This is where Moore College’s reputation for what is (a bit misleadingly) called “academic rigor” comes from. We take thinking seriously. That is not because we are “academic”, but because thinking is an important part of being Christian. God “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim 2:4). “The truth” is the reality of God’s grace in Jesus Christ, the one mediator between God and men (1 Tim 2:5). He is the truth. By understanding something of God’s grace towards us in Jesus, we are humbled. By learning something of what Christ has done, we begin to take life seriously. By comprehending that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, we are turned away from our sinfulness. By grasping the faithfulness of God, faithfulness matters to us. And so on. The heart of such godliness is thinking – because the power that produces such godliness is the truth.

That is why Moore College is a Bible College and a Theological College.

via What’s in a name? | Ministry Thinking | Sydneyanglicans.net.

Reflecting on “Life Together” by Bonhoeffer

This wonderful short book is full of great theological reflections on what it means to be part of a Christian church gathered under the Word of God.

Bonhoeffer was a Lutheran pastor who suffered imprisonment and was martyred under the Nazi regime of WW2.

Our Growth Groups are a wonderful expression of ‘life together’ under the Word of God.

How reading and studying Scripture helps us forget ourselves:

‘Consecutive reading of biblical books forces everyone who wants to hear to put himself, or to allow himself to be found, where God has acted once and for all for the salvation of men. We become part of what once took place for our salvation. Forgetting and losing ourselves, we, too, pass through the Red Sea, through the desert, across the Jordan into the promised land. With Israel we fall into doubt and unbelief and through punishment and repentance experience again God’s help and faithfulness. All this is not mere reverie but holy, godly reality. We are torn out of our own existence and set down in the midst of the holy history of God on earth. ‘ p38.

1. Is your growth group a place where people can ‘forget themselves’ as they become engaged in the story of God and the lives of others?

The danger of Christian isolation:

‘In confession the break-through to community takes place. Sin demands to have a man by himself. It withdraws him from the community. The more isolated a person is, the more destructive will be the power of sin over him, and the more deeply he becomes involved in it, the more disastrous is his isolation. Sin wants to remain unknown. It shuns the light. In the darkness of the unexpressed it poisons the whole being of a person’, p88.

2. Is your group a place where a community welcomes people out of isolation and temptation?

On the loving nature of a ‘severe rebuke’:

‘Nothing can be more cruel than the tenderness that consigns another to his sin. Nothing can be more compassionate than the severe rebuke that calls a brother back from the path of sin. It is a ministry of mercy, an ultimate offer of genuine fellowship, when we allow nothing but God’s Word to stand between us, judging and succouring. Then it is not we who are judging; God alone judges, and God’s judgement is helpful and healing’, p84.

3. Is your Growth Group a safe place for people to be rebuked in love? How often does this happen?

How God uses difficult Christian fellowship to grow all of us:

‘A [Christian leader] should not complain about his congregation, certainly never to other people, but also not to God. A congregation has not been entrusted to him in order that he should become its accuser before God and men. When a person becomes alienated from a Christian community in which he has been placed and begins to raise complaints about it, he had better examine himself first to see whether the trouble is not due to his wish dream that should be shattered by God; and if this be the case, let him thank God for leading him into this predicament’, pp17-18.

4. Do you grumble about your group? Does your group grumble about others at BAC outside your group?

Exercise: In groups of 2-3 discuss one or more of the above questions for a few minutes.

We need hell

GEOFF Strong uses Cardinal Pells comments to find that 1 per cent of reason to doubt hells reality, but on the basis of last weeks Q&A the cardinal proved he is as reliable in articulating Christian beliefs as a politician facing re-election.

I believe in hell for two reasons: First, Jesus affirmed its reality, and did so more than anyone else in the Bible. I trust Jesuss view of heaven and hell more than I do Cardinal Pells off-the-cuff deconstruction.

Second, I believe in hell because we require it. We need hell so that all the evil that goes unpunished in this world will be punished one day. Without hell we are surely faced with the appalling reality that countless millions of victims will never be vindicated and their abusers escape justice. Where human justice falls down, the doctrine of hell suggests God will bring final and complete justice.

And hell isnt just a place for atheists. Jesus assures us that religious folk will be there also, including those who hide behind their clerical collars.Pastor Murray Campbell, Mentone

via Lanes offer false sense of security.

His article argues for “benefits” for the Son and the Godhead in the work of creation and redemption. It is also a wonderful understanding delineating the work of each person of the Trinity.

Here is a great sampler commenting on Revelation 4-5:

In the cross-event, the Son becomes worthy of praise in a new way.  Alongside his eternal inclusion in the nature, works, and praise of the Father (cf. 1 Cor 8:6), he now earns a particular and distinct worship that is different from, but equal with, that accorded to the first person of the Trinity.

And this takes us beyond mere manifestation. The Son’s achievement here is not simply to reveal the Father. It is also to establish a new relationship with the universe in which the Son himself is the focus and hinge. The world, hitherto seen as the Father’s by virtue of his creation (Rev 4:11) now also becomes the Son’s by virtue of redemption. 26 The culmination of the arc is praise to both God and the Lamb together: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honour and glory and might forever and ever!” (Rev 5:13).

“Were I asked to focus the New Testament message in three words, my proposal would be adoption through propitiation, and I do not expect ever to meet a richer or more pregnant summary of the gospel than that.”

Knowing God, p241.

‘Young people in our country are smothered by emasculated language, which lays waste all thought and feeling; by the time-wasting frivolities of television; by the hullabaloo of the cinema. (And by sport. And by political indoctrination.)’, Aleksandr Solzhenetsyn, “The Oak and the Calf – A Memoir”, p247.

The Christian gospel is news to be preached:

‘… it is not surprising that Paul speaks of the foolishness of what was preached rather than the foolishness of what was taught, or discussed, or reasoned over…  the gospel is primarily displayed in heraldic proclamation: the gospel is announced, proclaimed, preached, precisely because it is God’s spectacular news.

So when one hears the frequently repeated slogan, “Preach the gospel – use words if necessary,” one has to say, as gently but as firmly as one can, that this is smug nonsense,’ page 158.

His footnote references the apocryphal link of this phrase to St. Francis of Assisi.

In contrast to so many today that seek to extract an ethical ‘gospel’ from the teaching corpus of the Gospels, Carson rightly challenges:

‘All that the canonical Gospels say must be read in the light of the plotline of these books: they move inevitably toward Jesus’ cross and resurrection, which provides forgiveness and the remission of sins. That is why it is so hermeneutically backward to try to understand the teaching of Jesus in a manner cut off from what he accomplished; it is hermeneutically backward to divorce the sayings of Jesus in the Gospels from the plotline of the Gospels,’ page 160.

Great stuff.

The article can be found in the anthology: “For the Fame of God’s Name – Essays in Honor of John Piper”, edited by Storms and Taylor, Crossway Books 2011.

phronew – to think, hold an opinion, judge, to set ones mind on, be intent on, to develop an attitude based on careful thought (BDAG)

Phil 1:7 – “It is right (diakion) for me to think this way (phronein) about all of you, because you hold me in your heart”

Phil 2:2 – “make my joy complete; be of the same mind (phronayte), having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind (phronountes)”

Phil 2:5 – “Let the same mind (phroneite) be in you that was in Christ Jesus”

Phil 3:15 “Let those of us then who are mature (teleioi) be of the same mind (touto phronwmen); and if you think differently about anything (ti eterws phroneite), this too God will reveal to you”

Phil 3:19 – “Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on (ta epigeia phronountes) earthly things”

Phil 4:2 – “I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind (to auto phronein) in the Lord”

Phil 4:10 – “I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern (phronein) for me; indeed, you were concerned for me (ephroneite), but had no opportunity to show it”

A bunch of websites claim it is the motto for the Franciscan order who translate it: “My God and my all”. However Wikipedia says the Franciscan motto is “Pax et bonum”.

In Knowing God, J. I. Packer ascribes the phrase to Martin Luther and translates: “God is mine and everything is mine,” p143.

The Packer quote is awesome (very Romans 8:31-32), but is it right? Confusing.

For the Fransican option you would expect ‘meus’ to be genitive not nominative, right? (although Thomas’ “My God” in John 20:28 is ‘Deus meus’)

For the Packer/Luther way you would expect ‘meus’ to be accusative tense, right? However it seems to be nominative! Any Latin gurus out there?…

The Trellis and the Vine – Colin Marshall and Tony Payne.

No frills exhortation towards 1-1 ministry of the word and a discipling culture.

There are no magic bullets in this book, but it is very good tonic for sanity in the programmatic avalanche that churches find themselves under.

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Leadership on the Front Foot – Zac Veron

I read this at the start of the year and loved it. Hard hitting and practical yet grounded solidly on an evangelical theology. A breath of fresh air.

Probably need to reread given I am now in charge in my own parish..

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The Rage Against God – Peter Hitchens

Ignoring issues to do with his famous atheist brother, this book is a wonderful testimony from a convinced leftist atheist who became a committed Christian.

Great insights into the heart of polemic atheism from one who was on the inside and is now a committed, intelligent and educated Christian.

(I wrote a review of this book for EFAC Essentials but it hasn’t appeared online yet, only in the print edition)

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The Reason for God – Belief in an Age of Skepticism – Tim Keller

Articulate and humble, this is a very compelling read. The new giveaway book.

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The Core – Teaching Your Child the Foundations of Classical Education – Leigh A. Bortins

A great little handbook out of the resurgence of interest in classical education.

Not as detailed and useful as The Well Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer. The best books on this topic are still those by Doug Wilson: Recovering the Lost Tools of Education and The Case for Classical Christian Education.

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Jane Tooher has joined the faculty of Moore College to become the founding director of the Priscilla and Aquila Centre.  This Centre, a new initiative for the college, aims to encourage the ministries of women in partnership with men and has a number of connected aims:1.  to encourage and strengthen the training of women for ministry2.  to encourage and promote a wide range of ministries by women, in genuine complementary partnership with the ministries of men3.  to encourage and support women to pursue postgraduate theological study at Moore and to write and publish at both a popular and academic levelThe first major public event arranged by the Centre is a conference to be held on 7 February 2011.  A range of men and women will address the topic of ‘Male and Female He Created Them’.  More details will be available on the website in coming weeks.

via Have You Heard of the Priscilla & Aquila Centre?.

Will the real Mars Hill please stand up? 1/3 from Arthur Davis on Vimeo.

Will the real Mars Hill please stand up? 2/3 from Arthur Davis on Vimeo.

Will the real Mars Hill please stand up? 3/3 from Tamie Davis on Vimeo.

Well worth an online read, you’ll end up buying some of them!

Fidelity

Future Men

Reforming Marriage

Mother Kirk

The Paideia of God and Other Essays on Education

Heaven Misplaced – Christ’s Kingdom on Earth

Angels in the Architecture – A Protestant Vision for Middle Earth

A Serrated Edge: A Brief Defense of Biblical Satire and Trinitarian Skylarking

David Peterson, “Resurrection Apologetics and the Theology of Luke-Acts“, in “Proclaiming the Resurrection – Oakhill School of Theology”, Edited by Peter Head, Paternoster Press, 2008.

(some wordpress bug is causing the images to cascade unless I put full stops in to space them out – bleh)

The Acts of the Apostles,  David Peterson, Pillar New Testament Commentaries, IVP.

Preaching through the final third of Acts this year, this new commentary has been invaluable.

Peterson has an excellent grasp of the use of the OT in Acts, and of the Lordship of Jesus as the pivotal theme.

Excellent and insightful.

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The Word of His Grace, A Guide to Teaching and Preaching from Acts

This is a really enjoyable summary of the theology and structure of Acts.

Exemplifies the very best of the Proc Trust tradition, really giving you a good sense of the ‘melodic line’ of different parts of Acts – to use the David Jackman phrase.

A great big picture look at Acts.

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Keller – The Prodigal God

Excellent confrontation with ‘elder brother’ legalism that pervades today.

Many wonderful exegetical insights that could only be discovered by a pastor-evangelist.

Destined to be a Christian classic.

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Notes from the Tilt a Whirl – ND Wilson

If you like philosophy then this is a fun ‘ride’.

Solved one theological puzzle I’ve been wrestling with for many years. That alone was worth the price of the book for me.

(I’ll have to blog the ‘puzzle’ another time)

Could be a good book to give away to well-read unbelievers. It gets under your guard.

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Calvin Sermons on Genesis 1-11

This new translation from Banner is wonderful.

So often people miss out on the best of Calvin because most retailers hock a crappy 19th C public domain facsimile translation.

This translation is readable and quotable.

His sermons have alot more applications than his commentaries, great for preachers.

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Making It All Work, David Allen

Not a Christian book but I did really enjoy the follow up to his productivity classic “Getting Things Done”.

Unfortunately Penguin Australia has a grammar nazi in management. They renamed the books as “How to Get Things Done” and “How to Make it All Work“. Lessons from rulebook of “How to Make Books Sound Dumber as if People Don’t Know the Real Title from the Net”.

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What does this mean for evangelical Anglicans (and other inheritors of the Reformation) today? Scripture is the final authority to which all Christian thinking must be subject. However, it’s either arrogant or simply naive to imagine we are the first readers of Scripture, or that we can or should read it without reference to that tradition. And if a reading of Scripture is proposed that breaks with the witness of the tradition of faithful Christian readers down the two millennia of its being read, we do well to hear alarm bells ringing.

via Scripture Alone: what it is and what it ain’t | Culture analysis | Sydneyanglicans.net.

And, in some ways, a long ministry is especially so. In a two or three or four year ministry one can live off first impressions. No one gets to know you all that well and then off you go to make first impressions on another congregation. But after ten years and fifteen and twenty the warts begin to show, the shortcomings are spotted, reservations that were kept at bay by good will are confirmed against hope by repeated observation. The stages of life come and go and the fruit of one’s walk with God through many years appears or fails to appear. I know it has been so for you in regard to me. But, that is not bad — that is good. No one said we were not and would not remain sinners while in this world. And I am forced by that fact, that you see and know me, to care about my life before God and before all of you and to care that I do not allow myself to stop in mid-stream but that for my ministry’s sake and your sake and God’s name’s sake I continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of God, lest, to my judgment and loss, all of you be put to sleep by my example and by my tiresome preaching of old and tired thoughts unrenewed by new and vital experiences of the grace of God and the presence of Christ.

via “Reflections on Twenty Years of Ministry”.

The structure of our training effectively forces ministers into at least a decade of moving and moving again. This is wrong for people so committed to the importance of good relationships. There is a real danger that ministers disconnect from the very people they should be connecting with – in the church and the parish. Like military families, it ends up being easier to just have deep relationships with other military families that understand the strange lifestyle.

via Putting down ministry roots | Mission-minded church | Sydneyanglicans.net.