One of our newest church plants in the CRCA, the Pakenham Christian Community Church (PC3) in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, is moving to the next phase of their ministry.   After prayer, discussion and seeking God’s direction, PC3 Leadership in collaboration with our core group have felt that this Church Plant is now in need of a part-time Ministry Worker. With this role description only being a 3-day a week position, PC3 Leadership have narrowed the focus into three key deliverables.  These are outlined in the Ministry Worker Role Description which can be downloaded here.       Comments (0)Original author: Warburton

There is  real danger when you simply "hear the Word of God" but don't do it.   The apostle James warned about this (James 1:22-25).   When people listen to sermons, they do not only need some truth to believe but they need specific, life-shaping ways to apply it.   For many preachers preaching practical application from every Biblical text is difficult.   Murray Capill's latest book, The Heart is the Target, will help preachers prepare sermons that move beyond explanation to transformation. The launch of Murray's book coincided with the recent preaching conference held at the Reformed Theological College (RTC)....

"What does the Lord God require of [us]?    To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8)    In a recent trip to the eastern suburbs of Melbourne -- I saw a bunch of Christians living out this relationship with God. I was in Pakenham, a rapidly growing city in the far eastern reaches of Melbourne, Victoria. Every day commuters board trains and travel to and from the Melbourne CBD for work and/or school.   The last stop on the eastbound trains is Pakenham.   Three years ago a group of Christians from...

Posted by: Jack De Vries on Jun 30, 2014   Tagged in: Untagged  What if you have a city bus service, with buses that were always "on time", but these buses were always empty of passengers?   Reason?    Studies had shown that the only way these buses could stay "on time" is if they did not pick up passengers.    Sound ridiculous?   It is a true story ... a story that Phillip Scheepers (Reformed Theological College) shared as he challenged churches to consider how they could sharpen their evangelistic edge.    Phillip spoke at the recent Advance Together conference...

I am feeling restless when I think of the plight of our society and the mission God has laid on our hearts as Reformed churches in Australia.   At times I have laid awake at night -- and my thoughts wander and ponder.   I cannot stop thinking of what our Lord reminded believers through the prophet Micah:   "And what does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8)     A dozen years ago this month I gathered with hundreds of Reformed men, women, and young people in Edmonton (Canada) to envision what God...

"Best ever... balance between great talks and free time was really good.   Lovely, special activities.  I feel privileged to have been here, 'refreshed,' 'renewed,' and thankful."   These comments made by one of the persons attending Recharge 2014 reflect what just about everybody said about the recent CRCA Ministry Conference held in Collaroy Conference Centre, Collaroy, NSW.In the words of an old adage, a picture is worth a thousand words.   Check out the pictures on Facebook here.     The main speaker this year was Andrew Reid,  the lead Pastor at Holy Trinity Doncaster (Melbourne).    Andrew gave five...

For churches to be healthy they require regular feeding.   But too much manure can do more harm than good.   When new seedlings are planted in the ground it is important to make sure that the proper nutrients are in the soil to maximise healthy growth.   Go to any plant nursery and you will find shelves full of fertilisers which can be used to ensure plants will thrive.   Fertilisers add fresh supplies of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to soil where these naturally occurring nutrients have been depleted.   Nitrogen fuels leaf and stem growth and is the nutrient that depletes fastest.  Phosphorus stimulates root growth and seed formation.  ...

Posted by: Jack De Vries in The Four Fold Task on Mar 14, 2014   Tagged in: Untagged  Most plants you find in the local nursery have tags.   It doesn't matter if it is an indoor or an outdoor plant.   The tags will not only tell you the name of the plant; it will tell you where to plant it or where to place it. See not all plants thrive in every spot.   Some indoor plants thrive in a western exposure, where they will get lots of afternoon sun.   Put violets or certain varieties of orchids in...

Healthy churches require good seed and deep roots.    That is the point I made in my previous blog.   In this blog we will discover more wisdom from the garden.   As I learned from my dad, when you plant a garden you must avoid overcrowding, but don't force plants to stand alone. It is like this, when you plant a garden, you first must make sure the young seedlings are not overcrowded.     If you grow a garden from seed, you must thin out the plants as they begin to grow.   If you plant from small seedlings, you must...

How central is mission to the message of the Bible and the identity of the church?   Over the past number of years, as CRC churches here in Australia, we have been exploring these questions as we seek to be churches that are reforming to reach the lost for Christ. In the last Recharge Conference held in Sydney (May 2013) Mike Goheen, Mark Glanville, and Erin Goheen-Glanville clearly showed how central mission is to our core identity as Christians individually and corporately as churches.   This is not a novel idea created by modern day theologians and scholars.   These truths...

There is much we can learn about growing healthy churches and planting new ones just by observing a garden.   This is the point I made in a previous blog.   There is much wisdom we can learn from the garden.    In this blog I will explore the need for good seed and deep roots. For a church to be healthy, roots need to be firmly planted. This is a lesson I learned working with my dad in our family's landscaping business.   Each spring we would load up my dad's Volkswagen van with fresh nursery stock:  geraniums, petunias, celosias,...

O God, you are the fountain of all truth; we ask you to protect your church from all false teaching. Protect the Church From all teaching and preaching which would destroy people's faith;   From all that removes the old foundations without putting anything in their place; From all that confuses the simple, that perplexes the seeker, than bewilders the way-faring person. And yet at the same time protect the Church From the failure to face new truth; From devotion to words and ideas which the passing of the years has rendered unintelligible; From all intellectual cowardice and from all mental...

You can read my latest post here. Have a blessed New Year, friends!

"Unto us a child is born, to us a son is given... and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."  Isaiah 9:6  These words from the prophet Isaiah take on special meaning when we see them fulfilled in the coming and birth of Jesus Christ.    May each one of us find in Jesus all that we need in life and in death.  Jesus' names (titles) given prophetically by Isaiah clear point out that everything we ever need is met in this Child whose birth we remember at Christmas.   Jesus provides wise counsel when we have to make...

Membership in a church used to be a big deal.   Unlike a membership at the local gym or even joining the area golf club, membership in the church meant giving of yourself wholeheartedly to the life and ministry of the church.   Not only did you attend every worship service, but you gave generously of your time, talents, and treasures to the well-being and growth of the church you joined. Times are a changing!   People are not in the habit of "joining" a church.   They simply attend, and after weeks or months of attendance, these people are assumed...

I grew up with a green thumb. See, my dad was a gardener, and ever since I could tag along with him, he would have me work with him in the gardens. Cutting grass, clipping hedges, trimming roses, planting annuals, laying new turf, weeding between the plants, watering the flowers. I still enjoy gardening -- seeing seeds become plants and watching things grow. There is much wisdom we can learn from the garden. Jesus knew that. In the gospels we see Jesus using stories from the garden as he taught about the church and kingdom. There is much we can learn...

"True leadership starts with a purpose, not a plan."   In many ways this statement sums up Albert Mohler's excellent book on leadership:  The Conviction to Lead.   Leadership has to do with conviction.   As he writes:   "Congregations and Christian institutions need effective leaders who are authentically Christian -- whose leadership flows out of their Christian commitment."     In my library I have several shelves of books on leadership.   Many are helpful books written by prominent leaders.    Not all of these book are written from a Christian perspective.   But I have benefited from studying all of...

When you think of the unsaved millions in the world -- how do you think about them?   I'm thinking about non-Christians.   They might be co-workers, friends, neighbours, and/or family members.  How do you think about them?   It matters how you think of them.   It really does.  I like to explain what I mean.  I like to suggest a nuance that might bring about a shift in your thinking.   And if your thinking changes, perhaps this might change how you live. In Luke 15 Jesus tells us three stories to counter the grumbling of the religious heavy weights in...

In 2006 the CRCA adopted a strategy to increase church health and effectiveness throughout the denomination in Australia.   The churches agreed to the vision to be "A church reforming to reach the lost for Christ."   The stated mission described what we as churches prayerfully and by God's grace hoped to achieve:  "To multiply Bible-based Christian fellowships and congregations which equip and nurture their members and grow throughout Australia and beyond."   So now 7 years on, how are we doing? There is both good and bad news.   And it is good to look at them both.   In my work with...

On 12 June 2013  a number of pastors and leaders in the CRCA met at the Sydney airport to think about how we as churches can bet minister to South African migrants and pastors. This was the first time CRCA has gathered South African ministers of our denomination together. This was an important meeting, given the significant contribution South African Ministers and migrants are making to our denomination. There was a palpable cathartic atmosphere in the meeting, in which people shared both the positive and negative   experiences of their new life in Australia and the impact of the difficulties of adjusting...