Author:Malcolm Gordon

Why did Jesus have to die? Why couldn't God have just forgiven humanity?Part twoI think the answer has something to do with the fact that sin costs, and that love costs even more. Early on in Genesis Adam and Eve are told that to eat from the forbidden tree means that 'on that day you will surely die'. From Romans, every good evangelical knows what the wages of sin are; death. But rather...

[caption id="attachment_449" align="alignnone" width="300"] Tessa and Zoe, not just clever songwriters.[/caption]WeBelong-ZoAndTessaFinal.mp3This year at Going Further we were lucky enough to receive teaching from Darryl Tempero on spiritual practices. So many of us were greatly encouraged and inspired by what Darryl shared with us, and as he had to leave before camp finished, we wanted to come up with a way of thanking him for his input at Going Further. Darryl had also been encouraging those...

The following is a post from worship leader, liturgist, song writer and one half of the wonderful Blackthorn Project, Tim Thornton. It struck me and I wanted it to strike you. You can find more of their stuff at http://www.theblackthornproject.com/ (like awesome albums that you can get for next to nothing, or just nothing). These guys are a treasure. Enjoy.Sudden Loss of VeneerLet me make a confession. In a certain way, I love when things...

Late last year I let you guys know that I was leaving parish ministry at St Paul's in Katikati in the hope of making space for this amorphous music ministry that seems to be springing up beneath our feet.Well so far so good. Since the beginning of this year, I've had the opportunity to minister in Rotorua with St John's in the City; in Auckland with The Upper Room; in Dunedin with B@tch and in...

Step aside Rapture Ruckus with your #1 NZ album.Today I heard I've been shortlisted as a semi finalist in the International Songwriting Competition (henceforth referred to as the ISC).With much fanfare, I read of my 'aceptance' [sic]. 'Out of 20,000 entrants you have made the cut of just 1,800 semifinalists...

Here I am working on the lectionary texts for this Sunday, which is built around the Baptism of Jesus in Luke 3 (Psalm 29, Isaiah 43 and Acts 8 also feature - you can check them out in detail here.)I'm still in the early stages of my preparation, but at the moment, I'm drawn by the presence of all three persons of the Trinity in the final couple of verses in the reading from Luke...

When Matt and I were nearing the end of the vocal recording sessions for the new album, we reached the point where Matt began ‘comping’ the vocal takes together to create the final version. He was working away with his trusty studio headphones so I didn’t have to listen to 9 different takes of the same two and half word phrase as he searched for the perfect (/best) version. After a while he had enough...

So I've been thinking. Why does Jesus do most of his theology in stories while the rest of us write it in a style as unfathomable as a car manual (and often with a comparable level of excitement)? I don't know the answer to this question, except to suggest that Jesus was much, much better at it than we are.Not to be deterred however, I have given it a go.A parable.There was a man who...