So, we have finally come to the end of our wander through the letter of James, spotting our respectable sins – those insidious ones that reveal our spiritual double-mindedness.
Well – I thought we’d come to an end then I spotted one we’d missed from James 5v12 which is a bit ironic because he starts with the words “Above all else…”.
Women’s world number one Aryna Sabalenka and former men’s Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios have agreed to tennis’s latest iteration of the Battle of the Sexes.
The event, which will take place in late December in Dubai, will be the latest such contest to take place, following Billie Jean King’s high-profile victory over 55-year-old Bobby Riggs in 1973, which is widely considered a watershed moment for the women’s game in its bid to gain greater recognition and funding.
When top BBC journalist and Christian Robin Aitken put together a dossier of what he felt were glaring examples of biased broadcasts, and sent it to the then Director General and Board of the BBC in 2007, he knew his career was on the line. What he had not expected – as a BBC executive and flagship Today Programme reporter - was to be ignored completely.
Instead of addressing the message, they pensioned him off.
Today I want to talk about service. This word is baked into the public institutions which our society is built upon: the Civil Service, the National Health Service, the Crown Prosecution Service...
The first words King Charles III said in Westminster Abbey at his Coronation summed up his new role as sovereign: “I come not to be served, but to serve.”
Is it yet another “should I stay or should I go” moment for evangelicals in the Church of England?
It feels like an interminable dilemma, especially with the process around the blessing of same-sex unions in recent years. With each significant development, the question re-emerges with a more negative tone. Yet, in the last two months, there have been announcements that push both ways.
David Yeghnazar has served with Elam Ministries (elam.com) for nearly 25 years and currently serves as the Executive Director. Elam’s mission is to strengthen and expand the church in the Iran region and beyond by: training Persian-speaking leaders for fruitful, effective ministry; equipping the Persian-speaking church with Bibles and resources for evangelism and discipleship; and sending the gospel through trained evangelists, church planters and the media into the Persian-speaking world. David was born in Iran, and his family has been serving the Iranian church for three generations.
How did you become a Christian? I was born into a faithful Christian family in Iran, so Jesus was always part of my life. When I was nine, my family was living in Lebanon for my dad’s work but we were preparing to relocate to the UK. On our last Sunday before leaving, during a small group prayer time at church, I was with my older brother and his friend when they asked what I wanted prayer for. My only desire was for Jesus to be in my heart. In that moment, I clearly sensed God saying, “David, you belong to me”. It was a profound, grace-filled encounter that anchored me before such a monumental life change.
What lessons have you learnt since thatyou would want to pass on to a younger Christian version of yourself? Don’t take yourself too seriously. Take Jesus seriously, but not yourself.
How would you describe your prayer life? I enjoy my prayer life and have been blessed to see faithful prayer modelled throughout my life – especially by my parents and grandparents. In the 1950s, they hosted a nightly prayer meeting in their Tehran home for four years, crying out for the salvation of Iran. I believe those fervent gatherings planted the seeds for the great turning to Christ we are seeing in these days in Iran. While I certainly haven’t “mastered” prayer and still have much room to grow, seeing God’s work in Iran continually reinforces for me the power and joy found in prayer.
Which two or three Christian books apart from the Bible have most influenced your faith? I have been deeply impacted by Discipleshipon the Edge by Darrell Johnson and EveryBeliever a Disciple by David Bjork. Our vision for the Iranian church is that every new believer receives effective discipleship to grow in faith and live fully for Christ. With many Iranians coming to faith every day amid intense persecution, discipleship is both critical and challenging. These books have sharpened my understanding of what it means to be a disciple of Christ, and the importance of equipping every believer to disciple others.
Who or what have been your biggest Christian influences? Many men and women have impacted my life, but my grandfather’s walk with the Lord has marked me significantly. He came to faith in Iran in the 1930s, and everyone he met he would simply ask: “Do you love Jesus?” As a child, I wondered when he’d move on to a more “important” question, but as I grew, I realised it was the most important one of all. Seeing that genuine love for Christ was beautiful, attractive, and made me want to know Him more.
What are the main challenges you believe Christians face today? I think it comes back to discipleship. We know we ought to both be disciples and disciple others, yet so many of us don’t really know how to actually do that. Yet the more we prioritise deep discipleship, the richer in Christ we will become and the brighter the church will shine as a witness to the world.
What encourages and what discourages you? I’m privileged to hear daily stories from the Iranian church of Christ transforming broken lives, healing relationships, and bringing hope into hopeless situations. God is moving – that continually encourages me. As for discouragement, the last few seasons as a Manchester United supporter have been tough! More seriously, I feel most discouraged when I fail as a parent.
What makes you laugh? My children say I laugh at my own jokes. Maybe that’s bad, but I see it as a gift– at least I can keep myself entertained!
What would you want to say to the wider evangelical world? We must remember that God is writing the story. This truth anchors us at Elam: amid the persecution of the Iranian church, we hold fast to the reality that God is in charge, even when we can’t see the whole picture. Another core value is that “everyone gets to play” – every believer has a role in God’s kingdom, regardless of skillset or credentials. I believe Christian leaders should focus more on equipping the whole church to do the work of ministry, as Ephesians 4v12 commands.
Which Biblical person (other than Jesus) do you most look forward to meeting in glory and why? It’s a hard choice, but I’d really like to ask James what it was like growing up with Jesus as his older brother.
Spoiler alert: last night, comedian Alan Carr won The Celebrity Traitors. It was some top-quality TV, and two moments can be of particular interest to us as evangelicals.
The burden of deceit
Now, if you're unfamiliar with the concept of The Traitors (as I was until this year when I, admittedly, became hooked), contestants bunk-up in a Scottish castle with some getting branded as "Faithfuls" and others, as "Traitors." The goal of a Traitor is to remain undetected by the Faithfuls, thereby not getting voted out (or "banished"), make it to the end, and nab the prize money.
Roberts denounced what he termed a "venomous coalition" of conservatives who called out the interview, because they oppose any "no enemies to the right" posture that includes Nazism.
"Roma locuta, causa finita est!" ("Rome has spoken, the issue is over").
This phrase taken from Augustine (Sermo 131.10) has often been used to highlight the solidity of the Roman Catholic authority structure and the finality of its decision-making process. Well, forget it.
After the Note of the Vatican Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith “Mater Populis Fidelis” (4 Nov), Rome has spoken (yes), but in doing so, is seemingly contradicting what was authoritatively said earlier, thus leaving the issue an open-ended one.
We live in a day when the advance of Islam in our land can no longer be ignored.
A recent video shows a group of Muslim men raising money to buy a Methodist church. The imam declares, “This is the next church we want to convert into a mosque. We have converted many churches so far. Please help us in our mission.” Such words ought to wake every slumbering Christian. They show us what happens when the church of Christ forgets her own mission and loses her first love.
The removal of former Prince Andrew’s royal titles and privileges has been the story of the week, and I suspect by the time you’re reading this we won’t have heard the last of it—even if “Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor” proves to be a much more inconvenient number of characters to put on the front of a tabloid than “Prince Andrew”.
The story certainly appeals to our thirst for black-and-white tales of justice: an apparently arrogant and unrepentant wrongdoer has been cut down to size and stripped of his titles.
I’ve always liked fireworks night. When I was growing up, we’d have a fireworks display in the back garden. There’d be rockets, sparklers and, of course, a variety of fireworks.
The most memorable times were when the fizzing, spinning Catherine wheel fell from the bird table and wreaked havoc over the lawn… Happily, this was an annual event!
"Am I my brother’s keeper?" Perhaps one of the most culturally well-known verses in the Old Testament. Cain has been responsible for his brother’s death, yet desperately tries to deflect in the face of the Lord’s questioning.
The Hebrew for "keeper" is shamar - to guard, to keep watch like you might over livestock, or even your sleeping child.
November will bring the budget, and there will follow frantic activity among economists, commentators and financial advisors. Martin Lewis will undoubtedly have a budget special on Radio 5 and an extended podcast. Inheritance tax is expected to feature prominently.
Dealing with probate and inheritance tax is a complicated business. It can also be an emotional and fraught one. People prefer to pass things on to family rather than the government, which is entirely understandable. Being able to provide for your family not only in the day-to-day, but for the long term after your death is a good thing: “Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing and benefits those who see the sun” (Ecc.7v11). As the preacher in Ecclesiastes says, money is a shelter. However, he adds that wisdom is greater because it preserves those who have it (Ecc.7v12), which is quite surprising considering how significant inheritance was in ancient Israel.
The news that a former FIEC-affiliated church has now become Eastern Orthodox (click here to read the article) is an interesting development.
It is a not untrodden path. One of the most influential Orthodox figures in the UK of the last century, the late Kallistos Ware, grew up in an evangelical home; and some while ago, Peter Gillquist, a former leader in Campus Crusade for Christ, led a whole group over to Orthodoxy in the USA.
Every year, when the end of October comes, the Western world dresses itself in darkness. Streets fill with images of death, devils, and horror. Even many who name the name of Christ shrug and say it is “harmless fun.” But the Christian must not reason as the world reasons.
“What does the Bible say?” is our standard (Romans 4v3). The Bible, not popular opinion, must govern your conscience. Halloween is not innocent. It is unbiblical in its meaning, pagan in its roots, and contrary to the holiness God requires of His people.
My view of Halloween was turned upside down after an evangelism training day at my church.
I do like Halloween - as an opportunity to be welcoming to my local community, showing kindness through giving the children who knock at my door their choice of sweet treat - but oddly, I never saw it as an opportunity to declare the light of Christ.
In March 2026, Dame Sarah Mullally will be formally “enthroned” as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury.
In accordance with long-standing tradition, Mullally will kneel before King Charles and pay homage to the King as Supreme Governor of the Church of England.
In recent months, the online sphere has seen the remarkable viral rise of the long-form YouTube debate format.
For example, the popular “Surrounded” debates, hosted by the channel Jubilee, feature one prominent debater, or public figure, taking on 20 individuals with an opposing view, in a format that crosses a gladiatorial battle with speed dating.
Comment
Does the Bible need trigger warnings?
The University of Sheffield recently issued trigger warnings for English Literature students studying Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
It advised that these texts contained graphic bodily injury and sexual violence.
Let your 'yes' be 'yes': The final challenge from James
So, we have finally come to the end of our wander through the letter of James, spotting our respectable sins – those insidious ones that reveal our spiritual double-mindedness.
Well – I thought we’d come to an end then I spotted one we’d missed from James 5v12 which is a bit ironic because he starts with the words “Above all else…”.
‘Battle of the Sexes’ – compelling or concerning?
Women’s world number one Aryna Sabalenka and former men’s Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios have agreed to tennis’s latest iteration of the Battle of the Sexes.
The event, which will take place in late December in Dubai, will be the latest such contest to take place, following Billie Jean King’s high-profile victory over 55-year-old Bobby Riggs in 1973, which is widely considered a watershed moment for the women’s game in its bid to gain greater recognition and funding.
The BBC: What's wrong, and how it might be fixed
When top BBC journalist and Christian Robin Aitken put together a dossier of what he felt were glaring examples of biased broadcasts, and sent it to the then Director General and Board of the BBC in 2007, he knew his career was on the line. What he had not expected – as a BBC executive and flagship Today Programme reporter - was to be ignored completely.
Instead of addressing the message, they pensioned him off.
Called to serve: The heart of leadership
Today I want to talk about service. This word is baked into the public institutions which our society is built upon: the Civil Service, the National Health Service, the Crown Prosecution Service...
The first words King Charles III said in Westminster Abbey at his Coronation summed up his new role as sovereign: “I come not to be served, but to serve.”
CofE: Should we stay, or should we go?
Is it yet another “should I stay or should I go” moment for evangelicals in the Church of England?
It feels like an interminable dilemma, especially with the process around the blessing of same-sex unions in recent years. With each significant development, the question re-emerges with a more negative tone. Yet, in the last two months, there have been announcements that push both ways.
Ten questions with David Yeghnazar
David Yeghnazar has served with Elam Ministries (elam.com) for nearly 25 years and currently serves as the Executive Director. Elam’s mission is to strengthen and expand the church in the Iran region and beyond by: training Persian-speaking leaders for fruitful, effective ministry; equipping the Persian-speaking church with Bibles and resources for evangelism and discipleship; and sending the gospel through trained evangelists, church planters and the media into the Persian-speaking world. David was born in Iran, and his family has been serving the Iranian church for three generations.
I was born into a faithful Christian family in Iran, so Jesus was always part of my life. When I was nine, my family was living in Lebanon for my dad’s work but we were preparing to relocate to the UK. On our last Sunday before leaving, during a small group prayer time at church, I was with my older brother and his friend when they asked what I wanted prayer for. My only desire was for Jesus to be in my heart. In that moment, I clearly sensed God saying, “David, you belong to me”. It was a profound, grace-filled encounter that anchored me before such a monumental life change.
Don’t take yourself too seriously. Take Jesus seriously, but not yourself.
I enjoy my prayer life and have been blessed to see faithful prayer modelled throughout my life – especially by my parents and grandparents. In the 1950s, they hosted a nightly prayer meeting in their Tehran home for four years, crying out for the salvation of Iran. I believe those fervent gatherings planted the seeds for the great turning to Christ we are seeing in these days in Iran. While I certainly haven’t “mastered” prayer and still have much room to grow, seeing God’s work in Iran continually reinforces for me the power and joy found in prayer.
I have been deeply impacted by Discipleship on the Edge by Darrell Johnson and Every Believer a Disciple by David Bjork. Our vision for the Iranian church is that every new believer receives effective discipleship to grow in faith and live fully for Christ. With many Iranians coming to faith every day amid intense persecution, discipleship is both critical and challenging. These books have sharpened my understanding of what it means to be a disciple of Christ, and the importance of equipping every believer to disciple others.
Many men and women have impacted my life, but my grandfather’s walk with the Lord has marked me significantly. He came to faith in Iran in the 1930s, and everyone he met he would simply ask: “Do you love Jesus?” As a child, I wondered when he’d move on to a more “important” question, but as I grew, I realised it was the most important one of all. Seeing that genuine love for Christ was beautiful, attractive, and made me want to know Him more.
I think it comes back to discipleship. We know we ought to both be disciples and disciple others, yet so many of us don’t really know how to actually do that. Yet the more we prioritise deep discipleship, the richer in Christ we will become and the brighter the church will shine as a witness to the world.
I’m privileged to hear daily stories from the Iranian church of Christ transforming broken lives, healing relationships, and bringing hope into hopeless situations. God is moving – that continually encourages me. As for discouragement, the last few seasons as a Manchester United supporter have been tough! More seriously, I feel most discouraged when I fail as a parent.
My children say I laugh at my own jokes. Maybe that’s bad, but I see it as a gift– at least I can keep myself entertained!
We must remember that God is writing the story. This truth anchors us at Elam: amid the persecution of the Iranian church, we hold fast to the reality that God is in charge, even when we can’t see the whole picture. Another core value is that “everyone gets to play” – every believer has a role in God’s kingdom, regardless of skillset or credentials. I believe Christian leaders should focus more on equipping the whole church to do the work of ministry, as Ephesians 4v12 commands.
It’s a hard choice, but I’d really like to ask James what it was like growing up with Jesus as his older brother.
Betrayal, deceit & the freedom of forgiveness
Spoiler alert: last night, comedian Alan Carr won The Celebrity Traitors. It was some top-quality TV, and two moments can be of particular interest to us as evangelicals.
The burden of deceit
Now, if you're unfamiliar with the concept of The Traitors (as I was until this year when I, admittedly, became hooked), contestants bunk-up in a Scottish castle with some getting branded as "Faithfuls" and others, as "Traitors." The goal of a Traitor is to remain undetected by the Faithfuls, thereby not getting voted out (or "banished"), make it to the end, and nab the prize money.
Tucker Carlson, neo-Nazism, and Christ's church
Last week, after Tucker Carlson platformed neo-Nazi apologist Nick Fuentes on his podcast, the Heritage Foundation’s president Kevin Roberts issued a statement defending Carlson.
Roberts denounced what he termed a "venomous coalition" of conservatives who called out the interview, because they oppose any "no enemies to the right" posture that includes Nazism.
Rome & Mary: Fresh clarity, or further confusion?
"Roma locuta, causa finita est!" ("Rome has spoken, the issue is over").
This phrase taken from Augustine (Sermo 131.10) has often been used to highlight the solidity of the Roman Catholic authority structure and the finality of its decision-making process. Well, forget it.
After the Note of the Vatican Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith “Mater Populis Fidelis” (4 Nov), Rome has spoken (yes), but in doing so, is seemingly contradicting what was authoritatively said earlier, thus leaving the issue an open-ended one.
The mission of Islam: How should the church respond?
We live in a day when the advance of Islam in our land can no longer be ignored.
A recent video shows a group of Muslim men raising money to buy a Methodist church. The imam declares, “This is the next church we want to convert into a mosque. We have converted many churches so far. Please help us in our mission.” Such words ought to wake every slumbering Christian. They show us what happens when the church of Christ forgets her own mission and loses her first love.
Fallen royals vs. the eternal reign of King Jesus
The removal of former Prince Andrew’s royal titles and privileges has been the story of the week, and I suspect by the time you’re reading this we won’t have heard the last of it—even if “Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor” proves to be a much more inconvenient number of characters to put on the front of a tabloid than “Prince Andrew”.
The story certainly appeals to our thirst for black-and-white tales of justice: an apparently arrogant and unrepentant wrongdoer has been cut down to size and stripped of his titles.
Remember, remember: From Wittenberg to Westminster
I’ve always liked fireworks night. When I was growing up, we’d have a fireworks display in the back garden. There’d be rockets, sparklers and, of course, a variety of fireworks.
The most memorable times were when the fizzing, spinning Catherine wheel fell from the bird table and wreaked havoc over the lawn… Happily, this was an annual event!
Andrew's keeper? King Charles & brotherhood
"Am I my brother’s keeper?" Perhaps one of the most culturally well-known verses in the Old Testament. Cain has been responsible for his brother’s death, yet desperately tries to deflect in the face of the Lord’s questioning.
The Hebrew for "keeper" is shamar - to guard, to keep watch like you might over livestock, or even your sleeping child.
The Budget, inheritance tax – and death
November will bring the budget, and there will follow frantic activity among economists, commentators and financial advisors. Martin Lewis will undoubtedly have a budget special on Radio 5 and an extended podcast. Inheritance tax is expected to feature prominently.
Dealing with probate and inheritance tax is a complicated business. It can also be an emotional and fraught one. People prefer to pass things on to family rather than the government, which is entirely understandable. Being able to provide for your family not only in the day-to-day, but for the long term after your death is a good thing: “Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing and benefits those who see the sun” (Ecc.7v11). As the preacher in Ecclesiastes says, money is a shelter. However, he adds that wisdom is greater because it preserves those who have it (Ecc.7v12), which is quite surprising considering how significant inheritance was in ancient Israel.
Biblical orthodoxy
The news that a former FIEC-affiliated church has now become Eastern Orthodox (click here to read the article) is an interesting development.
It is a not untrodden path. One of the most influential Orthodox figures in the UK of the last century, the late Kallistos Ware, grew up in an evangelical home; and some while ago, Peter Gillquist, a former leader in Campus Crusade for Christ, led a whole group over to Orthodoxy in the USA.
Choose you this day whom ye will serve
Every year, when the end of October comes, the Western world dresses itself in darkness. Streets fill with images of death, devils, and horror. Even many who name the name of Christ shrug and say it is “harmless fun.” But the Christian must not reason as the world reasons.
“What does the Bible say?” is our standard (Romans 4v3). The Bible, not popular opinion, must govern your conscience. Halloween is not innocent. It is unbiblical in its meaning, pagan in its roots, and contrary to the holiness God requires of His people.
'Halloween isn't for Christians' - or is it?
My view of Halloween was turned upside down after an evangelism training day at my church.
I do like Halloween - as an opportunity to be welcoming to my local community, showing kindness through giving the children who knock at my door their choice of sweet treat - but oddly, I never saw it as an opportunity to declare the light of Christ.
Christian Nationalism and far-right exclusivism
In March 2026, Dame Sarah Mullally will be formally “enthroned” as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury.
In accordance with long-standing tradition, Mullally will kneel before King Charles and pay homage to the King as Supreme Governor of the Church of England.
YouTube debates: Apologetics goldmine or frivolous rage-bait?
In recent months, the online sphere has seen the remarkable viral rise of the long-form YouTube debate format.
For example, the popular “Surrounded” debates, hosted by the channel Jubilee, feature one prominent debater, or public figure, taking on 20 individuals with an opposing view, in a format that crosses a gladiatorial battle with speed dating.