European Leadership Forum 9

A twelve hour journey back from Eger to Bangor gives much time to reflect and to try to consider how to sum up the Forum.

The one thing which makes such a conference stand out is the variety of those who attend. Over 42 nations were represented, and a variety of occupations (that is not all pastors, professional theologians or even church workers.) The quality of the teaching was excellent, and the opportunity to question, challenge and engage was plentiful. But it was the participants that make this event unique.

The fact that we were not all from the same theological stable was interesting. We were all agreed on the gospel (The Bible was held up as the infallible Word of God; the atoning work of Christ was rejoiced in; the truth that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone was upheld throughout etc.). However differences were there, but they did not seem to cause the conflict which often comes in such situations. We were all prayerfully concerned about the effective spread of the Gospel throughout Europe, and were there to further that aim. And for my part, although I am sure that I would disagree deeply with John Lennox about some issues, I learnt much from him as he expounded the Word of God, and rejoiced in the fellowship and personal discussion we had.

Whilst the steering committee is essentially European, much of the arranging and administrating, including the running of the whole event in Hungary, is done by friends from the USA. Their commitment, hard work and generosity are major factors also in the atmosphere of the whole event. When we arrived this year each participant was given an ESV study Bible as a gift. This was paid for by the adult Sunday school class of Wayne Grudem (who was the general editor of the study Bible, and a frequent contributor to the ELF). This gift was especially valuable to many of those who come from Eastern Europe. This was the spirit of the whole Forum, and on the final evening a long standing ovation was given to all those volunteers who had given of their time and out of their own pocket had paid to come to help us. Any who would doubt the American way of patronisingly try to sort out the rest of the world can see here a very different spirit.

The challenge for me (as is often the case when we have been away) is to bring back home some things which can be applied to our own situation. Certainly I have been refreshed, and my vision for the lost has been sharpened. I have a deeper understanding of certain portions of the Scriptures, and have greater knowledge to use in the proclamation of the Gospel. I also have new brothers and sisters in Christ for whom I can thank God, and for whom I must pray. I received numerous invitations to other countries to help them as they seek to serve God.

There are some things which I would want to see change. Firstly it seemed very difficult to find a cup of coffee after 11.00 a.m. – a major complaint!! Maybe a little more seriously, a pastoral track might be useful. Whilst some pastors were used, most of the speakers seemed to be those who were not so directly involved in the full time ministry of the church, and at times the apologetic emphasis overshadowed all else. I am aware that much personal mentoring was done there, but there could be a place for something else.

One serious issue for me was that I was the only Welsh speaker there, and on one night when we sat according to our nations for food, I had only one companion from Wales – Lindsay Brown. I would dearly wish to have others from my country there, so that we could continue the work here between Forums. Maybe next year I can persuade someone to come with me.

In the meantime, I pray that God will make me faithful in putting into practice the things I have learnt and been convicted of. I am grateful to have been there this year, and look forward to other blessings God may have in store for Europe.

European Leadership Forum 8

The final evening meeting was a summing up of our desire to see the Gospel explode across Europe, and a sending out of the conference participants to proclaim the gospel. It was good to see a fellow Welshman giving the word, as Lindsay Brown, former General Secretary of IFES was the one chosen to speak to us. He gave a clear, powerful challenge as we face not only the pluralism of our age, but also probably increased opposition and even persecution. (One of those at the conference had nearly been imprisoned in Greece six months earlier accused of trying to proselytise someone from an Orthodox background.) He took us to the first letter of Peter and gave us a general overview in the light of our calling to be witnesses. His five point sermon was enriched as usual with stories of Christians from around the world, but this was not just a catalogue of inspiring stories. It was a direct challenge to take the gospel to others.

1) Our witness issues from our identity in Christ:
(a) We have a trans-cultural identity (1 Peter 1:1, 2:9,10) shown clearly in the make up of this conference.
(b) Our identity is tied up in our being a chosen people (1 Peter 1:2,12; 2:9)
(c) Our identity is inextricably bound in our common experience of God’s grace and wonder (1 Peter 1:10,13; 5:10)
(d) Our identity is found in knowing the living hope of the Gospel (1 Peter 1:3 – 5)
2) Our witness is sharpened by our response to adversity (1 Peter 1:7; 4:12 – 16). We do not suffer from the hopelessness of unbelief or the resignation of Stoicism when we face pain and loss.
3) Our witness is sharpened by a godly lifestyle (1 Peter 1:13 – 17; 2:11) When the Roman world suffered epidemics in the second and third century, the Christians cared for and loved those who fell ill, and many of them died, but the impact was a great influx of people to the church as they witnessed such love. In Albania, when there was a shortage of blood in the hospitals, it was the evangelical Christians who queued up to answer the need, so much so that one of the government ministers publicly thanked them for it.
4) Our witness is galvanised by conviction of the truth claim of the Gospel (1 Peter 3:15) In Algeria last year one pastor had baptised 1,500 believers. When the police took hold him to tell him that they were going to imprison all the Christians, he challenged them – You do not have enough prisons to hold us all – the Gospel is true, and we will see many people turn to Christ.
5) The heart of our witness is Christ. 1 Peter 1:8,19; 2:24; 3:18)

The meeting was both a blessing and a real challenge. It was not overly charged with emotion as the last night of a conference can often become. However the sound of people from over 42 nations raising up their voices in unison to praise the eternal God was an uplifting and encouraging experience.

I will leave the final summing up of the conference until tomorrow, when I will have had a good night's sleep in my own bed.

European Leadership Forum 7

Wednesday opened with John Lennox again preaching from Genesis. This time he opened with a plea that we need to let the Bible speak. We often begin with our problems, and see what the Bible has to say about it. But he contended that the Bible is true, and we believe it not because we can win all the intelectual arguments, but because God has spoken life to us through it. Turning to the story of Joseph he looked at The story of the brothers going to seek food in Egypt and the way Joseph deals with them. The insights were deep, and we saw the two sides of repentance and forgiveness being shown in Joseph’s actions and the brothers’ (in particular Judah’s) response. We ended up seeing Judah being turned from a man who sold his brother, to a man who repented and evetually was willing to give himself for his brother (Benjamin) and thus being a faint shadow of the Lion of the tribe of Judah – the Lord Jesus Christ. I was conscious of the presence of Christ, and was greatly humbled.

The Evangelism seminar then continued, firstly with Michael Ramsden leading us to consider the way Ideas mold the thinking. We considered the influence of such men as A.J.Ayre, who contended that Moral and Theological statements had no meaning; and H.L.A.Hart who with his views on jurisprudence pushed all moral and consideration of God out of the window in legal matters.

The second half of the session was a challenge, firstly by Michael Ramsden, looking at Luke 14:12 – 24. He set the parable in the context of his own Middle Eastern background, and challenged us as to the compelling them to come in. Then Michael Green encouraged us from John 16 about the Paraclete – the Friend sent alongside us and advocate who comes with us to prosecute those who challenge us. We then prayed for each other for 30 minutes in groups of two or three, and in this praying looked at our own situations in a very direct way, praying about what we had learned at the conference, what were our weaknesses where God’s grace could abound, and what we needed to do when we get home. My group of three was Michael Ramsden, Klara – a health worker from Novi Sad in Serbia, and myself. To sit in a room of men and women bowing our heads, and putting ourselves and each other in the hands of an all-powerful God to do as He wills with us is something special.

A blog cannot convey the sense of the presence of God in these things, but I know that once again I have been faced with the fact that God in his rich mercy has called me to work with him, for him in the power of his strength. Weak though I am, He must increase.

European Leadership Forum 6

Tuesday
This has to be one of the most encouraging days of the Forum for me. The sun was again shining as I took my breakfast in the open air with brothers from Northern Ireland, USA, and Denmark.


We then proceeded to listen to a scintillating exposition of Genesis as John Lennox tokk us mopre into the story of Joseph. The first part of his Bible reading looked at Judah (Chapter 38) which was shown not to be an irrelevant sideline, but at the heart of the plan of Genesis to prepare the way for the seed of Adam to come as the Messiah. His insights were both pastoral and theological. Then he went on to consider the suffering and rejection of Joseph. We all left the main conference room inspired, humbled, wanting to know more and wanting to come home to share the pearls of insight with others.

The three hours of morning seminars on evangelism which followed were divided into two parts. In the first part we looked at the way to deal with questions which people ask us. We honed in on one question which we might be asked by an unbeliever – Are you saying that I’m going to Hell? We split into groups to discuss (a) What could be the motive behind such a question? (b) What would be the questions that we would ask? (c) How would we answer the question? The insights different people had on this was very helpful in thinking about dealing with such a question. In the second session Michael Ramsden took us through a number of logical fallacies which we might come accross when we talk to people. It was a practical and enjoyable session.

The Book Stall
One of the benefits of this Forum is the extensive bookstall that is here. A great number of books are available, and they are all at a 60% discount. We might think this is marvellous, and indeed I felt like a child in a sweetshop looking at the tables. But there is another aspect which sobers those of us who come from the west. Some of the participants from the poorer countries of Eastern Europe could hardly afford even these. So a scholarship fund is set up to help them. One couple from Serbia were speechless when they were given a small gift of 20 euros. They had not been able to spare any money to buy books, but a little gift meant that, together with the scholarship they could have some quality literature to take home with them. How humbled I felt, yet how rewarded when I saw the light and joy in their faces.

European Leadership Forum 5

Monday

John Lennox took us to Genesis again today, concentrating on the disintegration of the family life of Joseph. The insights are fascinating as he pointed us to simple things which together make for a deep reading of the text. In the story of Genesis we get God setting up a natiopn, but it is not simply a multiplication of offspring. Abraham, to whom the promise of being the father of nations and with whom God made a covenant passed the blessing of the covenant to Isaac, not Ismael, and Isaac in turn passed the covenant promise on to Jacob and not Esau, but now we come to a different passing on – the twelve sons were included in the covenant. But the passing on was not just a physical birth. There is also the story which will eventually lead to Christ and there is a spiritual story here. As we looked at the factors which led to the disintegration of the family we were faced with questions which were so relevant to today’s issues – issues of gossip, loving our neighbour, favouritism, cutting corners as we do God’s work, God at work and the deceit of the human heart. We left feeling that there was so much depth that we yet had to see in the familiar story.

In the seminar tracks on Evangelism we had two sessions. In the first Michael Green faced the challenge of the Da Vinci Code and the accusation that the church distorted the true Gospel in a paper entitled The Books The Church Suppressed. And he readily admitted that as Dan Brown has claimed, the church did suppress some books – books which appeared long after the original Gospels and other documents included in the New Testament appeared – because they were a distortion of the true gospel. We should not be intimidated by the false claims of Dan Brown. There is no evidence to support his claims, whilst the Scriptures as handed down to us by the church in the New Testament have all the marks of authenticity.

In the second session Michael Ramsden then took us into the Ontological Root of the Gospel which sounds complicated. But really it simply means that Christianity is not rooted in ideas (epistemological root), feeling (existential root) or doing (pragmatism), but in being. It is an encounter with the living Christ which changes what I am.
Its method of revelation is that Jesus did not come to tell us about God. He came as God, and in seeing Him we have seen the Father.
It is rooted in being in Salvation. Through Christ’s physical death and ressurrection that we are saved. He took on our desperate need in his being and we are saved.
It leads to our transformation. Our very beings are restored and thus we can truly begin to learn how to think, how to relate to the world around us and how to live.
So Christianity is ultimately different to all other religions.

The afternoon seminar by Michael Green was entitled Don’t Just Sit There, Plant, and led us to consider the work of Church Planting. The people in the seminar included those who had planted churches in the UK, France, Belarus, and other places. We had valuable discussion with much insight into the need, challenge, and encouragements to be involved in this work.

The evening was given to a culture night with many choices as some participants in the Forum performed. I went to listen to Ellis Potter argue that as Christians we must redeem the arts, in our Christian faith utilising our creative nature.

Once again the fellowship with people from all sorts of cultures seemed to me to be the great blessing of the day.

European Leadership Forum 4

Sunday afternoon I did not go to the optional workshop. It was better for me to digest what I’d already heard, and to try to think about some of the conversations I’ve had.

Then at 4.00 the next workshop was with Wayne Grudem. His discussion was A Call to Personal Holiness. His point was that we seem to have neglected the fear of God as a factor in our living, and replaced it with a softer reverence. God is holy and calls us to holiness, and scripture tells us that not living holy lives brings inevitable consequences. The example of Ananias and Saphira is an extreme one, but we were reminded that there is a judgement which is not eternal judgement – and God deals with us according to what we do (1 Peter 1:14 – 16) There is a passive judgement, where God removes his presence, giving us up to our own desires. But there can also be an active judgement where something happens which seems to be God calling us to repent and turn by allowing something bad to happen. Of course this is not the only reason bad things happen to Christians (take the example of Job). But there seems to be in the USA an emphasis on grace which belittles sin. I found his emphasis needing to be qualified, but I understand where he is coming from.

The evening session with Pablo Martinez brought out the caring and careful nature of the man. He is a Psychiatrist in Spain who has done much for the church and especially the student movement there during his life. He spoke on Love, Faith and Faithfullness in Family Life. He began by illustrating how things have changed in European attitudes, citing a spanish tv reality programme, where the premise is that to preserve faithfulness to one’s self, one needs sometimes to be unfaithful to our partners. Faithfulness is threatened by a triumvirate of rights surrounding the self – My right to be happy, my right to change, and my right to be myself. These selfish rights supercede the duties or responsibilities towards others – they justify unfaithfulness. The result of these rights being insisted on is the death of self.
However to combat this we have a triangle with God at its’ centre. This triangle consists of love (not eros, the passion which scientific research has shown lasts about three years, but agape.) faith, which leads to faithfulness. this means that instead of insisting on “my rights”, when I fulfill my duties, this leads to life abundant. This was so reasonably and carefully presented that they could form the basis of a course of preparation for marriage.

European Leadership Forum 2

This is a full on conference, with not much time to spare, and most of that is spent with men and women from a variety of countries and churches. There is so much to say, and so much to digest that this will only be a very brief outline of some of the things that are happening.

The seminar yesterday on Developing Elders was a fruitful time. We began by considering some secular views of Leadership before turning to the scriptural view. One of the basic Biblical models of leadership is the Shepherd. Here we need to do more than consider the superficial idea – we need to understand the ancient middle eastern concept of shepherd, before tying it in with the scriptural references about God being the Shepherd of Israel, and the patterns given to us in various passages of the Bible. We then considered 1 Timothy 3:1 – 7, and set this in the context of how to develop the leadership qualities listed here.
Tom Streeter shared some of his own experience as he expounded the idea of a plurality of Elders, equal in authority, leading the local congregation. The whole process of developing such men began with discipling men. This is in small groups of men who meet weekly for a time of study together. The curriculum involves three elements – church history, theology and developing a world view. These sessions develop friendships and give opportunities for the pastor to learn what sort of people they are. In these groups some would come to the fore as candidates for leadership.
We listed the qualities expected of the leaders, and considered how to test these within the context of our own situations.

Mealtimes are interesting. We are placed on tables of six, and I am responsible for caring for those on my table. They are one American who is a missionary in Torrino in Italy, another who is based in Slovakia, and helps to arrange for and support both long term missionaries in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Hungary. Then we have a sister who is a medical health worker in Serbia. The church is facing all sorts of difficulties at present there, but she has access to many people, and is here to learn more about evangelism. She works with two friends whi I already know in Serbia. Finally we have two brothers from Norway.

The evening session brought everyone together to worship and part of that worship was listening to the ministry of Nick Nedelchev, a senior Bulgarian leader. His humour and spiritual insught combined to show us how fear can paralyse, but also can be our friend as we replace our own unscriptural fears with the fear of God, and challenge the Europe which is full of fears at present.

Following this session a group of us went down to the town of Eger to sit in one of the number of restaurant/bars on the streets. I ended up in a discussion with an Irishman, a Dane, and three Americans on the financial crisis and the opportunities it affords to us for proclaiming better riches than the world offers.

Sunday began with breakfast in the open air under the sun with Steve, a UCCF staff worker from England, Teuta who is a girl from Albania, and conversations also with Lindsay Brown, a brother from Zagreb who knows my daughter, and others.

John Lennox then led a Bible study. John is a Proffessor of Mathematics at Oxford University, one who has publicly debated with Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens, and is an accomplished speaker on the Bible. He is looking at Joseph this week, but today was an overview of Genesis as a backdrop for what is to come. It was a different look at Genesis, helping us to see the worldview of the book – God as Creator/upholder and as object of faith. This is in open opposition to the secular atheism we encounter today, and the question all have to face is – Do we believe this God.

Then came a three hour session in our workshop tracks – mine being evangelism. We began by introducing ourselves which was in itself interesting. Among those who are there was one who did not seem sure of his name. He was a Muslim, converted six months ago, and his name used to be Iman, but he has changed it now to Immanuel. Michael Ramsden who leads the workshop then led us into an introduction as to why we should be concerned with apologetics and what is that apologetic which is scriptural. It was a chalenging introduction, with a call to sepond to 1 Peter 3:15&16. Some people give their lives to give the reason for the hope that is in them. How will we respond when we meet them in eternity! What excuses will we try to give for our silence. The church in Europe seems to have lost its voice and we need to rediscover it.
Following a much needed coffee, we then asked each other what was the question we would least want a non-believer to ask us. Then we tried to look at these questions and ask Why would someone ask these questions; What could we ask them, and How would we answer them. We split into groups of three to look at these, before coming back to share with each other.

What a morning, and I have only just started the conference! More to come before long.

European Leadership Forum

I have arrived in Eger – a town in Hungary about two and a half hours’ drive from Budapest. I’m here for The European Leadership Forum, which is a conference for Christian Leaders from all over Europe, run by a coalition of a number of Evangelical movements throughout Europe and much support from the USA. This is my second year at the conference, and arriving was very much like the tribes of Israel coming up to Jerusalem. At Heathrow I met others on their way, and eventually there were 22 coming here on the same plane. In Budapest we were put on a bus with a similar number from a previous flight, and after the long drive to Eger, we entered the hotel to find other familiar faces from last year’s conference, and many new ones. I’m sharing a room with a brother who spent many years in Vienna, and then in Slovakia, serving the church in Eastern Europe. I caught up with an Irish Presbyterian, who I shared a room with last year. I went to look for food last night with a student from Cambridge who is doing a phd in Chemistry, and a young man who works for Navigators in Edinburgh. I breakfasted this morning with one of the main people from Friends International – a society which works to reach foreign students in the uk with the gospel, and with one of the leaders of the church in Bulgaria, before having time with John, the brother from Northern Ireland, Michael Ramsden who works for the Zacharias Trust, and another brother from the USA who work with the Charles Colson Foundation. So we’re a pretty diverse group of people.

This afternoon I attended a workshop on Developing Elders, led by Tom Streeter, a brother from the USA who had planted a number of churches, and has over forty years’ experience in the ministry. I will try to set out some of the helpful points in my next blog. This evening we will be listening to Nick Nedelchev, with whom I had breakfast. He used to lead the European Evangelical Alliance and ministered in Bulgaria for many years. He is now retired, but busy as ever. He will be speaking on Fear and its Power to Paralyse People. He lived through years under communism, and has seen many changes. I’m confident that he will inspire us.

I'm off to take care of a number for a meal, and will try to get back to this later this evening.

Evangelism and some helpful books

Next week I’m off to the European Leadership Forum – an annual conference where about 400 Christians from all over Europe come together in Hungary for a week of teaching, sharing and fellowship. This will be the second time that I attend, and last year I found it to be a most encouraging experience. I hope to blog about it during the conference.
There are a number of tracks to follow – last year I chose the apologetics network. This year I’ve chosen to join the evangelism track, where the main speakers will be Michael Ramsden and Michael Green. As preparation for this I have been looking at some books and have found the following helpful:

Questioning Evangelism – Randy Newman (Kregel Publications).

This is a book which challenges the way so many of us think we should evangelise. We wait for the opportunity to pour out our well practised presentation, often preaching at people, rather than speaking to them. Often the way into people’s confidence is to question them and to listen until we understand where they are. At other times we need to challenge people’s ideas using questions to push their own beliefs further. When they get to admit the shortcomings of their own viewpoint, then they are ready to listen to others.

The Gospel and Personal Evangelism – Mark Dever (Crossway)

Mark Dever is obviously a man who is gifted in Personal Evangelism. However this is not an excuse for those of us who do not feel we have the same gift not to engage in speaking to others about Christ and his gospel. If this book is not particularly long, it is certainly challenging. The author takes us through all the excuses which we have for not speaking the gospel personally, and encourages us in very practical terms to get to work.

What Kind of God – Michael Ots (IVP)

The author looks at ten questions which are often used as objections to the Christian Faith. As a result of years of dealing with these questions he gives clear, useful answers which can be used in disarming those who object to the Christian Faith.

Things God Wants us to Know – Roger Carswell (Christian Focus)

A simple, clear presentation of the gospel by one of the UK’s more effective evangelists. Following an initial chapter which challenges the reader to come with an open mind to listen to the Christian message he goes on to say that God wants us to know who He is; who we are; what He has done; what we must do. This is a book to put into the hands of those who are prepared to think and want to know what the heart of the Christian message is.

The Heart of Evangelism – Jerram Barrs (Crossway)

I am reading this at the moment. It is the fruit of more than thirty years of reflection on what the New Testament teaches about evangelism. It is a thorough treatment of the subject, and, although the chapters are short and easy to read in one sense, they are full of the Bible and challenging. It is split into four sections – Section One is Mission to the World, and challenges us to think of what we are called to do. The next section – The Kindness and Perseverance of God – faces us with the fact that our mission proceeds from God’s heart himself. The third section – Barriers in the Way of Communicating the Gospel – looks at those barriers within ourselves, the church and the hearers. The final section helps us with the principles we need to bear in mind as we fulfil our calling to evangelise – Making the Gospel Known.
This is a book born from the heart of one who yearns for Christ to see the fruit of His labours, and for the lost to be found. It’s almost 300 pages, so not a book to consume in an afternoon! But as I read I am challenged, my heart is both convicted and warmed. I am encouraged to engage in the work. I look forward to reading the book through to the end.

Incidentally, for those of us involved in the Welsh language work, Christianity Explored is now available in Welsh. Contact the Evangelical Movement of Wales for more information.