David Westerfield

Gospel. Culture. Technology. Music.

Category: Theology Page 6 of 67


Unpacking the Ninth Commandment

By

On October 19, 2017

In Theology

Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

In these words is contained an entire volume that could be written on slander, lying, gossip, shaming others, and so on. Do we delight in speaking ill or even thinking ill of others, even if it’s true to one degree or another? Too often this manifests itself on social media, even in seemingly harmless ways (“humble shaming”?), but also in loose talk within conversations, even and especially with people in church many times. The Westminster Larger Catechism unpacks what is required and restricted within the ninth commandment. Quite convicting. Thankful that Jesus covers this by His great love through the accomplishment of our salvation in fulfilling this aspect of the law. And yet I pray that through His resurrection to new life that is now ours, that we would turn from our loose natural talk that demeans others, and as Paul says in Romans 3:31, uphold the law by this faith in His promises in the gospel.

Below is  link to a great article related to this and the section of questions related to the ninth commandment in the Westminster Larger Catechism.

Further reading: https://cccdiscover.com/this-is-why-gossip-is-the-most-unacceptable-sin/

Read More

In You We Live and Move and Have Our Being – A Prayer

By

On October 15, 2017

In Theology

Glorious Father, It is in you that we live and move and have our being. You have captivated our hearts through the unconquerable love You have demonstrated toward us in creation and redemption. You have united us together with Your Son. His death for sin is our death to sin. His resurrected life is our resurrected life as a new creation. His justification in His perfect life lived and sacrificial death on our behalf is our justification before You, through faith alone. You have adopted us and made us Your very own children through the work of the One who laid down everything so that You could have us as Your own. You have transferred us from the domain of darkness to the Kingdom of Your beloved Son. Through your embrace of us, would you free us from the attachments and entanglements the world has on our hearts, with all of its distracting joys and delights, and replace those things we wrongly cherish more than You with an unfading joy and desire for You, surpassing the love of all things that so easily captures our hearts. Remind us throughout all our days of Your faithfulness and tender care and affection toward us, in order that we would remain faithful in this world.

Five Solas of the Reformation – Gregg Strawbridge

By

On October 2, 2017

In Church History, Theology

Sola Scriptura: The Scripture Alone is the Standard

The doctrine that the Bible alone is the ultimate authority was the “Formal Principle” of the Reformation. In 1521 at the historic interrogation of Luther at the Diet of Worms, he declared his conscience to be captive to the Word of God saying, “Unless I am overcome with testimonies from Scripture or with evident reasons — for I believe neither the Pope nor the Councils, since they have often erred and contradicted one another — I am overcome by the Scripture texts which I have adduced, and my conscience is bound by God’s Word.” Similarly, the Belgic Confession stated, “We believe that [the] holy Scriptures fully contain the will of God, and that whatsoever man ought to believe unto salvation is sufficiently taught therein…Neither may we consider any writings of men, however holy these men may have been, of equal value with those divine Scriptures nor ought we to consider custom or the great multitude, or antiquity, or succession of times and persons, or councils, decrees or statutes, as of equal value with the truth of God… Therefore, we reject with all our hearts whatsoever does not agree with this infallible rule” (VII).

Read More

Resources for the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation

By

On September 25, 2017

In Church History, Theology

With this year being the 500th anniversary of the beginnings of the Reformation (though there were quite a number of precursors leading up to that point), there are a number of great resources that are celebrating what God has done in history in recovering the gospel, while expressing the urgent need for ongoing reformation in our present day in the church (universally).

Read More

The Covenant of Grace in a Nutshell

By

On July 14, 2017

In Theology

“The covenant of grace, with respect to us, consists of the absolute promises of God, in which the mediator, the life to be obtained by him, the faith by which we may be made partakers of him, the benefits purchased by him, and the perseverance in that faith, in a word, the whole of salvation, and all the requisites to it, are absolutely promised.”

Herman Witsius, The Economy of the Covenants Between God and Man

High, Lifted Up and Exalted – A Tenebrae Reflection

By

On April 14, 2017

In Theology

Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted. – Isaiah 52:13

Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors. – Isaiah 53:12

In His lovingkindness toward us, before the foundation of the world, Christ purposed to redeem us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. In time, He descended to our level, put on this body of flesh, living and fulfilling all righteousness before the Father from our side, in our place, and suffering a sinner’s death, the very death we deserved for our wickedness against the rights of our Creator.

Read More

Practical Theology: Where the Academic Meets Real Life

By

On February 9, 2017

In Theology

“[Calvin] was more pastor than theologian, that, to be exact, he was a theologian in order to be a better pastor.” – John T. McNeill

Of all the things I’ve learned in the past couple of years, it hasn’t simply been more aspects of systematic theology, or a deeper, broader understanding of covenant theology, or getting a deeper sense of the larger, redemptive view of scripture given in biblical theology, or seeing the truth of and studying deeper on the sacraments as means of grace that has done my heart the most good, though it all certainly has in abundant ways. The deepest impact that has been made on me personally, in my own relationship with Christ, has been practical theology or what could even be called affectional theology. How does all of that theology meet real life? And how can it all be made accessible?

Read More

One Covenant, Differing Administrations

By

On January 17, 2017

In Theology

From the Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter VII, Sections V & VI:

Read More

A Primer on Biblical Theology – Kerux via Monergism

By

On January 7, 2017

In Theology

Biblical Theology approaches the Bible as an organic drama of God’s unfolding revelation through history. In distinction from doctrinal or systematic theology, biblical theology follows the progressively unfolding revelation of God’s words and deeds through history. This linear aspect of revelation unites each revelatory event and proclamation both retrospectively and prospectively. Geerhardus Vos described the organic continuation of revelation in history as a flower expanding from bud to blossom. The blossom is retrospectively united to the bud; the bud is prospectively united to the blossom. One of the tasks/privileges of the interpreter of Scripture is to draw out these organic prospective and retrospective relationships. At the center of this organic unity is the person and work of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Even as our Risen Lord related all of Scripture retrospectively and prospectively to himself (Luke 24:27), so Reformed biblical theology is preeminently Christocentric.

Read More

O. Palmer Robertson on the Unity of the Covenants

By

On January 3, 2017

In Theology

From The Christ of the Covenants, O. Palmer Robertson, pg. 41.

The New Covenant, promised by Israel’s prophets, does not appear as a distinctive covenantal unit unrelated to God’s previous administrations. Instead, the New Covenant as promised to Israel represents the consummate fulfillment of the earlier covenants. This organic relation of the New Covenant to the covenants of Abraham, Moses, and David finds explicit development both in the Old Testament prophecies concerning the covenant and in the New Testament realizations of this consummating covenant. From either perspective, the New Covenant may be understood in no other way than as a realization of the prophetic projections found in the Abrahamic, Mosaic, and Davidic covenants.

Read More

Page 6 of 67

Previous

Next

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén