INTRODUCTION This is our observance of Pentecost, the time when we commemorate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Church. There are many things that can be said of this, but we sometimes overlook the obvious. Today we should consider the holiness of the Holy Spirit. THE TEXT For God hath not called us …
That At the Name of Jesus/Ascension 2004
INTRODUCTION The ascension to Jesus Christ is the coronation of Jesus Christ. This is the point where God formally bestows upon Him all authority in heaven and on earth. THE TEXT Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every …
The Council of Trent Finally Repents!
In response to my Thanks for Nothing post (5/18/04), one correspondent argued that this was essentially the same position that Trent affirmed. It was a bit hard to follow, but I will do my best to replicate it here. If the creature’s works are the ground of his justification (which I was denying, actually), but …
Two Towns Over
A much overworked session of Presbyterian elders had just finished the hard and thankless task of disciplining their minister, a man who taught that being a Christian was an objective reality, marked by baptism, and that being a faithful Christian was a covenant requirement, to be marked by evangelical faith, hope and love. This was …
Faith Unplugged
I guess I should be pleased that I caught up with Peter Leithart. The April edition of The Trinity Review is a chapter from a book called Not Reformed At All, which presents itself as a response to my “Reformed” is Not Enough. I am tempted to write another book entitled And Both Are …
The Lowest Place
Jesus taught us that the way to accomplish dominion (of the sort He envisioned) was through faithful service. The one who humbles himself is exalted, and the one who exalts himself shall be humbled. The first shall be last, and the last first. Seeking dominion, which is an individual ability to extend the influence of …
Thanks for Nothing
In my post on monocovenantalism (5/14/04), I said that some prominent folks on the other side of the AAH had agreed with me that had Adam stood, it would have been by the grace of God appropriated by faith. One of those gentlemen has since contacted me, saying that this misrepresents his views. He believes …
I Got a Question
So here it is. Q. What should the Reformed establishment do with a teaching or doctrine that emphasizes our need to believe all the promises of God, especially those promises that concern our children? Keep in mind that this is a doctrine that underscores the necessity of faith from first to last. The purveyors of …
Faith Knows That God Hears/Psalm 4
Many believe that this fourth psalm was written on the same occasion as the one just before it. There are reasonable arguments against this, but at the very least, it was written in the same kind of situation. ” Hear me when I call O God of my righteousness; thou hast enlarged me when I …
Auburn Avenue Hubbub (AAH) Cool Quote #4
“Before baptism, the minister is to use some words of instruction, touching the institution, nature, use, and ends of this sacrament, shewing . . . that they [children] are Christians, and federally holy before baptism, and therefore are they baptized.” Westminster Directory for the Publick Worship of God, emphasis mine