While on holidays recently, I made a good start on reading a book that I think is of great importance to us all, and I would strongly recommend it to everyone to read. While addressing the situation of the churches in America, it is equally applicable to the Australian situation. Michael Horton, the author of “Christless Christianity – the Alternative Gospel of the American Church”, argues compellingly that Christ has been displaced in much of what presents itself as Christianity by a man centred, man focused religion that uses a form of Christianity to make people feel good about themselves and...

How is your reading of the Bible going?You know, I hope, that we publish three different Bible reading plans every week in the hope that they will provide a helpful way to keep you reading the Bible every day.These plans (Easy, Medium and Advanced) are designed to fit your capacity to read and the time you have available. Let me urge you to use them or something similar if you do not have a regular reading plan and habit.Simply reading the Word of God is good but it can also be bettered by expanding our overview of what it is we...

Television is very low on mylist of priorities.  I can go for dayswithout so much as turning the television set on.  But last Thursday night I finally decided to tackle that backlogof shirts that needed ironing.  To helpreduce the Yuck-factor of ironing it helps to be distracted by thetelevision...!  So I ended up watchingan SBS program on blended families. The reason for choosing thatprogram was two-fold.  Firstly, it was adefault choice as there was nothing worth watching on the other channels.  Secondly, the program interested me becauseI’m about to commence my own ‘blended family’.  That second reason for watching this program...

“If every man had faith, we would need no more laws, but everyone would of himself at all times do good works, as his confidence in God teaches him.” (Martin Luther)Wouldn’t be wonderful if every person in this world had a saving faith in Jesus Christ? What a different place it would be! But then that is what heaven and the new earth will be!Until the Lord returns, how then do we ensure that all our works are pleasing to God, when at times we fall, and talk, eat, drink and sleep too much? Luther’s response to such a question is,...

Can we please God by confidence in Him and His purposes when we suffer an illness or experience poverty?We are still addressing ourselves to questions regarding good works that are pleasing to God. We have seen from the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before Me”, that it forbids but one thing - unbelief - and requires but one thing - faith, which is confidence in God’s good will at all times.We believe that God, out of His mercy, directs every event and circumstance in which we find ourselves, and does so that we might grow and mature in...

Last week we made the point that, in order to discover that which is good, so that God will regard it as good and worthy of His blessing, the Ten Commandments are where we must start (Matt 11:17). We also saw that the first and highest, the most precious of all good works, is faith in Christ (John 6:28-29).But, what do you think about your employment? What about walking, standing, eating, drinking, sleeping, and physical exercise, or personal hygiene, do you regard these things as good works? Most people will say that they do not. Instead it is often suggested that...

We often speak about doing “good works” and how good works in the life of the Christian are a mark of devotion to the Lord God, and an expression of gratitude for the saving works of our Lord Christ on the cross. Confusion however, about good and good works remains a point of contention. After all, many seem to think that doing good – giving to charities, philanthropic gifts to society, being kind, gentle and compassionate – gain a person some standing, not only in society and with people, but also, and more importantly with God. Others point to the many...

How much faith does it take to be a good Christian? Jesus said that faith as small as amillimetre sized mustard seed can move mountains (Matt 17:20). So how big, howmature, how old, how well connected must faith be, to be a faith that Jesus says is thekind for which “Nothing will be impossible for you” (Matt 17:20)?Such faith is tiny. If it were to be compared to something physical, it’s not much largerthan three or four of the full stops at the end of this sentence. But it’s not the size, but thefact of it that is important.There is a...

The world lives by light and dark. Have you ever noticed that? There’s day and there’s night. There’s black and there is white, and shades in between. Science tells us that colour is also a form of light and dark. Materials absorb certain wave lengths of light and reflect the rest. The wave lengths reflected are the colour we see. I got to thinking about this when it was impressed on my mind how the Bible often speaks about light and dark. The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ into the world is spoken of as a great light entering darkness...

Whenever driving through farmland and bush, my mind tends to wander off into trying to imagine what it would be like to live away from the city rush and noise, and wondering what I might do to make a living. It’s always easy enough to imagine the ideal get-away place – a modest two bedroom cottage, a log fire in the living area, lots of book shelves and books, a small workshop and surrounded by bush.What I would do to earn the necessary means to live in such a setting is where it gets interesting. I sometimes think I would be...

When you are feeling low and you begin questioning your faith, what do you do?Depression is an issue which touches us all in one way or another. A friend or relativemay experience a dark time in life, or we ourselves might go through what some havecalled a dark time of the soul. How do we address those times?I remember many years ago as a teenager listening to a conversation among someolder people where it was seriously questioned whether genuine Christians couldever experience such times. I don’t know why, but the conversation, or at least thedoubts expressed in that conversation have stayed...

With disturbing and increasing frequency we are hearing various stories about churcheswho tell their older members, “If you don’t like it here you are welcome to go elsewhere.”It’s probably not expressed exactly like that, but the older members who find themselvesuncomfortable in the new “worship” styles or music are soon made aware that theirchurch has decided to be more youth focused and any complaints or observations ofneglect to the older members are not welcome.Another more recent shift in church emphasis, and one which our denomination isbeing shaped by out of a fear of declining membership, is the move from pastoral careto...

I have been thinking about ‘can’ and ‘want’ lately: I want to please God in everyway possible, but can I? The Biblical Reformed answer is that we can, but only inChrist Jesus. It is by His accomplished and finished work on earth and at the cross,as He grants us faith in His sovereign grace that God receives from us anythingthat might please Him. In order for our acts and thoughts to delight the heart of ourFather in heaven, they must be immersed and cleansed by the life and blood of theSon of God.A book by R.C. Sproul “Willing to Believe –...

When you attend the Supper of our Lord, what do you think about as you sit there, hear the reading of the preparation for it, take the cube of bread, and sip the wine/grape juice? What goes through your mind?It may be that your thoughts are a confusion of competing things, or theweight of your unworthiness to be there may be prominent. I freely admitthat we may experience a whole range of other thoughts and feelings as well. The children may have played up before you got to church, or there may be some tension between you and your spouse. It...

Did you know that in Reformed theology we believe there are only two means of grace’?Perhaps you may be wondering more about what a means of grace’ is, let alone that there may be more than one. The two things we believe communicate the grace of God are the proclamation of the Word of God and the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper.In his “Systematic Theology”, L.Berkhof defines a means of grace as an objective channel through which Christ ordinarily communicates His grace, and to which He ordinarily binds Himself (p604).He also ensures that we never disconnect Christ, the Holy...

A number of Synodical reports address themselves to issues directly related to finances - Superannuation, Ministerial Aid and Mutual Assistance (MAMA), and Synodical Board of Management.’  These do not generally create a great deal of enthusiasm.’  Notable, however among the reports is the number of requests for increased finances or new finances.’  In the past a kind of finance tracking committee has been formed to keep a tally on the cost of Synod decisions during the course of the meeting, and at the end the Synodical Board of Management get the task of being the razor gang.The Synodical Interim Committee is...

Continuing the review of Synod reports, some may recall hearing about R.O.A.D.— Resources for Outreach, Aid and Development. This committee had asits original task to co-ordinate the mission and aid tasks of the various Synodicalendeavours. They feel that their role has to be changed and so they are seekingto reinvent themselves with a new name — “Ministry Multiplication Committee” anda new mandate. For a committee only planning to meet three times per year theproposed mandate comes across as a rather grand plan.The Solomon Islands Workgroup recognises that a succession plan needs to beput into place soon, for when the Rietvelds reach...

Reading through the 239 pages of Synod material (there is stillone more report to come) there is one theme being played outin almost each report.There has been much shaping and moulding of the reportsto the fourfold task we mentioned last week. Another notablefeature is the very positive and bright picture that is paintedof the church. Of course, that is the nature of reporting — topresent things in as positive a light as possible. On the otherhand, listening to those who are not in leadership positions(the majority) and feeling the unease and disunity of thediversity among us, a little greater realism would...

With Synod approaching, perhaps it is appropriate to review what is coming up.’  We have been praying for this meeting of our churches for sometime already and held an information evening, but I wonder if everyone is aware of how these things go?Synods of the Christian Reformed Churches in Australia meet every three years to transact the business’ of the denomination. Delegates to these meetings are drawn from each regional grouping of churches called the Classis.’  Two minister delegates and two elder delegates.’  We have six Classes.Reports and their recommendations, and overtures (proposals) are circulated to each session well before the...

Just when you think you have seen everything, something else comes along to surprise and confound you. After summarising the issue of extra-Biblical revelation as set out by John Calvin and how the Word of God written is the only Word we can rely on, I received an unsolicited email from some group calling itself “Prophecy Bulletin”.Using language that sounds somewhat Biblical, and using liberal references to “our Mighty God, Yahweh, Jehovah, Most High God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit” someone purporting to be Linda Newkirk wrote about things that would make us question the mental stability of the writer. The...