Reformation21

The primary apologetic value of the efficacy of God's word is obvious: the gospel is the power of God to save everyone who believes and the instrument the Spirit ordinarily uses to bring people to faith and keep and grow them in it. The implication for apologetic method is just as obvious: preach...

I have always enjoyed reading Richard Mouw, former president of Fuller Seminary, long-time faculty member at Calvin College. I was reminded how much I enjoy him this morning when I read his little book, Called to the Life of the Mind . The book represents a short essay broken up into various...

The coming of Jesus is always good news. This is what Abraham learned when Jesus appeared to him during a sad time in Abraham's life. Genesis 18 is a fascinating example of Jesus appearing in the Old Testament. He is first identified as "the Lord " (Gen. 18:1), which is God's covenant name, and...

If there's one thing worse than celebrity Christians, I've become aware of an even worse plague on the Christian church; 'The famous Christian's family'. I've met three folk in the last month who are all related to well known people. We barely had any sentences without 'such and such says....'...

What is the incarnation? It is the kissing of heaven and earth. To borrow a phrase from Thomas Goodwin, when the Son became flesh, "Heaven and Earth met and kissed one another, namely, God and man." The incarnation makes theology possible. It makes communion with God possible. Whatever saving...

Christmas (along with Good Friday, Easter, Ascension, and Pentecost) is one of five "evangelical feast days" that celebrate key moments in the Son of God's saving mission. On these days, the church turns its attention in a special way to the redemptive historical events that mark "the fullness of...

As our families and churches prepare for the Christmas celebration, many are seeking to emphasize the biblical expectation of the promised Savior, rather than the commercial and sentimental emphasis of our society. One way to do this is to walk through the Old Testament, following the centuries-...

I had a delightful day yesterday at the Grace Baptist Church in Edlesborough, hearing Stuart Olyott run about 60 men of varying ages and backgrounds through what it meant to preach the Word of God. Two morning sessions encouraged us to "Listen to yourself" - to make an objective analysis of our...

About 120 people gathered during Tuesday and Wednesday this week at the long-running Westminster Conference . A mix of regulars and newer and younger faces enjoyed a couple of days of theological and historical cogitation. The first day opened with Stephen Clark's paper on holy worldliness...

I am looking forward to reading a new publication from Reformed Baptist Academic Press called Recovering a Covenantal Heritage: Essays in Baptist Covenant Theology , edited by Rich Barcellos. It is a delight to see reformed Baptists wrestling through the rich heritage we have of a robust covenantal...