Meet the Puritans

"Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." So says God to Abraham in the opening verse of Genesis 15. In his commentary, Calvin admits that, at first glance, God's encouragement to Abraham "to be of good courage" seems strange if not "superfluous." Abraham has just waged a...

Dear Timothy, In my last letter , I wrote that the Puritans show us how to marry doctrine and practice in our preaching. I'd like to add that they stressed the practice of piety (praxis pietatis), or practical godliness, flowing out of sound doctrine—just as much as Augustine and Calvin before them...

Dear Timothy, In my last letter , I wrote that the Puritans show us how to shape our entire lives and preaching by the Holy Scriptures. But they also show us how to marry doctrine and practice in our preaching. They accomplished this by addressing the mind with clarity, confronting the conscience...

There is a Christological impoverishment in the evangelical world. Christians, by and large, excel at embracing the divine nature of Christ. And yet the confusion comes when Christians are forced to reflect carefully upon the true human nature of Christ. A study of orthodox Christology would help...

Editor's note: This is part 2 in this series. Read part 1 here . The law/gospel distinction is sometimes used to distinguish between the commands and promises in the Scriptures. Anthony Burgess noted that “some Divines” taught that the law is every command and the gospel is every promise found...

Dear Timothy, You asked me in your last letter, “As you look back over 25 years of ministry, what was the most helpful, optional spiritual discipline that you maintained for your own spiritual life and for your preaching and pastoral ministry?” I answer without hesitation: Maintaining a steady diet...

The sacraments have always been a point of contention in the church. Someone once said that the sacraments serve as a litmus test of the strength or weakness of a system of theology. This is because many aspects of what we believe, such as the doctrines of God, of Christ, of the Spirit, of...

​Satan shows us the happiness and comfort that flagrant sinners seem to enjoy. Some non-Christians scoff at God, indulge in spectacular sins, and yet still seem to thrive. The Evil One shines the spotlight on these men when they are healthy, wealthy, happy, and carefree to ensure that believers...

The law/gospel distinction is a well-known and an important theological distinction in Protestant and Reformed circles. Unfortunately, a lot of confusion exists surrounding it, in part because further distinctions are not always properly made. And these further distinctions are necessary because...

In John 4:24, the Lord Jesus declares, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” New Covenant worship is not about holy places such as the temple in Jerusalem, but about holy hearts worshiping the Triune God. The multitude of Old Covenant ceremonies are...