Press On Journal

How can we ‘count it all joy’ when we meet trials? And if God tempts no one, why does Jesus teach us to pray that our Father does not lead us into temptation? This article explores the difference between being tested and being tempted, through the experiences of Abraham, Adam and Eve, and Jesus himself. Testing is how God shapes us, intending to do us good in the end, even when the same situation becomes a seedbed for temptation. Understanding how the two work can help us face them with our eyes on the joy set before us.

Are our lives just a waiting room ‘in the region and shadow of death’, or has light dawned? The message Jesus preached was not a reminder of the Kingdom visions of the Old Testament but a radical invitation to experience the realm of God here and now. His miracles showed that the Kingdom had already broken through, and the Sermon on the Mount describes what it means to live under the sovereignty of God: the transformation of who we are, not a performance of piety. Jesus is already our King, and we can experience God’s Holy Spirit in our lives now.

How much of what we think about a passage is actually coming from the text, and how much is coming from us? This article looks afresh at three familiar passages: the parable of the Prodigal Son, Paul’s letter to Philemon, and the Great Commission. It shows how titles, tradition, our social context and the understandings of others before us can colour, and even distort, what we hear. We will always bring preconceptions; the only protection is to bring humility too, and to recognise that discipleship is a path of learning and discovery.

Roman culture had a practice of using adoption to ensure a desirable heir, sometimes even freeing a trusted slave for this purpose. Paul uses slavery as a metaphor to show what God has done for us: bought us at a high price, clothed us with Christ, and adopted us as his children. We can call God ‘Abba, Father’ and live free as his cherished heirs.

The book of Job throws up many theological, moral, and linguistic questions. For the purposes of this article, the author is assuming that the book of Job is a poetic and dramatic portrayal of the story of a faithful man in adversity. This assumption does not diminish its truth; rather, it clarifies the kind of truth the book is about. Using scholarly works and personal study, the author discusses the question: what actually happened to Job’s children?