The Body of Christ: On the Nature of the Church (WCF 25.1–25.6)

In our modern, hyper-individualized culture, it is common to hear people say, “I love Jesus, but I don’t need the church.” Many view the church as a helpful, but ultimately optional, voluntary association of like-minded religious consumers. The Westminster Confession utterly shatters this low view of the church. In Chapter 25, the divines present a… Continue reading The Body of Christ: On the Nature of the Church (WCF 25.1–25.6)

The LORD Will Provide: A Father, a Son, and a Sacrifice on Moriah (Gen. 22:1–19)

Loved ones, we have arrived at one of the most agonizing, breathtaking, and theologically profound chapters in all of Scripture. After decades of waiting, failing, and trusting, Abraham finally has his promised son, Isaac, safely at home in Beersheba. Ishmael is gone. The treaty with the Philistines is signed. Abraham is resting under the shade… Continue reading The LORD Will Provide: A Father, a Son, and a Sacrifice on Moriah (Gen. 22:1–19)

On Fear, Awe Before God, Courage Before Men

Before we cross the final threshold to face the ultimate test of the Christian Stoic—the meditation on death (Memento Mori)—we must address the emotion that makes death so terrifying in the first place. We must examine fear. For the ancient Stoics, fear was a disease of the mind. It was an irrational anticipation of a future… Continue reading On Fear, Awe Before God, Courage Before Men

One Flesh: On Marriage and Divorce (WCF 24.1–24.6)

Few institutions in the modern world have been as fiercely debated, redefined, and fractured as marriage. Contemporary culture increasingly views marriage as a fluid social contract based on personal fulfillment, to be entered and exited at will. Against this cultural confusion, the Westminster Confession offers a profoundly stabilizing, biblical theology of the family. In Chapter… Continue reading One Flesh: On Marriage and Divorce (WCF 24.1–24.6)

“The Everlasting God”: Covenants and Worship at Beersheba (Gen. 21:22–34)

Loved ones, the life of faith is not entirely made up of dramatic mountaintop experiences or agonizing crises. Much of our walk with God happens in the ordinary, dusty realities of everyday life—navigating relationships with unbelieving neighbors, resolving property disputes, and finding a place to quietly put down roots. Following the intense emotional highs and… Continue reading “The Everlasting God”: Covenants and Worship at Beersheba (Gen. 21:22–34)

The American Revision: Church, State, and Religious Liberty

In our previous article on the Civil Magistrate (WCF 23), we explored the original 1646 text of the Westminster Confession. While it correctly established that government is ordained by God, its third paragraph contained a glaring issue for modern readers: it granted the civil government the power to suppress heresies, reform worship, and call church… Continue reading The American Revision: Church, State, and Religious Liberty

God’s Minister for Good: On the Civil Magistrate (WCF 23.1–23.4)

How should a Christian view the government? Throughout history, believers have often swung between two dangerous extremes: either idolizing the state (treating politics as the ultimate savior) or completely withdrawing from it (viewing all government as inherently demonic). In Chapter 23, the Westminster Confession charts a biblical middle course. Drawing heavily on Romans 13, the… Continue reading God’s Minister for Good: On the Civil Magistrate (WCF 23.1–23.4)

“The Son of the Free Woman”: Isaac’s Birth and Ishmael’s Banishment (Gen. 21:1–21)

Loved ones, for twenty-five years, Abraham and Sarah lived on nothing but a promise. They endured famines, wars, self-inflicted detours, and the agonizing, slow decay of their own physical bodies. The promise of a son had often seemed impossibly distant, sparking both the staggered laughter of faith and the cynical laughter of doubt. But God’s… Continue reading “The Son of the Free Woman”: Isaac’s Birth and Ishmael’s Banishment (Gen. 21:1–21)