Vol 87 Issue 18

Congregation Activities As many of our readers are aware, Prof. D. Engelsma, retired pastor and professor in our churches, spent about six weeks in the vacant Hope PRC in Redlands, CA from early May through mid-June. In addition to filling their pulpit each Lord’s Day, Prof. Engelsma was also able to provide some other service to Hope. He spoke to Hope’s “Church History” class on “A Brief History of the Schism of 1953 in the PRC.” He joined Hope’s Reading Club in their discussion of Bound to Join, a book written by Prof. Engelsma. And he gave a Spring Lecture...

May 11, 2011 3 Southwest Protestant Reformed Church Classis East met in regular session on Wednesday, May 11, 2011, at the Southwest PRC. Each church was represented by two delegates. Rev. M. DeVries was the chairman for this session. Rev. Martin VanderWal rejoined Classis East as the new pastor of the Wingham PRC. The business of classis was routine. Classis heard reports from the Stated Clerk and the Classical Committee. Requests for pulpit supply were granted for Trinity and Cornerstone. A request from Wingham PRC for financial support for the moving expenses of their pastor was presented. Wingham requested help...

The continent of Africa has been dubbed the “Dark Continent” by missionaries. Africa is a grand and mysterious land, full of wildlife, and having a rich history, with ancient civilizations, and intriguing geography. It is also a continent that abounds in the deepest pagan practices of witchcraft and superstition involving cruelties and dangers hard to imagine. Those who dared to explore Africa, or were sent there to do missions, more often than not were martyred or died of sickness. Ruth Tucker writes that “Black Africa, known for centuries as the ‘white man’s graveyard,’ has claimed the lives of more Protestant...

Previous article in this series: May 15, 2011, p. 368. A Case Study in Working Hard Not to Exercise Discipline The last article began an examination of the Missouri Presbytery of the PCA’s exoneration of Federal Vision heretic Jeffrey Meyers. In that article it was pointed out how Meyers contradicts the Reformed doctrine of justification by faith alone. We turn now to Meyers’ second main error and a brief explanation of the significance of the Meyers case. The Root of it All: Jeff Meyers Believes in a Conditional Covenant Meyers’ second error, and the root of his heretical views, is...

The Lion of Judah is Jesus. But it might surprise us that the lion is also a metaphor for the devil and the ungodly. It is a metaphor with which people living in the Middle East during Bible times were very familiar, for they lived among those wild beasts. With his bare hands, Samson killed a lion that roared at him in the way, giving rise to the riddle, “Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness” ( Judg. 14). The young shepherd David slew a thieving lion who had snatched a lamb...

Commencement exercises of the Protestant Reformed Seminary were held on June 16, 2011 at Grandville Protestant Reformed Church. An abbreviated version of Prof. Dykstra’s address on that occasion begins here, to be concluded, D.V., in our August issue. There is a certain paradox about the ministry of the Word. We reject the notion that there are theological paradoxes—irresolvable contradictions in theology. There are, however, characteristics and callings of the minister that seem contradictory. For instance, the ministry of the Word and sacraments is a high calling indeed. A minister is a herald of the King—Jesus Christ, Lord of lords and...

I could not help but hum the Psalter tune and say its words in my heart: “The lines are fallen unto me (us!) in places large and fair; a goodly heritage is mine (ours!) marked out with gracious care.” My heart was glad. It still is. What goodness our God showed to us this year at our annual assembly called synod! How I was wishing all our people could witness the public examination of the three seminary students—now candidates—and sit with us to hear Prof. Dykstra’s graduation sermon. What joy if even more could hear synod deliberate and decide to...

Dear Editor, I appreciated your summary of the agenda of Synod 2011 in the May 15 Standard Bearer. However, I do want to comment on the references that you made to past decisions of Classes and upcoming decisions of Synod 2011 in our Protestant Reformed Churches. On page 365, on the overture of Faith PRC Council: “They are withdrawing it after both Classes rejected the concept. It seems a pity.” On page 355: “Synod should bear in mind that we are tinkering with a relationship that already exists….” It strikes me that the Reformed way for comments and opinions on...

This is a abbreviated text of the pre-synodical sermon that Rev. VanOverloop as President of the 2010 Synod, preached on June 13, 2011 in Grandville Protestant Reformed Church. “Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness; in hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; but hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Savior; to Titus, mine own son after...