Not long ago I listened to a sermon on the Rich Young Ruler in Matthew 19 and I was struck by the difficulty the preacher seemed to have in dealing with the passage. I agree, there are some interpretive challenges but I think that often these difficulties are the result of theological baggage that's brought to the text.
Calling for a Return to the Doctrinal Ideals and Kingdom Ethics of the First Reformation
09 June 2025
Another Example of Progressive Orthodoxy
https://churcheswithoutchests.net/2025/03/13/the-imitation-of-christ/
I am pleased to note de Bruyn also offers some praise for the Theologia Germanica, another worthy pre-Reformation work.
But as I've often argued there's a problem with this approach to orthodoxy - it's progressive. Men like de Bruyn are willing to say that à Kempis and the anonymous author (the Friend of God from the Oberland) of the Theologia were Christians.
03 May 2025
A PCA Take on Paedocommunion
https://gospelreformation.net/dear-pastor-may-my-child-take-the-lords-supper/
Spinnenweber is to be commended as he covers all the bases and his treatment of the subject is fair. Unfortunately his conclusions are completely wrong.
13 January 2025
How Should Christians View Their Children?
https://jacobrcrouch.wordpress.com/2024/11/01/train-your-kids-to-be-christians/
There is much that is positive in this article and I do not doubt Crouch's sincerity nor do I wish to simply cast his comments in a negative light. Rather I wish to utilize them and discuss some of the tensions and inconsistencies that exist within the Reformed and Evangelical communities.
28 October 2023
Churchill's Christian Civilization (II)
The Churchill Cult in the United States finds its most tangible expression in Fulton, Missouri the site of his famous speech. Though most people are unaware of this, a small London church (reconstructed by Wren after the 1666 fire) was dismantled in the 1960's and moved to Missouri and is a symbolic platform for the Churchill museum. In a kind of strange commemorative fusion it combines Churchill, Christianity and (it would seem) the call to take up arms in the Cold War.
27 June 2023
The Ripples of Evangelical Collapse
Looking at a social media photo of members of our wider family circle (a network of relations connected by marriage) – I'm struck once again by the rapid fall of American Evangelicalism. The photo is of a mother, her daughters and their 'spouses'. One of the daughters stands boldly and unashamedly with another woman.