Coral Ridge PCA News

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My wife and I attended New City for a short time while we were looking for a church home shortly before we moved further north. They were just starting a study through Ephesians and he was very solid on the Doctrines of Grace. I remember him having a fondness for Herman Bavinck as he quoted him fairly often.
 
DMcFadden;


Here comes some old talk from an old former pastor . . . From a human relations standpoint, anytime there is a 20 year gap or more between the age of the former pastor and the new pastor, the church is in for a bumpy ride. That does not mean that it is not of God or that he is not called to the church. But, human nature being what it is, more than a 20 year gap and you are in for some interesting times. I say this as one who followed two older pastors in my ministries.

We all tend to affiliate with (i.e., socialize, make friends with) people around our own age. When a much younger pastor comes onto the scene (even without a merger) the power brokers who were "buds" with the former pastor are likely to feel frozen out of the inner circle by the new kid on the block. Unless they are VERY mature in their faith, this will give way to fault finding and criticism driven by emotions that they may not even fully realize or acknowledge. You would be surprised how many things a pastor can be found doing "wrong" when people are strongly motivated to find fault. Add to this the very different corporate cultures of the two congregations and wowie zowie. This is a likely to be a VERY exciting Disneyland ride.

Pray for both congregations as they continue to seek God's will. There is a very fine line between energizing synergy and enervating sin-ergy. The new life to an older congregation could be a tonic. However, that does not mean that it will be easy.
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I'm not a pastor, but as a congregant, I can attest to the truth in this..and it's not necessarily that he is 'young' but sometimes, it's just he's NOT the former pastor..and people can be deeply hurt by things like this, even though it's not intentional.
 
yeutter said:
I know that the age gap has often been a problem in Baptist and Presbyterian Churches. 'Tall Stepple' Presbyterian Churches often want experienced men with a little grey hair, and a Scottish accent.
Lutheran Churches frequently have old pastors who are succeeded by men 40 or more years their junior. I wonder what is culturally or institutionally different that Lutherans are able to bridge the age gap easier then Presbyterians and Baptists?
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Who says that they do? I mean, how many Bible-believing Lutherans are left in America? Not nearly as many as I would wish.
 
As one with many dear friends in the EPC and some in the PCA, I hope and pray that this might just be a sign to a further level of mutual respect and cooperation between the two communions. We all know how much Reformed Christians need to come together in this time of crisis for the North American church!

I will pray that the EPC and PCA might both profit from this impending church merger, to the glory of God.
 
Moderation. I want to head off a thread derail. Political discussion doesn't belong here, and the proper forums for such discussion are closed until after this week.

:judge:
 
You mean he had a love for the lost? How odd for a pastor.
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While I'm sure Kennedy was very concerned for the lost, what I was refering to was what appeared to be a overly high regard for the institution. I believe that can be a distraction, and my hope is that Tchividjian would not suffer from the same weakness. CR would be a far more effective light unto the world if it were led away from that trend, in my view, which you can take with the proverbial grain of salt.
 
Any update as to which denom they will go into? I've seen several blogposts and nothing about this. They've decided to "get married" before solving a few questions.

So far as i know, the new pastor would be a good PCA fit, but how attached is he to the EPC? I'd also worry about CRPC joining a denom that has far too much proto-liberal, charismatic, neo-evangelical, and arminian influence. I hope my fears are unfounded.
 
Coral Ridge Presbyterian and New City Church congregations have confirmed Teaching Elder
Tullian Tchividjian and approved details of a merger of both congregations into the PCA.

http://www.crpc.org/index.php/show_news/senior_minister_elected_as_senior_minister/

In PCA polity, I believe the Teaching Elder still needs to be examined by his presbtery.

While it is not clear to me what happened with the seminary connected with the church, but it is clear it was not handled well, especially for presbyterians, this merger has potential for a lot of good in the Kingdom of God.

Let me be the first here to welcome the Pastor here, and wish him God's very best in leading a vital, biblical, reformed church for the Honor and Glory of God!
 
Having listened to an extended sermon by this man (for the first time), I am edified by the preaching gift, particularly exhortation, God has given this man.

Granted, this is not a complete representation of doctrine, but it seems like Christ-like humility, and passion for the things of God.

I am very grateful already for him and his congregation.
 
"For anyone who thinks Coral Ridge can't change, this demonstrates that that is just not true," he said.

Will it be ...

Change we can believe in?
 
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