Midweek meeting June 3 2015

So it was back to Philippians last night. We looked at the first three verses of Chapter 4. 4:1 in many ways concludes Chapter 3. I notice that the old NIV sets it out in that way but the new NIV puts verses 1-3 together under their own section as I did. It seemed to me that Paul is speaking very personally in these verses and so I sought to speak very personally too about standing firm and being united and working together, pastor and people. As ever there were a stack of things to pray for and we did our best. 

Cheap at the Pryce

I availed myself of the opportunity of seeing The Merchant of Venice down at The Globe on Tuesday (still only a fiver in the yard). It stars Jonathan Pryce and his daughter Phoebe as Shylock and his daughter Jessica. Their surname gives just one tiny extra layer to a play full of interesting ideas about property and wealth and cost. I was not really familiar with the play and so it was good to see, especially in this well executed performance. Though a tragedy (I assume) there was plenty of comedy and all done very well, especially by Stefan Agdebola as Lancelot. The programme notes explain that this is really two stories (that of the Jew Shylock and that of Portia) sewn together. It's not that well done really but Shakespeare is able to give the audience what they want and get away with some quite amazing stunts in the mean time. As ever there are famous phrases (The devil can cite scripture for his purpose; all that glisters is not gold) and speeches and it is good to hear them in their proper context. I did not know that Shylock's question "If you prick us, do we not bleed?" is followed by "if you tickle us, do we not laugh?". The speech beginning "The quality of mercy is not strain'd,: It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven" really is quite something.

Evangelical Library Lecture 2015

It was great to be at the annual lecture last Monday. It was good to have so many along (around 40 I guess) and to hear such an excellent lecture. We had originally asked Dr Peter Beale to speak but he has been struggling with ill health and so had to decline, although it was nice to see he and his wife Lucy at the meeting. Dr Digby James kindly stepped in late on but was able to give us a well informed and informative and interesting life of Richard Baxter, who was born in 1615 (and died in 1691) bringing out very well both his strengths (his work in Kidderminster, his eagerness for Christian unity, etc) and weaknesses (some of his doctrinal views) and some of his idiosyncrasies. There was alkso a helpful section on his writings. A recording was made of the lecture and can be had from the Library. We hope to publish the lecture in the next In Writing in the Autumn.

Lord's Day May 31 2015

Every Sunday is different at Childs Hill. Fifth Sundays are perhaps more different than others. We had a good turn out in the morning though we were quite low in the evening. There were a five or six regulars away for various reasons. We had hopefully encouraging sermons that sort of matched. I am not planning to begin a new series in the morning until after the summer so we looked at Psalm 73 in the morning, which I know best from Dr Lloyd-Jones's book The Triumph of Faith. I didn't check out Lloyd-Jones to remind myself of his approach but I'm sure it is there subliminally. In the evening we looked at worrying from the Sermon on the Mount. Previously I have gone through verses 25-34 over two or three weeks but it seemed better to take it all in one go. I ended up quoting three pop songs for some reason (Three little birds, Hands and One day at a time sweet Jesus). I would not be happy with any of those songs but each has snippets of truth - Don't worry about a thing, worry is wasteful and the need to live one day at a time.

West Kilburn 150

It was good to be at West Kilburn Baptist Church today for their 150th anniversary services (their building is five years older than ours but I think the work in Childs Hill actually began 1863). Peter Law the present pastor chaired, the previous pastor Paul Pease preached (above) and several others gave testimony and prayed. There was also a bit of the history and a lovely tea to follow.

Retro Album of the Week 21 - Play To Win

Getting a bit out of kilter with this series I guess, but we'll do our best to catch up. Play to win is the fourth studio album by the British singer Gabrielle. It came out in 2004. Gabrielle co-wrote all the tracks. It was not generally liked I fear (too much country and not enough soul, perhaps) but I got on very well with it as did many others. Gabrielle has a great voice and I find the way this album is arranged and produced most satisfying (especially the acoustic guitar). I particularly liked Latchkey Kid and Tumbling down. The War Of Two Minds, Give & Take and Play To win also stand out.

Midweek Meeting May 27 2015

As it is half term this week I thought I would take a break from Philippians and look at 2 Corinthians 5:16, a verse that has been on my mind a lot recently. We worked through what it is to regard Christ in a worldly and in a spiritual way and then with regard to others. I hope it was helpful. We had a good time of prayer to follow and most people prayed. 

Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter is one of those books you hear about from time to time. I'd never read it but I eventually got round to it the other week. The lead in is a little long winded but Hawthorne wants to root you in his present before taking you back to yesteryear and a very different New England. I had always assumed that scarlet letter referred to a letter written in red ink, which is not the case. It is a little anti-puritan but I enjoyed the book as it is well written, the story well told and very human and with a little whiff of the mysterious, which is both true to life and makes for interesting reading. I'm glad to have it read (no pun there).

As You Like It

I went down to The Globe this afternoon to see As you like it. As ever, it was very well done. AYLI is one of my favourite Shakespeare plays, probably because I first studied it in school. A number of words I first encountered in that context I believe. The seven ages of man and the varying speeds of time speeches are rightly famous and it was good to have them in context again plus "laid on with a trowel", "sweet are the uses of adversity", "forever and a day", etc. The tap dancing was okay for a play that is part way a musical (al that side being done very well) but I don't see the point of introducing modern items (an OS map, sunglasses, a thermos flask, a bicycle, etc) when such efforts have been made to get back to Shakespeare's own times. The parts are shared out fairly equally and no-one shone. Perhaps they could have got more humour out of it. I fear some material was cut.

Theology with Mike Reeves

I've recently read Mike Reeves two Paternoster books The good God and Christ our life. I read the first (which is subtitled, on Father, Son and Spirit) on my kindle and the second in traditional format. Both books are written in a racy but highly theological style that makes good use of past masters. The books are illustrated throughout and certain sections are placed in separate panels, which all adds to the delight of the experience. These books have now been published in America by IVP as Delighting in the Trinity and Rejoicing in Christ. Not everyone copes so well with this fresh approach but it is good to know that a fresh voice is articulating ancient truth in the modern vernacular.

Lord's Day May 24 2015

Having come to the end of the series on 1 Corinthians I thought I'd preach a one off on Psalm 23 in the morning. It is always a good place to come back to. One reason I was glad I had was that it is the anniversary of the death of one of our members. I had forgotten but here widower reminded me afterwards. In the evening I carried on in the Sermon on the Mount, looking at the dangers of wealth. It 's such a challenging subject. The day went off quite well but was marked by several slip ups o my part. In the morning I almost forgot the collection for some reason but remembered before the sermon. By the evening I had managed to send the kindle I use to Cardiff and so had to return home and print it off on paper. We also had our monthly prayer meeting for the children's work before the evening meeting.

Five foot types

Evangelistic Preaching

I picked up a copy of Roger Carswell's new book, Evangelistic Preaching at the conference (thanks John). It is a beautifully produced book - hardback in a lovely blue colour with a few graphics and clear print. The print could have been slightly bigger perhaps but they wanted it short which it is - only just over 70 pages. In five chapters Carswell the evangelist simply urges and encourages more evangelistic preaching inside our buildings and out with lots of helpful advice and quotations on the way (from Wiersbe, Stott and others). After speaking of the need he looks at preaching Christ, manifesting love, being creative, connecting and expecting results. Good stuff. I was slightly surprised but pleased to find this quotation from John Stott on pages 28 and 29.

 

I constantly find myself wishing that we twentieth century preachers could learn to weep again. But either our tear-springs have dried up, or our tear-ducts have become blocked. Everything seems to conspire together to make it impossible for us to cry over lost sinners who throng the broad road which leads to destruction. Some preachers are so preoccupied with the joyful celebration of salvation that they never think to weep over those who are rejecting it. Others are being deceived by the devil's lie of universalism. Everybody will be saved in the end, they say, and nobody will be lost. Their eyes are dry because they have closed them to the reality of eternal  death and outer darkness of which both Jesus and His Apostles spoke. Yet others are faithful in warning sinners of hell, but do so with a glib and even a sick pleasure, which are almost more terrible than the blindness of those who ignore or deny its reality.

Slogging along

Slogging along in the paths of righteousness by Dale Ralph Davis is Davis's apparently unplanned follow up to The Way of the Righteous in the Muck of Life. The first book covers Psalms 1-12 and the second Psalms 13-24. Both books give around 10-12 pages to each Psalm, beginning with Davis's own careful translation and characterised by his usual mix of gentle scholarship, playful language, brilliant illustrations, judicious quotations and helpful applications. I am far from being alone in recognising what a great gift Dr Davis is to God's people. Another 10 books like this would be most welcome. The only problem I can see is with titles and special effects for the covers (for the first we had slightly raised mud splashes which I did try to rub off and this second has colour in a black and white photo). How about Trudging the Lord's ways through the sludge of reality and using a black and white colour split effect (as below)?

 

10 People who died at the age of 56

1. Abraham Lincoln
2. Adolf Hitler
3. Rik Mayall
4. Steve Jobs
5. Joseph Mohr
6. Josephus
7. King George VI
8. Roger Miller (musician)
9. Phil Chevron (The Pogues)
10. Billy Powell (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
(Sobering as ever)