Geneva Push website launched
The Geneva Push church planting network has launched their new website. (h/t Craig Schwarze.)
The existence of God, the reality of Evil, and the terror of Hell
Three brief video clips by Don Carson answering three common questions —
* How do I know God exists?
* How can God allow suffering and evil in the world?
* How can God be loving and yet send people to Hell?
See them via Between Two Worlds.
David Short to take a break
Rector of St John’s Shaughnessy (and Honorary Canon of St Andrew’s Cathedral Sydney) David Short is taking a break to recover from the stress of recent months. Please pray for our brother, his family and the church at St John’s.
“This is a strange place for me personally (although not uncommon for clergy I am discovering), and for us as a church, yet this too is from the hand of our heavenly Father. As we await the court decision be certain of God’s continued sustaining grace.”
News via Anglican Essentials Canada blog. (Photo: Joy Gwaltney.)
Connect09 Youth Event December 4
Read all about the LIVE OUT LOUD youth event planned for December 4 – part of Connect09.
Position vacant at Dongara in DNWA
Bishop David Mulready of North West Australia is still looking for a couple, committed to the Bible, to come to serve in the parish of Dongara (map) and Mingenew (map), south and south-east of Geraldton. Might the Lord be calling you?
See this PDF file for a description of the parish and the ministry there – with contact details for Bishop Mulready.
GAFCON Primates Council statement on Vatican offer
Statement from GAFCON/FCA Primates Council
RESPONSE TO OFFER OF AN APOSTOLIC CONSTITUTION TO ANGLICANS
We have received the Archbishop of Canterbury’s letter informing us of the Pope’s offer of an ‘Apostolic Constitution’ for those Anglicans who wish to be received into the Roman Catholic Church. We believe that this offer is a gracious one and reflects the same commitment to the historic apostolic faith, moral teaching and global mission that we proclaimed in the Jerusalem Declaration on the Global Anglican Future and for this we are profoundly grateful.
We are, however, grieved that the current crisis within our beloved Anglican Communion has made necessary such an unprecedented offer. It represents a grave indictment of the Instruments of Communion whose very purpose is to strengthen and protect our unity in obedience to our Lord’s clear command. Their failure to fully address the abandonment of biblical faith and practice by The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada has now brought shame to the name of Christ and seriously impedes the cause of the Gospel. Read more
Challies and Challies on ‘Sexual Detox’
Over the last two weeks, Tim Challies has been blogging on the theme of ‘Sexual Detox’ – and has now made his posts available as two free e-books – Sexual Detox: A Guide for the Single Guy (PDF) and Sexual Detox: A Guide for the Married Guy (PDF). In addition Tim’s wife, Aileen, is guest blogging some articles especially directed at women (False Messages I: What he really wants).
Worth reading in conjunction with the discussion going on at SydneyAnglicans.net (Pornography’s “silenced sufferers”).
Response from the Council of Church Society to the plans by the Church of Rome to receive disaffected Anglicans
“…the true doctrine of the Church of England does not embrace any of the teachings or practices which characterise the Church of Rome. For instance, the Church of Rome is fundamentally flawed in its claims about its own nature and authority and in its teaching about the means of salvation.”
– Read the full statement from Church Society.
Create 09 registration closes soon
Registration for next Saturday’s Create Conference (being run by Outreach Media) closes at 17:00 on Wednesday November 11th. Details here.
Article XVIII
They also are to be had accursed that presume to say, That every man shall be saved by the Law or Sect which he professeth, so that he be diligent to frame his life according to that Law, and the light of Nature. For holy Scripture doth set out unto us only the Name of Jesus Christ, whereby men must be saved.
“The sequence of articles on the subject of individual salvation that began with Article XI ends here with this very strong statement against the view that it is sincerity and diligence that matter most in the religious life.…”
– Michael Jensen is up to Article XVIII at Thirty Nine.
Mary Shilton 1925-2009
Anglican Media Melbourne has published a tribute to Mary Shilton, remembered by many Sydney Anglicans as a CMS missionary and also the widow of former Dean of Sydney Lance Shilton. She died last month.
(Photo: Anglican Media Melbourne.)
‘A liberal pit that was no earthly use’
“A bestselling author and Anglican priest has launched an outspoken attack on the Church of England and revealed that he is converting to Catholicism.
GP Taylor, whose children’s book Shadowmancer became an international bestseller and is being turned into a film, accused the church of sinking ‘into a liberal pit that was no earthly use and offered no hope, no love and no grace’…”
– Story from The Guardian. See also his article in The Yorkshire Post (h/t Anglican Mainstream). Photo: Tyndale House Publishers.
Help and encouragement in sharing the gospel
“Paul E. Little’s book How to Give Away Your Faith was first published in 1966, a few years before the popular evangelist was killed in a tragic car accident. Since his untimely death, his wife Marie has overseen two revisions of Little’s book (1988, 2008). It is sometimes described as ‘the classic guide to evangelism,’ perhaps because of the way in which the book addresses practical issues surrounding personal evangelism.”
– Trevin Wax offers some good reasons to dust off your old copy – or perhaps to get a revised edition. At The Discerning Reader.
Of course, Chappo’s Know and Tell the Gospel, written for Australian conditions, is essential reading! (Photo of Paul Little: Ake Lundberg.)
Get to know the Nigerian Primate-elect
The Vanguard newspaper in Nigeria has run this interesting interview with the Primate-elect of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Nicholas Okoh.
(Photo: Church of Nigeria.)
The Influence of Liberalism upon Evangelicalism — ‘the Curate’s Egg’
“When a term is used frequently enough it can become over used and so end up being abused. We may think, for example, of the word, ‘awesome’. A mobile phone can now be described as ‘awesome’ and pretty soon everything is awesome which means nothing is so. We have a similar problem with the term ‘evangelical’. It can now mean little more than indicating that one prefers guitars to organs in public worship…”
– Church Society has just reprinted this 2007 Churchman article (PDF file) by Melvin Tinker.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…