Church news for the week beginning 16th July 2023

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OUR SERMON

This Sunday we are going to be hearing from God’s word as Steve Bligh preaches to us from 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verses 10 to chapter 6 verse 2 about ‘Your High Calling’.

RELATIONAL EVANGELISM

Join Steve Bligh in a special in-house Relational Evangelism Course on Tuesday 25th July 7-9 pm in our hall. Learn more about how to be effective in sharing Jesus with the people we know and love.

GRANDPARENTS CONFERENCE

Save the date: Saturday 16th September at Figtree Anglican.

KBECET PIE DRIVE

If you like pies and school Scripture, then this is for you! You can: purchase some pies, donate some pies, or give directly to support our mission partner Wicky and his scripture teaching ministry. The link to the online order form is here: KBECET PIE DRIVE.

MORNING PRAYER

Join us at 7 am every day (except Sunday) at zoom.jamberooanglican.com as we gather to read the Bible, pray, and encourage each other as the new day dawns.

JULY BOOK OF THE MONTH

Our book of the month is ‘Respectable Sins’ by Jerry Bridges. Physical copies are available at our bookstall.

GIVING UPDATE

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. For last month, our average weekly giving was $5616.00, leaving a gap of $684.00. Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $218,400. Compared to that total we received $195,239, leaving a gap of $23,161.

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: Jamberoo Anglican Church. Account number: 356831. BSB: 032605.

80 Days Since Africa

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It’s 80 days since Mandy, Barbara and I returned from Africa, and although life has largely returned to normal, there is a sense in which I continue to see things differently since visiting Rwanda, Kenya, and Tanzania in April.

Like any cross-cultural experience, there’s learning to be gained from both those who visit and those who host, and this was certainly what we experienced in our journey.

Whilst there were many cultural differences, we had a fresh reminder that we worship the same Lord, and we know him by the same Spirit, through the same Bible, even if it’s in a different language.

At the same time, it’s hard to ignore the differences in wealth between our country and those that welcomed us, which challenges us to consider how to partner with our brothers and sisters on the other side of the globe.

Over the coming months I’m looking forward to establishing a partnership between our church and with ministries in Northern Tanzania, especially since three of us from Jamberoo have experienced this life and ministry firsthand.

What’s more, other local Anglicans have also been involved in ministry in this same area of Tanzania, which opens the possibility of creating partnerships with other local churches and organisations in our area.

Jesus has told us that it is more blessed to give than to receive, and we have experienced this ourselves as we have been blessed by the sacrificial ministry of our brothers and sisters in East Africa as they hosted us.

May he lead us to also bless them as we partner together as the one body of Christ, loving and serving to the glory of the God. 

JODIE McNEILL

Coming up this Sunday 16th July 2023

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This Sunday we’ll be hearing from Stephen Bligh who will be sharing with us on the topic ‘Relational Evangelism’ as he opens up 2 Corinthians 5:10-6:2

After our 9 am service we’ll be enjoying brunch together, and after our 4 pm service we’ll be having dinner.

We’d love you to join us in-person if you’re able, or watch our livestream at watch.jamberooanglican.com.

Here are your questions that Jodie plans to answer this weekend during church:

1 What does GAFCON stand for?
2 How can Christians make our voices heard in an increasingly secular society?
3 Why is there a ‘Roll of Honour’ in our church?
4 Why does a window say “suffer the little children to come unto me?”

There’s still room for more in our questions list, so if you’d like to ask a question and haven’t had an opportunity to write one down on a response slip, why don’t you hit ‘reply’ now and we’ll add it to the list for this Sunday.

See you on Sunday, God willing!

The Man Born Blind – John 9 – Michael Kellahan – 9 July 2023

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Scene 1: The disciples’ super-awkward question (verses 1-5)

Scene 2: Questioning by neighbours (verses 8-12)

Scene 3: The Pharisees question the man (verses 13-17)

Scene 4: The Pharisees question the man’s parents (verses 18-23)

Scene 5: The Pharisees question the man again (verses 24-34)

The super-awkward final scene: the blind see and those who see become blind (verses 35-41)

The-Man-Born-Blind-John-9-Michael-Kellahan-9-July-2023Download

Church news for the week beginning 9th July 2023

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OUR SERMON

This Sunday we are delighted to welcome special guest, Michael Kellahan, the Executive Director of Gafcon Australia. He is preaching from John 9 on the topic ‘The Man Born Blind.’

KBECET PIE DRIVE

If you like pies and school Scripture, then this is for you! You can: purchase some pies, donate some pies, or give directly to support our mission partner Wicky and his scripture teaching ministry. The link to the online order form is here: KBECET PIE DRIVE.

(Executive Officer of Gafcon Australasia) will be preaching at church. Don’t miss out!
MORNING PRAYER

Join us at 7 am every day (except Sunday) at zoom.jamberooanglican.com as we gather to read the Bible, pray, and encourage each other as the new day dawns.

JULY BOOK OF THE MONTH

Our book of the month is ‘Respectable Sins’ by Jerry Bridges. Physical copies are available at our bookstall.

GIVING UPDATE

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. For last month, our average weekly giving was $5616.00, leaving a gap of $684.00. Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $218,400. Compared to that total we received $195,239, leaving a gap of $23,161.

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: Jamberoo Anglican Church. Account number: 356831. BSB: 032605.

Strange New World

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Over the holidays I’ve been reflecting on the rapid change our world has gone through as we’ve shifted into a state of mind that considers the ‘self’ to be both an authority and an idol.

My thinking partner has been Carl R. Trueman, who has written a fascinating book called ‘Strange New World’, in which he explores how things have changed so much that the phrase, “I am a woman trapped in a man’s body,” has become normal in just one generation.

Trueman begins his analysis by looking at a bunch of old and new philosophers, including Descartes (“I think therefore I am”), Marx (“Religion… is the opium of the people”), Nietzsche (“God is dead”), Freud (“erotism [is] the central point of… life”), and even Oscar Wilde (“A man… may break the law, and yet be fine.”)

These thinkers set the foundation for the radical change that has only fully arrived in our society in the last decade.

But the thing that lit the fuse of this explosive change was technology, including ‘the pill’ that kicked off the sexual revolution, and the internet that normalised pornography and established new communities that have rallied together for support and change.

The result is that our society has closed itself to alternate views, and has developed a habit of silencing speech and cancelling debaters, out of fear of causing harm to a person’s self by injuring their feelings.

In response, Trueman suggests that Christians should make it a priority to invest in Christian community, so that we can show the world that we are Christ’s disciples by our love for one another (John 13:35.)

Furthermore, he encourages us to make our church services special, since, “a large part of the church’s witness to the world is simply being the church in worship.”

So, as we face this strange new world, let’s continue to gather together in love for one another, as we show the world the hope we have in the new creation.

JODIE McNEILL

Coming up this Sunday 9th July 2023

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This Sunday we’ll be welcoming special guest preacher, Michael Kellahan, who is the Executive Director of Gafcon Australia, who will be opening up John chapter 9 on the topic, ‘The Man Born Blind.’

After our 9 am service we’ll be enjoying brunch together, and after our 4 pm service we’ll be having dinner.

We’d love you to join us in-person if you’re able, or watch our livestream at watch.jamberooanglican.com.

Here are your questions that Jodie plans to answer this weekend during church:

1 Is Judgement Day one common day for everyone, or does it differ for each person?
2 What does it mean when we say “we have been crucified with Christ?”
3 What would you do if you lived in a place where it’s illegal to be a Christian and you got attacked for going to church?
4 Is there a way to make it easier to see the screen if you’re shorter?

There’s only four in the list so far… so if you’d like to submit one for this week, hit reply, and we’ll give it a go!

We’re really looking forward to seeing you on Sunday!

Cranmer and the Worth of the Word – Psalm 119:97-112, Matthew 4:1-4 – Mark Earngey – 2 July 2023

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Lost in Translation…

1. Who was Thomas Cranmer (1489-1556)?

2. He teaches us about the valuable Word of God 

3. He teaches us that the Word shapes our Worship

4. He wants the Word to sink into our hearts

What happened and now happens because of Cranmer?

Cranmer-and-the-Word-Mark-Earngey-2-July-2023Download

Church news for the week beginning 2nd July 2023

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OUR SERMON

This Sunday we are going to be hearing from God’s word as special guest Mark Earngey preaches to us from on the topic ‘Cranmer and the Word’.

KBECET PIE DRIVE

The pie drive is back again! You can: purchase some pies, donate some pies, or give directly to support our mission partner Wicky and his scripture teaching ministry. The link to the online order form is here: KBECET PIE DRIVE.

GUEST PREACHER

On 9th July, Michael Kellahan (Executive Officer of Gafcon Australasia) will be preaching at church. Don’t miss out!

MORNING PRAYER

Join us at 7 am every day (except Sunday) at zoom.jamberooanglican.com as we gather to read the Bible, pray, and encourage each other as the new day dawns.

JULY BOOK OF THE MONTH

Our book of the month is ‘Respectable Sins’ by Jerry Bridges. Physical copies are available at our bookstall.

GIVING UPDATE

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. For May, our average weekly giving was $5616.00, leaving a gap of $684.00. Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $218,400. Compared to that total we received $195,239, leaving a gap of $23,161.

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: Jamberoo Anglican Church. Account number: 356831. BSB: 032605.

The Gift of Psalms

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This week Sydney has welcomed international musicians Keith and Kristyn Getty, and their full band, who served us with a conference and a concert that helped inspire us to enthusiastically sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.

At Monday’s conference we were reminded of the importance of saying and singing Psalms in church, as local evangelist David Robertson urged churches to use the Psalms each week, as we currently do here at Jamberoo.

Other than the fact that the Bible tells us to, we were reminded that Jesus, himself, sang the same Psalms when he gathered with his people, and that ultimately, they are about Jesus, himself, great David’s greater Son.

Another reason is that they help us have a more authentic view of God, especially now that many modern songs seem to avoid some of the themes that the Psalms mention so often about God’s character, including his anger and judgement, and his glory.

Also, the Psalms express the full range of human emotions, so that we are able to speak and sing together words that connect with our deepest reality, no matter how we’re feeling.

To illustrate this, David shared about someone who, after reading out the Psalms in church, felt that she had been given permission to be depressed, instead of having to show a ‘happy clappy’ attitude that can often feel disconnected from how we’re truly feeling.

Finally, he showed us that Psalms are great for people exploring Christianity, for they can help newcomers see that what we’re saying and singing are the same things that people from other places and times in history have also sung… which gives a unique connection with the saints throughout history.

The Psalms are a rich gift to us from God, and it’s a pleasure and privilege to sing and speak them each week in church!

JODIE McNEILL