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).

Notes on Jeremiah by Graeme Goldsworthy

To promote the soon-to-be-released Gospel Transformation Bible, Crossway have made available a free download of the book of Jeremiah, with an introduction and study notes by Graeme Goldsworthy.

– Download it here. (h/t Gary Ware. Photo: The Bible Society.)

Modern Bioethics and its challenge to Christian thought

“Modern Bioethics and its challenge to Christian thought” is the topic for the next Centre for Christian Living open night at Moore College. Dr Andrew Ford is speaking, 7:30pm Wednesday 28th August, $8.

Resource for Australian Voters

The Australian Christian Lobby has released its comparison of policies of the major parties for the upcoming Federal Election. (Since some have asked: The Australian Christian Lobby and the Anglican Church League are quite separate – we just happen to have the same initials.)

Do you feel Called by God? — review

“Michael Bennett’s book is brilliant. I loved it. Let me tell you why. Ever since I became a Christian at age 19 (1989), I have been baffled and confused by the way Christians speak about decision-making. I was always hearing people say stuff like “I feel God is calling me to do X, Y and Z”. They seemed to put an awful lot of emphasis on two words: feel and call. …”

– Ben Pfahlert is very glad to see this new book by Michael Bennett (who also brought us Christianity Explained).

Paul: A Pastor’s Heart — review

“Paul – A Pastor’s Heart is succinct and easy to read; Barnett explains Paul’s meaning and motives clearly and helpfully. … It takes a powerful piece of Scripture and makes it accessible and applicable to today’s church.”