Westminster Fellowship

On Monday I attended the meeting of the Westminster Fellowship at Westminster chapel in London. This is the ministers' fraternal(meeting) that began under Dr Martyn Lloyd Jones in the 1950s and thrived under his leadership, but it is safe to say that since his death it has been steadily in numerical decline. There are rarely more than 18 or so men there, and only 14 on Monday.

Monday was an open meeting, when men bring matters for discussion. The morning is often a more theological subject, the afternoon is more pastoral. All the men contributed to discussion this time, and as always I found it helpful and encouraging to have been there. I started going again two years ago after a long absence of six years or so, but in the last two years I have not missed a meeting unless it couldn't be avoided.

Perhaps the most refreshing thing is to be in the fellowship of kindred minds. One can express one's views knowing that on the big issues and most of the small ones we are agreed. We also know we are in a minority, theologically speaking, representing a conservative end of the spectrum in both doctrine and practice. But the fraternal is open to any minister who can agree with the statement of faith which I should have thought would be acceptable to most evangelicals. It is not specifically Reformed but it rather looks to Evangelicals coming together on an uncompromising gospel basis, rejecting the doctrinal indifference of the 'Ecumenical movement'.

Our next meeting (we meet six times a year) is planned for 4th February when Jeremy Walker will be addressing us on the 'New Calvinism'.