Christ shall have dominion.  This was the sure promise of Psalm 72. That promise has now been fulfilled in the kingdom established by the gospel. Christ reigns in the confession of every true church. Since the church is established among all nations, the kingdom of Christ is a world-kingdom. Within the church, Christ reigns in the heart and life of every believer personally. 

On September 7, 1983, the convocation of the Theological School of the Protestant Reformed Churches took place at Southwest Church. Prof. Decker delivered the convocation address. In addition to our regular students, there will be three part-time students from Canada and a special student, Mr. Jaikishin Mahtani, from Singapore. May God bless the Professors and students as they study the Word of God. I have met Mr. Mahtani and his wife, Esther. This will be a frequent occurrence, since they live nearby. Their address is 4962 Ivanrest Ave., S.W., Apt. B, Grandville, Michigan, 49418. Telephone number 616-532-6832. We hope that they...

BIBLICAL INSPIRATION, by I. Howard Marshall; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1983; 125 pp., $4.95 (paper). (Reviewed by Prof. H. Hanko) Of the writing of books on the doctrine of inspiration there is no end. And it is somewhat doubtful whether this latest book will advance the cause of the truth of inspiration or whether it will serve to quiet the current storm of controversy which rages over this truth. 

By: David Engelsma, James Lanting, and Lamm Lubbers This open letter is addressed to all members of the Protestant Reformed Churches and to all others who have a concern for the instruction of the children of the covenant in all aspects of earthly science on the basis of the truth of the Reformed Faith as set forth in the Reformed Creeds. It concerns Reformed higher education, i.e., college-level instruction. It is sent on behalf of a group of Protestant Reformed men that calls itself the “Conference on Reformed Higher Education.” At a meeting held in Grand Rapids, Michigan on March...

In studying the biblical truth of adoption we have seen that election is the eternal source of our adoption as the children of God. The wonder of “the adoption of sons” is first revealed in the fact that it is “predestinated,” and the close relationship between election and adoption reveals the sovereignty of God’s predestinating purpose. Even the earthly picture of adoption reflects the fact that it has its source in a sovereign choice.

“Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging; and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” So spake the wisest of all mere human beings. Solomon in Proverbs 20:1 warned his son, and all who read the book of Proverbs, against being deceived by wine and strong drinks. And he did so at a time when men did not know of the damage that alcohol does to the brain, liver, and blood vessels. Those few moments of fleshly pleasure that wine and strong drinks give are soon changed into years of suffering of that same flesh and a hastening of the day...

Chapter 8: The “Seven Dispensations” of Scofield’s Bible—continued We have now come to the discussion of the so-called fourth dispensation of Scofield’s “dispensations.” Scofield takes his point of departure for this “fourth dispensation” in Genesis 12:1. He captions this section as follows: “The Fourth Dispensation: PROMISE—from the call of Abraham to the giving of the Law (Gen. 12:1–Exodus 19:8).” Should we inquire more about this “dispensation,” then we read the following from Scofield’s pen: “(a) The dispensation of promise is connected with the “Abrahamic Covenant” (Gen. 15:18), and by it the “descendants” of Abraham became distinctive heirs of the promise. “(b) In Egypt...

(Kuyper is, in this paragraph, discussing church reformation as it involves a break with the denomination. Reformation always begins with an individual or with individuals in a local congregation, but always continually involves the denomination as a whole. The role of a minister is always more serious than that of the ordinary members because his office is at stake.) We come now to the second category which we defined as conflicts with the church federation. That is, we speak of those who are called to church reformation not by a few persons (whether common members or office bearers) but by...

Dr. Harry Boer and I are in agreement. I believe that he is correct when he charges that his church does not believe and confess the doctrine of sovereign reprobation as taught by the Canons of Dordrecht. I believe that he is correct when he accuses his church in his recent book, The Doctrine of Reprobation in the Christian Reformed Church, “that in spite of the solemn and weighty affirmations and promises made in the signing of the Form of Subscription, in spite of the unambiguous undertakings to defend, teach, preach, and otherwise implement the teachings of Dordt, no doctrine in...

End of Volume 59 With this issue we have come to the end of Volume 59. The annual index will be found in this issue, thanks to my editorial assistant, Mr. D. Doezema. That reminds me: on October 1 the Standard Bearer celebrates its sixtieth birthday!   “Open Letter In this issue you will find a rather lengthy contribution entitled “Open Letter.'” It concerns the movement for Reformed higher education. Personally, I am glad to note that they are increasingly “going public,” as I suggested some time ago. Be sure to read their informative letter.   Publication News It begins to look...