At Oxford Community Church we are currently in a series on Community Groups, and this Sunday I co-preached on one of my favourite gospel stories in Mark 2 Four men bring their friend to Jesus, seeking healing. When faced with a crowd blocking their way, they take a courageous choice to do whatever it takes…
Author: Liam Thatcher
Writer, preacher, pastor, thinker, joker, gooner, baker, follower of the way. Husband of one wife, father of one child, author of no books.
Venom and Antivenom: A Gospel Metaphor
Tim Friede has been bitten by snakes more than 200 times and received 700 injections of venom. Now his blood could save hundreds of thousands of people. It’s an imperfect gospel metaphor to be sure, but it’s not bad. The Seed and the Serpent From its opening pages to the closing ones, Scripture uses…
The Death of David’s Innocent Son (2 Samuel 12)
There are stories in Scripture which, honestly, I struggle with. One of them comes in 2 Samuel 12, when the Lord took the life of David’s innocent son. The context for this is the sin of David against Bathsheba and Uriah. The King summoned Bathsheba to his courts while her husband was away and, presumably…
The Banished are Beloved: A Holy Week reflection on David’s Sons
This week I’ve found myself reading through a rather unpleasant stretch of 2 Samuel – the story of David’s sons, Amnon and Absalom. These chapters are full of violence, abuse, manipulation and heartbreak. They’re not enjoyable to read at any time of year. Reading them on Holy Week, however, adds an extra layer of poignancy,…
Project Weekender: The Empowered Life
A few weeks ago I spoke at Project Weekender, a 24-hour conference for students and 20s passionate about seeing God move in their generation. It was so much fun – and I was delighted to discover I wasn’t even in the top 10 oldest people in the room! The event was hosted by my good…
“Yes, and…” A prophetic principle from improv comedy
When learning to prophesy, I often find that people fall into one of two mistakes. They’re paralysed by overthinking or limited by underthinking. Some people feel they need the entire prophetic word clear in their mind before they step out and share it. Every detail. Every word. Perfectly honed and clear. And unless they are…
The Friendship and Fruit of the Holy Spirit
On Wednesday evening, I enjoyed a conversation with my friend Mark Gyde. For the past 15 years Mark has hosted a weekly webcast with Barry Adams, and it was fun to join him this week, to talk about ‘the friendship and fruit of the Holy Spirit’. We reflected on the good character of the Holy…
The Lent Encounter
Each day through Lent, Bible Society is producing a series of reflections – written and audio – journeying with the people of God through the wilderness, and looking ahead to the events of Easter. And I’ve had the privilege of writing this week’s contributions. This week we will work through Exodus 25–29, looking at the…
Freedom from Sin (Romans 6)
On Sunday I spoke at Horizon Church Carerton as part of their series on Romans. We looked at the subject of freedom and considered how our beliefs affect our behaviours, and how the gospel radically changes our identity. If you fancy catching up, here are the video and audio. (Note – this is a similar…
A Priest like Melchizedek (Hebrews 7)
On Sunday I continued our series at Oxford Community Church, looking at the identity of Jesus in the letter to the Hebrews. After a few weeks of tantalising hints, we finally spoke about the enigmatic figure of Melchizedek – a priest and king, who receives a fleeting mention in Genesis 14, and then fades into…
Liam Thatcher 