The Semper Reformata Podcast

LECTURE - Covid Fear Vs Christian Faith This talk is about fear - and perhaps, for Christians, about ‘fearlessness.’ We begin with some very wise words - from the One who created mankind, and who holds all our lives in his hands. Our Creator and the only Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Luke 12:4-7 4 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no mor...

Catechism Class: LD17B Q45 Many Infallible Proofs In this class, we continue to prepare ourselves to consider question 45 in the Heidelberg Catechism. In his commentary on this Lord’s Day, Ursinus chooses to spend time establishing the historical factuality of the Resurrection of Jesus, before taking up the points made in the catechism itself, dealing with how the resurrection affects, impacts and...

Acts-In-Replay: State of Mind Vs Peace of Mind. Acts 18:1-12 In this sermon, recorded at Templepatrick Reformed Church, and used with permission, we will think about Paul's ministry and do an assessment of his Christian work so far. We will look at Paul’s own situation, from a human level, then see how God intervened to help, in times of need, in oder to help us to remember God’s lovingkindness fo...

Lecture: "If Christ Died for Me, Why Must I Also Die?" This podcast is a LECTURE, given at Templepatrick Reformed Church in January 2022, and reproduced here with the permission of the church.  Based on Lord's Day 16 of the Heidelberg Catechism, it discusses the Death of Christ on the Cross and contrasts the death of an unbeliever with that of a Christian.   This lecture will compliment...

Catechism Class. Lord’s Day 17A, Q45. The Importance of the Resurrection READ: 1st Corinthians 15:13-20 In this podcast we are asking the question, - “Why is belief in a historical, factual bodily resurrection of Christ such an indispensable part of our Christian faith and life?” In that passage from 1st Corinthians, Paul gets right to the core of the issue. You cannot be a Christian, without a fi...

Paul’s Address on Mars Hill  #3 THE CALL TO REPENT Text: Acts 17:29-34 Paul has been preaching to the learned men of the Areopagus in  Athens.  Paul’s mission, of course is not to excite their interest with  some new philosophy, it is to win them for Christ, and he must make a  gospel application. Read the NOTES HERE . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more inform...

Catechism Class: LD16 Q44 'He Descended Into Hell? ' In this episode we will be looking at Lord’s Day 16, Q44, where our instructor is still dealing with the Christological clauses and statements of the Apostle’s Creed. He asks us, in Q.44 Why is there added: He descended into hell ? The answer we must give is, “ In my greatest sorrows and temptations I may be assured and comforted that my Lord Je...

Acts-In-Replay: Mars Hill #2 The Doctrine of Man Having taught the Athenian philosophers the doctrine of God, he teaches about the doctrine of man.  We are all the children of one single set of parents, we are all related, we are all equal before God – sinners who need salvation. Read the NOTES HERE . This podcast contains a sermon., delivered at Templepatrick reformed Church, and released on...

Lord’s Day 16, Q.42. To Die is Gain! Q42. “Since, then, Christ died for us, why must we also die?” The answer we must give is, “Our death is not a satisfaction for our sin, but only a dying to sin and an entering into eternal life.” Our instructor wants to know why, if Christ has taken our death, Christians themselves must also physically die. It's a logical and completely fair question. After all...

Acts-In-Replay: Paul’s Address on Mars Hill #1 THE DOCTRINE OF GOD Text:  Acts 17:24-25 and Heidelberg Catechism Lord’s Day 9 Paul’s sermon to the Athenians continues, Paul begins to address their condition, and to explain in detail about the God whom the Athenians don’t know… (Sermon preached at Templepatrick Reformed Church) READ THE NOTES HERE . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for m...

Lords Day 16C, Q43. For me to live is Christ! We have been looking at Lord’s Day 16, in the Heidelberg Catechism. Let’s move on now to think about how we, as believers, face the inevitable, the end of this physical life, and the certainty that one day we will die. It’s the situation that Paul was in when he wrote his letter to the Philippians, and declared, “For me to live is Christ, and to die is...

Acts-In-Replay: The Unknown God.  Acts 17:14-21 The Greeks at Athens had heard Paul speaking about Jesus and the Resurrection.  We know that everywhere he went Paul preached about the Cross, about Jesus who died and rose again from the dead for all our sins.  His message never varied. Read, 1 Corinthians 1:23-25, 1 Corinthians 2:2    So now he is standing in front of...

TableTalk: Personhood, Abortion and the Human Right to Life When does PERSONHOOD begin? When can we say that what is growing in a woman's womb is a human person?  At conception? At birth? At 20 weeks gestation? It’s important because a ‘PERSON’ has certain inalienable rights, including the right to life. Being a PERSON is very important indeed. So, when does ‘PERSONHOOD’ begin in the Biblical...

Catechism Class: Lord's Day 16B Q40-41 Why Did Jesus Have to Die? In our last catechism class, we began to look at Lord’s Day 16, Q40 which asks us why it was necessary for Christ to suffer death. Heidelberg Catechism Q.40. Why was it necessary for Christ to suffer "death?" Because the justice and truth of God required that satisfaction for our sins could be made in no other way than by the death...

Acts In Replay: Paul at Athens . Text:    Acts 17:14-21 Paul is now at Athens, alone.  What will he find there?   Athens was a haughty city, with a hopeless confusion of Greek paganism and immorality. While waiting for the rest of his party to arrive from Berea, Paul wanders through the city and sees some of the 10,000 or so pagan idols.  he goes into the Agora, and b...

Govt. Authoritarianism & The Church in Scotland 1662-1679  Daniel 3:16-18 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. 17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. 18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O kin...

Catechism Class: LD16A Q40, The Burial of Death We’re back after our short winter break, and our catechism class today begins a section that is the culmination of all that we learned in Lord’s Day 15, when we talked about the suffering of Christ. We learned then about the extent of the suffering of Christ and about the duration, the length of that suffering. We explored the issue of whether Christ...

Acts-In-Replay: Being a Berean! The Berean Christians are famous for the fact that when Paul preached, they searched the scriptures to find out whether the matters that he was teaching were actually in accordance with what is clearly taught in the Scriptures.  Perhaps this is why:-   11 ‘These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica .‘     We are often told that w...

The Prism: Should a Christian be a Member of a Church ? Most evangelicals believe that membership of a local church is a proper course of action for eery believer, so that we are part of a local congregation.  We should subject ourselves under the leadership of local elders to be watched over and cared for by them, as a part of a local, organic body.  Similarly, most evangelicals will ar...

Sermon: "Mary - The Lord's Handmaiden" A sermon preached at Templepatrick Reformed Church on Lord's Day 26th December 2021. Read the notes HERE . SRP Theme: "In Another Time."  Music licensed from www. NeoSounds.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Gift ! Luke roots the birth of Jesus in history, when he tells us exactly when it happened, ‘ And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. 2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) 3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the c...

Table Talk: Talking HONESTLY about SANTA . Santa is an amalgam.  A flux of personalities and legends, from church history, from pagan religions and maybe even from clever marketing strategies, and from the fertile mind of an American poet, – ’Twas the night before Christmas” was published in a book by CC Moore in 1844.  But, if it’s only a myth, what’s the harm?   What harm wil...

TableTalk: What Does the Bible Say About Eating and Food! Text. Daniel 1:8-13 In this episode of Table-Talk we are going to get to the very heart of what a table is for!  FOOD!  How good would it be if our table today was covered in the finest of cuisine, and we were all invited to tuck in!  But why would we be interested in getting some biblical perspective on food, and eating?&nbs...

Acts-In-Replay: Thessalonica Upside Down! Acts 17:1-9 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews Paul and Silas and Timothy are at Thessalonica.  They have been to the Synagogue, three Sabbaths in a row, and they have been teaching from the Scriptures at Sabbath worship, and when Paul speaks he aways points to...

Catechism Class: LD15 Q39 The Curse of Sin We have been looking at Lord’s Day 15, Q39, and we have been dwelling upon this Lord’s Day for quite a few weeks. But there’s a reason for that. It’s concerned with the suffering of Christ - and all our Christian faith and doctrine and our hope for eternity centres of that suffering and death. Jesus died for sinners, and specifically, he died on a cross....