Celebration of the 50th year of Campus Bible Study

Campus Bible Study at the University of NSW is turning 50!

“Over many years, God has been working through people at UNSW. The foundation of CBS is prayer and proclaiming the crucified and risen Christ as Lord of all. From CBS, God has raised many servants for Sydney, Australia and the world.

So, join past and present CBSers on campus to give thanks to God for his incredible kindness and faithfulness through CBS. We will look forward to the next 50 years (or until the Lord returns) of proclaiming Christ to future generations of university students.

Please join us and many others on Saturday 15th March 2025 at UNSW.”

Details here.

Guess who’s coming to podcast?

“The former Dean of Sydney, Phillip Jensen, has been joined by his brother, former Archbishop Peter Jensen, in a refashioning of the podcast Two Ways News.

The podcast was previously hosted by Phillip Jensen and Tony Payne. …

In the first episode of 2025, Mr Jensen introduces his brother Peter as the new co-host. “This year we’re looking at Genesis,” he says in the first episode. ‘Last year we worked our way through Romans and we just thought, well, the opening chapters of Genesis open up so many questions for us that it’ll be a great passage to have as the backbone of the year.’…”

Russell Powell shares the news at SydneyAnglicans.net.

This podcast will be a real treat. Listen to the first episode for 2025, released today.

Image: Peter and Phillip at the 2023 King’s Birthday Conference at Moore Theological College.

Ten archaeological facts to increase confidence in the Old Testament — Hans Kristensen

From The Pastor’s Heart:

“There are claims – and you hear them every so often – that archeology has disproved this story or that in the Bible, and claims from this or that scholar of particularly late dating of different bible books.

How do we as evangelical pastors react/respond/answer those claims?

Hans Kristensen is senior pastor of Marsfield Community Church in Sydney and is studying archaeology.

He suggests that there are 10 major archaeological finds that help us to increase our confidence in the Old Testament…”

– Fascinating.  Watch or listen here.

Book review: ‘Proclaiming Christ’

“The past two hundred years of human history has seen the rise of so-called ‘modern’ thinking, which has created unprecedented challenges for Christians around the world.

As it stands, our current society is underpinned by a subjective approach to truth – emotions determine worldviews; objective biblical standards are labelled extremist; and unalterable biological realities like one’s own gender are contested on the grounds of personal feelings. In turn, this subjectivity has accompanied religious pluralism, as no revelation from God can be considered objectively true, because nothing is objectively true.

Against this cultural backdrop, believers are constantly in need of reminders to keep preaching Christ crucified. As a compilation of Packer’s 1978 lectures at Moore Theological College on Common Objections Against Christianity, this book serves to do exactly that. …“

At AP, the national Presbyterian journal, Isaac Kwong commends J. I. Packer’s Proclaiming Christ in a Pluralistic Age.

As we noted when Campbell Markham reviewed the book last year, as well as reading the book, you can watch Packer’s 1978 Moore College lectures – About an hour each:

Lecture 1 –  We’ve a Story to Tell.
Lecture 2 – The man Christ Jesus.
Lecture 3 – He emptied himself: the divinity of Jesus Christ.
Lecture 4 – The wonderful exchange.
Lecture 5 – No other name: the uniqueness of Jesus Christ.

Nexus 25 coming up on 17th March

The Nexus25 conference is coming up on Monday 17th March at Village Church Annandale:

Nexus25 is about how we can reach our city with the life-giving gospel of our Lord Jesus.

Our conviction as a Nexus network is that the death and resurrection of Jesus, and his imminent return, means that our lives and churches must be driven by the urgent proclamation of our Saviour and Lord. And yet if we’re honest with ourselves, this conviction often wanes and does not flow into concerted, effective action in our churches.  We believe that God is not done with Sydney. Christ still has many people in this city—people who have not yet heard and believed the gospel of Christ—and we long to see them saved and gathered around his throne.

Together under God, let’s think about what we need to do in our churches as we strive to reach this city for Christ.

Dave Jensen and Phil Colgan are going to help us think about how we can help everyone in our churches be on board with the mission that drives us.  What are the convictions we need to sharpen in ourselves and encourage in others if we are going to be evangelistically effective? Are there things holding our churches back?  Are there better ways to do things that flow more truly from our convictions?  Those are the sorts of questions we’re going to consider.

Of course, along with this, we’re going to do what we always do at Nexus – come together for encouragement, fellowship and prayer, to spur one another on to persevere in the noble task of serving God’s people as pastors, teachers and evangelists.”

Learn more, and register, at the Nexus25 website.

Bishop of Bathurst’s HOPE25 Newsletter

The Bishop of Bathurst, Mark Calder, has released his HOPE25 Newsletter.

Many churches around Australia are planning to take part in the HOPE25 “intentional season of sharing hope in Jesus” between Easter and Pentecost.

Find your copy here – food for your prayers.

Crucifixion Historicity

“Friends in Christ, on Monday as I left the Cathedral to go home, my exit was impeded by a Muslim man praying right outside our office door on the landing. I had to excuse myself and step over and around him. But something, presumably the Holy Spirit, then prompted me to pause and pray for his salvation for as long as it took him to finish his set prayers.

I then explained that he should not pray so as to block a doorway. It could impede people in an emergency. He did apologise but his excuse was to say it was a house of God. I said, it was a Christian house of God. He then claimed we all worship the same God.

However as we talked a little further, it emerged that we disagreed over whether Jesus died on the cross. …”

– Dean of Sydney Sandy Grant reminds us of the solid historical attestation for the Crucifixion. From the Cathedral newsletter 16 January 2025.

Three Recommendations for Parents

“Being a parent is a joyful struggle. In my mind, it’s pure, undistilled hospitality: ‘Hey there! Make yourself at home … forever.’

As with any act of hospitality, there can be so much joy—there’s a new perspective on the world to discover and appreciate as it forms and matures; a new heart to embrace with all its loves and dreams and fears.

But as with any act of hospitality, there can also be struggles. This new perspective doesn’t know your way of doing things; their ways may irk you. This new heart may love different things, dream in different directions, or fear peculiar things—all of which makes everyday tasks more complicated, like breakfast, shopping, or going to the toilet.

Unlike other acts of hospitality, there is a pressure and constancy with parenting that can make it more difficult. Even change itself is constant, such that raising children often feels like we’re always playing catchup.

So here are three very different resources I’ve found particularly helpful as I navigate this parental calling. …”

– Callan Pritchard shares “three very different resources” at The Australian Church Record.

‘Your Word’ — updated arrangement from Emu Music

First published in 2017, “Your Word”, a beautiful song about Scripture, has just been re-released in a new arrangement for Emu Music’s 25th anniversary.

In an e-mail to supporters, they explain what the song is about –

“Your Word was written to fill the gap in congregational music of songs about the Bible, not just from the Bible.

So what does the Bible say about itself? We opened up the Psalms and spent time reading and reflecting on Psalms 19 and 119. We hoped to capture David’s delight in and dependence on God’s law, particularly in the passages quoted below.*

The chorus centres on the well-known verse from Psalm 119: ‘Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path’.

The bridge of the song took a different direction as we began to explore the implications of a perfect, powerful, timeless, enduring word for us today.

As the Bible comes under attack in our society, we want to affirm that it’s not just ink on paper or old stories, but that it is life-giving, powerful, and the greatest love story ever told. Ultimately, God’s word is not only the creating Word (his breath into dust creating man) but the Creator Word (Jesus!).

We hope and pray that this song helps you and your churches to delight in God’s word, but more than that, to love and obey the one to whom it testifies. For a Sunday service, we think it works really well as a pre-Bible reading song!”

* The Bible passages mentioned are –
Psalm 19:7-11, Psalm 119:89-92, John 1:1-3, 14.

Watch a recording of Your Word here.

Audio tracks and sheet music are available to purchase from their website.

A song which could be a real blessing to your church!

Latest Issue of Australian Journal of Law and Religion

“I’m very pleased to note that the latest online issue of the Australian Journal of Law and Religion (2024, vol 5) has just become available (free to download) …”

Neil Foster at Law and Religion Australia writes , and draws attention to two articles in the current issue.

The Gender Revolution — a new blog to go with the book

The authors of the book The Gender Revolution, Patricia Weerakoon, Rob Smith, and Kamal Weerakoon, have started a blog to discuss related topics.

The first post, Every Body Has Authority, by Kamal Weerakoon, is now online.

The book is published by Matthias Media. (It’s also on special at the moment!)

See a review by Tim Challies:

“There are times when I receive a new book and find myself saying ‘I don’t think we need a new book on that.’ …

Yet sometimes I receive a new book and find myself saying, ‘I’m so glad someone has written a book on that!’ …

The Gender Revolution falls squarely in the second category. This is a book that has been written to provide a biblical, biological, and compassionate response to the modern day gender ideology that has been flooding our world and sweeping away so many victims.”

Image: Matthias Media.

Godliness vs Effectiveness — the Both/And Dilemma

From The Pastor’s Heart:

“Godliness vs Effectiveness
Theology vs Pragmatics
People centered vs Organisationally minded
Leading from the front vs Serving others
Courage to take a stand vs Quick to submit
Others know I am one of them vs I am set apart to lead
I lead patiently vs I lead with a sense of urgency

Most Christians at some point do start to wonder if they are the real deal. What God asks of us is so far reaching, so all encompassing, that when we come up short, we start to ask ourselves “Am I an imposter?” “Should I really be a leader?” and perhaps/Am even a Christian at all?’”

Dominic Steele speaks with Gary Millar, the Principal of Queensland’s Theological College and author of a new book ‘Both/And Ministry.’

Expository Preaching Trust Activities 2025

The Expository Preaching Trust has published some details of its planned activities for 2025, including events at Armidale Anglican Cathedral as well as meetings at Sutherland, Abbotsford, Wahroonga, and Drummoyne.

Much encouragement for preachers.

See all the details at their website.

Mothers Union Sydney annual seminar 2025

Mothers Union Sydney has details of their 2025 Annual Seminar coming up on Friday 28th February.

Speakers and topics:
Shining Like Stars – Anna Brotherson
Living in a Secular Age – Steve McAlpine
Equipping Our Children – Al James and Beth Braga

It’s free, but registration is required. Read about it and register here.

William Taylor: ‘Give yourself wholly to the work of the Lord’

From The Pastor’s Heart:

“What is the work of the Lord? What is in vain if the resurrection is not true? What truly lasts and what does gospel work looks like in our daily lives?

The debate over eschatology and one’s view of the new heavens and new earth.   Will there be a Sydney Harbour Bridge in the new creation?

And in the meantime, what should be our priorities?

William Taylor is the rector of St Helen’s Church in London, where he is engaged in ministry to city workers.

He has written the book ‘Revolutionary Work’ to address these issues.”

Watch or listen here.

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