Vol 65 Issue 03

Mr. Wigger is an elder in the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. Byron Center Dedication Both our Byron Center Church in Byron Center, Michigan and the Southwest Church in Grandville, Michigan chose the evening of September 16 as the dedication of their new church sanctuaries. Can anyone ever remember that happening in our churches before? Southwest moved their dedication back one week to avoid any conflict. What a joy it was to attend the dedication of Byron Center. As has been the history of our churches in the past, Byron Center was erected with much volunteer help from their...

Rev. Hanko is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Houston, Texas. 4. The Definition of Chalcedon (continued) We have already quoted the Creed of Chalcedon’s statement regarding the union of Christ’s two natures. This creed was written in response to various errors that had arisen in the church as a result of the church’s efforts to understand how Christ could be in one person and at one and the same time both true God and true man. Chalcedon’s statement is the clearest and most succinct statement in the creeds of the church on this matter and involves in essence...

Rev. Terpstra is pastor or the Protestant Reformed Church of Pella, Iowa. “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth . . . .” Nothing better proves the veracity of this promise of Christ recorded in John 16:13than the history of the labors of the Christian church in clarifying, setting forth, and developing the truth of Scripture. If we are the least bit acquainted with the development of the truth of God’s Word throughout the ages, then we have some idea how often this promise has been specifically fulfilled. In leading the church...

Rev. Miersma is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of New Zealand. (Correction: This is probably as good a place as any to call the attention of our readers to a correction received from “down under” relative to an article in the October 15 issue of this magazine. Professor Hoeksema, in his article entitled “Some Impressions from ‘Down Under,'” noted that, when we in the U.S. change to “slow time,” and they in Tasmania change to ‘fast time,” there will be a “12-hour difference” between us and them. In a telephone call to the seminary recently, Professor Hoeksema admitted to...

Rev. VanBaren is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. “Bold Enough to God Against Scripture” The Christian News, June 20, 1988, presents reports from several magazines and newspapers about a new book, Living in Sin? A Bishop Rethinks Human Sexuality, by Bishop John Shelby Spong of the Episcopal Church. One report stated: Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong’s outspokenness on sexuality, particularly his call for the blessing of gay and lesbian unions, so vexed church conservatives earlier this year that they demanded his ouster from the House of Bishops. Now the controversial bishop from the Diocese of Newark has written...

Rev. Heys is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. The tremendously small disease germs that are invisible to the naked eye of man can produce in man a dangerously high fever, severe pain, and as far as some of them are concerned, the realization of certain death. The length, breadth, shape, and weight of such creatures do not count. Likewise a small spark of electricity, or a small match that has been lit near an explosive gas can cause a powerful explosion, great devastation, and fire. Therefore men are warned not to smoke while filling their automobiles with...

Rev. Gritters is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Byron Center, Michigan. The Problem is Real Suppose you have a close friend with whom you do just about everything. Melody, we’ll call here, doesn’t have much money because she has to pay a big part of her own school tuition and because she’s not able to take a job during the school months, since her parents want her to spend all her time concentrating on school. At first, Melody begins to take a few things at the store without paying for them. After a while, even though you don’t...

(Note: This letter from the Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore was received by the Contact Committee. We are passing it along to our people, via The Standard Bearer partly because it was meant for all our people, and partly because it has to do with the help which the Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church requested from us in connection with their new building project.) Dearly beloved brethren in the Lord, Greetings to you in the precious and glorious Name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. We thank God for His wonderful providence in giving to us a place of worship in...

In the covenant mercy of God, there is among us Protestant Reformed Christians a sound doctrine of Holy Scripture. With creedal fidelity, we all confess the 66 books of the Bible to be “holy and divine writings” (Belgic Confession, Art. 3); we all receive these books as the only, infallible rule of faith (Articles 5, 7); with child-like humility, we believe all things contained in the Scriptures, without doubt or criticism (Art. 5); and we hold that the doctrine of Scripture is perfect and complete in all respects (Art. 7). Of special importance at the present time is our conviction...

We would like to introduce a column in The Standard Bearer as a regular feature consisting of comment by our readers on articles that have appeared, or on issues that have been raised, in the magazine. Because brevity is the soul of wit and because space is limited, we ask that our correspondents keep their letters short. Like our regular writers, we are expected to exercise judgment and charity, using the power of the pen “to edification, and not to destruction,” as the apostle puts it in II Corinthians 13:10. The decision of the editorial committee whether a piece should be published will...