Sister and Other Church Relationships

In harmony with the principles of holy Scripture and our Three Forms of Unity (Belgic Confession, Heidelberg Catechism, Canons of Dordt), the PRC through its Committee for Contact with Other Churches maintain full sister church relationships with three foreign churches and a corresponding relationship with one other foreign denomination.

Covenant PRC Ballymena, Northern Ireland (157)

Website

83 Clarence Street,

Ballymena BT43 5DR, Northern Ireland

Services: 11:00 A.M. & 6:00 P.M.

Pastor: Rev. Angus Stewart

7 Lislunnan Rd.

Kells, Ballymena, Co. Antrim

Northern Ireland BT42 3NR

Phone: (from U.S.A.) 011 (44) 28 25 891 851

pastor@cprc.co.uk

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Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore (114)

Covenant ERCS 2022

Website

11, Jalan Mesin #04-00

Standard Industrial Building

Singapore 368813

Worship Services: 9:30 A.M. & 2:00 P.M.

Pastors: Josiah Tan (2021) and Marcus Wee (2022)

Ptr Josiah Tan 2023 Pastor J. Tan

Ptr Marcus Wee 2023 Pastor M. Wee

148 Bishan Street 11 #06-113

Singapore 570148

pastor@cerc.org.sg

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Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Australia (EPC) (2)

For information on this small Presbyterian denomination in Australia with whom the PRCA have a "corresponding relationship", visit their website.

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Protestant Reformed Churches in the Philippines (11)

PRCP Organization Banner 4 9 2014

Berean PRC, Antipolo City - Pastors: Rev. V. Ibe; Rev. L. Trinidad (emeritus)

Provident PRC - Pastor:

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07 Mar

Covenant Reformed News - February 2019

Published in Covenant PRC Ballymena, Northern Ireland

Covenant Reformed News

February 2019 • Volume XVII, Issue 10

Zechariah’s Day of the Lord (4)

In the first instalment of “Zechariah’s Day of the Lord,” we proved that Zechariah 14:1-15 “predicts Christ’s bodily return, including events that immediately precede it, and the new heavens and the new earth that it ushers in.” The next two issues identified and explained three topics in Zechariah 14:1-15: the plundered city (the equivalent of the great tribulation), the coming God (that is, “that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13) and the holy war (which finds its culmination in Christ’s destruction of the wicked at His return).

This and subsequent issues of the News will treat other themes in Zechariah 14, D.V. We begin with the movements of Judah’s mountains. Verses 4-5 speak of an earthquake and mountain formation (orogeny), involving the Mount of Olives, which is given this name here for the first time in the Bible (4). Running north-south to the east of Jerusalem, the Mount of Olives was a ridge largely covered with olive trees.

Zechariah 14:4 states that “the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.” Three things are described as happening to the Mount of Olives. First, it would split east-west. Second, the two halves would then move, with one shifting north and the other south. Third, this would create a valley going east from Jerusalem between the two halves of the (old) Mount of Olives.

What is God’s purpose in cleaving the Mount of Olives and creating a valley heading east from Jerusalem? It is to serve the flight of Jehovah’s people, a flight like that during the earthquake in King Uzziah day: “ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal [a place east of Jerusalem that is probably also mentioned in Micah 1:11]: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah” (Zech. 14:5; cf. Amos 1:1).

This is a flight from what? If the answer “persecutors” is given, someone might object, “But I thought that Jerusalem was besieged and plundered (Zech. 14:1-2), and that Judah was going to fight its enemies (14)!” However, Zechariah 14 consists of apocalyptic imagery. The point of the passage is that God will preserve His people from their enemies, even at the end of the world when things look darkest (cf. Rev. 12:14-16).

What causes the earthquake and orogeny or mountain movement, this east-west tear through the Mount of Olives, with one half heading north and the other going south? That is, what power is at work to form a valley so that God’s people can flee? This question is significant because the Mount of Olives is a formidable barrier to swift flight east from Jerusalem, as David and his loyal entourage experienced in II Samuel 15.

The answer is Jehovah’s “feet”! “Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah” (Zech. 14:3-5).

“Aha!” says the triumphant premillennialist, “This must be literal. Jesus Christ’s physical feet will touch the Mount of Olives which will divide and form a physical escape route for the Jews!”

The first element in our response is to declare loudly that Jesus Christ has one, and only one, second coming, not several second comings, contrary to premillennialism. Holy Scripture predicts His coming with the glorified saints to the air where those believers who are still living will rise to meet the Lord (I Thess. 4:17).

Second, we point out that the premillennial literalism ignores biblical language and imagery. Here are four biblical texts that speak of God’s coming to Mount Sinai: “the Lord descended upon it” (Ex. 19:18), “Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God” (Ps. 68:8), it “melted from before the Lord” (Judg. 5:5) and it “melted like wax at the presence of the Lord” (Ps. 97:5).

The theophany at Mount Sinai became a model for God’s coming to help His people, as in Isaiah 64:1-3: “Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence, As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence! When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence.” Three times we read here of Jehovah’s “presence” causing awesome things!

Similar language is used of God’s coming to Samaria in Micah 1:3-4: “For, behold, the Lord cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth. And the mountains shall be molten under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, and as the waters that are poured down a steep place.” Yet the Almighty did not literally “tread” or “trample” upon that city when it fell to the Assyrians in 722 BC. Nor were Samaria’s hills physically “molten under him” or its “valleys ... cleft, as wax before the fire, and as the waters that are poured down a steep place.”

Nahum 1:5 states three things which happen at Jehovah’s presence: “[1] The mountains quake at him, and [2] the hills melt, and [3] the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.”

So what does God have to do to cleave the Mount of Olives and create a valley? Only the soles of His feet need to touch it for it to cleave or split under Him! But we have run out of space, so more will be said on this subject next time, DV. Rev. Angus Stewart

The Intermediate State

I have received two questions from readers of the News concerning the intermediate state, that is, the state of believers between their deaths and the resurrection of their bodies. Both concern the difficulty of understanding how the soul, parted from the body, can live without the body.

This is not an easy question to answer, for we know so little both of the mighty works of God and the life we will live outside of the body in heaven. We should also remember that the question applies to the wicked, as well as the righteous, although their end is hell.

The question has been faced since early in the church’s history. Calvin wrote a book against “soul sleep” in which he denied the view that the soul at death enters a state of unconsciousness. One Dutch theologian proposed the idea that the souls of the elect live out of and through the body of the exalted Christ before the resurrection of their bodies. Other theories have also been offered.

In Reformed churches, the denial of soul sleep is a confessional matter. “What comfort doth the ‘resurrection of the body’ afford thee? That not only my soul after this life shall be immediately taken up to Christ its Head; but also, that this my body, being raised by the power of Christ, shall be reunited with my soul, and be made like unto the glorious body of Christ” (Heidelberg Catechism, Q. & A. 57).

This is clearly biblical teaching. In Luke 23, the thief nailed alongside Jesus’ cross asked to be remembered by Christ when He came into His kingdom (42). The Lord responded, “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise” (43).

Some Roman Catholics, in the interests of defending the horrible doctrine of purgatory, claim that a comma should be placed after the words “To day,” as do the cults. The meaning then would be that Jesus’ words to the thief merely meant that He spoke these words “To day,” that is, the day on which He died on the cross and was talking to the thief, as if the verse were: “Today I say to you, ‘You shall be with me in paradise.’” That is a forced interpretation that the text will not allow. The truth is that Jesus promised the repentant thief that, on the very day they were hanging on their respective crosses and would presently die, they will be together in heaven.

Other proof can be found in Revelation 6:9-10. When the fifth seal is opened, John saw the “souls” of the martyrs crying out, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” The point here is that the souls of God’s people are already in heaven and even ask how long it will be before Christ comes to destroy the wicked.

A problem arises with the resurrection of those Jesus brought forth from the grave: the daughter of Jairus, the son of the widow of Nain and, most notably, Lazarus. Where were their souls after they died and before Jesus raised them?

It seems impossible that these three were recalled from heaven itself. That would have been a most terrifying experience for these three people. They would have to have been brought back from their blissful life in glory, where they sinned no more, to a world of pain and bitterness, only to have to face death once again.

My dogmatics professor in seminary thought that he could not explain the question in any other way than that God prepared a special place for their souls in which place they remained unconscious until Jesus called them back to this life. But he acknowledged, as we all do, that the ways of an infinite God are unknowable and beyond comprehension.

One more problem remains and the awareness of it may go a long way to explaining the issue of the intermediate state. The simple fact of the matter is that we have very little understanding of what heaven is like. We know only what the Bible reveals to us, and Scripture’s revelation of heaven is always by means of figures, analogies and symbolic language.

God reveals heaven to us in language that is not always literal because He desires to keep the knowledge of heaven from us, perhaps so that He may surprise us with its glory when we arrive there. Scripture speaks of heaven in such, sometimes mysterious, language because heaven is so completely different from what we know here on earth that no earthly language can be created to describe it. Paul states that, when he was taken up into the third heaven, he heard “unspeakable words” (II Cor. 12:4), by which he means that there were no words in any human language that could describe what he heard: the words of heaven being too “heavenly.”

People have many misconceptions about heaven. Some think it will be the place where they can continuously do what they like best here on earth: play golf or whatever. Others look forward to seeing loved ones who have died before them, thinking that their interactions with them will largely be the same as before. Yet they forget that all earthly relationships shall come to an end, and our heavenly relationship will be to Christ and our spiritual family in the perfected kingdom of God.

When we do finally enter glory two things will be outstandingly wonderful: we shall see our Saviour face to face and our depravity will be no more. We will, I am sure, be like the Queen of Sheba who fainted when she saw the glory of Solomon and his Jerusalem, exclaiming, “the half was not told me” (I Kings 10:7).

When we come to heaven and see it in all its glory, we will do one thing and one thing only: praise the God who through Christ has done so wondrously. Now already there are times when heaven touches earth and the result is a miracle: marvellous things take place. All the glorious records of those times are in the Scriptures to spur us on to faithfulness. The greatest miracle of all is the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God incarnate.

Let us live expecting unexpected wonders in Christ in the world to come, as we pray, “Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly.” Prof. Herman Hanko

Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
83 Clarence Street, Ballymena, BT43 5DR • Lord’s Day services at 11 am & 6 pm
Website: www.cprc.co.uk • Live broadcast: www.cprf.co.uk/live.html
Pastor: Angus Stewart, 7 Lislunnan Road, Kells, N. Ireland, BT42 3NR • (028) 25 891851
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. • www.youtube.com/cprcni • www.facebook.com/CovenantPRC

Forward

South Wales Lecture

Thursday, 21 March
7:15 PM

Speaker:
Rev. Angus Stewart

Subject:
The Canons of Dordt:
The Original Five Points
of Calvinism
(400th Anniversary Lecture)

What are the Canons of Dordt (1618-1619)? Are they biblical? Why are there five points? How are these doctrines related? And what have they to say about worship?

Venue: Margam Community Centre
Bertha Road, Margam, Port Talbot, SA13 2AP

Book Table (including DVDs,
CDs & pamphlets)
Coffee & tea provided afterward

www.cprc.co.uk
www.cprf.co.uk/swales.htm

For His Mercy
Endureth Forever

illustrated by
Kathleen DeJong
(36 pp., hardback)

“O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him who alone doeth great wonders: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever” (Psalm 136:3-5).

God’s mercy endures forever. And the same mercy He displayed in the creation of the world and to His people Israel, He also reveals to His children in Jesus Christ. The words of this psalm, and illustrator Kathleen DeJong’s beautiful acrylics and line drawings, will inspire covenant children and their parents to thank God each day for His unending mercies.

Only £8.80 (inc. P&P)

Order from the
CPRC Bookstore
by post or telephone
7 Lislunnan Road, Kells, N. Ireland BT42 3NR
(028) 25891851

Make cheques payable to “Covenant Protestant Reformed Church.”
Thank you!

The Original
Five Points of Calvinism

400th Anniversary of the Synod of Dordt

Mini-Conference

Saturday, 13 April
1) The Onset of the Great War: Ecclesiastical and Doctrinal - 11 AM
(lunch served between
the two lectures)
2) The Confession of the Gospel (of Grace): The “Five Points of Calvinism” (as the Content of the Canons of Dordt) - 1 PM

Wednesday, 17 April
7:30 PM
The Defence of the Gospel: The Rejection of Errors

Wednesday, 1 May
7:30 PM
The Other Decisions of the Dordt Synod and Their Importance for the Reformed Churches Today

Speaker
Prof. David J. Engelsma
emeritus Professor of Dogmatics at the Protestant Reformed Seminary, USA

Venue
Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
83 Clarence St., Ballymena,
N. Ireland BT43 5DR

Prof. Engelsma is also to preach, DV, at some of the CPRC worship services (11 AM & 6 PM) on Lord’s Days 14, 21 & 28 April and 5 May

www.cprf.co.uk/dordtconference.html or for more details contact us at (028) 25 891851
video live-stream available at www.cprf.co.uk/live.html

01 Mar

Covenant Reformed News - January 2019

Published in Covenant PRC Ballymena, Northern Ireland

Covenant Reformed News

January 2019 • Volume XVII, Issue 9

Zechariah’s Day of the Lord (3)

Three verses in Zechariah 14 specifically refer to God’s coming at the end of this age: “Behold, the day of the Lord cometh” (1), “Then shall the Lord go forth” (3) and “the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee” (5). Putting all this together, Jehovah goes forth from heaven (3) so that “the Lord my God shall come” in the air (5; cf. I Thess. 4:17) with the result that this day—the best of all days—comes to the Most High for His glory (Zech. 14:1)!

Notice the first person singular pronoun in verse 5: “the Lord my God shall come.” Zechariah is speaking here, first of all, but every believer also declares with true hope in Jesus, “the Lord my God shall come” (5). This is our confession regarding Christ: He is Jehovah God. As well as confessing Jesus’ deity, the believer affirms that He is “my God” personally: “I have covenant fellowship with Him, as one chosen in Christ, redeemed by Him and united to Him by a living faith.”

When the resurrected Jesus was before him, Thomas exclaimed, “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28). When we think of Christ’s return, each one of us says, “the Lord my God shall come” (Zech. 14:5). He will come for His church and for me personally, if I am alive on the earth at “the day of the Lord” (1).

This is our comfort. This is deep consolation also for the saints to whom we speak of these things. “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (I Thess. 4:17-18).

There is also an important preposition in Zechariah 14:5: “the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.” The “saints” or holy ones are the elect angels and/or the glorified believers (I Thess. 4:14). This is our honour: to be with Christ as His train, flanking Him on that glorious day. This also magnifies the glory of the Lord Jesus, for He is coming with His perfected people attended by His mighty angels.

The coming of God in Jesus Christ is the climax of the “holy war” in the Bible: “Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle” (Zech. 14:3).

Deuteronomy 20 is the greatest chapter in the Bible explaining Israel’s holy war. Fundamentally, the command is fear not: “let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them” (3)! Why? “For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you” (4). Scripture includes many instances of the holy war: the crossing of the Red Sea (Ex. 14-15), the fight with the Amalekites (Ex. 17:8-16), the conquest of Canaan in the book of Joshua, the battles of the judges, the wars under Samuel and David, etc.

The second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ will be the culmination of the holy war, the war to end all wars. This will be the case because, first, Christ will fight not only against the Egyptians or the Philistines but against the whole world of the ungodly. Second, this battle will occur at the end of the world: “Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle” (Zech. 14:3).

Zechariah 14:12-15 graphically portray how God will destroy the Antichristian forces at Christ’s second coming. Verse 12 describes a plague upon the wicked people: “this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh [in which they attacked the church] shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes [that looked with hatred upon God’s people] shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue [that they used to slander the saints] shall consume away in their mouth.” Ultimately, this is the horrible corruption of hell (Isa. 66:24; Mark 9:44, 46, 48).

The destruction of the wicked on the day of the Lord is also presented in terms of infighting: “it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the Lord shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour” (Zech. 14:13). There are other instances of God's holy war taking the form of infighting among His enemies (e.g., Judg. 7; I Sam. 14; II Chron. 20).

Zechariah 14 pictures the church as joining in the holy warfare: “Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance” (14). We will be victorious and we will take the spoil!

Moreover, the plague will be not only on people (12) but also on the animals: “And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague” (15).

There are many other passages which describe the holy war that God fights with the wicked at the end of the world. Ezekiel 38 portrays an earthquake (19) that even makes the fish of the sea and the birds of the air to quake at Jehovah’s presence (20). Like Zechariah 14, Ezekiel 38 speaks of infighting among God’s enemies: “I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God: every man’s sword shall be against his brother” (21). Then it mentions six more divine judgments: “I will plead against him with [1] pestilence and with [2] blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, [3] an overflowing rain, and [4] great hailstones, [5] fire, and [6] brimstone” (22).
Revelation 19:11-21 pictures Christ coming on a great white charger with His armies following Him on white horses. The birds feast on the carcases of His defeated foes. Upon their capture, the beast and the false prophet are cast into the lake of fire.

Likewise, when “the camp of the saints” is surrounded, fire from God comes down to devour the wicked (Rev. 20:9); and the breath of Christ's “mouth” and “the brightness of his coming” will consume the man of sin and son of perdition (II Thess. 2:8).

The culmination of the holy war at the second coming of Jesus Christ is founded upon the great battle of the cross. There our Saviour defeated sin, Satan and the world, when He bore the punishment for our iniquities. Only the mop-up operation remains, the final destruction of all the wicked, those who thought that they had won! Rev. Stewart

Polygamy in the Old Testament

A reader writes, “I Corinthians 6:9-10 states that ‘neither fornicators’ ‘nor adulterers’ ‘shall inherit the kingdom of God.’ Surely in Israel people like King Solomon (1,000 wives and concubines) and those returned exiles described in Ezra 10 (assuming they remarried) would have been guilty of these sins and thus were barred from heaven? Surely God never lowers the standard of the law?”

We read of various men in Old Testament times who married more than one wife or who had concubines. In fact, some of the most prominent saints in the old dispensation married multiple wives or took concubines. I need name only a few: Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon and others. Undoubtedly, some of the kings married more than one wife because it was a custom in those days for monarchs to demonstrate their greatness with a harem. Judah even had intercourse with a woman he thought was a whore, yet Tamar’s son by Judah, though born outside of wedlock, was a father in the promised line that brought forth our Saviour.

Sadly, fornication also occurred among the males in Israel. When Judah was guilty of this sin, it seems as if no one thought much about it (Gen. 38), although, when Shechem the Hivite raped Dinah, Levi and Simeon were furious (Gen. 34). There is evidence though of Judah’s repentance (38:26; cf. 44:18-34).

The case of some of the returned captives who married foreign wives is somewhat different (Ezra 10). They sent away their wives and the children born to them. This was probably done under the law of Deuteronomy 24:1-4.

But even this regulation in Deuteronomy 24 has been an occasion for some serious disagreement and debate. It is a passage in Scripture that is appealed to in support of the legitimacy of remarriage after a separation or divorce in new covenant days. It is interesting to note, however, that the New Testament Scriptures emphatically forbid remarriage in the case of a rupture of the first marriage, so long as one’s spouse is alive (Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18; Rom. 7:2-3; I Cor. 7:39).

It is true, as the questioner observes, that God never lowers the requirements of His law. But it is also a fact that the seriousness of a sin is determined by God in connection with the circumstances. Jesus Himself reminds us that the one who knew his Lord’s will and disobeyed him is worthy of many stripes, whereas ignorance is a significant mitigating factor (Luke 12:47-48). Therein also lies the solution to the problem.

There can be no question that God punished the sins of adultery and fornication in the old dispensation as well as the new. Lamech, in the line of Cain, had two wives. He murdered a man and then boasted of his foul deed to his wives. He was totally disinterested in obeying God’s laws (Gen. 4:19-24).

Abraham, who married Sarah and took Hagar as a concubine, saw Hagar’s attitude towards Sarah change after Hagar conceived (16:4). He finally had to send Ishmael away because of Ishmael’s sin of mocking Isaac. Jacob married Leah and Rachel, and took two concubines, but witnessed nothing but jealousy on Rachel’s part and strife between the two sisters. Elkanah married Peninah and Hannah, but endured the grief of seeing Peninah mocking Hannah. Solomon had many wives but they led him to serve idols. God did not allow the sin to go unpunished!

The sin was less serious, however, in the old dispensation than it is in the new.

There is a good reason for this. Marriage is a picture of a heavenly reality, the true and spiritual marriage of Jesus Christ and His church (Eph. 5:22-33). The heavenly and spiritual marriage of the Lord and His bride was only dimly perceived in the old dispensation. There are many times, especially in the prophets, where God calls Israel His wife. And so the relationship of marriage and the true heavenly marriage was already dimly defined. But the picture in earthly marriages of the heavenly marriage was not very clear. The picture was blurred and of poor quality.

Yet it was a sin to distort the picture of marriage by marrying many wives. Those who did this were afflicted with trouble and grief in their homes.

I suppose, perhaps, that an illustration can be used. If you have a picture of someone you loved, anyone who would mar that picture by tearing it or defacing it with a pen would do you a great wrong and you would be angry with such a one.

But if the picture of someone you loved was a picture of someone still living and somebody would murder that person, the sin would be far greater.

So it is with marriage. The picture of our marriages is that of Christ and His church. But the marriage of Christ and His church is a reality already accomplished in those who believe in Christ and are grafted into His body by a true and living faith. Any two saints that are married are also married to Christ. The reality itself of Christ and His church is present in a very real sense in our marriages.

To desecrate our marriages by unlawful divorce and to remarry if divorced are dreadful sins that mar the figure of the reality. A man and a woman, united in sacred marriage, cannot and may not break the bond that binds them as one, simply because the bond between Christ and His people cannot be broken.

Marriage is a great gift. It is a union of love rooted in Christ’s love for His bride. It is the sacred bond that it is because it is God’s way of bringing His elect children to life in His church (Mal. 2:15). It is honourable and beautiful. Yea, it is an institution that God created in Paradise. Prof. Hanko

Forward

Grace & Assurance:
The Message of the Canons of Dordt

by Martyn McGeown
(384 pp., hardback)

In 1618-1619, the great Synod of Dordt met to counter the Arminian error that was threatening the peace and welfare of Christ’s churches in the Netherlands. The fruit of their deliberations was the Canons of Dordt, which set forth the scriptural truth of unconditional election (and reprobation), limited (or particular) atonement, total depravity, irresistible grace and the perseverance of the saints.

This accessible commentary on the Canons leads readers through the biblical and comforting message of the creed: being wholly saved by God’s efficacious grace, we have the steadfast assurance of our eternal election and blessed glorification.

Only £19.80 (inc. P&P)

Order from the
CPRC Bookstore
by post or telephone
7 Lislunnan Road, Kells, N. Ireland BT42 3NR
(028) 25891851

Make cheques payable to “Covenant Protestant Reformed Church.”
Thank you!

Gospel Living (vol. I)

12 sermons on
Romans 12:1-12
on CD or DVD in an attractive box set

Coming after the most doctrinal presentation of Christ’s salvation in all the Bible (Rom. 1-11), Romans 12 superbly explains the holy life and Christian ethics which flow from the gospel of sovereign grace!

(1) Presenting Our Bodies a Living Sacrifice
(2) Christian Thinking About Oneself
(3) The Members of the Body
(4) The Gifts of the Members of the Body
(5) The Seven Gifts of Romans 12
(6) Gifts and Office-Bearers Among the Members of the Body
(7) Love Without Hypocrisy
(8) The Moral Absolutes of Good and Evil
(9) Abhor! Cleave!
(10) Relating to One Another
(11) The Christian’s Work
(12) The Christian’s Attitude

£12/box set (inc. P&P)

Listen free on-line
or order from the
CPRC Bookstore
by post or telephone
7 Lislunnan Road, Kells, N. Ireland BT42 3NR
(028) 25891851

Make cheques payable to “Covenant Protestant Reformed Church.”
Thank you!

28 Feb

Reformed News Asia - February 2019

Published in Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore

Issue 53 - February 2019

Pamphlets

We print pamphlets written by our members and those from other Reformed churches of like-minded faith. They include a wide range of topics from doctrines to church history and practical Christian living. These pamphlets serve to promote knowledge of the true God as expressed in the Reformed faith.

NEWPamphlet!

Evangelism in the Established CHurch

By Jason L. Kortering

" The heartbeat of all evangelism in the local church is the living testimony of a godly walk by the members and their eagerness to share the gospel with those who cross their pathway. The great motivation for effective evangelism in the local church is a heart that truly loves God and loves the neighbour for God’s sake. If we truly love God, the goal of evangelism is not self, not even the neighbour, but it is God and His glory through the gathering and strengthening of His precious people. "

"..personal evangelism is God’s work through us. We must be obedient to Him and pray that His Holy Spirit will use us to promote the gospel to His glory."

Click here to view our catalogue of pamphlets.

Click here to make an order.

All pamphlets are free. CERC reserves some discretion regarding large orders and/or orders from those outside Singapore.

Featured Book

For local orders (Singapore), please contact Ms Daisy Lim at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For international orders, click here.

Walking in the Way of Love - Volume 2
by Nathan J. Langerak

From the RFPA website:

This volume treats the apostle's explanation of the main theme of the epistle in his glorious paean to love in 1 Corinthians 13. Also included in this commentary is treatment of the doctrinal heart of the epistle—the apostle's instruction regarding the resurrection. The apostle grounds all of his instruction about the way of love in the gospel of the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

This second volume covers chapters 10-16 of 1 Corinthians.

Audio Recordings

Click to listen to the sermons on Lord's Day 3 in 2 parts by Rev Audred Spriensma

Humans Wonderfully Made
The Blessedness Of The Truth: The Fall Into Sin

Upcoming Events!

Good Friday Gospel Meeting - 19 April 2019

CERC Church Camp 2019

Some details of this year's church camp are as follows. More details will be announced closer to the date.

Date: 10-13 June 2019
Venue: Pulai Spring Resort, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Theme: Holiness: "Walking in the Spirit" - Gal 5:16.
Speaker: Rev. A. den Hartog

Past Events...

Church Retreat

This year, our church retreat consisted of a speech by Prof Cammenga titled "Unity of the Spirit and the Bond of Peace" followed by prayer meeting and a time of fellowship over lunch. The speech follows our church's theme for 2019: Keeping the Unity of the Church from Ephesians 4:1-3 and can be found here..

Wedding of MIlton and Celina

This January, Milton and Celina were united in holy matrimony. We rejoice with them and pray the Lord's blessings upon their union!

Infant Baptism of Asher

We were blessed to witness the Infant Baptism of Asher, son of Lee Yang and Joanna! We rejoice with them, thanking God for adding to the church and praying for God's blessings upon them as they bring up their covenant child in the fear of the Lord.

"And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee."
Genesis 17:7

Notes

Salt Shakers

Salt Shakers is a bi-monthly magazine published by the youth in Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church (CERC). Included in each issue are writings pertaining to bothReformed doctrine and practical theology. Contributors to Salt Shakers include our pastor, youth and members of CERC, and pastors and professors from the Protestant Reformed Churches in America. Salt Shakers also features articles from the Standard Bearer and other Reformed publications. Click here to access.

Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church
We are a Reformed Church that holds to the doctrines of the Reformation as they are expressed in the Belgic Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism and the Canons of Dordt.

Lord's Day services on Sunday at 930 am & 2 pm ~ 11 Jalan Mesin, #04-00, Standard Industrial Building, Singapore 368813 ~ Pastor: Supply from PRCA ~ www.cerc.org.sg

01 Jan

Reformed News Asia - December 2018

Published in Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore

Issue 52 - December 2018

NEWPamphlet!

Christian Liberty

By Various Authors

"Christian liberty, therefore, is simply this, that we willingly walk in the narrow confines of God's commandments and find our happiness there."

"Thus our liberty means this: we MAY serve God, we have the right to serve Him. The living God banishes sinners out of His sight; He receives us as His children. We CAN serve God. We are 'restored in the likeness of Christ to be friend-servant in His house, using our gifts and talents to His glory. We WILL serve God. The psalmist sang, "'tis good to do His will." In the Dutch we used to sing, "Thy loving service has never yet wearied me." From all this follows the MUST. We may, and we also must. There is no conflict here. This “must” is as much the inner impelling of the Spirit as the outer command of God's law. The desire lives in our heart to serve the Lord our God, to hate sin, and to flee from it. This obligation we gladly assume."

This pamphlet talks about Christian Liberty in the church, in our lives, in practical living, in making decisions, etc. Read to find out more about the main principles of Christian liberty, how we can evaluate it and use it properly in our lives.

Click here to view our catalogue of pamphlets.

Click here to make an order.

All pamphlets are free. CERC reserves some discretion regarding large orders and/or orders from those outside Singapore.

Featured Book

For local orders (S'pore), please contact Ms Daisy Lim at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For international orders, click here.

Micah
by Martyn McGeown

From the RFPA website:

Christians want to know Christ from the Old Testament, from Micah, and the other minor prophets. And yet for many of us the minor prophets are like a sealed book. The inspired writing of the minor prophets are addressed to the people of God and addressed to us also in the New Testament church. As inspired scripture they indeed speak of Christ: Micah does so extensively, and not only in the obvious reference to Bethlehem in chapter 5:2.

The prophet Micah proclaims the incomparable God of judgment and mercy. This God is our God, the God of all who believe in Jesus Christ. And this prophecy has vital lessons to teach us today.

Audio Recordings

Click to listen to the series of sermons by Rev Arie Den Hartog

Nicodemus' Visit With Jesus
Jesus'Gift Of Living Water (Jesus And The Samaritan Woman)
Jesus And The Young Rich Ruler
Jesus And The Syro-Phoenecian Woman
Jesus And Zaccheus

Upcoming Events!

Chinese New Year Visitation (9 Feb)

Past Events...

Reformation Day Conference 2018

On the 3rd of November 2018, CERC held its annual Reformation Day Conference under the theme "By Grace alone". Commemorating 400 years of the Canons of Dordt, we give thanks as we acknowledge the great work of God! We were privileged to have Rev Den Hartog who delivered 3 speeches and Rev Singh who spoke about the mission work in Kolkata. We were blessed by the talks and enjoyed the good fellowship with one another. May we continue to be zealous to contend and preserve the truth.

Rev Den Hartog delivering one of his speeches

Rev Emmanuel SIngh speaking on the mission work in Kolkata

Vacation Bible School 2018

From 11-13 Dec, CERC's Vacation Bible School was held under the theme of "Are you a Christ-like Giver?". The camp was held over 3 days with lessons, indoor games and an outdoor activity at the high elements at Forest Adventure. The lessons were focused on giving and we are grateful for the time of instruction and fellowship among the children.

Lesson time

One of the many indoor games

Brave kids on the high element course!

Children visiting Aunty Sarah

Baptism & Confession of Faith

We thank the Lord for blessing CERC with new members who joined through Confession of Faith and Baptism. We rejoice in the growth of the church and the profession of faith of these brothers and sisters in Christ.

Confession of Faith of Chin Yuh Bin, Annie Chin, Nichelle Wong and Eric Quek

Baptism of Joezer Chin

Baptism of Emily Chua

Trip to Philippines

Elder Leong and Deacon Lee made a trip to Philippines from 15-20 Dec in order to explore the possibility of a sister church relationship with the Protestant Reformed Churches in the Philippines (PRCP). We thank God for the warm welcome by the brethren from PRCP and the opportunity to confirm the confessions, distinctives, church orders and practices of both churches. May the Lord lead and direct the decision on establishing sister church relationship with one another.

CKCKS Camp 2018

The annual CKCKS Camp was held on 19-22 Dec under the theme "Contentment as Covenant Youth", taken from 1 Timothy 6:6. We thank God for a spiritually refreshing time and good fellowship for our young people. May the Lord grant them contentment and strengthen their faith as they strive to live antithetical lives.

Group shot of the campers!

One of the messages - workshop by Joshua Tan

Some of the fruitful discussions

Camp games including ping pong with the hands

Outing - Laser tag at a nearby park

Notes

Salt Shakers

27 Dec

Covenant PRC, N. Ireland Newsletter - December 2018

Published in Covenant PRC Ballymena, Northern Ireland

Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
Ballymena, NI

27 December, 2018

Dear saints in the Protestant Reformed Churches,

US Trip

“The RFPA, the CPRC, and the Spread of the Truth” was the title of my lecture on 27 September at the annual meeting of the Reformed Free Publishing Association in Grace PRC (www.youtube.com/user/ReformedFree Pub). Our congregation and its witness is massively helped by the RFPA, so it was good to accept its speaking invitation.

The day before, I gave a chapel speech for Eastside Christian School in Grand Rapids on “The Sword of the Spirit” (Eph. 6:17). That evening, at the request of Principal Pete Adams, I delivered a lecture with slides on “Martin and Katie Luther: The Reformation of Marriage” to supporters of Eastside. Sadly, the CPRC does not have a Christian school, so it is an extra privilege to do something to help Reformed education.

Mary and I made our first ever visit to Wingham PRC in Ontario, Canada, on Sunday, 30 September, when I preached at both services and gave a PowerPoint presentation on the witness of the CPRC in the evening. We stayed at the home of Travis Hanko, our nephew, and his wife, Averly (Kikkert), whom we first met at the 2016 British Reformed Fellowship conference in Northern Ireland.

On Wednesday, 3 October, “Martin and Katie Luther: The Reformation of Marriage” was again the subject, this time for Pittsburgh PRC's 21st Annual Reformation Lecture. There was a good attendance, including some who had watched CPRC YouTube videos. It had been some years since we were last in Pittsburgh and it was lovely to see some old friends, as well as learning from the experiences of Rev. and Mary Bruinsma in missions and smaller churches.

Between Wingham and Pittsburgh, Mary and I stopped off at Niagara-on-the-Lake (where some significant conferences were held involving missions, fundamentalism, and dispensationalism) and the powerful Niagara Falls. After Pittsburgh, we hiked and dined with Lee Carl Finley, who has had an article on Job published in the British Reformed Journal, and his wife, Jennifer, and their daughter, Rebecca, in Ohio. We also benefited from our visit to the Creation Museum in Kentucky.

On the Lord's Day of 7 October, I preached in Southeast PRC and Zion PRC, where I also showed CPRC slides. Meeting the saints in the PRC is always a blessing and it helps strengthen our sister-church relationship with you. After enjoying our relaxing trip and visiting family and friends, we flew home armed with as many RFPA books and PR pamphlets as our weight allowance would permit.

Back in the manse in Northern Ireland, we met up with Rev. Ken Koole, who had been preaching and teaching catechism classes in the CPRC during the last two weeks. The next Sunday, he took the services in the Limerick Reformed Fellowship (LRF).

Other News

Due in part to the pile-up of other work after our trip to America (and Canada) for the RFPA speech (24 September - 8 October), my usual bimonthly letter has become, in this instance, a quarterly letter, covering the period from 17 August almost to the end of this calendar year. During these four months and ten days, we had an excellent haul of 60 new translations, including 14 Hungarian, 7 Portuguese (by a Brazilian believer who migrated to Australia and his brother back in Brazil), 6 Polish (by a new translator), 6 Russian (including the “Foreword” and the first three chapters to the British Reformed Fellowship book, Be Ye Holy by Profs. Hanko and Engelsma), 3 N. Sotho and 3 Zulu (all of the Three Forms of Unity in these two languages were supplied to me by a brother from South Africa), 1 Afrikaans, 1 French, and 1 Italian.

However, it is our Spanish section that has seen the largest increase in the last quarter of a year (www.cprf.co.uk/languages/spanish.html). Doner Bartolon of First PRC in Grand Rapids sent us 18 translations, mostly of Rev. Rodney Kleyn's Reformed Witness Hour addresses on eschatology, along with links to their Spanish video recordings on the PRC Español YouTube channel. We added Doner's contact details at the bottom of all of our 195 Spanish translations and he has already heard from two interested brethren in Chile.

Besides visitors to our Sunday services from the PRC (about ten saints), England, and Canada, Mary and I enjoyed hosting Peter and Bec DeJong from Launceston Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Australia (13-15 October), as well as Giovanni and Sarah Pecora from Turin in Italy (10-17 November). The Pecoras heard of the CPRC through the over 550 items on our Italian webpage (www.cprf. co.uk/languages/italian.htm).

The CPRC Reformation Day Lecture this year was titled, “Two Men from Trier: Karl Marx (and Communism) and Caspar Olevianus (and the Heidelberg Catechism)” (26 October). 2018 was the 200th anniversary of the birth of Karl Marx from Trier in western Germany. Trier is also the city of Caspar Olevianus, one of the principal authors of our Heidelberg Catechism. The speech compared and contrasted these two men from Trier: their lives, their main works, their ideas, and the results of their ideas. Key issues in the clash of worldviews between Marx’s atheistic communism and Olevianus’ Reformed faith include origins, alienation, work, private property, class struggle, the good life, history, and the end times! Much of the left-wing, anti-Christian, politically-correct world is based on Marxist and neo-Marxist thinking. The video, complete with a PowerPoint presentation, is online (www.youtube.com/watch?v= tN34URO2NXU).

I gave the same speech, also with slides, in South Wales (22 November). The lecture was very well attended and it was followed by a lively discussion.

My previous speech in South Wales was “Christ Our Sacrifice in Isaiah 53” (31 August). Before the lecture, Mary and I headed to Devon in SW England to check out two possible venues for a British Reformed Fellowship (BRF) conference. The first was Heatree Activity Centre in the wild and rugged Dartmoor National Park (www.heatreeactivitycentre. co.uk). The second was Brunel Manor in the English Riviera, the mansion in which Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the great mechanical and civil engineer, intended to retire (www.brunel manor.com).

Reports of July's BRF conference on “The Reformed Family—According to the Word of God” with Prof. David Engelsma and Rev. Andy Lanning were carried in the English Churchman (14 & 21 September) and Evangelicals Now (October). An article about Rev. Martyn McGeown's excellent book Grace and Assurance: The Message of the Canons of Dordt was published in the Ballymena Guardian (13 December) and the Tyrone Courier.

Our Tuesday morning Bible class has enjoyed studying the burnt, peace, sin, and trespass offerings in Leviticus 1-7 and how they picture the work of Jesus Christ. Some of the results of these studies are to be found on-line in two tables: “The 6 Stages in Offering the 4 Bloody Sacrifices in Leviticus 1-7” and “Lessons Regarding Sin, Christ, and Our Calling from the 4 Bloody Sacrifices in Leviticus 1-7” (www.cprf.co.uk/quotes.htm#sacrifices).

The second and third box sets of the Wednesday night classes on baptism from Belgic Confession 34 are entitled “OT Prophecy on the Children of Believers in the NT Age” (covering Isaiah 40-61, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel 34-37 in 6 CDs) and “NT Teaching on the Children of Believers” (8 CDs treating passages in all four gospel accounts, Acts and most of Paul's epistles, plus the relationship between circumcision and baptism, and the Reformed view of covenant children). These doctrinal box sets are available from the CPRC at a very reasonable rate and all the Belgic Confession audios can also be listened to free on-line (www.cprf.co.uk/audio/belgicconfessionclass.htm).

The CPRC YouTube page recently reached the 1,000 subscriber mark (www.youtube.com/ user/CPRCNI). Stephen Murray, our audio-visual man, has put many hours of hard work into putting thousands of our videos online, and making DVDs and CDs.
The new British Reformed Journal (BRJ) was recently published, with articles on “Answering the Fool” (Rev. McGeown), “Our Covenant God: Friend, Husband, and Father (3)” (Seminarian Matt Kortus), “Martin Luther and God’s Saving Righteousness (2)” (Rev. Stewart), and “God’s Universal Church: A Report on the 2018 BRF Conference” (Rhonda Boer). US subscribers will soon be receiving their copies. Subscription for 4 issues of the BRJ for those in North America costs $20 (US). Simply make your check payable to “Mary Stewart” and mail it (with your name and address) to Mr. Fred Hanko, at his new address: 725 Baldwin St., #A-18, Jenison, MI 49428.

Our thanks to all who sent us letters, cards, and emails. We ask for your indulgence in not replying individually for we already post thousands of items every year (Covenant Reformed News, BRJ, books, free pamphlets, and other church work).
The Lord be with you all in 2019!

Rev. Angus & Mary Stewart

19 Dec

New Salt Shakers Magazine - November 2018

Published in Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore

"Covenant Keepers", the youth ministry of the Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore (our sister church), has now released the November 2018 issue of "Salt Shakers" (#52),their youth magazine.

The NOVEMBER 2018 issue of "SS" is once again filled with interesting and instructive articles, and our PRC young people especially are encouraged to make it part of their reading content.

Below you will find a note from the "SS" Committee introducing the contents of this issue and images of the cover and table of contents. The entire issue is also attached here in pdf form.

SS 50 Dec 2018

Beloved readers,

In God's providence, we have been brought through another year, one closer to the return of our Lord. What roads have we traveled and what choices have we made in the last twelve months?

Where shall the Lord lead us in the year to come? By God's grace we will do this or that, but hopefully reading Salt Shakers (and being edified therein) will be a high priority!

Our deep appreciation for all our writers' contributions and our utmost thanks to God for sustaining and sanctifying the work of wretched sinners.

Inside the September issue:

Editorial: Choices - Chua Lee Yang

Scripture's Covenant Youth (XIV): A Nameless Girl - Prof. Herman Hanko

Love for God's People - Rev. Steven Key

Quit You Like Men (III) - Woon Tian Loong

The Importance of Christian Education - Rev. Joshua Engelsma

The Christian in the World (II) The Calling of a Covenant Mother - Dorcas Lee

Signs of Our Lord's Return: North Korean Relations - Daniel Tang

Overtaken in a Fault - Lim Yang Zhi

History of the PRCA's Missions in Foreign Fields - Rev. Daniel Kleyn

Fellowship with God (I): Grounded on Justification - Rev Nathan Langerak

The (Protestant Reformed) "Declaration of Principles" - Prof. David Engelsma

Book Review: Decisions, Decisions: How (and How Not) to Make Them - Chang Zhi Hui

Pro Rege,

Chua Lee Yang

On Behalf of the Salt Shakers Committee

01 Dec

Covenant Reformed News - November 2018

Published in Covenant PRC Ballymena, Northern Ireland

Covenant Reformed News

November 2018 • Volume XVII, Issue 7

Zechariah’s Day of the Lord (1)

When a Christian reads Zechariah 14, his main exegetical question can be expressed in one word: when? When did or when will these things come to pass?

Some very deliberately try to make this chapter fit with their millennial systems. The various forms of premillennialism seek to make it compatible with their idea of the millennium, a literalistic 1,000 year reign of Christ on earth. Here one thinks of dispensational premillennialism (with its secret rapture and literal seven-year tribulation), historic Jewish premillennialism (without any secret rapture or literal seven-year tribulation) and historic non-Jewish premillennialism (like the former position only without its Jewish trappings). In fact, the various schools of premillennialism see Zechariah 14 as furnishing them with one of their best arguments for their millennium.

The distinguishing feature of postmillennialism is its claim that Jesus Christ will return to a Christianized world of great earthly peace and prosperity, in which most are believers. For them, Zechariah 14 must fit their eschatological scheme. However, the Second Helvetic Confession (1566) summarizes biblical and Reformed teaching: “we condemn the Jewish dreams that before the day of judgment there shall be a golden world in the earth; and that the godly shall possess the kingdoms of the world, their wicked enemies being trodden under foot: for the evangelical truth, Matthew 24 and 25, and Luke 21, and the apostolic doctrine in the second epistle to the Thessalonians 2, and in the second epistle to Timothy 3 and 4, are found to teach far otherwise” (11).

Others interpret Zechariah 14 as being fulfilled in events or ages that have happened or are happening or will happen. Some say that this chapter predicts the wars of the Maccabees in the middle of the intertestamental period. Others reckon that it prophesies the fall of Jerusalem to the Romans in AD 70 or the New Testament age between Pentecost and the end of the world or the Lord’s second coming. To complicate things further, some see Zechariah 14 as speaking of two or more of the above events or periods.

Here are three simple arguments proving that Zechariah 14—here we are especially thinking of its first 15 verses—predicts Christ’s bodily return, including events that immediately precede it, and the new heavens and the new earth that it ushers in.

First, the chapter begins, “Behold, the day of the Lord cometh” (1). An eschatological technical term, “the day of the Lord” in the Old Testament refers to a terrible divine judgment, such as the fall of Samaria or Jerusalem or Babylon, which pictures the end of the world (e.g., Isa. 2:12; 13:6; 34:8; Jer. 46:10; Lam. 2:22; Eze. 30:3; Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11; 3:14; Amos 5:18, 20; Obad. 15; Zeph. 1:7-8, 18; 2:2-3). The day of the Lord in the New Testament is the day of the Lord Jesus Christ: His second coming to raise the dead, judge the world, and usher in the eternal states of the glorified creation and the lake of fire.

Second, Zechariah 14 refers to the Lord coming with all His holy ones: “the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee” (5). This is the Christian hope: the return of the Lord Jesus Christ (“the Lord my God shall come”) accompanied by His holy angels and glorified believers (“all the saints with thee”). In His Olivet discourse, Christ spoke of “the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels” (Matt. 24:30-31).

Third, Revelation 21-22 explains the fulfilment of three aspects of Zechariah 14 in the new heavens and the new earth. One, with regard to light, Zechariah says, “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: But it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light” (6-7). John declares, “And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof” (Rev. 21:23). Two, concerning living water, we read, “And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem” (Zech. 14:8). In “the city” (Rev. 21:23), the “new Jerusalem” (2), “he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb” (22:1). Three, both proclaim the removal of God’s curse: “there shall be no more utter destruction [i.e., curse]” (Zech. 14:11) and “there shall be no more curse” (Rev. 22:3).

Here we anticipate an objection: “You have made a good case for Zechariah 14’s predicting the end of the world, including its immediately preceding events and the new creation it ushers in, with your arguments from ‘the day of the Lord’ (1), the Lord’s coming with His holy ones (5), and Zechariah’s prophesies of light, living waters and no curse as fulfilled in Revelation 21-22. But maybe it is only parts of Zechariah 14:1-15 that refer to Christ’s second coming? Perhaps other sections deal with the Maccabees or AD 70 or the New Testament age?”

We observe that Zechariah 14:1-15 consists of six clearly identifiable units: 1-2, 3-5, 6-7, 8, 9-11 and 12-15. Note that there is a temporal indicator in each of the six portions. Verse 1 speaks of “the day of the Lord,” taking care of the first section (1-2). As for the next portion (3-5), it contains the phrase “in that day” (4), referring back to “the day of the Lord” (1), and it predicts the Lord’s coming with all His holy ones (5). The first verse of the next three sections (6-7, 8, 9-11) all include “in that day” (6, 8, 9). This same temporal indicator also occurs in verse 13 in the last unit (12-15).

Furthermore, we will see in our future instalments on Zechariah 14, DV, that everything in the passage fits with this interpretation and nothing opposes it. Rev. Stewart

The Order of Regeneration and Faith

Galatians 3:2, 14 reads, “This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? ... That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” A reader comments, “This would seem to suggest that faith comes before regeneration, but we believe that regeneration is immediate and faith the result. Could you please explain?”

The question of the place of faith in the order of salvation as applied to the elect has exercised the church for many years. This was especially true of the Reformed churches in the Netherlands. The great Dutch theologian, Herman Bavinck, even wrote a book entitled Roeping en Wedergeborte (English: Saved by Grace: The Holy Spirit’s Work in Calling and Regeneration). I believe that the order of salvation is regeneration, calling, faith, justification, sanctification and glorification. But Bavinck placed calling before regeneration for he believed in mediate regeneration, that is, regeneration by means of the preaching of the gospel. He reckoned that God used the call of the preaching to regenerate the elect, but totally depraved, sinner and so give him faith.

That discussion especially concerned the relationship between regeneration and calling through the preaching of the gospel. The present question is the relation between faith and regeneration. Nevertheless, the two are closely related.

It seems to me that there is an assumption of the questioner, namely, that the faith referred to is the conscious faith of the believer whereby he looks to Christ as his only Saviour and Lord. But Galatians 3:2-5 is not referring to the initial work of the Spirit by which God saves the sinner but to the extraordinary signs of the Holy Ghost, such as performing miracles (cf. 5), etc. These gifts were the fruit of conscious faith in Christ.

Regeneration, in which God begins His work of salvation in the heart of the elect sinner, is the gift of the new life that Christ earned for His people by His cross and resurrection (I Pet. 1:3). This work of the Holy Spirit occurs below our consciousness and principally contains in it the whole of our salvation: faith, conversion, justification, sanctification and glorification (Eph. 1:3). The “seed” of regeneration (I Pet. 1:23; I John 3:9) develops into all the other blessings consciously received by the child of God. It develops as an acorn contains the entire oak in seed form but does not produce the whole oak until it grows into a tree.

It is my judgment that Galatians 3:2-5 teaches that the Holy Spirit gave some in the early church the power to do miracles, speak in other languages, etc. My ground for saying this is that Paul speaks of receiving the Spirit “by the hearing of faith.” The genitive “of faith” is a genitive of source, that is, hearing has its source in faith. One must have faith (as a power) before one can truly hear the gospel and lay hold on it (faith as an activity). One will only hear the gospel, in the sense of believing it to be the saving Word of Christ to him, if the Spirit has first worked faith in his heart.

There is the two-edged sword of the gospel. Jesus speaks of this in Matthew 13:13, where He quotes Isaiah 6:9-10 to explain the (unbelieving) hearing of the gospel by those who do not have faith: “Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.” To those who believe, Christ proclaims, “But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear” (Matt. 13:16).

Now we need to say more about the order of salvation with regard to faith and regeneration. The Arminian heresy teaches that one must, by one’s own free will, ask for regeneration before one receives it. It was this carnal idea that faith precedes regeneration that prompted Billy Graham to write a book entitled, How to Be Born Again.

How foolish! One can no more give oneself the spiritual birth than one can give oneself a physical birth. Only those possessing spiritual life can manifest it in believing the gospel. Only those with a new heart can trust in Jesus Christ from the heart.

Without contradicting what has just been said and without falling into any form of Arminianism, there is a sense, however, in which regeneration and faith come logically and chronologically in exactly the same place in the order of salvation.

To explain, I need to distinguish more clearly two different aspects of faith: faith as a bond or a power and faith as an activity. Most are familiar with the latter so I will now set forth the former with the help of Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 7. The Catechism has spoken of the total depravity of those who are in the generations of Adam and Eve. The Catechism has said that the only way to be saved from this sinful state is by the Mediator, Jesus Christ. Then comes the inevitable question: “Are all men then, as they perished in Adam, saved by Christ?” The answer is most emphatic: NO!

If all men are not saved, who then is saved? The answer is “only those who are ingrafted into [Christ] ... by a true faith.” The figure of grafting, used here, comes from John 15. It is a technique practised in horticulture. The figure is this. Christ is the vine. He lives out of His own life, which He gained through His mighty resurrection from the dead. Of ourselves, we are dead branches with no life. But we are grafted into Christ. It is His life that we receive at regeneration. It is new life, life free from sin, life greater than Adam possessed, life of covenant fellowship with the Triune God.

This life comes to us only through the bond of faith which grafts us into Christ. This is faith: the graft that binds us to Christ. Out of this graft or bond of faith comes the activity of faith, our receiving as truth all that God has revealed in His Word and resting in Jesus Christ crucified for all of our salvation.

Like regeneration, the graft of faith is given us by God without our being conscious of it at the time. This bond of faith is given to some covenant children even before they are born physically, like Jacob (Gen. 25:22-26; Hos. 12:3; Rom. 9:11-13). This faith puts us into union with Christ, our life. One cannot graft a branch into another tree without the life of the mother tree flowing into the branch. We received the life of Christ, eternal life, when we were born again or grafted into Him by a true faith. Out of this flows our conscious trusting of Him—the activity of faith. Let us abide in Christ and His love, as John 15 teaches! Prof. Hanko

Forward

01 Nov

Reformed News Asia - October 2018

Published in Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore

Issue 51 - October 2018

NEWPamphlet!

Ageing

By Rev. den Hartog Arie & Lubbers MaryBeth

"Now also when I am old and greyheaded, O God, forsake me not..."
Psalm 71:18

"For I know [Abraham], that he will command his children and his household after him...."
Genesis 18:19

Click here to view our catalogue of pamphlets.

Click here to make an order.

All pamphlets are free. CERC reserves some discretion regarding large orders and/or orders from those outside Singapore.

Featured Book

For local orders (S'pore), please contact Ms Daisy Lim at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For international orders, click here.

Grace and Assurance
by Martyn McGeown

From the RFPA website:

In 1618-19 the great Synod of Dordt met to counter the Arminian error that was threatening the peace and welfare of the Reformed churches in the Netherlands. The fruit of their deliberations was the Canons of Dordt, a creed which has defined the Calvinist, Reformed faith for centuries.

This accessible commentary on the Canons leads readers through the comforting message of the creed: being wholly saved by God’s grace—not one’s own merit—comes with the steadfast assurance of eternal and unchangeable election.

Audio Recordings

Click to listen to some sermons from 1 Timothy by Rev Joseph Holstege

The Salvation of the Chief Sinner
Male Leadership in Public Worship
The Women Called To Learn Quietly

Upcoming Events!

Reformation Day Conference 2018

Come join us in commemorating Reformation day this November!

Details in the poster below.

Vacation Bible School 2018

Details for VBS 2018 are out!

Date: 11 - 13 Dec 2018
Theme: Are you a Christ-like Giver?
Text: Eph 5:2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour.
Location: CERC
Registration: 4 - 25 Nov 2018

For further queries please contact Cheryl, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

CKCKS Camp 2018

The annual CKCKS Camp is back again! Save the dates!

Dates: 19-22 Dec 2018
Location: Pasir Ris Aloha Loyang

More details to be out soon!

Past Events...

CERC 31st Anniversary

CERC celebrated her 31st anniversary on 23rd September, under the theme 'Wall of Fire' (Zec 2:5). An exhortation was given by Elder Lee, followed by song presentations and a video which consist of greetings from friends and sister churches. The cake this year was surrounded by some very exciting candles and firecrackers. We are thankful to God for His grace and presevation yet another year, in providing for our needs and keeping us as a faithful church. May we continue to do everything for God's glory.

Church photo!

Exhortation by Elder Lee

Song presentation by the youths

The very exciting anniversary cake

CERC's session members

Visiting Ministers

We welcomed Rev Daniel Kleyn, his wife Sharon; Rev Spriensma, his wife Alva; and Rev Joseph Holstege, his wife Lisa and their son, Jacob over the past 2 months into our midst. Thank God for their dedicated labour and that we could receive the word of God through the faithful preaching.

Once again, we are very grateful to God for the pulpit supply over the year. May we continue to pray and trust in God in all matters.

Rev Daniel Kleyn and Sharon at Glowing Candles Bible Study

Rev Joseph Holstege, Lisa and Jacob trying local food

Notes

Salt Shakers

27 Oct

Covenant Reformed News - October 2018

Published in Covenant PRC Ballymena, Northern Ireland

Covenant Reformed News

October 2018 • Volume XVII, Issue 6

The Christian’s Wisdom

Fearing the Lord is the repeated definition of wisdom in the Old Testament wisdom literature: “the fear of the Lord ... is wisdom” (Job 28:28; cf. Ps. 111:10; Prov. 1:7; 9:10). The great reality is Jehovah, the Creator, Lord, Saviour and Judge who is revealed in sacred Scripture. We must adapt all of our thinking and behaviour so that it is in accordance with Him. He must be the end and goal of our existence!

Let us consider how this applies to the Christian home. God sees and judges all that goes on. Therefore, we must fear Him and change our ways where necessary. The husband is the head of the house, who must rule in the love of Christ and according to God’s Word. Thus there must be no bullying or lording! The wife is to submit to her husband in the Lord, without manipulating him to get her own way. Covenant children must honour their parents and obey them in the Lord, without answering back. James 3:17 describes “the wisdom that is from above,” which must be exercised in our homes and elsewhere, as being “first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.”

What is it to be wise on the Lord’s day? It is to adapt all things in the light of the reality of Christ’s resurrection from the dead on the first day of the week. It is our wisdom to keep God’s law out of gratitude (Deut. 4:6), including the fourth commandment. We must come to both the services of a faithful church, as those who are prepared spiritually to hear and obey God’s Word. We train our children to do this in wisdom too! We must be wise, building our Lord’s days upon the rock of Christ’s words and not upon the sand of worldly pleasures (cf. Matt. 7:24-27). For example, the believer does not book flights that schedule him to be in an airport or flying on the first day of the week.

Proverbs speaks of three major ways of identifying a fool. First, he caves in to peer pressure (e.g., 1:10-19; 2:12-15; 4:14-17). This involves getting in with a “bad crowd” and joining them in their sin. This is not adapting oneself to God and His Word (wisdom); this is adapting oneself to ungodly people and ways (folly).

Second, he is seduced by women (e.g., 2:16-19; 5:3-23; 6:23-35; 7:4-27; 9:13-18). Going the way of fornication and adultery leads to everlasting hell. Likewise, there are silly women who are deceived by lustful men who tell them what they want to hear, namely, that they are beautiful and wonderful, merely in order to get them into bed.

Third, he does not listen to (godly) parents. Frequently God addresses us in Proverbs as “My son” (or daughter) and commands us to “hear” Him (1:8) or something similar (e.g., 2:1; 3:1, 11, 21; 4:20; 5:1). Our earthly fathers and mothers speak to us after the same fashion. Not heeding those who love us dearly and those to whom God has (ordinarily) granted greater wisdom is the way of disaster.

Proverbs has a lot to say about rightly receiving godly rebukes (e.g., 9:7-9; 24:25; 27:5-6; 28:23). It is wisdom to hearken to the brotherly admonition of church office-bearers. How often do we become angry when rebuked or even huff like little children!

Our need for wisdom touches upon so many different areas of our lives. First, wisdom is necessary for the right use of our tongues. When we utter foolish, hurtful words behind the backs of others or on Facebook or in the church or in our families, our tongues are “set on fire of hell” and that fire can spread quickly (James 3:5-6). How difficult it is to “tame” our tongues (7-8)! “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God” (1:19-20).

Second, we need wisdom with regard to discipline. Proverbs 3:11-12 tells us how we must understand and receive discipline at God’s hand: “My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.” In the light of God’s wise and beneficial discipline of us, we discipline our children: “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him” (22:15).

Third, wisdom enables us rightly to work and rise from sleep. “Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man” (Prov. 6:6-11).

Fourth, we need wisdom to avoid the foolishness of comparing ourselves with others: “For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise” (II Cor. 10:12).

The book of Proverbs especially calls young men (and women) to grow in wisdom. Why? Because ordinarily they have a greater lack of wisdom than they think. Because young people must make big decisions as regards friendships, education and work, courtship and marriage, church, etc. Because often they reckon that they can make these decisions alone, especially without the advice or even approval of faithful parents.

Let us all confess our foolish sins and receive forgiveness in Christ crucified. Let us pray for wisdom: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him” (James 1:5). Let us cry out for it “as silver” or “hid treasures” with all our hearts (Prov. 2:3-4). Rev. Stewart

The Salt of the Earth

A reader asks about Matthew 5:13: “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.”

The most common view is that the salt refers to Christians who bring about the day in which all believe in the Lord Jesus so that the kingdom of God is established here on earth. One way to do this is to Christianize all the institutions of life (the home, the church, the schools, the state, the work place and marriage). This is the postmillennial interpretation of the text. If God’s people do what they can to make this world Christian, they will bring about the kingdom of heaven here in this world.

It is, of course, a ridiculous idea that we can bring about the establishment of the kingdom of Christ. As one man said to my grandson who was applying for studies in a Christian college, “I am building the kingdom with my chain saw.” He probably meant that he was using his chain saw to rebuild houses destroyed by a hurricane.

Jesus smashes that interpretation with His statement that the kingdom of heaven comes not with observation, for the kingdom is within God’s people (Luke 17:20-21).

I have no interest in an earthly kingdom for in such a kingdom its citizens are still sinners, including me. I want and need and look forward to a kingdom where I will be forever beyond and free from sin to worship the Lord. This is a spiritual kingdom which will come only “within” me, worked by the Holy Spirit who applies to all the elect the blessings of the cross of Jesus Christ. A chain saw or any other earthly tool will not build the kingdom of heaven, no matter how well it is wielded.

Salt is necessary for animals and human beings to live and function properly. That is why huge tribes of barbarians at the beginning of the medieval period would travel long distances for salt. That is not the idea of Matthew 5:13, however, for it speaks of “the salt of the earth.”

Looking elsewhere for the meaning, we note that for many ages salt has been used to preserve many things, chiefly meat, especially before refrigeration. While salt is not intended to preserve meat for a long period of time, it worked well for a while.

Jesus calls His elect people “the salt of the earth” near the start of His Sermon on the Mount and immediately after the beatitudes (Matt. 5:3-12), which define the nature of the true citizens of the kingdom of heaven. The citizens of Christ’s kingdom are not characterized by building houses with chain saws; they are defined as those who are poor, meek, spiritually hungry and thirsty, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers and persecuted. These are strange characteristics of citizens of an earthly kingdom but they perfectly fit these citizens because the kingdom of God is spiritual.

Jesus goes on to say that, because the citizens of the kingdom of heaven possess these characteristics, they are able to be the salt of the earth. Their presence on the earth is the only reason why the world continues to exist. If it were not for the presence in God’s creation of these elect citizens of the kingdom of heaven, the world would be destroyed. Salt preserves things and so the citizens of the kingdom of heaven are essential for the preservation of this present creation until all the elect are saved.

Remember, first, that God’s elect are not a mob from which some may be taken or some added without doing any damage to the whole. God’s people are the body of Christ (I Cor. 12), an organic whole in which each member is necessary for the whole and has his or her individual place, a place different from that of every other saint.

Second, each elect member is preserved and cannot be lost (John 10:28-30). The world has to last until the last elect is born and brought to faith in Christ.

Third, the world and every creature is formed by God for the salvation of His elect. That is why Holy Writ can say that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Rom. 8:28). Reprobation is necessary for election and manifests the strict justice of God.

Remember when God told Abraham that He was about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah? Abraham knew that righteous Lot lived in Sodom and he wondered whether a just man would also be destroyed with the wicked. Fearful of calling into question the purposes of the mighty God, Abraham asked indirectly for Lot’s salvation, pleading for the sparing of the cities. God assured Abraham that He would not destroy Sodom even if there were only ten righteous people there (Gen. 18:17-33).

II Peter 3:9 is another such passage, though it is often twisted in support of the heresy of an ineffectual divine desire to save the reprobate. The church of Peter’s day was being persecuted. Because the Lord did not return immediately to save His church, His promised second coming seemed to have failed. Peter reminds the saints that God is not slow in fulfilling His promise but rather that all the elect must be saved before Christ can come again. If Jesus had returned when the saints wanted Him to come, we would never have been saved! But God is longsuffering toward us, and Christ will not come until all the elect are born and brought to saving faith. Are absolutely all men the objects of the divine longsuffering? No! God’s longsuffering saves (II Pet. 3:15)!

Finally, we ourselves also wonder why heaven does not burst open so that the holy wrath of God drives the wicked into hell. The world is full of people who ignore Him, deny Him and blaspheme His name with terrible curses. They openly deride the Scriptures and walk in the most horrible sins, often while working to make these sins enshrined in civil law. About 125,000 unborn babies are murdered every day in our world; homosexuality is openly practised before the very face of God. Our world not only does these things but it takes pleasure in those that do them (Rom. 1:32). Wickedness is made legal so that to call these things sin may be opening oneself to punishment by the state.

To sum it all up, God loves His elect and gave Christ for them only. He cannot destroy all the wicked until the last elect is saved. Somewhere in our corrupt world is the God-fearing couple from whom that last elect will be born.

When persecution comes and God’s people are hard-pressed by the hatred of the wicked, and we wonder why Christ does not come to rescue them, let us remember that He will come but that the whole church must be born and born again first. Prof. Hanko

Forward

CPRC Reformation Day Lecture

Two Men From Trier:
Karl Marx (and Communism) and Caspar Olevianus (and the Heidelberg Catechism)

2018 is the 200th anniversary of the birth of Karl Marx from Trier, NW Germany. Trier is also the city of Caspar Olevianus, one of the principal authors of the Heidelberg Catechism. This speech will compare and contrast these two men from Trier: their lives, their main works, their ideas and the results of their ideas. Key issues in the clash of worldviews between Marx’s communism and Olevianus’ Reformed faith include origins, alienation, work, private property, class struggle, the good life, marriage, history and the end times!

Speaker: Rev. Angus Stewart

Date: Friday, 26 October, at 7:30 PM

at Covenant Protestant
Reformed Church
(83 Clarence Street, Ballymena, BT43 5DR)

All are welcome!

www.cprc.co.uk

Unable to join us in Ballymena? The lecture will be streamed live at http://www.cprf.co.uk/live.html

South Wales Lecture

Thursday, 22 November
7:15 PM

Speaker:
Rev. Angus Stewart

Subject:
Two Men From Trier:
Karl Marx (and Communism) and Caspar Olevianus (and the Heidelberg Catechism)

Venue:
Margam Community Centre
Bertha Road, Margam, Port Talbot, SA13 2AP

www.cprf.co.uk/swales.htm

Grace & Assurance:
The Message of the Canons of Dordt

by Martyn McGeown
(384 pp., hardback)

In 1618-1619, the great Synod of Dordt met to counter the Arminian error that was threatening the peace and welfare of Christ’s churches in the Netherlands. The fruit of their deliberations was the Canons of Dordt, which set forth the scriptural truth of unconditional election (and reprobation), limited (or particular) atonement, total depravity, irresistible grace and the perseverance of the saints.

This accessible commentary on the Canons leads readers through the biblical and comforting message of the creed: being wholly saved by God’s efficacious grace, we have the steadfast assurance of our eternal election and blessed glorification.

Zechariah’s Burden Upon Israel

9 sermons from Zechariah 12-14
on CD or DVD in an attractive box set

Powerful prophecies of the Messiah, the gracious pouring out of the Spirit, the preservation and unity of the church, the climax of the holy
war, the fulfilment of the feast of tabernacles, the entire sanctification of the whole world—without any hint of premillennialism!

(1) God’s Preservation of Besieged Jerusalem (12:1-9)
(2) The Pierced One and the Spirit of Grace (12:10-14)
(3) A Fountain Opened (13:1)
(4) The Departure of the False Prophets (13:2-6)
(5) The Sword Awakening Against God’s Shepherd (13:7-9)
(6) Zechariah’s Day of the Lord (14:1-15)
(7) Jehovah’s Gracious Kingship Universally Affirmed (14:1-15)
(8) All Nations Keeping the Feast of Tabernacles (14:16-19)
(9) Holiness Unto the Lord! (14:20-21)

£8/box set
(inc. P&P)

Listen free on-line
or order from the
CPRC Bookstore
by post or telephone
7 Lislunnan Road, Kells, N. Ireland BT42 3NR
(028) 25891851

Make cheques payable to “Covenant Protestant Reformed Church.”
Thank you!

13 Oct

New Salt Shakers Magazine - September 2018 (#51)

Published in Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore

"Covenant Keepers", the youth ministry of the Covenant Evangelical Reformed Church of Singapore (our sister church), has now released the September 2018 issue of "Salt Shakers" (#51),their youth magazine.

The SEPTEMBER 2018 issue of "SS" is once again filled with interesting and instructive articles, and our PRC young people especially are encouraged to make it part of their reading content.

Below you will find a note from the "SS" Committee introducing the contents of this issue and images of the cover and table of contents. The entire issue is also attached here in pdf form.

Inside the September issue:

Editorial: A Reflection on Christian Liberty (II) - Chua Lee Yang

Scripture's Covenant Youth (XIII): Jeremiah - Prof. Herman Hanko

Are Unbelievers in God's Image? (IX) - Rev. Angus Stewart

Quit You Like Men (I) - Woon Tian Loong

Marriage is Not For Me (I) - Marcus and Tze Yan Wee

Let No Men Despise Thy Youth! - Deuel Teo

The Need For and Urgency of Reading (II) - Rev. Arie Den Hartog

Rejoicing and Weeping Together (III): In The Home - Lim Yang Zhi

The Music of the World - Lim Ruo Xi

Covenant People - Lee Kong Wee

Of Treasures Hid in Sand - Cassia Lee

Artificial Intelligence - Cornelius Boon

Book Review: Boyhood and Beyond - Jean Lim

Answer to last issue's riddle: Covenant children!

Did you get it? Test your wit and Bible knowledge on the new one!

Pro Rege,
Chua Lee Yang
On Behalf of the Salt Shakers Committee

More...

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Missions Menu

Our Lord's Great Commission

Mark1615-1 In obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ we go, here in North America and abroad. Pray for the work of our churches, our mission committees, our missionaries - and pray for those who hear!

The Heidelberg Catechism:

Question 54. What believest thou concerning the "holy catholic church" of Christ?

Answer. That the Son of God from the beginning to the end of the world, gathers, defends, and preserves to himself by his Spirit and word, out of the whole human race, a church chosen to everlasting life, agreeing in true faith; and that I am and for ever shall remain, a living member thereof.

The Canons of Dordt

1st Head, Article 3: And that men may be brought to believe, God mercifully sends the messengers of these most joyful tidings, to whom he will and at what time he pleaseth; by whose ministry men are called to repentance and faith in Christ crucified. Romans 10:14, 15:"How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except they be sent?"

2nd Head, Article 5: Moreover, the promise of the gospel is, that whosoever believeth in Christ crucified, shall not perish, but have everlasting life. This promise, together with the command to repent and believe, ought to be declared and published to all nations, and to all persons promiscuously and without distinction, to whom God out of his good pleasure sends the gospel.

Missions of the Protestant Reformed Churches in America

Sister and Other Church Relationships

Berean PRC, Antipolo City - Pastors: Rev. V. Ibe; Rev. L. Trinidad (emeritus)

Provident PRC - Pastor:

Covenant Reformed News

February 2019 • Volume XVII, Issue 10

Zechariah’s Day of the Lord (4)

The Intermediate State

Covenant Reformed News

January 2019 • Volume XVII, Issue 9

Zechariah’s Day of the Lord (3)

Polygamy in the Old Testament

Covenant Protestant Reformed ChurchBallymena, NI

Inside the September issue:

Editorial: Choices - Chua Lee Yang

Scripture's Covenant Youth (XIV): A Nameless Girl - Prof. Herman Hanko

Love for God's People - Rev. Steven Key

Quit You Like Men (III) - Woon Tian Loong

The Importance of Christian Education - Rev. Joshua Engelsma

The Christian in the World (II) The Calling of a Covenant Mother - Dorcas Lee

Signs of Our Lord's Return: North Korean Relations - Daniel Tang

Overtaken in a Fault - Lim Yang Zhi

History of the PRCA's Missions in Foreign Fields - Rev. Daniel Kleyn

Fellowship with God (I): Grounded on Justification - Rev Nathan Langerak

Covenant Reformed News

November 2018 • Volume XVII, Issue 7

Zechariah’s Day of the Lord (1)

The Order of Regeneration and Faith

Covenant Reformed News

October 2018 • Volume XVII, Issue 6

The Christian’s Wisdom

The Salt of the Earth

More...

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Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
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