Word on Wednesday with John Mason

In his book, God is Good for You, Dr. Greg Sheridan an Australian historian and opinion writer observes: ‘… Christianity has been marginalized in the popular culture in the West …’ He notes that there are ‘very few Christian celebrities, or rather celebrities whose primary fame is due to their Christianity, their works or writings’. He further comments, ‘Christians have a right to be worried about what is happening to their beliefs in the West.’ ‘… The primary challenge is not intellectual but

Many people today grieve over the extremes of political divisions in a world that has turned away from God. The bitter hatred and vitriol stand in stark contrast to the words and actions of Jesus Christ who came to earth to bring us to God. In his fourth Beatitude recorded in Matthew 5:6, he says: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” Today I have a simple question: ‘What do you really long for in life?’ Peace and happiness? Health and fitness? Su

We don’t normally like to think of ourselves as being meek. These days meekness is usually associated with someone who is weak and submissive. Someone who is timid and easily pushed around. Yet in the third Beatitude in his Sermon on the Mount Jesus says, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth”. The Beatitudes lay the foundation for Jesus’s Sermon recorded in Matthew chapters 5 through 7. An interesting feature about these eight beatitudes is that the first and last make the sam

The world loves to laugh. Comedians will always have an audience. People don’t like kill-joys who ruin the party. Yet Jesus says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Mt 5:4). Jesus doesn’t mean that God’s people are always to be gloomy or morose. Still less is he saying they are to wallow in self-pity. He has in mind the grief we experience when we become aware of the purity of God and the reality of the dark side of our nature. Isaiah the prophet was keenly aware of thi

Happiness is something we long for. Yet happiness is elusive and, at best, momentary. Where then can we find the riches of a lasting experience that satisfies the depths of our soul? Today we turn to the first of Jesus’s Beatitudes found in Matthew chapter 5, verse 3: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. Blessed. Some translations use ‘happy’ instead of blessed, but happy is subjective, a poor substitute for the word blessed that Jesus uses. The blessed will ge

Twenty-five years ago Judith and I were living three short blocks south of the Twin Towers in Downtown Manhattan. I had received an invitation from Timothy Keller of Redeemer Presbyterian Church New York City, to set up a gospel-focused Anglican Church to complement the ministry of Redeemer Church in the city. On Tuesday morning, September 11, we had awakened to see from our apartment clear blue skies and the sparkling waters of New York Harbor. But it was not to last. We felt the shock in our