In Obergefell, I warned that the Court’s decision would “inevitabl[y] . . . come into conflict” with religious liberty, “as individuals . . . are confronted with demands to participate in and endorse civil marriages between same-sex couples.” 576 U. S., at . . . Continue reading →
Author Archives: R. Scott Clark
Another Canary In Another Educational Coal Mine?
The crest of Duke University, one of the more prestigious universities in the United States, says, “eruditio et religio” (learning and piety). The crest signifies the school’s roots in the early and mid-19th century first as a joint Quaker/Methodist project and later . . . Continue reading →
Jude On The Continuity Of The Covenant Of Grace
Tucked in as it is between 3 John and the Revelation, it is easy to over look the epistle of Jude but this past Lord’s Day I noticed something I had not before and that something tells us a good deal about . . . Continue reading →
SCOTUS: Colorado Civil Rights Commission Exhibited Anti-Christian Bias
…To Phillips, his claim that using his artistic skills to make an expressive statement, a wedding endorsement in his own voice and of his own creation, has a significant First Amendment speech component and implicates his deep and sincere religious beliefs. His . . . Continue reading →
Move In Day Begins
John Owen On The Continuity Of The Abrahamic Covenant With the New Covenant
6. We have seen that Abraham, on the account of his faith, and not of his separation according to the flesh, was the father of all that believe, and heir of the world. And in the covenant made with him, as to . . . Continue reading →
AGR: With Chris Gordon On Unhitching The Faith From The Holy Old Testament God
Recently Atlanta pastor Andy Stanley argued that Christians should “unhitch” their faith from the Old Testament. He was trying to respond to concerns that people have about difficult episodes in the history of redemption but in so doing he fell into an . . . Continue reading →
Fentanyl Nation
Over the weekend came news that the Nebraska State Patrol arrested two men for transporting with intent to deliver enough Fentanyl to kill 26 million people. That is extraordinary. Obviously, we are grateful to the authorities for doing their job and glad . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: Where Are They Now? Dan Borvan
Dan Borvan was not always Reformed. He has run the gamut of American evangelical theology, piety, and practice before finding the Reformed confession. The story of his journey to Geneva, as it were, is worth hearing. He is a 2011 graduate of . . . Continue reading →
McWhorter On An Alternative Doctrine Of Atonement
This brand of self-flagellation has become the new form of enlightenment on race issues. It qualifies as a kind of worship; the parallels with Christianity are almost uncannily rich. White privilege is the secular white person’s Original Sin, present at birth and . . . Continue reading →
On The Roots Of The Concept Of “Privilege”
Back in 1988, the concept of privilege did little to challenge racism or sexism. It reinvented discrimination as a fixed condition rooted within the biological differences between individuals rather than a social problem. The solutions proposed were therapeutic rather than political. Dominant . . . Continue reading →
AGR: With Chis Gordon On The Free Offer Of The Gospel
At the international Synod of Dort (1618–19) the Reformed churches across the Netherlands, the British Isles, and Europe confessed: “As many as are called by the gospel are sincerely called. For God has most earnestly and truly declared in His Word what . . . Continue reading →
Are The Ten Commandments For Christians?
This is a significant question for many evangelical Christians, particularly for those influenced by Dispensationalism. E.g., Charles Ryrie, a self-described “classic” Dispensationalist,1 wrote: …Even though a dispensation ends, certain commands may be re-incorporated into a later era. Nine of the Ten Commandments . . . Continue reading →
The Israel Of God
At the center of the debate is the question of “the Israel of God” (Gal 6.16). Of course, this is not a new question. During our Lord’s earthly ministry and after his resurrection and before his ascension, the disciples asked him repeatedly, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1.6). Continue reading →
Gladwell On The Spiral By Late Modern Boys Into Murder
In the day of Eric Harris, we could try to console ourselves with the thought that there was nothing we could do, that no law or intervention or restrictions on guns could make a difference in the face of someone so evil. . . . Continue reading →
Gay Christians?
Introduction I have been speaking with an especially thoughtful young person recently who asked me whether it was appropriate to speak of “Gay Christians.” My first response was to ask whether it is appropriate to speak of “Murderer Christians” or “Thief Christians” . . . Continue reading →
The USA Is Not Old Testament Israel
Theonomy (or, more broadly Christian Reconstructionism) is one of the tollbooths through which pilgrims from traveling from Münster to Geneva, as it were, often seem to pass. I encountered it almost as soon as I came into contact with the Reformed churches. . . . Continue reading →
Christ Ascended, Christ Rules
Sometimes we give the impression or might be tempted to think that the last time we see Jesus in Scripture is at the end of the gospels but, of course, that is not true. We see him in Acts chapters 1 and . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: The 21st Century Reformed Pastor And Piety
The 21st century Reformed pastor faces many challenges. He represents a minority tradition in North America and in most other places in the world. His church tends to be understaffed and under-funded. Then there is the daunting task of evangelizing his community. . . . Continue reading →
N. T. Wright Is Still Wrong
I merely want to focus our attention on what I think is the most detrimental theological claim advanced in this book. Wright polemicizes by arguing that we should change the famous line “justification by faith” to “justification by loyalty.” He reasons, “If . . . Continue reading →