Word on Wednesday with John Mason

Doubt is not the opposite of Faith, as we see in this section of John's gospel - chapter 14 and verses 1-14. Jesus doesn't dismiss questions from Thomas and Philip, but responds with words which are astonishing and which give us hope and a challenge to help others see that *The Air We Breathe is shaped by Christianity. *Author, Glen Scrivener

Elections and the resulting political discourse remind us how much most people long for a leader who will bring us justice and peace, protection and prosperity. However, on every occasion our aspirations are dashed as leaders reveal their flaws and failures and self-interest. No one proves to be the ideal leader. Let me suggest one exception: Jesus who said, “I am the good shepherd. The good sheph...

Jesus is the Door and the Guard/Protector of each one of his people - his sheep.

In his book God’s Undertaker: Has Science Buried God? Dr. John Lennox, emeritus Professor of Mathematics Oxford University, writes, ‘To the majority of those who have reflected deeply and written about the origin and nature of the universe, it has seemed that it points beyond itself to a source which is non-physical and of great intelligence and power’. Transcendent Power . Yet in today’s world wh...

Jesus' resurrection is the foundation for our belief as Christians.

In his book God’s Undertaker: Has Science Buried God? Dr. John Lennox, emeritus Professor of Mathematics Oxford University, writes, ‘To the majority of those who have reflected deeply and written about the origin and nature of the universe, it has seemed that it points beyond itself to a source which is non-physical and of great intelligence and power’. Transcendent Power . Yet in today’s world wh...

Jesus fulfills prophecy and his own words to his disciples. On the third day after his brutal death, his tomb is empty. Listen to the conversation of two people on the road to Emmaus.

Easter Day that we celebrate this Sunday is a gala day as we remember Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. His resurrection underscores the validity of the Christian faith. Without it, we are lost. That said, our joy with Jesus’ resurrection raises interesting questions: Why isn’t an empty tomb the symbol of Christianity? Why is the symbol a cross? In today’s age when feelings and political correctn...

Why is the cross, the tool of Roman torture and brutality, the symbol of Christianity?

Royal events attract the attention of millions around the world. It is estimated some 4 billion people watched the funeral of her late Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II – more than twice the population of the world when she was born. How different was another royal occasion, when Jesus rode into Jerusalem to the acclamation of the crowds calling on him as God’s King. A King’s Welcome. The Gospels tell u...

Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a colt, the foal of an ass, fulfilling Zechariah's prophecy. But can he be God's King, entering the city in this way? And how can it be that God's King is put to death so brutally?

The subject of death is not something we usually discuss. It’s too personal and confronting. Yet it’s the ultimate certainty we all face. It’s why literature, film and philosophy so often dwell on the themes of our mortality. But it’s rare that anyone claims they can do anything about it. Death is assumed to be the inevitable end for everyone. In John chapter 10 we learn that life had been heating...

In our troubled world many long for the days of the great revivals – perhaps the days of the Wesleys and George Whitfield in England and in the US, or the years of Billy Graham, or the days of great revival in East Africa. Let me suggest we shouldn’t be discouraged. Jesus himself began with a small group of men and women and look what happened: by the 4th century AD the influence of God’s gospel h...

John chapter 11 relates the astonishing event in Bethany, when Jesus called Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary out of the tomb, after he had been dead for several days.

In his Pensées Blaise Pascal, the 17th century French mathematician and philosopher wrote, ‘Everyone seeks happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. They will never take the least step but to this object…’ John the Gospel...

Jesus heals a man who was born blind. He does it so simply and so completely that it results in a series of intriguing conversations between the man, his neighbours, his parents, the Jewish leaders and Jesus himself.

Jesus offers a Samaritan woman Living water which will satisfy her longing for happiness.

Jesus offers a woman Living Water - the only way she will find happiness.

Jesus heals a blind man and an interesting conversation ensues with the Pharisees. God's power has been seen and the man himself comes to realise it. However, the Jewish leaders don't want to see it and the insight of the man compared with their spiritual blindness is portrayed in an absorbing exchange of words.

In today’s world, God is not so much dead as cancelled. He is not to be spoken about. If he does exist, there’s nothing good to say about him: he is grim and uncaring. How different this is from what the Bible actually says about God. Consider the most well- known words in the Bible: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but hav...

John 3:1-16 - God's love for us is so profound that he sent his own Son to be a willing sacrifice that paid the penalty for our dismissing of him and our ignoring of him.

Human relationships on the personal and international level must rate as the greatest challenge for the world’s future. As I remarked this day last year, the invasion of Ukraine reveals an unspoken issue that confronts us: humanity is flawed. The Russian author, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn once commented, If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary...

Jesus' words in Matthew chapter 6 about desiring God's approval and not that of people, private and genuine prayer, private giving which only God sees.

Aspects of Christianity can seem far-fetched to our 21st century minds. The miraculous elements can make it feel like the story of Santa Claus or fairies at the bottom of the garden. But before we dismiss the supernatural events of the Bible as fiction, it’s worth remembering GK Chesterton’s words about truth and fiction: ‘Truth must necessarily be stranger than fiction, for fiction is the creatio...

Jesus' transfiguration, witnessed by three of his disciples, gives us a glimpse of our hope when Jesus returns.