Anyone for a Scottish Revival?

Dr. R. Scott Clark was kind enough to stop by again and lend our blog some credibility by posting some good stuff in the comment box. He alluded to some blog posts from Rick Phillips, which you can read here and here (which includes some info on the PCA side of the controversy). Apparently, a petition is going around, hilariously named "Presbyterians and Presbyterians Together", calling for "charity" in the whole Federal Vision debate. Fair enough, and I'm the first to say that we need to do all we can to prevent a "Scottish Revival" (i.e. church division). But what does "charity" really mean here? Clark observes:

I don't mean to be cynical, but is it mere coincidence that the PPT call for "charity" came out just after the OPC report?

Indeed. The Petition seems to go beyond a mere call for charity and assumes the very thing that is under debate in the church courts right now: that the Federal Vision is consistent with the confessional standards.

In my imaginary dream world, I can hope that the General Assemblies, Synods, and courts will biblically sift the wheat from the tares in the fairly heterogeneous Federal Vision world, laying out carefully and clearly which tenants or elements are outside the confessions and which are not. The involved ministers would then clarify, retract, repent, or turn in their collars accordingly. We would then all join hands and skip into the sunset, the soundtrack orchestra would swell, and the credits would roll. But somehow Reformed controversies seldom turn out that way.

Also: read Ron Gleason's demolition of similar "can't we all just get along" mushy-mindedness from John Armstrong here. He's the first guy I go to when I need theological firepower from an ex-tank commander.

Category: Theoblogia