We have seen heretofore, that Eliu intending to rebuke Job, protested that he himself was a mortal man as Job was, to the end he should not complain that he was handled with too high a power. And so he showed that . . . Continue reading →
2016 Archive
Calvin: God Gives Us Ministers So As Not To Swallow Us By His Majesty
Are Mainline Baptisms Valid?
A friend and HB reader writes to ask about the validity baptisms administered in mainline (liberal) congregations. Should a NAPARC (North American Presbyterian and Reformed Council) affiliated congregation receive as valid a baptism performed by a minister in a denomination that has . . . Continue reading →
Lake Hodges From Mt Israel At Sunset
Strangers And Aliens (23d): You Are Not Alone (1 Peter 5:6–11)
Politicians have often been tempted to declare “Peace in Our Time.” The most notorious example of this folly is the 1938 declaration by the Prime Minister of Great Britain that he and the German Chancellor Adolf Hitler had reached an accord to prevent war between them. Continue reading →
Bad News: Survey Shows American Christians Are Heretics
A survey of 3,000 people conducted by LifeWay Research and commissioned by Ligonier Ministries found that although Americans still overwhelmingly identify as “Christian,” startling percentages of the nation embrace ancient errors condemned by all major Christian traditions. These are not minor points . . . Continue reading →
What Is Repentance? Hint: It Is Not “I’m Sorry If Anyone Was Offended”
Q. 76. What is repentance unto life? A. Repentance unto life is a saving grace, wrought in the heart of a sinner by the Spirit and Word of God, whereby, out of the sight and sense, not only of the danger, but . . . Continue reading →
A Friendly Reply To Derek Regarding Calvin, Luther, And The Falling Of The Church
You can catch up with the flow of the discussion via Derek Rishmawy’s interesting essay but the short story is that Carl Trueman published an essay at First Things properly cautioning American evangelicals about re-making Luther into their own image and challenging . . . Continue reading →
Notes From The Didache On The Early Christian View Of Abortion
One of the more difficult and fascinating texts in the collection of texts known as the Apostolic Fathers is the Teaching of the Lord to the Gentiles by the Twelve Apostles usually known as a the Didache (Διδαχὴ). It is difficult because . . . Continue reading →
Strangers And Aliens (23c): Lions Are Real (1 Peter 5:6–11)
Occasionally, in Scripture, we are given glimpses of the spiritual realities behind the scenes, as it were. One thinks of the chariots of fire (2 Kings 6:15–17) that surrounded Elisha. They were present but unseen until Yahweh opened the servant’s eyes. In Zechariah 3:1–2 we are given a glimpse of a scene in which Satan is accusing Joshua the high priest. There is too that mysterious note in 2 Chronicles 21:1 in which Satan is said to have “stood up against Israel” (NASB95) and provoked David to perform a census in Israel. The spiritual realities and battles to which we are given an occasional glimpse burst, however, through the back curtain and on to center stage during the earthly ministry of our Savior Jesus. In the gospels we see Satan tempting Christ (e.g., Matt 4:1–11). He enters Judas (John 13:27) and demonic activity seems to increase dramatically during Jesus’s ministry (e.g., Matt 8:16; 8:29; 9:32; 12:22; 15:22; 17:18). Continue reading →
It Is Not Bigoted To Talk Sense
The mere fact that professor Peet would like to be addressed by a particular pronoun does not mean that I am required to address him by that pronoun. That doesn’t mean that I deny his existence or the existence of people who . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: David Zadok On Reaching Israelis With The Gospel
In Romans chapters 9–11 the Apostle Paul addresses the difficult question of whether the Lord has abandoned his promises to the Jews. Paul concludes that God has not abandoned his promises. He appeals to himself as an example, even though he was . . . Continue reading →
Heidelcast 118: I Will Be A God To You And To Your Children (13)
With this episode now we dive into the question of baptism itself. So far we have been setting the stage because, from the historic, confessional Reformed point of view, the debate about infant baptism is really a debate about how to understand . . . Continue reading →
Video: Highlights From Les’ Trip To San Diego
You’ve Been Invited To A [Fill In The Blank]: Should You Go?
As the culture descends further into post-Christianity and even the memory of Christianity fades in the minds of most Westerners, Christians will find themselves facing many of the same questions faced by the Christians of the first and second centuries. Many of . . . Continue reading →
With The Regular Reformed Guys On The Federal Vision
It was a good to spend an hour with the Regular Reformed Guys talking about the Federal Vision theology. We spend a little time talking Nebraska football, so that’s always good. We even wandered into the revival of the “King James Only” . . . Continue reading →
Is It Education Or Propaganda?
If you can’t ask a candid question of a professor or fellow students without fear of retribution, you aren’t in a place of learning. That’s because real knowledge can be fueled only by free and open inquiry. The process of learning for . . . Continue reading →
Luther On “Saints,” Monks, And Sola Scriptura
In the papacy there is a book containing the legends or accounts of the saints. I hate it intensely, solely for the reason that it tells of revolting forms of worship and silly miracles performed by idle people. These legends and accounts . . . Continue reading →
Turretin: Hypocrites And Reprobates Belong To The Church Only Outwardly
1. The question concerning the parts of the church. Do reprobates also belong to it? II. First it is inquired whether besides those called elect, reprobates and infidels also (whether secret or open) are to be considered as true members of the . . . Continue reading →
May A Christian College Administer Communion?
Andy Smith writes to ask about the administration of communion outside of the visible, institutional church. Specifically he writes to ask whether a Christian college or university may administer communion in chapel or in some other setting but the question is whether . . . Continue reading →