Sin, the Fall, and God’s Will (Bavinck, Aquinas, and Augustine)

When Herman Bavinck wrote about the origin of sin in volume three of his Reformed Dogmatics, he spent several pages discussing the possibility of sin as God's will. This, of course is a huge discussion: how do we reconcile the entrance and reality of sin in this world with God's sovereign will and providence? Bavinck …

Beauty, Temperance, and Virtue (Augustine/Aquinas)

In my studies for a sermon series on self-control (temperance) I've been reading what Augustine (d. 430) and Aquinas (d. 1274) had to say about it. I learned that Aquinas has an entire section in his Summa Theologica on temperance. It's a fascinating read, that's for sure! I'm still working through it, but here's a …

We Ask You To Abstain

Historic Reformed and Presbyterian churches have always “fenced” the table of the Lord.  That is, when the Lord’s Supper is celebrated, the pastor and/or an elder says that certain people are not to partake.  The details vary among historic Reformed/Presbyterian churches, but they all do fence the table to some extent.  Even if we might …