Vol 96 Issue 10

Trivia question This question was sent in by a reader. It goes back a ways, perhaps to the late 1930s or early 1940s. It is trivia, but it is also a riddle. See what you can do with it! What congregation in our denomination once made a trio consisting of three “non-persons?” A hint about the congregation: it is found in a State of the U.S. where no other PRC churches are found. And a hint about the trio: You need to put your knowledge of the Dutch language to use. If you translate the English version of the trio’s...

In our previous article, written to bring the reader up to date on our work as Contact Committee (CC), we focused on our contacts with churches with whom we stand in formal ecclesiastical relationships, sister churches or in a corresponding relationship. In this article we report on contacts we have with churches and groups with whom we have no formal re­lationship as yet, some of recent vintage, a couple of others of longer duration, but groups of believers that have reached out to us either to explore the possibility of establishing formal relations someday or for assistance in development in...

The next few articles in this rubric will be on God’s covenant. Lord willing, some of the subjects to be considered will be: God’s covenant is a relationship of friendship and communion that involves God revealing to us His secret will concerning our salvation. The covenant communion that we have with God is rooted in the communion that the triune God has within Himself. Jesus is the Mediator of the new covenant who confirmed the covenant by His death. The one covenant people are the elect in Christ. Just as election is unconditional, so God’s covenant is unconditional. The making...

The old adage says there is a reason we were created with only one mouth, but with two ears. The biblical description of the ear would confirm the wisdom of this clever observation. The ear is more than an oddly shaped appendage of flesh and cartilage such as the one Peter smote off the head of Malchus (John 18:10). God planted the ear in the skull of man just as a gardener might plant a patch of delicate tulips in the earth (Ps. 94:9). If we are amazed by the intricate design of the seeing eye, we should be as...

Previous article in this series: November 15, 2019, p. 90. Good We have been looking at the nature of the believer’s good works as works, but now turn our attention to the nature of those works as good. Scripture denominates some of our works “good.” While Matthew 5:16 is representative of those biblical passages that speak of the good works of elect believers in general, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven,” Acts 9:36 specifically identifies one individual believer who did good works, “Now there...

Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused me to hope. Psalm 119:49 The psalmist prays, “Remember the word unto thy servant” because he sees himself as God’s friend-servant saved by grace. The psalmist is not a servant against his will; God has made him a willing servant. Not surprisingly, he identifies himself as God’s servant thirteen times throughout the psalm, the only title he uses more than once. How good it is for us to see ourselves as God’s friend-servants. Adam was God’s friend-servant and God was his Friend-Sovereign in the garden. Adam fell from that...

Thanks to Mr. Cal Kalsbeek for putting this information us! The beginning of Hope’s existence goes back to 1916. If it hadn’t been for a 1914 decision of the Michigan State Highway Department, Hope might never have come into existence. At that time the farmers located in the hook-like bend in the Grand River had access to the Christian Reformed Church across the river only by means of the state-maintained ferry. The state’s decision to abandon the ferry in 1914 left the believers in the bend with two options, travel long distances by means of horse-drawn carriages or establish a...

The last two articles in this rubric demonstrated from Scripture and the Reformed Confessions that the elders’ work has three basic aspects: rule and oversight, being pastor and shepherd, and teaching. Future articles will develop the aspects of the work at length. The first of these three, the elders’ work of oversight, is itself broad. It includes the oversight of the congre­gation’s worship and congregational life, of the spiritual lives of the members of the congregation, and of all of the officebearers. The first in this list, the elders over­sight of the congregation’s worship, is the topic of this article....

Previous article in this series: January 1, 2020, p. 157. The Reformation and Scripture’s authority The Roman Catholic Church answered (and still answers) the question in our title (How do we know the Bible is the Word of God?) this way: “Because the Roman Catholic Church says so.” According to Rome’s false teaching, the Bible is church-authenticated. The church has all power and authority, even to determine what is and is not the Word of God. So that even if the church declared Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs and Ham to be the Bible, we would have to believe it.1 The...

The Canons’ positive treatment of the Reformed doctrine of total depravity is straightforward and relatively brief. And yet, all nine articles of the Rejection of Errors condemn errors of the Remonstrants connected with total depravity. The reason for this is simple. The Canons set forth the Reformed truth over against the specific teaching of the Remonstrants. However, the Reformed doctrine of total depravity was explicitly set forth in the existing confessions, the Heidelberg Catechism and the Belgic Confession of Faith. The Remonstrants did not write what they really believed about fallen man. If they had, they would obviously contradict the...