Ligonier Ministries

Did King Saul really talk to the spirit of Samuel, or was it a demonic impersonation?

The question presupposes that there are only two options—that he was talking to the real Samuel or to a demon. We don’t know the answer to that question. All we know clearly from Scripture is that what Saul was doing …Read More

How was the gospel lost prior to its rediscovery in the Reformation?

NICHOLS: It shouldn’t surprise us that, in the sixteenth century, the gospel was obscured. We see this in the first century. We see it in Paul’s churches. In his epistle to the Galatians, he’s astounded that they were entertaining a …Read More

What characteristic of Martin Luther made him effective as God’s instrument to reform the church?

SPROUL: Luther was a beggar who found where he could get bread and told everybody who would listen to him. How can a guy stand against the whole world like he did? The only way to understand that is to …Read More

Is God justified in punishing us for Adam’s sin?

It is just that we are born with a sin nature because we sinned in Adam. That’s the whole concept. Adam was the perfect representative, not just for himself but for the whole human race. Whether we understand being in …Read More

How can I avoid becoming prideful?

I recently wrote an article for Credo Magazine online and talked a little bit about my own experience in coming to understand the doctrine of salvation in Scripture. I talked about what a difficult thing it was for me, after …Read More

What is the Great Commission, and what can we gain from Ligonier’s teaching series on this subject?

PARSONS: In our study of Romans at Saint Andrew’s Chapel, I took some time to look at the mission of God in Scripture. The mission of God is something I could spend the rest of my life studying because I …Read More

Since heaven is perfect, why do we need the new heavens and new earth?

When the Bible speaks about heaven, it speaks of it in different terms. Many times when the Bible uses the term ouranos, which is a Greek word for “heaven,” it simply refers to the sky. It is also used to …Read More

How does the Holy Spirit work distinctly in the Old and New Testament?

In the Old Testament, we see different aspects of the work of the Holy Spirit. In the New Testament, one of the most important works of the Holy Spirit is the work of regeneration, by which He changes the disposition …Read More

How do creeds and confessions help us?

Those who understand the place of creeds and confessions understand how helpful they are to the church. My concern is for those who don’t know the creeds and the historic Reformed confessions and thus don’t refer to them or use …Read More

Can I know that I am saved?

The question of assurance is one of the biggest questions for many Christians. I dealt with that with an older saint this past Sunday evening. After the sermon, we spent some time together talking. We had a wonderful conversation really …Read More

Why did God rest after the six days of creation?

I don’t know, ultimately, the answer to that. But what I do see in that account is this: after the six days of creation, God rested on the seventh day and hallowed it. This says to me that the ultimate …Read More

What would you say in response to the doctrine of baptismal regeneration?

I would say, first of all, that I’m not at all an advocate of baptismal regeneration. I don’t think that baptism conveys regeneration either for infants or for adults. Regeneration is a sovereign work of God the Holy Spirit. Now, …Read More

Why are people so resistant to Reformed theology?

Having come to Christ not too many years before coming to understand the doctrines of salvation in Scripture, the doctrine of God that I had been taught was that God did things a certain way and not another way. Having …Read More

Is all Scripture equally applicable?

I would agree that all Scripture is equally inspired. I don’t believe that it’s all equally clear. There are some parts of Scripture that are much more difficult to understand than others. I’ll go to the brink of heresy for …Read More

Does “semper reformanda” mean that the church should always be changing?

SPROUL: Unfortunately, every heretic appeals to that mantra, semper reformanda, “always reforming.” We mistake novelty with reformation. The point of that motto initially was that, in the sixteenth century, not all of the errors in the church were reformed. Not …Read More