Singing in the Face of Suffering
In the midst of grief, God's people have historically cried out to Him in song.
Although the best comfort comes from God’s word, Christians have for centuries reflected on the hardships of life in light of the truth of God’s word in those seasons and written beautiful poetry shaped by the ideas and principles of the Scripture to find perspective and hope in God. God’s people have never been strangers... Continue Reading
8 Ways God Works Suffering for Our Good
When God brings a flood of suffering upon us, it is then that we fly to the ark, Christ.
In all these ways we see that suffering is not harmful to believers but beneficial. Thus we should train ourselves to look less at the evil of suffering and more at the good, to look less at the dark side of the cloud and more at the light. The worst that God ever does to... Continue Reading
Knowing the Unknowable God
God's Self-Sufficient Perfection is Absolute
How profound a mystery of God’s absolute self-sufficient perfection is infolded in these three letters, “I AM,” or in these four, “JEHOVAH.” If you ask what God is, nothing occurs better than this, “I AM,” or “HE THAT IS.” If I should say He is the all-mighty, the only wise, the most perfect, the most... Continue Reading
Everyone I Don’t Like is Literally Gothard
What does Gothard specifically mean by “authority is like an ‘umbrella of protection’” that makes it so bad?
Gothard says we can transfer ourselves back into Satan’s realm at any time, not by, say, apostatizing from the Christian faith, but simply by getting “out from under” our “umbrella of protection,”8 by which he means things like disobeying our bosses or our parents. While Paul says, “But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you... Continue Reading
Jesus Christ: Truly God, Truly Man
The Nicene Creed
The Nicene Creed and the Definition of Chalcedon are vitally important subordinate theological standards in the Church. Both have been received and confessed by the historic Reformed churches. Their doctrinal content was affirmed by the early Reformed theologians and embedded in our confessions of faith because they express the teaching of Scripture. When we... Continue Reading
Christ’s Kingdom Advances With the Sword, but Not That Sword
Christ established his Kingdom, not by spilling the blood of his opponents, but by shedding his own blood for them.
There are to be certain characteristics of those within Christ’s Kingdom, and those characteristics stand in stark contrast to the way the world operates in its rebellion against God. Unlike the kingdoms of this world, Christ’s Kingdom does not advance through top-down enforcement, but bottom-up servitude. Christians, the subjects of Christ’s Kingdom, don’t lord over... Continue Reading
Contending for the Faith: Jude 3–4
Engaging the Enemy
Not only does Jude instruct our action toward the enemy (“contend”), but he also instructs us how to take care of ourselves and others in this fight. We cannot lose any of our soldiers. We ourselves must grow in the faith, pray, persevere, and look to the return of Jesus Christ (Jude 20–21). Concerning the... Continue Reading
Still on the Throne
The Glories of a Seated Christ
Seated in heaven, Jesus is not anxious or uncertain. He is not scurrying feverishly around heaven’s throne room, making last-minute rescues. He lives. He sits on heaven’s throne, secure and utterly stable, in perfect heavenly equanimity and composure, interceding for his people with, and as, God almighty by his very life and breath. He’s still on the... Continue Reading
The Case for the Law’s First Table
George Gillespie viewed the magistrate possesses and ought to exercise coercive power in suppressing heresy and schismatics with a level of discrepancy, discrimination, and prudence.
The grave duty of the magistrate was not to be taken lightly nor administered flippantly, nor was executed with exaggerated eschatological expectancy. Prudence and patience should guide the magistrate here, for the good of the church and commonwealth, not personal prejudice or private gain. Taking “care of God’s glory” and the preservation of religion and... Continue Reading
Poking Holes in the Egalitarian Beachball: Seven Arguments against Female Pastors
When we live within the limits and lanes that God has set for us, we find beauty and flourishing there.
We don’t argue that preaching and pastoring is for qualified men in order throw water on the zealous young woman who has a knack for understanding the Bible. If our young daughters ask, ‘Can I be a pastor?’ Our answer doesn’t stop at “no,” as if we’ve just clipped some wings. Rather, our answer is... Continue Reading
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