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BLUE BANNER FAITH AND LIFE J. G. VOS, Editor and Manager Copyright © 2016 The Board of Education and Publication of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (Crown & Covenant Publications) 7408 Penn Avenue • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15208 All rights are reserved by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America and its Board of Education & Publication (Crown & Covenant Publications). Except for personal use of one digital copy by the user, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the publisher. This project is made possible by the History Committee of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (rparchives.org). BLUE BANNER FAITH AND LIFE VOLUME 27 JANUARY—MARCH, 1972 NUMBER 1 PRESSURED PASTORS, PRESBYTERIES AND PRAGMATISM 3 THE WESTMINSTER CONFESSION IN MODERN ENGLISH 6 A CHRISTIAN PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION 7 STUDIES IN THE TEACHINGS OF IESUS CHRIST 12 REVIEWS OF RELIGIOUS BOOKS.....................................................................37 A Quarterly Publication Devoted to Expounding, Defending and Applying the System of Doctrine set forth in the Word of God and Summarized in the Standards of the Reformed Presbyterian (Covenanter) Church. Subscription $2.50 per year postpaid anywhere J. G. Vos, Editor and Manager 3408 7th Avenue Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania 15010, U.S.A. Editorial Committee: D. Howard Elliott, Marion L. McFarland, Wilbur C. Copeland Published by The Board of Publication of the Synod of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America Overseas Agents Britain and Ireland: The Rev. Adam Loughridge, D.D., 429 Cregagh Road, Belfast BT 6 O. LG, Northern Ireland Australia and New Zealand: The Rev. Alexander Barkley, B.A., 2 Hermitage Road, Newtown ,®Geelong, Victoria, Australia Known Office of Publication - Box K, Winchester, Kansas 66097, U.S.A. Published Quarterly. Second Class Postage Paid at Winchester, Kansas 66097 2 Poems by Mrs. John Clark Scott The Penitent Come, thou rebellious heart, let us go up Unto the house of God that we may praise Our Lord and Maker; may glad anthems raise To Him who makes to overflow our cup. Even as a child He wooed thee, heart, and won A child’s simplicity of love and trust. Thou oft’ times since hast soiled with the dust Of sin the spotless love given by God’s son. Yet faithful has He been, and patiently Has waited for this day when thou wouldst cease Thy stubborn pride and wilful waywardness; Forgiveness plead on lowly bended knee. A broken and a contrite heart with peace He’ll fill when penitent we Him do bless. Revelation 3:20 Nocturne You were there, Lord, at the door, In the weary hour of midnight You knocked and hoped I’d let you in; I will think on Jesus. But never once I heard your voice; When the lonely night surrounds me, I was too busy with my sin. I will think on Jesus. You were there, Lord, at the door Jesus, leaning on Thy breast, Of my cold heart and heard my cry. Burdened souls can find sweet rest, Yes, you had been there all the while, So I come alone, distressed, But where was I, Lord, where was I? To Thee Jesus, and I’m blessed. Peace When I have knelt, my Lord, and told you all That on my heart has weighed until this hour, Then I can feel an inward surge of power. And perfect peace over my being fall. When I have come in Jesus’ name to ask Escape from tempting thoughts, from wayward feet, Then suddenly release becomes complete; In your power I have strength to meet the task. How dear they are, these moments spent with you. My Lord forever near, my very own! Why is it that I tarry then so long, Flee from this balm while my heart fills with rue? No, Lord, I will no longer strive alone. I’ll kneel so weak, then rise. My Lord is strong. 3 BLUE BANNER FAITH AND LIFE VOLUME 27 JANUARY—MARCH, 1972 NUMBER 1 Pressured Pastors, Presbyteries and Pragmatism By I. G. Vos “Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a of the Church of Jesus Christ have chosen to avoid book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and looking a bad situation squarely in the face and dealing ever: that this is a rebellious people, lying children, with it according to righteousness, in the name and by children that will not hear the law of the Lord: which the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, the great Head of say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy the Church. Too often a carnal fear of embarrassment, not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, suffering and reproach has led to an easy but prophesy deceits: get you out of the way, turn aside out unrighteous solution — a solution which obscures the of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from moral issue involved, and results in a superficial but before us.” false peace and harmony in the Church. —Isaiah 30:8-11 .This tendency to follow the line of least resistance, it would seem, springs from a double root. Note: This article was originally published 18 In the first place, it springs from the indwelling sin years ago, in the July-September 1954 issue of Blue fulness of men — even of Christian men. The Bible is Banner Faith and Life (pages 121-124) under the title realistic in reporting the sins of the saints. Noah’s Diseases of Church Government: Following the Line of drunkenness, Abraham’s untruthfulness, David’s Least Resistance. It is reproduced in the present issue adultery and murder, Peter’s thrice-repeated denial of with the addition of a Scripture quotation at the Christ — all these and others are truthfully reported in beginning and three paragraphs at the end dealing with Scripture. Clearly even true believers have within their attitudes among college students who are pre- hearts a fearful tendency toward evil. Even persons in ministerial candidates at the present day. It is the positions of leadership and responsibility in the Church, Editor's conviction that this article was relevant in 19S4 such as ministers and elders, have in their hearts this and is still relevant today. —Editor. sinful nature. It is not surprising, therefore, that church courts, even in their solemn decisions made in the It has been aptly remarked that following the line name of Christ, may be guilty of great sin. of least resistance is what makes rivers and men crooked. The winding, meandering river has followed The other root of the tendency to follow the line the line of least resistance. And the man whose life of least resistance, we believe, is the modern reveals numerous deviations from the straight and philosophy of Pragmatism. Pragmatism is not merely a narrow path has followed the line of least resistance. specialty of a few university professors. It has deeply When faced with a moral crisis involving a difficult infiltrated our modern life, and is constantly being decision, he regularly takes the easy way out of the subtly propagated by our educational system, our situation. To choose the path of righteousness would popular magazines and newspapers, and other media of involve self-denial and suffering, perhaps also em our modern culture. Pragmatism le^ds people to say barrassment and reproach. So the man who follows the that results are more important than principles. It leads line of least resistance chooses the easy way out, and by people to feel that the end may justify the means, that a doing so he sins against God, deepens the corruption of particular course of action may be proper if it can be his own character, and makes it harder for others to do expected to achieve favorable results and avoid un right. favorable ones. People who are influenced by the viewpoint of Pragmatism do not ask “Is it right?” but The Church in its organized form is also subject rather, “What will happen if we do it?” to the temptation to follow the line of least resistance. And it is sad but true that church courts, when faced Church courts are composed of fallible men. The with a crisis involving a moral issue, often follow the fact that they are Christians does not take away their line of least resistance, taking the easy way out of a bad human fallibility. Being human, they are influenced by situation, instead of accepting the position of self- the prevailing thought and culture of their time. That denial, suffering and reproach which befits the body of this prevailing thought and culture may be directly the rejected and crucified Christ. Too often the courts opposed to the mind of Christ is seldom realized. It is 4 not to be wondered at, then, that church courts of the pastor shall be called upon to continue as their pastor present day sometimes manifest a tendency to adopt for another term of years. The so-called seven-year plan the viewpoint of Pragmatism, in which the all important adopted by the Synod of the Reformed Presbyterian question is not “Is it right?” but “What will happen if we Church of North America provides such forms of do it?” procedure. This plan provides certain safeguards against improper pressures and certain compensatory A good many examples could be cited of church benefits to ministers who are not asked to continue in courts following the line of least resistance.