In this episode Office Hours talks with the Rev Mr John Bales, interim Library Director at Westminster Seminary California about his journey from the Protestant mainline (RCA) to the confessional Reformed sideline.
Recovering the Reformed Confession
Happy Birthday to the Heidelberg Catechism
As several others have noted, today is the birthday of the Heidelberg Catechism. On this date, in 1563, the Heidelberg Catechism was published. Westminster Seminary California student Jared Beaird has a nice summary and some resource links. What is a catechism? It’s . . . Continue reading →
The Social Crisis is Too Great to Be Arguing About… (Updated)
The various social crises facing the West are great but the Roman empire was already in crisis when God the Holy Spirit empowered Christ’s apostles to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. Rome fell. The gospel and Christ’s church continued. Another empire, Christendom, replaced the old Roman Empire but it fell too. The kingdom of God, as manifested chiefly in this world in the visible, institutional church, continued. Social crises are important but they aren’t more important than the gospel. Seeing that is a key difference between actually being Reformed and being just another social conservative with a passing interest in the Reformation (as it suits whatever social agenda is in view). Continue reading →
A Reformed Hero for Children
I don’t use the word “hero” lightly or often. Guido de Bres (1522-67) was a hero. He was flesh and blood, a sinner like the rest of us, but unlike most of us, despite his sins and failings, he did remarkable things . . . Continue reading →
John Owen for Kids
John Owen (1616–83) was one of the most important and influential Reformed theologians of the 17th century. His books were widely read in his own life and he has continued to influence Reformed theology and piety since. Owen’s theology is not light . . . Continue reading →
Berkhof in Russian!
Congratulations to Evangelical Press for getting Louis Berkhof. We, in the English-speaking world have an embarrassment of riches of Reformed resources. Berkhof’s Reformed Dogmatics first appeared in 1932. It was later re-titled Systematic Theology. That our Russian-speaking brothers and sisters are just . . . Continue reading →
Between Donatism and Liberalism: Trueman on Losing the Plot
One way of accounting for the decline of churches into liberalism is to find the villains and tell the story of how the bad guys snuck into the church and corrupted an otherwise pure institution thereby stealing it from under the noses . . . Continue reading →
What We Can Learn From the Free Church About Conservatism and Sola Scriptura
The Free Church of Scotland, by a narrow margin, has voted to allow the introduction of musical instruments and non-inspired songs into its public worship services. As unfortunate as that decision is, if news accounts are to be believed, the grounds for . . . Continue reading →
Kevin DeYoung on Grand Rapids
This is only a bit of what he writes. You should read the whole thing for yourself but I found this passage fascinating: But in my experience, there is in Grand Rapids a strange combination of being tight on cultural categories while . . . Continue reading →
It’s All About Eschatology (and History)
Collin Hansen has a stimulating post at the Gospel Coalition this morning (Pacific) lamenting the apparently declining desire for a “revival.” Collin’s post raises some very important questions. Why would one begin to doubt the desire for revival, which I have described . . . Continue reading →
Audio: The ReformedCast on Recovering the Reformed Confession
Enjoyed talking with Scott Oakland on the ReformedCast today about RRC. Check it out.
Columbus Heart: Main Street PCA
For most of the last four or five days I’ve been with the brothers and sisters at Main Street PCA in Columbus, Mississippi. Thanks to the indulgence of Main Street’s Pastor, David Strain, we spent part of Friday touring Memphis. We enjoyed . . . Continue reading →
When the Borderline and Sideline Converge: Sunday Evenings
Conservative sideline Presbyterian and Reformed folk like to think of themselves as distinctly different from the liberal mainline Presbyterians and even borderline denominations such as the Christian Reformed Church but the Christian Century (HT: Aquila Report) describes a study done in the . . . Continue reading →
See You in Phoenix (updated)
UPDATE 13 October 2010 Had a great time in Phoenix/Mesa with Pastor Gary Johnson and the folks at Church of the Redeemer. It was good to re-connect with several WSC grads serving in the area and to hear about plans to plant . . . Continue reading →
See You in Cheyenne (Updated)
UPDATE: Thanks to Alex Ramig, Pastor Milan Norgauer (check out his sermon from last Sunday evening) and to all the folks at Northwoods PCA (especially to those who work behind the scenes not only to host the conference but also to host . . . Continue reading →
Fall Conference Info
The fall conference season is upon us. Here are some conferences that might interest you: Christ Reformed Church, Washington DC is hosting “Preaching in the Capital” for 2010. The speakers are Gene Veith, T. David Gordon, Robert Norris, and Marva Dawn. They . . . Continue reading →
QIRE, Syncretism, Kingdom Confusion, and Evangelical Niceness
Andrée Seu of WORLD Magazine made a boo boo. She’s supposed to say that, as an evangelical, she disapproves of Mormonism but the temperature of Glen Beck’s religious fervor is so high that it wins the day. She writes:
Genevan Psalter in Spanish!
The Complete Spanish Psalter has now been published and is available for purchase. It has been published by Publicaciones Faro de Gracia and can be purchased online here. It contains the 150 Biblical Psalms, complete and entire, and versified to be sung with . . . Continue reading →
Is the Reformed Faith a Second Blessing?
In response to Jason Stellman’s monday post the question has arisen as to what should be required for membership in a confessional Reformed (e.g., Three Forms) or Presbyterian (Westminster Standards) congregation. The argument has been made that, in American Presbyterian churches, the . . . Continue reading →
Herman Witsius: The Practice of Christianity
1. What is the sole and perfect rule of our faith and conduct? It is the Word of God which is now contained in Holy Scripture, that is, in the canonical books of the Old and New Testament. This is the rule to which . . . Continue reading →