In this episode Matt and Jonathan talk about what true repentance looks like. Can you be repentant and yet still have a besetting sin? What does it mean to "sincerely repent?" If you're sinning a lot, then should you come to the Lord's Table or skip that week? And how can a pastor counsel those in his parish who just can't kick some sinful habit?

This week we're bringing you one of Matt's sermons from Advent 2024. The text is on Luke 3:7-20.

In this episode, Matt and Jonathan discuss that little pastoral qualification that runs around your house, is way too loud, eats all your food, and can sometimes be hard to manage. You guessed it - this episode is for the children.

What does God mean when He says a pastor's children need to be "submissive" and "believers"? What about pastors whose kids leave the house and deconstruct their faith? Why is all this a qualification for pastors anyway?

In this episode, Matt and Jonathan talk about the danger of treating the Bible like it's only a textbook. While learning the ins and outs of good Bible study is important, it's possible to let Bible study tactics actually keep one from submitting to God's word. It's easy to dissect Scripture. It's a lot harder to allow the Scripture to dissect us. But that's what it's meant to do.

"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart," Hebrews 4:12.

We start this episode off with an exciting announcement about Matt. Then we talk about books. What are some of our go-to books for pastors to read? Whether it be history, theology, philosophy, fantasy, biography - you name it - reading good books is important to pastoral ministry. We talk about why...

In Christ,

The Cranmer Fellows

In this episode Matt and Jonathan talk about the relationship between the Bible and the Church Fathers.

The Roman Catholic Church teaches that tradition is as authoritative as the Scriptures. On the other side of the pendulum there are those who say Scripture is the only authority - there's no reason to read the Fathers. But what exactly did the Reformers mean by "sola Scriptura?" And where do we think the Fathers stand in relation to Scripture interpretation?

In this episode Matt and Jonathan talk about last Sunday's service. We observed All Saints Day with our bishop who confirmed 16 people and consecrated Church of the Good Shepherd. It's been around 15 years since the Episcopal Church kicked Good Shepherd out of its building. Now Good Shepherd has paid off the mortgage for our current building. Matt and Jonathan discuss how all of this stuff combined into one Sunday made for such a meaningful service. We also talk about how simply preaching the word of God has been Good Shepherd's strategy all these years. Thanks be to God for all that He's done!

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Matt and Jon are at their diocesan clergy conference this week, so here's a sermon by Matt from a few weeks ago. The text is Acts 21:27-22:1.

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In this episode Matt and Jon discuss the recent moral failing of Dr. Steven Lawson. Lawson has done a tremendous amount of good work for the church, but all men are sinners. Matt and Jon talk about what happened with Lawson, why he can’t be restored to the pastoral office, and some safeguards that are helpful for pastors to avoid falling into sexual sin.

Matt and Jon respect Lawson for his work in the kingdom of God and we pray for his repentance and restoration in his marriage and other relationships.

This is a Difficult Passage Episode. Today Matt and Jon sit down to discuss a bizarre passage in Judges 11. Jephthah, a judge in Israel, makes a tragic vow to God. If God gives him victory over his enemies he'll offer the first thing that comes out of his home to greet him as a burnt offering. What was he thinking? Well, either way - his daughter comes out to greet him once he gets back...

Matt and Jon talk about the two primary views of this passage, share what they think, and discuss how one might preach Judges 11.

Hope you enjoy!

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This week we continue talking about end times. We're diving more into postmillennialism, some different ways of approaching Revelation as an entire book, and some tips on teaching the darn thing.

Enjoy!

The Cranmer Fellows

We're back! And we're talking about the end of all things!

In today's episode, we talk about the book of Revelation - how we interpreted it in the past and what's changed in our thinking. And we discuss a little bit of what we think about the Millennium.

It's really good to be back recording! We hope you enjoy this episode.

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This is the second part to the conversation Jonathan and Scott had about training as preachers. We primarily talk about manuscript writing and delivery.

In Christ,

The Cranmer Fellows

In this episode Jonathan is joined by Scott Pineau. Scott is one of the wardens at Church of the Good Shepherd and assists Matt and Jonathan in preaching.

Scott and Jonathan talk about what it's like to be preachers in training. They discuss things they assumed about preaching that they no longer believe, what it's like having someone else edit and review their sermons, and how they prepare to preach.

This is the first half of the conversation. The second half will come out next week.

In Christ,

The Cranmer Fellows

How successful is your ministry? Are your sermons impactful and meaningful? How full is your church? Are you getting results?

Let's face it, as pastors we often equate our success in ministry with "greatness" and bigger numbers. But what do you do if God has assigned to you an "unexciting" ministry? Is God really in a church with 45-50 people? Definitely not 10 people, right? What about when you suffer in ministry - is God in the midst of that? Our guest today, Chad Bird, helps us see that not only is God present, but He's more present in these things than we realize.

In today's episode Chad unpacks what Martin Luther meant when he wrote of the "theologian of the cross." The theologian of the cross understands that the things of God are rarely the mountain-top experiences. Rather, God reveals Himself in suffering, in un-met expectations, in ordinary life, in the word, in bread, in wine, in water.

Pastor, if you've been weighed down by the burden of greatness, be encouraged to lay that aside and just be a normal minister who preaches the good news and administers the sacraments.

In this special edition of the Cranmer Fellows Podcast, Matt and Jonathan set up a camera to record the first ever (and perhaps only ever) video pod. It's all because we have a special announcement regarding the Cranmer Fellowship at Church of the Good Shepherd.

Are you discerning whether or not God is calling you to ministry in the church? Do you want to get hands on ministry experience? What about seminary? Is there a way to combine education and experiential training? Let's talk. Email us at cranmerfellowship@gmail.com!

We have another sermon for you this week. This is from last Sunday and is taken from Acts 17:16-21.

Enjoy!

This episode is the recording of Matt's Pentecost sermon this year.

We hope it encourages you this week!

In Christ,

The Cranmer Fellows

A few weeks ago we had the pleasure of welcoming Dr. Carl Trueman to our diocesan synod. During that time we were privileged to sit down with Dr. Trueman to ask him questions about his pastoral experience.

In this episode we talk about the call to pastoral ministry, earning and burning good will with parishioners, dealing with physical abuse in the church, balancing pastoral and scholarly work, and much more.

We hope you enjoy the pod!

In Christ,

The Cranmer Fellows.

In this episode Jonathan has the pleasure of sitting down with the director of Jews for Jesus in Jerusalem: Yoel Ben David.

Yoel talks about how he came to faith from orthodox Judaism, what it's like sharing Jesus in Jerusalem, and his heart for serving the church as an Anglican pastor.

We know you'll be encouraged by Yoel and his ministry! If you feel so inclined, please go to ⁠https://jewsforjesus.org/staff/yoel-ben-david⁠ and support his work over in Israel.

In Christ,

The Cranmer Fellows