New Book on the Psalms of Ascents

This past Lord's Day, we read from Psalm 123 and Pastor Norm preached a sermon on this text entitled "The Soundtrack of the Sermon on the Mount." Well, one day later an email arrived from the Banner of Truth publications crew with details of a forthcoming book about the Psalms of Ascents. 

If such a book interests you, read on to learn more about this work by Rhett Dodson: 

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“The Psalms of Ascents (Psalms 120-134) were sung by Israelites as they made their way to Jerusalem for the annual feasts of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. As pilgrim songs, they provide a way for believers to express their fears, needs, and aspirations as they journey through this life.

These psalms are also the songs of Jesus. In Marching to Zion you will discover how these ancient songs of Israel affect our faith today, point us to the future, and help keep our eyes on Christ every step of the way.”

— Marching to Zion: Ancient Psalms for Modern Pilgrims

Don't Forget: Remember What Is Important!

"The means God appointed to help the children of Israel were to remember what was important. In his dealings with Moses, God had established a set of repetitive processes by which the Israelites would be constantly reminded of all that God had done for them. Thus, for example, in Exodus 12, God establishes the Passover Feast, the performance of which is designed in part to provoke later generations to ask the question of why this is done. This will then require parents to tell their children about God’s great act of saving grace in bringing the children of Israel out of Egypt even as this was by means of an awesome and terrifying judgment against the Egyptians.

The Passover is just one example of many rituals outlined in the Torah which functioned on one level as reminders of who God was, who the Israelites were, and how they related to each other. Thus, when we come in to the Promised Land and we find the Israelites suffering persistent recurrences of amnesia, it does not take a genius to assume that part of the immediate cause of this was their abject neglect of the means which God had established for keeping his name and his acts fresh in their minds.

What this kind of amnesia tells us is that we need constant reminders of who God is and what he has done if we are to stay on the straight and narrow; and that these are provided by the routines and rituals which God specifies in Scripture. For the Christian, under the terms of the NT age, these are the Word of God, read and preached and heard, and the sacraments, or, if you are a Baptist, the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. These things are given to remind us of who God is; and the neglect of them will only help to accelerate any proclivities towards forgetfulness that our instinctive rebellion of God encourages."

(Carl Trueman, "Lest We Forget" in Themelios 34.3 Nov 2009: http://themelios.thegospelcoalition.org/article/lest-we-forget)

Boris Stefanik

On the Psalms and Ephesians 5

From 150 Questions about the Psalter by Bradley Johnston:

Q13. Why does the Apostle Paul use the words 'psalms and hymns and songs' to teach the churches about singing?

A. The Apostle Paul uses the three words 'psalms and hymns and songs' to teach the churches about singing because they were featured in the Greek Old Testament (LXX) used by his original readers. The inscriptions of the Greek Psalter use 'psalm' 67 times, 'hymn' 6 times, and 'song' 36 times. All three words are used repeatedly in the text of the Psalter itself.

For a more in depth treatment of this subject, consider reading the RPCNA Report on Psalmody in the Church (accessible here)

Photo by Matt Briney on Unsplash

The Impact of God's Covenant with King David

What are we to make of the Davidic covenant found in 2 Samuel 7 and described again in 1 Chronicles 17?

First, we should be clear what we mean by 'covenant'. In the memorable words of the Children's Shorter Catechism, a covenant is a "relationship that God establishes with us and guarantees by His Word." Thus, when God made a covenant with King David, the LORD was telling David and his descendants what he could expect in the generations to come. 

The LORD looked upon the shepherd king of Israel and established an everlasting covenant – a binding and constant arrangement between God and David and his offspring. The Davidic covenant established an expectation of a greater Son of David who would come to bring us into an everlasting kingdom! And if we want to summarize the significance of the Davidic covenant in a single sentence, we might say: 

Because God keeps His Word, His promise of an everlasting house (or dynasty) and Kingdom to David gave confidence to all who anticipated the fulfillment of this promise. 

Ray Grau

The Story of Pastor Norm's Calling to the Ministry

At a recent meeting of the City Hall Connaught Toastmasters Club, Pastor Norm gave a speech on his calling to the ministry of the gospel. If you'd like to learn more about our pastor, here's a little snippet into his life and leading up to this point. Enjoy!

Augustine and the Defense of the Faith

With the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation being celebrated especially on this day (Oct 31st), it's always important to keep in mind that Luther was not the first to draw attention to the biblical doctrine of salvation by grace alone through faith alone. St. Augustine was one such figure who stridently defended the doctrines of scripture and the attack on the gospel found in the writings of Pelagius. 

The history of the monk Pelagius is a compelling read and illustrates how he frequently crossed heads with the early church’s St. Jerome and St. Augustine. Augustine spoke out against the merited grace doctrine of Pelagius in a series of letters and doctrinal treatises. Historian Rebecca Harden Weaver describes it thus:

“The issue for him was the utterly gratuitous character of grace. Any connection between the divine conferral of grace and human distinctions in merit would have the effect of making the former dependent on the latter. Grace would be a reward. Such an arrangement was totally unacceptable to Augustine. Instead, he argued that God had created human nature as good; yet in Adam all participated in sin and, as a result, deserve damnation. The grace of God, however, rescues some from their just deserts and bestows on them eternal life.” (Rebecca Harden Weaver, Divine Grace and Human Agency: A Study of the Semi-Pelagian Controversy (Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1996), 5)

What was the Reformation All About?

500 years ago, a German monk named Martin Luther started a protest that exploded into a worldwide movement. So what was the Protestant Reformation all about? Discover the answer in this short video narrated by Dr. R.C. Sproul. Learn more at http://Ligonier.org/reformation

On the Psalms ...

"We should understand the Psalter as a vital part of God's preparation for the coming of Christ. We should understand a particular psalm in its historical context and New Testament usage and ponder how that Psalm relates to Christ. Above all, we should understand the Psalter as divinely-inspired, Christ-centered songs worthy of joyful praise unto God."
(From '150 Questions about the Psalter' by Bradley Johnston; http://www.crownandcovenant.com/product_p/ds199.htm)