Two Brothers with a great divide but upon closer look, there's nothing to hide. One's a Baptist, the other Presbyterian, brothers always, endearingly contrarian.
The Church in History
Throughout all of history we see
The Church of God has been set free
She has from all of time proclaimed
The praise and glory of His name
The Word of God She’s boldly preached
From rocky hill to sandy beach
We of the Church do well to hear
Those from before who loved Christ dear
So throw not off the Fathers old
And go forth now, proclaim Him bold.
A little conflating of topics but hey, we’ve all tired mixing weird foods together-don’t judge.
All through Christian history those who have studied the Scriptures have engaged in what is called typology. In short, typology is seeing the meanings and pictures that lie underneath the surface of what is being presented. Paul does this in Galatians 4 when talking about Abraham’s wives and what they represent; we are told in the gospels that Jonah is a type of Christ; we also see Jospeh as a type of Christ; the elements within the temple foreshadowed things as well; the bread, the light, etc); and many other examples. That doesn’t mean the actual events weren’t true and were only told for the sake of typology, but part of the beauty of plunging the depths of Scripture is the fact that there can be many layers to a passage.
Now, not all typology is clear-cut and much is open to interpretation. And that’s ok. It is a blessing for the people of God to wrestle through passages of Scripture together to discern its potential meanings. We grow closer to God together this way, and we learn more about the infinite depths of our God.
So I wanted to briefly look at some potential types given to us in the Christmas story.
We see Mary coming into Bethlehem on a donkey carrying the Messiah. This also seems to be foreshadowing the Messiahs triumphal entry on a donkey into Jerusalem. Both accounts have a strong emphasis on the humility of the scene. This is not, in either case, how the Messiah was expected to enter this world.
We also have Mary and Joseph in a cave (this is what the stable would have been. We may often mistakenly think of it as a barn) and she wraps the baby Messiah in cloths. Many have acknowledged in this scene the foreshadowing of the burial of Christ and His being wrapped and buried in a cave (the tomb).
We also see the the Angels coming to Shepherds. The shepherds then go out and proclaim the good news to others. This is the job of the shepherds of the Church now, the pastors; to worship the Messiah and then to proclaim the good news.
One other thing I think might be observed is in the scene with the Magi coming to worship the Messiah. These are men of great wisdom and wealth (and presumably power), and I think in this scene there is the picturing of the wisdom, wealth, and power of this world being subservient to Christ.
These are just a couple stories within the story. Hopefully these examples, though maybe not elaborated upon eloquently by this present writer, maybe give us a little bit of an increased desire to study the Scriptures deeper to see what all might be there.
May God bless you this Christmas Day as we ponder the beauty and truth of the meaning of Christmas!
By, Samuel Brewer
Excellent article by Albert Mohler.
https://albertmohler.com/2018/12/07/earth-shall-full-knowledge-lord-waters-cover-sea/
When the Puritans landed on Plymouth Rock (I.e. the “Pilgrims”) they were seeking something thing – freedom to worship. But not just the idea of freedom to worship as is commonly understood; but to worship God rightly. They could not do this in England. even though the Church of England was a product of the Reformation (and politics between the King and Pope) it still needed reforming. The Puritans wanted the Church to continue to follow in the footsteps of the Reformers such as Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli, and get back to the Gospel.
When they felt this was not going to happen in the Church of England, they left so they could worship God rightly; as He has commanded as to worship Him. So yes, it was freedom of worship, but not a liberal worship-however-you-want; it was a freedom to obey God rather than man.
This is a great parallel to our experience in salvation. We do not have freedom of will until we are made alive by God. Romans 6 tells us that we are slaves to sin. It is only when we have been given the heart of flesh, and not stone, that we are free to worship Him in Spirit and in truth, and with thankfulness. But again, as Romans 6 warns us, it is not a freedom to do whatever we want; it is a freedom to obey God as He has commanded us.
We should not balk at that word command either. God’s commands are not edicts of a totalitarian dictator, they are love. The Psalmist says “Oh how I love thy law; it is my meditation all the day.” (Psalm 119:97). God’s laws are life and He gives us them because He loves us who are His creation.
And something that sets the Christian apart from the unbelieving person is that we have someone to give thanks too, because we know that “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:17)
To truly be able to give thanks for every blessing and person in your life, you must know whom those blessings come from. You may be thankful for things in your life..but where is that thankfulness aimed? If someone gives you a gift, you are thankful for that gift but it is directed toward the person who gave you that gift.
That doesn’t mean unbelievers aren’t thankful, they just do not realize and are not acknowledging from whom those things came from. They are not able to truly worship with thanksgiving. They are missing the true meaning and depth that Thanksgiving means and brings.
The Puritans knew this truth, they risked their lives for this truth. So this Thanksgiving Day think of your freedom to worship, but to worship God rightly and how He has asked us to worship Him, and with thanksgiving; because only in this freedom to worship rightly, of which thanksgiving is foundational, is true spiritual life and communion with God able to be achieved.
This episode is the beginning of a conversation on how different churches view ecclesiology-basically, how churches church. Since one of us is a Baptist and one a Presbyterian, we have some differing views on this topic to be sure.
Here are the links to some additional, short and sweet, resources.
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/why-you-should-be-a-presbyterian/
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/trevin-wax/5-views-on-church-government/
This is a follow up lesson I (Samuel) did at my church to a previous topic on my churches theology of outreach and evangelism. The first lesson was a scatter gun approach where I threw a ton of information out. This lesson focuses specifically on New Testament reliability and the Reformed understanding of the “problem of evil”.
Also, here is the link to the video I mention in the lecture. James White evaluates his debate over against Frank Turek’s debate with David Silverman (served as president of American Atheists). Same topic, but it shows why your theology matters when answering the “problem of evil” (well, it matters in all things but here is how it matters on this topic specifically).
Samuel and Seth Brewer Launch a new Podcast show!
Why another show? What makes this one worth listening to? We aren’t sure, but everyone else was doing it.
We think our brotherly dynamic will bring a fun and unique spin on the show. And, given our Theological differences, there will be plenty of back and forth to go around!
Here is a lesson covering a philosophy of Christian outreach and the churches role in it, comparing two methods of apologetics, and some hot button issues every Christian should be able to defend.
Two Brothers with a great divide but upon closer look, there's nothing to hide. One's a Baptist, the other Presbyterian, brothers always, endearingly contrarian.
Free, Biblical, Reformed, Historic Books & Articles Online
International Muslim Thinker, Speaker and Debater
Purely Presbyterian Perspectives
Two Brothers with a great divide but upon closer look, there's nothing to hide. One's a Baptist, the other Presbyterian, brothers always, endearingly contrarian.
Two Brothers with a great divide but upon closer look, there's nothing to hide. One's a Baptist, the other Presbyterian, brothers always, endearingly contrarian.
Two Brothers with a great divide but upon closer look, there's nothing to hide. One's a Baptist, the other Presbyterian, brothers always, endearingly contrarian.
Executive Director of CSNTM & Senior Research Professor of NT Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary
Two Brothers with a great divide but upon closer look, there's nothing to hide. One's a Baptist, the other Presbyterian, brothers always, endearingly contrarian.
Recovering the Reformed Confession
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