God originally made everything from nothing, perfect. He made our first parents, Adam and Eve, the root of mankind, both upright and able to keep the law written in their hearts. This law they were naturally bound to obey upon penalty of . . . Continue reading →
Sometimes Nebraska Is Just Too Nice (UPDATED)
Until now the only thing for which Irving Middle School has been notorious was that the infamous spree murderer Charlie Starkweather (1938–59) attended there, in the 1950s, when it was a Junior High School. It is in the news today, however, because . . . Continue reading →
Sectarians: Socinians, Arminians, And Pietists
By the end of the seventeenth century, there was a sense that sectarian groups – a list that included Socinians and Arminians, as well as Pietists — were increasingly establishing themselves throughout Europe to the detriment of true Christianity. As Elisée Géraud . . . Continue reading →
The Big Factory
The Left’s model of society is still the model of Marx and Bismarck: one big factory to be managed by experts. The government schools are an assembly line for human widgets, who are in theory there to be taught what the state . . . Continue reading →
Calvin Flashing Gang Signs
Chiliasm And Soul Sleep
Our study began with Irenaeus’ contention that the belief in an immediate removal of the soul to the presence of God and Christ at death was a stumbling block to orthodox acceptance of chiliasm, and with his counter proposal that the chiliastic . . . Continue reading →
Heidelcast 76: Was The Marrow Antinomian?
This is 13th and final part of the our series, nomism, antinomianism and The Marrow of Modern Divinity. If you’re just joining us, you can start at the beginning with episode 58. Why this series? Because The Marrow was an important classic . . . Continue reading →
Rollock: Of Works Done By Strength And Nature
Man, after the fall, abides under the covenant of works; and to this day, life is promised him under condition of works done by strength and nature. But if he will not do so well, death and the everlasting curse of God . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: Godfrey On What Is Wisdom?
Ours is not an age characterized by wisdom either inside or outside the church. Conferences on wisdom will not likely pack a football stadium (at least not a large one) but wisdom is a major theme in Scripture—terms for wisdom occur more . . . Continue reading →
Ursinus On Circumstances And Worship
Thirdly, there are ecclesiastical or ceremonial ordinances, prescribed by men, which include the determinations of circumstances necessary or useful for the maintenance of the moral precepts of the first table; of which kind are the time, the place, the form and order . . . Continue reading →
Cat-A-Baptist?
You Shall Not Withhold Your Hand
You shall not withhold your hand from your son or daughter, but from their youth you shall teach them the fear of God. —Didache (c.90–130 AD) 4.9.
Escondido Nitro

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Why Governments Fail
The breezy confidence of the White House and CDC is the kind of happy talk that relies on all the links in the chain having the same strength. —Rick Wilson, “The Uninvited Guest“
Scott Campbell: A Pioneer In Contemporary Christian Radio
In an earlier post I mentioned an old and dear friend, Scott Campbell. He was one of three people (the others being Don Crawley at KECK and Chris Abercrombie at KLMS) who got me started in radio. Scott was a devout evangelical Christian who . . . Continue reading →
Two Points On Left Behind And The Secret Rapture
I’m not certain how many “Left Behind” films there have been so far but since the 1970s there have been several evangelical thrillers—beginning with “Thief In The Night”—based on the eschatology of John Nelson Darby (1800–82) et al that anticipate a “secret . . . Continue reading →
Witsius On The Relations Between The Covenants Works And Grace
XV. In Scripture, we find two covenants of God with man: the Covenant of Works, otherwise called, the Covenant of Nature, or the Legal and the Covenant of Grace. The apostle teacheth us this distinction, Rom. 3:27, where he mentions the law . . . Continue reading →
Calvin On The Covenant Of Works
Because what God so severely punished must have been no light sin but a detestable crime, we must consider what species of sin (peccati) there was in Adam’s fall that kindled God’s horrible vengeance against the whole human race. To regard Adam’s . . . Continue reading →
Facts, Evidence, Wisdom, And Gossip
I’m not sure why, as a child, the TV show Dragnet captured my attention and imagination. Perhaps it was the theme song with its beat and blaring horns or perhaps it was the staccato, film-noir dialogue or the claim that the episodes . . . Continue reading →
Luther On The Covenant Of Works
Before Adam’s fall it was not necessary for him to have Christ, because he was righteous and without sin, just as the angels have no need of Christ. If Adam had not fallen, it would not have been necessary for Christ to . . . Continue reading →