Ref21 Blog

An Edinburgh taxi driver, James Kerr, of Simple Minds Cabs, Morningside, has asked Ref21 to bring readers' attention to the upcoming Herman Bavinck conference at New College.  Details can be found here.   It is disappointing to see that there...

Mrs. Peel has brought this article to my attention.  Once again, it highlights the problematic nature of the exhibitionism inherent in Facebook-type media....

Five Reasons to come to PCRT in Greenville In a little under a month, the Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology will make its second trip to Greenville, South Carolina.  Why should you come?  Here's at least 5 reasons: • First, and...

Ken Wingate (Elder at First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, and member of the ARP Commission on Erskine) will be on "Knowing the Truth" radio today (Wednesday) at 1:00 p.m. (EST). Here is the link  for more information....

All the fuss surrounding Tiger Woods' potential return to golf has left me wondering about how times have changed.   There was a time when it was key for public figures to keep private sleaze private; if it slipped into...

Rumor has it that there was a minor panic across the Bible belt this morning when a number of pastors focused on this story as a sign that Matthew 24:15 was about to be fulfilled, advising their congregations to flee...

Prof Sandy Finlayson of Westminster Theological Seminary has published a new book on the formative leaders of the Free Church of Scotland. Unity and Diversity has been published by Christian Focus Publications. It gives biographical studies of men like Thomas...

I don't disagree with what Sean says; but I repeat: the `aha' moment is not application; it is not the end point of the sermon; it is not sufficient in itself to communicate the imperative; it certainly is not where...

Okay, I'll take the bait. Carl just wrote, "If the game is simply to get from Text A to Bethlehem, what do you do with a book like Judges? Preach 200 sermons which essentially say, 'This judge failed, but surprise,...

Derek's comments on a certain kind of Reformed preaching are spot on.  If the game is simply to get from Text A to Bethlehem, what do you do with a book like Judges?  Preach 200 sermons which essentially say `This...

Further to my last post, my good friend Dr. John Ross (Dumisani Theological Institute, King William's Town, SA), made the following insightful comment:"I fully agree it is pushing the envelope to say that a meaningful encounter with God happens nowhere...

Further to Carl's comments on Barthian preaching...   Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of Barthian preaching is their belief that something happens in preaching that happens nowhere else. Lacking an authoritative epistemological base, Barthians assume the posture all too common elsewhere...

Karl Barth, as correctly identified by James from Edinburgh, who also raises the question as to why Barthian preaching is, by contrast with the quotation, often deathly dull.My theory is that neo-orthodox writing on preaching is often brilliant because it...

Here's an interesting quotation: "Preachers must not be boring.  To a large extent the pastor and boredom are synonymous concepts.  Listeners often think that they have heard already what is being said in the pulpit.  They have long since known...

The Vatican's chief exorcist has written his memoirs.  You can read the story here.   He claims ca. 70 000 exorcisms which is, I suspect, a workload which might even make Benny Hinn stop and take notice....