August 2026

Podcasts

As a follow-up to Pastor Bob’s sermon on Acts 17 about post-Christian evangelism, listen to Collin Hansen interview Josh Chatraw, chair of evangelism and cultural engagement at Beeson Divinity school, and Christopher Watkin, author of Biblical Critical Theory, on an episode of the Gospelbound podcast about the importance of practicing cultural apologetics. If you’re not sure what that means, that’s a reason to listen.

In light of the recent survey on our core values, the elders discussed the frequency of observing the Lord’s Supper at New Life (our current practice is monthly). For an overview of the variety found within historic Reformed practice, check out this video from PCA Pastor Matthew Everhard. 

Articles

I’m teaching a three-week series on the history of Presbyterianism with a focus on the formation of the PCA in 1973. Long before that, in 1729, Presbyterian ministers agreed to the Adopting Act, making the Westminster Confession of Faith, along with the Larger and Shorter Catechisms, the doctrinal standards of Presbyterianism in the New World. In the almost 300 years since that action, there have been persistent questions and debates about what it exactly means. Do ministers have to adhere to every article and phrase of the standards (often called “strict subscriptionism”) or are some stated differences permitted as long as they are not out of according with the fundamentals of Reformed doctrine (sometimes called “good faith subscriptionism”). You can read a helpful article from ByFaith that explores the issue written by Sean Michael Lucas, a PCA pastor and professor of church history at Reformed Theological Seminary.

“The Adopting Act: Confessional Subscription and Doctrinal Fidelity

I’m also getting ready to start a series on the book of Judges for the men’s Bible study. The book of Judges records the continued efforts of God’s people to remove the Canaanites from the Promised Land, a process started under Joshua’s military campaigns. The Canaanite conquest is frequently denounced by critics of the Bible as a divinely endorsed program of genocide or ethnic cleansing. How should we respond to these criticisms? Read my most recent essay called Genocide … or Divine Justice? The Truth about the Canaanite Conquest for some thoughts.

“Genocide … or Divine Justice? The Truth about the Canaanite Conquest”

6W Chronicles: Brief Profiles in Church History 

As a way to introduce readers to some influential figures in the church’s past, the 6W Chronicles briefly address six questions: Who? When? Where? What did they do? Why should we know about them? What works can I reference by or about them?

Who? Ambrose

When? c. 339–397 AD

Where? Ambrose was born in Trier (modern Germany) and ministered in Milan, Italy

What did he do? Born into a wealthy Roman aristocratic family, Ambrose was educated for a career in politics. Around the year 370 he was appointed to a prestigious and powerful government position in Milan. Then the course of his life changed suddenly. When the bishop of Milan died in 374, a dispute broke out over a successor. According to a famous account, the crowd rejected rival candidates and began to call for the popular Ambrose to become the next bishop – even though he had not even been baptized yet! Despite his attempts to refuse – even fleeing the city and hiding – he was baptized and moved through the necessary steps in unprecedented swiftness (about a week). He faithfully served as bishop of Milan for the remaining 23 years of his life, rarely leaving except for official business.

Why should we know about him? Ambrose was a vigorous defender of Nicene orthodoxy against Arianism during the critical fourth century. He also played a major role in the development of congregational singing. In addition, less than one hundred years after Constantine’s conversion, Ambrose flexed the power of the church in the face of imperial authority. When Emperor Theodosius ordered a massacre of several thousand civilians at Thessalonica in 390 AD, Ambrose refused him communion and insisted the emperor perform public penance to be restored. In time, Theodosius submitted. Ambrose literally brought the emperor to his knees before King Jesus and the church. Finally, it was Ambrose's preaching in Milan that God used to bring about the conversion of St. Augustine, one of the most influential figures in the history of the church. Ambrose baptized Augustine on April 24, 387.

Works? Ambrose wrote important works On the Duties of the Clergy, On the Holy Spirit, On the Christian Faith, and On Repentance. These, along with a selection of his letters, are collected in The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 10 and can be accessed online for free by visiting the Christian Classics Ethereal Library.

For works about Ambrose, you can check out Neil B. B. McLynn’s Ambrose of Milan: Church and Court in a Christian Capital or Ambrose of Milan for Beginners: Understanding His Life, Writings, and Role in Church History by Leo Eusebius.

Theolingo: Building Your Theological Vocabulary

Theolingo aims to help you expand your learning of important theological terms.  This month’s term is imputation.

The concept of imputation carries enormous theological weight. It is crucial for understanding the heart of the gospel. When it is considered in its most comprehensive sense, it touches on human sinfulness, our need for atonement, and the hope of ultimate acceptance before God.

The word derives from the Latin terms imputo and imputation, often used in the realm of commerce, meaning to “count,” “charge,” or “reckon” to another (as in an accounting ledger). 

There are three instances of imputation in the Bible: the imputation of Adam’s guilt to all of his offspring produced by ordinary generation (this excludes Jesus); the imputation of the sin of God’s people to Jesus; and the imputation of Jesus’ righteousness to believers. Biblical support for each instance can be cited: Romans 5:12-21 and 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 for the imputation of Adam’s sin to his offspring; 2 Corinthians 5:21 and Isaiah 53:6 for the imputation of sin to Jesus; and Romans 4:3 and Galatians 3:6 (both quoting Genesis 15:6) for the imputation of the righteousness of Jesus to believers. In Romans 4, Paul stresses that Abraham believed God and was counted righteous on the basis of faith. The Greek word translated  “counted” is logizomai (λογίζομαι). Like the Latin terms, it also carries a commercial idea: God reckoned or credited Christ’s righteousness to Abraham’s account by faith. It’s not that God accepted Abraham’s faith instead of righteousness, but that God reckoned (or considered) Abraham righteous on the basis of the righteousness of Jesus imputed to him (counted as his) by faith (see also Romans 1:17; 3:21–26; the second half of 2 Corinthians 5:21; and Philippians 3:9).

The idea of Christ’s imputed righteousness as the ground of a believer’s justification before God is a major difference between Roman Catholic and Protestant teaching. In Roman Catholic theology, justification is realized only (and maybe) at the end of a long process of infused righteousness, which can be increased, decreased, or lost. By contrast, Reformed theology insists that justification is not the outworking of our own righteousness aided by grace dispensed through the sacramental system of the church, but rather God’s definitive declaration of the believer’s righteousness on the basis of the atoning blood of Jesus and his wholly imputed (credited) righteousness. Any idea of infused righteousness, according to Reformed theology, would more properly describe a believer’s progressive sanctification rather than a believer’s justification.

Quotes

The pastoral quality of Ambrose’s wisdom is evident in many of his writings, including these two quotes: 

“Let there be a door to thy mouth, that it may be shut when need arises, and let it be carefully barred, that none may rouse thy voice to anger, and thou pay back abuse with abuse.” – Ambrose of Milan

“Let us take refuge from this world. You can do this in spirit, even if you are kept here in the body. You can at the same time be here and present to the Lord. Your soul must hold fast to him, you must follow after him in your thoughts, you must tread his ways by faith, not in outward show.” – Ambrose of Milan

In the June 2026 edition of The Hive, I shared a quote from Jonathan Edwards as I was making way through his Religious Affections. Now that I’ve finished it, here’s another insightful and penetrating quote from the book:

“Spiritual fortitude can be of use when we need to withstand the enemies that are around us – but that is not its ordinary use. For the most part, spiritual strength is needed for resisting and suppressing the enemies that are within us; they are our worst and strongest enemies … When zeal does help us to overcome opposition, it is mostly the evil that hides in our own hearts that zeal attacks. These are the enemies that the true saint sees most clearly, and these are the enemies he contends with the most …” – Jonathan Edwards

I also recently finished Michael Reeves’ heart-searching book, Evangelical Pharisees, which serves as a reminder of how desperately we need to be saved from ourselves. 

“… none of us is immune to the ways in which our pride kicks against Jesus’s assessment of our condition … it is far easier to see ourselves as mildly and occasionally immoral instead of naturally wretched and helpless. Thus we find ourselves surprised by our sin. When a moment of anger or stress unleashes unkind words and vicious thoughts, we are startled that such vileness could apparently pop out from nowhere. Our astonishment betrays how we forget the unseen sewer that exists in us at all times … we isolate and minimize our sinfulness, offering only shallow repentance for those times we have not been quite as good as we think we are. The shift in our self-perception away from Jesus’s diagnosis may be quietly done, but the effects are clear, leaving us both prayerlessly smug in ourselves and mercilessly critical of others.” – Michael Reeves

Final Thought

I bet you $63374395749474494847449748493757389215646774709826784627553213142709006542844574696347520175698955107254844976524085794204330493947486593845502478650243989583489760 that you did not read all the numbers.