The Record - April 2019 by Free Church of Scotland

THE

RECORD

MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF THE FREE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND APRIL 2019 • £2.00

Editor • Rev. David A Robertson The Editor, The Record, St Peter’s Free Church, 4 St Peter Street, Dundee, DD1 4JJ 07825 748752 drobertson@freechurch.org News Editor • Dayspring MacLeod dayspring.macleod@icloud.com 07974 261567 Missions News • Mrs Sarah Johnson Free Church Offices, 15 North Bank Street, Edinburgh, EH1 2LS sarah@freechurch.org WFM Editor • Sarah Cumming 31 Doune Park, Dalgety Bay, KY11 9LX sarah.cumming@hotmail.co.uk Gaelic Editor • Janet MacPhail 24 North Bragar, Isle of Lewis, HS2 9DA 01851 710354 Seminary News • Rev. Thomas Davis St. Columba's Free Church, Johnston Terrace Edinburgh, EH1 2PW thomas@stcolumbas.freechurch.org CHARITY REGISTERED IN SCOTLAND SCO48111

Prayer Diary • Mrs Mairi Macdonald ian.macdonald57@btinternet.com Design & Layout • Fin Macrae @DUFI Art www.dufi-art.com The Record • ISSN 2042-2970

Advertising • Anyone wishing to advertise in The Record should contact the editor. For Subscriptions • The annual subscription price for The Record is £33. Cheques should be made payable to: Free Church of Scotland. Please contact the offices for overseas subscription costs. Details of the church's activities, latest news and people to contact are all available on the church's website: www.freechurch.org

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Cover: Photo by Myicahel Tamburini from Pexels

Published • The Record is produced by The Free Church of Scotland, Free Church Offices, 15 North Bank Street, The Mound, Edinburgh, EH1 2LS 0131 226 5286 offices@freechurch.org

WELCOME TO THE APRIL RECORD

CONTENTS

hat’s the point of having a denominational

Is it not the case that magazines are out of fashion anyway? Who reads it? Why not just put everything online? Is it not a waste of money and resources? These are good questions which deserve answers. The purpose of a church magazine is to provide news and information about the church — so that it acts as a window to those outside as well as informing those within. It is also to act as a window to the culture for those within the church — helping us to think about what is going on in the world from a biblical perspective. The Record exists for both those purposes. A well written, designed and produced magazine is a great advert for the Church and for the Gospel. That is what we aim to be. We want a ‘coffee table’ magazine that members of the Church would be proud to give to their family, friends and workmates — something that you could leave on your coffee table at home, in the dentists or doctors surgery, the staff room or work canteen. Another purpose is to encourage a sense of unity and common purpose within the Church. You may not know about the new church plant in Stirling — this month you will learn something about that. This will hopefully then encourage you to pray, give and even visit. It’s also good to hear about individuals within the church — for example, Bob Akroyd’s well deserved award for his work. And then we need to be challenged to think about doctrine, practice and culture. The Record does not exist to provide simplistic and clichéd answers to complex questions, rather we want to encourage people to think biblically about these issues. And of course the magazine exists more than anything to get people to think about and worship our triune God — Father, Son and Holy Spirit. At the end of the day everything we do as Christians should be for Christ. Ultimately the purpose of The Record is to point to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. As for why print? There are a significant number of the population who do not have access to the Internet. Besides which, a physical magazine is much more a thing of beauty than an internet one and is easier to read. Certainly take advantage of the fact that The Record is online, but if you can, buy two copies — one for yourself and one to give away… Keep sending in your news and views! • magazine?

PARENTS — TAKE BACK CONTROL

FREE CHURCH NEWS

PRAYER DIARY

HATE CRIME CONSULTATION Dr. Stuart Waiton

ETS NEWS

SUPPORT FOR MINISTERS AND THEIR FAMILIES Alex MacDonald

LETTERS

CHURCH DEVELOPMENT AND REVITALISATION

A CHURCH PLANT IN STIRLING Iain MacAskill

ECCLESIASTES: LIVING IN THE SHADOWLANDS — IS THAT ALL?

A SUMMARY OF THE SERMON FOR MICHAEL GREEN'S FUNERAL Lindsay Brown

FREE CHURCH MINISTER BECOMES PRINCIPAL IN INDIAN OCEAN THEOLOGICAL INSTITUTE

MISSIONARY TRAINING PART 02 Shawna Williams

BOOK REVIEWS

STUDENT MINISTRY IN PARIS Susan Buchan

MISSION MATTERS David Meredith

GAELIC Janet MacPhail

POETRY PAGE William Wordsworth

POST TENEBRAS LUX Catriona Murray

See you next month, The Editor.

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You are a child in school attending a guidance class and are told by the teacher, ‘There are 73 different genders.’ When one of the pupils pointed out that there were two genders, they were laughed at by the rest of the class. This was not in a school in California, or Brighton. This was on the island of Lewis. And this is not unusual. Pupils all over the UK, including Scotland, are being indoctrinated in the latest sexual philosophy, known as Queer theory.

and respect? Besides which, the extent of homophobic and transphobic bullying has been greatly exaggerated. The “Ditch the Label’ annual bullying survey of 2017 says 50% have experienced bullying because of their appearance — but only 4% because of sexuality and 3% because of gender identity. These are the least important categories for bullying. 91% of teachers say they have never or rarely seen transphobic bullying (81% for homosexual bullying). But on the basis of self-selecting surveys from Stonewall and other LGBT advocacy groups the government pour large sums of money into these groups in order to help them propagate their doctrines. It pays Stonewall and others to exaggerate the extent of bullying.

CLEAR MUSLIMS Not everyone agrees; some people are resisting. When Parkside Community school in Birmingham sought to impose a sex education/relationships programme entitled ‘No Outsiders’, it was so strongly opposed by the parents that it had to be withdrawn. This was because the majority of parents are Muslim. I was impressed by how articulate and reasoned the Muslim spokespeople were — despite the desperate attempt by the UK media to portray them as homophobic bigots. Now another four Muslim majority schools have also withdrawn the programme. Meanwhile in schools up and down the land, Christian parents are allowing their rights to be overridden and are meekly acquiescing in this new programme of state indoctrination. Ofsted have made it a priority to ensure that LGBTQI indoctrination is practiced in every school.

STATE SPONSORED CHILD ABUSE Under that guise they are now seeking to impose, with the full blessing of the government, a philosophy that is not only anti-Christian but is harmful to all children. It’s a form of child abuse to tell children that they can choose their own gender. One seven year girl from my church came home to her parents in tears, ‘Mummy, am I a boy or a girl? Because the teacher says I can choose.’ Another 14-year-old boy was told by his guidance teacher that he might be suffering from depression because he was a girl trapped in the wrong body. This is nothing but state sponsored child abuse. It is not a coincidence that mental distress amongst our children has increased exponentially in recent years. Serious eating disorders, self-harm and other forms of mental disorder, including GID (Gender Identity Disorder) are on the rise. The progressive activists have largely switched from gay issues to trans issues and as a result we are bombarded almost every day with endless stories about how gender is just a social construct and those who wish to change gender can do so just by self-identifying as whatever gender they wish. This, along with the use of the internet, has resulted in the Tavistock Clinic for gender reassignment being overwhelmed with the increase in children presenting with symptoms of gender distressed fluidity. The quiescent rate within the population which remained at 0.07% has in the last 9 years increased by a factor of 4,415 (from 40 in 2009/10 to 1806 in 2017/18).

CONFUSED CHRISTIANS Many Christian parents are confused about this because of the language that is used. After all we all want to live in world of ‘love’ where there are no outsiders and everyone is respected. We all deplore the idea of people being bullied. But we need to understand that under the Trojan horse of teaching tolerance and being against bullying, the LGBT activists are seeking to impose a sexual philosophy that is at its core both anti-Christian and harmful to humanity . BULLYING Take for example the threat of bullying. We all want to stop bullying but does that necessitate teaching Queer theory to our children? Would it not be better to deter bullying by teaching the biblical truth that all human beings are made in the image of God and are as such to be treated with dignity

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©monkeybusiness — stock.adobe.com

magine the scene.

Parents – Take Back Control BY THE EDITOR

European law states the same principle: ‘In the exercise of any functions which it assumes in relation to education and to teaching, the State shall respect the right of parents to ensure such education and teaching is in conformity with their own religious and philosophical convictions.’ (First Protocol, Article 2) Scottish law abides by the same principle. ‘... education authorities shall have regard to the general principle that, so far as is compatible with the provision of suitable instruction and training and the avoidance of unreasonable public expenditure, pupils are to be educated in accordance with the wishes of their parents.’ Section 28 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 Education authorities, under pressure from Stonewall and The Equality Network, do not have the right to undermine parents by taking away their right to have their children educated according to their religious and philosophical convictions. Even as I write this editorial, I am listening to Prime Minister’s Questions where, amongst other issues, the Prime Minister is answering a question put forward by a Labour spokesperson, stating that if parents want to be responsible for their children’s education on this issue they are bigots!

The UK governments proposed RSE programme is also a form of child grooming. “Child grooming is befriending and establishing an emotional connection with a child, and sometimes the family, to lower the child’s inhibitions with the objective of sexual abuse.” (NSPCC) Whilst I accept that this is not the intent of the government and the pressure groups putting this forward, it is the effective result. This sexual indoctrination of young children prepares them for early sexual experimentation, normalises it and, in so doing, opens the door for sexual predators. I was saddened to hear of a youth sex counsellor in my own city of Dundee handing out condoms to children as young as ten in a park near my home. What message does that convey? Grooming is also facilitated in many cases when there is a removal of parental authority and control. Remember that the new RSE is compulsory with no parental opt outs allowed. As of September 2020, Relationships Education will become mandatory in all primary schools in England (both state and independent), and Relationships and Sexual Education will become mandatory in all secondary schools. The desperation of the Scottish government to be ahead of the UK in the progressive race to the bottom will ensure that we are not far behind. It is incredible that it is a Conservative government (doubtless thinking that it will rid them of the ‘nasty party’ label) which is spearheading this. The government makes no secret that its aim is to use the education system to promote LGBT lifestyles and identities. Ofsted have already made this a major part of their school inspection regime.

HERE WE STAND For the sake of not only our own children but for the love of others (especially the poor, who are the ones most affected by this sexual experimentation and indoctrination) we must take a stand in the State schools. It’s not enough for us to survive on fond memories of when we are at school, we need to know what is happening now. We need to support teachers, headteachers and other staff, whether Christians or not, who are prepared to make a stand against the intimidation and bullying. And if that does not work, we need to ask what we are doing in sending our children to be schooled and indoctrinated with antiChristian teaching, and return to Knox’s principle of ‘where you have a church, there you have a school.’ It’s not just about human rights — it’s about our God given responsibilities. It’s the same question that faced the 1st century Christians — who will we obey, Caesar or the Lord? •

HUMAN RIGHTS Christian parents need to follow the example of our fellow Muslim citizens by insisting on our basic human right to have our children educated according to our own beliefs. Article 26 (3) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: ‘Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.’ Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: ‘Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.”

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FREE CHURCH NEWS CORNERSTONE CHURCH PLANT PLAN FOR FUTURE

ornerstone, a free church of scotland church

Looking to the future they add, “This is the building that will provide us with a long term base for ministry and which can be a blessing to the wider community.” • For more information about the project, Cornerstone has set up a dedicated website www.osh.org.uk

plant in edinburgh’s morningside, launched its new

vision to train and equip future leaders, resource new church plants, and offer an accessible venue for the congregation and the local community. However, in order to achieve this they need to make major refurbishments to their B Listed building. It is hoped that the £300,000 project will provide better access for families, elderly and those with mobility problems by creating a new entrance from the street. Internal alterations to the main hall will also mean they will be able to accommodate 40% more people, plus rooms to host a creche and Kids’ Church. An upgrade to the kitchen and food preparation area has been included in the architect’s plans as well as the ever essential coffee making facilities. In their vision booklet, Cornerstone was keen to express their desire to make the “most of this asset for the sake of the gospel over the coming years.”

Architect's 3D visualisation of new building interior

NEW FREE CHURCH MINISTER

free

church

scotland

was

The Patersons presently worship with Cumbernauld Free Church and have a missionary interest in East Asia. Mr Paterson said, “I am delighted to be welcomed into the Free Church as a minister and look forward to serving together in the growth of the kingdom of God here and among East Asia’s peoples.” •

pleased

to welcome rev . martin h . paterson as the

newest minister to the denomination during Wednesday night’s Commission of Assembly. The Commission wholeheartedly endorsed the application of Mr Paterson, formerly of the United Free Church of Scotland. Assembly Clerk Rev. Callum Macleod said, “We are pleased to welcome Mr Paterson as a minister of the Free Church of Scotland. We pray that God will bless him and his family as he continues to serve the Lord under the banner of Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF). We trust that God will continue to guide him in all aspects of his gospel ministry in the future.” Mr Paterson is currently the Scottish representative for OMF. He previously served for 3 years as minister of Stonehouse Paterson United Free Church of Scotland, South Lanarkshire. He is married to Jennifer, who also works with OMF International, and they have two young children, Sophia and Joshua.

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Rev. Martin Paterson and Current Moderator Rev. Angus MacRae

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LOCH EWE COMMUNITY CHURCH OPENING

och ewe community church in wester ross (formerly poolewe

and

aultbea

free

church)

of re-dedication and a celebration of the congregation’s hopes and dreams for the future. The Church was filled to capacity for the service and for the refreshments which followed. “This project has taken some considerable time to get this far, but we have now reached a stage where we can move on from the focus on the building to the business of reaching out to the parish and beyond,” said Danny. Minister Rev. Dan Paterson was delighted with the finished result and encouraged by the dedication of everyone involved.

recently

completed a two-year refurbishment project transforming the 140-year-old building’s interior into a welcoming, bright and warm space for the church and community to make use of. The traditional church building in Aultbea was erected sometime during the 1880s using stones quarried from Isle Ewe. Nearly 140 years later it had deteriorated to such an extent that when consulted an architect suggested the cost of refurbishing would be prohibitive. His advice was to demolish the old building and build a new one in its place. It soon became obvious that many people in the village and surrounding area were very much opposed to its demolition. In order to preserve a good relationship with the community, and realising that to proceed would jeopardise opportunities for sharing the gospel and potentially damage relationships with a watching community, the congregation decided to remove demolition from their plans. Instead the decided to move forward in faith to try to raise sufficient funds to refurbish the old building.

“It is wonderful to now have a building which is fit for purpose. The old building was tired, rotting and only useable for an hour a week. We could hold Sunday services or large funerals but nothing more. As one of our elders reminded us, ‘We are not here to cater for the dead. We don’t need a building for funerals. We need a building for the living to find eternal life.’” “The refurbished building offers us the opportunity to take the message of God’s love in new and exciting ways. We are able to have meals, times of fellowship and meet in a warm and functional premise.” “We are grateful to God for all His provision and to those who worked hard every week in this venture. We hope this building will serve as a beacon to our communities that there is more to this life.” “Our logo has recently changed to that of a lighthouse. This is to reflect the belief that we are here to be a beacon of light to those around us. We warn of danger but also shine a path of spiritual safety leading to Jesus Christ.” “It is our prayer that as a congregation we can now meet the needs of the community around us and share the love of God with them.” •

Danny Grant, an elder at Lochewe said, “We recognised that to more effectively make a connection with a generation of people missing from the church we needed to upgrade and modify the building in order to create a more flexible and welcoming space.” “The congregation were very much involved in helping with the actual work and in raising sufficient funds. In this respect, it became very obvious that the Lord wished this work to continue.” “The builder agreed to do the work in stages. When the money was running out and we were prepared to ask the builder to stop, sufficient money would arrive to enable the next stage to proceed. We now have a lovely warm carpeted building with a working kitchen and all the latest technology.” On Friday 22nd February, the building was open to the public during the afternoon as part of a drop-in session. In the evening the community were invited to a service

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KNOX CHURCH PERTH

nox

church

perth

have

just

completed

the outreach café with support from members of the congregation. As an eldership, we are deeply committed to the ordinary means of God’s grace, believing that the primary

the

refurbishment of their building in the community of

tulloch, perth. The congregation returned to their premises on the first Sunday in March, having spent just under five months worshipping in Tulloch Community Centre. As well as the installation of new toilets and shower facilities, a new kitchen, flooring, interior doors, lighting and media, the church’s gathering space has been reconfigured to provide space for an outreach café which will be open two mornings every week from mid-April.

focus of Sundays is the worship of God and the preaching of His Word for the building up of the saints; however, we want to take every opportunity we have from Monday to Saturday to connect with those who as yet are strangers to God’s grace and we feel that this re-working of our premises will help to facilitate that. We would very much appreciate the prayers of our denomination, that we would not become complacent as a congregation, but that we would be zealous for the glory of God, burdened for the lost and therefore urgent about sharing the saving news of Christ and Him crucified.” The refurbishment of the Perth building comes exactly 50 years since the first Free Church was established on the same site in Tulloch, under the ministry of the late Rev. David Paterson. •

Minister Rev. Paul Gibson explained: “The church was in need of significant modernisation but with that we felt there was an opportunity to make the building more inviting and to make better use of the space so as to facilitate more engagement with those who wouldn’t ordinarily step over the door. To that end, we are just about to employ a Church Administrator, Emma Smith, who will also manage

CALLANISH FREE CHURCH

he congregation of callanish free

church

and

friends

came together in breasclete

on the 18th of January to celebrate 25 years of their minister Rev. Calum MacDonald’s ministry. A splendid buffet was provided by the ladies of the congregation. This was followed by speeches, and presentations were made to Rev. & Mrs MacDonald and family by the Congregation. The Sunday School presented Rev. MacDonald with a lovely cake in the shape of a Fruit Club, which he had let slip was his favourite biscuit. They also created a picture of a flock of sheep with each child’s name and Bible verses inscribed on them. community centre

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Rev. & Mrs MacDonald also cut the official Anniversary Cake. There was a lovely relaxed atmosphere throughout and the evening was enjoyed by one and all. It was brought to a close by

the Rev James MacDonald leading the praise in Gaelic with Psalm 72:17-19. The MC for the evening was Rev. MacDonald’s former neighbour in Shawbost, Rev. Calum Murdo Smith. •

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PRAYER DIARY APR/MAY 2019 This is how God showed his love among us: he sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 1 John 4:9 Mon 15th The Bible Society in Iraq is working to protect the persecuted Church. Pray for strength and protection for everyone working is such a dangerous and challenging area of our world. Tues 16th Pray for Rev. Benjamin Van Rensburg and his wife as they move from Arran to serve the Lord in Mauritius. Remember them as a family as their daughters will be staying to study in Edinburgh. Wed 17th Give thanks for the work of MAF throughout the world, especially staff who serve on the Disaster Response Team who are willing to travel to areas of need at short notice. Thurs 18th Pray for all those who have been affected by the upsurge in knife crime and for the government and law enforcement agencies as they work to address this. Fri 19th On Good Friday let us pause and thank the Lord Jesus Christ for sacrificing His life on the Cross for us. Sat 20th Give thanks for the work of Tearfund worldwide as they and their partners work to help communities lift themselves out of poverty. Sun 21st As we go to worship this Easter Sunday let us go rejoicing, praising God for the resurrection of His Son, our Saviour. Pray that God will help us to love the people around us as He does. Mon 22nd Praise God that over 7,000 people throughout Scotland have begun using Community Bible Experience (CBE) a new format of NIV Bible, which is transforming their experience of Bible and community. Tues 23rd Pray for Roddy Macleod (SASRA) as he looks for opportunities to get discussions going. He says when the surface is scratched soldiers often ask really good questions. Wed 24th Give thanks for our health service and pray for all those we know working under pressure to meet the targets that are being set.

Thurs 25 th Pray for greater protection for the unborn child alongside care for the mother as there are attempts to liberalise abortion laws throughout the UK. Fri 26 th Pray for the world’s 260 million Dalit people, mostly in India and many of them Christians, who are at the bottom of the hierarchical caste system. Ask God to help those working for change.

Mon 6th Pray for all the students in the Seminary as their exams begin today. Tues 7 th Praise God with the St Andrews congregation as they raised all the requisite finances for the next five years within six weeks. Pray too for a smooth transition to the hall on Queen’s Terrace.

Sat 27 th Trotternish congregation are celebrating Communion this weekend. Pray they and Rev. Robert Macleod will know God’s blessing as they remember Christ’s death.

Wed 8 th Pray for all the preparations for the General Assembly which takes place this month. Pray especially for Rev A MacRae and Rev D MacDonald as moderator and moderator designate.

Sun 28th Pray for the vacant congregation of Lochgilphead and Rev Sean Ankers as their interim moderator.

Thurs 9 th Give thanks for the work of the Leprosy Mission among patients who are so often discriminated against. Pray for continued success in their work.

Mon 29 th The revised edition of Holy Injil, Luke, is now with the publisher. Please continue to pray that the 1700+ copies of the first edition by Rev Duncan Peters that have gone out would be read and used to bring many to faith in Jesus the Messiah. Tues 30 th Pray for people serving prison sentences, especially those with mental health problems and other major disadvantages. Wed 1st Pray for prison officers, therapists, chaplains and social workers who work with prisoners and their families. Thurs 2nd Pray for the work of SASRA. As with society in general there is a staggering apathy to the gospel. Pray that the Holy Spirit will be at work in our land. Fri 3 rd Christians are asked to pray for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Let us constantly bring our government and all those in parliament to the throne of Grace. Sat 4th Give thanks for the police and security services who put their lives on the line to protect us.

Fri 10th Praise God for the continuing work of Scripture Union in Scotland. Give thanks that many SU workers and volunteers contribute to the curriculum in many of our schools. Sat 11th Continue to remember our summer camps programme as preparations are being made by the organisers. Pray that all the children who will attend camp this summer will see God’s love in action. Sun 12 th Pray for the Rev James Beaton as he serves as interim moderator for the Mull and Coll congregation and for the small group of believers who gather in worship. Mon 13 th Pray for the ongoing refurbishment work in the building in Leith, such as new kitchen and upgrades to the hall and church. Tues 14th ‘Pray for Schools Scotland’ aim t o create a network that prays for every school and therefore every child in Scotland. Currently 57% of Scottish schools are prayed for; pray that this number will grow.

Sun 5thRemember all those who gather to worship in Tarbert today and for Rev Rodger Crooks their interim moderator.

Prayer requests to: ian.macdonald57@btinternet.com. Please take time to send requests for your congregation or ministry to be included in forthcoming Records. These prayer notes are prepared 5 weeks in advance of publication.

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HATE CRIME C BY DR. STUART WAITON

consultation legislation moment.

on is

scottish taking

hate

place

crime the

It is based on Lord Bracadale’s recommendations, following his review of the existing laws in Scotland. It is open to everyone and allows the public to give their opinions to the Scottish Government. Rather than answer the rather narrow questions being raised by Lord Bracadale, however, I have written a submission that questions the legitimacy of hate crime legislation in its totality. Paul Coleman, in his book Censored: How European “Hate Speech” Laws are Threatening Freedom of Speech, traces the origins of hate-related laws and finds that it was Joseph Stalin’s Soviet Union that first proposed the use of state power to arrest people for expressing opinions that were seen as politically unacceptable. At the time, in UN discussions, Western nations opposed this position as illiberal and authoritarian. Stalin’s regime pushed this issue for two reasons: firstly because of the racism in America, an issue they believed they could exploit — demonstrating the myth of equality under capitalism; and secondly because they, at home, wanted to have the power to silence dissenting political voices and ideas. Over time, the liberalism of the West has declined and we now find these types of laws being promoted here. Hate speech laws are different from hate crime laws, but for Coleman, there is a clear connection between the two, as both relate to the criminalisation of certain ideas. James B Jacobs and Kimberly Potter, studying the rise of hate crime legislation in America, observe that there is no clear definition of hate; indeed the more you examine the idea the more you find it is about prejudice. How you measure prejudice or decide on good or bad prejudices is problematic, but for us the important point to note from this work, and looking at the history, is that hate crime legislation is a form of thought crime. We are punishing people for having ideas in their heads that we do not like. Or simply because they say certain words that we have defined as a form of hatred. As Jacobs notes, the majority of people who face longer jail sentences in the US due to hate crime legislation are not hardened bigots but simply working-class black

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and white young men (as both can be said to be haters against one another) who are more inclined to use crude offensive language. There is no need to prove actual “hate” in the true meaning of the word — a name called out in a drunken fight is all you need. A drunken swear word does not necessarily indicate hate or even bigotry and yet American prisons are filling up with the poorest sections of society — including many young black men — because wellmeaning people feel they can use the law to tackle social and political problems like racism. Somewhat ironically, hate crime legislation and the promotion of it encourages a caricatured image of certain groups in society, where all black people or gay people, for example, are represented as being essentially “vulnerable” and therefore in need of greater protection. A key way of proving this vulnerability isthrough the attempt to prove that certain sections of society are more traumatised by crime than others. But the evidence for this is limited and often used to justify what appears to be a pre-existing outlook. It certainly does not reflect every case and I would suggest does not reflect the reality in the vast majority of cases. Individuals experience things differently and different crimes have a very different impact on people, whoever they are. It could be argued for example that a

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because of the severity of the crime and the high level of trauma that followed. To suggest, from this very particular and brutal example, and indeed from only one piece of research, that all hate crimes in Scotland are traumatising and necessarily more traumatising than other crimes that people face is highly problematic. Jacobs and others have suggested that rather than bringing society together, hate crime laws encourage certain activists to promote their victimhood and to attempt to elevate the issue, thus encouraging the idea that we live in a hate filled society â&#x20AC;&#x201D; even when this may not be the case. There is also the possibility that this approach by the government and the police will create resentment amongst sections of society who feel that the criminal justice system is punishing the same crime differently. The loss of the universal dimension to law should, I believe, be a major concern. Finally, going back to issues raised by Coleman; hate crime legislation stems, at least in part, from a desire to rid society of bigoted ideas. If this is the case we need to question whether, firstly, it is legitimate to use laws and policing to challenge ideas, and secondly, to question whether this approach can ever be successful. A genuinely liberal and tolerant approach to bad ideas in society would see the criminalising of prejudices (or hate) as authoritarian and counter-productive. All hate crime legislation should be abolished. â&#x20AC;˘ This article by Dr Stuart Waiton, Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Abertay, Dundee, was first published in The Herald newspaper and is used here with permission. It is an important insight into the hate crime legislation which threatens to undermine our freedom to speak out on issues. No Christian should advocate hate, but we do not believe that disagreeing with an ideology is hatred, or that hatred can be dealt with by government legislation. Hatred is a matter of the heart and only the love of Christ can change the heart.

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poor person may experience far more difficulties in dealing with a crime than a wealthy gay or black person. How crime is experienced will also significantly depend upon individual characteristics, on personalities as well as the personal support networks they happen to have. Rather than attempt to understand the issue of crimetrauma, however, the authorities tend to adopt an extremely onesided approach to the issue. A good example of this can be seen in the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland report Hate Crime Guidance Manual of 2010. In this document we are informed that hate crime is more traumatic for vulnerable individuals and communities. However, only one piece of research is used to prove this point, and this is from America. The study was of what must be one of the most terrifying experiences: that of gay men being beaten up by gangs outside gay nightclubs. Here you have severe violence, at night, carried out by a gang of strangers, who are clearly bigoted and hate gay people, something that we can imagine would be truly terrifying and have a significant impact on the victim. But this is not what makes up most socalled hate crimes: the drunken fight, for example, or the insult to the Asian shop keeper by a young thief. The example of the gay men being beaten appears to be used

ETS NEWS BY REV. THOMAS DAVIS

SCOTTISH CHURCH HISTORY AND THEOLOGY LECTURE

Dugald Buchanan: his life as an 18th century, highly educated Highland school teacher, his influential poetry, drawn from the writings of Isaac Watts, and his contribution to the translation of the Bible into Gaelic. The well-researched address was immensely informative and was presented with characteristic warmth and enthusiasm. Prof. Meek not only gave a compelling insight into 18th century ecclesiastical life but also gave an important reminder of the central place that ordinary, yet highly skilled, Highland Churchmen played within their communities. The lecture was very well supported, with students and guests from the wider church in attendance. We are very grateful to Prof. Meek for his excellent address and our thanks also extend to all who supported the event. This annual lecture has become an important part of the ETS calendar. It is a reminder of the wealth of riches to be discovered within the history of the church in Scotland. Moreover, these riches are not simply for students to explore; they are a rewarding area of study for everyone. For those who could not attend, the lecture will be available to watch on YouTube. Details will be posted through the ETS Facebook and Twitter feeds. •

he annual ets lecture in scottish church history and theology was held on 7th march. This year, the

guest speaker was Professor Emeritus Donald Meek. Prof. Meek, who is originally from Tiree studied at both Glasgow and Cambridge Universities before embarking on a long and highly valued academic career in Scotland. He worked at the University of Glasgow from 1973-79 where he was Assistant Editor of the Historical Dictionary of Scottish Gaelic. He then moved to Edinburgh as Lecturer, Senior Lecturer and Reader in Celtic Studies from 1979-92. Between 1993 and 2000 he was Professor of Celtic Studies at the University of Aberdeen before returning to Edinburgh as Professor of Scottish and Gaelic Studies from 20032008. He has published numerous articles and books, most of which focus on Medieval and Modern Gaelic literature, and also on the history of the Christian faith in the Scottish Highlands and other ‘Celtic’ areas of the British Isles. The title of his lecture was ‘The Birth of Highland Evangelicalism: Dugald Buchanan (1716-68), the Gaelic New Testament (1767), and the Hymns of Isaac Watts’. A packed Presbytery Hall at ETS enjoyed a fascinating lecture which focussed on the little known figure of

Professor Donald Meek addresses the audience in the Presbytery Hall, North Bank Street

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WORLD MISSION DAY

february

13th,

ets

‘world mission day ’. This is a new initiative planned to be held twice each semester, that will focus on various aspects of global mission work and thus place world mission at the heart of the Seminary. At each event, there will be a combination of preaching, teaching, and prayer relating to world mission, with a different topic being the focus of attention each time. The World Mission Day was opened and introduced by Dr. Alistair Wilson of the ETS Centre for Mission, who himself served held

its

first

for several years in South Africa. Dr. Wilson then welcomed Martin Paterson from OMF who preached an excellent sermon from Isaiah 19. Following this there were two talks by Dr John Ross on ‘The Origins of Modern Mission’ and ‘Mission in the Twentieth Century’. These were both informative and challenging and were an important reminder of both the heritage and ongoing relevance of overseas mission. At the close of the day there was a time of prayer. Those who were present split into small groups in order to pray together for mission in local, national, and

international contexts. The day was very well supported with the Chalmers Hall full of students and staff, representatives of various mission agencies and a number of other friends. It was a great encouragement to see such clear enthusiasm for global mission and we hope and pray that in years to come ETS graduates will continue to be able to go across the world to places where the gospel needs to be shared. The next World Mission Day is scheduled for Friday 5th April; if you are nearby on that date please do come and join us.•

SEMESTER TWO CONTINUES

he academic year continues to march on .

The second semester is now entering its final few weeks. For many final year students, this will mean that their 10,000 word dissertations are being finalised. After that the last hurdle will be the end of semester exams. For all students this is a busy period, but it is also an encouraging milestone to be approaching the completion of another academic year. Our part time courses are also nearing completion and we are very grateful to have welcomed all who have participated in our Saturday Course and Access to Theology Course.•

STAFF NEWS

T a

seminary

board

moving

forward

their

new

aim

course history .

are in

appointing

organiser

Following the advertising of the post earlier this year, they are now moving into the interview process and are hopeful of being in a position to make an appointment soon. Throughout this semester we have been delighted to welcome several of our part time lecturers. In the Practical church

2019

Theology department, lectures have been delivered by Dr Mark Stirling (Leadership), Mrs Louise Macmillan (Biblical Counselling) and Rev. Duncan Peters (World Religions). And in Church History we have been very grateful for the help of Rev. Nigel Anderson and Dr John Ferguson. Readers will also be aware that recent months have also brought the difficult news of health concerns for some of our

other members of staff. Over the winter Prof. John McIntosh was taken ill while visiting Australia but we are delighted to say that he has made a very good recovery. Donald Macleod also had to spend some time in hospital and his condition continues to be monitored. We are very grateful for all the prayerful support that our colleagues have received over these recent weeks.•

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SUPPORT FOR MINISTERS AND THEIR FAMILIES I

The remit of the Panel is also to “help with pastoral care situations when requested by the Support Worker. In addition, they will be vigilant in bringing to the Support Worker’s attention any minister who may be experiencing difficulty. They will be careful to treat all such matters in the strictest confidence.” They are also to “give all necessary support, help and advice to the Support Worker.” My availability as Support Worker has been communicated individually to ministers by email, and in addition my contact details have been included in the Ministers’ Monthly Memo sent out by the Free Church Offices and in the Church’s Yearbook. This year, under instruction from the Board of Ministry, I have visited Presbyteries to inform them of my role and also present the Board’s paper addressing ‘Ministerial Failure’. Over the period of nearly two years since I was appointed, around a dozen ministers per year have contacted me or have been contacted directly by me. At a recent meeting of the Panel, concern was expressed about two areas in particular: the omission of Presbyteries to contact the Support worker when ministers were facing difficulty; and the difficulty in contacting ministers’ wives to let them know that such a service was available to them also (as at present there does not exist a database of their contact details). The present article is an attempt to address the latter issue; while my visit to each Presbytery was an attempt to address the former issue. I simply want to assure ministers and their wives that I am available to be contacted in the first instance about any difficulty they may be experiencing, and I am ready to listen, encourage and advise, and if necessary seek further help for them. I also want to encourage Christians to be praying regularly for their ministers in the various pressures they face, asking God to guard them and guide them for the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. •

n the past the minister tended to be viewed as a kind of one man band, wholly self-sufficient and able to cope with any and every situation life threw at

him.

One effect of this is that he tended to be put on an untouchable pedestal (an impression often encouraged by the minister himself!). The other effect was that he was pretty well left to sink or swim by himself. In recent years there has been a growing awareness that this is not right. It is certainly not the Biblical model (as instanced in the Pastoral Epistles of Paul written to Timothy and Titus). Particularly if our brother is sinking, ought we not to reach out our hand as Jesus did with Peter at the Sea of Galilee? Ministers can experience tremendous pressures in their work, which can affect their health, their relationship with their congregations and fellow elders, their relationships with wives and families, and, not least, their relationship with the Lord. For some time there has been discussion in the Church about the need for providing more support for ministers, and in 2017 the Board of Ministry brought forward proposals to the General Assembly to appoint a Pastoral Care Support Worker along with the Panel of Pastoral Care. The Panel consists of Rev. Dr John Nicholls, Dr James Finlayson, Dr Helen Macleod, Dr Ann MacRae, Louise MacMillan and the Pastoral Care Support Worker as Chairman. I was appointed as the Support Worker. The Support Worker’s remit is as follows: 1. The Pastoral Care Support Worker is to be proactive in befriending and encouraging ministers and their families — particularly those in difficult circumstances, nearing retirement, facing perplexing and demanding situations or in ministries that may be terminated. This remit is to be carried out by personal contact with ministers, not only by telephone and email, but also by face to face contact. 2. The Support Worker has wide freedom to carry out this work as he sees fit, and particularly to contact all ministers to offer support and encouragement. The Support Worker may seek medical, counselling or other professional help for ministers who desire it. Strict confidentiality in this work is vital, the only exception being in situations which clearly involve church discipline.

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My contact details are: alex@alexjmacdonald.co.uk 07504989189

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Pastoral Care Support Worker ALEX J MACDONALD presents the pastoral care support available in the Free Church.

Â©krsmanovic - stock.adobe.com

...if our brother is sinking, ought we not to reach out our hand as Jesus did with Peter at the Sea of Galilee?

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Alan J F Fraser 9 Hawthorn Park Muir of Ord IV6 7TX

13th March 2019

Dear Sir, I wish to thank those who responded in a spirit of reasonableness to my letter in the February Record. I appreciate this opportunity to interact in this way with those who hold views different from my own while all of us seek to submit to the inspired word of God. There are two areas I’d like to home in on, as being fundamental to this whole debate. The first is the teaching of Genesis and the second the theological implications of theism. In the brief space available to letters I can only touch briefly on these subjects but any who would like to see my thinking developed a little further can get a Kindle version of a small booklet I published on Amazon entitled, “The Bible and Evolution”. If you want to get in touch with me directly my email is alan@tambo.me.uk I consider 2 Timothy 3:16,17 to be my starting point. I believe the Scriptures were breathed out by God for a purpose. This brings to the Scriptures the seal of God’s authority on all it communicates to us. It also gives to us the reason why God has spoken to us. This warns us from treating the Word lightly by either ignoring its teaching or by seeking answers in Scripture to questions that it was never designed to answer. For this reason I am sceptical of all attempts to find in Genesis a simple description of how God went about creating space, time and matter, treating Genesis 1 as if it were an article on cosmological in the same vein as may be found today in popular scientific writing. I hope in this way to honour Scripture, seeking to be ruled in my thinking by the Word itself, always alert to the distortions in our interpretations of the Bible caused by received traditions of men and our limited understanding. My own understanding of Genesis 1 and 2 owes a lot to a book by Henri Blocher, In the Beginning, published during my student days. This drew on works of Meredith Klein, a Westminster professor, produced over a hundred years ago. It takes seriously the literary structure of Genesis 1. This is also the line taken by Tim Keller today. Verse 24 quoted by George with respect to the origin of species is a clear example of reading into the text much more than it could ever have meant. Yes God is the author of our ordered world with its separate species but he could have brought that about by creating and sustaining a physical world in which life developed over hundreds of millions of years from its simplest forms to the complex variety we know today. Whether he did it that way or not is something we are entitled to investigate scientifically. Such a picture of life evolving as God’s pattern of creating and sustaining the world is not atheistic. The Bible does not provide us an answer to how life developed. That was not its purpose. Incidentally one should note that the idea of ‘micro evolution’ as variation over time within species is not evolution at all. The second issue of deism and theism, as raised by Anthony, is crucial. Deism has a Creator who remains aloof from his handiwork, believing in autonomous Nature, free from any ongoing divine intervention, thus denying all miracles and the possibility of Jesus being the Son of God. Trinitarian theism presents us with a Creator who is also the sustainer of the universe. Donald M Mackay in his book The Open Mind and Other Essays develops this theistic understanding of our understanding of the physical world. Nature as an autonomous entity does not exist. The biblical view of the physical world sees God in every event. He is never absent from the world he created. The laws of nature are descriptions of God’s activity, his pattern of working, maintaining and ordered creation. Miracles happen when God varies his normal pattern of activity not when God intervenes in an autonomous nature. Alec Motyer puts it so well and with characteristic clarity in a footnote to his BST commentary on Exodus (p30). “God’s redemptive work is, therefore, not accurately seen in ‘interventionist’ terms. That is merely how it looks to the human observer. He is the ever-present, ever-active Creator (John 5:17), and his work in creation provides a basis for his work in redemption; his work in redemption fulfils his work in creation.”

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On the basis of this orthodox understanding of Biblical Theism we must be wary of the Intelligent Design movement with its interventionist God. It gives away too much to Deism and can sound like an incompetent Creator intervening from time to time to tweak an imperfect original. On the other hand Christians who see the beauty of evolving life as God’s pattern are fully aligned with orthodox theism. Denis Alexander develops this theme in a new book, Is there Purpose in Biology? There is purpose and design in the entire process from the beginning till now, not simply occasional parts designed but the whole, exhibiting evidence of a purposeful Creator. “The heavens declare the glory of God.” So also does the biosphere. It is interesting to note that 19th century theologians of the highest reputation in the Reformed world gave a welcome to Darwin’s Origen of Species. Among them were B. B. Warfield and A. A. Hodge. As a footnote it may be worth mentioning that we have to make up our own minds prayerfully, helped by those who have gone before us and who have studied the Word carefully with skill, effort and devotion, but not letting human traditions of interpretation usurp the authority that belongs alone to the Scriptures. We must also be very careful when making generalised judgments on the integrity of others, including atheistic scientists. Many working in the field of Evolution, Christian and non-Christian, are convinced by the overwhelming evidence, from independent lines of investigation, of the idea that life has evolved. It does the work of God’s Kingdom no favours to suggest that the evidence is scanty and distorted by a strong urge to discredit Christianity or a craven fear of ones colleagues. I would love to sit down with you, Anthony, for a chat. I’m sure there is much I could learn from you. Sincerely Alan J F Fraser

We would love to hear from you…please write the editor at: The Record, St Peters Free Church, 4 St Peter St. Dundee. DD1 4JJ or e-mail drobertson@freechurch.org

TRAINING FOR CHURCH LEADERS

The Living Out LOCAL Course Thursday 25 April 2019 Central Edinburgh

The Living Out LOCAL course is designed to help church leaders to understand how they can better help those who experience same-sex attraction to stay faithful to biblical teaching on sexual ethics and flourish at the same time. The course will offer a positive biblical vision and practical steps forward as we seek to model both grace and truth in our Christ-like love for all those who experience same-sex attraction.

The Living Out team will share their insight and stories as same-sex attracted Christians who hold to traditional biblical teaching on sexual ethics and who have spoken and written on this subject widely. It is taking place on 25 April 2019 in central Edinburgh. For further information and to register see https://www.livingout.org/local-edinburgh

QUOTATIONS JOHN OWEN

“

But there is no more sacred truth than this, that where Christ is present with believers, — where he is not withdrawn for a season from them, where they live in the view of his glory by faith as it is proposed unto them in the gospel, — he will give unto them, at his own seasons, such intimations of his love, such supplies of his Spirit, such holy joys and rejoicings, such repose of soul in assurance, as shall refresh their souls, fill them with joy, satisfy them with spiritual delight, and quicken them unto all acts of holy communion with himself. (From The Glory of Christ by John Owen)

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CHURCH DEVELOPMENT AND REVITALISATION

n the heart of the scottish highlands, a group of

In the afternoon David Robertson, minister of St Peter’s Dundee, led a session with the group on Vision. “I visited Harris recently and I believe there are lessons we can learn from the success of the Harris Distillery.” “They had a vision for a distillery which would employ local people in an area that desperately needed real permanent jobs. They invested in that vision and they took their time. So far they have managed to employ 33 people – they have trained up local people and they are beginning to produce their product and see the rewards for their labours.” “Even though they are still three years away from having their first whisky sold, they are selling a great deal of gin – and through clever marketing and establishing a reputation for quality – they have people beating a path to their door.” “They had, and have, vision, patience, investment, leadership, time, quality, training and people. If a distillery can get people on board with a gin vision, surely we can get people on board with a vision of Jesus? We want everyone who comes to our churches to know the palpable sense of Jesus.” •

at Smithton Church, a long-established church plant in Inverness, to discuss Church Development and the challenges of revitalisation. Board of Trustees chair James Fraser led the morning session where he discussed his experience of a congregation moving from decline to growth, and how intentionally implemented strategies helped to gradually focus the local church’s mind on reaching out and moving forward. Discussing the initial challenges the church faced, James said, “We had to get away from a mentality of decline, from looking back at the ‘good old days’, and address the problems we faced head-on.” James also offered some thoughts on changing local public perception of the congregation, “A simple example is to look at the building in which we met. We know the church is not the building but our buildings are not unimportant; an upgraded or refurbished building can signal to the local community there are signs of life, signs of renewal, signs of direction.” The Revitalisation Group is facilitated by Mission Director David Meredith. Commenting on the difficulties and challenges of developing struggling congregations, David said, “In the Scottish scene we clearly have a mammoth revitalisation task as some of our churches have declined in numbers and in spirit.” “We are often called to close down some churches and reallocate resources elsewhere. If a church is closed down that is not a disaster, it simply means that the resources can be allocated elsewhere. I hope that I’m not being over-optimistic when I say that very few churches are beyond the capacity to be revitalised.” ministers from around the country gathered

Positively Presbyterian

he 2019 positively presbyterian conference is to be held at lendrick muir, kinross from the 19th

- 21st august. The programme starts with dinner at 6:30pm on Monday 19 August and finishes with lunch at 1pm on Wednesday 21st August. It would be good to see you at the conference where you will enjoy talks, times of fellowship and relaxation. Please note the dates in your diary. The cost of the conference will be £130. Day visitors are also welcome. (Fee for Tuesday will be £35 and for Wednesday £30). Please note that this year you should pay by debit/credit card in advance online for your place at the conference. To pay, please visit www.freechurch.org/donate. In the description box, enter ‘Positively Presbyterian 2019’ and the amount of £130. You may, if you wish, pay a non-refundable deposit of £30, with the balance to be paid before the conference. Do let your congregation know about this event. It is open to all: ministers, office-bearers, non-ordained workers, men and women. The programme of speakers and topics is being finalised and will be published as soon as possible. Please address any queries to Clive Bailey, booking secretary to positivelypresbyterian@gmail.com www.suscotland.org.uk/lendrickmuir

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A CHURCH PLANT IN STIRLING

BY IAIN MACASKILL

centre (The Well). A weekly Sunday lunch for students there, followed by a time of study of that morning’s sermon, is proving popular (and helpful). One of our students from a Muslim background has booked the centre to celebrate Kuwait’s independence day - he has invited sixty-five of his Christian and non-Christian friends to the event that will include good food and some dancing!

he seven parables of the kingdom that jesus told

of the challenges and opportunities that we face as we seek to reach people here in this strategic University City and beyond. The sowing of the Word under the Spirit-anointed ministry of Iain MacAskill week by week has resulted in a group of up to a hundred (sometimes more) gathering in the Smith Museum and Art Gallery each Lord’s day morning and a membership of fifty. The group that meets is diverse in age, background and nationality. We are very conscious of hearing God speaking to us in powerful ways through his servant. in matthew chapter 13 give us a blueprint

Celebration of Kuwait Independance at The Well where over 12 different nationalities and many Muslims attended

A Parents and Toddlers group (Wee Wellies) meets on a Tuesday, and we are seeing mums responding to the gospel. A Road to Recovery group meets in the Well, addressing the needs of those with problems with addiction. We pray that many of those contacted will be like the man in the parable who found treasure in a field, or like the merchant who found the pearl of great price. We put a strong emphasis on reaching people and also pastoring those we make contact with. Our regular house groups meet in several locations in and around Stirling, giving opportunities for closer fellowship and discipleship and we hope may be the springboard for new church plants in the future. A new initiative is a fortnightly prayer time where we invite friends from other churches to join us. We saw the importance of unity last year when we got involved with the Central Scotland Celebration of Hope at Falkirk Stadium and we see the real need to continue to pray for issues that affect us in Stirling, Scotland and further afield. We are running out of seating capacity in our present location, so it is our intention to rent a larger city centre location this summer, which will seat two hundred people and will enable the congregation to develop further. It will also house a cafe and break out rooms for Sunday School and has ample free parking. Being part of this new Social Enterprise and Charity hub will give us further opportunity to reach people for Jesus. We give him the glory for the great things he has done. • “And he (Isaac) moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, saying, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” (Genesis 26:22, ESV). www.stirlingfreechurch.co.uk

Baptism in The Smith Museum where we meet on a Sunday Morning

The challenge for us all in the congregation is to be that yeast in the dough, working among our families, neighbours and friends, and all whom God places in our path, until the whole of our society is leavened. It is a real challenge in modern-day urban Scotland to reach people who have little to no interest in or knowledge of the gospel. But God has given us wonderful opportunities, opening many doors for service in His Kingdom.

Student Day Trip to Loch Tay

As a leadership, we put an emphasis on reaching the many students in this University City and employed a family and students worker initially for a one-year period (that’s all we could afford). Outreach during fresher’s week at the University has proved a real blessing and at a recent event where we celebrated Chinese New Year, we counted fourteen different languages in the group gathered. A former betting shop has now been transformed from a place of chance to a place where the certainty of the gospel message is communicated to the diverse groups who now use the

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fter the first and highly successful live aid,

It is not just wealth — there is honour. Solomon has fame to go with his wealth. But he is not able to enjoy it. What is the point of having it all if you cannot really enjoy it? The poet William Cowper describes the frustration beautifully, ‘The toil of dropping buckets into empty wells, and growing old in drawing nothing up.’ But if wealth and honour are not the answer perhaps we can live for our families? But what is family? When it was Mother’s Day last year, what used to be known as Mothering Sunday, a Belgium nursery got into a bit of hot water for deciding not to celebrate it, but instead replace it with a family’s day — because modern families come in all shapes and sizes. What if you don’t have a mother? What if you have two fathers? The question of what is a family is one that is going to come more and more to the fore, and is causing a great deal of upset and confusion in our culture. In Solomon’s day long life and many children were considered great blessings. Imagine having 100 children! In today’s modern Western culture, having more than two is considered to be highly suspicious! I wonder what ‘family values’ will be prevalent in another 2000 years? But despite the changes in how families are perceived, there are very few who would deny the importance of the family and the blessing of children. As the Psalmist

bob geldof turned to his fellow organiser midge ure, and asked

‘is that it?’ It was his reflection on the success and joy of Live Aid — a reflection which became the title of his autobiography. Many of us can identify with this. We have this sense of something missing. We are aware of living in the shadows, what C.S. Lewis calls the Shadowlands. It’s a bit like being in the Matrix, having the vague feeling that there is something more. The shadows are passing. The shadows are ethereal — fading. They are real but not real. But what is reality? This months Ecclesiastes passage (6:1-6) begins to ask and answer that most fundamental of questions — and to look for some real meaning. Where can we get that meaning in what is apparently an ultimately meaningless world? Solomon speaks from the perspective of earth — under the sun. He speaks of a situation where wealth has been given but the capacity to enjoy it has not. ‘God said to Solomon, “Since this is your heart’s desire and you have not asked for wealth, riches or honour, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king’ (2 Chronicles 1:11, NIV). ‘People never seem to learn from the experience of previous generations, and continue to look on wealth as the road to satisfaction. Their hopes are always disappointed.’ Stuart Olyott.

THE

GOSPEL Photo by Matthew Henry on Unsplash

FOR TODAY’S

SOCIETY ECCLESIASTES 6:1-6

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says, happy is the person whose quiver is full of them! But even if you have wealth, fame and honour, and a rich and fulfilled family life — what if you die unmourned and unsatisfied? What is the point? Verse 3 of the KJV states ‘his soul is not filled with good.’ He is talking about the whole inner life of man; our capacity for feelings, enjoyment, satisfaction. Why is there the emphasis on dying unburied? Does it matter what happens to our bodies when we die? If we are just a bunch of chemicals thrown together, then maybe Richard Dawkins is right — we need to overcome our fear of eating human meat?! But of course the Bible takes a much more humane view of humanity. Our bodies are important, and how we depart this world is as important as how we come into it. We don’t want either the death or burial of a donkey.

What Solomon is saying is that our life should be lived in such a way that when we die we will both be missed and mourned. He contrasts the life of the stillborn child and the life of the man who has it all and yet cannot enjoy it all. A stillborn child comes without meaning, departs in darkness and its name is shrouded. But it has more rest than the man who lives a miserable life on this earth. They both go to the one place: Sheol, the place of the dead. If there is no afterlife then the point is that we all go to the same place, no matter what we have done. The Bible teaches that there is an afterlife — that here we are living in the Shadowlands – and the real, the best reality, is yet to be. I was in a debate on assisted suicide one time with a leader of the secular society. At one point in the debate she declared to the audience, “There is one thing that is certain: we are all going to die.” As a preacher I could not miss that open goal! “Of course we are all going to die, that’s the point of this discussion. It’s what happens after we die that matters. If we are just a blob of meaningless carbon floating from one meaningless existence to another, then why not get it over with as quickly as possible? It is precisely because there is life after death, that life before death matters so much.” Wealth, fame and family mean so much more when they are seen in the context of eternity. •

‘Therefore this is what the LORD says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: “They will not mourn for him: ‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’ They will not mourn for him: ‘Alas, my master! Alas, his splendor!’ He will have the burial of a donkey — dragged away and thrown outside the gates of Jerusalem.”’ Jeremiah 22:18-19, NIV

LIVING IN THE SHADOWLANDS -

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A SUMMARY OF THE SERMON FOR MICHAEL GREEN’S FUNERAL BY LINDSAY BROWN

ood morning everyone .

First of all, I would like to offer some words of condolence and encouragement to the family who are present here. Just two days ago, I received this brief anonymous text which I hope will be an encouragement to you: ‘Grief never ends… but it changes. It is a passage, not a place to stay. Grief is not a sign of weakness, or lack of faith… it is the price of love.’ Even though believers have the hope of Heaven, the Bible still tells us that death is the king of terrors; and we know biblically and emotionally as human beings, that it is difficult to be separated from loved ones. It is acceptable, therefore, in God’s eyes to grieve freely for the loss of much treasured loved ones.

I well remember being at a conference in Poland, when he was a mere 78 and a half years old. I was standing in a café area when a flash of light went past me. It was Michael! I asked him where he was going. ‘I’m just off to speak at my third seminar of the day’ (just after midday!). I said to him, ‘I’ve only done one seminar and I’m tired already — where do you get your energy from?’ He stood bolt upright and said, ’I want to die with my bootstraps on!’ A couple of years later, we were on a university mission later together in Cardiff and at the end of the week, I asked one of the theological students who was helping what he had appreciated most about the week. He pointed to Michael and said, ’See that man over there? If I live to be 80, I want to be like that!’

Michael had a cast-iron confidence in the hope of heaven because of the solid evidence of the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, who thus authenticated his claim to deity and so can be trusted to fulfil his promise to bring us safely to him. Today we will speak of Michael’s legacy — and we will acknowledge his legacy in the many lives of people he influenced, the many who came to trust Christ, his books and his example and perhaps his greatest legacy: you, his family. He spoke with me of the amazement he felt that the late-born, only son of Australian and Welsh parents could leave behind him 4 children and 14 grandchildren… with many great-grandchildren to come! So be encouraged by his legacy of love to you and feel free to grieve. Benjamin Disraeli was a famous 19th century prime minister. He once said towards the end of his life, ’Youth is a blunder, manhood is a struggle and old age a regret.’ Michael never experienced that, as we heard from Tim Green’s testimony about his father’s life. He finished well, joyfully and with no fear. He phoned me just two days before he died, to say that he was at peace, without fear, full of joy and expectancy. We saw evidence of that not only in the last 10 days of his life, but many of us observed it in the last 10 years of his life.

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Well, what helped Michael to finish well? The family have chosen the text for this service as 2 Timothy 4: 1-8; 17-18. I think the text suggests three reasons why the apostle Paul finished well — and all were true of Michael. In reverse order, they are: a) In verse 17 the apostle said ‘The Lord stood at my side’. This is almost an exact repetition of Michael’s favourite verse, Isaiah 41:10, which Rosemary read to us. He had an intimate walk with the Lord, sensed his presence and could pray short prayers at the drop of a hat. This sense of the Lord’s presence sustained him to the end. b) His hope of Heaven: in verse 18, Paul writes that not only will the Lord rescue him from all attacks… but ‘He will bring me safely to the heavenly kingdom’. Here the apostle is building on his earlier statement (v8) that ‘there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award me on that day.’ Michael had a cast-iron confidence in the hope of heaven because of the solid evidence of the bodily

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resurrection of Jesus Christ, who thus authenticated his claim to deity and so can be trusted to fulfil his promise to bring us safely to him. In his last phonecall to me, he said ‘one day we will meet again in heaven… thank you for being a heavenly friend.’ In one of his most significant books, World on the Run, he comments on this Bible passage in the last page of that book and concludes his reflections on Heaven by saying, ‘What a magnificent prospect for runners who finish the race.’ c) But thirdly, in verse 7 of the text read to us, Paul writes ‘I have fought the good fight, I have kept the faith, I have finished the race.’ Michael had a clear sense of vocation and focused on completing the task which he sensed God had given him right up to the end of his life. I believe the key to this task is the phrase in verse 5, where the apostle exhorts Timothy to ‘do the work of an evangelist.’ • Michael had an extraordinarily fruitful life. He was involved in leading at least 4 churches, in Eastbourne, Oxford, Vancouver and Raleigh North, North Carolina. He also served effectively in Abingdon in his later years. • He was involved in leadership positions in 4 seminaries — in London, Nottingham, Vancouver and Wycliffe. • He published in excess of 50 books. • But it is illuminating to note that he turned down at least 2 offers of bishoprics because of a deepseated sense of vocation, which one obituarist referred to as preferring to be a ‘free ranging and roving evangelist,’ especially in the student world. From my perspective of having viewed student ministry around the world in at least 120 countries in the last 40 years, Michael, along with David Watson (his close friend), were probably the two most influential university evangelists globally in the last half century. Michael’s legacy was perhaps deeper, in part because he lived longer, whereas David died in his early 50s.

nothing but God, and I care not whether they be clergymen or not, they alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on earth’. Michael has left behind him that number of people all across the continent, spread over 30 countries, who are committed to the proclamation of the gospel. In the last 10 years alone, he preached at mission weeks in universities in Greece, Norway, Belarus, Poland, Serbia, Italy, Switzerland, Romania, Spain, Czech Republic, Malta, Albania and Denmark, in addition to 12 ‘Events Weeks’ in universities in the UK. In his last communication to these evangelists, he spoke of imagining he was in a plane, flying over Europe, and seeing lights appearing in university cities where these evangelists were at work. Some, he said, were dim, others were bursting into flame. He left a great legacy behind him. The International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) was formed in 1947 when 8 national evangelical student movements (including UCCF) joined together with the goal of establishing evangelical student ministry in every country in the world. Its first chairman was Martin Lloyd-Jones (from 47-63).Today the work includes 500,000 students globally and has spread to 160 countries. But what were the distinctive features of his evangelistic approach? I’d like to suggest three: Firstly, he was courageous — we all know that Michael was high energy. Working with him was like working with an Eveready battery! People who heard him rarely went away saying, ‘That was a nice word,’ or feeling indifferent. He often said that his goal in preaching was to ‘electrify the fence on which many people were sitting.’ Again, he said that his goal was not just to influence fish, but to catch them. There was a punch to his preaching. On one occasion, he wrote that evangelism was not for wimps: ‘Evangelists are at the front line; naturally, the enemy does not like it but I say ‘Back off, old Nick,’ and I carry on.’ His evangelistic style mirrored his style as an international fencer in his early days. His delivery was rapier-like: sharp, nimble, quick, penetrating, dashing, with a flashing blade. I was reminded of his courage when I visited Spain two yeas ago and met Mike Wickham, a Brethren missionary there. He approached me at a conference and asked me if I remembered him. He had played soccer as a goalkeeper in the Oxford Blues. He said, ’Do you remember coming to my college, St Edmund Hall, in 1976, with Michael Green? (Teddy Hall was famous as a sports college) …you both came down to Deep Hall, which was the bar in the college, stood on beer barrels and Michael challenged all the sportsmen there to ‘have the guts to face up to the historic Jesus and come along to hear someone explain why we >>

He often said that his goal in preaching was to ‘electrify the fence on which many people were sitting.’ Some people here have been shaped by Michael’s example and encouragement. I knew him for only half of his life, but we worked closely together for the last 10 years, and he and his beloved Rosemary were effectively grandparents of an emerging movement of university evangelists all across Europe, who last year alone were involved in speaking at mission weeks in 200 universities in 30 countries. This will probably be repeated this year. John Wesley, the famous Anglican evangelist of another generation, once wrote, ’Give me 100 preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire

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<< should follow him!’ Mike said he was petrified, but came along anyway and one of his friends, captain of the university rugby team named Tim, made a profession of faith and went on to serve Christ with distinction in the army and the prison service. Michael was diminutive of stature but he had the heart of a great lion. Secondly, his evangelistic style was imbued by contemporary and clear communication. This manifested itself in several ways.

only found in the gospel. So he moved quickly from the analysis provided by these individuals; eg, Cicero was quoted as saying ‘I am in a pit and I need help to get out,’ which Michael highlighted as referring to the human condition we call the Fall and moved effortlessly on from there to explain how Christ gets us out of the pit. This style of communication came through in many of his evangelistic books, most notably in those of the 60s: Man Alive (published in 1967)

In the same sermon, he could offer quotations from Greek and Roman authors such as Herodotus, an ancient Greek historian known as the ‘Father of history’, Seneca and Cicero, as well as Bono, Michael Schumacher and Prince Charles! He worked hard to ensure that his presentations were jargon-free and fresh. Even when he was here in Oxford, as rector of St Aldates, he frequently asked students, even non-believing students, to read the text of sermons he was going to deliver and to tell him if there were words they didn’t understand. He did that even into his 80s. When he was told there were words which were jargonised or too complicated, he would immediately try to find other ways to communicate what he wanted to say. I saw evidence of this in Cambridge last year, when he was preaching in the mission week there about the person of Jesus Christ, whom he called ‘the man with the vacuum cleaner’ — he came to suck up and dispose of the rubbish in your life — a novel way of saying that Christ died for sinners! His communication style was like that of a bridge builder. His sermons were often shot through with quotations. In the same sermon, he could offer quotations from Greek and Roman authors such as Herodotus, an ancient Greek historian known as the ‘Father of history’, Seneca and Cicero, as well as Bono, Michael Schumacher and Prince Charles! In fact, I heard him quote all these people in one sermon last year in Cambridge. He took his approach from Paul’s style in Acts 17, when the apostle refrained from quoting any Old Testament texts which his audience did not understand or would be unaware, and instead quoted 2 of their own authorities, Aratas and Epimenides. I asked him why he thought Paul did this — he said he thought it was because Paul was trying to build bridges with these people by quoting the authorities which they respected and moving on from there to explain the gospel. In this, Michael was an inheritor of Calvin’s style, who, interestingly, on one occasion, said that he would ‘take honey, even if it was in the lion’s mouth.’ He did this because, as he explained, these writers whom he quoted could identify aspects of the human condition as well as any Christian could, but they could not provide the antidote which was

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and Runaway World (published in 1968). Many previous evangelistic books were clear, biblically orientated and worthy, but sometimes somewhat dull, lacking illustration and quotation. Michael’s books were of a different genre and were copied by many subsequent evangelists and writers who tried to connect with the modern world. Together with his friend David Watson, Michael initiated the use of the creative arts as a supplement to the spoken and proclaimed word, especially from the 1960s onwards. Though a great wordsmith, he saw the importance of the visual and the testimony in Christian witness. He understood the changes taking place in British culture from the 1970s on and the fact that we were becoming a ‘verbally saturated culture,’ to quote his friend David Watson, and in that context,

Michael then took off his own white surplice and put the man’s rag-like shirt on his own body, saying that all our righteousness is like filthy rags and Christ has taken them upon himself. In return, he has transferred his own righteousness to us and made us clean before God… and then he put his own white surplice on the prisoner. it was important to balance the spoken word with the visual, so he initiated the use of drama, music and poetry. Later on in his life he would make use of rap artists, illusionists (as a basis of speaking on the question of ‘Is God an illusion?’) and even film clips. In doing this, he never played down the primacy or centrality of the spoken word, because he saw these approaches as helping the evangelist

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to engage the whole person, but also in order to supplement, not to supplant the spoken word. In that he leaves a unique legacy which is for others to build on. Thirdly, Michael’s evangelistic content focused on the centrality of the person of Christ. Whenever he spoke of Jesus, he spoke with freshness, excitement and warmth. In that respect, he reminds me of John Wesley. When I was a student here in Lincoln College, Wesley would have been a fellow for over 250 years ago. I was reading history and went into the library in order to read some of the journals and diaries of Wesley. I found some statements there which are found more frequently in Wesley’s journals elsewhere. At the end of each day, it was common practice for Wesley to write in his diary exactly the same words — ‘I offered Christ to the people today… I offered Christ to the people today.’ Sometimes he might replace that with the phrase, ‘I offered grace to the people today.’ That was Michael’s goal — to offer Christ to the people today. I saw him do that in Cambridge last year when memorably, using all his communication skills, Michael said ‘Christ came as God among us… and if he was not God, he deserves an Oscar! For no-one else dealt with wickedness as He did; noone else smashed the barrier of death as He did; no-one else offered to come and live inside us.’

the Light of the World, painted by Holman Hunt, which can today be seen in Keble College, Oxford. It is based on a verse in Revelation 3:20, where Jesus says that He stands at the door and knocks. If anyone opens the door, He will come in and sup with him. This was a verse which clinched Michael’s own conversion and he would regularly say ‘Notice in this painting that there is no handle or latch outside on the door — it has to be opened from the inside. It is for the individual of the house to open the door to Christ. Then he would plead for individuals to open the door of their heart and let Christ in. And he would implore us today, if he was here, to let Christ into our lives if we have not done so. So, let me close — there is a beautiful phrase in the Scriptures which says ‘He being dead, yet speaks.’ I don’t know exactly what Michael would say if he were here today, but I think he would say the following three things: Don’t be bitter — as he says in one of his books, ‘100 metre sprinters are no good in this marathon.’ Bitterness is like a one-way street with no exit, or like a bottomless pit. Many Christians may be bruised, especially later on in life, but turn to God and follow the exhortation of the apostle in v7, to fight the good fight, finish the race and keep the faith, as Michael did.

Whenever he spoke of Jesus, he spoke with freshness, excitement and warmth.

Take up the baton, which he has laid down. We need a new generation of Timothys. Michael would implore us to take up the baton of the evangelist. Remember what Wesley said – we need 100 such people in this next generation to take up Michael’s baton to proclaim the gospel not only in universities but in our culture as a whole.

The root of spiritual satisfaction comes not through creeds, or ceremonies, only through an individual encounter with Jesus Christ. Before I close, I want to mention two illustrations of how Michael tried to do this. He told me that on one occasion he was at a prison in East Asia. When he turned up at the prison, he was wearing a beautiful clean white surplice, but when he was introduced to the inmates, they were all wearing dirty rag-like prison uniforms. Michael wondered how he could communicate the wonder of the cross and the resurrection of Christ to these men? The he came up with a brilliant idea. He called one of the prisoners out of the crowd towards him, asked the man to take off his rag-like shirt. Michael then took off his own white surplice and put the man’s rag-like shirt on his own body, saying that all our righteousness is like filthy rags and Christ has taken them upon himself. In return, he has transferred his own righteousness to us and made us clean before God… and then he put his own white surplice on the prisoner. The place erupted as many understood what he was saying and cheered. He often closed his sermons by referring to the painting shown on the screen behind us —

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Trust Christ: open the door of your heart to him. What better time is there, than to give your life to Christ at this time of thanksgiving for one of God’s great evangelists in the 20 th/21 st century. He once said ‘I only have one life. I want to use the whole of it to serve Christ.’ May that be true for all of us today. Amen • Lindsay Brown has been involved in evangelical student ministry 40 years, including 16 years as Gen.Sec of IFES. He worked for 10 years with Michael Green in developing and leading a team of over 60 European University Evangelists who last year spoke at 200 university mission weeks across 35 European countries.

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FREE CHURCH MINISTER BECOMES PRINCIPAL IN INDIAN OCEAN THEOLOGICAL INSTITUTE

in a Muslim context. After an initial period of language learning, I worked in tourism while also lecturing at a Bible Institute for Turkish believers, and latterly served as the senior pastor of the Union Church of Istanbul, a multi-cultural inner-city congregation with services in English, Chinese, Turkish and Amharic. Elaine grew up in Yorkshire but moved with her parents to Zambia and attended an Anglican boarding school in Zimbabwe for two years. Her parents then moved to South Africa where she studied Science and worked for a few years as an industrial chemist. Elaine always felt a call to India and after a few years of theological study, she moved to North India where she lectured in biblical languages at the Allahabad Bible Seminary. Despite us being thousands of miles apart, God brought us together and we married in 1996 and Elaine joined me in Turkey. We are both excited about the opportunity to use our education and experience to serve the people where we are going.

enjamin has been the minister of arran free church of scotland since 2015 but will be moving onto

pastures new. We caught up with him recently to find out how he has enjoyed his time in Scotland and what he’s going on to do next.

How long have you been in Arran? Have you enjoyed your time in Scotland? In 2015 I accepted a call to Arran Free Church and we are sad to be leaving Arran and the wonderful people here. We have enjoyed getting to know the people of Arran through the church and school, the tennis club and various community events. We’ve done some Scottish dancing, enjoyed haggis, neeps and tatties and walked the hills on this beautiful island! I will continue to be a Free Church minister and we will relate with the church through the Mission Board. What are you moving on to do? After a wonderful time of ministering on the Isle of Arran, Elaine and I will be moving to an island in the Indian ocean region where I will be serving as principal of a theological institute. The institute was founded 20 years ago and is at the forefront of theological education in the region. The island has a population of 1.3 million people and is at the hub of the Indian Ocean region, and therefore very strategic in terms of education for the whole area. The rich cultural mix on the island provides an ideal context for theological training for anyone interested in working in a multicultural context. The island has no indigenous population and the people living there today are from Indian, African, Chinese, British, French and Dutch backgrounds with Hinduism being the main religion, followed by Christianity and Islam. Elaine will be teaching Physics and Maths at a Christian school that aims to provide quality education to the local population. The students are multi-cultural and representative of the diverse nature of the local society.

How can we pray for you and your family? We have two daughters, Sarah and Rachel, who will both be students at Edinburgh University next year. Sarah will continue her studies in Social Work and Rachel will be studying Maths and Economics. We will appreciate your prayers for us as a family as we settle in a new country while also ensuring our daughters have all they need for their studies in Edinburgh. Pray that God will bless our work and efforts as we minister to the local people. If you would like to receive regular updates by email please contact the Mission Board. •

How has God prepared you both to minister in a cross-cultural context? I grew up in South Africa where I was deeply impacted by an Indian congregation on the East Coast, where I worked as a student during the holidays. After completing my seminary training and postgraduate studies in Missiology, I moved to Istanbul, Turkey, in 1993 where I gained valuable experience in cross-cultural ministry

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MISSIONARY TRAINING PART 02 “I

have to do what?” I said as I was sitting in class, writing

Once you reach deep down into a person’s worldview, everything changes. We learned about raising children in remote locations, church planting, and even how to deal with stress. Everything we learned was taught to us by experienced missionaries themselves, and it took another two years. So here we are, back to the beginning of my story about Simple Living Class. Dun, dun, dun. The class involved tracking water use, using appliances during “sun sync hours” (just when the sun is shining, usually between noon and 4pm), and no internet use other than emails for a few weeks. I was able to handle it, and eventually even found it kind of fun to pull the candles out at night for light! However, something I was totally unprepared for was that we would also have to learn how to cook from scratch. Let me say that again, with emphasis placed on the important parts. We had to learn how to COOK FROM SCRATCH. I grew up in a family that was all about ease. I literally had never once in my life made bread with yeast in it. Actually, scratch that, I had never made bread. Not even a quick bread like banana bread. My idea of making a cake, cookies, brownies, pancakes, and I’ll be honest, even dinner sometimes was out of a box. To say that scratch cooking was a stretch for me, was a serious understatement. Surprise! I did it. I learned to make every version of bread you could possibly think of. I learned to make desserts, use substitutions, and even use a pressure cooker. Before the idea of using one was so scary that I just chose to stay away. Now, I literally cook with one 3 times a week (at least) in the village. I was adamant about it in my last article, and I will say it again! I am a mediocre human being. I often hear people say things like “I could never do what you do!” Well sister, that makes two of us. The Lord can use anyone who has a willing heart. I didn’t get here overnight. We grow, we change, we learn. It is all part of a process to draw us closer to Himself. When we CAN’T, He CAN.•

down directions for our next big class project. “The point of Simple Living Class is to simulate what it will be like living in the bush one day. You may not have good electricity, steady water, and you may only get groceries once every 6 months. You need to learn to be prepared for these things.” As I continued to write down notes, I was thinking “Yeah, but I currently have good electricity, steady water, and can go to Walmart whenever I want.” Alas, bad attitude in tow, I continued to listen and plan for the next few weeks of Simple Living Class. How did I get here from crying in an auditorium? Let me fill you in. After returning from camp that fateful summer, I proceeded to work for a year to raise some money and to wait for my boyfriend, now husband, to finish High School. To raise money yes, but yeah, you got me, mostly to wait for the boy. Priorities, am I right? I then attended a two-year Bible College in Wisconsin, got engaged, married said boy, and continued on to the Missionary Training Center in Missouri. I was now armed with a good foundation of The Word and it was time to become “Missionary Literate,” as I like to call it. The training had many facets. We learned how to use Solar Systems, how to break down languages, and cultures. We took an entire class on Conflict Resolution because, guess what? Missionaries are people too and they argue. They need to have the tools to resolve conflict when they are out in the middle of the jungle and want to tear the face off of their coworkers. We learned about Animism, or a belief system in which the worshiper does everything to appease the spirits and have a “good life.” We learned about how to penetrate a person’s beliefs at a worldview level. Let’s say I come to you and tell you “Hey, brushing your teeth is bad.” Would you believe me? Of course not. Everything in your worldview and surrounding experiences tells you that brushing your teeth is a good thing. Which, it is. Do not stop brushing your teeth and say that a missionary told you not to. I am simply using it as an example to show you what it is like.

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In the second of a series of three articles, SHAWNA WILLIAMS describes the practical training undertaken to prepare her for the Papua New Guinea mission field. Including baking bread!

BOOK REVIEWS Spring is a great time for new beginnings, and with Easter just around the corner, the perfect time for self-reflection too. This month we have four great books for you that will help you look at how your identity and character should be shaped by God, and not by life or the world around you. All of these books are available from https://thefree.church/shop unless otherwise noted. DON’T FOLLOW YOUR HEART JON BLOOM (2015) This is a challenging book about recalibrating your heart in order to become more godly. It consists of 31 short chapters which show us that we shouldn’t follow our own heart but instead follow God’s desires. The author uses examples from Scripture to show us how when we follow our own flawed hearts, disaster follows, and how instead we should change our attitudes and actions and become more like God. It is an easily readable book that you can turn to again and again and still find new nuggets of wisdom. My favourite chapter was about Joseph and how the sovereignty of God worked out in his life despite changing circumstances. It is insightful and contains thought provoking statements like ‘the existence of an evil slave trade was part of God’s plan’. • Available to purchase from www.amazon.co.uk. Ellen Lockington Glasgow City Free Church

JOHN NEWTON: THROUGH MANY DANGERS BRIAN EDWARDS (2018) John Newton is best known for his hymn Amazing Grace, which is a summary of his life. There are many other reasons why he is well-known, including his dramatic conversion in an Atlantic storm, his many years as a faithful preacher in Olney and London, his remarkable friendship with the depressed poet William Cowper, his numerous hymns, his wonderful marriage to Mary, his pastoral letters on ministerial issues, and his influence on Wilberforce. This biography by Brian Edwards has been updated and it includes numerous photographs and illustrations. Newton is one of the most attractive Christians one can read about and this biography tells his story very well. • Malcolm Maclean Greyfriars Free Church, Inverness

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LESSONS I LEARNED FROM MY LITTLE GIRL DAI HANKEY (2018) This is a good and helpful book, marrying together thoughts on life, parenting, and the gospel. But it’s not the book I was expecting. The title resonated with me. Our first child – our daughter – was born five years ago. My presumption was that this short book would be a window into how parenthood challenges and changes a person (as it did me). I had thought it would reveal the author’s journey to the vulnerable places of the heart, and the upheavals to daily life parenthood exposes so vividly. Rather, Dai Hankey has linked anecdotes from his and his wife’s early years of parenting experience (that do indeed touch on the vulnerabilities mentioned above) to present a framework of the biblical picture of humanity and God’s salvation. The chapter headings give good example of this: ‘we are precious’, ‘we are loved’, ‘we are messed up’ etc. Each chapter contains an anecdote, which links to a stage within the biblical big picture. In this way, Hankey does more than just delve into his own heart as he processes the seismic effect of caring for a new-born. He steers the reader outwards from self and upwards to God. The book becomes, in the process, about God and His gospel. Lessons I Learned from my Little Girl is short, clear, and charming. My only question as I read it was the intended audience. I wasn’t sure who it was really for. I do think it will help new parents tie their experience to the over-arching story of God’s love. More than that, it may also be a stimulating book to give to non-Christian friends who are also dealing with the big questions of life that parenthood throws up. As well as drawing the reader in with the very personal anecdotes, and presenting the gospel, it also establishes the inherent wonder, dignity, and purpose of life. In a society trying to make up its mind about what it means to be human, Dai Hankey’s book provides welcome illumination. • Tom Muir, Esk Valley Church

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TRUE FRIENDSHIP VAUGHAN ROBERTS (2013) This little book is one of the best books I’ve read on church fellowship. It may not be radically ground-breaking or filled with new ideas, but it is simple, practical, Spirit-filled and persuasive. Vaughan Roberts begins from the key premise that our salvation should ‘restore our relationships with each other as well as with God’, and proceeds from there to explore what that should mean and look like for the church today. This book is an ode to the importance of friendship, and a closely-packed handbook of its challenges and beauties. Friendships inside the church, as much as outside, require hard work, sensitivity, honesty and love. Sometimes this can be easy, but often it is not. Remarkably for such a short book, Roberts touches on many of the key issues in church fellowship, including gender, marriage, intentionality and forgiveness. He provides encouragement, but also forces clear-eyed self-reflection. Most importantly of all, he also emphasises the truth that only Christ can provide perfect friendship, and that only out of a secure and meaningful relationship with Him can we be a true friend to others. One for any church member, but also winsome enough to give to someone who is seeking. • Miriam Montgomery, Free Church Books

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BOOK REVIEW JAMES MACIVER reviews this biography of Rev. Murdo Macaulay, highlighting why this is a treasure trove for anyone, whether historian, theologian, or Free Church member.

still remember the occasion quite clearly .

At an evening service in Tong Mission House, when I was in my early teens, I thought it might be courteous to listen to the minister for a change. It was the first time, as far as I can recall, that I consciously decided to listen to a sermon. The minister was the subject of this book, the late Rev. Murdo Macaulay, then minister at Back Free Church. After becoming a minister myself I was privileged to accompany him several times at communion services and to enjoy some memorable and engaging conversations with him. This biography, Memories of My Father, by his son Donald John Macaulay, is a treasure, whether or not readers knew Rev. Macaulay in person. For those who had a personal acquaintance with him it will provide confirmation of his remarkable character and ability. As the narrative proceeds from his earliest days in Carloway, Isle of Lewis, the reader is quickly aware of a very different world to that of today, not only in the social and cultural structures of the island but also in the life of the Church. Converted in 1936, during a period of revival which began in Carloway in 1934, Macaulay’s life and ministry were much influenced by that spiritual movement, frequently referring to it in his public prayers as well as in his sermons, as the book shows. One of the most interesting chapters in the book describes the war years 1939-1945. Macaulay, then a Lieutenant with the Ross Anti-Tank Battery (part of the 51st Highland Division), was one of the 10,000 from that Division captured by the Germans at St. Valery, spending the remainder of the War as a prisoner. It was during this time that he applied to the Free Church of Scotland for recognition as a student with a view to the pastoral ministry. It is fascinating to read of him receiving books through Red Cross parcels for his studies and of how he used these years of confinement to learn fluent German as well as biblical Hebrew and Greek. When he died in 2001 aged 94, he was one of the last ministers to have experienced the traumas of war, which inevitably had a telling impact on their lives, but which he applied more ably than most men when it came to preaching on Christian experience, as evidenced in the text of sermons reproduced in the book. His two periods of ministry at Govan, Glasgow, and at Back, Lewis, are set out with many anecdotes, quotations, biographical details about some of those

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he interacted with, local and national events, church services and inductions. In addition to the very informative narrative the book contains numerous photographs throughout which enhance each chapter’s account of his life and times. One of the most valuable aspects of the book is the large section of appendices which contain details of College examinations; a list of texts preached from during his ministry and retirement; the text of sermons and articles published in the Monthly Record in both Gaelic and English; transcripts of interviews; and sermon notes on some fifty passages of Scripture. Available from the Stornoway Religious Bookshop, this biography will repay repeated reading and is sure to be a source of valuable information for students of history, theology, Hebridean culture, Gaelic and the Free Church for many years to come. Extending to 560 pages, this book is a “must have”, and retailing at £14.99 it is also a “best buy” which I have great pleasure in recommending. • To purchase this book, call the Stornoway Religious Bookshop on 01851 703334.

MEMORIES OF MY FATHER DONALD JOHN MACAULAY (2018) BIDDLES BOOKS LTD, £14.99

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A Bible Study Magazine for Growing Christians For over forty years, Tabletalk magazine has helped growing Christians live biblically informed lives. Today, it is read in more than seventyfive countries around the world, including the United Kingdom. Each issue features a series of daily Bible studies, along with articles on a variety of biblical and theological topics from trusted pastors and teachers. Sign up for your free three-month trial at TryTabletalk.co.uk and discover why thousands of Christians read Tabletalk every day. You’ll also get access to TabletalkMagazine.co.uk, where you can read the current issue and explore our expanding library of back issues from your smartphone or tablet. “Tabletalk magazine exists to help establish us in the Word to deepen our understanding of God and apply this knowledge to our daily living.” — R.C. Sproul

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BY SUSAN BUCHAN

WHO AM I? I'm Scottish but I grew up in France with missionary parents. I studied International Business at Napier University (Edinburgh). I was a relay worker (20132014) in Dundee with the Christian Unions and since September 2014 I have been working with the GBU in Paris. I'm also engaged to a Parisian! DID YOU KNOW? UCCF: the Christian Unions are part of a worldwide organisation called IFES (International Fellowship of Evangelical Students) which is present in over 160 countries with around 500,000 students! The vision of IFES is to see â&#x20AC;&#x153;students built into communities of disciples, transformed by the gospel and impacting the university, the church and society for the glory of Christâ&#x20AC;?.

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PARIS: OPPORTUNITIES & CHALLENGES Paris is such a diverse and multilingual city with a total population of about 2 million (12 million counting the suburbs!). There are approximately 625,000 students living and studying in this capital city. The university is therefore an important mission field; there you can find many students searching for their identity, their worth or their purpose in life. Christian students are faced with many different challenges; one of those is not to conform to the environment they are living in but to live out radically transformed lives for the glory of Christ. In France, religion and state are separated (Laïcité) which can present some challenges. For example, seeing as the GBU is not recognised by most universities, students can struggle to find a place to meet on campus. Religion generally has negative connotations; many people feel disillusioned, apathetic or disappointed by it. However, despite all this, there are students who are still interested in debating and discussing around various topics. The GBU is therefore an open place where students of all or no faith(s) can participate in Bible group discussions (Discussions autour de la Bible) and freely chat together about issues or questions still relevant today.

GBU PARIS • 30 Student leaders • 24 Bible study groups (Student-led) • 8 full-time Staff workers + 1 GBU intern • 6 groups with High school pupils • Muslim Ministry OUR MAIN ENCOURAGEMENTS: • New projects developed by iConnect: The Buddy Exchange (pairing internationals with French students), families hosting a Thanksgiving meal at home, International weekend away & “Returning home” training session planned this March. • 13 new student leaders committed to reaching out to others on their campus. • Seeing Muslim students interested to read the Bible as part of the Bible & Quran discussion group. One Muslim student has bought a Bible recently and has started reading it on his own because, according to him, the discussions have encouraged him to read this book he had never read before. • Between the 4th-8th of February 2019, we went to hand out flyers, hot drinks and Bibles to over 13 different Parisian campuses. Several students took Bibles or Luke’s gospels and stayed to chat at our GBU stalls! The Jazz night finished off the week with 100 participants; 3-course meal, live music and a short Gospel talk.

IFES IN PARIS Since September 2014, I have been working alongside the GBU (Groupes Bibliques Universitaires), the Christian Union equivalent, in Paris: first as a volunteer, and now as IFES Team Leader. This part of my work involves training and discipling Christian volunteers serving the GBU through the IFES InterAction programme. It offers graduates the opportunity to: do mission abroad for 1-2 years by serving another IFES movement, experience a different cultural setting, receive cross-cultural training and to grow spiritually as part of a team (more info: www.ifesinteraction.org).

OUR MAIN CHALLENGES: • Getting students to commit to events or meetings (FOMO attitude). • Reaching out to more international students across the city. • Difficulties for some student groups to meet on campus due to restrictions against “religious” groups.

Photo by Rudy van der Veen on Skitterphoto

PLEASE PRAY: • For the Lord of the Harvest to send more workers to the field; particularly for more volunteers in the IFES team. • Unity amongst our GBU team: for the staff to trust in God and his strength rather on their own. • Perseverance, faithfulness and courage for the Christian students as they reach out to their friends. •

Full-time National GBU staff (November 2018)

WHAT DO I DO? My work has different aspects; as well as training Christian volunteers, I have the privilege of encouraging and building up both international and French students to be missionaries on their campuses through Bible studies, training seminars and personal contact. Since 2016, a team of us have also been pioneering International Student Ministry within the GBU (iConnect) across the city.

2019

Susan Buchan

WWW.FREECHURCH.ORG

MISSION MATTERS A monthly take on some of the mission work the Free Church is involved in by our Mission Director, DAVID MEREDITH.

Let’s be honest, most of our readers have not thought about that bonny mid-Argyll town for a long time. It’s a beautiful town located on a branch of Loch Fyne. If canals are your thing then the Crinan Canal is among the best. Para Handy loved it and sang about it. There is a high school, a vibrant community hospital, a golf course, swimming pool and to cap it all, it’s the home of Kilmory Camanachd. Our purpose is not to provide copy for an ambitious estate agent to show-case her wares. Lochgilphead is a very typical Scottish town in need of the gospel. It is a location where we have a small but committed congregation who follow Jesus and want the 2,300 people in the town to hear about him. If you want picture ordinary mission possibilities then you could not get better than Lochgilphead. Let’s start with the tough stuff. There are 16 people connected to the congregation and the average attendance is 12. The building is old and to say that there are ‘issues’ with it would be charitable; even Pollyanna would have to admit that the situation was challenging. In mitigation we are dealing with people here who are fully aware of the problems. They love Jesus and they pray; not a bad combination. Mission is delivered through the local church and the typical local church looks a lot like Lochgilphead Free Church. Is your calling to re-locate to mid-Argyll and become a tent-making missionary? Would it be uncharitable to suggest that a few churches who plead with people to join them are doing so out of sheer laziness? There is a sense of entitlement and the feeling that the wider Church owes them some sort of favour. The mantra is ‘the strong should support the weak’. It all depends on the nature and cause of the weakness. The situation here is different. Here we have a congregation who have organised a financial package which will enable them to get a full-time minister for at least 3 years. They are not stuck in the past but are willing to effect real culture change within the congregation to make them missionally effective and relevant to the surrounding community. If a trained minister felt called to this situation along with his family and two other missionary families joined them it would transform the situation.

We are seeing this situation in Burghead, in Morayshire, where the church is being transformed through this pattern. It can be challenging to live in mid-Argyll or Moray but it’s not Kazakhstan. These communities are located within areas of natural beauty and are ranked among the best areas in which to raise families. Housing is considerably cheaper than in cities and employment opportunities abound for skilled people. If local churches have expectations of people joining them there needs to be a lot of honest discussion and planning before this happens. The church must be placed on a firm mission footing which means that there must be change. It is highly likely that the factors which led to the decline of the congregation are still in place and these issues are deep-rooted and can be difficult and painful to remove. If there is a group of gospel-driven people who are united in purpose and convinced of the power of the Holy Spirit, then there are no limits. What can we do together? In this case the Mission Board can act as a dating agency. If you are a congregation which genuinely wants to grow we can help you assess your current position. We have people who can help with advice about mission. On the other side we may have people or a group of people who are committed to the mission of the local church. Would you or a group of you be willing to speak to me about possible mission situations in Scotland? Listen, you speak the language, you know the culture … with some teaching on missional living you are good to go! When I met with the folk in Lochgilphead we spoke of a tipping point. This is the point when a congregation moves from non-viability to survival and on to healthy growth. God may be calling you to be that tipping point. • Think about this old folk song from a missional perspective:

ave you thought about lochgilphead today?

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Oh! The Crinan Canal for me, I don’t like the wild raging sea, It would be too terrific to cross the Pacific, Or sail to Japan or Fiji. A life on the Spanish Main, I think it would drive me insane, The big foaming breakers would give me the shakers, The Crinan Canal for me.

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Eben-eser (Ebenezer)

LE JANET NICPHÀIL

huala

sinn

searmon

leabhar

nan

salm

aig

òrdaighean shiaboist o chionn ghoirid.

Leugh sinn an treas Salm thar an t-seachd fichead. B’e Salm a bha seo far an robh an Salmadair a’ gearain. Tha sinn a’ faighinn beagan fiosrachaidh air mar a bha e a’ faireachdainn. Saoilidh sinn gur ann a’ leughadh Leabharlatha le Daibhidh a tha sinn. Tha Daibhidh ag ùrnaigh gu faigheadh e air a bhith rèidh ri toil Dhè. Tha e ag ùrnaigh, ‘A Dhè èist rium’, agus cuideachd, ‘A Dhè freagair mi’. Bha Daibhidh a’ ceasnachadh freastal air chor-eigin. Chan eil fios againn dè a bh’ann, ach bha e a’ gearain ris a’ Chruthaidhear. Ged a bha uallaichean mòra air Daibhidh, bha e cinnteach gur e Dia fìrinneach agus dìleas d’A gheallaidhean ris an robh a ghnothach. Tha e a’ faireachdainn brùite, ach tha e air a mhisneachadh, nuair a chuimhnicheas e mar a chuidich, agus a chùm an Cruthaidhear e, anns na làithean a chaidh seachad. Bha tòrr leasanan prìseil ann dha, le bhith a’ coimhead air-ais. Chuimhnicheadh e gum b’e an Tighearna a bhuachaill’, agu cuideachd gun tug e buaidh air Philisteach mòr air an robh Goliath, ’s gun aige ach clach bheag, crann-tabhaill agus neart a Dhè air a thaobh. Bha na cuimhneachain seo ga neartachadh. Thigeadh an cùmhnant a rinn Dia ris air-ais thuige, agus bhiodh cuideachadh Dhè anns na làithean a chaidh seachad ga mhisneachadh. Tha na cuimhneachain cuideachd ga chuideachadh gu bhith ag ràdh a-nis anns an t-Salm, gu bheil e a’ sìneadh a làmhan ris a’ Chruthaidhear. Tha fadachd air Daibhidh gus an èist an Tighearn’ ris, gus am beannaich E e, ’s gun toir E air A ghnùis deàlrachadh air. Tha fadachd air cuideachd gus an cluinn e guth Dhè, agus gus an cluinn e coibhneas-gràidh a’ Chruthaidheir anns a’ mhadainn. Tha e ag iarraidh a bhith air a theagasg gu toil Dhè a dhèanamh. Faodaidh an Cruthaidhear a bhith a’ freagairt ùrnaighean mar seo, le bhith ag iarraidh oirnn’ nithean a dhèanamh, nach eil furast’ dhuinn, ach tha Daibhidh ag iarraidh gum bi e rèidh ri toil Dhè d’a thaobh.

2019

Bhruidhinn an teachdaire air toil Dhè a thaobh Chriosd, agus b’e sin ‘gum biodh E air a bhruthadh airson ar n-aingidheachdan’, gun deidheadh E gu Getsemane, àite far an deach E air A ghlùinean ag ùrnaigh ann an èiginn anama, ‘Athair, mas toil leat, cuir an cupan seo seachad orm: gidheadh chan e mo thoil-sa, ach do thoil-sa gu robh dèante’. Dh’ fhaighnich an teachdaire dè a thug air Daibhidh a bhith rèidh ri toil Dhè d’a thaobh, agus thuirt e gu feumadh e a thighinn gu àite far an robh e ag amharc chan ann air na nithean a tha rim faicinn, ach air na nithean nach eil rim faicinn: oir tha na nithean a chithear aimsireil; ach tha na nithean nach faicear sìorraidh.’ Tha e a’ ruighinn àite far am bheil e ag iarraidh gu faigh an Cruthaidhear a’ ghlòir gu h-iomlan, g’e b’e dè na nithean a thig na shlighe-san, oir tha fios aige gur e Dia a ghlòrachadh ’s a mhealtainn gu sìorraidh, prìomh chrìoch a bheatha. • (B’e an t-Urramach Murchadh Caimbeul a bha a’ searmonachadh agus tha sinn a’ toirt taing dha.)

Chan eil feum oirnn’ ’s chan eil èiginn nach leasaich Thusa nad dheagh-ghean. Bheir Thu dòchas dhuinn is stiùireadh nuair thig sinn thugad ler cùisean. Is e a th’annad Athair fialaidh a chuidich sinn son iomadh bliadhna. Nuair dh’ iarras sinn do neart ’s do thròcair tha’n t-ullachadh agad do dhaoin’ der seòrsa.

WWW.FREECHURCH.ORG

POETRY PAGE ON HIS BLINDNESS BY JOHN MILTON When I consider how my life is spent Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide, And that one talent which is death to hide Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent To serve therewith my Maker, and present My true account, lest he returning chide,Doth God exact day-labour, light denied? I fondly ask;- But Patience, to prevent That murmer soon replies; God doth not need Either man’s work, or his own gifts; who best Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best; His state Is kingly; thousands at his bidding speed And post o’er land and ocean without rest;They also serve who only stand and wait.

John Milton's eyesight began to fail in 1644. By 1652, he was totally blind and this poem was composed in 1655. Here Milton is struggling to understand what God expects of him now that he is losing his sight. He's upset about wasting 'that one Talent which is death to hide', which is a biblical reference to the parable of the talents (Matthew 25: 14-30), in which two people invest their talents (in the story, 'talents' are money), while another just hides his talent in a hole and is punished. He feels that God expects him to use his talent for writing poetry in a way that honors Him and is frustrated that his lack of sight is preventing him from serving God when he wants to so badly. Much of Milton's poetry was concerned with God's relationship to mankind and he considered it a serious duty to write poetry that simultaneously made God's mysterious ways more clear to people and honored God with its craft. The last half of the poem has a calmer tone. It's almost like Milton realizes as he's writing that people can serve God in many different ways. It's the intent and the grace with which one deals with hardship that counts: 'who best Bear his milde yoke, they serve him best'. Within 14 lines, Milton has depicted a wavering, then regaining of faith. •

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THE LIGHT of THE WORLD

2019 London Conference

Alistair Begg, Sinclair Ferguson, Albert Mohler, Burk Parsons, and Michael Reeves

BY CATRIONA MURRAY

POST TENEBRAS LUX I

f free church folk want an inspirational up

to ,

figure

would

look

respectfully

suggest lady sybil crawley , late

of downton abbey .

Leaving aside the fact that she was a fictional character, I believe her frustrated confession, ‘I’m interested. I’m political. I have opinions’ is one to which we should all say ‘Amen’. Now, I write this as someone whose political leanings have crashed headlong into their Christian principles. I have been a nationalist all my life, believing that Scotland should govern itself, as is natural to every nation. That has not changed. What I do struggle with, however, is the vehicle for achieving that independence. I cannot subscribe to a party which has taken this country down some very dark byways; I cannot support the state-sponsored moral degradation of our country and – independent or not – I don’t want to see it governed by people with no regard for God’s law. So, what then? I could cancel my party membership, and I could withhold my vote from the SNP. But to whom will I give that vote? Which other Party would not, had they been in government, have taken Scotland on exactly the same route? Our politicians, you see, are not really governing us at all – they are being led by the prevailing atmosphere of this permissive society. And I, as a Christian, must have more options than to flounce away in high dudgeon, refusing to support a Party with whom I have a long association, because

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it has taken a wrong turning. Surely leaving them to their own devices is exactly the opposite of what is required. My own feeling is that holding yourself aloof from a political dilemma, citing your ‘Christian principles’ is a bit of a cop-out. Jesus didn’t run from messy situations. If he had, how would sinners ever have been exposed to the truth? And if sinners don’t meet the truth, how will they recognise that they are living in a state of sin? So, this leads me to conclude that my desire to see Scotland, and the Highlands, and the Western Isles, and the council ward of Loch a’ Tuath, represented by people who give God his rightful place, has to be an active one. Of course that means prayer. We should be in prayer for our leaders every day. But we forfeit the right to shake our heads in disapproval at their poor judgement if we will not intervene ourselves. Christians passing through this world are to be wise as serpents, and gentle as doves. That, I know, does not sound like your average politician. Then again, I doubt whether Christ would want his people being an average politician. I believe that we should – as he did – get involved. But in getting involved, we ought to be setting a better example. As a lecturer in a further education college, and a member of the EIS, I am currently in dispute with the Scottish Government. Since February, I and my colleagues have sacrificed three days of pay in order to strike and

make our protest against the unfair treatment we are receiving in comparison to the rest of the public sector. Ultimately, my students will still be taught, and their work marked, and the only loss is the financial one to myself. Principles can be expensive, you see. In this case, they are costing myself and my coworkers actual money. Loss of earnings is an easier burden to bear, however, than loss of face. If a Christian is going into the public sphere to stand their ground for Christ, they will be a laughing-stock. They will be pilloried, and they will be misrepresented. And if that is too much for us, and we prefer to stay safely where we are, behind the barricades of tradition, among people who think as we do, then we will gain no ground. The enemy stockades will advance towards us, and we will be overwhelmed. It was nice while it lasted – being respected for being a Christian. When I was a child, people behaved deferentially towards ministers and elders. The most profane of folk would moderate their language in the presence of a lady known to have the cùram. Nowadays, these same kinds of people will go out of their way to offend and blaspheme in your presence. So we have to choose and choose now. Do we want the respect of people who hate Christ? Or do we want to crucify self, and bring his love before them? It’s a political issue, I’m afraid, and he’s calling us to campaign on his behalf.•

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