All Articles For The Standard Bearer: Holding the Traditions

* In the fall of 1989, I gave the address to the annual meeting of the Reformed Free Publishing Association, publisher of the Standard Bearer. This was my first address to the parent body as editor of the magazine—my “inaugural address.” The group instructed me to publish the speech in the SB. Belatedly, I now obey the order. I have, however, taken the liberty to revise the speech, significantly so in places, as those who heard the speech will discover when they read especially the last two installments. There will be four installments in this series of editorials. We will do our...

(The preceding editorial in this series noted that there is an illicit holding of tradition. One form is that of the Roman Catholic Church. Another form is that condemned by Jesus in the Pharisees. This article picks up the subject at this point.—Ed.) Now the ministry of Paul, great apostle of freedom, was unrelenting warfare against this legalistic holding of the traditions, against what he calls, in Galatians 1:14, “the traditions of my fathers.” This makes it all the more striking that he commands believers to “hold the traditions.” This is what this most determined enemy of illegitimate tradition does in II...

(The previous editorial closed by contending that a living, genuine holding of the traditions fakes place only in the way of our constant, free interpretation of the Bible. The church holds fast what has been handed over to her by going back to Scripture.—Ed.) When this free interpretation of Scripture goes on, it is possible that the tradition that has come down to a Reformed church is both corrected and developed. Holding the traditions is not a static activity. It is not the same as preserving a family heirloom. We ‘may not hold the traditions as the servant of Luke 19 kept...

(Holding the traditions of the Reformed faith in no way rules out the possibility of further development of the truth. In this concluding installment of the four-part series, I guard against a stagnant view of our calling to hold the traditions and contend for the liberty in the churches that a healthy holding of the traditions requires.—Ed.) We are called to hold the traditions. This is the apostle’s command in II Thessalonians 2:15. For those who are Reformed at the close of the 20th century, this command takes on urgency from the wholesale abandonment of the historic, creedal Reformed faith by...