Recently I had a question from a Presbyterian Ruling Elder (RE) asking about how REs should relate to Pastors (or Teaching Elder). The specific question how REs should relate to TEs in ecclesiastical assemblies. E.g., REs are often at something of a . . . Continue reading →
With the stench of decades of sweat fixed permanently in the air, its tile floor, and its fan-shaped basketball hoops mounted to the brick wall—the only protection against which being a thin, worn wrestling mat—the Community Center was the epitome of an . . . Continue reading →
One of the most frequently recurring set of search terms that brings readers to the HB is “pastors” and “wives.” They get here from this January, 2013 post on What Pastors Shouldn’t Tell Their Wives. The combination of the terms “pastors” and . . . Continue reading →
Nevertheless, despite all our natural resistance to authority and despite our suspicion of the church the fact is that our Lord Jesus, whom we profess to love and whose Word we profess to believe, instituted the very visible church against which we so easily rebel. Continue reading →
Where funeral sermons are not held, they shall not be introduced; and where they already have been accepted, diligence shall be exercised to do away with them by the most appropriate means. —Church Order of the Synod of Dort (1619). RESOURCES Subscribe . . . Continue reading →
In the wake of the recent discussions about church discipline there have been many online discussions about whether churches should exercise ecclesiastical discipline (yes, it’s one of the three marks of the true church—see Belgic Confession art. 29), how, and when. In . . . Continue reading →
Jonathan Merritt has an interesting two-part post chronicling reaction to the struggles of The Village Church, a large (twice the size of at least two NAPARC denominations) multi-site Acts 29 congregation in Texas, with a church discipline case. In this case a woman discovered . . . Continue reading →
James writes to ask about when children should make profession of faith and receive communion. He has observed young children being admitted to the table and wonders whether that is proper, whether children are really professing faith or merely parroting what they . . . Continue reading →
In Heidelberg Catechism 55 we say: 55. What do you understand by the “communion of saints”? First, that believers, one and all, as members of the Lord Jesus Christ, are partakers with Him in all His treasures and gifts; secondly, that each one must feel . . . Continue reading →
My Papa (Grandpa) was a great handyman. It seemed as if he could fix just about anything. He always brought his tools when he visited and we often had work for him to do. I remember the first time he said to . . . Continue reading →
Most of us at some point shall have to choose a church. Are they all the same? No. How on earth does one? On what basis? In my experience people use a variety of criteria, not all of them good. Families choose congregations . . . Continue reading →
Church growth is a thorny subject. First there are the thistles of rationalism in which self-proclaimed experts offer to sell to pastors and churches a three-point program which will transform their average congregation to a super church. Back in the late 80s and early . . . Continue reading →
When there are fewer people in a place, it’s much harder to hide. The first Sunday Abby and I attended the church (we’re members now), we sat in the back. Our intent was to bolt as soon as the benediction was pronounced . . . Continue reading →
August is the time of year when the heat of summer is accompanied by a blessedly slower pace, unless one is a college football player, in which two-a-day practices begin. Nebraska football is a month away! It’s vacation season for many (e.g., . . . Continue reading →
Americans are an independent lot. The original colonists left the old world for the new. Their revolutionary successors in the 18th century formalized that independence with a war and constitutional documents. The American desire for independence helped to propel us west beyond . . . Continue reading →
A wise traveler adapts to the customs and languages of the host country. When we lived abroad, people never asked us about our health. It is considered rude. The day we left England, however, we were peppered with questions by an American . . . Continue reading →
It begins as an experiment; then, if it’s successful, it becomes a model. To preserve its success and the ongoing creativity and innovative potential of the leader/model, the church tends to isolate itself from the wider assemblies of the church (presbytery, general . . . Continue reading →
While we were back in Nebraska Mrs Heidelblog and I had occasion to drive past a billboard warning about the dangers of elder abuse. You know you’re Reformed when the first thing such a warning brings to mind is life in the . . . Continue reading →
From the outset, it is important to note that church membership did not begin in the New Testament, but rather in the Old Testament. Exodus 19 is considered the first church gathering in the Bible, because God commanded Moses to consecrate and . . . Continue reading →
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Lutheran Baby Boomer, Hi. Sir. Ma’am. I hear you say a lot of things about people my age in the church, people 30 and under. I hear you say them and I really am listening–mostly–but in my head, . . . Continue reading →