Vol 31 Issue 11

Further during the informal talk of Rev. Kok he called attention to the two statements of Rev. De Wolf. Rather silly to hang a man when he did not mean those statements, he said. Yet, they could stand under the doctrines of the Protestant Ref. Churches. When he talked about the second statement he quoted it as follows: “Our act of conversion in the indispensible requirement to enter into the kingdom.” During the question period I asked the Rev. Kok to repeat for us the second statement. This he did and this time he quoted it correctly.

This is the final article in our series in which we have been quoting and criticizing an essay written by the Rev. J. Blankespoor in Concordia of December 2, 1954. We have been quoting his essay in its entirety and then offering our comments. Whatever the Rev. Blankespoor may say about our criticism of him we do not know, but we are assured that he will never be able to say that we did not quote him fairly. This we do now also with respect to what he calls his church political viewpoint. It will not be difficult to criticize...

“The churches shall exert themselves, as far as necessary, that there may be students supported by them to be trained for the ministry of the Word.”Article 19, D.K.O.

For a brief and concise explanation of this essential subordination of the decree of reprobation to the decree of election we can do no better than to quote from the mimeographed Dogmatics of the Rev. H. Hoeksema., He writes, “Theology,” page 201, ff.: 

At one time or another every Bible reader must have been struck by that last verse of. John’s majestic gospel: “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written.”  How must we take these words from the pen of the disciple whom Jesus loved, as hyperbole or simple fact? Have we to do here with poetic exaggeration, or must we take them literally and at face value?  What is a hyperbole?

A different approach.  A different viewpoint.  These are familiar statements that were voiced in the struggle in our churches to defend the Protestant Reformed truth over against the conditional theology that was introduced by those who left us.  But a different approach and a different viewpoint can be an entirely different thought and an entirely different belief.  A difference of emphasis also can be a difference of fundamental opinion. It can be an entirely different doctrine. 

This beautiful passage from the Word of God to which we call attention in this essay reads as follows: “Now the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, meekness, longsuffering; against such there is no law.” 

13. Jehovah as a mighty man shall go forth, As a man of war He shall stir up zeal: He shall shout, yea, roar; With His enemies He shall show Himself strong.  14. I have been quiet from ancient times, I have been silent and constrained myself: Now as a travailing woman I will cry, pant and consume at the same time.  15. I will make waste mountains and hills, And dry up all their herbs; And I will make the rivers for islands, And I will dry up the lakes. 

Chapter 1: The Necessity of Prayer We understand, of course, that when the Catechism speaks in this connection of the grace of God and the Holy Spirit which God will give unto them that ask Him for them, it refers to the continually flowing fountain of grace from which the Christian lives and must live, and without which he cannot live. It refers to the continued indwelling and influx of the Holy Spirit whereby this grace is wrought constantly in his heart.

Het Ware Geloof (The True Faith), by the Rev. S.G. De Graaf. Published J.H. Kok, N.V., Kampen, the Netherlands. Price f 13.75.