Fake news or good news?

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Silence

The Macquarie dictionary has announced its 2016 word of the year: ‘fake news.’

This term came to prominence in 2016, referring to websites that deliberately published disinformation — often then promoted on social media.

One such site published a story about a German town’s oldest church being burnt down by refugees on NYE.

Except it wasn’t the oldest church, and it didn’t burn down. A firecracker landed in some scaffolding while some refugees happened to be celebrating nearby.

ABC’s Media Watch summarised why fake news has such a power to be believed: “We love to hear things that confirm what we think and what we feel and what we already believe. It makes us feel very comforted.”

And this is exactly the premise behind these stories.

While the use of social media has seen these stories gain a widespread footing, the spread of false or misleading stories is not a new phenomenon.

People have always loved to hear lies that confirm what they already believe.

In the first book of the Bible we read that when the serpent whispered to Eve that she would become like God, and that she would not surely die, both Adam and Eve believed. They believed because this is the truth they wanted to hear.

Humanity craves autonomy from God and it is comforting to think that there are no consequences. But it is a lie.

The environment that has led the rise of fake news is that of our “post truth” world, (the 2015 word of the year!)

When two stories vary dramatically in the events which they report the question used to be “which one is true?” 

But that question is rapidly becoming irrelevant. Truth itself is becoming irrelevant.

But only truth will bring salvation.

Jesus not only speaks truth but is himself truth to our world. His good news is the only antidote to the fake news of sin.

Christ also brought you the truth, which is the good news about how you can be saved. Ephesians 1:13

Simon Chaplin

Coming up this weekend 11th – 12th February 2017

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What does the bible say about marriage? And why is it that Christians are at loggerheads with a large number of the population about the definition of marriage? If history was different, this weekend a plebiscite would have been held to decide about the redefinition of marriage as a nation.

To recognise the significance of this decision and the significance of what is facing our nation today, Jodie will be speaking on the topic ‘Who becomes one: God’s Word on marriage’ this weekend.

During our service, we’ll have our weekly question and answer time, and Jodie will be answering these questions:

  1. When were the individual Psalms organised into five books, and why does that make any difference to how we interpret them?
  2. Since Psalm 90 also includes the question, “How Long?”, does this weaken the idea that Books 4 and 5 answer this question?
  3. Since God loves justice, how can the cross of Christ be the ultimate act of injustice?
  4. Is it appropriate to make criticisms about Trump from the pulpit?
  5. Where is Jamberoo Anglican headed in 2017?

Our 8am Sunday service will be a Holy Communion First Order AAPB service.

If you’re wanting to check out our church we’d really love you to visit us on Saturday at 5pm for a contemporary service with kids’ program and dinner afterwards, or come along on Sunday at 8am for a Prayer Book service.

Church news for the week beginning 4th February 2017

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This weekend’s Bible Talk

This weekend Simon Chaplin concludes our ‘Christ in the Psalms’ series, with the final talk titled ‘The king who saves’ from Psalm 99.

Mission of the month: Anglicare

Anglicare is our mission of the month. Support this ministry through the ‘Mission Table’ in the Hall.

Working Bee

Please join us next Saturday 11th February from 8.30am to help us get our buildings and grounds ready for our 150th anniversary celebrations. BYO vacuum cleaners, rakes, and other tools. In particular, extra cloths, polish and Brasso is needed. For more information see Robert Curll. Please bring along a small plate of food to share for morning tea.

150th Anniversary Celebrations

It’s only two weeks until we remember the 150th Anniversary of the opening of our church building at Jamberoo. To celebrate, we have two, big events.

On Saturday 18th February at 3pm we’re having a free Devonshire tea and history display, whilst the kids enjoy a jumping castle and ice creams. After church at 5pm we’ll have a free sausage sizzle and lamingtons, followed by a fun night of bush dancing in the hall.

On Sunday 19th February we’re joining together for church at the special time of 9.30am, which will be followed by a delicious morning tea and free lunch together, with historical displays.

At both services we welcome Bishop Peter Hayward to speak to us from God’s word, and we will have an opportunity to give thanks to God for his faithfulness.

If you haven’t already invited friends and neighbours, then this is the week to give them a call or drop them a note.

Volunteers needed for sausage sizzle

We are in need of two competent and willing people to cook sausages on Saturday 18th February for the 150th Celebration. Please see Lesley Errington or contact the office.

First Men’s Dinner for the year

You’re invited to join the men of Oak Flats and beyond this Tuesday 7th February for the first Men’s Dinner of the year. RSVP via the comment card, mensdinner@oakflatsanglican.com or 0439 561 373.

Ladies Guild AGM

The Ladies Guild are meeting on Wednesday 22nd February in the church hall at 2pm for their Annual General Meeting.

Eight weeks to the Weekendaway

Don’t miss out on our awesome church retreat on the weekend of the 31st March – 2nd April.  Our guest speaker is Peter Jensen, former Archbishop of Sydney. Registration is available now!

Scripture class helper needed

Please see Lesley Errington if you are able to help out with Scripture at Jamberoo Public. We need another helper for the Kindergarten class on Thursday afternoon.

 

Giving update

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. In the last calendar month, our average weekly giving was $5882.00, leaving a gap of $418.00.

Olimometer 2.52

Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $245,700. Compared to that total we received $221,466, leaving a gap of $24,234.

Olimometer 2.52

Electronic giving is a great way to give! It helps us prayerfully plan our giving, and then the bank will help us keep that commitment, even when we may be unable to attend. To give by direct transfer then these are the details. Account name: Church of England Jamberoo. Account number: 10081274. BSB: 062562 .

Last among equals

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We’re all members of the one body (CREDIT: Pascal via flickr.com)

Whether we like it or not, it’s natural for any group of people to form structures to try and organise its membership.

So, when you get together a bunch of people to play on a sporting team, it’s pretty normal for a captain to be appointed.

And when you have an organisation like a club or a small business, you can expect someone to be appointed to lead and take responsibility for the running of things.

This, too, is the case in a church.

God has made it clear in the Bible that he expects there to be some within the church who will lead others, taking responsibility for what happens.

But just because someone has a leadership role, it doesn’t mean that they are more important than the others.

In one of the Bible’s writings there is an encouragement to all Christians in the church:

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.  (Romans 12:3-5)

In other words, none of us should look down (or up) on anyone else, just because of what they are doing within Christ’s church.

So, whether a person is preaching into a microphone, or controlling the microphone from the sound desk, everyone is of the same value to God.

And just in case we need any further proof, Jesus, whom we serve as King, actually considers himself lower than everyone in the church.

And that’s the greatest model of leadership we’ll ever encounter.

Coming up this weekend 4th – 5th February 2017

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This weekend Simon Chaplin concludes our ‘Christ in the Psalms’ series, with the final talk titled ‘The king who saves’ from Psalm 99.

We will also share the Lord’s Supper at 5pm Saturday, so be sure to join us for this important reminder of the death of Jesus.

Our 8am Sunday service will be a Morning Prayer AAPB service.

If you’re wanting to check out our church we’d really love you to visit us on Saturday at 5pm for a contemporary service with kids’ program and dinner afterwards, or come along on Sunday at 8am for a Prayer Book service.

If you can’t make it in person, you’re welcome to jump online to watch the service (with the same sermon and many other items) at www.oakflats.tv.

Church news for the week beginning 28th January 2017

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This weekend’s Bible Talk

This weekend Simon Chaplin continues our ‘Christ in the Psalms’ series, with the next talk titled ‘Life in between’ from Psalm 39.

Mission of the month: Anglicare

Anglicare is our mission of the month. Support this ministry through the ‘Mission Table’ in the Hall.

Dinner at the Bowlo

Join us this Thursday at 6pm at the Jamberoo Bowling Club for a relaxed Chinese meal together.

150th Anniversary Celebrations

It’s only three weeks until we remember the 150th Anniversary of the opening of our church building at Jamberoo. To celebrate, we have two, big events.

On Saturday 18th February at 3pm we’re having a free Devonshire tea and history display, whilst the kids enjoy a jumping castle and ice creams. After church at 5pm we’ll have a free sausage sizzle and lamingtons, followed by a fun night of bush dancing in the hall.

On Sunday 19th February we’re joining together for church at the special time of 9.30am, which will be followed by a delicious morning tea and free lunch together, with historical displays.

At both services we welcome Bishop Peter Hayward to speak to us from God’s word, and we will have an opportunity to give thanks to God for his faithfulness.

If you haven’t already invited friends and neighbours, then this is the week to give them a call or drop them a note.

First Men’s Dinner for the year

You’re invited to join the men of Oak Flats and beyond on Tuesday 7th February for the first Men’s Dinner of the year. RSVP via the comment card, mensdinner@oakflatsanglican.com or 0439 561 373.

Giving update

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. In the last calendar month, our average weekly giving was $5882.00, leaving a gap of $418.00.

Olimometer 2.52

Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $245,700. Compared to that total we received $221,466, leaving a gap of $24,234.

Olimometer 2.52

Electronic giving is a great way to give! It helps us prayerfully plan our giving, and then the bank will help us keep that commitment, even when we may be unable to attend. To give by direct transfer then these are the details. Account name: Church of England Jamberoo. Account number: 10081274. BSB: 062562 .

An important reminder as school returns

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Back to school (CREDIT: Paradox 56 via flickr.com)

Whether it’s the school shoe sales or the return of 40kmh school zones, nearly all of us notice when it’s ‘back to school’ time.

And as schooling comes to our mind we should remember that education is a privilege we should never take for granted.

Many parents around the world would only dream of offering their kids the kind of education that is provided free to every child in Australia

Education empowers people to have a toolkit for life, whether it’s learning to read, write, add up or just relate to others .

The God who made all humans thinks that there is something that must be the foundation of all our knowledge and wisdom.

For, as we read in the Bible in the book of Proverbs, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7), and “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10).

So, a person can seem very knowledgeable and wise, yet if they don’t fear God, their very foundation of life is unstable.

This is why a comprehensive education will include the study of God as much as the study of all the other subjects.

For the children enrolled at Christian schools, the study of God is not only taught as a subject, but it should form the very heart of the syllabus.

Yet, due to the provision of Scripture (SRE) classes, children in our state schools can also be taught from the Bible about the God who made them and loves them and sent his son to die for them.

This means that even secular schools can offer parents and carers the choice to have their children taught the true foundation of education and life.

As we begin another year, pray that the Bible will be taught in a clear and compelling way to children in all kinds of schools, so that our kids will have a sure foundation for learning and for life.

Coming up this weekend 28th – 29th January 2017

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This weekend Simon continues our ‘Christ in the Psalms’ series, with the next talk titled ‘Life in between’ from Psalm 39.

We’re also launching our ministries for the year ahead, from youth and kids through to adults and seniors. We’d love you to join us to hear about the plans and to pray for the future.

Our 8am Sunday service will be the Lord’s Supper Sunday Service.

During our service, we’ll have our weekly question and answer time, and Simon will be answering these questions:

  1. Is all ‘worldly’ wisdom wrong, and if so, how should we engage with it?
  2. If it’s wise to despise a vile person, then was Bonhoeffer right to want to kill Hitler?
  3. In what way can money ‘buy’ people?
  4. If gambling is bad, then why did God give the Urim and Thummim to help his people make decisions?

If you’re wanting to check out our church we’d really love you to visit us on Saturday at 5pm for a contemporary service with kids’ program and dinner afterwards, or come along on Sunday at 8am for a prayerbook service.

If you can’t make it in person, you’re welcome to jump online to watch the service (with the same sermon and many other items) at www.oakflats.tv.

Church news for the week beginning 21st January 2017

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This weekend’s Bible Talk

This weekend Simon Chaplin continues our ‘Christ in the Psalms’ series, with the next talk titled ‘The wise one’ from Psalm 15.

Mission of the month: Anglicare

Anglicare is our mission of the month. Support this ministry through the ‘Mission Table’ in the Hall.

150th Anniversary Celebrations

It’s only four weeks until we remember the 150th Anniversary of the opening of our church building at Jamberoo. To celebrate, we have two, big events.

On Saturday 18th February at 3pm we’re having a free Devonshire tea and history display, whilst the kids enjoy a jumping castle and ice creams. After church at 5pm we’ll have a free sausage sizzle and lamingtons, followed by a fun night of bush dancing in the hall.

On Sunday 19th February we’re joining together for church at the special time of 9.30am, which will be followed by a delicious morning tea and free lunch together, with historical displays.

At both services we welcome Bishop Peter Hayward to speak to us from God’s word, and we will have an opportunity to give thanks to God for his faithfulness.

If you haven’t already invited friends and neighbours, then this is the week to give them a call or drop them a note.

Roster changes

If you make any swaps or changes to your rostered duty, please let Val know by contacting her or noting it in the comment card. This will ensure that all duties are covered.

Giving update

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. In the last calendar month, our average weekly giving was $5882.00, leaving a gap of $418.00.

Olimometer 2.52

Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $245,700. Compared to that total we received $221,466, leaving a gap of $24,234.

Olimometer 2.52

Electronic giving is a great way to give! It helps us prayerfully plan our giving, and then the bank will help us keep that commitment, even when we may be unable to attend. To give by direct transfer then these are the details. Account name: Church of England Jamberoo. Account number: 10081274. BSB: 062562 .

The lesson our leaders must learn

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Mike Baird and Barack Obama (CREDITS: Kate Ausburn, Whitehouse via Flickr)

At this moment in time we are witnessing a change in the leadership of the Premier of NSW and the President of the USA.

Both offices are positions of power, and both roles provide a powerful influence.

This makes it a good time to reflect on what Jesus thinks about leaders and leadership.

When one of his disciples tried to climb up the leadership ladder to grasp authority, Jesus said:

“You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:42-45)

This ‘servant leadership’ runs against the grain of the world, which encourages people to climb the ladder of power, even if it means treading on other people’s fingers.

Yet, in his most famous sermon, Jesus made it clear that this is not the way things should be.

Instead, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5)

Those who will inherit God’s blessing will be the ones who recognise that Jesus is king, and who follow Jesus’ leadership in serving others, as meek people, not as arrogant.

This is a very difficult thing to do in public office, and this is even more reason why we should be active in praying that our leaders recognise that the ultimate leader showed meekness and majesty as he willingly died for those he came to save.

After all, “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:27)