Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
One striking aspect of the recent “Federal Vision” conflict in the various conservative micro-Reformed groups is a debate over what older theologians really meant and said. Examining the credentials of various people who speak with great assurance on these matters one sees repeatedly degrees in church/theology history studies. In fact,…
The Worship of the English Puritans by Horton Davies really valuable book for gaining historical perspective on the American Presbyterian scene. (I will note for the record that I don’t believe there is an objective definition for “puritan” and I wish historians would stop using it and instead speak of…
This is the conclusion to Frame’s discussion about historical/covenantal election in his The Doctrine of God (pp. 329-30): Historical election and eternal election are distinct, but they cannot be entirely separated. Note the following: 1. Both historical and eternal election are aspects of God’s saving purpose. The election of Israel…
From John Frame’s The Doctrine of God : So although the election of Israel is by grace, there is an important place for continued faithfulness. Individuals can belong to the chosen people, yet lose their elect status by faithlessness and disobedience. Branches can be broken off “because of unbelief” (Rom.…
I’ve recently re-discovered an awesome theological resource, The Westminster Shorter Catechism Project . It is excellent, not least because it demonstrates the healthy diversity that has always been allowable in the Reformed Tradition until recently. For example, consider the sources attached to Question and Answer #94: Q: What is baptism?…
A friend recently asked if the frequent saying of the Pledge of Allegiance was a sign of American jingoism, or an attempt to inculcate “nationalism” of a bad sort. It seemed to him as a Canadian that that might be the case. That seemed to me to be probably backwards,…
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How can God respond to prayers, and yet not have a “real” (ie, a reciprocal, dependent) relation with the creation? Perhaps there’s a Trinitarian answer to this: In the creation, God responds to His own work. He makes light, and then He pronounces His work very good. This is not…
Jordan Mark Siverd, Esq., has provided a very careful constitutional evaluation of the FV Study Committee here: http://necdumvidemus.files.wordpress.com/2007/06/fv-memo-final.pdf
INTRODUCTION Matthew 2:13-23 is divided into three episodes, each of which concludes with a statement about events “fulfilling” prophecy (2:15, 18, 23). His movements were mapped centuries before. As the incarnate Word (John 1:1, 14), He is living out the script of the written Word. THE TEXT “Now when they…
I suggested at the end of the last post that judaizing and gnosticizing heresies may not be so different. This opinion is supported by JB Lightfoot’s analysis of the letters of Ignatius, which condemn both docetic heretics and judaizing ones, and do so in a way that suggests Ignatius saw…
1 John has sometimes been interpreted as a polemic against a Cerinthian heresy. This rests partly on patristic stories about John’s near-encounter with Cerinthus at a bathhouse, and it implies that the opponents in 1 John are proto-gnostics who teach a semidocetic christology. But patristic critics didn’t only accuse Cerinthus…
A few weeks ago, I criticized an article by Cal Beisner and Fowler White for introducing the notion of “merit” into the inter-Trinitarian relations. On reflection and having read some of Joel Garver’s recent discussion of the PCA Federal Vision study report (at sacradoctrina.com), I want to nuance my criticism…
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