Author Archives: A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green

John And Commandments (1)

Word association: commandment What did you come up with? Did you think of things like liberation, joy, freedom, and peace? Or, did your mind turn toward things like legalism, bondage, and burden? Or perhaps you landed somewhere in between these two extremes. I suppose to be totally accurate to the point I want to address I should have asked, “What do youContinue reading “John And Commandments (1)”

Assurance And The Spirit

“And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.” (1 John3:24)  “This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit.” (1 John 4:13) John tells us not once, but twice, that the proof we’reContinue reading “Assurance And The Spirit”

Assurance And The Disciples

When John writes of keeping commands (2:3,3:22,24,5:3), doing what is right (2:29,3:7,3:10), and not sinning (2:1,3:6,9,5:18), he is speaking directionally. Everyone is headed toward something and the disciple is headed in the direction of His Father. God is both the light (v. 5) and in the light (v. 7), (think of our sun, it is lightContinue reading “Assurance And The Disciples”

Working For The Lord

Can you guess what the following statistics (from Karl Thompson) have reference to? It’s something that occupies: 14 % of your total life, 21 % of your total waking hours, 23.3% of your life during the years you’re actually you’re doing this, 35% of your waking hours during those years you’re doing this, 50% ofContinue reading “Working For The Lord”

Worthy (Lawrence Of Arabia)

T.E. Lawrence was one of the more fascinating and controversial figures of the previous century.  While there is still a healthy, ongoing debate aimed at separating the man from the myth, we are sure of certain things. We know he was a gifted writer of books and letters. He published a translation of Homer’s Odyssey. We know inContinue reading “Worthy (Lawrence Of Arabia)”

Who We Are (Departures)

Departures is a Japanese movie that won 2009 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. As you might expect, it’s little different, but elegant in its presentation and musical score. It is the story of Daigo Kobayashi, a cellist with the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. As the film begins, the orchestra has folded for financial reasons andContinue reading “Who We Are (Departures)”

Who Really Has Grit? (True Grit)

Everything about the Coen brothers’ True Grit feels like a western . . . the music, the costumes, the sets, the cinematography, the language. Okay, maybe not the language. In keeping with the book, the characters in the movie rarely use contractions in their speech, with the result being that the dialogue (which worked in the book but sounded woodenContinue reading “Who Really Has Grit? (True Grit)”

Who Needs Our Lifeline? (A Street Cat Named Bob)

James Bowen is down to his last chance at life in A Street Cat Named Bob. He’s a heroin addict, living on the streets of London, busking (playing music for donations) and eating out of garbage cans to stay alive. A social worker assigned to his case gets him into a methadone program but he usesContinue reading “Who Needs Our Lifeline? (A Street Cat Named Bob)”

What Can God Do? (Room With A View)

Lucy Honeychurch is a young Englishwoman struggling to find herself and decide how she wants to live in E. M. Forster’s novel, A Room With A View. In particular, she is faced with whether she wishes to retain the sensibilities and manners with which she has been raised or to reject this upbringing and live differently. Her struggleContinue reading “What Can God Do? (Room With A View)”