Praying for those who serve those who serve
The 2015 Defence Anglicans Prayer Diary is now up on their website.
Use it to help you uphold in prayer those who minister to members of the Australian Defence Force.
‘2067: the end of British Christianity’
“It’s often said that Britain’s church congregations are shrinking, but that doesn’t come close to expressing the scale of the disaster now facing Christianity in this country.
Every ten years the census spells out the situation in detail: between 2001 and 2011 the number of Christians born in Britain fell by 5.3 million — about 10,000 a week. If that rate of decline continues, the mission of St Augustine to the English, together with that of the Irish saints to the Scots, will come to an end in 2067…”
– Damian Thompson writes in The Spectator. A powerful reminder that the gospel is Britain’s only hope.
And Adam Ford has this observation.
Don’t miss the ACL Georges River Region Information Night Monday 15th June
Don’t miss our ACL Georges River Information Night –
• What is the Anglican Church League?
• What do we do? Why is this worth your interest and support?
• Why do many consider consider the League to be vital for the life of the Diocese of Sydney?
Please be encouraged to invite others in your church (clergy or lay) who may be interested in the work of the ACL.
A day late, a dollar short
“Tony Campolo has become the latest evangelical leader to declare for gay marriage. It is perhaps not a surprise …
What is surprising in the statement is the complete absence of any thoughtful argumentation in his articulation of his position.…”
– Carl Trueman comments on Tony Campolo’s change of mind on ‘gay marriage’.
Photo: TonyCampolo.org
Which way, Evangelicals? There is nowhere to hide
“This is a moment of decision, and every evangelical believer, congregation, denomination, and institution will have to answer. There will be no place to hide. The forces driving this revolution in morality will not allow evasion or equivocation.
Every pastor, every church, and every Christian organization will soon be forced to declare an allegiance to the Scriptures and to the Bible’s teachings on marriage and sexual morality, or to affirm loyalty to the sexual revolution. That revolution did not start with same-sex marriage, and it will not end there.”
– Albert Mohler calls Bible-believing Christians to be ready to give an answer.
Anglican Future Conference videos
Videos of talks from the Anglican Future Conference in Melbourne in March 2015 (programme) are now available, thanks to the Peter Corney Training Centre.
They are terrific resources – check them out and consider how you might use.
30 Days of Prayer
Food for Prayer. 18 June – 17 July 2015.
Leland Ryken and Sam Storms on J I Packer
Justin Taylor sat down recently with Sam Storms and Leland Ryken – both of whom have written books on J. I. Packer. It’s a 20 minute video.
J. I. Packer is best known for his books Knowing God, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God.
The Huguenot Heart
Bishop Paul Barnett spoke at the Huguenot Heritage Church service for the Huguenot Society at Scots Church in Sydney yesterday and shares his notes from the event –
“I am not of Huguenot descent. But let me speak today about the Huguenot heart…”
The Dunkirk National Day of Prayer
“When Britain was close to defeat during the Second World War, and the entire British Army was trapped at Dunkirk, in desperation George VI called for a National Day of Prayer.
This was held on 26th May 1940. In a national broadcast he instructed the people of the UK to turn back to God in a spirit of repentance and plead for Divine help. Millions of people across the British Isles flocked into churches praying for deliverance…”
– at Church Society, John Willans remembers an extraordinary time of prayer – and extraordinary answers.
The Bible and same sex relationships: A review article
“The reason that homosexual relationships make so much more sense to people today than in previous times is because they have absorbed late modern western culture’s narratives about the human life.
Our society presses its members to believe ‘you have to be yourself,’ that sexual desires are crucial to personal identity, that any curbing of strong sexual desires leads to psychological damage, and that individuals should be free to live as they alone see fit…”
– Tim Keller responds to two celebrated books which argue that the Bible allows for, or supports, same sex relationships.
Do you love me? Putting the carriage before the horse in the same-sex marriage debate
“It’s important that we get our heads around the nature of this debate otherwise we’ll just continually be responding to the wrong point, nor will we be in any position to helpfully reflect back to our wider society just what is going on and, perhaps, get them to reconsider…”
– David Ould considers the nature of love and marriage. Check it out.
Words of encouragement from Gordon and Ruth Russell
Moore College has posted four brief, but very encouraging, videos with College graduates Gordon and Ruth Russell.
Take the time to watch. At around three minutes each, the videos are ideal for screening in mid-week meetings or on Sundays.
2. Why Moore, and what’s next for you?
Stage Two exile – are you ready for it?
“The Western church is about to enter stage two of its exile from the mainstream culture and the public square. And it will not be an easy time.
In case you missed it, Exile Stage One began a few decades or so ago, budding in the sexual revolution of the sixties before building up a head of steam some 20 years ago. Finally some Christians sat down to talk about it 15 or so years ago, and that set the ball, and the publishing companies rolling…”
– at The Gospel Coalition Australia, Steve McAlpine, Associate Pastor at Providence Church in Perth, calls Christians to be prepared for what is coming.
Christ amongst the ‘gods’
“Today, Australia is visibly a religiously plural society. Christianity is no longer the ‘normal’ religion. Religious diversity is the new normal. And we experience that diversity daily. … This is the first of three articles about responding to religious plurality in Australia…”
– the Gospel, Society and Culture Committee of the Presbyterian Church of NSW is helping Australian Christians to think through the issues of living in a multifaith society. You can download the PDF file here.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…