Jacob Aitken, sometime author at the HB, left the TheoRecon movement. What is that? TheoRecon is a shorthand word I coined (as far as I know) for the theonomic-Christian reconstruction movement. Now you know why I use TheoRecon instead. Short story: the movement . . . Continue reading →
Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706) was among the more important Reformed theologians of the later 17th century. According to Richard Muller, in van Mastricht we see Reformed orthodoxy and scholasticism coming to its high point technically. So students of the history of Reformed . . . Continue reading →
Why should we study what the Bible says about how we came to faith in Jesus? Isn’t it enough to simply believe and let it go? After all, do not such discussions only cause hurt feelings and doctrinal arguments among believers? These are good questions. Here are two answers. First, Jesus himself calls us to pay attention to His hard words. Continue reading →
In a sense everything on this site is intended to help pastors, elders, deacons, and laity better serve Christ but some of the resources are specifically focused on the nature and act of preaching because, in distinction from some traditions, in the . . . Continue reading →
Be Thou My Vision: A Liturgy for Daily Worship (Wheaton: Crossway, 2021) is a delightful surprise. Edited by Jonathan Gibson it is arranged in a cycle of 31 days and on each day it includes: A call to worship, Words of adoration, A reading . . . Continue reading →
On January 11, 2022, USA Today, once a reputable, mainstream national paper, ran an opinion/analysis piece by Alia E. Dastagir, who covers culture for USA Today, restating the argument made by Allyn Walker, that not all pedophiles (also known as “Minor Attracted . . . Continue reading →
Public schools across the USA are actively grooming elementary students for the LGBTQ movement. Continue reading →
As they used to say on Sesame Street, “one of these things is not like the others…”. That is the question raised by an article in byFaith, the official magazine of the PCA, which seeks to quiet the furor over the formerly secret network, The . . . Continue reading →
The Immediate Danger There is much to bemoan about Twitter as a social media platform. There is much to bewail about social media, which task your dutiful servant has performed in this space. Nevertheless, there are some benefits. One of them is that . . . Continue reading →
The Heidelberg Catechism appeared on this date in 1563. It went through three editions early on and it is the third edition that was authorized (in Latin) by the Synod of Dort. It is rightly beloved by millions. It has been translated . . . Continue reading →
Pat Abendroth is a friend and pastor of Omaha Bible Church and the host of The Pactum Podcast. Pactum is a Latin noun for covenant. You might see or hear it used, e.g., to refer to the pactum salutis, the covenant of redemption between . . . Continue reading →
Why did James say “justify” if he did not mean to indicate that there is either a second way of justification (e.g., by works) or if he did not mean to signal that works somehow play some role other that fruit and evidence. Continue reading →
Thanks for providing such great resources. Many of our Kenyan friends are now listening to the Heidelcast series “I will be a God to you and unto your children.” Continue reading →
I had the privilege of talking with my friend Pat Abendroth last night. He is the senior pastor of Omaha Bible Church. He is a gospel preacher. We were recording an episode of his excellent podcast, The Pactum and we discussed what the . . . Continue reading →
Andrew Bertodatti and Rasool Berry, two pastors in New York City, have written a lengthy critique of a new book by Owen Strachan. My interest in this essay is not to engage with Strachan’s book, which I have not read, nor to . . . Continue reading →
Already in the apostolic period of the church there were heretics, John calls them “antichrists” (1 John 2:18, 22; 4:2–3; 2 John 1:7) who taught that Jesus only appeared to be human but that he did not have a true human body. . . . Continue reading →
When the Westminster Assembly (1643–52), which was composed of Episcopalians, Congregationalists, and Presbyterians, deliberated on the moral law of God, they agreed on with the church of all ages and times on the abiding validity of God’s moral law. In their Confession (19.5) . . . Continue reading →
Kathryn Post, writing for the Religion News Service (HT: Christianity Today), writes, “On New Year’s Day, 43 congregations of the Reformed Church in America (RCA) split from the national denomination, one of the oldest Protestant bodies in the United States, in part over theological differences regarding same-sex marriage and the ordination of LGBT clergy.” This move, she says, “follows the RCA General Synod’s October decision to adopt measures for ‘grace-filled separation’ with departing churches and to appoint a team to develop a restructuring plan for those that remain.” These 43 congregations (so far) have formed The Alliance of Reformed Churches. Continue reading →
Introduction Americans are an independent lot. In the secular sphere (e.g., politics and economics) that can be an admirable quality which contributes mightily to freedom and prosperity. In the sacred sphere (e.g., in the life of the church, in our spiritual and . . . Continue reading →