Systematic theology at its best devotes its attention not only to individual topics such as God, salvation, church, and sacraments. It also devotes its attention to relationships between such topics. One of the most important relationships that systematic theology considers is the relationship between the doctrine of God (i.e., theology proper) and theological method. Either […]
Reflections on Christian assurance
The evangelical internet has been in a state of moderate agitation the past couple of days in response to a sermon by John Piper in which he touches on the relationship between “faith” and “feeling.” I have no intention of entering that particular conversation. But it does provide an occasion for addressing an issue of […]
“He has our good at heart”: Augustine on God praising God in the Psalms
The famous ABCOBARMA principle is “always be closing other books and reading more Augustine.” Okay, it’s not a famous principle. But it is good advice. And it’s the advice I’ve been following over the past several years. This year I’m spending time in Augustine’s Expositions of the Psalms. From time to time, I hope to […]
“Jesus Christ is the light of the world”: rightly relating the church’s ministry, mission, and worship
“Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory, that he may be known, worshiped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and […]
“Let us follow them with the voice and the heart”: Witsius’ doxology on the incarnation
In a previous post, I mentioned the value of Herman Witsius’ Sacred Dissertations on the Apostles’ Creed as a work of catechetical theology. Witsius’ chapter on the incarnation of the Son of God discusses four topics central to a proper understanding and appreciation of the doctrine: (1) the subject of the incarnation, (2) the mode […]
Ends of the incarnation
Christmas (along with Good Friday, Easter, Ascension, and Pentecost) is one of five “evangelical feast days” that celebrate key moments in the Son of God’s saving mission. On these days, the church turns its attention in a special way to the redemptive historical events that mark “the fullness of time” (Gal 4:4; Eph 1:10): the time […]
