On day 2 it was slightly hotter but the same sort of programme was followed. We began with Sinclair Ferguson again, on the mind of Christ from Philippians 2. Soul stirring stuff. Jonathan Landry Cruse, our new friend from Kalamazoo spoke helpfully on the content of worship, advocating plenty of reading and preaching and calling for a return to the practice of reading the commandments, confession and absolution and the use of the benediction. This was stimulating, although I see the danger of getting bound to a formal liturgy. After lunch it was Jonty Rhodes again with a very full exposition of the priesthood of Christ. The final session, from David Gibson, was difficult to sit through in some ways but worth hearing. It was on baptism from a Presbyterian point of view. A former credobaptist Mr Gibson spoke with the fervency of a convert. He was willing more or less to concede that the Greek word does mean baptism and that there were no children involved in the household baptisms in the New testament. I thought his most telling point was that Acts is not normative, which removes much baptism. I notice, like others, that it was when children came along that he and his wife became Presbyterians. It is not unusual to come across poorly taught Baptists who are won over at such a time. If our friends had known that their children were sanctified by dint of being born into a Christian home (1 Corinthians 7:14) they may not have bothered with the water, perhaps. Anyway good to know how Presbyterians see it.
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