When Life Imitates Chess

Queen to B3.  Bishop to C6 . . .

Premillennialism on the Decline -- The Evangelical Free Church Drops "Premillennial" from Their Doctrinal Statement

A generation ago, this was not even thinkable.  Most evangelicals truly thought amillennarians were closet anti-Semites who really did not take the Bible seriously.  Times have changed!  Apparently, the case has been made, as someone has put it.

On June 19, 2019, the Evangelical Free Church (EFCA) approved the following change (which passed with 79% of the vote) to their doctrinal statement:

The EFCA Board of Directors has introduced a motion to amend Paragraph 9, Article III of the Articles of Incorporation of the EFCA, the Statement of Faith, as follows:

We believe in the personal, bodily and premillennial glorious return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic mission.

The EFCA drops "premillennial" from its doctrinal statement

What Should I Read to Learn More About Infant Baptism?

One of the most common requests I get concerns resources regarding infant baptism.

What is the biblical basis for the practice?  

What about those questions which inevitably arise when folks consider attending a Reformed or Presbyterian church and witness an infant presented for baptism by the parents?  On what basis do you baptize an infant when they have not yet professed faith in Christ?

Below are some basic resources (aimed primarily to parents and those who might visit a Reformed or Presbyterian Church), which make the biblical case for the baptism of infants, and which address the questions people ask about the practice.

This is the place to start if the subject is new to you, and you have small children.  Why should our children be baptized?  Why is this doctrine so important to Reformed and Presbyterian Christians?  Infant Baptism --- What Christian Parents Should Know

This is a new and very highly recommended book.  It is written for those who have moved beyond the initial questions regarding infant baptism to truly considering whether or not to join a Reformed or Presbyterian Church and who want more information than Satelle's pamphlet (above) can provide. 

This is the best book to give to any friends or family who have questions about infant baptism.  But read it before you give it away!

Baptism--Answers to Common Questions

This is another thoughtful book written for those considering joining a Reformed or Presbyterian Church, and who want a simple and biblical explanation as to why we baptize the children of believers.  If Jesus welcomed them, because for such is the kingdom (Luke 18:16), then so should we!  Jesus Loves the Little Children

John Fesko's volume is a comprehensive theology of baptism.  Fesko covers the history of infant baptism, the doctrine of baptism in light of new creation, the covenant, and eschatology.  He then deals with baptism as a means of grace, a sacrament, its recipients, and its importance to the church.  This is a great resource for anyone who wants to tackle the doctrine of baptism in the broadest possible context.

Water, Word, Spirit

___________________________________________________

Previous Posts in this Series:  What Should I Read to Learn More About Covenant Theology?

What Should I Read to Learn More About "Covenant Theology"?

People often ask me, "what should I read to learn more about . . . ?"

So, throughout the coming summer, I'd like to suggest books (and on occasion other resources) on those topics about which folks frequently seek resources.

The books I will suggest throughout this series are primarily intended for lay people and others who are new to Reformed theology, or who would simply like to know more about various aspects of key Reformed distinctives.

If you have wondered about "covenant theology," and want an introduction to how the Reformed understand the course of redemptive history (the plan of redemption), then this is the place to begin.  This is a very important book to read for anyone who is interested in Reformed theology and who comes from a dispensational background.

You can find it at Mongerism.com (Monergism.com Books) or at Amazon (Sacred Bond)

Mike Horton's God of Promise is another important introduction to covenant theology.  Not a primer, God of Promise makes a substantial contribution to the Reformed understanding of the way in which covenants provide the internal biblical architecture for reading and understanding the whole of Scripture.  How does one determine whether a covenant is a "covenant of works" or a "covenant of grace"?  How do ancient Near-Eastern treaties help us understand the Bible?  Covenant or Testament?  This is a good follow-up to Sacred Bond.

 

This is the classic statement of the Reformed doctrine of the covenant or works and the covenant of grace.  Not an easy read, but a very important book, and well-worth tackling.  Witsius -- The Economy of the Covenants

Also highly recommended is Geerhardus Vos' essay, "The Doctrine of the Covenant in Reformed Theology" (The Doctrine of the Covenant in Reformed Theology)

Summer at the Riddleblog

Hard to believe--given the June gloom and unseasonably cool temps here in Orange County so far--that summer has arrived.

I'm now on vacation and taking my annual sabbatical break.  I'll return (Lord willing) to my church duties in late August.  In the meantime, I'm working on a summer series which will roll out shortly.

It has been a wonderful year for our family.  Both Riddlebarger boys got married and my wife and I now have two new wonderful daughters-in-law.  The picture above was taken in April, with Brianna, Mark, Nancy (on her wedding day with Dave), the missus and me.  Hopefully, we'll get to spend some time together!

Stay tuned . . .

"They Know Not the Lord"

Sermons on the Minor Prophets:  Hosea (4)

As a prophet called to his office by YHWH, Hosea functions as a divine process server to God’s covenant people, Israel.  Hosea brings the people of Israel the list of the charges which YHWH has against them.  The list is long and quite detailed.  Israel’s sins are great and the nation is about to come under judgment.  But why is Israel in such terrible spiritual shape?  Hosea reveals that God’s people are perishing because of a lack of knowledge of YHWH and his word.  In Hosea’s indictment of Israel, one group in particular is singled out as the chief offenders, the religious leaders, i.e., the priests and self-appointed prophets.  These men are held responsible for Israel’s current spiritual condition, which was graphically illustrated by Gomer’s promiscuity in the enacted parable of Gomer-Israel in chapters 1-3.  Because the people and the nation no longer have a proper knowledge of YHWH and his ways, they now face the supreme covenant sanction, expulsion from the promised land at the hand of Assyrian invaders.

As we have seen from our study of those prophets YHWH sent to Israel (the Northern Kingdom), Israel had become as pagan as their Canaanite neighbors.  The priests of Israel should have known what God’s law required of them.  They were assigned the task of leading the people to worship and serve the Lord as he commanded.  But they were also to warn the people about the dangers of idolatry instead of leading them to engage in it.  At this point in Israel’s history, the nation finally crossed the line into judgment. Israel’s priests (who were not descendants of the tribe of Levi) did not know God’s law, were indifferent to God’s law, or willfully disobeyed God’s law.  With the full approval of Israel’s kings (the House of Jehu), it was the priests who led the people of Israel astray to worship and serve the false gods of their pagan neighbors–especially Baal, the Canaanite weather and fertility god.  If the people will perish due to a lack of knowledge of YHWH and his ways, responsibility for this deplorable condition falls upon the priests, the teachers and guardians of YHWH’s word.  The priests have failed.  The people will perish.  

Then as now, YHWH holds the leadership of his people (i.e., the priests in the Old Testament, pastors and elders in the New) accountable for the health of his flock.  Those called to preach, teach, lead God’s people in worship, and then shepherd God’s flock, bear greater responsibility than do the sheep for whom they are responsible.  When such people use their positions to gain prestige, power, and wealth, or when they remain indifferent to the plight of God’s people, or worse, lead them astray through false doctrine, YHWH holds them accountable.  The harshest words in the Bible are directed to false teachers and Israel’s priests.  The greater judgment they will receive, reflects the gravity of their sin against YHWH.

We have completed our study of the first half of Hosea’s prophecy (chapters 1-3), the enacted parable of Hosea’s marriage to the promiscuous Gomer.  We have seen that Gomer’s bearing three children–only one of whom is identified as Hosea’s, are symbolic of the nation as a whole.  In the Israel-Gomer parable, Israel’s behavior mirrors that of Gomer–unfaithful, constantly seeking other lovers, and then bearing their children.  In the enacted parable, Hosea’s son with Gomer is to be named Jezreel, a name which recalls that familiar place in Israel’s history associated with bloodshed and death.  Gomer’s daughter is to be named Lo-Ruhamah (“no mercy”), a name which indicates that Israel’s covenant status has changed.  Israel will no longer be the recipient of YHWH’s mercy.  The third child mentioned, a son, is to be named Lo-Ammi, which means “not my people.”  His name is the strongest indication yet that YHWH has divorced Israel and the nation now faces certain and imminent judgment with the Assyrian invasion.

To read the rest of this sermon:  Click Here

"Teach and Urge These Things" -- 1 Timothy 5:1-6:2

Here's the audio from this morning's sermon:  Click Here

"You Are My People" -- Hosea 1:10-3:5

Sermons on the Minor Prophets:  Hosea (3)

YHWH has divorced Israel.  The name YHWH gives to Gomer’s third child in Hosea 1:9, is Lo-Ammi.  The boy’s name means “not my people.”  His name functions as YHWH’s symbolic declaration regarding Israel’s present standing in relationship to the Sinai covenant:  cut-off, the covenant rendered null and void.  Yet in the very next verse of Hosea (1:10), YHWH announces that Israel will again be “children of the living God.”  A dramatic reversal in Israel’s standing occurs as the covenant curse–YHWH’s divorce of Israel–becomes the basis for a future reunion of Israel (both kingdoms).  YHWH will again pronounce the covenant promise, “I will be your God and you will be my people.”  Those named “no mercy” in the days of Hosea, will be those “who have received mercy,” in the latter days–a people who will seek God, and be restored to the House of David.  In this dramatic reversal of divine verdicts, Hosea gives us a lesson in covenant theology, while at the same time pointing us ahead to the messianic age and the coming of Jesus.

This raises the question, how do we go from a rather shocking divine decree of judgment (Lo Ruhmah – “no mercy”) and divorce (Lo-Ammi – “not my people”) to a promise of future redemption from sin and the reconciliation of a divided people?  This complete reversal of fortune makes perfect sense against the backdrop of the broad panorama of redemptive history–which is the history of the administration of various biblical covenants, as we have seen throughout our time in the Minor Prophets so far.  

There are three covenants revealed to us in the Old Testament.  The first is the covenant of works (creation) which YHWH made with Adam in Eden–Adam representing entire human race.  Upon condition of perfect personal obedience to YHWH’s commands–“do not eat from this tree”–Adam would have been confirmed in righteousness, and then glorified so as to enter eternal life.  But when Adam rebelled against God and sinned, the entire human race (all those represented by Adam) was plunged into the curse of that covenant, sin and death.  Hosea will refer to this event in chapter 6:7.  The covenant of works demands perfect obedience and issues in death if there is not.  It is universal and still in effect today as evidenced by Forest Lawn.  We die because of human sin, not because we were designed with a short shelf-life.  We die because in Adam, we sinned and are guilty for his act of rebellion (original sin).

The second covenant found in the Old Testament is the covenant of grace, which God establishes immediately after Adam’s Fall.  This covenant is not universal, as is the covenant of works.  The covenant of grace is made with God’s elect–those who are in Christ.  In Genesis 3:15 shortly after Adam sinned, we read the first promise of the gospel.  “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”  This is a prophecy of the coming of Jesus Christ, whose death upon the cross (the bruising of his heel) crushes the head of the serpent (Satan).  This covenant is in view in Genesis 17 when God promises Abraham, “I will be your God, and you and your offspring will be my people.”  It is reaffirmed a number of times throughout the Old Testament and comes into its fullness in the New Testament as the “new covenant,” ratified through the shed blood of Jesus (as seen in the words of institution of the Lord’s Supper).  

Under the covenant of grace, God promises to freely give those who trust his promise, exactly what he demands of us under the covenant of works–a full and perfect payment for the guilt of sin, and perfect obedience to his commandments–a justifying righteousness.  In the new covenant, this comes through faith in the person and work of Jesus (the condition of this covenant).  This covenant of grace was promised to Adam, ratified with Abraham, reaffirmed to David (specifically the promise of a Messiah, who possesses an everlasting kingdom) and then foretold in the prophets (especially Jeremiah 31:31-34, which foretells of a new covenant).  The covenant of grace is grounded in God’s promise to justify all those who renounce their own righteousness and seek Christ’s through faith.

To read the rest of this sermon:  Click Here

This Week at Christ Reformed Church (June 10-16)

Sunday Morning, June 16:  Paul sees the church as the "household of God."  How should we treat others within that household, who likewise have been redeemed by Jesus, the head of the house?  Our text is 1 Timothy 5:1-6:2  Our worship service begins at 10:30 a.m.

Adult Sunday School:  This coming Sunday, I will be discussing the covenant of grace, one of the key features of Reformed theology.  We will talk about the biblical basis for such a covenant, along with the nature and conditions of this covenant which lay at the heart of the gospel.  Our class begins at 9:00 a.m.

Afternoon:  We are still discussing Lord's Day 6 of the Heidelberg Catechism.  We are focusing upon the catechism's discussion of promise and fulfillment in question 19.  Our afternoon service begins at 1:15 p.m.

Wednesday Night Bible Study:  On Hiatus Until Fall 2019

Friday Night Academy:  On Hiatus Until Fall of 2019

For more information on Christ Reformed Church you can always find us here Christ Reformed Church, or Christ Reformed on Facebook.

"Train Yourself for Godliness" -- 1 Timothy 4:6-16

Here's the audio from this mornings's sermon on 1 Timothy 4:6-16:   Train Yourself for Godliness