To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding, to receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity; To give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion …. Proverbs 1:2-4 There is always a risk in writing on ethical topics, especially on a subject one has not mastered. […]
Martin Luther's treatise The Freedom of the Christian is a wonderful starting point for reading the reformer's works. (1) It was written in 1520, three years after the posting of the "95 Theses," and at a time when the differences between Luther's new theology and Roman dogma had clearly become fundamental. Yet while many of […]
The name Ralph Erskine (1685- 1752) might not sound that familiar to modern ears but, in fact, this minister’s literary works were once so treasured that as late as 1879 they were still some of the best-selling religious books in London. (1) Most of Erskine’s published material consisted of his sermons, but his most popular […]
The argument for the regulative principle main-tains that God has, in Scripture, revealed his zeal to direct his own worship. That it is contained in the Westminster Standards and reflected by the adherents of those standards in Scotland, England, and America is sufficient to warrant its observation by the Church. It is a mandate "from […]
Typically in discussions about worship, the regulative principle plays the role of bad cop. It is restrictive, confining, and downright narrow, according to its opponents. After all, the word "regulative," implies regulations and rules that will cramp a church's worship "style." To be sure, the regulative principle limits corporate worship (that is, worship overseen and […]
Protestant reflection on the consumption of alcohol has undergone a dramatic transformation since the Reformation. Whether this change stems from the rise of pietism or the triumph of middle-class morality, contemporary evangelical ideas about alcohol are at odds with the views of the Protestant reformers. Attending to the reformers' ideas, then, is important not only […]
Who disagrees with Christian liberty? No one raises his or her hand. Yet many Christian colleges and parachurch organizations have codes of conduct requiring many things that the Bible does not. In itself, this isn't that odd; no one claims that a restaurant requiring a tie is violating its patrons' Christian liberty. But then again, […]
In his preface to this one-volume revision of his original two-volume edition, Alister McGrath informs us of its purpose and scope: "The history of the development of the Christian doctrine of justification has never been written. It is this deficiency which the present volume seeks to remedy. The first edition of this work appeared in […]
This massive work, written entirely by Norman Geisler, president of Southern Evangelical Seminary, is part of the "Baker Reference Library." This encyclopedia contains articles on general topics in apologetics, such as evaluative surveys of various kinds of apologetics (e.g., presuppositionalism) and the role of the Holy Spirit in apologetics, on philosophical concepts like the Principle […]
The "new homiletics," a recent article in Books and Culture states, "celebrates pilgrimage, not propositions." It "dances on the edge of mystery," maintaining that "the aim of preaching is … primarily … to 'evoke an event' or stimulate an encounter by making 'gestures towards the ineffable.'" In other words, the new homiletics no longer clearly […]
