Dear Friend,

This is probably the biggest announcement the MLJ Trust will ever make. Starting from tomorrow, April 12th, all 1,600 recorded sermons by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones will be available to download, at no cost, to anyone who wants to listen to them! There are no exceptions, so the Ephesians sermons, Romans sermons, etc. will all be available (it will take a few days to make sure that they are all included in the library). All one has to do is join the MLJ Library (membership is free of course) and start to download! Simply go to our newly updated site at http://www.mljtrust.org and click on “MLJ Library”.

This is a decision that the UK Board has been wrestling with for a long time, because by moving away from the sale of MP3 discs (and tapes before that), which has kept the Recordings Trust in existence for 30 years in God’s grace, they will become completely dependent (as we are in the United States MLJ Trust ministry), on the voluntary donations of brothers and sisters who feel called to support the ministry while downloading sermons.

In the end, however, and after much prayer and discussion, our brothers in the UK felt that as the world of low-cost distribution through the internet was now far reaching enough that most people around the world (even in developing countries) can gain access to this ministry through a computer, and as many other ministries have had a positive experience shifting to a voluntary donation approach to on-line sermons, they felt (as we do) that this change might be in accordance with God’s will.

While there is some nervousness about such a big change, it our our most earnest hope, on both sides of the Atlantic, that this announcment will help us to fulfill the objective that has fueled this ministry since its inception 30 years ago: To preserve, and make as widely available as possible, the doctrinal exposition of God’s word by the late Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, a man who could never quite believe how God had used him for the benefit of the Gospel over his long ministry in the pulpit of Westminster Chapel.

This announcement eMail has been timed to coincide with our formal announcement at “Together for the Gospel”. This morning (Wednesday, April 11th), we will be making the announcement on stage to the approximately 7,000+ Christian leaders and teachers who will be attending, and we never forget that the participation of the MLJ Trust at this conference was made possible by the kind support of our subscribers.

To those who have been able to donate to our ministry, we thank you so much. For those who have not had an opportunity, but would like to help us continue funding this ministry, a link to our donations page is at the bottom left of this eMail (Your GeoTrust secured contribution will be processed by Network for Good). As a reminder, the MLJ Trust is 501 (c) (3) charitable consisting of four Board members who volunteer their time, and no staff. You can learn more about us at www.mljtrust.org.

As always, we only want to be sending these eMails to friends of the ministry who want to receive them, and so if you would prefer not to receive them, simply click on the “unsubscribe” link below and you will be removed from this eMail list.

Thank you again for your interest in the Ministry of Martyn Lloyd-Jones!

Every blessing,

Jonathan
www.mljtrust.org
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The Appointment of Greg and Ruth Haslam

(The Inside Story)

The whole host of heaven surrounded the Lord
And He showed them a prayer He’d been sent
“Our man RT’s moving back to the States
And he’s asked us to find his replacement”.

“It’s Westminster Chapel, you know what they’re like
The right man will be hard to find
They’ll want someone sophisticated, cultured, refined
And not too charismatic mind!”

“It’s a tough one,” said Gabriel, “of that there’s no doubt
And there’s a membership vote he must pass”
But liking a joke, the Lord smiled and said,
“I know a scouser and Lancashire lass”.

“The Haslams!” said Gabriel, starting to laugh
“I can’t wait ‘til the membership hears
And what will the search committee say of the fact
That he’s part of that group New Frontiers!”

But it came to pass, as the AV would say
That the Haslams were duly appointed
And ten years on the Lord said to Gabriel
“Do you think that my choice was anointed?”

So Gabriel looked at his records and said
“Well there’s lots of good things on my file
They’ve got Alpha, a Foodbank and small groups all going
And an hosting team what’s able to smile.”

“And your man Haslam, well he’s not done that bad
He’s kept them all on the right track
His jokes are no better – but on a positive note
He’s ditched his PC for a Mac.”

“They’ve still got some space left to fill I can see
But the wineskin looks well stitched and new.”
And the Lord said, “Just watch and see what will happen,
When all that I’ve promised, comes true”.

We’ve decided to devote one Sunday evening a month to tackling these questions. Each event will consist of a short talk, followed by a Q & A session with experienced theologians and pastors. All are welcome to take part in the open dialogue, and we encourage seekers, atheists, agnostics, or whoever you are, to come and ask those ‘Tough Questions.’

The dates are as follows:

1. How can you be sure there’s a God? 29th January 2012
2. How can you say there is only one way to God? 26th February 2012
3. Isn’t the Bible a myth? 25th March 2012
4. Why does God allow suffering? 29th April 2012
5. How can God have a son? 13th May 2012
6. What gives you the right to tell me how to live my life? 17th June 2012
7. How can a God of love send people to hell? 15th July 2012

Each session starts at 5.30pm, at Westminster Chapel, and will be followed by drinks and light refreshments. We will make the audio of the talks available online…

We look forward to dialoguing with you then!

He’ll be looking at 2 Timothy; the Apostolic Gospel and the Apostolic Ministry.

Greg writes;

There is enormous fascination in reading the ‘famous last words’ of great people whose lives shook the world. What was uppermost in their minds during their final hours can still have an impact upon our lives today. II Timothy is Paul’s last letter and final legacy, written within days of his imminent martyrdom at Rome. It is reminiscent of Sir Winston Churchill’s fearless war speeches to beleaguered Britain during the darkest days of WWII. Here, the great Apostle charges his fellow-soldier Timothy to ‘Never, never, never give up!’ – in a moving rallying call still resonating to all of us who love the gospel, and long for it’s ongoing revolutionary influence today.

Paul’s sober realism unmasks the threat of false teachers and evil-livers who still love to intimidate and silence us, if they can. His striking courage and strong counsel is actually Christ’s voice, urging us to grab our combat gear and weapons then enter what C.H. Spurgeon called ‘The Greatest Fight in the World’. This is the worldwide battle to save countless lives drowning in a tsunami of sin and lies. This deadly tide can only be turned back when the ‘unafraid and unashamed’ fearlessly preach God’s saving message as though they really believed it. II Timothy then becomes our personal and timely summons to ‘Guard the Gospel’ in our time and generation.

For sermons in this series, please visit our website in the coming weeks.

Colin Barrow CBE

Our Foodbank is hosted in our church building, and is staffed entirely by volunteers from our membership base.

The Launch

Speaking at the launch, Councillor Colin Barrow, Leader of Westminster City Council, said, “It’s great to see our community pulling together as one to make a real difference to the lives of struggling families. We are constantly working to give Westminster residents that extra helping hand, and we know, with the winter months approaching, this Foodbank will play a pivotal role in providing for those most at risk.”

John Glen MP

John Glen MP, Member of Parliament for Salisbury, where the Trussell Trust was founded said, “I have huge

admiration for the work of the Trussell Trust, and I’m delighted to see this newest Foodbank opening in Westminster. This new service will be invaluable in helping people through some extremely difficult times, and I encourage local people to donate food generously to the Foodbank as others are doing across the country.”

Why do we need a Foodbank, and how do they work?

Greg Haslam speaks at the launch

Clients are referred to Foodbanks for a variety of reasons including redundancy, benefit delay, low income, ill health, domestic abuse, benefit reductions and debt. Food bags contain three days of nutritionally balanced, non-perishable foods such as tinned fruit, vegetables, meat and fish as well as pasta, cereal,UHT milk, sauces, tea, long-life juice.

Foodbank clients can receive a maximum of three Foodbank vouchers in a row (each voucher can be redeemed for at least three days food). Clients can receive up to nine vouchers per year, although longer term support is available in exceptional circumstances.

Where do we get the food from?

The Foodbank store cupboards sit in specially-converted rooms in the church, and over the past two months, volunteers, members of the public and local schools have helped to fill these rooms with enough food to officially open the Foodbank.

Greg Haslam, Colin Barrow and John Glen MP in the Foodbank storeroom.

On October 1^st, a team of volunteers spent a day collecting outside Sainsbury’s Market in Pimlico, receiving over 628 kilograms of food from members of the public! Thank you to all who gave so generously – look out for us next time you do your Saturday grocery shop!

Sainsbury’s Store Manager, Justin Sheppard said, “Sainsbury’s is delighted to be partnering with the Westminster Foodbank. We’ve been thrilled with the generosity of our shoppers and their willingness to get involved. We think the Foodbank is a fantastic initiative, and one which we will continue to support as part of our commitment to making a positive difference to our community.”

Donations have also been received from: Buckaroochies Parent & Toddler Group, St Vincent’s Primary School, Burdett-Coutts Primary School, Methodist Central Hall, All Souls Clubhouse, as well as Westminster Chapel members.

Thank you

Thanks to all who have made the Foodbank happen! Particularly Clare Gardner, our Foodbank Manager, who has given up many hours to bring this idea to completion; Andy Coleman, our Intern, who has donated a whole year to work as a volunteer for this project (among others); and Luke Boardman, the mastermind behind our supermarket collections. We are so excited about how God is going to use this initiative to impact our community with His love and goodness.

In the run-up to this, Greg appeared on BBC London’s breakfast news show to talk about the launch. You can listen to his radio interview via this link. (He is on at 2 hours 37 mins.)

Greg also appeared on Premier Christian Radio news bulletins throughout the day, and a story on our opening appeared in the Guardian’s Society Daily column (right at the bottom!).

We’re excited about the attention this new project is getting, and hopeful that it will make a real impact on our community!

This blog will be updated tomorrow morning with photos and comments from the launch.

O for a thousand tongues to sing
My great Redeemer’s praise,
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace!
My gracious Master and my God,
Assist me to proclaim,
To spread through all the earth abroad
The honours of Thy name.

This morning as I sat at the piano for a short devotional time I picked up the hymn book and on turning a few pages in was once again drawn to read the following words of John Wesley as he lays out his Directions on Singing.

1. Learn these tunes before you learn any others; afterwards learn as many as you please.
2. Sing them exactly as they are printed here, without altering or mending them at all; and if you have learned to sing them otherwise, unlearn it as soon as you can.
3. Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a single degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up, and you will find it a blessing.
4. Sing lustily and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, then when you sung the songs of Satan.
5. Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest of the congregation, that you may not destroy the harmony; but strive to unite your voices together, so as to make one clear melodious sound.
6. Sing in time. Whatever time is sung be sure to keep with it. Do not run before nor stay behind it; but attend close to the leading voices, and move therewith as exactly as you can; and take care not to sing too slow. This drawling way naturally steals on all who are lazy; and it is high time to drive it out from us, and sing all our tunes just as quick as we did at first.
7. Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this attend strictly to the sense of what you sing, and see that your heart is not carried away with the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord will approve here, and reward you when he cometh in the clouds of heaven.

All these directions are really helpful, yet personally for me Wesley’s pinnacle, point 7, greatly provokes and stirs me. I truly believe that as we raise our voices in this way, with “an eye to God in every word we sing” that not only will the other points follow more naturally and our sung offering have an all the more beautiful and authentic ring about it, but more importantly the unheard sound of our hearts will be swelled to a mighty crescendo of uncontainable praise that will bubble over into the realms of the visible and audible.

As the current Chapel gathered family we have the backdrop of such rich heritage, yet many of us are carrying in our hearts and even regularly now saying that “the best days are yet to come”…

Dare I say that although the past has seen Westminster Chapel known and defined, in many way rightly so, by its preaching, I believe that, by God’s grace, right now and on into the future are days of a more visible multi-faceted church emerging. And a key part of our church family’s expression and witness will be the beautiful facet of our corporate worship. I believe we will see a fresh wave of authentic songs and sounds being released as we give ourselves all the more to honour and worship God in spirit and truth. Furthermore, I believe as we give ourselves to singing spiritually that there will be a fresh spirit of worship released amongst us that will see ‘ceilings’ that have long restricted us, broken through for good as we enter new land, venturing ways we have not been before. Want to join me in being a people who increasingly sing spiritually?

Thankfully, we do have plenty of recordings of Lloyd-Jones’ preaching, and listening to them is a thrilling experience. Up to now, however, I have not seen any video footage of the man. I have searched the internet on many occasions. The closest you get are various photos (in which he almost never smiles).

But finally, in the last couple of weeks, the MLJ Recordings Trust have posted some videos of him in interview, and presenting a documentary. Enjoy.