How the Person Became a Self
“In 2020, while the world was on lockdown due to COVID-19, Carl Trueman published one of the most important books of the last several decades.
In The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self, Trueman built on the insights of contemporary thinkers such as Philip Rieff and Alasdair MacIntyre to show how modern thinkers … gave expression to a worldview … that made possible and plausible the arguments of the late-modern theorists who shaped the postmodern sexual revolution …
It is a penetrating analysis of recent intellectual history that shows why people are willing to believe ideas today that our grandparents would have rejected out of hand—without need of argument, evidence, or proof—just two generations ago.
The only problem? The book is over 400 pages long. … I knew that many of Carl’s potential readers would not have the time or appetite to wade through so many of his finer, nuanced discussions. So I emailed Carl, praising the book as essential reading. But I also suggested that he consider writing a shorter, more accessible version of the basic argument for non-specialists. Carl has now produced that volume with Strange New World, and it sparkles on every page. …”
– If the length of The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self put you off, Strange New World might be just what you need. Ryan T. Anderson writes at First Things.
The book is available widely – here are some booksellers.
How to apologise — The Pastor’s Heart
On the Pastor’s Heart:
“Actor Will Smith has apologised for his actions at the Oscars and former Hillsong Global Pastor Brian Houston has apologised to his church.
It makes one think then – what makes a good apology, and how can we apologise well?
Bruce Burgess from Peacewise speaks to us today on the seven things that make up a good apology.”
Gary Millar on Brian Houston — Keith Condie on The Pastor’s Marriage
From The Pastor’s Heart:
“The Chair of the Australian Gospel Coalition Gary Millar says the fall of Brian Houston brings significant lessons for anyone in any level of Christian leadership that power and authority are very dangerous.
Co-Director/Founder of the Mental Health & Pastoral Care Institute at Mary Andrews College, Keith Condie, says there’s a series of steps that pastors need to take to safeguard actions and protect marriages.”
Scripture Alone — David Cook
Even if you haven’t, David Cook has seen the preaching and the damage done –
“Coming from a Presbyterian background I had personally experienced the destructive effect of modernism or liberalism; preaching was hesitant, indefinite, and unclear. There certainly was no sense of authority. All one could say, after hearing a sermon, was that the minister believed in some sort of divine being!”
He writes at The Expository Preaching Trust:
Attending Bible College in the 1960s involved a two-year course, each year having three terms.
This meant that six areas of Systematic Theology were covered, the first being the foundational Doctrine of Revelation—what we believe about the Bible.
Entering Moore College in 1973 meant attending the transformational lectures of DB Knox as he led us through TC Hammond’s, ‘In Understanding Be Men’, the first chapter of which is entitled, ‘Final Authority in Matters of Faith’.
All other doctrines flow from a right understanding of what we believe the Bible is, its source, its nature and its purpose.
Coming from a Presbyterian background I had personally experienced the destructive effect of modernism or liberalism; preaching was hesitant, indefinite, and unclear. There certainly was no sense of authority. All one could say, after hearing a sermon, was that the minister believed in some sort of divine being!
The available Presbyterian Theological Schools, with a non-commitment to the inspiration of Scripture, its supremacy, authority and sufficiency, had produced a generation of preachers with nothing to say, apart from vague, theistic, positive psychology.
When Paul urges Timothy in 2 Timothy 3 to understand the times, avoid the alternatives and preach the word, all these imperatives are based on a firm conviction about Scripture’s divine source (2 Timothy 3:16).
Abandon the foundation of what God tells us about Scripture and the pulpit, and all true pastoral ministry will be lost!
Fifty years on and we need this reminder because fewer of us have experienced those empty, powerless days.
Scripture’s inspiration means that its authority is supreme, over church and culture.
Scripture’s inspiration means that it is sufficient, we need not, and should not look for any other special word from God, that extra word is at best a hunch.
Scripture is God’s word, not yours or mine, therefore we have no right to add to it or subtract from it.
Scripture is the instrument God uses to bring the lost to life and to bring the believer to maturity (Isaiah 55:11; Acts 12:24; 19:20; 20:32; 1Cor 1:18;1:21; 15:2; Eph 1:13; 2Timothy 3:15-16).
As disciples of the Lord Jesus, we share his conviction as to the authority and centrality of Scripture (Mark 12:10; John 10:35).
Thus all Christian leaders must be awake to what our recent history has taught us, and actively resist any influence to water down the central and supreme authority of Holy Scripture.
As our old friend John Chapman used to say, ‘The authority is in the text, brother. Preach the text’.
‘It is at the very root of the Evangelical position that the supremacy of Holy Scripture be held in its fullest sense… no words can too strongly express the importance of securing, beyond doubt, the unsuperseded authority of the Sacred Scriptures in all religious discussions whether of doctrine or practice’. (TC Hammond, ‘In Understanding be Men’, p.39).
– First published at The Expository Preaching Trust.
How to navigate a messy pastoral transition
From The Pastor’s Heart:
“For 15 years Hugh Isaacs has been at the centre of messy pastoral transitions, as an ‘emergency responder’ to churches going through a transition crisis. Today, he he joins us to give us insight into the process.
After initially helping members deal with their grief, there are five key steps Isaacs tells that need to be worked through for the best outcome. However, Isaacs warns of the land mines that come off at any moment though this process. …”
An unwanted gift
“Have you ever received a gift that you did not want? A number of years ago I asked my father to buy me a cast-iron griddle pan, but he decided to give it to my wife Pearl instead. I was delighted. She was less than impressed. Not every gift is something we want.
I received a gift I didn’t want recently. Despite abundant caution and double vaccination I received a bad case of COVID-19. And it really was bad. I cannot remember feeling so ill in my life. Even a month later I’m still in the process of recovery. Yet, despite all that, and amid recognition of all the pain and loss it has caused so many, I still consider it a gift. …”
– Bishop of Western Sydney Gary Koo shares what he has learned through COVID – at SydneyAnglicans.net.
Image: Bishop Gary Koo / Anglican Media Sydney.
A Wake-Up …
“With the continued missile onslaught on the cities of Ukraine we feel the pain and the suffering and the loss of life. ‘Why this evil and suffering in this 21st century?’
In his 1940s book, The Problem of Pain, CS Lewis considers the question of pain and suffering from the perspective of the meaning and purpose of life. …”
– At the Anglican Connection, John Mason has a reminder of the signs of the times.
Shepherds of Assurance
“How did the Puritan pastors use their doctrine of personal assurance of salvation to assist believers in living the Christian life?
And what lessons can we learn today from their pastoral specialization in the vast field of experiential Christianity connected with the assurance of salvation?…”
– At Desiring God, Joel Beeke looks at the Puritans and outlines how their examples are a great encouragement to pastors in understanding their roles today. (link via Tim Challies.)
How Can Jesus and the Father both be God?
“Thanks for asking this great and important question. There are a few issues tied up here but let me begin by offering a basic answer and then try to explore it a bit more deeply.
You ask how the Father can be God and yet Jesus can also be God. Of course, this is similar to what John talks about at the start of his gospel. Referring to Jesus as the ‘Word’, he declares that:
In the beginning, was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1)
How can the Word (the eternal person who became Jesus) be with God and be God. Is this simply a contradiction?
How can this make sense? How can the Word (the eternal person who became Jesus) be with God and be God. Is this simply a contradiction?…”
– In a new feature at The Gospel Coalition Australia (“Ask TGCA”), Andrew Moody seeks to bring some clarity in answering the question “How Can Jesus and the Father both be God?”.
Three Encouragements for Pastors Pursuing Wandering Sheep
“One of the unintended consequences of the pandemic has been the disintegrating weekly habit of attending the Sunday gathering. What should a pastor do when faced with wandering sheep, those who have left the safe pastures of the local church and found themselves in dangerous territory away from the herd?
Let me encourage you, pastor, to consider three things as you seek out wandering sheep. …”
– At 9Marks, Nick Gardner has some encouragement in these changing times.
Vladimir Putin, A Friend to Christian Morality and Conservative Culture?: A Christian Response this Question
In his daily analysis of news for Thursday March 10 2022 Albert Mohler tackles the place of the Christian morality and the Russian Orthodox Church in what’s happening in Russia at the moment.
Not as good as we hope to be? — Leadership effectiveness and ministry blindspots
“Senior leaders long to be effective leaders, but we may not be as good as we hope to be.
Leadership in a church context has become much much more complex, with increasing demands on the senior pastor to be excellent in leadership, managerial, and administrative on top of preaching, teaching and pastoral care. …”
– This week at The Pastor’s Heart.
Diocese of the Northern Territory Prayer Cycle for 2022
From the Diocese of the Northern Territory –
“We covet your prayers for the work of the Gospel in the Diocese of the Northern Territory.
Please keep praying that God will raise up the next generation of leaders in all the parishes here in the Northern Territory, for additional resources for our urban and remote parishes and that we will use the resources that God has given wisely.”
– Download the Prayer Cycle for 2002 here.
Law and Religion elective for later year Law students
“This is an announcement which may be of interest to readers of this blog who are, or who know, later year Australian law students. Please feel free to pass this on to others who may be interested.
Students in the final 2 years of their law program are invited to consider applying for cross-institutional study with Associate Professor Neil Foster at the University of Newcastle, NSW, who will be offering the course LAWS6095 “Law and Religion” in semester 2, 2022. The course is open to both postgrad JD students and LLB students in their final 2 years of study.”
– As noted at Law and Religion Australia, perhaps you may know a law student who would benefit from this.
Shane Warne and our own mortality
“I think it is fair to say that the whole nation is in mourning. The cricket world is in shock. At the age of 52, Shane Warne is dead. This legitimate Aussie larrikin and cricket legend (and legend is no exaggerated term) died suddenly on Friday night, apparently from a heart attack. …”
– Murray Campbell writes of mortality and Christian hope.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…