In Depth:  David Robertson

David Robertson

Be reasonable! That’s a cry I’ve not heard for some time. Maybe ‘reason’ is out of style in our modern ‘what you feel is what you are society’.

But one aspect of the controversial Scottish Government Hate Crime Act is that it is predicated on what a ‘reasonable person’ would think what has been reported is hateful, likely to stir up hatred and cause ‘fear and alarm’. But there is the rub – what is a ‘reasonable person’?

David Robertson

The Moral Maze is a BBC Radio 4 programme which is as fascinating as it is frustrating.

Superbly chaired by Michael Burke, it normally follows the format of four hosts questioning four different guests on what is deemed to be a moral subject.

David Robertson

During the lengthy period of debates about same-sex marriage and sexuality, the Church of Scotland leadership often spoke of the ‘trajectory’ that the Church was on.

By this they meant a trajectory towards a more ‘progressive’ and ‘liberal’ theology and practice. For over 20 years I have been writing about the Church of Scotland’s ‘trajectory’ – a trajectory which I believed would end up with its demise. I had thought it would be a gradual decline resulting in extinction by 2050. I was wrong. As this year’s Assembly demonstrates, the Church of Scotland has now fallen off a cliff edge and is in a state of terminal decline. It is doubtful whether it will exist in any meaningful form by 2030.

David Robertson

In many ways George Orwell’s 1984 could be regarded as a prophetic novel. Although written in 1949 there are parts of it that are even more apposite for 2023.

In the novel Orwell describes the Two Minutes Hate – a daily public period in which the citizens of Oceania watch a film showing Emmanuel Goldstein, the main enemy of the State, and his Brotherhood. They are encouraged to show their hate for him and their love for Big Brother. Orwell’s picture is a masterful description of group psychology – what he calls groupthink. It shows how people can transfer their own anxieties and anger on to an external enemy (who doesn’t really exist), and thus diverts them from questioning The Party – the governing authorities. In this way The Party can deal with thoughtcrime and thoughtcriminals.

David Robertson

It may not be one of Jordan Peterson’s ‘12 Rules for Life’, but I would suggest that it is fast becoming one of the unwritten rules for Christian commentators – ‘Be nice’.

Or, expressed in its negative form, ‘That’s not nice’. ‘If you can’t say something nice, say nothing’. Sometimes other words are used which express the same idea – ‘winsome’ or ‘gracious’. The latter certainly has a Biblical precedent, but I wonder if it should be confused with ‘niceness’?

David Robertson

‘I was, I think, the last speaker, and after dwelling on the encroachments made by the Court of Session, confirmed by the final judgement of the House of Lords, and on the manner in which we had been treated in Parliament, where the voices of the Scottish Members had been altogether overborne by the English majority, I said, on the spur of the moment, that such injustice was enough to justify Scotland in demanding the repeal of the Union. With that, to my surprise, and somewhat to my consternation, the meeting rose as one man, waving hats and handkerchiefs, and cheering again and again. No doubt the enthusiastic feelings of the people assisted our object, but I took care not to speak of repeal of the Union at our subsequent meetings.’ *

Reverend Walter Wood of Elie, describing his visit to the south of Dumfriesshire in the winter of 1842/3 – demonstrating that the question of Scottish independence is not an entirely new one in the church!

David Robertson

Every now and then a film comes along, or some other cultural moment, which you just know is an absolute gift to the preacher or evangelist seeking to communicate the good news of Christ.

Think Chariots of Fire, Schindler’s List, The Matrix, Apocalypse Now or The Tree of Life. I recently saw another quiet masterpiece – which was so deeply moving because it reflected so beautifully the fractured needs of humanity – and, at least to me, indicated how suitable the Good News of Jesus is for such needs.

David Robertson

We live in a hopeless world. Or at least a world full of false hopes which are quickly dashed.

In the West we seem to be going through what Os Guinness calls ‘a civilisational moment’ – a time when the foundations are being destroyed. Reading of the four horsemen of the apocalypse from Revelation at times feels like reading a news bulletin – death, war, civil strife, famine and plague no longer seem the stuff of ages past. The fears that people have about climate change, racism, economic depression or gender confusion only add to the growing sense of hopelessness and gloom.

David Robertson

Though it was an inevitable outcome, there is still deep sorrow for the decision of the Church of Scotland at its General Assembly to allow ministers and churches to conduct same-sex marriages.

There are many lessons for the wider evangelical church to learn, not least the role that evangelicals played in this decision.

David Robertson

A few moons ago when we were studying theology, some of us wondered what relevance, other than historical curiosity and help with understanding Paul’s letters, Gnosticism had?

The rules of the world based on a philosophy which saw a disconnect between body and spirit, the physical and the spiritual, seemed a million miles away from our common-sense, Christian-saturated, Western society.

David Robertson

‘Misinformation’ may well become the word of 2022.

The popular podcaster, Joe Rogan, who has 11 million subscribers, was threatened with ‘cancellation’ because of alleged ‘misinformation’ provided in a three hour programme with Dr Robert Malone. The troubling thing is that without knowing what this ‘misinformation’ was, and without listening to the programme, many people just joined in the pile on – on the basis that the accusation must be right because ‘270 scientists/doctors signed a letter saying so’. And yet dig a bit deeper and you find that only 87 of the signatories were doctors. The rest included engineers, psychologists, teachers, social workers, students, several podcasters, a dentist, and even a vet!

David Robertson

‘Is there any word from the Lord?’ (Jer.37:17). When King Zedekiah made a private plea to an imprisoned Jeremiah, I suspect he was not looking for the answer he got: ‘Yes, you will be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon.’ It takes courage to be a prophet.

Is there a prophetic ministry today? Whilst I accept that the church’s foundation of the apostles and prophets (Eph.2:20) does not need to be relaid and that we do not have prophets delivering to us the new New Testament, is there no place for the prophetic within the church and to the society? The application of Biblical principles by such as ‘the men of Issachar who understood the times and knew what Israel should do’ (1 Chron.12:32) is surely something that is directly relevant and needed today.

David Robertson

‘Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?’ (Who guards the guardians?) is the question the Roman poet Juvenal asked, at just about the same time as the New Testament church was rapidly expanding.

It’s not often that Latin phrases come to mind (mainly because I know so few), but this one seems entirely appropriate for the increasing tendency we are seeing in our major internet platform providers to decide that they, and they alone, are the arbiters of truth.

David Robertson

I was recently in a fascinating conference conversation with the remarkable Andy Crouch.

Andy is the former editor of Christianity Today and editor of several books – amongst them his 2017 The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place. In the course of his conversation, he mentioned his practice of having a one day ‘Sabbath’ where he does not use social media, internet or ‘devices’. I am increasingly coming across people who think it is a good idea to have one day a week set apart from our usual routine and set apart for the Lord. Whereas it was once fashionable, even amongst Christians to mock the perceived ‘extreme Sabbatarianism’ of the Victorian period, and the Western Isles in Scotland until very recently; now people are beginning to wonder whether we may have thrown out the baby with the bathwater. Was J.C. Ryle correct when he said that if we lose the Lord’s Day, we will end up losing Christianity in the nation?

David Robertson

The news from Australia made it all the way to the Church Times in the UK. And the headline was stark and clear – ‘Australia: Anglican women more likely to suffer domestic violence.’ (Church Times 18 June 2021).

Given that many people only read the headline, given that the report on which it was based was commissioned by the Anglican Church in Australia and given the ‘facts’ produced in the article – the implication was clear: those who are taught Biblical values are more likely to abuse and be abused.

David Robertson

In May I wrote about the danger of neglecting Biblical church discipline and instead replacing it with the world’s methods.

It seemed to me an entirely non-controversial article and yet it turned out to create more of a stir than most things I write! The irony was that an article which suggested we should avoid doing church discipline through social media – was condemned and critiqued on social media!

David Robertson

As the evangelical church in the West seems to be tearing itself apart over a number of scandals, the thought came to mind that there is a fairly simple (but not simplistic) solution. What if we returned to the Biblical practice of church discipline?

In our individualistic society, where individual autonomy and ‘rights’ trump everything, the notion of church discipline is not one that is popular, even in the church. The term brings to mind associations with authoritarianism, legalism, pettiness and bullying. A misuse of discipline can lead to those abuses, but you don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater. I would suggest that if we returned to a Biblical understanding of church discipline then we would have a far better framework for dealing with many of our current problems. Of course, that also means that we need a better understanding of what the church actually is – confusion about ecclesiology is wreaking havoc amongst us.

David Robertson

Imagine Martin Luther without the printing press? You would never have heard of him.

In the providence of God, Luther came to prominence just at the time that the Gutenberg printing press was invented. His 95 Theses was one of the first printed books. As a result, the Reformation doctrines spread throughout Europe. No matter how much the court and church in England tried to prevent the new ideas coming in – they could not be prevented. Through the ports of Eastern England and Scotland, ships from Germany, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and the Baltic states brought in Lutheran books and pamphlets. The ‘virus’ of Christianity could not be contained – through the traditional methods.

David Robertson

‘Demas, having loved this world, has forsaken me’ (2 Tim. 4:10). Is there anything more depressing for a Christian, especially a Christian leader, to see his close allies, his friends, his co-workers, deserting Christ and turning to the world?

We expect, and can almost cope with the hostility of the world – but other than my own sin, I know of nothing more discouraging and defeating than the fall of Christian leaders who I admired and was taught by.

David Robertson

Walking through the Bush near our home in Sydney my heart was heavy for the state of the church, both in Australia and in the UK. What is wrong? What can be done about it? I’m sure there are many answers to that, and I have spent a great deal of my life thinking about, and experiencing, much of what is wrong – as well as rejoicing in what is good, right, pure and holy. As I walked it struck me that there was an explanation right at my feet – deadwood. Here in Australia we are in the midst of bushfire season. Last year, as the world knows, it was one of the worst ever, with considerable areas of the country being burnt. But bushfires happen every year – and they are not necessarily bad. Except when there has not been a fire for years and there is a lot of deadwood which acts as fuel for a much more destructive fire. The fire cleanses, regenerates and enables plants to flower that would not do so without the heat. The Message translation of John 15:6 is fascinating: ‘Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire.’ What if the church has a lot of deadwood, including amongst the leadership? Jesus tells us that His Father is the gardener who cuts of every branch that bears no fruit. But what if the Father has stopped pruning and left us to our own devices? The indigenous people in Australia have for many centuries had a policy of ‘backburning’ or ‘controlled burns’. But the Europeans largely don’t like that. It seems wrong to deliberately set fires. Besides which it creates too much smoke. As a result, in recent years, in order to preserve our own comfort and because we can’t be bothered, there has been little controlled burning. So, when the fire inevitably comes it has years of deadwood to feed off. I wonder if one of the things that has been happening in the church is that we have forgotten church discipline and we have permitted a significant amount of ‘deadwood’ – just to keep the peace? Perhaps what Paul says in Romans 1 happens to society (God leaves us to have it our way), has also happened in the church?

Why is there deadwood? Because it has not remained in the vine. It is attached to the vine but is no longer living. Sometimes you can’t tell until a wind comes and breaks it off, and the fire comes and renews what still has life. I wonder how many churches will survive when the storm comes? I wonder how much of our work will have turned out to be wood, stubble and straw, when the fire comes to test the quality of each person’s work (1 Cor. 3:14).

David Robertson

When the governments asked us to shut down our church services – the vast majority of evangelicals acquiesced willingly. After all, was this not love for neighbour?

We were to shut down in order to save the NHS and not kill our grannies, plus it was only going to be for a few weeks. Several months later, things have changed. It appears as though Covid-19 is to be with us for some time and is unlikely to be eliminated or even suppressed.

David Robertson

The church is the bride of Christ. The church is the pillar and foundation of the truth. The church is beautiful, glorious and victorious. Which is why the gates of hell loathe the church and will never cease to rage against her.

There is a fierce battle which will not be over until the final day. When Paul gathered the Ephesian elders in Miletus he reminded them how valuable the church is – it is the church of God which He bought with His own blood (Acts 20:28), but he also warned them that savage wolves would come amongst them and would not spare the flock. This was so important to Paul that he spent three years day and night warning them with tears. I suspect that today we would regard Paul as a bit odd; we would turn a deaf ear, tell him to lighten up and not to be so negative. We pay lip service to acknowledging sin, spiritual warfare and the dangers of apostasy.

David Robertson

There are those who want to see Western society destroyed. They regard it as patriarchal, capitalist, immoral, racist and unjust. The sooner it is gone the better. But they find it far easier t o destruct than construct. What would they replace it with – other than some fantasy Utopia which no one has ever been able to manage?

But from a Christian perspective – why should we care about the West? We are about the whole world – not just one part of it. Surely, we are not claiming that one part of this world is more Christian?

David Robertson

It’s a familiar secularist cry – ‘we want freedom for religion, but we also want freedom from religion’. It sounds good and it sounds nice. But like so many soundbites the devil is in the detail. What do they mean?

In reality freedom ‘from’ religion means freedom from any form of religion (but especially biblical Christianity) in the public square. Militant secularists are as happy as Chinese Communists to have crosses in the public square pulled down. They want Christianity out of the public arena altogether. A ‘secular’ society is for them a ‘godless one’. We don’t ‘do God’ in education, health care, work, politics and media. They are happy for the church to be reduced to the equivalent of a line-dancing club or a Trekkie society. Do it in private – and don’t scare the horses!

David Robertson

There is a lot of talk in the general culture about the ‘new normal’ in society. Will city centres, tourism, flying, mass sports events ever go back to what they were? What about universities and schools? Will we become a less engaged society – permanently afraid of other human beings, except when they exist in avatar form on the Internet? And what about the church? What will the PC (Post-Covid) church be like?

Like the rest of society we have experienced negatives and positives out of this crisis. Sometimes we think that we are not like the rest of society, but the wider cultural trends tend to invade the church far more than we think – especially if the church has already been mirroring those trends. There are particular aspects of the ‘new normal’ which will I think be widely reflected in the church.

David Robertson

It was a revealing moment. Walking back from the hospital I turned a corner and saw a woman walking towards me. She stopped in her tracks – as though she were astonished to see another human being; stared and then turned back to the corner, where she stood aside to let me past.

The path was two metres wide and even though she was somewhat portly we could easily have passed each other without making any human contact. Instead she backed off and as I passed, gazed at me with what can only be described as a look of fear. This is not the first time this has happened.

David Robertson

The well-known theologian/author/ broadcaster N.T. Wright had an article in Time magazine in March in which he cautioned against ‘knee jerk’ reactions from Christians.

Amongst the ‘silly’ reactions he included arguing that the coronavirus was a sign or a punishment. He told us that rationalists look for an explanation; romantics look for relief; but that the biblical position is to lament. As with all N.T. Wright’s writings it is well written, thought provoking and stimulating.

David Robertson

Sin is individual. It is individual people who commit sin – who rebel against their Creator – not organisations. Yet there is a sense in which sin is also corporate.

After all, one of the most basic of scriptural doctrines is that we all sinned and fell in Adam. We are also clearly warned that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph.6:12). Although sin is individual, that individual sin infects and pollutes far beyond the immediate sinner – just as Adam’s sin resulted in the groaning and pollution of the whole creation – so our sins impact far beyond our immediate selfs. That is why I think it is right to speak of systemic sin – when a whole system or organisation becomes infected by sin – so much so that it often perpetuates, covers up, enables and even sustains sin.

David Robertson

1 Chronicles 12:32 is a fascinating verse. It speaks of ‘men who understood the times and knew what to do’. In an age of confusion it’s clearly something that we need today. The devil’s tactic as the father of lies is to sow discord, create confusion and magnify division. It appears that he is having a field day over the Franklin Graham visit.

The basic facts by now are well known. Franklin Graham had decided to come to the UK for a tour this year and had booked major venues in cities throughout the country. As the result of campaigns by LGBT groups aided and abetted by some in the church, including the Bishop of Sheffield and Colin Kerr, a Church of Scotland minister – all of the original venues have now cancelled their bookings. Franklin Graham still intends to come and it may be that the publicity will have done him no harm.

David Robertson

Sir Roger Scruton, the English philosopher and writer, died on the 12th of January this year. His death will leave a significant gap – his was a voice of sanity in the madness of crowds

Scruton was a provocative and deep philosopher whose insights have been of great personal help to me – most of all in his discussion of beauty and its demise within many parts of contemporary society.

David Robertson

Of making many books on marriage there is no end! Some are decent – a handful are outstanding, but I suspect most of us would not think of heading to the Church Fathers for marriage guidance in today’s society.

However, recently I came across a sermon from the 4th century – Chrysostom’s homily on Ephesians 5:22-24 which has some helpful insights for the 21st.

David Robertson

The more militant secularists are generally okay with Christians being Christians – as long as we do so behind closed doors and in the secrecy of our own hearts.

In other words they want us to be a private society or club, like a line-dancing society or a golf club. But our Christianity is not just a hobby, and the church is not a club. That is also true when it comes to politics. This month we have a general election – and some want to ask what is the Christian position.

David Robertson

The Health and Wealth Prosperity teachers are a blight upon Christianity. They offer a dumbed-down and exploitative version of the gospel, which turns it from something beautiful into something ugly. It’s some-thing which all decent Christian teachers should warn against.

Now it appears that the New Atheist Fundamentalists have their own Health and Wealth Prosperity evangelist. Richard Dawkins has returned to the fray with a new book, Outgrowing God, which demonstrates all the qualities of the worst tele-evangelist.

David Robertson

The church is taking a battering. In the 24/7 news world of the Internet and the era of monetised sensationalist reporting it seems as though the Good News is being eclipsed by the bad news. The father of lies is having a field day – although to be honest it seems as though all he has to do is stand back and let the church strangle itself.

Hardly a week goes by without news of yet another fallen leader, another Twitter spat between Christians and a depressing sense of déjà vu as the latest evangelical scandal hits the headlines. For those of us who are on the inside and involved in Christian leadership there is a dread of much more. The gossip and backbiting is poisonous.

David Robertson

Mark Driscoll is back. For some that sen-tence speaks of a nightmare. For others it is something to be welcomed. Others will ask ‘Mark who?’ – thus demonstrating that celebrity pastors can have as short a fame lifespan as reality TV stars.

I met Mark in 2008, in my first stint as editor of the Record. He was the rising star of the New Calvinism and one of the first to be perceived as a celebrity pastor. A superb communicator, he offered hope and encouragement to those of us who wanted to see the presence of a robust but contemporary Reformed theology in the market place – although his unhealthy obsession with Song of Solomon (which he seemed to perceive as a sex manual) and his reputation as the ‘cussin’ pastor, did cause some concerns.

David Robertson

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York – an event which was the catalyst for the modern LGBT movement.

‘Pride’ marches, days, weeks and months have become ubiquitous throughout the Western world – especially in the English-speaking countries. The politicians and the corporations are falling over themselves in the rush to identify with ‘Pride’.

David Robertson

I was 16 years old. A new convert. Enthused and encouraged in my new-found faith. I loved reading the Bible, until one day I was given a book with a title along the lines of ‘101 problems in the Bible – resolved’. I actually didn’t have any problems with the Bible – but after I read the book I had 101!

The problems were real, but the answers were shallow and superficial. It was my first ‘crisis of faith’. The only way I got out of it was to realise that I was very young in the faith and that I could not be expected to know everything at once. I believed that over the years the Lord would guide and show. Over the years most were gradually and graciously answered as the Lord taught me to read and think biblically. I came to understand that I needed to be transformed by the renewing of my mind (Romans 12:2) and to have the mind of Christ. I only have about four or five problems to go – although new issues still arise.

David Robertson

The BBC has been blamed for facilitating Brexit because it was biased against Remainers in that it gave equal time to the ‘lies and propaganda’ of the Leave campaign. The BBC has been blamed for frustrating Brexit because it was biased against Leavers in that it gave more time to Remainers to spread their ‘lies and propaganda.’

If being complained about by both sides is a mark of balance then it appears as though the BBC should be quite pleased with itself. But what about the BBC and Christianity? Whilst there are a handful of militant atheists who have a fit every time there is a religious service on the Beeb, the majority of complaints tend to be from those of us who think that the BBC has long forgotten and rejected its Christian foundations. I was once asked to give ‘Thought for the Day’ on BBC Radio Scotland – a simple 90 seconds of commentary on today’s issues from a Christian perspective. For some reason the producer was not happy for me to just walk into the

David Robertson

En route to Sydney airport our Bangladeshi taxi driver was fascinated to hear about my occupation. ‘You’re a Pastor? What does your church think about same-sex marriage?’ ‘We don’t agree with it and think that it’s wrong, unbiblical and bad for humanity’.

He was genuinely shocked and pleased. His mosque had told him that Christian churches were largely pro-gay marriage and, given the constant appearances of church leaders in the media advocating that position, they had good reason. He was so pleased with the answer that the conversation continued and by the time we got to the airport we were discussing the death of Jesus on the cross!