WHAT CHARMING BUT VIOLENT BETRAYERS DESERVE

 AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL CRISIS

Australia is now grappling with a national crisis — the violent abuse of women by men. Every four days in Australia a woman is being murdered [Source]. The sad probability is that she was murdered by “a current or former intimate partner” [Source]. But added to this alarming statistic is the even greater and more horrifying statistic of number of women who are experiencing abuse – physical; sexual; verbal; financial; psychological – daily. In fact, it is so prevalent that most people working in this arena know that most domestic abuse incidents in Australia are not reported. Abuse is oppression. And since the Bible is so clear and consistent in its condemnation of oppression of the vulnerable you would naturally assume that this national crisis was being thundered and denounced as a great evil from the majority of pulpits around our country at the moment. This assumption is further reinforced by the guesstimate that one-in-four women in every Australian church is regularly abused in some way by a man. But I suspect that it is not. While the Albanese Government’s announcement this week that will commit $925 million to combatting “gender-based violence” is laudable, if the history of attempting to resolve this crisis is any indication of its future success, it is likely to achieve little. Why don’t these expensive government responses work? What can be actually be done with historical support for its success? What, or who, needs to change in order to solve this national crisis? How should Christians and particularly church leaders respond to this crisis? And what does the ancient wisdom of King David’s Psalmic literature give a template for a proven model for societal transformation benefiting the fatherless and single mothers, and women in general?     

FAILED REMEDIES

In Prof. Nancy Pearcey’s book, The Toxic War on Masculinity, she highlights the research which shows that most government behavioural-change programs do not solve the root cause of male abuse of women.

“What is the root cause of domestic violence, then? People who work with abusive men say the cause is a particular belief system—and these men will not change their behaviour until they change their beliefs.”
Nancy Pearcey. The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes (p. 239). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

This is why most programs to ‘reform’ abusive men, do not work – unless it changes their beliefs about the value of women. Interestingly, based on one of the largest studies of its kind, Pearcey reports, of the three groups of men surveyed (secular, nominal Christians, and regular-church-goers) by far the least likely to abuse women were the committed regular-church-going Christian men (p. 14-15).

Many people assume that most theologically conservative men are patriarchal and domineering. But sociological studies have refuted that negative stereotype. Compared to secular men, devout Christian family men who attend church regularly are more loving husbands and more engaged fathers. They have the lowest rates of divorce. And astonishingly, they have the lowest rate of domestic violence of any major group in America (chapters 2 and 3). This research is largely unknown, and even Christians are surprised to learn about it. The evidence shows that Christianity has the power to overcome toxic behaviour in men and reconcile the sexes—an unexpected finding that has stood up to rigorous empirical testing.
Pearcey, Nancy. The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes (pp. 14-15). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Of all the solutions offered by governments to deter oppressive male abuse of women, prison is by far the least effective. My discussion with a defence lawyer this week confirmed what most of us suspect. If you put an abuse man in a prison with dozens of other abusive men who demean women that man is likely to imbibe even greater abusive tendencies! 

 

WHAT (OR WHO) NEEDS TO CHANGE?

The former Victorian Police Commissioner, Christine Nixon, and Professor Kate Fitz-Gibbon (University of Melbourne, School of Law), wrote in The Age last week (April 27, 2024) that what needs to change in Australia is men’s beliefs about women. The secular script that men are indoctrinated with through the sexualisation of women in advertising, Hollywood, and the so-called multi-trillion dollar “Porn Industry” must be exposed as fuelling an evil attitude in men about women. We can no longer ignore that around 90% of gender violence involves men abusing women. Prof. Pearcey points out that in the rare cases where it is a woman abusing a man it is commonly an act of self-defence.

Who needs to change? I am suggesting that Australian male pastors need to change. I would urge my pastoral fraternity to recognise that we must do what we can to model, teach, rebuke, exhort, and correct the men in our pews about their attitudes toward women by highlighting how our Lord Jesus the Christ was the Archetypal (the True) man to whom all men should aspire to resemble. Note the following facts about the Christ:

• He protected women against the violence of men (John 8:2-11).
• He never raised His voice to a woman (Isa. 42:2).
• He would not treat a woman as an object of sexual gratification (Matt. 15:19).
• He chose women to accompany Him and His disciples under His guardianship (Matt. 27:55).
• He ordained that it should be a woman to be the one honoured with making the announcement that He was risen from the dead (Luke 24:1-10).

Jesus did more for the dignity of woman than anyone else ever did!  

 

WHAT DOES THE ANCIENT WISDOM OF KING DAVID’S PSALMIC LITERATURE CONTRIBUTE TO SOLVING THIS CRISIS?

I encourage you to read Psalm 55 written by King David. He knew what it was to be confronted as the leader of a nation with a national crisis where violence and strife (Ps. 55:9) was rampant and the vulnerable were being oppressed, ruined, and defrauded (Ps. 55:11). To his horror, much of this oppression and abuse was being carried by men whom he had thought were his trusted friends (Ps. 55:12). In a passage eerily prophetic of what Jesus would experience from one of His most trusted followers (Matt. 10:4; 27:3), King David was shocked as to who his betrayer and underminer was (Ps. 55:13-15). After all, this man was charming. He had many friends. He was well-spoken of by all (Ps. 55:20). “His speech was smooth as butter – soften than oil” (Ps. 55:21) David sighs, “yet war was in his heart” where “he harbors animosity in his heart” (Ps. 55:21 NET). In her book, Prof. Pearcey gives example after example of women who were being abused by their husbands and went to their pastor and elders in desperation for help, only to be told that she was lying about her husband being an abuser. It seems that King David was not only one who was charmed by a man who could present himself as a sweet, charming, gentle and godly man – all the while, and secretly, living a double life in his home as an abuser of the one/s he was supposed to be loving, protecting and providing for. It was from King David’s own experience that he could say to the single mother and the fatherless the beautiful words of Psalm 55:22. What do these charming male betrayers deserve according to King David? Certainly not a godly wife who tolerates her husband’s secretive ungodly behaviour! If you to read what King David thought, then check out his extremely strong imprecatory words in Psalm 55:23. This should help us to understand just how seriously GOD feels about those who abuse women and children.

As I prepare to conclude my pastoral ministry at Legana I have endeavoured to foster an emerging generation of young men who will not model their manhood on the secular cultural script of a man is, but will, instead, chose to be counter-cultural and model their manhood on the traits of Jesus Christ found in the Gospels. And perhaps it is this small initiative of ours that will set an example for other young men to follow as well. It is my pastoral prayer for our church that no woman would experience verbal, physical, sexual, emotional, psychological, financial, abuse from her husband; and, that the men of our church would model their manhood on the person of Jesus of Nazareth. In fact, this is my prayer for our nation!

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

AT THE END OF THIS YEAR, I WILL RECOUNT 12 WONDERFUL THINGS FOR WHICH I AM THANKFUL

This is my last end-of-year Pastor’s Desk post. When the leader of our Live-stream ministry, Sari, asked me what I was thankful for this year, my immediate answer was obvious and predictable. But since then, I have considered that I also have eleven other things for which I am grateful to GOD for. In my last ever end-of-year Pastor’s Desk please indulge as I share my heartfelt thanks to God and for those God has used to bless me in my role as pastor of Legana Christian Church this year.

¶ I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart;
I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.
Psalm 9:1

When David penned this psalm he was clearly under pressure. He and his nation were under constant attack from surrounding enemy nations. Added to this, he wrote he was also being afflicted and near “to the gates of death” (Ps. 9:13). Yet his psalmic song is a song of thanks to the Lord (Ps. 9:1) in which he expresses his “praise to Your name, O Most High” (Ps. 9:2) and “recounts all Your praises” (Ps. 9:14). Despite his personal and national adversities he wanted to thank the LORD with all of his heart! And so do I.

The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
And those who know your name put their trust in You,
for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Psalm 9:9-10

In the midst of all that David was going through he knew that “the LORD sits enthroned forever” (Ps. 9:7). It was God who surrounded David with faithful and loyal friends who gave him the support that he needed when he most needed it. And I too can thank God that He gave me my best friend who cried with me, assured me that God was still in control (“enthroned”) and that He had not changed His plans for us, and that we would get through this trial! Indeed, Kim was a model of a godly woman. As David was also thankful to God for his colleagues, I too am so thankful to Pastor Phil Hills who prophesied to Kim what she had to do, and then on several occasions prophesied by phone and text messages to me in some of my darkest moments. In addition to this, I am extremely grateful to Bishop Richard Condie for his pastoral care and for taking the time to travel up from Hobart to lay hands on me and anoint me with healing oil. Tasmania is blessed to have such a godly bishop.

¶ Sing praises to the LORD, who sits enthroned in Zion!
Tell among the peoples his deeds!
Psalm 9:11

I have only just recently been discharged as an outpatient of the Launceston General Hospital. I have but high praise for all of the staff of the LGH. The doctors, nurses, orderlies, radiological and neurological teams were brilliant. I am particularly thankful to Dasha in the Neurology Department who wrote down on a sticky-note superficial siderosis and then said it would be best if I went home and Googled it for myself, which Kim did and then read it out to me. I then realised why Dasha didn’t want to tell me what it was. And speaking of my gratitude for the LGH staff, when I was first admitted into the Emergency Department at the LGH it was Queen Karen Dickson who, while taking leave from her regnum mãternus to visit the provincial parts of her realm (E.D.) where I was a guest, who then took full advantage of my temporal suboptimal incapacity as I lay there with a dozen wires glued to my head and chest that Saturday morning, who regally told me that she was “preaching tomorrow.” To which I responded with the correction, “No no no, I’m being discharged later today and I’ll be able to preach tomorrow.” Karen H.R.H. then shot back,“For someone who is so smart, you can be really really stupid! Have you noticed where you are?” And I am deeply appreciative of Karen, and I was very proud of her for doing exactly what she said she was going to do the next day during church service when she delivered an outstanding sermon on the text of John 5.

There are many parallels between Christ and king David. The prophet Isaiah prophesied that the coming Christ would possess “the key of David” (Isa. 22:22). This “key” was the ability that David had to inspire others and bring the best out of them. Jesus told the leaders of the church at Philadelphia that He was the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy:

¶ “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the Holy One, the True One, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.”
Revelation 3:7 

My diminished capacity enabled Kim to do for our church what I have never been very good at – inspiring others and bringing the best out of them. Since my return on March 26th many people have commented to me how thrilled they have been to see  so many of our young people used in our pulpit ministry — and I share their sentiments. King David had his “mighty men” (2Sam. 23:8) – but Legana is now blessed to have many (young) mighty men and women! Jared and Alexandra Nielsen have also made a significant contribution to this enhancement. This is another wondrous thing for which I am thankful to God for.

And it is not just from our pulpit that we now have mighty men and women, I am recounting my thanks to our ten elders and overseers who now share the pastoral burden of oversight for our church. I am particularly thankful to God for Dr. Ali Kidmas for his years of faithfulness as our senior elder. We now also have a team of seven deacons overseeing our various ministries and several intercessors committed to praying regularly for our church. (Our deacon responsible for our Worship Team, Thomas Ferguson, deserves much encouragement for his countless hours of dedication each week to prepare for our weekly Sunday worship services.)  I cannot begin to express just how grateful to God I am for our Board who have been outstanding in their level of care for, vision for, and oversight of, our church and our resources. Also, I am overwhelmed by the many unseen volunteers who have laboured to make our grounds so presentable (Lydia, Alan, and Paul Chatwin) for whom I am ever thankful to God.

Finally, my twelfth thanksgiving prayer point is for those largely unknown to our church but ocassionally mentioned in our church’s prayer points. This group of people are comprised of my local ministerial colleagues:
particularly Noel and Beckie Eagling, Anson van Delden, Steve Fitzallen; and interstate, pastors including:
Chris Maynard (“Pastor Encouragement”), Sean Wood, Ted Pangilinan, Kevin Thomas, and Michael Ridley. Most of these precious people have prayed daily for me and been in contact with me weekly (or every other week) to see how I was going. In addition to these colleagues I have been so encouraged by Prof. Stuart Piggin who has been very gracious toward me in his encouragement and prayers. As no doubt king David would have experienced during the background to his writing of Psalm 9, I too have felt unusually and supernaturally strengthened by the prayers of God’s people.

As you can see from these twelve thanksgiving prayer points I, like king David in Psalm 9, have a lot to be thankful to God for. And I hope that you will join me in prayer for the future of our church as the mantle of leadership is transferred to a new senior pastor. 

 

OUR SPIRITUAL WARFARE

Finally, many many people have raised with me their sense that what has happened to me (and our church) this year has been a spiritual attack by the evil one. I do not disagree with them. And this might surprise some people because I don’t talk about this very much. The reason is that I have an understanding of how the Bible says we should engage in spiritual warfare. I see king David employing this practice in Psalm 9. Rather than directing our attention at our enemy, the spiritual warfare encouraged and modelled in the Bible is to direct our attention and increased devotion to God! And this has been my practice and encouragement for others to do the same.

¶ Arise, O LORD! Let not man prevail;
let the nations be judged before You!
Put them in fear, O LORD!
Let the nations know that they are but men! Selah
Psalm 9:19-20

Thank you for indulging me by reading about my twelve wondrous thanksgiving prayers for this past year. 

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

THE START OF A NEW SEASON - Began the day that David could no longer kill giants!

 

I’m heading into a new season. Last Sunday marked the beginning of a new season for our church. I always knew this season was coming. I had just thought that it was still a few years off. When we arrived in Legana in 1995 it was love at first sight. We had lived in a high-density part of Melbourne, just ten minutes out of the city centre, where we had been pioneering a church in a very needy part of the city. When the Lord called us to Tasmania we were initially unsure where we were going to be called. Then it became obvious that the Holy Spirit was calling us to Launceston — where we would be based in Legana (ten minutes north of the city of Launceston). Whenever anyone asked, “If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you really want to live?” My answer has always been the same: “Right here.” Yet, Kim and I always knew that the day would come when we would have to transition into a new season. As I was convalescing and physically battling with what appeared to be chronic fatigue, in my daily Bible reading I read the story of the turning-point in King David’s seasons. He had once been the young “giant-killing king of Israel” who was now the sixty-year-old weary king who was about to be killed by a giant named Ishi-benob. This became the moment when four very young men stepped-up and did what their previous generation thought was impossible: they each killed a giant! 

THE DAY THAT DAVID COULD NO LONGER KILL GIANTS

¶ There was war again between the Philistines and Israel,
and David went down together with his servants,
and they fought against the Philistines. And David grew weary.
Second Samuel 21:15

Years before David’s season changed, the Philistine’s champion, Goliath, challenged the national army of Israel (under the leadership of King Saul) to come out and face him man-to-man in one-on-one combat. But there was not one Hebrew man who dared accept his challenge! When the sixteen-year-old shepherd boy, David of Bethlehem, arrived with supplies from his father for David’s seven brothers, David did what none before him had dared do: he accepted the challenge of the 12-fingered giant to enter into one-on-one combat. And with God’s help, David defeated him.

“AND DAVID GREW WEARY”

Years later, David is now much older – probably close to 60 years of age. He no longer has the youthful vigour that he once had. “And David grew weary” the unnamed prophet writes. And what nearly happened next nearly changed the course of human history!

And Ishbi-benob, one of the descendants of the giants,
whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of bronze,
and who was armed with a new sword, thought to kill David.
But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and
attacked the Philistine and killed him.
Then David’s men swore to him,
“You shall no longer go out with us to battle,
lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”
Second Samuel 21:16-17

WHAT DAVID COULD NO LONGER DO
– COULD STILL BE DONE –
EVEN MORE EFFECTIVELY!

After this episode, the unnamed narrator includes a remarkable series of giant-killing tales that actually greatly honoured David (2Sam. 21:22). Four young men, Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Sebbecai the Hushathite, Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, and Jonathan the son of Shimei (David’s brother) each slew giants as big as—if not bigger than—the original Goliath that the young David had slain!

But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and attacked the Philistine and killed him.
Then David’s men swore to him, “You shall no longer go out with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”
¶ After this there was again war with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph,
who was one of the descendants of the giants. And there was again war with the Philistines at Gob,
and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, the Bethlehemite, struck down Goliath the Gittite,
the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. And there was again war at Gath,
where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot,
twenty-four in number, and he also was descended from the giants. And when he taunted Israel,
Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down. These four were descended from
the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.
Second Samuel 21:17-22

David had been fighting battles, that no-one thought could be fought – let alone won, for many years. He was not just weary – he was battle-weary. But in the process of being present, courageous, faithful, and fearless, he inspired a generation of young warriors to step up and enter into the fray with the confidence that they could. What their parents and grand-parents thought could not be done, and what they had never witnessed anyone even brave enough to try, these four young men serving David dared to believe was also possible with God’s help — just as David had once done. While the day came that David could no longer kill giants, it came on the same day that four young men were inspired to believe that they could!

It would be a nice way to conclude the Biblical story of David’s life with this honourable tribute of his inspiration of the next generation, but sadly, this is not where it ends – and even sadder for the memory of King David is the narration that the shepherd-turned-warrior King did not handle his lack of military-identity with the required humility needed for such a high royal office. The Scriptures reveal that there are certain life-changes which require a good deal of humility to be able to enter well, and even though David, the once humble shepherd boy, had been selected by God precisely because of his humility, toward the end of his life he did not maintain it as well as he had when he started. This reveals that there are some great and difficult lessons for those of us who are ageing to learn from this and to recognise and accept when a season changes we must too.

Change is never easy. But it is necessary, even for churches. There is a tragic aspect to church history that reveals those churches that forsook Christ’s mission and refused (or were unable) to change, ended up dying. The challenge before us as a church is to embrace change and recommit ourselves to our God-given mission to know Jesus and make Jesus known. It is my hope that we can all work together and cheer on the next generation of “giant-killers” and that: (i) parents of primary-school aged children will prioritise getting their children to Kids Church each Sunday; (ii) the parents of teens will encourage their teens to commit to our youth group each Friday; and, (iii) each of us will get a fresh revelation from the Spirit about the times we are now living in and why gathering together as a church family each Sunday and in our Home Groups, is now more important than ever before!  As we heard from several people last Sunday who brought prophetic words, we are now heading into a new and greater season of anointing and harvest! 

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

THE DAY THAT DAVID COULD NO LONGER KILL GIANTS

¶ There was war again between the Philistines and Israel, and David went down together with his servants, and they fought against the Philistines. And David grew weary.
Second Samuel 21:15

Years earlier on the day that the Philistine's champion, Goliath, challenged the army Israel (under the leadership of King Saul) to come out and face him man-to-man in one-on-one combat — not one man dared accept his challenge! When the sixteen-year-old shepherd boy, David of Bethlehem, arrived with supplies from his father for David's seven brothers, David did what none before him had dared do. He accepted the challenge of the 12-fingered giant and with God's help defeated him.

AND DAVID GREW WEARY

Years later, David is now much older - probably close to 60 years of age. He no longer has the youthful vigour that he once had. “And David grew weary” the unnamed prophet writes. And what nearly happened next nearly changed the course of human history!

And Ishbi-benob, one of the descendants of the giants, whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of bronze, and who was armed with a new sword, thought to kill David. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, “You shall no longer go out with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”

  Second Samuel 21:16-17

WHAT DAVID COULD NO LONGER DO, COULD STILL BE DONE - EVEN MORE EFFECTIVELY!

After this episode, the unnamed narrator includes a remarkable series of giant-killing tales that actually greatly honoured David (2Sam. 21:22). Four young men, Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Sebbecai the Hushathite, Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, and Jonathan the son of Shimei (David’s brother) each slew giants as big as—if not bigger than—the original Goliath that the young David had slain!

But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, “You shall no longer go out with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”  ¶ After this there was again war with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph, who was one of the descendants of the giants. And there was again war with the Philistines at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, the Bethlehemite, struck down Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number, and he also was descended from the giants. And when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down. These four were descended from the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

Second Samuel 21:17-22

David had been fighting battles, that no-one thought could be fought - let alone won, for many years. He was not just weary. He was battle-weary. But in the process of being present, courageous, faithful, and fearless, he inspired a generation of young warriors to step up and enter into the fray. What their parents and grand-parents thought could not be done, and what they had never witnessed anyone even brave enough to try, these four young men dared to believe was also possible with God’s help just as David had once done. While the day came that David could no longer kill giants, it came on the same day that four young men were inspired to believe that they could!

It would be a nice way to conclude the Biblical story of David's life with this honourable tribute of his inspiration of the next generation, but sadly, this is not where it ends - and even sadder for the memory of King David is the narration that the shepherd-turned-warrior King did not handle his lack of military-identity with the required humility needed for such a high royal office. The Scriptures reveal that there are certain life-changes which require a good deal of humility to be able to enter well, and even though David, the once humble shepherd boy, had been selected by God precisely because of his humility, toward the end of his life he did not maintain it as well as he had when he started. There are some great and difficult lessons for us who are ageing to learn from this.

Pastor Andrew Corbett