Worship – Focus

Bill van Schie. Trowel & Sword. February 2003

Preamble: Attending a church service would appear to most to be a simple process. You walk in, go to the same seat you have been sitting in, perhaps for years, and perhaps even “gently” admonish someone who has had the temerity to “inadvertently” sit in “your seat”. You sing some songs, listen (or not) while the minister recites one or more prayers, perhaps drop a few coins, or notes into the collection bag as it is passed around, settle in for a half hour sermon (lecture?), and wait patiently for the final “amen” which is usually an indication that the service is coming to an end. If engaged by the sermon you may listen intently and maybe even remark to a few other attendees that it was a “good sermon”. If not some will find other ways to occupy their minds; a favourite method being to scroll through their mobile phones. If any of this sounds familiar, the next few articles in TSR may be for you as Bill van Schie takes us through some of the fundamentals of what a church service should look like. We humbly suggest that there may also be some ministers in our churches who would also benefit from a reminder of why they are there.

Worship – Focus

One of the good things about writing a regular column in a magazine such as this, that it gives us the opportunity to enter into dialogue with others. We have the opportunity to wrestle together on the basis of the Word of God.

During the past months a number of people have written in and have questioned the concept that worship has “an audience of one” that is God alone. Some have emphasised that the worship service is primarily God speaking to us and that we are the audience. Whereas others have emphasised that we come to church “to be taught in the word”, that we are an audience of students.

This raises a very important question. What should be our primary focus in corporate worship? The answer to this question is significant because it can determine what blessings we receive from the Lord in the worship service. Again, let us not base our examination on what we are used to, not even our human customs and traditions. Let us go back to the Word of God. When the Word of God uses the word “worship” what does it mean?

The Hebrew word in the Old Testament most commonly used to describe worship is “Shachah”. This word means “to worship, to prostrate oneself, to bow down.” The fact that it is found more than 170 times in the Hebrew Bible shows something of its cultural significance.

The act of bowing down in homage is generally done before a superior or a ruler. Shachah is used as the common term for coming before God in worship, as in (1 Sam. 15:25) and (Jer. 7:2). Sometimes it is in conjunction with another Hebrew verb for bowing down physically, followed by “worship,” as in (Exod. 34:8): “And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped.” (from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words)

The Greek word in the New Testament most commonly used to describe worship is “proskuneo.” This word means “to make obeisance, do reverence to” (from pros, “towards,” and kuneo, “to kiss”), is the most frequent word rendered “to worship”(sic). It is used of an act of homage or reverence (a) to God, e. g., (Matt. 4:10; John 4:21-24; 1 Cor. 14:25; Rev. 4:10; 5:14; 7:11; 11:16; 19:10) (2nd part) and (22:9); (b) to Christ, e. g., (Matt. 2:2,8, 11; 8:2; 9:18; 14:33; 15:25; 20:20; 28:9,17; John 9:38; Heb. 1:6)

These and many other words are used throughout Scripture to describe the activity of worship. Although they each emphasise different aspects of worship the one common denominator in all these words is the fact that true corporate worship is always God focussed. It is a humbling of sinful self in confession and reverence before a holy God. It is coming into his presence bringing him honour, glory and praise for who He is and what he has done and will do. It is a coming before God and serving Him as the pre-eminent one.

The focus of the concept of “worship” in Scripture is never the worshipper’s mind, feelings, will or in any other way, that would be idolatry. The focus of true worship in Scripture is always the Lord alone. True worship in Scripture has an audience, a focus, of one!

Our English word worship reflects this very value. “Worship” means “to proclaim the worth of a greater person”. To adore, to revere and honour, to venerate”. Again the focus of the word in English is not the worshipper in any way but the one being worshipped.

The Reformers understood that God is the primary focus of our worship. Calvin emphasised that “the object of our worship is God alone.” (Institutes 2.8.1 & 1.12T). Ursinus commenting on Lord’s day 38 states that the Sabbath day has been given primarily so “God may be publicly praised and worshipped in the world”.

The Reformers following the Biblical teaching that worship must be God focussed realised a very important principal. That it is in worshipping and being focussed on God alone that God’s people are blessed. To focus on God’s people as students who come to learn, or to focus on people who come to be satisfied with new experiences means that we can actually detract from God’s blessing and even dabble in areas of idolatry.

It is an awesome concept, and it is an amazing reality, that God calls us into his presence to focus wholly on him and that in that focus we are amazingly blessed as our almighty God actually connects with us.

But you may ask, What about those aspects in the worship service where we receive and we learn? Is that not worship as well? How does the dialogue principle fit into this definition of worship? Well more about this next time. (ie. next week. ed.)

Bill van Schie.

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

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The Belgic Confession

(DE NEDERLANDSE GELOOFSBELIJDENIS). 
1561 - 1961

Dr. K. Runia. Trowel & Sword, November 1961

Preamble: Beginning with a history lesson, Dr, Runia moves almost imperceptibly into a discussion of what it means to be “Reformed”, until at last he comes to the real reason for writing this editorial. What is it? Read on and it will become obvious what is on his mind and on his heart.

The Belgic Confession

No Church of the 16th century has produced so many martyrs of the faith than the Reformed Church of the combined Netherlands (our present day Holland and Belgium). In Brussels, July 1, 1523, the first martyrs of Protestantism, Henry Voes and John Esch were burned at the stake, reciting the Apostles’ Creed and singing the Te Deum. They were only the first of a great multitude. According to Hugo Grotius more than 100,000 men and women were martyred under the reign of Philip II. According to Gibbon the number of Protestants who were executed in this period far exceeded that of the primitive martyrs of the first three centuries in the whole Roman Empire.

One of these martyrs was Guido de Bres, who was hanged on the last day of May, 1567, at Valenciennes, Belgium. That his name is still known among Reformed people all over the world is due to the fact that he was the chief author of the Belgic Confession. Born about 1523 he was converted to the Reformed faith by diligent study of the Scriptures. After a period of exile in England under Edward VI, he went to Lausanne, where he studied for the ministry. After that he became a travelling evangelist in South-western Belgium and Northern France. At the age of 45 he crowned his ministry with his martyrdom.

Because the confession written by him originated in Southern Netherlands, now known as Belgium, it has been called the Belgic Confession. But it was not just a confession representing the faith of one national group only. This confession was the embodiment of the Reformed faith, accepted by the followers of Calvin, all over Europe. It was originally intended as a defence against the common charge of rebellion and as a protest against the cruel oppression by the Spanish government and the Roman Catholic Church. Consulting the French Confession of 1559, de Bres, in co-operation with some other Reformed ministers of the Netherlands, wrote this confession to show that the adherents of the Reformed Faith are no rebels, but obedient citizens of their king, whom they will obey in all lawful things. Yet rather than deny Christ before men, they will “offer their backs to stripes, their tongues to knives, their mouths to gags, and their bodies to the fire, well knowing that those who follow Christ must take His cross and deny themselves” (quoted from the address presented to Philip II).

So this confession, as nearly all other great confessions, was not born of purely academic discussions, but of a struggle of life and death. For the author and his fellow-believers, the Reformed Faith was not just one religious opinion alongside others, but it was the Divine Truth of God’s Word, as they had understood it under the illumination of the Holy Spirit. Therefore they were not afraid to die for it and to seal their conviction with the most cruel death. Motley in his “History of the Rise of the Dutch Republic (Vol II, p. 504) said of the terrible reign of Alva: “The barbarities committed amid the sack and ruin of those blazing and starving cities are almost beyond belief; unborn infants were torn from the living bodies of their mothers; women and children were violated by the thousands, and whole populations burned and hacked to pieces by soldiers in every mode which cruelty in its wanton ingenuity could devise”.

What is Reformed?

We, who are the descendants of these martyrs, still call ourselves Reformed. But do we still know what this word means?

Many of us would perhaps say: it means that we belong to the Calvinistic tradition. As such this answer is perfectly correct. The Reformed faith is indeed the faith which embodies the Calvinistic interpretation of Scripture. And yet this answer is by far not sufficient. It is only an historical answer, which could be given by every outsider. The real answer, however, goes much further. It seeks to evaluate the truth of the Reformed faith, by subjecting it to the test of Holy Scripture itself. What is our answer to this question?

It is quite a common thing in our day to hear people say: Oh, the Reformed faith is just one of the many interpretations of Christianity. It is a real nice one, but, just as all the others, it is unbalanced and you need the others to see the whole truth. One can hear such an answer even among Reformed people. Usually they add: we should not be so proud as to think that we alone have the truth. The truth is not ours, but God’s and He has given part of it to all.

Does it not sound nice? Does it not sound humble? Yes, it does. But – it is the humility of the relativist.   It is the humility of the man, who actually does not have a real conviction, but who today is inclined to believe this and tomorrow that!

And what a far cry this is from the attitude of Guido de Bres and his fellow-martyrs. If they had been of the same opinion, there would not have been any martyr! There would not have been a Reformation! Even more than that there would not have been a Christian Church!

Surely, we have to be humble. It is not our merit to have a true and deep understanding of Scripture. It is pure grace, a mere gift of the Spirit. But at the same time, if we have received this grace, it is our duty to accept it in gratitude and acknowledge it freely. Shame on us, if we are ashamed of our convictions! In that case we are not worthy to call ourselves Reformed!

The other day the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney said: “We Anglicans believe that Anglicanism is the purest and most scriptural expression of the Christian religion, both in its faith and order. If we do not believe that, we have no right to be Anglicans”. Although I do not agree with Dr. Gough, I do honour him for his conviction. This is the language of a man who is convinced of the truth of his religion and church. And if we are truly Reformed, we should be prepared to say the same of our own faith.

Our  modern world is dying of relativism.  You find it everywhere. In politics, in the business world, in science, in art and also in religion. If we are Reformed we cannot be relativist. For Reformed is to be convinced of the truly scriptural character of our faith. Prof. R. B. Kuiper expressed it in these words with which we fully agree:

THE REFORMED FAITH IS THE CHRISTIAN FAITH IN ITS MOST COMPREHENSIVE AND CONSISTENT FORMULATION AND CALVINISM IS CHRISTIANITY IN ITS PUREST AND MOST PRECISE EXPRESSION.

(To Be or Not to Be Reformed. 29)

Because I believe this I am a member of the Reformed Church. Because I believe this I cannot be ashamed of my faith, but are prepared to defend it everywhere and before everyone.

Ecclesia Reformata Semper Reformanda

Do we mean to say on this that we are perfect? That our faith is perfect or that our Church is perfect? Not at all. The above mentioned Latin saying is perfectly true. A Reformed Church is never finished with its task, but has to subject itself to a continuous process of Reformation.

And yet we do believe that our Church holds and preaches the true faith in its most comprehensive and consistent interpretation. For this reason we cannot possibly understand how our Tasmanian brethren, who in the past years have re-discovered this truth, decided to establish a new denomination. I do realise that there were many difficulties. There were differences in tradition, practice and lately also in worship. But is that enough to establish a new denomination and to add another division to the Body of Christ? Recently I have heard it said more than once: They could not join us because our Reformed Churches carry so much dead weight. I would be the last to deny this. I can understand that for those who have just gone through a personal struggle such dead weight is repelling. But I am also sure, that after twenty-five years the newly formed Evangelical Reformed Church will be in the same position! And I am also sure that this can never be a reason for a new denomination. How different was the view of the “father” of the Reformed Reformation. (See: Institutes Book IV, Ch.I, 10-16.)

I cannot see it otherwise than that the establishment of this new denomination is a dark stain on Australian Calvinism. How tragic that this happened in the year of the commemoration of the Belgic Confession. We all are Reformed. We all do believe that the Reformed Faith is the true interpretation of Scripture. And yet we part company for subordinate reasons. Now there are five Reformed denominations in this Australia (apart from the many Calvinists in the Presbyterian Church, the Church of England, etc.):

The Free Presbyterian Church, the Reformed Presbyterian Church, the Reformed Churches, the Free Reformed Churches and the Evangelical Reformed Church. Are there real differences in Faith? No! Is there any of these Churches which cannot fully and whole-heartedly subscribe, e.g. to the Belgic Confession? No! How tragic! Or should we say: how sinful?

To be divided is not a sin in itself. On the contrary, it can be an act of true obedience. To be divided as Churches of the same confession is not a sin in itself either.

It may be due to  historical circumstances, which at first could not  be  overcome.  But to remain divided, while there is no doctrinal reason whatsoever, is  utterly sinful.,  To acquiesce in such a divided-ness is  contrary to the very essence of the Reformed Faith.

May God open the eyes of all  the Australian Calvinists, that they become more aware of the precious legacy, for which their forefathers died.

That they also become more aware of their  high calling to seek one another in unceasing love.  That would, no doubt, be the best commemoration of  the 400th anniversary of the  Belgic Confession!                   

K. Runia

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

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Mysterium Incarnationis

Prof. K. Runia. Trowel & Sword. December 1961

Preamble: The mystery of the incarnation? What’s so mysterious about that? It’s quite straightforward, isn’t? Jesus comes down from heaven, is born as a human being, grows up, becomes a man, teaches a group of men for three years, all the time healing the sick and performing miracles, and then returns to heaven to be with the father once again. All very straight forward! Not so fast, declares Prof. Runia. How is all this possible, or even believable. Humanly speaking, it’s not. Why not? In the following article Prof. Runia explains why not. In a word, this is why we need FAITH. Belief in what we cannot understand.

Mysterium Incarnationis

What is that: Incarnation? What happened on that day, when the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary? What happened in that night, when a child was born in the stable of Bethlehem? What did really happen there?

We all know the story as told by Luke in his Gospel. It is such a moving story.

But WHAT happened there?

The word INCARNATION is actually a Latin word. You find the Latin word “caro” (= flesh) in it. Literally it means: to become flesh (“vleeswording”). Of course this immediately reminds us of John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh”. According to verse 1 of this same chapter this “Word” is the Son of God.

But how can that be? How can God’s Son, who fully shares in the eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent being of God, how can He become flesh?

Let us be honest: this is an incomprehensible mystery. No one can understand this, let alone explain it to others. The most we can do is to say it in the negative.

The Incarnation does NOT mean that God’s Son CHANGES INTO a man. Some people have inferred that from the verbal form: “became” (The Word became flesh). True, quite often the verb “to become” indicates a change from the one thing into the other. When a caterpillar “becomes” a butterfly, a complete change is involved. The butterfly has lost all the characteristics of the caterpillar. But when you say: My son John became a doctor, no change is involved. Your son has not become another person. He is still the same John, with all his characteristics, but in addition he has acquired the abilities and the status of a doctor.

Along similar lines we have to understand the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God. When He becomes flesh, He does not change into a human being, so that now He is not God any more, but it only means that in addition to His Godhead He also assumes the human nature.  Now He is both at the same time: God and man. That this is John’s intention is quite evident from the second half of verse 14, where he says that he and his fellow apostles “beheld” His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father”. Being in the human nature, He still had all the glorious attributes of the Divine Son.

Does this, then, mean that in Him Divine and human attributes were mixed up, so that He was a completely new being: God and man mixed into one? On the ground of Scripture the early church at the Council of Chalcedon (451) said: No! He was God and man at the same time, but His two natures were “inconfused” and “UNCHANGEABLE”. The two natures remained what they were: fully Divine and fully human. Was it, then, not a real unity? Yes, the Council says, for the two natures were at the same time: “INDIVISIBLE” and “INSEPARABLE”.

The striking point in these four formulations is that they are all negative! A real divine mystery cannot be explained. At most you can put up some fences and say: do not go outside them, for then you will destroy the mystery. Keep within the fences.   THERE is the mystery! But also: there is the MYSTERY! God’s mystery, incomprehensible, immeasurable, unfathomable. Just imagine!

A BABY lies in Mary’s lap.  A real baby.  He cannot speak, cannot walk, cannot act.  He can only drink and cry and smile.  This baby is GOD’S SON. GOD IN THE FLESH.

A BOY plays with other boys in the small town of Nazareth.  In the morning he goes to school in  the synagogue to learn the Word of  God from the rabbi.  In the afternoon he gives his father a hand in the carpenter’s shop. This boy is GOD’ S SON. GOD IN THE FLESH.   And he plays with other children!

A YOUNG MAN walks through the fields accompanied by other young men. He points them to the birds and the lilies.  He tells them parables and other stories.  He performs miracles, heals the sick, feeds the multitudes, walks on the lake, etc.  This young man is GOD’S SON. GOD IN THE FLESH.

A man hangs on the cross, stripped of all  his clothes, “blood on his brow, anguish of the hell in his eyes.  Hear!  He cries out with a loud voice:  My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?  This sufferer, crushed under the wrath of God and  the  hate of man,  is  GOD’S SON. GOD IN  THE FLESH.

You can’t understand this.  No one can.

You can’t even believe it – unless the Holy Spirit opens your eyes. This baby, this boy, this young man, this sufferer on the cross God’s own Son?  Yes, says the believer.  Yes, that’s what I accept.

Does he understand it?  No, not at all.

But he falls on his knees and adores.  He adores this child, this boy, this man, this sufferer. He adores Him as His Saviour, with the simple shepherds, with the wise men from the East, with  Peter and Thomas, with all angels and all  saints,  in heaven and on earth.

MYSTERIUM Incarnationis.  Indeed! 

My LORD and my GOD in the flesh!

How incomprehensible and how wonderful! 

For He is  MY Lord and MY God!

K Runia

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

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I Believe In The Holy Spirit

J.F.H. VanderBom. Trowel & Sword, (De Kleine Krant), May 1974

Preamble: For nearly thirty years the “Kleine Krant” (Little Paper) was part of Trowel & Sword, catering for readers more comfortable with the Dutch Language. While many have passed into glory we recognise that there may still be readers who would love to read articles in their native language. So every four to six weeks we hope to publishing an article written in Dutch, complete with an English translation. To ensure accuracy, Mrs. Henriet Vanderstoep has agreed to proofread each translation to ensure it is faithful to the original article. We are grateful to Henriet for her willingness to become a part of our team.

Whether we continue with this format will depend largely on its popularity. Therefore, if you, our readers, would like us reprint more articles in Dutch, with an English translation, please “like” this post or better still, write a reply in the comments section. We would also ask that you spread the word, particularly to our Dutch speaking members who would love to read some of the old articles in their native language.

Ik Geloof In De Heilige Geest

De Heilige Geest is de grote Getuige van God. Voor velen is God geen werkelijkheid. Ook als ze het nog eens over Hem hebben, dan is Hij voor hen een vaag begrip, een idee verweg en onwerkelijk.

En Jezus is voor velen een persoon, die weleens voor vele eeuwen geleden, ergens in Palestina geleefd moet hebben, en die wel een bijzonder en goed mens geweest moet zijn,— maar niet de NU-Levende in heerlijkheid. Waar de Heilige Geest komt, wordt dat alles anders. “Hij zal Mij verheerlijken”, heeft Jezus tot Zijn discipelen gezegd, “want Hij zal het uit het mijne nemen en het u verkondigen….” (Johannes 16:14). Dat is dus Zijn werk: getuigen van Jezus Christus, als de Zoon van de Vader; spreken van God zoals Hij Zich openbaart in de Heiland. Hij getuigt in de Bijbel, want de Bijbel is Zijn boek. Hij overtuigt ons dat dit Woord de waarheid is, en Jezus werkelijk de van God Gezondene. Hij daalt in ons hart in, om dat gesloten hart te openen en ontvankelijk te maken voor de werkelijkheid van God. Ja, dan gaan wij God zien, in Jezus Christus, Zijn Zoon. Hij gaat uit van de Vader en de Zoon, zegt de belijdenis van Nicea. Hij is eên in wezen met de Vader en de Zoon, Zelf waarachtig God. Waar de Heilige Geest komt, daar komt God.

Dit is het eerste, wat Zijn komst in u bewerkt: God wordt werkelijkheid voor u. U gelooft dat Hij er is. En dat Hij zó is als de Bijbel het zegt: heilig en rechtvaardig; uw God, met Wie gu te maken hebt en te maken zult krijgen! Dan ziet u opeens ook de grote afstand tussen God en u: een onoverbrugbare kloof. Alleen wie God ziet, ziet de werkelijkheid over zichzelf. Hij, voor wie God een werkelijkheid wordt, krijgt de waarheid over zichzelf te zien, te horen‚en dat betekent een doods-schrik ….. ! Zoals die tollenaar, die naar de tempel ging. Waarom ging hij? Hij móest! Want nergens anders kon hij meer rust of vrede vinden. Maar daar, in het heilig huis van de heilige God valt het op hem: Gód is hier. . . Maar hoe zal hij Gods heiligheid verdragen? Hij zal onder Gods ogen bezwijken. En hij durft zijn ogen niet opslaan naar dat Heilige der Heiligen. Hij slaat zichzelf .. op de borst: 0 God, wees mij, een zondaar‚ genadig! 

Dat is het eerste werk van de Heilige Geest in ons hart. Hij overtuigt ons van zonde, van de radikaal—verkeerde richting van ons leven, van onze opstand tegen God. Ja, Hij maakt God werkelijkheid voor u. En zó alleen — dat is het tweede, maar het komt soms vlak tegelijkertijd in ons leven — zo wordt Jezus werkelijk de Christus, de Verlosser, de liefdevolle Heiland. Door mijn angsten en tranen heen zie ik opeens Zijn lichtende, nodigende gestalte. Ik zie het kruis. Ik zie het Hoofd, bedekt met mijn vuile zonden. Nee, dan is Hij voor u niet meer alleen een geschiedkundig persoon, die vóór negentien eeuwen daar ergens in Palestina moet hebben geleefd. Hij treedt uit de Bijbel op u toe, in de veroverende, levende werkelijkheid van Zijn leven en sterven, Zijn kruis en opstanding. U ziet de Vader in Hem. God Zelf over u bewogen. God, die in liefde Zijn eigen Zoon voor u gaf. En ook dit is van de Heilige Geest. Alzo lief heeft God de wereld gehad, dat Hij Zijn eniggeboren Zoon voor ons gegeven heeft. Maar na het Kruis begint een volgend hoofdstuk. Alzo lief heeft God de wereld gehad, dat Hij Zijn Heilige Geest heeft uitgestort. De Geest Die ogen en harten opent. De Geest die mij leert om Jezus aan te grijpen en in Hem te geloven. Hij leert mij bidden, pleiten op de beloften, waar Gods Woord zo vol mee staat.

De Geest leert mij bidden en danken. Want Hij verzekert mij uit Gods eigen Woord dat God geen bidder afwijst, en dat Jezus aan zondaren genade schenken wil. Ja, dat is pas bidden, dat roepen tot de levende God, dat zoeken van Zijn aangezicht, dat u—beroepen op wat de Here Zelf heeft gezegd, dat grijpen naar de toegestoken hand van Jezus. Niemand kan zeggen: Jezus is Heer —, dán door de Heilige Geest! (l Corinthiers 12:3).

Zo komt al sterker vertrouwen in u, dat God hoort, ook u aanhoort en aanneemt als Zijn kind. U ziet de Vader in de Zoon, en durft vrijmoedig te bidden, en te aanbidden: Abba, mijn Vader! (Romeinen 8:15).

Schatrijk en gelukkig is hij die belijden mag: ik geloof in de Heilige Geest. Ik geloof maar niet alleen dat Hij bestaat. Ik werd Zijn werking gewaar. De Bijbel spreekt mij toe. Nu luister ik naar het Woord als naar het Woord van de levende God: Christus’ gestalte licht er in, Hij glanst me toe, en ik ontmoet in Hem de Vader! Zo weet een arme zondaar zich een kind van God, en is blij en getroost in tijd en eeuwigheid. Daarom heet de Heilige Geest de Trooster. Dit is onze droefheid, onze bewuste ellende of onze onbegrepen onbevredigdheid, dat wij mensen GOD verloren hebben. Wij missen iets; neen, alles. Want wij missen GOD. Vandaar het besef van bange verscheurdheid, van eindeloze leegheid, van volkomen verveling. Vandaar het heimwee van ons hart. Die diepste nood komt voort uit onze diepste zonde: wij missen God, omdat wij Hem moedwillig losgelaten hebben.

De Heilige Geest troost ons door in het Evangelie te getuigen van Christus en Zijn verzoening, en zo leidt Hij ons weer tot God. Zo maakt Hij ons bang en onrustig, om straks ons heimwee te stillen, als wij worden thuisgebracht bij de Vader! Hebben wij de Heilige Geest ontvangen? Die vraag maakt velen schichtig en onrustig. Sommigen zeggen, het is onbetamelijk om deze vraag te stellen. En toch is deze vraag de levens—vraag. Maar voor de christen moest dit zijn een vraag naar de bekende weg: Hebt ge de Heilige Geest ontvangen? Nee? Kent gij, kent gij Jezus dan niet? Die om ons te redden de hemel verliet? En zovelen die Hem aangenomen hebben, die in Jezus geloven, komen door Hem tot de vreugde van het Vaderhuis. En al deze vreugde is van de Heilige Geest.

”Bid; en ge zult Hem ontvangen”, zegt Jezus. “Want, indien u, hoewel u slecht bent, goede gaven weet te geven aan uw kinderen, hoeveel te meer zal uw Vader in de hemel de Heilige Geest geven aan hen, die er Hem om bidden.”

Vervul ons hart, o Heilige Geest,  opdat wij allen onbevreesd 

Vervul ons hart, o Heilige Geest, 
opdat wij allen onbevreesd
getuigen zijn van Christus' werk
dat Hij gedaan heeft voor Zijn Kerk.

Gij zijt de Trooster die ons leidt,
de gave, ons door God bereid, 
de bron waaruit het leven vloeit,
het vuur, dat heel ons hart doorgloeit.

Uw overvloed van hemels licht
bestrale ons aller aangezicht;
een bruiloftsfeest is ons bereid
aan't einde van den levensstrijd.

Breng al Gods kinderen tesaarn
en maak ons tot Gods lof bekwaam,
opdat in 's werelds wijd gebied
altoos weerklinke 't jubellied:
Halleluja! Looft God den Heer!
Looft God den Heer! Halleluja!
VANDERBOM

I Believe In The Holy Sprirt

 The Holy Spirit is the great Witness of God. For many, God is not a reality. Even if they do believe in Him, He is a vague concept for them, an idea far away and unreal. 

For many people, Jesus  is a person who must have lived somewhere in Palestine many centuries ago, and who must have been a special and good person, – but not the NOW-Living One in glory. 

Where the Holy Spirit comes, all that changes. 

“He will glorify Me”, Jesus said to His disciples, “for He will take of Mine and declare it to you….” (John 16). That is His work: to bear witness to Jesus Christ, as the Son of the Father; to speak of God as He reveals Himself in the Saviour. 

He bears witness in the Bible, because the Bible is His book. He convinces us that this Word is the truth, and that Jesus is truly the One sent by God. He descends into our heart, to open that closed heart and make it receptive to the reality of God. Yes, then we will see God, in Jesus Christ, His Son. 

He proceeds from the Father and the Son, says the Nicene Creed. He is one in essence with the Father and the Son, Himself truly God. Where the Holy Spirit comes, there comes God. 

This is the first thing His coming does in you: God becomes reality for you. You believe that He is there. And that He is as the Bible says: holy and righteous; your God, with Whom you have to deal, and will have to deal! 

Then you suddenly see the great distance between God and you: an unbridgeable gulf. Only those who see God see the reality about themselves. He, for whom God becomes a reality, gets to see and hear the truth about himself, and that means a death-fright ….. ! Like that tax collector, who went to the temple. Why did he go? He had to! For nowhere else could he find more rest or peace. But there, in the holy house of the holy God, it strikes him: God is here. . . But how shall he endure God’s holiness? He shall succumb under God’s eyes. And he dare not lift up his eyes to that Holy of holies. He beats himself .. on the breast: O God, be merciful to me, a sinner! 

That is the first work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. He convinces us of sin, of the radically wrong direction of our lives, of our rebellion against God. Yes, He makes God real for you. 

And only in this way — that is the second, but it sometimes comes into our lives at the same time — that is how Jesus truly becomes the Christ, the Redeemer, the loving Saviour. Through my fears and tears I suddenly see His shining, inviting figure. I see the cross. I see the Head, covered with my filthy sins. No, then He is no longer just a historical person for you, who must have lived somewhere in Palestine nineteen centuries ago. He steps out of the Bible towards you, into the conquering, living reality of His life and death, His cross and resurrection. You see the Father in Him. God Himself moved by you. God, who in love gave up His own Son for you. 

And this too is of the Holy Spirit. God so loved the world, that He gave up His only begotten Son for us. But after the Cross, a new chapter begins. God so loved the world, that He poured out His Holy Spirit. The Spirit Who opens eyes and hearts. The Spirit Who teaches me to seize Jesus and believe in Him. He teaches me to pray, to plead the promises, of which God’s Word is so full. 

The Spirit teaches me to pray and to give thanks. For He assures me from God’s own Word that God rejects no supplicant, and that Jesus wants to grant grace to sinners. Yes, that is praying, that calling to the living God, that seeking His face, that you—calling on what the Lord Himself has said, that grasping at the outstretched hand of Jesus. No one can say: Jesus is Lord—except by the Holy Spirit! (1 Corinthians 12:3). 

In this way, there will be an ever stronger trust in you, that God hears, also hears you and accepts you as His child. You see the Father in the Son, and dare to pray boldly, and to worship: Abba, my Father! (Romans 8:15). 

Fantastically rich and happy is he who may confess: I believe in the Holy Spirit. I do not only believe that He exists. I became aware of His working. The Bible speaks to me. Now I listen to the Word as to the Word of the living God: Christ’s figure shines in it, He shines to me, and I meet the Father in Him! Thus a poor sinner knows himself to be a child of God, and is happy and comforted in time and eternity. Therefore the Holy Spirit is called the Comforter. 

This is our sorrow, our conscious misery or our misunderstood dissatisfaction, that we humans have lost GOD. We miss something; no, everything. For we miss GOD.

Hence the sense of fearful separation, of endless emptiness, of complete boredom. Hence the homesickness of our heart. 

That deepest need arises from our deepest sin: we miss God, because we have wilfully let Him go. 

The Holy Spirit comforts us by testifying in the Gospel of Christ and His reconciliation, and thus He leads us back to God. Thus He makes us afraid and restless, in order to still our homesickness later, when we are brought home to the Father! 

Have we received the Holy Spirit? 

That question makes many of us nervous and restless. Some say, it is unseemly to ask this question.

 And yet this question is the question of life. But for the Christian this should be a question along the well-known path: Have you received the Holy Spirit? No? Do you know, do you not know Jesus? Who left heaven to save us? And as many as have accepted Him, who believe in Jesus, come through Him to the joy of the Father’s house. And all this joy is of the Holy Spirit. 

“Ask, and you will receive,” says Jesus. “For if you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.

"Fill our hearts, O Holy Spirit,
That we may all be fearless
Witnesses of Christ's work
That He has done for His Church.

You are the Comforter who guides us,
The gift prepared for us by God,
The source from which life flows,
The fire that glows in all our hearts.

Your abundance of heavenly light
Shines upon our faces;
A wedding feast is prepared for us
At the end of life's struggle.

Bring all God's children together
And make us capable of God's praise,
So that in the wide world 
The song of joy may always resound:
Hallelujah! Praise the Lord God!
Praise the Lord God! Hallelujah!

VANDERBOM

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A Survey To Make You Think

Dr. K. Runia. Trowel & Sword, November 1961

Preamble: The following are the results of a survey conducted it a Presbyterian Church in 1961 and published in “Presbyterian Life”. Dr. Runia asks a very pertinent question. If this survey had been conducted in a Reformed Church back then, would the results have been any different? If this survey was conducted today, again, would the results be any different?

A Survey To Make You Think

Under this heading “Presbyterian Life”, the official organ of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria, published the results of a poll held among 100 communicant members of an outer suburban Church in Melbourne. All these members received a questionnaire and were kindly requested to answer a long set of questions. The congregation includes both new and old established families, city workers and some engaged in rural occupations, and it is, therefore, regarded as a fairly representative congregation of the Presbyterian Church.

Reading this article we admired the honesty of the Presbyterian Church in publishing these figures. In some ways they are really shocking. They clearly show that in many respects, especially in regard to private and family devotions, this Church is at a very low ebb.

However, we do not quote these figures to throw stones at the Presbyterian Church. Also as a Church we have to remember the word of Jesus spoken to the Pharisees(!) who brought the adulterous woman to Him: “let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her”.(John 8:7) The only reason why we publish these figures in our magazine is that we are of the opinion that they can serve as a mirror for our own Church! What would be the result if such a poll were held in our congregation? Perhaps one of our Churches would be willing to do it. If this is so, they can write to Geelong and get the complete set of questions.

An open and honest self-criticism of another should not make us proud but humble. And it should lead us to self-criticism too! We were of the opinion that we could not join the Presbyterian Church or any other of the existing Churches in Australia and New Zealand. I, for one, still believe that this is true. Everyone among us, who is in doubt, should read and re-read Rev. Deenik’s booklet about Presbyterianism in New Zealand.

BUT WHAT DID WE MAKE OF OUR OWN CHURCHES? ARE THEY LIVING CONGREGATIONS? ARE WE LIVING MEMBERS OF THESE CONGREGATIONS? ARE OUR FAMILIES TRULY CHRISTIAN FAMILIES? These questions come to us when we read the questions and answers of this poll.

In the rest of this article we will give some of the results of the poll without any comment. The answers and figures speak for themselves. For completeness we add that of the 100  members interrogated 38 were men and 62 women, 42 were under 30,   36 between 30  and 50,  and 22 over 50.

Let us study these questions. Let us study the answers. Let us answer the questions for ourselves. Where do we stand?·

And, then, add the all-important questions, which unfortunately were missing in the questionnaire: Who is Jesus Christ for you? And who are you for Him?

K. Runia

Which of the following statements best describes your usual practice?

During the last 6 months I have attended Church:

About once a week 40

About once a fortnight 28

On average once a month 25

Once or twice only 7

During the past six months I have prayed:

Daily 30

Frequently 28

Occasionally 38

Not at all 4

No answer –

During the past six months I have read my Bible:

Daily 6

Frequently 25

Occasionally 42

Not at all 27

No answer –

Do you feel that regular worship is:

Necessary for your life 78

Helpful but not necessary 20

Rather boring –

 No answer  2

Of the story of Jesus Christ in the New Testament, which aspect would you say ·was most important for your daily life?

His teaching and commandments 72

His claim to be the Son of God 11

Both 8

Don’t know 4

No answer 5

Do you really believe Jesus Christ rose from the dead?

Yes 93

No –

Doubtful 6

If Yes – would you say this fact was:

The primary basis of 

Christianity 83

An incidental fact of the story 4

Don’t know 6

No answer 6

Do you feel that your religious beliefs mark you off from people who do not share them?

Yes 17

No 69

Doubtful 9

No answer 5

Do you say grace before meals in your family?

Yes 28

No 34

Sometimes 37

Does your family read the Bible and pray together?

Yes  2

No 81

Sometimes 14

No answer 3

If you had to choose your minister would you choose 

A brilliant organiser –

A man of great human understanding 77

An outstanding preacher –

A really spiritual man 9

All qualifications 5

Various combinations 9

Do you think your faith is something you should 

Discuss with your family 39

Discuss with other members of the congregation 10

Purely a personal and private matter 27

Both family and congregation 18

Varied answers 4

No answer 2

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Is It Really So Important To Go To Church Every Sunday?

K. Runia. Trowel & Sword. October 1961.

Preamble: Prof. Runia begins this article by quoting statistics on the church attendance of all Australians in 1961. If these numbers were repeated in 2024 churches would be packed to overflowing and we would be living in a very different country today. Sadly, this is not the case and Prof. Runia points to diminishing church attendance as one of the main reasons for declining faith in this country. Now some may argue that this is a chicken and egg situation. Ie. Which come first. Declining faith or declining church attendance. Does it really matter? Ultimately both are true so the question should really be, “How can this decline be arrested?

Is It Really So Important To Go To Church Every Sunday?

STATISTICS

Although we should not over-estimate the value of statistics, but be careful in drawing conclusions (in particular with regard to spiritual matters), yet statistics can be quite revealing. In June of this year, people in all States of Australia were asked by a Gallup Poll to answer questions on their church attendance. The results indicate the following: Of all Australians only 27% attend church weekly, 48% occasionally and 25% never. For the major denominations the figures were: Roman Catholic: 54% (weekly), 32% (occasionally), 14% never.  Methodist 31,  45, 14. Presbyterian: 14, 55, 31.  Church of England: 13, 58, 29.

These figures are revealing, indeed!  It is striking, that even among the Roman Catholics the figures of weekly attendance are decreasing.  Even this Church seems to lose its firm hold on many of its members.  We would not be surprised if the 32% “occasionally” and the 14% “never” were mainly found  among the many Roman Catholic migrants who in the new country miss the moral support of the community of which they were part in their homeland.

Another striking and very sad feature is that the Presbyterian Church has almost equalled the Church of England in the number of occasional church – goers and even outnumbered this Church in nominal membership.  

Is it any wonder that in our day we see unbelief growing at such a rapid speed?  For there is a very close connection between Church attendance and unbelief.

HEIDELBERG CATECHISM

For proof of this thesis we would point to Lord’s Day 25 of the Heidelberg Catechism. In Question 65 we read: “Since, then, we are made partakers of Christ and all His benefits by faith only, whence comes this faith?”

In the preceding Lord’s Days the Catechism has time and again mentioned the word faith.  In Lord’s Day 7 it dealt  with the question: What is true faith?  In the Lord’s Days 8 – 22 it dealt with the contents of faith.  In Lord’s Day 23it taught the Pauline doctrine of justification by faith alone. In Lord’s Day 24 it said that true sanctification is only possible in a life of faith.

But – whence comes this faith?

Answer: From the Holy Spirit, who works it in our heart BY THE PREACHING OF THE HOLY GOSPEL.

Faith is God’s work!  It is not a human achievement, but a precious gift of God the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:3).  But the Holy Spirit does not give it us immediately, but mediately – namely, by the preaching of the Gospel. A very clear illustration of this is found in the story of LYDIA (Acts 16: 11-15). In verse 14 we read: “The Lord opened her heart to give heed to what was said by Paul”.

There you clearly see the connection between preaching and the origin of faith.  During the preaching of the Gospel the Spirit opens her heart and she embraces the message given by the Apostle.     

In this connection we have to emphasise the word “PREACHING”.  Many people say: We need not go to Church, we can just as well read the BIBLE AT HOME.  Now we do not deny at all that the same miracle can happen by reading the Bible. The Bible is also preaching; it is the written preaching of the prophets and apostles, which is the basis of all other preaching.  Indeed, many people have come to faith in Christ by reading this written preaching. In many prisons or concentration camps of the last war men and women have found Jesus Christ as their Saviour by reading the Bible (sometimes even a few leaves from a Bible!) in the solitude of their cell.

Yet God has given His Gospel first of all to be preached by the living voices of His servants. “Go into all the world and PREACH THE GOSPEL to the whole creation (Mark 16:15).  “Go therefore and make disciple of all nations, baptising them, TEACHING them …“ (Matt. 28:19, 20). ”You are WITNESSES of these things.” (Luke 24:48).   “You shall be my WITNESSES in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8).  “Preach the word, be instant in season and out of season … ” (II Tim. 4:2). ETC.

Where do we find this preaching first of all today?  IN THE CHURCH SERVICES on Sunday!  There the word is preached.  There the glorious Gospel is proclaimed!, There salvation is offered to sinners!  There the Holy Spirit performs the miracle of opening hearts!

If we want OUR CHILDREN to be true believers, where should we bring them? To the services on Sunday!  It is not enough to have our children baptised.  We have to bring them also to that mighty means of grace: the proclamation of the Gospel. In fact, baptism is nothing else than a sign and seal to that Gospel!

If WE OURSELVES are not sure of our own faith, if we are seeking for the miracle of the Spirit to happen to us, let us go to the place where we may expect it!  If Lydia (I speak from the human point of view) had not come to the regular place of worship, the miracle would not have happened to her!

Once again, is it any wonder that UNBELIEF is SO RAPIDLY GROWING in our country?  People do not come to the place, where the Holy Spirit may be expected to open their hearts.  They do not bring their children there, and although these children have perhaps been baptised they grow up as unbelievers.  For baptism alone cannot save a child.  Baptism itself does not produce faith.  Baptism is sign and seal of the promise of the Covenant which is proclaimed in the preaching and has to be accepted in faith.

SPIRITUAL FOOD

But not only for the beginning of faith we have to go to church, but also for the feeding of our faith.  Faith is not like a jewel, which, once given, retains its shine and value, whether you use it regularly or hide it in a jewel-box in a safe.  Faith is like a plant.  It is a living organism. It needs light and heat and moisture, otherwise it will die. Faith can only thrive, when it is regularly fed with the living water of the Gospel, when the sun of God’s favour as proclaimed in the Gospel shines on it.

If we do not attend the church services regularly, our faith will necessarily suffer and wither.  For we are sinning against one of the primary laws set by the heavenly Husbandman. We neglect the most important means ordained by Him

READING SERVICES

It is  perhaps a good opportunity here to insert a few  words ,about reading  services.   They do occur quite often in our Churches.   Now we all agree of course, that weprefer  a service conducted by a  minister!   We also agree, that the one elder  may be  a better “reader” than  the  other (just  as the one minister may be a “better” preacher  than the other).

But  is  this sufficient reason to stay away from reading services?   Why actually do we go  to  Church?   To hear a man OR to  hear the ‘Word of  God? Do you in ordinary life refuse to eat because the cook is  not as good as you are used to?   I think your body could not stand that too often.  But your soul cannot either!!

Usually  the main trouble  is  that  we go  to  Church in  the  WRONG SPIRIT. We do not expect much.   And, of course, we do not  get  much!   If we get anything at all!   Sometimes people say:  When I  left  the Church I  was  just as cold as when I  entered it.    By these words they mean to  blame  the preacher or reader.   In actual fact, however, they blame  THEMSELVES! For they confess: I went in  the wrong spirit! I went without prayer, without expectation.   I went with  a  cold instead of a yearning heart.

THE FUTURE OF OUR REFORMED CHURCHES

Sometimes the question is asked:  Will  our Churches have a future in Australia and New Zealand?   The final answer is,  of course:  we do not know.   God alone knows.

Yet we may say:  If we, on our side, are FAITHFUL in  the  use  of  the  means of grace, GOD WILL BLESS US. He is  also faithful! We have His promise: “Where two or  three are gathered together in my name,  there am I in  the midst of them.” (Matt. 18:20).   This promise stands and will stand till the last day.   If we and our  children remain faithful in our church attendance, then the Lord will do His miracles in our midst.  He will open hearts, hearts of children and grownups,  and He will feed hungry souls, which come to Him for  their spiritual food.

K. Runia.

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

My Culture – Right Or Wrong

Henk DeWaard. Trowel & Sword. June 1979.

Preamble: When we think “missionary” we tend to think of men and women going off to far away places like Africa, Asia or perhaps the Pacific region to spread the gospel message to people who may have never heard it before. When Henk Points out that, “Most mission work is done in sprawling cities – Tokyo, Jakarta, Nairobi, Sao Paulo,” it is telling that places like Melbourne, Sydney or Brisbane do not rate a mention. Have we ever thought about sending a missionary to Alice Springs? Henk does an excellent job in outlining the difficulties faced by overseas missionaries in adjusting to different cultures but perhaps it is also time we started thinking about the many needs closer to home. While it is true that there is a shortage of ministers in both Australia and New Zealand it could as well be argued that there is an absolute dearth of CRCA&NZ missionaries working in our respective countries.

My Culture – Right Or Wrong

“What would it take to be a missionary?” That’s the question I was asked to speak on to a church group, and perhaps I could use this question to give you a better picture of what the missionary task involves. For mission work is probably different from what you think; just as that real holiday is different from what the advertisements say. Too much information about mission is little more than ‘propaganda’ aimed at obtaining support rather than conveying accurate information.

The word ‘mission’ conjures up all sorts of pictures in your mind. The white missionary (did you know that there are many black and coloured missionaries?) is pictured as making his way through jungles and mountains, preaching the gospel to the natives as he goes along. No doubt, some missionaries are working in these frontier situations. The majority are not. Most mission work is done in sprawling cities – Tokyo, Jakarta, Nairobi, Sao Paulo. That is where many hidden, unreached peoples are. There is no great romance attached to working in a chaotic, smog filled city.

So, what would it take to be a missionary? Great faith? No doubt. But does it not take great faith to live as a Christian anywhere? It takes more than faith to be a missionary.

Self-denial at a deep level…

I would single out self-denial as a prime requirement. Look at Corinthians 9. Paul speaks about his rights as an apostle:

– the right to bodily comforts (v.4).

– the right to family life (v.5) 

– the right to free time (v.6) 

– the right to an adequate salary (v.7)

Paul was prepared to give up all these rights. (Most missionaries today do not have to give up any of these ‘rights’). But Paul went even further, to a deeper level. He was prepared to give up his cultural identity as a Jew. (v.21 ff). For the sake of the Gospel, Paul would be prepared to give up his Jewishness, which he prized so much. And he did give up some of his Jewishness as he crossed into the Gentile world.

Crossing boundaries….

A missionary is one who crosses cultural boundaries and not just geographical ones. A tourist does the same, but he has a return ticket. The missionary has to settle down and work…. that is, if he can get adjusted to a new culture. For all of a sudden, everything he has always taken for granted does not apply. He is almost like a child. He can’t say anything. And when he tries to speak, people will laugh. How do you eat here? And how do you use the bathroom? And why don’t people keep their promise? He said ‘besok’ and the dictionary says that means tomorrow.. but nothing happens! What strange people and weird customs!

Ethnocentrism….

The missionary is judging and evaluating every new experience on the basis of his own culture. We all do that. From the minute we are born, we learn a particular culture pattern and as we grow up we consider our way of doing things right and all other ways are weird, strange, untrue or bad. This attitude: My culture is right!, is deeply in-grained in every one of us. We call this attitude ethnocentrism. Let me give a few examples.

(a) When the European powers around 1500 A.D. discovered sea routes to Africa, America and the Far East, they discovered many new peoples. One of the big questions was: Do these people have a soul? They were so unlike European people that our forebears did not know what to think of these people. At one stage the Pope in Rome had to rule that the Pygmies in Central Africa do have a soul! But labels like ‘savage, ‘primitive’, ‘underdeveloped’, ‘childish’ continued to be used by Europeans to characterise these new peoples. Because they were different, Europeans considered them inferior.

(b) The theory of sickness held by these newly discovered peoples was called backward and superstitious. Their medicine man was called a witchdoctor. They believed that sickness was due to evil spirits. We know better! One missionary wanted to prove to the natives that disease was due to germs, bacteria and parasites. So he prepared a slide of a drop of blood from someone having malaria. A blue stain which the malarial parasites absorbed, made them visible among the blood cells. The missionary wrote:

“To me it was obvious that once one saw the germs under the microscope it would be clear that sickness is caused by germs. The Indian seeing them through the microscope looked at his friends in surprise: ‘Come here and look. I didn’t know that those spirits were that small and that they were blue at that’ “

Apparently, we see what we look for! However, today many writers are saying that the witchdoctor performs essentially the same function as a psychiatrist in western society and with an even greater degree of success!

(c) It is to the credit of missionaries that they generally protected newly discovered peoples from the greed and exploitation of traders and colonists. The missionaries opposed slavery and championed the rights of native peoples. Even so, missionaries were also ethnocentric. They could only think of the church in a western sense, according to a western pattern, structure and liturgy. There were notable exceptions but many held that ‘you must civilise before you can evangelise!’ The natives were thought to be incapable of understanding the gospel and therefore needed education. Many missionaries could not conceive how non-western culture could become the vehicle through which God would communicate with these peoples. There was an unspoken feeling that God was against these non-western cultures and that there was nothing worthy of being incorporated into the service of Christ.

(d) Today we speak about aiding underdeveloped countries of the Third World. The assumption is that these countries should imitate the West, for our ways are the best. We think we know what people need and we will help them improve their lot. I could give many more examples. But the point is clear. The attitude: ‘my culture is best, is contrary to the law of love.

Love your neighbour….

To love one’s neighbour is to respect him/her for what he/she is, and not try to make the other person in our image.

To be a missionary is to deny that my way of doing things is the only right way. It is to deny many habits and attitudes that were instilled from childhood. Love demands the appreciation of another’s personhood. Love demands the willingness to learn, to adapt and to understand another culture.

Generally we judge other cultures on the basis of our own strength, that is, technological advance. Western countries are more advanced technologically, but socially we may not come out so favourably. We can learn much from other cultures and ethnic minorities in our midst. We ought to appreciate the variety in God’s creation and the many and varied ways in which people try to meet their common needs. I am not saying that everything is ultimately relative and that there are no absolute truths. Naturally, when a people accepts Christ as Lord, changes must and will occur in their world view and life-style. But that is not the point here. What I am referring to here is that cultures AS A WHOLE are attempts by societies to come to terms with basic, felt-needs. All cultures do a reasonably good job at that. We need not all become the same. When the Kingdom of God comes in its fullness, people from all nations, peoples, tribes and tongues will come in. (Rev.7:9).

Simpler life-style….

Part of the self-denial is the willingness to adopt a simpler life-style. This should not be too difficult and may be a blessing, for we are increasingly becoming aware that the western lifestyle has serious drawbacks. We suffer from obesity, heart disease, lung cancer, at least in part due to our eating habits and life-style. And surely there must be something wrong with a society, where per year more is being spent on chewing gum than on mission?

The missionary (whoever he is and wherever) has a deeper motivation in denying himself.

“That I might by all means save some.” I. Cor.9:22.

Henk DeWaard.

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

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The Impact Of Television

Rev. John Westendorp. Trowel & Sword, June 1996

Preamble: At the time this article was written, television was at the peak of its powers. Today that power is on the wane – to a large extent superseded by newer technologies and the advent of “social media”. However the issues raised by John remain. The difference is that whereas television could then be found in almost every home, today social media can be found in almost every hand, regardless of the age of that hand, and its effect on the lives of individuals, as well as the national psyche cannot be over estimated. By substituting “television” with “social media” the problems outlined by John not only remain but are multiplied.

The Impact Of Television

A Pervasive Influence.

One would be hard pressed to overstate the influence television has had on Western Society. The statistics tell a sobering story. Few households in New Zealand or Australia are now without a television set – about 5% of the population. In the average household the ‘telly’ will be on for about 7 hours each day. Actual viewing time peaks at age 11 or 12 when some 26 hours of television are watched every week. If that amount of viewing was carried through consistently until 70 years of age, then one would have watched television for a full 10 years of ones life. The mind boggles to think that if this is the average where does that put those on the upper end of the scale. Television’s pervasive influence is felt in other ways too. The design of the average family’s living area when I grew up was a semi-circle of couches and chairs around an open hearth or wood heater. Today the furniture is arranged to give everyone an unimpeded view of the television. Perhaps its impact is noticed most in family schedules – now too often controlled by ‘the box’. At best it’s “Let’s hurry up and eat so Dad can watch the news”. At worst family meal times have been replaced by what Andrew Kuyvenhoven once called “snacking and grazing” where a properly balanced meal is replaced by takeaways and where family conversation and family devotions lapse altogether except for some hasty consultations during commercial breaks.

I was struck by the controlling influence of TV some years ago on a visit to the local blood bank one evening. I commented to the sister-in-charge that the place was unusually quiet. She commented ‘A Country Practice’ isn’t finished yet – just wait another 20 minutes and we’ll be swamped with donors.” She was right!

TV and Behaviour.

At this point one could do a separate study on the pervasive way TV has shaped behaviour. Television (im)morality is a concern for many Christians. Repeatedly we have cried ‘foul’ at excessive violence or explicit sex aired during prime-time viewing. However it is not only the excesses that are a concern. Ordinary morality was once shaped by church, school and family – now it is largely shaped by ‘the box’ That is hardly a new phenomenon. More that a decade ago people on the ‘Love Boat’ (or was it the ‘Lust Boat?) gave the impression that climbing into bed with someone of the opposite sex was as socially acceptable as shaking hands. Today it’s ‘Home and Away” that gives younger people their moral cues but often in such a way that they would be more honest if they called the program ‘Home and Astray’.

In programming and advertising, television exercises a kind of universal peer pressure. All of this has been glaringly obvious to most Christians for some time. Wiser parents therefore ensure that these negative effects of TV do a minimum of damage to their children – by controlling what is watched and by discussing these issues frequently.

What is less obvious but more disturbing is that TV has not only affected our behaviour but it has reshaped the modern mind in the very way it operates. Recently several Christian writers have expressed immense concern about this issue. Let me come at the problem from a personal angle.

Subjective Christianity

I have noticed for some time a move in Christian circles away from basing things on objective realities and instead grounding them subjectively in one’s own experiences and feelings. I am not a social analyst and found it difficult to assess what I thought was a trend – so I decided to keep a small file of clippings until such a time as I could get a handle on things. Let me share just a few of these.

Stephen Lawhead is recognised as a Christian writer of fiction. His book ‘Dream Thief’ portrays the powers of evil over against the power of God. People meet others who are Christians and eventually their contact leads to conversions. But what struck me was that Lawhead never once made a single reference to the Bible. I found that odd and just to make sure didn’t miss it I read the book a second time. I have since read some other Christian novels which show the same trend toward mysticism – where, for example, conversion is not based on an objective record of the gospel (Sola Scriptura?) but rather on shared experiences of Christ.

Along the same lines I have noticed recently that in some Christian magazines there is even a change in the way people speak of conversion. In a number of biographical stories people spoke about their conversion (or someone else’s conversion) as “experiencing Jesus”. Now I certainly don’t want to begrudge anyone an experience of Jesus… but it comes across as a little odd to my ears, for I have always understood conversion as a faith response to the objective claims of the gospel.

Admittedly, subjectivism in the church is nothing new. Thirty years ago I already met people who made decisions about work and marriage on the basis that in some mystical way God had told them so. It just seems to me that this subjective trend is becoming more common among Christians of all stripes. Of course it’s easy at this point to quote some extreme examples. In the US someone actually started a church for nudists (good grief -what next!). When questioned about the rationale for such a church the founder was quoted as saying “God told me to do it”. That sort of answer puts a very effective end to all further discussion.

I could extend this list, ad infinitum. The cartoon which said that prayer is not just speaking to God, it is also listening. Or the naive comment from a pastor: Jesus didn’t teach theology, He just taught us to love each other.

Looking for Reasons.

Why is there this growing emphasis on the experiential, the emotive and the subjective? Some people have given answers to those questions in terms of this being post modernist culture – where the objective truth has been replaced by truth based on how we feel about things. But that still doesn’t answer ‘Why such a development?’.

It is not my intention in raising these questions to belittle experience nor to deny that our emotions are a part of us. This is not a plea for a sterile intellectualism where Christians have the head crammed full of knowledge but with cold hearts. The point is that these days the starting point increasingly lies in our experiences and emotions – also in Christian circles. A spate of books on the subject by authors, such as J.M. Boice, M.Dawn, J. MacArthur, D. Wells and others, have sounded the alarm to the Christian church about this matter.

It would hardly be fair to blame all of this on television. Other factors such as secularisation and the technology (of which TV is just a part) have also contributed. So has a faster pace of life which gives us less time to pause and reflect deeply. Yet one is forced to admit that there is some damming evidence that points to television as one of the main culprits.

Not All Bad!

Dawn, in her book ‘Reaching Out Without Dumming Down’, quotes from studies by Jane Healy, a trainer of educators who “cites overwhelming evidence to convince us that many children in contemporary society actually are less intelligent and less capable of learning than their forbearers.” The research by Healy’s team uncovered evidence that children who watch a lot of television actually have smaller brains.

I don’t have access to Healy’s data so I have no answer to the question of whether Healy is right or whether it is simply that children with smaller brains are more disposed to television watching. Nevertheless Healy’s claims ought to make all Christian parents extremely cautious about the amount of time their children watch ‘the box’.

One could also argue that not all the changes wrought upon our inner world have been necessarily bad. I sometimes reflect on how different life is for my children than it was for my wife and I when we were their age. They are the product of the video era – we are still the product of the age of typography (the written word). There is no doubt about it that through the medium of television their experience of the external world has been far broader than mine. At least, it has often seemed that my children possessed a kind of knowledge about life that I cannot remember having at that age – I think that in many respects I was much more naive. Because of what they were confronted with on TV they had to grapple with issues and take a stand on matters which at their age I didn’t even know existed.

One could debate whether this is good or bad. In one way we are robbing our children of their innocence and not allowing them to be children. On the other hand am convinced that my children are able to think through and articulate a wider range of thoughts and feelings than I could at their age.

At this point I take the issue with those who speak as if television has robbed us of our ability to think. Boice for example argues “that the chief cause of mindlessness is television” and that “television forms our way of thinking, or more accurately, not thinking”. Wells too has very little that is positive to say about the way that television has shaped our mind. In some way the total negativity of these writers is a little surprising especially when we know better today just why television has changed the way we think (rather than stopping us from thinking).

Changing The Way We Think.

Scientists have researched the different functions of the two hemispheres of the brain. Already 17 years ago Paul Borgman wrote a book, ‘TV – Friend or Foe?’ He pointed out that in a pre-TV age, thinking for most of us developed by relying more on the left-hand side of the brain…. the side that controls analysis and logic; it’s the side propositional thought (sic). In contrast, television appeals to the right-hand side of the brain… the hemisphere that controls our ability to think artistically and emotionally.

If that is so then the way TV has changed our inner world is not necessarily all bad. It may well be that the sometimes stark logical thought of an older generation may be more balanced by being in tune with ones emotions in the younger generation. Sometimes I think I see that difference between my generation and younger Christians growing up in our churches. It may also explain why in a former generation churches often split over doctrine whereas today it seems they are more likely to split over issues of worship.

I do not want to turn this into a blanket defence of TV either. The big issue is still that too many of us watch too much television. Here at least I do share much of the concern of the writers mentioned.I also see in too many younger Christians what seems to be less ability to handle the logical thought and reflection that already made theology exciting for me and my peers when we attended our first Bible Study Camp at the age of 18. Even worse…! Too often the hunger for the emotional and experiential is no longer balanced by reasoned Biblical thinking.

Much more could and should be written about this subject but perhaps others, more experienced in this field, might care to put pen to paper. In the meantime, we who need to bring every thought captive to Christ must also do that with regard to television.

J. Westendorp

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

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The Read Your Bible Club

Mrs. Irene Reid. Trowel & Sword. August 1977

Preamble: The preamble to this weeks article may well be longer than the actual article but both are worth your undivided attention. Generally speaking comments about our articles have been few and far between, which is somewhat disappointing as feedback from readers gives us some idea of whether the articles chosen have hit their mark. We were therefore very happy to receive the following comments from “Linda”. “I have read many of the articles in T&S Revisited with great interest. I love church history but am personally not a great fan of Theological discussion. Trowel and Sword offered much more than this. I know this interests many and do not want the editors to stop these items, but could we possibly see other items too? Some were regarding Youth and Women’s Ministries, and also poetry, etc. This would possibly attract a wider audience to T&S Revisited.”

I confess the sentiments expressed by Linda closely mirrored my own in the time I spent studying at RTC in the early 1970’s. It was always a great joy listening to Prof. Barkley’s ‘lectures’ on church history; he had a way of making history come alive. But Linda’s point is well taken. As it happens, this week’s post was written by Mrs. Irene Reid for the children of the “Read Your Bible Club”. As with many of our articles it’s message is just as relevant today as it was then. We hope you share it with your children and grandchildren as well as taking its message into your own hearts. Sometimes we do need a reminder of the simpler messages of the Gospel.

The Read Your Bible Club

Hi there members!

When we are kept busy time really goes quickly doesn’t it? I’m sure you always keep yourselves very busy, with different activities, there always seems to be something to do.

I would like to welcome two new Members to the Club, Daniella and Diana Heatherich, congratulations to both of you from all of us.

I would like to tell you about our little son who is getting to the stage now where we must tell him NO to many things and pull him away from anything that may be dangerous, he grizzles if he can’t have or do what he wants but a few minutes later he smiles and has forgotten.

Unfortunately, as we get older and punished for wrong or even abused or made fun of by others, we at times find it very hard to forgive and forget and sometimes if we let it go on too long our hearts can become bitter. This is very wrong and Boys and Girls, I do hope that you will always be able to forgive, as our Father in Heaven also forgives us. Keep your heart a heart of love.

The Lord be with you in all you do.

Bye for now,

Mrs. Irene Reid, Anakie Road, Lovely Banks, via Geelong, Vic. 3221.

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

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The Reformed Church And The Future

John VanderBom. Trowel & Sword, April 1977

Preamble: In this article John VanderBom looks over a period of fifty years – 25 into the past and 25 into the future. In the process he asks many searching questions about the Reformed church and the people who make up its numbers. It is almost another fifty years since then and still many of those same questions remain. Tellingly he states: “I am writing this article to impress upon all of our readers, our young readers in particular, that the tomorrow of the Reformed Church is largely in your hands,” at the same time acknowledging that ultimately, we are all in God’s hands.

The Reformed Church And The Future

The Reformed Churches of Australia have celebrated their twenty-five years of existence in four Eastern States.

An anecdote: when we were on holidays in New Zealand a young man spoke to me: “Aren’t you going to Sydney next week? And doesn’t the Church in Sydney celebrate its eh- 100th anniversary?”

You can guess my answer: “I am not Moses…….’

No, for all our struggles, we cannot say that we have spent forty years in the wilderness. We haven’t even been involved in an eighty years war for the faith.

For me, the anecdote was another reminder that the history of our Reformed Churches is a very short history. The main reason for our celebrations has been to thank the Lord (while the older generation is still with us) for the miraculous way in which He has blessed us. And it went so fast.

I have written about the enthusiasm, the conviction, the determination and the obedience. We began in the spirit of being “unprofitable servants, who have only done the things which they ought to do”. Yet I wonder if our people with all their affluence would have achieved so much and give themselves so willingly if they were in the same situation again.

Within three years’ time Reformed Churches were an established fact in every State of Australia. When the Rev. Jan Schep opened the Synod of Sydney, he spoke of the tears of the sower (Psalm 126.) In the prayer service before the Synod of Ulverstone, 1954, I took my text from the parable of the Mustard Seed and the tree in which the birds could sit down to rest.

But now it is the time to look at the future.

Is there a future for the Reformed Church?

The future always poses intriguing questions for us. A whole new science, futurology, deals with these interesting possibilities, also concerning the Christian Church.

I remember a Readers Digest article. When RD had the 25th anniversary of its Australian edition, it published two fascinating articles: one on the 25 years that had passed, and that on the 25 years to come.

The second article made it very plain that we, all of us, are the makers of the future. As people of the present generation, we are the planners for tomorrow. Readers Digest mentioned a few practical things, like the planning for roads and traffic, planning for new centres of population, and more and better roads. We all seem to assume that over the next 25 years we will still be going faster and faster, on and on, just like we did in the past. Programs for education of larger numbers of students are planned. Today we are making the world for the next 25 years.

But then? Readers Digest closed with a very down-to-earth remark: What will happen in the year 2000 is very important. And all our calculations could fail because there is the unknown factor of the human nature. RD says: The Wilsons’ wondrous To-morrow is very much in the hands of the Wilsons’ themselves!

I am writing this article to impress upon all of our readers, our young readers in particular, that the tomorrow of the Reformed Church is largely in your hands. What will the Church of the year 2000 be like? It is in your (and my)-praying-hands. God has laid it there!

Now I know that with such a statement I am in for all sorts of reactions. Some people will say: The Church is safe, it is in God’s hands! Many others have told me already that in 2000 the Church shall not be there any more! They say, that the world is in such a rut, in such turmoil… Many Christians will tell you that for our “late great planet earth” there is no hope any longer; or: no other hope than that the Lord Himself may come very quickly.

Yet we know there is the other side. As Reformed Christians we know that the Lord has entrusted us with talents, responsibilities. We are here not only to pray and win souls, but to do something. Until the Lord returns we’ll have to work with our talents and pounds. It is a tremendous challenge, so demanding that it ought to bring us on our knees. Yet, this challenge is a God-given talent.

We can well understand people speaking like this. On seeing so much trouble today, I say this myself: Lord Jesus, come quickly!

This means that as Christians we not only know that there is a crying world with the crying needs of crying people. We also know that there is the Good News. The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is the answer. And the Church is here to make that Gospel known.

The apostle Paul declared that the whole creation waits for the revelation of God’s children. It all waits for God’s children to be visible.

Today we must face the question: are the children of God revealed, is the Church a visible Church? 

The Church can be in hiding, invisible. The Church can be dull, asleep, divided. The Church can be like the Church in Russia in the days of the Revolution. The Church had been there for ages, but the children of God were hardly visible.

We also are living in days of revolution.

We are still free to preach the gospel. It is easy to stand on a platform and say or shout: Jesus is the Answer! And then to go home in peace, and say that we are so happy.

Now, I do realise that the preaching of the Word of God is still the Church’s main task. The opening of God’s Word brings light. So many Australians who over the years have joined the Reformed Churches have told me how much they have appreciated the teaching of the Reformed Church. Stuart Fowler has written that one of the contributions which our Churches have made is the preaching of the Kingship of our Lord Jesus Christ. It has led to a growing, strong movement for Christian Schools in many places.

Yet we must aim at greater things. The Reformed Church stands for more than for the pure preaching of the Word. Far too often we have been preaching to ourselves in our isolated corner. We have even left it to the minister. In so many cases, it looks like our congregations stand, or fall, with the good, or less competent minister.

As congregations we must know that together we have received the Word of God. And: we have got it, to get it out! (T.L. Wilkinson) 

Michael Griffiths (Cinderella with Amnesia) reminds us (from Ephesians 4) that the beauty of the Church must become visible, not so much in the person of the preacher, but in the body-life of the Christian community.

For 1977, to obey the Gospel means something very practical. We must learn to be distinct. The crying needs of the world around us call us to become visible in a new and simple Christian life-style. We all know that the present world as it exists cannot continue. The production wheels are moving faster and faster; we are bound to have things bigger and bigger. Who can stop the wheel? A young mother who was concerned about her children said to me: I wish that somebody could stop that big wheel, I wish could get out of this.

No, we cannot go on. We cannot continue to produce more cars, with the consumption of more oil, more food, more entertainment, robbing the other half of mankind.

They who have read bishop John V. Taylor’s Enough is Enough (SCM; recommended in Trowel and Sword, September) know I what mean. And many of our young people know what I mean. Some of our youth have chosen to live a simple life-style, and a few have even built their own community-life. They remember the words of Scripture: By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. And: we know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren.

We must become very serious on the question of how to present our Christian faith on the Monday, in society, in our business, on holiday. We must have the courage to tell our children and ourselves: Enough is enough! We must become visible, and be known in the community as people of tomorrow, who are the first-fruits of God’s new creation.

Do you know that the monastic movement and the religious orders of the Middle Ages had their origin as a protest movement, a cry for a new lifestyle?

We say that our age is getting darker and darker. Are we being absorbed in the darkness, or is our light getting brighter and brighter? Are we a light on the hill, or does the Church only leave a passing shadow?

We have got it to get it out!

When we are filled with the compassion of Christ, then we’ll begin to see the other and to speak of him, not as a far-away object for an evangelisation campaign, but as a neighbour whom we wish to know at the nitty-gritty level of his daily pleasures and worries.

To be filled with the Holy Spirit means to be filled with the compassion of Jesus for the lost. And: “he who is not with Me, is against Me.”

If in the Reformed Church you asked for a show of hands, nobody would be against Jesus. But the Lord had more to say: “He who is not with Me, is against Me; and he who does not scatter with me, scatters”! Jesus’ job was to gather sheep, stubborn and dirty sheep. We are here too to gather them in, and so to be “with Jesus”. If we are not with Him, then we are working against Him. If we do not win, then we are losing and scattering.

Paul said: I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, IF ONLY I may accomplish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord, to testify to the Gospel of the grace of God! And: it is MORE BLESSED TO GIVE than to receive! (Acts 20:24, 28).

Shall we make this our Bible verse for the coming 25 years?

JOHN VANDERBOM

We look forward to receiving feedback about any of our posts. We also encourage you to share our posts with family, friends and acquaintances; in fact anyone you think may appreciate and/or benefit from the knowledge and wisdom handed down to us from the past.   To view previous posts visit our website at www.tsrevisited.com

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