The theme of all good church planting updates is the faithfulness of God. This one is no exception. Perhaps that has to do with the ever-faithful God whom we worship. Continue reading →
Ascension Presbyterian Update
Author: Luke Gossett
Rev. Luke Gossett (MA Westminster Seminary California; MA and PhD Candidate, Catholic University of America) is the pastor of Ascension Presbyterian Church (a mission of the OPC Presbytery of the South) in his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama. His dissertation focuses on the linguistic functions of the Hebrew word for “now.” Luke has been married to his wife, Jennifer, since 2014, and they have three wonderful children.
The God Worthy Of Psalming And Hymning: Psalm 113 (Part 3)
Recently, the King of Spain, Felipe VI, met his subjects in the streets. Floods have lately ravaged Spain, and the monarch came to meet his people. Continue reading →
The God Worthy Of Psalming And Hymning: Psalm 113 (Part 2)
Recently, the King of Spain, Felipe VI, met his subjects in the streets. Floods have lately ravaged Spain, and the monarch came to meet his people. Continue reading →
The God Worthy Of Psalming And Hymning: Psalm 113 (Part 1)
Yuri Gagarin is an unlikely candidate to make an appearance in our churches. The Russian cosmonaut died in 1968. Nevertheless, you may have heard of him. He was the first man in space. He is also becoming a favorite sermon illustration of some. Continue reading →
Review: Towards A Reformed Apologetics: A Critique Of The Thought Of Cornelius Van Til By Keith A. Mathison
If you have been in the Presbyterian and Reformed world long, at some point you have likely heard of Cornelius Van Til. He has had an enormous influence. For some people, Reformed and presuppositional apologetics are nearly synonyms. This may be surprising . . . Continue reading →
Review: Praying with Jesus: Getting to the Heart of the Lord’s Prayer By Adriel Sanchez
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 →
Psalm 115: The Cure For Idolatry In The Postmodern World (Part 3)
My wife and I have moved quite a lot in our adult lives. We have done local and cross-country moves. We have met a lot of wonderful people along the way. Continue reading →
Psalm 115: The Cure For Idolatry In The Postmodern World (Part 2)
The gravers of images, all of them are desolate Their delights never profit. Their witnesses do not see They do not know so that they are shamed. . . . He grazes on ash, a heart is deceived, it leads him away. He cannot . . . Continue reading →
Psalm 115: The Cure For Idolatry In The Postmodern World (Part 1)
Not ours, YHWH, not ours For to your name, give glory. On account of your steadfast love and on account of your faithfulness. Why should the nations say “Where, now, is their God?” Our God is in the heavens, All that delights . . . Continue reading →
Review: Retrieving Augustine’s Doctrine of Creation: Ancient Wisdom for Current Controversy By Gavin Ortlund
It was in seminary that a certain Church history professor (and President of the HRA) taught me about the technical theological distinction between lumpers and splitters. If you are unfamiliar, let me clue you in. There are people who group things together . . . Continue reading →
A Patristic Root In Reformed Theology Part 3: Interpretation Of The Descent
What do you do on a Sunday when you arrive at confessing the descent into hell in the creed? Maybe you say it loudly, or maybe you squirm. Or maybe your church omits it entirely.1 For those new to Reformed churches, confessing . . . Continue reading →
A Patristic Root In Reformed Theology Part 2: The Division Of The Creed
For Christians like me who grew up outside of liturgical and Reformed traditions, the first year of saying the Apostles’ Creed in worship can raise many questions and spur the need for study. One of those instances is the descent clause: “He . . . Continue reading →
A Patristic Root In Reformed Theology Part 1: What, Who, And Why?
Over my years of study, one essential thing I have learned is that the Reformation was a return to patristic roots not only in worship,1 but also in theology. It was not a wholesale repudiation of history; nor did it cast off the . . . Continue reading →
An Update From The Field: Birmingham URCNA Church Plant
As I write this, we have been living and laboring in Birmingham, Alabama for twenty weeks. My family and I moved back to Birmingham at the beginning of July. In the middle of that month, we had the privilege of attending a church-planting conference. Continue reading →
A New Church Plant In Birmingham
Introduction: Why Another Church? As I began to announce and plan for a United Reformed Church plant in Birmingham Alabama, the question that kept coming up was some variation of, “Why another church?” or “Why another Reformed church?” In response to this, . . . Continue reading →