Articles by Vanguard Presbyterian Church
Never Give Up—Never
Yesterday was Pentecost Sunday—an annual reminder to the Church of the importance of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. I am afraid that Presbyterian and Reformed people are sadly some of the most prone to forget the work of the Holy Spirit. We tend to be cerebral and to think that we can present the…
Jesus of Nazareth—Jesus’ Backsliding Disciples (Matthew 17:24-27 and Mark 9:33-37)
In Personal Declension and Revival of Religion in the Soul, Octavius Winslow wrote: An uncharitable spirit towards other Christians, marks a low state of grace in the soul. The more entirely the heart is occupied with the love of Christ, there will be less room for uncharitableness for his saints. It is because there is so…
Should I Join a Church?
There are two questions of great importance concerning the visible church on this earth. The first question is this: Should I join a church? The second question is: What church should I join? Yet, church membership is not a rite of passage or a natural right for every person. There are terms of membership that…
The Missionary Nature of the Church
Acts 16:6-10 gives us an account of the Macedonian call to Paul to come over to Philippi and help the western world. Paul wanted to go east, but he writes that he “was forbidden by the Holy Spirit” (Acts 16:6) and that “the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them” (Acts 16:7) to do so.…
Shall I Be Baptized?
In his Institutes of the Christian Religion, the great John Calvin wrote the following concerning the various modes of baptism: But whether a person being baptized should be wholly immersed, and whether thrice or once, whether he should only be sprinkled with poured water—these details are of no importance, but ought to be optional to churches…
Questions that Deserve Answers
I frequently get emails or telephone calls from people asking questions about Vanguard Presbytery—how we got started, what is our relationship with other reformed denominations, what we believe, how we are governed, etc. The questions are usually similar enough that there is value in writing some general answers to them for this email. Q 1. Why…
How to Choose a Denomination
There are almost no guidelines that are given to congregations that are leaving one denomination and beginning the process of affiliating with a new denomination. I have never read an article on how to do that. Some congregations are so focused on leaving a denomination that is heretical or trending in that direction that they…
“I Serve a Risen Savior”
One of the best known and most well-loved hymns concerning the resurrection of Christ is “He Lives” whose first line says, “I Serve a Risen Savior, He’s in the World Today.” Sadly, that hymn has come under a lot of criticism over the last fifty years because of the closing words of the refrain, “You…
True Church Power
In 1977, I was on my first trip to Great Britain and spent a few days in the home of Iain and Jean Murray in Edinburgh, Scotland. One day, I made a comment to Iain that Presbyterians—rather than Independents—had the correct form of church government. He replied, “Yes, but Independents often have more of the…
John L. Girardeau on Evangelists
John Lafayette Girardeau (1825-1898) was born on James Island, South Carolina to French Huguenot parents. Many French Huguenots had fled to South Carolina after the Edict of Nantes (1598) was revoked in 1685. That edict had previously granted religious toleration and rights to Protestants. Girardeau’s grandfather had fought in the American Revolutionary War and he was,…
Scripture: the Church’s Only Prototype
On August 20, 1944, four American B-29’s built by Boeing were forced to make an emergency landing in far eastern Russia. One plane crash landed at Khabarovsk and the other three safely landed near Vladivostok. The crews of the three intact fighter planes thought that they would be allowed to refuel and fly out of…
Shall We Trust Church Courts Implicitly?
In his excellent commentary, The Confession of Faith, Archibald Alexander Hodge wrote the following concerning Chapter XXXI, Of Synods and Councils: As we have seen in the last chapter, all Church power is vested by Christ in the Church as a whole—not as a mob, but as an organized body. As organized, the Church consists of…
The Asbury Revival, True or False?
In recent days, I have had several people contact me about the Asbury Revival which is happening presently at Asbury University in Asbury, Kentucky. Time will tell if this is a true revival or just a work of the human flesh. Either way, there will certainly be some people who come to faith as a…
Evangelists in Old School Presbyterianism
In the nineteenth century, there were two leading publications that enlightened orthodox Presbyterians on doctrine and life. Charles Hodge was the general editor of The Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review. James Henley Thornwell was the editor of The Southern Presbyterian Review. Both men were committed to Old School Presbyterianism and were the leading theologians, respectively, in the…
If Not Independency or Hierarchy, Then What?
The courts of the United States only recognize two forms of church government—hierarchy or congregationalism. The first question, therefore, that is considered in all church cases before the civil courts is whether the denomination is hierarchical or congregational. The answer to that question determines how the court rules in the case. I agree that there…
Shall We Be Independents?
In his great work, The Apostolic Church” Which Is It?, Thomas Witherow makes the following observations concerning the form of church government known as Independency: It is difficult to ascertain the particulars of ecclesiastical order approved by Independents, inasmuch as we are not aware that they have embedded their views of what the Scriptures teach on…
Why I Left the Methodist Church
One of the questions I get asked very frequently is why Vanguard Presbyterian Church was started. Perhaps the best way for me—individually—to answer that question is to give some of my personal Christian history. In my early life, my parents took us to Baptist churches in West Virginia and Kentucky where we lived. At the…
Herod’s Troubled Conscience
The lives of Jesus and Herod Antipas were entwined in many different ways though they had never met when reports of the miraculous works of Jesus began to filter back to the Tetrarch (Cf. Matthew 14:1, 2; Mark 6:7-16; and, Luke 9:7-9). Herod Antipas became the Tetrarch of Galilee at the death of his father,…
Christmas and the Lord’s Day
In my nearly forty-seven years in the ministry, there have been seven times that Christmas Day has fallen on the Lord’s Day. The most recent time was a few weeks ago in 2022 and I think I am correct in saying that the next time that will happen will be in 2033. Something strange happened…
John Beheaded
It was in the Spring of 29 A.D., shortly before the Passover, that the brief life of John the Baptist came to an end. Ever since his imprisonment at Herod’s Machaerus palace the previous year, the destiny of John had been very tenuous. Herod was severely conflicted over John. Herodias had a Jezebel-like hatred of…
Merry Christmas
I want to wish each of you a Merry Christmas as we remember the birth of our Savior into the world. The great Samuel Davies preached a sermon on Christmas Day in both 1758 and 1760. The former occasion was to one of the churches he supplied in New Kent County, Virginia and the latter…
Fleeing Apostate Denominations
Last Thursday, December 8, 2022, the US made one of the worst prisoner exchanges with Russia in the history of our two nations. The US received back into this country Brittney Griner, a WNBA basketball player who was serving a sentence for a minor drug offense. In exchange, Russia received Viktor Bout, a dangerous arms…
Prepared to Stand Alone
Ian Murray wrote a biography of J. C. Ryle which he titled, Prepared to Stand Alone. In the history of the Church, it has always been those men who were ‘prepared to stand alone’ that God used the most to effect reformation and revival. John Charles Ryle was certainly one of those men. He was the…
Doctrine and Life I realize that my article last week on the Old Side-New Side and Old School-New School divisions were difficult for many people to follow. This week I am going to simplify the subject matter and I hope most everyone will understand. In the eighteenth century, there was a great debate that took place…
Follow My Blog
Get new content delivered directly to your inbox.
Vanguard Presbyterian Church 