We may now readily perceive the difference between the Essence of God, and the Persons, subsisting in the divine essence. By the term, Essence, we are to understand, in reference to this subject, that which the eternal Father, Son, and Holy Spirit . . . Continue reading →
Author Archives: R. Scott Clark
Students Do Better To Take Notes By Hand
When people type their notes, they have this tendency to try to take verbatim notes and write down as much of the lecture as they can,” [Pam] Mueller tells NPR’s Rachel Martin. “The students who were taking longhand notes in our studies . . . Continue reading →
Ursinus On The Persons, Works, And Unity Of The Trinity
Question 24. How are these articles divided? Answer. Into three parts: the first is of God the Father, and our creation; the second of God the Son, and our redemption; the third of God the Holy Spirit, and our sanctification. Exposition There . . . Continue reading →
Perkins On “Faith” In Hebrews 11
“Now Faith.” Faith in the word of God is specially of three sorts: historical, miraculous, [and] justifying or saving faith. First, historical faith is not only a knowledge of the word, but an assent of the heart to the truth of it. . . . Continue reading →
A Wonderful Illustration Of The Necessity Of An Objective Definition Of Reformed
Trevin Wax and David Fitch have been in a dialogue in which each of them has published a post expressing appreciation for the other’s tradition. Wax identifies as Reformed and Fitch as Anabaptist. The reader can draw his own conclusions as to . . . Continue reading →
Turretin On The Covenant Of Nature (12)
IV. This double covenant is proposed to us in Scripture: of nature and of grace; of works and of faith; legal and evangelical. The foundation of this distinction rests both on the different relation (σχέσει) of God contracting (who can be considered . . . Continue reading →
Machen’s Senate Testimony Against The Proposed Department Of Education (1926)
The committee met, pursuant to adjournment, at 10 o’clock am, Senator Lawrence C. Phipps presiding. Name of those present: Senators Phipps (chairman), Ferris, Copeland, and Brookhart, of the Senate Committee, and Messrs. Reed of New York, Robison, Holaday Lowrey Black of New . . . Continue reading →
Back In Print: Beza On The Christian Faith
Theodore Beza (1519–1605) was one of the most significant Reformed theologians in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was a humanist (a classics scholar), Calvin’s successor in Geneva, a New Testament scholar, minister, and a teacher in the Genevan Academy. . . . Continue reading →
Positively High Street
Who May Read Scripture To The Congregation In Public Worship?
Reading the Word of God publicly to the congregation is the duty of those especially called as ministers of the Word.” …Reading the Scriptures ‘publicly to the congregation’ is a part of conducting the public worship of God, and therefore it is . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: Introducing Johannes Cocceius On Covenant Theology In English
For most of his long career, Johannes Cocceius (1603–69) taught Old Testament, biblical theology, theology, and philology in the Netherlands. He was arguably one of the most important and influential Reformed theologians of the 17th century and his influence continues to be . . . Continue reading →
As It Was In The Days Of Noah (25): 2 Peter 1:1–2
The over-arching theme that unites these two epistles is what I have been calling the “Noah Paradigm.” Our Lord appealed to this way of thinking in his Oliver Discourse (Matt 24:37): “As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be when the Son of Man comes.” Our Lord was characterizing the inter-adventure age. He was giving us a way to think about our life between his ascension and his return Continue reading →
Of Empires, 180s, And The Communion Of The Saints
A friend and I were talking recently about a mutual friend, who had been a pastor and a strong advocate for the Reformation doctrines of sola scriptura (according to Scripture alone), sola gratia (by grace alone), and sola fide (through faith alone). Suddenly, however, this . . . Continue reading →
Volume 3 Of Perkins’ Works Available Now
William Perkins (1558–1602) is one of the most important of the English Reformed writers of the late 16th and early 17th centuries but, until recently, his works were mostly unavailable. Until this new series by RHB, his works had been out of . . . Continue reading →
With The Presbycast On The Lost Sheep
The USA is a vast place and there are relatively few confession Presbyterian and Reformed Congregations. You can find many of them listed via NAPARC. Regularly confessional ministers get the question: what do I do when there is not a confessional P . . . Continue reading →
Turretin On The Covenant Of Nature (11)
IX. Although faith in Christ is not prescribed specifically and expressly in the law (which does not know Christ), still it is contained in it generically and implicitly (inasmuch as the law commands us to believe every word of God and all . . . Continue reading →
A New Online Resource For Bible Study
Travis Fentiman wrote to let me know about a resource site he has compiled which is built on Spurgeon’s recommended list of commentaries and upon resources such as the Post-Reformation Digital Library (PRDL). It is a gateway to older, online biblical commentaries. . . . Continue reading →
Grammar Guerrilla: Drop The “Of”
Sports-talk radio is a never-ending source of malapropisms and a good indicator of the state of the language. One abuse which I hear regularly on the radio and in personal conversation is the unnecessary use of the preposition of. A preposition indicates . . . Continue reading →
When Bible Translations Disappoint
Late modern Americans face a plethora of choices in English-language Bible translations: The King James Version (KJV), the American Standard Version (ASV), the Revised Standard Version (RSV), the New International Version (NIV), the New King James Version (NKJV), the Living Bible (LB), . . . Continue reading →
When Confessional P & R Congregations Do Not Exist Or Disappoint
A reader writes: “I’ve followed your blog and podcast for a while now. I have not been a Reformed/Presbyterian for very long, but I do know that I want to be a part of a specific congregation that is committed to confessional . . . Continue reading →