Reformed Forum

In Hosea 10 the prophet likens Israel to a vineyard and and garden – but not a very fruitful one. In fact, her covenants with the nations has given rise to terrible idolatry, which is spiritual adultery. She is faithless and therefore fruitless. But the judgment and curse God pronounced upon her would not finally fall upon her, but on him who is the true vine. And now as branches in that vin...

Durham, James. Commentary on Revelation: Volume 2, Lectures on Chapters 4–11 (Reformation Heritage Books, May 2021). 504 pages. $50.00. Hardcover. Guinness, Os. The Magna Carta of Humanity: Sinai’s Revolutionary Faith and the Future of Freedom (IVP Academic, May 2021). 288 pages. $25.00. Hardcover with jacket. Lynch, Michael J. John Davenant’s Hypothetical Universalism: A Defense of Catholic and R...

DeYoung, Kevin. Men and Women in the Church: A Short, Biblical, Practical Introduction (Crossway, April 2021). 176 pages. $19.99. Paperback. Gronewoller, Brian. Rhetorical Economy in Augustine’s Theology (Oxford University Press, April 2021). From the Oxford Studies in Historical Theology series. 224 pages. $99.00. Hardcover. Tripp, Paul David. Marriage: 6 Gospel Commitments Every Couple Needs to...

Camden Bucey and Lane Tipton discuss Lefferts A. Loetscher, The Broadening Church: A Study of Theological Issues in the Presbyterian Church Since 1869 (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1954). This book is indispensable as a thoughtful and well-researched rationale for the reorganization of Princeton Seminary in 1929. It is a history told from the perspective of the mediating conservatives, who vi...

Jim Cassidy reviews Scott Swain, The Trinity: An Introduction (Crossway) From the Publisher The Trinity is one of the most essential doctrines of the Christian faith. The eternal God existing as three distinct persons—Father, Son, and Spirit—can be difficult to comprehend. While Christians often struggle to find the right words to describe this union, the Bible gives clarity concerning the triune...

Jim Cassidy reviews Gerald Bray, The Attributes of God: An Introduction (Crossway) From the Publisher How can we (created beings) know God (the Creator)? Throughout history, the church has recognized the importance of studying and understanding God’s attributes. As the Creator of all things, God is unique and cannot be compared to any of his creatures, so to know him, believers turn to the pages o...

The following books are on our radar for April 15, 2021. Greidanus, Sidney.  Preaching Christ from Leviticus: Foundations for Expository Sermons  (Eerdmans, March 2021). 344 pages. $35.00. Paperback. Ryken, Leland and Mathes, Glenda Faye.  Recovering the Lost Art of Reading: A Quest for the Good, the True, and the Beautiful (Crossway, March 2021). 304 pages. 21.99. Paperback. Bredenhof, Reuben.  W...

The following books are on our radar for April 8, 2021. Barrett, Matthew.  Simply Trinity: The Unmanipulated Father, Son, and Spirit  (Baker, March 2021). 368 pages. $24.99. Paperback.  Van Dam, Cornelis.  In the Beginning: Listening to Genesis 1 and 2  (Reformation Heritage Books, March 2021) 384 pages. $30.00. Hardcover. Gribben, Crawford. Survival and Resistance in Evangelical America: Christia...

These are the books on our radar for April 1, 2021. Kuyper, Abraham.  On Business and Economics  (Lexham; Acton Institute, February 2021). From the Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology series. 192 pages. $29.99. Hardcover with jacket. Selvaggio, Anthony T.  Considering Job: Reconciling Sovereignty and Suffering   (Reformation Heritage Books, February 2021). 184 pag...

Whether you are a scholar, pastor, theological student, Bible study teacher, or someone engaged in serious personal study, it is  critical  to document your sources. Regrettably, most people don’t do this well. Along with many best practices, there are tested tools   used by many scholars in a wide range of disciplines. One of these is Zotero . At root, Zotero is a citation manager. But it does mu...

Occasionally the New Testament provides a direct connection to the words of the Old, pointing like a bright beacon to the person of Christ. We find that is the case as we look at the story of God’s ladder from Genesis 28. Angels ascend the ladder with a message for God from Jacob and descend from heaven with a message from God for Jacob. Participants: Mark A. Winder

Ryan Noha brings his collection of Van Til books to the studio for show-and-tell. Join us for a surreal Reformed home shopping network experience. This was recorded in the summer of 2020 along with our course Introduction to the Theology and Apologetics of Cornelius Van Til . Participants: Camden Bucey , Lane G. Tipton , Ryan Noha

In this review, we consider CM, Christian Meditation: What the Bible Teaches about Meditation and Spiritual Excercises by Edmund P. Clowney and published by Regent College Publishing. Writing in 1977, Edmund P. Clowney addressed the growing popularity of transcendental meditation (TM). TM started to develop roots in America in the 1960s and took off in part due to high-profile endorsements, includ...

Although Jacob and Esau both show themselves unworthy to inherit the covenant promises, we see, through two theological paradigms—the offspring and the land—that God Almighty will lead his people to the land of promise. Participants: Glen Clary , Mark A. Winder

A Book on Notetaking? It’s Not What You Might Expect Amazon showed me Sönke Ahrens’s How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking – for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers about twenty times in sponsored posts before I finally broke down to see what it was all about. I decided to retrieve a sample chapter on my Kindle. I couldn’t put the book do...

Matthew’s account of the visit of the Magi is not exactly the story as we know it from our cultural Christmas traditions. The response of these wisemen to the birth of Jesus is what the response of Herod should have been, and what our response should be, namely, worship. Participants: Joel Fick , Mark A. Winder

Michael A. G. Haykin, “‘The Best Friend in the Worst Time’: Pandemics in Church History” The Banner of Truth Magazine, No. 689, February 2021, pp. 4–8. We are prone to think we are the only people ever to experience something like our present pandemic. This last year and last, we have heard the phrase “in these unprecedented times” so often that it has become a cliché. In five brief pages, Michael...

In today’s episode we look at Matthew’s account of the genesis of Jesus. In this account of his birth story Matthew draws our attention to the particular perspective of Joseph, the comforting message of the angel, the wonder of the virgin birth, the glory of the Immanuel promise, and the significance of the name of Jesus as the one who saves his people from their sins. Participants: Joel Fick , Ma...

Camden Bucey reviews Stewards of Eden: What Scripture Says About the Environment and Why It Matters (IVP Academic, 2020) by Dr. Sandra L. Richter , the Robert H. Gundry Chair of Biblical Studies at Westmont College. In this book, Dr. Richter addresses humanity's role as stewards of creation—those entrusted to care for that which God has placed in their charge. In exploring this theme, Richter addr...

Hosea ministers in Israel between the time of the conquest of Canaan and the exile. In chapter nine of his prophecy, he tells of the coming judgment-exile of Israel into the land of the uncircumcised. But there is hope! God will preserve a remnant—elect exiles—for his own glory and as his chosen portion. For Christ was exiled in his death because of our sins, so that we who were once far off may b...

Esau has been disqualified to receive the covenant blessing, but Isaac intends to give it to him anyway. In fact, none of the four characters in this chapter is painted in a good light. As Jacob and Rebecca plot to steal the blessing, it becomes clear that the blessing may only come through the work of God himself—and we are pointed to the promised covenant Son. Participants: Glen Clary , Mark A....

Paul once again admonishes the church in Corinth over its division into rival parties with some following Paul, and other Apollos. Paul rebukes them because this behavior is of the flesh and they have elevated the minister of the gospel to an unwarranted and unbiblical position. Ministers are but servants used as instruments in the hands of God and they are fellow workers under God. Participants:...

In this passage, the Apostle Paul highlights the role of the Holy Spirit as the revealer and illuminator of the wisdom of God, which is the gospel of Jesus Christ. That divine wisdom was eternally decreed by God before the foundation of the world and is now revealed by the Spirit through the preaching of the gospel.

In Genesis 26, God confirms the covenant promise to Isaac—the heart of which is “I will be with you.” In this episode, we see how God not only keeps this promise to Isaac in the midst of conflict, but also how he continues to keep this promise to believers today, as we too journey through a hostile land, seeking peace through the gospel as we look to the land of promise where God will dwell with u...

As the Gospel According to Matthew begins we are introduced to the royal line of Jesus, where Matthew presents Jesus to us as the Davidic king, the universal king, and the final king through whom all of God’s purposes are fulfilled. Participants: Joel Fick , Mark A. Winder