In Belgic Confession article 29, the Reformed Churches identify three marks of the true church and seven marks of the true Christian. The second mark of the true church says: “It makes use of the pure administration of the sacraments as Christ instituted them.” Regarding baptism, we confess: For that reason weContinue Reading
Colossians chapter 2, verses 8 to 15: “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells inContinue Reading
For some years, I have complained about Baptist squatters in the Reformed house. These are those Baptists who insist on re-defining the adjective Reformed. As it turns out, however, this habit of squatting is not new at all. Indeed, one of the earliest examples occurred in 1680. I use theContinue Reading
As Reformed Christians, we confess that infants of believing parents (or of at least one believing parent) should be baptised. Heidelberg Catechism Lord’s Day 74 asks, “Should infants, too, be baptised?” Answer: Yes. Infants as well as adults belong to God’s covenant and congregation.[1] Through Christ’s blood, the redemption fromContinue Reading
I received a piece of spam mail late last week offering to “elevate” the worship service at my church. I can think of a number of verbs that might pique the interest of a Reformed church: purify, reform, sanctify, solemnize are some that come to mind but elevate is notContinue Reading
There is one huge difference between the altar call and the Reformed understanding of the sacraments. In the altar call, the qualification was “if you truly meant it”, which made the subjective state of the sinner the critical factor in whether or not one actually benefited from going forward. DidContinue Reading
Jesus introduced the Lord’s Supper at a solemn time, the Passover meal on the night before His death. Paul shows its solemnity in the warnings he gives to those who would participate in the supper in 1 Corinthians 11:17–34. Paul is concerned that Christians in the Corinthian church are notContinue Reading
By Simon Jooste The overriding witness of Scripture is God’s salvation of sinners (Gen. 3:15; John 3:16; Luke 24:27). Natural man remains dead in his sins unless God acts (Rom. 3:9-20; Psalm 53). If God did not extend his grace, there would be no hope for this fallen world (Gal.Continue Reading
By Simon Jooste The original sixteenth- and seventeenth-century horizon of the Three Forms of Unity and the 1619 Church Order of the Synod of Dort was thick with about five hundred years of theological innovation in the medieval Roman Catholic church, which included the Lord’s Supper. In keeping with aContinue Reading
Simon Jooste The Bible sets forth two sacraments that were instituted by God and qualify as means of grace. In the Old Testament, they were circumcision and the Passover meal. In the New Testament, these rites have been replaced with baptism and the Lord’s Supper respectively. Those that claim additionalContinue Reading