An Evening Conversation with J. I. Packer – A 1999 Interview by Mark Dever

In October 1999, Mark Dever interviewed Dr J. I. Packer in an event at Capitol Hill Baptist Church.

The 59 minute video from 9Marks is a very worthwhile use of your time.

The Sins of Old(er) Christians – Especially Pastors

“John Chapman, the gifted evangelist now with the Lord, would often say two things as he moved into his senior years: (i) Getting old is the pits, and (ii) Another year, another specialist.

He was no fan on the ageing process and, as an active man, found the breaking-down of his body frustrating and he refused to ennoble it.

I don’t mean he complained about it. He remained thankful and faithful to the end. Chappo was only doing what Ecclesiastes does in chapter 12 – being honest about the brevity of life and the pain of drawing closer to the end of it. …”

– At The Gospel Coalition Australia, Ray Galea has some sobering encouragement for older Christians, and pastors in particular.

Moore College Sunday is this Sunday

Moore College Sunday this year is Sunday 2nd August.

Learn more and download resources here.

The Big Question

“One of the finest preachers I have heard is Haddon Robinson, who was the Harold J. Ockenga, Distinguished Professor of Preaching at Gordon Cornwell Theological Seminary, in the United States.

Haddon Robinson visited SMBC for two Preachers’ Conferences in 1995 and 1999 and his preaching had a great impact us.

His book on preaching, ‘Biblical Preaching’, continues to be very influential in the world of expository preaching.

The central thesis of the book is that preaching preparation ought to lead the preacher to reduce his text to one big idea, a single sentence which encapsulates the content of the  Bible passage. Indeed the Wikipedia entry on Dr Robinson lists his notable ideas as: ‘The big idea, Biblical Preaching’. …”

– At the Expository Preaching Trust, David Cook shares lessons he’s learned in sermon preparation.

(Book link added. Photo: St. Helen’s Bishopsgate.)

Two new episodes of The Pastor’s Heart

Dominic Steele and the team at The Pastor’s Heart have been busy, already producing two episodes this week:

1 – “Thousands of people attended Grace Community Church in Los Angeles [on Sunday, US time], the evangelical megachurch led by Pastor John MacArthur junior.

And the church elders have put out a statement defending their decision …

Moore Theological College’s New Testament lecturer Dr Lionel Windsor and Northmead Anglican Church’s Senior Pastor Adrian Russell join us to discuss the decision.”

2 – “After three years of researching the pornography problem and what to do about it, Marshall Ballantine-Jones has a message of hope.”

– Watch both at The Pastor’s Heart.

Review: Spurgeon on the Christian Life: Alive in Christ

“Michael Reeves has gifted us an excellent addition to the ‘Theologians on the Christian Life’ series, which is clearly written and a joy to read. …”

– At Church Society’s website, Ben Sear provides a brief and encouraging review of “Spurgeon on the Christian Life: Alive in Christ”.

(The book is available locally from Reformers Bookshop.)

 

Glory of Christ – Part 2

“In the second of these short reflections on the glory of Christ, I want to draw attention specifically to the constitution of his person in two natures, fully divine, and fully human. As a truth it is something that can be stated with relative ease. …”

– Andrew Leslie continues his series on the Glory of Christ – at The Australian Church Record.

Hagia Sophia and the Signs of the Times

“The Byzantine Cathedral Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) was built in 537AD by Emperor Justinian and remains one of the world’s most recognised and beautiful buildings. It is deservedly a Unesco World Heritage site: a museum of immense beauty and historical significance.

Although I have never had a chance to visit Istanbul and to walk inside this magnificent building, I have long dreamed of wandering along its marble floors, admiring the mosaics and being entranced by the dome above.

But this museum is no more. …

What is happening in Turkey should serve as a reminder for churches not to take for granted the time we have to live and serve and to preach Jesus Christ as Lord. …”

– Murray Campbell sees an important lesson for churches in current events.

We Preach Christ Crucified — J. I. Packer at the 1978 Moore College Lectures

The Donald Robinson Library at Moore College has digitised and made available the videotapes of  Dr. J. I. Packer’s 1978 Moore College Lectures.

His topic? “We Preach Christ Crucified.”

Watch here.

Forgiveness in Three Images

“Christians always want to understand the world better than it understands itself in order that we can comment on it with light and understanding.

However, we are members of another kingdom (Phil.3:20-21) ruled by a king who is not from our earthly world (John 18:36-37).

For sinners, one of our first issues must be that of forgiveness – which is probably not first on the list of world priorities.…”

– Encouragement from Psalm 103, and the Rev. Dr Peter Barnes, Moderator-General of the Presbyterian Church of Australia.

Preach, Pray, Love, and Stay

“When I was interviewing with Capitol Hill Baptist Church before they called me to be their pastor, someone asked me if I had a program or plan to implement for growth.

Perhaps to this person’s surprise (and perhaps to yours too!), I responded that I didn’t really have any great plans or programs to implement.

I was just armed with four P’s – I would preach, pray, develop personal discipling relationships, and be patient. In other words, preach and pray; love and stay. …”

– 9Marks shares this very helpful excerpt from The Deliberate Church: Building Your Ministry on the Gospel by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander.

Preaching in the Days of the Virus

“The English philosopher Bertrand Russell said, ‘Most people would rather die than think and most people do so’.

God urges his people to think – to think about history, to think about what he is doing in the world. God is not aloof and distant; he is involved in human history, nothing happens apart from his permission.

History is indeed his story and when one takes a bird’s eye, rather than a worm’s eye view,  God’s hand in world and personal events is readily apparent. …”

– At The Expository Preaching Trust, David Cook has some valuable suggestions for preachers in “the Days of the Virus”.

(Picture: St. Helen’s Bishopsgate.)

The Importance of Understanding History

From John Anderson:

“John talks to Professor Geoffrey Blainey, Australia’s most prominent historian, on the importance of a thorough understanding of history, and the dangers associated with establishing too narrow a worldview.”

Christians, of all people, should have an interest in history, and how it shapes the culture into which we want to speak the gospel. Watch at johnanderson.net.au.

“…and the books were opened.”

“This morning saw the release of a set of 45 year old documents, previously kept as secret as secret can be since 1975.

The ‘Palace Letters’ were the correspondence between the then Governor-General of Australia Sir John Kerr and the office of Queen Elizabeth as they discussed the dismissal of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. …”

– What will it be like when the books are opened – for you?

The Australian Church Record has this timely article by David Ould.

Are my sermons boring?

“In recent months several people at different churches have told me how bored they are by the sermons they hear on Sundays.

Now, if you’re a preacher, ‘bored’ is a term likely to immediately trigger your defence mechanisms. You’ll likely want to jump at the comment and eagerly condemn such ungodly attitudes. And yes, when some people say ‘I find the sermons boring’ they mean the sermons fail to entertain them. In this case repentance is required – there are many ways to be entertained but sermons aren’t one of them. No one should expect entertainment when God’s word is preached.

However, this criticism of sermons isn’t always or wholly the fault of the listener. …”

– Helpful questions from Steven Kryger at Communicate Jesus.

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