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6/29/2007 Distribution of Asians in SydneyThe 2006 ABS census data is now available - and it reveals that there are now 292,338 people of Chinese ancestry in Sydney (7.1% of the Sydney's population of 4,119,194). This is up from 248,579 from the 2001 census (out of 3,948,015 people).
So where are all these 292,338 Chinese people? The ABS provides some data in map form (called MapStats), and here is a map of the proportion of people (as percentage) born in North-East Asia.
Unfortunately you can't drill deeper to find out where people born in China or Hong Kong live - it's only at the level of 'North East Asia', which also includes countries like Mongolia, South Korea and Japan.
Chinese churches are in the very best position to reach out to people of Chinese ancestry - we know the culture, we know the language, we have a familiar face. Chinese churches may not be so good at reaching Indians or Aussies, but we are rockets for reaching the Chinese! And while there are 70 Chinese churches in Sydney, we are still a long way off from reaching the 292,338 people of Chinese ancestry in Sydney.
So where's your church? and how are we going at reaching the 292,338 in Sydney?
[ PS: more from the census to come! ] 6/27/2007 ABS 2006 census data online!The census data can be found at the ABS website here. And what's more, the data is free! You used to have to pay for it, but no longer.
I've collected some data on the number of people identifying themselves as being of Chinese ancestry in Australia, the capital cities, and our local area.
You may have expected that the numbers would have increased in the last five years. But how much would you have expected them to increase by? Here then, are the results, courtesy of the ABS!
This first graph shows you the increase in people who identified themselves as having Chinese ancestry, in each of the capital cities. And you can see the increase from 2001 (aqua) to 2006 (green).
From this graph you can also see that the Chinese population of Sydney and Melbourne is huge, compared to those of the other capital cities.
But how does that increase compare to the rest of the population? Is it less, about the same, or significantly more? This next graph shows you the increase in population in the capital cities as a percentage from 2001 to 2006. Here I have separated the increase in population firstly for all people in the city (red), and then for people of Chinese ancestry (green).
And you can see that there is significant increase in the Chinese population of all cities over and above normal population increase - except for Perth and Darwin!
While the numbers for the other capital cities are small by comparison to Sydney and Melbourne, the Chinese populations there are growing at a much faster rate.
This next graph is Australia-wide, and you can see that the Chinese population in Australia (green) has grown by over 20% over the last 5 years - while the rest of the population (red) has grown by only just over 5%.
This means that Chinese ministry is going to be increasingly important for reaching Australia as a whole!
The next set of pie charts shows the changing face of the Australian population between the 2001 and 2006 census, first for Australia and then for Sydney. And here you can see that there is an increase in the percentage of Chinese in Australia and Sydney (green).
But in the next few pie charts you can see that the Chinese population of Epping, North Epping, Marsfield and Chatswood is huge compared to the figures for Australia and Sydney. There is a disproportionate amount of Chinese in our area!
But not only that, the census data shows us that they have increased even more over the last five years! In Eastwood it has gone from 21.2% to 30.1%. In Marsfield it has gone up from 19.9% to 27.1%. And in Epping/North Epping it has gone up from 14.8% to 19.3%.
OK, so there's a high percentage of Chinese in our area. But exactly how many are there? This next graph shows the number of people in each of those suburbs who are of Chinese descent in 2001 (aqua), and then in 2006 (green).
In Epping and North Epping alone, there are 12,690 people who are of Chinese background. And that's not taking into account those in the surrounding areas!
The cash value of all this is that there is a lot of work for Chinese churches such as ours to do. There are increasing Chinese in Australia, and churches like ND are well placed to reach many of them. Let's not be content with a respectable sized church - but open our eyes to see the unfinished task that lies before us!
[ PS: stay tuned for more from the 2006 census... ] 6/25/2007 RewardsIt seems like we are given something in exchange for our being godly - yet this seems to run against the gospel that tells us we can't contribute to our own salvation! Well, with the principle of Scripture interprets Scripture, we have to make sure that the way we interpret 'rewards' is in line with the gospel, and doesn't undercut it.
Perhaps we're thinking about rewards all the wrong way, and there's actually another way to think about rewards. And it turns out that there is. CS Lewis distinguishes between two kinds of rewards: there are those rewards that flow naturally from the act itself, and there are other kinds of rewards that aren't naturally related to the act - mercenary rewards. He says,
Lewis also has a third category, where it begins as obedient drudgery, but as we approach the goal we discover more and more the natural reward of the act. He says it's just like a schoolboy learning a foreign language - at the outset, it is motivated only by obedience, but later on this turns increasingly into enjoyment of the natural reward.
When we think about rewards, our problem is that we instinctively think only about those mercenary rewards. And they seem suspicious and wrong to us, so we can't see how it can fit with Christianity. However, mercenary rewards aren't the only kinds of rewards - there are other rewards that very rightly and naturally flow from the act itself. Perhaps then this it is this kind of reward that Jesus is talking about. Perhaps the idea of rewards isn't so wrong after all.
So what exactly are these rewards in heaven? We aren't told a lot of details about them, and it's dangerous to take a parable and expect that it will correspond concretely to reality. One suggestion is the reward of seeing those whom you ministered to on earth, in heaven with you. This an example of a reward experienced by those who were faithful in ministry on earth (and not experienced by those who weren't), and is a natural reward. Could this be what Jesus means?
Maybe. We don't know for certain. But at least here is one suggestion of how it might work out, while not saying something counter to the gospel. In any case, we know that our good works on earth won't be forgotten, but will be remembered and honoured by God. It will - somehow - be very good for those who were faithful and sacrificial. And this is revealed to us to encourage us in faithful, sacrificial ministry.
[ PS: you can get the full text of The Weight of Glory as a PDF here! ] 6/24/2007 The usefulness of sound theologyAt our Wednesday night leaders' meetings things term we've been working slowly through Paul's instructions to Titus on what is required of a Christian leader, in Titus 1. Paul says that,
There's a lot of challenging stuff in there. But notice the final verse - among many things, Paul places the requirement of sound doctrine in the last position (v.9). And in aural societies it was the last position that was the most important in a list (as opposed to the first, for societies like ours that emphasise the written word).
But Paul doesn't just leave it at that - he also goes on to tell us why doctrine is so important. And in verse 9 we discover that it is actually doctrine that encourages people - not so much your personality, or the games you know. It is doctrine that really encourages people ultimately - and this is one of the big secrets in ministry.
I remember being in the car with someone who was depressed, and as we drove along, we talked about the doctrine of justification by faith. And at the end of the car trip - they had become encouraged, and motivated to press on in the Chrisitan life! Then several years ago I was again driving in the car with someone else. This person had a lot of long term health problems and was somewhat unhappy with his lot in life. And as we drove along we talked about the eschatology, and the hope we have for a resurrection body. And his mood lifted considerably.
It is doctrine that really encourages - not counselling skills, or a winning personality! There is nothing more practical and useful for your ministry than good theology!
But notice also that what encourages people is not 'dodgy' theology, or 'barely adequate' theology. No, Paul says that the Christian leader needs to have sound theology! It's when we know our doctrine back to front, that we are most helpful to our brothers and sisters. Only when we know it well, can we effectively draw out the implications of Christian doctrine for individuals.
If you are just making do in the area of theology, it's time to seriously rethink that strategy. Our doctrine must be sound!
Not only that, sound doctrine is also important because it's the means by which we "refute those who oppose it". Paul actually goes on in the following verses to talk about the false teachers that were worrying the church on Crete. And like Titus, our job is to guard and preserve sound doctrine. We are like sentries posted around the camp, scanning the horizon for any sign of the enemy.
I wonder: is your doctrine up to scratch to detect counterfeits that come your way? Is your doctrine sharp enough to pick out flase doctrines that will harm those around us? Or is it as dull as a butter knife?
People are encouraged by sound doctrine. I wonder if you really believe this? Because it can seem like a weak thing that we rely on the teaching of the Bible to turn people around. But this is what sets us apart as evangelicals - we believe that there is divine power in the simple teaching of God's word. And so for us, Christian doctrine is our primary weapon, our trusted instruments, our favourite tool in the work of ministry.
[ PS: wanting to get into doctrine? PTC's Doctrine 1 is a good start... ] 6/21/2007 Starting points for theologyWhen theologians write a book on Christian theology, they have to start somewhere. And people have chosen to start in interesting places - some start with creation, or the doctrine of man, or the doctrine of revelation. Others, the doctrine of God's sovereignty. More rarely, people have even begun with eschatology, or even the doctrine of the Trinity!
Not that they would neglect other doctrines - of course, they will go on to look at each of the other doctrines in turn. But for them, this is what comes first conceptually. And this is often a giveaway for what shape their theology will take in the end. Because whatever it is that you end up put first, actually ends up being the lens through which you see everything else ... and sometimes that lens can unnaturally distort things.
People who put the doctrine of man first invariably end up having a high place for humanity, and a low view of God's holiness or sovereignty. Conversely those who put God's sovereignty first end up with a Christianity that seems to lack love and care. Those who put the doctrine of creation first can find themselves downplaying the cataclysmic effects of sin. Your starting point for theology actually matters - it can have a huge impact!
It's like picking up a thick, woolen jumper from the floor. If you pick it up the wrong way - say, by pulling on this or that thread, you will actually pull the whole woolen jumper out of shape. And that's what happens when you have the wrong starting place for theology. You seem to be saying biblical things - but in the end you're actually pulling the whole of God's revelation horribly out of shape.
So where should we start in our theological reflection? You actually start with the gospel itself, not with individual doctrines. Because the gospel is the whole, not just a part. The gospel is the content of God's revelation. And when we pick up God's revelation by the shoulders of the gospel, we find we are not distorting it - for this is really what God's revelation is about.
In a previous post there was a diagram of the two channels for thinking theologically. One was individual Bible passages (red arrow), the other was the message of the gospel (blue arrow). Replace that blue arrow with something other than the gospel (say, the doctrine of man) and conduct your theology in that manner, and you will find yourself saying things that are strange. And that's because we are no longer testing it with the gospel itself!
[ PS: this is why the Doctrine 1 course notes for PTC start off with a chapter on the gospel! ] 6/19/2007 The place of historical theologyMaybe you're discussing something, and someone say, "oh that sounds like Pelagianism to me." This person is making use of historical theology. They are identifying what's going on nowadays, using categories and names from the past.
And you can do this because a lot of the heresies and false teachings that crop up today are merely variations of heresies and false teachings that have come up again and again throughout church history. And so this ability to recognise and describe is a very useful skill to have.
The great value of studying church history isn't just for interest's sake (although it is very interesting) - it's so that we can know how others have fallen into theological traps in the past, so that in today's church we can avoid falling into them all over again.
However there is actually a difference between the ability to use historical theology, and the ability to think theologically. They are not the same thing! In fact a person can have one and not the other, or the other and not the one. Often people think they are thinking theologically when they are tossing around words like 'hyper Calvinism' and 'Tridentine' and 'Sabellianism' - but they're not. They're actually using in the skill of historical theology - which is useful in its own right, but is not the same as thinking theologically.
Of course the Reformers of the past were, in their own day, using the ability to think theologically. And some of them were absolutely phenomenal in their ability to think theologically! John Calvin, for instance, published the first edition of the Institutes of the Christian Religion at the age of 26 - a work that is still being used today! But as people today look back on and reapply their work, that is the skill of historical theology.
The two are related to each other as a mechanic (historical theology) is related to an engineer (thinking theologically). They are both working with theological ideas. But while one is concerned with using ideas from the past, the second is constructing new ideas (which will hopefully be in line with the gospel).
The idea here is not to denigrate historical theology - becuase it really is a useful skill. If only people would learn from the lessons of the past! But historical theology is not a substitute for thinking theologically...
[ PS: the picture is of the Reformation Wall in Geneva, Switzerland. From left to right, William Farel, John Calvin, Theodore Beza, John Knox. ] 6/17/2007 How to think theologicallyAnd so I read up on theological method - and let me tell you, there are some really strange books out there on theological method. But I think I've worked out that there are two key components in a sound theological method...
1. Two channels of thought
Just say you want to work out how to think theologically about a particular subject. Well, there are two complementary channels that will feed in to your theological method.
The second of these two channels is the gospel itself. And for this we are trying to think about what the gospel itself says about the particular subject. A simple way is to think of the Two Ways To Live boxes, and to consider in which of the six 2WTL boxes this subject fits. This will give you a clue as to what the gospel might have to add to our understanding about this subject.
The two channels are related to each other as detail (individual Bible passages) relates to big picture (gospel message), as diachronic (individual Bible passages) relates to synchronic (gospel message), as micro relates to macro, as trees relates to forest. They are not in conflict with each other, but both are necessary for each other.
And as you put your findings from the first and second channel together, and you are not yet there, but certainly on your way to thinking theologically.
If, on the other hand, you only used the first channel and neglected to use the second, you might find yourself just creating a word study on your subject, or possibly a biblical theology of your subject - but you wouldn't be thinking theologically.
Not only that, by inexpertly selecting some passages (and not others by our biblical ignorance), and then neglecting to check whether your conclusion is actually in line with the gospel message, you are actually in danger of creating theologies that are not Christian.
2. Recursion
The second key concept is your theological method is recursion. That is, you don't actually just do the two-channel thing once. You actually go back and do it several times, feeding your findings back in through the system.
In your first step as you considered the gospel it might have triggered a whole new potential area of exploration. Well as you feed those findings back in, you would look for individual biblical passages related to that. And at the same time, you would also consider the individual Bible passages you first thought of, and consider the gospel implications of these. This next recursion would lead to further observations.
And you wouldn't just stick with once or twice, you would continue to feed these observations through recursively, as in the following diagram...
In the diagram above you would start your theological reflection at A by considering relevant Bible passages, then considering how these fit into the gospel message at B, then searching out more Bible passages suggested at C, and then once more considering how those passages fit into the gospel message at D. At the same time you would also be starting your theological reflection at 1 by considering the implications of the gospel for the subject, then moving to 2 by searcing out Bible passages that come to mind, then moving to 3 where we reflect again how the gospel sheds light on those passages, and then moving to 4 where you would be checking out Bible passages that suggest themselves.
However the diagram at the bottom shows what is really going on with this recursive theological method. Here the process is actually a spiral, and we progressively get closer and closer from A to B with each iteration of the cycle. As a faithful Christian applies the theological method to their subject again and again, we get closer and closer to a theologically sound statement on the subject. We become more certain that we've considered relevant passages, we make sure that we consider these parts in light of the whole, we make sure that our statement is in line with the overall message of the Bible itself. And this is what we are doing when we are thinking theologically.
If one neglected to recursively apply the theological method, then one would end up with theologies that might be unsound, missing out on insights that could have been gained from further iterations. However, it would not have been a bad first go.
3. Expert theologians
So is this what people are doing when they are thinking theologically? Do they laboriously and self consciously work through all these different steps? Probably not in a laborious fashion. But that's because people train themselves to work through these steps instinctively!
But in order to get better at thinking theologically, it's obvious that one should work at both a) increasing one's familiarity with Scriptural passages, and b) sharpening one's understanding of the gospel...
[ PS: a group of ND'ers have been studying Doctrine 1 for PTC, and interstingly, the first chapter is about the gospel - because the gospel is the foundation for thinking theologically! ] 6/14/2007 Blasphemy ChallengeMaking the rounds of the Internet is the Blasphemy Challenge, by a group calling themselves the Rational Response Squad.
The idea is for people to post a video of themselves on YouTube committing the unpardonable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit (Mark 3:29).
And as a reward, the Rational Response Squad will send out 1001 free copies of the DVD documentary, The God who Wasn't There. The advertising on their website says, "Retail price: $24.98. Your price: one soul."
And since the challenge has been issued, tons of people have been posting low-quality vids of themselves "blaspheming the Holy Spirit". The challenge has been on since December last year, and as of this morning there were 1250 responses to the challenge - though not all of them were actually taking up the challenge. To the right is an example of a young lady taking up the Blasphemy Challenge...
I think the Rational Response Squad are basing their challenge on a misreading of Mark 3:29. The idea behind that passage is that people were saying that the stuff that Jesus was able to do, was in fact from evil spirits. This becomes obvious when you look at what the very next verse says...
And obviously, if a person is thinking that Jesus is of the devil, they aren't very likely to come to him for forgiveness.
But aside from that, even if you did believe that saying "I deny the Holy Spirit" was the unforgiveable sin, it still strikes me as rather foolish thing to do. But I suppose Romans 1 tells us that this is exactly the kind of behaviour we should expect from those who claim to be wise, but are in fact fools (Rom 1:22). Not only do they revel in sin, they actually encourage others to participate with them (Rom 1:32)!
[ PS: if one of your friends were to upload a video, what might you say to them? ] 6/11/2007 Different kinds of trialsInterestingly, James also tells us that we will face trials "of many kinds" (v.2). And there are many kinds of trials that you may go through...
Huge trials
Most obviously, there are those huge trials that come by once in a while. Things like the death of a loved one. Or losing your job. Or your marriage breaking down.
These things really shake your faith, and cause you to ask all those big questions about life. They make us wonder if God really is good. Or if God is there at all. Or if we can even keep on going... Minor trials
But there are also all those minor annoyances that happen, almost on a daily basis. Things like an argument at home. Or feeling torn between studying for your exams, and going off to a church meeting. Or a patch of spiritual dryness.
These small things don't shake our faith to the core, but in hundreds of different ways, and from unexpected quarters, they test our godliness and patience in the normalcy of life.
Long, drawn out trials
While those sorts of trials are short in duration, there are also some kinds of trials that don't just last for hours or days - but which linger on. Sometimes for years and years. Things like a long term illness. Or marriage problems.
These things test our perseverance over the long term, and reveal what it is that we are really putting our hope in.
Corporate trials
And while all of the above are trials that individuals bear all by themselves, there are also the kind of trials that we bear as a group. Things like a church losing its pastor, and having to make do without one, perhaps for several years.
Trials don't arrive clearly labelled as such. They come along in many forms, and when they come upon us we don't know that God has a plan for us. But he lovingly sends trials of many kinds our way. He uses each of them to grow us in perseverance, to make us mature and complete.
[ PS: can you think of other types of trials? ] 6/6/2007 How Christian leaders lead
Notice the underlined words - among other things, Christian leaders are to be 'upright' and 'holy'. The word 'upright' is not immediately familiar, but the Greek word behind that is dikaion (pronounced 'dikaion'), and some of you may recognise that this is elsewhere translated as 'righteous'. So Paul is telling us that the Chrisitan leader is to be 'righteous' and 'holy'.
They are both words about being pleasing to God - firstly a word taken from the judicial world, the world of courtroom and the judge. And the second is a word taken from the world of the temple and sacrifices. That first word, dikaion, saying that this person stands righteous in God's heavenly courtroom, this person never breaks God's law. And the second word, osion (pronounced 'hosion'), saying that this person is acceptable in God's holy temple.
And yes, it's true that Christians are people righteous because we are in Christ, and we are holy because we are in Christ. But is that all that that Paul means here in Titus 1? Becuase all Christians are righteous in Christ! All Christians are holy in Christ!
No, what Paul is talking about here is the Christian who has received God's alien righteousness - but they themselves are working on their own personal righteousness. Yes, they are holy in Christ, but they are working on their sanctification (a word that comes from sanctus, the Latin word for holy). They are growing in their very own holiness.
So Paul is writing to his friend Titus and he's really saying: "these are the kinds of people you want as leaders". Not just people who know about the Lord Jesus, but people who follow the Lord Jesus. Not just people who know the theory, but people who are putting it into practice. What you are looking for are those people who are growing in righteousness, who are striving to be holy - they are the ones you want.
In 1 Thessalonians 4 Paul says that,
What about you? How are you going in your personal righteousness - on the backburner? or glowing white hot? How are you going in your sanctification - standing still? or pressing on hard like an athlete?
You see the danger for us as Christians is that we think: "alright, I've got my salvation, and so I can now relax. I can now set our minds on other things". And so we can get fat and bloated as Christians.
And so that is why Paul wants Christian leaders to be righteous and holy. Because by their example, they are to be setting the pace for other people. By their holiness, they are to lead people behind them. By their righteousness they are blazing a trail ahead of their people, they show the church how it's done.
Paul says to Timothy, "set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity" (1 Tim 4:12). Paul says to Titus, "In everything set them an example by doing what is good" (Titus 2:7).
Christian leadership is not actually about making bold decisions. Christian leadership is not even about telling people what to do! That's the world's idea of leadership. No, Christian leadership, is actually about showing people the way. It's about leading the way in our own godliness.
Reflect on your own leadership. What example of holiness have you been setting up? What path of righteousness have you been blazing? If your group truly follows your example, will they be misled?
Brothers and sisters, lead the way by your righteousness, and by your holiness. Burn a bright path that people can follow. Set an example for the believers in everything you do. Because this is what Christian leadership is really about.
[ PS: what are your Christian leaders like? ] 6/4/2007 Mini sermons from the boxBut watch out, TV isn't a neutral form of entertaiment - it does things to you. Television networks don't put out TV shows on free-to-air TV just because they like to entertain you. They do it so that you will sit and watch the advertisments!
And each advertisment is in effect a 20-second mini-sermon, complete with music, provocative images and jingles, specifically designed to change you desires. The payload of television advertising is discontentment with our looks, our status, our mobile phones and anything else worth marketing.
But they generally don't scream it at you (except for those annoying ads - you know which ones I mean). Some ads are funny, others are visually stunning, others evoke strong emotional responses. But all of them are fashioned with the specific end of getting people to be discontent with what they have - and to consume more products, and choose their products to consume. And so the mini-sermons in between our TV shows transform and manipulate our desires and worldview - often without us being very aware of it.
Imagine being invited to hear a talk given by a visiting speaker - but the thing is, you know that this person is well known for teaching false doctrines! But you decide to go along anyway, just to see if what you hear is true. However you would probably listen warily to the things this speaker says. You would sift carefully his words, being alert to test it with Scripture.
I wonder, though, how many Christians watch TV ads with the same wariness as they would a speaker telling them they should desire to have more and more things. Not that we should have the Bible open as we watch the ads! But that with open eyes, we become aware of the lies and false worldviews of the ads. That we see through all those seductive mini-sermons.
[ PS: how many TV ads will you see in a day? what things do you notice about them? ] |
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