August 18, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville, NY (BPC) Sermon Text: [Jhn 4:45-54 ESV] 45 So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast. 46 So he came again to Cana in …
Sermon on John 4:45-54 — “Faith in Jesus Himself” Read More »
My favorite source of historical information is letter collections. I’ve recently found these letters from William Jennings Bryan to Bible Presbyterian minister Roy T. Brumbaugh in the collection of the latter’s papers owned by Brumbaugh’s grandson, David Sinding. Whenever I find letters like these I wonder if there is some scholar, like a William Jennings …
Letters of William Jennings Bryan to Bible Presbyterian minister Roy T. Brumbaugh Read More »
In a previous post (Francis Schaeffer, Pseudo-Calvinist) I criticized Francis Schaeffer’s apparent lack of conformity with Reformed soteriology later in his life. But I also referenced there a 1948 publication of his indicating that he did hold to a Calvinist view early in his career. Now I’ve found something of his from earlier (1942) and …
I’m glad to announce that First Presbyterian Church at Unionville, NY has left the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and joined the Bible Presbyterian Church (BPC). The Great Lakes Presbytery of the BPC has examined me and approved my transfer from the denomination in which I am ordained, the Reformed Presbyterian Church – Hanover Presbytery. …
Herman Bavinck, Pastor, Churchman, Statesman, and Theologian, by Ron Gleason, Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2010, 511 pp. This is one of the more interesting and informative biographies out of the couple dozen or so that I’ve read on various church figures. Herman Bavinck had a central place in the Dutch Reformed churches in the late 19th …
July 28, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville Sermon Text: [Jhn 4:27-44 ESV] 27 Just then his disciples came back. They marveled that he was talking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you seek?” or, “Why are you talking with her?” 28 So the woman left her water jar and went …
Sermon on John 4:27-44 – “Labor in the Field of the Lord” Read More »
July 21, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville Sermon Text: [Jhn 4:1-26 ESV] 1 Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), 3 he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. 4 …
Sermon on John 4:1-26 – “Worship in Spirit and Truth” Read More »
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, The First Forty Years, 1899-1939, by Iain H. Murray, The Banner of Truth Trust, 1982, 394 pp. This is the first time I’ve ever read a “biogr.” A what? A half biography, of course. I am glad to find out that Iain Murray later wrote the second “aphy” half as David Martyn …
Review of D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, The First Forty Years by Iain Murray Read More »
The Origin of Paul’s Religion, by J. Gresham Machen, 1925, Eerdmans 1947, 329 pp. In The Origin of Paul’s Religion J. Gresham Machen argues against various modernistic theories of the sources of the Apostle Paul’s Christianity. Machen’s contention is that the Biblical account itself provides the best explanation of the resulting history. He concludes, “Everywhere …
Review of The Origin of Paul’s Religion by J. Gresham Machen Read More »
While driving through western Pennsylvania this morning I stopped in the town of Prospect where there is buried Rev. James Armstrong Clark, the paternal grandfather of Gordon H. Clark. The gravesite is at the cemetery of the Presbyterian Church of Prospect where an obelisk marks the location. A number of other family members are apparently …
July 7, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville Sermon Text: [Jhn 3:22-36 ESV] 22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being …
June 30, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville Scripture reading: John 3:1-21 [Jhn 3:1-21 ESV]1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for …
June 23, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville Sermon Text: [Jhn 2:23-25 ESV] 23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. 24 But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all …
Sermon on John 2:23 – 3:15 – “Born of the Spirit” Read More »
June 16, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville Sermon Text: [Jhn 2:12-22 ESV] 12 After this he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and his brothers and his disciples, and they stayed there for a few days. 13 The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 …
June 9, 2019 Sermon Text: [Jhn 2:1-11 ESV] 1 On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no …
Sermon on John 2:1-11 – “The Glory of Jesus Revealed” Read More »
[Here is something that to my knowledge I haven’t posted previously. It is a transcript of a document of Gordon Clark’s remembrances, given in his later years.] Γορδονος Κλαρκος Απομνημονευματα (Gordon Clark Remembrances) though they are not so memorable My earliest memory is of a vacation trip to Niagara Fall when I was just …
Γορδονος Κλαρκος Απομνημονευματα (Gordon Clark Remembrances) Read More »
June 2, 2019 Sermon Text: [Jhn 1:35-51 ESV] 35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus turned and saw …
Sermon on John 1:35-51 – “The First Five Disciples” Read More »
May 26, 2019 Sermon Text: [Jhn 1:19-34 ESV] 19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” …
May 19, 2019 Sermon Text: [Jhn 1:14-18 ESV] 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He …
Sermon on John 1:14-18 – “Grace and Truth Made Known” Read More »
The Incredible Scofield and His Book, by Joseph M. Canfield, Vallecito, CA: Ross House Books, 1988, 2004, 394 pp. The Incredible Scofield and His Book is an expose of Cyrus Ingerson (C. I.) Scofield (1843-1921) and his Scofield Reference Bible. The historical research put into this volume is impressive and the reading is interesting, but …
Review of The Incredible Scofield and His Book by Joseph M. Canfield Read More »
In this article I contend that philosopher Ronald Nash erred when he claimed that Gordon Clark held to the Preformation Theory. I believe it is better said that Clark held to only half of this theory. It seems likely that Nash erred by reading his own view into Clark. Nash’s contention that Clark held to …
May 12, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville (PCA) Sermon Text: [John 1:6-13 ESV] 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear …
May 5, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church of Unionville (PCA) Sermon Text: [John 1:1-5 ESV]1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made …
Sermon on John 1:1-5 – “Light to a Sinful World” Read More »
My family and I are working on getting settled in Unionville, NY, a trail town along the Appalachian Trail. Unionville is so small, in fact, that it is not a town but a village! It does make for a nice stop for hikers with an Italian restaurant, a general store, a post office, and a …
I recently acquired a set of issues of The Christian Observer running from 1987-1989. This paper has a long history reaching back over 200 years and has at times been a prominent publication. I skimmed through these issues and thought it might be interesting to note some of what I found. At this period of …