Vol 35 Issue 12

Creston’s Men and Ladies’ society was guest at the Young People’s Society Meeting of Feb. 24. The after recess program consisted of pictures of Miss Borduin’s world travels; the twice postponed toboggan party With Kalamazoo was finally held Feb. 17 at Echo Valley in Kalamazoo; and, Cornelius Lubbers, son of our Missionary will be inducted into the Army March 5 for a six month duration. 

Rev. Herman Hoeksema  1139 Franklin St., S.E.  Grand Rapids, Michigan  Esteemed Editor:  In the March 1st issue of The Standard Bearer I read an article above the signature of Rev. M. Schipper that I felt degraded the quality of The Standard Bearer. 

We are indebted to a friend and brother who sent us a copy of a pamphlet entitled “Report Of American Bar Association, Special Committee On Communist Tactics, Strategy, And Objectives.” The report is prefaced with a brief note informing the reader that though the American Bar Association took no action on the report, Senator Styles Bridges succeeded in having the report inserted in the Congressional Record. 

For some time now we have been busy in this department with the decision of the Christian Reformed Synod of 1926 in which they took the position that it is proper for a Classis to depose elders, deacons and ministers of the Word. This decision was based in part upon Article 36 of the Church Order. It followed the reasoning that since this article speaks of the jurisdiction of the Classis over the Consistory, this jurisdiction includes the prerogative to exercise the power of deposition from the office.

Article 8.

“They ascribe divine perfections and render divine honors to a creature, and therein consists the essence of idolatry. In like manner Romanists teach that latreia, the worship due to God alone, is to be rendered to the host, or consecrated wafer. This worship, of course, is not rendered to the wafer as such, any more than the worship of Christians was rendered to the body and blood of Christ, when He was here on earth. But Romanists worship the host on the assumption that it is the body of Christ, with which his soul and divinity are inseparably connected.

To provoke, in the sense in which we are using the term at this time, is to incite, to stir up and spur on to certain activity. And it is a thing which the Scriptures demand of us. We are not looking at it now as something to be condemned but as something that ought to be practiced. Then too, it is being viewed as that which is possible only among the children of God. Believers can provoke one another and an unbeliever can never be provoked by a believer to the activity with which we are now dealing. 

This passage in Matthew 25:31-46 is not simply a lastsection in Jesus’ eschatological discourse; it is really the consummation of his discourse, giving the final answer to the question of his disciples concerning the time of his Parousia. The Lord Jesus, when he utters these words, is on the mount of Olives. Yet two days and he will hang upon the accursed tree.

“And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.”  I Peter 2:8

If we glance over the rest of the book and notice what things John must still prophesy concerning many peoples and nations and tongues and kings, we soon surmise why indeed he was in need of this special preparation. For it is not a pleasing message, it is not a message of peace and gradual development which he brings. But it is a message of judgment and battle and destruction and vengeance. He speaks of the fate of the holy city and of the temple and of the two witnesses that are killed in the city and taken to heaven...