The danger for high churchmen … is that we can forget that. We can end up thinking that the doctrine of the church is more important than the gospel or, worse still, that the doctrine of the church is the gospel. The news of the seeming impending conversion of Jason Stellman to Roman Catholicism will... Continue Reading

Even when you account for 2000 years of cultural differences between Paul and Evangelicalism, the answer is no. Why? Because Paul didn’t treat the Bible the way mainstream Evangelicalism says you need to. Would Paul have made a good Evangelical? No. Even when you account for 2000 years of cultural differences between Paul and Evangelicalism,... Continue Reading

Stellman says he has embraced two of Rome’s dogmas: that the Word of God is subordinate to the Church’s tradition, and that infusion is right and imputation wrong. In other words he has publicly repudiated sola Scriptura and sola fide. Those following the doctrinal battle of the past couple of years within the PCA’s Northwest Presbytery were surprised... Continue Reading

When we see these obviously flawed examples of justice, we understand Proverbs 28:5, which says that the wicked do not understand justice. The biblical concept of justice has a number of associated ideas that are important to know if we are to truly understand it. The same God who designed and ordered all of creation designed man to seek the good and to avoid evil.

For a number of decades now, Old Testament scholars across the theological spectrum have drawn upon ancient texts to clarify the nature of biblical covenants. A number of reformed theologians have built on these comparative studies in ways that have the potential of confusing many sincere believers. So, I have felt compelled to speak to some aspects of the matter.

It's part of what theologians sometimes call “the doctrine of progressive revelation:” God did not give us the Biblical text all at once. It came to us over many centuries and in at least two languages. The earlier portions lead to the later and sometimes yield to them when the later arrive, their intended task -- preparation for Christ and His truth – then being complete.

For a number of decades now, Old Testament scholars across the theological spectrum have drawn upon ancient texts to clarify the nature of biblical covenants. A number of reformed theologians have built on these comparative studies in ways that have the potential of confusing many sincere believers. So, I have felt compelled to speak to some aspects of the matter.

What this reading of the two kingdoms boils down to is a recognition of an internal sphere, where the justifying and sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit actually takes place, and then an external sphere which is shared by all men, and is shaped, in measure, by the spiritual affections without ever being conflated with the spiritual realm.

How can we uphold the special dignity and majesty the Bible accords human beings when we are only qualitatively different from other life forms and continuous with the rest of the animal world? How can God impute sin and guilt to all humans along the lines of federal headship when some of us have no physical connection with Adam?

Perhaps specificity will help to illustrate this point. I am confident that God’s glory is seen in the fact that a married man, faithful to his wife, who loves her genuinely, will wake up in the morning driven by ambition and passion in order to make his wife proud, confident, and assured in her devotion to her husband.