'Restoring hope in our church'

'Restoring Hope to the Church' was the title of a recent Anglican national initiative featuring church leaders and parishes engaging with their communities. However, hope for the Church of England rests in whether it will turn away from the liberal agenda that has dominated it for so many years to the gospel agenda outlined in the Bible.

There is great hope coming from the mainly orthodox and growing Anglican Communion which appears determined to exercise biblical discipline on the New Westminister decision to allow same-sex blessings and the New Hampshire decision to appoint the first gay Bishop, Gene Robinson. Manchester Cathedral has been caught up in this crisis by agreeing to host a service in October for the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement.

In early September the Cathedral and Bishop's Senior Staff decided to withdraw permission for this service to go ahead. Their concern, expressed in their statement about withdrawing permission for the LGCM service, was based on pragmatism rather than principle. It was done because of fear of rocking the boat, given the emergency meeting of Primates in October with Rowan Williams. It said:

'The Manchester Cathedral Chapter, with the support of the Bishop's Senior Staff, has reluctantly withdrawn its permission for LGCM to use Manchester Cathedral for a conference service on October 26th 2003. It has done so in the light of sensitivities and timing in relation to the current debates in the Church of England and the Anglican Communion'.

It was good news that permission was withdrawn but it should never have been agreed to in the first place! In the last paragraph of their statement, it says:

The Cathedral Chapter and the Bishop's Senior Staff regard LGCM as a legitimate Christian organisation, and its commitment to greater inclusivity as a proper moral claim on church and society - and wish it well in its forthcoming conference.

While allowing some room for presentation this statement gives legitimacy to a group seeking to undermine accepted Christian teaching and sexual ethics! There is a refusal to call sin what it is. We will begin to restore hope in our church when we stop trying to pretend that the cracks can be papered over with spin and appeals for listening.

Wake-up call

The events in North America and the Jeffrey John affair has been a wake-up call to the Church of England. The illness is unto death unless we turn for healing to the Lord.

The first step to recovery is to admit you are sick and go to doc!

The choice before the Church of England is symbolised by two church buildings that stand side by side in Chadderton. Christ Church came out of St. John's in 1870 because of its false teaching. St. John's is now a furniture warehouse and Christ Church a flourishing conservative evangelical parish! St. John's is like the Church in Ephesus in Revelation 2: 'If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place', says the risen Christ. This will happen to the Church of England unless it repents!

Discipline exercised in love must be shown to individuals and dioceses clearly stepping outside orthodox mainstream Christian teaching. For a healthy church we must both defend and extend gospel truth. The apostle Paul stresses both aspects in Philippians. He says: 'Stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel' (1.27). Hold onto the gospel! Then later on he stresses: 'hold out the word of life' (2.16). Hold out the gospel!

New church

We have just launched a new church plant called 'Chadderton Community Church' in our church school on September 7. 30 adults and ten children attended the launch. This has come about from the visit of the Archbishop of Sydney, Peter Jensen, who challenged the Church of England to church plant. Inspired by the Archbishop's visit, 15 Anglican parishes in the north-west, including our own, have been meeting to build one another up, to contend for the gospel and to encourage evangelism. We are not seeking to leave the diocese we represent. However there is such a need to supplement what is available from the present structures. Evangelical para-church organisations to support the work of the local church are not new.

What is the Spirit saying to the Church of England?

The church at Sardis is like the general spiritual condition of the Church of England. 'I know your deeds', says the risen Christ, 'you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God'. The Church of England stands at the cross roads today. Will it wake up to the serious apostasy within its ranks and return to the Lord in repentance and faith? There are many good things going on in parishes up and down the land but at its heart there is a sickness unto death.

Will the Church of England be like St. John's, Chadderton? Many church buildings are being used as warehouses and mosques already! Will it respond to this wake-up call? Of course Christ Church, Chadderton, has no guarantee of growth and blessing if it at some point it should turn from the gospel. There is no motive of triumphalism here. At the recent National Anglican Evangelical Congress at Blackpool, Vaughan Roberts, vicar of St. Ebbe's, Oxford, spoke of Mission, Morality but ended with the need for Meekness!

Mark Stibbe, vicar of St. Andrew's, Chorleywood, predicted a stark choice for all churches. Will we be 'popular churches', he asked, embracing the current secular culture and losing our gospel distinctiveness or will we be willing to be the 'unpopular church', willing to suffer for the sake of the name of Jesus? The jury is still out on the future of the Church of England. What happens in October at the meeting between Primates in the Anglican Communion, may be a turning point, a watershed, where a line is drawn in the sand for orthodoxy and gospel vitality and faithfulness. It may also herald a time of suffering to come to God's Church in England in some of the ways only experienced in modern times by our brethren overseas.

Obedience to Christ means a suffering church

The big issue is not homosexuality but the gospel. Homosexuality is a presenting problem about the authority of the Bible. The Bible is clear that homosexual practice is sinful. Making a stand is fraught with difficulties in seeking to 'hate the sin but love the sinner', but a gracious but firm stand must be made for the sake of the health of church and nation. Homosexual practice is socially destructive but is being pushed by the media and by local and national government. Manchester Council, which has developed the 'Gay Village' is a clear example. The 'pink pound' exerts great power over this nation. Any voices raised in protest risk a savage backlash.

Tolerance under threat

Religious tolerance is under great threat right across Europe. In Ireland the Catholic bishops are being threatened with up to six months in jail if they distribute the Pope's latest teaching on homosexuality. In Sweden anyone who strongly criticises homosexuality faces up to four years in prison! The same intimidation and threat is coming here.

That was my experience after accepting an invitation to speak about what the Bible says on homosexuality at a fringe meeting at the Europride Gay and Lesbian festival at Manchester Town Hall in late August. After thanking the organisers for inviting someone from the 'opposition' and making a plea for mutual respect and tolerance, the meeting took on the appearance of a 'bear pit', when I explained that God saw such behaviour as an 'abomination' and as 'unnatural'. 'I am here', I told them, 'because I was invited and because of my love for you. What sort of loving pastor would I be', I continued, 'if I omitted to warn you that such behaviour (amongst others), if not repented of, will stop you going to heaven?' In response to cries for me to apologise, I replied that 'I would not apologise for the Word of God!'

When the headline appeared on the next day's Manchester Evening News, it read: 'Gay fury at Vicar's Outburst'. There was certainly gay fury but there was no outburst from this vicar, simply a clear explanation of what the Bible said! Response from across the area has been overwhelmingly supportive of the stand I took. A local minister wrote to me saying how good it was to have Christian teaching for once on the front page of the MEN and a West Indian Christian said she 'leaped for joy' when she saw the story. A gay Christian man wrote to thank me for encouraging people like him trying to follow Christ. The common theme from dozens of phone calls and letters from Christian and non-Christian was how good it was to hear clear biblical statements from a churchman for a change.

Ordination promise

At my ordination I promised to drive away false teaching as well as promote sound doctrine. Bishops promise to do the same but few in England are willing to contend for the gospel. I am particularly encouraged by the formation of 'Anglican Mainstream' by bishops and clergy in this country and overseas in response to the Jeffrey John affair. We must be prepared to stand up for what we believe. A British Muslim cut out my picture and the heading below it which said: 'Vicar refuses to apologise'. He stuck it on a large envelope and wrote 'No need to apologise'! The huge support I have received from across Manchester has encouraged me to believe that many folk are waiting for the Church of England to give a clear biblical and gracious lead.

Like-minded local churches working together and holding on to the gospel and holding it out to others will be the means, under God, of restoring hope in our church.