Does God require us to rest on Sunday? Is the Fourth Commandment still in effect, or has it been fulfilled — and done away with — by Christ? What did Jesus mean when he said the Sabbath was made for man, not the other way around? We tackle these questions and much more in this episode.  

Mentioned in this episode:

Westminster Confession of Faith (scroll down to Chapter 21, Section 8)

Principles of Conduct: Aspects of Biblical Ethics, by John Murray

In this episode, Cameron and Mark talk about anger — specifically the rights and wrongs of being angry at God. As we’ve worked our way through the Sermon on the Mount at Grace, it’s impossible to ignore Jesus’ teaching on anger in Matthew 5. Yet we are angry people, shaped by a culture that puts a premium on being angry. If you’re not angry, we’re told, then you’re not paying attention. And when that anger is directed at God … well, as you’ll see, it gives us plenty to talk about.

During last year’s episode on prayer, Mark pined for some kind of “liturgy for daily worship,” a set pattern for Reformed devotion that fell somewhere between the complexity of the Book of Common Prayer and the informality of simply reading a daily dose of Scripture followed by extemporaneous prayer. With the publication of Jonathan Gibson’s Be Thou My Vision: A Liturgy for Daily Worship, has this longing been satisfied? In this episode, Mark — who has been using the liturgy since the first of the year — introduces Cameron — who is seeing it for the first time — to the pros and cons. By the end, Mark even contradicts his basic character by recommending the e-book version.

Mentioned in this episode:

Be Thou My Vision (hardcover at Westminster Books)

Be Thou My Vision (Kindle edition)

THE COMMENTARY is a weekly conversation about vision, worship, and life at Grace Presbyterian Church.

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It’s 2022 and if there’s one thing we should have learned by now about people in the twenty-first century it’s that they have an aversion to old-fashioned commitments. Oh, and to ritual. In this episode, Mark and Cameron unpack why, despite this knowledge, Grace continues to receive members in a formal way, administering ancient vows before the gathered church. They even argue that modern people like us can benefit profoundly from this approach!

Mentioned in this episode:

Membership at Grace — Including the five vows and frequently asked questions

THE COMMENTARY is a weekly conversation about vision, worship, and life at Grace Presbyterian Church.

Subscribe on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts or Spotify 

In the final episode of The Commentary for 2021, Mark and Cameron discuss two guardrails for “doing” in the beatitudes, resolutions for the New Year, and the beauty of gift-giving at Christmas. 

Have we finally jumped the shark? In this dog-eat-dog world, it was bound to happen sooner or later. In this episode, Mark and Cameron — both “cat people,” by the way — discuss pets (and animals in general) from a theological perspective. Why do human beings have pets? Will we be reunited with those animals in heaven? These questions are more are explored. 

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we observe the season of Advent, a time to reflect on our longing for Christ’s return. Like the Israelites who waited for the Messiah to come, we too are waiting for his return. In this episode, Mark and Cameron cover the basics of Advent — what it is, how it relates to the rest of the calendar, and how this time of preparation changes the way we celebrate Christmas itself.

Keeping with the theme of our last episode, sanctification, Cameron and Mark dig deeper into the role of our emotional responses — particularly when it comes to “feeling” God’s presence. Is there a difference between feeling close to God and being close to God? Could it be that the way to draw near to God — both for those struggling for a sense of God’s presence, and for those whose faith has never been tested — is one and the same?

Mentioned in this episode:

The Practice of the Presence of God, by Brother Lawrence

The word is complicated, but the idea is simple: sanctification is the process of growing more and more like Jesus Christ. In other words, growing in holiness. In this episode, Mark and Cameron unpack the basics — what sanctification is, what it isn’t, and (perhaps most importantly) who does the work.  

With the holidays approaching, Cameron and Mark discuss the theology of eating and drinking in anticipation of a season of, well, eating and drinking. The Bible’s teachings about food and drink are complex, but by thinking in terms of how creation, fall, and redemption impact our dependence on food, we can appreciate how to eat and drink to the glory of God. 

Mentioned in this episode:

For the Life of the World: Letters to the Exiles

For the Life of the World, by Alexander Schmemann

The Supper of the Lamb, by Robert Farrar Capon