I have been meditating lately on Jesus’ instruction to his followers "to go and make disciples" “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you”. Matthew 28:19,20. In particular … Continue reading Discipleship – Beyond Conversion
Cheap Grace and the Dumbing Down of Sin
The term ‘Cheap Grace’ was coined by the German pastor Deitrich Bonhoeffer. He was a man who sought to oppose the Nazis in World War 2 and paid for it with his life, being executed by them tragically only a few days before the war ended. Bonhoeffer defined cheap grace as: “Cheap grace is the … Continue reading Cheap Grace and the Dumbing Down of Sin
‘System Failure!’
A recent headline to an article by Paul Kelly of the ‘Australian' newspaper caught my eye. It read- “Broken System Can't Fix the Nations Problems" Of course Kelly was referring to what he calls the "failure in Australia's political system". However I think paraphrasing Kelly’s title a little to “Broken System Can't Fix the Churches … Continue reading ‘System Failure!’
When Church Gets in the Way of the Kingdom
It comes as a great shock to many church members that Jesus rarely used the word ‘Church’, basically only twice. Once when referring to the ‘Rock’ (himself) on which he would build the spiritual eternal community of those who become disciples (Matt. 16:18). A second time when giving guidelines on how to deal with discipline … Continue reading When Church Gets in the Way of the Kingdom
More Straws in the Wind
From time to time it is possible to detect what I call ‘straws blowing in the winds’ of Australian church life. These are indicators of the health, vitality and growth, or otherwise, of the Australian church. Some more ‘straws’ have become evident recently in reports submitted to the recent three yearly General Synod of the … Continue reading More Straws in the Wind
unbounded church 