I just finished reading Phillip Jensen's Sermon from Friday night. On Monday there was an article written by Kelly Burke in the paper which was wasn't very nice to Phillip. Then on Tuesday there was this article which also wasn't very nice. I don't much like Kelly Burke's article. She seems to have it in for Evangelical Christians in general and Jensen's in particular. I haven't seen her write a firendly article yet.

I didn't really mind his sermon too much. I thought it was alright. It seemed to be very "Sydney" like (which is probably what you'd expect from Phillip Jensen), but that isn't always bad. As someone commented to me yesterday, it may not have been the best sermon to preach as ones first as Dean of the Cathedral. I can see how it would piss people off. Maybe that's ok, but I would be tending towards being offensive in week two. First impressions count and it would be a shame to get yourself ignored because of your first sermon.

But as far as the sermon goes, it didn't upset me.

It's emphasis was on the preaching of Christ. He said: "The Cathedral pulpit in the centre of the city, the suburban pulpits scattered across the whole metropolitan area, are critical in the free and unfettered proclamation of the gospel." I would agree with that statement. But I would want to say that an effective pulpit ministry must be backed up by more than just boldness and sound theology but also by (and I'd say most importantly by) a life lived in service to Christ, His followers and the world. The gospel lacks all substance if it can't make a difference in the lives of those that believe it. The sermon seemed a lot about talk, without much walk. I agree with the talk but I would pray for boldness to do the walk.