“Calvin’s understanding of union with Christ, as accomplished by the work of the Spirit through faith, was foundational to his soteriological expression from the time of the second edition of his Institutes and the initial publication of his Romans commentary. Given, moreover, . . . Continue reading →
Author Archives: R. Scott Clark
Office Hours—Sacred Bond: Covenant Theology Explored
Too often, the way covenant theology is presented, it seems too complicated to understand or explain to others. It doesn’t have to be that way and it isn’t in this interview with Zach Keele and Mike Brown, authors of a new introduction . . . Continue reading →
Do Confessional Protestants Have Anything At Stake in the Papacy?
“Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man. We shall this day light such a candle, by God’s grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out.” These were among the last words of Hugh Latimer, as he . . . Continue reading →
10 Reasons Not to Pope
Shane is, as they say on sports-talk radio (at least in Omaha and Lincoln), “doing work” at the Reformed Reader.
Non Habemus Papam. Christus Solus Noster Mediator et Pontifex Maximus
Resurgent Catharism?
In the 2nd century, the Fathers faced one of the greatest threats ever to confront the Christian faith and church: Gnosticism. The gnostics taught a hierarchical scale of being in which salvation meant being delivered from our status as creatures. Salvation was . . . Continue reading →
The Myth of the Papacy
You know by now that Benedict XVI has abdicated the papacy and the college of Cardinals have been preparing to elect a new pope. on Tuesday they are set to begin the process of actually electing a new pope. Over the next . . . Continue reading →
Heidelberg Conference on Reformed Theology
Long before there was a Young, Restless, and Reformed movement, there was a movement of young, settled, and confessionally Reformed pastors and theologians in Heidelberg. It began in the late 1550s and continued until 1576 when they were all ejected—for being Reformed. . . . Continue reading →
All Heretics Quote Scripture
An HB Classic
One of the Ecks (there were two) is (or was it Bob Godfrey?) reputed to have said (I can’t find the reference), “All heretics quote Scripture.” If he said it, he meant it as rebuke to Luther’s appeal to Scripture. Of course, . . . Continue reading →
Updated Audio/Video Resource Page
Sorry to mar the HB with my visage but the technical wizard must be obeyed and failure to use an image will bring a stern warning from him who must be obeyed. Anyway, I’ve updated the audio/video resource page from the more . . . Continue reading →
RRC Now Available on Kindle and iTunes!
Due to popular demand or just the ordinary movement of technology Recovering the Reformed Confession is now available via Kindle and iTunes for $9.99. As always, the hardcopy is available through the Bookstore (ding, ding!) at Westminster Seminary California. If the sound effects make . . . Continue reading →
Hide Your Pets
Yale University was founded by conservative congregational ministers in the early 18th century. For those who haven’t been looking much has changed at Yale since its founding. You can catch up a bit via William F. Buckely’s Jr’s 1951 classic, God and . . . Continue reading →
Too Legit, Too Legit to Quit
MC Hammer Called. He wants His Costume Back
A “Not At This Time” Culture
7 minutes and 16 seconds. That’s how long nurses at Glenwood Gardens nursing home, in Bakersfield, CA, had to render aid to Lorraine Bayless. She was 87 years old and now she is dead. Perhaps you’ve heard the audio of the 911 call. . . . Continue reading →
Chicken of the Sea?
Reformed Churches have long posted a rooster-shaped weather vane atop their church buildings as a silent warning to their members not to deny Christ (Matt 26:34). The Church By the Sea in St Petersburg, FL is a congregational church founded in 1944. . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: Steve Baugh on Hebrews 7:18-28
Steve Baugh, Professor of NT at Westminster Seminary California, joins us for this episode Office Hours that takes a look at Hebrews 7:18–28. Does Hebrews teach that the Ten Commandments are no longer valid for Christians? What does “law” mean here? How did the old . . . Continue reading →
What Reformed Confessionalists Can Learn From Orthodox Jews
Sports themes continue on the HB. The Blaze carries a story today about an Orthodox Jewish day school in Houston, TX. Last year they earned national attention when they were nearly disqualified from participating in the state basketball tournament because they refused . . . Continue reading →
A New Program for Hired Hands
In the fundamentalist-modernist controversy in the early part of the 20th century, one of the more difficult aspects was the question of whether the “modernists” really believed the faith any longer. The suspicion among conservatives was that in some, perhaps many cases, . . . Continue reading →
The Blood of the Martyrs Today
Rupert Shortt is Religion Editor of the TLS (Times Literary Supplement). In this 54-page synopsis of his case he takes the reader on a tour of global persecution of Christians. He begins in Egypt by contrasting current conditions with Egypt’s tradition of . . . Continue reading →
Biblical Theology Isn’t New—It’s In the Catechism
HC Q. 19 (Pt 1)
Go the reference room (virtual or real), find a encyclopedia entry on “Biblical Theology” and one will likely find an entry that begins in the 19th century liberalism. Depending upon which entries one reads, one might find reference to the Dutch Reformed . . . Continue reading →