Why the Virgin Birth of the Son?
Have you ever wondered why Matthew 1:23 quotes Isaiah 7:14? Perhaps the ready answer is that the quote substantiates the virgin conception and birth of Christ, which is true enough. …
Jeffrey Stivason
Jeffrey A Stivason (Ph.D. Westminster Theological Seminary) is pastor of Grace Reformed Presbyterian Church in Gibsonia, PA. He is also Professor of New Testament Studies at the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, PA. Jeff is the Editorial Director of Ref21 and Place for Truth both online magazines of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals.
For Instruction, Doctrine, and Morals: The Analogy of Scripture
Panel discussions are great. I love the unscripted “off the cuff” format because it is in those moments that you often get the best help from a speaker. I remember…
The Preacher and Teacher: The Intersection of Duties
For me, as for so many others, Sinclair Ferguson has been and continues to be one of my heroes in the faith. While a Ph.D. student at Westminster Theological Seminary…
The Reason to Give Thanks
I was in a store just a couple of days ago when a smiling clerk asked if she could help my wife and me with some pictures we were admiring. …
Heaven on Earth?: Some Hard Questions & Some Help
It is fitting that Christians should love the springtime of the soul, the bodily resurrection that will come in God’s time. But how much do we really know about the…
Heaven on Earth? The Beatific Vision
“Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). I am captivated by this beatitude. All of them are deeply searching and logical. There is precision…
Why Get Married?
Many Americans are still marrying but an increasing number are not. So, why aren’t people getting married these days? Recently, I was reading an article by a secular psychologist who…
Still Protesting: Trent Ruins Everything!
I teach a small weekly Bible study that is attended by a couple of Roman Catholics one of which is practicing and the other is not. A third member has…
Still Protesting: the Donum Superadditum
“Why can’t you get past the objections of Luther and his progeny?” That was the question that came plaintively from the man who sat opposite the pastor in the coffee…
Wedding Day Counsel
I will officiate at a wedding ceremony today. My wedding sermons aren’t really sermons but meditations. They are short but calculated. I view the wedding meditation as the last effort…
The Apostles’ Creed: He descended into Hell
Perhaps the phrase that gets stuck in the throat when reciting the Apostle’s Creed is “He (Christ) descended into hell.” And if it does, it wouldn’t surprise me. It was…
Surveying Sanctification: What About God’s Holiness?
Quite a while ago, I met a woman with whom I had attended a particular church several years earlier. At the time of our meeting we were both worshiping in…