A Theology of Friendship
Our Lord Jesus showed himself to be the greatest Friend of all through His death. This death is our means of friendship with God and an example of friendship for all.
Until the return of our Lord, wisdom is necessary to discern what genuine friendship with others truly means. Friendship is not based on riches, befriending one another for benefit in return (Prov 14:20; 19:4, 6, 7). Friendship falters from dishonesty and disloyalty (Prov 16:28; Ps 7:4; 15:3; 38:11; 41:9; 55:13), especially if the offense occurs again and again (Prov 17:9). One friend does... Continue Reading
Who Is Our Enemy?
During our sojourn here, we are living and moving in enemy-occupied territory.
God has not left us ignorant of the sphere of warfare or of the enemy himself. Much biblical revelation from the first promise of Christ’s victory over the evil one (Genesis 3:15) is taken up with a revelation about the nature of spiritual warfare. What impact would it have had on the church in our late-modern,... Continue Reading
Cretans Are Always Liars: The Necessity of Divine Oaths in Church Courts
The Scriptures are unambiguous that Jesus Christ, the Head of the body has ordained oaths for the preservation of the truth.
Wherever men acknowledge the Biblical teaching about human depravity; wherever men acknowledge the unique bearing of God’s name on the human conscience; wherever men trust in God’s promise to make truth prevail when His name is invoked, oaths will be required of all witnesses in church courts. In 2023, the PCA General Assembly considered... Continue Reading
The Ruling Elder & the Ministry of Prayer
As I learned more and became increasingly exposed to private and public prayer, I realized that my way of doing it had some deficiencies.
When I was first saved, I loved talking to God and seeing Him work. I still do. Yet, I now see that there is a lot to be gained from a little structure, like actually having a regular quiet time where I pray the Bible. I was almost 30 and had been in the... Continue Reading
Review: “Omphalos: An Attempt to Untie the Geological Knot”
Did God create the earth with functional maturity?
The book was an apologetic exercise in harmonizing the position that creation occurred several thousand years ago with the presence of geologic structures that seemingly suggested a longer timeframe. Although the book is quite long, the central premise is easy to describe. Gosse’s observations led him to believe that the mature forms of all natural... Continue Reading
Calvin on War
Within His vengeance and glory, God deals with darkness.
Since the fall of mankind, the Lord has been carrying out judgment on wickedness, often resulting in death in battle or wars. When disasters occur, or wars start, rest assured that the Lord is at work. It may be humanly impossible for us to ascertain the purpose, but Christians can find solace in knowing God... Continue Reading
Committee Report on Church Music
Worship is a theological issue in that its purpose is glorifying God as we enjoy Him within the limits of liturgy given in Scripture.
One thing both traditional and contemporary churches could agree on is the participation of church members in congregational singing. If unity cannot be found here, then the issues that divide are presuppositional and theological. The Church, whether Presbyterian or not, is divided about music, but it is certain that all of us will be singing... Continue Reading
With Rising Discontent, More than Half of American Clergy Seriously Considered Quitting: Study
The growing discontent among pastors was described in the report as a "disconcerting" reality that implies "clergy are in the midst of a challenging time."
Researchers found that the changing religious landscape in America, sped up by the pandemic and enforced lockdowns, has led to the challenging times that pastors now face, causing more of them to think of changing churches or leaving the profession altogether. As American pastors have grown increasingly discontent with their profession, more than half... Continue Reading
Lessons from the Lutheran Tradition for 2024
Looking to the Lutherans, as one of the more confessional traditions, might be helpful for evangelicals to avoid selling their souls to the politics of this world.
Lutheranism has much to offer the church catholic at this moment in time. Like all confessional Christianity, it is anchored in realities that transcend the political particularities of our day; and it also reminds us of the church’s true task and realistic expectations in a time such as this. This week I had the... Continue Reading
A Misguided Pastoral Motive
As pastors, we can lead our people to a lot of things. Godliness must be at the top of the list, both for ourselves and our congregations.
Leadership is not an end in and of itself; it naturally implies a destination. It’s kind of like application and illustration in a sermon—these elements serve as means to other ends. We don’t just do application in our sermons; we apply something. We use application to demonstrate how the truth is to be lived out.... Continue Reading
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