John Calvin

The writings of French reformer, theologian, and pastor John Calvin are often remembered by the Latin phrase “brevitas et claritas”. Calvin wrote to be understood, and avoided using more words than would be helpful. To get to the point then, in English, the phrase means “brevity and clarity”...

Incomprehensible but Knowable Words are important, and some of them carry meanings that can be crucial for our understanding of God; words that will eventually affect the way we live the Christian life. Incomprehensibility is one of these words. But what exactly does it mean? Jonathan and James...

I just finished preaching through Romans. So, what was my favorite commentary? Which one would I take to a desert island? Well, let me throw up a disclaimer or two. First, I never use a commentary that is, shall we say, more devotional in character, or better, readymade to preach. I did say never...

Not all the 16 th century Protestant Reformers agreed that church discipline should be considered one of the marks of a true church. Calvin, for example, spoke only of the pure preaching of the word and the right administration of the sacraments. The Second Helvetic Confession, like Calvin,...

Reading through Sinclair Ferguson’s book Some Pastors and Teachers feels akin, or so I imagine, to sitting down with the author and getting to hear first hand what it was that sharpened and formed him into the pastor, preacher, and theologian he is today. Each chapter excels at informing the reader...

I look forward to reading Sinclair Ferguson’s Pastors and Teachers . I have long admired Dr. Ferguson’s brevity, clarity, and depth in writing and preaching. After hearing the podcast I am especially anticipating drinking from the fountain of his insights forged over many years of faithful devotion...

“You probably won’t have much to say until you are forty.” The words passed easily enough over the breakfast table into my ears. Then they went deeper. Their sanctifying force was acute and penetrating. They have haunted me, in the best possible way, for twenty years now. Just before I heard those...

Five hundred years ago the Protestant Reformation changed the theological and ecclesiastical landscape forever. And yet, was that something that only made sense in their historical context? Is the Reformation over, a quirk of history, only brought up in Church History classes? Perhaps we should we...