In 1858 Abraham Lincoln gave one of the most important speeches of his career, his “house divided” speech.1 Quoting Jesus’ words in Mark 3, Lincoln was drawing a line in the sand. He was saying that America could not continue to be half-free and half-slave. At some point the house would no longer be divided; […]
While Protestants were formulating their doctrines and publishing them in a systematic manner, the Roman Catholic Church found it necessary to clarify its own teachings and to defend them against the Reformers. The most comprehensive and enduringly influential effort of this character was the work of the Counter-Reformation Council of Trent, which Pope Paul III […]
As we have discovered from the book of Genesis, the angel of the Lord is more than a mere angel; he is one with God Himself. Let us now take a look at the book of Exodus to see if our findings are confirmed, contradicted, or even made questionable. In Exodus 3 our attention is […]
“Christianity isn’t a religion; it’s a _______________.” If you need help filling in the blank, the missing word has twelve letters, starts with “r,” and has become modern policy speak for describing the New Testament faith. And, yes, Christianity is about relationship. But it’s the contemporary church’s reluctance to call it a religion that ought […]
The second coming of Jesus Christ is not a favorite subject for many Christians. They feel uneasy about it, uncomfortable about it, and all too often, apathetic about it. Most Christians, if they heard that Jesus was coming again—and coming very soon—would panic. Maybe we need to know more about this second coming so that […]
The following overtures were adopted by Classis Pacific Northwest to forward to the URCNA Synod. Overture re union with the Canadian Reformed Churches: Zion United Reformed Church overtures Classis Pacific Northwest to overture Synod Wyoming 2016 to direct CERCU to discontinue all further action, advancement, processes, efforts or steps towards unification with the Canadian Reformed […]
Classis Michigan of the URCNA The forty-third meeting of Classis Michigan was hosted by Cornerstone United Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan, on October 14 2014. Twenty-three delegates from the twelve area URC churches joined together in the sanctuary of Cornerstone for the deliberations of the day. The meeting was ably led by Elder Glen Hop […]
I appreciated your response to the review of the 2014 URCNA Synod. It should not be surprising that a group of churches that left a denomination because of actions done by that denomination’s Synods and its committees have a fear of synodical committees. For those who went through the split, those wounds are still very […]
Dear brother Oord, Thank you for your excellent and thorough summary of Synod Visalia as it appeared in the July/August 2014 edition of The Outlook. I am particularly interested in and wish to interact with your remarks concerning our relations as United Reformed Churches with the Canadian Reformed Churches. It is encouraging to read your […]
It was a warm and humid evening on September 5, 2014, as many people filed into the auditorium of Redeemer University College in Ancaster, Ontario. This humidity would eventually turn into a crashing thunderstorm, which echoed throughout the building. Yet despite some of the discomfort caused by the conditions, it was an evening filled with […]