The Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Retaliate with Gentleness In chapter 6 of The Fruit of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, Rev. Smit explains the lovely Christian characteristic of gentleness. Towards the end of the chapter Rev. Smit speaks of the connection between gentleness and the characteristics of love and peace, which precede gentleness in Gal. 5:22-23. Christian love is characterized by gentleness. And the fruit of gentleness is peace. If we desire to experience the joys of love and peace in our relationships with God and our...
Read MoreThe Fruit of the Spirit: Longsuffering
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
The Queen of Virtues Longsuffering begins, Rev. Smit writes in chapter five of The Fruit of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, “the second main group” of the fruit of the Spirit. The first group of three virtues is inward looking, while this second group of three “seems to highlight virtues that are evident in our outward dealings and communication, especially with those of our church families and covenant homes.” Just as the importance of love is highlighted by its position at...
Read MoreFruit of the Spirit: Peace
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Am I Pursuing Peace? True peace is the fruit of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Rev. Smit explains what this true peace is in chapter 4 of The Fruit of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Rev. Smit begins the chapter with a description of false peace, the peace the world strives for and claims it can achieve through man’s “own wisdom, goodness, and righteousness (pg. 52).” But this manmade peace is “illusive” (pg. 51). There is no peace in the world...
Read MoreRFPA Update Fall 2013
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Schism of 1953 within the Protestant Reformed Churches. In the newest issue of the RFPA Update, learn about the role of the Standard Bearer throughout the schism and read a review of our most recent book publication which also details much of the history of the schism. Click here for to view the entire Update as a PDF. The SB and the PRC: A Trumpet Blast and Reformed Testimony by Prof....
Read MorePerversion, Praise, and Promises: Sneak Peak at the Next Issue of the Standard Bearer
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Looking forward to receiving the September 1 issue of the Standard Bearer? Here's a taste of what's to come in the next issue of our Reformed magazine: Editorial | The Persistent Sanctioning of Sexual Sins by Reformed Churches "Our stand on sexual intimacy and marital faithfulness has direct bearing on our view of the church's relationship to Christ, and of his relationship to us." O Come Let Us Worship | Praising the Lord in the Congregation:The Element of Singing ...
Read MoreComing soon! Book #3 in the Reformed Spirituality series....
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
All Glory to the Only Good God Available early September 2013! The third book in the Reformed Spirituality series, this book again consists of meditations by Protestant Reformed minister and theologian, Herman Hoeksema. The meditations in this volume have in common their living, breathing zeal for the glory of the good God. God is only good-- good in himself; good in creation; good in salvation; good in Christ; good to his elect people. Hoeksema warns against two misconceptions concerning...
Read MoreFruit of the Spirit: Joy
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Love, Joy... If you were making a list of Christian virtues, where would you put joy? Where would you expect a Calvinist to put joy? Somewhere after orthodoxy, sobriety, and humility…right? Or maybe joy doesn’t belong on the list at all. Christianity and joy just do not seem to go together. But in the inspired order of the fruit of the Spirit Rev. Smit explains, “Significantly, joy...is near the beginning of the list…right beside love.” Joy is a gift of the...
Read MoreEncouraging the Next Generation to Read
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
RFPA Annual Meeting September 19, 2013 | Georgetown Protestant Reformed Church | 7:30 p.m. Save the date for the RFPA Annual Meeting! This year's keynote address will be given by Rev. Brian Huizinga, pastor of Hope Protestant Reformed Church in Redlands, California. Rev. Huizinga will present Encouraging the Next Generation to Read "Reading has a significant place in the covenant of grace as an instrument of God for the fulfilling of His promises," said Rev. Huizinga. "We must share the conviction...
Read MoreFruit of the Spirit: An Introduction
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Greetings! My name is Rev. Clayton Spronk, and it is my privilege to write for this blog on behalf of the RFPA. The plan is for me to write at least two posts a month. The RFPA has left it up to me to select the subjects, meaning that you can expect coverage of a wide variety of topics. Though not every post will be devoted to the promotion of RFPA publications, I do plan to put a plug in...
Read MoreWelcome, Rev. Spronk!
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
We welcome guest blogger Rev. Clayton Spronk, pastor of Peace Protestant Reformed Church in Lansing, IL! Rev. Spronk will be blogging for us several times a month, taking us first through a brief study of Richard Smit's newly released book, The Fruit of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Many have been asking for a discussion or study to follow-up each of the Book Club books, and we hope you feel free to join in by leaving your comments at the...
Read MoreReformed Literature in eBook Format: FAQ
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Many of our titles are now available in eBook format! Our readers have sent us many requests for eBook versions of our distinctive Reformed literature, and we're thrilled to now be offering this new format for a dozen of our most popular titles (with more coming soon). We love this new medium and it seems that you do, too. Our eBook titles are "flying off the shelves" but we've had a few questions from readers about how to access their eBook...
Read MoreThe Voice of Our Fathers
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Available Summer 2013 in print and eBook formats! Perhaps you've noticed that the popular commentary on the Canons of Dordrecht, The Voice of Our Fathers, has been out of print for well over a year. We're pleased to announce the new revised edition will be available this summer in both print and eBook formats! This book is an extensive commentary on the articles drawn up by the great Synod of Dordrecht (1618–19). The articles stated and defended the doctrines of...
Read MoreLet's chat...
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Have you read your copy of The Fruit of the Spirit of Jesus Christ by new author Richard J. Smit? If not, now's the time to do it! We'll be hosting a chat about the book on Twitter in just a few weeks. Join us (@ReformedFreePub) on January 30 at 7:00 p.m. (EST) to give us your thoughts on the book. We'll also host a second chat on February 2 at 8:00 a.m. (EST) to give our international readers a...
Read MoreReformed Literature in the Philippines: Books, Books, and More Books
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
You may remember from this post a few months ago that we shipped a large order of books to Rev. Daniel Kleyn and his wife, Sharon, in the Philippines. Well, their shipment arrived and they were kind enough to share these photos with us! To learn more about who's reading all these books, click here and head on over to the the Kleyns' blog!
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