“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” In the telling of Mark’s gospel account, chapter 8 provides a turning point. From chapter 1 to chapter 6 the ministry of Jesus centers on the region of Galilee. As a member of […]
If ever there was one article in our Confession of Faith that was both irrelevant and relevant for our time, surely it would be Article 29 and the marks of the true church. This article is irrelevant if we approach the Confession as a dust-covered relic of times past, but it is eminently practical and […]
Whenever a disaster like Hurricane Katrina strikes us, people always ask the question, “Where was God?” or “How could God allow this?” One very wrong answer is that God did not do it. It is wrong for us to think that this was brought about simply by natural forces or the devil. No. The Bible […]
Approximately 100 people gathered from southern California and elsewhere on the evening of August 5, to hear a presentation by the members of the Joint Church Order Committee of the Canadian Reformed Churches and the United Reformed Churches. The meeting was hosted by First United Reformed Church of Chino, California. Rev. Ron Scheuers, minister of […]
Present were: Dr. Nelson Kloosterman, Rev. William Pols, Rev. Ronald Scheuers, Rev. Raymond Sikkema and Mr. Harry Van Gurp, representing the United Reformed Churches in North America (URCNA), and Dr. Gijsbert Nederveen, Mr. Gerard J. Nordeman, Rev. John VanWoudenberg and Dr. Art Witten of the Canadian Reformed Churches (CanRC). Dr. Kloosterman opened the meeting with […]
Rob Bell is the pastor of one of the fastest growing churches in the history of America. The church is in Grandville, a suburb of Grand Rapids, MI. He recently published a book, Velvet Elvis, Repainting the Christian Faith. His title refers to an old painting in his basement of Elvis Presley. Bell maintains that […]
Though churches of the Reformation are committed to the principle of sola Scriptura, which requires that the Scriptures be regarded as the supreme standard for their faith and practice, they are not indifferent to the lessons of church history. Nor are they indifferent to the tradition of Scriptural interpretation that is embodied in the confessions […]