In verse 27 of chapter 3, after he dwells for a little while on the conclusion of the demonstration and has preached a little more fully about the righteousness of faith, he connects the two parts of the principal syllogism and gathers . . . Continue reading →
Biblical theology
Robert Rollock’s Commentary on Romans (2)
And so, you have in that one verse 18 of chapter 1 these three things: First, man is not justified by works; second, man is condemned by works, which is the reason of the former; third, all the works of all men . . . Continue reading →
New From Hywel Jones—Isaiah’s Oratorio: An Appreciation of Isaiah Chapters 24–27
Dr Hywel Jones was ordained in the Presbyterian Church of Wales in 1963 and ministered in several pastorates in Wales and England over 25 years. During those years, he was a member of the executive committee of the British Evangelical Council of . . . Continue reading →
Robert Rollock’s Commentary on Romans (1)
For, to speak about this epistle to the Romans, nobody could now think, speak, or even write about it enough. For it contains that mystery and those unsearchable riches of Christ. Robert Rollock | Commentary on Ephesians, trans. Casey Carmichael, Classic Reformed . . . Continue reading →
Stressful Providences And Fit Faith: Psalm 30 (Part 2)
In our pilot episode on Psalm 30, the poetry of its verses disclosed David’s close brush with death. Due to the infection of his affluence, his faith stumbled, and God disciplined him. From this ordeal, the psalmist learns a lesson that he . . . Continue reading →
Stressful Providences and Fit Faith: Psalm 30 (Part 1)
Time is a funny thing. For one, it is the constant we all live under. Time moves at the same rate. The second hand on the atomic clock does not speed up or slow down. Hours cannot be lost or added. We . . . Continue reading →
Two Peoples of God?
Dispensationalism has fallen on hard times. What was the dominant eschatological view of twentieth-century Evangelicals, dispensationalism today is overshadowed by the resurgence of postmillennial eschatology and the ever-stalwart amillennial position. This article offers a brief critique of dispensationalism. My remarks about dispensationalism . . . Continue reading →
Warfield On Calvin’s Doctrine Of The Natural Knowledge Of God
The first chapters of Calvin’s “Institutes” are taken up with a comprehensive exposition of the sources and guarantee of the knowledge of God and divine things (Book I. chs. i.-ix.). A systematic treatise on the knowledge of God must needs begin with . . . Continue reading →
Christ Reigns Even Amidst The Rubble (Psalm 74)
The Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem just as the Lord warned. Thus says the LORD, Behold, I will bring disaster upon this place and upon its inhabitants, all the curses that are written in the book that was read before the king of Judah. . . . Continue reading →
The Psalm of Yahweh’s Seven Thunders: Psalm 29 (Part 2)
Psalm 29 has lifted up our eyes to the heavens to behold not weather but the glory of God in the storm and the ear-bleeding thunders of Yahweh’s voice. But you cannot really have thunder without lightning. The one necessarily comes with . . . Continue reading →
The Psalm of Yahweh’s Seven Thunders: Psalm 29 (Part 1)
There is a basic assumption many of us share about our modern age, and this is that we have it better than any other age. We live in the best period of history. Strictly speaking, such an estimation is unprovable; it is . . . Continue reading →
It’s Not Hopeless
On the other hand, believers often feel powerless over the lust that arises from within. This shameful experience often leads many Christians to bear the problem alone, with a rather hopeless outlook that maybe this deep struggle indicates that they are not . . . Continue reading →
Only Son Or Only Begotten Son?
The translation of the Greek word μονογενής in the New Testament is a subject of debate. The term appears nine times, with four occurrences referring to ordinary “only children,” and the other five occurrences in Christological contexts, all in the Johannine literature. These Christological . . . Continue reading →
The Burden of the Lord’s Silence: Psalm 28 (Part 2)
In the first segment on Psalm 28, we saw the psalmist lay out for us the urgency of his plight, as he has been lumped in with the society of wicked lawbreakers. This need aches for a solution, so with the depravity . . . Continue reading →
The Burden of the Lord’s Silence: Psalm 28 (Part 1)
Do you like to stick out or to fit in? The teacher tells your class to dress in black, but this is not you, so you come in red—the red umbrella amid a sea of black ones. Or maybe you decide to . . . Continue reading →
Psalm 26: Denouncing Sin Yet Seeking The Lost (Part 2)
In the first part of Psalm 26, David confirmed his upright disdain for the perversity of idolatry and its overflowing evils. This godly contempt, though, was not alone, for it had an opposing pair, a sacred love. The psalmist loves the habitation . . . Continue reading →
Psalm 26: Denouncing Sin Yet Seeking The Lost (Part 1)
Hatred, is this a virtue or a vice? This is a no brainer, of course—hatred is an evil, as we hear about all the time. The trending morality of the day is to be nice, accepting, tolerant, and respectful to all. There . . . Continue reading →
Psalm 67: Isn’t It Aaronic? (Part 3)
Why will the nations “be glad and sing for joy”? In Part 2 of our study of Psalm 67, we explored the first of three reasons offered by the psalmist: “For you judge the peoples with equity.” Despite the fallenness of our . . . Continue reading →
Psalm 67: Isn’t It Aaronic? (Part 2)
In Part 1 of our study of Psalm 67, we played the part of a biblical cartographer, mapping and tracing the blessings of God to his people. Channeling the language of the Aaronic benediction, the psalmist asks for God’s grace and blessing . . . Continue reading →
A Summons to Sing: Psalm 47 (Part Two)
Ascension Thursday is fast approaching. This day is forty days after the resurrection, marking when Christ ascended into heaven. And, as one of my favorite puns has it, many of us today suffer from ascension deficit disorder. Continue reading →