Desiring God Conference for Pastors 2010
The Desiring God Conference for Pastors is currently taking place in Minnesota and as talks are given, audio and video is being made available online.
Here’s John Piper’s invitation to the conference, and the notes on the pre-conference seminar by Paul Tripp are challenging and well worth reading (1, 2).
Engaging with Liberalism
“But within the local church liberalism can be pervasive not because it enters via the pulpits, but via public worship—a softening of the mind and a lowering of the defences through the songs sung, the prayers prayed and the liturgies used. …
It is nearly eighty years since our forebears fought to ensure that the 1928 Prayer Book would not be accepted into the Church of England. Compared to Common Worship*, that book appears to be a compendium of soundness! The ex opere operato view which is pretty well explicit in the baptism service is simply astonishing. This is where at the Synod level evangelicals need to resist such trends and at the parish level refuse to capitulate.”
– Melvin Tinkler points out the bankruptcy of liberalism and offers advice on how to resist it. His 2008 article from Churchman has just been republished by Church Society (PDF file).
* Common Worship is in wide use in the Church of England.
Hitchens explains the gospel
Earlier this month the Portland Monthly in Oregon, published the transcript of an interview with atheist Christopher Hitchens. He spoke with Unitarian minister Marilyn Sewell.
One of them rejects Jesus, the other wants Jesus but without ‘all that stuff’ –
Sewell: “When you speak of ‘religion’ in your book God is Not Great it seems to me that you’re generally referring to the fundamentalist faith of various kinds. I’m a liberal Christian, and I don’t take the stories from the Scripture literally. I don’t believe in the doctrine of Atonement – that Jesus died for our sins, for example. Do you make any distinction between fundamentalist faith and liberal religion?”
Hitchens: “Well, only in this respect: I would say that if you don’t believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ – in other words, the Messiah – and that he rose again from the dead and that by his sacrifice our sins are forgiven, you are really not in any meaningful sense a Christian.”
The transcript on the website has been fairly heavily edited and leaves out an exchange immediately following the above. Sewell says she believes… Read more
Carson on theological study for God’s glory
Don Carson was interviewed last year on studying theology for the glory of God — by Mike Reeves at The Theology Network in the UK. The interview runs for 34 minutes.
Worth hearing – especially if you are considering theological training and wondering where to study.
Gerald Bray on the 39 Articles
ACL President Mark Thompson is encouraged at the new attention being given to the Articles –
“Gerald Bray has provided a brilliant resource for the study of authentic, biblical and evangelical, Anglicanism. His recently published study of the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, The Faith we Confess: An Exposition of the Thirty-nine Articles (London: Latimer Trust, 2009) should be included on the reading lists of every Anglican theological college.”
(Articles? What Articles? You’ll find them at the back of the Prayer Book – and here.)
Order your copy of the book – or read the Introduction – from Latimer Trust.
Sermon preparation help
At his Gospel Coalition blog, Kevin DeYoung has been sharing some helpful thoughts on sermon preparation. Part 1, Part 2.
Encouragement and example in Evangelism
What is the gospel?
In characteristic style, Chappo gets straight to the point –
“It does not focus upon us, not should it draw attention to us. It focusses on the Lord Jesus Christ. That is what the gospel is about. The gospel is not about us. The gospel is not even about us and our needs. It not even about us and our needs and those being met in Christ. It is none of those!
The gospel is about Jesus Christ our Lord. That is the gospel. I’m not talking about how you engage people in listening to the gospel – you might do that in a hundred and one different ways. But when I have gospelled you, it is about the Lord Jesus Christ that I have spoken from beginning to end.
It is about him. OK?”
– from a talk given in the UK in 2004. (See the last link on this page – “The Training an Evangelist Needs – 2 Cor 4v5”.)
While you’re there, read about the very exciting A Passion for Life initiative – “a [UK] nationwide initiative that is drawing together local evangelical churches to plan a fantastic variety of missional initiatives culminating in Easter 2010”.
And see their terrific collection of videos — a selection of testimonies and apologetics.
Talking about Mary
“You would have to be living on another planet not to notice the avalanche of publicity about Mary MacKillop at the moment. …
However, when talking with people from a Catholic background, rather than raising … concerns straight away, it would be better to take another approach. …”
– Mark Gilbert makes some helpful suggestions on how to start a conversation with your Romans Catholic friends – at SydneyAnglicans.net.
Find the Bible boring?
John Piper has some words of exhortation in this video excerpt from a sermon on Philippians 2:14-16.
(Or see the whole thing.)
Air Conditioning Hell: How Liberalism happens
Tempted to be embarrassed by the biblical doctrine of hell?
“Though some lampoon the stereotypical “hell-fire and brimstone” preaching of an older evangelical generation, the fact is that most church members may never have heard a sermon on hell — even in an evangelical congregation. Has hell gone dormant among evangelicals as well?
Interestingly, the doctrine of hell serves very well as a test case for the slide into theological liberalism. The pattern of this slide looks something like this…”
– Read this article by Al Mohler in the current 9Marks eJournal. (Photo: Together for the Gospel.)
9Marks eJournal on the dangers of Liberalism
The latest 9Marks eJournal has been published online and is essential reading. Editor Jonathan Leeman writes –
“Michael Lawrence, Carl Trueman, Al Mohler, and Phil Johnson examine how liberalism happens and offer wise counsel for the academic and the pastor’s heart.
Greg Gilbert, Michael Ovey, Russell Moore, and I point to several specific areas where evangelicals appear to be walking on thin ice…
Greg Wills, Michael Horton, and Darryl Hart present notable lessons from history…”
– and there’s much more for your edification. It’s available from 9Marks. (We’ll highlight some key articles over the next few days.)
10 ways to encourage a Missionary
At The Gospel Coalition blog, Mark Rogers shares the fruit of asking some missionaries what they find encouraging –
“One of the most encouraging/inspiring things we receive from people is a quick note via email to say that they are ‘thinking’ of us…”
Although it’s written from a US perspective, there are some good ideas here.
(h/t Justin Taylor.)
Preach through the Lectionary or books of the Bible?
The Diocese of Tasmania website has posted an article by David Roger-Smith on planning a preaching programme. Especially helpful for those whose practice is to preach on Lectionary readings –
“If you’ve never preached through or helped preached through a biblical book, it might seem a bit daunting, but we would encourage you to have a go. Start with small steps. Devote one school term this year to preaching through a biblical book rather than from the Lectionary readings.”
Download it as a PDF file here from the updated Preaching page.
What you can do in three pages a day
Stephen Altrogge asks, “What would happen if you resolved that, in addition to your Bible, you would read three pages of a spiritual book every day?”
He lists some practical suggestions on what you could read at The Blazing Center.
(Most of the books mentioned would be available at Moore Books or Reformers’ Bookshop in Sydney.)
Mike Raiter and Radical Discipleship
Mike Raiter, Principal of the Bible College of Victoria, opened God’s word, starting in Luke chapter 9, at this week’s CMS Summer School at Katomba.
CMS has graciously made Mike’s first talk available for download.
It, and the whole series, were a great blessing, challenge and encouragement to all who were present. The other talks are available for purchase from CMS NSW.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…