All Articles For Vol 96 Issue 08 1/15/2020

Trivia question There is one seminarian in the newly begun Theological School in the Philippines. Brother Jeremiah Pascual and his wife Leslie joyfully received of the Lord their first child, a son named Iohanne Cauvin (Yohan Covin). According to Tricia Smit’s newsletter that young man is pogi! So what does pogi mean in Tagalog? Answer later in this column. Minister activities Rev. E. Guichelaar received the call from Kalamazoo PRC as Rev. DeVries plans to become emeritus at the end of the year. Rev. DeVries preached his farewell sermon in the morning of January 5, with a brief program and...

Submitted by Ruth Nobel and Judy VanTil Unity. What a beautiful name! At the organizational worship service on October 30, 2019, Pastor A. Lanning (Byron Center PRC) gave three reasons why this name is wonderful: when we say unity, it is a confession of an attribute of the church—its oneness, as described in the Apostle’s Creed, an holy catholic church; when we say unity, we point to the church’s head, Christ, since He is the foundation of uni­ty; when we say unity, we are reminding each other of a well-known text and its calling to keep the unity of the...

Last year, Rev. Koole wrote an article (SB, Oct. 15, 2018) regarding the deplorable state of the American prison system. He concluded the article with a reminder that “Christ can still be brought to men and women in prison. And Christ still has power in the midst of such corruption and despair to set His people free.” This article seeks to testify of that mighty power of God. For many years now, a committee of men at Hope Prot­estant Reformed Church, Redlands, has labored in a cor­respondence work with prisoners across the state of Cal­ifornia and beyond. By God’s grace,...

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:4–5 We confess that we know God by two means: the most elegant book of creation and His most Holy Word. In His infinite wisdom, the Holy Spirit has incorporated many aspects of creation into His Word. When meditating...

“Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.” Acts 20:28 We recently began a new year of history, another year in the life of the church and in the life of each congregation. For many congregations this has meant the installation into office of elders and deacons, who take the place of those who have finished their term of service. Throughout my years in the ministry I have been thankful to God for the...

Born for our Salvation: The Nativity and Childhood of Jesus Christ, Martyn McGeown, Reformed Free Publishing Association, 2019. 288 pages, hardcover, $26.95. [Reviewed by Stephan Regnerus, pastor of Lynden Protestant Reformed Church in Lynden, WA] Rev. McGeown’s latest book, Born for our Salvation: The Nativity and Childhood of Jesus Christ sets forth the rich and comforting history of the birth of Jesus Christ. We are all familiar with the narrative; most readers have celebrated the birth of Christ every Christmas for as long as they have been alive. So the question may legitimately be asked: what is the value of...

There is much that separates the Reformed faith from Arminianism doctrinally. Those doctrinal differences are expressed in the Can­ons of Dordt, which set forth the Reformed truths of unconditional election, limited atonement, total depravity, irresistible grace, and preservation of the saints, and that over against the Arminian denial of these biblical truths. Arminianism rejects the doctrines of sovereign grace and instead defends conditional election, uni­versal atonement, the free will of the sinner, resistible grace, and the possibility of falling away from salvation. As always, false doctrine affects every area of be­lief and practice. For that reason, the false Arminian doctrines...

“Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.” Jeremiah 6:16 Dear discerning young people, By the Spirit of wisdom, I ask that you use the able minds God has given you and think with me for a mo­ment. Just think. Think about the philosophy of this world that says, “Newer is always better.” Think about the rash acceptance of everything new. Thronging the malls, the Internet sites,...

“Let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice.” Song of Solomon 2:14 There are many interpretations on the Song of Solomon, yet most would agree it contains lovely communication between a bridegroom and his bride. The two sing one another’s praise. They speak with love and respect. Their speech involves sharing personal thoughts, including inmost longings, in safety. There is mutual trust. This level of communication is a giving of oneself, a way of saying, “I want to know you and I want you to know me.” There are no substitutes for heart to heart talks in marriage....

In His incarnation, the eternal Son of God took to Himself our human nature. The incarnation of Jesus Christ assumes that He is truly God and, therefore, is eternal. Early in the fourth century, Arius, a priest in Alex­andria, Egypt, denied that the Son of God was truly God and eternal. Arius taught that God created Christ as the first creature. God did so in eternity, in order that God might create everything else in time by Christ, the Word. Still, even though Christ was created before time, He was a creature and not God, nor eternal. In Arius’ words,...