All Articles For Langerak, William

Our thanks to Rev. Langerak for writing this memorial. The editors apologize for it coming a year late. Late Sunday evening, September 21, 2014, the Lord took Rev. Dale Kuiper to live with Him in Paradise. That he lives where there is no more death, sorrow, crying, or pain was comforting for family and friends, especially because for several years prior, Rev. Kuiper suffered the debilitating effects of a stroke. It was difficult to see this man who enjoyed being outdoors, confined to a wheelchair; one who loved visiting others, needing company himself; and one whose work depended upon a...

We sons of God possess a glorious liberty (Rom. 8:21). Glorious because it is true liberty. All other liberties are mere pictures or illusions. If the Son makes you free, you are free indeed (John 8:36). Such liberty cannot be taken by revolution, earned by merit, infringed upon, or ever revoked, but is an everlasting gift of God’s grace (Rom. 3:24). It is a freedom not possessed by everyone, for where the Spirit of the Lord is, there alone is liberty (II Cor. 3:17). This true, glorious liberty is exclusively Christian liberty. Christian liberty is not freedom from authority or...

“Keep” is a biblical word that teaches both the preservation and perseverance of the saints. Preservation of saints is God’s keeping them; perseverance of saints is their keeping God’s law by His keeping them. Basically, “keep” means to exert careful attention (thus, to heed, obey, and observe), so that something precious and pure is guarded and protected from being defiled and destroyed by some evil power. And with regard to keeping, Scripture teaches six grand truths. First: Our main calling is to keep. Adam’s duty was to keep the garden. That also implied evil was afoot; angels who kept not...

The gospel is that Jesus is risen from the dead. The good news is not merely that Christ died. Indeed, Jesus must die for our sins according to the Scriptures (I Cor. 15:3). But He must also rise (John 2:22). For if Christ is not risen, our faith is vain (I Cor. 15:14). A dead Jesus does us no good. A dead Jesus is no different from any other human. And Christians who believe only a dead Jesus are themselves still dead in sin (I Cor. 15:17). The complete, comforting, pure, and powerful good news of salvation is that Jesus...

The crown is an ornament of glory given to another and prominently displayed on his/her head. It represents the glory adorning the holy gospel and person of Jesus, and given to all who believe the gospel. This glorious gospel is that man, who disgracefully corrupted the glory of his original creation, is crowned with righteousness and life incorruptible by Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, and is now crowned with glory and honor, that He by grace should rule over the works of God’s hands (Heb. 2:7-9). Besides the crown that...

The beginning and ending of each year is a rather momentous time for mankind. It is celebrated with festivities the world over. We consider the year a significant marker of time, and remember important events by the year in which they occur. The church also recognizes each new year’s connection to Christ by holding worship services, referring to it as ‘the year of our Lord,’ and assigning it a date “AD” that denotes the years that have passed since Jesus’ first coming. Yet how often do we consider the biblical importance of this prominent, universal, and regular unit of time?

All who love the Reformed faith should give thanks for Augustine. Through him, the Lord imparted to us a rich, enduring knowledge, especially of grace. His contribution to our understanding of grace is substantial, even foundational, for by grace are we saved. But Reformed believers may want to consider his development of predestination greater, more important, and essential to our faith. Not because predestination itself is more important, or even because his development of it was so robust. Rather, please consider it because Augustine established the principle that without predestination, there is no grace by which we are saved. Our...

Some might frown upon associating blessed with happy. To speak of a happy birthday or new year, much less a happy Christian might seem sensual and common, perhaps even profane, since happy is derived from the word hap, meaning fortune or chance. Besides, happy may not seem to describe accurately our life of continual death in this valley of tears. Therefore, if we are to speak of happiness in this life, isn’t the word blessed more spiritual and appropriate? Happy is a perfectly good, biblical word. Scripture declares happy the man who fears the Lord (Ps. 128:1), who has mercy...

Amen is the last word of God. It is the last word of God declared in His eternal counsel. It is the last word of God to us in Holy Scripture. To everything in the Bible, from its “In the beginning” to its concluding “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all,” to every word of history and prophecy, providence and miracle, blessing and cursing, law and gospel, exhortation and promise—the faithful, true, and everlasting God adds one final word. Amen! Amen is a Hebrew word that means “it shall truly and certainly be” (H.C., L.D. 52)....

Shame is a form of suffering. Shame is essentially the painful feeling, in one’s soul, of disgrace, embarrassment, disappointment, anxiety, and confusion. And there are many causes. Although we usually associate shame only with guilt, Scripture does not. As with all suffering, shame certainly does have its ultimate source in sin— without sin there would be no shame. But, biblically, one can suffer shame for many more reasons than guilt over sin or foolish deeds. All shame is basically due to humiliation—one’s lowly state or condition, especially when compared to any honor and glory had before, expected in the future,...