How to put together ‘an excellent’ funeral

This week from The Pastor’s Heart –

“Not every funeral is great. Sometimes they go too long, sometimes the gospel is not clear, sometimes the content overlaps.

How do you create a funeral service that God would be pleased with, connects well with people, honours the deceased and serves the bereaved?

• David Cook is former Principal of Sydney Missionary and Bible College,
• Sandy Grant is Dean of St Andrew’s Cathedral Sydney, and
• Gary Coleman is former Chaplain to the Motor Racing Industry.”

– Watch here. Some very helpful advice.

Recommended:

At a Time Like This – Some answers for loss and grief by Simon Manchester.

Judging the Unrighteous — Exclusion from the kingdom of heaven

From Phillip Jensen –

“If ever there is a passage of the Bible that has caused controversy and division today, it is 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.

There is not much doubt as to what the passage says or means, yet the application of this passage in the church and in society has led to great conflict.

In today’s episode, Peter outlines something of the background of the conflict within the Anglican Communion over the last two decades, before we turn to the real pastoral importance of this passage in the lives of the leaders.”

– Peter and Phillip Jensen discuss this very sobering topic at Two Ways News.

Bishop Bell warns of new departures after Church in Wales vote

“The Church in Wales is about to lose another tranche of clergy, lay leaders and church members after its decision to make permanent a service of blessing for same-sex couples.

Many left at the beginning of the experimental period of provision in 2021 whilst others have been waiting to see if the passage of five years would be sufficient to bring the church back to the clear teachings of Scripture on the subject of human relationships. Clearly not. …”

– Via Anglican.ink, Bishop Stuart Bell responds to last week’s vote by the Church in Wales to make permanent its provision for same-sex blessings.

Photo: Stuart Bell (centre) with Bishop Andy Lines (left) and Archbishop Foley Beach at Bishop Bell’s consecration to serve within the Anglican Convocation in Europe in March 2023.

Preaching to Meet the Need

At The Expository Preaching Trust, Bob Thomas remembers the preaching of Graham Miller (pictured) as an example to consider and follow –

“Dr Graham Miller, friend and mentor of many young ministers in his day, and now in Glory, told a group of us once that he never had queues of people lining up at the Manse door to seek counselling or ask questions – and he attributed this to the fact that he was answering their questions in his preaching.

Those of us who sat under his preaching could testify that it was profoundly simple and simply profound, firmly tied to the passage of Scripture he was expounding in careful detail as he preached serially through a book of the Bible, and that it did indeed do what he claimed it did – answered peoples’ questions along the way and to their satisfaction. …”

– Read it all here.

Photo: Banner of Truth.

(Some of Graham Miller’s audio messages, recorded in 1959, can be found here.)

321: Seeing Life Clearly

From The Gospel Coalition Australia –

“Glen Scrivener’s How to See Life in 321 is a unique contribution to the plethora of evangelistic books available.

In this book, Christian doctrines such as trinity, sin, salvation, and union are given their initial conceptual meaning through simple stories and explanations.

The book and corresponding online course are divided into four sections : ‘Jesus: Our Guide’, ‘God’s Three-ness’, ‘The World’s Two-ness’, ‘Your One-ness’.

Each section comprises two chapters; the first begins with an illustrative story, and the second provides a deeper look at the illustrated idea with personal application.

There is a brief and helpful frequently asked questions section at the back of the book which gives general answers for those who are asking whether Christianity is true. The FAQ answer on divine hiddenness is an important contribution given people no longer assume the existence of God as compared to by people attending a Billy Graham crusade sixty years ago …”

– Jospeh Hewitt enthusiastically reviews Glen Scrivener’s How to See Life in 321.

“If your church is looking a resource to give non-Christians who do not want to read a gospel just yet, How to See Life is probably the pick of the bunch.”

Image: Speak Life’s 321 course.

Australian Journal of Law and Religion — Volume 7

From Associate Professor Neil Foster at Law and Religion Australia –

“The latest volume of the Australian Journal of Law and Religion has been published (and is freely available online.)

The Table of Contents is below – always worth reading! In particular I would like to commend the prize-winning essay by Jacob Carson, a former student of mine, on the important issues around teaching of religion in public schools.”

– Read about it (and download your copy) here.

Widows in the household of God

From the Priscilla and Aquila Annual Conference 2026 –

“A deep dive into 1 Timothy 5:3-16.

Working closely through the passage, Lionel Windsor addresses key questions and tensions – how it relates to the rest of Scripture, what it means to honour widows, and how the church is to order its life as God’s family.

The talk highlights the importance of honour, responsibility, and care, and challenges the assumptions we often bring to age, family, and independence.

We are reminded that the church is not simply a gathering of individuals, but a household shaped by God’s word – where men and women are called to honour one another and live out the implications of the gospel together.”

– Fascinating and helpful.

Church in Wales — Weighed in the balance and found wanting

“The Governing Body of the Church in Wales faced an important test this week.

It was a test of their commitment to inclusivity and the respect of individual conscience. It was a test which revealed far more about the future for faithful Anglicans in the Church in Wales than the vote that came later.

The challenge came in the form of a procedural motion. It was merely a request that the vote on the Bill to incorporate an order of service of blessing same-sex relationships into their Book of Common Prayer should be taken by ballot, rather than the usual show of hands. For those unfamiliar with the way Governing Body does its business, a counted vote requires individuals to hold their voting card up to be counted. There is no option for electronic voting and no formal record is made of how individuals voted.

It should not have been controversial. …

Faithful Anglicans in Wales are used to putting up with being being scorned and marginalised. They will now need to come to terms with the fact that the much vaunted conscience clause is limited to an individual’s right not to ‘participate in a service.’ It does not stretch to being able to have nothing to do with such services. If asked, clergy must enable a service of blessing to take place by passing the couple on to the diocesan bishop, or ensuring that another member of their team, or a visiting clergy person, offers the service. Lawyers clarified too that clergy, or congregations, cannot refuse to allow their buildings to be used to bless what they believe God cannot bless.”

– Anglican Futures has published this opinion piece on this week’s meeting of the Governing Body of the Church in Wales.

Related:

Evangelicals ‘need prayers’ after Church in Wales votes to make same-sex blessings permanent – Christian Today.

The liturgical shape of authentic Anglicanism

Original published in The Australian Church Record’s Easter 2026 Journal, Andrew Leslie reflects on authentic Anglicanism –

“When you look beyond the Sydney Diocese at national or global Anglicanism—and you can get a glimpse of this within the Sydney Diocese too—you might imagine that the denomination is so diverse in liturgy, in theology, and in practice, that defining ‘Anglican’ could be like asking, how long is a piece of string? And you’d be right.

In the face of that reality, it might be tempting just to sit on your hands, or throw them up in the air, or perhaps even make a virtue of the increasingly fragmented, almost totally amorphous comprehensiveness of global Anglicanism—as if to be authentically Anglican amounts to little more than  ‘everyone does as they see fit in their own eyes’, to borrow from the book of Judges!

Forty or fifty years ago, people would often try to solve the riddle by saying that at least the denomination has some kind of global coherence through communion with the Archbishop of Canterbury. But now even that’s no longer a given. …”

– Read it all here.

Image: Archbishop Thomas Cranmer by Gerlach Flicke.

Fish Must Fish

Campbell Markham at Scots’ Church in Fremantle reminds us of the Great Commission –

“Jesus makes disciples who make disciples (Matthew 4:18–22).

Cruise liner or battleship? Rest home or fort? Resort or gymnasium? What is the Christian Church supposed to be?

Though our forebears rest rejoicing in heaven as the Church Triumphant, we yet labour and fight on earth for Christ as the Church Militant.

Jesus stamped this fact on his church – permanently, deeply – when he called his first followers whilst simultaneously calling them to call other followers to him. …”

– Read it all at AP, the Australian Presbyterian online journal.

Nikhil’s youth leaders persistence made all the difference

Encouraging testimony from Nikhil Kurien, Assistant minister at Narellan, via SydneyAnglicans.net –

“My parents migrated to Australia the year before I was born, and were part of an Indian Reformed denomination. In Sydney, Anglicanism was the closest, so my parents from an early stage went to Anglican churches.

I grew up with all of the benefits of being in church, hearing Bible stories, knowing Scripture, but feeling bored by it. I had all of the precious truths in front of me but never appreciated what I had.

The turning point for me was late high school. …”

– Read here.

You can find this, and other encouraging testimonies, in the March-April 2026 Southern Cross magazine.  Photo: SydneyAnglicans.net.

Anglican board directs Bishop of The Murray to step down

From John Sandeman at The Other Cheek, a report on Bishop Keith Dalby of The Diocese of The Murray –

“Following the diocese becoming aware of his secret marriage to Alison Dutton in August 2023, Bishop Keith Dalby had stepped aside from his office as Bishop of the Diocese of The Murray with effect from 9 December 2023. In his statement, Bishop Murray expressed his ‘deep regret for the impact of my actions on the Diocese of the Murray, its clergy, and its people.’ …

[Bishop Dalby responds] ‘I am considering my position in light of the Board’s determination and will respond within the required timeframe. I ask for prayers for all those affected by this matter, including the people and leadership of the Diocese of the Murray.’”

– Story here.

The Reality of Biological Sex in Law — one step closer

“One of the deeply contested issues in Western societies at the moment is whether the law recognises the reality of biological sex. This is not only a question for faith groups, but it is one that most religious traditions regard as crucial – that there is a difference between men and women, and this difference can matter in some important contexts. But the question is also important for others in society, as this fundamental feature of humanity comes under challenge from those who claim that sex (or gender) is changeable.

The decision of Moshinsky J in the Federal Court of Australia, in Lesbian Action Group Inc v Australian Human Rights Commission [2026] FCA 432 (15 April 2026), arguably moves the law of Australia one step closer to acknowledging biological reality. …”

– Neil Foster shares his opinion on the latest developments – at Law and Religion Australia.

Photo: Associate Professor Neil Foster speaking at a Diocese of Sydney Safe Ministry conference.

Wales – rolls onwards towards same-sex marriage

From Anglican Futures –

“On the 15th April, the Governing Body of the Church in Wales will vote on a “Bill to incorporate into the Book of Common Prayer an Order of Service of Blessing following a Civil Partnership or Marriage between two people of the same-sex”.

If it passes, the fractures in the Anglican Communion will further deepen.

If it is rejected, it will be a miracle. …”

– Read it all here.

Image: Archbishop Cherry Vann delivers her Presidential Address, 15 April 2026. (For whatever interest, the proceedings are live-streamed here.)

Judgement of the Unrighteous

From Phillip Jensen –

“1 Corinthians 6 opens with a very challenging issue of disputes within the congregation. The Corinthians seem to have blown up these minor disputes into lawsuits against each other.

This raises for us a plethora of issues about resolving disputes inside the church and when it is appropriate and right to take issues beyond the church into public law courts.

I’m sure you will find this issue as complex as Peter and I discovered in our conversation.”

– Listen to Phillip and Peter discuss – at Two Ways News.

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