Reformation Roundtable

We recently met to discuss Memorial G in the CREC book of Memorials. You can read the memorial here.

Here is the email I sent to everyone interested in coming.

Hi Everyone,

Now that Pastor Dave Hatcher has met us all and we've been able to meet him, I would like to propose having our meetings transition somewhat.

As we prepare to move toward official Lord's Day worship with Biblical eldership in mind, I would like to know who would be interested in serving in a larger role during our meetings and with the overall vision?

This could be things such as: 

Preparing for and leading the discussions

Opening / closing in prayer

Preparing and giving prayers of thanksgiving for God's blessings

Preparing and giving prayers for the sick and those in need

Playing instruments / Leading songs during worship time

Help with website, podcast, printing song sheet packets, schedules, etc.

Heading set up / clean up 

Other things that haven't been mentioned...?

If this seems like something you would like to take a larger role in, think and pray about it. We can discuss these serving roles tonight and maybe even plan on implementing them on an upcoming fellowship night. 

We are also planning on transitioning the focus of our discussion during these fellowship nights away from topics that are probably best discussed in smaller groups. I think it might be wise to leave Memorial E and F (Terrorism and Homosexuality) for a small group discussion and just go right to the last memorial. Pastor Hatcher suggested we go through a book exploring the vast number of promises God makes to parents regarding covenant children. It was written by Doug Wilson and is called "Standing on the Promises." 

Tonights discussion will be Memorial G on Worship as well as discussing serving during fellowship nights.

Songs:

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Psalm 100 - All People That on Earth do Dwell

Holy God, We Praise Thy Name

We're excited about the work the Lord is doing here in Lewis County.

While our leaders and their media proudly herald the various ways the heathen nations can rage and the peoples plot in vain, we plow in the hope that comes from knowing our Risen King is alive and reigning at the right hand of God the Father. He told us that all power and authority had been given to Him and that we were to go into all the world and preach the gospel and baptize the nations, turning them into disciples for Christ. This is the work of the church and this is the plow the Lord has placed into our hands. The good news is that we don't labor in vain. We should never think, "what's the point?" Jesus promised that even the gates of hell (the last enemy to be defeated) won't survive the onslaught of His church.

If you missed last week's fellowship night, you can listen to it here.

This week we welcomed Pastor Dave Hatcher of Trinity Church in Kirkland. 

Here is the schedule we followed. We also sang these two songs.

1. Holy God, We Praise Thy Name. (If you are unfamiliar with this song take a listen to the video. It is a glorious, beautiful, and fairly easy to learn tune)

2. Blessed the Man, Who Fears Jehovah  (This is Psalm 128 and we've sung it a couple of times.)

3. Doxology

In this episode, our fellowship night gathered to sing these songs:

Oh Worship the King All Glorious Above

Psalm 23 - The King of Love My Shepherd Is

Psalm 94 - God of Vengeance, Oh Jehovah (this Psalm is set to the tune of the Hymn Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken but we will sing it faster.)

Oh, For a Thousand Tongues to Sing

Doxology

We also discussed these two Memorials: Christian Education and 7-Day Creation.

In our quest to plant a reformed church in Lewis County WA, we are pursing unity in theological areas that are addressed in the CREC Book of Memorials.

This week we tackled two topics Ministerial Training as well as Confessional Revision. We also sang 5 songs including Psalm 128 and Psalm 23.

Come Thou Almighty King

Psalm 128: Blessed the Man That Fear Jehovah

Psalm 23: The King of Love My Shepard Is

This is My Father's World

Doxology

You can find the music we were singing here: https://lewiscounty.church/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/1-3-21-Song-Packet.pdf

The episode of Reformation Roundtable is taking a slightly different format. This was a time of fellowship that took place between many families who would like to see a reformed church take root here in Lewis County. We met for a time of singing, discussion and fellowship. We discussed the first half of the Reformed Evangelical Confession which can be found here: https://lewiscounty.church/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Reformed-Evangelical-Confession.pdf

Lewis County is home to over 80,000 souls. Nearly 25,000 of those live in the Centralia / Chehalis area.

For the past 12 months, Reformation Roundtable has been meeting to discuss reformed theology. Our vision is to plant a biblically faithful, God glorifying, Christ centered, Spirit filled reformed church right here in the Twin Cities amongst our own people.

We also have been working to align our shared vision regarding oversight of this future church plant. Which leads us into the topic of today's podcast.

I would like to introduce you to Dave Hatcher who is pastor of Trinity Church in Woodinville. Dave met with us last month via Zoom to discuss having Trinity Church oversee our church plant.

I hope you are blessed by this discussion and if you would like to join us in our vision to plant a reformed church here please fill the form on our contact page. 

Big idea: One can be “in the covenant” without being elect / regenerate / born again

John 15:1-17  |   Romans 11:17-21    |    Hebrews 10:26-31

1 Corinthians 10:1-12    |     Romans 11:7

Baptism 

Who should be baptized? Acts 16:31-33

When should they be baptized? Acts 16:31-33

Why should they be baptized? 1 Peter 3:21

How should they be baptized? (mode)

Immersion? Sprinkling? Pouring?

Rom. 6,          Ezk36:25     Acts 1:5,2:17

What does baptism mean? What is it a “sign of”

Outward sign of being “in the covenant?”

Those who are baptized are a part of the “visible church?”

Outward sign of an inward reality?

What does baptism accomplish? Acts 2:38, Galatians 3:27, Acts 22:16

What is the status change if any that happens during baptism? Galatians 3:27-29

What benefits do baptism confer? Hebrews 8:8-12

Video Teaching: Covenant Theology 

As we seek to plant a reformed church in Lewis County, WA we are pursuing unity as it relates to our hermeneutic or method of biblical interpretation. Without unity here, we will likely be simply talking past one another if our hermeneutics are incompatible. We are returning briefly to Covenant Theology as a prelude to beginning our study of sacramental theology (baptism and communion). Our understanding of the Covenantal nature of God informs entirely our view of the Sacraments.

Watch Toby Sumpter's teaching here.

We are Covenantally Connected to Adam through his sin.

Romans 5:12 “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—”

We are Covenantally Connected to Christ through His obedience.

1 Corinthians 15:22 “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.”

Romans 5:17,19 “For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.…For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.“

The Covenants through the OT

After the fall, God’s immediate response was to make a covenant with Adam in Genesis 3:15. This covenant was renewed with Noah (Genesis 9:8-17), Abraham (Genesis 15), Moses (Exodus 19, Deut. 28), and David (2 Samuel 7). All of these covenants have their completion in Christ.

God doesn’t change. The Seed of the Woman will conquer the Seed of the Dragon. Jesus is that Dragon Slayer and the Covenants throughout the OT are a part of the ONE story God is telling through His ONE people.

Toby Sumpter

The People of God

Clarifying hermeneutic: The people of God or God’s covenant people are not necessarily regenerate, born again, elect Christians. Those who are elect can never lose their salvation (Eph 1:14) however those who appear as a part of the visible church ie baptized, communicant members, may or may not be elect (1 Samuel 16:7) but they are nonetheless a part of God’s covenant people. (

This week we completed our current survey of reformed theology as it relates to eschatology. During this last week we explored two major topics within this field both of which come with much debate and variation as it relates to biblical interpretation. These two topics are the Rapture and the Millennium. Both are difficult to understand and therefore there is a LOT of diversity of thought in "where" Christians are as regards the theological timeline.  All Christians believe in a coming rapture. That is why it has been a part of our creeds since the second century, "we believe in Jesus Christ... who will come again to judge the quick and the dead." What does the rapture signify? Is the coming of Christ preceded by wickedness so great that He must whisk us away to safety and therefore we are raptured from earth into heaven? Or is the the coming of Christ preceded by His Church victoriously overrunning the world with the gospel and Christ returns as the victorious King in which we meet Him in the air welcoming Him as He unites Heaven and Earth? Obviously both ideas are wildly different but are based on the same idea of the Return of Christ. We seek unity on this doctrine.

Regarding the Millennium or 1000 year reign of Christ, there is also much difference in theological conviction. Some believe it is still to come and Satan is currently in charge, other's believe we are already in the Millennium and that Christ is reigning in both heaven and on earth, and some even believe it exists only in Heaven with Christ and is not an Earthly reality. Again we strive for Biblically based unity on this doctrine.

The reasons we've spent so many lectures exploring the topic of eschatology is that we seek to plant a reformed Church in the twin cities of Centralia and Chehalis in Lewis County Washington and we want to have unity as believers specifically as it relates to the end of all things. While we certainly don't need to all hold the same views to have unity, some views are more compatible than others. We are holding these roundtable discussions with the hopes of planting a distinctly and unashamedly reformed church. A church that is unafraid to embrace the big idea that God is truly sovereign. We believe that God is glorified when we understand His majesty, His dominion, and His sovereignty. While it is our conviction that Reformed Theology brings God this glory most biblically and faithfully, there is currently no reformed church in our parish. Therefore, Reformation Roundtable seeks to prepare the soil of Lewis County so that God in His good pleasure, might bring the glories of the reformation.

Today we are discussing the identity or identities of the Antichrist, the Man of Sin, and the Beast. RC gives a compelling argument that they are one and the same and can be summed up in one notorious and wicked historical figure. If you would like to join us in planting a reformed church in Lewis County please reach out via our contact page and let us know. We would love to have you join the vision!