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Only Jesus doesn't make demands

Elliot Morley was released in September after serving four months of a sixteen month sentence for fraud to the amount of £32,000.
Prior to that he was the MP for Glanford and Scunthorpe. One of those caught in the expenses scandal. And we're disappointed. Leadership is entrusted to people and they seem to fail us... sometimes they're corrupt, sometimes they're conspiratorial, sometimes they're abusive...
Morley is just an example, and the same can be seen closer to home. .

My first experience of leadership was as a Scout. I was overlooked for leadership as a 13 year old and was furious, frustrated and angry. When a year later I was finally given an opportunity to serve I seized it with a clenched fist, a bad temper and a stamping foot. Not everyone has had authority but invariably, we're all either in authority over someone or under someone elses authority. Some carry that well but many fall short. Yet we hope and dream for more. We long for someone to lead well.

And then one Saturday Jesus walked into a Synagogue in Capernaum and people's verdict was - what stunning authority. It's worth asking whether that's off-putting or something that stirs optimism?

Listen on... MP3: Dave Bish - Jesus' Authority(24mins + a reading from Mark's gospel first)1. You need someone who will give not take. In contrast to the demanding lurking and imposing 'teachers of law'2. You need someone who will get you into God. Someone who wont fail us like religion has - who can deal with our uncleanness.

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Kelly Kapic's book really struck me in explaining that God's ownership (rule) of creation is a good thing, but it is counter-intuitive. We take ownership from him. He could just take it back in the same way as we took it from him, instead he gets by giving.

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