Church silence has given voice to extremists

Windfall used to aid God’s great plan for the Jewish people

When a young barrister came into a great fortune over 200 years ago, he did not spend it on himself but instead used it to turn the key that would eventually unlock the fulfilment of numerous biblical prophecies.

Lewis Way must have been dumbstruck when, for no obvious reason, he became the main beneficiary of a friend’s will, the only stipulation for which was that the money should be used “to the glory of God”.¹

The inheritance was worth £300,000 – a colossal amount at the time representing at least £12 million in today’s money.

An Eton-educated ‘mover and shaker’ in influential circles, Lewis sought the Lord in prayer and duly felt the call of God to devote his time, energy and recently acquired wealth towards helping Jewish people to a knowledge of their Messiah and restoring them to the land of Israel.

He was particularly stirred by what has been dubbed his ‘Exeter Road encounter’ when, in 1811, he passed the home of two sisters who had also inherited a fortune and was reminded of how one of them was said to have planted a row of oak trees over which she had prophesied that they would stand until the Jews were back in Palestine.

“The spirit of that story really inspired him,” Rev Alex Jacob told an audience this week. “He knew at that moment that the return of the Jewish people to their ancestral home would be his chief cause for the rest of his life.”

Joining with Wilberforce

So he pursued this task with great zeal and became active with the Church’s Ministry among Jewish people (CMJ), co-founded in 1809 by his close friend William Wilberforce and dedicated to investing in Israel’s spiritual rebirth.

Unlike today, it was quite fashionable – even politically correct – to be linked with such an organisation, especially with the Duke of Kent (Queen Victoria’s father) as patron…until he resigned because the mission was “too evangelical”.

Lewis became active with CMJ, co-founded by his close friend William Wilberforce and dedicated to investing in Israel’s spiritual re-birth.

There was an irony, too, in that the Way family had in earlier years acquired their wealth through slavery, yet now he was teaming up with an abolitionist! Rev Jacob, CMJ’s UK chief executive, explained that the Jewish emancipation and anti-slavery movements were two sides of the same coin.

And when, in 1815, CMJ hit a financial crisis, Way stepped in with a significant gift, without which CMJ would have been a footnote in church history.

Pleading with the Czar

A great networker, he then set up a successful work in Poland, where many Jews came to believe Jesus as their Messiah.

In 1817 he had an audience with Czar Alexander I of Russia, pleading with arguably the most powerful ruler of the time that the Jewish people should have their own homeland. And on 13 October the following year, with the Czar’s backing, he put the case for the issue – and for Jewish emancipation² generally – to the European Congress.³

His meeting with the Czar is said to have significantly advanced the Jewish hope for returning to their ancient land and eventually led to the issuing by the British Government of the Balfour Declaration in 1917 which paved the way for the modern state of Israel.

Way was accompanied on this trip by an ex-Muslim Arab (his translator) and a former Jewish rabbi who embraced each other as they worked together in the cause of Christ and of Israel.

The briefcase Way used for the occasion has survived to this day and was actually displayed alongside the podium at which Rev Jacob spoke at CMJ’s Nottinghamshire headquarters.

Way and the Czar developed a bond as brothers in Christ and, after addressing the Congress, the Englishman wrote to his wife Mary: “Certainly, such an appeal for the Jewish people has not been made since the days of Mordecai and Esther.”

Way’s meeting with the Czar significantly advanced the Jewish hope for returning to their ancient land.

Storing up Treasures in Heaven

There is no doubt that Way’s sacrificial exploits greatly contributed to the cause of Zionism and the return to the Holy Land of Jews dispersed to every corner of the globe by the Romans almost 2,000 years ago.

His ultimate purpose, however, was not just in helping them back to their land but, more importantly, to their Lord. And he will have been thrilled to see the proliferation throughout Israel today – and in other parts of the world including the UK – of Jewish congregations worshipping Yeshua (Hebrew for Jesus).

Lewis Way's family chapel, renovated in 1804 to include a stained glass window referencing the Jewishness of the faith. See Photo Credits.

The bi-centenary of Way’s presentation to the European Congress is being marked tomorrow (Saturday) with a special event at Stansted Park in Hampshire, once Way’s family home. It will be held in the historic St Paul’s Chapel, situated within the Park, from 11am to 4pm with access to tearooms and a farm shop. Dr Richard Harvey, Rodney Curtis and Rev Jacob will give talks titled From Russia with Love, The Forgotten Way and Money, Money, Money respectively. It is free of charge; just turn up.⁴

The chapel happens also to contain a unique stained glass window designed by Way while carrying out renovation work in 1804. It is the only window in a Christian place of worship which is wholly Jewish in design and symbolism.⁵

Recently restored with help from CMJ, this beautiful window is based on Genesis 9:13: “I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.”

Despite his immense earthly wealth, Way successfully stored up his treasure in heaven, as Jesus advises us to do (see Matt 6:19-21).

Notes

1 It is suggested that his benefactor and namesake John Way (no relative) would have been hugely impressed by his friend’s integrity for, when he offered him an arranged marriage with a woman of high status, he turned it down, preferring to ‘marry for love’.

2 Jews throughout Europe had their rights restricted in many ways, such as being denied access to various professions.

3 Set up following the collapse of the Napoleonic empire as a kind of precursor for the League of Nations in a bid to help re-shape the map of Europe.

4 Find out more here.

5 Click here for a picture of the window.

Catharine Pakington reviews ‘The New Normal: The Transgender Agenda’ by Dr Lisa Nolland et al (2018, Wilberforce Publications).

‘The New Normal’ aims to help the Church face changing attitudes to gender and sexuality, being a follow-up to the November 2016 conference of the same name.¹

Since then, the campaign for ‘transgender rights’ has gathered pace with bewildering intensity but the Church seems to be largely ‘missing in action’. Theresa May has now launched the delayed consultation on removing safeguards to legally ‘change sex’. How will Christians respond?

Informative and Practical

This book is a vital tool to inform those willing to engage with the issue through the experienced contributors who have researched the background, development and implications of the movement. From the preface onwards, the reader is challenged to act on practical suggestions rather than be a passive observer. But as one author says, “we cannot know how to respond to something unless we first know what that something is”.

The 11 contributors come from backgrounds of theology, medicine, philosophy, sociology and literature to produce a work divided into two halves: ‘Other LGBT Issues’ helps to understand the context for ‘The Transgender Agenda’ and includes the personal experience of those who grew up with same-sex parenting and the abusive atmosphere of the LGBT movement.

It is shocking to read of the intensity of abuse faced by those who dare to resist or expose the lengths that this community will go to, whether against children or academics doing sound research.

This book is a vital informative tool, from experienced contributors who have researched the background, development and implications of the transgender movement.

Building a Comprehensive Picture

Chapters are naturally written in different styles, being the work of different authors. All are thought-provoking and worth reading while varying in accessibility, with some being more academic and others speaking more from personal experience. Together they build a picture by seeking answers to deep questions (although unbiased evidence may be hard to find). Why is it that this agenda is becoming the ‘new normal’ when a large proportion of the population in this secular society is not comfortable with it?

As Britain’s Christian foundations have weakened, individualism and demand for personal rights have grown. Laws are changed with concern for costly litigation under European directives without considering the impact on children and families, schools, healthcare, the integrity of official data and so many other areas of our society.

The final chapter, written by a literary critic, looks for evidence that homosexuals are ‘born that way’ (in the words of key LGBTQ+ authors) but finds graphic descriptions of negative upbringing and expectations and abusive sexual relations that result in individuals ‘turning gay’. These examples reveal confusion in the LGBTQ+ movement and are useful for that purpose but you may not wish to dwell on them.

Clearing the Fog

Definitions for terms are given but the book also highlights the difficulty in defining ‘gender identity’ in law when a fluid, chosen state of mind is being regarded as a more trustworthy indicator of identity than sex, a fixed, biological characteristic.

Is sex reassignment surgery even a proper medical procedure if the aim of medicine is to restore body faculties to their proper function or prevent dysfunction? Is it morally permissible? Yet we live in times when it is increasingly unacceptable to suggest that gender identity should be brought into line with biological truth.

All the chapters thought-provoking and worth reading while varying in accessibility, with some being more academic and others speaking more from personal experience.

The great confusion over defining terms such as ‘gender’ and ‘sex’ has been enough to create a fog that disables opposition. Can we recognise the lies perpetuated through the history of the movement that are promoted with such virulence in the Western world today? As we seek truth, we need to be prepared to support gender-conflicted people who come to us needing compassion and empathy while we hold to the biblical teaching that God created mankind in his image, male and female.

The book was launched with the view that the transgender movement could collapse if more people were prepared to challenge it, because it is so contrary to truth and science.² Be informed by reading the book, follow up with suggested websites, encourage others including church leaders and politicians to engage and, above all, pray.

‘The New Normal’ (211pp) is available on Amazon for £9.99 (paperback) or £5.99 (Kindle).

References

1 Christian Concern has created an online hub of resources to accompany the conference, available here.

2 Click here for coverage of the book's launch.

Full list of Contributors: Lisa S Nolland, Carys Moseley, Carlos D Flores, Robert Oscar Lopez, James D Lopez, Daniel Moody, John Nolland, Peter Saunders, Rick Thomas, Julia Gasper, Brittany Klein. As listed in the book cover.

Charles Gardner reviews ‘Not the Same God’ by Sam Solomon, with Atif Debs (2016, Wilberforce Publications).

The god of Islam is most definitely not the same as the God worshipped by Christians and Jews.

That is the no-nonsense conclusion of Sam Solomon’s recent book, Not the Same God, dedicated to tackling a thorny theological issue which has left many confused and misguided.

A number of Christian scholars are said to have suggested that ‘sufficient similarities’ exist between Islam and Christianity to warrant co-operation between the so-called ‘monotheistic faiths’, which may even prove helpful in introducing Muslims to Christ.

But the author, writing with Atif Debs (both are former Muslims), makes a convincing case that Islamic theology amounts to a complete contradiction of the Judeo-Christian faith.

The Illusion of Similarity

In essence, the Qur’an denies the divinity of Jesus, along with his crucifixion and resurrection. It even denies original sin, thus rejecting the need for salvation and the forgiveness of sins which is surely what Christianity (and Judaism for that matter) is all about.

Extensive quotations from the Qur’an, while uninspiring, clearly serve the purpose of the book by demonstrating how similarity with the Bible is an illusion.

Whereas the entire Bible points to Jesus, with the Old Testament (the Jewish Tanach) fulfilled in the New, Muslims claim that Muhammad is the ultimate ‘seal of the prophets’ and fulfilment of all God-given scriptures.

The author makes a convincing case that Islamic theology amounts to a complete contradiction of the Judeo-Christian faith.

And although they reject Christianity as worshipping ‘three gods’ while boasting that they are monotheistic, it is hard to differentiate (in terms of names given and honour ascribed) between Allah, the Muslim name for God, and Muhammad, for whom they claim no divinity.

Furthermore, in dismissing Christian belief in the Trinity as worshipping ‘many gods’, they hold that Jesus’ disciples worship the Father, Son and Mary (mother of Jesus), only adding to the confusion in their understanding of our faith.

Impossible Union

But the ‘Grand Canyon’ of the debate – which makes union between the faiths impossible – is the Islamic rejection of the uniqueness of Christ, who said: “I am the way, the truth and the life; no-one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Moreover, Allah is described in the Qur’an as the great ‘unknowable’ who does not reveal himself to mortal man. This, of course, is a complete contradiction of Christianity, which says that God became one of us and makes himself known to all who seek him (Jer 29:13).

Solomon concludes his book (for which he probably won’t be thanked by many, but it is true nonetheless) by saying that the Qur’an can best be described as a set of “arguments raised up against the knowledge of God” (2 Cor 10:5) and expresses the hope that those looking for a ‘common path’ between Islam and Christianity will in future “reflect the reality, rather than the illusion”.

Not the Same God (224 pages, first published 2015) is available from Amazon for £7.99.

With greed and corruption becoming an everyday part of life, Britain is looking more and more like it did in the 18^th Century - just before revival happened.

The sudden departure of England's much heralded football manager transferred sports news from the back page to the front page of our newspapers.

Sam Allardyce had only been in the job 67 days before he was forced to resign following a sting set up by the Daily Telegraph with men posing as businessmen from the Far East. They recorded him agreeing to a £400,000 deal in which he would help "get around" strict bans on third party transfer regulations.

Allardyce left his employment with the Football Association with a reported half £1 million payoff for just over two month's work, during which he organised just one international football match - which England won, giving him a 100% record for his England career!

It is astonishing that a man who was being paid a salary of £3 million a year could fall for such an entrapment. Why would he risk everything for an additional £400,000 on top of the immense salary he was receiving? It is surely an example of the incredible power of greed. However large the salary, greed will always try to get a bit more.

Greed is Now Normal

Greed is the driving force in so many people's lives today; it has become a banal part of our culture, affecting every area of life - from banking and the growth of vast international business conglomerates to sport and entertainment. It seems that no area of society is free from greed and corruption, with the result that the gap between rich and poor is getting ever wider.

The rich are growing richer and the poor are growing poorer, leaving the way open for injustice and exploitation of the powerless. The greatest health problem facing the rich nations is obesity while millions in the poorer nations go to bed hungry every night. Yet the vast injustice of this situation leaves most people in the Western nations untroubled. Why is this in nations that have had the Gospel for centuries, where biblical values of justice are part of the foundations of their civilisation?

Greed has become a banal part of our culture, affecting every area of life.

Abandonment of 'Traditional' Morality

Surely the reason has to be connected with our turning away from our biblical foundations. In Britain children are no longer taught basic biblical morality in state schools and we now have a generation of parents who have virtually no knowledge of the Bible, leaving many children growing up with no ultimate standards of right and wrong.

George Whitfield

What can change the nation? Can we learn from the past?

Revisiting 18^th Century Britain

A similar situation existed in the latter part of the 18^th Century and the beginning of the 19^th Century. Crime, lawlessness, adultery and drunkenness were the foremost characteristics in all ranks of society, as Hogarth's pictures of London vividly illustrate. Violence and unrest were everywhere and there were frequent riots, as well as fears that the French Revolution might spread across the Channel and engulf the nation.

Church attendance was the lowest it had been for centuries. In 1800, just six people took communion on Easter day in St Paul's Cathedral. It was at this stage that the Evangelical Revival began to change everything, with the Methodists and Nonconformists reaching the working classes and the evangelical Anglicans reaching the upper echelons and the burgeoning middle classes produced by the Industrial Revolution.

Today, many children are growing up with no ultimate standards of right and wrong.

Gospel-Driven Cultural ChangeJohn Wesley

A striking example of their success in changing the nation can be seen in the social statistics. Throughout the 19^th Century, crime rates fell dramatically. By 1870 there were only 10,000 in the jails of England and Wales. But even more remarkable was the continuing fall over the next 30 years. By 1910 there were only 3,000 prisoners in the nation's jails, despite the population rising from 25 million to 35 million!

Social historians attribute this astonishing fall in the crime rate to the success of the Evangelical Revival in transforming the moral and spiritual life of the nation. It all began with a small group of Christians, like Wilberforce, Wesley and Whitfield, in the dark days of the late 18^th Century. They had a passion for the Gospel and cared deeply about people.

In addition to preaching the truth, they also applied the Gospel to the great social issues of their day, working for causes such as the abolition of colonial slavery and the end of child exploitation in the mines, mills and factories of England. It was through their faith in God that the nation was transformed.

Dramatic Loss of Faith

Today, there are many similarities with the early 19^th Century. The latest British Attitude Survey (published May 2016) shows that 48% of the population say they have 'no religion'. It is remarkable that 50 years of immigration has not resulted in significant numbers converting to other religions such as Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism - the British people have simply lost faith in any religion, so they have nothing to hold onto when difficult times come.

The mission field is wide open for Christians with a passion for the gospel to share their faith with their non-Christian friends and neighbours. An even greater Evangelical Revival could happen in 21^st Century Britain!

The British people have lost faith in any religion, so they have nothing to hold onto when difficult times come.

Revival Happening Now?

Churches in Reading have been sharing their faith on the streets since May this year with some amazing results - and a similar movement has been happening this month in Liverpool, where Christians report an astonishing new openness to the Gospel and hundreds of ordinary people giving their lives to Christ on the streets.

People are fed up with the greed and corruption they see everywhere. The fields are ripe for harvest. We hope to publish details of the developments in Liverpool next week. Maybe the only thing holding back revival in Britain is that many people in churches have not yet woken up to the spiritual hunger of people around them!

Jesus said, "The time has come, the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!" (Mark 1:15)

Magna Carta Unravelled (Wilberforce Publications, 2015, 217 pages, £7.99)

This book, a joint venture between Wilberforce Publications and Voice for Justice UK, is a collection of essays by eight experts in various fields (eg politics, law, the Church) largely based upon talks given at a conference held in May to commemorate the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta. Among the better known contributors are Baroness Cox, Lynda Rose, and Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali, but all those involved have distinguished reputations and are highly experienced.

Six of the original talks were expanded by the speakers into written form and to these were added two extra chapters. The overall result is a comprehensive survey covering the origins of Magna Carta, the development of its ideas throughout history, and its relevance today. The whole makes an important contribution towards the discussion on the contemporary challenges we face in our nation regarding our freedoms.

The opening chapter provides an excellent overview and sets the scene, declaring that "what we need to recognise today is that we are in the middle of a predominantly three-stranded ideological war: between Christianity, secularism, and Islam" (p29). Society is now in the grip of competing belief systems as the ruthless imposition of non-Christian values with their own ideas of 'rights' and 'freedoms' are being selectively applied. The result is a vigorous shaking of our foundations which is causing many to wonder what the eventual outcome will be.

This is an important contribution towards debating the ideological war currently gripping British society."

Other chapters cover the historical and theological background to Magna Carta, its Christian origins and legacy, the role of the State concerning freedoms, and the rise of Islam and sharia law in the UK. The final parts focus on the current challenges to individual liberty. On reflection, not all sections are of equal interest or engagement; some are more difficult to follow and rather stolid. Certainly, there are also many anecdotes and testimonies, including up-to-date personal stories, but often these have been well covered elsewhere and are over-long in the context of this particular book. There is even some overlap between speakers, which may be one of the disadvantages of a book produced from a conference. Overall it is difficult not to be disappointed at times that this is not a more enjoyable read.

However, the book clearly has a place within the current re-assessment and evaluation of Magna Carta. It is of a suitable length to fit between short introductions and fuller studies, and above all it does ask the right questions. Realising that the UK is "at a crossroads, with the soul of our nation at stake" (p17), it is very pertinent to consider the relevance of Magna Carta. Clearly it is an important historical document but what about now, eight centuries later, in our multi-cultural society? The fundamental principles and freedoms that it established have recently been attacked, dismantled and shattered. How did this happen and why? And where do we go from here?

This book asks the right questions about the present situation and future outlook in Britain, showing how Christian principles and values are not just being eroded and marginalised, but being branded as dangerous."

As the authors show, Christian principles and values are currently being marginalised, rebranded as hate speech and provocation if expressed publicly, and even portrayed as dangerous to a liberal and secular modern society. At the very least the likelihood is that there will be continuing attempts to contain Christian views and eventually eliminate them in the cause of new freedoms and ideas of tolerance. The ultimate fear is that we will lose our specifically Christian freedoms altogether.

Is this unduly alarmist or a wake-up call? You decide! Either way here is an informative and valuable resource for those seeking to think through these vital issues.