Mark Barnes's Blog, page 3

Christ on every page

One of the things I love most about the Bible is the way it all fits together. Sometimes the same thing pops up at vital parts of the story, like the tree of life in Genesis 2:9. It’s there again after the fall, this time barred from Adam and Eve because of the curse (Genesis 3:22). Yet then it reappears in heaven (Revelation 2:7), with an invitation to eat its fruit. In between, you have another tree, we call it the tree of death. On that tree the curse was reversed, as our access to the tre...

Lord, help!

A few months ago I had something of an epiphany. I realised that one reason why many of my prayers weren’t being answered was that I was probably praying for the wrong things. My prayers would go something like this: ‘Lord, I’m having a tough time in this situation. Please make it better.’

I’m sure you’ve prayed prayers like that, too. Perhaps you’ve been having a tough time with your boss at work, and you’ve been praying your boss would stop giving you such a hard time. Or maybe you’ve recen...

Lloyd-Jones and 1966, Fifty Years On: A personal reflection

Over the last fifty years the events of 18th October 1966 have acquired legendary status amongst conservative evangelicals in Wales. I was born nearly nine years after those events, but as a young Christian in North Wales, Martyn Lloyd-Jones and his call for gospel unity still shaped my evangelical identity – the churches I knew had been fundamentally influenced by his call for evangelical unity, and the ministers I respected were shaped by that event and the repercussions that followed.

As a...

How should Christians vote?

In May and June this year, we’ll get an opportunity to vote in local elections, in the European Union referendum, and for a Police and Crime Commissioner. Some of us will also be voting for a mayor.

Apathy and disillusionment

As a nation, we don’t get very enthusiastic about elections. In 2012, only about 30% of Brits voted in local elections, and half that in the election for the Police and Crime Commissioner. There’s probably a combination of factors behind the apathy. Disillusionment with...

Should Christians be progressives or traditionalists?

Most of us are either progressives or traditionalists. Progressives think society can improve through new freedoms and forward thinking. Traditionalists think society can be improved by restoring good things that we’ve lost. Which are you? And which should Christians be?

It’s partly a political question. Progressives are more likely to vote for the Liberal Democrats, whilst traditionalists more likely to vote for the Conservatives. It’s partly a generational question. Younger people are more...

Why don’t Christians sing the blues?

There are times in every Christians’ life when sadness and grief strike. For some it comes for a season, brought about by tragedy or loss. For others sorrow is almost an integral part of daily life. So here’s my question. Why is it that our hymnody often doesn’t reflect the way that many of us feel?

It hasn’t always been like this. More than a third of the Psalms are laments. Take Psalm 88 for example:

I am overwhelmed with troubles
and my life draws near to death.
I am counted among those wh...

‘One-man ministry’ or ‘Team ministry’?

The Bible is full of great heroes, but those heroes were rarely on their own. Moses had Aaron and Joshua, David had Jonathan and later Joab and his mighty men, Paul had Timothy and Luke among many others. Even Jesus had his twelve disciples.

It seems that God intended this to be a model that should be followed by the leaders of God’s people in every generation. The pattern seems to be that God would raise up a leader, and he would also raise up a team around that leader to support them in the...

Facing up to persecution

When I was in Bible College, the only time we learned about persecution was in Church History classes. Yet in some parts of the world, ‘Standing Under Persecution’ is a required module for all evangelists and pastors.

We’ve had it easy in the West, for generations. I’ve never preached or heard a sermon about dealing with persecution. I don’t have any recent books about it. Modern systematic theologies don’t mention it.

It’s tempting to say that we don’t suffer from or think much about persecu...

Hearing God speak

Brenda’s seen a job advert, and she’s wondering whether she should apply. Liam’s wife has just left him, and he simply doesn’t know what to do. Richard feels as though God has been distant, and he longs for a closer walk with him. Sophie’s just had to undergo tests at the hospital, and she’s bracing herself for bad news. Daniel’s getting married in a few weeks, and he want the best possible start to married life. Lucy’s stuck in the same old sin (again), and she aches to be free.

Six very dif...

Church and State

Most Britons think the Church should be separated from the state, according to a 2013 survey for Prospect Magazine — and for once, I’m sure the majority is right.

A brief history of Europe

The ties between Church and State in Britain don’t come from Biblical principles or apostolic practice. For the first three centuries of its existence, Church and Empire remained separate. Sometimes relations were friendly, often the State was hostile. That changed in 311AD, when the Roman Emperor Constanti...