One of the realities when you switch churches and denominations is how one network of communication is unplugged and another network is connected. It takes a bit of time to find out where you are in all of this. But after having done moves to England and back again I have found that it is best… Read More Thank You, Article XXXVII
The more determined men become to despise the teaching of Christ, the more zealous should godly ministers be to assert it and the more strenuous their efforts to preserve entire. And more than that, by their diligence to ward off Satan’s attack. John Calvin As my study drew to a close and I realized how… Read More Hello, I must be going, 7
I read a blog by Brian Croft the other day who asked some questions concerning our assumptions on decline that got me thinking. Like him the more I hear the push “to overcome” the “plateau or decline” the more I pause and think of scenarios where a church’s decline in numbers is not necessarily a… Read More Decline and…
Ever met an evangelist? I met one recently in the pages of John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. He is simply called “Evangelist” but it would be wrong to impose upon Bunyan’s character a modern understanding of an itinerant, American-style preacher. Rather, Evangelist here represents an important facet of the office of pastor which remains connected… Read More Seeker, Seeking, Sought
If you’ve read my posts you will know that at the end of November John Owen arrived at 501 Green. I was just reading the sermons in volume nine of The Works of John Owen, “Sermons to the Church” and spotted this. Across the centuries, the “prince of the English divines” describes the same experience… Read More John Owen on Preaching
In 1538 John Calvin wrote in a letter to Henrich Bullinger, explaining his early difficulties in Geneva, that “…Geneva want preachers and teachers, but not pastors…” As a rector who understands his call to pastor his congregation, I know exactly what Calvin meant. In most congregations, the clergy perform the sacraments, visit the sick, teach… Read More Pastor as Lens
The Vicar's Garden 