All Articles For Harbach Robert C

Robert C. Harbach is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. The theme, in the title above, we, in our Protestant Reformed Churches, understand to be in sharp contrast to the Calvinistic (or the Reformed) conception of regeneration. It is the latter point of view we must and always do presuppose in our theological stance and thinking. So, at the outset, we quote from Buck’s Theological Dictionary, out of the article, Regeneration, p. 395: Regeneration “is an irresistible, or rather invincible work of God’s grace, Eph. 3:8 . . . It is an instantaneous (immediate, RCH) act, for there can be no medium between life and death...

Robert C. Harbach is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. At the institution of the Lord’s Supper, Jesus had spoken these words, “For this is My blood of the new testament which is shed for many, for the remission of sins” (Matt. 26:28). He could speak of His blood as already shed, for He is the foreordained “Lamb slain before the foundation of the world.” John the Baptist did too, introducing Jesus not only prospectively but actually taking (bearing) away the sin of the world (John 1:29). How do we speak of the blood of Christ? In the...

Robert C. Harbach is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. In the sixteenth chapter of John’s Gospel we have two sections: (1) warning (John 16:1-6), and (2) encouragement John 16:7-33). In the latter section we have these words, “Do ye now believe? Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave Me alone; and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me” (John 16:31-32). Jesus’ “disciples (had) said unto Him . . . ‘Now we are sure that Thou knowest all things, and needest...

“We all believe with the heart, and confess with the mouth, that . . . God . . . is . . . immutable . . .” (Belgic Confession), as it is written, “For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed” (Malachi 3:6). 

“Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness” (Ps. 30:4). 

“And the Lord passed by before him and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious,longsuffering and abundant in goodness and truth” (Ex. 34:6). 

Rev. Harbach is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. I.The Door of the Fold II.The Folded Sheep III.The True Shepherds Who Enter by the Door In this tenth chapter of John’s Gospel we have double revelation: first, the door revelation (John 1-10), and, second, the shepherd revelation (John 11-18). John 10:1-5contains an illustration of the door revelation; John 10:6-10contains the interpretation of the door revelation. The illustrative part puts before us the undershepherds and the porter (John 10:1-3a), then the Shepherd and the sheep (John 10:3b-5). There are interesting figures of speech in the passage. There are the fold, the...

The Standard Bearer article, “God’s Holiness” (Nov. 1, 1983, Vol. LX, No. 3), meets with a fine, positive response from a young Protestant Reformed college student who principally agrees with the content and thrust of the article but takes exception to the word “untalented” (see front cover and p. 61) as not applicable to today’s popular “singers,” adding that it should be recognized as modern “music theorists tell us . . . these ‘singers’ are very talented,” only they have debased their God-given gifts to the service of sin.

Rev. Harbach is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. True Shepherds Enter by the Door “He that entereth in by the door is the (literally, a) shepherd of the sheep” (John 10:2). In the previous article we pointed out that most commentaries in their exposition apply this verse to Jesus. But this, we believe, results in a faulty exegesis. It is a shepherd who enters in by the door of the sheep. This shepherd represents the teaching and preaching elder of the church. To this person, “the doorkeeper openeth.” The spiritual shepherd of the sheep does not climb up...

Robert C. Harbach is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. Continuing from where we left off in the first installment under the above heading, at John 18:6, we now go on with verse 7. “Then asked He them again, ‘Whom seek ye?'” Putting this His second request to them, Jesus releases His holding them down where they had fallen on the ground and allows them to get to their feet. They had lost their dignity, but not Jesus His. What He is saying to them in effect now is, Does not My identity dawn on you yet as to...