Francis Makemie (1658-1708): Presbyterian Missionary to America

Francis Makemie is known as the "father of American Presbyterianism." He was born in County Donegal, Ireland in 1658. At the time of his birth, Oliver Cromwell was the Lord Protector. Makemie described himself as being converted at age 15 due to the influence of a godly schoolmaster. He then went to Glasgow University as an older teenager in the 1670s, studying there in Scotland even as the king's troops sought to suppress the persistent conventicles of the Covenanters. Then he returned to northern Ireland and was ordained in 1682 around the age of 24.

Northern Ireland had been relatively peaceful during these years, a refuge for Presbyterians during the suppression of the Covenanters in Scotland, but the persecution of Presbyterians in Ireland was increasing around the time Makemie was ordained. In 1681, the year before he was ordained, five ministers of the presbytery that would ordain him had been arrested and fined for gathering together for a fast that they had appointed.

In the midst of these harsh conditions, this presbytery received requests for ministers for the colonies in the American colonies, such as Maryland and Virginia. They sent the newly-ordained Francis Makemie in 1683 to minister to the colonists. At that time Maryland did not have an established church. It was initially set up to allow for Roman Catholics to have toleration there, but the toleration also applied to Presbyterians. Rev. Makemie got to work organizing churches, beginning in Maryland on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Like Paul and Barnabas of old, he preached, gathered the saints, and oversaw the election of elders in every church. He also got married and worked as a merchant to both support his family and help raise funds for church planting. He ministered in Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and, for much of 1692-1698, on the island of Barbados.

Barbados, one of the southernmost Caribbean islands, was an English colony. Some Presbyterian Covenanters had been sent there in bondage amid the wars, uprisings, and persecutions of the 1650s-1680s, while other Presbyterians had settled there voluntarily. While he was there, Makemie wrote a booklet, available online here, entitled, Truths in a True Light, or, A Pastoral Letter to the Reformed Protestants in Barbados Vindicating the Non Conformists, from the Misrepresentations, Commonly Made of Them in that Island, and in Other Places: And, Demonstrating, That They are Indeed the Truest and Soundest Part of the Church of England. In it, he wrote to the leaders of the Church of England, 

Let me humbly and earnestly, with all Submission address the conformable Clergy, in this island, to instruct their People, that they and we profess the same Christian and Protestant Religion, only with some alterations in external Ceremonies and circumstances; that we may unite in affection and strength, against the common Enemy of our Reformation, and concur in the great work of the Gospel, for the manifestation of God’s Glory, and the Conviction, Conversion and Salvation of Souls in this Island, instructing such as are Ignorant, in the principle & great things of Religion, promoting virtue and true holiness, and Preaching down and reproving all Atheism, irreligion, and profanity, sealing and confirming all by a universal Copy, pattern and example, of a holy, and Ministerial Life and Conversation.

After his return to Maryland and Virginia, he also came into conflict with Quakers. Makemie was not so like-minded with the Quakers and he engaged in debate with their doctrine. He wrote a catechism that critiqued their teachings and he published a response to their objection to his catechism. Makemie was friends with the Mathers in Boston, he sought to get ministers for the churches he was planting both from England and from New England. He worked tirelessly and traveled much. On one of those trips he ran into trouble.

When Makemie arrived in New York in 1707, he stepped into a sensitive situation. There was a new governor in town. When Lord Cornbury had become governor in 1702, he had wanted to firmly establish the Church of England in New York. This was not easy, since there were many Dutch settlers there already and Presbyterians from New England. He had found that the Presbyterians had a church building in Jamaica (the neighborhood in Queens, not the island) that had been funded with tax money. Initially the building had been shared by the Presbyterians, Anglicans, and Dutch Reformed, but as the other groups formed their own churches, the Presbyterians, the largest group, retained the building. When the new governor found out about this, he locked the Presbyterian minister out and took the church and manse away from them. In time, the church was able to take the matter to court and they got their building back.  

Thus Lord Cornbury had his eye out for Presbyterian activity in New York. When Francis Makemie came into town, he was arrested for preaching in a private house because he had preached without getting a license from the governor of New York. He was put into prison along with a friend of his who had preached in a different church in town. A few weeks later, his trial was held, at which he produced his license from Barbados. He had obtained licenses to preach, although not from New York in particular. He appealed to the Toleration Act of 1689 and argued that these rights were retained throughout the colonies.

The governor described Makemie as a "Jack of all Trades he is a Preacher, a Doctor Physick, a Merchant, an Attorney, or Counsellor at Law, and, which is worse of all, a Disturber of Governments." Makemie contested the last phrase, arguing that he had not done anything to disturb governments. He printed his sermon, which was on Psalm 50:23b, "to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God." He said he would preach if even he did not have a license, but that he was law-abiding and licensed, and that his doctrine, expressed in the Westminster Confession of Faith, was in agreement with the 39 Articles of the Church of England, with those exceptions specified in the law.

Makemie won his case, an important one that helped to ensure that religious toleration would be extended to the colonies. All the non-conformists, whether they were Presbyterians or Baptists or Independents, appreciated his stand. Nevertheless, Makemie did suffer since he was forced to pay all the legal expenses.  loaded up with all the legal fees. On the other hand, Lord Cornbury was recalled the following year in 1708. 

The year before this trial, in 1706, Francis Makemie had organized the first presbytery in America. There had been Presbyterian churches established in the 1600s, but they had not been connected with each other through regional presbyteries until this time. At that first meeting, seven ministers attended. Most of them were Scottish or Scots-Irish, but one was from Massachusetts, a graduate of Harvard under Increase Mather. Makemie mentioned this presbytery meeting in a letter, saying, 

Our design is to meet yearly, and oftener, if necessary, to consult the most proper measures, for advancing religion, and propagating Christianity, in our Various Stations, and to mentain Such a Correspondence as may conduce to the improvement of our Ministeriall ability by prescribing Texts to be preached on by two of our number at every meeting, which performance is Subjected to the censure of our Brethren…

They wanted to coordinate their efforts for the spread of Christianity as well as help each other improve. It was a common practice for presbytery meetings to include "presbyterial exercises," in which a couple of them would preach and get feedback from the rest. The next presbytery meeting included ruling elders as well as ministers. From that point forward, it would be expected that all ministers were to attend and that each church was to send a ruling elder. A decade later in 1716, four presbyteries were formed with a synod over them. This expansion happened just in time, since the great migration of the Scots-Irish to America would begin in 1717.

As for Francis Makemie, he died at home in Virginia on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay in 1708. He was about 50 years old. You can read more about him and by him online at the Log College Press: Francis Makemie (1658-1708). You can hear more about the history of American Presbyterianism from this lesson series of mine: American Presbyterian History.

John Calvin on "the Wondrous Exchange"

In his chapter on the Lord's Supper in The Institutes of the Christian Religion, John Calvin reflects on the wondrous exchange between Christ and believers: 

"Pious souls can derive great confidence and delight from this sacrament, as being a testimony that they form one body with Christ, so that everything which is his they may call their own. Hence it follows, that we can confidently assure ourselves, that eternal life, of which he himself is the heir, is ours, and that the kingdom of heaven, into which he has entered, can no more be taken from us than from him; on the other hand, that we cannot be condemned for our sins, from the guilt of which he absolves us, seeing he has been pleased that these should be imputed to himself as if they were his own. This is the wondrous exchange made by his boundless goodness. Having become with us the Son of Man, he has made us with himself sons of God. By his own descent to the earth he has prepared our ascent to heaven. Having received our mortality, he has bestowed on us his immortality. Having undertaken our weakness, he has made us strong in his strength. Having submitted to our poverty, he has transferred to us his riches. Having taken upon himself the burden of unrighteousness with which we were oppressed, he has clothed us with his righteousness."

The Lord's Arrival in Jerusalem: Three Threes in Matthew 21-22

Jesus arrived in Jerusalem on the Sunday before his crucifixion. Matthew 21-22 recounts his first few days in Jerusalem by describing three symbolic acts, three parables, and three questions answered by Jesus.

The three symbolic acts were the triumphal entry, the cleansing of the temple, and the cursing of the fig tree. Jesus chose to ride on the donkey’s colt as he journeyed over the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem (after walking for miles from Galilee) to symbolize his identity as the King of Zion, the Son of David, the Christ (Matt. 21:1-11, Zech. 9:9). His hour had come, and it was time for him to unfurl his banner in the presence of his enemies, praised by his disciples and the crowds of pilgrims coming to the city. He then drove out the buyers and sellers from the temple courts to symbolize the coming judgment upon that "den of robbers" (Matt. 21:12-13, Jer. 7:11). He also cursed a fig tree to symbolize judgment upon those who failed to bear fruit (Matt. 21:18-22, 43, Jer. 8:13).

The three parables were those of the two sons, the tenants, and the wedding feast. They were told in response to a challenge to his authority from the chief priests and elders of the people (Matt. 21:23-27). In the first parable (Matt. 21:28-32), a father told two sons to work in the vineyard, and the first son said “I will not” but then changed his mind and went, while the second son said “I will go, sir” but then did not go. In the second parable (Matt. 21:33-46), the tenants of a vineyard beat or killed the landowner's servants and then finally his own son, so that they might have it for themselves; the point being that Jesus would be rejected, like the prophets who proceeded him, yet he would become the cornerstone. Those who were going to cast him out and kill him were going to then be cast out and killed. Jesus, though killed, would return from the dead and give the kingdom to his disciples. In the third parable (Matt. 22:1-14), the king invited guests to a wedding feast for his son, but the guests ignored or killed his servants. Therefore the king sent troops to destroy those murderers and their city (i.e. Jerusalem) and he sent his servants to invite whoever they can find to the feast, filling the wedding hall. But this was a mixed group, good and bad, and so the king inspected the guests and cast out the man not wearing a wedding garment. All three parables stressed the need to be true sons of the kingdom by receiving the gospel of the kingdom.

The three questions posed to him were concerning taxes, the resurrection, and the great commandment. The Pharisees and Sadducees took turns trying to entangle him in his words, but Jesus silenced them by his answers and astonished the crowds by his wisdom. Concerning taxes (Matt. 22:15-22), he pointed to the image on the coins they possessed, saying, "Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s." They were to give back taxes to the civil government, as was but fair and just, and they were to give back themselves, made in God's image, to God. Concerning the resurrection (Matt. 22:23-33), he answered the conundrum posed to him by noting that procreation, and therefore marriage, would be no longer needed or practiced in the coming age, and he noted that the Sadducees had errored in their denial of the resurrection by not taking into account the Scriptures and the power of God. Concerning the great commandment in the law (Matt. 22:34-40), he quoted two commandments, the one commanding wholehearted love for the Lord your God and the other commanding love for your neighbor as yourself (Deut. 6:5, Lev. 19:18), as the first and second commandments that together summarized the law. 

Chapter 22 ends with a final question, a question posed by Jesus himself about whose son the Christ is. Quoting Psalm 110:1, he asked, "If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?" (Matt. 22:45). Jesus had presented himself as the son of David and he had been acclaimed by the crowds as such. Now he pointed to the fact that while he was the son of David, he was no mere man. He was greater than David. He is David's Lord and the Son of God. He was the son described in the parables of the tenants and the wedding feast. The eternal Son of God had come in the flesh to his people as their king.

Men, Women, and Sin

God created mankind as male and female. Here are four ways in which sin corrupts and distorts this aspect of God's creation order:

(1) Masculinity and femininity, which are good, being twisted and redirected by sin. For example, man’s strength and aggression, designed to work and keep the garden, is used instead to oppress, exploit, and rob. Both men and women use their respective strengths for evil ends.

(2) Men and women rebelling directly against their design. For example, men who were given strength to protect and provide become lazy and soft, abdicating their responsibilities. Women who were given a unique ability to nurture their young can yet prove cruel and heartless to them. Men and women, designed for sexual relations with the opposite sex, sometimes pursue sexual relations with the same sex, contrary to nature.

(3) Enmity between men and women. They blame each other, are bitter against each other, hating and being hated by each other. There are men who despise and mistreat women, and women who despise and mistreat men. Masculinity and femininity get despised, blamed for their sinful perversions.

(4) Rebellion against the sexual distinction itself. Since the distinction between man and woman is an occasion of conflict, some want to solve it by getting rid of it. Other may be motivated by a desire to transcend their createdness, to avoid any prescribed identity. But one way or another, people rise up against this distinction and promote androgyny. Especially in our day, people seek to leverage the powers of science to overcome nature and free humanity from this distinction, making men and women interchangeable.

The good news is that redemption for sinners is found in Christ. Apart from Christ, humanity is lost in a labyrinth of confused and miserable rebellion, but that is not the case when one is in Christ. In Christ, you are forgiven and reconciled with God. In Christ, man and woman become co-heirs of grace, fellow members of the household of God. In Christ, you all are restored to live in accordance with your created design as the image of God and as men and women. 

Some error by thinking that in Christ we transcend our created nature and are freed from these created distinctions. But the problem was not in your created design. The problem was in rebellion and the misery it caused. Redemption does not destroy nature but restores and perfects it. The unity and distinctiveness of man and woman is restored, purified, and perfected in Christ. 

When Paul says in Galatians, “there is no male or female,” he explains what he means by saying, “for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Both men and women are fully and equally members of Christ and united as one body of Christ. There is no distinction in that respect, but that is not the case in every respect. The same Paul teaches that men and women in Christ do not loose their distinctive natures and duties, but are enabled and instructed to be godly men and godly women. Just as you are the image of God, and Christ restores your conformity to that identity, so in a similar way you are men and women and Christ restores your conformity to those identities in a way that is good and pleasing to God. 

Distributing the Lord's Supper

In this article at American Reformer, I review the history of the distribution of the Lord’s Supper in the Presbyterian tradition in light of current discussions about who should help in the distribution:

Distributing the Lord's Supper in the Presbyterian Tradition by Peter Bringe

Catechizing and the Westminster Shorter Catechism

Presbyterian Catechising by John Phillip (1817-1867). National Galleries of Scotland.

"Catechizing" refers to teaching the doctrines of the Christian faith in a systematic manner, especially through the use of questions and answers. The word comes from a Greek word found in the Bible (Luke 1:4, Gal. 6:6), κατηχέω (katécheó), which means “I teach orally, I instruct,” from kata and echos; to “sound down.” In English, catechism refers both to oral instruction and to written catechisms. Historically and etymologically, the oral instruction is primary, and the use and memorization of written catechisms is an aid in this work of catechizing. 

The Bible teaches the importance of such instruction. Exodus 12:26-27 and Deuteronomy 6:20-25 describe giving instruction in the faith through questions and answers. Deuteronomy 6:7 teaches parents to diligently teach the word of God to their children. "You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." This point is confirmed in the New Testament as well (Eph. 6:4). And not only parents are responsible for catechizing. The Greek word katécheó is used to describe the pastor-teachers of the church in Galatians 6:6, "Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches." It is important for the pastors of the church to teach as well as preach (1 Tim. 4:13, 16), to give instruction in sound doctrine, in "the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness" (1 Tim. 6:3, cp. 2 Tim. 1:13-14). Ministers must not shrink back from declaring everything profitable, the whole counsel of God, giving the saints a systematic understanding of what God's word teaches (Acts 20:20, 27). 

Not only do we find biblical grounds for this doctrinal instruction by both parents and pastors, but also its use in church history. In the early church, catechetical lectures were given to catechumens before they were admitted to the sacraments, along with catechetical instruction afterwards. From early on, this instruction followed the outline of the Creed (Nicene or Apostles), the Lord’s Prayer, the Ten Commandments, and the sacraments.

Catechetical instruction blossomed during the Reformation. Many catechism were written by the Reformers to assist in this work, such as Luther’s Large and Small Catechisms and the Genevan Catechism. The Roman Catholic Church responded with the “Roman Catechism” in 1566. 

Both parents and pastors were to be engaged in the work of catechism. Calvin held a catechism class on Sunday afternoons in between the morning and evening services, especially for the children. The Dutch Reformed tradition prescribed that pastors preach through the Heidelberg Catechism in their evening service. The Church of England in 1603 prescribed that all its pastors examine, instruct, and teach at least the youth and ignorant persons of their parish before the evening service for 30 minutes or more. The Church of Scotland prescribed in 1560 that the minister catechize on Sunday afternoons by publicly examining the youth before the congregation, instructing the whole congregation. In 1639, the Church of Scotland prescribed that every minister hold gatherings during the week for this catechizing (as portrayed in the painting above). It also prescribed that parents and masters catechize their households. 

The Westminster Shorter and Larger Catechisms were produced by the Westminster Assembly in the 1640s and they form part of the doctrinal standards of Presbyterian denominations like my own, the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. The Westminster Assembly produced these catechisms as a "Directory for ... catechising" for the churches of England, Scotland, and Ireland, in accord with the Solemn League and Covenant (1643). Its Form of Presbyterial Church Government included "catechising" among the ordinances to be practiced in each congregation and "To catechise, which is a plain laying down the first principles of the oracles of God" as among the duties of pastors. 

The Westminster Shorter Catechism has been used for centuries by Puritans, Presbyterians, and others to give instruction in the Christian faith, especially to the young and to those new to the faith. This catechism was used by English Puritans, with commentaries written on it by Thomas Vincent, Thomas Watson, and Matthew Henry. It was used throughout Presbyterian Scotland for centuries. It was also used in America, by Presbyterians and Congregationalists. It was included in the influential New England Primer, which was first published in 1690 and continued to be reprinted through the 19th century, and served as the basic textbook for beginning students as they learned to read. Thus, especially in the 1600s and 1700s, generations of American children were taught and discipled by this reliable tool of Christian discipleship.

The American Presbyterian Directory for Public Worship, approved in 1788, directed that 

Children, born within the pale of the visible Church, and dedicated to God in baptism, are under the instruction and government of the Church; and are to be taught to read, and repeat the Catechism, the Apostles Creed, and the Lord's prayer. They are to be taught to pray, to abhor sin, to fear God, and to obey the Lord Jesus Christ. And, when they come to years of discretion, if they be free from scandal, appear sober and steady, and to have sufficient knowledge to discern the Lord's body, they ought to be informed, it is their duty, and their privilege, to come to the Lord's Supper.

It also said, 

Let heads of families be careful to instruct their children and servants in the principles of religion. — Every proper opportunity ought to be embraced for such instruction. But we are of opinion that the sabbath evenings after public worship, should be sacredly preserved for this purpose.

Much of the responsibility for catechizing was on the parents, but often the church or school would also help in this work (e.g. public recitations, examinations, classes, or home visits). Sometimes the Scripture proofs were also memorized. 

For example, young Charles Hodge (1797-1878) and his brother were drilled in the catechism by their mother, who brought them to the catechism classes held by their pastor Ashbel Green for children, ages 3 or 4 to 10 or 12. When children of Dr. Green’s congregation had learned the catechism, they joined a Bible class which met weekly in the pastor’s study, which included continued review of the catechism. Then the youth attended Dr. Green’s series of lectures on the Shorter Catechism, which also attracted people of all ages. When Archibald Alexander (1772-1851) was a pastor, he held regular catechism classes for the children of the church on Saturday afternoons. He “put the class through the Shorter Catechism. The older children were required to bring written proofs of certain points assigned’” (Calhoun, Princeton Seminary, vol. 1, p. 57). Archibald himself had memorized it by the age of 7, at which point he had begun working on the Larger Catechism.

I am currently catechizing at church at 10:00 am on Sunday mornings with all ages welcome, working through the Westminster Shorter Catechism. You can find the recordings of those lessons here. You can find several written commentaries on it at this link and an outline of it here. You can also learn more about catechizing at this links:

Is the Shorter Catechism Worth While? by B.B. Warfield (1851-1921) 

Why Catechize? by Thomas Watson (1620–1686)

Catechizing: A Forgotten Practice by John Murray (1898-1975) 

The Parson Catechising by George Herbert (1593-1633)

Church Membership

A Christian must be a member of a church, under the oversight and jurisdiction of particular elders, exercising the communion of saints.

There have been times and places when this was not as much of an issue for Christians, because they would automatically belong to their parish church. But our present situation in America places more responsibility on the individual to take the initiative to join a church.

Those whom Christ saves, he makes members of his church, which he organizes with visible government and ordinances, and church members have no right to renounce its jurisdiction and fellowship.

A Christian has no right to withdraw from membership in Christ’s church and its jurisdiction, although they may transfer from one particular church to another.

A Christian is bound by his profession of faith in Christ to participate faithfully in the church's worship and service, to submit in the Lord to its government, and to heed its discipline.

Nor should a Christian want to withdraw from the church - Christ has instituted things like pastoral care, diaconal care, and the sacraments for the good of his people. One of the benefits of salvation is this fellowship in the household of God, in which you are both blessed and a blessing to others.

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The visible church is composed of those who profess the true religion and their children (1 Cor. 1:2, 7:14). While Baptists would disagree with the inclusion of their children, they would agree that Christians are the church. Those who are baptized are added to the number of the church (Acts 2:41, 47, 1 Cor. 12:13).

The church is society, a fellowship, in which each member is called to participate in its common worship, in mutual edification, and in sharing according to abilities and needs (Acts 2:42, Heb. 10:24-25, 1 Thess. 5:11, 2 Cor. 8-9). As the Westminster Confession of Faith puts it, "Saints by profession are bound to maintain an holy fellowship and communion in the worship of God, and in performing such other spiritual services as tend to their mutual edification; as also in relieving each other in outward things, according to their several abilities and necessities" (26.2).

Christ has appointed that there be a government in his church of elders to govern and shepherd the church, “all the flock” (1 Thess. 5:12-13, Acts 20:28), instituting the practice of church discipline, to be used as needed (Matt. 16:19, 18:15-20). Part of how Christ exercises the office of a king is by giving his people "officers, laws, and censures, by which he visibly governs them," as our Larger Catechism explains (WLC 45). Christians are commanded in Scripture to be subject to this government in the Lord. “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you” (Heb. 13:17). 

Christ has given pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints (Eph. 4:11-12). As the Westminster Confession of Faith puts it, "Unto this catholic visible church Christ hath given the ministry, oracles, and ordinances of God, for the gathering and perfecting of the saints, in this life, to the end of the world: and doth, by his own presence and Spirit, according to his promise, make them effectual thereunto" (25.3). 

This is not to discount the bad experiences some people have with churches. Their suspicion toward the church in general may be understandable. But such a Christian should not want to withdraw from the church altogether, but to seek the care and ministry that Christ has appointed for his people. The church has a responsibility to faithfully care for one another and build up the body, and shepherds in particular have a duty to faithfully carry out their ministry, lest what Ezekiel 34:1-10 describes takes place.

This church is universal (Matt. 16:18), regional (Acts 20:17), and local (1 Cor. 16:19). Christians can transfer from church to church, especially when they move or when attempts to rectify a serious problem fail. But as long as they are Christians, they cannot withdraw from Christ’s church, and ought to therefore have membership in some church under some elders.

Jesus the King

"Q. 26. How doth Christ execute the office of a king? A. Christ executeth the office of a king, in subduing us to himself, in ruling and defending us, and in restraining and conquering all his and our enemies." (Westminster Shorter Catechism) 

In what two ways is Jesus king?

While Jesus has eternal dominion over all as God, he also has received a mediatorial dominion over all as our Redeemer, on the basis of his death and resurrection, to the end that he might save, lead, and protect God’s elect and restore God’s reign over a fallen world (John 17:2, Matt. 28:18, 1 Cor. 15:24-26). It is in this second sense that he was “given” all authority in heaven and on earth (Matt. 28:18). Not only does Jesus, as our Redeemer, execute the offices of a prophet and of a priest, but also of a king. 

Why do we need a king?

By nature, the fallen world is under the domain of Satan and the judgment of God. They are condemned outlaws, hostile to God, doing whatever their corrupt will desires, under a tyrant’s sway. They are like sheep without a shepherd (Matt. 9:36, 1 King 22:17, Ezek. 34:5-6), scattered, going their own way, subject to ravenous wolves. But by grace, sinners are brought into the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of God and of his Christ (Col. 1:13-14). Jesus binds the strong man and plunders his house, drawing people into his kingdom (Matt. 12:25-29).

As early as Genesis 3:15, mankind was taught to believe in the king who delivers sinners from the domain of darkness with victory over the serpent. God said to that ancient serpent the devil, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel” (Gen. 3:15).

When did God first promise kings for his people? 

God promised to Abraham and Jacob to raise up kings from their offspring (Gen. 17:6, 16; 35:11), and instructions for a king were given in Deuteronomy 17. The book of Judges pointed to Israel’s need for a king to deliver and lead them. “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes”(Judges 21:25).

After God rejected Saul from being king, whom did he raise up and establish as king over his covenant people?

King David, son of Jesse, a shepherd from Bethlehem. The kingdom of Israel under King David and his heirs was an Old Testament manifestation and type of the kingdom of God. God chose this people and provided them with a king to deliver them and give them peace and rest (2 Sam. 7:8-11, Ps. 78:70-72). He promised to raise up David’s offspring to succeed him and to establish his throne forever (2 Sam. 7:12-16, Ps. 72, 89:1-37).

The kings like David, Asa, and Jehoshaphat received God’s word from the priests and enforced it, guided the people by it, delivered the people from their enemies, gave them peace in the land, and interceded for the people.

Yet, as David’s descendants acted corruptly, the kingdom fell. Was God done with the offspring of David? What did the prophets say? 

The prophets explained to the people that this situation was temporary. God would remember his covenant with David and raise up his heir and restore his kingdom and make it greater than ever before (Is. 9:6-7, 11:1-10, Ezek. 34:23-24, Micah 5:2-4). The king would come to Israel and shepherd God’s people and extend his reign to the ends of the earth. This would be the Christ, God’s anointed, who would deliver his people and establish heaven’s reign on earth. As the fulfillment of this prophecy, Jesus came as the Son of David, the promised king (Luke 1:31-33).

How does King Jesus subdue us to himself? 

He does so by subduing our hearts by converting us by his word and Spirit, so that we offer ourselves freely on the day of his power (Ps. 110:3, see also Acts 15:14-18). He powerfully calls out of the world a people to himself, bestowing saving grace upon his elect, rescuing them from the domain of darkness. He applies redemption by his word and Spirit.

How does King Jesus rule us? 

He rules his people internally by his grace, by his Spirit who writes God’s word on our hearts. He rules his people externally by his officers, his laws, and his censures (Eph. 4:11-12, 1 Cor. 12:28, Is. 33:22, Matt. 18:17-18). He also rules them in his providence by rewarding their obedience, correcting them for their sins, and ordering all things for their good (Rev. 2:10, 3:19).

How does King Jesus defend us? 

He defends us from our enemies by preserving and supporting us under all our temptations and sufferings, and by restraining and conquering our enemies. He both carries his sheep and he fights off the lions and bears (Is. 40:11, 1 Sam. 17:34-36).

The kingdom of heaven is both a shelter and a transforming power, a place of protective defense and a power of righteous sway. It is a tree where the birds make their nest and it is leaven which transforms the dough (Matt. 13:31-33). (1) It is a shelter where there is reconciliation with God rather than condemnation, favor rather than wrath. In this kingdom there is justification and adoption, and thus peace and joy, through Jesus Christ (Col. 1:12-14). We take refuge under the protection of our king. (2) Jesus reigns in our hearts by his grace, producing sanctification, societal reform, and a new way of life. As a little sin can spread its corrupting influence in people and communities (1 Cor. 5:6), so the reign of Christ spreads its reforming influence in people and communities.

How does King Jesus restrain and conquer his and our enemies? 

As Jesus places us on his side, his enemies become ours as well. As the world hated him, so it hates his disciples. Therefore, in addition to death, our enemies include the world, the flesh, and the devil. But Jesus shall restrain and conquer them, for his glory, for our good, and to fulfill his messianic task to restore the world. He “will shatter kings on the day of his wrath. He will execute judgment among the nations, filling them with corpses” (110:5-6). As Psalm 2 describes the choice, we must either submit to the king and take refuge in him or suffer his wrath and perish (Ps. 2:12). He wields this power even now as he extends his kingdom (Rev. 2:15-16, 22-23). For example, he overthrew Jerusalem for its persistent persecution of him and his disciples. But one day he will return in glory to raise the dead and judge the world, repaying with affliction those who afflicted his church, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God or obey the gospel, purifying his church of all hypocrites, bringing all of this work to perfect completion (2 Thess. 1:6-10). 

Psalm 110 serves as a good summary of his kingship. Jesus was enthroned as king when he ascended to his Father’s right hand on the basis of his victorious work of redemption (Ps. 110:1). He now rules in the midst of his enemies, making his enemies his footstool (110:1-2). He does this in two ways, (1) by subduing the hearts of his people by his word and Spirit, so that they “offer themselves freely on the day of [his] power” (110:3), and (2) by restraining and conquering all his and our enemies, executing judgment among the nations (110:5-6).

"[The kingdom of God] was symbolized in the throne of David in Jerusalem and the Jewish theocracy, and it was visibly set up in its higher spiritual form when the long-promised Son of David, having redeemed his people on the cross, rose from the dead, ascended to the heavens and sat down at the right hand of God. This kingdom is not one among the many competing kingdoms of the earth. It is antagonistic to the kingdom of Satan only: all the natural kingdoms of men, except in so far as they are compromised with the kingdom of Satan, are penetrated and assimilated and rendered subservient to its own ends by the kingdom of God. All other kingdoms have their rise, progress, maturity and decadence, while this kingdom alone is eternal, growing broader and waxing stronger through all ages until its consummation in the city of God."
-A.A. Hodge, "The Kingdom Of Christ," Popular Lectures on Theological Themes (1887)

Jesus the Priest

"Q. 25. How doth Christ execute the office of a priest? A. Christ executeth the office of a priest, in his once offering up of himself a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice, and reconcile us to God; and in making continual intercession for us." (Westminster Shorter Catechism)

Jesus became our redeemer to deliver us from our estate of sin and misery. As our redeemer he executes the offices of a prophet, of a priest, and of a king. 

Why do we need a priest? 

Because apart from him we are alienated from God, guilty and defiled, condemned by divine justice, unable to dwell with a holy God.

Who were some of the priests in the Old Testament? 

Aaron, Eleazar, Phinehas, Zadok, Joshua (the high priest after the exile), and Ezra. Some of the priests were also prophets (Ezekiel) and one was also a king (Melchizedek).

What did they do?

They received God’s word from the prophets and taught it, maintained the worship and vindicated the holiness of God, offered the various sacrifices and gifts of the people to God, and interceded for the people (Deut. 33:8-11, Lev. 10:10-11, Mal. 1-2, Heb. 5:1-4).

Where was it prophesied that the Christ would be a priest? 

Isaiah 53 and Psalm 110. "The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, 'You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek'" (Psalm 110:4).

What is significant about Jesus being a priest of the order of Melchizedek? 

As Hebrews 7 explains, Melchizedek was the priest-king of Salem who received a tithe from Abraham and was a type of Christ. Being of the order of Melchizedek, Jesus is superior to the Levitical priesthood and is a priest-king of peace and righteousness, without beginning or end. It also defeats the objection to the priesthood of Jesus on the grounds that he was of the tribe of Judah rather than Levi - the Christ who was prophesied to be king was also appointed by God’s oath as a priest of the order of Melchizedek.

How was Jesus greater than the Levitical priests? 

In contrast to the Levitical priests, who were “many in number because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, [Jesus] holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever” (Heb. 7:23-24). Jesus is God and man, and he was raised from the dead, to never die again, being made a “priest forever” by God’s oath. He also personally sinless and undefiled, without need to offer sacrifice for his own sins (Heb. 7:26-27).

Was it requisite that our priest be man? 

Yes, priests were chosen from among men to act on behalf of men in relation to God (Heb. 5:1-2). Jesus is a merciful high priest, able to sympathize with our weakness, having been tempted as we are, yet without sin (Heb. 2:17, 4:15).

What is the sacrifice that Jesus offered for sins? 

The sacrifice that he offered was himself. He partook of our flesh and blood to die for us, bearing our sins in his own body on the tree. Jesus secured an eternal redemption by his once-for-all offering of himself as a sacrifice without blemish to God (Heb. 9:12, 14). “But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Hebrews 9:26).

How is this sacrifice superior to the sacrifices that were offered by the Levitical priests? 

The animal sacrifices of the old covenant were shadows of what was to come. They pointed to Christ, directing the old covenant saints to believe in the Christ to come for their salvation. The fact that these sacrifices had to be continually offered showed their insufficiency of themselves to take away sins. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins (Heb. 10:1-4). The sacrifice of Christ did take away sins, once for all (Heb. 9:13–14). And rather than purifying the earthly holy place, which was a copy of the heavenly, Christ entered into the heavenly holy places by means of his own blood, appearing before God for us (Heb. 9:11-12).

What did Jesus do by his sacrifice of himself?

By his death, Jesus satisfied divine justice and reconciled us to God. His sacrifice of himself was a “propitiation” for our sins (Rom. 3:25, Heb. 2:17, 1 John 2:2, 4:10), which is to say that by atoning for our sins it appeased the just wrath of God and incurred God's favor. It is the grounds for our forgiveness, the debt of sin having been paid by Christ. By it, we are reconciled with God - peace has been made by the blood of the cross (Col. 1:20).

This is not to say that Jesus and the Father were at cross-purposes. The Father had sent the Son because of his love for us, so that God and sinners would be reconciled. As John Murray has said, “The doctrine of the propitiation is precisely this: that God loved the objects of His wrath so much that He gave His own Son to the end that He by His blood should make provision for the removal of this wrath.” (John Murray, The Atonement. Philadelphia, PA: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1962, p. 15)

How does Jesus continue to execute the office of a priest for us? 

He continues to make intercession for those who draw near to God through him (Heb. 7:25, Is. 53:12). As the Westminster Larger Catechism says, "Christ maketh intercession, by his appearing in our nature continually before the Father in heaven, in the merit of his obedience and sacrifice on earth, declaring his will to have it applied to all believers; answering all accusations against them, and procuring for them quiet of conscience, notwithstanding daily failings, access with boldness to the throne of grace, and acceptance of their persons and services" (Q&A 55).

Jesus the Prophet

"Q. 24. How doth Christ execute the office of a prophet?
 A. Christ executeth the office of a prophet, in revealing to us, by his word and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation." (Westminster Shorter Catechism)

The eternal Son of God became the Redeemer to deliver us out of an estate of sin and misery and into an estate of salvation and glory. He is not our redeemer and mediator by nature, but by grace. In this capacity and for this purpose, he is a prophet, priest, and king. 

Who were some of the prophets of the Old Testament? 

Moses, Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, Elisha, Jonah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Zechariah, etc. 

What did they do? 

They delivered God’s word to the people, speaking and writing his word. God put his words into their mouths (Jer. 1:9). They often received and described visions given by God, and sometimes were given parables or demonstrations to deliver the message (Hos. 12:10). They often did miracles which demonstrated God’s power and mercy, as well as verified the message. They often interceded for the people in prayer.  

How did the ministry of the prophets differ from the teaching ministry of the priests? 

The prophets spoke as oracles of God, delivering revelation to God’s people. The priests received the written word of the prophets and taught it. The prophets delivered new revelations from God by speech and writings, while the priests read and taught those Holy Scriptures (Deut. 31:9-13, 33:10, Lev. 10:11). And while there were some women prophets in the Old and New Testaments, the ministers of the word in both eras have always been men.

Was there a prophetic expectation that the Christ would be a prophet? 

I think it is safe to say that Moses was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament. The concluding postscript of Deuteronomy says that “there has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, none like him for all the signs and the wonders that the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt…” (Deut. 34:10-11). Yet, Moses prophesied in Deuteronomy 18:15-16 that the Lord would raise up a prophet like Moses for his people, to mediate between them and the Lord.

When people began to observe Jesus’ teaching and miracles, they realized that he was this great prophet, the Prophet. The Gospel of John makes this clear by noting that John the Baptist denied that he was the Prophet (John 1:21-27), while the people correctly realized that Jesus was the Prophet (John 6:14, 7:40). Peter quoted the prophecy of Deuteronomy 18 in Acts 3:22 as referring to Jesus.

How was Jesus greater than the other prophets? 

Both John and the writer of Hebrews points out that Jesus surpassed the other prophets by being God himself, the eternal Word, the only-begotten Son of the Father (John 1:1-3, 14-18, Hebrew 1:1-3, 3:1-6). Jesus makes his Father known perfectly and completely because he is “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Heb. 1:3). And as the Redeemer who accomplished redemption, Jesus proclaimed the final and permanent administration of the covenant of grace. Jesus is the final word. “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son…” (Heb. 1:1-2a). This is why Scripture was completed and special revelation ceased once his word, delivered through the apostles, was written down (Heb. 2:3-4).

How did Jesus exercise his office as a prophet before his incarnation? 

By inspiring the prophets by his Spirit (1 Peter 1:10-11). Not only is Jesus greater than all other prophets, but he was always at work through the other prophets. The Old Testament was given through him, as he worked by his Spirit to prepare his people for his coming and to build them up through faith in him.

How did Jesus exercise his office as a prophet during his earthly ministry? 

Jesus exercised this prophetic ministry during his time on earth as he preached the gospel, taught his disciples, told parables, pronounced blessings and woes, foretold future events, taught through symbolic actions, and did many miracles, signs, and wonders. He made the Father known, revealed the substance and fullness of the covenant and the kingdom, and established the new covenant administration.

How did Jesus exercise his office as a prophet during the apostolic age?

He revealed God’s will by his Spirit through through his apostles whom he commissioned (John 14:25-26, 15:26-27), as well as by the NT prophets (Eph. 3:5, 4:11, 1 Cor. 12:28, Acts 13:1). The apostles and prophets (OT and NT) are the foundation and he is the cornerstone (Eph. 2:20). 

How does Jesus exercise his office as a prophet now? 

Jesus continues to exercise this office as he disciples us through Scripture and enlightens our minds by his Spirit to understand it (1 Cor. 2:12-16). He also continues to gift men for the ministry of the word, not as infallible prophets, but as preachers and teachers (Eph. 4:11).

What is it that Jesus makes known to sinners by his word and Spirit? 

The will of God for our salvation. This includes a knowledge of the true God, his works, and his will. The purpose of this revelation is that we might be justified by faith in Christ and conformed to his image by his discipleship (John 20:31, Matt. 28:18-20, 1 Tim. 3:15-17).

He delivered the full and final revelation of this message with his coming, a message that was once delivered to the saints through the prophets and apostles, and which was written down for the church in the New Testament. As this message has been delivered by the Prophet, and we await no greater revelation until his second coming, prophecy has ceased and we expect no further revelation. Let us attend to the written word of God and grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

The Incarnation of the Son of God

"Q. 22: How did Christ, being the Son of God, become man? A. Christ, the Son of God, became man, by taking to himself a true body and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin." (Westminster Shorter Catechism) 

Christ is the eternal Son of God, of one substance with the Father. At a particular time, for our salvation, he became man. He did this without giving up his divine nature, but united the two natures in one person. This is one of the great wonders of the Christian faith. It is such a wondrous thing that from time to time some heretics have felt the need to tone it down. But our catechism explains what God has revealed in his word concerning Jesus, that because we “share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things” and was made to be “like his brothers in every respect” so that he might be our high priest and die on our behalf (Heb. 2:14-18). As a man, he “in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15).

The Human Nature of Christ

What kind of body did Jesus take to himself?
He took to himself a true body. Some heresies have denied this, such as Docetism and Marcionism. Even in the days of the apostles, John warned of deceivers who “do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh” (2 John 1:7). Jesus took to himself a true human body with flesh and bones (Luke 24:39-42). He took to himself a mortal body, with its common infirmities, in weakness. His body was a true body, subject to the limitations of a human body.

Did Jesus have a human soul as well as a human body?
Yes, he took to himself a human soul. Contrary to the heresy of Apollinarianism, he took to himself a “reasonable soul” (that is, a rational soul, a soul that could reason). This too was part of being "made like his brothers in every respect" (Heb. 2:17). He took on a human mind, will, and affections - all willingly subject to his divine will. He fully shared in our human experience, both in the outer life and in the inner life. When he suffered for us, he suffered in both body and soul. When he was in Gethsemane, he told his disciples, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me” (Matt. 26:38). He is able to sympathize with our weakness (Heb. 4:15). While he remained without sin, and thus did not experience any temptation arising from evil desires, yet he did experience things like hunger, thirst, sorrow, and weakness, as well as the temptations of the world and the evil one.

Jesus did not come as superman, a man of steel, but a man in your humble and mortal condition, capable of suffering. He hungered (Matt. 4:2). He got tired (John 4:6). As a youth he studied and grew in wisdom (Luke 2:52). As he prepared to offer himself as a sacrifice for sin, he was in agony, praying with loud cries and tears, with sweat that became like great drops of blood (Heb. 5:7, Luke 22:44). He experienced fear and yet pressed on for the joy that was set before him, entrusting his spirit into his Father’s hands. It was not enough to merely take on a visible appearance to talk with humans, as angels have done, but it was essential to become one of us, in order to die our death and raise us to new life and immortality.

What use should we make of the doctrine of Christ’s true humanity?
(1) Gratitude to Christ. (2) Confidence in his mercy and compassion, seeking his help. (3) Confidence in his sacrifice and redemption, receive and resting upon him. (4) Imitation of his love and humility. (5) Imitation of his perfect humanity. (6) To not despise human nature, body or soul, but to give thanks for Christ’s redemption of our whole nature.

The Virgin Birth

Was Jesus begotten by an earthly father? 

No, he was conceived apart from any earthly father in the womb of a virgin. 

Of whom was Jesus conceived? Out of what was his flesh made?
The flesh of Christ came from the virgin Mary, although miraculously conceived. Jesus was conceived “of her substance” (WLC 37, WCF 8.2). Even before his birth, Jesus was called by Elizabeth the fruit of Mary’s womb (Luke 1:42). Mary also nourished him in her womb and gave birth to him. As regards his divine nature, the Son is begotten of the Father before all ages, but as regards his manhood, he was conceived of Mary, of her substance. Jesus is the promised offspring of the woman (Gen. 3:15), of Israelite and Davidic descent according to the flesh (Rom. 1:3, 9:5).

By whose power was Jesus conceived in Mary’s womb and of her substance?
The Holy Spirit was the one who did this work. This is the angel’s answer to Mary’s question, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” How? By the Holy Spirit. Nothing will be impossible with God. The same explanation was given to Joseph: “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for what which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit” (1:20). The Holy Spirit does not act the part of a father, but as the worker of a miracle. The virgin conceived without intercourse, and this happened by the power of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit wrought this miraculous conception, and did so in such a way that the personal union of Christ’s two natures existed from the moment of conception and what was conceived was holy, without original sin.

What implication might this doctrine have for the debate as to when personhood begins? 
Note that the Son of God was an unborn baby. The incarnation began at conception. Beginning at conception, a person was in Mary’s womb, conceived of her substance, but no longer her body. She was the “mother of my Lord” while pregnant (Luke 1:43).

How did this miraculous conception fulfill prophecy?
Christ was conceived in this way in accord with the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14 (cp. Is. 9:9-7 and Matt. 1:22-23). "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel" (Is. 7:14). 

Besides fulfilling prophecy, why is it important that Jesus was conceived of a virgin by the Spirit?
That Jesus might be the second Adam, a new beginning for the old humanity.

The covenant of works was made with Adam and all his natural posterity, all those descended from him by ordinary generation. Adam’s corruption was conveyed and his guilt imputed to his natural descendants. But Jesus took on Adam’s human nature without being his descendant by ordinary generation. The point is not that original sin comes from the man rather than the woman, but that original sin is passed on by the course of nature and that Christ was not conceived through the course of nature.

Jesus is the head of a renewed humanity, a new beginning for the old humanity, having the same human nature as Adam but without his headship and corruption. Jesus was descended from Adam, but not in a natural way. He was conceived of Mary’s substance by a supernatural work. He is the last Adam (Rom. 5:12-21), the one who would renew the lost children of the first Adam. Thus his miraculous conception is like our own spiritual rebirth in him: not by nature, but by the Spirit of God.