October 2015 Ordained Servant

From the Editor. The Reformation represents a revival of Christian learning, and thus touches on every aspect of the theological curricula. So in this issue we look at the theology of justification by faith in its relationship to Christian obedience, apologetics, the relationship between the church and the culture in which it is embedded, the way to speak with Roman Catholics about the faith, and a biblical commentary on the Song of Solomon. We begin by looking at the theological importance of the Marrow Controversy in Andy Wilson’s article “A Righteousness Apart from the Law that Is Not against the Law: The Story and Message of the Marrow of Modern Divinity.” The cover picture for this issue is the Ettrick Church in Ettrick, Scotland, the border town where Thomas Boston, author of the famous notes in Edward Fisher’s The Marrow of Modern Divinity.

Darryl G. Hart’s review article, “Do We Need a Better Country Now More Than Ever?” a review of Steven Miller’s The Age of Evangelicalism: America’s Born-Again Years, deals with the perennial question of the relationships between Christ and culture, and church and state. This reminded me of a letter to the editor of the Wall Street Journal that I wrote this past summer in response to “The Benedict Option.” It is titled “The Jeremiah 29 Option.”

Speaking of culture, James D. Baird reviews a recent book of apologetics, Knowledge and Christian Belief by Alvin Plantinga, comparing it with the method of Cornelius Van Til.

An important part of what is presently happening in the world is the new leader of the Roman Catholic Church. Pope Francis’s visit to the United States has elicited positive responses from many quarters, exemplified by a new book titled The Tweetable Pope: A Spiritual Revolution in 140 Characters. Viewed as a herald of a new openness, his pontificate raises important questions about the church’s future and its relationship to world politics. Is this the logical culmination of the theology of Vatican II? And how should Reformed Christians speak with Catholics about biblical faith? Camden Bucey reviews a book that will help answer the latter question: Talking with Catholics about the Gospel by Chris Castaldo.

Sherif Gendy presents us with another insightful review of a new commentary on the Song of Solomon by Iain M. Duguid, The Song of Songs.

Our poem this month was suggested by Kurt Oliver: “The Convert” by G. K. Chesterton. Please feel free to suggest poetry for OS.

Blessings in the Lamb,
Gregory Edward Reynolds

FROM THE ARCHIVES “ROMAN CATHOLIC, JUSTIFICATION, APOLOGETICS, TWO KINGDOMS”

Subject Index

• “A Primer on Vatican II.” (Danny E. Olinger) 19 (2010): 80–87.
• “Shorter Catechism 33, Etc.” (Gregory Edward Reynolds) 16 (2007): 34–36.
• “A Letter from Cornelius Van Til to Francis Schaeffer.” (Cornelius Van Til) 6:4 (Oct. 1997): 77–80.
• “The Post Modern Paradigm Shift and the Biblical, Reformed Presuppositionalism of Van Til.” (Larry E. Ball) 5:4 (Oct. 1996): 87–90.
• “The Reason for God.” (William D. Dennison) 17 (2008): 146–51.
• “Addressing Issues: A Cordial Response to David VanDrunen” (Ryan McIlhenny) 22 (2013): 80–85.
• “Education, Natural Law, and the Two Kingdoms” (Gregory Edward Reynolds) 21 (2012): 14–17.
• “A Response to a Response to a Response” (David VanDrunen) 22 (2013): 86–89.

Ordained Servant exists to help encourage, inform, and equip church officers for faithful, effective, and God-glorifying ministry in the visible church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Its primary audience is ministers, elders, and deacons of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, as well as interested officers from other Presbyterian and Reformed churches. Through high-quality editorials, articles, and book reviews we endeavor to stimulate clear thinking and the consistent practice of historic, confessional Presbyterianism.