What Justification means

“The eleventh Article is so crucial that no apology need be offered for dwelling a little upon it.

Luther has been severely criticised for declaring that Justification by Faith only was ‘Articulus aut stantis aut cadentis ecclesiae,’ ‘The Article of a standing or a falling Church.’ But it may confidently be declared that the whole Reformation movement stands or falls according to the interpretation placed on Justification. …”

– The Australian Church Record has republished T.C. Hammond’s commentary on Article XI, Of the Justification of Man.

Why we don’t pray for the dead

“Recently I came across an article written on Anglican Pastor by a fellow Anglican Priest entitled Why We Pray for the Dead.

What surprised me was the not only his endorsement of the practice, but the implication behind the title that it is normal Anglican practice to do pray either for the dead or to the dead. …

Here are 10 reasons why we are not to pray for the dead …”

– Joshua Bovis, Vicar of St. John The Evangelist in Tamworth, writes at Thinking of God.

Doctrine and Theology of Two Ways to Live


Phillip Jensen unpacks the doctrine and theology of Two Ways to Live in six lectures – recorded last year, and just posted at phillipjensen.com. A wonderful resource.

Watch it all, but be sure to start with the first lecture.

1 Two Ways To Live: Creation February 2016
2 Two Ways To Live: Sin March 2016
3 Two Ways To Live: Judgement March 2016
4 Two Ways To Live: Atonement March 2016
5 Two Ways To Live: Resurrection March 2016
6 Two Ways To Live: Repentance And Faith March 2016

Truthing in love

“Have you heard the saying ‘speak the truth in love’?

It appears quite often as a heading in blog posts that have titles such as ‘Seven top principles for using social media’. The phrase is normally used to mean something like ‘say true things in a charitable way’. The idea is this: sometimes you have to say hard and challenging things; when you do, make sure you’re using a gracious tone.

But do you know where the saying comes from? …”

– Even if you know the answer, you will be encouraged by this article from Lionel Windsor, at GoThereFor.com.

The prosperity gospel — no gospel at all

“What do you long for the most? The answer to this question will help you identify your god.

Preachers of the prosperity gospel call people to turn to Jesus. But the motivation they give people is health, wealth, husbands, wives, jobs, promotions etc.

In this version of the gospel, Jesus is not what is truly desired, pursued, and treasured. Jesus is the means to the things that the individual truly wants, he is merely the way to receive the material things that our worldly hearts hunger for. And what your heart wants more than God has become your god.”

– GAFCON has published four posts on the prosperity gospel by the Rev Ken Mbugua, Senior pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church, Nairobi, Kenya.

Related:

The pernicious evil of the prosperity gospel and the theology of the cross – Dr. Mark Thompson.

‘What the New York Times gets wrong about complementarianism’

“Baird relies heavily on critics of complementarianism to define complementarianism. I suspect that is a major reason why the picture is so flawed. Baird quotes a feminist writer… who argues that complementarianism makes women into unwilling participants in their own marriage covenant.”

– Denny Burk writes at The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, with a response to Julia Baird’s recent article published in The New York Times. Read her article, and his response, and see if you agree.

Real faith in a performance dominated world

“We live in a world that constantly judges us by how well we perform. From preschool reports to professional annual reviews, performance assessments are everywhere.

Of course, in many cases it is entirely appropriate to assess performance. Businesses need to perform for their customers, politicians for their constituents, employees for their employers, sportspeople and artists for their fans. Assessing performance can help us make wise decisions about whom to buy from, vote for, employ, watch or listen to.

However, this focus on performance can easily become a burden. In our workplaces the anxiety of being constantly measured and assessed can be a major source of stress and depression. Even worse, the demand for performance can affect our friendships, our relationships and our family life.

Is our relationship with God based on our performance? Does God ‘assess’ us to determine our standing with him? …”

– ACL Council member, Dr Lionel Windsor, writes at SydneyAnglicans.net.

The Message of the Resurrection

“There are several aspects of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ dwelt upon in the New Testament. It is profitable for us to consider two of them as we recall this outstanding event.

An aspect which is frequently overlooked in these days is brought prominently under our notice by St. Paul’s speech at Athens. Addressing Epicureans and Stoics Paul declared,

‘God commandeth all men everywhere to repent; Because He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead’ (Acts 17:30-31).

The Resurrection is a guarantee of judgment as it is an endorsement of the claim of our Lord to be the judge.”

– The Australian Church Record has republished this timely message from Archdeacon T.C. Hammond.

2017 Gospel Coalition Conference — expositions


From Justin Taylor:

“Here are the videos from the expository plenaries at the Gospel Coalition National Conference (April 3-5, 2017) in Indianapolis, with the theme of ‘No Other Gospel’.”

– Expositions from Galatians.

(Photo: Dr. Peter Adam, who, in his characteristic way, thanks Don Carson for his numerous visits to Australia.)

Article 29 — Of the Wicked which eat not the Body of Christ in the use of the Lord’s Supper

“Sometimes it is only when you sit down and do a worked example that you understand a truth thoroughly. When I was 15 my local Roman Catholic priest asked me to choose whether to be a Roman Catholic or an Anglican. As we discussed Scripture and Salvation the worked example of just one person, Mary the mother of Jesus, was very helpful to me. If she was sinless then I should be a Catholic; if she was sinful like everybody else then I should be a Protestant.

The example of ‘the wicked… in the use of the Lord’s Supper’ does the same job with the Sacraments. …”

– At the Church Society blog, Charlie Skrine looks at Articles 29.

Encountering contemporary liberal theology – in its own words

“Conservative evangelicals are often accused of not ‘listening’ to other points of view. We’re told that we only engage with each other; we only read or listen to ‘approved’ versions of our faith; we caricature the arguments of revisionists without really hearing them.

So I was delighted to receive a press release from Modern Church, summarising the keynote address from the recent annual meeting of their Council, and giving a link to the substantial 12 page text of the talk itself, by Dr Lorraine Cavanagh, which can be found here. [Updated link]

‘Reclaiming the soul of Modern Church’ reads like a manifesto for mission for liberal Christians, and it’s worth reading with genuine enquiry, to ask whether this revisionist version of Christian faith offers a coherent and compelling vision that threatens orthodox biblical faith in any way. …”

– Andrew Symes at Anglican Mainstream provides a very interesting look at liberal theology’s rolling redefinition of Christianity.

Article 25 — Of the Sacraments

“The Sacraments ‘ordained of Christ’ then are to be ‘duly used’ and ‘worthily received’. What does that mean? First, we must distinguish between those sacraments of the gospel ordained by Christ and other ‘commonly (i.e. wrongly) called’ sacraments which may or may not have a useful place in the Christian life (matrimony, orders, and confirmation certainly do). …”

– At the Church Society blog, Wallace Benn takes a look at what the 39 Articles have to say about the sacraments. (GAFCON photo.)

Justification – “A Most Wholesome Doctrine”

“The eleventh article introduces us to the most important point of controversy in the sixteenth century. It would not be an exaggeration to say that polemics raged round the question of Justification by Faith. …”

– The Australian Church Record is continuing to reprint Archdeacon T.C. Hammond’s series on The Thirty Nine Articles. This from April 1956.

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners

“That simple statement from 1 Timothy 1:15 has always been one of my favourite Bible verses, for a number of reasons.

Pre-eminently, though, it is because it conveys the heart of the gospel. It always reminds me of the picture the Lord Jesus himself gave of the shepherd who seeks the lost sheep until he finds it, lays it on his shoulders and brings it home safely.

Whatever else you may think about the Lord coming into the world, saving sinners was his chief aim and his death on the cross was the chief means.…”

– GAFCON General Secretary, Dr Peter Jensen, continues his series of posts marking the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

What has God joined together?

Sydney Anglican parishes will soon be receiving copies of the booklet “What Has God Joined Together?”. 

A companion website has also been launched.

It has the full text, Chnese translations, an essay entitled “Does God approve of same-sex sexual activity?”, and links to resources for Ministers.

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