18 Oct 2017

On the final day of our recent CRC Global Conference, Pastor Ian Simpson one of our CRC fathers from our founding generation went to be with Jesus.

When I came to Christ In 1971, Ian was one of my Pastors along with Dudley Cooper, Arthur Hooper & Les Paulson.

Leo Harris was the great leader and apostle of the CRC to the nation, but it was men like Ian who were our pastors who shepherded and guided the hundreds of new converts that Jesus was bringing into His Church every year.

We loved these dear men who gave so much of themselves to help us grow spiritually and to discover our ministry role in Jesus kingdom.

How appropriate it was to mention this wonderful man in my message at Conference.

Ian was a blessing to thousands of people as one of Leo’s key pastors, and he then led our CRC mother church for several years after the sudden death of Pastor Harris.

This was such a difficult time for both the church and our CRC movement, and Ian served our Adelaide Assembly with great sincerity and integrity.

We all loved Ian, as we all knew he really loved us, and everyone was so aware that he would only do what was in the best interest of the people that Jesus gave His life to save.

Ian is now in heaven and along with Marguerite who preceded him by just a short time, is revelling in the literal presence of his Saviour whom he served with all his heart.

On behalf of our entire CRC Churches International family our deepest condolences to his family and friends.

Well done good and faithful servant.

by Pastor Bill Vasilakis – CRC National Chairman

Eulogy from the SA/NT/WA State Chairman offered at Ian Simpson’s funeral

From CRC Churches and Pastors around SA, I bring today the heartfelt condolences and encouragement to you Linda and James and to all your family.

Last November I was honoured to share at Marguerite’s funeral and now less than a year later many of us find ourselves together again honouring Pr Ian’s life. We come to remember a wonderful family man, pastor and friend of many. We acknowledge his lifetime of ministry, serving Jesus and people with a singularity of call, commitment and zeal.

Pr Ian was one of my pastors as a young man growing up in Sturt St. I remember when he came from New Zealand to join the pastoral team with Leo Harris, the founder of our CRC movement. Immediately you could sense Pr Ian’s pastoral heart, genuine love for people and eagerness to draw alongside them. His warmth of person, wide smile and sincerity of concern made him a trusted pastor and leader to many.
He was a ‘faith’ man who loved teaching on the ‘Kingdom of God’. Coming from a pastoral family background, he’d learnt from his mother the power of prayer and intercession, and from his Father, a deep love and respect for the word of God. He was a spiritual leader who loved his Lord and served Him whole-heartedly all his life.

Ian was a sensitive pastor, whose empathy with people and heart for their welfare, often came at deep personal cost to himself. In latter years his struggle with heart and other health issues may well have reflected this selfless giving that ministry demanded of him. He was one of our Pentecostal pioneers, who through involvement with the charismatic movement brought his experience of the fullness of the Holy Spirit into the lives of so many people and churches.

He was a pastor amongst pastors and one we honour today for the enormous contribution he made to our movement through at times personally harrowing and demanding circumstance. As a movement, we now stand on the firm foundation created by men and woman such as Pr Ian and Marguerite.

Pr Ian is now with His Lord. He is rejoicing with the angels and praising the Lord with his wife and the many other saints that have gone before. Free of the encumbrance of his earthly life, he now can rest in the accolades of Heaven that no doubt herald him with “Well done good and faithful servant”!

Pr Ian we honour you as one who has significantly affected so many of our lives and that of the CRC and wider Kingdom of God. You will be missed by many.

Yours in Christ,
Hans Voortman