Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Atheism in Australia - Yahoo!7 TV

So help me God: Atheism in Australia - Yahoo!7 TV

There is a clip from Sunrise between an atheist and a Christian. Also the article has some interesting stats at the start:
- 64% of Australians identify as Christian
- In 1902, 97 per cent of the population professed to be Christian.
- Estimates up to 25% of Australians are atheist
- 18.7% stated No religion in 2006, while 11.2 stated left religion 'not stated'
the doctrine or belief that there is no God

Lets all study Ephesians together

Matthias Media write bible studies for churches (and they have a two year plan using their resources). But they never really encourage everyone all over the world to study the same thing at the same time and to listen to sermons from the host church... Is it removing the local church somewhat, or am I just being too negative? But don't get me wrong, I'm all for studying Ephesians:

The Mars Hill Blog | Global Church. Literally.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Church Times - Evangelise among other faiths, don’t ‘sell’, says report

Josh has pointed out this article on how the Anglican church thinks it is a good idea to evangelise

Church Times - Evangelise among other faiths, don’t ‘sell’, says report:
They recommend an approach to sharing the gospel which “proclaims gladly and openly the uniqueness of the work of God in the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ”, but which “forbears from making ultimate judgements about others, always preferring to leave that to the loving mercy of Christ.

“In this approach, sharing the gospel of salvation through Christ alone is not an exercise in the selling of a product in a competitive market place of religions or philosophies, it is proclamation.”

This view is echoed by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York in their foreword...

You can download the 47 page report (with 199 paragraphs) here.

Monday, June 28, 2010

Jesus Didn't Die On a Cross

Jesus Died on a Tree Trunk? | The Atlantic Wire:
The crucifixion is apparently under review. In his doctoral thesis, newly graduated Swedish theologian Gunnar Samuelsson argues that the cross Jesus supposedly died on may not actually have been a cross. He explains in an interview with DRadio Wissen, a German station: 'the New Testament said that Jesus died some way on something called a staurus ... that's a Greek name for a cross or a pole or something ... I call it an execution device only to be [distinguished] from the common notion that it must be a cross, because it mustn't be a cross--it could be a pole, for instance, or a tree trunk, or something else.'

Jesus did not die on cross, says scholar - Telegraph:
...the Bible has been misinterpreted as there are no explicit references the use of nails or to crucifixion - only that Jesus bore a 'staurus' towards Calvary which is not necessarily a cross but can also mean a 'pole'.

Lloyd-Jones on Thinking and Faith

Lloyd-Jones on Thinking and Faith :: Desiring God:
The Bible is full of logic, and we must never think of faith as something purely mystical. We do not just sit down in an armchair and expect marvelous things to happen to us. That is not Christian faith. Christian faith is essentially thinking.
That is the every essence of faith. Faith, if you like, can be defined like this: It is a man insisting upon thinking when everything seems determined to bludgeon and knock him down in an intellectual sense.

Friday, June 25, 2010

Advance10: Audio and Video

Another conference has posted their audio and video: Advance10: Advance The Church - Hopefully there will some file download links soon so you don't need your browser to listen/watch them

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Against All Gods - TGC Reviews

This looks like it could be a good book: Against All Gods - TGC Reviews:
They assert that the surge of New Atheism is also a good thing because it is forcing discussion of religion back into university life. These attacks are happening largely in the academy, pushing the sacred back into the secular
Their belief is that in thoughtful, uninhibited discussion of the issues, the truth can and will emerge as it forces New Atheism to move from offense to defense. As Christians are able to press their worldview with the truth, New Atheism ideology will crumble.

SMBC Preaching conferences

I heard Kirk Patston talk at a Katoomba Easter Convention on Ecclesiastes and would be happy to hear him talk again from the Old Testament: SMBC Preaching conferences : Anglican Church League, Sydney, Australia

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Matt Chandler on Talking at other conferences

This is Chandler latests update on how is he going with fighting his brain cancer, and this in this one he talks about speaking at other conferences and Rick Warren at this years Desiring God conference and the consequence of being on a public stage.

Week 16: Video Update from Matt Chandler

Friday, June 18, 2010

Requisite Tools for a Pastor

Requisite Tools – Kevin DeYoung:
But what must a pastor do? That’s the subject of this post.

In other words, let’s assume the first two C’s are in good shape (Character and Convictions). What is required by the third C–Competence?
Kevin's points are:
1. A pastor must be able to teach.
2. A pastor must be able to relate to people.
3. A pastor must be able lead.
4. A pastor must stay relatively organized or surround himself with those who can do this for him.
5. A pastor must pray.

Tripp and Glenn: "The Pastor and Pleasure"

Looks like some good free talks on the pleasure of God, Sex, Food, Money and the Local Church: Tripp and Glenn: "The Pastor and Pleasure" :: Desiring God

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Meet the New American Family, Digitally Deluged

AlbertMohler.com – Meet the New American Family, Digitally Deluged:
In an accompanying article in The New York Times, Tara Parker Pope asked a chilling but revealing question: “Has the high-speed Internet made you impatient with slow-speed children?” Does that question not arrest you on the spot?

The research indicates that people who are highly invested in digital involvements are less empathetic, less attentive, less patient, and less able to remember something as basic as a conversation.

Die With Your Boots On

This is a good, quick overview of how the apostles died: Die With Your Boots On | TheResurgence:
You're either going to go out like Judas or Jesus—that's how your life is going to end. You're going to go out like Jesus, faithful to the end, whatever the cost, or you're going to go out like Judas, prematurely, tragically, rebelliously, shamefully.
If you were going to get crucified, would you stop calling yourself a Christian?... Andrew replied, [and this is an amazing line] "I would not have preached the honor and glory of the cross if I feared the death of the cross."
We're in a day where we get a lot of come-and-see. There are free sermons on the Internet, classes, training, Christian music, radio stations, radio preachers, church events, mass crusades, services, small groups. It seems, Lord God, like there are more come-and-see opportunities than any people have ever been offered in the history of the world.... [But] I pray for the grace of the Holy Spirit on us as a people that we wouldn't just be a come-and-see people, that we'd be a go-and-die people.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Missional church

Acts29 have a good article with lots of quotes about What is Missional?

In some essays on missional churches I find myself quoting some 9marks articles such as:

The Church in England

In May Al Mohler posted on A Preacher Is Arrested in Britain

C.J. Mahany now quotes Mark Dever about an experience he had in England before that event, from Old Atheism:
I was stopped this past February in Heathrow airport when I was trying to go over to London to speak. I had been invited to preach there by Church of England Church, an established church in the UK in the middle of London. When I got to Heathrow, new laws had been passed. They wouldn’t let me in. I waited 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 40 minutes, while they asked me more and more questions. What exactly would I be saying? Finally they let me in, but with cautions…

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Christianity, tolerance, and Rodney King

dangerous idea: Christianity, tolerance, and Rodney King:
A lot of believers, as well as unbelievers, think that there is a great deal at stake in this whole business of religion. Given that so much is at stake, isn't it a little misguided to implore people to accept a Rodney-King-style political correctness: 'Can't we all just get along?'

Bob Kauflin is writing another book

I like what Bob has to say about singing in church at a past Desiring God conference, and now he is writing about it again: I’m Writing Another Book | Worship Matters:
Why not write a much shorter book that spoke directly to the Christians who walk in to be led every Sunday morning? Perhaps a book that would help them think more biblically about their responsibility as a worshiper of God, regardless of how they were being led. A book that leaders could give to members of their congregation.

Friday, June 11, 2010

The Word and the Word

The Word and the Word – Kevin DeYoung:
Let me make a bold, but, I think, defensible assertion: we should approach the Scriptures with the same reverence we would have in approaching Christ.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

CJ Mahaney: Keep Reading

Do you read books and not remember it all? C.J. says to Keep Reading and quotes John Piper:
I do not remember 99% of what I read, but if the 1% of each book or article I do remember is a life-changing insight, then I don’t begrudge the 99%.

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Andrew Katay and Tony Payne on New Perspective of Paul

Andrew Katay is continuing his series on his thoughts on the New Perspective on Paul. In this posting KPP (Part 2): The problem of sin Tony Payne weighs in on the comments.

They mention a incident in The Briefing where Rob Smith has posted these three articles:


To which Katay posted a response to that got cut from 1000 words to 500. Katay has posted his full response to Rob Smith on his blog over his review on N.T Wrights What St Paul Really Said here: Letter to the Briefing 1999

Friday, June 4, 2010

Next 2010 talks are online

Talks from Josh Harris, Mark Dever, Kevin DeYoung, C.J. Mahaney and D.A. Carson are now online: NEXT | Resources

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Michael Kirby @ TEDx Sydney

Michael Kirby is held in high esteem at my work place, he has even comes and spoken at some big events. I have never hear him speak before.

YouTube - TEDxSydney - Michael Kirby - Asks Religious Leaders & God Botherers to Change their Messages (mostly on homosexuals)

Peter Bolt on the new Sydney Archbishop

See page 4 of this pdf

Why are young evangelicals into social justic?

It is because it is popular, rebellion from our parents or because it is easy (relatively)The Gospel and Social Justice: Toward a Robustly Biblical Conversation – The Gospel Coalition Blog

Sullivan’s article argues that today’s younger evangelicals (the under-30s) are “expanding their mission” by being deeply concerned not with “fire-and-brimstone conservatism”... but with issues like global poverty, creation care, and inner-city education.
For the sake of moving this debate further along, let me suggest another reason many younger evangelicals might find social justice issues so attractive: it’s easy.
No one argues with the need to feed the hungry. But people are killed for the proclamation of the gospel.

Discerning God’s Call

Discerning God’s Call | TheResurgence:

George Whitefield, the 18th-century evangelist, gives this advice for those considering a call: “Ask yourselves again and again whether you would preach for Christ if you were sure to lay down your life for so doing? If you fear the displeasure of a man for doing your duty now, assure yourselves you are not yet thus minded.”
The article also lists thoughts by Luther, John Newton, Charles Hodge and Robert L Dabney on the calling of a minister

Also today Matt Chandler talks on the Call to Ministry | TheResurgence

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Preaching & the Emerging Church: A New E-Book

The Resurgence is posting bits from a new e-book they have released. It looks at Mark Driscoll, Dan Kimball, Brian McLaren and Doug Pagitt. Looks like it could be a good read. Download it from: Preaching & the Emerging Church

A “Normal” Pastoral Visit

Some guy explains how he does a pastoral visit to someone in his church. It lists some good questions to ask: A “Normal” Pastoral Visit – The Gospel Coalition Blog

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Happiness and its causes - Part 2 Community

An interesting look our modern day houses and how community, even church, is a good thing. Happiness and its causes - Part 2 Community

When you take the time to listen to the Happiness experts, a repeated theme is the vital place of community.
We have bunkered down in private castles and the refuge of a controlled environment untrammelled by the muddy shoes of neighbourhood children. Remote controlled garage doors mean we don’t even have to risk a conversation with nearby residents before pulling down the shutters and retreating to our sanctuaries.
But there is lots of evidence that community is not only good for us, but we are longing for it.

The Gospel of Technology

Are Australians any different? The Gospel of Technology – The Gospel Coalition Blog

An interesting article in the New York Times considers American’s faith in technology and the surprise we have when technology can’t immediately fix our problems.
Humans don’t do well when not in control.
Among other things, this catastrophe can remind us of where our faith ultimately needs to be: “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God” (Psalm 20:7).