This installment of Letters to our Students is dedicated with love to Dr. and Mrs. Don Sweeting. This past Thursday, February 10th, 2011, marked his inauguration as President of Reformed Theological Seminary, Orlando, Florida. My friend Don has lived and lives out this Gospel portrait of a pastor with much grace. We cared so much... Continue Reading

Miller explains that they argue along these lines: first, that “the Bible is an ancient text, inapplicable in its particulars to the modern world.” Second, that “sex in the Bible is sometimes hidden.” Third, that “that which is forbidden is also allowed.” And fourth, that “accepted interpretations are sometimes wrong.” The Bible is brutally honest... Continue Reading

Glenn Farrell, pastor of First OPC in San Francisco, CA, posted the following article from Robert Dabney’s pen on the topic of the Spiritual Nature of the Church – a topic with a growing interest in current days. From “Political Preachers,” The Texas Presbyterian (May 4, 1894): 1 and “The Gospel Idea of Preaching,” Presbyterial... Continue Reading

The problem with anger is that those who don’t have the problem take it to heart; those who are angry are confident in their right-ness and over time can become massively, utterly, completely deluded, blind and (this is no exaggeration) can feel quite good about themselves after bludgeoning someone close them, as if they have... Continue Reading

“And as for your birth, on the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to cleanse you, nor rubbed with salt, nor wrapped in swaddling cloths. No eye pitied you, to do any of these things to you out of compassion for you, but you were cast... Continue Reading

Instead of congealing the whole of the Scriptures into a simplistic tag line, we must expound the depth and richness of the gospel that defy simplistic accounts. The plot line of redemptive history is deep and rich because redemption is deep and rich. The Bible’s articulation of the gospel mirrors the depth and richness of... Continue Reading

‘To the canonical Scriptures alone I owe agreement without dissent,’ says Augustine. ‘My conscience is captive to the Word of God,’ cries Martin Luther. Martin Anstey writes, ‘the primary qualification demanded in the reader of the Bible is not scholarship but surrender, not expert knowledge but willingness to be led by the Spirit of God.’... Continue Reading

What can be done about the PCA’s “big sort” constraint? I wish I were that smart to say. I am not. I wish I had all the answers. Thankfully, Presbyterians do theology in community. My greatest desire is for the PCA to be serious about its HUP ethos in suburban and city center churches so... Continue Reading

As such, my working thesis is this: given that the PCA was structured and built around the homogenous unit principle it is unlikely to ever have much success moving deeply into black and Hispanic communities unless outlier minorities socially conform by adopting the same cultural values of white socio-political conservatives and/or white city center elites.... Continue Reading

“Yes Sir! Living the dream! I am called to preach, called to be a chaplain and I find myself this very moment in chaplain school, preparing for ministry. I am literally living the dream.” I am on chaplain duty today. I am ministering at the US Army Chaplain Center and School. I came to instruct,... Continue Reading