Posts by Patrick Ramsey

Look to Jesus

Sep 28, 2021

Note: Read more from the author's "Runner in a Race" series here. One of the many lessons I learned from my cross-country ski coach was to keep my head up and look ahead when skiing, particularly when skiing up a steep hill. Going up a sharp incline is hard work, and it is natural to look down when...

Discard Entanglements

Sep 21, 2021

One of the most anticipated races of the 1984 summer Olympics was the women’s 3000m, featuring the American Mary Decker and the South African Zola Budd. Decker—who had won a 3000m at the World Championships the preceding year—was favored to win the gold medal, and Budd knew she could not beat the...

Run Without Burdens

Aug 24, 2021

When struggling halfway through a marathon, the last thing you want to do is make running harder than it has to be. No sane runner would stop mid-race, put on a 30-pound weight belt, and then keep going. It is true that some runners train with weights to increase their strength and stamina, but...

Run with Confidence

Aug 5, 2021

In the middle of a long race, doubt can be a killer. Realizing how far you have to go, the present ache in your body can make finishing seem unlikely. Doubt then quickly transforms itself into certainty and you give up. Likewise, it is with the Christian life. If we doubt our ability to trust and...

Keep Your Eyes on the Prize

Jul 7, 2021

The midday sun beating down upon him was becoming unbearable. Having just passed the 13-mile marker, with 13 more miles to go, he wondered what he was thinking when he signed up to run a marathon. At the 18 th mile, his run is a brisk walk. One mile later, his brisk walk is no longer brisk...

Run Together

Jun 22, 2021

Although it was over twenty-five years ago, I still remember a track race one of my older brothers ran during his senior year. He was scheduled to run the final 800m race at the Nova Scotia Provincial Track Meet. There were two heats for the final and unfortunately, my brother was placed in the...

Run Your Race

Jun 2, 2021

When I ran track in high school, I competed in the 800m and 1500m races. My teammates competed in different races. The sprinters ran the 100m and 200m, while the long-distance runners ran the 3000m and 5000m. Although we all ran on the same track, we had our own particular races to run. As...

Run to the End

May 20, 2021

During my school days in Nova Scotia, Canada, I competed in cross-country ski races. Cross-country skiing is a relatively unpopular sport in Canada, and Nova Scotia is one of the nation’s smaller provinces. That combination meant that sometimes the competition wasn’t very stiff. In fact, in one...

Run to Win

Apr 23, 2021

As we saw last time , a Christian is like a runner in a race in that he must run. Obviously, a runner doesn’t take a seat in the stands when the starting pistol goes off. He runs. How does a Christian run? By trusting and obeying the Lord Jesus. Paul equates finishing the race with having kept the...

A Runner in a Race

Apr 5, 2021

Quoting his beloved mother, Forest Gump famously compared life to a box of chocolates: "You never know what you’re gonna get." But what about the life of the Christian? To what can we liken it? In the New Testament, we find the Christian life often compared to a race. Paul used this metaphor both...

How Joseph Saved Christmas

Dec 24, 2020

Christmas is the time of year we remember and celebrate the birth of the long-awaited Son of the David, who would (and has) saved us from our sins. But did you know that the first Christmas almost didn’t happen? The virgin birth (or better virgin conception) produced a significant problem that...

Heart-Trouble

Dec 8, 2020

Over a hundred and forty years ago, J.C. Ryle wrote that “heart-trouble” is the most common thing in the world. He also said that no one is exempt from it, and that there is nothing that we can do to avoid it. The world has changed quite a bit since Ryle penned those words, but his observations...

Faith, Feelings, and Facts

Apr 30, 2020

God is slandered daily. Satan, who is a liar and the father of lies, makes sure of it. One of his favorite lies to spread about God is that he doesn’t love us, that he wants nothing more than for us to suffer and die. Satan wants us to think that God is more like the elder brother than the father...

"The Wrath Of The Seas" by Ivan Aivazovsky

Numbering Our Days

Apr 9, 2020

Death is an ugly, harsh reality that we try hard to hide and ignore. We do not want to think about it or live our life in light of it. The current pandemic, however, has made it difficult to disregard, as the death toll continues to rise day after day. We would be wise, therefore, to take the time...

The Law, the Gospel, and the Spirit

Mar 26, 2020

Editor's Note: Find previous entries in this series at the end of this article. The law/gospel hermeneutic wrongly separates the Bible's indicatives from its imperatives. That's the first problem that we addressed in our last article . But there's a second problem with this hermeneutic: It tends to...

Law, Gospel, and Gataker

Mar 20, 2020

Editor's Note: Find previous entries in this series at the end of this article. In this article, we will look at one key reason the law/gospel hermeneutic is problematic, and then another reason in a subsequent article. The law/gospel hermeneutic is problematic because it separates what Scripture...

To Live, to Die

Mar 19, 2020

The coronavirus is another stark reminder that we are mortal. We are all going to die, one way or another, but in moments like these we are forced to consider the reality of our own death. For the vast majority of us, there is a good chance that this virus will not claim our lives... but you never...

Law and Gospel (and Hermeneutics)

Feb 28, 2020

Editor's note: This is part 2 in this series. Read part 1 here . The law/gospel distinction is sometimes used to distinguish between the commands and promises in the Scriptures. Anthony Burgess noted that “some Divines” taught that the law is every command and the gospel is every promise found...

Law and Gospel

Feb 3, 2020

The law/gospel distinction is a well-known and an important theological distinction in Protestant and Reformed circles. Unfortunately, a lot of confusion exists surrounding it, in part because further distinctions are not always properly made. And these further distinctions are necessary because...

Error in the Church

Dec 19, 2019

Richard Vines was a member of the Westminster Assembly and was considered one of the Assembly’s finest preachers. He preached a sermon on Ephesians 4:14-15 before the Mayor and court of Aldermen of London in 1644 entitled “The Impostures of Seducing Teachers Discovered.” Apparently not everyone was...

In Defense of a Faithful Minister

Nov 30, 2019

One of the reasons the Puritans wrote a number of polemical works pertaining to sanctification, particularly with respect to law, good works and salvation, was to defend faithful ministers and churches. That reason remains true today and I want to take the opportunity to say a few words in defense...

The Reward of Eternal Life

Nov 13, 2019

When I began to study the doctrine of good works in the Reformed tradition many years ago, I was astounded by a view that many Puritans, following in the footsteps of John Calvin, promulgated. These Reformed stalwarts taught that God graciously rewards eternal life to his people who persevere in...

Karma

Oct 28, 2019

Karma is a word that has been adopted from Hinduism and Buddhism to capture the saying, “what goes around, comes around.” What you do to others—good or ill—will eventually in some form or fashion be done to you. As is often the case with proverbs or maxims, this one is widely recognized as...

Ministry of Condemnation?

Oct 9, 2019

The Westminster Standards teach that the post-fall covenants in Scripture are gracious. Although the covenants are distinct and different in some respects, they are the same in substance. This is why the Standards speak of one covenant of grace “under various dispensations” and that one covenant “...

Not Under the Law

Sep 26, 2019

T he Westminster Standards teach that Christians are obligated to obey the Ten Commandments. The fact that the Larger and Shorter Catechisms include a detailed exposition of the Ten Commandments indicates this. Moreover, chapter 19 of the Westminster Confession of faith says that the law delivered...

Avoiding Extremes

Sep 10, 2019

Westminster divine Anthony Burgess addressed Antinomianism in his book Vindiciae Legis: A Vindication of the Moral Law and the Covenants . In a passing comment, Burgess noted that God may have allowed “Antinomian errour” to grow in popularity in order rebuke Protestant ministers. He claimed that “...

Faith & Repentance

Jul 23, 2019

W hich logically comes first: Faith, or repentance? This theological conundrum has been debated from time to time within the Reformed world. It is important to note that the point of contention pertains to logical and not chronological priority. Most people do not argue that there is a time gap...

David Clarkson on Repentance

Jul 11, 2019

David Clarkson joined John Owen as a fellow minister in a church in London in 1682. Owen entered glory soon thereafter, joining the assembly of the righteous made perfect. Clarkson continued on, preaching in Owen’s pulpit for three more years until his own death in 1686. The Banner of Truth Trust...

Repentance and Salvation

Jun 26, 2019

O ne issue that is periodically debated in Reformed circles concerns the relationship repentance has with justification, and more particularly with forgiveness. The Bible clearly states that repentance is necessary for forgiveness (Isa. 55:7; Luke 24:47; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 5:31; 11:18; 17:30; 20:21;...

What Is the Gospel?

Jun 11, 2019

I n a brief but hilarious reformation21 blog post , " Can You Speak Gospelese? ", Paul Levy noted that the word “gospel,” had become “an adjective which if you want people to think you’re kosher in conservative evangelicalism you add it, seemingly, to everything.” Thus, there are churches, and...

From Frying Pan to Fire?

May 28, 2019

T he doctrine of salvation (Soteriology) is necessarily intertwined with the doctrine of God (Theology Proper). Your understanding of what God does and how he saves will affect your understanding of who God is, and vice versa . The puritans faced this issue in their debates with the so-called...

Drops of Vinegar

May 14, 2019

S tephen Geree was one of several puritan ministers who wrote against the so-called Antinomians during the 1640’s. His main target was Tobias Crisp. Crisp, who has been regarded by some as the high priest of English Antinomianism, moved to London in 1642 where he quickly became an influential...

Desiring Us (John 17:24)–2

Apr 23, 2019

In the last article , I noted the love that some puritans expressed for John 17 and for verse 24 in particular. Verse 24 is special because it teaches that Jesus desires us. He wants us to be where he is. In the present article, I want to look at the reason Jesus wants us to be with him . Jesus...

Desiring Us (John 17:24)–1

Apr 9, 2019

J ohn 17 sits alongside the other great chapters of the Bible such as Romans 8 and Psalm 23. Many people have sung its praises, including the puritans. Stephen Charnock wrote, “If any part of Scripture be magnified above another, this (John 17) seems to claim the pre-eminence.” A.W. Pink said that...

A Walking Bible

Mar 26, 2019

I fully understand the criticisms of the popular saying “Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words if necessary.” Words are essential (Rom. 10:14-17; Acts 8:26-40). Nevertheless, this saying does point to an important truth: Yes, pastors need to preach the word of God boldly and faithfully. Yes,...

Tolle Lege: Christ and the Law

Feb 26, 2019

A number of years ago, a young man who had been trained at a Reformed seminary that subscribes to the Westminster Standards was being examined for licensure on the floor of Presbytery. He was asked, "Is the covenant of grace conditional? If so, what is or are the conditions?" Without hesitation,...

A Spiritual Measurement

Jan 22, 2019

A re you physically healthy? You might answer that question by how you feel. You don’t feel bad, so you assume that you are in fairly good health. But if you wanted a more objective answer, you might visit the doctor’s office and undergo some tests. They would check your temperature, heart rate and...

A Helpful Distinction

Jan 8, 2019

I am currently preaching a sermon series on the Gospel of John. There are some passages in that Gospel that appear to betray the grace of the gospel by presenting a legalistic view of salvation. Since Scripture cannot contradict itself, we know that these passages don’t teach legalism. How then are...

The Incarnation

Dec 11, 2018

The puritans aren’t known for their love of the Christmas season. They did, however, love the incarnation. John Flavel addressed this topic in his sermon on Philippians 2:8, which will be the subject of this article. I will briefly summarize some of his comments on the incarnation as part of Christ...

The Christian’s Hope for Eternity (2)

Nov 28, 2018

I n the last article we looked at the resurrection of our bodies, which is one aspect of the Christian’s hope for eternity. When Jesus returns, he will raise our bodies from the dust and transform them to be like his glorious body (Phil. 3:21). We will live forever with an immortal, incorruptible,...

The Christian’s Hope for Eternity (1)

Nov 13, 2018

T he Christian’s hope at death is that he won’t have to cross Jordan alone. Christ by his Spirit will be with him every step of the way. The Christian’s hope after death is twofold. Death brings an end to evil and misery and is the door to a far better life with Christ in heaven. But what hope do...

The Christian’s Hope after Death

Oct 23, 2018

T he certain hope that Christians have at death is that they will not be alone. Christ by his Spirit will be with them. But what hope do we have after death? What do we have to look forward to after we die? Death is gain for believers in at least two respects. First , death puts to death everything...

The Christian’s Hope at Death

Oct 9, 2018

R ichard Baxter felt the unwanted invasion of deep heartache that only death can deliver when his beloved wife Margaret passed away. He described his experience as being “under the power of melting grief.” J.I. Packer noted in his book A Grief Sanctified that Baxter’s use of the word “melting”...

Neonomianism

Sep 26, 2018

T he counterpart to (English) Antinomianism, which I considered last time , is Neonomianism. People today typically use the term “Neonomian” to depict views that they consider to be legalistic or moralistic. Historically, however, it was coined and employed by English Congregationalists at the end...

Antinomianism

Sep 11, 2018

I n several articles, I have referred to the so-called “ antinomians ” by which I mean the 17th century English theologians who were labelled antinomians. In this article, I will provide a brief explanation of English antinomianism. The term “antinomian” was a term of abuse and rejected by most if...

An Unchanging God and a Changing World (2)

Aug 31, 2018

I n the last article , I looked at how interactions with the so-called antinomians over important soteriological issues required Westminster divine Anthony Burgess to discuss the doctrine of God. The antinomians, at times, appealed to divine attributes, such as immutability and impassibility, in...

True Love: A Funeral Sermon for a Friend

Aug 14, 2018

Introduction I n the movie The Princess Bride , Westley has to leave his fiancé Buttercup in order to make his fortune. Buttercup is worried that she will never see him again. Westley reassures her: “This is true love-you think this happens every day.” True love is the reason they will always be...

An Unchanging God and a Changing World (1)

Jul 24, 2018

H ow can God, who is simple (theologically speaking), unchanging and impassible, meaningfully interact with a world that is constantly changing? The Westminster divine Anthony Burgess had to face this issue in his interactions with the so-called antinomians in London during the middle of the 17th...

Does Jesus Repent for Us?

Jul 10, 2018

D oes Jesus repent for us? That question was raised in an online discussion group due to a comment made on social media that asserted that Jesus completely repents for us. It reminded me of the heated debate the Westminster divines had with the so-called antinomians in London during the 1640s. John...

The Imitation of Christ (2)

Jun 26, 2018

For part 1 of this series, see here . T here are two errors that need to be avoided regarding the doctrine of the imitation of Christ. One error is theological liberalism or moralism , which teaches that Jesus suffered and died merely to set an example for us to follow. This is a serious error and...

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