Maurice Ashton is a retired lecturer who lives in Australia. He taught Science and Mathematics at high school level before taking a research interest in Computer Science. He lectured at Avondale College for nearly 30 years before retiring in 2012. He is married to Carmel and they have two adult children and two grand children. Currently Maurice is pursuing a keen interest in bird photography and spends much of his time sitting in swamps observing and photographing birds. He has been involved with Sabbath School Net since about 1997.
A discussion of tithing would be incomplete without looking at the verses in the books of Moses that discuss tithing and attempting to understand their detail. The main references are: Numbers 18: 21-32 Leviticus 27:31-33 Deuteronomy 14: 22-29 There are other verses that also relate to tithing, but the above references have the greatest detail. … Continue reading –>
Many of us believe that the description of the Laodicean Church applies to us. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: Rev 3:17 If there is a Seventh-day Adventist sin that we … Continue reading –>
The early Christian church did not build dedicated church buildings. They typically met in people’s homes or in public spaces, such as the temple forecourt. They often met in synagogues, because of their close connections with the Jews. The earliest known Christian church (second century), the Dura-Europos church in Syria was essentially a house church. … Continue reading –>
The King James version of the Bible is often considered the gold standard for modern translations, but few of us are familiar with its history, mandate, publication and early printing. This article provides a brief glimpse in the hope that we will understand it and its historical context a little better. The Bibles in Use … Continue reading –>
A couple of days ago John Clarke died. He dropped dead of natural causes at the age of 68 doing what he loved best; bush-walking with his family and photographing birds. John Clarke is a household name in Australia and New Zealand (Fred Dagg for NZers), well known as a TV personality, satirist and critic … Continue reading –>
We are adding a new feature to our Sabbath School Net Blog. A suggestion came to us that list of hymns related to the Sabbath School Lesson may be helpful, particularly for those of you who have to run the Sabbath School program. The reader who made this suggestion turned out to be my neighbor, … Continue reading –>
Acts 2:1-4 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, … Continue reading –>
And behold, a pea plant flourished in the garden and brought forth a beautiful pod with three peas in it. In the fullness of time, the wind blew and the pea pod fell to the ground and split open, spilling the peas onto the dirt. The first pea, looking around, saw the dark damp earth … Continue reading –>
Too often in church conversations, we quote Bible verses and Spirit of Prophecy quotations, but we share little about the practical application of those passages in everyday Christian life. By contrast last year’s excellent article by Lars Justinen, “Hot Lunch and Syrian Refugees,” is worth reading as a practical application of what this set of lessons is all about. Not all of … Continue reading –>
Seventh-day Adventists often prefer to think of the gospel in terms of the second coming, the investigative judgement, the mark of the beast, or the nature of Christ, rather than social responsibility. However, reading through Matthew and the other Gospels recently, I find that Jesus was just as concerned about how we treat one another … Continue reading –>
