Listening to the Giants

Ahhh….young love. Now it might disturb you that Edwards was 20 when he wrote this about his future wife, Sarah. Yet keep in mind that it was four years before they married and the age of Sarah was normative for females to marry in the 1700’s.  The words below were written on a leaf on one of Edwards’ student books. “They say there is a young lady in New Haven, who is beloved of that Great Being who made and rules the world, and that there are certain seasons in which this Great Being, in some way or other invisible, comes to her and fills her mind with exceeding sweet delight, and that she hardly cares for anything, except to meditate on Him that she expects after a while to be received up where He is, to be raised up out of the world and caught up into heaven; being assured that He loves her too well to let her remain at a distance from Him always. There she is to dwell with him, and to be ravished with His love and delight forever. Therefore, if you present all the world be...

Jonathan Edwards was born into a Puritan evangelical household on October 5, 1703, in East Windsor, Connecticut. He was the fifth of eleven children born to the Rev. Timothy and Esther Edwards. His childhood education immersed him not only in the study of the Bible and Christian theology but also in classics and ancient languages. Undergraduate Years During his undergraduate years (1716-1720) and graduate studies (1721-1722) at Yale College, Edwards engaged all manner of contemporary issues in theology and philosophy. He studied the debates between the orthodox Calvinism of his Puritan forebears and the more "liberal" movements that challenged it, such as Deism, Socinianism, Arianism, and Anglican Arminianism, as well as the most current thought coming out of Europe, such as British empiricism and continental rationalism. Becoming a Pastor In 1726, Edwards succeeded his grandfather, Solomon Stoddard, as the pastor of the church in Northampton, Massachusetts, the ...

"Original sin is the only rational solution of the undeniable fact of the deep, universal and early manifested sinfulness of men in all ages, of every class, and in every part of the world." Many people think this concept is a Roman Catholic “thing”, but actually this doctrine is a biblical “thing”. Here are some key passages: Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned- 1 Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die , so also in Christ shall all be made alive. Psalm 51:5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Ephesians 2:3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath , like the rest of mankind. These verses made it clear that every human inherits not only the sin of Adam, but the guilt that comes...

Is it wrong that Charles Hodge loved being a Presbyterian? I don’t think so. Many great men have come from the ranks of Presbyterianism. The better question is, “What does it mean to be a Presbyterian?” Well, this may be too simplistic, but in my opinion, historic Presbyterianism is a blend of church polity , Reformed theology and a general adherence to the Westminster Confession of Faith. Church Polity It is likely that most Presbyterians would describe their polity (i.e. church government) as moderate, a middle ground between High church (Episcopalism) and Low Church (congregationalism). The governmental structure is typically broken up into four categories: 1) Sessions (elected leaders by the congregation, both lay and teaching elders); 2) Presbyteries (local Presbyterian churches in a certain region form this group); 3) Synods (an additional step of accountability for regions with an excessive amount of local churches); 4) General Assembly (this is the highest cour...

No one catechized me growing up. If anyone or any institution did, it is likely during my years in the para-church program, A.W.A.N.A. (Approved Workman Are Not Ashamed). This program drove me to memorize countless scriptures, which I did, but unfortunately I was not driven by a love for His word, rather I was driven by a love for prizes and recognition. Reflecting back on those years and now having children of my own, I often ask myself, “Was that spiritually profitable at any level or did it just feed my insatiable pride?” Charles Hodge grew up, not in A.W.A.N.A or some other para-church program, but being personally catechized by his pastor. “Green’s (Charles’ childhood pastor) catechizing of his young charges in Philadelphia formed just a small part of his ministerial duties in Presbyterian confessional polity. His pastoral efforts reinforced in the congregation what the parents practiced at home in teaching the Shorter Catechism by systematically expounding its mean...