The future of the Church in Britain.

This is a question that was fiercely debated by members, clergy and bishops in the Church of England following the consecration of David Jenkins as Bishop of Durham in York Minster on 6 July 1984. Some hours later a bolt of lightning struck the Minster and burned the south transept where the consecration had taken place.

It was particularly remarkable because weather maps showed clear skies over the whole of the UK and northern Europe except for this one tiny cloud no bigger than a man’s hand crossing Yorkshire and delivering an electrical strike of such magnitude that it overrode a newly installed lightning conductor at the Minster.

Even the secular media saw this as an ‘act of God’ but not so the Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie, who declared that God does not do such things. It later emerged that he was faced by a ‘God or Mammon’ dilemma as the Minster’s insurance might not have covered ‘acts of God’!

Liberal Theology

Jenkins had some unorthodox views on central tenets of Christian doctrine including casting doubt on the resurrection of Jesus. Although the Archbishop did not publicly support the views of Jenkins, he nevertheless continued to promote non-Bible-believing clerics to senior posts in the Church of England which brought liberal postmodernist teaching into the leadership of the Church that still has an influence today.

In last week’s editorial we were examining the influence of ‘postmodernism’ in the nation and noting its objective of destroying the family in its war against Christianity. We said:

The central tragedy of recent history over the past half-century is that neither Church leaders nor politicians have understood the philosophy of postmodernism, with its objectives of destroying Judeo-Christian civilisation.

For the Church to play a significant part in guarding the nation against destructive philosophies that undermine basic truth, its leadership must have an unshakeable grasp of truth that is derived from its source in God, the Creator of the universe.

For the Church to be able to guard the nation against destructive philosophies, its leadership must have an unshakeable grasp of truth.

When church leaders lack understanding of the truth - as revealed in Scripture, through the prophets of Israel and through Jesus the Messiah - and promote obscurity, distortions and lies instead, they come under the judgment of God. Paul makes this clear in Romans 1:18:

York Minster's south transept after the lightning strike, 1984. See Photo Credits.The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness.

This particularly applies to Church leaders who claim to be men of God but are not faithful in declaring the truth. In the same passage Paul continues:

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools.

This is similar to Jeremiah’s complaint about the leaders of the nation in his day: “The shepherds are senseless and do not enquire of the Lord” (Jer 10:21). They were relying upon human wisdom; in 23:1 he elaborates this: “‘Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!’ declares the Lord.”

Undermining Truth

This exactly describes many church leaders and professors of theology in our seminaries and universities today, most of which are steeped in liberal theology and driven by its spirit of postmodernism, which has roots in anti-Semitism, atheism and Marxism.

I can speak from personal experience because I did a doctorate in liberal theology. I went up to university with a strong faith in God and a conviction that my life was to be devoted to preaching and living in accordance with biblical truth. Most of my faith was destroyed by the time I left university and it took me some years and a personal experience of spiritual renewal to regain my faith.

I went up to university with a strong faith in God and came away with most of my faith destroyed – having studied liberal theology.

Please do not misunderstand me – I am not despising biblical scholarship; indeed, we need good, sound, biblical scholarship to guard against deception in the Church and in the nation! But the postmodernist heresies that began in Germany in the late 19^th Century have penetrated deeply into our academic institutions, such that biblical scepticism undermining truth has been taught in many of our theological colleges and universities for the past century and more.

What is ‘the Church’?

In the light of this statement we can now return to the question at the beginning of this article: Can the Church come under God’s judgment? Here we must define our terms: what do we mean by ‘Church’?

If we mean the Church founded by Jesus on the Day of Pentecost when he fulfilled his promise to send the Holy Spirit upon his disciples, enabling and empowering them to take the Gospel to the nations beginning in Jerusalem, then to Judea, Samaria and out to all the world – if we mean the true Church that is the ‘Body of Christ’, then we must conclude that such a Church can never come under the judgment of God!

But are the institutions that we call ‘churches’ the true Body of Christ? I was recently discussing this with my wife who has for many years been studying church history. She told me about an incident of which I was not aware. When King James I became King of England (having previously been King James VI of Scotland), he brought with him a strong Christian faith although, like his father Charles I, he had Catholic sympathies. James wanted to make the Bible available in English to all his subjects.

At that time most Bibles were in Latin which many people, even among the clergy, could not read. He called together a group of Protestant scholars, some of whom were Church of England clergy while others were Dissenters (Nonconformist ministers). They allocated different parts of the Bible to individual scholars and collectively set about the task of translating the Bible into what became known as the ‘Authorised Version’ or the ‘King James Version’.

The group of scholars worked well together but there was one word upon which they could not agree, so they all came together to consult the King. It was the word ecclesia which in the original Greek of the New Testament means ‘a gathering’– or ‘congregation’ – ‘a gathering of people committed to a particular purpose’. The Dissenters wanted to translate ecclesia as ‘congregation’, whereas the Church of England clergy wanted to translate it as ‘church’, as in the Roman Catholic Bible.

The King agreed with the CofE clergy and the word ‘church’ came into the Authorised Version of the Bible and in most English translations since then.

The true Body of Christ can never come under the judgment of God!

What an amazing difference it would have made if our Bibles had all read ‘congregation’ instead of ‘church’. We might have been saved from the mess that we have today where ‘church’ can mean a building, a denomination, an organisation, a congregation, or a small group of believers in Jesus. We might even have been saved from the disgrace of whole denominations becoming infected by unbelief: becoming ‘a broad church’ tolerant of everyone’s beliefs (or unbelief).

Hope for Reformation

The prophecy in Hebrews 12:26-29 that all man-made institutions will be shaken and will crumble, appears to be happening: not only to banks, finance houses, business institutions and politicians, but also to the man-made denominational institutions that we call ‘churches’. This is surely the judgment of God falling upon corrupt institutions! `

The good news is that many Christians are recognising these institutional failings and are meeting in small groups for prayer, Bible study and fellowship similar to the first Christians. Luke describes this in Acts 2:42: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Maybe what we are seeing today is the beginning of a new Reformation rediscovering the spiritual dynamic of the Early Church.

Further Response from Clifford Hill

Susan and Randall have asked me to explain why I believe that the true church as the Body of Christ cannot come under judgment. Let me say straightaway that I am not infallible and I’m open to correction from brothers and sisters in Christ – in this way we all learn from each other: so I really appreciate comments which I always read carefully.

I found the comments on this subject particularly helpful and I am happy to explain a little more of what I was trying to say. I was distinguishing between the true ‘ecclesia’ of God and the man-made institutions that we call ‘churches’. John is perfectly right in saying that of the 115 references to ecclesia in the New Testament only two are correctly translated in most English Bibles. They both refer to the riot in Ephesus where the whole town came together to oppose Paul’s teaching, chanting “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” This gathering [ecclesia] is referred to as “an assembly”.

All the other references are to ‘gatherings of believers in Jesus the Messiah’ and in each case ecclesia should similarly be translated ‘congregation’, or ‘assembly’ (of believers). It is entirely wrong to translate ‘ecclesia’ as ‘church’, as in most English Bibles.

Confusion can arise over the concept of God’s judgment because the word is so often used to mean his wrath and punishment. In fact, the word used for judgment in the New Testament (krima) can mean these things, but is also broader, simply meaning a verdict or decision. In this respect, we will all be judged – for we will all one day stand before the judgment seat of God, as Paul says in Romans 14:10.

It is true that a church can go off track and come under condemnation like the church at Laodicea. But if we are part of the true ecclesia of Christ, it is his intention to present us spotless before his Father – it was for this that he shed his blood. Paul says this in Ephesians 5:25-27:

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the ecclesia and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word to present her to himself as a radiant ecclesia, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

The New Testament teaching is that the true ‘ecclesia of Christ’ can never come under condemnation, for “God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess 5:9). True believers still undergo trials, but these are appointed for God’s paideia - his discipline - so our faith can be refined (1 Pet 1:7; Heb 12:4-11).

As such, the reference to “judgment beginning at the household of God” (1 Peter 4:17) most certainly does not refer to God’s wrath! It is referring to the persecution of Christians by the Roman Empire. It is the wrath of human beings upon God’s people – not the wrath of God upon his own people. That is made very clear in the context of the passage beginning 1 Peter 4:12: “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering…But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ.”

Jesus himself said “Remain in me, and I will remain in you…if you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love” (John 15:4 and 10). Provided we remain in Christ we cannot come under his wrathful judgment: we are bound to Him in love.

Cliff

We re-publish a prophetic word from David Noakes, given to the Church of England in 1992.

In light of the decisions made recently at the General Synod meeting, and in conjunction with our editorial this week, we have chosen to re-publish a word given to the Church of England through David Noakes more than 25 years ago. Though it is an 'older' word, we believe it is still as powerful today, and submit it afresh for weighing and testing.

SENT TO GEORGE CAREY AT LAMBETH PALACE IN JUNE 1992

When I formed you, I took you and drew you out and separated you from an institution which was lost in the darkness of unbelief and false teaching. I restored to you the truth of my word, and I set you in this nation as a repository of that truth, and in order that you might declare and act as guardian of that truth, as it is contained in my holy word.

I appointed you in order that you might be salt and light in this nation where I have placed you; in order that through you I might bring godly wisdom and enlightenment to the rulers of this nation and the knowledge of the way of truth and upright living to its people. I inspired those who wrote your Prayer Book and through it I provided you with direction as to how you should uphold the nation’s rulers before me.

Ever since I formed you, I have cherished you and protected you from your enemies, both within and without, in order that you might continue to be an instrument of my righteousness. Yet, despite all this you have disregarded the sacred trust which I have given to you and you have lightly esteemed the rich inheritance which I placed into your hands.

Your leaders have despised me and have rejected my word. They have played the harlot, loving the world and the things of this world. In seeking to be pleasers of men they have discarded piece by piece the doctrines contained in my word, in order that they may not give offence to men.

Instead of sounding a trumpet call of warning to those who were turning aside after teachings which were not true, they have chosen rather to join hands with them and walk in the paths of darkness, closing their eyes to the portions of my word which have become inconvenient. Your nation has turned away from me and gone astray with the approval of the church. It has passed laws which are an offence to me, while the voices of your leaders have been either silent or sometimes heard in approval. Instead of standing as a bulwark of strength against the flood which threatens to engulf your nation and sweep it away in a tidal wave of anarchy and immorality, they have assisted those who in foolishness have opened the door to these forces of darkness.

The position of your Sovereign as the upholder of the Gospel, according to the oath which she swore before me, has been compromised as a result of walking according to the counsel of her spiritual advisers, who have sacrificed godliness and truth on the altar of political and social expediency.

I have called to you many times in order that you should repent and return to walking in the ways of the Lord and declaring his truth to a nation lost in darkness and confusion, but you have stubbornly blocked your ears. I am deeply grieved over the state of your godless nation; but with you I am exceedingly angry on account of your faithlessness and apostasy. I warn you that unless there is speedy repentance on the part of your leaders, I will hold them accountable for the blood of many. If there is no repentance, then I will give you up to those things which you are bringing upon yourselves, and there will be no turning back. Because of your lukewarmness, I will spew you out of my mouth; because of your refusal to love the truth, I will give you up to delusion and darkness.

Even that which you still have will be lost to you. There will be division and strife and utter confusion within your own ranks. Your wealth will disappear from you and your buildings will be occupied by those who do not know me. Because of their disregard of my authority, your leaders will become a laughing stock and their pronouncements will become the subject of open ridicule by the world which for so long they have sought to please.

Oh, Church of England, hear the cry of my heart as I warn you, for in my anger I speak of impending judgment, but in my steadfast love I plead with you, for I still love you and I still desire to bless you on account of the faithfulness of former generations.

Return to my word and obey it. Re-discover the paths of righteousness and walk in them, for if you will do so, I will even now save what little remains of your former glory and use you as an instrument of salvation in this nation; but if you do not, I will give you up to the destruction which you have chosen for yourselves, for your condition in my sight is now worse than that of the institution out of which I first rescued you.

About the author: David Noakes was a solicitor in London until he joined Clifford Hill’s ministry in 1984. He has been part of the Prophetic Word Ministries/Prophecy Today team since that time, although he has also exercised an independent ministry speaking at conferences both in Britain and overseas. He has visited Israel many times and until recently was chairman of Hatikvah Film Trust, working with Hugh Kitson making films about Israel. He is a well-known Bible teacher with an established ministry and remains an official advisor to Issachar Ministries (Prophecy Today UK's parent charity).

Ian Farley reviews ‘Leaven: The Hidden Power of Culture in the Church’ by David Brown (2016, RoperPenberthy).

Retired naval captain David Brown has written an alternative book to the many in the market which tell the Church, both members and ministers, what new things they ought to be doing to see their congregations grow. Of these kinds of books there is no end.

This book, however, approaches affairs from the other direction, taking the New Testament injunction to ‘throw out the old leaven’ seriously. Indeed, not to do so will leave whatever else you might do subject to corruption from the bad stuff still within.

Church in Distress

This is not a book which goes on to talk about our individual failings, as might be expected: ‘If only I were a better Christian then the Church would be a better Church’. Brown moves in bigger (and one might say, murkier) waters, outlining what he calls the “institutional distress” of the Church. He argues that the Church has allowed the culture of the world to infiltrate herself.

Particularly, he identifies four major cultural intruders: controlling power, the enchantment of historic custom, individualism and dogmatism. He outlines these in some detail in the first part of the book and argues that they all destroy relationships and are all variants of lovelessness.

The Church has allowed the culture of the world to infiltrate herself.

By contrast, of course, Jesus built the Kingdom with a focus on relationships and was personally sustained by his close intimacy with his Father, which led in his own life to an attentive, habitual discipleship.

Anglican Perspective

Brown then goes on to suggest what should be thrown out. Here readers need to be aware that, although in the advertising blurb it says this book is for all churches, Brown is an Anglican (and 12 years a lay assistant to a Bishop) and this immediately flavours his response.

Reader responses to this part of the book will, likewise, be shaped by their own denominational preference (for example, some nonconformists will no doubt rejoice over his castigation of the current role of bishops).

Most of Brown’s suggestions, however, are rightly transferable across denominations and, if heeded, would revolutionise the Church. In the example above, for instance, even churches which don't have bishops should pay careful attention to what Brown argues as he identifies what proper, biblical ministry roles and pastoral care should look like, regardless of church structure.

Most of Brown’s suggestions are transferable across denominations and, if heeded, would revolutionise the Church.

Removing the Vestiges of Pomp

The author makes deft judgments which should cause the reader to shout "hurrah, hurrah", especially in his analysis that old temple symbolism must be replaced by the teaching of the New Testament. This would necessitate the removal of all vestiges of pomp in any church and the notion of clerical Eucharistic presidency.

There are endless other suggestions that make this book a fascinating read for any Christian concerned about the cultural health of the Church. The depressing thing is that those who are in power will probably not be readers. This is depressing because, as Brown himself argues, "there is little point in adjusting my car's clutch whilst ignoring its corroded chassis. The time for ecclesiastical spanner work has passed." (p27).

Leaven (254pp) is available from the publisher for £12.99.

As same-sex issue divides, who will speak up for the truth?

The Church of England has once again failed to give a moral lead to the nation.

Their Synod (parliament) has voted against the Bishops’ recommendation that, in the face of huge pressure to allow same-sex ‘equality’, they should continue to take the traditional view of marriage.

Those within the Church desperately trying to honour the clear biblical teaching – that a man shall leave his father and mother and be united to his wife (Gen 2:24) – have reached a discouraging impasse.

Heresy Within, Confusion Without

Is it not time to say: ‘enough is enough’? Undermining the authority of the Bible only leads to heresy within and confusion without. Sure, the watching world sees a Church divided, and some would say that is a bad witness. But there are surely issues over which it is impossible to compromise.

Endless debates create much heat, but bear little fruit. What, after all, is there left to debate? If the choice is whether or not to follow Scripture, then the advice from the Apostle Paul is: “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you” (2 Cor 6:17). Those pushing for same-sex marriage are surely touching something ‘unclean’.

At the end of the day, we will all stand before God to give account of the decisions we have made or haven’t made (Rom 14:12).

Undermining the authority of the Bible only leads to heresy within and confusion without.

Danger of Deception

The letters to the seven churches of Asia Minor recorded in the Book of Revelation give as much emphasis on teaching as on behaviour – the key doctrines of Christian belief are hugely important.

The Apostle John, in his first letter, reminds his hearers that those who were spreading false teaching had come from within the churches. “They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us,” he wrote (1 John 2:19).

Heresy was a great danger in the early Church, just as Jesus predicted it would be in these latter days. When his disciples asked him about signs of the end of the age, the first thing he said was: “Watch out that no-one deceives you” (Matt 24:4).

Yes, Jesus prayed passionately for unity among his followers. It was never meant to be unity at any cost, however, but the sort of oneness about which Paul spoke in his letter to the Ephesians when he explained that the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers were there “to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature…” (Eph 4:12f).

The context is clearly about developing maturity within the body of Christ as disciples learn to walk in harmony with the Word of God.

But because the modern Church has failed to give a moral lead on the issue of homosexuality, the entire Western world is now in the grip of ‘redefining marriage’, if that is really possible.

Jesus prayed passionately for unity among his followers, but it was never meant to be unity at any cost.

Seek The Truth

We have seen the same thing happen over Israel. Undermining the authority of the Bible has led to the heresy of ‘Replacement Theology’, teaching that the Church has replaced Israel in God’s affections. As a result, there is very little understanding of Israel in the UK Church today, and yet God’s end-time purpose is for Jew and Gentile to work together for the Gospel! How far we have fallen behind God’s programme!

Tragically, the Church has succumbed wholesale to worldliness, ignoring the Bible’s directive: “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom 12:2).

Isn’t it time we re-committed ourselves to seeking the truth, perfectly demonstrated in Jesus Christ – “the way, the truth and the life” (John 14:6)?

The Synod’s vote this week shows how compromised the established Church is on the issue of gay marriage.

It must seem utterly amazing to people outside the church that Christians could spend such a long time discussing the issue of same-sex relationships.

To young people in particular, it appears to be a non-issue – not even worth discussing. For most of them sex is sex – it’s just a fact of life and it’s entirely optional whether you have it with the opposite sex or the same sex.

So why has the Church of England Synod spent so much time this week discussing a ‘non-issue’?

Most young people, other than those educated in faith schools or home-educated, have been subjected, over the past two or three decades, to a process of social engineering that has radically changed the structure of society. The change has seen a fundamental shift from the centrality of the family as the building block of society to a form of individualism that diminishes the family to a kind of ‘optional extra’ that can take any shape or form.

In the brave new world of reconstructed families, marriage has no special significance and is just one of those relationships that can be entered or dissolved at the desire of the individuals involved, regardless of the effects this might have upon the lives of others.

In the brave new world of reconstructed families, marriage has no special significance.

The Truth of Scripture

It is against this background that the Church of England, as the established church, has been struggling for several decades. At root, it is a theological issue that is determined by one’s attitude to Scripture. If you accept the Bible as the unchangeable word of God, you believe that marriage is part of God’s act of creation and that it is only between a man and a woman who pledge themselves to each other in a lifelong covenant of love and faithfulness.

You accept that marriage is at the heart of family life for the pro-creation and upbringing of children and that this form of society is ordained by God for the health and well-being of humanity. It is not just the ideal – it is the only form of sexual relationship between the genders that is acceptable in the sight of God.

This is where the problem arises with LGBT people who defend this lifestyle but who also desire to be part of the Church. They often emphasise that love is part of the very nature of God and therefore assume that God will bless any form of love relationship between human beings whom he has created in his own image.

This is why homosexual people have been so persistent in pressurising Church leaders of all denominations to recognise same-sex marriage, which is now legally recognised by the state. Those living an LGBT lifestyle want to be assured of God’s blessing upon their relationships.

Not Denying Difficulty

Of course, these decisions are extremely difficult because they involve people’s hearts, identities and lives. No Christian hates or wishes to hurt their friends or family who choose to pursue an LGBT lifestyle. However, we must all also consider the wider implications of their decisions upon the health and well-being of the whole of society.

I saw at first hand the cost to Dr Rowan Williams, then Archbishop of Canterbury, when he made the decision not to appoint Jeffrey John (who was openly gay) as Bishop of Reading. On the day before his meeting with Jeffrey John and Richard Harries, the Bishop of Oxford, I spent three hours with him in prayer and seeking the Lord.

It was an agonising decision for Rowan, not simply in terms of affirming biblical truth but because he had been friends with Jeffrey since college days and yet he knew that such an appointment could split the Church and have implications for the worldwide Anglican Communion. The wider repercussions of Church decisions are far-reaching and long-lasting even in this secular age when so much of our Judaeo-Christian heritage has been eroded.

Marriage is not just the ideal – it is the only form of sexual relationship between the genders that is acceptable in the sight of God.

It is a plain sociological fact, demonstrated by hundreds of research findings, that faithful loving marriage produces the healthiest form of society. It is also true that family breakdown has disastrous consequences - not only for individuals, both children and adults - but also for the physical and mental health and even the economic prosperity of wider society.

Members of the House of Clergy, meeting earlier this week. See Photo Credits.This Week’s Synod Vote

The situation faced by the Synod of the Church of England is complicated by three major factors:

• Biblical truth
  
• The pastoral care needed for individuals, and
  
• The demands of the LGBT lobby
  

All three are represented within both the hierarchy and the Synod of the Church of England. There is no easy path for the Synod, which is reflected in what happened this week when all  three groups had members who voted against the report presented by the House of Bishops. Despite upholding marriage as only being between a man and a woman, the report was also presented as "a stepping stone toward greater inclusiveness".¹

Evangelicals voted against it because it indicated a departure from Scripture. The LGBT members voted against it because it did not give them the full equality that they wanted; and other clergy voted against it because they have concerns for the people in their pastoral care.

The Church of England always wants to be a ’broad’ church that includes everyone – but the Bishops’ Report satisfied no-one. It was presented with lots of apologies which showed that the Bishops knew that it would not please anyone: it was just a fudge. But that is the very nature of a church that tries to be all things to all people!

The Church of England wants to be a ’broad’ church that includes everyone – but the Bishops’ Report satisfied no-one.

Reflecting Society?

The Rev Bertrand Olivier, who is a gay man, told the BBC that the Church needed to “reflect modern society”.² But that is the very thing that the Church must not do! Its mission is to declare the unchangeable word of the Living God and apply it to the changing times in which we live; however unpopular that may be. The Church must be different from secular society.

Archbishop Justin Welby called for “a radical new Christian inclusion”³ for homosexual Christians, which sounds very much as though he is advocating a Church that reflects modern society just as Bertrand Oliver wants.

But the Church is answerable to God for its teaching, not to human beings. The Church of England will continue to be divided so long as it tries to please everyone. Surely the only thing that should matter is the presentation of the unvarnished truth in a world where truth has disappeared, or has become ‘alternative facts’ or ‘fake news’.

The Prophet Isaiah provides a pinpoint description of our nation today. He says:

Justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance; truth has stumbled in the streets, honestly cannot enter. Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. (Isa 59:14-15)

Surely, what is most needed in the nation today is for a Church that does not follow popular trends in society, but sets an example to the nation by lovingly and fearlessly declaring the truth of the word of the Lord!

References

1 Church of England votes against gay marriage report. BBC News, 15 February 2017.

2 Ibid.

3 Ibid.

A lesson for Britain on what education is all about.

Whatever else you may say about Israel – though the cradle of Judeo-Christian civilisation, they are clearly now as secular as the rest of us in the West – they are currently being blessed by a leader who believes in the importance and authority of the Bible.

Whereas former British Prime Minister Tony Blair trumped education as the all-important issue of his tenure, Israeli PM Binyamin 'Bibi' Netanyahu has been more specific.

At the start of the school year, he announced to his cabinet that "excellence and Zionism", with an emphasis on Bible study, were at the root of an education "revolution" his government wanted to bring about. "First of all the study of the Bible," he said. "We must make a major effort; this is the basis for why we are here, why we have returned here, why we stay here."¹

What a contrast to the way things are run in Westminster, seat of the British Parliament. Of course there's much talk about raising educational standards, but we have cast the Holy Scriptures to the margins of our schools, and there are even efforts by humanists to wipe out their influence altogether. Yet without the Bible, our knowledge is incomplete. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge..." (Prov 1:7)

We have cast the Holy scriptures to the margins of our schools.

The Apostle Paul wrote: "Love never fails... But where there is knowledge, it will pass away" (1 Cor 13:8). And he is not talking about gushy love, but the 'agape' (Greek) love that is unique to those who have experienced a personal encounter with Jesus.

Britain's Greatness Built on the Bible

It was in holding to the authority of the Bible and proclaiming its truth that Britain became a great nation whose influence covered the globe, and it was because we believed in its literal veracity that we were privileged to help pave the way for Jewish restoration – both to their ancient land and to their Lord.

Our spiritual forefathers such as William Wilberforce, John Wesley, Charles Spurgeon, Charles Simeon and Bishop JC Ryle saw from the scriptures that Christians should pray for and facilitate Israel's return. And they played a crucial role in the modern-day re-birth of the Jewish state.

But our Jewish brethren also need the "new heart" Ezekiel prophesied (Ezek 36:26) if they are to fulfil their God-given role as "a light for the Gentiles" (Isa 49:6). Mercifully, Mr Netanyahu is paving the way for this spiritually with his declaration of intent.

Tragically, however, neither Church nor state in Britain is following this kind of lead, as they once did, caving in on all sides to politically correct pressure undermining the Bible's authority. The result is increasing breakdown in society, with all too few children growing up under the love and discipline of a mother and father.

Current Disunity Over Scripture

Key to Israel's restoration was an Anglican society called CMJ (the Church's Ministry among Jewish people) who are still doing a great work among God's ancient people today. But the Church of England, with which they are linked, is literally at the point of breaking up. And the issue is...the Bible's authority!

A dozen evangelical² parishes in the South-East – including representation from the Diocese of Canterbury, the ancient heart of Anglicanism – are currently in discussions toward what could lead to a formal split over the 'watering down' of biblical teaching on issues of marriage amid talk of 'blessing' services for same-sex couples. They are setting up 'embryonic' structures that could be used were a split to take place.

The Church of England is literally at the point of breaking up.

The Rev Dr Peter Sanlon, Vicar of St Mark's Church in Tunbridge Wells, said: "If senior leaders of the Church of England water down the [church's] teaching on key issues like homosexuality, then this synod could easily evolve into a new Anglican jurisdiction."³

Threat of Schism

This development coincides with news that Bishop of Grantham Nicholas Chamberlain has become the first Church of England bishop to publicly declare he is gay and in a relationship, albeit celibate.⁴ And it has emerged that Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was aware of this at the time of his consecration last November.

Bishop Chamberlain said he adhered to church guidelines under which gay clergy must be celibate and are not permitted to marry, and Archbishop Welby has stated that "his sexuality is completely irrelevant to his office".⁵

Yet an increasing number of priests have married or plan to marry same-sex partners in defiance of the ban and Archbishop Welby told a recent Christian festival that he was "constantly consumed with horror" at the Church's treatment of lesbians and gay men.⁶

Disagreements over sexual issues have already caused schisms within the wider Anglican body – in Canada and the United States, for example. But it was on the Bible's authority that a Judeo-Christian civilisation was built that became the envy of the world. Israel's future – their protection from enemies and hope of a Messiah – is bound up in the authority of the Bible. Pray for Mr Netanyahu.

Notes

1 Jerusalem Post, 30 August 2016. Also quoted by Jerusalem News Network on 1 September 2016.

2 A term signifying belief in the absolute authority of the Bible on all matters of faith.

3 Church of England parishes prepare for a possible schism. Christian Concern, 31 August 2016.

4 Sherwood, H. Bishop of Grantham first C of E bishop to declare he is in gay relationship. The Guardian, 2 September 2016.

5 Ibid.

6 Ibid.