I have been asked one question more than any other since our launch back in 2015 in Brisbane. And it’s a very good question, not least because without a satisfactory answer to that question (in fact, without a compelling answer to that question), we really should just shut up shop and throw ourselves into more urgent, more effective areas of ministry.
So why does TGCA exist? Why is it worth pulling together twenty people from across Australia to meet as a Council a couple of times a year? Why is it worth investing considerable time and energy into a website? Why is it worth encouraging existing groups like the Perth Gospel Partnership to keep doing what they are doing, and establishing new networks in places like Victoria, Queensland and the Illawarra where none existed? Why is it worth pulling gospel workers and future ministry workers together for a national conference, as we plan to do in 2019?
Why Does TGCA Exist?
The answer is simple: to help advance the cause of the gospel in Australia and beyond.
Our desire – in fact our reason for existence – is to see the gospel flourish. Our greatest desire is to do everything in our power to keep the gospel front and centre on the one hand, and to encourage gospel partnerships on the other, so that the evangelistic temperature across our nation is raised, and we see ‘gospel ecosystems’ grow ever stronger in every state and territory.
So why does TGCA exist? The answer is simple: to help advance the cause of the gospel in Australia and beyond.
We are committed to ‘beating the drum’ for reformed theology and authentic, gospel-shaped ministry in the years ahead.
We are working hard to ensure that our website is a safe place to go for God’s people, where the same notes are sounded over and over again, as we play our part in championing proclamation of the gospel, as Christ is proclaimed from every part of the scriptures through careful, systematic, expository teaching; where God’s people are equipped to read the Bible and to explain the gospel to others; where new leaders are identified and trained in life-on-life, rigorous apprenticeships and discipling relationships; where a growing stream of potential gospel workers are encouraged to train at healthy bible colleges where they are further formed in character, convictions and competencies, and then sent all over the world to live and teach the gospel.
The TGCA Website
The TGCA website is fast becoming a powerful resource for the church across Australia. Our church directory lists many gospel-centred churches across the nation. We are in the process of setting up a page which will freely list any event which is consistent with our Foundation Documents across the nation, as well as a list of ministries whose ethos is consistent with our own. In addition, we are committed to make the many, many encouraging stories of gospel partnerships and movements across our nation more widely known.
But the work of TGCA cannot simply be reduced to a website.
The success or failure of TGCA depends on the extent to which we can encourage real and productive gospel partnerships across Australia and on the ground. From the beginning, we have spoken of TGCA as a ‘network of networks’. As we move forward, we hope to make TGCA an ‘umbrella’ under which existing ministries and organisations across Australia can effectively gather, building mutual trust and providing a much greater sense of the fact that we are ‘in this together’. Why would we do this? To see the evangelistic temperature across our nation raised, as we see ‘gospel ecosystems’ grow ever stronger in every state and territory.
From the start, the Council has been adamant that we would not do things simply for the sake of doing them. In particular, we were committed to supporting other ministries (many of which we have been involved in for many years), rather than competing with them. That’s why at points over the past couple of years, it may have seemed like we were doing nothing!
Moving forward, we will roll out some specific events.
TGCA Events in 2018 and 2019
Our aim is to hold public celebrations in several major centres during 2018 to encourage Christians to stay faithful to the gospel and to promote confidence in the gospel, and then in 2019, to run two conferences in early March, one for leaders and ministry workers, and a shorter one for theological college students, apprentices and other future ministry workers, as we focus on reaching Australia in the years ahead.
Why more conferences?
Not because we wish to compete – there are already great conferences (like Oxygen in June 2018, for example), which we would wholeheartedly support. But what we are planning is not simply a gathering for refreshment or even teaching (important though these are). The 2019 events will be focused on galvanizing key leaders from churches for the next 50 years as we seek to defend and promote the gospel together.
Challenges Faced by Australian Christians
One of the challenges in Australia is obviously the vast distances which separate us. We rejoice in the fact that all over this continent, God’s people has established gospel ministries, teaching the Bible, encouraging pastors, and so on. Many of these ministries, however, are isolated, with very little sense of connection to (or awareness of) other similar projects elsewhere. At TGCA, where it is useful to the kingdom, we are more than happy to provide a home for local ministry networks or conferences, offering theological stability in the long haul, a ‘brand’ which has no local political baggage, as well as some organizational support.
At points in the past, we Christians have not always worked well together for the sake of the gospel. At times that has been due to poor communication and misunderstanding. At times it has been due to a lack of trust, or sinful behaviour, or simply a mindset which acted as if we were the only people doing gospel ministry at that moment. TGCA has reached the place where at national level, and increasingly at a local level, we are able to encourage hard conversations, to promote trust, and where possible to facilitate godly ways of working together.
Every generation faces new and fresh theological and societal challenges. We are committed to facing these challenges, and to standing firm together. TGCA exists to encourage gospel ministry on the ground across Australia. We are committed to keeping the gospel front and centre on the one hand, and encouraging gospel partnerships on the other, so that the evangelistic temperature across our nation is raised, and we see ‘gospel ecosystems’ grow ever stronger in every state and territory.
