Scotland: lessons from a later local lockdown
en asked Jeremy Middleton, minister of Gilcomston Church
in Aberdeen, what
lessons can be learned from returning to a
stricter lockdown.
The
original
lockdown,
however
unpalatable, was at
least predictable. Its
terms were clear and its scope was broad:
a total lockdown throughout the land. We
were all in the same boat.
Spirit and power preaching
Around
150 members
of
the Crieff
Fellowship gathered at Crieff Hydro over
three days in January to benefit from the
ministries of Dr Liam Goligher and Neil
Powell.
Liam Goligher gave
four powerful and
profoundly
insightful addresses
from
the
book of Psalms (with, against the backdrop
of Psalm 8, a detour in the second address
into Proverbs 8) which stretched the minds
and warmed the hearts of those privileged
to be present, enabling us to ‘fix our eyes
on Jesus’.
Crieff: aware of God’s love
The
January
gathering
of
the Crieff
Fellowship saw almost 200 members bene-fiting from the ministry of Alistair Begg and
Sinclair Ferguson.
No stranger
to
these gatherings, Alistair
Begg brought his customary clarity of exposition and incisiveness of pastoral application to
four thrilling sessions on Ephesians 3, while
his after-dinner address on the first night helpfully
highlighted
distinctive
features
of
Spurgeon’s
John-the-Baptist-like ministry.
That his own ministry reflected precisely the qualities to which he alluded – authority, coupled with a deep humility; integrity; and boldness of application – is perhaps the best measure of the quality of pastoral ministry by
which those present were richly nourished.