Continue reading »]]> Well, over Friday evening and through Saturday, a group of about 50 of us had the privilege of hearing Carl Trueman speak on the topic of Creeds and Confessions.  It was excellent – lots of stuff to think about, and lots of great encouragement too! Carl took three sessions (with Mark Thompson taking a great session on the 39 Articles in between) which were:

1. Christians who know what they believe in a world which believes nothing
2. Confessing Christ in context
3. Confessing Christ in the future

These are some of the key points I thought Carl made during his lectures (it’s a little random, but worth putting down!):

- Contra today’s emphasis on progress, and the future, Christians know that 1) Truth is verbally formulated, 2) There are bodies which do the formulation, and 3) Truth can, to some extent, cross time and space.
- God does Church, we don’t! And Church is a doctrinal entity (not purely experiential), which presupposes knowledge and experience, which in turn presupposes office (Heb 14:7-9, 1 Tim 5:17,  Romans 10:9, Titus 1:5, James 3).  Thus, training and age are important.
- The order of Calvin’s institutes cannot be read up into his theology. Crucial.
- There are two types of Christian: One who writes their creeds down in order to be open with what they believe, and the other who prefers to keep them in the background
- The fact that Calvin and Luther didn’t reject the perpetual virginity of Mary shows how they valued tradition.
- The proof-texts of the Westminster Confession of Faith point you to traditions in the commentaries – they aren’t crude and brute proofs in and of themselves.  They urge you to pick up the 30 or 40 commentaries on that verse to see why the point was made.
- Confessions are necessary for corporate unity.  Eg: the Emerging Church is correct to point out the individualism of current evangelicalism, but hasn’t solved the problem since they haven’t produced any confession of belief.  Thus, they have a rubbery, non-existent corporate unity.
- Confessions demonstrate our integrity.  Eg, Luther and Zwingli and their disagreement on the Lord’s Supper: [it] “was a tragedy, but would have been an even greater tragedy if they had agreed.”
- Confessions require catechisms.  They are vital to the communication of the faith.  Carl agrees with Jaroslav Pelikan: “any movement that is based around personal salvation in Jesus but is divorced from creeds and confessions is doomed.”
- Confessions relativise the present.  Since they stand the test of time, but they be used to measure how significant current issues are.
- Carl made an interesting suggestion of preaching through confessions.  Morning worship with expository sermons, then a church family lunch, then afternoon worship with a sermon based around the week’s confessional point.
- Confessions must not simply be used as a test of orthodoxy, but they should ultimately bring us back to doxology – since of course, that was in the mind of the framers!

Personally, I’ve been challenged to think about my doctrine of baptism, and the importance of this for my future ministry in the Anglican Church. I think I’ve been taking this doctrine quite lightly, but actually should reconsider this, in light of upholding the 39 artictles.  And also, I’d be keen to think about preaching through the 39 articles at some point also (bar the one on the Queen!).

So, all in all – a great conference and a great guy.  I’m looking forward to Wednesday night’s lecture back at the PTC.  It’s on BB Warfield’s theology.  Info here.

Continue reading »]]> Wouldn’t this be great…. In fact, I think it’d be incredible! (h/t R. Scott Clark)

JULY 5, 2009 (SUNDAY)

11:30 Greetings for Opening Convocation of Calvin500 in St. Pierre Cathedral
Worship and Sermon by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson, “In Christ Alone” Phil. 3:8-12.
6:00 PM Joint Worship, with Sermon by the Rt. Rev. Henry Orombi, Archbishop of Uganda

Psalm Sing and worship
Sermon by Dr. Bryan Chapell (President, Covenant Sem.): “In Praise of Predestination,” Eph. 1:3-6

JULY 6, 2009 (MONDAY)

Paper: Dr. Douglas Kelly (RTS): “The Catholicity of the Theology of John Calvin”
Paper: Dr. Richard Gamble (RPTS): “Recent Research in Calvin Studies”
Paper: Dr. Darryl Hart: “Calvin among Nineteenth-Century Reformed Protestants in the United States”

Keynote Address: Dr. John Witte (Emory), “Reading Calvin as a Lawyer,”
Sermon by Rev. Geoffrey Thomas (Wales, Alfred Place Baptist Church), “Election” Eph. 1:3-14
Sermon by Dr. Peter Lillback (Pres., Westminster Sem., “All the Glorious Offices of Christ,
“1 Cor. 1:29-31
Sermon Dr. Robert Godfrey (Pres., Westminster Sem California), “Calvin’s Cherished Text,” Jn 17:1- 5

JULY 7, 2009 (TUESDAY)

Paper: Dr. Richard Burnett (Erskine Theological Seminary): “Calvin on Secular and Sacred History”
Paper: Dr. William Edgar (Westminster Theological Seminary): “Calvin’s Impact on the Arts”
Paper: Dr. Anthony Lane (London School of Theology): “Calvin’s Doctrine of Assurance Revisited”

Keynote Address: Dr. Bruce McCormack (Princeton): “Union with Christ in Calvin’s Theology:
Grounds for a Divinisation Theory?”

Address: Dr. Henry Krabbendam: “Reformation and Revival”
Dr. Steven Lawson (Christ Fellowship Baptist, Mobile, AL): “Calvin, the Expository Preacher”
Dr. Iain D. Campbell (Back Free Church, Scotland) “Three Great Intercessions” (Romans 8:26, 34).
Sermon by Dr. J. Ligon Duncan

JULY 8, 2009 (WEDNESDAY)

Paper: Dr. R. Scott Clark (Westminster Sem California): “Calvin’s Principle of Worship”
Paper: Dr. Hughes Old/Dr. Terry Johnson (Erskine): “Calvin’s Worship Reforms”
Paper: Dr. Henri Blocher, “Calvin, the Frenchman”

Keynote Address: Dr. William McComish, Emeritus Dean, St. Pierre Cathedral, “Calvin’s Children”
Afternoon: Young Calvin Scholars Symposium
Paper: Dr. Jae Sung Kim: “Calvinism in Asia”
Sermon by Dr. Philip Ryken (Tenth Pres, Philadelphia): “A Wide Door for Spreading the Gospel,” 1Cor. 16:5-11
Sermon by Dr. Joel Beeke (President, Puritan Ref Theo Sem): “Cherishing the Church,” Mt. 16:18b
Dr. Martin Holdt, “Psalm 100 Then and Now,” Psalm 110

JULY 9, 2009 (THURSDAY)

Paper: Dr. James McGoldrick (GPTS): “Calvin and Luther: Comrades in Christ”
Paper: Dr. Michael Horton (Westminster Seminary California): “Union and Communion:Rediscovering Calvin’s Eucharistic Theology.”
Paper: Dr. Andrew McGowan (Scotland): “John Calvin’s Doctrine of Scripture”

Keynote Address: Dr. Herman Selderhuis:
Paper: Dr. George Knight: “Calvin as New Testament Exegete”
Dr. Henri Blocher: “Calvin on Divine Election”
Sermon: Rev. Ted Donnelly (Principal, Reformed Theological College, Belfast): “More Than Conquerors,” Rom. 8:37

Dr. Hywel Jones (Wales/USA): “One of a Thousand,” Job 36:1-4
Dr. Derek Thomas (RTS) “Adoring the Majesty of God,”Rom. 11:33-36