Bishop of Tasmania – Pastoral Letter on Euthanasia
“Today I sent the following Pastoral Letter to all Anglican Parishes in Tasmania asking that the letter and attachments be made available to Parishioners.…
Pastoral Letter – Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill 2013
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
You will have learned recently that the Hon. Lara Giddings and the Hon. Nick McKim, Members for Franklin have recently introduced the “Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill 2013” to the Tasmanian parliament.
This Bill would allow those who meet certain eligibility criteria to be prescribed and receive a lethal injection. This Bill is a direct threat to the lives of Tasmanians, particularly the sick and elderly. This Bill embraces a philosophy of human value defined by convenience and personal capacity. It stands against the responsibility of societies and governments to implement compassionate, timely, and effective care for those who are unwell or disabled in some way. …”
– Read it all at Bishop Harrower’s blog.
Related: Belgian helped to die after three sex change operations (BBC News).
“A transsexual has been helped to die by doctors in Belgium, after a series of failed sex-change operations. Nathan Verhelst, born a girl, asked for help to end his life on grounds of psychological suffering. He died in a Brussels hospital on Monday. Two doctors concluded the 44-year-old did not have temporary depression. …
Belgium legalised euthanasia in 2002. There were 52 cases of euthanasia on psychological grounds last year. … There were 1,432 recorded cases of euthanasia in Belgium in 2012; a 25% increase on the previous year’s figure.”
Bible Society Australia commemorates the 50th anniversary of CS Lewis’ death
“Bible Society Australia has launched a library of Australian resources on C.S. Lewis to celebrate the life of this great author and champion his contribution to literature and to Christianity for many years to come. …”
– from Bible Society Australia.
Getting to know Tim Challies
Many people benefit from Tim Challies’ blog. Tim was in Scotland a few weeks back, and David Meredith at Smithton Church chatted with him in the studios of Inverness TV.
St. Helen’s Training: Bible Overview
St. Helen’s Bishopsgate has posted two new videos in its ‘St Helen’s Training’ series.
These begin an overview of the Bible.
Acting the Miracle — free eBook from Crossway and Desiring God
The soon-to-be-published Acting the Miracle – God’s Work and Ours in the Mystery of Sanctification – edited by David Mathis and John Piper, is available as a free eBook from Desiring God.
via Andy Naselli.
How then shall we Tweet?
The Australian Church Record announces it will aim to help “fend off the keyboard cowards and take on the trolls” in upcoming posts encouraging godly conduct on social media.
“In the coming months … We will be publishing ten pieces of honest biblical wisdom for the social media circus.”
CMS Summer School 2014 Promo Video
CMS has uploaded a 55 second video you can use to promote the 2014 Summer School at Katoomba.
And don’t forget – families are asked to apply online by 16th September.
David Platt interviews Mark Dever on Evangelism and Discipleship
A 50-minute interview in 8 parts – via The Gospel Coalition.
Sermons from the 2013 Presbyterian General Assembly of Australia
The Sermons from the Presbyterian General Assembly of Australia 2013 (just concluded) are now available to hear and download.
All encouraging and challenging, including –
- David Jones (the immediate past Moderator-General) “Why are we here?”
- David Cook (new Moderator-General) “The Apostolic Pattern”, Acts 20.
- David Burge (Minister at Walcha) “The Christian’s Boast and Works”, Galatians.
- Ligon Duncan (from Jackson, Mississippi), three expositions.
Take the time to listen, and to pray for our Presbyterian brothers and sisters around the country, as they, too, seek to reach men and women with the gospel.
(Photo: David Cook.)
9Marks Journal — Evangelism. Part 1
“What does it mean to think through evangelism in a church-centered way?”
That’s the theme of the latest 9Marks Journal (September–October 2013), just released in several formats, for your edification.
Free e-Book — The Universal Compass: Why Study the Bible?
People from all walks of life would benefit from getting to know and understand the Bible.
George Whitefield College in Capetown has made available, as a free e-Book, “The Universal Compass: Why Study the Bible?” by Dr David Seccombe (Principal, 1993-2012). From the first chapter:
“From the death of the last apostle, the Bible has been the determiner of true Christianity. Almost all churches have accepted it in their statements of belief as the written Word of God, and as the final authority in matters of faith. …
However, although most modern denominations still subscribe in their statements of faith to the Bible as the final authority, some have abandoned it in practical terms. This collapse of confidence stems from the philosophical mood of the past two centuries. Man has placed himself at the centre and rejected all forms of authority not based on his own discovery of truth. …
[This book] is written in the hope that you will begin to read the Bible for yourself, or be encouraged to study it more deeply, if you already are a Bible reader. My prayer is that you may also consider the possibility of full-time study in a Bible-believing theological or Bible college.”
– The book is available as a 4.4MB PDF file from this page on the College website.
Get a copy and pass on the link to others who would benefit.
The answer to dull and boring preaching
What’s the place of illustrations in preaching? Or emotion? How can we make our preaching better?
Dr Peter Bolt is interviewed for the latest instalment of Preaching Matters from St. Helen’s Bishopsgate in London.
See it here. Invest 10 minutes of your time.
Barnabas Fund urges prayer for Syria and Egypt this weekend
“This Sunday (1 September), we are urging churches and individuals to hold a time of prayer for Syria and Egypt’s Christians.”
– Details from Barnabas Fund.
And you can find a prayer for ‘the Forgotten Church in Syria’ here. (h/t Carl Trueman.)
Assessing Christian election guides
Sandy Grant takes a look at four different Christian election guides –
“Thoughtful Christians could benefit from interacting with each one of these election guides, even the ones where they find a considerable amount to disagree with.” – Read it at The Briefing.
Preaching Christ in an age of Religious Pluralism
Church Society has published online the audio of Gerald Bray’s talk at the 2005 Church Society Conference.
The topic: Preaching Christ in an age of Religious Pluralism (Acts 17 v16).
It’s a 38MB / 80 minute mp3 file (direct link).
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…