“Until I come,” says the apostle Paul, knowing that his death is imminent, seizing, perhaps, the opportunity to give direction to the church for the centuries ahead, “give attention” (NASB), or “devote yourself” (NIV), “to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching.”It’s clear enough what the apostle Paul wants done in the public assembly of the church. He wants Scripture read. T...  Read More

The composition of the typical Presbyterian session is familiar enough. Professionals, prosperous businessmen, and community leaders predominate. Some are devout, some less so. Most were chosen, truth be known, because of their prominence in endeavors outside the realm of the church. Successful leadership in the world, it is assumed, should translate into successful leadership in the church.The si...  Read More

How might we describe the psychology of Christian experience? Is it characterized by joy, peace, and contentment? Or is it characterized by lament, struggle, and holy discontent? Should I feel good about myself or bad about myself? Should I forget past failure and delight in present grace or continue to remind myself of the evidence of the depths of my depravity in my past record and present reali...  Read More

The words of the apostle Paul are ominous, fearsome, sobering, encouraging, and strengthening as he says, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, this he will also reap” (Gal. 6:7). When I was a young boy, the Baptist minister under whose ministry I sat between the ages of 10 and 20 preached a sermon on this text that made a crucial difference on how I handled my teenage yea...  Read More

Which is more important, the unity of the church or its purity? To which are we to give preference: love or truth, fellowship or doctrine? The apostle Paul places great emphasis on unity: “Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise” (Gal. 4:28). Galatian Gentiles and all believers are “brothers,” are “like Isaac,” and, as such, are “children of promise.” We are all spiritual children o...  Read More

Who are the true sons of George Washington? Every player in our political arena today attempts to legitimize his or her political agenda by an appeal to the Founding Fathers. American politicians must be able to show that they embody the principles first established by our Founders. Who best represents their concepts of justice? Of freedom? Of the “common good?” Of the separation of church and sta...  Read More

My high school-aged children attend a secular prep school. The process of deciding to educate them there was long and difficult. They spent their lower and middle school years in Christian schools and home school. But in the end, all factors considered, the prep school seemed to us the best choice. Among the many challenges that have come our way as a result have been regular contact with people o...  Read More

During the Reformation era, debates raged over what things must be considered crucial to Christian faith and practice, and what could be considered adiaphora (Latin for “things indifferent”). All sides agreed that the doctrines of the Trinity, the atonement, and justification were central. But what about worship issues? What about the elements of worship, sacramental theology, church architecture,...  Read More

The dust that can be seen swirling in the distance is the aftereffects of Richard A. Muller's scholarly avalanche. He has marshaled mountains of historical evidence to bury the various twentieth century agenda-driven "Calvin against the Calvinist" schemes devised to drive a wedge between the great Reformer and the period known as "orthodoxy" or "Protestant scholasticism" (roughly 1560-1725). Somet...  Read More

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One of the great insights of the Reformation was the recovery of the biblical concept of “covenant.” This recovery was fueled by the “new learning” of the Renaissance humanism, the return ad fontes, “to the sources,” of theology in the original texts of the New and Old Testaments and in the writings of the church fathers. The fall of Constantinople in 1453 to the Muslim Turks brought a flood of Gr...  Read More

What is worship that is not centered on God? Worship that is centered on something other than God is not worship, we answer simply. It may be a religious gathering, it may be exciting, it may be informative, but it is not, by definition, worship. Among the primary virtues of traditional Reformed worship is its God-centeredness. Its structure and content leave no ambiguity about what the people of ...  Read More