In season 5 of Office Hours we focused on the biblical, Reformed, and confessional doctrine and practice of sanctification, i.e., the process of being made holy, of being brought gradually and graciously into conformity to Christ by the Holy Spirit. The doctrine . . . Continue reading →
The Reformation gospel of salvation by grace alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola fide), as defined and confessed by the Reformed churches and as rejected by the Remonstrants (Arminians) was intended to produce and had the effect of giving comfort to . . . Continue reading →
Ours is not an age characterized by wisdom either inside or outside the church. Conferences on wisdom will not likely pack a football stadium (at least not a large one) but wisdom is a major theme in Scripture—terms for wisdom occur more . . . Continue reading →
The Protestant Reformation was one of the most important theological, social, religious, and political episodes in Western history. It is reasonable to divide all Western history in two: before the Reformation and after. Nevertheless, in our time, the Reformation is not well . . . Continue reading →
On this date in 1959 the state of Nebraska executed the death sentence upon Charles Starkweather, an admitted, notorious spree killer and mass murderer. Certainly, when “Charlie” (as he was known) was captured after a shootout in Douglas, Wyoming there was little doubt and by the end of his trial it was certain that he had committed a shocking and brutal series of murders in and around what was then a sleepy college town and state capitol, Lincoln, Nebraska. The only real question that remained through the trial, which persists to this day, is whether Caril Ann Fugate, whose family Charlie murdered, accompanied him willingly during his spree, whether she cooperated in or even committed some of the murders, or whether she was a hostage (as she later claimed) and suffered from Stockholm Syndrome. Continue reading →
The Bible contrasts two very different kinds of ministries. In 2 Corinthians 3:6 the apostle Paul says that we are ministers of the New Covenant, of the Spirit and not of the letter. 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—which he designates as the “ministry of condemnation.” The contrast between them is important because each kind of ministry produces its own kind of fruit in its recipients. Continue reading →
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is the largest evangelical Christian denomination in the USA reporting a total membership of 14.8 million (of whom 1/3 attend weekly). The SBC is Baptist in name and practice but about 99% of the other 45 million . . . Continue reading →
Romans is one of the greatest resources available to the Christian faith and life. Written in the mid-to late AD 50s to the congregation in Rome, Paul sent this pastoral letter to make clear the gospel, that salvation is from the Lord, . . . Continue reading →
There are a few Late-Modern bromides that people repeat as if they were self-evidently true that are really quite nonsensical. One of these is: everything is relative. Well, if everything is relative, then your claim that everything is relative is also relative. . . . Continue reading →
Abounding grace to sinners (Rom 5:20), i.e., God’s free favor to the undeserving, leads to Christian freedom but not to licentiousness (living without norms). Liberty is not libertinism. This doctrine is at the heart of the Reformed doctrine of the Christian life. . . . Continue reading →
Had you told me that as a grown man with two adult children that I would, for any reason, write the words My Little Pony (MLP) in an article (or anywhere) I would have advised you to seek psychiatric care. Nevertheless, here we . . . Continue reading →
Romans is one of the greatest resources available to the Christian faith and life. Written in the mid-to late AD 50s to the congregation in Rome, Paul sent this pastoral letter to make clear the gospel, that salvation is from the Lord, . . . Continue reading →
In 2009 Time Magazine hailed the rise of “The New Calvinism” among the 10 ideas that are changing the world. Behind that article was the publication of Collin Hansen’s Young, Restless, and Reformed (2008) and the formation of The Gospel Coalition (2005), . . . Continue reading →
I think I first read about “web logs” about 1995, when I was teaching at Wheaton College. Then they were the domain of people writing about what they had for breakfast. They were daily, public journals where people recorded online their most . . . Continue reading →
Abortion is a form of necessary violence. We need to move away from arguments designed to placate our enemies, and defend abortion as a right to stop doing gestational work. Continue reading →
Romans is one of the greatest resources available to the Christian faith and life. Written in the mid-to late AD 50s to the congregation in Rome, Paul sent this pastoral letter to make clear the gospel, that salvation is from the Lord, . . . Continue reading →
For perhaps 20 years we have been in the midst of a movement which Collin Hansen (2008) described as Young, Restless, and Reformed. Others have spoken of the “New Calvinists” (see the resources below). The one doctrine that animates these movements is the sovereignty of God. For many American evangelicals it is a given that God has his opinion and we have ours. Continue reading →
Como os seguidores de Armínio foram (principalmente) eclesiasticamente separados das igrejas reformadas durante séculos, é fácil perder de vista o fato de que a crise arminiana ocorreu originalmente dentro das portas da igreja reformada. Apesar das graves reservas sobre sua teologia e ensino expressas por Plancius e outros ministros em seu Classis (presbitério), e por seus colegas Gomarus e Trelcatius Jr., Armínio foi e permaneceu como ministro em boa posição na igreja reformada (Hervormde Kerk) na Holanda. Continue reading →
The Remonstrants (Arminians) charged the orthodox Reformed, i.e., those who confessed the Belgic Confession (1561) and the Heidelberg Catechism (1563) sincerely (without crossed fingers) with being unconcerned about sanctification. The Remonstrants were convinced that the Reformed faith did not produce sufficient godliness. . . . Continue reading →
Poucos dos nossos documentos confessionais reformados são tão valiosos, porém ainda tão negligenciados quanto os Cânones de Dort. Hoje, a maioria das pessoas que os conhece pensa neles como os chamados “Cinco Pontos do Calvinismo” ou TULIP: Depravação Total, Eleição Incondicional, Expiação Limitada, Graça Irresistível e Perseverança dos Santos. Continue reading →