John Colquhoun, Repentance, ch. 4. It is a truth clearly revealed and often inculcated in Scripture that without repentance a man cannot attain eternal life in heaven. The most of men, therefore, who read and hear the Gospel admit that repentance is necessary to their future safety and felicity. But while they believe that it… Read More The Difference Between True and Counterfeit Repentance
The church of Jerusalem in Judea contained in it more congregations than one. This may be convincingly evidenced divers ways, particularly from, 1. The multitude of believers in that church. 2. The multitude of church officers there. 3. The variety of languages there. 4. The manner of the Christians’ public meetings in those primitive times,… Read More Was the Church of Jerusalem a Single Congregation or a Presbytery?
The church of Antioch, in Syria, consisted also of more congregations than one. This appears, 1. From the multitude of believers at Antioch, and 2. From the multitudes of prophets and preachers that ministered at Antioch. 1. From the multitude of believers at Antioch. 1. After the dispersion upon Saul’s persecution, the Lord Jesus was preached at… Read More Was the Church of Antioch a Single Congregation or a Presbytery?
The church of Ephesus (in Asia Minor, Acts 19:22) had in it more congregations than one. Due to 1. The number of prophets and preachers; 2. The gifts of tongues conferred upon those prophets; and, 3. The multitude of believers which so abounded at Ephesus: how is it possible to imagine, upon any solid ground, that… Read More Was the Church of Ephesus a Single Congregation or a Presbytery?
The church of Corinth in Greece comprised in it also more congregations than one, as may be justly concluded from, 1. The multitude of believers. 2. The plenty of ministers. 3. The diversity of tongues and languages. 4. And the plurality of churches at Corinth. Let all these be well compared together. 1. From the… Read More Was the Church of Corinth a Single Congregation or a Presbytery?
Natural Theology is the knowledge of God, as sovereign creator and judge, from nature, without special revelation. Man cannot know God as redeemer or discern the gospel from nature, nor many of His attributes, but man can know that God exists, is holy, righteous, wrathful against sin, etc. without having special revelation (Rom. 1:19-21). Therefore, all men are… Read More The Four “Books” of Natural Theology
The True Bounds of Christian Freedom Samuel Bolton (ii) Against Antinomians We look next at the case of those who are called Antinomians. Just as the Papists set up the law for justification, so the Antinomians decry the law for sanctification. We claim to be free from the curses of the law; they would have… Read More Against Antinomians | Samuel Bolton
While it is true that there is some diversity of opinion and practice on the Sabbath in the Continental Reformed tradition, ranging (in the Netherlands, for example) from the loose position of Cocceius, to the strict view of Voetius, Koelman and a’Brakel, the views of the Reformers regarding the Sabbath are much more Sabbatarian than… Read More The Myth of the “Continental View” of the Sabbath
Adding on to our last post summarizing a few scholastic concepts: Causality: Five Metaphysical Distinctions, this post briefly considers another important principle often used in Reformed Theology and gives a few examples of the principle in practice. Principle of Proportionate Causality. “The logic of causality also dictates that proximate or closely related causes produce only proximate or… Read More What It Does Not Have, It Cannot Impart
In part three we considered the necessity of a Holy Spirit wrought Reformation and unity in the the Church prior to, and in harmony with, the establishment of a national Church. In this final post of our series we will envisage the dangers of ecumenical latitudinarianism to the unity of the Church and answer objections regarding persecution and… Read More Establishment Principle, Part 4: Liberty of Conscience
Purely Presbyterian 