During the week I had an amazing experience. I started my Year 1 Scripture lesson by asking if the children remembered the memory verse from last week. I had the flashcards ready to re-teach them. And then they broke out in unison: Go to all the nations and make all the people my disciples. Matthew 28:19. I was gob-smacked.

This school is so committed to Scripture that the teachers request to stay and help the Scripture teachers, rather than have more time to themselves. The teacher in my class was equally shocked at what happened. We just looked at each other. I thought I was there to teach them! The truth was I could hardly remember the verse myself.

There are many children in the class who are not involved in any church, yet it is remarkable to hear how much they understand about Jesus. NSW is the only Australian state that mandates the provision of Scripture in legislation. It represents a unique opportunity for us to help today’s children understand the Gospel.

In the last few weeks, we have shared our desire to employ a Children’s Minister at TAC. This new position will provide leadership and training so that we can make even more of such opportunities and others. As you may imagine, there are many pieces that need to come together to make this a reality, and I am overwhelmed with how God’s work is unfolding.

I do hope and pray that you will support this exciting initiative. The yellow sheet (at the back of church if you missed it last week) provides more information about how you can support this development. At a minimum please pray, for without God our efforts will be nothing.

Jesus said:

“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.”

Raj

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am)… we come to another strong passage in the New Testament. Read 1 John 2:28-3:10. Why does John speak so strongly about sin?

Confirmation Sunday

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm) it’s Confirmation Sunday. Confirmation is an opportunity for one to declare their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. This is done by publicly confirming for themselves the promises that were made on their behalf when they were baptised as a baby or adult. Please be praying for Janice and Ben as they prepare to declare and confirm these promises at Sunday Night Church. Meeting starts at 6pm. Bishop Ivan Lee will be preaching from Phillipians. You can read the passage Phillipians 2:1-11 here.

People are hearing and understanding the Gospel. People are coming to Christ. People are deepening in their understanding of God through His Word. One example is someone I spoke with a few days ago who visited evening church. They said: ‘we loved it’. They are thinking of joining us as a result of just one visit.

This is not to say that we are the perfect church. We must prevent ourselves from thinking such nonsense, for we are sinful people and our church has many weaknesses. It is inevitable that a growing church will have problems, for in many ways chaos sets in as we try to keep up with what God is doing.

With so much to give thanks for also means there is a tremendous danger. For it is in times like these that the evil one would like nothing more than to gain a foothold. I have seen it happen before, with devastating consequences.

‘Be self controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour’ (1 Peter 5:8). These are apt words for our church at this time. Satan would like nothing more than to bring to a halt to the work God is doing through His people. And in recent weeks, I have become only too aware of many opportunities in which I believe he is trying to do exactly that.

We must not let him.

It is in times like this where we must uphold one another in prayer, particularly our church leadership. That is often where he chooses to attack. God is a powerful God. He is far more powerful than the evil one, and he is working wonderfully among us. Praise the name of the Lord, and please join us in praying that he keeps working as he is.

Raj

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am)… we continue in 1 John and come to some very strong words. Read 1 John 2:15-27. Why does John give such a strong warning, and against what?

Have you considered reading the whole of 1 John?

Love One Another

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm), we will be looking at Loving One Another as a follow on week to Ultimate Relationship Sunday. You can read the passage John 13:31-38 here. What is one of the key features of being a disciple of Jesus? How does this show in your life?

Any Sunday is a good time to visit our church. But today is a day we have designed particularly for this purpose. Whilst it is popular to think that a church is a building, really it is all about the people. And the people at Toongabbie Anglican are people who, firstly and fore mostly, have embraced the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

It is nothing short of staggering that God sent his one and only Son Jesus into the world. He lived an incredible life, as people recognized his uniqueness every where he went. For the majority, this meant they followed him and listened to his every word. What no one could anticipate was the extraordinary death that he would die. And even though Jesus himself predicted what would happen, it wasn’t until afterwards that the pieces were put together. God worked powerfully so that people would understand the full significance of why Jesus came, and from this work has come the Bible.

The Bible teaches us that ‘God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life’ (John 3:16). It is that simple, and it is that powerful. In 1 John it says ‘if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness’ (1 John 1:9).

This life changing forgiveness has over taken us at Toongabbie Anglican. With this foundation, we enjoy a wonderful and rich community, as expressed in a diversity of activities throughout the week. There is something for everyone.

Yet our purpose is not limited to ourselves. We have had the wonderful experience of having the Ultimate Relationship with God because of Jesus, and we wish for others to have the same experience. Living in this world can be depressing. It is full of constant disappointments and uncertainties. But Jesus came to show us that life is not just about this world. It is about developing a relationship with the God of the universe that lasts beyond this world.

Thank you for coming to church today. We hope and pray that you might find the Ultimate Relationship, and please do visit us again.

Raj

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am)… the passage we come to in 1 John this week is ideal to introduce people to the Ultimate Relationship. Read 1 John 1:5-2:2 here. What are three inappropriate claims that can be made?

Why not read the whole of 1 John?

Forgiving the Sinner

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm), we are looking at Forgiving the Sinner from Matthew. You can read the passage Matthew 9:1-13 here. What is humanity’s greatest need? What is your greatest need?

One way our church is involved is with our student ministers. During the week, they each study full time at Moore College and on Sundays we have the privilege of their involvement. They serve among us, and they learn from us. Part of the student minister system is to use the opportunity to see how different churches operate. Personally, I have learnt a great deal from being at different churches. A student minister would normally remain at one church for two years.

Garry and Gail Dibley joined our church at the start of last year (2007), and their two years at TAC will come to an end in December. Since they arrived they have had a servant heart. Garry shouldered a load above and beyond most when our church was in between ministers. He also helped me settle in when I arrived last year, as he continued to accept abnormally high responsibilities. His leading and preaching has helped us all. And of course, his Kids Spots have been both entertaining and helped even adults understand the Bible. We will miss Garry and Gail as they leave us, and I know they would appreciate your prayers as they seek a new church to join in a similar capacity.

The sadness of their departure will be mixed with joy as we welcome a new student minister and his family. Ben Pakula is married to Stacie, and they have recently had their first child, Eli. He will commence, God willing, at Moore College next year. They currently live in Wollongong, where Ben is doing MTS at St Michael’s Cathedral. Ben has also released 2 children’s Christian CD’s.

I have every confidence that Ben and Stacie will be another blessing to our church, though this will not replace the sadness of Garry and Gail’s departure from TAC. There are still many months to go, but I hope you will find an opportunity to thank them personally for their work among us.

Raj

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am)… we begin a new series in 1 John. I’ve titled the series ‘The Straight and Narrow’ for reasons that shall become obvious as we move through the series. There are only 5 chapters in 1 John. Can I suggest the challenge of reading the whole of 1 John before Sunday? Why do you think John writes?

Revelation of the Future

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm), we come to our final sermon in our Daniel series, Daniel 10-12. What does Daniel’s prayer tell us about God and about humanity?

The conference was described as a ‘group of Anglicans struggling together to hold on to Biblical truth.’ They spoke about the thrill of meeting like minded Christians from around the globe, commenting particularly on the joyfulness and thankfulness of the African Christians. But it was more than sharing in studying the Scriptures, in song, and in fellowship.

The catalyst for the conference was persecution of Biblically based Christians. Even though it seems irrelevant to us, it is a reality in some parts of the world. One delegate, based in America, spoke about this persecution. Some Biblically minded churches are being taken to court.

This extract from the final statement sums up the challenge ahead:

The future of the Anglican Communion is but a piece of the wider scenario of opportunities and challenges for the gospel in 21st century global culture. We rejoice in the way God has opened doors for gospel mission among many peoples, but we grieve for the spiritual decline in the most economically developed nations, where the forces of militant secularism and pluralism are eating away the fabric of society and churches are compromised and enfeebled in their witness. The vacuum left by them is readily filled by other faiths and deceptive cults. To meet these challenges will require Christians to work together to understand and oppose these forces and to liberate those under their sway. It will entail the planting of new churches among unreached peoples and also committed action to restore authentic Christianity to compromised churches.

Much has been given to us: the grace of God has given us the Gospel of Jesus Christ, without which we would perish; we in the West have more resources than most others around the world; and even more importantly, we are blessed with strong Biblically based teaching. I frequently come into contact with overseas visitors who can’t believe the strength of Biblical Christianity in Sydney. They are so excited to see what we have, and every now and then wonder if we take it for granted.

Much has been given. What a responsibility we now have.

Raj

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am)… we continue our series in Psalms. This week we come to Psalm 16. How will the Psalmist be kept safe?

Prayer and Prophecy

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm), we continue to look at Daniel, this week Chapter 9.  What does Daniel’s prayer tell us about God and about humanity?