Vol 99 Issue 12

A reader raised a question with me about a statement in my January 15, 2023 Standard Bearer article, the fifth installment in Antinomians? Without a Doubt. The statement in question concerns my quote and interpretation of what Calvin says in his commentary on Zechariah 8:15-16. The quote from Calvin reads:  And hence we may gather a general truth—that God cannot be intreated by us [notice, cannot], except we begin to repent; not that our repentance anticipates God’s mercy, for the question here is not, what man of himself and of his own inclination can do; as the object of Zechariah...

It may be one of the most misused words in the English language. An athlete has an amazing comeback, though everyone said his sporting days were over. A singer comes out with a new hit single, long after she was written off as old news. A CEO climbs back to the top after suffering a setback. And the news headlines flash—so-and-so has ‘redeemed’ himself! So goes the legacy of a foundational concept in the Christian faith when it is subjected to the eroding winds of pop-culture.  The basic flaw in the popular usage of this term is the misidentification of...

Previous article in this series: December 15, 2022, p. 135. The Belgic Confession has been accused of being irrelevant for or even detrimental to mission work. But this is not true. As we noticed in our previous articles, the creed’s significance for missions is evident from the history that surrounded its writing. One of the reasons it was produced and published was so that it might give a sound witness to the earthly rulers of that day (who were Roman Catholic), as well as to the Roman Catholic Church itself, of the truths of the gospel. On account of the...

This article was first written by the author for the PR Scholarship Committee when he was a seminary student and was published in the February 2003 Beacon Lights. With the permission of the magazine, we reprint this article, as relevant now as it was then. An intriguing question has been raised by the 2002 Protestant Reformed Scholarship Committee: “Why isn’t the position of minister desired by more young people?” This question supposes two things: 1) That the number of young people who desire this ‘position’ is inadequate; 2) That more young people would desire the ministry if something changed in...

Previous article in this series: December 15, 2022, p. 139 Know, young person, that you are in a spiritual warfare in which enemies oppose you and seek your destruction. Sleeping and waking, eating and drinking, sitting and standing, texting and surfing, talking and listening, working and vacationing—in all your life, the battle is real. Know, too, that one of the foes that watches to ruin the church and all its members is the Devil. He is a wicked spiritual being who is an enemy of God, the church, and every good thing. He is a fallen angel and a murderer....

  Mr. Charles Terpstra, member of Faith PRC in Jenison, Michigan is the full-time registrar/librarian/archivist at the Protestant Reformed Theological Seminary and is the book review editor The following book is reviewed by Rev. Joshua Engelsma, pastor of Crete PRC in Crete, Illinois. Strange New World: How Thinkers and Activists Redefined Identity and Sparked the Sexual Revolution by Carl R. Trueman. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022. 204 pages, paperback. The author of this book was formerly a professor of church history at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, but in 2018 he resigned that post to take up a position as professor...

PRC news (denominational and congregational) In the most recent minister call news as of this writing (Feb. 27), we can report the following: Rev. N. Decker (Grandville-MI PRC) declined the calls he had received from Georgetown (MI) PRC and from Loveland (CO) PRC (Feb.19). Rev. J. Maatman (SE-Grand Rapids, MI PRC) received the call from Hudsonville (MI) PRC (Feb. 19). On that same Sunday he also received the call from Hosanna PRC (Edmonton, AB). Also on February 19, Rev. M. Kortus (Hope PRC-Redlands, CA) received the call to Doon (IA) PRC. Rev. S. Regnerus (Lynden-WA PRC) accepted the call to...

Previous article in this series: March 1, 2023, p. 250. In the last article we looked at Habakkuk’s third woe against Babylon (2:12-14) and saw that though Babylon was just coming to power and would soon dominate the nations, its might and conquests were all vanity: “Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts that the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity?” All the labor of their conquests, their building projects, their political system were put forth in the middle of the fires that would destroy them, their city...

Previous article in this series: January 1, 2023, p. 155. The Divine Nature of Christ Is Not Passible, and the Human Nature Is Not Everywhere. Therefore, we do not in any way teach that the divine nature in Christ has suffered or that Christ according to His human nature is still in this world and thus is everywhere. For neither do we think or teach that the body of Christ ceased to be a true body after His glorification, or was deified, and deified in such a way that it laid aside its properties as regards body and soul, and...

Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?… Matthew 6:25-32  The text speaks of something we all struggle with, worry. We get anxious about many things, including our physical needs. In Matthew 6:25,  Jesus tells us not to worry, saying, “Take no thought for your life.” As planting season begins, may this passage remind us to trust in our heavenly Father to supply our needs and...