By now all those who have been following the Federal Vision situation in the PCA will have heard that the General Assembly of the PCA approved the report by the study committee. That was not what we were praying for, and so I thought I needed to make just a couple of brief comments here. …
Because They Did Not Eat the Fat, or Drink the Sweet
The covenant sanctions include fearsome curses. This section is significantly longer than the blessings, but given the situation the warnings are to the point. This section is not so much an argument as it is a painted picture—it contains a good deal of repetition. These are warnings, not proofs. The proof comes in the judgment. …
PCA at the Crossroads
Please be praying for the PCA. This afternoon they will be considering the Federal Vision issue. Or, more accurately, they will be considering what some people deem to be the Federal Vision issue. Unfortunately, depending on the outcome, there are accurate names connected to inaccurate summaries of doctrine, and so this really is a crossroads …
The Inclusivist Snare
John Stackhouse is a professor of theology and culture at Regent College in Vancouver, BC. He is part of the Christian Vision Project, and he writes in favor of “inclusivism” here. Inclusivism, as he defines it, says that there are many outside the Christian faith who are saved because of their demeanor of faith, without …
A Career Move?
I just got an email from my son-in-law Ben, to whom the credit for this insight belongs. He was responding to the current PCA embarrassment and, here . . . let him talk. I was thinking about how for the last generation the thing that has always been presbyterianism’s real strength has been its intellectualism. …
That He’d Been In His Bunk Below
I read on Reformed News that Sam Duncan, former moderator of the PCA, has provided a summary of the FV in preparation for the big doings at the General Assembly of the PCA this week. But before I start in on my war dance, let me just say that you ought to check out Reformed …
Middle-Aged Congregations
By the grace of God, our church has grown significantly over the years. Also by the grace of God, our church has actually survived through these years. We are now facing the temptations and obstacles that churches our size and our age have always faced. When we were young and small, and no one had …
A Double Order of Golden Brown Buttermilks
A reply to some of the (very deserved) criticisms of the PCA study committee on the Federal Vision can be found here. The PCA will be addressing this issue at their GA in the coming days, and so I would urge everyone to pray that God would protect that denomination from an act of theological …
Fear of Being Blessed
In this chapter, we come to the covenant sanctions. The first part contains the blessings which follow obedience, the latter portion, four times as long, contains the curses. The terms have been set out, the covenant renewed. What will happen if Israel keeps covenant? What will happen if they do not? “And it shall come …
Live in the House, Not on the Mantle
I am continuing to interact with Greenbaggins’ review of my book, “Reformed” Is Not Enough. When I draw a distinction between a law/gospel hermeneutic (which I reject) and a law/gospel application (which I accept), this is what I mean. With a law/gospel hermeneutic, each text is either demand or promise, and it is the job …