Bethnal Green Mission Church

The season of Lent takes us on a journey into wilderness. The theme occupies a powerful place in the story of God's people and in the imagination of biblical writers, both as a geographical location and as a metaphor. In this peculiar and unique Lent of 2021, how does this wilderness theme shape our understanding of testing, temptation and our Christian identity and discipleship?

The Rescuing Revelation road comes to an end. The relevance and practically of the whole book is often hidden by inappropriate and misguided interpretations, and our intention was to, at least, address some of these. From Chapter 22 verse 6, the vision forms a 'coda' to the finale of the book with an 'alter call' or invitation by the exalted Jesus. What is this invitation and what does it really m...

Revelation Chapters 21 and 22 provide a guided tour of what will happen to the earth when God dwells fully in it. It provides us with a spectacular vision of the architecture of the Garden-City of the New Jerusalem. What are the essential qualities of this future and what do we need to enact in the present to be for earth, architecture for the common good?

The large canvas of Revelation 21 & 22 describes what will be absent from the earth when God is fully present in the Garden-City of the New Jerusalem. How can this stunning vision not only give us a hope for the future but a renewed sense of what we do now making a difference to the coming new creation?

Revelation reaches a climax in the highly symbolic, pulsating vision of the New Jerusalem, the radical alternative and polar opposite of Babylon. It is a majestic vision of new creation, of life in where God dwells in the midst. In these first few verses of chapter 21, we explore how this vision shapes our present life - is is just something for the long-distance future when we die or can we hope...

Chapter 20 contains some of the most misinterpreted and controversial concepts in Revelation. What is the millennium, what is the nature of judgement? When is the end of time really the end? In order to makes sense of these concepts we need to revisit the techniques John has consistently used to make his pastoral and theological point. It is only by doing this, we will fully grasp how relevant the...

The concept of fire as a metaphor is common within the Bible. However, fire in both testaments can mean many different things - destruction, holiness, purification, and power for example. What does fire mean for our understanding of God and his presence and power?

Chapter 19 contains both a vision of worship and one of the most violent pictures of Jesus in the New Testament - a blood stained, sword-wielding, white-horse riding warrior. How will evil be overcome and God's enemies defeated? Is Jesus really going to resort to violence at the end of time to defeat evil and restore the cosmos ? John's consistent approach has always been to use contemporary and a...

A responsible approach to the bible seeks to understand how it behaves and how we behave when we come to read and interpret it. We are compelled to see how our many filters and lenses - gender, colour, age, personal history, geographical location etc - inform our understanding of it. We would do well to listen to voices that are different from ours, in order to find a richer and deeper appreciatio...

Trinity Sunday is a chance to celebrate the relational diversity of the Triune God and to reflect on how the perfectly choreographed Divine dance of Father, Son and Holy Spirit should be the basis for our relationships. The church and wider humanity have been given an invitation to participate in the mutual indwelling and generous hospitality of God because we are made in her communal image. What...

The outpouring of God's Spirit at Pentecost was a momentous event in the history of the church. Willie Jennings has called this event, "prophetic boundary crossing and border transgressing". In the light of the murder of George Floyd by US police officers and the subsequent world wide protests, what does this mean for justice, diversity and unity in our churches and wider society? And what has the...

The meaning of Jesus's ascension to heaven, has been in some Christians traditions, largely misunderstood or even ignored. The physical wounds of violence on Jesus body remain visible in his new form. What is the significance of Jesus' healed wounds being carried into eternity? How does this have a bearing on our wounds and those of our neighbours during this pandemic?

The disciple Thomas has acquired over the centuries the nickname 'Doubting Thomas'. Is this reputation justified? What does doubt mean in the context of his encounter with the risen Jesus? What does faithful Christian living look like in times of crisis?

The materiality and physicality of Jesus' risen form seems to be very important to the Gospel writers. But this isn't about Jesus privately modelling a nice new body as way to convince the disciples to believe, this is is a new creation story of cosmic significance. This is nothing less than a resurrection revolution where Jesus' body becomes a prototype of new life breaking into the world. How ca...

The story of the disciples walking along the Emmaus Road and their meal with Jesus provides a helpful backdrop to the challenging times we currently live in. How can the simplicity of a meal with the risen Jesus become such a sacred encounter and revelation? How can Jesus' mealtime habits show us how we can live faithfully and fruitfully at this time?

The risen Jesus seems to play hide and seek with the disciples that encounter him on that first Easter Sunday. The couple on walking in grief and sadness along the Emmaus Road did not, at first, recognise the stranger Jesus coming alongside them. How can a range artistic depictions of this scene help us see the playful way God works with their blindness and ignorance and ours?

The world has been grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic and with it, the suffering, fear and social and economic upheaval it has brought. The gospel writers tell us that the resurrection garden was a place of both fear and joy. What does it mean to hear the risen Jesus' words, 'do not be afraid' at this time? It is possible to experience unexpected joy in the midst of uncertainty?

Easter Sunday starts with a garden scene. While Mary encounters a gardener, whom she does not recognise as Jesus, John is taking the Bible's epic garden story to a new and beautiful climax. How can we find resurrection in these challenging times?

What is the meaning of Easter Saturday? It is just a day's depressing pause in between the huge events of Good Friday and Easter Sunday? Or is something significant happening that day?

Good Friday 2020 is a remembrance of Jesus' death like no other in recent history. How can Jesus' death inform our understanding of the world amidst a global pandemic and lockdown?

Revelation chapters 17 and 18 make uncomfortable reading for empires of all generations. They contain Revelation's most powerful condemnation of these 'Babylons' and those complicit in empire's idolatry and injustice. In the midst of this threat, John calls the church of Asia Minor to have a 'mind of wisdom'. What does this wisdom look like for the 21st century church living in Babylon?

The significance of Jesus' interaction with women has been debated for hundreds of years. What do these encounters and his parabolic teaching mean for the church in terms for equality, inclusion and justice? What do they disclose about the character of God and the Kingdom?

Revelation 16 concludes the sequence of disturbing visions of judgement that John has depicted throughout the book. The bowls of seven plagues and the coming Armageddon provide us with another nightmarish vision but what is their point and how do they function both in reference to John's hearers and 21st Century readers?

Revelation chapter 14 and 15 provide the sense that the picture of the unfolding cosmic warfare in heaven and earth is progressing towards a climatic finish. John poses a question for the church of Asia Minor to answer - what will be your response to the blasphemous unholy trinity before you? He uses a variety of rich and disturbing images to provoke the church to loyalty and perseverance.

Jesus had many encounters with the powerless and marginalised of first century Palestine. He What is Jesus' understanding of poverty and what example does he provide for the church to follow?