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Following on from the post from two days ago, another resolution I find myself making frequently is to pray more widely. It’s all too easy for one’s prayer life to become focussed in on fewer and fewer concerns, at least that is what I find.

“But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.” (Psalm 1:2)

“The law of God is in his heart; his steps do not slip.” (Psalm 37:31)

“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11)

I’m sure you end up making the same resolutions every year.

One that I make frequently is to read more of the Bible. New year is a good time to make that resolution, because if it becomes your aim to read the whole Bible in a year (or two years, or four), then January 1st is as good a day as any to begin.

Thanks, Neil Robbie, for joining the world of bloggers, even if you only post your starter post. A sobering, but fantastically helpful, quotation from Thomas Boston on how to tell when our mourning for sin might be spurious rather than real and heart-felt.

I look forward to reading more of Neil’s jottings.

(The Book of the Twelve is another name for the “Minor Prophets”, Hosea – Malachi).

Peter Leithart has an illuminating post on the unity of these 12 books entitled Book of the Twelve.

There are a few other posts there as well, posted around the same time, on Micah 4-5 in paticular. Read the post on the Book of the Twelve, and you’ll see why he focuses in on those two chapters.

Doing some work on the birth narrative in Matthew at the moment, and enjoying the recently published commentary on Matthew by R T France.

He has a brilliant (if long) paragraph arguing that Matthew was not a poor Old Testament handler at all, but knew exactly what he was doing. So brilliant, it’s worth quoting in full (from page 45)

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12)

If, like me, you’ve ever read that verse and puzzled slightly over what those “greater works” are, then it’s time to visit Doug Wilson’s blog over at Blog and Mablog.

Yesterday he posted an entry entitled Greater Works which sheds a lot of light on that verse.

“I tell you the truth, today you wll be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43)

So said Jesus, on the cross, to “the other criminal”. A saying that has been precious to me for some time, not least because of the implications for the way in which God saves by grace not works. The model sinner, whose saving faith could not be accompanied by any good works. Such a verse makes very clear that God does not save us because of our works (as instrumental cause), but by faith. James 2 makes clear that genuine faith will be accompanied by good works, but Luke 23 makes clear that such good works are the outworking of faith in space and time not an essential component of it.

But I want to reflect on this verse from another angle today. What we can learn from this verse about what awaits the believer after they die.

Think Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel.

Think Isaiah 40-46.

Then read the story that appeared on the BBC News website today, entitled Hindu gods [sic.] get summons from court.

I hope every parent of young children has discovered the delights of Wibbly Pig and Percy the Park Keeper:...