Gospel Methodist Church 1
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Bishop Kwang & Kim with Pastors and leaders of EMP Methodist Bishop Kwang with the Pastors and Leaders of the EMP Methodist Church taken after the Book of Discipline Training Session. Church taken after the 1st Local Conference. 法规训练完毕,官会督与Kim和福恩堂教牧同工及领袖 福恩堂举行第一次牧区议会后与官会督和领袖们合影。 们合影。 All Australia South District Pastors with Bishop Kwang and guest The Disciple Green Facilitators in the Australia East District with speaker, Rev. Dr. Joshua Ting. Bishop Kwang at EMP MC after the training on 27th February. 全体澳南教区牧者与官会督及外来讲员陈世钦牧师合 于27/02澳东教区在福恩堂青本门徒导师训练后与官会督 摄。 同摄。 Bishop Kwang and Kim with Pastors and facilitators of Disciples Australia West District Disciple Red Facilitators’ Training Red and Purple for 2015 of Immanuel MC on Sunday 8th March. participants with Bishop Kwang and Kim taken on 12th to 14th 08/03主日官会督与Kim在神恩堂举行2015年红本和紫本 March. 门徒导师训练后拍照留念。 12-14/03澳西教区红本门徒导师训练参于者与官会督和 Kim 合摄。 Bishop Kwang and Kim with facilitators, Pastor Shirley & Mrs. Hannah Nee with Disciple Red and Green participants of Grace Australia West District Pastors’ gathering on 10th March. MC for 2015 on Sunday 15th March. 澳西教区教牧团契于10/03聚会后同影。 15/03主日官会督与Kim和导师、良敏传道及林师母与 2015年感恩堂红本及青本门徒们合影。 More photos front inside cover for Chinese 更多相片在中文版的封面背页 Bishop Exhortation The 18th century founder of Methodism, John Wesley, said that a "Methodist" was nothing other than a plain “scriptural Christian”. Wesley therefore, emphasis on inviting people to experience God’s grace and to grow in their knowledge and love of God through disciplined Christian living. They placed primary emphasis on Christian living, on putting faith and love into action. This emphasis as referred to by Wesley as “the religion of the heart” (which I expanded briefly in the August 2014 issue of the Methodist News). This is the hallmark of Methodism which is our distinct heritage. Our theological heritage can be seen not only in this emphasis on Christian living, but also in Wesley’s distinctive understanding of God’s saving grace. Although Wesley shared with many other Christians a belief in salvation by grace, he combined them in a powerful way to create distinctive emphases for living the full Christian life. So we ask, therefore, as Methodists what do we believe in regard to the teachings on the doctrine of salvation. Here is an extract from an article written by a Wesleyan the- ologian which I find it helpful. He also used the acronym of the word TULIP to defence against the Calvinist doctrine of salvation. Total Depravity: Mankind is totally depraved, but God has extended His common grace to all so that every man or woman can search and find God. Unconditional Election: Before the foundation of the world God elected all men to salva- tion but most refuse His offer. Limited Atonement: The atonement of Christ is open to all men everywhere and is lim- ited only by our refusal to be saved. Irresistible Grace: The “common grace” [prevenient grace] of God is given to all men everywhere and it is irresistible, but saving grace can be refused by a stubborn heart. Perseverance of the Saints: Once saved, a person will always be saved unless by defi- ant, continual, purposeful, rebellion he or she refuses God's grace and chooses apostasy. Though relatively rare for a truly saved person, apostasy is possible. He concluded that we must be careful not to run off to extreme Arminianism which is man-centred humanism. And he added that, “If you want a name just “a hair's breadth from Calvinism”. This is the Wesleyan-Arminian teaching on the doctrine of salvation. Servant of the Lord, 1 Chief Editor’s Message Praise be to our God of Revelation, Who has communicated with mankind through many channels to clearly reveal His will to us. Jesus Christ, the Word, was incarnated into human flesh and dwelt among the human being, which became a historical reality, that He can show us how we can receive eternal life through Him. Ultimately, God commands all believers to preach the Gospel to the world. Undeniably, this is the greatest commission to all Christians. Methodist News is an official publication of the Chinese Methodist Church in Australia (CMCA). This bi- monthly magazine serves as a means to “broadcast” truths and shoulder the responsibility of conveying the message of God’s love to all. Its mission is to help enhance the spiritual development of brothers and sisters in Christ, and also to proclaim the good news through writing. Since it’s inception 20 years ago, Methodist News has documented the people and events of each local Methodist church in Australia, which serves as a testimony of the wonderful grace and works of God through many lives and events. It not only emphasises the provision of spiritual nourishment, but also provides special columns for family relationships and parenting education, questions and answers on our faith, etc. In addition, it includes a separate forum to provide spir- itual sharing among youth. The ministry of writing is far-reaching, powerful and effective, transcending time and space. We sincerely invite all co-workers in Christ to support this ministry through various contributions, such as submitting articles, giving financially, or praying for us. We pray that our joy may be full in His presence, with eternal pleasure at His right hand. Rev Wen Ping Loi DISCIPLE RED FACILITATOR COURSE REFLECTION By Roselind Chan, Kingsway Methodist Church I must admit, prior to the joining of the Disciple Red Facilitator Training, I was quite reluctant to commit myself to it. Being a fulltime working mother of a fifteen months old daughter and with a busy working routine, I felt I was taking this too much on myself. The course fell on my rest days after three consecutive days of night shift work, so I was really looking forward to a good break after the three days stretch. However, after deep consideration and encouragement from my church pastor, and my husband who was willing to babysit Gabrielle, I decided to take up the challenge to be equipped through this facilitator course. The course, with twelve participants, took two nights and a full day to complete. The time we spent together was not only about skills and techniques for facilitating the course. It was a reminder of the importance of the need to help the disciples to develop a close and consistent relationship with God in their daily lives. We were also introduced the concept of the covenant group which consists of two to three people. This aims to strengthen the relationship in Christ among one another within the group. It also helps the covenant group members to keep in touch even after the disciple course finished. After the course, I realised that, in the past, I took the course as a way to increase my Bible knowledge. With this attitude, I gained the head knowledge but I did not feel the weight of the teaching and motivation in my heart. I guess most people who were involved would have this similar mindset. I realised now the importance of the role of a disciple facilitator. It is to equip believers not just on the head knowledge of the Bible but also the internal motivation of the heart and the working of the hands in ministry for God. It is ultimately a course to help be- lievers to develop a constant and close relationship with God through their daily reading of the Bible and prayers. 2 District Superintendent’s Message District East Superintendent Rev Alexis Lui (Eight Mile Plains MC) Habakkuk 3:17-18 are familiar verses to us: 17 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. When we face difficult moments, we may find comfort and spiritual support in these two verses so that we have faith and hope to carry us through the tough challenges ahead of us. Before the fall of Judah, Habakkuk knew that there would be no human way to turn the tide. His heart pounded, his lips quivered at the sound of war; decay crept into his bones and his legs trembled. Yet he waited patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation from the invading Babylonian army. Habakkuk understood that the nation would be desolate. In the aftermath of war, the fig tree would not bud and there would be no grapes on the vines; the olive crop would fail and the fields would produce no food; there would be no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls. Yet the prophet still believed that God was His strength and that of Judah. The Lord God would make his feet like the feet of a deer; God would enable him to tread on the heights. Habakkuk gave his song to the director of music, to be accompanied by stringed instruments. The Book of Habakkuk recorded the sins and violences committed by Judah, which triggered God’s judg- ment by using the Babylonians, who were more wicked than the Jews, as a tool to punish His rebellious people. Given this context, it may not seem appropriate to apply the above two verses to our difficult mo- ments, as in some instances such moments may not necessarily be induced by our sins. When we talk about ‘applying the Biblical Teachings’, we must consider that our current scenarios will not always correspond directly to the biblical events of the past. The principle of application focuses on properly applying the Biblical teachings in today’s contexts.