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Grace-based Forgiveness
Philemon v1-7
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Philippians 1 v 9-11
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Theme verses Grace-based Forgiveness
Philippians 1:9-11
Philemon v1-7
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FIRST WORD
Cast your mind back to the middle of May and you will
remember that the news was filled with wall to wall
coverage of the royal wedding as the world tuned in
to watch the marriage service of Prince Harry and
Meghan Markle. A handsome prince, a beautiful bride,
a stunning dress and glorious sunshine; it was one of
the most majestic weddings we will ever see!
What a blessed and beautiful bride!
Of course, we understand that this psalm points us
beyond the wedding of any of the Old Testament Kings
of Israel or Judah. Like an over-sized garment, this
psalm doesn’t ‘fit’ Solomon properly. It is several sizes
too large for him! Solomon’s glory falls short of the
glory of the eternal and divine King described in the
psalm. The only King it fits, truly, is our Lord Jesus, who

P salm 45 describes to us another royal wedding,

perhaps that of King Solomon and the daughter
of Pharaoh, King of Egypt. The psalmist, a privileged
‘guest’ at this grand occasion, describes to us all that
took place. In the first half of the psalm he points
us to the glory of the King. He is a gracious King,
whose words are laced with graciousness towards
his people (v2). He is a victorious King, defeating all
of his, his people’s and God’s enemies (v3-4). He is a
righteous King, ruling according to God’s perfect will
and standards (v4). He is an anointed King, chosen
and empowered by God for his regal office (v7). He is
even described as an eternal King, whose reign will be
forever (v6, 7). Even more surprisingly, he is described
as a divine King, who brings the rule of God on earth
(v6). What a King!
is himself the gracious, victorious, righteous, anointed,
eternal and divine King. And how blessed are we, his
bride the church, for whom he laid down his life! We are
those who have responded to the gracious invitation
of the King, and have come to him and bowed before
him as Lord. Even now, we are being changed bit by bit,
and will one day be presented before our King holy and
without blemish (Ephesians 5v27). Then, our joy will be
complete. And we can look ahead to the glorious future,
when we will reign with him, and all nations will praise
him forevermore.

In the second half of the psalm, the psalmist describes

for us the blessedness of the bride. She has responded
to the gracious invitation of the King, to come to him
and to bow before him as her Lord, and to live within
the love, care and provision of the glorious King (v10-
12). In turn, she has now been beautified, ready to be
presented to her bridegroom in great joy (v13-15). Now,
she can look ahead to the glorious future, when her
sons will reign throughout the earth, and all nations
will praise her bridegroom King, forevermore (v16-17).

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 Five minutes with…
Andy Young
CHURCH PLANTING
In this short interview we catch up with Andy Young of the
EPCEW, who is in the process of planting a new church in
Oxford.
Hi Andy, thanks for taking the time to chat to us today. Prior
to moving to Oxford you were minister of Naunton Lane EPC
in Cheltenham for ten years. Can you tell us a bit about that
church?
First I want to thank you for the opportunity to tell you about
the new church plant in Oxford. I really appreciate the interest
and prayers of God’s people for this work and have been
learning in a new way how important the support of the wider
church is in the life of the church, and especially in church
planting.
Naunton Lane EPC is in Cheltenham and is a congregation of
the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales.
It was planted by an American Minister called Tim Horn in
2002. In 2008 he returned to the USA and, after a summer of
interning at the church, they called me as their new Minister.
Over the last ten years God has wonderfully blessed us. We
now have our own building and our numbers have grown from
approx. 25-30 to 75+. We are in the middle of some building
renovations, which are needed partly to accommodate the
growing congregation. Whilst we would love to have more of
an impact for the gospel in Cheltenham we thank God that the
church enjoys a significant level of unity and joy in Christ.
 
You have recently moved to Oxford in order to lead a new
church plant there. Can you tell us why Oxford, in particular?
What led you to that city?
With two universities, and thousands of tourists, Oxford is a
strategic place to plant a church. In addition, whilst there are
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already some gospel-preaching churches in Oxford, there is
nothing distinctly Reformed and confessional.
With this in mind the EPCEW have been looking to plant a
church in Oxford for several years, but until recently the timing
wasn’t right. In 2016 we began a monthly meeting in Oxford
called ‘Re:Con’ which stands for ‘Reformed Confessions Study
Group’. This was an attempt to push the door in Oxford and
seek to get a core group together. It became clear by mid-2017
that the need was great, people were interested and the time
was ripe. In all of this I began to wrestle with whether or not
I should be the man to lead the work. After several months
of prayer and seeking the wisdom of godly men, I became
convinced that I should put myself forward to lead this church
plant. Since then the Lord has wonderfully opened the door in
several remarkable ways, all of which have confirmed that this
is his work and his leading.
As a new church in Oxford, how have you been received by
other churches there?
I really appreciate this question because it has been something
I have really wrestled with. Whilst I believe Oxford, and
many other cities for that matter, need a confessional and
Presbyterian church, I don’t think we should go about planting
churches as if we were the only Christians alive. As I have
already said, there are existing gospel preaching churches in
Oxford and I am keen to work with them. To that end I have
met with several church leaders in Oxford to tell them what I
am doing and to try and foster gospel unity with them. Their
welcome has been warm. One minister said to me: “Andy,
there are gospel churches in Oxford, but we need more. So it
is great to have you here.”
 How are you going about getting a church plant started?
What process does that involve?
 
Until I moved to Oxford to plant a church I thought there was
only one way to plant a church – pray, preach and pastor.
It seems that there is a variety of ‘philosophies’ out there.
One person asked me what ‘stage’ I was at in planting a
church and I simply replied – the “planting one”! So the short
answer to your question is I believe you plant a church in the
same way as you grow a church that is already established,
and that is with God’s help and through the means of grace.
Practically it means we are holding regular Bible studies and
prayer meetings over the next few months, and then we plan
to start morning and evening worship services in September.
There are a few specifics I would emphasise as well. The first
is prayer. There is something about church planting – when
you have no building, no people, and no money - that really
drives you to your knees. It exposes in a visceral way what
we always know to be true, but we easily forget: that unless
the Lord builds the house our labour is in vain. Church planting
is as much about prayer as anything – crying out to Christ to
build his church for his glory, and bringing all our needs to the
throne of grace on a daily basis.
Another thing to emphasise is advertising. I am instinctively
a technological rebel. I don’t like social media and I am not
very good at using it. However, I am learning the importance
of it in church planting. The reality is that more people are
‘Googled’ into churches today than by any other means. So
having a good website and utilising Facebook, Youtube etc. is
imperative. Just this last week two people contacted me about
the church plant and their first introduction to the church was
via our website.
What are some of the biggest challenges to overcome when
planting a church?
The biggest challenge for me was wrestling with God’s calling
to Oxford and facing the prospect of leaving Naunton Lane
EPC. I think once you know God is with you and opening the
door, then you can face almost anything, so until that was
made clear I experienced a good dose of doubt and inner
turmoil.
Another challenge has been the uncertainty. Not knowing
where you are going to live. Not knowing where the church
services will be held. Not knowing who will come to the
services. Not knowing if there will be enough money to fund
everything. Moving from a growing, self-funding and self-
governing church, to the uncertainty of church planting has
and continues to be really hard. And this leads to a deeper
challenge, and that is the reality of failure. This is something
I have contended with as I have thought through coming
to Oxford. Whilst I am convinced God has led us here, the
church plant may yet fail. In a few years time the doors may
close. This has challenged my pride and made me confront
whether or not I am willing to give up everything – including
a successful church plant – for Christ. Needless to say I am
not intending to fail. I am expectantly praying for God to bless
and establish a new church in Oxford. Yet at the same time
the uncertainty of church planting makes you face up to the
possibility of failure, and this itself is humbling.
What are some of the encouragements you have experienced,
so far?
The greatest encouragement has been the clear leading of
God. In a remarkable providence a ‘launch-fund’ was made
available for this new church plant. Whilst there are still
financial needs into the future, this provision has enabled my
family and me to move to Oxford and start things here. The
timing and provision of this fund was nothing other than God’s
clear leading.
Other encouragements have come from people in and around
Oxford. One example was when a lady phoned me up recently.
She had come across our website and had been struggling
with a lack of teaching in the churches she had tried out. She
asked if my theology was anything like R.C. Sproul and Dr.
Martyn Lloyd Jones because she had been listening to their
sermons and wanted to find a church similar to what they
were teaching. Examples such as this highlight the clear need
there is in and around Oxford, and of how God is as work.
 
How can we, as your brothers and sisters in Northern Ireland,
be praying for you and supporting you – individually, and as a
church - as you seek to serve Christ in Oxford?
Thank you again for your interest and support. Please do
pray for the new work in Oxford. Pray specifically for two
things: first that the Lord would continue to gather a core
group who are committed to the church plant. I am so
thankful for the handful of people who are already involved,
but we need more. Pray that people would move into Oxford,
would find out about us and get in touch and involved. Pray
secondly for a place for us to hold our worship services in
from September. This is known to be an area of difficulty in
Oxford so please do cry out that God would go ahead of us
and open doors for us so we can find somewhere to worship
in.
One final thing you and your readers can do is to go on
Oxford EPC Facebook page and ‘like’, ‘share’ and ‘follow’ it.
This is a small thing, but it can be helpful in letting people
know we are here.
Please do check out the website at www.oxfordpres.co.uk
and Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/oxfordepc
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 Philemon v8-20
Grace-based Forgiveness
In the first article in this series, we
saw how the apostle Paul began his
short letter to his friend Philemon by
reminding him that, by God’s grace,
Philemon had been drawn into grace-
based fellowship with other believers.
In this present article, we will consider
the main body of teaching in the letter;
why, in particular, has Paul decided
to sit down and pen an epistle to
Philemon?
In order to answer that question, we
need to understand first of all some of
the background to the letter...
Philemon, being apparently a fairly
successful businessman, had at least
one servant working for him in his
household. There might have been
more, but we know of at least one,
who was a man called Onesimus. The
name Onesimus actually means “useful
or beneficial”, which is a fairly suitable
name for a servant!
However, this Onesimus was not a
particularly useful servant. In fact,
quite the opposite. He was useless,
Paul says, making a joke of his name in
verse 11. Some time before Paul wrote
this letter, Onesimus stole some things
from Philemon (perhaps some money,
perhaps some goods, we don’t know
what exactly), and then ran away with
whatever he had stolen. He decided to
go to the bright lights of Rome, to start
a new life there.
However, in Rome things were to
change, because who should be in
Rome but the apostle Paul?! Remember
how Philemon’s paths had crossed
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with Paul’s in Ephesus? Well now, as
God would have it, Onesimus’ paths
crossed with Paul’s in Rome. Again, we
don’t know how, but the two ended up
meeting in Rome, and just as Paul had
told the gospel to Philemon in Ephesus
and led him to Christ, Paul now tells
the gospel to Onesimus in Rome, and
leads him to Christ as well. That’s what
Paul is referring to in verse 10, where
he refers to Onesimus as “my child,
Onesimus, whose father I became in
my imprisonment.” Onesimus became
another one of Paul’s ‘spiritual children.’
However, as soon as Onesimus was
converted, that led to a unique pastoral
situation. Because the question is, what
does Paul do, now, with Onesimus? On
the one hand, does he keep him there,
in Rome, with him? To Paul, that sounds
like a great idea. Remember, Paul is
under house arrest, and so he can’t
travel around freely. So, how about
Onesimus becoming his fellow worker
for the gospel in Rome? Onesimus
could be involved in areas of ministry
that Paul was unable to engage in.
However, the problem with that option
would be that Paul’s co-worker would
be a runaway thief, who was running
away from another Christian. It would
undermine Paul’s fellowship with
Philemon, and it would undermine the
integrity of Paul’s ministry in Rome. So
that option is really a non-starter.
The other option is that Paul sends
Onesimus back to Colossae and to
his old master, Philemon. But Paul is
worried about that option as well. The
consequences of being a runaway,
thieving slave, in those days, were very
severe. At the very least, Philemon
could have flogged Onesimus. He could
have thrown him in jail. He could even
have had him put to death. This worries
Paul; if Philemon were to condemn
Onesimus, the fellowship of the church
in Colossae would be ripped apart.
You could imagine how everyone else
in Colossae would react, can’t you? “I
thought that those Christians were in
fellowship with one another! I thought
they loved each other! But look at what
Philemon has done to Onesimus! Some
fellowship!”
Paul decides that the only thing he can
do is send Onesimus back to Philemon,
but he sends him with this letter, in
which he very gently and very pastorally
seeks to guide Philemon to the right
response to seeing Onesimus return
home.
Notice, first of all, three things that Paul
lays aside as he writes this letter:
1) Paul lays aside his own
authority
I wonder if you’ve noticed this, but there
is something that Paul never mentions
in this letter. He never mentions the fact
that he is an apostle. In almost every
letter he writes in the New Testament,
he makes it clear from the start that he
is an apostle, and therefore what he is
writing is coming with the authority of
Christ himself behind it.
But here, he chooses not to mention his
apostolic authority at all. Look at the
start of the letter. “Paul, a prisoner for
Christ Jesus.”
And then look at verse 8 and following.
Paul says to Philemon…
“Accordingly, though I am bold enough
in Christ to command you to do what
is required, yet for love’s sake I prefer
to appeal to you—I, Paul, an old man
and now a prisoner also for Christ
Jesus— I appeal to you for my child,
Onesimus, whose father I became in my
imprisonment.”
As one with apostolic authority, Paul
could command Philemon what to
do in this situation. But with real
pastoral gentleness, he lays aside his
own authority, and he simply refers to
himself not as an apostle, but as an
old man and a prisoner. And instead of
commanding Philemon, he appeals to
him, for love’s sake.
Verse 14 is similar: “I preferred to do
nothing without your consent in order
that your goodness might not be by
compulsion but of your own accord.”
Because of the pastoral sensitivity
bound up in this letter, Paul chooses to
lay aside his own authority.
2) Paul lays aside his own
interests
What are Paul’s interests, here? Well,
remember that he is under house arrest
in Rome. He needs help and support
for his ministry, which is being curtailed
somewhat by his circumstances. And
now, out of nowhere, he has a new,
younger convert with him, who would
make a great co-worker.
This man Onesimus, whose name
means ‘useful’, has at last become
useful! Paul jokes in verse 11, “Formerly
he was useless to you, but now he is
indeed useful to you and to me.”
Paul’s own interests are to make use of
the usefulness of Onesimus, but look
at what he writes next, in verse 12 and
following:
“I am sending him back to you, sending
my very heart. I would have been glad
to keep him with me, in order that he
might serve me on your behalf during
my imprisonment for the gospel, but I
preferred to do nothing without your
consent in order that your goodness
might not be by compulsion but of your
own accord.”
Do you see, Paul is laying aside his own
interests? If he kept Onesimus there,
he would be forcing Philemon to accept
that Onesimus was gone. Paul doesn’t
want to do that. That would be papering
over the cracks. That would be doing
ministry whilst not really addressing the
underlying pastoral situation. And so
Paul lays aside his own interests, and
sends Onesimus back.
3) Paul lays aside his own
resources
Remember, before Onesimus ran off
from Philemon’s house, it appears that
he nicked a few things as well. So, in
addition to losing one of his servants,
Philemon is also out of pocket. We can
assume that, whatever Onesimus had
stolen, he had spent some or all of it
on travelling to Rome. That money
was gone now – there was no getting
it back. So, you can imagine what
Philemon is thinking as he is reading
this letter, can’t you? He’s thinking,
“even if I do forgive Onesimus, I’m still
out of pocket!”
Paul knows that that could derail the
whole thing. And so Paul steps in to
deal with that possible problem. To
deal with it, Paul lays aside his own
resources. Paul says to Philemon:
“If [Onesimus] has wronged you at all,
or owes you anything, charge that to my
account. I, Paul, write this with my own
hand: I will repay it—to say nothing of
your owing me even your own self.”
If Philemon does want recompensing,
Paul says, “Don’t let that detail hinder
things between you and Onesimus. I’ll
step in, and I’ll settle things out of my
own pocket.” Paul lays aside his own
resources.
Perhaps you are thinking, “Why does
Paul do all of this? Why does Paul lay
aside his own authority, and his own
interests, and his own resources?” The
simple answer is this: because in this
letter, Paul is going to say to Philemon:
“Dear Philemon, would you do the
same, for the sake of the gospel?
In this situation between you and
Onesimus, would you lay aside, first of
all, your own authority?”
Look at verses 15 to 17, which is Paul’s
appeal to Philemon. Paul says:
“For this perhaps is why he was parted
from you for a while, that you might
have him back forever, no longer
as a bondservant but more than a
bondservant, as a beloved brother—
especially to me, but how much more to
you, both in the flesh and in the Lord. So
if you consider me your partner, receive
him as you would receive me.”
Before Onesimus had run away,
Philemon was in authority over him.
He was the master of the household,
and Onesimus was a servant within the
household. But do you see how Paul
is saying to Philemon, “Now that this
man Onesimus has become a Christian,
would you lay aside that authority
over him? Would you forgive him and
take him back into your household, but
not as a servant, but as a brother in
Christ. Let your relationship with him be
reshaped, in terms of the gospel.”
Secondly, “Philemon, would you lay
aside your own interests for the sake of
the gospel?”
What are Philemon’s own interests
here? Philemon wants his servant back.
He wants his money back. He probably
wants revenge. He probably wants to
throw the book at Philemon, so that no
other servant will ever dare to do that
to him again. Philemon has all sorts of
interests here. He wants to get even.
He wants to get his own back. He wants
revenge. He wants the person who has
sinned against him to pay for it.
And Paul says to him, “Dear Philemon,
would you lay aside those interests for
the sake of the gospel?
Don’t try and get even. Don’t keep
bringing it up against Onesimus time
and time again in the future. Don’t let
resentment against this fellow believer
get even the tiniest foothold in your
heart. Lay aside those interests, and
forgive him and welcome him back
graciously, with open arms.”
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 Thirdly, “Philemon, would you even lay
aside your own resources for the sake
of the gospel?”
That’s what Paul is getting at in verse
20: “Yes, brother, I want some benefit
from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart
in Christ.”
Just as he did in verse 11, Paul is
making a joke about Onesimus’ name.
Remember, the name literally means
“useful or beneficial”. So Paul is saying,
in verse 20, “Yes, I am sending you
Onesimus, but I want you to send me
something beneficial back.” It would
appear that Paul is perhaps hinting
that, after Onesimus has returned
home to Philemon’s house, and has
been welcomed back as a brother,
that Philemon then release him to go
and serve in ministry – and so he can
go back to Rome once more, and be
beneficial to Paul’s ministry there. Paul
is saying, “Philemon, would you lay
aside your resources, even Onesimus
himself, for the sake of the gospel?”
Now, the big question is, did Philemon
do all of this? When Onesimus walked
up Philemon’s driveway in Colossae,
and handed him the envelope
containing this letter, how did Philemon
react? Did he accept Paul’s appeal, and
forgive Onesimus of everything and
welcome him back as a brother? Or did
he ignore the letter, and have Onesimus
thrown into prison, or worse? The
answer, surely, is that Philemon forgave
Onesimus, and welcomed him back.
We can be confident of that simply
because the letter survived. After all,
if you were to receive a personal letter
from the apostle Paul, asking you to do
something, and you then completely
ignored it and did the opposite, you
would do your best to keep that letter
quiet. You would screw up the letter and
throw it in the fire.
But Philemon didn’t do that! Philemon
kept the letter. He shared it with the
church in Colossae. The church even
made copies of it. They knew that it
was inspired by the Holy Spirit. They
understood how pastorally insightful
this letter is, and so they sent copies
round other churches so that they
would know what it means, practically,
to have your relationships in the
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church reshaped by the grace of the
gospel. And eventually, this little, short,
personal letter, about a strange pastoral
situation between two believers in a
small congregation, ended up in the
bible.
I wonder if you have ever noticed,
when you have read this letter, how
it bears such a striking resemblance
to the Parable of the Prodigal Son? A
young rogue takes for himself some
riches from the head of a household. He
then runs away into a far off country.
Whilst in the far off country, he repents
of what he has done. And so he turns
round, and goes back to the household
he had left. He expects that, at the
very best, he will be taken back in as a
slave. And yet, with grace, he is forgiven
freely and welcomed back as a beloved
member of the family.
The real life events of the book of
Philemon are a reflection of the parable
of the prodigal son. All of which is to
say that this story of Philemon and
Onesimus is ultimately a reflection of
the gospel. As someone has put it, this
letter is all about relationships between
believers being reshaped in terms of
the gospel.
So, what does all of this mean for us,
today? As we draw this article to a
close, let’s notice three applications:
1) In your Christian life,
sometimes you’re Philemon
That is, sometimes as a Christian,
another believer will sin against you,
and you’ll find yourself in Philemon’s
shoes. What do I do about this person?
They’ve sinned against me! They’ve
hurt me! I feel angry about it. What do
I do?
Like it was for Philemon, your
temptation in that situation will be to
think about your own interests. How
can I make sure that other person pays
for this? How can I get even? How
can I hurt them back? How can I keep
them at a distance? How can I limit my
fellowship with them, and keep it to a
minimum?
The gospel requires you to hold out
forgiveness to them, and welcome
them back, as a brother or sister in
Christ. You can only do that because,
by grace, God saved you, and he drew
you into Christian fellowship, and he is
changing your heart to love your fellow
believers more and more. Ask yourself,
who is that other believer, for you?
Sometimes, you’re Philemon.
2) Occasionally, you’re Paul
That is, occasionally you find yourself
somewhat caught in the middle of two
other Christians who are at loggerheads
over something, and you’re in a position
to try and bring them back together. It’s
not an easy place to be, is it? It takes an
awful lot of wisdom and a great deal of
grace to do that, as Paul demonstrates
for us in this letter.
Sometimes you’re Philemon.
Occasionally you’re Paul. But remember
this, Christian: You’re always Onesimus.
3) You’re always Onesimus
That is, you’re always someone who
is desperately in need of the grace of
forgiveness. Forgiveness from other
believers you sin against, yes, but
even above that, forgiveness from
God himself. Praise God that that
forgiveness is yours because Christ has
paid for it himself.
As it were, at the cross, Christ was
able to look at your sin, and say to his
Father, “Charge that to my account. I
will repay it.” And he did. At the cross,
he laid aside his own interests in order
to pay for all of our sin.
That’s why there is a gracious welcome
for you when you repent and come
back to the Father, and wonderfully
find yourself brought back into his
household, not as a slave, but as a part
of the family, by grace alone.
Do you see, this little gem of a
letter tells you how to reshape your
relationships in the church in terms
of that gospel of grace? Because,
sometimes, you are Philemon.
Occasionally, you’re Paul. But you’re
always Onesimus.
 In our first two articles in this series on the law and the
gospel, we have looked at the two ‘ditches’ on either side
of the road of Christian obedience; on the right hand side,
the ditch of legalism, and on the left hand side, the ditch of
antinomianism. We have seen that both of these mistakes
come from a misunderstanding of the relationship between
the law and the gospel. The legalist uses the law to displace
the gospel, whereas the antinomian uses the gospel to
displace the law. In neither person’s view do the law and the
gospel sit well together. One always is displacing the other.
In the final two articles, we will look at how we get that
relationship between the law and the gospel right.

How do we read God’s law?

I would guess that, when you’re reading through the bible
for yourself, probably the bit you find hardest to read is
the Old Testament law. Perhaps you’re working your way
through Exodus, then Leviticus, then Numbers and finally
Deuteronomy, and, if you’re really honest, it can feel like hard
work!

Maybe you’ve read those books of the bible, and you’ve

thought to yourself, “this doesn’t feel anything like
Christianity – not as I know it! It feels a long way from the
promises of the gospel. It’s just a load of strange commands

The Law and

and rituals!” When you feel like that you’re grappling again
with this relationship between the law and the gospel. How
do we read God’s law rightly, as Christians?

the Gospel In Reformed theology it is customary to distinguish between

three different types of law within the Old Testament law
– and you need to read each type of law a bit differently to

Part three: make proper sense of them.

How to read
1) The Ceremonial Law
Some of the laws are what we call ceremonial laws. These

God’s Law
are the laws which are to do with the religious life of Old
Testament Israel, and especially to do with the temple and
the sacrificial system. We might think of all the laws about
offerings and sacrifices, or the different religious feasts, and
laws about what makes a person clean or unclean.

How do we read these kinds of ceremonial laws? These laws

are there as pictures to show us that God is a holy God, and
that because of our sin and guilt and corruption we deserve
his judgment, and we cannot approach him unless a perfect
sacrifice dies in our place to take away our sin and suffer the
punishment we deserve. We need to be forgiven of our guilt
and cleansed of our defilement in order to enjoy fellowship
with God.

And, as the New Testament makes very clear, no Old

Testament sacrifice ever did that truly. Hebrews 10v1 says
that these ceremonial laws “can never, by the same sacrifices
that are continually offered every year, make perfect those
who draw near.” In other words, the ceremonial law wasn’t an
end in itself. It was hand in hand with a promise; a promise
that one day, a perfect sacrifice would be offered, once and
for all, that would truly deal with the sin of all God’s people,
and bring them to God. Jesus fulfils that promise by dying
that death at the cross. As Paul puts it, Jesus is our Passover
Lamb. We therefore no longer have to abide by these

9
 ceremonial laws, because Jesus has fulfilled them himself.
Our right response to reading them ought be to see how
Christ fulfils them, and trust in him and give thanks for him.
2) The Civil Law
We then come to the second category of Old Testament
laws, which are referred to as civil laws. These are to do with
Israel’s life as a state under God, living with him as their king,
and governing all of their affairs. We might think of laws
about how justice should be administered in Old Testament
Israel; laws about punishments for certain crimes, or rules
about lending money, or laws about cities of refuge.
How do we read these kinds of civil laws today?
Well, the key thing to remember is that God’s people are,
of course, no longer a political nation state like that, so
these laws too have served their function within history.
These laws have been fulfilled in that Jesus has brought the
kingdom of God, and not just in one nation state in one corner
of the world, but all over the world men and women and
boys and girls are living with him as their king, submitting
to him, obeying him, living under the reign and rule of God,
and relating to one another as fellow citizens in a spiritual
kingdom. These civil laws too, then, came hand in hand with
a promise of something greater to come, when the people of
God would enter into a new era of fulfilment and blessing.
It would therefore be wrong of us to take these old judicial,
civil laws which specifically apply to life in Old Testament
Israel, and try to implement them here, today, in exactly the
same manner. As the Westminster Confession puts it, the
“judicial [or civil] laws… expired with the state of that people,
not obliging any other now.” (WCF 19.4)
Instead, today, when it comes to our civil affairs, the New
Testament is very clear. Romans 13V1-2: “Let every person
be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no
authority except from God, and those that exist have been
instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities
resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will
incur judgment.”
Or, as Peter puts it: “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every
human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme,
or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil
and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God…”
(1 Peter 2:13-15a)
Or, as Jesus summed it up very simply, “Render to Caesar
what is Caesar’s.” (Matthew 22:21)
This is not to say that there is no sense in which we can
apply the civil law of Old Testament Israel to life today. Let
me quote more fully from the Westminster Confession – the
civil laws “expired together with the state of that people;
not obliging any other now, further than the general equity
thereof may require.”
What this means is that these civil laws show us something
of what justice and fairness look like in society. And so, even
though we don’t apply them in exactly the same way as they
were applied in Old Testament Israel, there are principles
there that you can take and apply to life today.
10
The apostle Paul gives us a good example of that. In 1
Corinthians 9, Paul is talking about the right that those in
gospel work have to be paid for doing that work. But he
argues that point from a strange place. He says, “Does not the
Law say the same? For it is written in the Law of Moses, ‘You
shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.’”
(1 Cor 9:9)
Do you see, he takes a civil law about how to care for working
oxen, and from it he draws a principle about how to care for
working preachers?!
3) The Moral Law
In the Old Testament, the moral law of God is most clearly
summarised in the Ten Commandments. These laws reflect
the holy and perfect character of God, and therefore they can
never change. Unlike the ceremonial and civil laws, the moral
law is an eternal and fixed standard, which applies in all times
and all places.
This is therefore a somewhat different category from the
other two. The civil and ceremonial laws only came into effect
when God gave those laws to Old Testament Israel, and they
ceased to be an obligation when Christ died and rose again.
They were an obligation for a specific people in a specific
period of history.
The moral law, however, has been all of mankind’s obligation
ever since the Garden of Eden, and it will always be our
obligation. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you are, or
when you are, God’s moral law is God’s requirement of you.
Of the Ten Commandments, the first four are about our duty
to God, and the last six are about our duty to man. That’s why
Jesus sums them all up for us in two commandments, saying,
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first
commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your
neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments depend
all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40). But the
key thing is that it is this same, unchangeable moral law being
applied, same as it ever was.
We need to remember that Jesus has fulfilled these laws as
well. In our place, he has obeyed all of these laws perfectly,
because we’ve failed to. Furthermore, he has suffered the
punishment we deserve for breaking the law, by dying in
our place. As Christians, the Holy Spirit applies to us all of
the benefits of Christ’s obedience. To borrow a phrase from
Michael Horton, thanks to Christ’s passive obedience in his
death our glass is empty of sin, and thanks to his active
obedience to the law throughout his life, our glass is full of
righteousness! In Christ, our guilt and shame is taken away,
and we are clothed in his perfect righteousness. We are now
called to respond with lives of grace-fuelled, gratitude driven,
Spirit empowered, God glorifying obedience to God’s moral
law. In the final article, we will unpack how we can then apply
God’s law in our lives.
This, then, is how we can more helpfully read God’s law as
Christians. We need to be sensitive to the different types of
law – ceremonial, civil and moral. By being mindful of those
different types of law in the Old Testament, we can better
understand what they all mean, and how they all point us to
Christ, and have been fulfilled in him and by him.
 A Loyal Subject
Daniel 6:6-16
The Crown is a dramatized account of the ascension and reign
of the current Queen Elizabeth II, available on Netflix. One
episode focuses on the death of King George VI in 1952, and
the news reaching the heir to the throne, young Princess
Elizabeth, in Kenya.
As she travels back to the UK, Elizabeth receives a letter
from her grandmother, Queen Mary. Part of it reads:
“while you mourn your father, you must also mourn someone
else. Elizabeth Mountbatten. For she has now been replaced
by another person, Elizabeth Regina. The two Elizabeths will
frequently be in conflict with one another. The fact is, the crown
must win. Must always win.”
Christians are conflicted people. When we’re called into
God’s family, we’re given a new identity, a new loyalty, a new
king. But we still face pressures from our sin inside us, and
the hostile world outside us. Our loyalties can feel divided.
Sometimes we’d like to live like everyone around us, spend
our time, money and energy on ourselves. We feel the
strong pull of the temptations that cross our path. We’d like
to keep our heads down and go with the flow of the culture.
We want to go back to our old self, rather than be true to
our new self (see Colossians 3:9-10). But as for Queen
Elizabeth, so for a Christian, the Crown must always win.
That is to say, for us, Jesus comes first.
Of course, in saying that, we must remember that our
loyalty is always responsive. We’re not obedient to earn
Jesus’ favour. As Christians, we know we are forgiven, loved
and accepted entirely by undeserved grace. It’s our grateful
response to live for him.
Back to Babylon
This is our second article looking at the story of Daniel in the
Lions’ Den in Daniel 6. Daniel was taken as a young man
from Jerusalem into exile in Babylon. He’s spent most of his
life serving foreign kings, and by the time we get to chapter
6, he may be in his 80s, working for Darius the Mede.
In the last article we saw how Daniel, remarkably, remained
faithful to God in the midst of a hostile world. Indeed, his
flawless record has provoked his colleagues (“satraps”) to
fierce jealousy. Finally these men said, “We will never find
any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has
something to do with the law of his God.” (Daniel 6:5). With
that realisation, they hatch a masterplan, and Daniel’s
loyalty is put to the test.
Darius’ Decree
So the administrators and the satraps went as a group to
the king and said: “O King Darius, live forever!  The royal
administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors have
all agreed that the king should issue an edict and enforce the
decree that anyone who prays to any god or man during the next
thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be thrown into the lions’
den. (Daniel 6:6-7).
We all enjoy a good ego massage from time to time, and
11
 that’s what’s going on here. Look how they emphasise
how unanimous they are, how they are all agreed. It’s as if
they’re saying, “you’re a jolly good fellow and so say all of us!”
But they go further. They’re saying, “King Darius, you’re as
close to divine as makes no difference. Let’s celebrate that with
a law.”
And here’s the law: No one can pray to anyone except
Darius, for 30 days. Three times we’re told it’s an
unbreakable law (v8, 12, 15). If the law could be repealed,
that would mean the king had made a mistake. And if the
king is divine, he can’t make mistakes.
We’re not told how much deliberation Darius gave it,
whether he consulted his wife or floated the idea in a focus
group, but either way, the decree goes out (v9).
Now, if you were told you couldn’t pray for 30 days would
that bother you?
30 days without brushing your teeth would be unpleasant.
30 days without contact with your family might be
unbearable.
30 days without your phone would be unthinkable.
But prayer? I suspect we are liable to downplay the
importance of regular prayer. A day or a week, or several
weeks passes and we find we haven’t been praying.
Honestly, would you miss it if you couldn’t pray for a month,
or would it seem like no big deal?
Daniel’s Dilemma
For Daniel it was a big deal. He faced a dilemma. As John
Goldingay puts it, “God’s law makes an absolute demand.
So does the king’s law.” (The Book of Daniel, NICOT, p130).
Here’s the conflict. Where does his loyalty lie? Well, as the
satraps already know, for Daniel, his God comes first.
Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published,
he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened
toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees
and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done
before. (Daniel 6:10).
For many (most?) Christians, it doesn’t take much to stop
us praying. A lie in, a bad day, a good day, a headache,
busyness, the doorbell, the dog, the dinner. The
disappointment of feeling like there’s no response or no
point.
When you think about it, Daniel had every reason NOT
to pray. He’s seen Jerusalem overrun and ransacked, the
Jewish God seemingly overpowered by the Babylonian gods.
He’s remained faithful through decades of hard exile, and
God hasn’t freed him. Didn’t it make him question God’s
care, power or existence? In fact, the only reward his loyalty
to God has brought him is the prospect of a gruesome
execution. Can you feel something of the immense and
12
intense psychological pressure Daniel was under? Yet he
keeps praying, regularly and openly.
Daniel could of course have just decided to pray silently,
in secret, for those 30 days. But he prayed as he had done
before. Why? Well, if he changed his practice, everyone
would assume he was obeying the new law. Daniel chose to
take a principled stand, only in this case, on his knees.
We’re told he prays facing Jerusalem. This takes us back
to Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the temple. May
your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, this place
of which you said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that you will
hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. (1 Kings
8:29, cf v46-49). So Daniel prays towards the temple, the
dwelling place of God. You see, his body was in Babylon, but
his heart was in Jerusalem. He was a loyal subject of his
God.
Persistent Prayer
Let’s take a slight tangent here, to consider prayer more
generally. In Luke 18:1-8, Jesus tells the parable of the
persistent widow. As you may remember, in the parable,
the woman keeps pestering the unjust judge until he
finally gives her justice, just to get rid of her. Luke says the
purpose of the story was to urge Jesus’ disciples to always
pray and never give up.
How does the parable give us confidence to keep praying?
Because we’re not praying to an unjust judge, but to a loving
heavenly Father, who delights to give good gifts to his
children. If even the unjust judge eventually gives justice,
how much more will the judge of all the earth do what is
right?
Like Daniel, you may face long years where it seems your
prayers are ignored and unanswered. But keep trusting in
God – he’s in control.
A few years ago, I got a knee infection. After doing the
typical male thing of hobbling around for a few days, I finally
went to see the doctor. She examined me and asked what
my job was. I said I worked for a church. She replied with
the priceless line, “You don’t spend much time on your knees
then?”
She was oblivious to the joke. (I think she wanted to know
if I’d been tiling a floor or something similar that had let the
infection in). But in that instant, she gave me 2 things. A
good anecdote; and a stinging rebuke. I was working for a
church, but my prayer life was far from Daniel’s.
For any Christian, 30 days without prayer is a big deal!
Prayer is not for God’s benefit, but for ours. He doesn’t need
us to pray, we need to pray. To show our utter dependence
on him, and build our relationship with him. Daniel knew it.
When we pray, we don’t have to be on our knees, or face
a certain direction, or pray at set times. Our posture and
routine can be useful for disciplining ourselves, but they
are not essential. What is essential is that we pray. All
Christians struggle to some extent with prayer, but let Daniel
inspire you, to always pray and never give up.
We can pray on our own, but there is also something
precious about praying with others. I encourage you to
prioritise the prayer meeting at your church. You may not
feel confident praying out loud, but make the effort to be
there. You’ll encourage others merely by your presence.
Before we go on, let me point out one more aspect of
Daniel’s prayer. What sort of prayer is he praying? Daniel is
pleading with God, asking him for help, as we would expect
(v11), but interestingly we’re also told, explicitly, that he is
giving thanks (v10). Does that surprise you?
How often do our prayers descend into a list of requests
and demands? Well, if anyone could be excused for being
self-indulgent in their prayers, surely it would be Daniel in
this passage. Yet in the most desperate of circumstances,
he finds things to praise God for. Shouldn’t we do the same?
As the old hymn puts it, Morning by morning new mercies I see.
Does thanksgiving characterise your prayers?
Satraps’ Trap
Back to the story. Everything has gone to plan for the
satraps. Perhaps they wait till the next weekly staff
meeting, fidgeting excitedly as they get closer to AOB.
So they went to the king and spoke to him about his royal
decree: “Did you not publish a decree that during the next thirty
days anyone who prays to any god or man except to you, O king,
would be thrown into the lions’ den?” (Daniel 6:12)
Then with all innocence, and maybe the pretence of
reluctance,
Then they said to the king, “Daniel, who is one of the exiles from
Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or to the decree you put
in writing. He still prays three times a day.” (Daniel 6:13)
The cogs whirr, the penny drops, and Darius is distraught.
He desperately looks for a loophole (v14), but Daniel’s been
caught red kneed.
Darius wants to save Daniel, but more than that he wants
to save face. He’d looked so strong and powerful when the
god-like decree went out. Now he looks weak and pathetic
– hamstrung by his servants, his vanity and his own stupid
law.
And just like another weak gentile ruler centuries later,
Darius washes his hands and condemns an innocent man to
die (see Matthew 27:24).
Even as they drag Daniel off to the lions’ den, Darius calls
out – “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!”
(Daniel 6:16). Here Darius finally finds his place. He’s proved
he is powerless to save Daniel, but maybe God can. Darius
knew Daniel was a loyal subject of his; but more than that
he knew Daniel was a loyal subject of his God, the one he
served continually.
A Loyal Subject
Where does your loyalty lie? Again, let me be clear, we’re
saved by grace not works. We fail and fall every day. But do
you desire to be like Daniel? Loyal to God above all else and
whatever comes your way?
We don’t know if Daniel said anything as he was hauled
away. His friends in chapter 3, when faced with the fiery
furnace made a great speech:
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, “O
Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before
you in this matter.  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the
God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us
from your hand, O king.  But even if he does not, we want you
to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the
image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel 3:17-18)
Similarly, when the Jewish council ordered Peter and John
not to speak any more about Jesus:
“Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey
you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking of what we’ve
seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19-20).
Whatever Daniel said, he displayed the same attitude. I have
a higher loyalty. You can threaten me, intimidate me, beat me,
even kill me. But for me, the crown must always win.
What about you? Christians have faced the same challenge
ever since, in countless different ways. Some believers are,
like Daniel, literally faced with death, at the hands of lions in
the Coliseum, or at the hands of IS on a Syrian beach. But all
of us face related pressures to obey man rather than God.
Perhaps to sign up to an equalities policy that doesn’t
square with the Bible. Or being told to keep quiet about
Jesus at work, school or with atheists in your family.
Or being mocked and ridiculed for your primitive faith. How
will you respond?
The question is, where’s your loyalty? Let Daniel inspire
you as you serve the King, to always pray, to never give up,
and to show the world that, for us, the crown must always
win.
James Buchanan is the Minister of St Peter’s International
Presbyterian Church in West Liss, Hampshire. He is married
to Jenny, and they have three children. James is also an avid
supporter of Sheffield Wednesday.
13
 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12
Pleasing God by Leading Lives of
Holiness & Love
In the opening three chapters of 1 Thessalonians, we see
Paul writing an extended reflection on his relationship with
the church in Thessalonica and seeking to encourage the
Christians there by reminding them that God has converted
them (ch1), the Gospel is true (ch2) and they are persevering
well in their faith (ch3).
Now, in chapters 4 and 5, Paul moves from making largely
personal comments to dealing with certain pastoral issues
that had evidently been reported back to him by Timothy.
And in these final two chapters, Paul addresses the following
fundamental question: how are you to live and to please God?
The Thessalonians had already received instructions from
Paul and his companions on this subject and they were doing
well, but Paul now urges them to lead lives that please the
Lord “more and more” (4:1). In other words, they were not
allowed to take their foot off the gas. In fact, they had to push
down on the accelerator even harder!
And what we see in the opening twelve verses of chapter 4
are two key areas in which the Thessalonians were to please
God: holiness and love. In other words, it was by leading lives
of “more and more” holiness and “more and more” love that
the church in Thessalonica would bring pleasure to the Lord.
Let us, then, consider each of these two areas in turn.
1. We please God by leading a life of holiness
Note three points from vv3-9.
(i) God’s will is for you to be holy (vv3-6a)
Sometimes we can tie ourselves up in knots wondering what
God’s will for us is. Should I go to this university or that one?
Should I pursue a career in law or teaching? Does God want
14
me to marry this man or not? We can torture ourselves trying
to discern what the Lord’s particular will for our lives is.
Now, don’t get me wrong; I’m not in any way denying the
importance of some of these decisions. Nor am I suggesting
that we shouldn’t think and pray long and hard about what we
ought to do in certain situations. However, what I am saying is
that we have a tendency to become overly absorbed with the
details of our lives and to forget the big picture.
God hasn’t told us anywhere in his Word exactly which
university we should go to or which particular career we
should pursue or whether we should marry this specific
individual or not. He expects us to use our minds, act wisely,
seek godly counsel and trust that he providentially overrules
all the circumstances of our lives.
However, God has made it very clear what his chief will for our
lives is. As Paul says at the beginning of verse 3, “For this is
the will of God, your sanctification.”
In other words, God’s great priority for our lives is our
holiness. His desire is that we become like him. He wants us
to be increasingly conformed to the image of his Son, Jesus
Christ. That’s what it means for us to be sanctified and made
more holy – to become just like Jesus.
And if God’s chief will for us becomes our chief will, then
every other decision we have to make is put in its proper
perspective. If you say to yourself, when faced with having
to make a difficult choice, “What is it that will most help me
become more holy?”, then you won’t go far wrong.
It is true, of course, that in one sense we are already holy. God
has set us apart for himself. Through our union with Christ,
we have died to sin and been raised up to newness of life. We
have been, as theologians might say, definitively sanctified.
But there is also a progressive nature to our sanctification.
We need to keep growing in grace day by day. We need to
constantly take off the dirty rags of our sin and put on the
royal garments of holiness. We need to become who, in Jesus,
we already are!
Robert Murray M’Cheyne, the famous 19th century Scottish
preacher, once prayed this: “Lord, make me as holy as a
pardoned sinner can be.” This should be our aim too. Our great
ambition ought to be that we become as holy – as much like
Jesus – as it is possible for us to become this side of glory.
It is clear, then, what God’s general will for our lives is.
But what we next see is Paul moving from the general
to the particular. From v3b to the start of v6, he tells the
Thessalonians what holiness looks like in one very specific
area: sexual purity.
The 1st century Roman world was a world not unlike our own:
permissive and licentious. Anything went. If it felt good, it
was good. It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that Paul focuses
attention on what holiness means in the whole area of sexual
ethics.
Some commentators also suggest that it could be that
Paul has in mind a particular act of impurity that had been
committed by someone in the Thessalonian church, but we
can’t know this for sure. However, what we do know for
sure is that sanctification means being sexually pure, which
comprises at least three things from these verses:
(a) Being sexually pure means abstaining from sexual
immorality (v3b). The Greek word πορνειας (porneias,
translated as “sexual immorality” in the ESV) is a catch-all
term encompassing every form of impure act: adultery,
fornication, polygamy, homosexuality, incest, rape, lustful
glances in the street, lustful gazes online etc. Christians are
to have nothing to do with such things.
(b) Being sexually pure means knowing how to control your
own body in holiness and honour (v4). This is a difficult verse
to understand. The word translated “body” is literally “vessel”
in the original and a number of other renderings are possible.
However, overall I think it’s best to understand Paul referring
to the body in this verse.
As such, he is basically saying that we should exercise self-
control and not indulge ourselves in lustful passions like non-
Christians who have no saving knowledge of God. We should
be in control of our desires – not the other way round.
(c) Being sexually pure means not transgressing and
wronging a brother in this matter (v6a). It’s probably best
to understand Paul saying here that we should abstain from
sexual immorality and learn to control our own body “so that”
we do no wrong to anyone else in the whole area of sexual
conduct. Sexual impurity doesn’t just offend God and damage
those who commit it. It’s also a grave sin against others in the
church.
The point is simply this: as a Christian who is called to be
holy, God commands you to be sexually pure. You must not
think any impure thoughts. You must not speak any impure
words. You must not look at any impure images. You must
not commit any impure deeds. “Sexual immorality…must not
even be named among you” (Eph. 5:3).
This is difficult, isn’t it? Holiness, perhaps especially in the
sexual realm, is a constant battle. That’s why we need to note
two further things from our passage.
(ii) God will avenge the unholy (vv6b-8a)
Paul is emphatic about this. He declares that “the Lord is an
avenger in all these things” (v6b). The Lord takes vengeance
on those who are sexually immoral. People don’t like to hear
this.
But the Bible is clear: God will punish the impure. God will
avenge every immoral act. God will condemn those guilty of
sexual immorality. He has to. After all, he himself is holy. He
has purer eyes than to look upon sin. And he has therefore
“not called us for impurity, but in holiness” (v7).
Imagine if a soldier, enlisted to serve his country, called to
protect the citizens of his nation, trained to combat hostile
forces, then decided to join the enemy and fight against his
own people. Would he not, if caught, be punished for treason?
Would he not deserve to be condemned?
God, in his grace, has enlisted you to serve him. He has called
you to be on his side and to fight for his cause. He has trained
you to ward off enemy attacks. Every time, therefore, that
you engage in some form of sexually impure act, however
small it may seem to you, you are in fact committing treason.
You are committing the highest form of treason, because you
are disregarding “not man but God” (v8a).
So, whenever you are tempted to indulge in sexual immorality,
say to yourself: “God is an avenger in this matter. This is no
light thing that I’m about to do. It deserves to be punished
with death. The holy God has called me in holiness. How dare
I disregard him? How dare I commit treason against him?”
God will avenge the unholy. But bear the following point in
mind too.
(iii) God helps us to be holy (v8b)
God enables us to be pure. How? He “gives his Holy Spirit to
you” (v8b).
As you read this article, I imagine that many of you are
thinking, “I have disregarded God in this matter.
15
 I have thought, said, looked at, and done so much that God
must punish. What hope is there for me?”
Maybe for some of you sexual impurity has become a habitual
sin. Maybe it has become a sin that you find very easy to
excuse. Maybe it has become a sin that you think just cannot
be defeated. What hope is there for you?
There is much hope in every way! Remember the following
two facts:
(a) Jesus died for the sexually immoral. On the cross, God
made him who knew no sin to be sin for you (2 Cor. 5:21).
This means that he became – he was treated as – The
Sexually Immoral Man. All of your sexual sin was placed on
his shoulders. And he bore it. He was punished for it. He died
for it – in full!
This is what your Saviour has done for you. So don’t condemn
yourself – and don’t let Satan condemn you – when you fall
in this area. Mourn your sin. Confess it. Repent of it. Believe
in the gospel. And move on. In Christ, you are sexually clean.
Now, become who you are.
(b) God gives his Holy Spirit to you. The Holy Spirit is your
ever-present Helper. He is your constant divine companion.
He is working in you. He is sanctifying you. He is empowering
you. He is reproducing the holy character of God in you.
You can change. Don’t be defeated. Don’t be excessively
discouraged. All the power and grace of the Spirit of the
resurrected Christ is available to you. So when you are
tempted to commit adultery; when you are tempted to feast
your eyes upon pornographic images; when you are tempted
to keep gazing at the person you see in the street – cry out to
God who gives you his Holy Spirit. And he will help you.
2. We please God by leading a life of love (vv9-12)
This is Paul’s focus in vv9-12.
He begins by commending the Thessalonians for their
brotherly love (v9), by which is meant the love they are
showing to their fellow believers. Such love, Paul says, has
been taught to them by God (v9b). In other words, the origin
and source of their love for one another is not natural, it is
supernatural. It does not come from within, but from without.
Given the reference to the work of the Spirit in v8b, it is
likely that Paul is saying that the one who has taught the
Thessalonians to love one another is, in particular, the Holy
Spirit. The third person of the Trinity is the one who has
written the word of God’s love upon their hearts, saturating
them with the immeasurable riches of Christ’s love, so much
so that the love of God has flowed out of them, almost
instinctively, in love for their brothers.
16
And this is what God has done for you as a Christian. The Holy
Spirit has engraved upon your heart the limitless love of God.
And it is this – nothing less than the love of the Holy Trinity
– that empowers you to love your brothers. Every act of love
you show to a fellow Christian is a manifestation of the divine.
Given the evidence of such love that Paul sees in the
Thessalonians, it is no surprise that he commends them. And
yet, just as he wants them to please God more and more
(v1b), so also he wants them to show brotherly love more and
more (v10b). Paul wants them to excel in love.
And God wants you to excel in love. Don’t coast in your life
as a Christian. Strive. Strive to be the best and most loving
Christian that you can be. Ask God to help you with this. Say
to him, “Lord, you want me to love more and more. So please
give me more and more of your love, that I might love my
fellow believers more and more.”
In what practical ways, though, do we show such love?
Paul identifies three in v11. One: we lead a life of love by
living quietly (v11a). This means that we avoid unnecessary
contention and seek to be at peace with all. Two: we lead a
life of love by minding our own affairs (v1b). There are to be
no busybodies in the church! And three: we lead a life of love
by working with our own hands (v11b). In other words, doing
useful work that will benefit others.
Conclusion
This, then, is how we please God: by leading lives of holiness
and love. And isn’t this the way you want to live? Do you
not want to please God? This is not a hard burden for the
Christian. This is surely our greatest joy! After all, consider
how holy and loving your God is. Look to the cross to see
these two attributes in their fullest expression. Say to
yourself, “If God is that holy, and if God is that loving, surely
my greatest pleasure is to please him – and to please him
more and more!”
Doug McCallum is Associate Minister at
Cambridge Presbyterian Church. He is married to
Rebecca, and they have recently welcomed the
arrival of their first child, Luke.
FROM THE CHURCHES

Tuesday Afternoons at Crosscollyer Street

There are 13 names on the roll and an average attendance of 9, and we meet from September to May. Most are members or
adherents of Crosscollyer Street EPC but the group is open and welcoming to all.

In the first half of each meeting we look at items of historical or local interest. During 2017-18 the historical topics were:
the reformation and the reformers – the Reformation Wall, Luther, Wycliffe, Tyndale, Peter Waldo, Anne of Bohemia, John
Huss, Katherine von Bora, Cranmer, Knox, Calvin and the related story of our English Bible. The local subjects were the Hills of
Belfast (mainly Cave Hill, Black and Divis mountains), the Castlereagh Hills, Belfast Lough, the River Lagan, the Belfast Coat of
Arms and the history of Northern Ireland.

Part 2, after the tea and coffee break, is directly biblical and our studies were: The Parables of the Kingdom (Matt 13), The
Standards of the Kingdom – The Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5-7), the land of Israel, the story of the Old Testament, the book
of Joshua, Easter, and the book of Genesis.

Our end of term outing was a 60 minute trip on the Lagan estuary and Belfast harbour: “The world’s only Titanic Boat tour
– ‘She was alright when she left here.’” The highlights are the Lagan Weir, the Titanic Quarter, HMS Caroline, the former
shipyards of Harland and Wolff, the seal colony in Musgrave Channel, and the many impressive developments in the harbour
area. Afternoon tea over, Rev Robert Beckett brought the session to a close with a very engaging talk from Job 41 on the
Leviathan, a great creature of fearful power (which is said to be extinct for 70 million years!) and the sovereignty of almighty
God who made and controlled it.

ECB

Student Graduation Report

The hall of Knockbracken Reformed Presbyterian Church was filled on 19th April for the graduation of three students from the
Reformed Theological College. Many of those attending were from EP churches as John Roger, Ballyclare EPC, was one of the
graduates.
Rev. John Hawthorne, Convener of the college, spoke warmly of how John, along with Peter Dundee and Isaac Berrocal, had
bonded as brothers in the Lord and had displayed hard work, the gifts necessary for gospel ministry and the graces of godly
lives. He reminded them that the demanding duty of study will continue and wished them God’s blessing in their ministries as
they build up His church and lead people to Christ, all for His glory.
Rev. Prof. Norris Wilson (Moderator of the RPC) took as the title of his address, Goads and Nails- the Words of the Preacher,
taken from Ecclesiastes 12:9-12. His
reminder of the Preacher’s authority and
the Preacher’s message will have been of
encouragement not only to John, Peter and
Isaac, but also to the other preachers in the
assembly. His speaking of the Preacher’s
preparation and the Preacher’s impact
should challenge us all to uphold in prayer
those who minister God’s word, and to be
sure we do not harden our hearts to that
word.
We congratulate John, Peter and Isaac and
pray for them and their families as they
seek God’s direction for the future.

17
 FROM THE CHURCHES

Hope Fellowship North Belfast

In 1985 John and I moved our membership from Stranmillis
EPC to Somerton Road EPC to support what had become
a struggling work. Somerton was founded in the late
1920s, but the flourishing work of the 1930s was badly hit
by evacuations from the area following the blitz. A slow
recovery in post-war years never saw a return to earlier
numbers. In 1996 after a seven-year vacancy, Somerton
was linked with Crosscollyer Street EPC under the ministry of
Rev. Robert Beckett, but the work at Somerton continued to
decline.

In 2012 we learned that a large and unexpected legacy was

coming to Somerton Road. After much prayer and discussion,
it was decided to re-plant Somerton for a trial three-year
period. Pablo Mandresa was appointed as evangelist, and
David Burke as youth evangelist.
Our vision was to plant a congregation where both
Nationalist and Unionist would feel welcome and worship the
Lord together in a united, Biblical faith. Accordingly, it was
decided to re-brand as Hope Fellowship North Belfast.
From late 2013 we had Core group meetings of those
interested in the work, and Sunday services started in 2014.
Pablo and David gradually modified the existing youth clubs
to make them more Bible study centred. These later became
a fortnightly Junior Youth Challenge, and a Good News Club
also re-started, both with CEF help.
If you had visited Hope Fellowship (thank you to those who
did—what an encouragement you were!) you would have
found it at first very different to other EP churches. Our folk
weren’t used to church of any kind, so we began informally
with coffee and chat. Everyone was welcomed, and a number
of our regulars said we were their family.
In the service itself you would hear three scripture readings,
three prayers (adoration, confession, intercession), four
songs, and a Kids’ Time (an opportunity to teach simple Bible
stories to all ages). Sometimes we recited the Apostles’
Creed or the Nicene Creed, which reassured folk that we
weren’t a cult.
During the service you might see a few young people slip in
and out, apparently attending to their phones, but listening
as well. An adult might slip out for a smoke, but the regulars
learned to sit through the whole service. There was a
supervised table behind the seating where children could
colour, draw or do puzzle pages related to the sermon. Week
by week, people were hearing God’s word.
The original core group broke up, Pablo resigned before the
end of his three years for personal reasons, and David Burke
got a job in the area to maintain the many contacts the Lord
had given him. John took on the task of co-ordinating the
preaching programme and I did admin and power points. We
were left with no musician, so we played music through a
smartphone and loudspeaker.
Last year we were made a Mission Church under the
supervision of the Church Development Committee. Several
men were approached to consider leading the work, including
an EPC minister, and two candidates came to preach with
a view and then received job offers. These however were
prayerfully declined. With a heavy heart CDC decided to
suspend the services at the end of 2017, due to the lack of
support and the impossible task for the few of us remaining.
All around Hope Fellowship is a world of unemployment, low
literacy rates and broken family life. Drug and alcohol abuse
and violence are commonplace, and the suicide rate among
young people is distressingly high. What a mission field! And
how heartbroken we were that we couldn’t go on. We made
many, many mistakes, but we saw our God gloriously at work
in people’s lives, with 10—12 coming to a clear faith and
going on well.
Thank you to all who prayed so faithfully for us. David Burke
continues to live in the district and maintain contact with
many of our folks.
Julia Grier

18
FROM THE CHURCHES

Presbytery Day Conference 28 April 2018

If you didn’t make it to this year’s Presbytery Day Conference you missed an
opportunity to enjoy fellowship with friends from across the denomination under
the ministry of God’s word. The speaker was Rev. Ian Parry from Cardiff, preaching
on Razor sharp—keeping the gospel both clear and real, and many spoke of the
challenge of the messages.
In the business meeting, Mr Wallace Thompson gave a report on the past year
in Presbytery before handing over the role of Moderator to Rev. Gareth Burke
who spoke on the theme of prayer. Rev. Drew Goodman of Barry EPC brought
greetings from EPCEW, and Rev. Roland Schipper and Rev. Dick Dreschler, visiting
from the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Liberated), were welcomed to
the conference. Pastor Matt Bingham was interviewed about his time as assistant
Pastor with the Stranmillis congregation and his upcoming move to post of lecturer
at Oakhill Theological College.
Annual Presbytery Reports for the year 2017 are available to download at http://
www.epcni.org.uk/resources/Annual-Presbytery-Report-2017.pdf These contain
a review of the year, congregational statistics and reports from the various
Presbytery committees, including Finance, Youth, Public morals and Inter-church
relations. These are recommended reading for your information, encouragement
and prayer for the work of God. If you would prefer a hard copy of the reports, speak
to your minister or a member of Presbytery.

Quotations of the day

Alexander Whyte used to say we must hold four things before people: Death,
Judgement, Heaven and Hell. Glyndwr Jenkins

The world can only offer social, relational, self-help answers. The gospel is much bigger
and offers much more than “enhancement”. It offers salvation in its totality. The world
says, “Look within for answers.” The gospel says, “Look without to Christ.” Ian Parry

Men despise religion. They hate it and are afraid it may be true.
The cure for this is first to show that religion is not contrary to reason, but worthy of
reverence and respect. Next make it attractive: make good men wish it were true, and
then show that it is. Blaise Pascal

Grace is not only the ground of our salvation, it is also the dynamic
of our hearts. What makes you tick? Before you were converted
it was idolatry and self-righteousness. But grace works a great
change. When you become a Christian your idols are replaced by
Christ, and your self-righteousness by an alien righteousness, the
righteousness of Christ imputed to you as a gift. This changes the
dynamic of our hearts. Ian Parry

19
 FROM THE CHURCHES

OBITUARY: Hilda Thompson

Mrs Hilda Thompson, a faithful member of the Stranmillis
congregation, was called home on 24th May 2017 in her one
hundred and first year. Mrs Thompson joined the Stranmillis
Church during the ministry of Rev Derek Thomas in 1981.
She was one of the very few folks who lived in the Stranmillis
district and was able to walk to the services from her nearby
home in Riverview Street. Mrs Thompson was very faithful in
her attendance at both Sunday services and also at the prayer
meeting – she never missed. Wonderfully she was able to
reside in her own home until the last few years of her life
when she was well cared for in Adelaide House Residential
Home. A lady of independent spirit, she was well known in
the Stranmillis district and for many years kept lodgers in
her home. As she was originally from Drumbo it was fitting
that after her funeral service in the Stranmillis church her
earthly remains were laid to rest in the churchyard of Drumbo
Presbyterian awaiting the resurrection of the last day when
Jesus, her Saviour, will return.
We assure the whole family circle of our prayers and
sympathy.
George left school at 14 years of age to take up an
apprenticeship in bookbinding. In time he began his own
bookbinding business. He married Grace McCutcheon in
1961 and together George and Grace were blessed with two
children, Sharon and Colin. Sadly Grace died in 2004 after
suffering with MS for many years. We believe that George
clearly came to faith in Jesus Christ and, although saddened
by his passing, we find comfort in the knowledge that he is
with Christ which is ‘far better’. We assure Sharon, Colin and
Hazel and George’s good friend and companion, Linda, of the
prayers and sympathy of Stranmillis Church.
GNB
Obituary: Timothy McCormick

GNB

OBITUARY: George Moore

The Stranmillis congregation was stunned and deeply

saddened by the unexpected death of Timothy McCormick
on 11th April 2018. Timothy was 32 years of age. It is hard
for us to express in a few words what Timothy meant to us
within Stranmillis. Having professed faith as a young child,
he, from an early age, showed considerable spiritual promise
and used his many gifts to the glory of God. He was actively
involved in our children’s works as leader of the Pathway Club
and within the church did many unnoticed tasks behind the
On the 11th April 2018 George Moore’s earthly pilgrimage
scenes. His commitment was total. Regularly he drove the
drew to a close in the Ulster Hospital, Dundonald. George
church minibus picking up children on a Sunday morning and
had been ill for some time but prior to his days in Limetree
Thursday evening. His contribution to the worship and praise
Residential Home he had regularly worshipped with us in
of the congregation was immense. He was an exceptionally
the congregation of Stranmillis. George Moore was a true
talented musician who played the piano with great ability.
gentleman, always smartly attired and always courteous to
Visitors to services were often surprised to discover that our
deal with. He was very attentive to the preaching of the Word
pianist was not a professional musician! When we moved
and would often comment to the preacher on some aspect of
away from the use of praise books to PowerPoint slides
the sermon.
20
FROM THE CHURCHES

and screen Timothy meticulously formatted the psalms

and hymns we use in worship. He gently introduced us to
contemporary songs of praise that were faithful to Scripture
and were well written. His suggestions for new items of
praise were always graciously put forward and he was very
skilled in finding suitable psalms and hymns to match the
theme of the sermon. Often at the close of the service as
worshippers were departing he would play some item of
praise that in many ways encapsulated what the preaching
had been all about.
Thank God for equipping and enabling Wallace
Timothy served the Lord not just within Stranmillis but in
Thompson in the role of Moderator last year
many different places. He regularly taught in the Finaghy
and pray for Gareth Burke as he begins his
Sunday school and, over the years, was active in Portstewart
year in office. Thank God for the diligent
CSSM and numerous UBM teams. He had a keen interest commitment of all Presbytery Commission
in the mission of Christ’s church and was involved in several and Committee members and pray that as a
mission teams abroad, only last November making a return church we might seek God for much blessing
visit to Niger. and encouragement in the days ahead.
Professionally, Timothy worked as a doctor in General
Practice in South Belfast. He was actively involved in the Pray for the Church Development Committee
Belfast Philharmonic Choir. as they make plans to foster an EPC Church
The large number of people who attended his funeral Plant in Londonderry, and ask God to
service was a striking reminder to us of the high regard in graciously guide and bless.
which Timothy was held. Many spoke of acts of kindness
Give thanks to God for His evident blessing
that they had experienced at his hands and all knew of his
upon the work of Hope Fellowship over
love for and commitment to the Saviour. We grieve deeply
the past four years and pray that all those
within Stranmillis and recognise that our grief is nothing in
involved will know His help as they seek to
comparison to that felt by his family. Timothy was a devoted
integrate into the life of other evangelical
son to his parents, Ron and Joy, and a loving brother to his
churches. Pray for wisdom regarding the
sisters, Sarah and Rachel. We assure Ron and Joy, Sarah future use of the Somerton Road building.
and John, Rachel and Paul of our prayers at this time of deep
sadness. We also remember Rachel and Paul’s children, Continue to pray for Sid Garland and the work
Esther and Nathan, who in their way so miss Uncle Timothy, of Africa Christian Textbooks. Give thanks
and give thanks to God for the recent arrival of their baby for the financial and prayer support from
brother, Matthew Timothy, who was born on 13th June. congregations for this strategic ministry which
Amidst our deep grief we find comfort in the knowledge that, contributes to the strengthening of the church
by God’s grace, Timothy is in the presence of Jesus whom he in Africa and pray that this backing would
served so well. continue. Join the Garlands in praising God for
answered prayers regarding Jean’s health.

GNB
Pray for the Finance Committee and all those
who help to administer the church’s finances,
including congregational treasurers and
deacons’ boards. Thank God for another year
of His provision through the generous giving of
His people.

21
 FROM THE CHURCHES

Sunday School Project

Winners...
Congratulations to the following children who won
prizes in the 2018 Sunday School project.
Projects were on Corrie ten Boom and Dr Barnardo.

Pray that sessions and leaders in each Prize-winners:

congregation and camp will be diligent in
implementing the Church’s POCVA policy, Pre-school & P1
Committed to Care, and ask for the Lord’s 1st Rachel Wright
watchful care over every Holiday Bible Club, 2nd Katie Woolsey
outreach event and camp over the summer. 3rd Luke Kelly
Pray that our children and young people would
have a growing appetite for the Word of God. P2- P3
1st Sophie Johnston & Jonathan Wright
Praise God for every memory of His saints 2nd Rose Fairley
who have gone to be with Him and pray that 3rd Amy Nelis
those who sorrow would be strengthened
daily. Praise God for the sure and certain hope P4- P7
that exists for those who die in the Lord. Pray 1st Daniel McMullan & Lauren Wright
for opportunities to share this hope with 2nd Juliette Hall & Rebekah Woolsey
others. 3rd Hannah Kelly

Pray for all our politicians in local government, Secondary

Assembly and Westminster, praying especially 1st Sarah McMullan
that Christian politicians will be given much
grace, wisdom and courage. Pray for all who Thank you and well done to these and to all 25 who
are involved in lobbying on moral issues, took part. We hope you enjoyed learning about the lives
particularly the Christian Institute. Pray that of these two Christians who made a difference.
all efforts to introduce same sex marriage
and abortion on demand would fail. Pray for A special thank you to Alison Hobson and Naomi
teachers and school children who are being Halliday who marked the entries.
exposed to the transgender and associated
agendas. Pray “O LORD, revive Your work in
the midst of the years! In the midst of the
years make it known; in wrath remember
mercy.” (Hab 3.2)

Pray for our friends in the Reformed Churches

in the Netherlands, that they would reverse
their Synod’s decision to allow women elders
& ministers, and that they would reaffirm their
allegiance to the Scriptures and Reformed
Confessions.

22
 BOOK REVIEWS
New Biography of Amy Carmichael
A completely new biography of Amy
Carmichael has been written by Dr
Hans Kommers, entitled Triumphant
Love: The contextual, creative and
strategic missionary work of Amy
Beatrice Carmichael in south India.
Her children, who now have the
charge of the work Amy began, are
so happy to have this new source
of information. Sura Carunia, who
came to Amy in 1940, said, ‘As one
who had never met her, Dr Kommers writes with an amazing
depth of understanding of the personality, character and
spirituality of “Amma”’. She held nothing back from her Lord and
Saviour, desiring always to follow Him and to live ‘the crucified
life’ with, as she put it, ‘my spirit tender of the glory of God’.
He brings her to life in a way that will touch the hearts of all
of us, her children, many of whom remember her as the very
loving, special person she was. We would hope that all who
read this book would be challenged and motivated to live for the
glory of God with a renewed commitment.
The book, 663 pages, is free to download as a pdf file, or
purchase as a print on demand book from the AOSIS website,
cost 670 Rand: https://books.aosis.co.za/index.php/ob/catalog/
book/36
Title: Brian J. Arnold, Cyprian of
Carthage: His Life and Impact (Early
Church Fathers
Author: Brian Arnold
Publisher: Christian Focus, 2017
RRP £7.99, EBS price £5.99
Everyday Christians do not likely
give many thoughts to the early
centuries of the church. It seems
far removed to us and it can be
daunting to read the “Church
Fathers” since we know they used
a different vocabulary, and their
doctrines were not as maturely stated or explained as ours
are today. Yet, those early centuries might actually be more
important in some ways for modern Christians to study than
any other period of church history. The culture was one of
religious pluralism, and Christianity was an outside minority.
Sexual immorality and paganism were rampant. Christians had
to be careful about how they conducted themselves in public
life so that they were not seen as rebels against the Roman
Empire. The reigning authorities were fine with Christians
believing whatever they want in their heads, but they required
at least a nod of the head, if not full submission, to public
policy and political preference. In other words, there are a vast
number of ways that the second and third centuries are much
like the twenty-first. That means the principles and conduct of
faithful Christians in that time can be helpful, encouraging, and
instructive for how we are to live our lives.
Cyprian of Carthage was one of the predominant leaders of the
church in the third century. He was born around 200 AD, but
did not convert to Christianity until 246. He was elected to be
bishop of Carthage by the insistent demand of the people only
two years later. He was executed by the Roman state in 258 as
a martyr. In his ten years of ministry, he weathered two seasons
of intense, government-sponsored persecution, a plague,
and two major controversies in the church. In his conduct and
decision-making, he remains an example for us of pastoral
wisdom, passion for godliness, and commitment to Christ.
One of the distinct features of Cyprian’s ministry was his
emphasis on the church. Modern evangelicals often take church
membership and attendance as optional extras for the Christian
life. Cyprian, in contrast, insisted that, “There is no salvation
outside the church” Although this phrasing may bristle some
of our Reformed sensibilities about justification being by faith
alone, he was simply noting that true Christians join in the
body of Christ, and that the church is the community of the
redeemed. He was emphatic that the church is essential for the
Christian life because the church is the place where Christ has
promised to meet us. Christ teaches us through the preaching
of his Word and he holds us accountable to be faithful to his
instruction through the administration of the sacraments.
Cyprian formed this view through controversies were some
professing Christians left the church because of threats against
Christians. His view was that you can not abandon the church
and still be a faithful Christian. We would benefit greatly today
by giving serious thought to Cyprian’s understanding of the
importance of the church.
Cyprian also cared deeply to see people live a life of deep
godliness. He did teach that we are saved by faith, even if his
explanations were not always as clear as we would prefer or
would require of our ministers today, but he also thought we
needed to live a life devoted to God. He placed a high priority
on prayer and he taught that we should learn to pray through
Scripture so that we are bringing God’s Word back to him. He
used the outline of the Lord’s Prayer as the essential guide to
teach us what should be the content and form of our prayers.
He also wrote extensively about Christian virtue and advocated
a robust commitment to developing our character according to
godliness. He also taught about the goodness of martyrdom.
This was not morbid vainglory. In a context where it was a real
possibility that some of his people may be killed for their faith,
he wanted them to have reasons not to be afraid of death for
their Savior. He, therefore, advocated that since God is the one
who sends our suffering, we should accept it as good for us.
Cyprian is a lasting example for us of commitment to Christ
and passionate, thoughtful, and sensitive pastoral care. We
learn about his teachings mainly through the letters he wrote
to his congregations either during his exile in hiding or during
his campaigns to settle controversial matters in the church.
Brian Arnold’s excellent book will guide you through the
cultural setting to understand Cyprian and teach you about
the content of his writings in a helpful way that points to the
points of relevance for today. In the example of Cyprian we
see an instance from the early church of how Christ has never
abandoned us and even in the worst times, the gates of hell
have never prevailed against us. This book is certainly worth
your time and you will be encouraged and helped as you see
how Cyprian lived for the gospel through the uncertainties of his
age.
Harrison Perkins
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 Best of the Blogs
A selection of online blogs and articles to challenge and
encourage you in your walk with God and his people…
The Simplicity of God (James Dolezal)
https://tabletalkmagazine.com/article/2018/05/the-
simplicity-of-god/
“Particularly prominent among the classical doctrines
about God is divine simplicity. Early Protestants such as the
Anglicans, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, and Baptists
all confessed that God is without parts, as had Christians for
a millennium and a half before them. Yet over the past few
centuries, this doctrine has become increasingly obscured,
and to us moderns it may even sound wrong or insulting to
call God simple. We tend to deem simple things among the
least awe-inspiring, the nearest to nonbeing. Surely, complex
things are more impressive and more capable of performing
powerful acts than simple things are—like the difference
between a Boeing 747 and a grain of sand, say. And if God is
the Creator of all things, then would He not need to be the
most complex of all?”
The Math Language of Revelation (Barry York)
https://gentlereformation.com/2018/05/14/the-math-
language-of-revelation/
“When it comes to the book of Revelation, you quickly find
the presence of many numbers. These numbers add (no
pun intended) to the mystery of the book. Yet, similar to
the example above, remembering the Bible has a “math
language” of its own can help in understanding the passages
containing the use of numbers. Here are five of Revelation’s
math language rules to follow.”
Thoughtful Christians know that the steady erasure of
Christian tradition in the day-to-day fabric of life will mean,
sooner or later, that Christians will find ourselves living like
the early church in hostile Rome.”
Marcion and Getting Unhitched from the Old Testament
(Kevin De Young)
www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevin-deyoung/marcion-
getting-unhitched-old-testament/
“Most heresies from the early church find a way to live on
in to other ages. This is especially true of Marcionism, with
its distaste for an angry God, its optimism about human
improvement, and its eagerness to set aside the Bible Jesus
read. From Red Letter Christianity to recent comments about
our need to “unhitch” from the Old Testament, Marcionism is
the evergreen heresy. So who was Marcion and why does his
revisionist project still resonate?”
Three types of people who help the church (Josh Buice)
http://www.deliveredbygrace.com/three-types-of-people-
who-help-the-church/
“There is not a perfect church in all of the world. We can’t
expect to find one this side of heaven. However, we must be
consistently reminded of our need for the local church. Just
as nobody ever makes it to the summit of Mt. Everest alone,
God has not willed for us to journey to heaven alone. God has
placed us within the fellowship of a community of believers
that we know as a local church as referenced in the pages of
Scripture.”

The Best Weapon is an Open Door (Rosaria Butterfield)

https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-best-weapon-is-
an-open-door

“If you believe that these are dangerous times, then you are
right. The worldview du jour is called “intersectionality” —
the belief that who you truly are is measured by how many
victim-statuses you can claim, with human dignity only
accruing through the intolerance of disagreement of any
kind. This has landed Christians squarely in a post-Christian
world, where the highest achievement of personhood is this:
the autonomous, independent individual finding meaning in
nothing but himself.

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