I will build my church ... in Ireland

2011-12-16T21:42:00.003Z

Take a look at this brilliant side-by-side comparison of the Westminster Confession of Faith (1647) and the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689).

Reformed Baptist Hippies?

2011-11-19T08:00:00.000Z

“We don’t need no piece of paper. From the city hall. Keeping us tied and true.”

So sang Joni Mitchell. She taught cold English house wives how to feel. A few men would say Mitchell helped them to feel too. Not many people can listen to Blue without some thing or other moving in their souls.

But times in America and Europe are changing. There is a reversal in attitudes and standards. Within five years it could be Christian hippie chicks singing those lines.

Governments in England and Scotland have made their intentions about same sex marriage clear. In the recent Irish Presidential election five of the seven candidates had absolutely no doubts about introducing same sex marriage. A few countries and states in Europe and America have already introduced what everyone acknowledges to be a legal redefinition of marriage.

If that redefinition is accepted then civil marriage becomes something other than biblically defined marriage.

Questions start to loom, questions that few Christian thinkers appear to be addressing.

Should Christians enter into such civil marriages? Do Christian husbands and wives need such pieces of paper to keep them tied and true?

Christians need legal and ethical experts to work on these questions immediately. Should newly married Christians enter civil marriages defined to allow same sex marriages? Or will living in sin become the right thing to do?

Letter to the Irish Times

2011-11-01T21:19:00.000Z

Sir -

Michael Nugent's article (November 1st) about the Jesus myth is superb. It illustrates how difficult it is to try and understand Jesus apart from reading and studying the New Testament first hand. Mr Nugent manages to undermine the Jesus myth constructed by modern scholars like Bart Ehrman. Using information that he has obviously gleaned second hand from such experts, he asks us to dismiss the "fantastic and wildly inconsistent stories" found in the New Testament.

Unfortunately, Mr Nugent's own construction of the Christian faith is wildly simplistic. It lacks the examination of truth that he expects of others. For example, he is right to say that the physical resurrection of Jesus is central to Christianity. But if he believes that the Christian faith itself requires or pleads external evidence for this central tenet, then he has failed to do his homework.

The New Testament claims that its own content is sufficient for faith and godly living. It does not seek to prove anything. Indeed, the New Testament is open in stating that the risen Jesus appeared to disciples and believers. So there is no conspiracy to hide, it is open for all to see and read! The accounts of Jesus and his resurrection were written to record testimony in order that more people might believe. (John 20:30,31)

Sir, I am happy to dismiss all the myths about Jesus. I ask all interested readers to read the New Testament to discover the truth about the New Testament. Is it really fantastic and inconsistent? Does it really present to us more than one Jesus? Does it really start with Jesus the Jewish preacher, only to end up with Jesus, the divine God man? Or does it offer hope to all those who take its message seriously? Thankfully we live in an age and in a country where we are free to answer those questions for ourselves.

Yours sincerely

Reformed Baptist covenant theology

2011-10-23T19:18:00.002+01:00

The brothers Renihan have posted a copy of their recent presentation on Reformed Baptist covenant theology here.

Conference and free book competition

2011-10-05T14:34:00.002+01:00

Don't forget the Clonmel conference this Saturday and this free book competition, which closes at midnight on Friday, Irish time!

"A love for Christ ... a love for his church"

Dr James Renihan, Westminster Seminary California
8th October 2011, Clonmel Baptist Church, SIPTU Hall, Anglesea St, Clonmel

10.30am coffee
11am Session 1 "A love for Christ"
12.15 Lunch - bring your own packed lunch and drinks will be provided!
1.30pm Session 2 "A love for his church"

Creche available. Any further queries contact Matthew Brennan 0861527663.

John Calvin on the Kingdom of God

2011-09-27T10:01:00.000+01:00

Taken from his Catechism of the Church of Geneva, c.1545. Discussing the Lord's Prayer:

Minister: What do you understand by the Kingdom of God in the second petition?
Child: It consists chiefly of two parts: that he would govern the elect by his Spirit; and that he would prostrate and destroy the reprobate who decline to submit themselves to his obedience; thus making it manifest that there is nothing which has the power to resist his will.
M: In what sense do you pray that this kingdom come?
C: That the Lord may daily increase the number of the faithful, and load them repeatedly with new gifts of his Spirit, till he wholly fill them. And further, that he render conspicuous and apparent his truth for the dispersal more and more of the darkness of Satan, and that he abolish all iniquity by furthering his own righteousness.

Pray God the Father to increase his kingdom in Ireland!

John Calvin on the Church

2011-09-22T11:39:00.000+01:00

Taken from his Catechism of the Church of Geneva, c.1545. Discussing the Apostles Creed:

Minister: Let us proceed.
Child: The fourth part follows, in which we confess our belief in one Holy Catholic Church.
M: What is the Church?
C: The body and society of believers whom God has predestined to eternal life.
M: Is this article also necessary to belief?
C: Yes indeed: if we would not render Christ's death ineffective and reduce to nothing all that has hitherto been said. For the one effect of all this is that there be a Church.

Pray God to make Christ's death effective in Ireland. Pray God to build his Church in Ireland!

Conference and free book

2011-09-19T11:23:00.002+01:00

To promote the upcoming Clonmel Family Day Conference, we are giving away a free copy of Crawford Gribben's God's Irishmen: Theological debates in Cromwellian Ireland (Oxford UP, 2007) to the person who writes the best 50-word introduction to Irish Christianity. Just post your entry below! The deadline is midnight (Irish time) on the day before the conference. Get your thinking caps on!

Family Day Conference

2011-09-19T10:49:00.004+01:00

"A love for Christ ... a love for his church"

Dr James Renihan, Westminster Seminary California
8th October 2011, Clonmel Baptist Church, SIPTU Hall, Anglesea St, Clonmel

10.30am coffee
11am Session 1 "A love for Christ"
12.15 Lunch - bring your own packed lunch and drinks will be provided!
1.30pm Session 2 "A love for his church"

Creche available. Any further queries contact Matthew Brennan 0861527663.

Who should be baptised? Part 2

2011-09-13T09:49:00.004+01:00

We believe that the biblical evidence outlined in part 1 leads to some absolutely straightforward conclusions. We believe that everyone who professes faith and demonstrates repentance should be baptised. And we believe that those people who were “baptised” in infancy and have since become disciples of the Lord Jesus should be biblically baptised, upon profession of faith. Put simply, we believe that only Christians should be baptised, and that all Christians should be baptised.

Some common objections

Most Christians agree that the biblical evidence is clear enough, but many nevertheless argue that baptism should also be given to the infants of believers – children too young to be considered disciples. Their arguments do not often depend upon specific New Testament examples of baptism being given to infants – for there aren’t any! – but instead they depend upon wider theological arguments. Here are some of the most common objections:

“Children have always been included in the covenant.” This argument is partly true, for children were included in many, though not all, of the covenants made in the Old Testament. The promises to Abraham, for example, were given to him and “his seed” (Gen 12:7). But the Bible never tells us that the promises made to Abraham – which do still apply, though in a fuller realisation, in the new covenant – are given to “believers and their seed,” as those who defend the baptism of infants often claim. If someone is defending this practice on this basis, just ask them where the Bible makes that statement. They won’t be able to find it. What is essential is that we are Abraham’s seed, not the seed of any other believer – and we can only become a member of Abraham’s family when we become a disciple of Jesus Christ (Gal 3:29).

“Show me where children were first excluded from the church!” This argument is similar to the previous one, in that it assumes that the covenant membership of children should be continued into the New Testament period. There are good reasons for believing it does not, but this argument can be quickly countered by another: “Show me where the first child was baptised!”

“The new covenant is better than the old one, so the privileges given to believers’ children could not decrease!” This argument is also partly true. But even those who believe that baptism should be given to the infants of believers do not think that a little part of the Promised Land is still reserved for them. So whether we realise it or not, people on both sides of this debate all agree that the new covenant is better, but it functions in a completely different way.

Difficult passages

Actually, there aren’t very many passages which can be made to challenge these conclusions. Here is the most widely used:

Acts 2:39 is part of one of the most important passages for understanding the relationship between the old and new covenants. Peter is preaching to a large crowd in Jerusalem. He tells them that Jesus of Nazareth, whom they crucified, has been exalted to heaven and has poured out his Spirit upon his people (Acts 2:32-33). The crowd were “cut to the heart,” and Peter tells them what they must do: “Repent, and let every one of you be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call” (Acts 2:28-29). Well, our friends say, there it is – proof that Peter was commanding the people in Jerusalem to become believers themselves, and then to baptise their children. But they are wrong. The “promise” that Peter is talking about is quite specific – it is the promise that the gift of the Spirit will be given to those who believe his message (v. 38). This is the promise that God gives to the children of believers. Our children need to become disciples of Jesus Christ – and as they do so, God will pour out upon them the gift of his Spirit.

And that’s why the new covenant is better for our children than the old. Children in the old covenant had no automatic right to the indwelling of God’s Holy Spirit. But our children do – no matter how young they may be – if they become Jesus’ disciples. Only – and all – his disciples should be baptised.

Who should be baptised? Part 1

2011-09-12T14:59:00.003+01:00

Many Christians are asking questions about the proper subjects of baptism. Some say that baptism should only be given to believers, others say that it should be given to believers and their children, while still others say that it really doesn’t matter too much and churches should be broad enough to include Christians who hold to both positions. Some Christians even claim that baptism isn’t required any more. Let’s see what the Bible says, and what that means for us today.

What the Bible teaches

There are two ways of understanding what the Bible teaches about baptism. Firstly, we can look at specific passages which detail the instructions which our Lord gave to his apostles about baptism, and then we can look at specific examples of the baptisms they carried out under the terms of those instructions. Secondly, we can look at the broader theological issues – especially related to the biblical “covenants” – which some Christians use to modify these instructions about and examples of baptism. The broader theological issues can be quite complex, but fortunately the passages which describe the instructions about and examples of baptism are clear enough.

Everyone agrees that New Testament baptism begins with John the Baptist. John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance, which by definition could only be given to those old enough to repent (Mark 1:4). One of the people he baptised was his cousin, Jesus of Nazareth, who gathered his own followers and began his own baptismal campaign, working for a time in the same area (John 3:22-23), and, like John, only baptising disciples (John 4:1). The baptisms carried out by John and the Lord Jesus are foundational to all later New Testament teaching about the ordinance, and it is clear in both instances that both John and the Lord Jesus called their followers to a baptism of repentance. Only those who were old enough to repent and only those who became disciples were allowed to be baptised.

This pattern continued in the early church. The Lord Jesus gave his disciples only one instruction about who should be baptised. That instruction was included in the Great Commission, in which he commanded his apostles to “make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matt 28:19-20). The baptisms recorded in Acts show what the apostles understood the Great Commission to mean. Wherever they went, they preached the gospel and called those who responded to it in faith and repentance to be baptised. And it’s this close link between saving faith and baptism which explains the baptism of households in the New Testament. There are several instances of these baptisms of entire families, and in all but one of those instances we learn that the family that was baptised was a family (and sometimes a very extended family) of believing persons – a family of disciples.

The evidence is simply indisputable. When Peter preached to the household of Cornelius, “the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word ... And he commanded them to be baptised” (Acts 10:24, 44-48). This was a household of believing persons. Again, when Paul and Silas preached to the Philippian gaoler, he “believed in God with all his household” and so “he and all his family were baptised” (Acts 16:33-34). This was also a household of believing persons. The same point could be made of the family of Crispus (Acts 18:8) and the family of Stephanus, which was baptised as a family (1 Cor 1:16) and which served and led the church as a family (1 Cor 16:15). These were families of disciples.

There is only one example of a household baptism that is not linked to an explicit declaration about that household’s faith (Acts 16:15). But this instance occurs in the wider context of the Lord’s clear example and instruction that only disciples should be baptised, and in the context of other household baptisms in which only disciples were baptised. It would be a very dangerous thing to build our understanding of baptism upon the one exception to the overwhelming New Testament evidence that our Lord and his apostles only baptised disciples.

Of course, the discussion of baptism in the epistles is entirely consistent with this understanding. Baptism was the badge of those who responded to the gospel. In fact it was so much a part of the response of faith that apostles could simply assume that every Christian had been baptised as part of their response to the gospel (Rom 6:3-6). They assumed, as we cannot today, that every baptised person was a Christian, and that every Christian was a baptised person. The teaching of the epistles indicates to us that the instruction about baptism given in the Great Commission – that baptism should only be given to disciples – should continue in the present day.

Continued in part 2.

John Owen on spiritual gifts

2011-09-06T15:08:00.001+01:00

Apologies for the current fascination with John Owen.

Yet more apologies for the break in the series about corporate (church) worship. Some of the most relevant New Testament material was covered in the early blogs of the series. Future posts may be written to discuss how we apply the principles in our church worship today. However - having started the series with clear ideas - I'm no longer as sure about what conclusions to draw.

Which is why it is good I've nearly finished reading Owen's main works on the Holy Spirit, found in volumes 3 and 4 of his collected writings. The final discourse in volume 4 is all about spiritual gifts.

Most cessationists (most Reformed Baptists?) will be content to think that Owen guides them into all truth on this specific topic. But I'm holding off that conclusion until I get to the end, because here is what Owen writes in chapter 2:

"We speak not of such gifts or endowments of men's minds as consist merely in the improvement of their natural faculities: such are wisdom, learning, skill in arts and sciences; which those may abound and excel in who are utter strangers to the church of Christ, and frequently they do so, to their own exaltation and contempt of others. Nor do I intend abilities for actions, moral, civil, or political; as fortitude, skill in government or rule, and the like... But I intend those alone which are conversant about the gospel, the things and duties of it, the administration of its ordinances, the propagation of its doctrine, and profession of its ways."

I'm keen to find out how Owen develops this, and then to think whether any contemporary Christians follow Owen in principle or practice. If Owen is right the implications are drastic. But, at the moment, I'm not sure he is right... dare I suggest that cessationists are not cessationist enough?

John Owen: what should we pray for?

2011-08-19T12:42:00.001+01:00

What God hath promised, all that he hath promised, and nothing else, are we to pray for; for "secret things belong unto the Lord our God" alone, but the declaration of his will and grace belongs unto us, and is our rule. Wherefore, there is nothing that we really do or may stand in need of but God hath promised the supply of it, in such a way and under such limitations as may make it good and useful unto us; and there is nothing that God hath promised but we stand in need of it, or are in some way or other concerned in it as members of the mystical body of Christ. Owen, Works, vol 4, On the Work of the Holy Spirit in Prayer

John Stott (1921-2011)

2011-08-01T22:39:00.001+01:00

On the 27th July last Dr. John Stott died or came alive as never before when he went home to heaven. His coming to faith as a teenager was to be the great determining factor for the whole of his life. He felt a call to the ministry and in time became the rector of All Souls in London for twenty five years. His contribution to the Christian Church world wide was immense. He authored fifty books that will continue to be of blessing in the coming years. Personally, I have always found his commentaries most helpful. The sales of his books were enormous in paperback editions. Virtually all of his considerable royalties went to charitable trusts. I liked the fact that we shared a common pastime. He was a birdman. In fact, he was an authority on birds and wrote a wonderful book on birds entitled, The Birds Our Teachers.

He lived a simple lifestyle and was in demand all around the world as a speaker. He had a great concern for the developing world and helped in any way he could the church in those poorer places. The number of people who attribute their salvation under God to him was great. He was the spiritual father to hundreds.

His sermons can be downloaded and listened to from the website of All Souls. Listening to him speak you were struck by the measured and thoughtful study that had preceded the sermon. I have always heard him with great profit.

If you preach regularly and have not read any of Stott’s commentaries, start now. You will be a better preacher for having read him. He never married but will meet a great family of his spiritual children in heaven. Oh to have even a few spiritual there!

John Stott was a great Christian man. His passing, leaves a great gap in the Christian world and also causes us to thank God for his life and labour and makes us cry out for more men like him.

Article by Matthew Brennan.

Revelation: Heavenly Worship

2011-08-01T15:34:00.000+01:00

The Book of Revelation has been described as critical for the study of worship in the New Testament. While it is impossible to avoid being influenced by Revelation in our theology and practice of worship, it is curious that “the terminology of worship is not directly used to describe the response of Christians on earth to God and the Lamb.” However the songs in Revelation have found their way into Christian hymns and liturgies. John may have intended his work to be used in Lord’s Day meetings (cf. 1.3)

Heaven is depicted as a place where adoration and praise are continually offered to God and the Lamb. This heavenly worship is contrasted with the idolatry of earthly worship that denies or rejects worship of God and the Lamb. Earthly worship is rebellion against God. It is worship of the dragon and the beast (12:9; 13:1). But God’s people are called to worship the true God. Praise and thanksgiving are to be offered to God for keeping his promises. Revelation depicts scenes where all nations are finally united in praise and all forces opposed to God are finally destroyed.

The visions of heavenly worship are given to encourage endurance and faithfulness among God’s people on earth. In heaven, those redeemed from the earth sing a new song before the throne (14.3), they ‘follow the Lamb wherever he goes’ (14.4). This redemption is a call to priestly service (1:5b-6; 5:10). Priestly service is linked to Christ’s return to, and future reign on, earth (5:10; 20:6).

Heaven’s court regularly pays homage to God in physical acts of worship. These acts acknowledge God’s character and purposes. Angels, elders and saints fall before God as creator and declare his holiness (e.g. 4:8-11; 7:11-12). The same group fall on their faces and sing in worship to Christ as the Lamb in Revelation 5. Jesus is not an alternative object of worship. He shares in God’s glory on “absolutely equal terms with God the creator!” It follows that only those who recognise Jesus as such can truly worship God as creator.

(This post draws heavily on David Peterson’s Engaging God: A biblical theology of worship, chapter 9.)

The birth, death and resurrection of the Irish baptist churches 2

2011-07-28T16:52:00.005+01:00

In 1796, Samuel Pearce, the “seraphic” Birmingham preacher, was invited to travel to Dublin to preach in a number of the city’s evangelical churches. His visit brought new energy to the Baptist community in the Irish capital, and, in a number of other churches, Pearce witnessed something of a mini-revival as churches shook off the spiritual lethargy that had taken hold upon them. But he left Ireland with real concern about Baptist prospects.

Pearce’s visit was followed by that of Andrew Fuller in 1804. The situation he encountered was much less encouraging. In the years since Pearce’s visit, erroneous notions of saving faith had taken hold of large numbers of Dublin evangelicals, including many within the Baptist community. As a consequence, Fuller refused to join the Dublin Baptists at the Lord’s Table, and encouraged the orthodox party within the largest church in the city to form a new fellowship. He returned to England with a burden for Ireland.

Fuller shared that burden with other believers. John West, an English pastor, arrived in Ireland in 1811, and spent some time preaching in Waterford before being called to the large Dublin congregation. He began to re-organise the work, establishing gospel discipline and revitalising evangelistic concern. West formed the Baptist Irish Society, and recruited a number of young preachers to evangelise in the counties around the capital. The results were dramatic. Within a few months, the evangelists were able to report 70 conversions. With advice from Carey, financial support from Fuller, and the prayers of the English Particular Baptist churches, the evangelists associated with the Baptist Irish Society moved steadily north and west from Dublin, and saw Particular Baptist churches planted at the remarkable rate of almost one per annum for a period of forty years.

These were extraordinary times. But the Baptist advance in the southern counties of Ireland was not to be continued. In the middle and late 1840s, the Irish potato crop failed, and government reaction only exacerbated the crisis. Around one million Irish men and women died of starvation. One million more emigrated. Among their number were 3,000 Baptists from the southern counties of Ireland who left for America.

The famine devastated Irish Baptist witness in the southern counties, and dramatically shifted the balance of Baptist witness. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, there were hardly any Baptist churches in the area that would constitute Northern Ireland, but by the end of the century, most Baptist churches were located in that area. Once again, the Baptist cause in the southern counties of Ireland was on the verge of extinction.

But God has preserved the witness of his people. Today, it seems that the Calvinistic Baptist cause in Ireland is stronger than it has been for a very long time. Between 1980 and 2006, the number of Irish evangelicals trebled, and around 40% of evangelical churches are less than 15 years old. Most of these new fellowships are baptistic, and many are Calvinistic.

The movement still faces many difficulties. Many large towns do not have any evangelical witness. A great deal of work remains to be done. But Andrew Fuller would not be surprised at the things that God has achieved. “Christ has much more yet to do in the world; and, numerous as his enemies yet are, and few his friends, his heart does not fail him; nor shall it, till he has spread salvation throughout the earth.”

First part is available here. Article by Crawford Gribben.

The birth, death and resurrection of the Irish baptist churches 1

2011-07-28T16:45:00.006+01:00

“When I think what vast numbers are hasting the downward road; how few walk the narrow way; and, comparatively speaking, what little success attends our preaching, and what little ground Christ gets in the world, my heart fails and is discouraged,” Andrew Fuller admitted in a letter to a friend in 1788. But, he remembered, “Christ has much more yet to do in the world; and, numerous as his enemies yet are, and few his friends, his heart does not fail him; nor shall it, till he has spread salvation throughout the earth.”

Fuller’s expectation of greater things was certainly an extraordinary act of faith. In 1788, the overwhelming majority of the global population had never heard the name of Jesus Christ. And, as we all know, Fuller and his friends set out to address their need. We have all heard the extraordinary story of how their confidence in the progress of the gospel developed into the Baptist Missionary Society. But we are much less familiar with their efforts for the gospel closer to home – and particularly in their important contribution to the revival of the Irish Baptist witness.

The Irish Baptist movement began in the 1650s, when invading Cromwellian soldiers formed congregations in major garrison towns. These early churches depended for their membership upon the military, and declined rapidly after the end of the puritan revolution (1660). By 1725, there existed only 5 churches with settled ministers, alongside a handful of congregations struggling to survive. None of the churches were large, other than the principal congregation in Dublin, which had over 150 members. Two other churches existed in Dublin, neither of which had joined the recently established Association. One of these congregations, led by Oswald Edwards, whose preaching was tinged with Arminianism, Socinianism and “foul language,” would attempt to raise finance for a church building project by entering a lottery.

By the mid-eighteenth century, the principal Dublin church had come to exercise enormous influence on the national movement. Its large congregation provided preachers for some of the struggling country congregations, and it hosted the meetings of the Association every second year. These Association meetings were not well supported. Churches often failed to send representatives to the meetings, and the church in Cork generally failed to attend the meetings in Dublin. In 1762, when the Association meeting rotated to Cork, none of the other churches sent a messenger. The Irish churches clearly found it difficult to express their commitment to each other. They were also failing to gain new members. By the end of the eighteenth century, it had become clear that most children born into Irish Baptist families were leaving the movement. The Irish Baptist movement was almost extinct.

It was at this point that something remarkable happened. [Continued here]

Calling pastors and elders

2011-06-13T17:04:00.000+01:00

Changing those things that need to be changed, this post of Carl Trueman's is relevant for Baptists in Ireland.

1 Corinthians: Gifts, Leadership and Order in Worship

2011-06-06T23:09:00.002+01:00

It is important to remember the relevance of the public private distinction in much of 1 Corinthians. There are several verses that point to gatherings of the church as a church (11:17, 18). In such circumstances it appears that Paul expected certain patterns of behaviour. Mostly these were not Paul’s own rulings but traditions that he had received (11:2, 16, 23). So, for example, it appears best to understand Paul’s teachings about women and head coverings as referring to formal gatherings of the church.

One reason for gatherings of the church is to eat (11:33). The church gathers to eat the Lord’s Supper. But Paul writes that things are so bad in Corinth that the Lord’s Supper is not actually celebrated (11:20). This curious statement suggests that practical errors can rob worship ceremonies of their perceived significance.

In general, Paul’s teachings concerning spiritual gifts do not have specific reference to corporate worship. Nothing in chapters 12 and 13 is narrowly concerned with gatherings of the church. However gifts cannot be ignored in gatherings of the church. Gifted people are those who should lead and speak in worship gatherings of the church. Only a few men should take part in good order with a view to building up the church (14:26-30). Women are not to be involved in these lead speaking roles, but they are free to speak outside of formal worship gatherings (14:34, 35).

These restrictions do not mean that people are passive when the church gathers. All are to weigh prophecy (14:29), all are to be instructed (14:31), all should be able to say ‘Amen’ (14:16). It is even possible for unbelievers to be moved to worship as they observe a church at worship (14:25).

1 Corinthians: Spirit and Wisdom in Christian Assembly

2011-06-02T13:14:00.000+01:00

Paul’s first preserved letter to the Christians at Corinth includes the only New Testament description of a church at worship (1 Cor. 14:26-40). It is well known that the church at Corinth had its fair share of problems. The reason Paul wrote the letter was to address such issues. In writing Paul combines principles and practicalities. Taken together these principles and practicalities can help Christians think about what corporate worship should look like today.

Early in the letter Paul describes how the believers in Corinth are sanctified and called to be together as they call upon the Lord (1:2). This unity is shared with all who share the same fellowship in Jesus Christ. God himself has confirmed his own intentions by equipping the believers with all they need to remain faithful (1:4-9). On this basis Paul calls for renewed and on-going agreement and unity among believers (1:10).

God’s wisdom has been given to believers through the apostolic teaching tied to the Spirit’s power (2:1-7). More than this (or, perhaps, because of this) God dwells within the body of believers, within the church as a church (3:16, 17). This can be compared with the Spirit’s dwelling of individual believers (6:19). Both the bodies of individual believers and the body of the church as a fellowship are described as God’s temple. Under the Mosaic covenant God’s temple was a tent or a building. In the age of the new covenant God’s temple is organic. Worship becomes embodied and renewed according to the word of Ezekiel (Ezekiel chapters 36, 37).

As such assemblies of believers take on a special significance. Such assemblies have authority to judge, permission to celebrate, but also a responsibility to safeguard integrity among the body of the church (5:1-11). If all in life is to be done to the glory of God, how much more should Christian assembly be to the glory of God (10:31)? Such assembly should include the Lord’s Supper, so becoming participation in Christ’s body (10:14-17).

John Owen and the meaning of "Christian"

2011-06-01T11:30:00.003+01:00

"We are not called Christians for nothing," John Owen argues. "If truly we are so, then have we an 'unction from the Holy One,' whereby we 'know all things.' ... The unction, then, of the Holy Spirit implies a participation of all those endowments which were typified by the anointing with oil in the Old Testament, and invests us with the privileges, in a spiritual acceptation, of all the sorts of men which then were so anointed - to wit, of kings, priests, and prophets." Owen, Works, xiii. 23.

Hebrews: Worship in the Presence of Jesus

2011-05-25T17:28:00.001+01:00

Hebrews is a remarkable part of the New Testament. Whether it is purely a letter, or whether it is a written sermon with greetings attached, Hebrews contributes a huge amount to a Christian understanding of worship.

Early in Hebrews we read that angels are bound to the worship of God the Son (1:6). How much more so men and women? Glory and honour are given to Jesus because of his death (2:9). So, by inference, the death of Jesus has a distinctive place in Christian worship. But Jesus himself also worships. As the holy one who is making others holy he leads his people in the praising of God (2:11,12). The death of Jesus and the worship of Jesus appear to be closely connected to subsequent Christian worship.

It is because of Jesus that believers can approach God’s ‘throne of grace’ (4:16). He is their high priest (4:16; 5:1). As high priest Jesus prayed to God both for himself (5:7), and his people. The theme of priesthood is highly significant for Christian worship. It is because Jesus ascended into heaven that Christian worship is possible. We have access to God because our high priest is in God’s presence in heaven.

Christian worship is under and in Jesus as high priest (8:1,2). The priesthood of Jesus means a change of law (7.12), and it implies the beginning of a new order (9:10). However Jesus is also described as serving in the sanctuary (8:2). Although raised from the dead and ascended to heaven Jesus remains active in his work as high priest. This is compared to the high priest entering the Most Holy Place once a year under the old law (9:25).

There is perhaps a sense in which Christians worship waiting for their high priest to come out of the Most Holy Place. Jesus will return from the Most Holy Place, from heaven, to bring salvation (9:28). In that sense our worship can be compared to Old Testament temple worship (9:24-28). Yet in another sense we currently have access to the Most Holy Place through the death of Jesus (10:19). Christians have been made perfect and are being made holy in and through their worship under Christ (10:14).

Practical outworking of all this includes faith (11:6) and worship (11:21). Christian believers are part of a holy and heavenly company in the presence of God and Jesus (12:22-24). Because of all that Christians are receiving, they are to worship God thankfully and with reverence (12:28). The singing of believers is a sacrifice acceptable to God because of Jesus. So are good works (13:15,16). Christian believers are under the apostolic blessing and benediction (13:20,21).

New Irish Baptist blog

2011-05-18T21:25:00.000+01:00

Dave Neald, pastor of Waterford Baptist Church, is blogging here - check it out!

Why the early Irish Baptist movement failed

2011-05-16T14:41:00.005+01:00

There are many reasons for the failure of the Irish Baptist church. Incompatibility with the indigenous culture due to the overlap of ethnic and religious loyalties along with the presence of a strong Anglican gentry and aristocracy limited the scope of potential Baptist converts. Peculiar views concerning toleration also limited them. The lack of cohesion among the churches in forming an organizational structure to handle the transformation of the church during the century was another critical reason for failure. ... Thus there was a reciprocal relationship between good organization and church growth. Without an effective organization the other impediments to church growth became impossible to overcome.

From Kevin Herlihy, "The Irish Baptists, 1650-1780" (unpublished PhD thesis, University of Dublin, 1992)

Andrew Fuller and Christ's conquest of the world

2011-05-16T11:33:00.001+01:00

“What I think what vast numbers are hasting the downward road; how few walk the narrow way; and, comparatively speaking, what little success attends our preaching, and what little ground Christ gets in the world, my heart fails and is discouraged. But it did my heart good last night to read Isaiah xlii, 4, “He shall not fail or be discouraged till he have set judgement in the earth!” I could not but reflect that Christ had infinitely more to discourage him that I can have to discourage me; and yet he persevered! But, methought, judgement is not yet set in the earth, except in a small degree. And what then? May I not take courage for that the promise has not yet spent its force? Christ has much more yet to do in the world; and, numerous as his enemies yet are, and few his friends, his heart does not fail him; nor shall it, till he has spread salvation throughout the earth, and leavened the whole lump.”

Andrew Fuller to Benjamin Francis [?], Horsley, 3 July 1788; Regent’s Part College, Oxford: Angus Library, Fuller 4/5/1.

Acts: Early Patterns of Christian Worship

2011-05-07T10:54:00.002+01:00

The book of Acts rarely uses some of the key biblical terms for worship. However there is much to learn in what we read about the life and growth of the early churches.

For example the way in which the believers met in and around the temple courts. After the ascension of Jesus the disciples returned to Jerusalem full of joy. In the temple they praised God. (Lk. 24:52, 53) Initially the temple was a venue for Christian preaching and for the regular prayer meetings of believers. These meetings appear to have followed established patterns for religious duties. (Acts 3:1)

But in the teaching ministries of both Stephen (Acts 6:13, 14) and Paul (Acts 21:26-30) the temple soon became a point of controversy. Something about Jesus and his resurrection changed how believers related to the temple and its worship.

The confession of Jesus as Son of God, as Lord and Saviour was at the heart of early Christian activity. Those who associated with the believers were baptised in the name of Jesus. Believers prayed to Jesus as Lord and called on his name. (Acts 7:59-60; 9:10-17)

There is great emphasis on believers being together, especially in the opening chapters. They meet together to pray. They take decisions together. They eat together. They share fellowship and teaching together. They share with those who are in need. They appoint and commission workers. They bury and mourn their dead together. (Acts 8:2)

Later in Acts we read about believers ‘worshipping’, praying, singing hymns, breaking bread, meeting on the first day of the week, and fasting. Religious vows are taken seriously.

While the apostles clearly led the early church their work was narrowly defined, concentrated on word ministry and prayer. These two elements were central to the life and worship of the early church.

Carl Trueman seminar in Dublin

2011-05-02T12:19:00.003+01:00

Professor Carl Trueman (Westminster Theological Seminary) will lead an audio-visual linked seminar on “Developing Calvin: Historiographical method in the study of Reformed Orthodoxy” at 4pm on Friday 6 May 2011.

Contact Crawford Gribben (crawford.gribben@tcd.ie), Susan Hardman Moore (s.hardmanmoore@ed.ac.uk) or Jeff Jue (jjue@wts.edu) for details of seminar locations in Dublin, Edinburgh and Philadelphia.

Why worship matters

2011-04-18T18:23:00.003+01:00

Why go to church on Sunday?

Every church that has organised and advertised meetings has a liturgy. It might not be a liturgy in the traditional or popular sense of that word. But in every church there will be patterns or habits or conventions associated with weekly meetings. There will be people recognised as leaders and organisers. There will probably be singing, reading, praying, talking and other activities in a set form. These activities will become a pattern in the life of the church. People will know what to expect at any given gathering.

Does it matter what form a church liturgy takes?

In her book, Reaching Out without Dumbing Down, Lutheran writer Marva Dawn argues on the culture of church worship. In Part III she suggests three reasons why corporate worship matters.

First, the reputation of God is at stake. Dawn argues that in Christian worship God is both subject and object. Christian worshippers return to God worship in response for what they have received from God. Our worship cannot add to God’s honour or glory. God is God. But how we worship will inevitably convey what we think about God. The world is watching and waiting to see what God is like. In part the world sees what God is like through the worship of his people.

Second, the character of the believer has to be considered. Dawn reminds us of the unity between life and worship: “Various elements of worship create certain perspectives and understandings about God and specific attitudes and habits of being, all of which affect how we think, speak, and act. It is crucial, then, that leaders of the Church study carefully our underlying theology of worship and the specific worship practices that result, for they do, indeed, determine who we are. How (and whom) we worship nurtures personal character.”

Third, the character of the church matters too. Read today John Calvin’s comment is more than a little provocative: “To those to whom he is a Father, the Church must also be a mother.” But the metaphor or image of church as mother is useful here. How does the worship of the church affect its ‘motherly’ work? Are the children being nurtured for, cared for, provided for, and loved through her worship? Are strangers and visitors shown hospitality that reflects the values of the family? Or are the children spoiled, neglected and abused? Do strangers and visitors feel awkward in the family home? Is the family actually dysfunctional?

Corporate Christian worship will reflect what we believe about God, individuals and church. But what we do in corporate Christian worship also shapes what we believe about God, individuals and church.

The next post will begin a series within the series… a survey of some of the most significant biblical material relating to corporate Christian worship.

What is worship? Defining the theme

2011-04-14T13:15:00.003+01:00

Or, why go to church on Sunday?

This series of articles will have a narrow focus. It will concentrate on worship as acts or ceremonies of devotion to God. And the main concern will be corporate acts or ceremonies of worship. What should Christians do when they gather together (to worship God)? Why go to church on Sunday?

Worship is bigger than the mechanics of singing, praying, and hearing God’s word. It is more than celebrating and sharing the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

When Satan tempted Jesus he offered the whole world in return for worship: ‘All this I will give you if you will bow down and worship me.’ (Matt. 4:9) Jesus responded with words from Deuteronomy, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’ (Deut. 6:13)

Taken in isolation personal or corporate acts of religious devotion do not define our worship. This can be illustrated from the well-known words of Jesus in John’s Gospel, chapter 4. It is not simply true worship that God seeks. He seeks true worshippers. People can take part in the same worship event, saying, hearing and doing the same things. The true worshippers in that gathering will be those people, known only to God, who are worshipping in Spirit and in truth. (John 4:22-24)

Yet this does not mean we should dismiss concerns about corporate worship. As a theme worship cannot be restricted merely to our acts of religious devotion. Ultimately it concerns our allegiance to one master or another. Who or what we worship is who or what we serve. This service will influence all the big areas of our lives.

How much more, then, should our service to God influence our corporate worship as churches of Jesus Christ? If we are true worshippers of the living God our corporate worship should reflect our true service and devotion to God.

Worship as act of devotion to God matters. Why and how it matters will be the theme of the next article.

Coming soon...

2011-04-05T17:00:00.010+01:00

What is worship?

A series on how the Scriptures can shape our understanding of worship.

How should Christians and churches worship God? Do the Scriptures provide boundaries within which anything is acceptable? Are churches free to choose the style, content and form of their worship meetings and activities? Or does the New Testament in particular lay down patterns to be followed?

These are perennial questions. The history of the church illustrates how answers to them have changed and varied from one generation to the next. So this series will not be authoritative or comprehensive. The opening article will define the theme. A second post will explain why worship matters.

Subsequent posts will likely follow this provisional outline:

Acts: Early Patterns of Christian Worship
1 Corinthians: Gifts, Leadership and Order in Worship
Hebrews: Worship in the Presence of Jesus
Revelation: Heavenly Worship
Out with the Old?
What shall we sing? What shall we pray?
God’s Word in Worship
The Lord’s Supper in Worship
Conclusion: Towards a Reformed Baptist Liturgy?

2011-03-29T23:00:00.000+01:00

"I frequently hear persons exhorted to give their hearts to Christ, which is a very proper exhortation; but that is not the gospel. Salvation comes from something that Christ gives you, not something that you give to Christ. The giving of your heart to Christ follows after the receiving from Christ of eternal life by faith. It is easy to work our friends up so that they say, “We will give our hearts to Christ,” but they may never do so, after all. If, with broken heart and contrite sigh, they had confessed their guilt, and had penitently cried, “God be merciful to me a sinner,” they might not have looked quite so well, but there would have been more hope of them. We cannot come to Christ unless Christ comes to us, and gives us a broken heart and a contrite spirit." C. H. Spurgeon

GENERAL ELECTION 2011 - GOD AND GOVERNMENT

2011-02-11T15:52:00.000Z

Many Christians are asking questions about how they should respond to what may be among the most significant elections in the history of the state. They are wondering what they should expect of the incoming government. Most importantly, they are wondering what God expects of the incoming government, and whether they can use their vote to advance his expectations.

Ireland is a democratic republic. Its constitution was adopted in 1937, and it is more supportive of many biblical values than are the constitutional statements of other European countries. But the most important component of the Constitution is probably its preamble. These words set out the framework within which the rest of the Constitution should be understood:

In the Name of the Most Holy Trinity, from Whom is all authority and to Whom, as our final end, all actions both of men and States must be referred, We, the people of Éire, Humbly acknowledging all our obligations to our Divine Lord, Jesus Christ, Who sustained our fathers through centuries of trial, Gratefully remembering their heroic and unremitting struggle to regain the rightful independence of our Nation, And seeking to promote the common good, with due observance of Prudence, Justice and Charity, so that the dignity and freedom of the individual may be assured, true social order attained, the unity of our country restored, and concord established with other nations, Do hereby adopt, enact, and give to ourselves this Constitution.

This preamble may be the most significant recognition of the state’s obligation to God of any modern country. But it is biblically justified? Should the people of Ireland really expect to elect a government that will recognise that “all authority” comes from God, and that he is the one to whom “all actions both of men and States” must finally be referred? Should Irish Christians expect to elect a government that will be held accountable by God? And if so, to which standard will that government be held accountable?

God’s law and its purposes

The Bible teaches that the laws which God gave to his people through Moses can be divided into three elements – moral (think of the Ten Commandments), ceremonial (think of the animal sacrifices), and civil (think of the rules governing the political life of Israel). The New Testament books explain how these various parts of the Mosaic law apply in the new covenant age.

The ceremonial law has been abolished with the once-for-all sacrifice of the Lord Jesus.

By contrast, the moral law (summarised in the Ten Commandments) continues to be enforced – it works to condemn the sinner, by driving him away from any hope of pleasing God by his own efforts; and, after conversion, it is our guide in sanctification, for our progress in the life of holiness can be measured by the extent to which we conform to the moral law. This might sound strange, but remember that the Old Testament law is useful for “training in righteousness” in the new covenant era (2 Tim 3:14-17). And remember that the moral law of the Ten Commandments is summed up by the new commandment to love one another (Rom 13:8-10).

But what about the category of civil law? Were God’s expectations of Israel unique? Or did Israel’s civil law have anything to say to other nations?

God’s laws for nations

Israel was a theocracy: it was a nation governed by God. And his government was very strict. Religious pluralism was not tolerated in Israel (“you worship your God, and I’ll worship mine”). Neither was there any ethical pluralism (“you believe in marriage, and I don’t, but we can still get along, can’t we?”). It was a very different place from modern-day Ireland.

The story of Israel demonstrates that God also held other nations to his own standards. Through Israel God judged the nations (Lev 18:24-30), even though they hadn’t adopted his laws. And although Israel’s civil law was very strict, God expected that pagan nations would find it attractive (Deut 4:5-8). Indeed, the hope of Israel was that the nations would come to see the wisdom of God’s laws (Isa 2:2-4).

The lesson from this is that, in the old covenant, God held nations to be morally responsible. Nations were held responsible as nations. And individuals involved in the government of pagan nations were held responsible by God not just as private “citizens,” but as members of government. Psalm 2 describes nations rebelling against God by casting away his law, and instructs the leaders of those rebellious nations to return to his law and to submit to it. God isn’t just interested in the lives of individuals. He also holds nations morally responsible.

How does this work out in the new covenant? We might be surprised: God’s expectations of pagan governments do not suddenly disappear. The apostles are quite clear that God continues to hold national governments responsible to his law.

Peter writes to believers suffering under the brutal persecution of the Roman empire (1 Peter 2:13-14). But he doesn’t downplay the responsibility of the state. Instead, he insists that even a persecuting pagan government has a duty to “punish those who do evil and praise those who do good.” That is the job God gave it to do.

Paul writes to believers living in Rome itself (Rom 13). And his message is exactly the same. The Roman government was instituted by God (v. 1-2), was given authority by God (v. 1), was described as “God’s servant” (v. 4 [twice], 6), was given moral responsibility by God (v. 2), and was given authority to punish wrongdoers as an expression of God’s “judgement” and “wrath” upon them (v. 2, 4, 5). In other words, Paul was arguing, one of the ways God would execute his wrath on sinners would be through his servant, the government. God puts national governments in place so that they should uphold his law.

These are incredible statements. Where does Paul get his definitions of “good” and “wrong”? Well, we can think about the answer to that question by seeing how he uses these moral terms elsewhere in Romans, and by remembering what it is that God’s wrath punishes. God’s wrath punishes sin; and Paul only ever uses moral terms like “good” and “wrong” in reference to God’s law. God defines what is good and just. And national governments should uphold it.

So Paul and Peter agree: even in the new covenant age, God continues to hold nations morally responsible. The nations of the world continue to have obligations to uphold God’s holy law.

Christian responsibility

So how should modern Christians think about their responsibilities during the general election? Building on the teaching of Rom 13, we should recognise that government has divine authority; we should respect its responsibility to be an executor of God’s wrath against sin; and we should “be subject” (v. 1) to it.

Obviously being “subject” would mean something entirely different to believers in first-century Rome and in twenty-first century Ireland. But at the very least, we in modern Ireland should recognise our responsibility not to undermine our state’s recognition of its divine responsibility. We should not vote in such a way as to speed up Ireland’s movement away from God’s laws for the nations.

So how should we vote? “Be holy in all your conduct” (1 Pet 1:15), including voting, remembering that holiness is defined by God’s law (Rom 7:12). We are always to expose works of darkness (Eph 5:11), not silently support them in the ballot box. Our voting and all our political involvement should uphold God’s moral law in the nation. “Righteousness exalts a people, but sin is a reproach to ANY people” (Proverbs 14:34) – including Ireland.

How important is this focus on politics?

The themes of civil government and Christian responsibility to that government are minor themes in the New Testament. But Christians have been provided with principles that we can apply today. What is important about this teaching is the context in which it was given. The lives and writings of Paul and Peter show us that mission was more important to them than politics. God’s kingdom advanced not through political agitation but through gospel proclamation.
Today things are no different. Christians should not be agitating to impose anything by force. God’s kingdom advances by means of the Great Commission. Jesus Christ has ultimate ethical authority – not the state, not any cultural consensus (Matt 28:18). Our Divine Lord, Jesus Christ, knows what is right for Ireland. Our part is to honour him, just as our Constitution acknowledges we should do, in how we vote in this important election.

GRACE BAPTIST ASSEMBLY 2011

2010-12-24T11:10:00.002Z

The programme for the Grace Assembly has just been posted online - and includes a presentation on Andrew Fuller and Irish Baptist missions.

CONFERENCE AND FREE BOOK

2010-09-26T09:05:00.004+01:00

Don't forget the Clonmel conference this coming Saturday ... or our free book giveaway!

The conference topic is "Jesus Christ - our Prophet, Priest & King." Speakers are Mark Mandarano (Tullamore Bible Church), Mike Tardive (Laois Bible Church), and
David Neald (Waterford Baptist Church). The conference will be held on Saturday 2nd October 2010 @ 10.30am in Clonmel Baptist Church, SIPTU Hall, Anglesea Street, Clonmel. Contact Matthew Brennan: 0861527663 for further details. Drinks will be provided – bring your own lunch 1-2pm. You can print a poster here.

And to celebrate the conference, we're having a free book giveaway - one copy of The Cambridge Companion to Puritanism will be awarded to the person who writes the best 50-word introduction to the puritans in the comments section below. It's a great prize - go for it!

UPDATE: We have only one book to offer, so the judges' decision is final, and the deadline is midnight on Friday night coming, Irish time.

IRISH AUGUSTINE BLOG

2010-09-22T19:43:00.002+01:00

Check out this new online reading group, working its way through Augustine's Confessions, led by David Shedden of Clonmel Baptist Church.

CONFERENCE

2010-08-25T09:31:00.004+01:00

October Conference

ON CHOOSING GOOD BOOKS

2010-07-29T14:21:00.002+01:00

Having just moved over to live in Ireland, I currently have about 100 books in my possession. And half of these were given to me on arrival. I had selected around 50 books to bring with me for the short term, leaving at least 500 books in storage back in Scotland. Almost all of the 50 books were chosen with a view to aiding my work in Christian word ministry and mission in Clonmel, Tipperary.

A few of the books I brought were comfort books … books that I enjoy owning and re-reading. But most of the books were simply books I felt I needed for work. As I packed and prepared for my journey to Ireland my regret was more leaving objects behind than losing access to valuable meaty content. The next few months will be an interesting test of just how many books I require to fulfill my role as a Christian preacher and teacher.

Here are a few of the notable books I brought:

Augustine’s City of God and Confessions: I often think we only need the classics, and these two are certainly classic. I plan to re-read each of these within the next six months.

Calvin’s Institutes: partly a work thing this choice. However Calvin is often stimulating and encouraging, and surprisingly so. I will miss having access to my copies of his New Testament commentaries … his Commentary on Acts helped me hugely in recent months.

IVP’s Contours of Christian Theology series: I own seven of the eight published so far, and they are all with me in Ireland. Two or three of these volumes are fundamental to my theological education and understanding, even though I now quibble with the Presbyterian emphases within those volumes.

The ESV Study Bible: I prefer reading the (T)NIV because the NIV was the translation I learned as a young Christian. However the ESV Study Bible is simply too good a resource not to have and use. Currently I am reading four chapters a day to get through it.

Derek Tidball’s Skilful Shepherds: this book deserves to be more widely known. It is a nice blend of biblical historical and practical reflections on pastoral theology. It complements Charles Bridges’ The Christian Ministry, which I also intend to start re-reading.

Several books on evangelism: Know and Tell the Gospel by John Chapman, Evangelism through the Local Church by Michael Green, and others.

Other comfort books include The Call by Os Guinness, The Return of the Prodigal Son by Henri Nouwen, and The Cross of Christ by John Stott. I’ve brought commentaries on Matthew, Mark and the Psalms for personal reading projects. And I should soon receive two commentaries from Amazon on Revelation, those by Osborne and Keener.

But, with the increasing density of online resources … who needs hardcopy books anyway?

(by David Shedden, Clonmel)

ON READING

2010-07-28T11:26:00.002+01:00

How many books do you have? If you serve in the first world, the answer is almost certainly more than you need; it’s often more than you can justify; and it’s sometimes more than you can accommodate. If you serve in the third world, the answer is almost certainly many fewer than you think your ministry requires. Wherever you live, books are almost certainly a problem.

They are certainly a problem for me. In the last five years, I’ve lived in four houses in three different countries. And with each move I have realised that I am spending time, money and effort in shifting boxes of books that have remained unopened since the last move. In other words, I’m housing books I do not need. So now that we seem to be settling, I find myself provided with the opportunity of doing something about it. Which books should I get rid of? And how can I think about this question biblically?

Well, I am beginning by wondering which books the apostles read. We know they read each others’ books (2 Peter 3:15-16), as well as the Hebrew Scriptures – but we don’t know much beyond that. We know that Paul quotes a little pagan drama and offers an occasional burst of pagan poetry (Acts 17:28 appears to quote Epimenides and Aratus; Titus 1:12 appears to quote Epimenides again). We know that Paul loved his books, and encouraged others to share that passion. His two great statements about reading bear strikingly similar references. He instructed Timothy to “devote yourself to reading” (1 Timothy 4:13; the ESV interpolates “the public reading of Scripture”), and towards the end of his life, he asked Timothy to visit him, and to bring “the books, and above all the parchments” (2 Timothy 4:13). But Paul probably didn’t have as many books as most third-world readers of Reformation Today.

Then I wonder about the books read by some of the greatest figures in church history. Take Jonathan Edwards, for example – one of the most significant thinkers in American philosophy, and one of the greatest Christian theologians ever. How many books did he have, and what kinds of things did he read? Well, over the last two or three decades, academics in North American institutions have spent a lot of time addressing this question. Edwards had access to more books than he owned, of course, but their number was relatively small. George Marsden’s recent biography of Edwards includes a photograph of the cabinet in which Edwards’ entire library was accommodated – and it held no more than 300 items. And yet a first-world pastor with a library as small as Jonathan Edwards’ would now be considered a seriously unlearned man.

Maybe it’s time we considered whether we need as many books as we all think we do. Why do we think we need a substantial library? Yes, the revival of Reformed orthodoxy owes a monumental debt to Christian publishers. But we should remember that their motives in having us buy more and more of their products are not entirely altruistic. Do we really need the latest publication announced on the publishers’ blogs?

The truth is that we could all get by with many fewer books than we think we need. It’s not that we should neglect reading. Nothing in Scripture could ever encourage that. But perhaps it is that we should read in a different kind of way. The older writers were men of fewer books – but their grasp of the contents of those books was often masterly. And they tended to see books as objects that assisted their thinking – not as substitutes for their thinking.

At the end of the day, it’s not reading we need to prioritize, so much as thinking about what we are reading. And there are very few books that we actually need. We need to make sure that the books we need are the books we actually use.
Of course, this article is a confessional, for I write it as an addict. I love books, I buy books, and occasionally, when the mood is just right, I even read them. But I certainly need to repent of investing money in books I will never use. There are better uses for a Christian’s wealth. And I need to repent of investing time in books that I need not use. There are better uses for a Christian’s time. Nevertheless, if you’d like to buy them off me, feel free to get in touch ...

MISSION::IRELAND 2010

2010-07-16T19:50:00.002+01:00

Last month, the Mission::Ireland conference was convened in Abbeyleix, county Laois. Around 60 men gathered to hear preaching on aspects of the biblical teaching on election and adoption. It was a good conference, full of encouragement. You can listen to the sermons here.

NEW CHURCH WEBSITE

2010-07-16T14:37:00.004+01:00

Check out the new website for Clonmel Baptist Church.

GOSPEL NEEDS IN IRELAND

2010-04-02T14:26:00.000+01:00

On average, there is one church where the Gospel is preached for every 122 square miles in the Republic of Ireland. There is one such church for every 20,000 people. As both these figures are averages, there are areas in the country where Gospel-preaching churches are even more sparse.

There are over 60 towns with over 5,000 people where the Gospel is not preached. Pray that God would give these people opportunity to hear it.

REPORT ON IRISH MISSIONS

2010-03-30T22:18:00.001+01:00

Want to know what God has been doing in Ireland? Click here to listen to a recent report given at Westminster Theological Seminary, PA.

FREE BOOK GIVEAWAY

2010-02-20T10:26:00.004Z

To celebrate the 2010 St Patrick's Day Family Conference, we are giving away one copy of Peter Master's book, God's Rules for Holiness: Unlocking the Ten Commandments (2003). The prize will be sent to the first person to leave a comment on this blog after the stroke of midnight on St Patrick's Day, 17 March. Set your alarm clocks!

CONFERENCE TIMETABLE

2010-02-20T10:18:00.003Z

St Patrick's Day Family Conference

Wednesday 17th March 2010

Clonmel Baptist Church (SIPTU Hall, Angelsea Street, Clonmel)

Speaker: Martin Grubb (Church planter in Derbyshire, England)

10:30 Tea / coffee
11:00 "The Bible is all we need"
12:00 Lunch (Bring a packed lunch; drinks will be provided)
1:30 "We need all the Bible"
2:30 Tea / coffee

Everyone is welcome. Come along for a day of teaching and fellowship!

ST PATRICK'S DAY CONFERENCE

2010-01-07T13:36:00.004Z

The St Patrick's Day Conference will be held in Clonmel Baptist Church this year, when the speaker will be Martin Grubb, a church planter in Derbyshire, England. d.v. More details later.

EXPOSURE

2009-10-10T20:31:00.004+01:00

An Irishman's eye ...

What a busy few weeks the media have had what with the Lisbon Treaty Vote, the Leinster verse Munster game and then the running saga of the Ceann Comhairle John O Donoghue. There was much ink spilt over the days when his expenses were plastered across the papers and then his resignation.

I do wonder a little about the way the media seemed set on this man and I wonder who will be the next target for exposure.

Having said that I am not arguing that that what was going on was right. There do seem questions that need to be answered fully and I wonder will we get the answers to them now that he has resigned.

I have never met Mr O Donoghue personally but when I watched him on TV in the Dial I was struck but the serious and even handed way that he did his job. I think it was during his time in the Chair that the public were brought into the Dial in a more meaningful way. The open days and the radio programme with Turbidy helped to connect us more with our house of Parliament.

Well, having said all that I wonder how any of us would feel to have our lives detailed in the papers and on the radio and TV? I am sure that many of us are grateful not to be in the public eye and to have them rake over the files of our lives. Many if not all of us would be hanging our head and running for cover if our private life were to be exposed.

Yet there is a day coming when every detail of our lives will be exposed and revealed, every idle word, every selfish act, every act of betrayal, every wicked deed, and every dark secret will be writ large and assessed by the all knowing Eye of God.

Listen to how it is stated in the last book of the Bible, Revelation 20:11-15:

Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.

Did you notice that there is a great white throne with a just and perfectly knowledgeable judge sitting on that throne?

Did you notice - that all people men of all ranks and degrees, rulers and the ruled, parents and children, brothers and sisters, from all places, stand before God!
John O Donoghue has resigned and maybe the hunger of the media may die away - but for all of us including the reporters of people’s lives we will stand before God. How will any of us bear that exposure? The evidence will be there dates, times, places, people, whether alone or with another the deeds you thought no one knew about not even your spouse or parents. It is truly our worst nightmare come to pass. How can we face this judgment day and survive?

No one will survive it ... unless their name is found in the Book of Life. Did you call to mind what verse 15 says? "And anyone not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." Jesus on one occasion said to his disciples, "Rejoice that your names are written in the Lamb’s book of life." The way you get your name placed in that book is by repenting from all your sins and asking God to be merciful to you.

BIBLE MEMORY CARDS

2009-09-16T10:01:00.003+01:00

You can make your own, using the popular ESV translation, by clicking here.

2009-09-03T07:37:00.000+01:00

Don't forget to enter to win The Advent of Evangelicalism book below!

IRISH MISSIONS MAP

2009-09-01T21:42:00.001+01:00

Check out this missions map of Ireland here.

MORE FREEBIES!

2009-08-31T11:44:00.002+01:00

Jim Elliff says: "We occasionally like to give away resources to seminary students and first time pastors. Students or first time pastors may currently ask for one of the following: Divorce and Remarriage: A Permanence View, OR Wasted Faith, OR Dangers of the Invitation System. We only ask that you commit to read the book. Please write Steve Burchett at ccwblog@gmail.com for ordering details."

FREE BOOK GIVEAWAY

2009-08-29T11:51:00.003+01:00

The annual Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies conference has just finished at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, KY. You can read an excellent summary of the event here. Audios of the lectures should be available soon here. To celebrate, we're giving away a free copy of a book edited by conference organiser Michael Haykin - The Advent of Evangelicalism: Exploring Historical Continuities. To enter the competition, just leave a comment on this thread. Closing date for entries is midnight (Irish time) on Friday 4 September.

IS SOUND DOCTRINE ENOUGH?

2009-08-18T22:13:00.002+01:00

Sound doctrine must be accompanied by sound behaviour and sound speech "that cannot be condemned": watch Phil Johnson at last spring's Shepherd's Conference expound Titus 2 here.

BAPTISMS IN LAOIS

2009-08-09T20:52:00.002+01:00

A good day in Laois Bible Church today ... God was glorified in the baptisms of five believers.

ON THE INTERCESSORY WORK OF CHRIST

2009-08-06T14:04:00.003+01:00

"It is a consoling thought that Christ is praying for us, even when we are negligent in our prayer life; that He is presenting to the Father those spiritual needs which were not present to our minds and which we often neglect to include in our prayers; and that He prays for our protection against the dangers of which we are not even conscious, and against the enemies which threaten us, though we do not notice it. He is praying that our faith may not cease, and that we may come out victoriously in the end."

Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 403.

NEW REFORMED BAPTIST BLOG

2009-08-05T09:59:00.002+01:00

A number of North American pastors associated with ARBCA have begun to blog here. This report on recent church planting initiatives is particularly worthy of interest.

REPORT ON IRISH CHURCHES

2009-07-24T17:38:00.001+01:00

Stephen Murphy, pastor of Dundalk Baptist Church, reported on church life in Ireland at the Grace Baptist Assembly (UK) earlier this summer. You can hear his report here.

ALEXANDER CARSON: IRELAND'S FORGOTTEN THEOLOGIAN

2009-07-23T10:30:00.002+01:00

Ian Clary, an MTh student at the Toronto Baptist Seminary with an unnerving knowledge of both Irish traditional music and Irish Baptist history, has published an article on Alexander Carson in the latest issue of American Theological Inquiry. Read it here.

CHRISTIAN WITNESS IN THE NEW UNITED KINGDOM

2009-06-22T14:51:00.001+01:00

BOOK REVIEW: RENIHAN, EDIFICATION AND BEAUTY

2009-06-19T16:33:00.005+01:00

Professor James Renihan's new book, Edification and beauty: The practical ecclesiology of the English Particular Baptists, 1675-1705 (2008), represents a landmark in the historical study of Baptist history, and a significant step forward in the ongoing recovery of a fully biblical identity for contemporary churches.

Professor Renihan's book addresses a theme that has fallen on evil days. Ecclesiology - the doctrine of the church - has historically been given enormous importance. But not in the early days of the twenty-first century, when churchmanship often appears at a discount, and in situations where the biblical teaching on the church is hardly known and could not be defended.

Edification and beauty begins with a brief overview of the emergence of the earliest Particular Baptist churches, and subsequent chapters move on to discuss the nature of the church, the government of the church, the officers of the church, the worship of the church, and the "communion" between churches. This is, by definition, an historical study, and Robert Oliver, in the foreword, is quite correct in arguing that the book does not provide "a blue print to be slavishly followed." But it does compel us to evaluate the various perspectives it represents - and therefore calls us back to Scripture, which ought to be the foundation of church life, in our modern world quite as much as in the seventeenth century.

MISSION::IRELAND CONFERENCE

2009-06-19T16:15:00.008+01:00

The Mission::Ireland conference, held annually in Abbeyleix, co Laois, has just finished.

The speakers this year were Jim Harrison (Red Mills Baptist Church, Mahopac Falls, New York) and Ron Baines (Grace Community Church, West Bath, Maine). About 30 missionaries and pastors gathered to hear Jim preach two messages on "What a piece of work is man": humankind in its four-fold state in creation, the fall, redemption and glory. Ron addressed the topic of guidance - an always controversial issue - and called us to consider what the Bible teaches about the means by which God guides the believer through life choices that bring glory to God. Jim blogs here (though not very regularly!) and you can hear more of his preaching here. You can hear more of Ron's preaching here.

The conference sermons will likely be posted on the Mission::Ireland website.

CONFERENCE AT SOUTHERN SEMINARY

2009-06-08T21:48:00.004+01:00

The Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies is hosting the third annual conference devoted to Baptist History. This year the conference is titled, “Baptist Spirituality: Historical Perspectives.” It is being held August 24-25, 2009 on the campus of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

The theme of the 2009 conference is “Baptist Spirituality: Historical Perspectives.” Featured speakers will include: Crawford Gribben, Michael Haykin , Robert Strivens, Greg Thornbury, Kevin Smith, Tom Nettles, Greg Wills, Gerald Priest, Jason Lee, and Malcolm Yarnell. Other established Baptist History scholars, as well as several Ph.D. students will be presenting papers on the conference theme during the parallel sessions.

M.A. IN HISTORICAL THEOLOGY OPPORTUNITY

2009-06-01T13:43:00.002+01:00

The contributors to this blog have frequently highlighted opportunities for theological education, whether by seminars, audio lectures, or distance learning courses. Here's one of the best opportunities to date.

Mark Jones, a PCA pastor in Vancouver, Canada, maintains a blog devoted to Thomas Goodwin. He has posted on this site in the past. Mark has just published a post offering the possibility of MA studies in historical theology - for next to nothing and from an accredited South African institution. Full details can be found here.

NEW CHURCH WEBSITE

2009-05-23T14:12:00.001+01:00

Laois Bible Fellowship Church has a new website, which you can see here.

New books: Thomas Manton's Works

2009-05-16T16:09:00.001+01:00

"The renowned Thomas Manton (1620-1677), whose writings have long been prized by thousands, was known first and foremost as a great preacher. In a day when good preaching is sorely lacking, we need the reprint of his Complete Works, in which twenty of his twenty-two volumes are sermons. These sermons are the legacy of a powerful preacher devoted to the systematic teaching and application of God's Word. Whether he is expounding the Lord's Prayer, Psalm 119, Isaiah 53, James, or Jude, Manton presents us with the best that English Puritans had to offer in careful, solid, warmhearted exposition of the Scriptures." - Dr. Joel R. Beeke

"A MOUNTAIN OF SOUND THEOLOGY." - C.H. Spurgeon on The Works of Manton

This 22 volume hardcover set is smyth-sewn, shrink-wrapped on acid free paper and boxed as a complete set in a double wall container for special protection. Speaking with John Gowan and others they reckon that of all the puritans Manton is the one who sticks tightly to the text. In these 22 volumes Manton covers the great truths and themes of Scripture. The indices and Bible verse index at the back of the set runs for almost three hundred pages. This alone makes this set very valuable for a minister. If you do not have any puritan works this complete set I suggest would be worth having. They are selling from Evangelical Press, with delivery included, for about €260.euro…

LADIES CONFERENCE IN MAGHERAFELT

2009-05-01T15:15:00.003+01:00

Magherafelt Reformed Baptist Church invites you to a Ladies Conference with Pastor Jeff Smith (Covenant Reformed Baptist Church, Easley, South Carolina) on Sturday 23 May from 9:30am-1pm d.v. A book stall will be available.

Full details at www.magherafelt-rbc.co.uk.

BIBLE EXHIBITION IN DUBLIN

2009-04-21T08:18:00.002+01:00

Bible Exhibition at Arann Reformed Baptist Church

The exhibition will be held on Saturday 25th April 2009 at St. John's GAA club, Ballinteer, Dublin 16 (just off exit 13 M50 ring road) at 3.30pm, when the speaker will be Pastor David Silversides (d.v.). For further details contact Mark Fitzpatrick at info@arann_reformed.com. Light Refreshments will be provided.

IT'S GETTING VERY NEAR THE END

2009-04-13T11:31:00.005+01:00

Even if you don't have Grudem’s Systematic Theology, a set of audio lectures given at Scottsdale Bible Church and based on the book are freely available to download and distribute free (i.e. you can't charge for them).

The interface of the site is much improved lately and now there is only one talk to go - on the New Heaven and the New Earth - which will be available probably sometime next week. I think I have most of them at this stage - I'm currently trying to assign meaningful names to the files by copying and pasting the titles from the site. By default, the names e.g. 021509-WG are based on the date the lecture was given. Some chapters are covered over a few weeks so although there are about 57 chapters in the book there are 100 files - about 2 GBs of info - so these would fit on three CDs or a single DVD.

Here's the site URL: http://www.christianessentialssbc.com/messages/

I wonder if any recent (or older) classics have a series of lectures associated with them?

Paul (Tipperary Christian Fellowship)

HOME SCHOOLING AND THE IRISH CONSTITUTION

2009-03-29T21:02:00.002+01:00

From article 42:

The State acknowledges that the primary and natural educator of the child is the Family and guarantees to respect the inalienable right and duty of parents to provide, according to their means, for the religious and moral, intellectual, physical and social education of their children.

Parents shall be free to provide this education in their homes or in private schools or in schools recognised or established by the State.

The State shall not oblige parents in violation of their conscience and lawful preference to send their children to schools established by the State, or to any particular type of school designated by the State.

WATERFORD CONFERENCE SERMONS

2009-03-27T19:43:00.003Z

Around 60 people gathered in Waterford Baptist Church on Tuesday 17 March to hear Stephen Rees preach on "Jesus at the Jordan" and "Jesus in the wilderness." The sermons are available by clicking here.

CONFERENCE / FREE BOOK

2009-03-14T09:35:00.003Z

The first person to leave a comment that will bear the date of 17 March will recieve a free copy of The Advent of Evangelicalism, edited by Michael AG Haykin and Kenneth J Stewart (IVP / Broadman and Holman).

Meanwhile, don't forget the St Patrick's Day conference in Waterford Baptist Church, dv. The speaker is Stephen Rees, pastor of Grace Baptist Church, Stockport, UK for around 25 years. The Stockport church website holds a large number of his sermons. Stephen is also the author of the article on "The heart of the Reformed faith" hosted on this site. In Waterford, he will be addressing the topics "Jesus at the Jordan" and "Jesus in the wilderness."

The conference timetable is as follows:
10:30 Tea / coffee
11:00 "Jesus at the Jordan"
12:00 Lunch (bring your own; drinks will be available in the church building)
13:30 "Jesus in the wilderness"
14:30 Close of conference

Everyone is welcome. A brief history of Waterford Baptist Church can be read here.

WEEKEND ROUNDUP

2009-03-07T14:01:00.004Z

It's been a while since we've had a weekend roundup, but here are a few things of recent interest.

Mark Fitzpatrick has posted the sermons from the constitution of Arann Reformed Baptist Church, Dublin, held last Saturday, here.

We've noticed a few blogs and websites of interest: one focusing on the theology of John Gill, another by the new pastor of Ballymoney Baptist Church, county Antrim, and another by Conrad Mbewe, pastor of the Reformed Baptist Church in Lusaka, Zambia. And if anyone is interested in free copies of PhD theses on Baptist history, many are freely available here.

Finally, we hope to post a review of James Renihan's Edification and Beauty: The Practical Ecclesiology of the English Particular Baptists, 1675-1705 (Paternoster, 2008). Let's just say it's a candidate for book of the year.

ON READING ANDREW FULLER

2009-02-28T08:40:00.002Z

Michael Haykin, professor of church history at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, writes ...

Near the beginning of the funeral sermon that John Ryland, Jr. (1753-1825) preached for Andrew Fuller in 1815, Ryland described Fuller as “perhaps the most judicious and able theological writer that ever belonged to our [i.e. the Calvinistic Baptist] denomination.” Although Fuller was Ryland’s closest friend and confidant, his judgment is by no means skewed. Joseph Belcher, the editor of the final edition of Fuller’s collected works, believed that his works would “go down to posterity side by side with the immortal works of the elder president Edwards [i.e. Jonathan Edwards, Sr.],” while Charles Haddon Spurgeon once described Fuller as “the greatest theologian” of his century. What contributed to these judgments, which this writer wholeheartedly endorses?

Well, first of all, there is the fact that Fuller penned the definitive response to High Calvinism that had crippled his fellow Baptists in The Gospel Worthy of All Acceptation (first edition, 1785). A preliminary draft of this work was written by 1778. In what was roughly its final form it was completed by 1781. Two editions of the work were published in Fuller’s lifetime. The first edition, published in Northampton in 1785, was subtitled The Obligations of Men Fully to Credit, and Cordially to Approve, Whatever God Makes Known, Wherein is Considered the Nature of Faith in Christ, and the Duty of Those where the Gospel Comes in that Matter. The second edition, which appeared in 1801, was more simply subtitled The Duty of Sinners to Believe in Jesus Christ, a subtitle which well expressed the overall theme of the book. There were substantial differences between it and the second edition (1801), which Fuller freely admitted and which primarily related to the doctrine of particular redemption. The work’s major theme remained unaltered, however: ‘faith in Christ is the duty of all men who hear, or have opportunity to hear, the gospel’. This epoch-making book sought to be faithful to the central emphases of historic Calvinism while at the same time attempting to leave preachers with no alternative but to drive home to their hearers the universal obligations of repentance and faith.

With regard to Fuller’s own ministry, the book was a key factor in determining the shape of that ministry in the years to come. For instance, it led directly to Fuller’s whole-hearted involvement in the formation of the Baptist Missionary Society in October 1792 and the subsequent sending of the Society’s most famous missionary, William Carey (1761-1834), to India in 1793. Fuller also served as secretary of this society until his death in 1815. The work of the mission consumed an enormous amount of Fuller’s time as he regularly toured the country, representing the mission and raising funds. On average he was away from home three months of the year. Between 1798 and 1813, moreover, he made five lengthy trips to Scotland for the mission as well as undertaking journeys to Wales and Ireland (1804). He also carried on an extensive correspondence on the mission’s behalf.

Fuller’s commitment to the Baptist Missionary Society was not only rooted in his missionary theology but also in his deep friendship with Carey. Fuller later compared the sending of Carey to India as the lowering of him into a deep gold-mine. Fuller and his close friends, Sutcliff and Ryland, had pledged themselves to ‘hold the ropes’ as long as Carey lived. No wonder, Carey would say of Fuller: “I loved him.”

His demolition of High Calvinism revealed Fuller to be an indefatigable and fearless Baptist theologian and minister, characteristics revealed in other vital areas of theological debate. In 1793 he issued an extensive refutation of the Socinianism of Joseph Priestley (1733-1804)—The Calvinistic and Socinian Systems examined and Compared, as to their Moral Tendency. Due to the vigorous campaigning of Priestley, Socinianism, which denied the Trinity and the deity of Christ, had become the leading form of heterodoxy within English Dissent in the last quarter of the eighteenth century. Fuller’s rebuttal of Socinianism well displays the Christocentric nature of eighteneth-century Evangelical thought. Fuller ably showed that the early Church made the divine dignity and glory of Christ’s person ‘their darling theme’.

In 1800 Fuller published The Gospel Its Own Witness, the definitive eighteenth-century Baptist response to Deism, in particular that of the popularizer Thomas Paine (1737-1809). This work was one of the most popular of Fuller’s books, going through three editions by 1802 and being reprinted a number of times in the next thirty years. William Wilberforce (1759-1833), who admired Fuller as a theologian and who once graphically described him as ‘the very picture of a blacksmith’, considered it to be the most important of all of Fuller’s writings. The work has two parts. In the first, Fuller compares and contrasts the moral effects of Christianity with those of Deism. The second part of the book aims to demonstrate the divine origin of Christianity from the general consistency of the Scriptures.

Yet another vital controversy in which Fuller engaged was that with the Sandemanians, the followers of Robert Sandeman (1718-1771), who distinguished themselves from other eighteenth-century Evangelicals by a predominantly intellectualist view of faith. They became known for their cardinal theological tenet that saving faith is ‘bare belief of the bare truth’. In a genuine desire to exalt the utter freeness of God’s salvation, Sandeman had sought to remove any vestige of human reasoning, willing or desiring in the matter of saving faith.

In his Strictures on Sandemanianism (1810) Fuller makes a couple of telling points. First, if faith does concern only the mind, then there would be no way to distinguish genuine Christianity from nominal Christianity. A nominal Christian mentally assents to the truths of Christianity, but those truths do not grip the heart and re-orient his or her affections. Then, knowledge of Christ is a distinct type of knowledge. Knowing him, for instance, involves far more than knowing certain things about him, such as the fact of his virgin birth or the details of his crucifixion. It involves a desire for fellowship with him and a delight in his presence.

But Fuller was far more than an apologist and mission secretary. Alongside his apologetic works, Fuller exercised a significant pastoral ministry at Kettering. During his thirty-three years at Kettering, from 1782 to 1815, the membership of the church more than doubled (from 88 to 174) and the number of ‘hearers’ was often over a thousand, necessitating several additions to the church building. Perusal of his vast correspondence—today housed in the Angus Library, Regent’s Park College, the University of Oxford—reveals that Fuller was first and foremost a pastor. And though he did not always succeed, he constantly sought to ensure that his many other responsibilities did not encroach upon those related to the pastorate.

One other of Fuller’s literary works deserves mention. His Memoirs of the Rev. Samuel Pearce (1800) recount the life of his close friend, Samuel Pearce (1766-1799) of Birmingham. In some ways modeled after Jonathan Edwards’ life of David Brainerd, it recounted the life of one whom Fuller regarded as a model of Evangelical spirituality. Through the medium of Fuller’s book Pearce’s extraordinary passion for Christ—which led to his being labeled the ‘seraphic Pearce’ by contemporaries—and his zeal for missions had a powerful impact on his generation.

Fuller had remarkable stores of physical and mental energy that allowed him to accomplish all that he did. But it was not without cost to his body. What he called a ‘paralytic stroke’ in 1793 left him rarely free of severe headaches for the rest of his life. And in his last fifteen years he was rarely well. Taken seriously ill in September 1814, his health began to seriously decline. By the spring of the following year he was dying. He preached for the last time at Kettering on 2 April 1815 and died 7 May. He was 62.

His funeral was attended by an immense crowd which one estimate put at 2,000 persons. At Fuller’s request, his old friend, John Ryland, preached the funeral sermon. Based on Romans 8:10, it included a brief account of Fuller’s final days and the following declaration made by Fuller in his last letter to Ryland. ‘I have preached and written much against the abuse of the doctrine of grace’, Fuller wrote, ‘but that doctrine is all my salvation and all my desire. I have no other hope than from salvation by mere sovereign, efficacious grace through the atonement of my Lord and Saviour’.

The importance of his theological achievements was noted during and after his life. The College of New Jersey (1798) and Yale (1805) awarded him a DD, both of which he declined to accept. As has been noted, Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892) did not hesitate to describe Fuller as ‘the greatest theologian’ of his century, while A. H. Newman (1852-1933) said that ‘his influence on American Baptists’ was ‘incalculable’. Without a doubt, he was the greatest theologian of the late eighteenth-century transatlantic Baptist community.

ON THE TONGUE

2009-02-19T15:56:00.001Z

Helpful thoughts from a leading Irish biblical scholar:

The tongue is much more than what we actually say out loud. In fact actual speech is probably only a small percentage of the use of the tongue. We cannot think without formulating thoughts in words, we cannot plan without describing to ourselves step by step what we intend to do; we cannot imagine without painting a word-picture before our inward eyes; we cannot write a letter or a book without talking it through our mind on to the paper; we cannot resent without fuelling the fires of resentment in words addressed to ourselves; we cannot feel sorry for ourselves without listening to the self-pitying voice which tell us how hard done by we are. But if our tongue were so well under control that it refused to formulate the words of self-pity, the images of lustfulness, the thoughts of anger and resentment, then these things are cut down before they have a chance to live: the master-switch has deprived them of any power to switch on that side of our lives. It is in this way that if anyone does not stumble in word , he is a perfect man able also to bridle the whole body.

(from Alec Motyer, The Message of James, IVP)

RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION IN UK

2009-02-15T11:19:00.003Z

Growing evidence suggests that Christians are facing increasing discrimination in UK schools and health sector.

Over the last couple of weeks, media in the UK has highlighted a disturbing trend: increasing opposition to the articulation of Christian faith by public servants. A Christian nurse drew fire when offering to pray for a patient (here); and it was later revealed that NHS employees would be sacked if they discussed religion with patients (here). More recently it has become clear that teachers can be sacked if they discuss their own faith (and thereby fail to promote equality and diversity in the classroom) (here).

But now children in schools have been drawn into the fray: a primary school receptionist may be sacked after her daugher spoke to a school friend about heaven and hell. Read all about it here.

HOW WE THINK OF OURSELVES

2009-02-13T18:11:00.001Z

Scripture speaks of God’s people in the language of saints. We do not. Scripture speaks of Christians as a family. We do not. Why is there such a difference between the way the Biblical writers describe us and the way that we describe ourselves?

Business people who attend assertiveness classes are taught about the important power of positive thinking. They learn the danger of negativity and especially the depressing consequences of working in an environment in which their status is constantly undermined. If someone keeps talking you down, sooner or later you’ll feel yourself on the ground.

The problem is that this kind of negativity has invaded the church – and we have unwittingly endorsed it. But modern Christians now talk themselves down. Older writers followed the Biblical example and kept their descriptions of Christians high – for these people, Christians were ‘saints’, and with respect to one another, we were to be ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’. But, by and large, we’ve abandoned the terms. We’re prepared to think of ourselves as something less than ‘saints’. We’re prepared to treat one another as something less than brothers and sisters. We’ve forgotten the metaphors and abandoned the power of Biblical thinking.

The metaphors are vitally important, because how we describe ourselves ultimately impacts how we behave. Think about it – how we describe ourselves is vitally important to who we believe we are; how we describe ourselves is basic to what we think about ourselves; how we think about ourselves is basic to the way we act.

Isn’t that the reason we have forgotten the Biblical identities we possess? We are reluctant to call each other ‘brother’ or ‘sister’ because we’re not prepared to act as if we were each other’s brother or sister. We are reluctant to call ourselves ‘saints’ because we’d rather not live under the expectations that name involves.

But these terms are important. Bible writers in both testaments use the term ‘saints’ to emphasise that God’s people are his ‘holy ones’. The New Testament epistles constantly reiterate that these saints have been brought into a family relationship with their heavenly Father, and hence with one another.

Thomas Goodwin has something vital to say about our forgotten metaphors. We should keep on calling ourselves ‘saints’, he writes, ‘that the reality of the true religion be not lowered (as it is) by avoiding this title, which in these times is out of use; but it is [out of use] because true holiness is out of fashion’ (Works vol. I, page 11).

Let’s recover the metaphors. Let’s embrace our identity as ‘saints’. Let’s embrace one another as the brothers and sisters of the family of God.

SAVE OUR MISSIONARIES!

2009-02-12T12:13:00.003Z

Aontas - the national association of evangelical churches in Ireland - has begun a campaign to protect the status of non-EU Christian workers in Ireland.

As many of you are aware the Government, in the middle of 2007, changed the procedures by which they allow missionaries to come into the country. Up until then people from non-EU countries had their visas stamped annually as a matter of course, subject only to Garda clearance. The change means that volunteer workers can now only stay in the country for a maximum of three years, this is having a profound affect on the Missionaries concerned and upon the churches they are working with.

To fully appreciate the affects of these changes please consider the following facts:

Churches Planted by Non-EU Missionaries 48 – 23% 34% of New Churches
Churches with significant Non-EU Missionary Involvement 57 – 27%

These figures are taken from research conducted by Aontas in early 2007 – listing evangelical churches from among Church of Ireland, Methodist, Presbyterian, Reformed Presbyterian, Baptist Association, Independent Baptist, Independent evangelicals, Brethren, and Pentecostals.

Towns with no churches:-

Number of Towns of a population of 15,000 or more with no Evangelical Witness – 17

Number of Towns of a population of 7,500 or more with no Evangelical Witness – 49

We are asking you to urgently visit or write your TDs and Senators in your area. We have prepared a briefing document which will help you prepare for the meeting. It is of vital importance that this is done in the next three weeks. New legislation is presently making it way thought the houses of the Oireachtas. The Senate is presently considering the bill, hence the reason we are asking you to visit both TDs and Senators.

Can I ask that if you have a particularly close relationship with any of the politicians, or if you know someone who does, can you please use your influence now for the good of the Kingdom.

Can we also ask that churches mobilise as many people as possible to visit with, or write to, their politicians.

Kind regards in Christ
____________________________
Paudge Mulvihill
Aontas’ Hon. Secretary

CONSTITUTION OF NEW CHURCH

2009-02-05T10:03:00.007Z

Arann Reformed Baptist Fellowship will formally constitute on Saturday 28 Februrary 2009, d.v.

An email from Mark Fitzpatrick ...

Dear Friends,

It is with great joy we invite you to join with us as we constitute as a Reformed and Evangelical Church. As many of you will know we have been meeting together on the Lord’s day since May ’07. The meeting for the purpose of Constituting will be held in the St John’s GAA Club, Ballinteer, Dublin 16 {Exit 13 off the M50}. For further help with directions see www.sermonaudio.com/arann. Time: 3pm, Saturday 28th February 2009

Pastor Malcolm Watts of Salisbury will Chair and preach at this meeting.

There will be light refreshments served after the meeting.

Please let us know if you plan to attend.

CONFERENCE IN WATERFORD

2009-01-19T10:04:00.007Z

A St Patrick's Day conference, with preaching by Stephen Rees of Grace Baptist Church Stockport, will be held Waterford Baptist Church on 17 March 2009, d.v.

Stephen Rees has been pastor of GBCS for around 25 years. The Stockport church website holds a large number of his sermons. Stephen is also the author of the article on "The heart of the Reformed faith" hosted on this site. In Waterford, he will be addressing the topics "Jesus at the Jordan" and "Jesus in the wilderness."

The conference timetable is as follows:

10:30 Tea / coffee
11:00 "Jesus at the Jordan"
12:00 Lunch (bring your own; drinks will be available in the church building)
13:30 "Jesus in the wilderness"
14:30 Close of conference

Everyone is welcome. A brief history of Waterford Baptist Church can be read here.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2009-01-01T21:11:00.002Z

"Take with you words, and return to the Lord."

Hosea 14:2

WATERFORD INDUCTION

2008-12-20T12:13:00.004Z

Matthew Brennan, pastor of Clonmel Baptist Church, writes ...

On Saturday 29 November 2008, I had the privilege and pleasure of attending the induction of David Neald to the ministry of the Waterford Baptist Church. I was there among the 80 or so others who attended.

David had previously pastored the Limerick Baptist Church before coming out of the ministry and working in the construction industry for some years. Then Waterford invited him to be their pastor, and after much prayer he accepted the call. It was great to see the building almost full with friends travelling from Cork, Kilkenny, Tipperary and Dublin.

Dr Stuart Olyott was the guest preacher. Dr Olyott has been a friend of David's for many years and gave the charge from 1 Timothy 3:14-15. The outline of that message was: (1) There is such a thing as truth. (2) The world needs such truth. (3) The truth has enemies. (4) God has a singular pillar of truth. (5) What should such a pillar (local church) look like (Acts 2:40-47).

Waterford is one of Ireland's major cities. Having David working into that city, we can pray that he may be the means of building up a congregation and reaching into a multi-cultural situation. The building itself in need of some repairs and at present the congregation is modest in size. If you know where funding may be had for the repairing of the building or you would like to financially support David I am sure the church would be very grateful.

If you are interested in supporting the work you can contact Mr G. Flynn, Moriah, 15 Seafield, Newtown Hill, Tramore, Co. Waterford, IRELAND.

You can read about the history of the Waterford Baptist Church here.

ON READING THOMAS GOODWIN (PART 2)

2008-12-18T17:05:00.002Z

Here's a recommendation of Thomas Goodwin that differs from that of Dr Joel Beeke (below). Mark Jones (pastor, author, and PhD student at Universiteit Leiden) writes ...

I ended up choosing to do PhD work on Thomas Goodwin – for better or for worse, but I think for better – because of the suggestion of a friend. My friend must have known something I didn’t because I’d never given much thought to the man who still very much remains in John Owen’s shadow. This is rather unfortunate; after all, Owen often deferred to his close friend and Goodwin was rightly recognized as one of the greatest theological minds not only in Britain, but on the Continent (Herman Witsius had some of Goodwin’s writings translated into Dutch). After having read through the majority of Goodwin’s corpus I can confidently say that three of his Works stand out, but for different reasons.

If you want to enter the mind-boggling world of seventeenth-century eschatology, Goodwin’s exposition of Revelation is a good place to start; and for sheer entertainment value this work of his stands unparalleled (you can read into that sentence whatever you wish!). Our Puritan forefathers were excellent theologians; but if I am ever tempted to venerate them too much I turn to one of their commentaries on Revelation. Well, now that I’ve escaped the charge of hagiography, onto something more positive ...

In terms of theological acumen, the great Scottish theologian, Alexander Whyte, has called Goodwin “the greatest pulpit exegete of Paul that has ever lived,” to which J. I. Packer has added, “and perhaps justly.” Goodwin’s work Christ Set Forth considers the full-orbed nature of Christ’s work as a priest-king; from the cross to Christ’s resurrection, ascension, and exaltation at the right hand of the Father where he ever lives to make intercession for his bride, Goodwin highlights the value of Christ’s work not only on the cross, but in his state of glory as the risen Lord of Glory.

The type of theology one finds in Christ Set Forth is summed up in the following quote where Goodwin addresses the soteric value of Christ’s intercession: “This all divines on all sides do attribute unto it, whilst they put this difference between the influence of his death, and that of his intercession unto our salvation: calling his death medium impetrationis, that is, the means of procurement or obtaining it for us; but his intercession medium applicationis, the means of applying all unto us. Christ purchaseth salvation by the one, but possesseth us of it by the other. Some have attributed the application of justification to his resurrection; but it is much more proper to ascribe it to his intercession …. his eternal priesthood in heaven, and the work of its intercession, is the applying cause of our eternal salvation …” (Works, 4:63). I used to think that Reformed theologians at Westminster Theological Seminary invented these fine distinctions, but they are already present in Goodwin and his contemporaries. If you want my opinion on what work to begin with in Goodwin – and if you are looking for profound theology – I would suggest reading Christ Set Forth. And be prepared to be amazed at how much this work will do for your heart as well.

Next, if your heart is feeling particularly cold, I would urge you to read Goodwin’s work, which follows Christ Set Forth, The Heart of Christ in Heaven Towards Sinners on Earth; this treatise of Goodwin’s may be one of the finest works in the English language that combines intellectual and theological power with pastoral comfort. I cannot speak too highly about this work – it is magnificent and sure to stretch your mind and warm your heart. Apart from Calvin, I know of no other Christian writer who possesses the ability to wed together theology and piety in the way that Goodwin does! Once having read those two works, I would suggest you read whatever else you think might be profitable to your soul, and Joel Beeke has provided a helpful list of works and their particular strengths.

I now see why Whyte confessed: “I have read no other author so much and so often. And I continue to read him to this day, as if I had never read him before.” It may be prudent to note, too, that Whyte calls Goodwin's sermon, Christ Dwelling in Our Hearts by Faith, one of the “two very greatest sermons in the English language.” With a recommendation like that, how can you not pick up a Goodwin volume – choose #4 – on your next trip to the bookstore?

Read more from Mark Jones on his blog.

ON READING THOMAS VINCENT

2008-12-13T11:19:00.000Z

Following Matthew Brennan's challenge on reading (below), Randall Pederson (editor and PhD student at Westminster Theological Seminary) writes ...

If I had to choose who my favourite Puritan is, I would probably answer, Thomas Vincent (1634-78), the rector of St. Mary Magdalene. That is not to say that other Puritans are not worth reading; they are, and the rich, vibrant piety of the Puritans is to be found across many streams, political and ecclesiastical. Still, there is something unique about Vincent that is refreshing, uplifting, and exceptional.

Just try reading The True Christian’s Love to the Unseen Christ (1677) without being moved, without being challenged, without having your affections raised to heavenly places and wanting, hoping, yearning to love Christ more. Reading Vincent is like reading Watson; both were master word-smiths, and both used the English language to glorify God and strike at the heart of Christians. It is no wonder that Vincent was among the bestsellers of the eighteenth century (Andrew R. Holmes, The Shaping of Ulster Presbyterian Belief and Practice, 1770-1840 [Oxford University Press, 2006], p. 277).

Of course, only a handful of Vincent’s writings were ever published and of those only six have been reprinted in the past fifty years. In addition to The True Christian’s Love to the Unseen Christ, Vincent wrote God’s Terrible Voice in the City (1667), Christ’s Certain and Sudden Appearance to Judgement (1667), Fire and Brimstone (1670), The Shorter Catechism Explained from Scripture (1673), and The Good Work Begun (1673). All of these titles, minus The Shorter Catechism, were reprinted by Soli Deo Gloria Publications.While some may find God’s Terrible Voice in the City profitable, others will find it somewhat archaic, bound to the terrible events of the Great Fire of London (1666)—and so it was; still, it offers several ‘improvements’ on the woeful providence of God that reflect the atmosphere and spirit of the times—this is useful in getting to know how Puritans thought of God’s involvement in the world.

Readers should begin with and meditate deeply upon The True Christian’s Love to the Unseen Christ; in fact, I would dare say this should be a Christian’s daily companion. How often we find ourselves cold and listless; Vincent can help kindle the fires of Christian love. Then, a thorough read of Christ’s Sudden and Certain Appearance to Judgment will awaken longing for the great and terrible Day of the Lord, where the omniscient eye will recount the deeds done in the body, a horrific day for those who disbelieve, but a welcomed day for those who do. Then, I would read The Good Work Begun, a small book but well worth one’s time investment. Originally written to young people, to keep them from apostasy and backsliding, The Good Work Begun reminds us of our need to stay close the embers of Christian fidelity.

Readers who have enjoyed Randall's encouragement to read Vincent will also benefit from his popular anthologies - Day by Day with the English Puritans and Day by Day with Jonathan Edwards - and Meet the Puritans, which he edited with Dr Joel Beeke.

ON READING THOMAS GOODWIN (PART 1)

2008-12-09T07:47:00.006Z

Following Matthew Brennan's challenge on reading (below), Dr Joel Beeke (pastor, author, and president of Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, MI) writes ...

If I could have $5 for every time someone has asked me the question, “Who is your favourite Puritan to read?,” I suppose I’d be a wealthy man by now. Though I would probably answer that question today by saying, “Anthony Burgess—and he’s also one of the most neglected!,” for nearly two decades I would have said, “Thomas Goodwin.” I may be an oddball, but—dare I say it—I’ve usually gotten more out of reading Goodwin than reading John Owen.

The first collection of Goodwin’s works was published in five folio volumes in London from 1681 to 1704, under the editorship of Thankful Owen, Thomas Baron, and Thomas Goodwin Jr. An abridged version of those works was later printed in four volumes (London, 1847–50). This reprinted twelve-volume edition was printed by James Nichol (Edinburgh, 1861–66) in the Nichol’s Series of Standard Divines. It is far superior to the original five folio volumes.

Goodwin’s exegesis is massive; he leaves no stone unturned. His first editors (1681) said of his work: “He had a genius to dive into the bottom of points, to ‘study them down,’ as he used to express it, not contenting himself with superficial knowledge, without wading into the depths of things.” Edmund Calamy put it this way: “It is evident from his writings, he studied not words, but things. His style is plain and familiar; but very diffuse, homely and tedious.” One does need patience to read Goodwin; however, along with depth and prolixity, he offers a wonderful sense of warmth and experience. A reader’s patience will be amply rewarded.

How should a beginner proceed in reading Goodwin’s works? Here is a suggested plan. (Note: Books marked by * have been printed at least once since the 1950s.)

1. Begin by reading some of the shorter, more practical writings of Goodwin, such as Patience and Its Perfect Work,* which includes four sermons on James 1:1–5. This was written after much of Goodwin’s personal library was destroyed by fire (2:429–467). It contains much practical instruction on enhancing a spirit of submission.

2. Read Certain Select Cases Resolved, which offers three experimental treatises. They reveal Goodwin’s pastoral heart for afflicted Christians. Each addresses specific struggles in the believer’s soul: (a) “A Child of Light Walking in Darkness” is a classic work of encouragement for the spiritually depressed based on Isaiah 50:10–11 (3:241–350). The subtitle summarizes its contents: “A Treatise shewing The Causes by which, The Cases wherein, and the Ends for which, God leaves His Children to Distress of Conscience, Together with Directions How to Walk so as to Come Forth of Such a Condition.” (b) “The Return of Prayers,”* based on Psalm 85:8, is a uniquely practical work. It offers help in ascertaining “God’s answers to our prayers” (3:353–429). (c) “The Trial of a Christian’s Growth” (3:433–506), based on John 15:1–2, is a masterpiece on sanctification. It focuses on mortification and vivification. For a mini-classic on spiritual growth, this gem remains unsurpassed. You might also read The Vanity of Thoughts,* based on Jeremiah 4:14 (3:509–528). This work, often republished in paperback, stresses the need for bringing every thought captive to Christ. It also describes ways to foster that obedience.

3. Read some of Goodwin’s great sermons. Inevitably, they are strong, biblical, Christological, and experimental (2:359–425; 4:151–224; 5:439–548; 7:473–576; 9:499–514; 12:1–127).

4. Delve into Goodwin’s works that explain major doctrines, such as:
· An Unregenerate Man’s Guiltiness Before God in Respect of Sin and Punishment* (10:1–567). This is a weighty treatise on human guilt, corruption, and the imputation and punishment of sin. In exposing the total depravity of the natural man’s heart, this book is unparalleled. Its aim is to produce a heartfelt need for saving faith in Christ rather than offer the quick fix of superficial Christendom.
· The Object and Acts of Justifying Faith (8:1–593).* This is a frequently reprinted classic on faith. Part 1, on the objects of faith, focuses on God’s nature, Christ, and the free grace of God revealed in His absolute promises. Part 2 deals with the acts of faith—what it means to believe in Christ, to obtain assurance, to find joy in the Holy Ghost, and to make use of God’s electing love. One section beautifully explains the “actings of faith in prayer.” Part 3 addresses the properties of faith—its excellence in giving all honor to God and Christ; its difficulty in reaching beyond the natural abilities of man; its necessity in requiring us to believe in the strength of God. The conclusion provides “directions to guide us in our endeavours to believe.”
· Christ the Mediator* (2 Cor. 5:18–19), Christ Set Forth (Rom. 8:34), and The Heart of Christ in Heaven Towards Sinners on Earth are great works on Christology (5:1–438; 4:1–92; 4:93–150). Christ the Mediator sets forth Jesus in His substitutionary work of humiliation. It rightly deserves to be called a classic. Christ Set Forth proclaims Christ in His exaltation, and The Heart of Christ explores the tenderness of Christ’s glorified human nature shown to His people on earth. Goodwin is more mystical in this work than anywhere else in his writings, but as Paul Cook has ably shown, his mysticism is kept within the boundaries of Scripture. Cook says Goodwin is unparalleled “in his combination of intellectual and theological power with evangelical and homiletical comfort.”
· Gospel Holiness in Heart and Life (7:129–336) is a convicting masterpiece, based on Philippians 1:9–11. It explains the doctrine of sanctification in every sphere of life.
· The Knowledge of God the Father, and His Son Jesus Christ (4:347–569), combined with The Work of the Holy Spirit* (6:1–522), explore the profound work in the believer’s soul of each of the three divine persons. The Work of the Spirit is particularly helpful for understanding the doctrines of regeneration and conversion. It carefully distinguishes the work of “the natural conscience” from the Spirit’s saving work.
· The Glory of the Gospel (4:227–346) consists of two sermons and a treatise based on Colossians 1:26–27. It should be read along with The Blessed State of Glory Which the Saints Possess After Death (7:339–472), based on Revelation 14:13.
· A Discourse of Election* (9:1-498) delves deeply into issues such as the supralapsarian-infralapsarian debate, which wrestles with the moral or rational order of God’s decrees. It also deals with the fruits of election (e.g., see Book IV on 1 Peter 5:10 and Book V on how God fulfils His covenant of grace in the generations of believers).
· The Creatures and the Condition of Their State by Creation (7:1–128). Goodwin is more philosophical in this work than in others.

5. Prayerfully and slowly digest Goodwin’s 900-plus page exposition of Ephesians 1:1 to 2:11* (1:1–564; 2:1–355). Alexander Whyte wrote of this work, “Not even Luther on the Galatians is such an expositor of Paul’s mind and heart as is Goodwin on the Ephesians.”

6. Save for last Goodwin’s exposition of Revelation* (3:1–226) and his only polemical work, The Constitution, Right Order, and Government of the Churches of Christ (11:1–546). Independents would highly value this polemic, while Presbyterians probably wouldn’t, saying Goodwin is trustworthy on every subject except church government. Goodwin’s work does not degrade Presbyterians, however. One of his contemporaries who argued against Goodwin’s view on church government confessed that Goodwin conveyed “a truly great and noble spirit” throughout the work.

Those readers who would like to get more of this kind of advice from Dr Beeke can draw on the insights of the modern classic he prepared with Randall Pederson, Meet the Puritans. Those readers who have been encouraged into Goodwin by Dr Beeke's post should look forward to the forthcoming companion article by Mark Jones (pastor, author, PhD student at Universiteit Leiden).

ON READING JEREMIAH BURROUGHS

2008-12-04T14:55:00.005Z

Following Matthew Brennan's challenge on reading (below), Dr Jim Davison (Belfast Bible College) writes ...

In response to a recent post by Matthew Brennan, I put forward Jeremiah Burroughes as my favourite author. Now I would like to give my reasons for this choice.

Most of Burroughes’ works are sermons, many of which were published after his death in 1646. These sermons were his endeavour to exhort his hearers to recognise the excellency of God and, therefore, their responsibility to live in a truly God honouring way. For this reason we find very little by way of apologetics or many technical theological terms used in these sermons. This does not mean that there is no theology to be found in these sermons; what it does mean is that it is expressed in a way that his hearers, the common folk around Stepney and St. Giles, Cripplegate, in London, where he was a lecturer in the 1640s, understood clearly what Burroughes was pronouncing as God’s spokesperson.

In these sermons Burroughes shows not only the excellency of God in his Being, but also the infinite love of God towards fallen mankind, through Christ the Mediator. There is also to be found in Burroughes’ sermons a very clear understanding of what sin actually is, and the evil of it (something that is greatly needed today), which helps recognise the magnitude of the grace of God. But while the sermons give good evidence of being proclaimed in a forthright manner, they are full of compassion that seeks to move and warm the heart.

Now I am the first to acknowledge that men like Richard Sibbes, Thomas Watson, Thomas Brooks, and Thomas Vincent, to name but a few, express the same truth and with the same warmth oozing out of their works (who can read Sibbes’ A Bruised Reed or Vincent’s The True Christian’s Love to the Unseen Christ and not be taken up with praising God?) But for me Burroughes has the edge.

In Burroughes’ sermons I find three streams of major puritan doctrine, among others, with which he identified: 1) the infinite holiness of God; 2) the heinousness of sin, which separates man from God; and 3) the all-sufficiency of Christ in reconciling sinners and God. For Burroughes these doctrines must be maintained in balance in order to bring about the godly life, a life that consists of communion with God, the One who is infinitely majestic in his Being, and who alone is deserving of our adoration and worship. My suggested reading of Burroughes’ sermons in the following order:

Gospel Revelation: In this excellent work Burroughes sets forth a very penetrating and masterly exposition of the nature of God, the glory of Christ and the excellency of man’s immortal soul (the third part can be left to be read later).
Gospel Worship: Burroughes wrote: ‘the reason men worship God in a slight way is because they do not see God in His glory.’ How true this is today, and therefore how much we need to read this book that seeks to show not only why we should worship God, but importantly, how we should worship God. The work has three parts: 1) worship in hearing the word; 2) in the sacraments (ordinances); and 3) in prayer.
Gospel Fear: In this work Burroughes seeks to develop a tender heart that trembles at the Word of God, with reverence and awe, for the Word is ‘the glass of the holiness of the infinite God.’
The Evil of Evils: A penetrating analysis of sin. In this work Burroughes’ hatred of sin is very evident as he emphasises repeatedly that ‘it is better to choose affliction rather than sin.’ No one can fail to know what sin is after reading this book.
Gospel Remission: Here Burroughes expounds what he regarded as the greatest blessing a man can have, namely, the pardon or remission of sin.
A Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment: Burroughs’ best-known work aims to set before its readers not only the obstacles to contentment, but how it may be attained. It is a classic on the topic.

The reading order suggests we first get a proper understanding of who God and Christ are, then how they are to be worshiped, especially as we reverence God’s Word. The last three reveal man in his degradation, then the blessedness of being lifted out of this state by the grace of God, which alone brings true contentment.

There are at least ten other volumes by Burroughes in print that may be read with real benefit.

Readers who have enjoyed Dr Davison's comments on Burroughes will be glad to know of his forthcoming articles on his favourite puritan in future issues of the Banner of Truth magazine.

ON READING

2008-11-28T23:33:00.003Z

Matthew Brennan writes ...

It seems there are no end of new books about the Christian faith. New titles are coming out of the Christian publishing houses all the time. The fact that there are more books being published begs the question, "are people reading more?" Is it an indication that the people of God are become more knowledgable about their faith?

Looking around the churches that I am aware of reading does not seem to be increasing and knowledge about the faith seems to be derived from those ubiquitous God channels. I wonder is there some Biblical principle that could be invoked to stop the church watching much that is worthless? I digress. It seems that just like tele-evangelists, the Christian publishing houses have their celebrated authors who produce another book that then is reviewed by the inner circle of Christian heavyweights and warmly endorsed. What if one of these men said something different like "this book is a poor imitation of the book written by ... ?" I am sure if we stopped and thought about it much of what is being published has been said in other books just as well but the publishing machine keeps felling trees and flinging out more paperbacks.

Why do the publishing houses waste so much money printing a title and then see the value of the book fall by 30% because they will not put in an index at the back of the book? I could cite several publishing houses in the UK but I appeal to them instead: please put an index in your books. You do not do honour to yourselves when you omit them.

We do not have all the time in the world and we cannot read all that is out there. Let us try to read and master a few of the great Christian authors like ... who do you suggest?

JIM RENIHAN IN IRELAND

2008-11-06T17:33:00.003Z

Jim Renihan, professor at Westminster Seminary California, reports on his trip to encourage Irish churches here.

FREE BOOKS GIVE-AWAY

2008-10-31T11:09:00.004Z

I will build my church ... in IRELAND is having a give-away: bag your copy of Satan Cast Out: A Study in Biblical Demonology (Banner of Truth), by Fred Leahy, one of the premier Irish theological writers of the last century, by leaving a comment below. We have two copies to give away. What better way to spend Hallowe'en?

HAPPY REFORMATION DAY

2008-10-30T22:40:00.002Z

It's October 31st - Reformation Day - the anniversary of Luther's posting of the 95 theses - and to celebrate, Ligonier Ministers are GIVING AWAY leather-bound editions of the Reformation Study Bible (ESV) as a thank-you gift for a donation of ANY size. Find the details here.

CHRISTIAN INSTITUTE, DUBLIN

2008-10-30T12:34:00.001Z

The Christian Institute held its inaugural meeting in Grosvenor Road Baptist Church, Dublin, last night. Click here for a full account of their activities.

BAPTIST MISSIONS IN c19TH IRELAND

2008-09-29T11:13:00.002+01:00

Google Books has come up with another amazing resource - digitized images of The Baptist Magazine (1824) with its many editions of the Irish Chronicle, a vital record of missionary enterprize. Click here and search within the book for keywords "Irish chronicle" to read each successive issue.

M.A. SCHOLARSHIPS

2008-09-29T09:25:00.006+01:00

Anyone who is interested in further theological study should give serious consideration to this opportunity - Trinity Theological Seminary is offering 50% fees scholarships for their MA (University of Wales) degrees. Further details can be found here.

The scheme offers a number of unique advantages.

Firstly, in terms of content, the course requires a series of modules and a 20,000-word thesis. Maybe you would prefer to attend a Reformed or Baptist seminary, instead of a seminary that, like Trinity Theological Seminary, is fairly undefined in terms of theology. This scheme allows you to partner informally with a mentor of your choice to benefit from their pastoral and theological insights.

Secondly, in terms of cost, students in Ireland can benefit from the high value of euro against sterling as well as benefit from the scholarship: with the scholarship, fees for the entire MA would be no more than c. €2,500 (fees are charged in sterling at £2,050).

Thirdly, the MA degree is from the University of Wales. Don't confuse the Wales degrees with the in-house degrees also offered by Trinity Theological Seminary, though they can also be useful.

Maybe we in Ireland should be a little more creative about the kinds of pastoral training schemes we would want to see put in place in our churches. Pastoral training must be rooted in the life of the local church, and one-to-one mentoring is a biblical model of ministry training; but we also want training that is intellectually and spiritually demanding, and ideally without sending our men out of the country in which they are called to serve.

Might this scheme help us think about some of these possibilities?

(Closing date for applications is 3 October.)

RADIO ...

2008-09-20T20:26:00.002+01:00

Matthew Brennan, pastor of Clonmel Baptist Church, will be broadcasting on Tipp FM at 7am tomorrow morning. Listen in here.

APOLOGISING TO DARWIN

2008-09-15T16:00:00.001+01:00

Charles Darwin: 200 years from your birth, the Church of England owes you an apology for misunderstanding you and, by getting our first reaction wrong, encouraging others to misunderstand you still ...

Read more here.

c17th BAPTIST HISTORY LECTURES

2008-09-01T11:35:00.002+01:00

The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, which has just held its conference on "The English Baptists of the 17th Century," has posted MP3 recordings of the lectures here. Scroll down for Al Mohler on "The importance of Baptist confessionalism" and other gems.

Additionally, the latest issue of Eusebia - one of the finest historically-orientated Reformed or Baptist publications, is dedicated to the study of Andrew Fuller. You can find full details here.

J.N. DARBY CONFERENCE AT TRINITY

2008-08-27T10:31:00.002+01:00

Unfortunately it's on the same day as the Aontas pastoral ministry conference - but anyone with an interest in the Irish origins and development of dispensationalism would find this conference on J. N. Darby valuable. The conference is free, and is being planned to be held in Trinity College Dublin on Wednesday 17 September 2008.

CONFERENCE ON PASTORAL MINISTRY

2008-08-25T14:14:00.003+01:00

Aontas are organising a conference on pastoral ministry on Wednesday 17 September. The speaker for the day will be Pastor Robert McCollum (professor of Pastoral Theology at the Reformed Presbyterian seminary in Belfast and pastor in Lisburn).

The conference will be held in Grace Community Church, Church Street, Roscommon. The Conference will begin at 10.30am and finish at around 3.30pm.

Tea and coffee will be provided during the day and there are various options in the town for lunch. A collection will be taken up on the day to cover costs. Full details from the Aontas link on the left!

THOUGHTS OF AN AMERICAN TOURIST

2008-08-25T10:42:00.003+01:00

Michael Emadi, a student at the Midwest Center for Theological Studies, reflects on his recent trip to Ireland ...

Can a place be so beautiful and yet so barren? So full of life and yet dead?

Now I’m pretty sure that six weeks in Ireland does not qualify me to make any real authoritative statements on the country itself or its religious state but in my brief time there the answers to the above questions appear to be ‘yes.’ Ireland is absolutely gorgeous and extremely green (40 shades - or so I’m told)! Yet in the midst of one of the most striking places God has created there seem to be few who actually know Him. The paucity of good Christian churches (let alone Reformed Baptist churches) is not only an indication of where the country currently is as a whole but is also evidence of great possibility in the future. From talking with many people during my stay in Ireland, the historical connection between the authority of the Roman Catholic Church and the people of Ireland has somewhat diminished.

Yet no man is without religion, one cannot be a-religious. For some (and from what I understand the number seems to be increasing very rapidly) the traditional religion of Roman Catholicism is being replaced by the religion of Secularistic Materialism. Despite this fact, this climate may be just what Ireland needs for the seed of the gospel to grow. I cannot help but think of Blaise Pascal’s words whenever I hear of countries becoming more secular and more materialistic (including my own country) when he said, “There once was in man a true happiness of which now remain to him only the mark and empty trace, which he in vain tries to fill from all his surroundings, seeking from things absent the help he does not obtain in things present. But these are all inadequate, because the infinite abyss can only be filled by an infinite and immutable object, that is to say, only by God Himself.”

I thank God for the work that is going on in Ireland to help spread the “light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Cor 4:4). I enjoyed my short stay and the Lord willing would like to go back again. I want to thank everyone in Clonmel and Dundalk for their kindness and hospitality. May God bless you all abundantly more than you could ask. May God continue to carry out His purpose through the death of His Son in saving sinners “from every tribe and tongue and people and nation” (Rev 5:9).

BRUSHING UP ON GREEK

2008-08-25T09:21:00.003+01:00

There are lots of resources now to help those of us who have only a smattering of New Testament Greek develop in our language skills. One of my recent purchases has been the Zondervan Reader's Greek New Testament - a most useful little edition, despite its eccentric textual base. If you look at this PDF of a sample page you'll immediately see its main benefit: the RGNT footnotes handy definitions of every word that occures on fewer than 30 occasions. In other words, if you've gone through first-year Greek with a grammar similar to Mounce's, and have thereby learned every word that occurs on 50 or more occasions, you're only a short step away from being able to pick up this edition, pour yourself a cup of coffee, and start actually reading the New Testament in its original language. (I see that there's also a Zondervan Old Testament in the same format - which uses a standard text. Sample pages here.)

And speaking of Mounce - he's posted his own lectures on his Greek textbook on the web at that excellent library of lectures, biblicaltraining.org. Check them out here.

WEEKEND ROUND-UP

2008-08-22T10:19:00.004+01:00

Some good news ... and some bad news.

Nine people were baptised in Laois Bible Fellowship Church last Lord's day. As in previous years, the fellowship had to use an outdoor swimming pool in Ballinakill - but this time were provided with what may have been the only dry lunchtime of the last ten days! Remember to pray for those who have taken this momentous step in Christian discipleship.

The Mission::Ireland conference website has recently posted MP3 versions of the sermons delivered at the conference in Abbeyleix in June 2008. Click here for details.

If you are interested in the Irish origins and worldwide impact of dispensational theology, don't miss this upcoming conference in Dublin.

Meanwhile, check out this disturbing article on the end of British childhood: more British children live with a television in their bedroom than live with their biological father.

CHRISTIAN HYMNS MP3 DVD

2008-08-17T16:39:00.004+01:00

Some would say that these are dark days indeed for lovers of the older hymns. Yet, in some respects you never had it so good. There's a wealth of resources on the web that open up a whole new world. For example, now, when you remember a line but can't remember which hymn it's in, you can Google it - and find it instantly. You can quickly discover the history of hymns and their writers. You can dig up midi files of hymns - which you can manipulate in all sorts of ways. For example, if, like me, you can play by ear but not read music, you can open the file in a music editing program and see which notes are pressed, and pause it, slow it down, raise the key it's played in etc - or just listen to it and play it any way you like!

And - you can download lots of audio files of choirs singing hymns that are out of copyright free - in many different languages.

But what if you're not into the web? Not everyone has broadband. Well, if you have access to a computer, here is an excellent product I purchased recently.

The Christian Hymns Mp3 edition is an electronic version of the recent edition of Christian Hymns. You get an electronic book in pdf format which you can read on your computer - (or ipod touch if you have access to a little application called Datacase - but that's another story)

Having it in electronic format enables you to search for particular lines etc - something that was hugely difficult in the old days. But that's not all! On each page (and there are over 900!) - you can click a little button to hear the whole hymn played on a piano. Furthermore, because they are high-quality mp3 rather than midi format, you can load them onto your ipod. You can also hook a computer up to speakers in church and click the button if your normal piano player is getting too big for his boots :). The whole hymn is played and every page has an mp3 associated with it.

So far I've put about 20 onto my ipod. I did have a bit of trouble with a hymn called "I'll Praise My Maker". I understand it's pretty well known but it was never sung in any circles I moved in. I had the words and I had the tune but I just couldn't match them up. I was so curious that I looked in every music hymn book I could find. It was generally there but the words and music were always on a separate page. Despite what I just said about the web, it was no help at all. Finally, I found one with the words written directly under the score - mystery solved! The hymn has quite a history and some readers might think it odd that I've been a Christian for 28 years and can't remember ever hearing or singing it. Such are the times!

You can purchase the DVD from Evangelical Press - by the way - it's not a DVD video - it's on a DVD disk because there's about 4 gigs of data on it - as I said, the mp3 quality is higher that usual so the files are quite large.

Paul (Tippfellowship)