Encouragement from the Archbishop

Archbishop Kanishka Raffel has recorded this message of encouragement for churches.

via SydneyAnglicans.net

Engaging with the Media — A worthwhile endeavour

Recently I decided to enter the fray of letter writing.

It was in response to a piece written by Nikki Gemmell, published in The Weekend Australian, “Why the Anglican church must evolve or die”. (Sorry – link is via subscription)

The thrust of her article was aimed at the Anglican Archbishop of the Sydney Diocese of the time, Glenn Davies (and Anglicans like him), who believe what the Bible and the Lord Jesus teaches about marriage – that it is between a man and a woman. However, according to Gemmell, the church needs to become like the world if it wants to survive and thrive; specifically, it needs to get on board with the pansexual zeitgeist of the modern western age.

Gemmell writes:

“the majority of Australians do support same-sex marriage. It feels like the archbishop is damaging his church and Jesus’s teachings of tolerance, gentleness and inclusivity.”

“The church has been on the wrong side of public opinion recently on abortion as well as same-sex marriage. It’s slowly killing itself by refusing to open its heart to others.”

So in response to her article, I wrote the following:

Ms Gemmell in her article “Archbishop You have Lost me”, writes, “the Bible as we know is open to interpretation – pick and choose at your will”.

To read the Bible in this way is to make the reader the author. There is a significant difference between interpreting the Bible and understanding the Bible.

Understanding the Bible requires a person to listen to what God has said and submit to His authority. When we seek to understand, understanding submits our reason, tradition and contemporary circumstances to God’s Word. When we seek to interpret, interpreting submits God’s word to our reason, traditions and contemporary circumstances. Archbishop Davies is simply issuing a clarion call to fellow Anglican Bishops to do the former instead of the latter, which is what they promised at their ordination.  

It does not matter if the church is on the wrong side of public opinion. If there had been opinion polls in Jesus’ day, the results would have been disastrous. People wanted him dead the moment he was born, he was accused of being a blasphemer, demonic, promoting sin, a law-breaker. Jesus said things that made people hate him, made people want to kill him, made followers leave him, and compelled close friends to deny and betray him, and he was crucified on a Roman Cross.

The Lord Jesus also said that to his followers

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:18-19)

The message of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ will never be cool or popular to our world, the Lord Jesus was none of those things.  If the church did what Ms Gemmell suggested, and mirrored the world, the church would be indistinguishable from the world and in essence have nothing to offer.

Although only what is underlined above made it to print, it made it to print.

Thus to have the Christian world view published in a culture that increasingly cares nothing for such a world-view I hope serves as encouragement to more of God’s people that engaging with the secular media is still a worthwhile endeavour.

– Joshua Bovis is the Vicar of St John The Evangelist in Tamworth.

Rico Tice on Luke 19:1-10

Rico Tice at All Soul’s Langham Place preached on Jesus and Zacchaeus from Luke 19:1-10 on the first day of the Evangelical Ministry Assembly 2021 in London.

Watch here. A great encouragement in so many ways, and well worth sharing.

(Link updated to reflect the edited video uploaded.)

The Great Rescue

“26th May was the anniversary of perhaps one of the greatest rescues of all time.

World War had broken out in September 1939. Into 1940, the Nazi German army was surging across Western Europe with lightning speed and force.

As the month of May progressed over 300,000 troops from the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) along with Belgian, Canadian, and French soldiers, were trapped and encircled at the beach of Dunkirk in France.

A terrible disaster seemed inevitable. …”

– At SydneyAnglicans.net, John Lavender has some godly encouragement for you. (Also published in the June 2021 issue of Southern Cross.)

The Word of God — the Bible!

“Central to our Christian faith is our conviction that the Bible is God’s book, the book through which He reveals Himself, His will and purpose.

The very first clause in the ordination vows of Elders and Minsters relates to the ordinand’s conviction about the Bible.

The most important reading in any class preparing people to preach is to read what the Systematic tomes teach about the doctrine of revelation.

Preachers need to understand the nature of the book they are to spend a lifetime preaching, so whether it be Robert Reymond or Wayne Grudem or Kevin DeYoung, the preacher in training needs to understand the inspiration, authority, reliability and sufficiency of God’s Word, the Bible. It is a constant battle keeping the Bible, and therefore God, central in our ministry and lives. We may be losing the battle!

I have noticed three unhealthy trends. …”

– Encouragement from David Cook.

Ordinary Time

Ordinary:

adjective
with no special or distinctive features; normal; ”he sets out to depict ordinary people”.

Similar: usual, normal, standard, typical, stock, common, customary, habitual, accustomed, everyday, regular, routine.

example of usage:
not interesting or exceptional; commonplace.”he seemed very ordinary”

noun
what is commonplace or standard; ”their clichés were vested with enough emotion to elevate them above the ordinary”


I don’t know how may parishes in my beloved Armidale diocese observe the Church Calendar and so I know even less if there are parishes in the Sydney diocese that observe it, (my guess is about ten?). But for those of you who have a vague curiosity about it or foggy recollection of it, we are once again about to enter in what the church calendar refers to as Ordinary Time.

Taken as a unit, the season of Ordinary Time is the longest season of the liturgical year and is composed of 33 or 34 weeks (June to November).

Although it is long, and the liturgical colour is green (which I do not see the same way as everyone else thanks to being colour blind), it is far from ordinary, for it is the time where we strive to grow together as the Body of Christ and His witnesses in the world, to grow in our Love for God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

The means to our growth is being grounded in the Word of God, being people of prayer, being nourished spiritually by the sacraments and being encouraged by others and encouraging each other.

So if you are one of those Anglican Christians who observes the church calendar, how are you going to spend the time, the ‘ordinary time’?

Here are some tips:

1. Remember that you follow the risen and ascended Lord of the Universe, the Lord Jesus! Who ascended into Heaven, not to rest, not to relax but to reign!

2. Be consistent in your time with God. This is why I find the Daily Office such a helpful thing. It gives me the rhythm and routine that I am made for and at the same time makes prayer and the word part of that rhythm and routine. (The Daily Office), is to put it simply, a time during the day where Christians prayer and read the Bible. It is based on the ancient practice of prescribed daily times of prayer.  Although the Prayer Book is not in vogue or used by most parishes, the Prayer book has a daily service in the morning and evening for this very purpose. Anglican theologian and author, the late  J.I. Packer says, “None of us will! ever find a better pattern for private prayer and Bible-reading anywhere than that offered by the Prayer Book’s own daily offices.”

3. Be committed to your church. Although since the Covid lockdown opportunities for online church are so much more readily available, there is no substitute for face to face fellowship and physical corporate worship. It is also easier than ever to have a laissez-fair attitude to church, since we can attend anywhere at anytime, with no checks.

4. Be open and honest with God about your sin. Do we have the determination to see ourselves before God as we are, without excuse? We must face “the things what we have done and the things that we have left undone.” How am I participating in the systems of the world and the flesh? In what ways have I given the devil place in my decisions? 

5. Get practical with your faith  None of us can expect to follow the Lord Jesus and simply have our own comforts baptised. Sacrifice has to cut deep. The Lord Jesus calls us all to radical discipleship and it is costly.  It costs to be an agent of the Kingdom in this world. Where are we letting go of the riches we cling to in order to use our time, energy, and resources to serve, the body of Christ and also to help those in need?

6. Be a contagious Christian The Christian faith is contagious, it is to be shared and spread. Pray that God will grant you boldness and opportunities to introduce people to the Lord Jesus. I am praying that this time will open people’s eyes to the folly of the cultural idols that are in our lives and will be receptive to the Lord Jesus and the abundant life he offers.

We may be in ordinary time, but following the Lord Jesus is far from ordinary!

– Joshua Bovis is the Vicar of St John The Evangelist in Tamworth.

Avoiding “long COVID” in our churches

“For some people, the impact of the COVID-19 virus can last weeks or even months after they have been infected. These ongoing symptoms are known as ‘long COVID’.

Despite its title, this article is not about medical long COVID. Rather, I am using long COVID as a metaphor for the ongoing disruption to our churches caused by COVID-19. …”

– Bishop Michael Stead writes with some key encouragements for churches – at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Ten Reasons to Persevere in Gospel Ministry

“It is widely acknowledged that there is something of a current crisis in the evangelical church. Too many are dropping out of pastoral ministry and seeking to do something else. This is a tragic situation that must be urgently addressed.

To be fair, there are a number of legitimate reasons why this might occur. And I don’t want to discount the validity of an individual’s personal decision. But as I am presently preaching through Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, I’ve been struck by the numerous encouragements Christ’s apostle gives as to not lose heart…”

– Encouragement from Mark Powell at The Gospel Coalition Australia.

Preaching Mentoring

“This year, quite by accident, I have been involved in a number of preaching mentorships.

These mentorships are one on one, held on a weekly basis, and focus on preaching rather than other aspects of pastoral leadership. The sessions are held for half an hour and focus on either the next text to be preached or as a review of the last sermon preached.

Consistently, as with all Trust activities, there is no financial charge for any of our services or resources. The Trust is dependent on donors who meet all the costs of the ministry so that there is no financial pressure on those accessing any of our resources.

At the moment we are assembling a group of experienced preachers who will be available to mentor preachers via Zoom. …”

– A very practical and generous offer from David Cook at the Expository Preaching Trust.

How to reach Australia + The Queensland Presbyterian crisis

On the latest edition of The Pastor’s Heart, Dominic Steele speaks with Queensland Theological College Principal Gary Millar at the Reach Australia conference on the NSW Central Coast.

As well as sharing from his keynote addresses on Holiness and Hope, Gary is asked about the problems facing Queensland Presbyterians and the College he leads.

Watch or listen here.

Stand firm! – Bishop Rod Chiswell at Moore College

Bishop Rod Chiswell, the recently-installed Bishop of Armidale, spoke at Moore College chapel on 1 Corinthians 15:53-58 last week.

Most encouraging.

Love and Gospel in the Time of Corona

“A bishop once said: ‘Everywhere St Paul went there was a riot; everywhere I go they serve tea.’ Our lives can get very comfortable, all too easily. Everything is predictable and orderly and follows a set pattern with little disturbance. That is how it is until God steps in. We often say that God is in control, but we lose sight of the fact that he doesn’t place at the top of his agenda that everyone should live comfortably and happily. …”

– On the website of George Whitefield College in Capetown, Principal Dr Mark Dickson observes that “the illness that has swept away millions and wreaked economic havoc is God’s reminder that this world cannot be all that there is”.

Read his article and watch the moving video.

Things I have learned about coaching senior ministers – with Peter Mayrick

From The Pastor’s Heart:

“Ministers have a crucial role as a source of guidance and authority in the church environment – but we also need coaching, guidance and support.

So how do we make sure that as spiritual leaders we are doing effective ministry? What heart issues and skills should we be focussing on to encourage sustainable and innovative service?

This week we’re speaking to an expert on the topic of ministry training, Peter Mayrick. As the co-director of the Centre for Ministry Development at Moore College, his key area of responsibility is supporting pastors and churches. Peter shares his wealth of experience with us as we discuss what’s helpful for coaching those who will shoulder the most responsibility for the health and growth of a church.”

– Watch or listen here.

Peter Jensen on pure speech

In his editorial in The Global Anglican 135/1, Peter Jensen reflects on the power of words.

Via Ros Clarke comes this excerpt on the Church Society blog:

“Bad doctrine, which is a travesty of the gospel, is doing much harm. But just as harmful is the careless or self-serving language by which other believers are traduced either secretly or publicly.

To repel Satan in his assault on you, is to put on the whole armour of God, especially to buckle on the belt of truth (Eph 6:14). And it is to commit yourself to pure speech:

Not the speech which follows the world in foul language and in blasphemy. So frequent has this become in entertainment, let alone the marketplace, that it is fatally easy to allow our minds to become infested with obscenities and to begin to use them ourselves. …”

– Read the excerpt here, Or start a subscription.

Jesus’ Post-Easter Priority

“Is Jesus Smart? We often think of Jesus as loving, kind, and selfless, but have you ever considered him smart? If we are honest, we must conclude that he is. He is the ‘author of life’ (Act 3:15) who came in the flesh! And since he is smart, he wasn’t ‘winging it’ when he met with his disciples in a locked room that first Sunday evening.

As a thoughtful and intelligent person, Jesus would have been very intentional about his first words to them and to us, and we find them in John 20:19-21…”

– Mark Eldredge at The American Anglican Council has a challenge for churches.

← Previous Page — Next Page →