A bit about Barnabas from our 10th anniversary issue (Fall 2018)
It’s hard to believe that this is this issue completes the tenth year of publishing Barnabas! I want to personally thank the many writers, columnists and reviewers who have helped bring Barnabas to our readers since 2009. You have contributed to help bring the idea of this magazine to life and have served the Sovereign Grace Fellowship of Canada—and the wider Canadian church—with your efforts, ideas and gifts. All glory be to our great God!
In Barnabas we hope you find: (1) biblical encouragement to live for Christ in this world; (2) equipping to serve him, and (3)inspiration to think through your life and theology. It’s a tall order in any age, but we live in challenging days as the cover story on religious freedom in Canada reminds us. We trust we will continue to be able to bring you news and articles that serve you well in the days to come.
In our inaugural issue, we tackled discerning God’s voice in the midst of the financial crisis that was gripping much of the Western world (Spring 2009). Dr. Michael Haykin called us to turn away from panic and despair, to trust in our sovereign God, to continue to be generous and to pray for gospel inroads in times of uncertainty. In this issue, constitutional lawyer Deina Warren outlines the current state of religious freedom in Canada and exhorts us to be aware, to engage and to pray. We thank God for people who can speak to the issues of our times and help us navigate the challenging terrain of daily life in Canada.
Reader, as we look to the future we don’t know what lies over the horizon, be it personal or national tragedy, heady days of gospel progress or indifference and lukewarmness. What we do know is that we serve a big God who is sovereign over every area of life. He is able to ignite his church with gospel passion, quicken his servants to faithfully preach the whole counsel of God, abundantly supply all that his people need for life and godliness, richly accomodate all our weaknesses with his boundless strength and give hope to those who are weary in the battle. For all these things we pray, and continue to long that Christ would be lifted up in our land, that Jesus would bring dead hearts to life in our families and communities and the gospel would have free reign in our land and to the ends of the earth.
We know Satan is a wiley foe. Whether it is the lure of pornography or the assault of social media on family life, he has engineered present temptations for the present age. But we serve the God of all ages, the Sovereign of all dominions, and he is able to help us with the armour of his Word, the shield of faith, the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation and the sword of his Spirit (see Ephesians 6:10–20). We are called to pray at all times and to boldly declare the glorious gospel of salvation in Christ alone, remembering we are ambassadors for Jesus, and resting in the fact that he has won the ultimate victory!
Like Barnabas, may we be a son or daughter of encouragement in our churches today and may Christ be our only hope and rest in 2019.
Janice Van Eck, Editor
