Bible Reading Plans for the New Year

One of the things we often do for the new year is make our New Year resolutions. While we can make fun of people who make the same resolutions each year but never do anything about them, I want to suggest that a little reflection followed by some resolutions can be a good opportunity for all of us.


While Christians know that we can make a fresh start with God anytime, the start of a new year can be a good opportunity to change some of the patterns of life and make the changes that we haven’t felt able to make in the business of the year. I suggested in a recent sermon that two of the habits and patterns we might seek to establish or re-establish for the new year might be our quiet times and our Bible reading programme. Often these two can (and should) be linked.

One of the challenges of establishing a regular Bible reading plan is working out the plan. I find that it helps to use a plan that someone else has put some time and effort into devising. I recently came across a collection of these gathered by Justin Taylor here: http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2009/12/30/bible-reading-plans-2/

Another recent article with a revised Bible reading plan is found here:
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2010/12/29/two-year-bible-reading-plan/

In particular I recommend the plan I am using this year. It was originally devised by Robert Murray M’Cheyne in 1842. If you read all four readings for each day you read the whole Bible in a year. It can easily be modified so that you read the whole Bible in two years (just read two readings each day). The plan is reprinted in a book by Don Carson, For the Love of God (Vols 1 and 2) which gives a short reflection for each day on one of the readings. Carson’s introduction, which includes a copy of the plan, can be found here: Carson’s Introduction - For the Love of God

Take the plunge and get into a Bible reading plan this year. I pray that God will bless you richly as you listen to his word.

PS.  For a nice online version of the M'Cheyne plan, with links to Biblegateway, check out this page created by Karen & Ben Beilharz.   http://hippocampusextensions.com/mcheyneplan/

A Locust Plague and an Ancient Prophecy

City-dwellers may not have realized, but as well as drought-breaking floods, 2010 has seen the biggest locust plague in Australia for more than 30 years.

According to the Australian Plague locust Commission the peak time for hatching in New South Wales has been October-November, with plague swarms moving across the state and moving to egg-laying in December. Apparently the conditions that produced potentially the best crops in more than a decade (now significantly damaged by floods) are ideal for locusts.

Hearing about the Australian locust situation made me think of the Old Testament book of Joel, which recounts the invasion of Israel / Judah by locusts and the people's response to the consequent warnings from God passed on by the prophet.

The book of Joel is interesting because scholars have long had difficulty determining the date it was made – unlike most OT prophets there is no dating information based on the reining kings or historical events. The locust plagues Joel speaks of could have occurred at almost any date in the history of Israel – from the time of King Solomon to the time after the exile.

Nevertheless, Joel speaks powerfully on a number of topics, including the need to cry out to God in the face of calamity; the need for heart-felt repentance for those who have sinned; the need for communities to repent together and rejoice together when they are delivered. He also pushes us to understand the Biblical meaning of 'The Day of the Lord' and gives the definitive OT prophecy of the outpouring of the Spirit in the 'last days' (quoted by Peter at Pentecost in Acts 2).

The final chapter of the prophecy paints the picture of the end time judgment in the 'Valley of Decision' (Jehoshaphat) on what will be the great and terrible 'Day of the Lord'. Yet the prophecy does not simply end with judgment but points to the fountain that will flow from the house of the Lord. This is picked up in the NT in Revelation 22:1-2 where John sees: 'the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city.' We also ought to remember the words of Jesus (in John 7:37ff), who said: 'If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.'

I am not suggesting that reports of a huge locust plague ought to have us jumping to conclusions about the end of the world being nigh – although some so-called 'end times experts' might want to interpret them this way! In fact, Joel's prophecy teaches us to understand every calamity - such as a locust plague, or a Tsunami or even a financial crash – as a kind of mini 'Day of the Lord' – something that ought to warn us to turn back to God and be ready, for the great 'Day of the Lord' is coming. The NT also calls it the day of the Lord Jesus Christ, who will return on that day as the judge of the earth. However that day will come 'like a thief in the night' at a time we cannot predict. (Check out 1 Thessalonians 5:2; 2 Peter 3:10.)

The prophecy of Joel reminds us that the 'Day of Decision' is coming – when the world will face judgment. Yet those who have turned to the Lord will escape condemnation on that Day. We have also received the blessing of God's spirit poured out on us and since we live in the day of Salvation, can be part of that blessing flow out to the whole world.
If you would like to check out my sermons on Joel, they are available at our church website: www.padstowanglican.org.au/sermons.
1.  Joel 1:1-20 'Cry to God'
2.  Joel 2:1-17 'Return to God'
3.  Joel 2:18-32 'Rejoicing in God'

4.  Joel 3 'In the Valley of Decision'…

PRAY FOR THE PERSECUTED

In our recent series on Hebrews we spent a week thinking about Hebrews 13:3:

Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.

This Sunday (November 14th) has been billed as the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

Whether you spend this Sunday as a special time of prayer or find some other time, I believe it is important to be informed and to pray (regularly) for our brothers and sisters who are persecuted.

As if on cue, this article appeared in yesterday's Sydney Morning Herald, telling the story of Pakistani woman Asia Bibi (Pictured above), who has been convicted of Blasphemy and sentenced to death.

There are too many similar stories in various parts of the world. Helpful websites to find out more about persecution around the world are:

http://www.persecution.org/         International Christian Concern

http://www.persecution.com/       Voice of the Martyrs

http://www.persecution.com.au/   VOM Aust

Fun and Safe Social Networking for Kids

One of the challenges most parents face in the 'internet age' is walking the line between 'access' and safety. When we hear the terrible stories of people abused by 'friends' they have met on social media sites we are rightly cautious about what our kids are doing online.

There are of course precautions we can take when kids are younger, including filtering or blocking software, physical location of computers (in the family room, not the bedroom) and parental supervision. But where do we allow them to go online when they want to start using social networking.

In our house the teenagers use 'facebook'. We rely on their maturity and good judgement - but their parents are also among their FB 'friends'. The pre-teenagers are more likely to be interested in Club Penguin, where each person has a penguin avatar that can interact (to a limited extent) with others. They especially like the races against other penguins (that earn them points).

But what if you want something in between? This review by Sarah Kessler of five 'fun and safe social networks for children' on mashable could be the answer. For the record the five are:

1. Togetherville
2. What's What
3. Scuttlepad
4. Giant Hello
5. Skid-e Kids

While none of these will be perfectly safe, there will probably be something here you will find acceptable. Just remember to keep talking with your kids about what they enjoy (or dislike) about the site.

A Christian Response to Global Warming

I recently took on the challenge of preaching two topical sermons on current ethical issues. The first was Euthanasia (see here) and the second was 'A Christian Response to Global Warming'.

I have to say that the first topic was much easier to tackle - mainly because the Bible has more to say about the topic. But how to tackle the topic of 'Global Warming' (GW)?

I began by doing some research on the scientific views on GW. With some background in science (B Sc in 1986!) I was confident I could get a handle on the issues. What I discovered is that it is not as straightforward as I had thought!

If we accept the argument of Al Gore and friends (from the movie 'An Inconvenient Truth') then an increase in pollution caused by human activity has led to an increase in greenhouse gases - especially Carbon Dioxide. This has led to an increase in the average temperature of the earth by about 0.6 - 0.8 degrees C in the last 40-50 years, or about 1.5 degrees over the last 100 years. The concern is that this increase in temperatures is already having significant negative effects, and that if it continues we could see an increase in the world's temperature of 4-5 degrees in the next 50 years - with catastrophic consequences. (A Short Video by national geographic explaining Global Warming can be found here: Global Warming 101.)

Al Gore claims that the scientific facts are not disputed - which is only partly true. The fact of global warming - the rise in the average temperature of the earth - is generally not disputed. What is disputed more is the cause. More specifically, whether humans are the main cause. There actually seem to be quite a few scientists who have alternative explanations (see for example the arguments of Bob Carter, an Australian from Townsville who does not deny the facts, but the conclusions drawn. His new book is called Climate: The Counter Consenus). The 'international consensus' on human induced global warming is presented here (Australian Government Dept of Climate Change) and here (Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change).

In a short period of time I went from being fairly convinced for Human-caused global warming to very sceptical, and then back to cautiously accepting.

Another side of the issue is to consder the political organisations that are pushing the for an integrated international solution - which generally involves heavy taxing of carbon emissions. Led by the beauracracy of the UN, it is strongly supported by many socialist organisations around the world who are keen to see this as a way to redistribute the world's wealth. At this point we can get into any number of conspiracy theories - many of which I consider crazy! However, there is at least a grain of truth coming from those who warn against handing over power to an unaccountable world-wide beauracracy.

Taking all this into account, I then tried to consider the Christian response. I decided that perhaps the most  important passages are in Genesis 1 and 2 which remind us that God is creator of our world and he has given us an authority over the creation - not an authority to exploit, but rather an authority that involves caring for his creation. Very important is to remember that we are to worship the creator, not the creation, and that in whatever we do we are to see to love both God and our neighbour.

So, I asked, how should we love our neighbour who is possibly affected by Global Warming? I think the answer is that we as individual and as societies ought to take 'reasonable means' to lessen our impact on the creation. Having said that, I am sure that there are more significant issues of exploitation (of people as well as the environment) and pollution that ought to be addressed as a priority over 'carbon emission'. Nonetheless, I believe that in this we ought to err on the side of caution and begin to implement measures that will reduce our the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Here is the outline of my talk:

Archbishop Ussher and the Birthday of the Universe

I was listening to ABC 702 this morning and heard Adam Spencer make the following comment:

"And a happy 27th of October to you all. Perhaps a birthday – an anniversary – the maths extension 1 exam.

Well for some creationists, Oct 27 4004bc is the day of creation itself. I chatted with Dr Mark Harwood from Creation Ministries about what underpins creation theory. Interesting stuff indeed. Hmmmmmmmmmmm."

This was the introduction to an interview (that can be found here) in which Dr Harwood (from Creation Ministries International) did a reasonable job of defending his position as a Young-Earth creationist despite some fairly belligerent interviewing by Adam.

After hearing the interview I checked the facts about Archbishop James Ussher (Archbishop of Armagh, Ireland, 1625 - 1656). Adam should have checked his facts, because Archbishop Ussher calculate that the earth was created about nightfall before October 23rd. 4004 BC. According to Wikipedia:

After a 1647 work on the origin of the Creeds, Ussher published a treatise on the calendar in 1648. This was a warm-up for his most famous work, the Annales veteris testamenti, a prima mundi origine deducti ("Annals of the Old Testament, deduced from the first origins of the world"), which appeared in 1650, and its continuation, Annalium pars postierior, published in 1654. In this work, he calculated the date of the Creation to have been nightfall preceding 23 October 4004 BC (According to the Julian calendar).

 
Now, leaving aside Adam's error, how important is this date? Should we celebrate it as the birthday of the world? Do we have to accept that the world is about 6000 years old if we want to uphold the authority of the Bible as the Word of God (as Dr Harwood implied)?
 
I would suggest that Archbishop Ussher made an overly literalistic interpretation of the date of the creation. Even if the ages given in the genealogies of the Bible can be calculated accurately to give dates for Noah or for Adam, this still does not imply that we can calculate the date of the creation of light to six days before. I would argue that the first two chapters of Genesis are intended to tell us more about the purpose of creation and the nature of the creator rather than the exact order and date. I am therefore prepared to accept the label of  'Old-Earth Creationist' and to accept a possible date for the creation of the earth at over 13 billion years ago.
 
Of course I would still want to argue that the Bible is the word of God that should be read literally. Yet I find the Young-Earh creationists to be a little disturbing in their dogged adherence to such an early date in the face of very significant scientific evidence.
 
While we should not accept everything that scientists claim as 'proven fact', neither should we be scared of science when done within its proper bounds. While the YEC's claim to have rebuttals to much of the 'scientific evidence' for an old earth, it does appear to me to be 'special pleading' bound by a dogmantic and literalistic reading of Scripture. These are the kind of arguments that are usually called 'fundamentalist'.
 
A helpful article by Michael Jensen on 'Fundamentalism' was also released this week on the ABC religion website. Michael warns against the person who claims that their view is purely objective and rational - whether based on Scripture or something else (like Science). Such a person is not prepared to consider the alternative argument. A humble Christianity will always be prepared to consider the merits of the alternative argument - even when it might contradict certain cherished presuppositions or conclusions.
 
Unfortunately the conversation on the radio this morning sounded like a conversation between two different kinds of 'fundamentalists' - although I do think that the Christian was a bit more polite.

Synod Vox Pops

This video by Anglican Media gives you an idea of what attenders think about Synod.

AND Check out this post by Nigel Fortescue for a taste - in fact a highlight!



Synod Vox-pops from Sydneyanglicans.net on Vimeo.

Peter Jensen on 'Being Human in this Glittering City'

In the last week I have been attending the Annual Synod of the Sydney Anglican Diocese. One of the highlights is always the Presidential address given by the Archbishop. This year the address by Peter Jensen was on the topic of 'Being Human in this Glittering City'.

He began by suggesting that this 'glittering city' of Sydney began as an experiment in human nature. "One of the architects of the whole [transportation] scheme was the Home Secretary, Lord Sydney. For him, transportation was not a penalty in itself, and even convicted felons did not lose all the rights of an Englishman. He thought that after a relatively brief settling-in period under the rule of military authority, the new colony would be self-governing, run by morally improved convicts."

In what sense can humans be 'improved' or even 'perfected'? He then goes on to talk about the dream of improving people, including convicts and aboriginals; the education of the early children in the colony before making the point that our view of humanity will have direct implications for how we treat people - like the first Australians, Prisoners, the needy, the dying and the young.  He provided a reflection on the trial of so-called "ethics classes" as a challenge to Special Religious Education (Scripture) and challenged us to rethink our vision for Christian education. He then went on to speak about the financial situation of the diocese and - more importantly - the progress of our mission.

It was a great encouragement to think Biblically about human nature ('Anthropology' for the academics) and to make sure we stick to the gospel mission.  For me the address is the highlight of Synod. Well worth a read or listen!

The full text is available here.

The Audio Version is available here,

and the video is available in two parts on Vimeo, Part 1, and Part 2.

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