pdf - Protestant Reformed Churches in America

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Setting in Order the Things That Are WantingWord ofGod. their talk, their speech. lacks the edifying substanceof God's Word. They, therefore, by their unruly behavior andempty speech deceive God's people.What is more, these evil men are '"chiefly the ones ofor outofthe circumcision." In other words, most ofthese evil men in thechurches were Jewish "converts:' Not all ofthem, but most wereof the ~'circumcision party or faction" in the churches. These,because they were Jews. thought probably that they ought to belooked up to. This same expression is used elsewhere in severalNew Testament passages to refer to Jewish members of thechurch. h These evil men insisted that Gentile members of thechurches had to be circumcised and had to observe other Jewishrites and rules as well.Concerning these evil men. there are several truths we oughtto note:I. There were many. not a few. but many ofthese plaguingthe churches with their deception. William Hendriksen writes,~' ...they existed in alarming numbers in the church:'72. These are always to be found in the church. HolyScripture warns ofthis often and in many ways. This same apostlewarned another ofhis spiritual sons, the young preacher Timothy,ofthis very fact. R The inspired apostle Peter warns us that just asthere were false prophets in the Old Testament church, so therewill be false teachers in the New Testament church. These willprivily bring in damnable heresies and many will follow theirpernicious ways.'> We must as preachers and as those who aspireto that sacred office be aware of this truth! These evil men arealways present in and must be opposed by the church.3. These men are deliberately evil. They are consciouslyout to destroy the church. They are not sincere, godly men who6. peri-tomee, see. e.g.• Galatians 2: 12~ Acts 10:45; Acts II :2.Further. Acts 2: II speaks ofJews from Crete as among those who heardPeter's Pentecost sermon.7. William Hendriksen, Nell' Testament Comment{ll:\': Titlls. p. 350.R. See II Timothy 3 and 4.9. See II Peter 2.November. 200 I 5
happen to hold unwittingly to some minor errors. No, these menknow the truth and deliberately reject and deny it. What is more,they attempt to convince others to believe and follow their hereticalteachings. We must make no mistake about this. Their talk isempty because it is devoid of the truth of the gospel. They aredevoid ofthe gospel because they in their disobedience refuse tosubject themselves to the Word ofGod. They are out to seduce thepeople of God.4. We need to do battle against them and expose them andrefute their erroneous teachings. If they remain impenitent, weneed to put them out ofthe church by way ofthe exercise ofchurchdiscipline. The only weapon we have to accomplish this is thesound doctrines of the Word ofGod.An indispensable aspect ofour preaching, therefore, must bethat it be antithetical, sharply and distinctively antithetical. Wemust not hesitate to refute the false teachers, the disobedient, vaintalkers and deceivers. Ifwe fail in this we shall be held accountableby God and His Christ for allowing the church to be led awayand corrupted by these evil men.Hence, be positive in your preaching. Comfort, encourage,instruct God's people by means ofthe preaching ofthe Word. Butdo not shrink from being negative in the right sense ofthat word.The right sense of"negative" is that we refute the false teachingsofthe evil deceivers who never cease to trouble God's church.Verses 11, 12(11) Whose mouths must be stopped ("whom it is necessary tosilence by stopping the mouth" is the literal Jranslation), whooverthrow (the AV translates this "subvert") whole houses, teachingthings which they ought not in favor of (or "for the pleasure Of')'Obase gain (the AV translates the phrase, "for filthy lucre's sake").(12) One ofthem, a prophet oftheir own, said, Cretans are alwaysliars, wicked beasts (wild, ferocious, savage),I! idle or lazy bellies.10. The Greek is charin.11. Thayer's translation ofkaka theeria. See James Henry Thayer,Greek- English Lexicon ofthe New Testament (Grand Rapids: ZondervanPublishing House, 1973), pp. 290 and 320.6 PRTJ
Page 1 and 2: ProtestantReformedTheologicalJourna
Page 3 and 4: EDITOR'S NOTESProf. Russell J. Dyks
Page 5: For there are many, even l unruly,
Page 9 and 10: tion oftheir false teachings. II Pe
Page 11 and 12: est, they are very weak, at worst,
Page 13 and 14: truth~' (see I Tim. 4: 1 - 4). Ever
Page 15 and 16: Thomas Bradwardine:Forgotten Mediev
Page 17 and 18: ated grace and uncreated grace. Unc
Page 19 and 20: Bradwardine faces the question ofth
Page 21 and 22: the age, namely, that having set fo
Page 23 and 24: did not identify Thomas Bradwardine
Page 25 and 26: The first is that Bradwardine was a
Page 27 and 28: to Bradwardine as oneof"two pre-emi
Page 29 and 30: Gospels, Acts, and Revelation. Sir
Page 31 and 32: power of the papacy in Bradwardine'
Page 33 and 34: The Serious Callof the Gospel -Is t
Page 35 and 36: elieve th~s proclamation with uprig
Page 37 and 38: to bring good news with their "fig
Page 39 and 40: nation, we read of Melchisedek, the
Page 41 and 42: official activity ofa monarch's her
Page 43 and 44: 8): "Calling is ofthose elect and r
Page 45 and 46: ut all his posterity unable to obey
Page 47 and 48: alone, and He saves whom He will. E
Page 49 and 50: have moved away from the notion oft
Page 51 and 52: every member ofthe visible, institu
Page 53 and 54: fulfilling this calling is their pa
Page 55 and 56: contingent. Further, Calvin did not
Page 57 and 58:
ofacceptance in terms of merit, ins
Page 59 and 60:
covenant ofgrace and works, or it i
Page 61 and 62:
Spiritual, Suffers Them to DefileTh
Page 63 and 64:
the gospel is preached" (p. 212).In
Page 65 and 66:
"They do not hold that JesusChrist
Page 67 and 68:
II Corinthians 3:6 that "the letter
Page 69 and 70:
is to oppose and to repulsethat sec
Page 71 and 72:
Rightly Divided: Readings inBiblica
Page 73 and 74:
is necessary speaks volumesabout th
Page 75 and 76:
Guilt, Grace and Gratitude,Lectures
Page 77 and 78:
76ted under the new? If it wererigh
Page 79 and 80:
er to keep himself holy; forthe Sab
Page 81 and 82:
there is room for both positionsin
Page 83 and 84:
Dr. Gannett's eschatologyalso effec
Page 85 and 86:
that, but man has a corrupt nature(
Page 87 and 88:
the love of God is "universal"(p. 5
Page 89 and 90:
ever, throughout the book thereis n
show all

pdf - Protestant Reformed Churches in America

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?