Excerpt from Francis Turretin’s dedication to the “most magnificent, noble, and honored men of the consul and all the Senate of the celebrated Republic of Geneva“, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, vol. 1. Our Geneva, not shadowy and emblematically but truly, is that city sustained by the hand of God alone; not by human means or… Read More The Importance of Godly Rulers | Francis Turretin
“They who, upon pretense of Christian liberty, do practice any sin, or cherish any lust, do thereby destroy the end of Christian liberty; which is, that, being delivered out of the hands of our enemies, we might serve the Lord without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life (Luke… Read More Religious Liberty & the Establishment of Religion
James Durham A Commentarie Upon the Book of Revelation pp. 511-516. And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders, which… Read More National Churches Under the New Testament
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
In part 2 we examined the Scriptural evidence for the Establishment Principle and particularly the prophecies that God will cause it to occur in history. In this post we will see the importance of a Holy Spirit wrought Reformation and unity in the polity, discipline, worship, ordinances, doctrine, and practice of the Church prior to, and in harmony with,… Read More Establishment Principle, Part 3: Reformation and Unity of the Church
In our previous post we saw that civil governments are to provide an “hospitable abode to the church” which is a singular institutional entity organized by Jesus Christ with a specific political and catholic structure. This is strictly a positive duty in Christ’s Kingdom of Grace regarding nations joining the Church corporately, not how magistrates set public policy in relation to… Read More Establishment Principle, Part 2: Prophecies
In part one of four in our series on the Establishment Principle we will see what the Establishment Principle is and how it relates to the nature of the Church as well as what it is not. In part two we will demonstrate the Establishment Principle from the many prophecies of Scripture. In part three we will elucidate, on… Read More Establishment Principle, Part 1: What it is, What it isn’t
Voluntaryism/the Voluntary Principle is the belief “that the only relation that ought to subsist between the State and the Church — between civil government and religion — is that of entire separation; or, in other words, its advocates maintain that nations, as such, and civil rulers in their official capacity, not only are not bound, but are not at… Read More Voluntaryism: The Real Origin of Romish and Priestly Domination
David Dickson Truth’s Victory Over Error pp. 185-189 CHAPTER XXIII. Of the Civil Magistrate Question I. Hath God armed the Civil Magistrate with the Power of the Sword for the Defence, and Encouragement of them that are God, and for the punishment of Evil-doers? Yes (Rom. 13:1-4; 1 Pet. 2:13-14). Well then, do not the… Read More The Duty of Civil Magistrates | David Dickson
It is objected, that the power in question is very liable to be abused, has been abused in all ages; and that, if we give power to magistrates about religion, they will employ it for the support of a false religion as well as the true. This is an objection which has the greatest influence… Read More Objection: Magistrates Liable to Abuse the Enforcing of the First Table
Purely Presbyterian 