Guest Service this Sunday

There will be guest services at SMACC1 and SMACC2 this Sunday, where the message of Christianity will be clearly explained. There will be a few people getting baptised (and we get to share in that joy with them!), and there will be food afterwards. Do come along with family and friends! :)

Taking a break from the Lord's Work

We get our identity and value in what we accomplish in our work (the number of people we serve, the number of things we are responsible for, the number of things we get done) and not from who we are in Jesus. This is a huge and significant issue that no amount of vacation is going to solve. Longevity and health in ministry will be a result of who you are in Jesus, more than what you do for Jesus. 1 John 5:21 warns us about idols. Ministry can and has become an idol for a lot of us...

Might that be you? Then read on...

Thinking Theologically Conference 2010 - The Word of God

At this year's TTC, we focus on the important evangelical doctrine of Scripture.

As Christians, all that we do in the end must turn on our understanding of this doctrine. Just what does it means when we commit to upholding the Bible’s authority? Can we explain it in the face of multiple other claims to authority that we ourselves acknowledge? Is Scripture unclear in any way? In what way is Scripture authoritative when authorities conflict with what the Bible says on an issue of controversy? Just how far does Scripture’s authority go?

From November 4-6, 2010, at Port Dickson. Click here to register!

Solomon on social media

If Solomon were alive today and we were to ask him how we are to relate to one another in this digital world, if we were to ask him how we can honor God in our use of all these social media available to us today, here is how he might respond...

Global Gospel, Global Era

Here is a thoughtful paper from David Wells and Os Guinness on Christian discipleship in a globalised age.

An excerpt:

Christians are by definition great communicators, and the global era is by definition the great age of communication, so the potential for outreach in the global world can hardly be overstated. With the destruction of traditions, the collapse of traditional certainties, and the melting down of traditional roles and allegiances, there is greater political liberty, greater social fluidity, greater religious diversity and greater psychological vulnerability than ever before in history. As a result, human beings in the global era have been described as “conversion prone,” and more open than ever to consider new faiths. We therefore face the prospect of spreading the Gospel in a manner that is “freer, faster, and farther” than ever before in the church’s history, a prospect that must be seized with faith and courage.

At the same time, it would be naïve not to see that the increased challenges to mission and evangelism are equally powerful, and must be faced frankly...

The paper is worth a careful read in its entirety.

Making the most of Sunday mornings

...There is absolutely nothing like the local church. The church universal is God’s global display of his life transforming grace. The church local is one of the most profound experiences of that grace this side of eternity.

Hebrews 10 informs us of the value of the local church–it is the training ground for the age to come. In the local church, God’s people are to “stir one another up to love and good works . . . all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (vv24-25).

If the local church is the believer’s training ground in which to prepare for the Lord’s return, we ought to think very carefully about how we "do life" together in the church.

How might we do that? 4 suggestions:
1. Come to church
2. Sing, and sing loudly!
3. Talk to people
4. Let your fellowship extend beyong your corporate gatherings

For an expansion of these 4 points, you can read the whole thing here.

Stephen Hawking, God and science

Here's an article by Alister McGrath on Stephen Hawking, God and the role of science.