Malcolm Cox

Preview Class: Introduction and Background to “The Book of Haggai: The Glory Will Be Greater”. Why this book? Do you and your group need to assess your priorities from time to time? Have you been given a great work for God to do? Do you sometimes get off track and forget that our discipleship is about pleasing God and bringing him glory? Are there occasions when you get tired labouring for the Lord, not seeing the results you had hoped for? Do you need God’s reassurance, and a divine vision? Do you find it challenging to believe that the future will be more glorious than the past? If so, this book is for you! Key Themes Soberness; Priorities; God’s Discipline; United Work for God; Leadership; Speaking the Truth; vision of God’s glory in which we participate Core Idea Taking joy in pleasing and honouring God (1:8) Next week is Class 1 - Background and Chapter 1 Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.  Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it

AIM UK & Ireland Christian Doctrine Module Christian doctrine is an exploration of the way God intends us to relate to him, one another and the world. It isn’t a dry or difficult topic but an exciting and dynamic one. What could be more important? Not only that, but the consequences of teaching and living by erroneous doctrine are serious, “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Timothy 4:16) We, like those of Paul’s day, live in a time when “people will not put up with sound doctrine.” (2 Timothy 4:3) What is our responsibility? “You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine.” (Titus 2:1) See also 1 Timothy 1:3. Teaching what is accurate will enable us to, “encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.” (Titus 1:9) In this module we will examine common Christian doctrines held by various denominations with three aims: To discover their value - even if they differ from our

Christian doctrine is an exploration of the way God intends us to relate to him, one another and the world. It isn’t a dry or difficult topic but an exciting and dynamic one. What could be more important? Not only that, but the consequences of teaching and living by erroneous doctrine are serious, “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Timothy 4:16) We, like those of Paul’s day, live in a time when “people will not put up with sound doctrine.” (2 Timothy 4:3) What is our responsibility? “You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine.” (Titus 2:1) See also 1 Timothy 1:3. Teaching what is accurate will enable us to, “encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.” (Titus 1:9) In this module we will examine common Christian doctrines held by various denominations with three aims: * To discover their value - even if they differ from our understanding * To discover any errors - and eval

We continue our series on the "one thing" sayings in the Scriptures. Today we encounter the blind man and the consequences of his healing.  “One Thing I Know”, John 9 1. Jesus on sin and suffering, vv1-5 2. Jesus heals, vv6-7 3. Jesus creates a stir, vv8-34  A. Neighbours  B. Pharisees  C. Parents & Man  4. Jesus creates faith, vv35-38  A. About choice 4 B. About discipleship 4 C. About Lordship 4 Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.  Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [malcolm@malcolmcox.org](mailto:malcolm@malcolmcox.org).  If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/).  Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.  “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11

Today we continue with a series based on Psalm 27. I spoke on this Psalm’s theme, and especially verse 4, for the Watford church of Christ. We are part-way through a series based on the “one thing” phrases found in the Scriptures. If you haven’t already done so, I recommend listening to the first episode which covers some background thoughts on the context of the Psalm.  Now, on to today's verse.  “Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.” (Psalm 27:3 NIV11) David is not only confident about the present, but also about the future.  It is one thing to have enemies, it is another when they band together and start a war!  Even then David is confident in God.  An army is nothing when God is on our side. “Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.” (Exodus 14:13 NIV11) “The LORD said to Gideon, “You have t

Tuesday Teaching Tips | Episode 272 | “The Myth About Non-Verbal Communication” The oft-repeated claim is that communication is 7 percent verbal, 38 percent vocal, and 55 percent facial. Is this true? Those statistics come from two studies conducted in 1967. Their conclusions have become accepted orthodoxy, but there are serious methodological limitations to those studies. The author of Communication is 93% Nonverbal: An Urban Legend Proliferates, by David Lapakko (Associate professor at the department of communication studies at Augsburg College, Minneapolis) says, “What that number tells people is to pay little attention to the words they use, because words don’t really matter.“* Do words matter? How significant is body language? What do you remember of the body language connected to the following speakers? Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream”? Or Churchill’s, “We will fight them on the beaches….”, or, Shakespeare/Hamlet’s, “To be or not to be”, or, “When you pray, say, “Our Father who art in heaven

Quiet Time Coaching Episode 329 | Psalm 27, “One Thing I Ask” Series | Part 3 | Malcolm Cox Today we continue with a series based on Psalm 27. I spoke on this Psalm’s theme, and especially verse 4, for the Watford church of Christ. We are part-way through a series based on the “one thing” phrases found in the Scriptures. If you haven’t already done so, I recommend listening to the first episode which covers some background thoughts on the context of the Psalm.  Now, on to today's verse.  “When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall.” (Psalm 27:2 NIV11) David has problems. His enemies not only have evil intent, but they aim to destroy. They want him gone, out of the picture, eliminated. Have you ever had an experience like that? What does it do to your peace of mind and confidence about the future? Let's see how David responds. First of all, we note that David faces reality head on. He is not unaware of his predicament, nor is he trying to pret

“As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”” (Luke 10:38–42 NIV11)  Overview The previous section (Luke 10:25-37 - the Samaritan) is focussed on how we treat other people in a way that pleases God. This section focuses on how we treat God himself. The ‘horizontal’ dimension of relationships is followed by the ‘vertical’ dimension. Martha opened her home to him This is not the only time Martha and her family are mentioned. You might like to compare this scene

This coming Sunday I am preaching on John 9. The man born blind. Part of my prayer this morning was asking God to show me the meaning of this passage for my own life so that I can live it this week before preaching it on Sunday. Reflecting on a passage is part of preparation. Certainly, there is a place to pull apart the text, to analyse, to exegete and to research content and context. However, another essential and in my experience neglected aspect of preparation is reflection.  In her book “Your MA in theology”, Zoe Bennett comments, “[reflection] takes time and demands attention to what is new to us, rather than a quick jumping to conclusions or hurrying on so fast we miss things.”   Is this what was happening when Paul warned Timothy about those teaching false doctrines? “They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.” (1 Timothy 1:7 NIV11) The word translated “know” (novo - GK) is elsewhere translated "reflect". They have idea

Quiet Time Coaching Episode 328 | Psalm 27, “One Thing I Ask” Series | Part 2 | Malcolm Cox Today we continue with a series based on Psalm 27. I spoke on this Psalm’s theme, and especially verse 4, for the Watford church of Christ. We are part-way through a series based on the “one thing” phrases found in the Scriptures. If you haven’t already done so, I recommend listening to the first episode which covers some background thoughts on the context of the Psalm.  “The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1) The LORD What is the first thing we notice? The first two words of each sentence. "The LORD”. David may be surrounded by enemies, but YHWH is first and foremost in his thoughts. One of the reasons David was a man after God's own heart was that he trusted God to be present, nearby and attentive. How spiritual well-being is directly tied to how much confidence we have that God is present and powerful. Jesus said,

Our focus today is the man who runs up to Jesus and falls on his knees in front of him. However, it must be noted that this incident comes hard on the heels of the previous scene. Children were brought to Jesus - only for the disciples to rebuke them. Jesus in turn rebukes his disciples and declares that “the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (v14). Mark is showing us the ideal kingdom-candidates before we encounter the flawed kingdom aspirant. ‘Paradoxically, the least powerful, least wealthy, least influential have a greater prospect of entering the kingdom than do those who are most powerful, wealthy, and influential.’ Word Biblical Commentary receive the kingdom Why are the children able to ‘receive the kingdom’ (v15)? We are not told precisely here, but perhaps we get a clue by looking at the contrasting example of the man on his knees. He looked good. He sounded good. He ran to Jesus, he fell upon his knees, he addressed Jesus respectfully (‘good teacher’), he kept the law. Yet something was

For the last two years I have been combining the sermon and communion. Or more accurately, concluding my sermons with reflections on the Lord's supper.  Why have I done this? What are the benefits and drawbacks? Perhaps you have heard of or seen the so-called ‘sermunion’. On occasion it has been employed to save time. I have heard this approach despised and denigrated as not being a real sermon, or a real communion. Are these criticisms fair?  Today let me offer a few thoughts about benefits and drawbacks. Please tell me what you think. Benefits 1. Avoiding too many ‘lessons’ in one service. Sometimes we get three or every four lessons in a service. A welcome ‘lesson’, a HOPE talk ‘lesson’, a communion ‘lesson’, and a sermon - possibly even some of our prayers are more like lessons! The sermon/communion approach reduces the number of ‘lessons’ by ensuring that the sermon and Lord's supper have the same theme. This connectedness seems healthy. 2. Moving from the Scriptures to the table seems right. Now we k

Today we start a new series based on Psalm 27. I spoke on this Psalm’s theme, and especially verse 4, for the Watford church of Christ. We are part-way through a series based on the “one thing” phrases found in the Scriptures. I am dedicating this series to my friend Akin who told me that Psalm 27 was his father’s favourite Psalm.  I was so taken by the Psalm that I thought it would be worth taking the time to go deeper into the passage. We will take one verse at a time, week by week. We begin this week with a brief introduction, a reading of the Psalm and then I will share with you a short song I wrote using the words of verse 4. Music helps to embed words into our memories. I hope you will take the time to listen and learn this simple song. I believe it will enable the truth of God’s Word to find a permanent home in your soul.  First a comment or two on the Psalm’s setting. It has similar themes as the previous Psalm and following one. These are primarily the challenges created by enemies, and delight in

Today we start a new series based on Psalm 27. I spoke on this Psalm’s theme, and especially verse 4, for the Watford church of Christ. We are part-way through a series based on the “one thing” phrases found in the Scriptures. I am dedicating this series to my friend Akin who told me that Psalm 27 was his father’s favourite Psalm.  I was so taken by the Psalm that I thought it would be worth taking the time to go deeper into the passage. We will take one verse at a time, week by week. We begin this week with a brief introduction, a reading of the Psalm and then I will share with you a short song I wrote using the words of verse 4. Music helps to embed words into our memories. I hope you will take the time to listen and learn this simple song. I believe it will enable the truth of God’s Word to find a permanent home in your soul.  First a comment or two on the Psalm’s setting. It has similar themes as the previous Psalm and following one. These are primarily the challenges created by enemies, and delight in

In the AIM UK&I community we have been discussing how we approach our study of a passage and prepare it for teaching or preaching. Here is one technique I use. It involves mind mapping. It is the first or second step in my process. The other is well described by Mike Poole, one of our AIM students, “I really liked letting the Bible wash over me that we learned in the NTS course as I found that helpful in understanding the bigger picture.” The third step is to study the passage with the aid of dictionaries, commentaries and similar resources. This step is the ‘pulling-it-apart’ phase. Let me demonstrate…..  Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.  Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [malcolm@malcolmcox.org](mailto:malcolm@malcolmcox.org).  If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at m

Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God; Dallas Willard Today we look at the epilogue of the book, “The way of the burning heart”. “They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”” Luke 24:32 The material world shouts at us, but the spiritual world whispers at us. Scepticism regarding the reality of the spiritual is part of the landscape of our culture. It is vital that we do not give into this and become sceptical of God interacting with us in a personal manner. One of the questions we must resolve is whether we truly believe what the Bible records. Included in those records are examples of God speaking to his people  As Willard puts it, “Spiritual people are not those who engage in certain spiritual practices; they are those who draw their life from a conversational relationship with God." 222 Our next project is a 15 episode series based on Psalm 27. We will begin with a general introduction - a

How do we make sure we teach in such a way as to build unity not weaken it? “Thank you” to Tina Poole for your post in the AIM UK & Ireland forum as well as the comments from Geordan, Mike, Charlie, Madalena and Andy B. You have inspired me to make this recording. https://www.aimukandireland.com/ First let us have a look at one of the classic unity passages, then I will offer a few tips. “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, Teaching, as well as unity, is Christ initiative, not ours. Therefore, we keep Christ at the centre and visible. to equip his people for works of service, For a positive purpose. In other words we’re not trying to prove other people wrong so much as help people to be able to do right so that the body of Christ may be built up While this all applies to the church universal, perhaps Paul had in mind the local Ephesian body. Most of the time when we teach it is to help the local body, those present, with only half an eye

Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God; Dallas Willard Today we look at chapter 9 of the book which is titled “A life more than guidance”. The more we understand, the better our relationship with God will be "Faith is not opposed to knowledge; it is opposed to sight." 194 The framework for our answersGod is capable of accurate speech, we are not always capable of accurate understanding or hearing. This is not a fault of the speaker, and, does not mean he will give up trying.  It is our responsibility to learn how to hear better“If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.” “Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.”” (Mark 4:23–25 NIV11) Do we want to hear from God? Listening for God "I get down on my knees and say, 'Lord, I need to know what you want me to do, and I am listening. Please speak to me thro

The Pressures We Feel A. What is pressurising David? When was King David under pressure? David: Own son trying to kill him! 2 Samuel 15 B. What is pressurising us? The Hopes We Have A. What is David hoping for? B. What are our hopes for the summer? A. Ask Looking to God Dwell Married couple Stream, not a pool B. Seek…Seek…Gaze Acting on own initiative Study Meditate C. Beauty What is ‘beautiful’ about God? How does David ‘see’ God? Conclusion Only God can change us when we are under pressure Only Jesus can give us what we hope for How did Jesus handle the pressure – on the cross? ‘Father..my spirit’ – even to the end “Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.” (Luke 23:46 NIV11) Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community. Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. He

We took ourselves off to Cassiobury Park for an outdoor service. On an exceptionally hot day it seemed only appropriate to discuss the topic of thirst from John 4. Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.  Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [malcolm@malcolmcox.org](mailto:malcolm@malcolmcox.org).  If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/).  Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.  “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11)  God bless, Malcolm