The Gospel Saturated Blog

The gospel is good news before it is good advice. It tells us who Jesus is, what he has done, and what that means for our lives and our world.

The Church

Carrie Shaw
October 31, 2024

Loving The Church

Loving the church can be hard.. Frankly, at times, she can seem like a big, fat disappointment. Infighting. Divisions. The failure of leaders and the apathy of congregants. The assimilation to culture. A preoccupation with prestige and power. Intolerance. Liberality. Sometimes the church is hard to love.

Faith & Life Origins & Authority

Carrie Shaw
July 16, 2022

Beyond The Pale

"By the 14th century, the Norman invasion of Ireland was struggling. Too many Normans had "gone native", assimilated into Irish life. The remaining settlers had retreated to just four eastern counties: Louth, Meath, Dublin, and Kildare. These four "obedient shires" were the only part of Ireland still under the control of the English crown. The king's perimeter was marked with wooden fence posts pounded into the Irish turf. These were called "pales," from the Latin palus, meaning "stake."

The Church

Carrie Shaw
April 28, 2021

Beneath The Skin

What of the church today? What lies beneath her skin? Behind the powerful vocals from a vast and blue-lit stage, beneath the skinny jeans with tastefully ripped knees, between the cleverly worded messages from the pulpit, is there still a radical and beating heart? After asking Jesus into their hearts, do Christians still ask Jesus into their lives? The church may profess to still love Jesus but would she die for him?

Faith & Life

Carrie Shaw
March 30, 2021

The Night Before Tomorrow | Communion

Gathering now with his disciples to celebrate Passover once again, Jesus understood, as no one else did, the true significance of what was symbolised by this festival and what kind of deliverance God had always had in mind. Turning to his disciples, his voice warm with feeling, Jesus said “I have earnestly desired to eat this with you before I suffer.” It was the night before tomorrow, and this was to be his last Passover.

Faith & Life History & Heroes The Church Theology

Carrie Shaw
March 16, 2020

The Parallels In Communion

The institution of communion had its origins in an ancient Jewish festive meal known as 'Passover'. Celebrated annually, it commemorated the deliverance of the nation of Israel from bondage in Egypt. The early chapters of the book of Exodus tell of the origins and background of the Passover (Exodus 1-12). Forcibly enslaved upon the accession of a new Pharaoh to the Egyptian throne, the people of Israel were subjected to cruelty, forced labour, and intolerable work and living conditions.

Israel, The Church, and the Christian Conscience

Carrie Shaw October 10, 2026

What do Christianity and Judaism have in common, if anything? How should the Church understand its relationship with the Israel of today? What responsibilities do Christians have towards the Jewish

The Revival Of Antisemitism (Or Was It Ever Really Dead?)

Carrie Shaw October 7, 2026

The reality is, the world feels sharply split right now: pro-Palestinian or pro-Israeli, and the gap only seems to be getting wider. Along with that widening gap is a troubling

The Headship Bait-And-Switch

Carrie Shaw October 4, 2026

“The husband is the head of his wife.” It’s a favourite refrain in complementarian circles, particularly when the conversation turns to biblical manhood, leadership, and a husband’s supposed God-given authority

Israel, The Church, and the Christian Conscience

Carrie Shaw October 10, 2026

What do Christianity and Judaism have in common, if anything? How should the Church understand its relationship with the Israel of today? What responsibilities do Christians have towards the Jewish people? And how should our answers to these questions shape the way we engage in public discourse about contemporary political and social issues?