Midweek Meeting June 29 2022

It's a paradox I guess but when there are a lot of thigs to pray for  - and there certainly were last night, then it can be a good prayer time as people have plenty to prayer for and hopefully do. That seems to have been what happened last night as we prayed for the sick and injured, those with work issues, our missionaries, a family off to Italy to do a beach mission, etc. Before that, we looked at Philippians 2:14-16, always a challenging section.

10 Ways the Bible refers to faith as noted by Thomas Charles

Thomas Charles wrote a letter in 813 in which he explained faith to a correspondent by saying

"... Last spring I gave our young people for their exercise, to find out all the names given to faith in the Scriptures. And they set about it, and laboured hard, and at last brought to me seventy-one names given to this grace in the Bible. They learnt all the Scriptures, and repeated them publicly twice in our chapel. I must confess I was most highly gratified and edified; and I believe, received more light upon this important subject than from all the authors I have ever read: and the effect still continues sweetly on my mind ..." Here are ten of those he mentions

1. Believing God
2. Believing in the Son of God
3. Coming to Christ
4. Receiving Christ
5. Building upon him
6. Resting under his shadow
7. Casting all our cares upon him
8. Committing our way unto the Lord
9. Taking hold of his strength
10. Believing the word/Receiving the word

(He mentions many others such as Seeing the glory of Christ, Looking unto Christ, &c. &c)

Day Off Week 26 2022

I decided on my latest day off to head to our nearest Leon, where I had lunch. Near the restaurant is a Waterstones and I picked up a book on eugenics by Adam Rutherford which i more or less finished. I also read Derek Thomas's helpful new book on worship. In the evening we watched the final episodes of the BBC's latest detective drama Sherwood.

Lord's Day June 26 2022

Numbers were down but there were encouragements last Sunday. A Korean couple we have not seen in ages were back and an Afghani lady and her son came along. I do hope they will join us. Our family from Malawu were there again. There was also an American missionary normally in Senegal but currently recuperating from illness and staying with members of the church. I preached from the beginning of Luke 11 on prayer and from Micah 3 to a very small number indeed.

London Seminary Thanksgiving 2022

It was great to be at the London Seminary after such a long break last Saturday. The chairman was Reuben Danladi and the preacher was FIEC Director John Stevens. Bill James the Principal gave an encouraging report. Some ten students were leaving after having done the course over various lengths of times. (Curiously, each of the students was applauded - not sure that has happened before). Most will now start in posts in Britain. There were also two Italians about to begin church planting in very needy situations. I was sorry not to be able to hang around to chat in the sunshine. I had a family function to attend.

Midweek Meeting June 22 2022

It was very hot yesterday and I struggled in various ways but dragged myself to the screen for yesterday's midweek meeting. People were a little slow to pray too. You never know quite what is going on. At least it is a reminder to be more prayerful,

Day Off Week 25 2022

With all those books recently acquired, I thought that it was right that I spend the bulk of my day off on reading. I love the eighteenth century and I really enjoyed the new biography of Thomas Charles by Eryl Davies and Michael Haykin's excellent new book Iron sharpens Iron looking at the matter of friendship with a special emphasis on eighteenth century Baptists. I found it a very stimulating read. I enjoyed Eryl Davies's book too (a little more substantial then Jonathan Thomas's little book) and it has whetted my appetite for the yet more substantial John Aaron biography. (Three biographies in one year!). What good books these days.

Lord's Day June 19 2022

This last Lord's Day was a happy one with good congregations morning and evening. We had some old friends, former members, which was nice. We had communion in the evening. I preached on Mary and Martha in the morning and then on Micah 2 in the evening. I had to do some preparing in the afternoon after the busy week but I think I made the right decision. The last verse of Micah 2 is a clear Messianic prophecy but I am not that familiar with it I confess.

Books recently acquired

Having been to two conferences last week and it was Father's Day yesterday I have acquired a lot of books recently. Just the reading of them now. I was particularly struck at receiving a book called Fifth Sun from my fifth son (I think my fourth son put him on to it).

10 Puritan Types of Application

The Puritans were famous for the way they ordered their sermons, beginning with exposition of the text and establishment of the doctrine before coming to the application, which they called the use. They had several categories of use, as listed here.

1. Use of instruction or information
2. Use of doctrine
3. Use of confutation
4. Use of exhortation
5. Use of admonition
6. Use of reproof or reprehension
7. Use of comfort or consolation
8. Use of trial or examination (self-examination)
9. Use of lamentation or mourning
10. Use of dehortation (dissuasion)

Westminster Conference 2021 Print Version

I note that the papers from the conference at the end of last year are now in print. There are eight papers altogether as we have included the two online papers from 2020 on Luther and Bellarmine. The final paper is the printed version of my own on Benjamin Beddome. It reads okay, with only two or three of the most minor of typos. Well done John Harris.

Newton House Conference 2022 Day 2

After a night in a nearby hotel (no votes for a noisy soapless room and poor Travelodge - one redeeming feature the TV on which I caught again the close of the episode of Sanditon, featuring Julie Fowlis!) I proceeded to day 2 of the conference. It was quite a trek out there but I had a lift back from Ulsterman Martin McNeely. This was a truncated counterpart to the previous day. We began again with singing and then there were live sessions either side of coffee with Americans Phil Ryken and Bradley Green. Dr Ryken looked at Thomas Boston's Fourfold State in light of the conference theme an had lots of interesting things to say. it was useful to be reminded that Boston like the other Puritans
put the mind first rather than the will but was very much aware of the affections. Dr Green's paper on affections and the knowledge of God was more wide ranging beginning in the Bible (including several interesting proverbs) moving on to Augustine and Pascal and including Nietzsche. Both papers were followed by useful question and answer sessions. Lovely to meet so many friends old and new.

There was an extra afternoon session of questions and answers with Dr Green but I thought I'd better head home. Filling the week with conference material has been interesting. I'm quite stimulated. We'll see if it has really worked tomorrow, I guess.

Newton House Conference 2022 Day 1

After missing a lot of conferences during the pandemic I thought I might be able to squeeze in two this week and early on Friday morning I headed down to Victoria and caught the Oxford Tube to be in St Aldate's for the Newton House Conference. We are not a large number, around thirty or so. As I expected there were some familiar faces and plenty I did not know and some sort of between.

We began with singing. We then had a good first paper from Mike Reeves introduicing the conference theme - the importance of the affections. The second half of the morning was exposition from John 14 by Clive Bowsher on the important theme of union with Christ.

We then and seminar options and I listened to Rob Brewis on Handley Mouule and Nick Abraham zooming from Ohio on Andrew Fuller's use of John Owen. Both very informative.

Our final session of the day was again online where we had a very helpful outline of the Sandemanian controversy and Fuller's reaction to it by Michael Haykin. Very helpful indeed.

There was plenty of opportunity for questions and I asked my fair share. Nice to interact with others. Most are Masters or doctoral students but involved in ministry too. Appreciated more free books and to buy a few others.

Several then had a meal together and a short tour of Oxford before I headed for my bed. Great day. Lots to ponder.

PS I should have mentioned that we had a brief video greeting from Gwenfair Adams in the US

Midweek Meeting June 15 2022

Because the conference was only half an hour away and finished at 4 pm, it was good to be able to speak at the prayer meeting (on Philippians 2:9-11) and lead the meeting on zoom. We are down to a basic 10 or so these day but most prayed. We were praying for a sick missionary from Africa in London and staying with members (see here) and a little girl in the congregation who had a fall the other day and is having dental treatment, among many other things.

IPC Catalyst Conference Day 3

Our final day was inevitably unable to top the previous two days but the standard was still excellent. It has grown hotter by the day and despite the kind supply of lollipops that has brought its challenges. Sinclair Ferguson spoke on knowing Christ from Philippians 3, again very helpful. I have heard him speak of the conversion of Paul before but it was good to hear again. I don't think I have heard the rich young ruler allusion before. John Landry Cruse spoke on our response in worship - the importance of being there, of leaning in and then on singing. Good stuff. (I liked his two hymns that we sang.) After lunch (yet another pizza I confess) we had Jonty Rhodes on Christ the King who triumphed over sin, Satan and death and now rules over the church and the world. The final session was from Simon Arscott on church polity. He began with Isaiah 9:6 and did well on the whole, although for me as a Baptist, it seemed he rather assumed the meaning of Acts 15 and ruling elders. Thomas Witherow gives Independents a three out of six apparently in his recently republished book (one of several given away at the conference). I think he was being mean there and we could take a four or a five. Presbyterians meanwhile probably only deserve a theoretical six.

So great three days of conference - mind stretching and warm (in every sense). Loved the opportunity to speak with attendees - mostly Baptist and Welshmen but not exclusively. Many thanks to the organisers. I plane to back next year, God willing.

PS The videos of the conference are up. See here.

IPC Catalyst Conference Day 2

On day 2 it was  slightly hotter but the same sort of programme was followed. We began with Sinclair Ferguson again, on the mind of Christ from Philippians 2. Soul stirring stuff. Jonathan Landry Cruse, our new friend from Kalamazoo spoke helpfully on the content of worship, advocating plenty of reading and preaching and calling for a return to the practice of reading the commandments, confession and absolution and the use of the benediction. This was stimulating, although I see the danger of getting bound to a formal liturgy. After lunch it was Jonty Rhodes again with a very full exposition of the priesthood of Christ. The final session, from David Gibson, was difficult to sit through in some ways but worth hearing. It was on baptism from a Presbyterian point of view. A former credobaptist Mr Gibson spoke with the fervency of a convert. He was willing more or less to concede that the Greek word does mean baptism and that there were no children involved in the household baptisms in the New testament. I thought his most telling point was that Acts is not normative, which removes much baptism. I notice, like others, that it was when children came along that he and his wife became Presbyterians. It is not unusual to come across poorly taught Baptists who are won over at such a time. If our friends had known that their children were sanctified by dint of being born into a Christian home (1 Corinthians 7:14) they may not have bothered with the water, perhaps. Anyway good to know how Presbyterians see it.

IPC Catalyst Conference Day 1

Great first day in Ealing for the Catalyst conference. Four messages. First a superlative one from Sinclair Ferguson on the affection of Christ. Then a helpful assertion of the truth of the fact that God is present when we gather to worship from American opc minister Jonathan Landry Cruse. Then after lunch Jonty Rhodes spoke on Christ as prophet and Jonny Gibson on the Sabbath. The latter was particularly tightly argued and convincing. Looking forward to tomorrow.

Lord's Day June 12 2022

This last Lord's day we had a meal together in church. There were about thirty of us. I preached in the morning on the Good Samaritan and in the evening I began a new series on Micah. Numbers were low and I understand that giving is down too. Nothing it seems will get some people along. I don't think many are tuning in on zoom either. We are in great need, I fear. One encouragement a new family from southern Africa.

Midweek Meeting June 8 2022

About 11 of us tonight at the meeting on zoom. We looked at the first half of the great hymn in Philippian two and prayed. Good time.

Day Off Week 23

 

Behind with this but had a nice fay off last Tuesday. I had to fit in a pastoral visit but the rest of the day was very day offish. I collected tablets from the chemist, had a coffee and read some Mayor of Casterbridge and began listening to set of Suzanne Vega CDs I had for my birthday. Also plenty of TV - a French crime drama I am watching. I also began sorting out a filing cabinet I have full of various items. I burned a pile of bills and bank statements from the nineties in the garden.

2 Willow Road, the British Museum, etc

Last week was half term here and so things were a little different with visits from my oldest son and his family (five of them all week) the other two married sons (3 in each family, half a week each). My youngest son lives with us and the other couldn't make it. We also got to see Eleri's two sisters and husbands plus one nephew and her father and his wife, briefly. Hectic week then. Colds and hay fever didn't help.

On treat was going with Rhodri my oldest to see 2 Willow Road in Hampstead (he is a fully paid up NT member). A volunteer guide showed us around the modernist house, built in the thirties by Goldfinger and very interesting it was. Great to have it all explained. It made you appreciate it more. It felt a little like a school but one could imagine living there quite happily. World's smallest kitchen (they're all designed by men).

We also got a good look at the British Museum's Egypt section and had a look at Cleopatra's Needle more by accident than design.

Great to see the kids enjoying themselves in the water outside the Royal Festival Hall.

Lord's Day June 5 2022

I was very tired yesterday - a combination of late nights, hay fever and a bit of a cold, I guess. In such situations you just need to press on. I also took a two hour nap in the afternoon.  We began with communion and then I preached on three great sayings of Jesus from Luke 10:21-24. In the evening we looked at the second part of Psalm 18, which is full of good things. Numbers were quite low but several were happy to hang around chatting. It's up hill work at the moment.

In Writing 139 now out

 

The latest edition of the magazine of the Evangelical Library is now out.

Midweek Meeting June 1 2022

We were a good number on zoom this week for the midweek meeting. We looked at the opening verses of Philippians 2 and then prayed. Most people took part.

Lord's Day May 29 2022

Last Friday we headed to Marlborough where we had a lovely night and a bit in Marlborough, a fascinating place where we'd never been. We then headed to Avebury and had a look at the stones. Great moment as we came round a roundabout in Avebury and the car in front had the registration number AV58URY. we were then in Trowbridge with Eleri's sister and family as I was preaching in Hilperton the next day. We also popped into see our friends Benjamin and Diana and their girls. Benjamin is assistant at Bradford on Avon. Good day in Hilperton. I preached on the end of Luke 9 and on Jude 20, 21. Nice to see the congregation growing again.