How to be Moral without being a Moralist
“Nobody likes a wowser. But then again, it’s strange how modern life is full of things we’re not allowed to do, eat, drink or say (no sugar, no carbon, no sexism, no GM foods, and of course no religious people telling us what to do).
What do you think Jesus would say about all this?
Is it possible to be genuinely moral and seek to do what is good and right, without becoming a legalistic scold (like his most bitter opponents, the Pharisees)?…”
– Moore College’s Peter Bolt is speaking at two Centre for Christian Living events – one at Wollongong 0n Thursday 22nd October, and the other at the College on Wednesday 28th October. (Photo: St. Helen’s Bishopsgate.)
Also coming up at Moore College:
Ray Galea is leading this year’s third Advancing Your Preaching Workshop on Tuesday 6th October.
Free eBook: Are We Together?
“Pope Francis is the first Pope to visit the United States since 2008. His visit has provoked many Christians to ask sincere questions concerning Roman Catholicism. In light of this, Reformation Trust is making the ebook editions of R.C. Sproul’s Are We Together? free until the end of September.”
– From Ligonier Ministries.
Chapters are: 1 Scripture, 2 Justification, 3 The Church, 4 The Sacraments, 5 The Papacy, Mary.
Also until the end of September is a free download of 5 lectures by R.C. Sproul on Roman Catholicism: 1 Scripture and Tradition, 2 Papal Infallibility, 3 The Church and Salvation, 4 Sacraments, 5 The Virgin Mary.
(To download these resources, you need to sign up for an account – however there is no charge for them this month.)
Matters of life and death
“One of the most vexed questions for Christians today is how we apply the truth of what we know to a fast changing culture. This is especially true in the area of ethics. Things that were not even possible 10 years ago, and scarcely considered, are now on the radar. Christians have to react quickly and think carefully.
That’s why John Wyatt’s one hour session at this year’s EMA was gold dust. John is a practitioner, which means every day he is having to put his carefully thought through theology into real life situations, and it’s well worth hearing his conclusions.”
– Thanks to Adrian Reynolds at the Proclamation Trust for the link.
‘Allow me to die!’ — SBS Dateline
On 2CH in Sydney last night, Dominic Steele interviewed SBS journalist Brett Mason and Moore College’s Lionel Windsor, about the SBS TV Dateline programme “Allow me to die!”.
The Dateline programme follows two people who have decided to end their lives.
Related:
The hardest story I’ve told – Brett Mason, SBS.
Dr Megan Best’s speech on euthanasia at Sydney Synod in 2010.
Give Me Liberty and Give Me Death: Belgium’s Brave New Euthanasia Regime – Public Discourse.
Graeme Goldsworthy on the Gospel, Atonement, Satisfaction and Justification
“Graeme Goldsworthy, former Moore College lecturer, is a highly influential theological thinker and author of recent times. His “trilogy” is available on Amazon Kindle right now for the stunning price of 20 cents. [14 US cents on the US store – ed.] It includes three key works: Gospel and Kingdom, Gospel and Wisdom, and The Gospel in Revelation. …
Goldsworthy’s life work is built on integrating the grand sweep of biblical narrative with its central theme, the gospel. The gospel, for Goldsworthy, has at its very heart the amazing truth that Christ died as a satisfaction for sin (in doctrinal terms, “penal substitutionary atonement”).
I thought it would be worth providing a few select quotes from Goldsworthy in his chapter on “Justification by Faith in Revelation” to illustrate this. Here he is seeking to integrate the historic reformed articulation of the gospel with the biblical narrative of Christ’s victory in the book of Revelation. …”
– Lionel Windsor has some really helpful quotes at his blog, Forget the Channel.
Anglicare Sydney launches Syrian Refugee Crisis Appeal
Anglicare Sydney has launched The Archbishop’s Syrian Refugee Crisis Appeal.
Read about it, and donate, here.
A Journey through Romans – infographic
From Lionel Windsor –
“Here is the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans, summarised in a single infographic. This is based on a mini-lecture I gave at Moore Theological College.” See it here.
Sooner Count the Stars – new Sovereign Grace album on the way
A new album from Sovereign Grace is on the way and is available for pre-order. Details here.
Evangelism: The Simplicity of Changing the World
“Once upon a time in a land far away, I heard a speaker at a conference insisting that evangelism ought to engage with the cultures around us. The task seemed so complicated. Mapping conceptual worlds. Integrating lofty ideas into unseen mental frameworks. And all of this was to be done well before you open your mouth about Jesus.
Everyone I spoke with at morning tea had been thoroughly convinced of one thing: they could never do the kind of thing the speaker was calling for. And most of them were ministers who had gone through a full theological education! What hope would the ‘unlettered and ordinary’ amongst us have (as the apostles were called, Acts 4:13)?
In contrast, the view of evangelism in the book of Acts is refreshing for its simplicity…
On that extraordinary day when Jesus rose from the dead, evangelism became the ordinary activity of his people for the rest of time.”
– Encouragement from Moore College’s Peter Bolt.
Getting ready for the Plebiscite
“To guide your holiday reading and listening, here is a selection of resources for a sermon series on marriage in preparation for the possibility of an upcoming plebiscite…”
– David Cook provides a useful list of resources, plus the outline of a sermon series planned for the Chinese Presbyterian Church in Sydney. Very useful for ministers helping their congregations think through what the Bible says on these important issues.
(Photo: David & Maxine Cook. David is the Moderator General of the Presbyterian Church of Australia.)
Things fall apart: Yeats’ sphinx and the need for spiritual warfare
“It is impossible to understand evil without a worldview which includes the reality of the spiritual. ‘Spiritual’ refers to unseen entities separate from human psychology, and ‘evil’ involves more than human sin…”
– Andrew Symes at Anglican Mainstream argues that Christians need a biblical worldview to understand what’s going on in the world.
Related resources:
Living with the Underworld – Matthias Media, Peter Bolt.
Spells, Sorcerers and Spirits – Latimer Trust, Kirsty Birkett.
Is Tim Keller down on Exegesis?
“It is unsurprising that when Timothy Keller brings out a book about preaching, lots of people will be eager to consume it.
Preaching: Communicating In An Age Of Skepticism has drawn some notable reviews of a positive nature, but it has also raised a few questions.”
– Colin Adams at Unashamed Workman asks Tim Keller some questions about his new book.
Instant library: 22 free eBooks from R.C. Sproul
From Ligonier Ministries:
“To further help Christians know what they believe, why they believe it, how to live it, and how to share it, in May 2013 we made the ebook editions of R.C. Sproul’s Crucial Questions series free forever. We continue to publish new ebooks in this series and this year have added Can I Lose My Salvation? and What Is the Great Commission?”
– Find them – for Kindle or iOS – at this link.
Packer on Preaching
“When did you last hear a sermon that spent 50% of the time on application? J. I. Packer has insightfully analysed contemporary and historic approaches to preaching over his years as a pastor and scholar. In this featured article, drawn from the summer edition of Churchman, Benjamin Dean outlines Packer’s approach to preaching…”
– Today’s post on Church Society’s blog.
The visit of Dr Ryan Anderson
“Dr Ryan Anderson is the William E Simon Senior Research Fellow at the Heritage Foundation in the USA and Founder and Editor of the online journal Public Discourse. Dr Anderson recently visited Australia … I attended his Sydney meeting held in the Strangers’ Dining Room at NSW Parliament House. …
Dr Anderson stressed the need to engage with our culture over the issue, saying that churches which had not done so in the US now regret their inactivity. Our pulpits, he said, are a place to inform congregations about what God says about marriage and they must not be silent.
I am a member of the pastoral staff of the Chinese Presbyterian Church in Sydney. At our recent staff retreat, we planned the preaching program for 2016. Unusually for a Chinese church we have dedicated three Sundays next year to preaching on what God says about marriage and sex. …
The need for Christians to engage their mind, to think clearly, faithfully and lovingly is always apparent but has never been greater.
In my next column I want to outline how we will preach the three week series and some useful resources to help preachers.
I urge you all to preach about this issue as a plebiscite/referendum is an imminent possibility and such a series on such a subject will always be helpful.”
– Presbyterian Moderator-General, David Cook, with an exhortation to all Christians, and especially to Pastors. (Image: St Helen’s Bishopsgate.)
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…