How do you relate to God? Since the triune God is truly transcendent, what binds us to him that we might know that he is near to his people? We long for certainty and assurance to know that our God is with . . . Continue reading →
Author: Harrison Perkins
Harrison Perkins (PhD, Queen’s University Belfast; MDiv, Westminster Seminary California) is pastor of Oakland Hills Community Church (OPC), a member of the of the Heidelberg Reformation Association, a Senior Research Fellow at the Craig Center for the Study of the Westminster Standards, online instructor in church history at Westminster Theological Seminary, a visiting lecturer in systematic theology at Edinburgh Theological Seminary, and author of Reformed Covenant Theology: A Systematic Introduction. You can read more from him at Pastor Perks.
In Contrast To 1689, The Old Testament Covenants Apply Christ and His Benefits Proactively
Among some representatives of 1689 federalism, this dialectical tension wherein the covenant of grace both communicated Christ’s benefits and was not administered ends up breaking the wrong direction. Although the covenants of the old economy “carried the promise of another covenant,” they . . . Continue reading →
Review Roundup: Covenant Theology (Part 3)
The covenant theology roundup continues with part 3. Continue reading →
Good Works Matter Because They Are Fruit On A Growing Root
Good works matter because they are the fruit growing on the root of love. After all, God created humanity as an act of love toward us. He made us to glorify and enjoy Him. By ruling creation in righteousness, we would have . . . Continue reading →
The Canons Of Dork #49 For March 7, 2026
May the road rise to meet you Continue reading →
Review: Mere Christian Hermeneutics: Transfiguring What It Means To Read The Bible Theologically By Kevin J. Vanhoozer
How do we understand the Bible? And should Christians not all agree about how to do so? Given Scripture’s clarity, we might think the answer is an obvious yes! The church’s history, however, tells a different story. The transition from the medieval . . . Continue reading →
From Glory to Glory: The Story of Christ in Psalms 15–24 (Part 12): Psalm 21 And The Victorious King
One thing I have realized about home repair projects is that the whole job is not done just because you finish the job you set out to do. You may complete the main task, but cleanup is still a feature of a . . . Continue reading →
Review: Conceived By The Holy Spirit: The Virgin Birth In Scripture and Theology By Rhyne R. Putman
Christ is the heart of the Christian faith. God the Son became incarnate. In assuming a true human nature, God the Son is the man Jesus Christ. His work for our salvation is all-encompassing of every moment of his incarnation. Reformed churches . . . Continue reading →
The Canons Of Dork #48 For February 7, 2026
It’s a trap! Continue reading →
The True Continuing Church
When John Henry Newman said, “To be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant,” his basic argument was that if you look at the early church and compare its doctrine and practice to Protestantism, you will observe that the early . . . Continue reading →
Why Good Works Matter
Why do I exist? Who am I supposed to be? Questions of identity touch the heart of our human condition. They also broach some of the most challenging issues of the modern period. We need to know what it means to be . . . Continue reading →
Great Lakes Reformed Conference 2026: Wisdom, Guidance For The Journey With J. V. Fesko
The fourth annual Great Lakes Reformed Conference is scheduled for the morning of Saturday, March 21, 2026. This half-day event in Farmington Hills, Michigan, packs in three educational sessions on the topic of Wisdom, Guidance for the Journey. Dr. J. V. Fesko . . . Continue reading →
Becoming Barnabas: The Example Of Encouragement (Part 3): Words Can Go The Distance
I remember standing in a parking lot as my dad panicked that gas prices approached one dollar per gallon. The panic that my dad and many other consumers experienced led to another fallout that remains with us today, the concern for mileage. . . . Continue reading →
Becoming Barnabas: The Example Of Encouragement (Part 2): What’s In A Name?
Think of your most trusted confidant and ask yourself why you welcome his input. What causes you to trust his advice and be open to whatever he might say? What about that person makes you feel like even his hard feedback will . . . Continue reading →
Becoming Barnabas: The Example Of Encouragement (Part 1): Introduction
The Acts of the Apostles contains some truly epic accounts of what Jesus continued to do and to teach as he worked from heaven through his appointed church officers (Act 1:1). We easily focus on Peter, who preached the first Christian sermon, . . . Continue reading →
Review: Scripture and Metaphysics: Aquinas and the Renewal of Trinitarian Theology By Matthew Levering
Biblicism is a tough drug to kick, as recent years in evangelical circles have demonstrated. Arguments have proliferated about traditional understandings of God, his attributes, how to formulate the Trinity, how the unchanging God—as at least classical theists assert—relates to the changing . . . Continue reading →
Images Of Christ Diminish His Humanity
Mrs. Smith: “But Jesus truly came in the flesh. Doesn’t forbidding images make Him seem less human?” Dr. Perkins: Not at all. For the disciples, seeing Jesus wasn’t sinful—it was God’s gift in history. But for us to recreate Him is presumption. . . . Continue reading →
Review: Hope and Holiness: How the Gospel Enables and Empowers Sexual Purity By John Fonville
Sex is a recurring issue of interest. I imagine readers are already engaged more fully in this article just because of the topic it flags. We understand why the world retains interest: As the axiom goes, “sex sells.” This axiom’s lamentable counterpart . . . Continue reading →
From Glory to Glory: The Story of Christ in Psalms 15–24 (Part 11): Psalm 20 and the Coming King
The last-minute arrival of the hero is one of the great suspense breakers in good stories. When all hope seems lost against the rising tide of enemy forces, hope reignites as reinforcements arrive to carry the heroes forward. The civilian ships unexpectedly . . . Continue reading →
The Canons Of Dork #47 For January 3, 2026
Return to sender? Continue reading →