on discipleship that I wanted to get down on paper before they flittered away out of my sieve like brain.Firstly, who makes disciples?Perhaps the classic answer to this in some circles would be pastors or those in full time leadership with some theological training. I may be overstating the case there but there can be a tendency even in non-conformist churches to see the

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-86540039973077844082011-08-28T17:51:00.001+01:002011-08-31T10:30:36.064+01:00

This morning, while on holiday in rural Lincolnshire, we were treated to a sermon on discipleship. This got me thinking a bit about what it means to disciple people and what I've seen work both in my own experience and while watching others.It seems clear to me that Jesus expects his disciples to make more disciples.Matthew 2818 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-56932699145515315892010-12-31T14:02:00.002+01:002010-12-31T14:40:01.672+01:00

I looked this morning at my daily reading planner and it shows as 99.7% done which means that all being well tonight will be our last reading through the Bible for 2010 and we'll have completed the M'Cheyne system for Bible reading. I thought I would jot down a few reflections on how the reading has gone for the year. I'm not aiming to be profound but rather just honestly reflect on how this year

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-30695084939581562752010-09-29T18:37:00.000+01:002010-09-29T18:37:40.798+01:00

I came across this quote from Luther in another blog and I thought it was good so I thought I'd re-blog it. But then it got me thinking about it. I know Luther loved to be shocking in his language and his constant references to his bowels can raise an eyebrow - but what do you think of this? In this sort of temptation and struggle, contempt is the best and easiest method of winning over the

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-88337543148404911372010-09-05T08:20:00.000+01:002010-09-05T08:20:24.163+01:00

It's easy to feel a little bit embattled and discouraged with the struggle against the world the flesh and the Devil, but Spurgeon had some good words for me this morning: As a Christian you have to live in the midst of an ungodly world, and it is of little use for you to cry "Woe is me." Jesus did not pray that you should be taken out of the world, and what he did not pray for, you need not

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-59074460652245354412010-08-02T09:00:00.000+01:002010-08-02T09:00:04.917+01:00

A little while ago I was working through Thomas A Kempis'  book The Imitation of Christ. I'm not endorsing the whole book but there was a couple of chapters that I thought were really good. Listen to this from chapter 5. TRUTH, not eloquence, is to be sought in reading the Holy Scriptures; and every part must be read in the spirit in which it was written. For in the Scriptures we ought to seek

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-12088264148328654782010-07-28T09:00:00.001+01:002010-07-28T09:00:04.249+01:00

I love reading through the Bible once a year. For me it's a great discipline to keep me from only visiting those bits that I like or feel I need to read for some specific reason or other. The problem with reading through the Bible is a year is that it can easily become an exercise in simply getting through the material rather than properly engaging with it and feeding on it. I was going to

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-78105398336377767232010-07-21T09:51:00.001+01:002010-07-21T09:51:51.974+01:00

It's been a while since I've quoted anything from "The Valley of Vision" so I though some of you might find this prayer helpful. As always there is a very honest confession before God of our failures but also a wonderful dependence on God for help and forgiveness. Notice in the first paragraph how he rejoices because no accusation will finally stand because it has all been laid on Christ. Holy

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-8267294427247841732010-05-05T10:16:00.000+01:002010-05-05T10:16:40.656+01:00

The answer to the question "Am I random?" may well be yes. That is, some of you who know me well may consider me to be a bit scatterbrained and forgetful. But of course, that's not really what I'm asking. I'm asking the question "am I the product of random combinations and blind chance?" Biology is certainly not my speciality but at both school and college mathematics was something I enjoyed and

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-86512186417243097392010-05-03T17:33:00.000+01:002010-05-03T17:33:16.737+01:00

 "I've decided to have a week off church because you don't need to go to church to be a Christian so there is no obligation for me to go" Ever heard anything like that? There are other variations on it: "I don't need to read my Bible every day because there is no command that tells me to in the Bible." and so on and so forth.  Ben (Assistant Pastor at BABC) was preaching on Jesus' words about

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-70244847037597144512010-05-01T11:41:00.000+01:002010-05-01T11:41:35.556+01:00

The Song of Solomon is one of the books of the Bible that lots of people really don't know what to do with. At first glance it is a love poem between Solomon and one of his brides, and as such it's intimate and at times surprisingly explicit. Recent sermons I have heard on the book have taken it primarily as a love poem that speaks into the pre-marriage and marriage setting. In other words its

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-20817273424526145142010-04-30T08:15:00.001+01:002010-04-30T08:16:11.630+01:00

I may well be late to this particular phenomenon but this is a video song about a Systematic Theologian called Wayne Grudem. For those of us who have read his stuff his particular blend of extraordinary clear thinking and obvious heartfelt passion for Christ is compelling. But... I have never before heard of a song written about a systematic theologian. When are we going to get the Berkof rap?

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-2149836774246088422010-04-23T07:43:00.001+01:002010-04-24T12:10:24.731+01:00

A couple of things this week got me thinking about how appropriate expectation is for people who profess to believe in an all powerful God. The first was last Sunday, we looked at Psalm 5, a great song from King David about praying and looking to God in times of trouble. I was really taken with verse 3 "Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-57890200967584040612010-02-26T16:12:00.000+01:002010-02-26T16:12:39.076+01:00

Reading through Job last night I had one of those moments where you come across a verse that you must have read before but it's never hit you in previous readings: Job 26v14 "And these are but the outer fringe of his works;         how faint the whisper we hear of him!         Who then can understand the thunder of his power?" Job has been talking about some of the amazing things that

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-83909190274035072002010-02-18T19:47:00.002+01:002010-07-17T10:43:46.104+01:00

Each week I get an email from the Kairos Journal which has various articles on contemporary issues and articles drawn from older works. I was struck by one of the pieces this week because it touched on an issue that John MacArthur had been speaking on. (LINK) This is the piece from the Kairos Journal: William Wilberforce is famous not only for his persistent efforts to see the slave trade

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-11196596755182700392010-01-29T16:24:00.000+01:002010-01-29T16:24:26.248+01:00

Writing today in "The Times" Richard Dawkins is on a mission to demonstrate again how stupid Christians are and how superior his own brand of religion (athiesm) is to all the rest. I have to say much of the article I agreed with.  I find it amazing that we Christians actually lack the courage to say what the Bible says. We sometimes go to huge lengths to distance ourselves from very simple and

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-89915168508893088872010-01-07T08:03:00.000+01:002010-01-07T08:03:38.248+01:00

It is not difficult to understand what Jesus is getting at in Matthew chapter 6. Three times he condemns religious acts that are done merely for show. He says God hates it when we pray so that other people can see us and give so other people will praise us and fast so other people will applaud us. When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly And when you fast, don’t

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-80158130270630507012010-01-03T16:49:00.004+01:002010-01-07T07:57:51.677+01:00

Generally I dont like New Year resolutions. Not because I dont think they are a good idea but because I often fail to keep them (like most people) and sometimes wonder if they tend to be an exercise in affirming my own power to change things independant of the gospel. But having said that I so much enjoyed my New Years resolution to read through the Bible in 2009. It was a good goal to set and

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-82549567306173301072009-12-02T15:19:00.001+01:002009-12-02T15:37:47.921+01:00

A few observations of things that I observe myself and my friends tempted to find satisfaction in. Please note that because a thing is on the list it is not therefore a bad thing but simply an indication of a good thing becoming a substitute for the best thing. Money Popularity Family Computer games Shopping Sleep Sex Significance Travel Excitement Academic achievement Gadgets Orthodoxy

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-72263954757678573932009-11-19T16:19:00.000+01:002009-11-19T16:19:51.789+01:00

Phillips Brooks says: There is another source of power which I can hardly think of as a separate quality, but rather as the sum and result of all the qualities which I have been naming. I mean Courage. It is the indispensable requisite of any true ministry. The timid minister is as bad as the timid surgeon. Courage is good everywhere, but it is necessary here. If you are afraid of men and a

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-83231268931053161402009-11-13T16:06:00.003+01:002009-11-13T16:12:55.861+01:00

Augustine says: "Faith is to believe what we do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what we believe." I confess I do want to see. I dont want to rush ahead of all the God has in store but the idea of seeing something so spectacular and so mind blowing the Apostle Paul had to be given some trouble to keep him humble after all he had seen makes me excited to see it. There is a land of

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-33910584702504456332009-11-11T22:31:00.000+01:002009-11-11T22:31:01.234+01:00

While away speaking at David Rushbrooks induction service at the weekend I had 10 hours alone to myself in the car. What a pleasure to find that "Desiring God" by John Piper had been released for free this month and ten hours in the car was an ideal opportunity to hear it.So many good things came of listening, so many good things to re-think and re-examine. But one of the things that struck me

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-30535345175382137732009-10-24T17:58:00.000+01:002009-10-24T17:58:23.041+01:00

Probably the best thing I have ever read on repentance as a Christian is Tim Keller's sermon called "All of life is repentance". If you are confused about what repentance for a Christian looks like or whether it is even necessary then do read it. http://download.redeemer.com/pdf/learn/resources/All_of_Life_Is_Repentance-Keller.pdf I hope it will change the way you think about keeping it real.

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-63532236289398069152009-10-20T12:20:00.001+01:002009-10-20T12:22:03.141+01:00

Going through Psalm 119 over the last few days has reminded me how much passion the Old Testament song writer has for God's word. He obviously loves is and not simply because he is religious and likes religious ideas but rather because the Word of God comes from God. Much like I keep some of the letters that Claire sent me there is a connection with the person through the words. In that way the

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-8389491267958163432009-10-14T22:09:00.003+01:002009-10-15T14:47:42.657+01:00

This may or may not connect with you but I found the words stirred my heart. You might find that thinking about all of these things lifts Jesus from the two dimensional "cardboard" character that so many picture him as. The truth is that he is more amazing that we can get our heads round. Colossians  1v15-20  Christ Is Supreme 15  Christ is the visible image of the invisible

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-61249965952368895592009-10-14T09:49:00.001+01:002009-10-14T14:14:49.809+01:00

For me the temptation to let the busyness of church become the thing that drives and consumes me is very real. It is difficult to pursue a proper connected relationship with Christ when I am always thinking about the next thing I need to be doing or the next problem that needs addressing. It seems crazy that being a pastor can sometimes get in the way of being a Christian but I know how easily

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-46809314635991872472009-10-10T10:18:00.003+01:002009-10-10T17:16:58.128+01:00

Sadly Mike Plant was away this morning so couldn't give the second lecture on Calvin at the Teesocs Plus course. I had the dubious privilege of filling in and came across a great quote from Calvin on the heart that I thought I would share: "Its like a man who thinks he has made a fox tame, if he lets it alone for even half a day it returns to its kind . Even so it is with us. We are so wild that

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-49428865902122024842009-10-09T14:59:00.000+01:002009-10-09T14:59:21.922+01:00

Lots of things lately have got me thinking about what I am thirsty for in life. I mean by that what kind of things do I give my time and effort and money to and how far short do they come of what really satisfies. I remember before I became a Christian the feeling of thirst for something that I couldn't quite put my finger on, it was difficult to imagine what could make we feel really full or

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-52178021580696644182009-10-08T11:47:00.002+01:002009-10-08T14:29:35.986+01:00

I find it a difficult thing to know how honest I can be with God when I talk to him. Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that I want to tell him lies or try and pull the wool over his eyes (as if I could), but rather I just don't always know how to present my complaints to God. I want to be honest about the things I face and the issues that press in on me but I sometimes feel unsure about how

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-35807693886332540412009-10-07T08:36:00.000+01:002009-10-07T08:36:32.031+01:00

Due to our incredible denseness God speaks some things over and over and over again. Sometimes the symphony of sources that speak the same word is deafening but still we are not listening. I hear it and then dismiss it as just coincidence. I even rebel against the words of encouragement as if I don't deserve them. He speaks and then with unbelievable patience speaks again and then a glimmer of

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-14254727946215974572009-10-06T10:42:00.000+01:002009-10-06T10:42:50.508+01:00

Reading the account of Hezekiah over the last few days made me realise again how mixed he was. He finds himself under siege from the army of Sennacherib and does the thing that seems to natural and so right. Isaiah 37v14-17 Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the LORD and spread it out before the LORD. 15 And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-69584726715518002622009-10-02T10:41:00.001+01:002009-10-02T22:37:15.693+01:00

Last night we were asking the kids that come to one of our youth groups what they were afraid of. The answers were interesting: spiders (obviously), darkness, dying, adults shouting and so on and so forth. Interestingly when we got home our reading in Isaiah 33 had two verses that talked about fear but spoke about it in two very different ways.  5 The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high;

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-6929850622182936762009-10-01T11:37:00.000+01:002009-10-01T11:37:42.811+01:00

Thinking yesterday evening about the comments in John 15 from Jesus about why people hate him got me thinking about the type of things that Jesus said that got people annoyed. John 15v22-23 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates me hates my Father as well. Jesus draws a strong link between guilt and

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-26183784723921559032009-09-30T10:40:00.002+01:002009-09-30T10:43:33.276+01:00

Reading Isaiah again last night and I found myself challenged by the words that he spoke about a change that would happen with Gods people. Isaiah 29:23-24 ESV      23     For when he sees his children, the work of my hands, in his midst, they will sanctify my name;           they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.      24     And those who go

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-16004964907490522052009-09-29T09:58:00.000+01:002009-09-29T09:58:00.580+01:00

I guess that Jude is one of those short letters in the New Testament that gets overlooked all the time. After all what could 25 verses have to say about our situation and our life, particularly when so much of it seems to be to do with obscure Jewish history? Yesterday John Piper's weekly email dropped into my inbox and I was really challenged by what I read. It was talking about Jude and I

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-23421310177168614402009-09-27T07:34:00.004+01:002009-09-27T09:20:59.013+01:00

The preacher must be a serious man; he must never give the impression that preaching is something light or superficial or trivial….What is happing [in the act of preaching] is that he is speaking to them from God, he is speaking to them about God, he is speaking about their condition, the state of their souls. He is telling them that they are, by nature, under the wrath of God–”the children of

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-22428710398954266282009-09-25T09:58:00.000+01:002009-09-25T09:58:53.659+01:00

Last night we were reading through Isaiah 13 in our read through the Bible in a year plan and I have to say it was a sobering experience. The section is all about God's judgement on Babylon but as with so much of Isaiah it looks forward to a greater fulfilment in our time. What God did to Babylon was awful but what lies ahead for us, if we keep on stubbornly going our own way and doing our own

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-87211124612596928022009-09-24T12:09:00.002+01:002009-09-24T13:06:22.657+01:00

I have for a long time now found the book "Valley of Vision" a real help in my praying. Its a collection of some of the puritan prayers from 400 years ago. One of the things I love about the prayers is that they are real and honest; the puritans weren't afraid to own up to their sin nor were they too prim to express their profound love of God. I find their prayers challenging and helpful:

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-39209669546221729802009-09-23T10:13:00.001+01:002009-09-23T10:17:01.804+01:00

Having spoken on prayer on Sunday I find myself in the middle of the week already struggling to get down to praying properly...again. And as usual it's Satan's well worn trick of telling me that God doesn't love me because I'm too bad. What an encouragement to read Charles Spurgeon this morning talking about Ephesians 1v6. There the Apostle Paul tells us that we are accepted in Jesus, or accepted

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-21113824999304895522009-09-22T09:09:00.000+01:002009-09-22T09:09:51.902+01:00

"Beautiful music is the art of the prophets that can calm the agitations of the soul; it is one of the most magnificent and delightful presents God has given us." Martin Luther It's great to sing isn't it? I love it when we sing at church and we really sing from the heart. For me it doesn't matter particularly if it's an old hymn or a new song, the issue is not so much the style but rather the

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-39749627006878387662009-09-20T17:04:00.000+01:002009-09-20T17:04:19.934+01:00

I just had to share this video. I friend had posted it on their facebook account and I was so moved by what the guy had to say I wanted others to have a look too. The basic premise is that we are messed up and Jesus comes to rescue us when we are messed up not when we are all nice and perfect and think we are ready for him. For most of us that idea of a saviour who rescues us when we are

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-19470639523816153742009-09-19T09:42:00.001+01:002009-09-19T09:43:19.688+01:00

Great to see so many students back for the new Teesocs sessions. How could we have imagined three years ago that God would have been so good to us. Forty three have graduated from the 2007/09 sessions and we now have a whole new set of students sat listening to Philip Tait teaching on Biblical Studies. Mike Plant is currently lecturing the graduate students on John Calvin and I'll be up soon

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-63246551482934043612009-09-18T12:23:00.000+01:002009-09-18T12:23:12.672+01:00

I came across this letter on one of the creation websites this morning, it comes from a man who was an atheist and found the logical conclusions of atheism more than he could cope with. I was interested in it because it challenges the view that rejecting God leads to happiness. Dear CMI, I cannot express my gratitude in words.  I became a Christian three years ago after struggling with thoughts

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-50913627071762757382009-09-17T12:27:00.000+01:002009-09-17T12:27:57.148+01:00

"The person who knows my commandments and keeps them, that's who loves me. And the person who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and make myself plain to him." John 14v21 I was struck last night by how much emphasis Jesus puts on doing what he says. John 14 is the passage about him sending the Spirit to his followers after he leaves them to go to the cross and then to

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-8616257078015117622009-09-16T15:51:00.002+01:002009-09-16T15:51:51.565+01:00

Claire and I are reading through Ecclesiaties at the moment and last night we came across a verse that made us both laugh out loud. "Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise--why destroy yourself?" Ecc 7:16 NIV It seems a bit out of place doesn't it? Is the Bible really saying we shouldn't be serious about being good? Is this really an argument for moderation in all things even holiness?

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-40562195320792738762009-09-15T11:59:00.001+01:002009-09-15T13:25:46.606+01:00

Occasionally when I am reading through something it seems as if God shouts out loud at me and speaks a word that is so appropriate and so relevant that I am bowled over by it. Over the last few weeks of working up at the church I've been revisiting Spurgeon's Morning and Evening book as a means helping to get my head in gear as I start the day. Today what he had to say was one of the times of

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-12636806417978653892009-09-14T22:51:00.000+01:002009-09-14T22:51:02.261+01:00

"I longed for honours, gains, marriage; and You mocked me. In these desires I underwent the most bitter hardships, You being the more gracious the less You allowed anything which was not You to grow sweet to me. Behold my heart, O Lord, you who want me to recall all this, and confess it to You. Now let my soul cleave to You..." Confessions 6:9 We want so many things and still God is

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-19074171410251236902009-09-11T14:53:00.000+01:002009-09-11T14:53:14.360+01:00

As some of you will know I have become a great fan of Red Mountain Music in the last year or so. They have done the excellent thing of setting some of the old hymns to new music and I have to say I just love it. http://www.redmountainchurch.org/rmm/ One hymn that I wasn't familiar with before goes like this: We travel through a barren land,With dangers thick on every hand;But Jesus guides us

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-60800608333637369982009-09-10T09:48:00.003+01:002009-09-10T13:48:49.056+01:00

"Bear with me a little, and I will show you, for I have yet something to say on God’s behalf." Job 36v2 When Elihu arrives on the scene at the end of Job it feels to me like such a mixed up thing. He says some things that are right and good and true and yet his tone and his conclusions seem to be arrogant and somewhat off the mark. It got me thinking about the many people I have met over the

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"And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great" Job 2:13I'm sure it's been said before but it struck me how useful it is to actually say nothing sometimes. Job was in terrible agony both physically and emotionally and his three friends just sat and said nothing for a whole week. Sometimes when you're

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-35138607446767100822009-08-26T09:50:00.000+01:002009-08-26T09:51:07.388+01:00

Job 2:10 … Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?There is a paradox in this verse; we know that God is good and he loves to give good gifts to his children and yet we also know that because he is sovereign he is the one who controls all things, even the bad. Job is speaking truthfully, he knows that God has the right to do whatever he chooses and yet the words here are

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-63921920856896492612009-08-19T21:20:00.002+01:002009-08-20T06:47:56.095+01:00

"Grant that I may not pray alone with the mouth; help me that I may pray from the depths of my heart." Martin LutherIt is difficult to pray isn't it?I often think that I should be much better at it now that ever I was but I wonder if I am worse.

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-84767946372207343902009-08-16T17:05:00.007+01:002009-08-27T08:06:33.813+01:00

I was a bit over ambitious at the beginning of the year. I had been reading various things from Aurelius Augustinus of Hippo and I was surprised at how much I connected with what he had to say. I guess I rather stupidly assumed that 1600 years was a long time and that anyone writing during that period would be so

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-7050125607503455412009-08-16T10:32:00.001+01:002009-08-16T10:33:59.242+01:00

Since reading Augustine's Confessions and various other things he has written I find myself strangely drawn to his style of radical connection with God. He does say some odd things thought, but then don't we all?

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-30066361553029541042009-04-24T17:14:00.002+01:002009-04-24T17:14:51.804+01:00

So, unless there are any advances we are going for this:The Bible is the inspired word of God and the 66 books in it are the final and sufficient authority on all matters of faith and practice.

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-66585028371046067842009-04-20T06:11:00.014+01:002009-04-20T10:33:10.718+01:00

Summary Sentence:We believe the Bible is the inspired word of God and as such is our final authority on all matters of faith and practice.Link to BCoF section 1Is this brief enough?Should there be something in there about the 66 books? Something about scripture interpreting scripture? Something about the Holy Spirit?

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-70465676040108081352009-04-20T05:34:00.009+01:002009-04-20T07:09:32.743+01:00

In an attempt to create a brief summary of the 1689 Baptist confession of Faith I'm going to post some suggestions for a summary sentence for each of the 32 sections of the confession. The hope is that as people read this they will make some useful comments that will help us to come up with a useful short edition of the confession that can be used as an introduction to what Baptists believe.Tools

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-24252555012604451322007-06-18T15:57:00.001+01:002009-04-20T06:39:44.546+01:00

I've been working on two new websites for the Teesocs (Teesside School of Christian Studies)www.teesocs.organdhttp://teesocs.wikidot.com/Check them out

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I think that God is amazing. Surely not surprising coming from a minister you might say, but it suddenly struck me the other day how awesome he is at ordering events in his own perfect way. We might have our plans but he over rules them and puts things in place that are much better than we ever imagined. Certainly at church at the moment, while things may not be entirely easy, they are much more

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-1066301777320265242003-10-16T11:56:00.000+01:002003-10-16T11:56:16.803+01:00

Ian asked a good question at the Bible Study last night: "If we are already one because we are connected to Jesus then how can he pray for us to be one in John 17?" Carson says: “Although the unity envisaged in this chapter is not institutional, this purpose clause at the end of v. 21 shows beyond possibility of doubt that the unity is meant to be observable. It is not achieved by hunting

Paul Lintotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00259285199825334490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5886362.post-1065599663533158522003-10-08T08:54:00.000+01:002003-10-08T09:01:12.416+01:00

We heard yesterday that the offer on the property in Westbourne Road has been accepted. Wahoo! We can hardly believe it. I know there is a long way to go and nothing is certain until we exchange contracts yet we are still grateful to be so much further forward.

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