In the history of the Church, Christians have certainly divided over inconsequential matters before. Should you make the sign of the cross with two fingers or three? They have also divided over momentous issues, where the gospel itself was at stake. The magisterial Reformation was an example of this. Sometimes issues arise where it is …
Little Exiles
God created us in order that we would get along with one another. When sin entered the world, our fellowship with God was disrupted, of course, but so was our fellowship with one another. Adam and Eve hid from God after their sin, but they were also estranged from one another, which can be seen …
In Worship Tomorrow
Father and gracious Lord, we are so grateful for the week just past, and we thank You for the opportunity to lay the foundation of worship for a new week of work, which we will do as we approach You in worship in the morning. We thank You that You have given us this day, …
Westminster Sixteen: Of Works
1. Good works are only such as God hath commanded in His holy Word (Micah 6:8; Rom. 12:2; Heb. 13:21), and not such as, without the warrant thereof, are devised by men, out of blind zeal, or upon any pretense of good intention (Matt. 15:9; Isa. 29:13; 1 Pet. 1:18; Rom. 10:2; John 16:2; 1 …
Westminster Fifteen: Of Repentance Unto Life
1. Repentance unto life is an evangelical grace (Zech 12:10; Acts 11:18), the doctrine whereof is to be preached by every minister of the Gospel, as well as that of faith in Christ (Luke 24:47; Mark 1:15; Acts 20:21). Ministers of Christ are not just to preach faith in Christ; they must also preach repentance …
Westminster Fourteen: Of Saving Faith
1. The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls (Heb. 10:39), is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts (2 Cor. 4:13; Eph. 1:17–19; 2:8), and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word (Rom. 10:14, 17), by which also, and by …
Spiritual Morning Glory
The saying of the corporate amen is a great covenant privilege, and has the force of a binding oath. We never want to take it lightly, or invoke it to no purpose, or, worst of all, to mumble it. As we sing the psalms, we offer back to God what He gave us to sing …
Three Temptations
We come now to a passage of Scripture which was well-known to our Lord Jesus—He used it in His victory over the devil in the wilderness. “And it shall be, when the LORD thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers . . .” (Deuteronomy 6:10-25). It ought …
Tender Mercies
There is no substitute for personal holiness, kindness, and humility. Nothing can be substituted in for it. Nothing adequately takes the place of it. There are many glorious truths in the Christian faith, but there is only one demeanor to adorn them all. The gospel is glorious, but what adorns it? Tender mercies. The covenant …
And I Have Seen Your Vengeance Fall
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! Save me, Oh God, through Your great name, And judge me through Your strength. Incline Your ear to hear my prayer, Give ear to all my suffering words. For strangers want my soul and life, The alien warrior rises up. They do …