Topic Archives: Church & Ministry

DO GYPSIES SPEAK IN TONGUES AND PERFORM MIRACLES? If we doubted what we saw or seemed to question authority, we were seen as rebels, unsaved, or just plain unspiritual by Gary Nixon As a Christian brought up in a Pentecostal church, recognised as an evangelist, combining work in Romania and planting my own church in […]

WORSHIP AND THE PRESENCE OF GOD Think what is involved – personal communication and communion with the living God. by Graham Harrison   Worship has been hijacked and debased by many today. It is often reduced to a set of preliminaries lasting anything from a half to one hour, usually consisting of repetitive chorus singing, […]

HOW OPEN THEISM HELPS US CONCEAL OUR HIDDEN IDOLATRIES Open Theism implies, therefore, that we should not think about the wisdom of God’s purpose in causing or permitting our calamities by John Piper Open theism may help conceal deep idolatry in the soul. One of the great needs of our souls is to know if […]

WHY DO WE DO CONTINUE IN OUR MINISTRIES? “The ministerial work must be carried on purely for God and the salvation of souls, not for any private ends of our own. A wrong end makes all the work bad as from us, how good whatsoever it may be in its own nature. It is not […]

THE ORIGIN OF THE CLERICAL COLLAR When did Anglican ministers start to wear “dog collars” on a regular basis? In 1976 the Church of England’s Enquiry Centre produced an A4 sheet concerning the use of the “dog collar” among the clergy. Apparently, it had been invented, they said, quoting the Glasgow Herald of December 6,1894, […]

MEDIEVAL MISTAKES We could well do with a Luther redivivus today Sinclair Ferguson Althought provoked by the indulgences peddled by Johannes Tetzel, the very first proposition which Luther offered for public debate in his Ninety Five Theses put the axe to the root of the tree of medieval theology: “When our Lord and Master, Jesus […]

AN OPEN LETTER TO REFORMED BAPTIST PASTORS AND CHURCHES by Ted Christman [The following letter was sent out to pastors and churches who have been primarily involved with the independent, Reformed Baptist movement in the United States. Its sad occasion was the serious moral failure of a very visible and deeply respected leader of that […]

THE REFORMED CONFERENCE IN MANILA Over the years the conference has proved a tremendous catalyst for change, introducing men who would otherwise never have heard them to the doctrines of grace I am only now beginning to feel human again, having left Manila at 11p.m. local time on Sunday. I was already tired after preaching […]

ENCOURAGING YOUNG MEN FOR MINISTRY Can we speak a word to a young man who is walking with Christ and has enough of an overflow to give to others? Probably each of our churches has at least one young man who has shown some interest in the gospel ministry. How can we encourage them? How […]

GOD-CENTRED WORSHIP Where worship is focused upon the eternal God, and not man and his fading fashions, the numbers drawn to participate tend to remain relatively small The topic of contemporary worship continues to arise for discussion, if not debate, amongst pastors and people. One finds articles and books being written now in defence of […]

The Church of Jesus Christ has been entrusted by God with the very words of Scripure, and all those who disseminate that Word, whether from pulpits or printing presses, hold a sacred trust. On May 27, 1997, twelve men meeting at the headquarters of Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs issued a statement that […]

FEEDING SHEEP OR AMUSING GOATS The mission of amusement fails to effect the end desired. An evil resides in the professed camp of the Lord so gross in its impudence that the most shortsighted can hardly fail to notice it. During the past few years it has developed at an abnormal rate evil for evil. […]

ALLEN GARDINER COMMEMORATED They were the first Protestant missionaries to attempt to make Christ known to the indigenous people of South America. In Faith Cook’s “Singing in the Fire” (Banner of Truth) the heroic story of Captain Allen Gardiner is recorded, as one of fourteen biographical sketches. It is the most accessible record of that […]

THE CAREY CONFERENCE: January 8 – 11 Swanwick. God uses that which the world despises to know God through his Son Over 100 people gathered for the annual Carey Conference at Swanwick from January 8-11. The first evening speaker was Earl Blackburn of Los Angeles who spoke on the Theology of the Cross. Earl Blackburn […]

NEO-CALVINISM The question is not whether Christians have a task in this world or not, but what this task consists of and what is the Scriptural basis and warrant for it Cornelius Pronk is a graduate of Calvin Seminary and pastor of Brantford Free Reformed Church, Ontario. He is radio pastor of the Banner of […]

RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN SPAIN TODAY The tragedy is that we had reformers, but we did not have a Reformation! In much of Europe, either the Roman Catholic or Orthodox Church have enjoyed a privileged position with a dominant influence on culture, whilst Evangelicals have been a small and sometimes persecuted minority. A pan-European forum was […]

THE ALPHA AND THE CHRISTIANITY EXPLAINED COURSES Among Christians Alpha has earned a rapidly spreading reputation based on its effectiveness. On 24th May 2001 at All Soul’s Church, Langham Place, a new evangelistic course called Christianity Explored was launched. Adapting and expanding an earlier course run at All Soul’s called Christianity Explained, Rico Tice has […]

IS WORSHIP BORING? I believe God’s people will find worship nourishing, and rarely boring In December 2000 I was asked by a writer of “Word and Way” (the newspaper of the Missouri Baptist Convention) to contribute to a multi-page, special section on the subject of “Is Church Boring?” My input was requested because in my […]

DON’T STOP PREACHING Where are the preachers of the gospel in our land today? There are plenty of performers, but where are the proclaimers? From two different sources this week we received exhortations about continuing to believe in preaching. I was struck with these words of Phil Eveson, the Principal of the London Theological Seminary, […]

PREACHING THE MORAL LAW – REFORMERS AND PURITANS There is the importance of understanding the biblical antithesis of law and gospel The annual Westminster Conference was held at Westminster Chapel London on December 11 and 12. The usual number of men and women were present, over two hundred, and mainly men. As we walked to […]

THE DAYS OF GENESIS: 24 HOURS? DAY-AGE? FRAMEWORK? The publishing of the book will not end the debates in the church. Perhaps it will lead to greater clarity in thinking and help provide an atmosphere where calm discussion can take place. A new book has appeared entitled “The Genesis Debate – Four Views” edited by […]

EVANGELICALS AND CATHOLICS TOGETHER? Perhaps one of the most encouraging signs about this document is the reaction of some evangelicals who feel left out. Since the 1994 publication of Evangelicals and Catholics Together (ECT), the Evangelical body has been convulsed periodically over the doctrine of justification. The patient, to strain a metaphor, sustained a second […]

THE CONFESSING CHURCH MOVEMENT IN THE PCUSA The number of sessions and the membership they represent joining the Confessing Church Movement within the Presbyterian Church (USA) has grown 400 percent since the eve of the 213th General Assembly in Louisville. The Presbyterian Church in the USA is the large denomination which excommunicated Dr. J. Gresham […]

SIX DAY CREATION CONFERENCE EVOLUTION HAS EXPLANATORY STORIES BUT DESTROYS THE CAPACITY TO EXPLAIN ANYTHING ‘In the beginning the Word of God was formidable and void of error. Then Sci-Man said, “Let the book of Genesis be an inspiring story of the creative power of the universe over billions of years. “And there was grieving, […]

WINDOWS ON SIBERIA ALCOHOLISM AND DRUG ABUSE HAVE REACHED EPIDEMIC PROPORTIONS During September I visited Siberia again and attended the official opening of the big church in Tobolsk. I give below the latest news from the churches we are seeking to support. TOBOLSK a) During the past three months nine people were baptised and fifteen […]