Editorial from May 2023 newsletter: The Church of England’s abandonment of biblical authority demonstrates captivity to secular culture; re-setting of the Anglican Communion now an urgent priority, says the Kigali Commitment
Resources
God’s Word gives a better account of what is going on in the world’s obsession with identity than the world can give of itself. At the heart of the secular narrative is a desire to control one’s destiny.
Editorial from April 2023 Newsletter: The aim should be that the biblically orthodox within the Anglican Communion should be structurally differentiated from those who advocate a different gospel. This means, in practical terms, a convergence of Gafcon and GSFA, so it would be good to see moves towards this goal in Kigali.
Christian views aren’t seen as merely false but dangerous – our opinions no longer worth considering but rather in need of silencing.
Gafcon’s foundational document from 2008 remains powerful, prophetic and relevant today as faithful Anglicans seek to “proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations”
This book considers two questions of utmost importance and relevance:
“How can churches stay healthy and dynamic over the long term?”
“What’s needed to avoid or reverse church stagnation and decline?”
The root of the crisis in the Western church is different views on the reality of God and his plans for the cosmos. Keeping in mind the future return of Christ, and the present miracle of the real, faithful, spiritual (rather than institutional) Church, is an important antidote to secularism.
A frequently heard testimony from many white, Western Anglicans attending previous global Gafcon gatherings, is a discovery for the first time of a rich diversity of cultural expression within a shared unity based on a biblical world view and agreed understanding of the gospel.
Regardless of whether one likes football the 2022 World Cup in Qatar cannot have gone unnoticed. While some Christians, concerned about social justice issues, chose to personally boycott the tournament, others saw it as an opportunity for evangelism. The Jerusalem Declaration recognises the vital importance of both evangelism and social justice in the Church’s mission.
This is a book for our times when the church is confronted by the pressures of a secular society as it examines its affirmation of the truths of the Bible.
Our teaching and our lives must reflect that:
“…we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery – but I am talking about Christ and the church”.
Ephesians 5:30-31.
At Advent we remember how Christ comes as Saviour to deal with our unfaithfulness which causes separation; he will come again as the bridegroom to claim his bride.
What is an Anglican? The Jerusalem Declaration focusses on affirming bible-based Christian faith shared with all true churches but in clauses 6 and 7 sets out concisely some Anglican distinctives.
The church must proclaim the reality of the unique Christian world view.
Reading and listening to many of the comments about the late Queen Elizabeth, it was noticeable that her Christian faith was mentioned repeatedly – and by the secular media, not just evangelical churches.
The Anglican Church has always reflected the character of the early church. A movement with mission in its DNA, creative in methods and adaptive to different cultures around the world. And yet, settled and at home in shared faith in Christ based on the Scriptures and shared traditions of order and polity – where the church has come from and how it is governed.
Authentic Anglican faith affirms the inspiration, authority and sufficiency of Scripture, and notes the need in every generation to interpret and proclaim its message of salvation faithfully and carefully.
Gafcon aims to “make disciples of all nations and to build up the church on the foundation of biblical truth". The energy that drove the formation of Gafcon in 2008 came from a protest of righteous anger against injustice and wrongdoing, and against a lie originating in human philosophy infiltrating and endangering the church. The Jerusalem Statement, of which the Declaration forms the main part, talks about the crisis facing world Anglicanism.
The raising of the dead is a demonstration of a principle or pattern by which God operates in and through his people in a sinful world under judgement. God wants us to trust him for a turnaround in our circumstances and those we are praying for, practical as well as spiritual: something of the final glorious salvation of the future coming through to the present.
The greatest, most important miracle in history is the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. The truth claims and credibility of Christianity down the ages, as well as the personal faith of millions in a risen Saviour, depend on the fact that Jesus really died, was buried, his tomb sealed and guarded securely, but then by God’s power, broke free, and was seen, heard and touched physically by hundreds of people
“Difficulties are going to come…we must go through a time of weeping and seeking the Lord…we have an apostolic commission to take the gospel to the world…the gospel is not just a statement, it is God’s promises of what has happened and what will happen for the salvation of the world…”
Sing…because the days are evil. Standing firmly on God’s word, we can turn to praise and thanksgiving with music, rejoicing in our fellowship with brothers and sisters around the world who are pursuing the wisdom of God’s revealed will and praising him, even in difficult circumstances.