June 2016 Ordained Servant

From the Editor. In this issue we continue to explore the much neglected science and practice of elenctics with part 2 of Brian De Jong’s “Exposing the Darkness.” In this concluding part De Jong makes the biblical foundation for elenctics explicit, urging us to take the offense in our apologetics and evangelism by shining the light of God’s Word on the problem of sin and rebellion in each unbeliever’s life.

On occasion the authors of books reviewed in Ordained Servant wish to respond to the reviews. In such cases I always allow the original reviewer to respond with a rejoinder. Owen Anderson responds to Paul Helseth’s review of his two books on the Princeton theology.

Ryan McGraw reviews two books, Stephen Casselli’s Divine Rule Maintained and Michael Kibbe’s From Topic to Thesis. Casselli deals with the complex subject of Puritan Anthony Burgess’s covenant theology and the place of the law in post-Reformation dogmatics. Kibbe offers a practical guide to theological research.

I review poet Larry Woiwode’s evocative chapbook of poetry, Land of Sunlit Ice. This letterpress book is a treat for anyone who loves poetry, especially those familiar with Woiwode’s fiction as a Christian writer.

Finally, don’t miss seventeenth-century poet-politician Edmund Waller’s “Of the Last Verses in the Book,” reflecting death and the Christian hope in a form antithetical to the metaphysical poetry of his day.

Blessings in the Lamb,
Gregory Edward Reynolds

Ordained Servant exists to help encourage, inform, and equip church officers for faithful, effective, and God-glorifying ministry in the visible church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Its primary audience is ministers, elders, and deacons of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, as well as interested officers from other Presbyterian and Reformed churches. Through high-quality editorials, articles, and book reviews we endeavor to stimulate clear thinking and the consistent practice of historic, confessional Presbyterianism.