3-2-1 Gospel outline

In the UK, Glen Scrivener introduces a tract which will “make every other tract look somewhat flat and two-dimensional”.

Check out the video. And here’s the tract.

You may find it an encouragement to think of fresh ways to present the timeless truths of the gospel.

10 out of 10 people die

Here’s a 5 minute video from New Zealand on why the gospel needs to be preached. (h/t Tim Challies.)

Bishop JC Ryle’s new book

Bishop J C Ryle has a new book.

Well, sort of – it’s a collection of previously uncollected tracts entitled Distinctive Principles for Anglican Evangelicals, published by Church Society.

See the details here. We hope it will be available in Australia in due course.

“If you are ordering from Europe or overseas, please email us with your order, and we will send a link for you to make the payment.”

CMS NSW Summer School underway

CMS’ NSW Summer School is now well underway, with John Yates leading the main Bible Studies on Romans 1-8.

If you can’t be there, or missed the first two talks, CMS has made them available here.

Advancing the Gospel on the Front Line

As many gather for CMS Summer Schools around the country, this interview with Dr Tim Keesee, the man behind the Dispatches From the Front video series and book, is appropriate.

This interview is an extract from Ligonier Ministries’ Tabletalk magazine. The January 2015 issue is available as a free download, and is packed with encouraging and worthwhile articles, as well as a Bible reading guide on the theme of Wisdom.

This isn’t Rocket Science either

“Prior to Christmas, I shared the statistic that 58% of Australian church websites weren’t displaying Christmas service times. …

So I set out to discover what would happen if I emailed each church and asked for the Christmas church service times. In the 2 weeks before Christmas, I emailed the same list of 100 churches (regardless of whether or not they displayed service times on their website) and asked them a simple question…”

– Steve Kryger at Communicate Jesus does us all a service. Read it all. (What will be the results this Easter?)

Related: It’s not Rocket Science.

C.H. Spurgeon — Morning and Evening

This month’s free audio book from Christian Audio is C.H. Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening.

Looking for help in praying regularly in 2015?

Looking for help to pray regularly in 2015?

A number of apps for smart phones and tablets are now available to help you pray. One of the best is PrayerMate from the UK.

“Prayer is an amazing privilege, but it’s also really hard work (the apostle Paul compares it to a wrestling match!). PrayerMate is a Christian prayer app that seeks to help you actually pray for all the people and causes you care about.

PrayerMate brings all your prayer points together. Whether its your personal prayer points for friends and family, regular updates from some fantastic mission organisations, or the latest PDF prayer letter that just arrived in your inbox, PrayerMate puts it all together in one place and helps you get on and pray.”

It’s a free download for iOS and Android, and is recommended by people we know and love. Take the time to learn about it here.

What is Your Bible-Reading Plan for 2015?

Tim Challies provides links to a number of different Bible-reading plans.

Check them out, and be encouraged to commit to regular reading of God’s word in 2015.

(Photo: Smithton Church.)

Oak Hill Commentary magazine Winter 2014-15

The latest issue of Commentary, the twice-yearly magazine of Oak Hill College in London is now online.

Lots of good reading – the articles by Nick Tucker on A Confessing Church (page 11), Levi Booth on Identity in Japan (page 14), and David Potter on Philosophy (page 17) are good places to start!

The Best Possible Gift — the case for theological education

“Theological education is a costly business. Whether you are raising your own support, or whether it’s being funded by the church, it’s expensive to be trained for ministry. There’s a personal cost, too. Giving several years of your life to theological education is sacrificial. …

This short film looks at the case for theological training and features short interviews with people who are currently in training or who are now doing ministry in a wide range of contexts in the UK and Ireland…”

– A new resource from Oak Hill College in London.

The REAP Journal — to help you read God’s Word

Growing Faith (part of Youthworks) have just released an new Adult Edition of their REAp Journal.

From the blurb:

“If you’re training to be an athlete or concert pianist, you’ll no doubt have a daily workout or regime to get you to your goal. So, how do you train to be godly? By devoting yourself to the word of God and being disciplined in allocating time to its study and meditation!

Sounds difficult? It doesn’t have to be! This REAP Journal will help you to reach your spiritual goals with an easy-to-use format and a daily Bible Reading Program to keep you on track.

REAP stands for Read, Explore, Apply and Pray and is designed to make reading the Bible easy as a part of everyday life. There’s a version for Adults, Youth and Kids, with similar daily passages across all versions (with special consideration for each demographic), meaning that families can learn together just as easy as individuals can.”

– You can get it here. (Youth edition, Kids’ edition.)