March 2009 Ordained Servant

From the Editor. Church planters are willing to endure a certain amount of risk when they believe that opportunity to spread the gospel and further the cause of Christ is before them. So the exchange in this month's OS between Richard Gaffin and John Fesko involves a certain risk. I have endeavored to minimize the heat and concentrate on the light. Notice that the heading for this content is "Servant Exchange." This is a reminder of the intention of this OS feature. Fesko and Gaffin are engaged in a gentlemanly debate and have each agreed that the other's presentation is fair in its argument and honest in its representation of the other's view.

Not every topic in the theological landscape is open for such debate, although every topic is in some sense debatable, in that there are always those who disagree with every Christian doctrine. But Servant Exchange is meant to foster debate over issues in which both sides of the debate are within the bounds of our Confession, between men who have taken vows to uphold that Confession, and are seeking a clearer understanding of the truth enumerated there.

Also in this issue Dr. Gaffin reviews Mike Horton's Covenant and Salvation: Union with Christ. And, in an effort to be technologically ecumenical, there are two reviews of BibleWorks 8—one for all users, but since BW is only compatible with PCs, the other review is for Mac users. It will be news to some that there are a variety of programs that install PC operating systems on Macs, so that PC programs can be used on a Mac.

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 Presbyterianism.