Mark Twain wrote, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” While we might agree with Twain, the salaries many of us earn do not. Few of us will be able to replicate his transcontinental stagecoach journeys or his overseas adventures in Africa, Europe, and the Holy Land.
But we can read.
Through reading we can enter cultures vastly different than ours. We can feel the plight of people who might long to walk in our shoes even on our worst days. We can cheer for protagonists who live on the wrong sides of the tracks, or the globe.
Through reading we learn, often unexpectedly, that characters who seem worlds apart from us share our struggles and fears—even our virtues. They, like us, lay their heads on their pillows (or bamboo mats) at night wondering if they have made a difference in the world. As we try to answer that question with them—sometimes agreeing, sometimes disagreeing—Twain’s ugly threesome of prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness start to suffocate.
And if reading books can make us better traveled, reading fiction can often take us into the deepest jungles of unfamiliarity better than any other type of literature. Fiction encourages us to savor truth without choking on facts. And in an unexpected way, fiction can, in turn, help us grapple with facts by fortifying our hearts and awakening the creative parts of our minds. Through fiction our thoughts and feelings embark on the kinds of travels Dr. Twain prescribed.
J.A. Myhre’s A Bird, a Girl, and a Rescue is a traveling book. It brings us to a part of the world few of us will ever visit in the flesh. And, in a way that no news soundbite can, we are confronted with the unfamiliar realities of African boarding schools, rebel attacks, juvenile abduction, predatory animals, and illegal deforestation. The book’s illustrations are starkly inelegant; in other words, the perfect style for the story. They feel like they could have been borrowed from a wall-display at the rural boarding school that provides one of the settings of the story. As the author and illustrator firmly plant our own feet in the rich African soil, these problems become ours. We cannot face these issues like we would if we were reading a newspaper; we are part of the story!
If the book sometimes feels rushed, the brisk pace only adds to the gritty tension of the plot. Our inability to fully understand the heavenly messengers who help the protagonist through her challenges reflects the mystery of God’s “ministering spirits” (Heb. 1:14). Even as we (might) disagree with the decision of the main character—an early adolescent girl named Kiisa—to embark on a perilous journey alone, we are struck by how our respective contexts help interpret virtues like fear and valor. As with most well-written juvenile literature, this story is meant for young adults, but adults traveling with them will be thankful for the ride.
A Bird, a girl, and a Rescue can’t replace a trip to rural Africa. But for one percent of the cost of an airline ticket it is a highly recommend stand-in
Chicago Review Press does not publish Christian books. Their publishing submission guidelines explicitly state that they do not publish books in the area of religion. But in Michelangelo for Kids: His Life and Ideas with 21 Activities (2016; for readers 9 and up), Chicago Review Press has published an excellent Christian book.
Let me clarify. Michelangelo for Kids is written by a Christian author, about a Christian person, exploring Christian themes, and produced with a thoroughly Christian insistence on truth and excellence, beauty and order. So in partnering to produce this book, the author hasn’t hoodwinked the publisher and the publisher hasn’t compromised its guidelines. Instead, they have teamed up to provide author Simonetta Carr the well-deserved opportunity to use her talents to tell part of God’s story in a more nuanced way and to a more secular audience than her typical publishers ordinarily allow. The book preaches, but it doesn’t sound at all like a Bible sermon. Instead it invites readers to experience the book of God’s natural revelation, that “most elegant book wherein all creatures, great and small, are as so many characters leading us to contemplate the invisible things of God, namely His eternal power and divinity,” to borrow language from the Belgic Confession (Art. 2), which was written just a few years before Michelangelo’s death. This book is Christian because it is the kind of product upon which Christ could stamp his imprimatur, his “well done, good and faithful servant…” (Matt. 25:23).
A secular publisher publishing a truly “Christian” book is doubly ironic. Tragically, much of what passes as “Christian literature” is not worthy of the title; too often, despite a shell of religion, the product does nothing to advance the reader’s understanding of God’s magnificence. In other words, a fair test of the quality of “Christian” writing is whether it meets the expectation of a reputable but non-religious publishing company. Michelangelo for Kids passes with gusto, from its clear and lively writing, to its copious striking images, to its overall feel of facility. You don’t have to be Christian to appreciate quality. A School Library Review raves, “This intelligently written, comprehensive, and fascinating account of the Renaissance icon’s life, art, personal and professional relationships, and prickly personality and the ways in which he navigated the religious and political upheavals of his time are handled smoothly and with sophisticated language.” Not only does this praise aptly describe Michelangelo for Kids, it helps set a much-needed benchmark for any writing that Christians (or anyone else) should care to embrace: When given the choice, we should settle for nothing less than writing that is intelligent, thorough, and fascinating.
Anyone who has written or read historical books understands the tension between getting the story right and using the story to grab readers by the hand and heart and draw them into the narrative. Carr does both. As readers learn about Michelangelo’s blossoming talents as a young man we can’t help feeling a desire to create. As the artist wrestles with disappointment, mortality, and God’s sovereignty, readers can easily join him in the strain.
Michelangelo (1475-1564) was a slightly older contemporary of Martin Luther—the artist was born almost ten years earlier and died almost twenty years later than the theologian. Like all of us they wrestled with the same questions. What is real beauty? How can a mortal experience immortality? They asked these questions in different contexts and did not answer them in exactly the same way. But we need to know both their stories. Both the artist and the churchman can help us know God.
The best historical writing—regardless of the topic—leaves the reader not only with a pocket full of facts about the historical plot, and an experiential acquaintance with the subject, but also a bolder, more robust outlook on life. After finishing the 130 page book I (and my children who read with me) know Michelangelo—not nearly exhaustively—but truly. In a small way, through her interactions with Michelangelo’s works, the author has also given the gift of beauty. Michelangelo has stretched our imaginations. The book has, if only in a small way, helped us to flourish. That is a testimony to good writing…no matter the subject guidelines of the publisher.
Rev. William Boekestein pastors Immanuel Fellowship Church in Kalamazoo, MI. His most recent book, Shepherd Warrior (Christian Focus 4 Kids; 2016), is a story of the exciting life of Ulrich Zwingli written for readers 8-14 years old.
If this question were asked by a sitcom child, the camera would likely pan from an innocent-looking kid to an awkward-faced adult sputtering halting attempts at an explanation, all to the sound of canned laughter.
Some of us have found ourselves in this situation in real life. If you haven’t yet, you probably will. If you are a parent, your kids will ask this question. It is only a matter of time.
Of course, it is an entirely fair question. Some young children have visited a new-born sibling in the hospital. They realize that this new person used to live in her mother. But how did she get there? Good question!
The difficulty is coming up with an age appropriate and honest answer. Danika Cooley offers a biblical, colorful, conversational, and tactful answer in her fully-illustrated hardcover book, Wonderfully Made: God’s Story of Life from Conception to Birth (Christian Focus Publications, 2016). Wonderfully Made reads like a skillfully combined science book, daily devotional, and personal story.
The first page of the book tackles the most delicate part of the question: How does a new life begin? Taking cues from God’s revealed will for procreation, Cooley frames the answer in the context of both a sovereign God and a loving union of a husband and wife. “When your dad and I joined together to show the special love we have as a husband and wife, a cell from your dad, called a sperm, was able to swim to a cell in me, called an egg.” The illustrative sketch feels partly anatomical and partly astronomical, well-capturing both the intimacy and mind-blowing beauty of the start of a new life.
From cover to cover, Jeff Anderson’s illustrations help to show the universal human experience of reproduction by featuring a host of characters from diverse walks of life exploring the wonder of conception, pregnancy, and birth.
The nearly two dozen quoted Scripture verses stress God’s masterful role in the development of new life. With God’s help, children will come away from Wonderfully Made with deep awe over his creative power, profound admiration for his fatherly care, and a strong desire to praise their maker.
The book is recommended for ages 2-6 (Read to me) and 8-11 (Read myself). When we read the book my four kids spanned that age range and everyone liked it.
“Where do babies come from?” can be a challenging question for anyone to answer. But Danika Cooley provides readers not only with clear factual answers but also worshipful reflection. You might consider having Wonderfully Made in hand when you are next asked this question!
Ordinarily every second year two delegates from each of the churches of our federation (the United Reformed Churches in North America) meet as a synod in order to deliberate on matters that concern all the churches. We provide this summary to help our members become better acquainted with our church family and some of the decisions that were reached.
· One of the first items of business was the unanimous ratification of the membership of our congregation, Immanuel Fellowship Church in Kalamazoo, MI.
· Synod rejected an overture (or request from a Consistory and its classis) to review and propose changes to our current Church Order. Synod advised the churches that they are welcome to submit overtures for making amendments to our current Church Order.
· In connection with previous action taken by Synod Visalia, Synod Wyoming received a report from a study committee on guidelines for the honorable support of ministers and committed the report to the churches for study.
· Synod re-affirmed its desire and intention to continue pursuing ecumenical developments with the Canadian Reformed Churchesacknowledging that formal steps forward will not take place within the next six years.
· After a nearly twenty year process synod approved a new songbook called the Trinity Psalter Hymnal which will be published with the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and which will include the ecumenical creeds, the Three Forms of Unity and the Westminster Standards. The Liturgical forms and prayers of the URCNA will be published in a separate stand-alone book. The Three Forms of Unity will also be published in a second, stand-alone book.
· Synod adopted a foreign missions manual, “URCNA Foreign Missions Manual,” which the Missions Committee has authored “as helpful guidelines to assist consistories, missionaries and church planters in the day-to-day activity of foreign missions.”
· Synod adopted official translations of the Belgic Confession, Heidelberg Catechism and Canons of Dort.
· Synod determined to not sustain the appeal of a brother who has been suspended and deposed from the office of Minister of the Word and Sacraments.
· Synod received a report from a study committee mandated by Synod Visalia 2014 to study and address the issue of members who seek to depart from our churches in irregular manners (ex. resignation). Synod gave pastoral advice to the consistories on how to handle these issues.
· Synod Wyoming scheduled the next synod to convene June 11-15, 2018 at Wheaton College in Illinois. This Synod will conduct its business concurrently with the General Assembly of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.
“No amount of freedom is worth the compromise of biblical teachings” (p. 52). This maxim is a fitting response to recent erosion of religious freedom in the West.
As a reminder that biography can serve as timeless moral philosophy in narrative form, these words reflect the position of the persecuted Protestants living in eighteenth century France. Many who were unwilling to compromise the gospel lost freedom, livelihood, wealth, and public esteem. Sometimes they lost their lives.
Simonetta Carr’s “Marie Durand” (2015, Reformation Heritage Books), like the rest of the books in her “Christian Biographies for Young Readers” series, allows readers to enter the lives of some of the spiritual predecessors upon whose shoulders they unwittingly stand. What readers will see as they taste a thin slice of eighteenth century France (aided by the always–gorgeous artwork of illustrator Matt Abraxas) are sincere believers choosing to endure dire circumstances in order to honor God and their consciences.
In other words, contemporary readers will find in this book a reality check.
We wonder if Christianity is worth it when our convictions become unpopular. We complain when the church air conditioner doesn’t keep up with the temperature or humidity. We start watch–checking when it seems like the minister might not say “amen” within his allotted time. We leave churches because the vote on the most recent non–essential matter didn’t go our way.
Our toleration for persecution is low. This is understandable. Most of us have not resisted sin to the point of shedding our blood (Heb. 12:4)…yet.
This is not to say that contemporary believers do not suffer. What Paul says is true—“All who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12)—because believers at all times and places have to tread the same ground in which “the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). As we resist the devil we do well to remember that “the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by [our] brotherhood throughout the world” (1 Peter 5:9); indeed, throughout the history of the world. This is why books like “Marie Durand” are immensely valuable. Her life provides an imperfect but badly needed tutorial on how to suffer well as a child of God.
The author’s tribute to Marie is applicable to believers today: We must simply continue to do what God calls us to do every day, keeping our eyes on the future triumph of glory (p. 53). Because our God is a faithful father and not a false–kissing enemy (Prov. 27:6) our everyday walk will be as hard as necessary in order that we might be conformed to the image of our suffering Savior. Perhaps Marie had read the Puritan Thomas Watson who, like her, exhorted his friends to learn to kiss the rod that strikes us. If God disciplines those he loves (Heb. 12:6), he seemed to especially cherish Marie. We might find it hard to imagine being locked in a cold, drafty, unsanitary tower for thirty–eight years, and emerge as a mature, loving, sober–minded Christian! But during those hard years, in which everything else was stripped from her, Marie learned to say to her God, “There is nothing on earth that I desire besides you” (Ps. 73:25).
What will it take for modern Christians to be able to say the same? The answer will differ for each of us. But Simonetta Carr’s “Marie Durand” might just help us and our children toward the goal.
How would you respond if your minister began his evening sermon by saying, “Our sermon comes from Lord’s Day 1 of the Heidelberg Catechism?
For around 450 years, such has been the norm for members of Dutch Reformed Churches. Just a few years after the Heidelberg Catechism was written (1563), ministers began using it to help them preach the central doctrines of the faith. This task was aided by the fact that the 129 questions and answers are laid out in fifty-two sections called “Lord’s Days.”
But is the practice useful today? More importantly, is it right to use a man-made document as preaching material?
To respond to the second question, catechism preaching is merely another kind of Bible preaching. In some sermons the minister expounds one text. When he preaches catechetically, however, he preaches on a series of texts which form a unified topic. One minister explained it this way: In some sermons you hear “textually specific” preaching; whereas, in others you hear “topically specific” preaching. In catechetical preaching “the minister takes the whole Bible as his text and shows his flock how different parts of Scripture have a bearing on this or that particular biblical…teaching.”
In what follows I hope to demonstrate the benefits of catechetical preaching—not so much to defend a unique ecclesiastical tradition—but to help us desire the pure milk of the word (1 Peter 2:2) as it is preached catechetically.
Educational Benefits
Catechism preaching makes use of a good teaching tool. Every sermon has (or ought to have) a structure. When preaching catechetically the minister uses the catechism as the sermon (and series) structure. And it’s a good structure; its outline—following Paul’s letter to the Romans—teaches the deepest realities of life; from mankind’s pervasive guilt, to God’s amazing grace, to the believer’s heart-felt life of gratitude. Like a great teacher, the catechism communicates these deep truths by way of questions and answers John Milton Gregory explained that one of the most important rules of teaching is to prepare beforehand thought provoking questions. Not surprisingly, the Bible too frequently uses this method (e.g. Micah 6:8, Mark 8:29, 36).
Biblical Benefits
It is sometimes suggested that man-made confessions usurp Scripture’s authority. But, by the very way the Catechism handles Scripture, we are taught to submit to God and his word. The so called “proof-texts” are like arrows pointing to places in Scripture where readers can explore the great truths of the Christian faith. Abraham Kuyper says they are like signs that proclaim: “From these mines this gold has been dug.” For example, question and answer nineteen provides more than twenty-five texts to help us better understand the gospel and how it teaches us about Christ our mediator.
Catechism preaching also honors Scripture by helping the minister tell the Bible’s story. When the Catechism explains the Apostles’ Creed (Lord’s Days 8–22) it begins with God and creation. It follows redemptive history by then unfolding God’s plan of salvation in Christ. It recognizes the critical ministry of the Holy Spirit who came to empower the church to march forward under Christ’s banner, looking forward to the coming of the great day of restoration and eternal life.
Doctrinal Benefits
The catechism is not just a string of texts, but an organized presentation of great Bible themes. Someone has well said that “The whole of Scripture, not just some parts of it, are explicitly or implicitly doctrinal in content.” Doctrine is the first stated use of Scripture (2 Tim. 3:16)!
The Catechism can help pastors preach doctrine well. Without a time-tested organizing structure some ministers might fail to build up their congregants in certain essential truths of Christianity (e.g. The Creed, sacraments, prayer, Ten Commandments). The Catechism helps ministers to major on the majors and avoid imbalanced, “hobby-horse” sermons.
Catechism preaching can also help congregants know what they believe and why they believe it. Most churches have statements of faith even if they are sometimes minimal and inconspicuous. But when churches minimize doctrine, churchgoers might hear a lot about how to be a successful person, but know very little of the Christian faith.
Catechism preaching can make for doctrinally strong believers who will not fall prey to every wind of teaching (Eph. 4:14).
The Catechism helps the contemporary church resist the urge for doctrinal innovation. Charles Spurgeon spoke to our age when he said, “Rest assured that there is nothing new in theology except that which is false…” Believers should applaud creativity, but not in doctrine. Doctrine is a trust, a deposit (Jude 3). The Catechism unites us with our predecessors as well as with Christians in our own day as we confess essential Christianity.
Experiential Benefits
Catechism preaching emphasizes heart-focused application as it joins doctrine and life. The Catechism answers the question many church-goers ask after a sermon: “how is this information useful?” The word “benefit” is used eight times. For example, “What does the resurrection of Christ profit us?” (Q. 45). Or, “Of what advantage to us is Christ’s ascension into heaven?” (Q. 49). The Catechism addresses direct questions about the use of the sacraments (Q/A 67) and more specific questions like, “Who are to come to the Lord’s Table? (Q/A 81).”
The Catechism is rich devotional material which aims at warming the heart as well as informing the head, thereby promoting personal piety. Several of the questions can be used as prayers with just a few word changes. From the first question we sense the authors’ emphasis on experiential piety by their use of personal pronouns: “What is your only comfort in life and in death?” Likewise, question and answer twenty-one stresses the importance of appropriating the benefits of Christ through personal faith. Clearly, the Catechism was written by authors who were intimately familiar with the personal piety of the Psalter.
The Catechism can help us better plumb the depths of the riches of our great salvation. When blessed by the Holy Spirit, catechism preaching kindles in our hearts a love for the God who has saved us by his boundless grace. Isn’t that what all preaching is meant to do?
For an illustrated children's introduction to the catechism, see my “The Quest for Comfort: The Story of the Heidelberg Catechism.”
The 'What' and 'Why' of the “Book of Common Prayer”
Can the Book of Common Prayer be used profitably in a non-Anglican, reformed church? Our church (a member of the United Reformed Church in North America) put that question to the test last evening at our monthly congregational prayer meeting (The prayer book we used is that of the Reformed Episcopal Church in North America.). In an informal “debriefing” after the prayer meeting, the answer to the question seemed to be a cautious “yes.”
But before attempting to use the prayer book, we tried to get a handle on just what the Book of Common Prayer is and why it is considered useful. Hopefully this brief introduction will assist other congregations in exploring what thousands of Christians have found to be a very helpful book.
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The Book of Common Prayer (BCP) is a worship service manual used in the Church of England (and other Anglican communities) which builds on historic Christian worship practices. It contains scores of prayers, the historic creeds, orders for the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, suggested Scripture readings, the complete Psalter with chanting notation, forms for baptism, marriage, ordination, and funerals, among others. It was written under the leadership of the Anglican Archbishop Thomas Cranmer in 1549 and continued to be revised for better or worse, until 1662.
The BCP is most directly based on a 1545 publication entitled “The Prymer Set Forth by the King’s Majesty” which was prepared by Cranmer drawing from historic liturgies and those developed by the Lutheran theologian Philip Melanchthon and the reformer Martin Bucer. It is important to note, that the first two editions were compiled while the reform minded Edward VI was on the English throne. The Second Prayer book of Edward VI was particularly influenced by the reformers Martin Bucer, John Knox, Peter Martyr, Vealerandus Pollanus, and John a` Lasco. During the reformation in Scotland under John Knox, Parliament in 1560 authorized the prayer book for use in the churches of Scotland.
In the words of theologian Gerald Bray, “The English Reformation produced the Book of Common Prayer and the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion as its foundational documents. Both represent the more Reformed (as opposed to Lutheran) phase of the English reformation, though they are closer to patristic and medieval traditions than most Reformed documents are…. The Prayer Book represents reformed worship, and the Articles contain reformed doctrine. ”[i] He goes on to observe, “Tragically, it seems that the current spiritual lethargy of Anglicanism in the English-speaking world is connected to the demise of the Prayer Book since the 1960s.”
Why Are We Using It?
The Prayer Book Offers Biblical Prayers
The Prayer Book is saturated with Scripture. If we were honest, we would have to admit that our “free” prayers can become narrow, stale, and self-centered; or, in a word, unbiblical. Formal prayers need not supplant “free” prayers to be helpful. But they can, as they did in England in the sixteenth century (and beyond), infuse the prayers of the faithful with a more biblical character.
The Prayer Book Offers Beautiful Prayers
It is true that we should never pray in order to impress others (Matt. 6:5). It is also true that prayers use words to remind us of the beauty of God, of his grace, and of his salvation. Is it not helpful, when those words and sentences themselves reflect something of the beauty of God?
The Prayer Book Offers Balanced Prayers
Our prayers often fail to express the breath of Christian experience. Historic prayers can infuse freshness into our often stagnant prayer lives. The Prayer Book helps us pray to all three persons of the Trinity for the church, congress, courts, missions, missionaries, armed forces, schools and colleges, Christian education, etc.
The Prayer Book offers “Body” Prayers
Christ assures believers that he will hear them even when they pray alone (Matt. 6:6). But Scripture contains numerous examples of believers praying together with the same words (Ezra 3:10-11; Psalm 136), thereby experiencing unity around the throne of Grace.
Just a few days ago a friend suggested that the disciplined study of church history is unimportant because, in our information age, all the historical facts that we might otherwise have to study are at our fingertips.
There are many reasons to vehemently reject this suggestion.
Since the first volume of the Christian Biographies for Young Readers (CBYR) series, Simonetta Carr has proven time and again that she gets the importance of seeing the study of church history as a vehicle for inspiring the next generation of believers to join the ranks of the redeemed in living for the honor of God in the face of personal shortcomings and contextual challenges. Her latest in the series, Jonathan Edwards, (Reformation Heritage Books, 2014) is yet another welcome contribution to this growing collection of inspiring biographies for children ages 7-12. (NB: Don’t be deceived by the suggested audience; few adult readers will finish the book without being likewise informed and inspired.)
Throughout the well-told story Edwards is presented as an imperfect man who, nonetheless expended himself for God’s glory. As Carr writes, “he was easily discouraged, and when he felt depressed, he was not pleasant to have around.” Many of us, young and old, can relate. How encouraging, then, to read that despite his tendency toward discouragement, Edwards persevered in the Christian life, seizing every possible opportunity to extend the renown of his Lord. With the blessing of God, readers of Jonathan Edwards will be encouraged to follow hard after God at a young age, to prepare their impressionable minds for whatever calling they might receive, to stick to their convictions, to treasure the word of God, to run the Christian race as a member of a biblical church, and to view true religion as deep personal relationship with the living Christ.
As usual, the dozen full-page paintings by Matt Abraxas help the reader to enter into Edwards’s world. Along with a spellbound young YaleUniversity student, we gaze at a large spider clinging to a stick (p. 13). Like a fly on the wall, we witness Jonathan’s wife Sarah tenderly pin note cards to his jacket (p. 23). We feel Edwards’s pain as he prepares to accept the call to lead the College of New Jersey (p. 51).
Simonetta Carr helps to focus on one face from the great cloud of witnesses that urges us to take another step down the narrow road that leads to celestial city (Cf. Heb. 12:1). You don’t have to remember the exact dates of Edwards’s birth and death (for the more inquisitive: October 5, 1703–March 22, 1758). But once you better grasp how he filled his time between those dates, you can hardly help being inspired.
This is an outstanding book in a fantastic series. I can’t imagine ever not buying future CBYR books as soon as they become available.
I was asked recently about how our congregation approaches the issue of officer training. It was a timely question. At a recent meeting of the congregation we clarified our approach to officer training. Hopefully this will be helpful to others as well.
Church Officer Training Program
Background:
Scripture obliges Christian leaders to be on the lookout for, and equip “faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:2).
Likewise, article 22 of our constitution requires that nominees for the office of elder or deacon “shall be required to undergo instruction as to the office, the Reformed faith in general, the creed, and Constitution of the local church in particular…all nominees must be in full communion with the church and earnestly devoted to the cause of Christ.”
Providing further explanation of the nature and duration of this training is beneficial for those in training, and for the Consistory, council, and congregation.
Overview
The Consistory shall strive, at all times, to have at least one man in the position of elder and deacon in training (respectively) for the purpose of evaluating his suitability for office and, where warranted, preparing him to fill that office should the congregation elect him.
The in-training position is not an office, nor is it vested with the authority that comes through congregational election and formal ordination. Nonetheless, this position of officer-in-training will provide the kind of training for office that “book work” or other theoretical training cannot accomplish.
The congregation should be mindful to encourage the trainees in their undertaking and show them Christian charity as brothers in the Lord. The congregation is encouraged to bring shepherding and diaconal needs to their district elder or deacon (or elder or deacon in training where appropriate).
Duties
General Duties
All officer trainees shall studiously familiarize themselves with the Scriptures, the Three Forms of Unity, the Creed, the Church Order of the URCNA, and the Constitution and Ministry Handbook of CRCC.
Officers in training shall be expected to attend all Consistory and/or council meetings where they may participate in the discussion though without a vote. When necessary, those in training may be excused from the meetings, especially when sensitive matters calling for strict confidentiality are undertaken.
Elder-in-training
An elder-in-training will ordinarily serve in a particular shepherding district with an ordained elder.
An elder-in-training may be asked by the Consistory to participate in those duties which are pertinent to the office of elder, including but not limited to: Leading the district prayer meeting, assisting in distributing the elements of the Lord’s Supper,[i] and participating in family visitation.
Deacon-in-training
A deacon-in-training will ordinarily serve in a particular shepherding district with an ordained deacon.
A deacon-in-training may be asked by the Consistory to participate in those duties which are pertinent to the office of deacon, including but not limited to: Helping to collect and count the offering, offering a prayer during the collection of the offering, and listening to diaconal needs raised by a member of the congregation.
Qualifications, Appointment, and Term
Those appointed to the position of elder or deacon in training must be members in good standing of Covenant Reformed Church and will ordinarily have been members of the church for a minimum of one year.
Appointees shall demonstrate the qualifications needed for the office to which they are being trained according to 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1.
Appointees shall desire the office to which they are being trained (1 Tim. 3:1).
Appointees shall also have shown diligent participation in the leadership training classes offered to the men of the congregation.
Those appointed shall ordinarily serve for a period of one year.
When a man has been an elder or deacon in training for one year (or more or less time in extraordinary circumstances), the Consistory shall evaluate the man’s suitability for nomination.
After this evaluation, the man’s status (i.e. whether he will be nominated for office, reappointed to the in-training position, or released from said appointment) will be publicly communicated to the congregation.
[i] Our church order insists that “The Consistory shall supervise participation at the Lord’s Table” (art. 45). This we do by having an ordained elder distribute an evaluation card to prospective guest participants and by issuing a public warning and invitation. The distribution of the elements is a sort of “administrative” matter.
Ulrich Zwingli, explains his view of the proper use of a military. Do you agree?
"Our ancestors did not kill...for pay, but fought only for independence so that their bodies, lives, wives, and children might not be subjected to the wantonness of an insolent aristocracy"
Last week I had the privilege of offering this prayer at Scranton's Care Net crisis pregnancy center's banquet:
Almighty God, you have breathed into us the breath of life. You have made men and women, boys and girls, even unborn infants, in your image, and given us greater value than the fish of the sea, greater value than the birds of the air, and greater value than any other creature that walks the earth (Gen. 1:28). You have sanctified human life by your desire to see this race–and particularly a godly seed–multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. In your good creation, and your continued care over your people you have taught us to, likewise, respect and promote a culture of life.
In this light, we are grieved over how carelessly we have tended the lives entrusted to us. We have honored ourselves and our freedom over the lives of millions of precious ones. We have rejected your providence when it seemed inconvenient to us. For this great sin that blots our land and our race we are heartily sorry.
We pray, Lord that our repentance would be, not only in word but also in deed. Give us courage to speak for the silent, and to oppose those who would do them violence.
We pray that this evening would do much good toward the awareness and support of the cause for life in our community. Please provide the means to fund the fight for life. Please encourage those who volunteer for Carenet, and raise up new volunteers. May we all experience such emboldening solidarity tonight, that we would stand together with renewed zeal, and wisdom, and skill, to promote life in our midst. And please turn the hearts of fathers and mothers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers and mothers, lest you come and strike the earth with a curse" (Mal. 4:6).
Please cause the gospel of Christ to permeate this world as far as the curse of death is found. And may we find joy, and energy, and eternal hope in the life, death, resurrection, intercession, and second coming of Christ the Lord, who–above all–is honored and glorified. Amen.
I was not obligated to write a positive review in exchange for the complimentary copy provided by Reformation Heritage Books–ALTHOUGH BEFORE I READ IT I KNEW I WOULD. I’ve come to trust Simonetta Carr’s books the way you trust Grandma’s chocolate chip cookies.
As expected, this is a great, and highly recommended book for at least three reasons.
1. A Great Character. The life of John Knox has all the ingredients to make for some great reading: Courage, conviction, love, loss, intrigue, blunder, and triumph. Knox was right at the center of tremendous upheaval of church and state during a critical juncture in the history of Western Europe. As a major player in the Protestant Reformation, he was also passionate and active, imitable yet flawed. Of all the noteworthy traits that made John Knox, one that speaks resoundingly to our apathetic generation is his keen sense that every part of life is profoundly important. The gospel of free grace in Christ animated his spirit and left no place for lethargic indifference.
2. Great Writing. My hunch is that far less research goes into many historical biographies of greater length, and for older audiences. Good biographies are true–not only true in general–but true in the details. And Simonetta’s biographies get the stories right! At the same time, her clear and crisp writing tell the story well without becoming pedantic. John Knox, like the previous books in Christian Biographies for Young Readers is appropriate for children but not cuddly. By dealing with difficult issues with care and courage, the author prods kids to ask hard questions about difficult subjects: “Was it right for the Protestants to kill Cardinal Beaton for his treacherous leadership? If I were in Knox’ position would I have spent my free time revising a religious book instead of earning money to feed myself? Does God sanction female leadership in the civic sphere?” When is the last time children–or their parents–were prompted to ask these kinds of questions?
3. Great Visual Appeal. Like all the books in this series, the images in John Knox are both informative, and evocative. There is a good blend of contemporary photographs and paintings, as well as period art. I take it as a compliment to artist Matt Abraxas that one of my kids thought his painting of Knox seated pensively in a rowboat crossing the English Channel looked “scary.” It should look scary. It depicts a man with a price on his head reluctantly leaving the people he loved, for an uncertain future. Some books are strong on style but weak on substance, or vice versa. This book excels in both.
The author’s careful attention to detail and the artist’s passion-infused windows into Knox’s world are packaged in a stunning layout that gives the book a timeless feel. It is hard to imagine seeing a new illustrated juvenile biography of John Knox on the market again for a long time. It’s even harder to imagine a better one.
The Five Points of Calvinism (6): Perseverance of the Saints
A number of years ago my wife and I woke up to our radio alarm, which was set to a local Christian station. As we began to revive from the night’s rest, the radio DJ read the station’s verse of the day, Philippians 1:6. Here Paul writes that he is “confident…that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” The DJ then offered a brief commentary that was so theologically shocking, I’ll never forget it (even though I heard it through an early morning fog a decade ago). He said, “This verse describes a little doctrine we like to call the perseverance of the saints. It basically means finish what you started.”
The DJ failed to see in this verse the powerful persevering work of God and the confidence such work evokes in his saints. Instead, he focused only on the need for human endurance. Sadly, this is often the focus of those who believe Christ died for everyone according to a conditional election to supply a resistible grace for men and women who are still capable of choosing grace. In the Arminian system, whether or not believers per-severe to the end depends on their zeal to finish well. According to the Arminians’ fifth article of remonstrance, God is ready to help, and will keep Christians from falling “if only they are ready for the conflict, and desire his help, and are not inactive…”
Of course, the relationship between God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility in salvation, and in perseverance, can be a difficult issue. But the difficulties are not resolved by prioritizing the command to persevere over God’s provision of perseverance.
Those who reject this approach unintentionally run into several problems. First, they challenge the integrity of God. Can God begin a work of grace but fail to bring it to completion?” Is God telling the truth when he says to his people, “I will never leave you nor forsake you”? (Heb. 13:5). Second, they destroy the comfort of believers. Can Christians have confidence that God will abide with them? If so, are there conditions they must first meet? If so, how well must they meet these conditions? Finally, they accidentally invert the gospel. The gospel does not teach that Christ extends a hand to those who demonstrate a resolve to live godly. Instead, it is his hand, upholding weak and needy sinners, that enables them to abide to the end.
The Need for Perseverance
Scripture, by warnings and exhortations, is crystal clear on the believer’s need to persevere (Heb 6:4-12).
But Scripture is equally clear on man’s utter dependence on God to make perseverance a reality. Believers never shake the effects of the fall in this life. They are delivered from the chains but not the remains of sin. As John Murray said, in the believer sin remains but no longer reigns (Art. 1).The sin that still stains even the best works of believers drive us Christ (CoD 5.2).Believers are not capable, in their own strength, of persevering to the end. But God performs what man cannot (Cod 5.3).
Sadly, Scripture and history demonstrate that true believers are capable of great sin. By the righteous permission of God, and due to our own weakness, and the temptation of the flesh, the world, and the devil, believers can fall into great sins (CoD 5.4). Noah, who sinned through drunkenness, had found grace in God’s eyes (Gen. 6:8). Abraham, who fornicated, “believed God and it was credited to him for righteousness” (Gen. 15:6). Moses, even while committing a grievous murder, was united to the suffering Christ (Heb. 11:24-26). Jonah blatantly disobeyed God even though he feared “the Lord, the God of heaven,” (Jonah 1:9). Peter, although upheld by the prayers of the great High Priest, vehemently denied him (Luke 22:31-32). The effects of such sins are greatly damaging and only redressed through real repentance (CoD 5.5).
God’s Provision of Perseverance
The perseverance of the saints is a work of the triune God. Perseverance is a fruit of the Father’s electing love–the elect have obtained rest. (Rom. 11:7, 8:32-35; R.E. 5.1). It is a work of the intercessory ministry of Christ (John 17:11,15,20; R.E. 5.9). Upheld by Christ’s prayers, Peter fell terribly, not totally. (Luke 22:32). And perseverance is a work of the God’s indwelling, abiding Spirit, the “incorruptible seed” by which we are born again once and for all (1 Peter 1:23; R.E. 5.8). Perseverance is not a 50/50 effort between God and man (1 Cor. 1:8; R.E. 5.2). Perseverance is a new covenant blessing, not a condition.
But if God is responsible for believers’ preservation, what can be said about backsliding? In a few words, a believer’s backsliding is limited by God’s election and his plan for his own glory. According to his unchangeable purpose of election God does not allow the sins of believers to cause them to permanently fall from grace (CoD 5.6). In these falls, God preserves in the elect the new birth and works in them repentance (Cod 5.7). The work of God previously committed to the backsliding believer cannot be frustrated, thus preventing his permanent fall from grace (Cod 5.8). God keeps believers from committing the sin unto death (1 John 5:18; R.E. 4). As offended as God is by backsliding, he uses it for good. When God rescues his elect from backsliding, such rescue, far from giving them freedom to sin, produces in them a stronger resolve to seek his face and maintain the comfort which they had, for a time, lost (Cod 5.7, 13).
God’s preservation of his chosen ones is also vitally connected to the use of means. God “preserves, continues, and perfects” his work of grace in the elect by “the hearing and reading of his word, by meditation thereon, and by the exhortations, threatenings, and promises thereof, (Cod 5.14), and by the use of the sacraments” (Cod 5.14).
Assurance and Perseverance
The question of perseverance is inextricably tied to the believer’s experience of assurance of salvation. The Canons’ treatment of the issue is practical, not speculative.
The Reality of Assurance
Believers may and do obtain assurance of their perseverance (Cod 5.9), without which we would be of all men the most miserable (Cod 5.10). Because of doubts and temptations believers do not always feel full assurance of faith and certainty of persevering (Cod 5.11). But God does not subject his children to more than they can bear (Cod 5.11).
The Means of Assurance
Believers must not expect assurance of salvation to spring from special revelation apart from God’s word (Cod 5.10, R.E. 5). Instead assurance comes through trust in God’s promises (Mark 9:21-24), the testimony of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:16), and a “serious and holy desire to preserve a good conscience and to perform good works” (1 John 3:24; Cod 5.10,12).
The Blessings of Assurance
The Scriptures nowhere teach the idea of carnal security or the praiseworthiness of doubt. The child of God shudders at unbiblical caricatures of Christian security: “Free from the law, O blessed condition; I can sin as I please and still have remission.” “On the contrary perseverance is the real source of humility, filial reverence, true piety, patience in every tribulation, fervent prayers, constancy in suffering and in confessing the truth, and solid rejoicing in God…” (1 John 3:2,3; Cod 5.12; R.E. 6).
Application of Perseverance
How should we respond to this doctrine?
With Christ-Centered Humility
Our blemished track record of personal piety inculcates humility in perseverance (Cod 5.2). The reason we do not fall from grace is because Jesus Christ “always lives to make intercession” for us (Heb. 7:25). Every day we must “flee for refuge to Christ crucified” (Cod 5.2). Our disregard for God’s means of perseverance reminds us that we are still unworthy servants of God (Luke 17:10).
With Believing Prayer
The perseverance of the saints drives us to our knees, praying that God would both preserve us from, and rescue us from backsliding (Cod 5.2). We trust that God will preserve us from falling from his grace but we must never presume that he will do so apart from our prayers. Prayerlessness is inconsistent with the doctrine of perseverance of the saints.
With Loving Gratitude
The ungodly despise this doctrine but the godly love and defend it (Cod 5.15). The Psalmist said, “You enlarged my path under me, so my feet did not slip” (Psalm 18:36). We thank the Lord for preserving us from slipping out of his hands into hell.
With Confident Obedience
Being confident “…that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6), we “press forward to the goal of perfection, until at length, delivered from this body of death, [we] shall reign with the Lamb of God in heaven” (Cod 5.2).
