Vol 65 Issue 19

Mr. Wigger is an elder in the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. Congregational Activities Just because it’s summer, that doesn’t mean that all our churches take a break from society meetings. During the summer months the congregations of some of our churches continued to meet in active society life. The members of Covenant P.R.C. in Wyckoff, New Jersey met as a combined society three times. The topic considered was the doctrine of creation, using the seminar series of Prof. Hanko as the basis of discussion. Rev. D. Kuiper, pastor of our Immanuel P.R.C. in Lacombe, AB, Canada conducted a...

COMMENTARY ON ROMANS, by Robert Haldane. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1988. pp. 1-668. $21.95 (paper) (Reviewed by Prof. R. D. Decker) Robert Haldane (1764-1842) spent the first half of his ministry in Scotland where several congregational churches were established as a fruit of his preaching. In 1816 at the age of fifty Haldane moved to Geneva. Under his ministry and teaching several great nineteenth century theologians were trained. Among these were the church historian, Merle D’Aubigne, and Louis Gaussen, the author of Theopneustia, a book on the divine inspiration of Holy Scripture. This is a fine commentary, a classic on the...

Rev. Hanko is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Norristown, Pennsylvania. Jacob is returning from his Uncle Laban’s house in Padan-Aram, and is about to re-enter the land which had been promised to him by God. More than twenty years have passed since he deceived Isaac and obtained the birthright. Through all those years God has been with him, blessed him, and protected him from the avarice and cunning of Laban. God has sent him back to Canaan with the promise, “I will be with thee” (Genesis 31:3), and God has shown him the host of angels who encamped...

Rev. Heys is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. What folly it would be to deny that the shadow before you is proof of the fact that the object which casts it exists. There are no shadows where there are no objects. Objects do not always cast shadows. But when there is a shadow, there is an object between the light and that shadow. Therefore the flood which God sent to destroy the whole ungodly world reveals to us the undeniable fact that He is coming in judgment at His own appointed time. That judgment speaks of the...

Rev. Terpstra is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of South Holland, Illinois. Our readers will recall that in these articles on the great church father Augustine we are focusing on his defense and development of the doctrines of grace over against the heresy of Pelagianism. In our last segment we saw how the Spirit of truth specially prepared Augustine for this, and how Augustine began his work by confronting this error of Pelagius with the biblical teaching concerning the sinfulness of natural man. He overthrew the Pelagian figment of salvation by man’s freewill and posited instead the utter helplessness...

Prof. Hanko is professor of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Lying is always wrong, and the fierce anger of God rests upon the man who lies. Lying must be cut out of our life, and our children must not only be constantly instructed in their calling to tell the truth, but they must be severely reprimanded and reproved for lying and warned of the wrath of God which comes upon the liar. Lying is rooted in our sinful nature. The depravity of our nature is such that lying is “natural.” It is the natural thing...

During the past several , decades the listeners and viewers of radio and television have had the opportunity to expand their knowledge of religious topics and biblical teachings by means of religious talk shows, interviewing Bible “experts” attempting to answer difficult religious questions here-to-fore unanswered and unknown. By means of radio and television many churches, both local and far away, invite the public to “attend” their worship services, available to us all hours of the day and days of the week.

The annual Synod of the Protestant Reformed Churches convened June 13, 1989 in the Protestant Reformed Church in Hull, Iowa. Rev. Gise VanBaren, president of the Synod of 1988, led in opening devotions and chaired until the new officers were elected. Rev. Van Baren also preached an appropriate sermon on Psalm 48:12-13 entitled: “A Necessary Survey of Zion’s Defenses,” the night previous at the Prayer Service. The officers of this year’s Synod were: President, Rev. James Slopsema; Vice-president, Rev. Kenneth Koole; First Clerk, Rev. Dale H. Kuiper; and Second Clerk, Rev. Jason Kortering. Rev. Slopsema, serving as president for the first time,...

On Monday, July 17, 1989, Professor Homer C. Hoeksema died at the age of 66 years. He lived only 3 months after cancer was discovered. Professor Hoeksema held a prominent place in the Protestant Reformed Churches for many years. A minister in these churches for 40 years, he served the denomination as professor of theology for 30 years. For 24 years, Professor Hoeksema was Editor of this magazine. We are asking his long-time colleague in the Protestant Reformed Seminary, Professor Herman Hanko, to write a memorial article for a future issue of The Standard Bearer. The staff of The Standard Bearer expresses its...

Rev. VanBaren is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. “Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following.” Psalm 48:12-13 This sublime Psalm asserts the wonders of the work of our God in Zion. Zion was the religious as well as political center of Israel. In Zion God was pleased to reveal Himself, and there He would fellowship with His people. It was the place for all Israel to worship and sacrifice. The Psalmist acknowledges that Zion...