W e're happy to annouce that the winner of the well-loved, The Valley of Vision , is Dale S. of Milwaukee, WI.

L ike me, many young reformers of my generation and even younger came out of a myriad of non-Reformed but evangelical churches into a Reformed church. Recall the struggles. One of them, no doubt, was over the theology and practice of worship in a Reformed church. In former churches we were taught...

In 2016, every two months ( Feb , Apr , June , Aug , Oct, Dec) we will be producing a Meet the Puritans Resource, which you will be able to find linked under Our Resources . These will be classic texts with introductions, footnotes, and modernized language. The purpose is to introduce you to the...

First off, congratulations to Scott P. of Aubrey, Texas, who has won a copy of To the Ends of the Earth: Calvin's Missional Vision and Legacy (Crossway). Now for the next giveaway. Our friends at Brill have provided us with a copy of Unity in Diversity: English Puritans and the Puritan Reformation...

Q uick. What should be the two constituent parts of a Reformed theological education? Theology and exegesis? Philosophy and theology? Systematic and practical theology? Good guesses. Having just participated in examinations for seminary graduates who seek entrance into the ministry, this question...

S ince you're reading this online post, you're no doubt aware that in the broader Reformed theological world there has been discussion of the issue of holiness in the recent past. The links are too numerous so I'll leave it to you to search for them yourself. In particular, one issue in this...

F or many of us who have discovered the Reformed expression of the Christian faith after years in other traditions, “covenant theology” was one of the most eye-opening facets of it. It was more than just another part of theology, though. It was like getting a new pair of glasses. The old way we saw...

Congrats to our own Dr. Ryan McGraw who last night gave his inaugural lecture as Professor of Systematic Theology at Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Greenville, South Carolina, entitled, "Gisbertus Voetius, Presbyterianism, and Smart Phones." Have a listen and enjoy !

Meet the Puritans editor and contributors Joel Beeke, Danny Hyde, and Ryan McGraw will be speaking at the upcoming International Conference on "John Owen: Between Orthodoxy and Modernity." Hosted by the Theological University Apeldoorn, The Netherlands, from August 31–September 2, this conference...

Thanks to our friends at Crown & Covenant Publications , we have two (2) copies of Bradley Johnston's, 150 Questions About the Psalter: What You Need to Know About the Songs God Wrote. USA addreses only. One entry per person. Deadline is Friday, August 29. Click here to enter ...

H ow can New Covenant Christians sing Old Covenant Psalms? In my previous post we looked at William Ames' (1576-1633) resolution of the "case of conscience" of singing "imprecatory Psalms." The well-known words of Jesus, "pray for those who persecute you" (Matt. 5:44), are often used as...

In 2016, every two months ( February , April , June , August, October, December) we will be producing a Meet the Puritans Resource, which you will be able to find linked under Our Resources . These will be classic texts with introductions, footnotes, and modernized language. The purpose is to...

If someone looks at [God's commands] in the wrong way and says that they are heavy to bear, he is merely revealing his own weakness. —Andreas Presbyter, Catena on 1 John 5:3 When I was in college I was required to read G.K. Beale's edited volume, The Right Doctrine from the Wrong Texts? Essays on...

It's an assumed point of hermeneutics today that the grammatical historical meaning of the Song of Songs is that it merely a love song, a poem between a husband and wife. John Owen reminds us of the ancient method of Christological exegesis, seeing in the Song a type and shadow of the mutual love...

Since theological seminaries have recently held graduations and a new class of students will soon enter, I thought it would be a fun exercise to write a post on "the learned Doctor" William Ames' advice to theological students. William Ames (1576–1633) was an Englishman who was "exiled" to the...

Say it aint so, but the Puritans cut and pasted their own material across their works! I think it was Mark Jones who once made this point in relation to Thomas Goodwin. Well, John Owen did it too. For example, his sermon on 1 Corinthians 12:11 ( Works 9:441–452) does this. But there is one section...

“In Adam’s fall, we sinned all” ( The New-England Primer: A Reprint of the Earliest Known Edition, with Many Facsimiles and Reproductions, and an Historical Introduction , ed. Paul Leicester Ford [NY: Dodd, Mead and Company, 1899], 14). This famous line of Benjamin’s Harris’ 1690 New England Primer...

In 2016, every two months ( Feb , Apr , June, Aug, Oct, Dec) we will be producing a Meet the Puritans Resource, which you will be able to find linked under Our Resources . These will be classic texts with introductions, footnotes, and modernized language. The purpose is to introduce you to the...

"And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers" (1 Thessalonians 2:13). Reformed churches believe God still speaks. While...

Thanks to our friends at Crown & Covenant Publications we have two (2) copies of the beautiful and soft leather-like The Book of Psalms for Worship: Words Only Edition . The deadline for entering is Friday, June 3 . Here's the entry form ...

At some point in every local pastor's ministry he is going to experience an inquiry and even a call to serve in another congregation or area of service. I know for me, the first time this happened I had no idea what to do. I certainly was not prepared in seminary for this! Thankfully I like old...

A while back while teaching a mid-week series on the life and work of Thomas Manton, I came across the following quote from Charles Haddon Spurgeon about Thomas Manton. It comes from the "Preface" to Illustrations and Meditations, or, Flowers From a Puritan's Garden, Distilled and Dispensed (London...

Herein lies that which all the beauty of the world fades before, and becomes as a thing of nought,—which brings all the outward pomp of ceremonious worship into contempt;—I mean the glory and excellence that lies in the spiritual communion of the soul with God, by the grace of the Holy Ghost, in...

We’ve all seen them, right? Angels, that is. You know, those chubby little children with wings; those cute Precious Moments statuettes; those little guys on your shoulders—one reminding you of good and the other tempting you to what is bad. From the downright silly to sentimental to seriously wrong...