All Articles For Titus

Rev. Gritters is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. In other words, the ruling elders should encourage, advise, and give constructive criticism to the pastor in his role as chief teaching elder for the congregation. The pulpit can be a lonely place. The pastor who stands there from week to week without such support from his fellow elders is called to bear a burden too heavy for one pair of shoulders. (Lawrence Eyres, in The Elders of the Church)One great encouragement in my ministry is that there always has been at least one elder in the consistory...

Rev. Koole is pastor of Faith Protestant Reformed Church in Jenison, Michigan. O for godly pastors. It was the apostle Peter, no less (are you listening, Rome?), who wrote, Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, … not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being examples to the flock. I Pet. 5:2, 3 How the church needs godly pastors who can function as examples to the flock, especially to its youth (John 21:15), and in particular in the area of sexual purity and faithfulness...

Last time we cited a few passages of Scriptures wherein are enumerated the qualifications of the officebearers of the church and, more particularly, of the elders. In “The Church Order Commentary,” Monsma and Van Dellen make the following summarization of these qualifications: 

The task of selecting men to serve in the offices of the church is a very serious matter. Calvin says that Paul mentions it in preference to everything else because in the spiritual building (the church) it nearly comes next to the doctrine. It is a labor that must be done with greatest discretion and much prayer. The church that ignores this will surely suffer dire consequences of ill-government for it is like a plague to the church when either unscrupulous or spiritually incompetent men control the presbytery.

The Revelation of Jesus Christ 

Rev. Laning is pastor of Hope Protestant Reformed Church in Walker, Michigan. Previous article in this series: May 1, 2006, p. 345. There are centrally two errors taught concerning the sacraments: the error of denying that the sacraments are means of grace, and the error of teaching that everyone who receives the sacraments receives grace. The second error amounts to teaching either that the sign becomes the grace of God or that God’s grace and the sign are inseparably connected. Either way, the result is that everyone who receives the sign receives also the grace. Roman Catholics and Lutherans are...

Rev. Kuiper is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church in Randolph, Wisconsin. Previous article in this series: March 1, 2006, p. 249. In our last article we argued from Scripture and church history that the care of sick, aged, widowed, or otherwise afflicted saints, even when such are not poor, is properly the work of the deacons. This is because the care of such saints is a work of mercy; because Christ shows mercy to afflicted saints through His church; and because the diaconate is the God-appointed means officially to administer Christ’s mercies on the church’s behalf. In noting examples...

Prof. Engelsma is professor of Dogmatics and Old Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Previous article in this series: November 15, 2005, p. 80. Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.  Titus 1:9 The standard Orthodoxy requires a standard by which right, sound doctrine is established and determined. The church needs a standard by which to determine that her professors are orthodox. All professors claim to hold fast the faithful word. But many professors lie. Reformed professors in Reformed seminaries are teaching future...

Prof. Engelsma is professor of Dogmatics and Old Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. *The text of the sermon preached at the combined seminary convocation/installation service (for Prof. Ronald L. Cammenga) on August 31, 2005. “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.” Titus 1:9   Introduction  The purpose of our special worship service is the installation of the Rev. Ronald Cammenga into the office of professor of theology in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. This office is included in the authoritative position...

Twice we have now called attention to the exhortation of Paul given to Timothy here in the text in I Tim. 2:1-7. In the first installment we called attention to the meaning and implication of the term “all men” as this is modified in the phrase “for kings and for all who are in authority.” It was and is our settled conviction that the meaning of “all men” as here employed by the Holy Ghost through Paul must not be distilled into “every man” in the sense in which the Arminians speak of this, to wit, “that Jesus Christ, the Savior...