We take a pulse check on the health of preaching in Australian Evangelical Churches with one of our leading preachers, from Melbourne’s Centre for Biblical Preaching, Mike Raiter. Mike has just spent a few weeks surveying twenty different Australian Churches - watching  their sermons online - and analysing them on type of sermon, biblical genre, who was being preached to, faithfulness to text, length of sermon, appropriateness of application, and how well the preacher addressed the heart? Mike listened to ten evangelical Anglican Churches from across the country, and ten evangelical churches from a range of denominations from the Queensland capital Brisbane.Mike’s detailed review of the sermons is published in the EFAC Evangelical Fellowship in the Anglican Communion Magazine. Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

Major cultural change is making a big impact on Christians and the church.  Something radical has changed. Admitting you follow Jesus ‘weirds people out’ in a way it never has before.  And doing church the way we did no longer yields the same results. Senior minister of Dapto Anglican David Rietfield says there’s fewer new people and the regulars are coming less frequently. David has a new book out ‘Being Christian after Christendom’ Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

What is the relationship between concupiscence and sexual same sex attraction?One of the most contentious issues facing the Christian Church at this moment is how can Christians think and speak truthfully, clearly and compassionately about desire and temptation in a way that does not condone or encourage sin? There were years in Christian ministry where I never really thought about the term concupiscence, and many of my peers, when I mention it say. ‘Remind me again what concupiscence is?’The tenth of the Anglican Church’s 39 Articles says (in part) that: ‘concupiscence and lust hath of itself the nature of sin.’Over the last few years, the relationship between the doctrine of concupiscence and ministry to those who experience same sex attraction has become a burning issue (and a right understanding of it will massively help many of the debates around ministry to Christians experiencing sexual same sex attraction).Rob Smith lectures at Sydney Missionary and Bible College, serves in the Sydney Anglican Ministry, the Council of Living Faith, and is a member of the Sydney Anglican Doctrine Commission, which has just produced a report on the relationship between concupiscence and sexual same sex attraction. Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

Are our Gentile Pastor’s Hearts out of step with God? The Apostle Paul says the gospel should be first for the Jew, but Joseph Steinberg, is calling for a rethink, saying often the western church has as it’s priorities: the gospel being ‘last for the Jew.’Should we think of Jews as ‘another people group’ or given their special place in God’s unfolding plan, should they have a special place in mission priorities? Joseph Steinberg is Global CEO of International Mission to Jewish People.  Mark and Rahel Landrom are Sydney Missionaries with International Mission to Jewish People. Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

In almost every personal conversation I’ve had since returning from Africa I’ve been asked about my personal reflections on the almost four weeks that Catherine and I spent there. How was Gafcon?  What was significant? What stood out? How has Africa impacted you?This episode features conversations with Archbishop Tito Zavala (Chile), Archbishop James Wong (Indian Ocean), Rico Tice (Christianity Explored), Richard Coekin (London), Vaughan Roberts (Oxford), Michael Charles (Anglican Aid http://www.anglicanaid.org.au), Melina Galiboma (Link Officer, Mara Diocese),  Bishop Mwita Akiri (Teremi, Tanzania) Gafcon Kigali was a landmark moment in Global Anglican history and it was a privilege to play a small part in itGafcon emphasised faithfulness to Jesus and the priority of missionThere are real issues that theological conservatives need to talk about regarding sexualityIt was good leave the Kigali first class hotel and see real Africa by touring rural Tanzania.  It’s amazing what CMS and Anglican Aid have and are achieving in rural TanzaniaKey to the future is raising theological education standards in AfricaChristians are helping with the darkside of the Serengeti - preventing Female Gentile MutilationThe Africans’ hospitality and generosity was overwhelmingSupport the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

Our Pastor’s Hearts are in New York City as we honour New York’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church founder Tim Keller who died yesterday. All the congregations of Keller’s church Redeemer Presbyterian Church met together overnight, for an evening originally planned to cast the next stage of Redeemer’s Vision, but which became a moment for the church family to grieve and pray after the death of Rev Keller.Tim Keller had a massive impact on New York City, and globally, as an author, preacher, the co-founder of the Gospel Coalition, and the founder of City to City. Tony Carnes, who joined Redeemer a year after Keller planted the church, and writes for nycreligion.info, says it was a night of high emotion as they remembered their pastor, grieved, prayed and celebrated together, and looked forward to the future. Read Tony Carnes obituary for his pastor here. Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

Richard Borgonon is the author of Word 1-2-1.  He presented at the recent Gafcon Conference in Kigali, Rwanda alongside Christianity Explored’s Rico Tice on how a church might have an integrated evangelistic strategy incorporating both an evangelistic course and a program where members are encouraged to personally evangelise their friends through personal bible reading. After Rico Tice headed off for a coffee, we sat down to ask Richard how might this work.http://www.thepastorsheart.net/podcast/attractional-and-missional-richard-borgonon Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

After Queen Elizabeth’s funeral last year, Saturday’s coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla was probably the biggest reaching church service of our lifetimes.We analyze the service theologically and missionally and compare it with the coronation service of Charles’ Mother Queen Elizabeth II.Is it in any way better theologically and where is it worse? Mark Earngey lectures in Church History at Sydney’s Moore Theological College. Sandy Grant is the Dean of Sydney.  And today is leading three Sunday services at St Andrew’s Cathedral marking the coronation.Brett Murphy is Vicar in the parish of St David’s in Broom Leys in Leicestershire in the UK.Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

Sydney’s Archbishop Kanishka Raffel has responded to Gafcon’s Kigali Commitment which says the Archbishop of Canterbur Justin Welby’s continued leadership of the Anglican Communion is entirely indefensible.Leaders representing 85% of the Anglican Communion say they have no confidence in the Archbishop of Canterbury or the other instruments of the Anglican Communion.In his first interview, since the release of Gafcon’s Kigali Communique, Archbishop Raffel sits down with Dominic Steele while on a tour of Anglican Aid projects in rural Tanzania (see http://www.anglicanaid.org.au). Archbishop Raffel was named new Vice Chair of Gafcon at the meeting in Rwanda in April. Responding to the criticism of the Archbishop of Canterbury, in the Kigali Commitment, Archbishop Raffel said if 85% of membership rejected my leadership, I’d resign. #gafcon23 #gafcon #anglican #tanzania #anglicanaid #cmsSupport the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.

An extraordinary story of God working by his spirit in the life of African Anglican Primate Laurent MbandaAs a four year old barefoot refugee Larent (and his parents) fled Rwanda in 1959 for Burundi. Larent came to a saving trust in Jesus Christ as a child. He later lead the Compassion Relief Effort in the way of the Rwandan Genocide in 1994. Larent Mbanda is now the Anglican Primate of Rwanda and the Deputy Chair of the Gafcon Movement. Take a moment to be encouraged by the extraordinary story of God’s grace in his life, and the amazing ways that God has used him. Larent Mbanda will be the host of the big Gafcon Conference 17-21 April 2023 in Kigali.  We will be bringing you all the news from that conference live from the Kigali Foyer. The Church Cohttp://www.thechurchco.com is an excellent website and app platform built specifically for churches.  Support the show--Become a regular financial supporter of The Pastor's Heart via Patreon.