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Martin Bucer was a sixteenth century German Dominican monk who converted to Protestantism. He was a mentor to John Calvin and helped Calvin in his efforts to reform the city of Geneva. In his essay, Instruction in Christian Love, he had this to say:

Civil officials must govern according to the Word of God and, in the measure of their power, help the success of the divine Word.

For as there is no power which is not from God, and everywhere the present powers are established by Him (Romans 13:1), it certainly follows that this power must be exercised according to the order and will of God. Only so will this power at last procure the real welfare of its subjects and thus stimulate them to recognize, praise, and glorify God as the Lord of all lords and the King of all kings.

“Citizens are not governed for their good and for the true glory of the supreme King when the secular authorities do not rule according to the divine Law and are not set to observe it themselves. For where God is not recognized and obedience to Him is not required before all things, there peace is not peace, justice is not justice, and that which should be profitable brings injury instead.

We call ourselves Christians and consider ourselves the people of God, and yet our officials who have the power have fallen into the error of believing that the divine Law does not concern them, that they must judge and make regulations more according to the pagan imperial law and other human sentences than according to the sentence of God. But we cannot pride ourselves on being communities of God and the people of God, if we respect, accept, and keep all sorts of laws, ordinances, and regulations other than God's. Only His Law can make us live.

Bucer raises a few uncomfortable, but necessary, questions. Is a Christian nation good for our neighbor? Is vying for a Christian nation a way of loving our neighbor? What does it mean to love our neighbor if it doesn’t mean tangibly taking them straight to the throne of Christ? Are we really Christians if we leave politics to the pagans?

In this episode of The Parrhesians, Pastor Nate, Peter, and Kyle tackle the thorny issue of Christian Nationalism. How separated are the Church and the State? How separated should they be? What does it mean to be a Christian nationalist? If no law or policy is neutral, who, or what, is the Christian giving the nation over to if they don’t advocate for Christian laws?

Welcome to another episode of The Parrhesians Podcast!

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“This is a perishing world. Your neighbors are perishing. Maybe some of you I’m looking at right now are perishing. […] Everyone is either on their way to heaven or on their way to hell.”

This is the last installment of a three-part series Dr. John Gerstner gave at Beverly Heights Presbyterian Church in 1984 on the riches of John 3:16. It focuses on God’s love of the “world,” the sovereign will of the Spirit, and those who believe.

In this episode, Dr. Gerstner discusses the world as a burning house, God’s obligation to keep the reprobate under eternal torment, His inflexible justice, and the infinite redemption of Jesus Christ.

Enjoy! And welcome to another episode of The Parrhesians Podcast!

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In a previous episode, Peter, Pastor Nate, and Kyle discussed how we measure church health and vitality. What does it mean that a church is healthy? What does it look like for it to be sick? They continue this exploration by providing several signs for what makes a church healthy. Such as,

- The congregation's words are more informed by the Word than the world. They speak less like Moabites and more like the ancient Israelites. The Pharisees don't have their tongue but the Prince of Peace.

- The congregation's eyes see correctly. The church isn't seen as a country club that they attend on the weekends but their entire outlook is one in which they see this as their covenantal family.

- The congregation's time is prioritized rightly. Those who work 40-60 hours take off the week to help with VBS. Those who encourage their kids to play sports don't let them miss a Lord's Day service.

When grammar (speech), perception (sight), and action (sacrifice) are rightly ordered, a healthy church is around the corner. Join Peter, Pastor Nate, and Kyle as they break this down and more.

Welcome to another episode of The Parrhesians Podcast!

https://theparrhesians.com/