Reformed Thinking

Deep Dive into A Dissertation on Divine Justice by John Owen - The Introduction - The Design of the Work - Atheists - The Prolepsis of Divine Justice in General - The Divisions of Justice, according to Aristotle - The Sentiments of the Schoolmen Respecting These - Another Division - Justice Considered Absolutely; Then in Various Respects John Owen's "A Dissertation on Divine Justice"...

Deep Dive into The Treasury of David by Charles Spurgeon - Psalm 104 Psalm 104 is a magnificent poetic reflection on the creation and ongoing providence of God, often described as an inspired oratorio of creation or a poet's version of Genesis. Attributed to David, the psalm translates the many voices of nature into a song of deep and ardent praise. The psalmist begins by marveling at the pers...

Deep Dive into Limited Atonement: The Definite and Effectual Redemption Accomplished by Christ The doctrine of limited atonement, also known as definite atonement or particular redemption, teaches that Jesus Christ died to secure the salvation of a specific group of people, rather than merely making salvation a hypothetical possibility for the entire world. Reformed theology clarifies that Christ&...

Deep Dive into Biblical Missions: Principles, Priorities, and Practices by Mark Tatlock and Christ Burnett - Resourcing the Global Church The global mission of resourcing the church through translation and publishing is intrinsically linked to the biblical mandate to make disciples and proclaim the excellencies of Christ. Scripture demonstrates this priority through examples like Ezra translating...

Deep Dive into Monergism and the Masterpiece: Sovereign Grace from Decree to Doxology The provided texts explore the profound doctrine of sovereign grace, emphasizing that salvation is exclusively a monergistic work of God rather than a cooperative effort between God and humanity. Because human beings are naturally dead in sin and entirely incapable of saving themselves, grace is not a reactionary...

Deep Dive into Hearing Holy Indirectness: Innuendo, Euphemism, and Translation Strategy in the English Bible The biblical use of indirect communication, such as euphemism, idiom, irony, and narrative reticence, is not a product of human prudery but a divinely inspired feature designed to convey profound theological truths with precision and holiness. This holy indirectness serves as a form of mora...

Deep Dive into Love with a Spine: Obedient Walking (2 John 1:6) Both sources examine 2 John 1:6, emphasizing that the biblical definition of love is not a vague, subjective emotion or formless sentimentality, but a deliberate, volitional commitment to walk according to God's commandments. The Apostle John provides this definition as a pastoral safeguard against deceivers and cultural pressures...

Deep Dive into The Blood-Stained Path to Kingdom Glory (Matthew 17:9–13) As Jesus and His inner circle descend from the Mount of Transfiguration, He strictly commands them to tell no one about the glorious vision until the Son of Man is raised from the dead. This command ensures that the disciples do not proclaim a message of divine glory detached from the atoning work of the cross. The resurrecti...

Deep Dive into Bethel on the Run: How God’s Promise Produces Worship, Allegiance, and Stewardship (Genesis 28:18–22) Genesis 28:18-22 captures Jacob's profound response to God's sovereign, initiating grace during his lowest point of exile and vulnerability. Awakening from his heavenly vision, Jacob engages in a four-part response of worship that establishes a biblical pattern of grace alwa...

Deep Dive into The Necessity of Self-Examination (Psalm 139:23-24) by Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards’ discourse on Psalm 139:23-24 emphasizes the critical importance of self-examination to discover and eliminate hidden sins. He argues that all individuals should be deeply concerned about whether they are living in a sinful way, as unallowed sin dishonours God, damages the soul, and prevents spi...

Deep Dive into Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible by David Brown, et al. - Romans 1 Paul introduces himself as a devoted bond-servant and apostle of Christ, chosen specifically to preach the Gospel. He emphasizes that Jesus was made of the seed of David according to the flesh, but powerfully declared to be the Son of God through His resurrection. Expressing his long-standing de...

Deep Dive into The Treasury of David by Charles Spurgeon - Psalm 103 Charles Spurgeon describes Psalm 103 as a masterpiece of praise, likely written in David’s later years when he possessed a profound appreciation for divine pardon. The exposition divides the Psalm into three sections: personal mercies, Jehovah's attributes, and a universal call to adoration. The Psalm opens with David exhorti...

Deep Dive into Hellenistic Culture: The Greek-Shaped Cosmopolitan World After Alexander The Hellenistic era, sparked by the military campaigns of Alexander the Great, fundamentally transformed the ancient Mediterranean and Near East into a highly interconnected, cosmopolitan civilization. This era was characterized by the widespread adoption of Koine Greek as the universal language of government,...

Deep Dive into Biblical Missions: Principles, Priorities, and Practices by Mark Tatlock and Christ Burnett - Missions and the Pastor-Translator: Bible Translation "Best Practices" Bible translation consultant Kyle Davis emphasizes the critical need for pastor-translators to serve at the intersection of Bible translation, church planting, and theological education. This concept traces its...

Deep Dive into The Silent Starvation: Confronting the Sin of Omitting God's Word Both sources argue that neglecting the reading and study of the Bible is not merely a product of modern busyness or emotional fatigue, but rather a serious, treacherous sin of omission. According to James 4:17, failing to do the good we know we ought to do constitutes sin, making the ongoing failure to engage with...

Deep Dive into Love That Obeys: Why God’s Commandments Are Not Burdensome (1 John 5:3–5) The apostle John in 1 John 5:3-5 presents a profound, objective definition of love for God that fundamentally rejects modern views of love as mere private feeling or sentimentality. Instead, genuine love for God is defined as covenantal loyalty expressed through a habitual, vigilant keeping of His commandments...

Deep Dive into The Majestic Sufficiency of the Son: The Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1–8) Matthew 17:1-8 recounts the Transfiguration, a pivotal moment occurring six days after Jesus predicted His crucifixion and called His disciples to bear their crosses. Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up a high mountain where His face shines like the sun and His clothes become brilliantly white. This event un...

Deep Dive into The Sovereign Descent: Jacob’s Ladder and the Triumph of Monergistic Grace at Bethel (Genesis 28:10–17) The provided texts offer a profound theological analysis of Genesis 28:10-17, where Jacob, fleeing his family after deceitfully stealing his brother's blessing, encounters God at Bethel. As Jacob sleeps in physical and spiritual desolation with a stone for a pillow, his vulner...

Deep Dive into The Admirable Conjunction of Diverse Excellencies in Christ Jesus (Revelation 5:5-6) by Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards' discourse examines the profound mystery of Revelation 5:5-6, which depicts Jesus Christ as both a Lion and a Lamb, illustrating an admirable conjunction of diverse excellencies. Edwards argues that Christ perfectly unites seemingly incompatible attributes th...

Deep Dive into An Introduction to the Book of Psalms by David Malick Hebrew Wisdom and Poetic Literature, which encompasses the Book of Psalms, provides practical direction for achieving wholeness amidst the brokenness of natural life caused by the fall of mankind. While biblical genres such as legal or historical literature address national moral direction or record God's sovereign work in hi...

Deep Dive into The Treasury of David by Charles Spurgeon - Psalm 102 Charles Spurgeon’s commentary on Psalm 102 in The Treasury of David characterizes the psalm as the heartfelt prayer of an afflicted patriot lamenting the desolate state of his country and the church. Rather than a typical penitential psalm mourning personal sin, this text expresses the deep sorrow of a sufferer who is mourning pr...

Deep Dive into By the Fall and Revolt of Adam the Whole Human Race Was Delivered to the Curse, and Degenerated from Its Original Condition by John Calvin True self-knowledge requires recognizing both the original excellence God bestowed upon humanity at creation and our current miserable condition following the fall of Adam. Initially, God formed humans in his own image, endowing them with reason...

Deep Dive into Biblical Missions: Principles, Priorities, and Practices by Mark Tatlock and Christ Burnett - Bible Translation: Concepts and Models God established language for communication, and linguistic diversity provides no barrier to His revelation. Consequently, Bible translation is essential for Christian missions, conveying divine history to people of differing worldviews and languages. T...

Deep Dive into Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin - Fanatics, Abandoning Scripture and Flying Over to Revelation, Cast Down All the Principles of Godliness John Calvin strongly condemns certain individuals, whom he labels as fanatics, for abandoning the reading of Scripture in favor of claiming direct, personal revelation from the Holy Spirit. These individuals dismiss the biblica...

Deep Dive into δοκιμάζω The Greek word family centered around the verb dokimazo fundamentally relates to testing, examining, and verifying something to determine its genuineness or worth. In ancient papyri and inscriptions, the term was commonly used in metallurgical contexts to describe the assaying of precious metals like gold and silver by fire to prove their purity. It also functioned as a tec...