Ligonier Ministries Blog

1. How Does Church Planting Relate to Discipleship?

   When I was young, my father told me, “Nick, throughout your life you will hear unbelievers in North America saying disparaging things like, ‘There are too many churches everywhere,’ or ‘There’s a church on every corner’—when, in fact, they do not attend any church on any corner.” To this, he added, “There will always be a need for God’s people to plant more biblically solid churches.” He elaborated, “There are many so-called ‘churches,’ but there are never many biblically faithful churches. God would be glorified if His people planted doctrinally solid churches on every corner of every city in every country of the world!” I didn’t understand how profoundly important that sentiment was at the time. However, having planted a church and having helped with training church planters over the years, I have come to embrace my father’s conviction about the need for church planting. I love church planting because God is glorified when the redeemed gather together to worship Him in Spirit and in truth in faithful congregations across the face of the earth. I also love church planting because it is one of the principal ways in which the church faithfully carries out the Great Commission. The mission of the church is the discipling of God’s people among the nations (Matt. 28:18–20). God’s people are best discipled in the context of the local church. When there is no biblically sound local church in a particular locale, a church plant is needed for the purpose of lifelong discipleship. Prior to His ascension, Jesus told His disciples: > Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. (Matt. 28:19–20) The great Discipler charged His disciples to make disciples. How would they accomplish this? Simply put, through the work of evangelism leading to church planting and, from there, to organized churches. This is exemplified by the Apostolic commitments recorded in the book of Acts. The Apostles didn’t simply engage in evangelistic preaching in the village greens of the cities they entered. They set in place what was necessary to ensure disciple-making and disciple-building in specific geographical regions. In short, Jesus’ charge of disciple-making is best fulfilled through the establishment of biblically faithful churches on every corner of every city in every country throughout the world. We find a key example of this in the account of Paul and Barnabas in the region of Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch in Acts 14:21–22: > When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God. And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed. Paul and Barnabas did not stop their labor with evangelism after seeing new converts brought to saving faith in Christ through the preaching of the gospel. Rather, they returned to where they had previously made disciples. Luke tells us that they strengthened the souls of the disciples (Acts 14:22). Paul recognized that a further work was needed among those who had become disciples of Christ through the preaching of the gospel. Luke records that “when they had appointed elders for them in every church . . . they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed” (Acts 14:23). At the inception of the new covenant church, Paul and Barnabas understood that believers needed a church in order for them to be strengthened to “continue in the faith” (Acts 14:22). Where there was no church, they organized one with the believers there. This too is essential to discipleship. Believers are brought to saving faith and then strengthened for continuance in the faith as disciples through the ministry of local churches. Discipleship occurs primarily through the ministry of the means of grace—namely, the Word, prayer, the sacraments, and discipline—in the context of the gathered worshiping assembly of God’s people. While some well-meaning believers may convince themselves that discipleship primarily occurs through a youth group, college ministry, one-on-one mentoring, or personal Bible study (all which have their place in the lives of the people of God), the local church is the principal sphere of discipleship. For this reason, the Lord has sent laborers out to the harvest to plant and establish local churches in which men, women, boys, and girls are discipled in the school of Christ. If we are going to be obedient to the Great Commission, we should commit to supporting the work of church planting for the discipling of Christ’s people among the nations.

2. How Did We Get the Westminster Shorter Catechism?

   The Westminster Shorter Catechism is one of the most beloved and enduring summaries of the Christian faith in the Reformed tradition. Its clarity, brevity, and theological precision have made it a foundational teaching tool for generations of believers. But how did this remarkable document come into existence? To understand the Shorter Catechism, we must step back into a time of political upheaval, ecclesiastical reform, and deep concern for doctrinal faithfulness in the mid-seventeenth century. A Time of Crisis and Opportunity The 1640s in England witnessed tremendous upheaval, as tensions between King Charles I and Parliament erupted into the English Civil War (1642–1651). At the heart of the conflict were not only political questions about authority and governance, but also deeply rooted disagreements about the nature of the church. The Church of England—shaped by earlier reforms under Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Elizabeth I—retained many elements that some believed were insufficiently Reformed. The Elizabethan Settlement (1559), in particular, sought to combine a Protestant theology with a Roman Catholic aesthetic—a “middle way” (or via media) between the two. In other words, while Protestant, the Church of England retained the government as well as the experiential elements (the “smells and bells”) of Rome. The English Puritans sought to purify the Church of England from its Roman Catholic vestiges. Influenced by the Reformed theology from Geneva and Wittenberg (among other places), they longed for the church and her worship to be more thoroughly grounded in and regulated by Scripture. In 1643, the English Parliament called together an assembly of theologians and church leaders to advise on matters specifically of doctrine and worship. This gathering, known as the Westminster Assembly, met at Westminster Abbey in London. The assembly would not merely revise existing documents (such as the Thirty-Nine Articles) but also produce an entirely new body of doctrinal standards. Among these were the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Larger Catechism, and the Shorter Catechism. Why a “Shorter” Catechism? Catechisms—structured question-and-answer summaries of doctrine—had long been used in the church as tools for instruction. The Reformers, including Luther and Calvin, produced catechisms to teach biblical truth systematically, especially to children and new Christians. The Westminster Assembly followed this tradition by first producing the Westminster Larger Catechism, a comprehensive and detailed exposition of Christian doctrine. However, the assembly recognized the need for a more concise version that would be accessible to children and those new to the faith. Thus, the Westminster Shorter Catechism was written not as a lesser document, but as a more accessible one. It distills the same rich theology of the confession and Larger Catechism into 107 carefully crafted questions and answers. Crafting the Catechism The Shorter Catechism was completed in 1647 (approved in 1648) and presented to both the English and Scottish churches. It reflects the collaborative work of the assembly, though certain individuals played particularly significant roles in shaping its content. The Westminster divines were deeply committed to grounding every statement in Scripture. They carefully crafted every word to be both precise and memorable. The result is a document that is both theologically robust and pedagogically effective. The Shorter Catechism is structured in a logical and pastoral way. It begins with man’s chief end—“Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever”—and proceeds to unfold what we are to believe concerning God and what duty God requires of man. It covers doctrines such as the doctrine of Scripture, the nature of God, the decrees of God, creation, providence, the fall, redemption in Christ, and the elements of salvation. It then turns to the moral law, expounding the Ten Commandments, before addressing the means of grace: the Word, sacraments, and prayer. Adoption and Influence The Westminster Shorter Catechism was formally adopted by the Church of Scotland in 1648 and became a central teaching tool in Scottish Presbyterianism. Although the political situation in England shifted dramatically with the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, limiting the catechism’s official use in England, it continued to flourish in Scotland and later in Presbyterian churches around the world. In America, the Shorter Catechism became a standard for Presbyterian churches and was (and remains) widely used in both the church and home. For centuries, children were expected to memorize its questions and answers, embedding deep theological truths in their hearts and minds. Its influence extends far beyond Presbyterian circles. Many Reformed and evangelical churches from various denominations have drawn from its language and structure in their teaching ministries. Enduring Value What explains the enduring power of the Westminster Shorter Catechism? Its God-centeredness It begins with God’s revelation and keeps Him at the center throughout. This reflects the Reformed conviction that theology is ultimately about God and His purposes. Its biblical fidelity The catechism is saturated with Scripture. Though the Scripture proofs were added later, they demonstrate that every doctrine is rooted in the Word of God. Its clarity, brevity, and memorability The concise, carefully worded answers make it ideal for instruction and retention. Phrases such as “justification is an act of God’s free grace” or “sanctification is the work of God’s free grace” have shaped the theological vocabulary of countless believers. Its pastoral usefulness The catechism is not merely an academic exercise; it is a tool for discipleship. It teaches believers how to think rightly about God, themselves, and the Christian life. Conclusion The Westminster Shorter Catechism emerged from a unique moment in history—a time of crisis, reform, and an earnest desire for doctrinal clarity. Yet its value has far outlasted the circumstances of its origin. Born out of the labors of faithful pastors and theologians, shaped by Scripture, and refined for the instruction of God’s people, it remains one of the most effective summaries of the Christian faith ever produced. In an age often marked by theological confusion and shallow teaching, the Shorter Catechism stands as a reminder that clear, concise, and biblical instruction is not only possible, but essential.

3. 5 Things You Should Know About Being a Parent

   I have recently become a great-grandfather, welcoming two great-granddaughters and one great-grandson into our family. Here are some biblical thoughts about childrearing that I am passing on to my grandchildren and their spouses. 1. Parenting is an important calling that God has given you. Psalm 78 comes to mind: > He [God] established a testimony in Jacob >    and appointed a law in Israel, > which he commanded our fathers >    to teach to their children, > that the next generation might know them, >    the children yet unborn, > and arise and tell them to their children, >    so that they should set their hope in God > and not forget the works of God. (Ps. 78:5–7) What could be more important than passing on truth about God to the next generation? What could be a more significant legacy than generation after generation setting their hope in God? You will have many challenging opportunities in your life, but few will ever be as impactful as raising children “in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). 2. Learning to live under authority is foundational. In Ephesians 6:1–3, God addresses children: “Children obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and your mother (this is the first commandment with a promise), that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” God has drawn a circle in which children are to live. The boundary of the circle is to honor and obey parents. God promises wonderful blessings as a child lives in the circle; it will go well, and they will enjoy long life. These are blessings every child and parent wants. Honoring and obeying is more profound than just doing what one is told. It is a faith commitment to trust and obey God. In teaching your kids to be under authority, you demonstrate the foundational truth that submission to God’s authority is the pathway to blessing. 3. The heart is the wellspring of life. > Keep your heart with all vigilance, >    for from it flows the springs of life. (Prov. 4:23) Life flows from the heart. The problem we have does not just consist of the ways we sin, but the sin that lies under the sin. It is the pride, the compulsive self-centeredness, the love of self, the envy, and the assorted sinful attitudes of heart that motivate behavior. It is easy for parents to focus on behavior and miss the heart. Jesus reminds us that behaviors such as coveting, deceit, envy, slander, arrogance, and pride flow from the heart (see Mark 7:2–23). A major part of the parenting task is helping children identify the heart attitudes that lie under the ways they sin. Of course, understanding the attitudes of heart that lie beneath your own besetting sins will facilitate asking good questions that help your children understand their hearts. 4. Keep the gospel central. The heart of our faith is not how to be good enough to earn eternal life. The heart of our faith is the One who was good enough. Jesus is incarnate to be our Savior. He lived the life we could not live; He lived without sin so that we could have righteousness. He died the death we could not die; He laid down His life on the cross to deliver us from the guilt and condemnation of our sin. He was raised to life for our justification. Even now He prays for us at the Father’s right hand. This hope of grace, forgiveness, salvation, and empowerment is truth that our children (and we ourselves) always need. As you correct and disciple, always hold the hope of the gospel before your children. We deny the gospel when we tell children they can be good in their own strength. The encouragement of Hebrews 2:17 is that Jesus who, as a man, suffered being tempted, can help us in our temptations. 5. What you model is powerful. Deuteronomy 6:5 captures this truth: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” Your love for God, your joy in Him, and your gratitude and satisfaction for all that God is to you in Christ are important truths for you to model for your children. The next verses capture how essential this modeling is: “These words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children” (Deut. 6:6–7). Each day, as you live with your children, you are presenting a view of reality. You are showing them that you believe that God is good and the rewarder of those who seek Him. By loving God and others, you model the truth that the law of God is good. As you make a priority of worship, you tell them that life is found in God. When you are kind to people who are unkind, you show the magnanimity and kindness of God. Everything you do provides a narrative of truth for your children. Your submission to God in all things, your honesty about the ways your heart is prone to wander, and your hope in the grace of the gospel all provide a narrative for your children. Raising children for God is some of the greatest work you will ever do. : Editor's Note: This article was originally published on September 9, 2024.

4. Children’s Curriculum Sale

   Are you making plans for your fall Sunday school curriculum? Or looking for a trusted resource to help your church pass down the Christian faith to the next generation? For a limited time, save an additional 20% on Growing in God’s Word, a Bible curriculum from Ligonier to help churches, families, and schools teach children the story of Scripture with clarity and confidence. With 52 lesson plans, this teacher’s resource equips you to guide the next generation confidently through the Word of God. Use code GROW20 at checkout to secure your savings. Everything you need to teach with confidence: A Teacher’s Guide 52 Bible Lessons Suggested Prayers Learning Activities Optional Catechism Questions Whether you’re preparing for a new school year, teaching Sunday school, or looking for a new homeschool curriculum, Growing in God’s Word helps you engage children with the Bible’s transformative story. Choose the format that best fits your classroom: A printed edition for in-person teaching A digital edition for flexible access and team use Additional licenses to equip multiple teachers Baptist and Presbyterian & Reformed editions to fit your church’s needs Use code GROW20 at checkout to save an additional 20%. Don’t delay—this sale ends Tuesday, June 30, at midnight ET.

5. The Kingdom of God and the Church

   Maybe you’ve had the experience of joining a conversation already underway and feeling lost. For you to understand what is going on, someone needs to catch you up. Or maybe you want to watch a ballgame on TV, but you turn it on halfway through. If so, you may wonder what the score is and how it came to be that way. We make sense of many things by the intuitive use of context. A punch in one context may be playful but in another context may start a fight. Context matters a great deal. The same is true for our understanding of the kingdom of God. If we start with the New Testament as the foundation for what the kingdom means, we may find ourselves in the middle of a conversation that we don’t fully understand. In the first century, the people of God shared some expectations about what the kingdom means that were assumed by Jesus—even as He challenged some of those expectations. In other words, Jesus was not the first to introduce the concept of the kingdom. Scripture has much to say about the kingdom in the Old Testament. What Jesus says about the kingdom must be slotted into that context and understood in the light of those expectations. It will take us a bit more work to recover what those expectations were, but recovering them will go far in helping us understand the nature of the kingdom in the New Testament. While the Old Testament does not speak about the kingdom with the same frequency as the New Testament, it would be wrong to conclude that the concept is foreign to the Old Testament. The kingdom of God permeates the Old Testament. In my book The Kingdom of God and the Work of Christ, I explore in more detail the Old Testament background to the kingdom—which is substantial. Kingdom expectations start early in the Old Testament, but they really come into their own with David and his kingdom. David was the paradigmatic king of God’s kingdom in the Old Testament, and the Lord made a covenant with David that one of his sons would rule over the kingdom forever. Yet we also find great tragedy among God’s people in the Old Testament, with the kingship and the kingdom falling to the enemies of God’s people. Even so, God’s promises remained. It is in the light of such promises that we should understand the kingdom in the New Testament and Jesus’ identity as the messianic Son of David. Foundations of the Kingdom The Old Testament foundations of the kingdom of God are laid at the beginning in creation. Already God is portrayed as a great King whose power is apparent over creation. His resting on the seventh day of creation communicates that He has successfully completed His task of creation; He rests when His work of creation is completed. The creation of humanity in God’s image also reflects the divine kingship of God. Man and woman are created in God’s image and commanded to rule over God’s creation (Gen. 1:26–28). This ruling over creation is part of what it means to be made in the image of God: Adam and Eve were to be royal image-bearers of the Great King and to spread His glory throughout the whole world. The royal dignity of humanity, therefore, reflects God’s divine kingship. This is reiterated later in the Psalms when David, reflecting on the creation in Genesis 1–2, speaks of the crowning with glory and honor that is characteristic of humanity (Ps. 8:5). If humanity, made in the image of God, is crowned with glory and honor, we can be sure that this is but a reflection of the kingship of God. With the fall of humanity into sin in Genesis 3, the kingdom of God as it was in the beginning, as it was to be ruled over by Adam, was marred. Sin brought disorder and disruption and pain. God never ceased to be King, but now there is a conflict that will play out throughout Scripture and world history. It is a kingdom conflict between the offspring of the woman and the offspring of the serpent. This is the context for understanding the great gospel promise of Genesis 3:15, which foretells a coming Redeemer. Speaking to the serpent, whom He was cursing, the Lord God said, > “I will put enmity between you and the woman, > and between your offspring and her offspring; > he shall bruise your head, > and you shall bruise his heel.” This promised Seed of the woman refers to a coming child who would destroy the devil and his kingdom and recover what Adam lost in the beginning. God is portrayed in Scripture as a great King (see Ps. 10: 16), and those made in His image are also portrayed in royal terms. The same is true for Israel collectively. In the exodus from Egypt, Pharaoh is commanded to let Israel—the Lord’s firstborn son—go, or Pharaoh’s firstborn son would be killed (Ex. 4:22–23). This is a challenge of kingships. Pharaoh’s royal son would die if he would not let the royal son of the Lord go free. The story of the exodus is therefore the vindication of the true kingship of the Lord. This perspective continues in Deuteronomy, where the Lord is identified as a great King—or Father—who cares for His people. This is a significant emphasis of Deuteronomy (see 1:31; 8:5; 14:1–2; 32:4–6, 18–20). The people collectively were God’s son, which paved the way for one individual to lead the nation as God’s son. Deuteronomy 17:14–17 specifically anticipates a future day when God’s people would be led by a king according to the instruction of the Lord: > When you come to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell in it and then say, “I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,” you may indeed set a king over you whom the Lord your God will choose. One from among your brothers you shall set as king over you. You may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother. Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses, since the Lord has said to you, “You shall never return that way again.” And he shall not acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away, nor shall he acquire for himself excessive silver and gold. In the future, the Lord would choose a king for God’s people who would rule them according to God’s word, not according to the customs of the nations. This king, as we will see, would be God’s Son and would rule over God’s son (that is, God’s people) collectively. This again reflects the divine royalty of God Himself, for the king of God’s people rules on behalf of God, the Great King. Instead of trusting in chariots or horses, this king over God’s people was to trust in the name of the Lord (see Ps. 20:7–9). He would lead the people in righteousness and protect God’s people from their enemies, allowing them to serve and worship the Lord in the promised land. In the days of Deuteronomy, the people had no earthly king, but this would change in the future. The book of Judges further underscores why God’s people need a king. Judges recounts cycles of sin and rebellion and how the Lord raised up judges (or warlords) to save His people. Yet the deliverance through the judges did not last, and by the end of the book, sin had gotten grossly out of hand. Judges makes clear that the people went their own way because they did not have a king. For example, just before recounting great corruption in Israel, the book of Judges states, “In those days there was no king in Israel” (Judges 18:1). A similar refrain opens chapter 19, just before one of the great atrocities of the Old Testament. The book ends ominously: “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (21:25). The implication of Judges is that God’s people went astray in large measure because they had no king to rule over them in righteousness and provide safety from their enemies. The book of Judges therefore provides dramatic illustrations of why it is good and proper for God’s people to be ruled over by God’s king. The Kingdom of David In the days of the prophet Samuel, the people finally got their king. While it is true that Samuel rebuked the people for their reasons for wanting a king—to be like the other nations (1 Sam. 8:4–9)—the appropriateness of a king's ruling over God's people was already clear from books such as Deuteronomy and Judges. The first king was Saul, the son of Kish, who was an impressive physical specimen but had the fatal flaw of not trusting in the Lord. Therefore, the Lord rejected him as king, and David was anointed in his place. David is the most important king in the Old Testament. He was a man after God's own heart ( 1 Sam. 13:14), and he was the paradigmatic king. Further, and crucial for understanding the kingdom in the New Testament, it was with David that the Lord made a covenant promising an everlasting kingdom. This is recounted in 2 Samuel 7. This divine promise is known as the Davidic covenant. In this covenant, the Lord promises to build David a house—that is, a dynastic kingdom—for his offspring (2 Sam. 7:11–12). The kingdom of David's offspring would not be temporary but would last forever (vv. 13, 16). The king would be God's son, ruling over God's people as God's chosen representative (v. 14). While David ruled on God's behalf with great success, David's greater Son would rule over God's people forever. The Davidic kingdom would never end. The coming of this Davidic offspring (v. 12) fulfills the Abrahamic promise of an offspring from Abraham (Gen. 15:4) and ultimately fulfills the promise that the offspring of the woman would bruise the head of the devil (3:15). David plays a key role in establishing the kingdom of God in the Old Testament. But the Davidic covenant looks beyond David to an even greater Son who would rule forever. David was a great king who ruled God's people well and protected them from their enemies. But he was also a deeply flawed man, and his kingdom tottered in the latter years of his reign. David's son Solomon rose to even greater heights than David. Could Solomon perhaps be the promised son who would reign forever? It may have looked that way at first. But Solomon was not the final son to reign forever. Like David, Solomon, as great as he was, turned away from the Lord toward the end of his life (1 Kings 11). The Davidic covenant looked for further fulfillment beyond Solomon. A greater Son of David—greater than Solomon—would one day come and rule forever. It is in such light that the New Testament presents Jesus as greater than David (Matt. 12:1–8) and greater than Solomon (v. 42). The Failure of the Kingdom While the kingdom of God is on display in the Davidic covenant and in the Psalms, the historical books of the Old Testament broadly are all about the successes and struggles of various stages of God's kingdom. In the words of theologian Herman Bavinck, "What Scripture describes in these books... is the progress of the kingdom of God." This history in the remainder of the Old Testament is filled with ups and downs—many downs. After the heights of Solomon's glorious reign, the kingdom split under his son Rehoboam into the Southern Kingdom of Judah and the Northern Kingdom of Israel. The account of these events and the ensuing years is recorded in 1–2 Kings and 1–2 Chronicles. In the north, idolatry was established early on by Jeroboam, who built a rival place of worship to Jerusalem. We read of a succession of ungodly kings in the north, such as Ahab (and his wife, Jezebel). Ahab worshiped Baal, murdered Naboth, and stole his vineyard, and during his reign the prophets were killed (see 1 Kings 16–22). Such failures of ungodly kingship led to a failure of the kingdom, with the Northern Kingdom eventually falling to the Assyrians in 722 BC. In the Southern Kingdom things were not quite as bad, but they were bad enough. Some kings, such as Hezekiah, carried David's mantle admirably (if imperfectly). But the overall trajectory even of the Southern Kingdom was not success but failure. The Southern Kingdom lasted longer, but it, too, fell to foreign enemies, succumbing to the Babylonians by 586 BC. With the fall of the kingdom and kingship, the people languished. Many were taken into exile and forced into foreign lands. Idolatry ran rampant. The temple at Jerusalem was devastated. There was little peace for God's people. The lament of Psalm 137 reflects the despondency of God's people in the absence of their king: > By the waters of Babylon, > there we sat down and wept, > when we remembered Zion. (v. 1) But the promise of the Davidic covenant was a guarantee that the kingdom would not be permanently cut off. The Promise of a Restored Kingdom Thankfully, the failure of the kingdom was not the final word. Even when it might have looked to the naked eye as if the kingdom of God had been shattered beyond repair, the promise of an everlasting king­dom from David's line was never in doubt—for God had promised. And God's promises are certain. The Old Testament prophets often recalled this Davidic covenant in their prophecies of the future restoration of God's kingdom. This is prominent in Isaiah. Indeed, Isaiah 9:2–7, a familiar Christmas passage, is not just about a child to be born—as wonderful as that is—but about a royal child to be born, the coming Son of David. The people dwelling in darkness are those suffering the failure of their king and the violent threat of surrounding kingdoms. These are God's people, who faced the lowest of lows in their forced exile when the kingdom seemed to have disappeared. But in the face of such gloom would come a child to fulfill the Davidic covenant. This child would reign forever; of the increase of His kingdom and of peace there will be no end. As great as David's rule was, he did not fulfill this prophecy. His dynasty had fallen, but in the future, One would come to restore the fallen dynasty of David (Amos 9:11–12). These are but a small sampling of the Old Testament expectations of the final fulfillment of the Davidic covenant. We will consider more Old Testament passages in the chapters that follow. These prophecies of a coming king remained unfulfilled in the Old Testament. But they come into spectacular view in the New Testament. It is to this story of the kingdom in the New Testament that we now turn our attention. : See, e.g., Richard L. Pratt Jr., Designed for Dignity: What God Has Made It Possible for You to Be, 2nd ed. (P&R, 2000), 23–38; and G.K. Beale, The Temple and the Church’s Mission: A Biblical Theology of the Dwelling Place of God, New Studies in Biblical Theology 17 (IVP, 2004), 81–87. : Ridderbos, The Coming of the Kingdom, trans. H. de Jongste, ed. Raymond O. Zorn (Presbyterian and Reformed, 1962), xii–xxxii. : 3 On this and the role of the judges, see Bruce K. Waltke with Charles Yu, An Old Testament Theology: An Exegetical Canonical and Thematic Approach (Zondervan, 2007), 588–623. : Herman Bavinck, The Wonderful Works of God: Instruction in the Christian Religion According to the Reformed Confession, trans. Henry Zylstra (Westminster Seminary Press, 2019), 74.