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Joy - An Advent Reflection Pt 2

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  In last week’s letter I began talking about joy, drawing from Psalm 43:4, “ to God my exceeding joy ” (Psalm 43:4). That then led us to Augustine and his prayer in his “Confessions”. After I wrote that last week, I began thinking: Since God himself is that joy itself, then how do we enter into the solidarity of that joy? The answer is that having the joy that is God himself, comes from God. As Paul declared when talking about laying down our rights for the good of one another, “ For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit ” (Romans 14:17). The kingdom of God is not about us flaunting our expressive individualism, asserting our prejudiced self-priorities – “ eating and drinking. ” Rather, the reign of God is exhibited, displayed, experienced, and made clear by three virtuous qualities: righteousness, peace and “ joy IN the Holy Spirit .” The location or address of joy is the Holy Spirit himself (thus th...
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"O Lord God, Unlike Us, Unlimited, Unrestrained, Unmarred" - 7 December 2025

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  O Lord God, unlike us in your very being, unlimited by space, unrestrained by time, untouched by mortality, and unmarred by sin; yet you made us to bear and reflect your image in some way so that we might have warm communion with you! And even more, after our open rebellion you sent your Son who became as full-bloodedly and full-bodily human as we are to bring us back into communion with you! What an astounding thought! O Lord, we adore you and thank you! In grateful communion with you we plead with you for the world and the Church. Look upon the nations of this world, including our own country. See all of the spite, uprisings, commotions, mayhem, wars, droughts, flooding, wild-fires, government-approved barbarity, orchestrated impoverishments, socially sanctioned human-sex-and-drug trafficking, as well as tribal and racial bigotry. Therefore we implore you to steer, steady and stabilize all nations; restore and renew sound justice; bring substantial relief; provide help to the o...
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"Messiah the Prince" by William Symington. A Slight Assessment.

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  If I have it figured out, William Symington, a Scottish Covenanter for the 19 th Century, wrote “Messiah the Prince: The Mediatorial Dominion of Jesus Christ” as an apologetic for his branch of the Scottish Reformed and Presbyterian Churches in Scotland, many of whom had immigrated to the America, but also had congregations in Ireland, France, and beyond.   His points (in a nutshell) seem to be: 1. Jesus fulfills the threefold office of Prophet, Priest, and King. These three offices, though having different functions, are indivisible. To receive Christ as (atoning, saving) Priest, one has the whole Jesus – including his royal office (King) and declarative office (Prophet). One can’t pick and choose. It is very much the way the saving LORD (Isaiah 32:5-6) puts it in Isaiah 32:22, “For the LORD is our judge; the LORD is our lawgiver; the LORD is our king; he will save us.”   2. As the prophetic, priestly King, he exercises his whole authority for his church, “A...
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"The Redeemed Man" Edited by Beeke, Phillips, and Smalley. A Review

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  There are many voices noting that men and fathers have forfeited the game and thrown in the towel. Some of those voices coach their male audiences to curl up in fetal positions, kick their feet, swing for the air and squall victimhood. Others instruct their viewers that they must reassert themselves forcefully, maybe even abusively, manhandling women and a womanized world. But some authors and talking heads that see the multidimensional problem squarely, are beckoning men to return to the game, unashamed of their masculinity, and to step out in manly fashion, even as gentlemen. And these fill the spectrum from Louis Perry to Jordan Petterson to Anthony Bradley, and more. Soon, Reformation Heritage Books will be stepping into the ring to offer biblical direction for men with a 296-page paperback, “The Redeemed Man” edited by Joel R. Beeke, Richard D. Phillips and Paul M. Smalley. This straightforward volume includes chapters of scriptural direction from a number of pastors and tea...
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Joy - An Advent Reflection

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  Joy is a word that shows up repeatedly in Advent and Christmas. Some think it’s simply happiness. Others assume it means pleasure. A few might even consider it to imply amusement. But real joy seems to come from a deeper place than peppy surface emotions. As one of the Psalm writers describes it, “ to God my exceeding joy ” (Psalm 43:4). And that writer didn’t scribble those words flippantly. He was in a very dark place, a distant land, a far-off spot longing for “ God my exceeding joy .” [1]   Augustine gets at the same point in his Confessions . I have pondered these words during dismal and dreary times, as well as happier seasons. I have quoted them in numerous sermons at Heritage over the last 13 years, and will likely do so until the end of my days. And as we move through Advent to Christmas, it just seems fitting to hear from Augustine about joy, once more: “There is a joy which is not given to the ungodly, but to those who love you for your own sake, whose joy y...
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"I Love You, O LORD..." - 30 November 2025

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  “ I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies. The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation ” (Psalm 18:1-3, 46). Holy God, we pray for all nations and countries, these United States of America, Sudan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Syria, Libya, Luxembourg, Laos and Lithuania, and for the leaders of the world. O God be gracious to us and bless us and make your face to shine upon us, that your way may be known on earth, your saving power among all nations. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you! Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you (Psalm 67:1-5)! We give you thanks for ...
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On Thanksgiving, Giving Thanks, and a Thanksgiving Litany - 2025

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  (The following is from my letter to my congregation today, 25 November 2025) Thursday is our national day of thanksgiving. The Westminster Confession of Faith reminds us that legitimate worship of God includes things such as, “ thanksgivings upon special occassions, which are, in their several times and seasons, to be used in an holy and religious manner ” (21.5). Therefore, as our nation has opened itself up to establishing a countrywide holiday (old English for holy day ) to give thanks, we should heartily jump in and help others engage the day “ in an holy and religious manner .”   So, at the least, we all ought to be praying for our country over this four-day weekend. Pray that God would use this season to rouse the hearts of the citizens and inhabitants of this country to actually realize that we owe thanks to our Creator, who has bestowed on us certain unalienable Rights, among which are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness ( The Declaration of Independence...
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