The use of confessions of faith is a common practice among reformed churches. Dutch Reformed Churches use the Three Forms of Unity, Presbyterians have the Westminster Confession of Faith, and Reformed Baptists hold to the 2nd London Confession of Faith of 1677/89 (2LCF). Typically, the broader evangelical churches have statements of faith but tend to…
The question of good works and the final judgment is one that often perplexes the people of God. The teaching of Jesus in Matthew 25 is relevant as it is a clear statement of the judgment of the sheep and the goats. There are several reasons why the traditional, Protestant understanding of justification by faith…
The Bible often speaks about the “fear of God.” There are two types of the fear of God, the first is a slavish fear, and the second is a filial fear. Both are referred to in Exodus 20:20, “And Moses said to the people, ‘Do not fear [slavish]; for God has come to test you,…
How many people will be saved? How many people will be left? The answers to these questions often constitute an objection to the goodness of God.Why doesn’t God save everyone? Warfield’s essay on the subject addresses these issues relating to the doctrine of salvation. It also includes a biblical study of election and reprobation, and…
The problem of easy believism is a legitimate threat to Christian orthodoxy, but to properly address how it departs from biblical doctrine, it is important to identify its characteristics and to guard against its misrepresentation. In the first place, it is vital to establish that easy believism is distinct and separate from the biblical pattern…
In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul writes, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” There are several things the church needs to hear about this text. In the first place, the Christian ministry must be populated by men who work…
The Bible teaches what has been commonly referred to in the history of theology as “Calvinism.” The second point of the Five Points of Calvinism is called “unconditional election,” which means that God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4) according to His good pleasure (Mt 11:26). He did not…
Listen to this short 5 minute excerpt from the sermon on The Thief on the Cross. He [Jesus] says the Son of Man will be lifted up and everyone who looks to Me will live. Brethren, faith is what it’s about. This man was not justified by His works, he was not justified by his…
With reference to church attendance at FGBC, as of June 28th we are no longer scheduling attendance for morning and evening services, but have gone back to a first come first serve basis. This took effect on Sunday, June 28. There have been those who have expressed a willingness to not attend as their presence…
Brethren, Greetings in the Lord Jesus. There are no changes affecting worship on this Sunday. We will have Confession study (ch.24) at 9:30a.m. (available on Zoom), morning worship at 11:00a.m., and evening worship at 5:00p.m. Both services will be livestreamed as is our custom. We will be partaking of the Lord’s Supper in the evening…