It’s Not About You: How Biblical Theology Transforms Bible Study

Nancy Guthrie spoke at Christ College in Sydney on 18 August 2022. Her topic? – “It’s Not About You: How Biblical Theology Transforms Bible Study”.

The college has now published the video.

After introductory matters and Nancy is interviewed, her address begins at 28’34”.

A very helpful and encouraging talk and well worth your time.

She encourages us not to take our understanding of Biblical Theology for granted, or to assume an understanding of it in our churches.

Presbyterians extend hand of fellowship to Bishop of the Diocese of the Southern Cross

Dr Peter Barnes, Moderator-General of the Presbyterian Church of Australia, has written a letter to Dr Glenn Davies, Bishop of the Diocese of the Southern Cross.

The Clerk of the General Assembly of Australia has sent a copy to all Ministers and Session Clerks, adding,

“The Moderator-General has requested that this letter be forwarded to you with the request that it be circulated amongst the members of your congregation.”

Here’s the letter:

22 August 2022

Dear Glenn,

Your many Presbyterian friends have watched recent developments in the Anglican Church in Australia and are delighted at your appointment as the Bishop of the Southern Cross Diocese. This is a strong stand for biblical truth, and we trust the Lord preserves and keeps you, and uses you greatly.

We are most appreciative of the kindness shown to us, especially concerning theological education in NSW in the 1970s, and also the use of Anglican church buildings for worship and would be more than happy if we could help out in any way by facilitating the use of our properties and making them available to you and your flock.

In the meantime, be assured of our prayerful good will and eager interest in what the Lord is doing through you.

Kind regards in Christ

Rev. Dr Peter Barnes
Moderator-General,
Presbyterian Church of Australia

Endorsed heartily by previous Moderators-General: Rev. Dr John Wilson, Rev. David Cook, Rev. David Jones, Rev. Professor Allan Harman, Rev. Bruce Christian, Rev. Robert Benn, and Rev. Bob Thomas; and Rev. David Burke (Moderator-General Designate).

– PDF file.

Armidale: We have no intention, nor need, to leave the Anglican Church of Australia

Bishop of Armidale Rod Chiswell has today published this statement on the diocesan website. Emphasis is original. –

24th August 2022.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

You probably have by now heard of the launch of the Diocese of the Southern Cross at the recent GAFCON Australia conference. This new diocese is a parallel Anglican structure outside of the Anglican Church of Australia. While some were dismayed at its establishment, I believe that it was a sad but necessary step at this point in time. The reality is that some Anglican evangelicals in dioceses led by liberal bishops who have a different view of the teaching of Scripture on matters concerning human sexuality, are looking for alternative episcopal oversight. Sometimes this is because they are being put under pressure by their bishop to step into line with the world’s way of thinking, other times it is a matter of conscience as they do not want to be led by bishops who they believe are leading God’s people contrary to God’s word. It is important to note that the Diocese of the Southern Cross has been activated solely as a safety net for these evangelical Anglicans.

Now, I suspect some evangelical clergy and laity in those dioceses will leave, others will stay. I don’t think that there will necessarily be a flood of evangelicals leave the Anglican Church of Australia to join the Diocese of the Southern Cross, but I trust that those who do will have good reason to do so. The leaders of GAFCON Australia have made clear that the Diocese of the Southern Cross will only remain while it is needed. If all Anglican bishops across Australia were to agree to the plain teaching of the Scriptures the parallel Anglican structure would no longer be needed.

With regard to the future of the Anglican Diocese of Armidale I want to make crystal clear that we have no intention, nor need, to leave the Anglican Church of Australia. The structure of the Anglican Church of Australia means that each of the twenty-three dioceses are autonomous and operate according to the decisions of their own synods. Thankfully the Armidale diocese has unity when it comes to upholding the plain teaching of Scripture in all matters of Christian life and doctrine, including human sexuality. We are thoroughly evangelical in this sense, with bishop, clergy and laity all on the same page. At this point in time, I stand with all other evangelical bishops in Australia when I say that we have no reason to abandon the Anglican Church of Australia. The ship as launched by Archbishop Cranmer in the 16th Century is a good one. Its constitution is sound, having excellent fundamental declarations and ruling principles that uphold the authority of Scriptures as primary.

In all of this we need to remember that God is still sovereign, Jesus is still King and He will build his church. May God strengthen us all to trust in Him and persevere with the main game in the Armidale Diocese which is “To Introduce All People to Jesus and Help Them Home to Heaven.”

With love in Christ, Rod Chiswell.

Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Armidale.

Source. Photo: Rod and Jenni Chiswell.

Living as God’s woman in God’s world

“Some of the biggest questions you can ever ask yourself  as a human on this planet are: who am I? why am I here? what is my purpose?

We ask those questions because we are human, and we ask them as women. And how we answer them determines how we live our lives, how we see ourselves, how we relate to each other, how we treat each other, and above all, how we respond to God.

Let me begin with two affirmations:

1) that we were created for God, for God’s  glory – created to bring glory to God; and

2) that it is only as we live as God intended that we are truly free.

So the questions we need to ask ourselves are:

• what do we learn about who God is?
• what do we learn about ourselves, as humans and as women?
• what do we learn about how God wants us to live in His world? …”

– At Equal But Different, Lesley Ramsay has been posting on the theme of Living as God’s woman in God’s world –

Part 1 – Living as God’s woman in God’s world: Confusion.

Part 2 – Living as God’s woman in God’s world: Old Testament Clarity.

Part 3 – Living as God’s woman in God’s world: New Testament Clarity.

– with the promise of more to come!

She also recommends God’s Good Design 2nd Edition by Claire Smith (Matthias Media 2019).

Reflections — David Cook

“We have been attending the St Helens City Summer School at Ashburnham, a gathering of City of London business people and their families, just down the road from Canterbury where the Lambeth conference is being held, a meeting for Anglican Bishops.

As the bishops debate and politic and try to navigate their bibleless way through the same sex marriage debate, down the road at Summer School there is gospel preaching and praying about the need to reach out into the lost city of London with the good news of Jesus. Lambeth has not been mentioned, attendees have bigger gospel shaped concerns. …”

– At the Expository Preaching Trust, David Cook shares his reflections, six weeks into a ten week trip to the UK.

While there, he’s been doing a spot of preaching at St. Helen’s. Last weekend he spoke on Psalm 100.

* To be fair, not all the bishops at Lambeth ignored the teaching of the Bible, even if far too many did.

‘Learn the Gospel’ book and videos

A new study book and videos from Matthias Media:

“Whether building a house or building a life, solid, square and true foundations are vital.

If you’re just starting out in the Christian life – or considering it – you want to get those foundations in place from the start. Even if you’ve been a Christian for a while, it’s important to occasionally check your foundations – they might have shifted or been attacked by white ants, or perhaps they weren’t laid quite as straight as you originally thought.

In this Learn Together book, we’ll thoroughly inspect our gospel foundations and make our understanding of that gospel sound and biblical.

Through reading, studying the Bible, watching some video input and discussing what we’re learning together, we’ll go deep into the gospel of Jesus Christ – understanding each of its parts, how they fit together, and what implications the gospel has for our lives.

This is Two Ways to Live grown into a study book for small groups and classes. Each of the six points are fleshed out with Bible study, discussion and video and text input.”

– The book is available from Matthias Media.

Plus you can watch or download the accompanying videos here.

When The Noise Won’t Stop – Paul Grimmond

From Moore College:

“Do you or a fellow Christian suffer from Anxiety?

Author and Moore College Lecturer Paul Grimmond knows what it’s like.

His newest book ‘When The Noise Won’t Stop’ is packed full of research and Biblical wisdom that will help Christians who suffer from Anxiety – and those who care for them, including pastors.”

– An encouraging 3 minute video.

When The Noise Won’t Stop is available from Matthias Media.

See also this interview with Paul on The Pastor’s Heart (28 June 2022).

Southern Cross August-September 2022 issue now out

Southern Cross magazine for August-September 2022 is now available from Anglican Media Sydney, and printed copies will soon be in churches across Sydney Diocese.

You can download an electronic copy here.

Temptations preachers face to give up on the Bible

“Preachers are not special. Every Christian faces temptations to sin. Preachers face the same temptations as every Christian. Like any of us, preachers are ruined through financial greed, sexual immorality, or alcohol abuse. However, there are some specific temptations preachers face concerning giving up on the Bible. …”

– In its series on preaching, The Australian Church Record has this very helpful article by Phillip Jensen.

Australia Remains Open to Christianity — Archbishop Kanishka Raffel

“What shall we make of the Census finding that 44% of Australians identify as ‘Christian’, with as many as 39% describing themselves as having no religion?

It is the first time in Census history that fewer than 50% of Australians align with a Christian denomination. What does it mean for Sydney Anglicans as we seek to commend the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to our friends and neighbours? …”

– Archbishop Kanishka writes to encourage you to keep on sharing the saving news of Jesus.

The Purpose of Preaching

“Part of my job involves teaching people to preach.

If I’ve learned one thing over the years it’s that you can’t learn to do something until you understand the goal. So I find myself asking the question, over and over again, what is the purpose of preaching? It’s a really important question.

Understanding the purpose of preaching not only affects the preacher, but also the listener. What is a preacher trying to do when they preach? What is the hearer supposed to do with what they’ve heard?”

– The Australian Church Record has published this encouragement from Paul Grimmond at Moore College.

Image: Paul Grimmond on The Pastor’s Heart.

Bathurst Diocese Strategic Plan

You may have watched Bishop Mark Calder’s keynote address from the Bathurst Diocesan Conference held on 30 July 2022.

He spoke about the Strategic Plan for the Diocese.

Here it is in one-page – Sharing Jesus for Life! (PDF file.)

Grace Flows in Tanzania — Anglican Aid

Here’s an encouraging video from Anglican Aid.

Darwin’s Garden of Eden

Here’s a recent addition to Nungalinya College in Darwin: The Garden of Eden Art trail tells the story of Creation and the Fall –

“The pathway through the garden depicts the greek letters Alpha and Omega. You might like to ponder … Revelation 21 as you enjoy your walk through the Garden of Eden.”

In the above video, College Principal Ben van Gelderen speaks about the garden at its opening in April 2022.

It’s a good reminder to pray for the students and staff of this unique college.

Archbishop Kanishka Raffel at Geraldton Cathedral’s Diamond Jubilee

Last week Archbishop Kanishka Raffel travelled to Geraldton in Western Australia for the Cathedral’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

He was welcomed to speak at the celebration service by Acting Dean David Seccombe.

Encouraging and a great reminder to pray for the progress of the gospel in the North West.

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