Where are all the young people going? Why do the visitors never seem to stick? Why have there been so many fights in our church history? Unfortunately, these are common questions in the Reformed tradition. In my years as a pastor, I have been shocked over how much antipathy there has been toward Reformed churches. It took me more than a few years to get a handle on why the reaction has been so strong. The sad reality is that many people have witnessed fighting, church splits, abuses, hatreds, contentions, jealousies, all undergirded by a hard kind of legalism within the confines of a closed community that demonstrates nothing of the joy of Christ. What are we to think of these things? Are there any legitimate criticisms of the Reformed faith that we should evaluate?

The Bible contrasts two very different kinds of ministries. In 2 Cor. 3 the apostle Paul says that we are ministers of the new covenant. The contrast the apostle is making is between the new covenant as the fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham which he calls the ministry of righteousness, and the particular phenomenon of the giving of the law on Sinai to Moses—that which he designates as the ministry of condemnation. The contrast is important because each kind of ministry produces its own kind of fruit in its recipients. Read more»

Chris Gordon | “Grumpy Old Men and the Reformed Tradition”

RESOURCES

• Subscribe To The Heidelblog!
• The Heidelblog Resource Page
• Heidelmedia Resources
• The Ecumenical Creeds
• The Reformed Confessions
• The Heidelberg Catechism
• Recovering the Reformed Confession (Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2008)
• Why I Am A Christian
• What Must A Christian Believe?
• Heidelblog Contributors
• Support Heidelmedia: use the donate button or send a check to

Heidelberg Reformation Association
1637 E. Valley Parkway #391
Escondido CA 92027
USA
The HRA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization

Post authored by:

• Heidelblog

  

  The Heidelblog has been in publication since 2007. It is devoted to recovering the Reformed confession and to helping others discover Reformed theology, piety, and practice.

  More by Heidelblog ›