Justin Taylor, in his article, “An Interview with the Apostle Paul on The Law, Life, and Death”, addresses an ongoing point of confusion for many Christians I meet.  What relationship do New Covenant believers have with the Old Covenant?  Confusion over this matter produces all sorts of pastoral issues; from guilt to lack of assurance; from a drive for perfection to self-righteousness - and on and on and on it goes.  Following is an excerpt from the article.  Make sure to read it all.

“Two opinions therefore there are concerning sufficiency of Holy Scripture, each extremely opposite unto the other and both repugnant to truth.  The schools of Rome teach Scripture to be so unsufficient, as if, except traditions were added, it did not contain all revealed and supernatural truth, which absolutely is necessary for the children of men in this life to know that they may in the next be saved.  Others justly condemning this opinion grow likewise into dangerous extemity, as if Scripture did not only contain all things in that kind necessary, *but all things simply*, and in such sort that to do any thing according to any other law were not only unnecessary but even opposite unto salvation, unlawful and sinful . . . . so we must likewise take great heed, lest in attributing unto Scripture more than it can have, the incredibility of that do cause even those things which indeed it hath most abundantly to be less reverently esteemed.”

This, from Iain Murray, on the topic of expository preaching.  Much to chew on:

Why has this view of ‘expository preaching’ become comparatively popular? There are several reasons. First, it is believed that the practice will raise the standard of preaching. By a consecutive treatment of a book of Scripture, it is said, the preacher is taken away from any hobby-horses, and congregations are more likely to be given a broader, more intelligent, grasp of all Scripture. The preacher is also delivered from a constant search for texts – he and the people know what is before them. These reasons are perhaps confirmed for younger preachers by the fact that at our main conventions and conferences the well-known speakers commonly deal with one passage in a few addresses, and when these find their way into print they are taken as models of the best way of preaching. Published sermons of any other kind are few and far between for publishers definitely favour the ‘expository’ on the grounds of their popularity.

In our view, however, it is time that the disadvantages of this view of preaching are at least considered:

Read the rest.

Last week I spent a few days with a bunch of 40-something year old men who, by-and-large, haven’t given a whole lot of thought to the state and quality of their spirtual lives for quite a while.  Almost to a man they had checked out of church.  ”Irrelevant,” “offers answers to questions I’m not asking,” “everything in my life – and the world - has changed – except the church, it’s locked in a different age.”  I would suggest that the stagnant nature of most churches that these men had rejected is the primary reason (surpassing even theological liberalism)  for the decline in church participation – and, seeing Jesus and church as a package deal, the baby and the bath water go out the door.   In a conversation with a couple of the guys one of them asked me if I really believed the Bible.  I told them I did – I believe the Bible, I believe the table of contents, I believe the maps, I believe the whole thing.  I told them that more than anything else Scripture has shaped my spiritual life; reading Scripture, studying Scripture, thinking through Scripture and memorizing Scripture – I have learned to love it all. 

John Piper writing about the topic of memoring Scritpure noted that one of the reasons Martin Luther came to his great discovery in the Bible of justification by faith alone was that in his early years in the Augustinian monastery he was influenced to love Scripture by Johann Staupitz. Luther devoured the Bible in a day when people earned doctorates in theology without even reading the Bible. Luther said that his fellow professor, Andreas Karlstadt, did not even own a Bible when he earned his doctor of theology degree, nor did he until many years later (Richard Bucher, “Martin Luther’s Love for the Bible“). Luther knew so much of the Bible from memory that when the Lord opened his eyes to see the truth of justification in Romans 1:17, he said, “Thereupon I ran through the Scriptures from memory,” in order to confirm what he had found.

So here are a few reasons why so many have viewed Scripture memorization as so essential to the Christian life:

Read the rest.

I ran across a fascinating article on Ray Fowler’s blog.  Seems as if the new Kindle software upgrade allows you to not only view your own highlights within the book you’re reading, but the highlights of others as well.  Using the feature Fowler compiled the most highlighted texts in both the Bible and the Koran.  Can you guess the most highlighted biblical texts?  Themes?

See the top Bible verses.

See the top Koran verses.

Do you ever feel put on the defensive regarding the Bible?  Here’s a great quote from Max McLean’sUnleashing the Word. It comes under a section titled “The Bible Is its Own Evangelist.”

The Bible is its own evangelist. I came to faith because I was deeply affected by the words of the Bible. The famous British preacher Charles Spurgeon was once asked how he responded to criticisms of the Bible. “Very easy,” he responded. “I defend the Bible the same way I defend a lion. I simply let it out of its cage.” That quote captures our vision for this book and for the growth of ministries that are committed to the passionate, articulate, and powerful reading of Scripture. Isn’t it time to let the Bible out of the cage, or (to borrow from the title of this book) to unleash God’s Word?

When I tell a Bible story, I have a quiet confidence that God is going to do a mighty work by the very act of reading his Word. Therefore, my objective is to engage hearers and draw them into the Word of God. My role is to use my skills and abilities, as best I can, to draw them into an experience with the Word.

I watched the ABC’s address to the Global South Gathering and sat amazed.  Amazed that this palaver came from the same man whose lectures on the Gospel of John I watched as a part of the St. Paul’s Theological Centre’s “Bible Track.”  In the latter he was brilliant.  In the former . . . ???

The crisis provoked by TEC within the Anglican Communion extends much further than pastoral practice and matters of interpretation.  There must be, conjoined to our continual submission to primacy and normative role of Scripture, discussions and reformation of our church order.  What is essential?  What is nice but unnecessary?  Are there, and should there be, mechanisms that bind us nationally and internationally?  Should fidelity to the apostolic message and a demonstration of apostolic success be the defining marks of apostolic succession?   Thoughts like these have been more frequent of late as have questions regarding the seeming failure by design of our church structures.

So, this morning I run across this brilliant piece (brilliant because I agree with it) by Canon Gary L’Hommedieu critiquing the ABC’s Global South Address – and the ABC, himself, as the leader of the Anglican Communion.  Here are my favorite quotes:

As always, we will be wondering what Dr. Williams said for days, if not for the rest of our natural lives.

In spite of his remarkable intelligence, he may really have nothing to say. There may be no reality upon which to fix his eloquence.

Here is the pathos of Rowan Williams: there is more gravitas communicated through his Tolkienesque visage than through his pained erudition.

Pep talks like these are understood to promise something while delivering nothing, except the next round of promises. This is the recognized form of an address by a professional diplomat, particularly one of rank. Some acknowledge it as being quintessentially British, others as quintessentially rubbish.

Dr. Williams’ address to the Global Encounter is a study in theology as platitude.

It is Dr. Williams’ pastoral arithmetic that reveals the vacuity of his position as Archbishop. His domain is one that has ceased to exist. His theology has nothing to attach itself too. It is pure calculation–not the shrewd calculation of a political gamesman, but the mechanical calculation of a pastoral logician. He is trying to conjure spiritual reality through “true” statements based on echoes of a religious past. His hope is that the Conference attendees will give weight to his office out of politeness and propriety, since his position and person no longer carry weight.

The sociological reality of the Archbishop of Canterbury is that of a ghost.

The sun set long ago on the Church of England as the priesthood of an empire that lies in ruins. Her power structure exists now for no purpose, and this vacuity of purpose is manifest. The Global South to South Encounter is puzzling over a number of questions: among them, whether the Mother Church must soon be confined to assisted living, while an adult in the prime of life assumes the role of parent.

Read it all.

The group, known as the Global South Anglican Communion, comprises churches in more than 20 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It represents 75 per cent of the global Anglican Church.

This is the fourth such meeting and the first held in Singapore. The week-long conference, whose theme is ‘The Gospel of Jesus Christ: Covenant for the People and Light for the Nations’, ends on Friday.

More than 130 delegates are expected to discuss how the various churches can support one another in missionary work and church-building.

Also on the agenda will be the impact that the consecration of a non-celibate lesbian as bishop next month in The Episcopal Church of the United States will have on the Anglican community, and its response to the Anglican Covenant – a document put together last December that outlines the theological identity of the Anglican Church.

On Friday, a summary of the meetings is expected to be sent to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, who leads the 75 million-strong Church.

The Anglican faith is one of the largest Christian denominations in the Protestant Church.

Dr Williams was invited to the meeting but he could not make it, said event organisers. He will, however, be speaking to delegates via a pre-recorded video message (see below).

Here are a few highlights:

Welcome address by Archbishop John Chew, Primate of SE Asia:

We continue that work in this Encounter with its theme of “The Gospel of Jesus Christ—Covenant for the People; Light for the Nations.”In our time together, we will begin each day by gathering in communion with the Lord and one another around the Lord’s Table and His Word before the business of the day. Then there will be the daily Thematic Addresses expounding on the Gospel, the Covenant, the Light for the Nations and explicated by the Plenary Presentations on Global South Structures, Missions and Ministry, and Economic Empowerment through Capacity Building.

Even as we do so, we are keenly aware of the current issues and deepening crisis and challenges facing our Communion. There is no denying that these issues will inevitably be of great concerns in our minds, prayers and conversations. We have the challenge of how we will respond to the Anglican Covenant. It is important that we can share our respective views, even if we differ.

Welcome address by Archbishop Peter Akinola, former Primate of Nigeria:

It is to this charge that I wish to call you. The apostle Paul reminds us that, “If the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle?” (1 Cor. 14:8) There is a battle going on in our beloved Communion and so there is a desperate need for an authentic and passionate proclamation of the truth of God. People are perishing and we dare not remain silent. We must proclaim the Word that brings life and hope. I pray that we will have the inspiration and courage to do so.

GSE4 Thematic Address by Archbishop Nicholas Okoh, Primate of Nigeria:

We must reject the so-called “Gospel” which encourages a man or woman to remain and feel good and fulfilled in a state of sin from which he/she should seek gracious escape in Christ. But it must be emphasized that this transformation is not just a matter of personal devotion and piety. It must be made to affect individuals, building families and societies especially fighting corruptions, poverty, despotic and greedy Government, polygamy in Africa as well as serial monogamy elsewhere, some of whom make profession of Faith. It also can help to transform the stay-in-one-place movement attitude of the West to climate change. And not less relevant is transformation to the crushing problem of refugees, hunger, disease and population explosion.
…
The materially wealthy North must not equate their affluent context with the paradise of God. Material wealth is necessary, where it is absent, the work of God will suffer, even the message will be distorted; but wealthy condition and affluent lifestyle do not necessarily amount to peace with God, and attainment of heavenly qualities. The peace we seek must have in it fairness (righteousness) a justice towards Africa and the rest of the South, in view of new post-colonial realities.

Sermon by Archbishop Peter Akinola, former Primate of Nigeria:

We all know that signing the covenant will not stop TEC from pursuing its own agenda. In fact only recently, it elected and confirmed another openly practicing lesbian priest to the episcopate. The Communion is still unable to exercise discipline. We are God’s Covenant to the world, yes, but we are divided. We lack discipline. We lack the courage to call ‘a spade a spade’. Our obedience to God is selective.My sisters and brothers from around the world, I am troubled, I am sad in fact I am confused. If the churches in the Global South sign up, would they then become a new Communion? Wouldn’t that further polarize the church? On the other hand the Churches in the Global South cannot forever continue to merely react to the actions of the Western churches. If TEC for political reasons chooses to sign, and we can’t stop them, but continues to disregard the mind of the Communion on these matters that have caused us so much grief, it will make nonsense of the whole exercise.

Where do we go from here?
Our desire in the Global South is for a genuine healing of the Church. Our desire is for the restoration of sacramental communion among all the churches in the global Anglican family. Much precious time has been spent, or maybe wasted, on this crisis. The real mission of the church, which is to make Christ known to all is suffering and in some cases neglected. We in the Global South cannot continue in this way. Yet, we see no light at the end of the tunnel. Time is God’s precious gift for which we are accountable to God as His stewards. This Encounter must show us the way forward in all of this.

Thematic address 2 by Archbishop John Chew on the nature of covenant from Scripture:

Summarizing the above observations, and to fast forward, it quite clearly show up that the people of God has a “lost vocation” to be “covenant for the people” and “light for the nations”. On the other hand, we see instead so graciously a covenantal (“steadfast love”) commitment and divine vocation to effect renewal, restoration, recalling and re-commission of the “lost” vocation, only now it has to be done in a fundamentally “new” way as the original ‘servant” has totally discredited itself because it is “blind and deaf”. The ‘vocation is now possible only in a much deeper sense where even the people of God, Israel, has to face up to — the fundamental issue of sin and rebellion in rejection of Yahweh and the embrace of new gods/idols of the land

The Archbishop of Canterbury’s video message:  Greg Griffith over at Stand Firm had this report on the ABC’s address: “Independent sources are reporting the same thing: That after Archbishop Rowan Williams’ video address to the Global South-to-South Encounter audience was over, there was silence. No one applauded, and glances around the room revealed lots of head-shaking and eye-rolling. According to one of the sources, ‘it did not go off well.’”

More reports can be found here

Aaron was offered, and accepted, an Air Force contract today and was sworn in this afternoon in front of his flight detachment.  Upon graduation (in December) he will commission as an officer in the Air Force.  Well done, son!  We’re proud of you!

An old friend, Kim Swithinbank, current Vicar of St. James, London, is in town this week.  Had him over to preach this morning.  Here’s his wonderful sermon, “Two Prodigals?”, preached at the morning celebrations.