Teaching for today

The twentieth Century has highly prized human freedom. Totalitarian state control in the former Communist countries has been seen to collapse. Is there now a moral danger from the political right where some advocate freedom unfettered by morality?

"Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the praise of Israel." (Psalm 22:3)"Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord." (Psalm 150:6)

"I will also appoint him my first-born, the most exalted of the kings of the earth. I will maintain my love to him for ever, and my covenant with him will never fail." (Psalm 89:27-28)"He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he will be a priest on his throne. And there will be harmony between the two." (Zechariah 6:13)

"With my great power and outstretched arm I made the earth and its people and the animals that are on it, and I give it to anyone I please." (Jeremiah 27:5)"His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No-one can hold back his hand or say to him: 'What have you done?'" (Daniel 4:34-35)

"I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you." (Genesis 17:7)"Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant." (Hebrews 7:22)

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." (Genesis 1:1)"By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible." (Hebrews 11:3)

Ranald Macaulay introduces this mini-series by looking at the biblical foundations of the family. He also asks how Christians should seek to share their view of the family with others.

Hermeneutics is concerned with how we read and understand the Bible. In the last lecture of the series, Professor Mackay challenges us to be objective in our interpretation of scripture.

How similar is the text we read in our Bibles to that of the original documents? Which of the many available 'texts' should Bibles be translated from, and how should they be translated? John Mackay carefully answers these important questions.

Professor Mackay talks about how and why the 39 books of the Old Testament and 27 books of the New Testament are in our Bible today. Including why certain books, such as those in the Apocrypha, should not be regarded as the Word of God.

William Carey as the "Father of Modern Missions" started the movement, under God, which was to make Christianity a truly global faith. His wide concept of mission embraced preaching, social, educational and translation work.

William Wilberforce is chiefly remembered as the reformer who campaigned for the abolition of the slave trade. He was at the heart of British politics for over forty years during the inflammatory times of the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars.

Lord Shaftesbury had a profound contribution to social reform. He spearheaded countless campaigns to care for the mentally ill, to reduce working hours in factories and to stop children being sent down mines.

As a minister of Holy Trinity Church, Cambridge, for 54 years Charles Simeon influenced a whole generation of Christian leaders. It has been said that his influence on the nation and the Church of England is incalculable.

The Wesleys were both tireless preachers of the gospel, mightily used in the Eighteenth Century revival. Charles is best known for his remarkable work as a Christian hymn writer. In his estimated 250,000 miles on horseback John was to establish a national network of methodist societies to follow-up new converts to Christianity.

As a conclusion to the series, John Mackay assesses the application of biblical law to politics today. At the end of the lecture Prof. Mackay answers of questions about the series as a whole.

How does the coming of Christ and the completion of His work effect the relevance and function of the Law in the New Testament? This lecture, among other things, looks at how Jesus himself and the Apostle Paul regarded the Law.

As an introduction to this much neglected subject, John Mackay looks at what the Law in the Old Testament entails and how it should be as valued now. "The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold." (Psalm 119:72).

"The one through whom all things were made, by whom and for whom all things exist." Lesslie Newbigin addresses the important subject of Christ's uniqueness and Lordship over all.

Harry Blamires continues the series, now looking at the effect in modern culture of abandoning God's rule.

Harry Blamires has been involved for decades in what he calls the "double campaign" of Christian apologetics: (1) expounding & defending the Christian faith and (2) demythologising contemporary secularism. In this opening lecture of a series of three, he explains that Christianity and Secularism are fundamentally opposed.

In his concluding lecture, Harry Blamires seeks to offer his encouragement to Christians as they respond and oppose secularist thinking. He especially focuses on the increasingly liberal approach to academia. At the end of this lecture he answers questions and comments on the series as a whole.

If love is the fulfulment of the law, then do Christians still need the law? If we should obey God's law, which laws in the Old Testament are still binding on Christians?

The great Scottish Covenanter and brilliant university teacher, Samuel Rutherford, was born into an age when the king answered to no-one - 'The king is law' (Rex Lex). But Rutherford believed the opposite. He wrote a book called 'Lex Rex', translated as 'The law is king'. The notion that the monarch was subject to a greater authority - God - was so radical that, had he not first died of illness, Rutherford's courageous stand would have seen him martyred for treason.