Since 2008, we have been taking a beat around New Year’s Day to bring you some of the top moments from the preceding year. We have several great clips lined up for you today.

This was another encouraging year for us at Reformed Forum. We published four new courses. We also hosted our first two in-person courses (on Zephaniah and 2 Peter) and increased our online student base to 4,210 people (+11% over last year) in 84 countries (+13%).

But perhaps the highlight of the year was the publication of Lane G. Tipton’s book, The Trinitarian Theology of Cornelius Van Til. We believe this work is a significant advance in Reformed apologetic scholarship and will be read for decades to come.

Every Person Mature

Our mission is to support the church in her charge of presenting every person mature in Christ (Col. 1:28). In order to continue producing resources that benefit local churches at home and around the world in accord with this mission, we have launched the Every Person Mature campaign. Our goal is to raise $150,000 by the end of 2022 so that we may continue to provide free theological resources for your congregation and others like it around the world.

The good news is that we are nearly halfway there! A generous donor has committed to match all donations toward this cause up to $75,000. By donating to the Every Person Mature campaign, you will fund essential resources for believers who are hungry for confessionally Reformed resources.

Top Episodes

• Episode 745 — Van Til, Thomas Aquinas, and the Natural Knowledge of God with Lane Tipton
• Episode 764 — A God-Centered Approach to History with Vern Poythress
• Episode 761 — Van Til Group #8 — The Christian Philosophy of Knowledge with Carlton Wynne and Lane Tipton
• Episode 736 — John Owen, Jeremiah 31, and the Old Covenant with Carlton Wynne and Will Wood
• Episode 780 — 1689 Federalism and the Old Covenant with Jeremy Boothby, Carlton Wynne, and Lane Tipton
• Episode 762 — The Extra Calvinistic from Zwingli to Early Orthodoxy with K. J. Drake
• Episode 746 — Natural Theology and the Effects of Sin with Lane Tipton, Rob McKenzie, and Ryan Noha
• Episode 748 — Van Til Group #7 — Creation, Sin and Its Curse with Carlton Wynne and Lane Tipton
• Episode 772 — A Tale of Two Trees with Scott Wright
• Episode 752 — The Two Ages in Scripture with Adam York

Chapters

• 00:00:06 Introduction
• 00:05:32 Lane Tipton — Van Til, Thomas Aquinas, and the Natural Knowledge of God
• 00:11:35 Vern Poythress — A God-Centered Approach to History
• 00:20:01 Van Til Group #8 — The Christian Philosophy of Knowledge
• 00:26:14 Carlton Wynne — John Owen, Jeremiah 31, and the Old Covenant
• 00:34:20 Carlton Wynne, Jeremy Boothby, and Lane Tipton — 1689 Federalism and the Old Covenant
• 00:45:38 K. J. Drake — The Extra Calvinistic from Zwingli to Early Orthodoxy
• 00:51:16 Lane Tipton — Natural Theology and the Effects of Sin
• 00:56:23 Van Til Group #7 — Creation, Sin and Its Curse
• 01:09:09 Scott Wright — A Tale of Two Trees
• 01:14:15 Adam York — The Two Ages in Scripture
• 01:20:59 Conclusion

Participants: Adam York, Camden Bucey, Carlton Wynne, Dan Ragusa, Jeremy Boothby, K. J. Drake, Lane G. Tipton, Rob McKenzie, Ryan Noha, Vern Poythress, Will Wood

Dr. Vern Poythress speaks about the study of history and historiography from a Christian perspective. In his book, Redeeming Our Thinking about History: A God-Centered Approach (Crossway), Dr. Poythress emphasizes God’s own command to remember his works and share them with the next generation. He explores providentialism, divine purpose, and the four basic phases of biblical history: creation, fall, redemption, and consummation.

Dr. Vern Poythress, Distinguished Professor of New Testament, Biblical Interpretation, and Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Glenside, Pennsylvania, where he has taught for four decades. In addition to earning six academic degrees, he is the author of numerous books and articles on biblical interpretation, language, and science.

Chapters

• 00:00:00 Introduction
• 00:03:44 Focusing on History
• 00:14:01 Presuppositions of Historical Methodology
• 00:17:06 Defining and Experiencing History
• 00:22:07 Three Important Aspects of History
• 00:32:29 Divine Inscrutability and Divine Revelation
• 00:34:36 Common Grace and History
• 00:40:12 Reductionistic Approaches to History
• 00:48:14 The Academic Pursuit of History
• 00:59:59 Conclusion

Participants: Camden Bucey, Vern Poythress

Dr. Vern Poythress speaks about the hermeneutical issues of interpreting Genesis 1–3 and how biblical interpretation relates to contemporary scientific study.

Dr. Poythress is Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Biblical Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary and the author of Interpreting Eden: A Guide to Faithfully Understanding and Reading Genesis 1–3 (Crossway). The publisher writes:

Christians have long discussed and debated the first three chapters of the Bible. How we interpret this crucial section of Scripture has massive implications for how we understand the rest of God’s Word and even history itself. In this important volume, biblical scholar Vern Poythress combines careful exegesis with theological acumen to illuminate the significance of Genesis 1–3. In doing so, he demonstrates the sound interpretive principles that lead to true understanding of the biblical text, while also exploring complex topics such as the nature of time, the proper role of science, interpretive literalism, and more.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Glen Clary, Jim Cassidy, Vern Poythress

Dr. Vern Poythress speaks with us about his book, Theophany: A Biblical Theology of God’s Appearing, published by Crossway. Each time God appears to his people throughout the Bible—in the form of a thunderstorm, a man, a warrior, a chariot, etc.—he comes to a specific person for a specific purpose. And each of these temporary appearances— called theophanies—helps us to better understand who he is, anticipating his climactic, permanent self-revelation in the incarnation of Christ. Describing the various accounts of God’s visible presence from Genesis to Revelation, Dr. Poythress helps us consider more deeply what they reveal about who God is and how he dwells with us today. We also spoke about the upcoming Westminster Conference on Science & Faith to be held April 6–7, 2018 at Proclamation Presbyterian Church in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania (see map). They will explore the relationship between theistic evolution and the Christian faith. Register at wcosaf.com. Dr. Poythress is Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary in Glenside, Pennsylvania.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy, Vern Poythress

Episodes

• 425 — David VanDrunen, God’s Glory Alone
• 428 — Vern Poythress, The Miracles of Jesus
• 441 — John Galbraith and Danny Olinger on John Galbraith’s Life and Ministry
• 443 — Alan Strange, Charles Hodge and the Spirituality of the Church
• 444 — Iain Murray, J. C. Ryle
• 445 — Lane Tipton, Trinity, Processions, and Missions: The Pactum Salutis
• 449 — Rob McKenzie and Bob Tarullo, Dispensationalism
• 452 — Michael Kruger, A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the New Testament
• 453 — Dennis Johnson, Walking withe Jesus through His Word
• 455 — Richard Gaffin, Jr., Calvin and the Sabbath
• 461 — Gregg Allison and Chris Castaldo, The Unfinished Reformation
• 464 — Mark Vanderhart and Cornelis Venema, The Reformed Church in Latvia
• 467 — Patricia Clawson and Diane Olinger, Choosing the Good Portion: Women of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church

Participants: Adam York, Alan Strange, Camden Bucey, Chris Castaldo, Cornelis Venema, Danny Olinger, David VanDrunen, Dennis Johnson, Diane Olinger, Glen Clary, Gregg Allison, Iain Murray, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy, John Galbraith, Lane G. Tipton, Mark Vander Hart, Michael Kruger, Patricia Clawson, Richard B. Gaffin Jr., Rob McKenzie, Robert Tarullo, Vern Poythress

Today we welcome Vern Poythress and Iain Duguid to speak about Reformed hermeneutics and the tradition of biblical interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary. Along with G. K. Beale and Richard B. Gaffin, Jr., Poythress and Duguid have contributed to Seeing Christ in All of Scripture: Hermeneutics at Westminster Theological Seminary. We speak about the book and the importance of interpreting Scripture according to Christ. Dr. Poythress is professor of New Testament interpretation and Dr. Duguid is professor of Old Testament at Westminster. Westminster Seminary Press is offering a PDF copy of the book for free.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Iain Duguid, Jeff Waddington, Vern Poythress

Jeff Waddington and Camden Bucey speak with Dr. Vern Poythress about his book Reading the Word of God in the Presence of God: A Handbook for Biblical Interpretation. Providing both theological foundations and practical strategies for interpretation, Dr. Poythress explains the simple yet astounding truth that God is present in his Word and speaks to us as we read. With pastoral sensitivity, he combines linguistic theory, hermeneutics, systematic theology, and expert biblical knowledge into a compelling work both instructive for advanced students of the Bible and accessible for beginners.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jeff Waddington, Vern Poythress

Jesus’ miracles are windows into God’s grand story of redemption. They confirm God’s message and demonstrate his power in the world and purpose in redemption. In this episode, Dr. Vern Poythress speaks with us about his book The Miracles of Jesus: How the Savior’s Mighty Acts Serve as Signs of Redemption (Crossway). Poythress serves as professor of New Testament interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary. For the opensource-minded, you can also download this episode in .ogg format.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy, Vern Poythress

• 370 — Donald Macleod, Understanding the Atonement
• 373 — Rita Cefalu, The Sons of God and Daughters of Man in Genesis 6
• 376 — Vern Poythress, Redeeming Mathematics
• 378 — Carl Trueman, Luther on the Christian Life
• 391 — Chris Castaldo, Talking with Catholics about the Gospel
• 393 — Tony Reinke, Newton on the Christian Life
• 398 — Bill Edgar, The History and Legacy of the Huguenots
• 400 — Jim Cassidy, Jeff Waddington, and Camden Bucey, Polemical Theology
• 403 — Kevin Chiarot, The Unassumed Is the Unhealed
• 408 — Richard B. Gaffin, Jr., The Eschatological Aspect of the Pauline Conception of the Spirit
• 411 — Daniel Strange, A Theology of Religions
• 415 — John Bolt, Bavinck on the Christian Life

Participants: Camden Bucey, Carl Trueman, Chris Castaldo, Daniel Strange, Donald Macleod, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy, John Bolt, Kevin Chiarot, Richard B. Gaffin Jr., Rita Cefalu, Tony Reinke, Vern Poythress, William Edgar

Vern Poythress joins us to speak about his book Redeeming Mathematics: A God-Centered Approach. Dr. Poythress explains how the Triune God of the Bible is the foundation for mathematics by arguing that the harmony of abstract mathematical truths, the physical world of things, and the personal world of our thinking depends on the existence of the Christian God.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jeff Waddington, Vern Poythress

Dr. Vern Poythress comes to the program today to speak about his book, Redeeming Philosophy. In today’s discussion, Dr. Poythress helps us examine the roots of Western philosophy, uncover some of its limitations, and find answers to our questions in dependence upon God’s word. Dr. Poythress is the author of a number of books, including Redeeming Science, In the Beginning Was the Word, Redeeming Sociology, and Logic. He has also spoken on Christ the Center episodes 52, 98, 188, 235, 332, and 356, and on Philosophy for Theologians episode 20.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Vern Poythress

Dr. Vern Poythress joins us to discuss divine and human authorship, in connection with his recent article in the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society (JETS), “Dispensing with Merely Human Meaning: Gains and Losses from Focusing on the Human Author, Illustrated by Zephaniah 1:2-3.” The major emphasis in current biblical scholarship is upon the Bible’s human authors compared to the divine author, but Dr. Poythress, in his article, questions this trend. Dr. Poythress is Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA and Editor of the Westminster Theological Journal. Many of his writings are available here.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jeff Waddington, Vern Poythress

Dr. Vern S. Poythress, Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA, speaks about his new book, Chance and the Sovereignty of God: A God-Centered Approach to Probability and Random Events (Crossway). The fifth in a series of “God-Centered Approaches,” Chance and the Sovereignty of God explores the mathematics of probability as well as the relationship of God’s sovereignty to chance events. Today, Dr. Poythress explains how Christians can approach chance in practical events as well as in academic study, whether scientific or mathematical. Dr. Poythress is the author of a number of books, including Redeeming Science, In the Beginning Was the Word, Redeeming Sociology, and Logic. He has also spoken on Christ the Center episodes 52, 98, 188, and 235, and on Philosophy for Theologians episode 20.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jared Oliphint, Jeff Waddington, Vern Poythress

• Ep. 265 – Gospels Harmonization with Vern Poythress
• Ep. 267 – The Reorganization of Old Princeton with Darryl G. Hart
• Ep. 268 – Regeneration and Redemption-History with Scott Wright
• Ep. 270 – Calvin’s Company of Pastors with Scott Manetsch
• Ep. 273 – Francis Schaeffer’s Spirituality with William Edgar
• Ep. 274 – The Plan of Salvation with Lane Tipton
• Ep. 277 – What Every Christian Needs to Know about the Qu’ran with James White
• Ep. 281 – The Polemical Theology of the Old Testament with John Currid
• Ep. 289 – Covenantal Apologetics with K. Scott Oliphint
• Ep. 291 – The DSM-V with Mike Emlet
• Ep. 299 – Jesus on Every Page with David P. Murray
• Ep. 300 – Communicating the Gospel through Hip Hop with Timothy Brindle
• Ep. 307 – Definite Atonement with Jonathan Gibson, David Gibson, and Carl Trueman

Participants: Camden Bucey, Carl Trueman, Carlton Wynne, Darryl G. Hart, David Gibson, David Murray, James White, Jared Oliphint, Jim Cassidy, John Currid, Jonathan Gibson, K. Scott Oliphint, Lane G. Tipton, Michael Emlet, Nick Batzig, Scott Manetsch, Scott R. Wright, Timothy Brindle, Vern Poythress, William Edgar

Dr. Vern Poythress speaks about his new book, Logic: A God-Centered Approach to the Foundation of Western Thought. Discussion centers around the relationship between God and logic, the relationship between logical form and its content, and a Christian approach to modal concepts like possibility and necessity. Dr. Poythress is Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA. You can find a free sample from his book, Logic, here. Other eBooks by Dr. Poythress are available at frame-poythress.org.

Participants: Jared Oliphint, Nathan Sasser, Vern Poythress

Dr. Vern Poythress speaks about the important topic of harmonizing the gospels by sharing with us features of his book Inerrancy and the Gospels: A God-Centered Approach to the Challenges of Harmonization. Answering the challenges of critics, Dr. Poythress argues for the uncompromisingly foundational role of Scripture and a proper attitude as we come to approach it. He provides several useful principles for the task of harmonization and walks the reader through a number of examples in order to demonstrate his God-centered approach. Dr. Poythress is Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jim Cassidy, Nick Batzig, Vern Poythress

• Session 1: 1 Corinthians 15:42-49 — Lane G. Tipton
• Session 2 was not recorded
• Session 3: Covenant Representation — Lane. G. Tipton
• Session 4: Genesis 1:26 — Vern Poythress
• Session 5: Questions & Answers — Vern Poythress and Lane G. Tipton
• Session 6: The Fourfold State of Man — Lane G. Tipton
• Session 7: Luke 4:1-12 — Lane G. Tipton
• Session 8: Genesis 2:5-17 — Jim Cassidy

Participants: Lane G. Tipton, Vern Poythress

• Session 1: 1 Corinthians 15:42-49 — Lane G. Tipton
• Session 2 was not recorded
• Session 3: Covenant Representation — Lane. G. Tipton
• Session 4: Genesis 1:26 — Vern Poythress
• Session 5: Questions & Answers — Vern Poythress and Lane G. Tipton
• Session 6: The Fourfold State of Man — Lane G. Tipton
• Session 7: Luke 4:1-12 — Lane G. Tipton
• Session 8: Genesis 2:5-17 — Jim Cassidy

Participants: Vern Poythress

Dr. Vern Poythress, Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary, speaks about his book Inerrancy and Worldview: Answering Challenges to the Bible (Crossway). In this important book, Dr. Poythress provides a worldview-based defense of inerrancy by demonstrating the influence various worldviews have on views of the Bible.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jeff Waddington, Vern Poythress

Christ the Center is pleased to welcome Dr. Vern Poythress back to the program to discuss his latest book Redeeming Sociology. The title alone may leave some people wondering why it was written by a professor of New Testament interpretation. Yet those familiar with Dr. Poythress’ work will quickly come to realize how he has thoroughly applied his God-centered Trinitarian approach to the subject of human relationships. From the publisher:

Redeeming Sociology advocates a biblically informed model for human relationships—relationships rooted in the Trinitarian character of God, his governance of the world, and his redemption accomplished in Christ. Poythress examines how the breaking of relationships through sin leads to strife, murder, and oppression among human beings and sets cultures against one another. And he shows how these broken relationships are restored through the outworking of redemption in Christ. Though typical sociological models for interpersonal relationships may offer some valuable insights, they are handicapped by a fundamental misunderstanding of humanity. The biblical model that Poythress presents correctly diagnoses the problem of human relationships, so it can likewise prescribe a biblical solution that infuses new meaning and power into how we relate to others made in the image of God.

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jeff Waddington, Nick Batzig, Vern Poythress

Participants: Camden Bucey, James Dolezal, Vern Poythress

Participants: Camden Bucey, Jeff Waddington, Nick Batzig, Vern Poythress

Science and faith are often pitted against each other. Many have felt they must make a choice between either being a person of science or a person of faith. Dr. Vern Poythress, Professor of New Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary and the author of Redeeming Science, joins the panel on Christ the Center to discuss the relationship between Christianity and science. He argues that not only is science compatible with Christianity but that the Triune God of the Bible is required in order for the very possibility of science to exist. Listen to this broad-ranging discussion that touches upon science, mathematics, the creation days, and a Christian approach to education.
Archive.org

Panel

• Vern Poythress
• James Dolezal
• Jim Cassidy
• Nick Batzig
• Camden Bucey

Bibliography

Participants: James Dolezal, Jim Cassidy, Nick Batzig, Vern Poythress