Why A New Reformed Denomination? Reformed Christians understand the significance of the Reformation and its effect on global Christianity. In Africa, there was an extended series of Reformed missions from the sixteenth to the early twentieth centuries. But this was not the . . . Continue reading →
It must be acknowledged that in few of the civilized nations of our time have the higher sciences made less progress than in the United States; and in few have great artists, distinguished poets, or celebrated writers been more rare. Many Europeans, . . . Continue reading →
I was twenty-eight years old when I started in full-time ministry in 1999 as associate pastor of a large Presbyterian church. I was thirty when I was called to pastor a small suburban church on my own. I made loads of mistakes . . . Continue reading →
On March 14th and 15th, Westminster Seminary California held its annual den Dulk lectures. Chad Vegas delivered two lectures on Pastoral Ministry. Below is a video from the second day of the lectures. RESOURCES Subscribe To The Heidelblog! The Heidelblog Resource Page . . . Continue reading →
On March 14th and 15th, Westminster Seminary California held its annual den Dulk lectures. Chad Vegas delivered two lectures on Pastoral Ministry. Below is a video from the first day of the lectures. RESOURCES Subscribe To The Heidelblog! The Heidelblog Resource Page . . . Continue reading →
I recently spent a few days driving through rural Tennessee, Kentucky, and Illinois. During many stretches of travel a person could drive one hundred fifty miles and not find a confessionally Reformed church to worship with. As a member of the Mississippi . . . Continue reading →
Over the years many things have changed at Westminster Seminary California (WSC). In the most important ways, however, the seminary has not changed. We still believe the Bible to be the inspired, infallible, inerrant Word of God. We still believe the historic . . . Continue reading →
Continuing our study of the hidden truths in the Book of Ruth, this final part of the series picks up with the fourth critical truth that points us to Christ. Redeemer (or kinsman-redeemer) points ultimately to Christ: Boaz preaches the qualities of . . . Continue reading →
Part two gave the first of four critical truths in the Book of Ruth that cannot be communicated by mute flannelgraph cutouts: Ruth the Moabite points to Christ. Continuing now with the second and third points: genealogy and Providence point to Christ. . . . Continue reading →
In part one, we began a search to find a christological title for the Book of Ruth, and we found that its title would in fact not be “Ruth”— although she has many excellent qualities, she is not the main character since . . . Continue reading →
Flannelgraphs, alternatively named flannel boards, are sturdy panels covered with flannel. Displayed on an easel, they facilitate the telling of stories, usually in the small nooks and crannies of basements (called “classrooms”) in many Christian church buildings. While most basements reek of . . . Continue reading →
The confessional Presbyterian and Reformed churches are facing a challenge that I have not seen since I first joined St John Reformed Church over 40 years ago: a shortage of pastors. For decades, there have been more candidates for ministry than there . . . Continue reading →
Joel Kim and Chris Gordon talk about how to prepare pastors. Continue reading →
What happens if we run out of pastors? Continue reading →
Commencement addresses are typically forgettable—not this one. David Hall is married to Ann, and they are parents of three grown children and grandparents of eight grandchildren. He has served as the Senior Pastor of Midway Presbyterian Church (PCA) since 2003. Previously, he . . . Continue reading →
When I tell people that I pastor a church in Illinois, they invariably assume that I mean Chicago. And when I tell them that the church is actually in southern Illinois, in a city of just 4,000, they generally do not know . . . Continue reading →
A former student of mine many years ago at Westminster Seminary California once mentioned that he was feeling concerned about his devotional life since beginning seminary—a thought many first-semester seminary students have. He said that before attending seminary, he had an active . . . Continue reading →
This is a sensitive topic. People do not always think rationally, biblically, and confessionally about the office of pastor. Many do not understand what ministers do, and most people who are involved in the pastoral search process are well-meaning but inexperienced. And . . . Continue reading →
According to new research by the Barna organization, nowhere are pastors feeling the pressure on this point more than on matters surrounding the ethics of sexuality and of reproduction… Yet more worrying than the specific examples cited by Barna is the more . . . Continue reading →
So, in general, there is some awareness in the wider church of this reality in underserved America’s small-town and rural regions. There is still, however, a greater need to raise up an explicitly Reformed and Presbyterian witness to serve these areas.
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