Why Do I Love My Unbelieving Neighbor? (2)
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
I do not love my unbelieving neighbor because I know that God loves him. But I do love him for God’s sake. Love for the neighbor is not rooted in a desire simply to be a decent human being. Atheists believe it is possible to love the neighbor without any love for God. Some of these atheists expressed their faith in a general human capacity for goodness with advertisements in 2008 that read: “Why believe in a god? Just be good...
Read MoreWhy Do I Love My Unbelieving Neighbor?
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
The title of this post is a question that I asked myself after reading the title of a “Breakpoint” message by John Stonestreet—Our Muslim Neighbors: Christ died for them, we could at least love them. The title seems to suggest that Christians ought to love unbelievers (specifically Muslims) because God loves them. The Bible clearly teaches that God sent Jesus to die for sinners as an expression of his love for sinners. And the logic of Stonestreet’s argument seems to be...
Read MoreMonday Morning Devotions: Rest
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Matt. 11:18 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” What is Sabbath rest? How can we enjoy Sabbath rest even during the week when we are busy working? Rev. Hoeksema answers these questions (and others) in chapter 7 of Peace for the Troubled Heart. Here is today’s excerpt: With unrest he fills the heart until every last basis of self-confidence is removed, until from the heart the cry is wrung, “O,...
Read MoreThe Plain Reading of Genesis
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Today I point you to this outstanding article entitled The Genesis Crisis. If anyone needs to be brought up to speed on the creation “debate” that is raging in the churches today this article is a good place to start. Here are some of the questions that the article answers (the answers are gleaned from the article—direct quotes are indicated with quotation marks): Why do so many in the church today refuse to accept the plain reading of Genesis? Answer: “Regardless...
Read MoreIn the Beginning God
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
COMING SPRING 2015! The 1960s were years of challenges to the infallibility and inspiration of scripture. These attacks were precipitated by the increasingly popular theory of evolution, which was making inroads into Reformed churches and schools. In contradiction to this creeping heresy and in unequivocal defense of the doctrine of scripture, the Reformed Free Publishing Association published In the Beginning God. Since then the conflict between creation and evolution as the explanation of the origin of the world has intensified, and the doctrine...
Read MoreMonday Devotions: Compassionate Remembrance
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Psalm 103:14 “For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.” Has he forgotten how frail we are? Rev. Hoeksema says our experience seems to tell us he has. We suffer persecution, sickness, the death of loved ones, and many other things. And all of this comes from God! What does Psalm 103:14 tells us? Rev. Hoeksema writes, He never forgets. A load of sickness and pain never breaks the dust-frame of his children because he was forgetful of...
Read MoreMonday Morning Devotions: Sojourning Safely
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
This morning’s excerpt is from chapter 4 of Peace for the Troubled Heart. I am jumping over chapter 3, not because it isn’t worth reading, but only because its theme is similar to chapter 2’s theme. Chapter 4’s theme is Sojourning Safely based on Psalm 105:14, “He suffered no man to do them wrong.” Here is today’s excerpt about God’s care of his sojourning people: God suffered no man to do them wrong. He was Abraham’s shield, Isaac’s protector, Jacob’s guide,...
Read MoreThe Status of the Federal Vision in the URCNA
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Yesterday I posted this article about the decision of Pastor Tony Phelps to leave the PCA. His decision to leave (explained in this article) is based on his conclusion that the PCA “has failed to be meaningfully confessional.” He explains various ways the PCA has departed from the Westminster Standards, pointing out that the PCA’s failure to hold ministers who teach the Federal Vision accountable is especially grievous. Because the Federal Vision (FV) has the approval of the PCA “as a...
Read MoreThe PCA Has Failed to be Meaningfully Confessional
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
The title of this post is a quotation from this article by Pastor Tony Phelps in which he explains why he left the PCA (Presbyterian Church in America). This is an important article because it exposes the ways the PCA has departed from the Reformed faith, and by doing so, highlights the issues that pose a serious threat to the confessional integrity of every Reformed denomination today. I encourage you to read the article to see what all of these significant...
Read MoreMonday Morning Devotions: The Pilgrim’s Goal
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
In chapter 2 of Peace for the Troubled Heart Rev. Hoeksema provides an exposition of Hebrews 13:4, “For we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.” He explains that this word of God encourages us to press on to the goal of heaven while we recognize that this world is not our home. Understanding the beauty of heaven as our goal encourages us to seek it as our goal. Here is part of what Rev. Hoeksema says about...
Read MoreRFPA Update - Winter 2015
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Click the PDF link to read the rest of the RFPA Update Winter newsletter. [Best if opened in Internet Explorer or FireFox] Articles in this Issue: Looking for More Authors for Children's Books New Books The Bearer of the Standard: In the Age of Compromise Come, Ye Children: A Bible Storybook for Young Children—Best Storybook I've Had The Triple Knowledge Series In Review: Hyper-Calvinism and the Call of the Gospel: An Examination of the Well-Meant Offer of the Gospel...
Read MoreReformed Spirituality: Monday Devotions
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
One of the RFPA’s exciting projects is the publishing of a series of books on Reformed Spirituality. These books contain meditations written by Rev. Herman Hoeksema and edited by Prof. David Engelsma, which are excellent for personal devotions. Currently I am reading through Peace for the Troubled Heart and decided to use it for my Monday morning devotions. Part I of the book is entitled Pilgrimage, and chapter 1 is entitled The Pilgrim’s Confession and based on Hebrews 11:13. I hope you will...
Read MoreMore RFPA titles now in ebook format!
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
Contending for the Faith Contending for the Faith presents the history of heretics that have troubled the church over the last two thousand years, treating errors from AD 100 (Marcion) to the present day (federal vision theology). What sets this book apart is its evaluation of every heresy from a consistently and unashamedly Reformed perspective. The reader will readily grasp the significance of the early heretics as Herman Hanko demonstrates the connection...
Read MoreIs Evolution Biblically Acceptable? The Question of Genesis 1
By : Reformed Free Publishing Association
The article linked above is the first in what is slated to be a series of articles by Pastor Rick Phillips about the incompatibility of the theory of evolution with the Bible. Phillips explains that the occasion for this series of articles is a report that Biologos (a supposedly Christian organization that aggressively and intolerantly promotes the theory of evolution) is spending $3.6...
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