Vol 85 Issue 06

Mr. Wigger is a member of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. Young People’s Activities The young people from our churches in west Michigan were invited to this year’s annual Young People’s Thanksgiving Mass Meeting held Sunday afternoon, November 9, at the Byron Center, MI PRC. Rev. Ron VanOverloop spoke on the last part of Psalm 69:30, with the theme: “Magnify the Lord with Thanksgiving.” Rev. VanOverloop reminded the young people that we can never magnify God more than what He is, and that we must magnify Him, seeing Him as big, and ourselves and our troubles as small....

Special Session October 21, 2008 Classis East met in special session on Tuesday, October 21, 2008 for the purpose of examining Heath Bleyenberg, Pastor-Elect of the Providence PRC. Pastor-Elect Bleyenberg sustained his examination; and, with the concurrence of the delegates ad examina from Classis West, his consistory was authorized to ordain and install him as a minister of the Word and sacraments in the Protestant Reformed Churches. Classis also approved the request from Kalamazoo PRC for the reduction of synodical assessments for 2008 because of their recent loss of three families. This request for reduction of synodical assessments (retroactive to...

Mrs. Laning is a wife and mother in Hope Protestant Reformed Church of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Have you ever received something like this? Dear Family and Friends, This has been a wonderful year. We finally bought our luxury dream home in our favorite gated community. God is so good. Susie and Trent fit right in. For Trent’s birthday, we flew to Disney World—his annual request! For Susie’s, another Princess Cruise! Despite our busy year, we were able to find time serving others. As I look on my calendar I can count 108 overnight guests who stayed at our house, and...

Rev. Stewart is pastor of Covenant Protestant Reformed Church in Northern Ireland. Previous article in this series: December 1, 2008, p. 112. The Vatican The logical place to begin a discussion of the political power of the Roman Catholic Church today is, of course, the Vatican, a sovereign city-state within the city of Rome. Established in 1929, the Vatican City is the world’s smallest state, both by area (108.7 acres) and population (c. 800). Its citizenry is 100% Roman Catholic, its highest functionaries are Roman clergy, and its non-hereditary, elected monarch is the pope. Jesuit Thomas J. Reese mentions several...

Rev. Bruinsma is Eastern Home MIssionary of the Protestant Reformed Churches, stationed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. God is pleased to gather His church and to save a people unto Himself by means of the mission work of the church. The church institute officially calls a missionary to go out and preach the gospel. He performs the work of missions. God by His grace and Spirit uses the preaching of the gospel to save those lost in their sin. But does this mean that mission work belongs to the church only through her offices? Does this preclude the members of the church...

Prof. Engelsma is professor emeritus of Dogmatics and Old Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Previous article in this series: November 1, 2008, p. 57. The “Immortality of the Soul” The biblical and Reformed hope of the life of the elect believer with Christ in heaven in his soul immediately upon death—the intermediate state—must not be confused with the philosophical notion of the “immortality of the soul.” Greek philosophy taught that the soul of every human is inherently immortal. Physical death, therefore, only destroys the body. The soul naturally continues to live in a more-or-less happy, if vague, existence as...

Rev. DeVries is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Chruch in Wingham, Ontario, Canada. Morgentaler Named to Order of Canada Such was the headline in the Waterloo Region Record, on July 2, 2008. Exactly three years ago I reported that notorious Canadian abortion activist and law-breaker Henry Morgentaler had received on honorary doctorate of laws degree from the University of Western Ontario. That pales in comparison to the award he is now to receive. The “Order of Canada” is the country’s highest civilian honor to recognize a lifetime of achievement and dedication to community. Terry Pedwell reports in the above-mentioned article:...

Rev. Hanko is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Lynden, Washington. Previous article in this series: November 15, 2008, p. 90. Wisdom and Solomon Wisdom is the most important word in Proverbs and is used 119 times in the book, almost as many times as in the rest of the Old Testament. There are a number of synonyms used for wisdom as well, including discretion, prudence, subtlety, and understanding. All these words tell us something about wisdom as a necessary spiritual virtue. The outstanding thing in the book of Proverbs, however, is that wisdom appears in the book not...

Previous article in this series: December 1, 2008, p. 100. n this concluding article we turn to the doctrine of justification and the fatal concession that the new evangelicals (as members of the ECT group) have made concerning it, a modification of definition that is both crafty and un-apostolic, which is to say, Romish to the core. But before we do that we want to say something yet about baptismal regeneration. It is worth noting that the concessions that the evangelicals have made to Rome concerning baptismal regeneration and automatic sacramental grace have also brought them into full accord with...

Rev. VanOverloop is pastor of Grace Protestant Reformed Church in Standale, Michigan. “And the angel said unto them, Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.” Luke 2:10 The angels brought the message of great joy. This joy was not about fun and games. Nor about health and wealth. But it still was a message of great joy. In fact, it was and is the greatest joy. Poor shepherds were the first to receive this good tidings. They received it by means of an angel of God. Later, when the...