Rev. Dr. Jon D. Payne and Pastor Chris Gordon continue their conversation about the true mission of the church and the power of prayer. The discussion turns to Christian persecution, the upcoming presidential election and the inevitable political tension that will accompany it. Continue reading →
I grew up outside of the Reformed tradition, though I have been a member of Presbyterian or Reformed churches for over a decade. Growing up, it was common to describe people in the church as “prayer warriors.” This is not something I . . . Continue reading →
Fix writes to ask about prayer as a means of grace. I’ve thought quite a bit lately, about the question of prayer as a means of grace. Question 1: When the Westminster Divines spoke of prayer as a means of grace, were . . . Continue reading →
In the wake of the New Calvinist (sometimes called the “Young, Restless, and Reformed”) movement, the adjective Reformed gets slapped on seemingly everything. What does it mean to be Reformed? Is it simply people who hold to a Calvinistic soteriology? Is it . . . Continue reading →
“If you want to almost-instantly humble any Christian, ask him about his prayer life,” or so the maxim goes. Prayer is one of those practices of the Christian life which every Christian will affirm in importance; in practice, however, many will struggle . . . Continue reading →
As long ago as the dark ages of 2012, elders and laymen have been noticing that traditionally Anglican elements of worship are increasingly appearing in Presbyterian churches, in numerous PCA church plants and in the CREC. Jonathan W. Williams, a layman in . . . Continue reading →
Almighty God and heavenly Father, You have promised to hear and answer our requests which we make to you in the name of Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. We are further taught by Him and His apostles to gather together . . . Continue reading →
Jesus, in instructing his disciples on the basics of prayer, uses the imperative and tells them to “Pray in this manner!” (Matt. 6:9), going on to then give what we know as the Lord’s Prayer. This has been taken to mean—and rightly . . . Continue reading →
The final aspect of Augustine’s hermeneutic that we will observe is this: Augustine believed biblical texts could have more than one meaning or interpretation. Scripture, for Augustine, was not a one-dimensional black-and-white text filled with brute facts of history and bare propositions.1 . . . Continue reading →
“Thou has pierced my heart with Thy Word, and I have loved Thee.”1 In the last article, we examined Augustine’s vigorous Christ-centered interpretation of Scripture. Another significant aspect of his biblical interpretation is love. For Augustine, the proper interpretation of Scripture leads . . . Continue reading →
Most of us know that we should pray more often. We do not need a book to tell us this. We only need to consider our own daily prayers to see our failures. If we already know this, then why bother reading . . . Continue reading →
“Like fingernails on a chalkboard.” Sometimes that phrase captures my response to a bizarre interpretation of Scripture. For example, I recently read a modern commentary on the story in Mark’s Gospel, where Jesus heals a man with leprosy: “Jesus stretched out his . . . Continue reading →
As a young evangelical convert, I learned three things right away: God commands us to pray and read our Bibles every morning (the quiet time), if we listen closely enough we can hear direct revelation from God apart from Scripture (the still, . . . Continue reading →
In C. S. Lewis’ The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, there is a moment when the ship is approaching the Dark Island and all aboard find themselves in fear and despair. As the darkness enfolds them, we are told that Lucy whispers, . . . Continue reading →
CANON 9. Concerning the succor of God. It is a mark of divine favor when we are of a right purpose and keep our feet from hypocrisy and unrighteousness; for as often as we do good, God is at work in us . . . Continue reading →
CANON 3. If anyone says that the grace of God can be conferred as a result of human prayer, but that it is not grace itself which makes us pray to God, he contradicts the prophet Isaiah, or the Apostle who says . . . Continue reading →
124. What is the third petition?
“Your will be done in earth as it is in heaven,” that is: Grant that we and all men renounce our own will, and without gainsaying obey Your will which alone is good; that so every one may fulfill his office and calling as willingly and faithfully as the angels do in heaven. Continue reading →
58 seconds on why we say, “yours is the glory…”. Continue reading →
In this episode Dr Clark answers a Heideltext from Anonymous who writes, “Dr Clark, I have attempted to walk an associate through the PCA’s position paper against the Auburn Avenue heresy, specifically Doug Wilson’s brand thereof. How might I proceed if met . . . Continue reading →
In this episode Dr Clark answers Heidelmail from Jackson about whether the American Revolution was just, from Coral about whether it is just social-justice warriors who are self-righteous, from Andrew about whether Augustine gave us both the Roman communion, the Reformed churches, . . . Continue reading →