Introduction
This is the first issue of a newsletter I hope to send out
3 times a year. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Alan Marshall.
The purpose of these emails is to draw attention to new material published on
my personal web site, www.alanmarshall.org.
This site shares some of the conclusions I have come to in
seeking to answer for myself some difficult questions that have divided the
church. It seeks to encourage, not to condemn. It welcomes feedback as we
learn from each other. I believe that Jesus is serious about the unity he
prayed for, and is faithful to bring it about in our time. Therefore, I am
seeking to take visitors beyond the narrow perspective of their particular
denomination, examining the scriptures afresh, and gaining insights into their
meaning from the early church, the reformers, revival preachers and
contemporary writers.
Complementing the above, I am also developing an
evangelistic site, www.jesusisreal.org. The aim is to
present high quality evidence, both historical and contemporary, for embracing
the christian faith. There is a focus on seeking to understand what God is
doing in this day.
Subscribing
If you would like to be on the mailing list, send me an
email with "Subscribe" in the subject line,or if
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Essays
This chapters are for me the heart of Romans, yet their is
much confusion over their interpretation. If we are to avoid confusion, we
must ask the right questions. The essay is a passage-by-passage commentary
that I hope you will enjoy. You will need to read the scripture passages
before each section of comment. I think it contains some fresh insights, and
it has received encouraging feedback.
A plea to churches who are dogmatic about worshipping on
Saturday (or Sunday for that matter), to see the bigger picture. Compelling
evidence of Sunday worship in Paul's letters and among the disciples of the
apostle John, while understanding that in the earliest days of the church,
every day was a day of worship!
During the last century, professional archaeologists
searched the Gulf of Suez for evidence of Moses' crossing of the Red Sea, and
found nothing. Finally in 1984, Ron Wyatt, an amateur archaeologist with a
passion for the bible, was led by God to search in the Gulf of Aquaba (the
eastern branch of the Red Sea). This gulf is very deep, generally around 5000
feet, but at this point there is a point, still quite deep at around 1000 feet
in the middle. It was not just freak weather that allowed the Israelites to
cross. The parting of the waters, the most awesome display of God's saving
power in the Old Testament, was intended to be etched into the minds of the
Hebrews for all time. Click above to see the photographic evidence for
yourself. What Ron and his divers found is nothing less than the remains of
Pharaoh's army! I believe it is God's intention that this evidence is etched
into our minds as well.
One of the photos shows a 4-spoked chariot wheel covered in
gold leaf. It must have belonged to someone of great importance - a high
priest, a nobleman, perhaps Pharaoh himself.
Transformations II : Inuit
Pentecost
The original Transformations video was released a few years
ago, and told of whole communities transformed by the gospel Colombia,
California, Kenya and Guatemala. This sequel premiered in Australia last
October in the auditorium of Daystream Christian
Fellowship.
One of the accounts in the Transformations II video tells
of the coming of the gospel to Canada's Arctic islands in the first half of
the 1900's. As the century drew to a close, however, the early impact of the
gospel had waned. Deep social problems such as alcoholism, domestic violence,
sexual abuse and youth suicide became endemic. In addition to this, the land
and fisheries had become degraded. The turning point came when pastors united
in prayer. The result was a deep repentance in these communities, and renewed
worship. The climax was an extraordinary event at the Anglican church at Pond
Inlet, Baffin Island, on 28 February 1999. A group of young were expressing
their love for the Lord in worship when the sound of a roaring wind, like that
described in Acts 2:2, filled the building. Their was no wind outside, but
inside this sound grew louder and louder, drowning out the worship!
Incredibly, the whole worship service, including this manifestation of the
Spirit, was recorded on tape and is replayed on the video. Since that time
there has been a dramatic improvement in all the above social problems.
See the video for yourself, and here the testimonies of
lives changed by Jesus! Both videos are available
from Koorong. Click here for their review.
"Empowered Evangelicals"; Rich Nathan and Ken Wilson;
Servant Publications
This book, if read as widely as I hope, will help break
down decades of predjudice between evangelicals and pentecostal /
charismatics, taking the best of both traditions into the one church that
Jesus calls us to (John 17:20-23). The authors are pastors of Vineyard
churches, where pentecostal experiences are understood in an evangelical,
Christ-centered theology that sees the kingdom of God has come, but is still
to come in its fullness. The tone of the book is positive and honest. Readers
of all backgrounds wil be encouraged.
"I am excited about Empowered Evangelicals because I
believe it will enrich the soul and intellect of those who know God, and yet
are hungry for more. My only regret is that it was not available sooner." -
John Wimber
Currently out of stock at Koorong. Click here for their review. You can purchase a copy immediately for $A14 from Alan Marshall.
"Future Grace"; John Piper; Multnomah
Books
For christians to regain the unity that Christ prayed, a
willingness to acknowledge that they may have drifted from the purity of the
New Testament gospel is necessary. Though Martin Luther was used powerfully by
God to restore to us a clear understanding of God's grace, we cannot
complacently conclude that the process of reformation finished with him. One
wake-up call for both Protestants and Catholics is the now readily accessible,
and digitally searchable, writings of the early church fathers. Other wake-up
calls are coming from contemporary writers like John Piper. He does not
question the reformation understanding of how we become christians, but he
challenges us to think about our the dynamics of our walk with
God.
"John Piper's purpose in writing is to revitalise a decadent Western Christianity that knows only cheap grace and cheap faith. Bible-soaked, God-intoxicated, deeply evangelical, and passionately humane, Piper fills the forgotten dimensions of faith - hope and contentment, stability and sanctity, prizing and praising God - with a master hand. This is a rich and wise book, one to treasure and re-read." - J. I. Packer
