All Articles For Editorial

About this subject we read an editorial in The Christian Century of Feb. 18, 1942. The editor of that magazine is often perplexed about the proper attitude of the Church and of the individual Christian with respect to war. War is such an ungodly business, so evidently opposed to all the precepts of the Christian faith, that he finds it extremely difficult to find a position for the Christian in relation to war, that will afford peace of mind and conscience. But “the crucial point at which all our differences and perplexities which war creates for the Christian come to...

The Christian is naturally interested in the events that are taking place in the world today. And although his interest does not exclude, but rather include, things temporal, such as the social problems, the economic situation, the political setup, it is not centered on these things as such, but considers these in the light of and with relation to something that far transcends them all: the kingdom of God. Even in and through the present world crisis and universal madness of the nations, the believer is mindful of the word of the Lord Jesus: “Seek ye first the kingdom of...

A so-called “Calvinistic Conference” is scheduled to be held in Grand Rapids in June. At this conference the Rev. H. J. Ockenga, pastor the Park St. Church in Boston, is to deliver the keynote address. Now, surely, if the keynote address is to serve its purpose, it ought to sound the basic note that should be heard throughout all the speeches and discussions of the conference. And if this is to be true in a Calvinistic Conference, that keynote address ought to be very sharply and definitely Calvinistic. If this does not characterize the keynote address, if it should sound...

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not vain in the Lord. I Cor. 15:58 A mighty faith and a great love express themselves in the words of address that introduce this exhortation; a faith, not in the work of man, but in the indestructibleness of the work of the Lord; and a love far transcending all mere human bonds and relationships designated by that term. “My beloved brethren!” Was not the condition of the Church at Corinth such that the relation of...

The second head of the Canons teaches that Christ’s death on the cross was an effectual redemption of the elect. The Canons rejected the Remonstrants’ (Arminian) teaching that Christ died “for all men and every man.” The Remonstrants also maintained that not all for whom Christ died receive the saving benefits but only those who believe, which is to say, only those who fulfill the condition of faith. Accordingly, they perverted the preaching of the gospel, turning it into a general offer of salvation from God to all who hear the preaching. They insisted that God wills (desires) the salvation...

The Reformed theology of God’s everlasting covenant of grace must be in harmony with the doctrines of grace set forth in the Canons of Dordt. That is the premise of these editorials. That the covenant and salvation are inseparable is admitted even by those who teach that the covenant is a conditional relationship with every baptized child, for they insist that God promises salvation to each of these children (conditionally). We have shown that God established His covenant with Christ and those chosen eternally in Him. This is the teaching of both Scripture and the Canons. Since the covenant is...

The Reformed, which is to say, biblical doctrine of salvation maintains that God sovereignly saves His chosen people. The Canons of Dordt set forth this truth beautifully. The Canons demonstrate that the race of man fell in Adam and every individual is born guilty and polluted with sin. Everyone is in fact dead in sin, hates God, and rejects His Son, Jesus. And yet, some out of this fallen race do come to love God and do believe in Jesus as Savior. What explains this difference? These are the people chosen (before time) by God unto salvation in Christ. Christ...

The reformation of the church is God’s work. God loves His church with an everlasting, unquenchable love. God’s eternal counsel with regard to His church includes not only the selection of every member, but also the entire history of the church through time and eternity. That earthly history includes times of reformation in His church. In His perfect wisdom, God determines a process of apostasy, that is, that the church that once maintained the teaching and practices of the Bible, over a period of time, departs from biblical standards. Such departure always involves doctrinal apostasy, setting aside the truth for...

That election and the covenant of God are linked has been noted from Ephesians 1. There, in the context of teaching eternal election in Jesus Christ (v. 3), the apostle states, “having predestinated us unto the adoption of children in Jesus Christ” (v. 5). Since in this verse predestination is a synonym for election, election is unto adoption as children. And adoption is an obvious covenant reality. This connection between the covenant and adoption is affirmed in the Reformed “Form for the Administration of Baptism” which teaches that “God the Father witnesseth and sealeth unto us that He doth make...

The doctrine of election is the foundation of the Reformed truth of salvation by grace alone. The first head of the Canons of Dordt establishes the doctrine of double predestination in answer to the first point of the Remonstrants. The Arminians placed this doctrine first in their five objections (remonstrances), knowing that if they could successfully change the Reformed teaching of election to a conditional election, the rest of their teaching (errors) would follow logically. If election (and therefore, salvation) depended on man’s choosing it, then Christ died for all to make that choice a possibility, and fallen man is...