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RTS and the Current State of Theological Education

Some of you may have seen this important article over at The Gospel Coalition about the decline and relocation of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) by Collin Hansen, who is a graduate of the school. Reformed Theological Seminary has been friends with TEDS for many years. Over the years, a number of our faculty have done their studies there before coming to RTS, and a number of our graduates have gone on to do doctoral work there. We wish TEDS all the best in this new stage of their institutional life. The last twenty years have been tough for accredited graduate theological education…

The Total Blessing

Wednesday Evening March 21, 2007 Numbers 6:22-27 “The Total Blessing” Dr. Ligon Duncan III Fourth, appreciate the context of this. Before this blessing is given, the children of Israel are assembled, getting ready to leave on a dangerous journey across the desert. Many of them were going to die in the wilderness. They were going to be assaulted by enemies. They were going to face thirst and starvation. They were going to face division and dissention, and before they begin this arduous, dangerous, adventurous journey, God goes before them with a blessing, and nothing would have been more comforting to them than the guarantee of God’s sovereign blessing. That in and of itself plays into the whole story of Numbers, because over and over what will the people of God doubt in the…

What is Death?

Fear…Not Luncheon Series “What Is Death?” March 21, 2007 Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III Donna came to me a number of weeks ago–it's probably been months now–and expressed to me how often she was getting questions relating to this awesome and practical subject of death, and how many of our Bible teachers in the church were getting questions from women and from men in various small groups and large groups who were studying the Scripture together…how many of them were getting questions pertaining to death; not just theoretical questions, although certainly there were those sorts of questions. I think some of the reading material that's sort of out there in the general public right now has prompted Christians to be curious about what are the Bible's answers to a variety of…

Biblical Priorities For the Life of the Church (12)…

The Lord's Day Morning March 18, 2007 Matthew 28:19-20; I Timothy 1:5; Philippians 2:12-13 Biblical Priorities for Church Life Let's Grow Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III Since October of last year, we have sporadically been working through a series of topical and expository messages on biblical priorities for the life of our church. We've been asking ourselves the question, “What does God say in the Bible characterizes a healthy local congregation of believers?” What are the characteristics? What are the qualities? What are the priorities? What are the emphases of a local congregation of believers that are being informed in their faith and practice, in their belief, in their life, and in their ministry by the word of God? What are the things that God says in the Bible are most…

Biblical Priorities For the Life of the Church (11)…

The Lord's Day Morning March 11, 2007 Hebrews 13:17; Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:42 Biblical Priorities for Church Life What's So Important About Church Membership? Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III Let me ask you to open your Bibles to the Book of Hebrews. For a number of months we have been working through what we have said are the Bible's priorities for healthy church life. And very frankly, one of the reasons that I have wanted to do this with you is we are in a transitional time in the life of…

The Nazarites

Wednesday Evening February 28, 2007 Numbers 6:1-21 “The Nazarites” Dr. Ligon Duncan III This passage from Numbers 6 that we’re going to study tonight…and we’re not going to go through the whole chapter, because as some of you may know, maybe because you’ve read ahead, maybe because you remember the different contents of the books of the Bible and you know that Numbers 6 has a very important thing in it. Well, some of you know at the end of this passage is what is called…

Together, For the Gospel

The Lord's Day Morning February 18, 2007 Philippians 1:27 Missions Conference 2007Together, For the Gospel Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III Amen. If you have your Bibles, I'd invite you to turn with me to Philippians, chapter one. The verse that the Missions Conference Committee has chosen to base our Missions Conference Week theme upon is Philippians 1:27, specifically the phrase in which Paul calls us to “stand firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the…

The Adultery Test

Wednesday Evening February 14, 2007 Numbers 5:11-31 “The Adultery Test” Dr. Ligon Duncan III I’m always so edified and instructed and encouraged by listening to you pray. The brother that prayed earlier,…I thought, “There’s a book title in that prayer: ‘We are in Christ, but I’m still in Jackson.’” You know, my life is hid in Christ, but I’m still in Jackson. There’s a whole sermon series and a book, maybe even a franchise in that one prayer. It says…

Biblical Priorities For the Life of the Church (10)…

The Lord's Day Morning February 11, 2007 Matthew 28:18-20 Biblical Priorities for Church Life Biblical Evangelism Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III If you have your Bibles, I'd invite you to turn with me to Matthew 28 as we continue to work through this series of messages called “Biblical Priorities for the Life of Our Church.” We’re not simply talking in the abstract here; we're talking about wanting to be a more faithful biblical local congregation of believers, and we've been…

Defiled

Wednesday Evening February 7, 2007 Numbers 5:1-11 “Defiled” Dr. Ligon Duncan III If you have your Bibles, turn with me to Numbers 5; and if you don't, there should be a sheet somewhere near you on one of the tables that has a copy of the whole of the chapter of Numbers 5. I want to say ahead of time that though I began today expecting to preach on this whole chapter, I'm only going to preach on the first ten verses, because the final verses of this chapter have so many complicating…