Semper Blog

Coffee in...pontification out
There is only one truth!

There is only one truth!

“The Scriptures charge sin, perniciousness, and damnation upon heresy. Paul reckons them among those works of the flesh which shut persons out of the Kingdom of God (Galatians 5:20-21). Peter calls them pernicious and damnable, and such as bring swift destruction;...

Wisdom from Alexander Vinet

Wisdom from Alexander Vinet

"What is addressed to infidels may be profitable to believers; what is addressed to believers may be profitable to infidels. As to the latter, everything in Christian preaching is adapted to convert them; as to believers, do they not, in one sense, always need to be...

Extra-Biblical Resources

Extra-Biblical Resources

A question had been posed to me recently by a person of the Reformed persuasion who was offended that I would cite a non-biblical resource to bolster my argument on a certain subject; his cry was, 'We are Sola Sciptura' people. We do not need anything but the Word of...

The Avengers; Infinity War: Thanos vs Thanotos

I recently watched the movie, 'Avengers, Age of Ultron'. I know, don't say it! I am late on the bandwagon. I don't spend a lot of time watching movies or television. I liked the movie, overall. It was descent; Many characters who I was not familiar with. My collegue,...

The One Sin That Will Keep You Out of Heaven

Most believers know that there is a sin that is unforgivable, that being the 'Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit'.  The “blasphemy against the Holy Spirit” is a term taken from the Gospels, where Jesus calls this a sin for which there is no forgiveness (Luke 12:10, cf....

G. O. S. P. E. L

G. O. S. P. E. L God’s Own Son Propitiates (the) Elect’s Lives Many people have asked the question, ‘What is the Gospel’? Some believe it is a message solely of the Cross. Others, a message of relief in a world that is constantly being pressed in under pain and...

Dead Walk

How many people were raised from the dead by Christ during His ministry? The widow of Nain’s son (Luke 7:11–17), Jairus’ daughter (Luke 8:52–56), Lazarus of Bethany (John 11) and of course, Christ (by the Father or Christ's deity...

Freed from the Law by the Spirit

If you are in Christ, you have the Spirit of God; If you have the Spirit, you are freed from the law as Christ died for you and justified you, to the glory of God. 13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh,...

Westminster Larger Catechism question 85

Question 85 Death, being the wages of sin, why are not the righteous delivered from death, seeing all their sins are forgiven in Christ? The righteous shall be delivered from death itself at the last day, and even in death are delivered from the sting and curse of it;...

Sing the Psalms-it is commanded!

GI Williamson, American Presbyterian said: “[An] element of true worship is ‘the singing of psalms with grace in the heart.’ It will be observed that the Confession [21:5] does not acknowledge the legitimacy of the use of modern hymns in the worship of God, but rather...

M. Henry on the Covenant of Grace

Grace is not born in us. … Even the children of saints are born in sin. Grace doth not run in the blood. Inherent holiness is not propagated, which yet doth not impede the propagation of federal holiness. Though the seed of believers are born polluted it doth not...

Calvin on abortion

"22. If men strive, and hurt a woman. This passage at first sight is ambiguous, for if the word death only applies to the pregnant woman, it would not have been a capital crime to put an end to the foetus, which would be a great absurdity; for the foetus, though...

Janet Bushey October 16, 1933-September 8, 2018.

I will start with 2 digressions, before I begin: I am a born-again Christian I am a nurse by profession My life, given these positions, have been quite humbling. Two things have I learned from these two things; People die often and most people ignore this fact or hide...

To be absent in the body….

My Mother, Janet G. Bushey (83), went home to be w/ her Lord this day 9/8/18 @ 1212 hrs. We praise Christ for the work He did in my Mom; as she walked w/ the Lord, over the years, one could see her tenderness toward all adversity grow immensely. Never a mean thing to...

The 7 churches

We are studying through the book of Revelation in our Sunday School class. In Rev 2:18, we come to the church @ Thyatira. Christ has some specific problems w/ this church. A female prophetess, 'Jezebel' who is advocating for sexual sin, worship of idols and the...

The church is akin to a coin

The church is akin to a coin; one side is the church local, i.e. the organized body of believers who meet together with the prime intent of sharing the gospel and worshipping Christ. The other side of the same coin is the universal expression, all saints, alive and...

Religion and tradition are not all bad….

2 Thessalonians 2:15 15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. 2 Thessalonians 3:6 6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from...

How did the Apostles die?

Paul, Apostle number 13, was beheaded, possibly in A.D. 67 under the reign of Nero. 2 Tim 4:6-8  “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the...

A bit on John the Baptist

John, the baptist??? Matt. 3:1   Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying,  2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven 1is at hand.”  3 For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said, “THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING...

Wash em…

John 13:5 5 After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research...

“I don’t need to confess my sin”

Confession of Sin Argument: “I am forgiven already, by Christ’s work-I don’t need to confess any sin any longer. If I confess my sin, it is like saying I don’t believe Jesus paid the price for the sins I am already forgiven of. That itself, would be a sin!”  ...

The novelty and calamity of Rome

“When the priest pronounces the tremendous words of consecration, he reaches up into the heavens, brings Christ down from His throne, and places Him upon our altar to be offered up again as the Victim for the sins of man. It is a power greater than that of monarchs...

BB Warfield on Covenant sign

"So long as it remains true that Paul represents the Church of the Living God to be one, founded on one covenant (which the law could not set aside) from Abraham to today, so long it remains true that the promise is to us and our children and that the members of the...

Ordinance or sacrament?

The word "ordinance" and it's origination: ".....by historical notation, the Presbyterian Puritans, for example, used the term "ordinance" as much as they used the term "sacrament," especially in their personal writings. They were used interchangeably. In the WSC the...

Brian Schwertley on Episcopalianism

http://www.reformed.com/pub/sola.htm   1. Episcopalianism Unfortunately, the Lutheran and Episcopal symbols both contradict sola scriptura in their discussions of ecclesiastical ceremonies, church authority and tradition. The Thirty Nine Articles give the church...

The Benefit of Baptism

John Owen “The end of his message and of his coming was, that those to whom he was sent might be “blessed with faithful Abraham,” or that “the blessing of Abraham,” promised in the covenant, “might come upon them,” Galatians 3:9, 14. To deny this, overthrows the whole...

Evangelism Explosion? Evangelism erosion!

Evangelism/Evangelist/Evangelize: Scripture: ‘Evangelist’, Used only 3 times in the New Testament Acts 21:8 8 And the next day we that were of Paul’s company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the...

Conversion Clarified

converslo: conversion; viz., the work of the Holy Spirit according to which the intellect and the will of the sinner are turned toward God in contrition and faith.Conversion can be distinguished into: (1) conversio passiva sive habitualis, passive or habitual...

I believe I came to Christ when I…..

Since the gospel is primarily given to the church and to be able to flawlessly define when one was actually regenerated and or converted, the chance that one was actually converted at a particular time, may have been in the context of a church setting, more likely....

True faith is based on something

In Thomas Watson's 'The 10 Commandments, he writes: (1) True faith is grounded upon knowledge. Knowledge carries the torch before faith. There is a knowledge of Christ's orient excellencies. Phil 3:8. He is made up of all love and beauty. True faith is a judicious...

John’s baptism

The charge that if John's baptism was not Christian, then all the people John baptized would then need to be actually baptized for the first time is flawed in that all of these people already had the sign in their flesh already-unless of course you are prepared to say...

Thomas Watson on the Kingdoms

The Kingdom of grace is nothing but....the beginning of the Kingdom of glory; the Kingdom of grace is glory in the seed, and the Kingdom of glory is grace in the flower; the Kingdom of grace is glory in the daybreak, and the Kingdom of glory is grace in the full...

“We are not born sinners!”

"We are Not born sinners" See Gen 6:5 & 8:21, Psalm 51:5 & 58:3, Eph 2:3, Rom 5:12 Ch 6 of the WCF: "I. Our first parents, begin seduced by the subtlety and temptations of Satan, sinned in eating the forbidden fruit. This their sin God was pleased, according...

Kinism?

Lane Keister: https://greenbaggins.wordpress.com/2014/03/26/the-main-biblical-problem-with-kinism/ Brian Schwertly: http://www.reformedonline.com/uploads/1/5/0/3/15030584/kinist_heresy.pdf http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=81101454374 A response by Kinist...

Was my election arbitrary or random?

When you consider that God elected you before the foundation of the world, was there anything in you that compelled God to elect you over someone who he rejected? This is a heady thought. I have pondered this often and it will cause you to twist a bit. 6 There was a...

Ministry

In researching the idea of ministry: The term is used in the OT in two ways that I can see: 1) In the secular realm of kings and dignitaries 2) Service to God-generally in temple duties-office holder (priest) 3 offices: Prophet, Priest and King The secular realm is...

Separated at birth for kingdom glory

Luke 1:15 When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb...   What did Mary actually proclaim to her cousin that made JtB leap? What the angel had told her about Messiah.   Luke writes of JtB:   "Luke 1:15 For he shall be great in the sight of the...

Knowledge is vital

"This new life, therefore, manifests itself in new views of God, of Christ, of sin, of holiness, of the world, of the gospel, and of the life to come; in short, of all those truths which God has revealed as necessary to salvation. This spiritual illumination is so...

F. Turretin on the Seed Faith of Infants

I. Concerning the subject of faith a question is moved as to infants. There are two extremes: (1) in defect, by the Anabaptists, who deny all faith to infants and under this pretext exclude them from baptism; (2) in excess, by the Lutherans, who, to oppose themselves...

Puritan Reformed Ministry in India

PURITAN REFORMED MINISTRIES IN INDIA Preach the word! Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! We wish you a blessed new year 2017 ! Our God remains always faithful to us. We thank Him for His goodness and mercy bestowed upon us in the...

Interaction

Taken from:http://rofgrace.com/the_believer_and_god_s_law I will interact with it, if u don't mind: I found this paper to be edifying and accurate in most cases; the only thing I see as a problem has it’s direct roots in dispensationalism. Otherwise, the paper is...

The law and gospel are not enemies-more.

I have seen recently that there are Christian groups out there whom hold to the idea that the gsoepl and the law are like water and oil. They are contrasts-polar opposites. If you hold to any law at all, 'you are still in your sins'. One needs to make the distinction...

There’s not enough Jesus in the Psalms

"If we just sing the Psalms, we wouldn't be singing about Christ!" "It is sometimes said that in the singing of the psalms one is denied the privilege of singing of the Saviour who has now come. In other words, it is commonly alleged that there is not enough of Christ...

Various reformed documents on law keeping

Ch 19 of the WCF I. God gave to Adam a law, as a covenant of works, by which he bound him and all his posterity to personal, entire, exact, and perpetual obedience; promised life upon the fulfilling, and threatened death upon the breach of it; and endued him with...

Was Ishmael and his mother in covenant?

Much can be said of the fact that Abraham surely placed the sign upon Ishmael. The question to be considered is was Ishmael in the internal aspect of the covenant or in the external aspect? When we look at ch 21 of Genesis we see some interesting language: For...

Christ came to ‘save’ sinners for Himself.

a friend responded to this Facebook post by asking: "Please explain what this means": "Christ came to 'save' sinners for Himself." It's a bit complicated, but I will try and make it palatable: Theologically speaking, before God created the world, the Godhead, i.e. the...

U want Logos?

You want to buy Logos? One of the things that the sales associates of Logos do not convey is that the prog is a power hog. If you are using a standard hard drive without max amount of ram pushing it, you will have bog down issues for sure. When I added the Reformed...

It’s a heart issue

Conforming to the word of God must begin with the work of the Holy Spirit. Reformation is the effect of that work, trickling down into the heart of the man as evidenced by his agreeable nature to it and the outworking of said, reformation.

Wisdom from a dear friend

I will not allow any man’s manipulation or questionable interpretation of Holy Scripture to cause me to suspend my critical thinking and ability to reason, given to each of us by our God and maker, in order to force me to live in their reality. ~J. Camejo

The Psalms are insufficient for worship?

I find it rather stunning that some Christians believe the Psalms are insufficient for the worship of Christ when the New Testament cites the Psalter more frequently than ANY OTHER BOOK IN THE OLD TESTAMENT and that by a wide margin! Psalm Citations in the New...

Martin takes a stand

On this day in history, Martin Luther said it best: "Your Imperial Majesty and Your Lordships demand a simple answer. Here it is, plain and unvarnished. Unless I am convicted [convinced] of error by the testimony of Scripture or (since I put no trust in the...

Required Reading on Singing the Psalms

1. “Songs of Zion” (4th ed.) – Michael Bushell 2. “The Psalms in Worship” – John McNaugher, ed. 3. “The Singing of Psalms in the Worship of God” – G.I. Williamson 4. “Sing the Lord’s Songs: Biblical Psalms in Worship” – John W. Keddie 5. “Singing of Psalms: The Duty...

Angels mating with humans?

And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, - Jude 1:14 KJV Poole on Jude 1:14 These men own the prophecy of Enoch, that the Lord comes to judgment, and they themselves are in the number...

The Sacraments

The Lord's Supper and baptism are not empty rites. It is more than just a symbolic act. To say that the Heavens do not open wide during the act itself and that God, Christ and the Holy Spirit are not communicating anything to the recipients directly is an injustice to...

An inane conversation with a Calvinist hater

News Feed Wayne Bond shared Charles Michelsen's post. 2 hrs · I watched a pastor become a Calvinist, so he did not have to witness anymore. Charles Michelsen 2 hrs · Calvinism is gross heresy because it effectively NEGATES the Gospel, i.e., renders it a moot point....

Christmas

19 The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. 21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither...

Thomas Valentine on the Gospel:

Thomas Valentine, one of the Westminster divines writes: "That Christ being offered to them to deliver them from curse and condemnation, and they wilfully rejecting Him, they aggravate their sins, and bring upon them the condemnation of the gospel; so that the law and...

More on the Church as ‘Mother’

23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. 24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. 25 For this Agar is mount...

“Dad, what is your favorite holiday?”

In the midst of the approaching (holi)days, my daughter asked me: "Dad, what is your favorite holiday?" Over the years, I have almost completely neutralized any love or kinship with the secular days. In the midst of my studies and prayer, I have cleansed my heart. The...

Do you sin by elevating particular days?

The sabbath day is commanded to be lifted up, as described in the 4th commandment. The other days of the week belong to God just like the Sabbath, but none of them have any exceptional value when compared to the sabbath day-there is a vast difference. Part of the...

The Covenanter on voting

The Duty of the Christian Voter (the Covenanter, 1845) "Now what is the duty of the moral—the Christian voter? Is it not, clearly, so to cast his vote that he may, as a member of the body politic, throw his weight, not into the scale of vice, but into that of virtue?...

God is one!

“Hear, O Israel: G‑d is our L‑rd, G‑d is one.” In its entirety, the Shema consists of three paragraphs:Deuteronomy 6:4–9, Deuteronomy 11:13–21 and Numbers 15:37–41.

You are a work in progress!

God saves all kinds of sinners. One's theology does not necessarily exclude one from this grace. For example, many people are in a sanctifying state. They are a theological work in progress. A child who is elect may not have their theology down pat. If this child dies...

Romans Chapter 16 and the house churches

Romans was an Presbyterial letter Churches: Cenchrea ‘The Churches of the Gentiles’ ‘Arisyobulus’ hosehold’ ‘Hosehold of Narcissus’ ‘14 Salute Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren which are with them.’ ‘15 Salute Philologus, and Julia,...