The Banner recently (8/26/77) published an article written by Rev. Alvin Hoksbergen. entitled, “Is Anita Bryant Right?” In this article the author asserts that she is wrong, that she “has done the Christian community a disservice by claiming that hers is a Christian cause.” Quite the opposite is true; Anita Bryant is right and Rev. […]
Like the apostle Paul, Dr. Machen was a man dedicated to the “defense” as well as the “confirmation” of the gospel. In his sermon on “Shall we Defend the Faith?” he says, “I believe with all my soul in the necessity of Christian apologetics, the necessity of a reasoned defense of the Christian Faith, and […]
This is the tenth in a series of articles on Reformed Doctrine, under the heading, What We Believe. The familiar question-and-answer method is being followed. Rev. Elco H. Oostendorp of Hudsonville, Michigan, deals with “The Fall”in this article. What is meant by the Covenant of Grace? The covenant of grace is the gracious arrangement that […]
A Delegate’s Complaint One of the most significant remarks made about the 1977 C.R. Synod in Rev. John Piersma‘s excellent August report on it was the comment, Many issues were dealt with procedurally rather than substantively. Those who were prepared to debate the issues surrounding the ordination of Dr. Allen Verhey or the gravamen registered […]
“Cindy, get out of the cookie jar, and you, Pat and Tim, quit teasing the cat. Why don’t you go watch T.V. for a while instead.” Easily, glibly, without much thought or reasoning we entrust our children to the T.V.–the electronic baby sitter. Wonderful instrument it is indeed! But also a devilish wedge to pry […]
Millions of brightly colored lights are used throughout our land at Christmas to decorate the homes and streets of our villages and cities. They add a festive glow to the holiday season. All the lights turned on at once cannot, however, dispel the darkness that obscures the Christmas observance of millions in the United States […]
This title of this article is not original with me. Many of you will recognize it as the title of a book authored by R. B. Kuiper in 1961, in which he makes a pica for “God-centered” rather than “man-centered” evangelism. If you have read the book, you know that he presents on its pages a […]
People in ancient times were concerned about breaches—cracks, and openings in their city walls. These people knew that such breaches in their defenses had to be watched for all the time and, when detected, had to be promptly and properly repaired. In the Old Testament Jehovah God a number of times spoke to His people […]
Harlan G. Vanden Einde is pastor of the Oakdale Park Christian Reformed Church of Grand Rapids, Michigan. From a Michigan reader comes a question relative to witnessing. Since the consistory has the “responsibility to exercise the keys of the Kingdom,” the inquirer writes, “can an individual or group go door to door in neighborhood evangelism preaching […]
1978 DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONS. Edited by Rev. Timothy M. Mousma. Published by Nelson Christian Book Store, 2007 Eastern Ave., S. E., Grand Rapids, Mich. $4.95. An Indian of high caste once said to a missionary: “If you Christians in India, in Britain, or in America were like your hook, you would conquer India in live […]