Reading the Bible — Regularly, carefully, prayerfully
The latest two posts by David Cook, Moderator General of the Presbyterian Church, deal with sin, and reading the Bible (respectively). Here’s a quote from “Reading the Bible – Regularly, carefully, prayerfully”.
“Do you wonder how many people in church read the Bible regularly? The latest statistics I could find from the Bible Society are 19% read on a daily basis, 14% several times a week, 10.5% several times a moth. That means that more than half are not reading the Bible at all. We need to do something about this.”
The church David attends is seeking to do something.
Both posts are under Moderator General’s Comments (you may need to scroll down to 20 May 2014 to find them).
30 Days of Prayer
This year’s 30 Days of Prayer for the Muslim World prayer guide is now available from their website.
A very practical and heart-felt way to show love for Muslim people with a focus during Ramadan, June 28 – July 27.
NEXUS registration closes tomorrow
Thinking of going to the NEXUS Conference on Monday May 26th?
If so, bear in mind that registration closes on Wednesday May 21st.
‘How Jesus Became God’: A Review
“Ehrman’s core argument is that Jesus was a mere man who gradually, over time, came to be regarded as more and more divine, until he was ultimately (in the fourth century) regarded as the God of the universe.”
– At Reformation21, Mike Kruger (pictured) reviews Bart Ehrman’s latest book, “How Jesus Became God”.
Lord Carey calls for the right to convert from Islam
“Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, has called on leading British Muslims to support the right to convert from Islam to another religion after a court in Sudan sentenced a woman to death for apostasy…”
– Story from The Independent.
The Budget: Being Economical with the Truth
“Did Tony Abbott lie? Did Julia Gillard lie? Do all politicians lie? Do they have to lie in order to run the country? Were John Howard’s non-core promises, lies? Was Bob Hawke’s “no Australian child will be living in poverty”, a lie?
Were these national leaders untruthful or unfaithful? What is the connection between truth and faith or between faith and faithful? …”
– Dean of Sydney Phillip Jensen writes in his weekly column for the Cathedral.
Why so many churches hear so little of the Bible
“It is well and good for the preacher to base his sermon on the Bible, but he better get to something relevant pretty quickly, or we start mentally to check out.” That stunningly clear sentence reflects one of the most amazing, tragic, and lamentable characteristics of contemporary Christianity: an impatience with the Word of God.
The sentence above comes from Mark Galli, senior managing editor of Christianity Today in an essay entitled, “Yawning at the Word.” In just a few hundred words, he captures the tragedy of a church increasingly impatient with and resistant to the reading and preaching of the Bible. We may wince when we read him relate his recent experiences, but we also recognize the ring of truth. …
– Albert Mohler writes on the famine of hearing the Word of God.
Investigating Paul’s backstory
“Paul Barnett, a leading historian of early Christianity, investigates the period sometimes labelled the ‘unknown years’ of Paul’s ministry (i.e. the 14 years between his Damascus Road experience and first missionary journey), in order to provide a foundation for interpreting Galatians. He convincingly accounts for Paul’s activities during that span, and offers a compelling interpretation of sections of Galatians based on his reconstruction…”
– At SydneyAnglicans.net, Moore College’s Philip Kern reviews Paul Barnett’s new book, Paul in Syria: The Background to Galatians. (Published by Paternoster in the UK, the book does not seem to be widely available just yet, but will be worth getting when it is. The ISBN is 9781842278536.)
Willful blindness vs social media traction
“Now, the story which has been almost completely ignored for the last two weeks is beginning to gain traction in the media.
It’s not because the mainstream media have suddenly gotten either religion or conscience, it is because every day crowds of demonstrators are marching in front of media outlets and government offices carrying placards in places like Lagos, Abuja, and London that say things that read, “Our girls are not for sale,” and “Bring them home.”
– Bishop Bill Atwood writes at The American Anglican Council.
(GAFCON photo: Russell Powell.)
From The Dean’s Wife
“Peter tells husbands to live with their wives understanding her physical hardships in life, as one with whom we share an inheritance (1 Peter 3:7). Here is an edited version of an article on the topic that my wife, Helen wrote some years ago for the Equal But Different Journal.”
– Phillip Jensen introduces this article by Helen.
Formulary Friday: Taking to heart
“We can tend to have a low view of memorisation – perhaps it conjures up those dreary school lessons spent reciting the kings and queens of England, or, still worse, we associate it with a dead spirituality, all outward forms and vain repetition. But, just as we might want to commit particular Scriptural verses or passages to memory, I’d like to suggest that we might find it helpful to do the same for parts of the liturgy – that liturgical familiarity is more often a friend than it is a foe.”
– Mark Smith at Church Society reckons it’s a good idea to open that Prayer Book. See why here.
The Church Singing — latest 9Marks Journal
Check out the latest 9Marks Journal –
“In this edition of the 9Marks Journal, we start with singing and the song. Why do congregations sing, what should they sing about, and how can they sing better?
We then think more carefully about the music itself, particularly with two different perspectives on whether or not some musical forms are better than others. Finally we think about what is involved in leading music.”
Free eBook on Isaac Watts
“In an age of simplistic and repetitive choruses, many churches are rediscovering the blessing of theologically rich and biblically informed songs. In the latest addition to our A Long Line of Godly Men Profile series, Douglas Bond introduces us to Isaac Watts, ‘the father of English hymnody.’…”
– free eBook from Ligonier Ministries during May 2014.
David Cook on Gospel Preaching
David Cook has been preaching evangelistically for St. Helen’s Bishopsgate in London.
While there, he was interviewed about Gospel Preaching for the Preaching Matters series. Most encouraging.
Bob Carr
“If ever a preacher had a challenge it was Bob Carr’s statement: ‘The thing that puzzles me about Easter is why the sacrifice was required. … No preacher has ever explained to me why the death of Jesus had to happen, why it was mandated, why any message from God to man had to happen by that route.’
He expressed no doubt that the Scriptures recount Jesus’ death as a sacrifice, he just could not see the reason for it. So in response there is no point simply rehearsing the content of the Scriptures, rather it requires showing their logic. So here are two lines to follow – one personal the other explanatory.”
– Dean of Sydney Phillip Jensen writes on former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr, and the Cross of Christ.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…