Father and gracious Lord, we are so grateful for Your continued covenant kindness to us. That covenant has brought us salvation in Jesus Christ; that covenant is Jesus Christ, and we thank You that You have given us the gift of living and rejoicing in Him. That life, and that joy, includes our Sabbath feasting, …
Glory In the Highest Comes To the Lowest
We want always to remember and commemorate our holidays like Christians. We must never attempt to recover the “meaning of Christmas” through some Reader’s Digest approach to inspirational stories. The meaning of Christmas is not found in a rejection of rank commercialism, but is rather the meaning of the whole Bible—sin, promise, redemption, faith and …
Ezra Nehemiah 5
Introduction There are two great elements to the task of rebuilding. The first is the nature of the task itself, an overwhelming task. The second is that the task must be undertaken with a handicap—constant opposition. It is not only that you have to drain the swamp, which would be difficult enough, but that you …
Theology With the Chambermaid
I am not sure I can do full justice to the questions about Roman Catholicism (from Tim and Kurt), but I will have a whack at it. The distinction between the magisterial doctrine of sola Sciptura and the modern, individualistic solo Scriptura is, in my thinking, straightforward. Solo Scriptura maintains that the Bible is the …
A Decree Went Out From Caesar
As we come to a robust celebration of Christmas, we want to maintain the biblical antithesis. This cannot be done on the basis of genial Unitarian platitudes, egg nog, gentle snow fall, or anything else like these things. “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, …
Heavenly Prayer Requests
This is the beginning of an answer to Kurt’s question about Mary. And, as is the case with many doctrinal issues, the real issue is found at the level of the presuppositions. The question really is not whether the Roman church has a nuanced position on Mary that acknowledges that Christ is a “unique” mediator. …
His Name Shall Be Called . . .
Isaiah is very concerned with the importance of names; he named his two sons with the future of Israel in mind, and they were both types of Immanuel. And Matthew tells that the Messiah was named Jesus because He was named Immanuel. And now we come to a glorious pinnacle of naming. For unto us …
Objectivity and Emergence
Frank Turk raised a question about the objectivity of the covenant and emergence, but at least had the presence of mind to realize it was a baptist question. This is not a detailed answer to the question, but it provides the initial outline of an answer. I believe emergent errors need to be identified and …
The High Praises of God
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! All you people, praise the Lord! Sing a new song to the Lord, Record His praise in the holy congregation. Let Israel rejoice in her Maker; Let the children of Zion be joyful, Joyful in their king. Let them praise His name …
Christmas and Sentimentalism
This is the second Lord’s Day of Advent, the year of our Lord, 2005. We must never forget that an essential part of the Christmas story is the stark reality of sin. We have already noted that our culture’s instinct of marking this holiday by giving gifts, giving lots of stuff, is an instinct that …