January 1961
“The whole Word is truth — not just its central message concerning salvation, not merely a core or kernel wrapped in the husks of historical forms that have no meaning today. Not one jot or one tittle of the law shall fall to the ground. For ‘the scripture cannot be broken’.”
Will a Man Rob God? Henry R. Van Til
“We firmly believe that Catechism preaching keeps us balanced in presenting the Gospel of God’s free grace; assists us in proclaiming the whole counsel of God; aids us in building up our people in the saving knowledge of God in Christ Jesus; and helps us to combat both old and modern heresies.”
Why Do Not All Our Ministers Preach the Catechism? Edward B. Pekelder
“In order rightly to resist beginnings of error it is necessary for us to learn to know God’s truth as fully and faithfully as we can.”
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“Our lands have many beautiful seminary buildings and campuses where the teaching is not sound. It started with so-called ‘peripheral’ matters and ate to the very heart.”
Pray for Jerusalem’s Peace Corneal Holtrop
February 1961
“The Bible does not speak to us as it should unless its very words have found a lodging place in our hearts. Its voice should be like that of a familiar friend.”
Stick to One Bible Translation Henry J. Kuiper
“Unless we sharpen our witness, knowing where we stand as churches and where we are going under the guidance of the Holy Spirit in obedience to the Word, we shall fail to give spiritual guidance to men within and outside of the churches.”
If I Were a Missionary Peter Y. De Jong
“God’s works, all His works, whether in nature or in the realm of grace, always demand His words — His interpretation. Whenever man ignores or denies the Word and interpretation of God he goes astray, creates misconceptions, and lapses into paganism.”
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“…a proper understanding of the first three chapters of the Bible (Genesis 1-3) is absolutely essential to the proper understanding and evaluation of all the rest of the Bible. If these chapters are ignored or misinterpreted the entire Bible will — sooner or later — be misunderstood.”
The Relation Between General and Special Revelation Nicholas J. Monsma
March 1961
“…when the Calvinist is completely certain that a matter is taught in the Word of God, he takes that matter into his system, whether it seems to fit in or not. For him thetest of truth is not human reason but the Word of God.” Complementary Truths and the Reformed Faith R. B. Kuiper “Some of our present-day preaching, under the guise of being ‘practical,’ seems to be in danger of being little more than moralizing.”
Indifference Stagnation Bankruptcy Apostasy Christian Huissen
April 1961
“I feel that the secret of preaching with power is to be found in the extent to which the truth to be preached has taken hold of the preacher. It has to live for him before he can make it live for others.”
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“Odious comparisons by pewpiteers make for picayunish picking at spiritual food instead of hearty eating.”
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“…the preacher is but a link — a link between God and the congregation, a link which serves its purpose best by drawing least attention to itself. If the people are to hear God, and in hearing Him to see Him, then they ought not to hear the preacher.”
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“I yearn for more spiritual force in my ministry. The holy joy that comes of working not so much out of duty only, but out of delight and love — of this I want more.”
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“I have found that the more Christ means to me the more my ministry becomes personalized and ‘pastoral’ as over against mechanical. The more Christ means, the more His people mean, the more His Word means, the more His cross means; and through all this, professionalism gives way to humble wonder and love.”
My Greatest Problem as a Minister — and How I Seek to Solve It Various Ministers & Managing Editor
May – June 1961
“How shall we reevaluate the concept of infallibility and not come up with fallibility? Who can explain how anyone can tone down infallibility and escape fallibility?”
As We Grow Older Corneal Holtrop
“Those who have sought to defend the position of the possibility of actual historical inaccuracies or mistakes have frequently assumed that their opponents were possessed of an extremely narrow, unduly literalistic view of inspiration and infallibility. While rightly repudiating such a view of infallibility, those same people continued to posit the possibility of actual historical error in matters not pertaining to the Spirit’s purpose. But it was here that an unjustified jump was made. The legitimacy of that jump has never been proved in any of the discussions that have come to my attention. No matter how much emphasis one may lay on ‘letting Scripture speak for itself,’ the possibility of actual historical error or contradiction does not flow from a stress on the phenomena of a divinely inspired Scripture, produced under the impulse of a sovereign God who controls all things and makes them usable for His purpose of revelation.”
Reformed Old Testament Scholarship Today Marten H. Woudstra
“With all its superficialities and shams, middle-class respectability looks like a comfortable way of life. Yet for true believers it cannot be reconciled with gospel demands. It produces not only stomach ulcers in an effort to keep ahead of the bill collectors but also heartaches in the realization that God sits in judgment on us.”
Straws in the Wind? Peter Y. De Jong
“Without being aware of it, we are the recipients of a system of training where the training aids have almost, if not entirely, replaced the direct handling of the Bible. We are so preoccupied with sources and aids about the Bible that we as a people suffer from a deplorable lack of Scriptural knowledge.”
Says the Bible Is Not Duly Honored in the Christian Reformed Church Arnold Jonker
September 1961
“It is never enough for a church to have a fine mission program, well organized and efficiently administered by competent and Spirit-filled leaders. At heart every Christian, born again by the Spirit and living by the fullness of grace in Christ Jesus, must be a missionary.”
Men Without Souls Peter Y. De Jong
October 1961
“When one ignores the doctrine of salvation by faith alone unto justification and puts in its place the doctrine of salvation by doing the law, he has perverted the Gospel of Jesus Christ in truly modernistic fashion and has returned unto the yoke of bondage from which Paul says we have been redeemed.”
Faith Versus Works: A False Antithesis Henry R. Van Til
“From the viewpoint of the Covenant, Reformed churches have been impressed with the fact that it pleases the Lord to continue His Church in the way of succeeding generations, as well as by accessions ‘from without’.”
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“…it has pleased God to place our children in the particular office of church member from their very birth.”
Some Thoughts on Catechizing Our Youth John H. Piersma
December 1961
“…sins against fellow-men are sins only because they are first of all sins against God.”
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“No sin mentioned or implied in the second table can be defined without due regard to the first table.”
Distorted Prayers Nicholas J. Monsma
“Is the Christian Reformed Church a sleeping giant? I think it is more precise to say that it is in imminent danger of becoming a shorn Samson.”
Is the Christian Reformed Church “A SLEEPING GIANT”? R. B. Kuiper