St Jude's Mapperley Archive Blog

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! It's been a busy week – I can hardly believe that this time last week we were still waiting for Christmas! Many thanks to everyone who has needed a rest after serving in various ways this week – especially thanks to Val for all her hard work with writing, organising and leading the Nativity Service, which went really well! Sorry for any injuries caused by flying chocolate too – it can get really dangerous around Christmastime... Yesterday morning we were looking at Simeon & Anna in Luke 2. Both Geoff and Dennis reminded us of the importance of ordinary people – not the kind of people who make headlines, but the kind of people who know their God, who spend time with him and who wait patiently for him. I remember hearing Bishop Paul mention them as well, and comment on what a privilege it was for them to be praying for Jesus, and for God to use their prayers for Jesus to accompl...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! We are well and truly getting near Christmas now! Several groups have already had their Christmas dinners, and last night we had our first Carol Service of the year in the Duke of Cambridge pub. A great time was had by all – I know I had several really good conversations with folk who are thinking of coming to (or back to!) St Jude's. So be encouraged as we invite folk along to the Christmas services! Yesterday morning, Philip began our new series in Luke reminding us of the story of the angel Gabriel appearing to Zechariah and then to Mary, the fact of the Virgin Conception and the way that it all points forwards to Jesus. What really struck me was how spiritually dry Zechariah must have felt. He kept on praying and holding on, but he didn't really expect God to do anything any more. All that was left for him was retirement and childless obscurity. And yet God remembered (that's...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! It was great to see so many folk at St Jude's yesterday, including a few new faces. An old friend of mine was visiting us with his wife, and commented on what a friendly church it was, so thank you everyone who spoke to them and to all who put the effort into welcoming new folk! It's a really important part of being church and of loving those around us. We finished our series in Colossians yesterday morning, and I spoke particularly about how valuing other people fits together with recognising that Jesus is Lord over everything, and that when you put those two truths together, you end up praying passionately for people, because you care about them and realise that God can open blind eyes so that people can see him, that he can soften hard hearts so that people can love him and he can open our mouths so that we can praise him to others! It also flows out into having conversation that is alw...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! Advent is a time that's all about waiting. It's a time of waiting and looking forwards to Christmas as we count the shopping, working and chocolate-eating days left. But it's also a time, as Geoff reminded us at the 9:15 yesterday, of looking forwards to Jesus' return in glory. "He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead" we say in the creed. And yet so often we carry on as if it is just an idea that Jesus will return one day . Yesterday evening, I was preaching on Haggai. In Haggai's day, the people were working hard but never quite had enough to eat. They were putting off rebuilding the temple because it seemed like too much hard work, and they were too discouraged. But God used Haggai to encourage them by reminding them that he was in control, that if we put him first and work for his kingdom, especially when times are hard, then he will bless us...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! It's been a really encouraging weekend for me. It was great to see (and hear!) so many people at church for Lizzie & Ben's wedding on Saturday, and there was a good crowd there on Sunday morning as well for Jasper's baptism. Wouldn't it be great to have that many people every week (of which more later)! Yesterday morning, we were thinking again about the kind of character that God creates in Christians, which we are called to wear. At the 9:15, Dennis picked up on the lovely picture of harmony – all singing from the same hymn sheet, all singing together and for the glory of God, but not all singing the same notes at the same time because we have been given different gifts and different callings at different stages of life. At the 11am service, I somehow managed to apply Colossians 3:12-4:1 to the characters in Downton Abbey, but what is really on my heart from yesterda...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving our Community Good Morning! Yesterday morning, we were looking at Colossians 3:1-14ish and thinking about how God has given us the "new shoes" of being free to love each other and knowing that we are God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved to replace the smelly old shoes of feeling that we have to defend ourselves and make our own lives significant. One thing that really came out in chatting to folks afterwards is that it can be really helpful when we get angry (for example) to use that as a way of seeing where in our lives we still feel that we need to defend ourselves, and to spend the time praying in the glorious truths that God is for us and not against us. A really helpful thing I heard last week is that God often uses fear the same way. When we are afraid (or anxious, or concerned, or stressed, or any of the other words we use instead of afraid), it is God calling us to put our trust in him on...

Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving Our Community 12 th November 2012 Loving God There has been lots to give thanks for in the last week. Here are just a few things: The announcement of the new Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. I don't think we could have hoped for a better appointment. He's good friends with Ian Russell's son (which will mean quite a lot to some of you); he's a man who clearly knows and loves Jesus, believes the Bible and has the wisdom and courage to make needed changes to the way the C of E does things. I've written a bit more here . Our services yesterday seemed to go really well. We had about 150 people for the Remembrance Day service, and then another 30 or so for the Remembering Service in the afternoon. Lots of people seemed to find both of them helpful, and it seemed that God really was speaking there, so thank him! Loving Each Other This week sees a couple of big meetings I'd appreciat...

I was delighted to hear of the appointment of Justin Welby as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. I was even more delighted to hear it confirmed on Friday! I don't know Mr Welby personally, but I've got quite a few friends who do know him from various places, and none of them has anything bad to say about him. He seems to be thoroughly committed to Jesus and his word, to be wise in the way he acts towards people and to be bold enough to try new things. I couldn't have asked for a better choice for Archbishop. At the same time, we need to be careful not to get our expectations up too high. Justin Welby isn't the "head of the Church of England". He isn't the leader the Church of England needs. That is Jesus Christ - we should pin our hopes on him and pray to him for revival in this nation. Justin Welby faces a horribly large task. The Church of England is a huge organisation (or 42 organisations, or 8000 organisations), and it will take a lot of effor...

I'm experimenting with putting the Monday e-mail straight onto my blog - this is from 5th November Fewer Ms this week - unexpected busy-ness on Monday Morning means I'm running a bit behind. Loving God | Loving Each Other | Loving Our Community We're in the middle of a season of remembering at the moment. In the last week, we've had Reformation Day when we remember all those who struggled to bring the church back to the truths of Scripture and All Saints Day when we remember all those who have gone before us in the faith – that "great cloud of witnesses" in Hebrews 12. Today is November 5 th when we remember the Gunpowder Plot, and this coming Sunday is of course Remembrance Day. Loving God Yesterday morning, Andrew Stewart reminded us that God remembers us, as symbolised by the rainbow, and that he remembers us in Jesus. In the evening service, ably assisted by Ade, we were looking at the book of Micah, and I came back to the last ...

Here are some of the best online resources for daily Bible reading... Explore do a free app for iPhone / Android. The King's English works through famous phrases from the King James Bible Robert Murray M'Cheyne's Bible reading plan is a good way of working through the Bible in a year (New Testament twice). Or you can do it at half speed and cover the NT once a year and the OT once every 2 years. For the Love of God is a brilliant series of books which provide helpful devotional thoughts on one of the passages from M'Cheyne's plan as a blog. It lets you do the plan at either full speed or half speed. You version is a Bible reading app for mobile phones with built in Bible reading plans. I don't use any of those. Personally, I find internet-enabled devices too much of a distraction when trying to read the Bible. But I know some people might find them helpful...

On 9th September, I preached a sermon at St Jude's where I outlined what I think our priorities need to be as we seek to move forwards with God. Here's a summary of it .

There's a lot of chatter going round the internet about a bit of ancient paper which mentions Jesus having a wife. Most if it is the usual bad journalism - here's a proper scholar's take on it. And a nice article here points us back to the fact that Jesus might not have a wife, but he is engaged - to his church.

From the Christianity Explored website.

One of the things I really like about Macclesfield is the surrounding countryside. Yes, the town itself may well be one of the least cultured towns in the country (a title which it "won" a couple of years ago), but it's right on the edge of one of the most spectacular bits of the Peak District. Here are some photos (all within 5 miles of here). Only the last two photos are of the same lake.

This week was my last Sunday at Holy Trinity, Hurdsfield. I'll really miss them - they even threw me into the pool! Thanks so much, Jonny, Simon, Darren, Dai and Mark. It meant a lot, and I mean that!

What do you do for fun? Cooking, swimming, reading books (historical fiction / sci fi / fantasy), watching films, walking in the countryside, quizzes, board games. How many angels can dance on the head of a pin? I don't care. What are the top 5 books that have shaped your theological thought aside from the Bible? Really tough to answer... In no particular order: John Stott – The Message of Romans . I read it as a teenager while on holiday and it really helped me get my head around God's plan for the world. John Piper – Desiring God . Piper's whole idea about God seeking his own joy and glory needs more Trinitarian focus, but this book really helped me to understand that emotions are an important part of the Christian life rather than a hindrance. Jack Deere – Surprised by the Power of the Spirit . Deere's basic question - “If you just had the New Testament, would you expect God to speak outside Scripture or not?” helped to open my eyes to the fact that he sometime...

Here are Tim Keller’s top ten tips for personal evangelism: Let people around you know you are a Christian (in a natural, unforced way) Ask friends about their faith – and just listen! Listen to your friends’ problems – maybe offer to pray for them Share your problems with others – testify to how your faith helps you Give them a book to read Share your story Answer objections and questions Invite them to a church event Offer to read the Bible with them Take them to an explore course He apparently goes on to say that we too often start with 8-10 because we think these are what count as true evangelism, but we need to start with 1-4 with most people. Indeed we may need to loop through them several times before we can move on to 5-10. (HT - Tim Chester ) I guess the tricky bit for me is #4. And yet it is so important - last week I was preaching on 2 Corinthians 4, which is all about God's power and glory shining through our weaknesses and cracks. Yet so often we feel as if we ha...

I read quite a lot of books. The best book I've read this year is probably The Good God by Michael Reeves. It's a book about the Trinity. The big point is that the Trinity is central to understanding who God is, to understanding the difference between Christianity and other religions, and to understanding how we can be saved. Reeves doesn't say anything new, but he explains the theology very accessibly and clearly, quoting and explaining "big name" theologians like Athanasius, Augustine, Luther and Richard of St Victor in a way that is accessible to all, and he does it very well. It would be my top recommendation for anyone wanting to understand the Trinity and why it matters, whether they were a new Christian or training for ordination. My one criticism of the book is it could be very good for ecumenism as well - building links between evangelical theology and the Roman Catholics and Orthodox, but the end lets it down in that sense. Trinitarianism is tru...

I think it would be good fun to do an online interview. So please post your questions in the comments section here, or by e-mail to revjohnallisterSPAM@gmail.com, with the SPAM removed, and I'll answer them on here in a few days' time.

Here's a photo of me and Lydia on holiday earlier this year!

Welcome to my newer, shinier, more relevant-to-me blog! My older, clunkier blog, mostly about theology and church politics is here .