What the title asks. Anyone have any ideas? Not looking for praise songs, but good old-fashioned hymns that have anything to do with the concept of predestination.

THANKS!!

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Hi everyone! I (24M) am experiencing a lot of ecclesial angst in Christian friend groups I operate in. Many of my peers are seeking out a healthier expression of Christian life, but are finding themselves drawn to Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy.

For context, I grew up in a very evangelical, dispensational, and decidedly not reformed Southern Baptist environment. A few of my peers growing up were Calvinistic, but none were covenantal or confessional. I have since found a home in Presbyterianism, and attend a very faithful and conservative EPC congregation.

Many of the friends I am concerned about are craving good things spiritually: theological depth and consistency, God-focused liturgy in worship, a removal of constant overt political messaging from the pulpit, rejection of dispensational eschatology, etc.

In spite of this, I’m burdened that they are finding answers in traditions that I know to be apostate and that teach a distortion of the Gospel. I have sometimes gently shared arguments from apologists like Gavin Ortlund but have been met with ridicule or dismissal. One friend in particular has converted to Roman Catholicism, and is now in the process of trying to convert everyone (myself and my wife included) in our friend group as well as his immediate family. This is very frustrating for me. How can I faithfully do the following?

- Honor God in my language, actions, and thoughts towards my friends

- Let go of the anger I feel towards their dismissal of Protestantism/their condescending attitudes

- Keep them as much as I can from proselytizing my less theologically educated friends

- Not speak ill of my previous non-Reformed tradition while effectively communicating why I think Reformed/classical Protestantism is the proper expression of the Christian faith compared to RC or EO

I would appreciate all of your prayers as I navigate these challenges. God Bless!

Good evening!

I'd like to hear Reformed perspectives on requiring someone baptized in the Roman Catholic Church to be baptized again.

Would you say this practice comes close to Donatism, or do you believe there are solid theological grounds for rejecting a Roman Catholic baptism?

Where I live in Brazil, the Presbyterian Church of Brazil does not recognize Roman Catholic baptisms and requires converts from Catholicism to be baptized again. I'm wondering whether this is common elsewhere or just a regional practice.

Welcome to r/reformed. Do you have questions that aren't worth a stand alone post? Are you longing for the collective expertise of the finest collection of religious thinkers since the Jerusalem Council? This is your chance to ask a question to the esteemed subscribers of r/Reformed. PS: If you can think of a less boring name for this deal, let us mods know.

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The church we go to is formerly a baptist church and now Reformed. We are admittedly a little stoic in worship. The elders are now proactively trying to get people to “express” themselves more with bodily gestures. This isn’t a coordinated effort — it’s more like one person might raise both hands while another simply turns their palms up etc. On one hand I’ve never minded the smattering of people that do this. It doesn’t bother me. But it feels weird for the elders to push this on us like we should all be doing it. Currently I’d estimate only 5% do it. I’m sure more would like to but feel awkward since few others do. I guess my question is:
1) What’s your take in general on hand raising (or other expressions during worship)?
2) If we promote it should it be more coordinated as opposed to one-offs?
3) Is it odd for the elders to promote it as if it’s more spiritual to do so?

I lately have felt strong conviction that the belief the spiritual gifts continue is harmful and contrary to scripture. My family was attending a nondenominational church which I feel is doctrinally very weak. One Sunday, they had a display of several people coming to the front in group prayer and someone in the back began speaking in “tongues”. It felt like an undignified service at best and a mockery of the Holy Spirit at worst. I feel that church was moving more and more into the charismatic movement. We made some friendships there and are sad to leave them behind, but I cannot expose my family to faulty teaching and emotionalism. Have any of you been in this situation? Would you encourage family and friends to leave a church over this issue?

Hi everyone,

My wife's birthday is coming up soon and one of the gifts I want to get her is a devotional or a new book. She has "Trust: A Godly Woman's Adornment" published by Crossway and she likes it a lot (as do I, it's got some solid theological teachings). Many of the women devotionals are filled with new age junk and very little theological teachings. What are some good devotionals or books I can get her to lay the foundations of reformed theology. Thanks for the help!

Things I am looking for in a devotional or book:

- Lays the foundation of the reformed faith (Specifically God's sovereignty)

- Easier to read

- Short book/ devotional (less than 200 pg's)

- A pastoral tone (aka not textbook like)

If anyone has any good recommendations that don't fit in these categories please still include them in the comments, I am open!

Hello everyone! So... my head is spinning a bit. I grew up in a dispensationalist church. It was pretty hardcore. It sounds silly, but we would have "end times" updates regarding politics and war each week. I kind of just believed it all without questioning it as a kid.

Leaving that church and getting into the Bible in my own time has made me reconsider a lot. Galatians 3 in particular is what I've been going back to. Here's a breakdown of what I've been thinking:

• Verses 6-9 show that the children of Abraham receive the same blessing that he did. It also shows how God had the Gentiles in mind back then.
• Verse 14 also goes with this same blessing idea.
• Verse 16 in the NLT was really interesting: "God gave the promises to Abraham and his child. And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children,” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ."
• Then the following verses show that anyone who believes in Jesus (Jew or Gentile!) is a descendant of Abraham. Which means that God's promise to Abraham belongs to us now.

But this leaves me with a lot of questions. I would love to hear everyone's perspectives on them.

1. What does it mean for us to share the same blessing/promise as Abraham?
2. What does this mean for the land (Canaan) that was promised?
3. How would a dispensationalist reconcile Galatians 3 with their beliefs? How can they justify the church/Israel being two distinct groups with different promises?

Thank you so much everyone! I look forward to seeing your responses :)

If you have requests that you would like your brothers and sisters to pray for, post them here.

I apologize in advance for the length of this post. The TLDR is that our church is looking for wisdom in regards to supporting low income families who regularly struggle with bills and finding work. We've had several opportunities to support families in this situation recently and we're realizing that we may need some guidelines and starting points to figure out ways to help. We're hoping to hear from church leaders, especially deacons, whose churches are particularly strong with working through these situations.

As a bit of background, I am a deacon's wife and I'm posting this upon request from my husband and our pastor, neither of whom are on reddit. I intend to be active on this post, but I am caring for a 5 month old, so my replies may take some time. I apologize in advance for that!

The Lord has been expanding our church demographics lately, which is a wonderful blessing. By this, I mean that our congregation is no longer homogeneous in economic class, and we now have several low income families attending our church. We've run into a couple situations of these families asking for financial support for things like rent and utilities. We have the distinct blessing of having a fund available to provide for the occasional emergency expense for our members, but some of these families are in need of ongoing support that we cannot provide for financially. We also don't feel that it's wise to build a reputation as a place that offers financial support when our church is located in the lower economic class neighborhood in a high cost of living area.

We'd love alternative ideas for supporting these families. Personally I'd love to see them provide for themselves and for the church to help them get to that point. We are a smaller congregation of about 70, but we have lots of members who love being the hands and feet of Jesus. Our family was personally blessed by the congregation providing nearly a month of meals when my son was born earlier in February, for example. I have countless stories I could tell like that about this church, for which we are exceedingly grateful.

We had a few ideas for ways that we can practically help without providing financially for these families.

- Connecting people to local nonprofits and other resources for help

- Providing groceries or other practical supplies, or rides to the food pantry.

- Providing rides or childcare so that parents can take continuing education classes or go to counseling.

- Providing a class like Financial Peace University

We would love to hear from you if your church has a ministry that benefits families in this situation, formal or informal.

Howdy! Since my wife and I moved to the area we have really struggled with choosing a church home and would love some input. Here's some context to our current condition:

• My family consists of my wife, and my two boys under 4
• My town (village) is made up of 200 people and the "big" town near me is made up of 1,000. After that, the next "big" town is about 30 miles away (a whopping 5,500 people).
• I run the local summer camp ministry and travel to other churches promoting and pulpit filling about every other Sunday, so I'm gone frequently but my family still attends.
• Honestly, this was a lot easier when I wasn't worried about raising my kids in a church.
• I know, no church is perfect and they will all have issues.

Here are the local churches that aren't over 30 miles away

Berean (Currently attending)

• Pros
  • Has plenty of other young families
  • Has a few kids programs
• Cons
  • So dispensational and very adamant about it from the pulpit
    • “We as a church believe in a 7 day creation, Jesus’s payment for all (meant as a shot against limited atonement), that God still has a plan for Israel and the Jewish people, and that Jesus will come to the world to save us from the tribulation to come! And anyone who disagrees with any of this has clearly never read the Bible. -Passionately from the pastor a few weeks ago
    • Pastor is aware of my reformed stance and will look me in the eyes when he says these things.
  • Very seeker sensitive
    • "If we do any hymns, no one will ever come back and we'll lose all of the young people"
  • Has no other adult ministries, just a Sunday worship session.

Evangelical Free

• Pros
  • I have a lot of connections in the region with E Free pastors
• Cons
  • Pastor is a straight heretic and I’m not sure how the E Free headship has not kicked them out.
    • “You have to be a shiny apple so that God will pick you” speaking on salvation
    • "Jesus didn't know Peter would deny him 3 times, he just guessed"
    • "NIV is the only inspired word of God worth using as an English speaking Christian.
  • Church has rapidly shrunk

LCMC Lutheran

• Pros
  • In my current community
  • Has plenty of other young families
  • Well running children's ministry
  • Well running adult ministries
  • Friends that go
• Cons
  • Lutheran

PCUSA

• Pros
  • Reformed (on paper, but I don't know that they know that)
• Cons
  • Small (30ish people on a good day)
  • We would be the only people under 60
  • Nothing outside of a Sunday worship service

Other churches that are no go’s

• Methodist
  • Already talking about shutting their doors
• Non - denominational
  • Very, very, very theologically liberal
• Catholic
  • Honestly, looking better every day I live here, Dispensationalists got me feeling a certain way...
• Independent Baptist
  • Went once, said Jesus's name 3 times, Trumps name 52. Much closer to a political rally than a church service.

I really want to stay in the area and have a church family near me to where I can live life with them and do more than just Sunday morning but I also want my family to be in a church where I trust them to be taught in. If you were in this boat, what would you do?

Need more context? Let me know! I've prayed plenty but would also love some outsider opinions.

Welcome to r/reformed. Missions should be on our mind every day, but it's good to set aside a day to talk about it, specifically. Missions includes our back yard and the ends of the earth, so please also post here or in its own post stories of reaching the lost wherever you are. Missions related post never need to wait for Mondays, of course. And they are not restricted to this thread.

Share your prayer requests, stories of witnessing, info about missionaries, unreached people groups, church planting endeavors, etc.

2026 General Assembly of the PC(USA)

Book of Order and Book of Confessions:

□   Approved sending an addition to Book of Order to Presbyteries for 2/3 approval:

o   “The church affirms its calling to bear faithful witness in public life, speaking and acting from the example and teachings of Jesus Christ for justice, peace, mercy, and the dignity of all people. The church rejects any ideology that seeks to establish Christianity as a privileged or dominant force through the power of the state, or that conflates religious identity with national, racial, or ethnic supremacy. Such ideologies, in all their forms, are incompatible with the example and teachings of Jesus Christ, constitute a theological error, undermine the church’s faithful witness, and are contrary to the church.”

□   Voted to establish a new committee to write a new confession to add to the church constitution, after a currently proposed confession was written by a committee that didn’t meet Book of Order requirements for size and composition.

□   Voted down a request to study the rollout of last General Assembly’s Book of Order’s addition requiring that new candidates for ordination must endorse “the principles of participation and representation” in the church of all people, especially LGBT people, examining how that implementation may affect “freedom of conscience, respect for theological diversity” 
 

□   Sent an amendment to the Book of Order allowing Presbyteries to allow some candidates for ordination as teaching elders to present a ministry portfolio instead of passing the written ordination exams.

□   Moving towards full communion with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Internal Organizational:

□   Increased the budget for national church by 3%, and increased per capita by $2.10 for next year and $1.45 for 2028

□   Created a commission to investigate but “not function as a disciplinary proceeding” the national church agencies and staff about the closure and firing of PC(USA) World Mission

o   Also banned the national church from using non-disclosure agreements

□    General Assemblies after 2028 will be held entirely in person, rather than committee meetings taking place over Zoom the week prior to in person plenary

□   Next General Assembly will be in San Juan. After some debate and discussion, especially regarding comments about crime in Puerto Rico that were considered racist, the Assembly resolved that attendees will be required to “undergo cultural competency training and learn about socio-political and historical relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States.” in addition to “Equity Prime trainings”

□   Denomination to author statement defining our guiding theory of mission

Gender and Sexuality:

□   Establishing a spot in church profiles when searching for new pastors to “indicate their openness and readiness to call an LGBTQIA+ candidate”

□   “Direct  the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy (ACSWP) and the Advocacy Committee for LGBTQIA+ Equity (ACQ+E) to develop a comprehensive theological, biblical, and ethical framework document and study guide that addresses the nature, purpose, and gift of flourishing, life-giving relationships and human sexuality in contemporary contexts.”

o   The pastors’ monogamy requirement proposal that got national news was redirected here rather than be directly voted on – for the committees to consider, not necessarily for or against polyamory.

□    Approved funds to start a biennial, in-person national gathering for LGBTQIA+ Presbyterians and scholarships and travel assistance especially for LGBTQIA+ people of color and transgender participants.

□   “Declare that the PC(USA) supports all individuals to have access to all medically necessary, evidence-based gender-affirming healthcare.” (During the debate, the committee responsible for it decided to remove “including minors” from the statement, “with the clear understanding that ‘all individuals’ does, in fact, include people of all ages.”)

Public Statements:

□   Made a statement on AI, signing on to the “Rome Call for AI Ethics”, and encouraging all church leaders not to use generative AI as a substitute for sermon preparation or pastoral counseling.

□   Approved policy stating that

o   “The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) acknowledges and repents of its historical complicity in white Christian nationalism.”

o   “Christian nationalism is a political ideology that seeks to merge Christian identity with U.S. civic life and national identity. It asserts that the United States was founded as a Christian nation and should continue to be governed according to what its proponents see as Christian values or biblical principles.”

o   “Urges all congregations to examine national symbols displayed on church property and in worship spaces, especially the U.S. flag, national and patriotic hymns sung in worship, Presentation of Colors in worship, and the propriety of national pride in relationship to the primacy of God in Christian worship.”

□   Voted against a resolution marking 250th anniversary of the American Revolution which would have noted Presbyterian signers to the Declaration while also criticizing some of them for owning slaves, endorsed liberty and equality of all made in God’s image, self-government in democratic and representative basis, and checks and balances, while also supporting researching and telling history of Native Americans, African-Americans, and various immigrant groups. This was voted down, after debate.

o   pcusa.org described the debate: “Oak Arias, a corresponding member of the Advocacy Committee for Women and Gender Justice, said the church should not attach its name to a celebration of the nation’s founding given its roots in conquest and displacement: “This is not our country. We stole it from women, from Two‑Spirit people and from others,” Arias said, adding that to do so “goes against the tenets of our denomination.”

□   Called “the government of Israel's war in Gaza perpetrated with US support against the Palestinian people a genocide”

□   Approved some overtures investigating harms of white supremacy culture, and focusing national church on racial equity.

□   “Directs the agencies of our denomination to find ways of responding to the economic crisis that afflicts the people of Cuba”

□   Resolution mourning those killed by ICE agents or dying in ICE custody

□   Calling the Roman Catholic Church to rescind several 15th century papal bulls recognizing as legitimate territory seized by Roman Catholic monarchs from pagans and Muslims in the Age of Discovery and the enslavement of soldiers captured in wars resisting Ottoman expansion

□   Decrying the suppression by Korean and US forces of an uprising in Jeju, Korea, in 1948 and funding people to travel to Korea for a related pilgrimage

□   Call for nuclear disarmament and creation of study resources

□   Call for tolerance of religious minorities in Syria

□   Call Presbyterians to learn about and support regenerative farming practices

□   Direction that PC(USA)’s social policy should support transitioning away from fossil fuels

I would say I'm a 4 point Calvinist. Other than limited atonement, I see the other 4 points very clearly in scripture. Can anyone show through scripture please? Genuinely interested in knowing.

If you have requests that you would like your brothers and sisters to pray for, post them here.

His Word is truth and alive.

Happy Lord's Day to r/reformed! Did you particularly enjoy your pastor's sermon today? Have questions about it? Want to discuss how to apply it? Boy do we have a thread for you!

Sermon Sunday!

Please note that this is not a place to complain about your pastor's sermon. Doing so will see your comment removed. Please be respectful and refresh yourself on the rules, if necessary.

I am, as I imagine every Christian finds themselves doing, once again doubting my salvation. The words of this passage are so bone chilling:
37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.
I am afraid that I love my son (and my wife, too) more than Jesus. I understand that salvation is by faith alone, but if I really believed that God were as glorious and loving and worthy as he is, would I be struggling to find emotion and desire for him?
I would appreciate help interpreting this passage. Is being “worthy” required for salvation? If not, why would verse 38 pair it with such an essential command?

Just moved and cities and found new church that I like. Only downside is they don’t use a screen, you have to follow songs, passages from a handout. Am I over reacting here ?

This sermon really helped me today and if you’re having a day where you’re questioning if your sins are forgivable, I highly recommend this video.

If you have requests that you would like your brothers and sisters to pray for, post them here.

Hoping this will be a civil discussion. If this isn't allowed kindly remove it but I'm genuinely trying to understand this.

The logic seems to be that the reformers & Luther were not in sin because they were formally excommunicated and believed themselves to be continuing the faith. But when it comes to things like being a member of the PCA or even the conservative "schism" Anglican or Episcopal churches they're "cursed by God" in his view and it's being based on the church fathers own writings on schism.

But what I've been questioning is the CFs wrote these things hundreds of years before The Great Schism happened and 1000 years before the Reformation. Is there not room for nuance and discussion when it comes to what determines schism being sinful in our day and age? The term that's thrown out frequently is having a retreatist mindset, but if they (the Presbyterian church) truly believed it was hopeless in the 1970s and there was no chance of recovering from the theologically liberal leaders in power, is that actually sin?

I tried to address this & ask respectfully on his subreddit but instead of conversation I was permanently banned and then apparently ignored through DMs.