Therefore the Law or the old covenant contains only physical promises, to which some such condition as this is always attached: “If you will hear My voice” (Ps. 95:7); “If you will keep My covenant” (Ex. 19:5); “If you walk in My . . . Continue reading →
Natural Law
Luther: The Law And The Gospel Make Promise On Different Conditions
For the Law did not have promises added to it about Christ and His blessings, about deliverance from the curse of the Law, sin, and death, and about the free gift of the forgiveness of sins, righteousness, and eternal life. But the . . . Continue reading →
Luther: If You Are Under The Law You Are A Slave
Now it should be noted that the Holy Spirit insults the people of the Law and of works here by calling them “sons of the slave woman.” It is as though He were to say: “Why do you boast about the righteousness . . . Continue reading →
Luther On Law And Grace
Therefore we are pronounced righteous, not on the basis of the Law or of works or of our own righteousness but on the basis of pure grace. Paul insisted on the promise so vigorously and stressed it so often because he saw . . . Continue reading →
Colquhoun: Distinguishing Correctly Between Law And Gospel Is Essential
If then a man cannot distinguish aright between the law and the gospel, he cannot rightly understand as much as a single article of divine truth. If he does not have spiritual and just apprehensions of the holy law, he cannot have . . . Continue reading →
Colquhoun: The Law And The Gospel Are The Sum And Substance Of Scripture
The law and the gospel are the principal parts of divine revelation, or rather they are the center, sum, and substance of all the other parts of it. Every passage of sacred Scripture is either law or gospel or is capable of . . . Continue reading →
Colquhoun: The Law As Covenant Of Works
The law, then, as a covenant of works, does, in the most authoritative manner, demand from every descendant of Adam who is under it perfect holiness of nature, perfect righteousness of life, and complete satisfaction for sin. And none of the race . . . Continue reading →
Colquhoun On Natural Law
The natural law of God, or the law of nature, is that necessary and unchangeable rule of duty which is founded in the infinitely holy and righteous nature of God, to obey which all men, as the reasonable creatures of God, are . . . Continue reading →
Perkins On The Abrogation Of The Law
…how far forth the law is abrogated? Answer. The law is threefold: moral, ceremonial, judicial. Moral is the law of God concerning manners or duties to God and man. Now the moral law is abrogated in respect of the church and them . . . Continue reading →
La Ley Natural Y La ‘Luz De La Naturaleza’ En Las Confesiones Reformadas
En la época moderna, especialmente en el siglo XX, muchos reformados se sintieron incómodos con el lenguaje reformado tradicional relativo a la «ley natural». Como alguien que empezó a entrar en el mundo reformado alrededor de 1980, la mayoría de los reformados . . . Continue reading →
Should the State Imitate the Church?
One of our readers named K wrote me to ask, “If God’s Word forbids women from teaching and exercising authority, why shouldn’t the state follow the same principle?” This is a good and interesting question. It is made even more complicated by . . . Continue reading →
Recovering The Realism Of Natural Law
The Christian natural law tradition offers Christians meaningful and coherent moral guidance apart from instrumental calculations of political power and success. That is, the tradition is moral, not consequentialist or ad hoc. Moreover, rooted in a creational theology, it provides important pathways for a . . . Continue reading →
There Are Limits To Parental Authority
Recently it has been argued (on a podcast co-hosted by Mary Katherine Ham and in an op-ed by David French) that parents have the right, if they will, to subject their children to sex re-assignment surgery. French objects to the alleged interference . . . Continue reading →
Natural is Not Neutral
In 2008, another blogger (Russ Reeves) made some thoughtful comments on my essay, “Christ is Lord of All But…” This post was made in response to his comments. The original essay was recently republished on the Heidelblog, and you can find that . . . Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Godfrey On Why Calvin Rejected Theonomy (2)
All the Episodes of the Heidelcast Subscribe to the Heidelcast! On Twitter @Heidelcast How To Support Heidelmedia: use the donate button below Subscribe in Apple Podcast Subscribe directly via RSS New Way To Call The Heidelphone: Voice Memo On Your Phone The . . . Continue reading →
Rushdoony’s Rejection Of Natural Law As “Heretical Nonsense” Is “Patently Inconsistent” With The Confession
An examination of the contemporary literature, and the writings of the divines themselves, reveals that the Westminster divines universally held to a concept of natural law, as did other theologians of the seventeenth century who were influential on the divines’ thinking. As . . . Continue reading →
Nature Is Nature (And Cloud Cuckoo Land Is Just That)
In 1996, the United States Senate passed and President Bill Clinton signed into law the “Defense of Marriage Act” (DOMA). The bill said, No State, territory, or possession of the United States, or Indian tribe, shall be required to give effect to . . . Continue reading →
What Can We Do With Natural Law?
The two principal reasons the Heidelblog exists (and its parent organization, the Heidelberg Reformation Association) are, first, to encourage Reformed confessing Christians to recover their confession, i.e., both the confessional documents but also the broader and classic Reformed theology, piety, and practice, . . . Continue reading →
Heidelminicast: Alan Keyes Demonstrates How To Make A Natural Law Argument
These are some of our favorite Heidelquotes. Something to think about from the Heidelcast. If you are subscribed to the Heidelcast or the Heidelblog (see below) you will receive these episodes automatically. All the Episodes of the Heidelcast How To Subscribe To Heidelmedia . . . Continue reading →
Lamenting Christendom
What difference should the visible church make in the broader culture? How significant should it be? How one answers this question tells us something about how one views the relations between Christ and culture and the evident death of Christendom. Defining Christendom . . . Continue reading →