Internet safety Laws to make it more difficult for children to access hardcore pornography were introduced in Parliament before the Easter recess. The legislation will introduce new controls to halt the rising numbers of children accessing hardcore pornography on the internet. The Bill was introduced in the House of Lords by Baroness Howe of…
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Jubilee Baptist Church, Occold Jubilee came into being on Sunday 4 March, the result of an amalgamation of Grove Evangelical and Occold Baptist churches in Suffolk. The congregation of the former churches met together in the morning for the final ‘joint service’, when David Steere preached from Joshua chapters 1 and 3. He…
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On 24 February 1791, only a week before he died, John Wesley wrote his final letter. It was to William Wilberforce, and all about Wilberforce's struggles against the slave trade.
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A salvation that works Guest Column Are sinners able to come to Christ for salvation in their own power, and of their own accord? Many have thought so. Some even believe they can ‘get saved’ any time they choose, as if the matter were entirely in their hands. But that is contrary to what…
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Ogmore Vale Calvary Baptist Church, at Ogmore Vale in Wales, has welcomed its new pastor, Owen Batstone. Last February the church set in motion a plan for Rev. Brian Nott to work part-time shortly after his 70th birthday, and began to pray for a new pastor to replace him. Three young men came to…
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A man for all seasons The media frenzy that sprang up when Dr Rowan Williams announced his resignation as Archbishop of Canterbury seems to have died down — for now. But amid the speculation over who would fill his episcopal shoes, little attention has been given to the necessary qualities of the next archbishop.…
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Lloyd-Jones sermons More than 1,600 recorded sermons of the late Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones have been made available for free on the MLJ Trust web site. The trust, which is a US-based charitable organisation founded to promote Dr Lloyd-Jones’ ministry through the US, has uploaded all of the recorded sermons onto its online library. The…
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Fallible science Confidence in science has declined steadily among Americans who consider themselves conservatives, while confidence levels have been at steadier levels for other ideological groups. The study, published in the April issue of the American sociological review, provides fresh ammunition for those who complain that conservative views on issues such as climate change…
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Election hope US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton said Washington will ease restrictions on investment to Myanmar and move towards naming an ambassador there. She said this would be a sign of better relations between one of the most secretive states in the world and Western powers. Her comments came after Myanmar president Thein…
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Shall we unite with Rome? (3) Rome has had her difficulties in the past with men within her bounds who were tainted with modernist unbelief. Liberal tendencies developed under Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903), but they were rigorously suppressed as ‘heretical’ by Pius X (1903-14). Rev. George Tyrrell, a convert from the Church of England…
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Avalanche More than 100 Pakistani soldiers and civilian personnel were trapped after their base was hit by an avalanche in the Kashmir region. According to a report from Al Jazeera, roughly 150 soldiers were deployed to search the snow that had cascaded down from the Himalayas, after the avalanche swept over the camp on…
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In Summer 2011 Rev. David Phillips wrote his final article as the retiring editor of Cross†Way (issue 121), having completed over 10 years as General Secretary of the Church Society (he is now engaged in parish ministry). Below is an edited version of his article.
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Militant secularism (1) The UK Conservative Party co-chairwoman Baroness Warsi (the first female Muslim cabinet minister in parliament) has expressed the view that Britain is under threat from a rising tide of ‘militant secularisation’. She warned that religion is being ‘sidelined, marginalised and downgraded in the public sphere’. These sentiments were voiced in…
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Power through prayer ‘After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the Word of God boldly’ (Acts 4:31). The apostles called upon God in their weakness and he filled them afresh with the mighty power of the Holy Spirit. But…
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Pierre de Coubertin got the idea for this phrase from a speech given by Bishop Ethelbert Talbot, at a service for Olympic champions during the 1908 Olympic Games.
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North Korean children Increasing numbers of children are risking their lives to escape worsening conditions in their homeland of North Korea, Release International has claimed. The charity, which works through an international network of missions to help Christians throughout the world, said the consequences were often devastating. Andy Dipper, of Release, gave…
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Children in St Kilda I have recently been reading an account of a visit which was paid to the lonely Atlantic island of St Kilda by Rev. Dr John MacDonald, minister of Ferintosh in the Black Isle, in the early nineteenth century. He was popularly known as the ‘Apostle of the North’ because of…
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Sarang Thomas Centre One of the most visible signs of the gospel partnership between Sarang Community Church in Korea and Wales Evangelical School of Theology (West) is the recently completed Sarang Thomas Centre, named after the church and Welsh missionary martyr Robert Jermain Thomas. The new building provides West with a permanent meeting…
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Hustings Christians were given the chance to quiz the main candidates running for Mayor of London at a special hustings debate on 18 April. The event, scheduled to take place at St James’s Church, Piccadilly, saw current mayor Boris Johnson and his key challengers, Ken Livingstone, Brian Paddick and Jenny Jones in attendance. The…
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Gift Aid Churches that operate their own Gift Aid administration were reminded that HM Revenue and Customs require a change to be made in the wording of Gift Aid declarations. The change became effective on 24 February 2012, but there is a period of grace up to 31 December 2012. Gift Aid declarations signed…
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Should Christians parade their religion? When former Labour leader John Smith died, one reporter wrote: ‘He’s a Christian who never parades his religion’. The question might be put: ‘Should Christians parade their religion?’ But a better question would be: ‘Should Christians display their faith?’ And there is a world of difference between those two…
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ET COMMENT Sound an alarm! As the Anglican Church prepares for an even more uncertain future, with the resignation of Archbishop Rowan Williams from Canterbury at the end of the year, nonconformist evangelicals cannot afford to be complacent. There is an elephant roaming within their own camp — it is called unbiblical ecumenism. …
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Frome On Saturday 5 March, Clink Evangelical Church, at Frome in Somerset, held special services to celebrate the opening of their new church building. The work began in 1976 out of a concern to reach children in the area with the good news of Jesus. Jim Short, now a church elder, started a Sunday…
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An investment that pays – the importance of Christian camps and conferences for young people Are you thinking about the summer holidays? Have you considered sending your children, or young people connected with your church, to a Christian camp? Here are some benefits in doing this. Same message If you send them to a…
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Peace attempt At least 100 people died on one of the bloodiest days in the Syrian uprising just before Easter, days ahead of a ‘ceasefire’, a report from the BBC has alleged. According to various sources within the country, more than 30 people died in Latamneh alone as a result of government shelling. A…
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Abortion figures An official compilation of late-term abortion statistics has been questioned by the British journal of obstetrics and gynaecology. The journal highlighted differences over data on late-term abortions published by the Department of Health. It noted a ‘substantial’ difference between the numbers of late abortions recorded by official Department of Health and those…
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Discord The liberal Accord Coalition has rejected the Church of England’s (CofE) Church school of the future report. It criticises the report for failing to set out an ‘open and inclusive’ vision for schools. The CofE, which is responsible for more than 4,800 schools across the country, published its 44-page report in March, after…
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Pakistan A young Christian mother has been charged with blasphemy in Pakistan for refusing to convert to Islam at the insistence of some of her relatives. Shamim Bibi (26), who has a three-month-old daughter, was arrested on 28 February and charged under section 295-C of the Pakistan penal code. This prescribes a…
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Building for God A former architect, Martin Noutch, has been ordained and inducted to the Evangelical Free Church, Radford, in Nottingham. Mr Noutch, a graduate of the Wales Evangelical School of Theology (West), was welcomed officially to the church on Saturday 10 March. He had completed full-time studies at West in 2011, but before…
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Steadfast faith Why is it difficult for Christians to consistently maintain steadfast faith in their everyday walk with Christ? Is it because it is so much easier to have ‘feel good’ faith when everything in our lives is running smoothly with no complications? Surely we are made more aware of our need for prayer…
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C4M petition Hundreds of thousands of people have signed the Coalition for Marriage (C4M) petition since its launch in February. Colin Hart, C4M campaign director, said the huge number of signatures — more than 437,000 at the time of writing — showed the strength of opposition to plans announced by Lynne Featherstone, the equalities…
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A lamb to the slaughter The expression ‘It will be like a lamb to the slaughter’ was quoted by a boxer recently. It would be fair to say he probably didn’t know he was quoting from the Bible! In order to ‘hype’ an impending match he was about to have for the British lightweight…
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‘An equality too far’ A Christian employee who was demoted after criticising gay weddings on his Facebook page has been told he cannot use human rights arguments to contest the decision. The ruling was handed down by District Judge Charles Khan at Manchester County Court. Adrian Smith vowed to continue his legal action,…
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Birmingham Conference 2012 The Birmingham Conference, for ministers, church workers and their wives, was held at Ebenezer Chapel, Old Hill, Birmingham, on 23 and 24 March. Now in its third year, this conference is well established and greatly valued for its distinctive emphasis on the Word of God and heart religion. The speakers were…
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1662 — a defining moment No fundamentally new issues arose in 1662, but old ones were crystallised and the identities of Nonconformity and Anglicanism defined. This was the message of the papers given at a well attended conference on ‘1662 and Nonconformity’, at the Evangelical Library on 27 March. Dr Garry Williams gave an…
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Sunday trading Keep Sunday Special (KSS) has launched a campaign to prevent ‘legislation creep’, following Prime Minister David Cameron’s suggested relaxation of the Sunday trading laws ahead of the Olympic Games. John Ashcroft, research director for KSS, said the rumours were ‘profoundly worrying’ and KSS ‘totally opposes’ such a move, claiming it would be…
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Eric Alldritt Rev. Eric Alldritt recently concluded his ministry in Keswick Congregational Church. Numerous people in the various churches he has served, both as pastor and through preaching across the UK by invitation, as well as those touched by his ministry in Portugal, will give thanks to God for this servant of the gospel…
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Cancer and abortions Pregnant women diagnosed with even aggressive forms of cancer no longer have to make an agonising decision between swift treatment and abortion. A series of studies in medical science journal the Lancet has revealed that, after the first three months of pregnancy, chemotherapy treatment does not harm the unborn child. …
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Time-poor Busy Brits need an extra day each week to get everything done, a survey from investment house JP Morgan Asset Management has found. Its Generation Busy Report revealed that no matter how old we are, Britons believe they are busier than our parents’ generation, and if we had an extra half an hour…
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Athletics ditched The economic woes in Greece have had a devastating effect on the nation’s Olympic hopes, after its cash-strapped athletics federation Segas suspended activities as a protest against continuous cutbacks in state funding. At a general assembly meeting, the Segas board said it would cease all operations until ‘further notice’ while calling on…
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Disasters and God’s sovereignty Recent years have brought wave upon wave of natural calamities. The Asian tsunami on 26 December 2004 killed 230,000, in more than ten countries. The floods in Vietnam (2005), China and Thailand (2011) killed many people. Then there was the category five Hurricane Katrina in the USA; the Chilean and…
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Kidney sold Five people were arrested in southern China after it was discovered that a teenager sold his kidney so he could buy an iPhone and iPad. According to a BBC report, one of the five who were detained was the surgeon who removed the kidney from the boy in April last year. The…
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Budget response The Association of Christian Financial Advisers (ACFA) has welcomed the Budget’s increased personal taxation allowance, but said phasing out the age-related benefit would penalise those who had contributed the most to society. Arwyn Bailey, an independent financial adviser and spokesperson for the ACFA, warned of increased ‘red tape’ and expensive complexity…
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Reflections on giving One of the most difficult issues to think through for missions and missionaries is that of money. Here are a few honest thoughts and reflections from my time here in the Philippines. Poverty When I first came to the Philippines, I remember being really struck by the poverty. I’d never seen…
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Tenth anniversary Rev. Stephen Packham has celebrated his 10th anniversary at Southern Cross Evangelical Church, Portslade, near Brighton. On the weekend of 25-26 February we celebrated our pastor’s anniversary with us. We had a blessed afternoon praising the Lord for his goodness to us and our pastor. There were about 70 in the congregation…
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Conference Banner of Truth in Australia The 2012 Banner of Truth Conference at Collaroy, Australia, was an answer to prayer, writes Rev. Iain H. Murray. He says: The same day I heard a Sudanese pastor and Chinese missionary speak of their countries, I read the text ‘Many prophets and righteous men have desired to…
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Youth Feature SERIOUS ABOUT LOVING TRUTH? ‘Serious about loving truth’ was the thrust of the SALT Youth Conference at South Glasgow Baptist Church last month. Oliver Allmand-Smith from Ramsbottom, Ali McLachlan and Conrad Pomeroy from Dundee spoke. Four delegates (below) reported on the talks. Conquering like David Andy Corkill: Like many others, whilst…
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Joseph – Encountering the man who saved his people Roger Ellsworth Day One Publications 112 pages, £5.00 ISBN: 978-1-84625-293-8 Star Rating: 3 Many preachers, such as Martin Lloyd-Jones, have rightly made 1 Corinthians 2:2 (‘I am determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified’) a fundamental…
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The Marrow Controversy and Seceder Tradition – Atonement, Saving Faith and the Gospel Offer in Scotland (1718-1799) William VanDoodewaard Reformed Heritage Books 302 pages, $19.00 ISBN: 978-1-60178-149-9 Star rating: 3 In 1733 four ministers left the Church of Scotland, establishing the ‘Secession’ church. They were strong advocates of the theology of ‘The Marrow…
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How sermons work. David Murray EP Books £5.99 ISBN: 9780852347485 Star rating: 4 stars Professor David Murray from The Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan provides a helpful and clear explanation of all that should be considered when preparing a sermon, in this short practical book. He examines the methods of…
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Deuteronomy Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries Edward J. Woods IVP Academic 333 pages, £11.99 ISBN: 978-1-84474-533-3 Stars:3 The original Tyndale Commentary series was much appreciated at a time when there were few modern evangelical works on the biblical text. All that has changed, and pastors, teachers and students of Scripture are spoilt for choice…
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The Message of the Word of God Tim Meadowcroft IVP 281, £9.99 ISBN: 978-1-84474-5517 Star Rating: 2 For Tim Meadowcroft, the Word of God, at least in the scope of this book, is not simply a synonym for the Scriptures. The book is a much wider consideration of how God speaks, looking at the…
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C. H. Spurgeon’s Forgotten Prayer Meeting Addresses Comp. Terence Peter Crosby DayOne 304 pages, £15.00 ISBN: 978-1846252389 Star rating: 4 stars Intended as a sequel, of sorts, to the readily-available Only a Prayer Meeting!, this volume draws together 37 addresses, many of them delivered at Metropolitan Tabernacle prayer meetings, though with a selection of…
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John Knox John J. Murray EP Books, 112 pages, £5.99, ISBN: 978-0-85234-759-1 While writing this review, I have been reflecting on the recent discussions on Scotland’s future possible independence. I wonder how many politicians, both sides of the border, are aware of the impact that a man by the name of John Knox has…
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Dr D Martyn Lloyd-Jones Eryl Davies EP Books 128, £5.99 ISBN: 978-0-85234-760-7 Star Rating: 0 This book is one of the first in a new series by Evangelical Press entitled Bitesize Biographies. Slightly smaller than most paperbacks and with less pages it is ideal for introducing a new generation of Christians, and especially younger…
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Defiant Grace -The surprising Message and Mission of Jesus Dane Ortlund EP Books 139 pages, £6.99 ISBN: 978-085234-751-5 Stars: 3 ‘Left in neutral, all of us tend to slide away from the wonder of the Gospel’ (p.12). Defiant Grace is a very readable and easily digestible book aimed at everyday Christians who need…
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Charles Simeon: An Ordinary Pastor of Extraordinary Influence Derek Prime Day One 275 pages, £10 ISBN: 978-1-84625-313-3 Stars: 4 For over fifty years until his death in 1836, Charles Simeon was a renowned leader among Anglican evangelicals. This book by Derek Prime is to be welcomed as a means of introducing Simeon…
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The Sovereignty and Supremacy of King Jesus: Bowing to the Gracious Despot, Mike Abendroth Day One Publications 239 pages, £10.00 Star rating: 4 This book offers a refreshing vision of divine sovereignty. This is surely in need of recovery and Mike Abendroth has done the church a service in producing this work. The…
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I am … Iain D Campbell Evangelical Press 128 pages, £5.99 ISBN: 978-0-85234-774-4 Star Rating: 3 Nothing is more important than the question of who Jesus is. We know from the four Gospel records that He divided opinion greatly amongst people of His own day. He still does today. Whilst many will have their…
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John Chrysostom (Bitesize Biographies) Earl M Blackburn EP Books 128 pages, £5.99 ISBN: 978-0-85234-772-0 Star rating: 4 stars. This is a little book that packs a mighty punch. It is part of the EP Books’ bitesize biography series and is written with a general readership in mind. Informative, inspiring, interesting and inductive this…
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The S.A.L.T. plan — how to prepare for an economic crisis of biblical proportions Chuck Bentley Crown Financial Ministries 144 pages, £6.51 for eBook ISBN: 978-1-56427-299-7 Star rating: 3 stars This unusual yet perceptive book addresses the prudent (and otherwise) behaviour of western people as they face economic downturns, recessions and collapses. Although…
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