All Articles For Isaiah

Rev. Laning is pastor of Hope Protestant Reformed Chruch in Walker, Michigan. Previous article in this series: September 1, 2008, p. 474. False teachers often take advantage of other false teachings to promote themselves. They start by pointing out what is unbiblical about what others are saying, and this prepares their listeners or readers to listen to them when they suggest their own theological system as an alternative. With this in mind we turn to consider some of the false teachings that were on the rise at the same time that dispensationalism became popular. More people began listening to the...

Rev. VanOverloop is pastor of Georgetown Protestant Reformed Church in Hudsonville, Michigan. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth.  Revelation 14:4b What is the security of the child of God in the last days? Revelation 13 describes the Antichrist: the beast and its false prophet. The descriptions of both the beast and the false prophet are frightening. The abilities and strengths given to Antichrist are formidable. The false prophet will be able to cause all, small or great, rich or poor, free or slave, to receive the mark of the beast. It is only with this mark that anyone...

Rev. Kleyn is pastor of First Protestant Reformed Church of Edgerton, Minnesota. Is once enough? That is, is it enough to attend church once on Sunday? Scripture does not specifically state that we should attend twice. So why go twice? Is this required and necessary? No one should dispute the fact that poor church attendance is a sin. The Scriptures make this clear, for example, in Hebrews 10:25. There we are admonished “not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is.” Obviously there were those, already in the early New Testament church, who were not regular...

Prevoius article in this series: December 1, 2011, p. 114. During the reign of Jeroboam II, the majority of the Israelites were not thinking at all of evil days. But those days were not long in coming. Jeroboam was succeeded by his son Zachariah. Zachariah was the fourth of the line of Jehu to sit on the throne. And he was the last—in keeping with the word of God to Jehu that his sons would reign to the fourth generation (II Kings 10:30). Zachariah reigned for a brief period of six months, when he was assassinated “before the people” by...

Mr. Wigger is a member of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. Mission Activities When Rev. B. Gritters and his father, Elder E. Gritters, went to Jamaica to conduct a seminar for the leaders of the Jamaican P.R. Churches, they also, as is customary, brought benevolence gifts with them. For this reason the Consistory of the Hope PRC in Redlands, CA decided to conduct a clothing drive for that purpose in their congregation. On Saturday, January 25, members of the congregation were encouraged to bring any appropriate light-weight clothing for either children or adults. Donations of shoes, eye glasses,...

The life and labor of the Protestant Reformed Churches are regulated by a church order. This is the church order adopted for Reformed churches by the Synod of Dordt, 1618-19. The church order is law for the churches. It is the authoritative standard to which both consistories and church members must conform. There are sanctions for the unruly and disobedient. The member who handles sin in the congregation by broadcasting it from the housetop, or over the telephone, rather than following the way prescribed in Articles 71-74 of the church order, will himself be disciplined. The minister who publicly agitates...

Rev. Lanning is pastor of Faith Protestant Reformed Church in Jenison, Michigan. Previous article in this series: November 15, 2008, p. 92. One Sunday morning in 1925, two ministers had a race to the pulpit to see who would lead the worship service. Rev. Henry Danhof won. He was not about to lose—not after what he had just been through. He had been branded an Anabaptist. He had been reprimanded by synod. He had been badgered by classis. Repeatedly, he had tried to resign from the office of minister of the gospel. Repeatedly, his consistory had refused his resignation. He...

Rev. Shand is a pastor in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Australia. A man is said to be justified in the sight of God when in the judgment of God he is deemed righteous, and is accepted on account of his righteousness; for as iniquity is abominable to God, so neither can the sinner find grace in his sight, so far as he is and so long as he is regarded as a sinner. Hence, wherever sin is, there also are the wrath and vengeance of God. He, on the other hand, is justified who is regarded not as a...

One of the most powerful winds blowing through the Reformed and Presbyterian churches today is the hurricane of “liturgical renewal,” or “progressive worship.” The service of public worship as the Reformed have conducted it for hundreds of years is summarily scrapped as “traditional” (“traditional” being uttered with scorn or with sorrow, as though describing a service that was either foolish or useless). The traditional service is replaced with a service of bands and singing troops; banners; films, skits, and drama; dialogues; dancing; and shallow, man-centered, Arminian, but lively “gospel songs.” Or the two kinds of services are placed back-to-back on...

Mr. Wigger is an elder in the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. Mission Activities The congregation of the Hull, Iowa PRC was called to a divine worship service on the evening of December 11 to witness the installation of Rev. R. Miersma into the office of missionary to the saints in Ghana, West Africa. Rev. S. Key, pastor at Hull, led the worship service, preaching from Isaiah 60:4, 5, with Rev. D. Kleyn, president of our churches’ Foreign Mission Committee, reading the form for installation. The Lord willing, Rev. Miersma and his wife, Sharon, will join Rev. W. Bekkering and...