By Erik Raymond Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay Christ’s Heart for the Hurting We have two pairs of spectacles to look through when reading the Gospel accounts. With one, we perceive what is natural to us and to anyone else who would look in. With the other, we see through the eyes of Christ. He Seemed Hopeless One such example is found in the fifth chapter of Mark’s Gospel. Readers are greeted by this man almost as quickly as Jesus was. Mark writes in verse 3,

By Jon Nielson Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash As the passage unfolds, we discover that Jesus’s disciples find themselves in a desperate situation! While they are crossing over the Sea of Galilee in a boat with Jesus, “a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat” (Mark 4:37). At least three of these men are fishermen, familiar with this sea. They have seen their share of storms! This storm, though, is one that they know they can’t survive. They wak

By Elizabeth Mckinney and Chris Mckinney Photo by Kindel Media: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-white-dress-shirt-beside-woman-in-black-and-white-polka-dot-dress-7578965/ Start with the Smallest of Steps The parable of the mustard seed has something to teach shy neighbors and reluctant mailbox-wavers (Mark 4:30-32) What kind of seed? The smallest of seeds. Seeds already strike us as miniature and inconsequential, but Jesus reminds us that great treasures come from these m

By Rev Tan Eng Boo Earlier this year, I came across a Facebook post about the arrival of Himalayan vultures in Singapore. I was excited about their arrival, and I contacted some birding friends who shared the location of where these rare visitors had been spotted. The very next morning, I made my way to Clementi and was rewarded with a magnificent aerial display of these birds in mid-air. I managed to capture a photo of these impressive birds of prey in flight. Himalayan vult

Photo by meriç tuna on Unsplash We see from Jesus' parable of the soils that there are at least four different kinds of people to whom the Word of God comes. The first group consists of those who pay no heed to the gospel at all. Never do they show any positive response to Scripture, not even on the surface. They are so hardened to God's Word that the devil is able to snatch it away from them (Mark 4:4, 15). The second group responds in what seems to be an exceedingly positiv

By Harriet Connor Photo by Jonny Gios on Unsplash Who’s Your Family? Some people argue we should see our church as our “first family.” Jesus certainly refocused membership in God’s family: Now anyone can join the family not by bloodline, but by faith in him (John 1:12–13; Gal. 3:6–9). God’s family now grows primarily through the spread of the gospel, not the birth of children (Matt. 28:19–20). Consequently, those without spouse or children have a valued place and purpose in

By Jonathan Pennington Photo by Jametlene Reskp on Unsplash Texts and Their Reception The “blasphemy of the Holy Spirit” language comes directly from the Gospels and is found in parallel accounts in Matthew 12:31-32, Mark 3:28-29, and Luke 12:10. In all these cases the literary context varies slightly, but there’s a consistency in emphasizing the one greatest and unforgivable sin—the “speaking against” or “blaspheming” of the Holy Spirit. Space doesn’t permit a fuller explor

By Rev Tan Eng Boo The central promise of the Christian faith is beautifully expressed in the words of Jesus recorded in John 11:25–26: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” These words are profound, yet they can also sound puzzling—even unbelievable. I recall attending a Christian vigil service where this passage was read aloud before the

by Mark Dever Photo by Jonny Gios on Unsplash Laboring for the Sake of Others Being a disciple of Jesus means orienting our lives toward others, just as Jesus did. It means laboring for the sake of others. This love for others is at the heart of discipling. We set our sights on serving others for Christ’s sake just as Christ came into the world not to be served, but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). The discipling life is an others-oriented life.

By Jared C. Wilson Photo by Tim Wildsmith on Unsplash Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bride- groom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fa

By Joe Carter Photo by Brian Chan on Unsplash As the Apostle Paul said, in order to avoid associating with unrepentant sinners we “would need to go out of the world” (1 Cor. 5:9). We therefore don’t need to be concerned about eating, partying, or hanging out with unbelievers in a place where no sin is occurring (at least openly). We could have made that argument without needing Jesus as an example. But what happens when we consider how using Jesus as a model affects the clai

By Joni Eareckson Tada Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” — Mark 2:4-5 What

By Rev. Tan Eng Boo When David fled to hide from his enemies. (Waterfall in En-gedi, Israel) When David was overwhelmed with sorrow and despair, his enemies taunted him with a piercing question: “Where is your God?” In Psalm 42:3 he writes: “My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, ‘Where is your God?’” This question strikes at the heart of faith. David was described as “a man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22). He was

By Matthew Emadi Photo by Tim Wildsmith on Unsplash This brief article will explore the biblical-theological significance of the leper’s cleansing. Leprosy, the Priesthood, and the Need for Cleansing The focus of Mark 1:40–45 is on cleansing, not healing, though the two are related. The words “clean” or “cleanse” appear four times in the span of five verses (vv. 40, 41, 42, 44). Leprosy, which refers to various skin diseases in the Old Testament (Lev. 13), rendered people ri

Photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash Mark 1:23–28 records the first of many exorcisms that Jesus performed during His earthly ministry. We must note that Jesus is not the only first-century teacher to whom exorcisms are attributed; other rabbis were known for casting out demons. What sets our Lord apart is the manner in which He exorcised evil spirits. Other exorcists relied on particular procedures to help oppressed people and by no means worked on the basis of their own in

By Erin Davis Photo by Samson Bush: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-shark-swimming-in-the-ocean-6927443/ The Original Start-Up The church is the original start-up, launched in an upper room, led by co-founders Jesus and the Holy Spirit and a bunch of guys crazy enough to bet everything they had on the mission. The church is how the gospel went viral. The disciples set the world on fire with their message and a simple mission statement: Go therefore and make disciples of all na

By Rev Tan Eng Boo Photograph of Grace Bible-Presbyterian Church taken by Rev. Tan Eng Boo “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.” (Matthew 5:14) Years ago, a tornado destroyed a small church along the coast of England. The congregation was too poor to rebuild it. One day, a representative from the British Admiralty visited the local minister and asked whether the church intended to rebuild. The pastor explained their financial difficulties. T

By Jared C. Wilson Photo by Mojave Jeff on Unsplash The temptation of Jesus works backward and forward. It works backward because we see in the ways that Satan tempts Jesus the exact same ways he tempted Adam and Eve. If you remember, the serpent led Eve to believe that the forbidden fruit looked good for food. This parallels Satan tempting the hungry Jesus to turn the stones to bread. Then Eve saw that the fruit was “a delight to look at.” This is similar to Satan showing J

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash Dear Gracians, Thank you for being a part of the process of indicating your views regarding our church logo, in the light of our Jubilee this year. As a recap, the purpose of the exercise is to help us review the key components of our church through the logo, namely, the foundation of Christ and His Word & the indwelling of the Spirit. It was also meant to promote greater unity & anticipation among us as the Lord leads us to make further p

“Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works!” (Psalm 105:1–2) Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, as we gather with thankful hearts, we cannot help but praise the Lord for His bountiful grace and abundant blessings upon Grace B-P Church over the past 50 years. When I reflect on this journey, I marvel at how faithfully the Lord has sustained His work among us throu