Together for the Gospel – distinct from the world
Jamie Southcombe
Date posted: 1 May 2018
Almost 13,000 pastors and church leaders gathered from 11-13 April for the 7th biennial Together for the Gospel conference in Louisville, Kentucky.
Together for the Gospel started with a friendship between four pastors and has now burgeoned into one of the largest Christian conferences in the world. Attendees came from over 50 different countries including a record 62 from the United Kingdom.
Rwanda: recovering the Great Commission
Charles Raven
Date posted: 1 Mar 2018
In January two new Anglican Primates were elected, the Bishop of Maridi, Justin Badi Arama, as Archbishop of South Sudan and the Bishop of Shyira, Dr Laurent Mbanda, as Archbishop of Rwanda.
Both nations have suffered internecine violence, and by far the most notorious example remains the Rwandan genocide of 1994 in which an estimated 1 million people died. Given the long history of insecurity which predated South Sudan’s recent independence, internal strife was predictable, but Rwanda was an established kingdom well before the colonial era, in which different ethnic groups lived peacefully. Moreover, Rwanda was the home of a powerful revival in 1929 which spread spontaneously during the 1930s and became known as the East African Revival.
Priorities: God’s or ours
Steve Nation
Date posted: 1 Mar 2018
Looking at Acts 6.1-7, with Steve Nation
Thus far in the Book of Acts, it’s been quite a ride.
Leadership and the Oxfam scandal?
Chris Sugden
Date posted: 1 Apr 2018
The scandal surrounding Oxfam staff in Haiti in 2011 has brought to light the need for the leadership in global organisations to address the imbalance of power between well-resourced institutions and desperate people struggling to survive in a disaster zone.
At the heart of the issue is accountability. The history of Christian mission, and of the Anglican Communion in particular, suggests that accountability must be rooted in the local situation. Anglican bishops around the world long since ceased to be accountable to any UK-based ecclesial body. They are leaders in their own ‘provinces’ and accountable to their own people. Powerful charities, which are the 21st-century equivalents of 19th-century missionary societies, could do well to develop similar models of local accountability, to address the issues and implications of the imbalance of power and its misuse.
news in brief
New law
A campaign was launched in late February
to bring about a law to protect religious
freedoms in the UK.
The law would hope to ‘affirm the freedom from being required to support a particular worldview or set of beliefs in order to
hold a public sector job; stand for election;
work in teaching, healthcare and law; study
at university; or give parental care to a child.
A review of the supporting literature is on page 5.
Billy Graham – living proclamation
Richard Bewes
Date posted: 1 Apr 2018
Richard Bewes, former rector of All Souls, Langham Place, recalls his meetings with the great evangelist
The first time I ever heard him, it was like a drumbeat in my head: You are going to be doing this for the rest of your life.
Connected in the North
Clive Bullock
Date posted: 1 Apr 2018
Over a hundred gathered for this year’s
‘Connected’
leadership
conference
at
Dewsbury Evangelical Church, drawing in
(mostly) men from the North of England.
In a period of profound changes in our culture, the theme of this year’s conference was
‘Things we dare not forget’. John Benton was
the main speaker, giving two papers and sharing an afternoon Q & A platform with Luke
Jenner (Pastor, Grace Baptist Church Halifax).
There was also an informative and encouraging
church reports session with six ‘messengers’
from across the footprint of the conference.
Harringay, 1954 – a personal recollection
John Peet
Date posted: 1 Apr 2018
I was only a teenager in 1954 when a young American evangelist, Billy Graham, and his team were invited by local churches to come to the UK and conduct an evangelistic crusade in London.
I have a mixture of good memories of the team and their ministry. The ‘song leader’ was Cliff Barrows, and George Beverley Shea, with a rich baritone voice, was the soloist.
TAKING A LIBERTY
Richard Cunningham
Date posted: 1 Apr 2018
‘The Christian Union should be banned from having a freshers’ stand.’
This was the unilateral announcement last October (2017) of two rogue members of Oxford’s Balliol College Junior Common Room Committee. This was to make the Balliol freshers’ fair a ‘safe, secular space’. This decision was subsequently overturned by an irate student body, but the incident caught the attention of the national media.
news in brief
BBC ups religion
The BBC will increase its mainstream religious output by giving greater prominence to non-Christian festivals such as Eid, Passover and Diwali, it was reported at the end of December.
It intends to broaden its audience by reflecting ‘an increasingly pluralistic society’. The BBC’s atheist head of religious programming, James Purnell, said it was important for British society to understand where it had come from and how religion plays an important part in that, stating: ‘The issues around belief are incredibly important to how we live.’
Youth work – now and then
Roger Carswell
Date posted: 1 Jan 2018
Roger Carswell calls for urgent action
I wonder how different from ours will be the Lord’s record of church history in the 20th century?
Word on the world
Chris Wright
Date posted: 1 Jan 2018
Langham Partnership’s International Ministries Director Chris Wright seeks a biblical response to the current world
Right now, we are living in a terminal phase of Western civilization.
defending our faith
Excavating the truth
Chris Sinkinson
Date posted: 1 Mar 2018
Late last year Donald Trump declared that the US would recognise Jerusalem as the capital of the state of Israel.
For many tourists to the Holy Land this seemed fairly uncontroversial. Given that this is the location of the Israeli Parliament, many visitors always assumed Jerusalem was its capital. However, in practice Tel Aviv has been the internationally recognized capital with diplomatic missions located there. Trump’s plan to move the American embassy has created real friction on the ground.
Planting: principles v pragmatism
Michael Farrier
Date posted: 1 Mar 2018
Michael Farrier tells us about his research into starting new churches
‘Here is the church, Here is the steeple, Open the door, And here are the people!’
175 years of witness
Christian Witness to Israel
Date posted: 1 Mar 2018
Christian Witness to Israel [CWI], one of the world’s oldest missions bringing the good news of Jesus to Jewish people, marked its 175th anniversary with a special event at St Aldate’s, Oxford on 27 January.
The event featured a number of missionaries including Igal Vender, who works with Jewish homeless people and drug addicts, and Aviel Sela, talking about his work with Holocaust survivors.
Next year’s history
Joy Horn
Date posted: 1 Jan 2018
Joy Horn helps us to remember our Christian heritage
JANUARY
24. John Mason Neale, who is chiefly remembered for his hymns, was born in 1818 in Bloomsbury, London. A linguist, familiar with some 20 languages, and a poet, of High Anglican convictions, he revived many old carols and translated others from Greek and Latin. O come, o come, Emmanuel and Christ is made the sure foundation are two of the best known – and, of course, Good King Wenceslas.
First AMiE ordinations in the UK
Church Times
Date posted: 1 Jan 2018
Nine men were ordained on 6 December as the first deacons and priests of the Anglican Mission in England (AMiE), the breakaway conservative evangelical movement that seeks to plant Anglican churches in England but outside the Church of England.
The nine were ordained by the Rt Revd Andy Lines at a service at a Baptist church, the East London Tabernacle.
Count it all joy
Helen Roseveare
Date posted: 1 Jan 2018
Helen Roseveare tells her story of grappling to find happiness when the will of God is difficult.
I had arrived at Ibambi, in the Belgian Congo, one Tuesday in March 1953.
Making ‘gospel sandwiches’
Alex Hays
Date posted: 1 Dec 2017
Alex Hays shares news of some encouraging gospel work in Asia
It was Charles Spurgeon who said: ‘If you give a man the gospel, wrap it in a sandwich. And if you give a man a sandwich, wrap it in the gospel.’
Closure on a closure?
When a church shuts, what are we to think?
Some months ago, the church I served as pastor for over 15 years worshipped together for the last time.
Facing the finances
How’s the money in your church?
I hope there’s enough and I hope you pay your pastor adequately (1 Timothy 5.17, 18). Without a proper salary he will worry about his family bills and that is bound to affect his ministry adversely. Churches who underpay their preacher tend to suffer spiritually. The ‘keep him poor, keep him humble’ attitude in some churches is appalling.
But, visiting various places, I have become aware that some churches are facing financial problems – and they are not the type of church you would expect to be in difficulties. They are generally growing churches. I have heard it said that the optimum church size financially is one of around 80 members – one pastor to support and volunteers doing what they can. It is when churches go beyond that threshold that expenses per capita rise steeply. More staff may be required (not least for administration), maybe the building needs to be enlarged, or a new kitchen is required. Perhaps more people are offering themselves for Bible College or the mission field.