Stories from Moore College Mission 2021: learning and partnership

“This year’s Moore College Mission was, thankfully, able to take place face-to-face in partnership with churches, a refreshing contrast to the circumstances of our hurriedly ‘re-imagined’ online mission of 2020 which took place in lockdown in the early throes of the pandemic.

Mission has always been part of the makeup of Moore College…”

– At The Australian Church Record, Ben George shares encouragement from this year’s Moore College Mission.

Andrew Bolt interviews Bishop Paul Barnett on the Evidence for Jesus

Sky News host Andrew Bolt speaks with Author Paul Barnett about what sort of historical evidence supports the biblical claims about the life and events surrounding Jesus Christ.

Watch and share.

Andrew Bolt’s interest was roused by “A Short Book About Jesus: The man from heaven” by Paul Barnett published by CEP in 2015.

Easter 2021 op-ed – Bishop Mark Calder

Mark Calder, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Bathurst, has released this message for Easter 2021:

“Because I was in Brisbane last week, I’m at home this week on ‘stay at home’ orders.

But that has been the last year, hasn’t it – from last Easter.

Cancelled plans, adjusted plans; waiting on the latest health orders to see what our response is to be to a latest breakout, here or there.

It’s been a massive year. And we’ve waited patiently for the development of and then the roll out of vaccines.

But here we are at Easter again, where we remember first of all the death of the Lord Jesus Christ and then the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

If the accounts of those momentous events were fabrications, then we really should cancel the Easter holiday this year and every year, and get on with life!

But if the events which we stop to remember are true, then it is the most significant event in all of history.

Why do I say that?

Because it’s the very means by which we who have pushed God out can be welcomed back into relationship with God; forgiven and reconciled to him, now and for all eternity!

And that really does mean that we can have a relationship with God which makes a huge difference in life and that in the midst of a global pandemic, and no matter what else is happening in life, we can know God’s love,  his presence, his peace, the assurance of forgiveness and the hope of a future with him.

I want to encourage you to get along to church this Easter. We weren’t able to last year. Get along to church and hear the story of Easter or hear again the story of Easter and what it means for you and what difference it makes for life today.

Four days off. How brilliant!

But take opportunity to take stock and remember what those four days are really all about.

30 March 2021.”

– To find a church in the Diocese of Bathurst, go to the Diocesan website and move your mouse over the “Our Parishes” button.

Help or Harm: The Gospel Coalition Australia’s planned campaign

In the latest edition of The Pastor’s Heart, Dominic Steele speaks with Akos Balogh and Bill Salier from The Gospel Coalition Australia about a social media campaign being launched this week.

These brothers each want to see people saved and Christ glorified. We are thankful for them all. Their discussion might help you think through how to best speak of the Lord Jesus in the public square.

Watch or listen here.

Make the most of Easter evangelism post COVID

From The Pastor’s Heart:

“Don’t let Easter creep up on you.”

Dominic Steele is joined by Paul Webb, Elliot Temple and Andrew Levy in thinking about how to make the most of Easter this year.

Watch at The Pastor’s Heart.

Also at The Pastor’s Heart, Dominic addresses the tragedy of the recent revelations concerning Ravi Zecharias.

Worldview and Christian mission

“I have a friend who was once a committed Buddhist. Wonderfully, he has come to know the Lord Jesus as his saviour. But he had a lot of questions.

The trouble was that his Christian friends kept answering questions he wasn’t asking. One of his big questions was, ‘How can you say God suffers?’ He was given lots of great answers explaining why people suffer – but he wasn’t confused about that. He knows people suffer. My friend couldn’t get his head around the idea that God might suffer on the cross. The reason this was such a big issue for him was because of his worldview. …”

– Dr David Williams, Director of development and training for CMS Australia at St Andrew’s Hall, spoke about worldviews at CMS Summer School.

SydneyAnglicans.net has published an edited version of his talk. Very helpful.

John Anderson speaks with John Lennox


John Anderson speaks with Professor John Lennox in Oxford.

They discuss Christ’s birth and life as one of historical truth, the Christian foundations of the modern scientific method, and the current religious climate.

Fascinating and helpful.

“NAZARETH” — A Hamilton Parody

Simon Camilleri has produced a wonderful video inspired by the musical Hamilton.

Watch here – and below the video is a link to download it if you can use it at a church Christmas event.

“PRAY FOR AUSTRALIA” DAY

Phillip Jensen has written to encourage prayer –

Our country is desperately in need of our prayers so would you join us for a day to:

What better day than Australia Day, 26th January (the public holiday just before the year gets under way)?

What better way than in our parish churches – with connections to others meeting to pray?

Last January we started an evangelistic prayer day with a group of young adults. Read more

The Coming — a dramatic new Christmas video from Glen Scrivener and Speak Life.

This year’s Christmas video from Glen Scrivener and Speak Life has just been released. This ambitious production, an animation based on “The Coming” by R. S. Thomas, is sure to generate discussion.

Be sure to watch.

Plus

You could pray about ways of using this video for Christmas.

Sydney Diocese’s Unchanged Priority for over Eighty Years

“The world’s greatest need is evangelism. With all the earnestness and strength that are in me I urge upon you that fact. I urge it especially upon my brethren of the clergy. Study evangelism; preach evangelism; live evangelism.

Let us not, by neglecting it, betray the Lord that bought us; let us not, by neglecting it, betray the souls of men who look to us for light and leading; let us not, by neglecting it, betray our own souls on the day of judgment when God shall call us to give account of our stewardship.

‘Who is sufficient for these things?’ we cry. And our cry would be one of despair did all not remember that “our sufficiency is of God”. That sufficiency comes to us through the medium of prayer.”

– Archbishop H. W. K. Mowll, Presidential Address to the 3rd Ordinary Session of the Twenty-fourth Synod of the Diocese of Sydney (Monday 15 August, 1938) (Year Book of the Diocese of Sydney 1939, p. 247)

Picture: Archbishop Howard Mowll, painted by Alfred G. Reynolds, 1958. On display at Mowll Village, Castle Hill.

Review: The Mission Before Us

“You are an Anglican from Sydney? Get this book.

Read it carefully. Read it prayerfully. If it is aimed at you, do something about it.

And it is aimed at all of us. …”

– At The Australian Church Record, former Archbishop of Sydney, Dr. Peter Jensen, commends “The Mission Before us”.

Learn how you can get your free copy.

One Year in Sydney: An Interview with David Robertson

You may recall David Roberston’s interview with The Australian Church Record in July 2018. At the time, asked about his impressions of Sydney Anglicans, he said,

“I came here expecting to learn a great deal about evangelism. I have learnt about church structures, praise, organisation and leadership training – all of which is essential. But in my limited experience I’m not convinced that evangelism is a strong point amongst Sydney Anglicans (or indeed some other Christians).”

That’s what’s behind the beginning of David’s answer in this new interview with the ACR:

“I think what has happened is a warning to those of us who have big mouths – or at least think out loud!

After I spoke to you, I returned home to my church in Scotland, safe in the knowledge that I would not have to put into practice what I suggested. But the Lord had other ideas! Peter Kaldor of City Bible Forum challenged me to come to Sydney and put into practice the ideas I was talking about.

Through a variety of push and pull factors it was made clear to myself and my wife, Annabel, that the Lord was calling us here. In one sense it was a hard decision – giving up home, country and a now well-established church to come to the unknown.

But the opportunity to set up a new evangelistic opportunity called Third Space, and to work with Steve McAlpine and CBF, was one that ultimately, we could not refuse. …”

Read it all.

Something Better

Richard Coekin at Dundonald Church in London wants to encourage Christians to share their story.

The aim: “To resource the local church to reach the city with news of something better.”

Check out the “Something Better” website here.

On Toppling Statues

“Surely one of the most striking images of this extraordinary year was the toppled statue of Edward Colston being rolled through the streets of Bristol, England by a furious mob, in June.

The statue had been erected in 1895 (174 years after Colston’s death) in recognition of his philanthropy. In his lifetime, Colston had endowed the city with schools, hospitals, homes for the poor as well as churches, including Bristol Cathedral.

But a significant proportion of Colston’s wealth came from the slave trade…”

– Terrific article by Kanishka Raffel. Suitable for sharing as a conversation starter.

(Image: St. Andrew’s Cathedral, Sydney.)

← Previous Page — Next Page →