Church Leadership

In March, Christian Education and Publications and Mission to North America conducted the fifth biennial conference on Mercy Ministries in the PCA. Over 230 participants from twenty-five states gathered for this conference entitled The Church as a Community of Hope: Restoring the Family, Serving the Community at New City Presbyterian Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Because training the church to show mercy is both a privilege and responsibility of discipling people for kingdom service, mercy ministry becomes a tangible way for churches to put hands and feet on the gospel of the kingdom.

The conference had four main objectives:

1. To mobilize compassionate leadership in our churches.

2. To equip congregations to pass on a biblical legacy of leadership characterized by mercy.

3. To understand that justice is a biblical imperative.

4. To develop an integrated approach to ministry so that mercy permeates the entire church.

How successful and effective was the conference in accomplishing those objectives? Curt Moore, Assistant Pastor/Disaster Response Assistant at Lagniappe Presbyterian Church in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi gave the following statement:

“I believe this year was the best Mercy Conference because of the real and practical ways we were encouraged to participate in showing mercy to those in need. It was also an encouragement to hear what God is doing and the diverse ways He is mobilizing His church. With regard to the content, the plenary and break out sessions were led by people who knew what they were talking about and communicated well God’s vision and passion for mercy. Unlike some conferences where you go home and put your notes on the shelf, this conference gave me the encouragement that I could really apply what I learned. What I like best was that it was a very gospel driven, gospel centered conference.”

And others add their comments:

“The plenary speakers were excellent. They were helpful to me personally.”

“An excellent conference with a lot to take back to our church and implement.”

“Definitely one of the high points in my Christian walk.”

“The conferences are impacting my church directly and my community positively.”

“The quality of the speakers and the variety of workshops was just excellent.”

“I wish we could have this kind of mercy ministry conference every year.”

CEP and MNA know this is a crucial time for churches to develop ministries that will be effective during our tough economic times. The 2009 Mercy Ministries Conference offered a program that was pertinent to our current situation. During the plenary sessions, Dr. Bob Burns of Covenant Theological Seminary spoke on Restoring Hope to the Family. Tara Barthel from Rocky Mountain Community Church and Peacemakers Ministry delivered the Friday morning plenary on Living the Gospel in Relationships. Randy Nabors, pastor of New City Presbyterian Church, spoke on The Story of Mercy; and Julian Russell of Park City Presbyterian Church in Dallas, Texas, gave the closing plenary on Kingdom Instructions for Mercy. For a complete list of workshop sessions, check out www.pcacep.org/mercy.

Click here to read entire publication in PDF (Acrobat Reader required)

The New City staff, worship team, and members did an outstanding job of hosting and contributing to the overall success of the conference. During the Friday night session, participants also enjoyed a mini concert from James Ward and the New City Church choir.

CEP Coordinator Charles Dunahoo reminded conference attendees that while the church has been losing ground in the past ten years, it has an opportunity to regain some of its ground by demonstrating integrity and seriousness about its challenge to disciple its people with a kingdom perspective that requires mercy and service. Referring to an article in USA Today regarding depression caused by the current economic crisis, Dunahoo expressed that the church as God’s messenger of the good news of the kingdom is the answer; but the world has to see that it is real, and young people have to be serious about making a difference in today’s world.

If you were not able to attend this year’s conference, you can still benefit from the array of pertinent and beneficial speakers. All the plenary sessions and seminars are available on CD from the CEP Bookstore at www.cepbookstore.com.

This year, 2009, marks the 500th anniversary of John Calvin’s birthday. Why should we take the time to remember someone of so many years past? Simply because of how God used him to impact the Protestant Reformation and to shape theology with his life, teachings, writings, and emphasis on the sovereignty of God. His system of theology set the course for Protestant thinking. God used John Calvin in a most remarkable way and enabled him to clearly define Christianity in its purest, most biblical and Protestant form.

When we think of John Calvin, we usually do so in a manner that suggests a person who was driven to write volumes of books, treatises, and letters focused on theology and doctrine. Those who know Calvin through his writings and teachings first think of his emphasis on the sovereignty of God and God’s revelation in the Scriptures. Those who are not that familiar with those resources often think of him as the man who taught the “horrible decrees” connected with predestination. They envision the thin man with a pointed face and goatee who was sickly most of his life or the man who encouraged burning at the stake those considered to be heretics.

In discussions over the years with people regarding Calvin, I can generally tell whether a person has actually read Calvin’s writings or simply heard about him from other sources that may or may not be sympathetic towards his teachings. For example, I was recently interviewed by a high school student for a history project because of my Presbyterian affiliation and age. Listening to the young man, especially as we talked about Calvin, I could tell he was getting a picture of Calvin from someone who had never read Calvin. I had to tell him that he was being taught from a perspective that misunderstood what Calvin and Calvinism were all about.

Without counting them all, I have more than ten biographies of John Calvin and have been reading back through some of them for the past several weeks. I was sparked to do this by a new biography by Herman J. Selderhuis, John Calvin: A Pilgrim’s Life (IVP). Though many of my following comments will reflect aspects of all the biographies, much of Selderhuis’ work helped with this article and is the biography I would recommend to you. You will find it comprehensive, readable, and consistent with other biographies, though written in a different style and format.

Click to read complete publication in PDF (Acrobat Reader required)

Most of you know enough about Calvin to also discern the difference between what people say Calvin said and what he actually said. Calvin was a holistic thinker who understood the importance of thinking God’s thoughts after Him, and the Scriptures were the spectacles through which he was enabled to see God’s truth. It was his rule of faith and practice. He wanted to know everything he could know about God; but as he learned, he realized that God was incomprehensible and there were things that he could not know. Hence, he concentrated on the things that God showed him in the Scriptures. Knowing God is the sovereign God, Calvin knew that through His general grace (common grace) that all truth was God’s truth; and whether he found truth in the special revelation of God’s Word or in the general grace areas of life, truth was all about God.

However, for our purpose here, we want to focus our thinking on John Calvin as an educator. So much of our educational philosophy and foundations can be traced back to him, whether we speak of education in the home, the school, or the church. There is so much to be said, but I will of necessity be selective.

While Robert Raikes is called the father of the modern Sunday school, a careful reading of Calvin’s life will reveal that three hundred years prior to Raikes, Calvin had a Sunday afternoon school for children and youth, primarily to teach them the catechism of the Christian faith.

When Calvin agreed to Guillaume Farel’s insistence that he come to Geneva to teach and preach. Calvin agreed but to do it in the following way. First, he would establish the Reformed faith among the people of Geneva to enable them to be people of the Word. This of course required their being able to read and then understand the Scriptures. Ronald Wallace points out in his Calvin, Geneva, and the Reformation that “it is not surprising that when the citizens of Geneva accepted the Reformed faith, they also at the same time agreed to make a new start with the education of the young.” Calvin’s plans included schooling as his first priority. Wallace points out that in the 1540’s some of the greatest educational experts of the time were at work in Geneva.

Acting on his main concern of establishing the Word of God in the Reformed sense, Calvin would always have as his priority catechizing the youth. In 1537 Calvin wrote his first catechism, Instruction in the Faith. This way of learning using questions and answers was designed to teach the young the Christian faith. He wrote, “The Church of God will never preserve itself without Catechism.” “‘True Christianity’ should be taught in ‘a certain written form.’ Such catechetical instruction would promote unity, supply deficiencies even of some ‘pastors and curates’ and help people not to be led astray by ‘presumptuous persons.'” Not only did Calvin spend his Sunday afternoons teaching children the catechism, he also had the council of Geneva insist that parents assume a major responsibility in the process. About four times a year, church leaders would meet with children and their parents to evaluate and examine their progress in the teaching. This is how Calvin’s catechism became a key resource along with Scriptures.

Calvin was desirous that covenant children be confirmed, generally around the age of 12, and make a public profession of faith, which for him was the door from baptism to the Lord’s Supper. When they could recite the catechism from memory, it was generally accepted as a public profession of faith; and they were admitted to the Lord’s Table. Calvin’s catechism became extremely popular and was translated into several different languages. It was a key reference in the later writing of the Heidelberg Catechism and a good companion to his Institutes.

Calvin insisted that the Geneva Academy, which was his second priority to teaching the children, was to have teachers of the highest standard anywhere. The Geneva Academy opened with 600 students and during its first year grew to more than 900. There were two sections of the institution. Students first went to college with seven grades where they learned to read French, Greek, and Latin. This was called the schola privata. Part two of the institution was called schola publica. In this second level students were taught to be exegetes of the Bible, to learn the basics and be able to explain them. They preached and were evaluated. On Saturdays, students focused on practical theology led by ministers that Calvin and Theodore Beza had discipled. The records show that students came to Geneva from all over Europe. Working with Theodore Beza, the educational institution became second to none.

Following his constant reference to the church as the mother with God as the Father, Calvin did not hesitate to refer to the church as “l’ecole de Dieu,” the school of God. A mother gives birth, nourishes, and educates her children, which according to Calvin is the role of the church. Thorough knowledge of the Bible was essential, because only by knowing the Bible was a believer able to know what God wanted and how God must be worshiped. Calvin wrote that even up to the grave God calls us to His school.

Calvin not only helped establish many schools, he was clearly a promoter of Christian education, or should I say education that is Christian through and through. According to Selderhuis, another important influence Calvin had in Geneva was to give children a significant place in the church. Selderhuis points out that Calvin mobilized the children for singing. With his emphasis on proper schooling, Calvin also believed that the parents could learn from the children.

However, Calvin did not see education as an end in itself. He believed that he had a twofold mandate from God: to train men for the ministry of the Word and to train men for the civil government. His Mondays were spent discipling pastors. This practice allowed him to impress upon clergy the importance of having a pastor’s heart and scholar’s mind and the importance of developing the ability to teach truth in a comprehensible way. Calvin was known for his brevity. One biographer said this characteristic did not refer to length of articles, sermons, or lectures, but to sentence structure. Calvin was a writer-educator.

For Calvin, the educational process required knowing something of the humanities as well as the Word of God. As you read Calvin’s writing, especially in Institutes of the Christian Religion, you quickly find him quoting people such as Plato and Aristotle.

“We have given the first place to the doctrine in which our religion is contained, since our salvation begins with it. But it must enter our heart and pass into our daily living, and so transform us into itself that it may not be unfruitful for us.”

-John Calvin,
Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book III

Whatever we know of Calvin, he was not only a scholar but a real pastor. He was not only a preacher but a teacher par excellence. He insisted that all clergy be learned men with the ability to teach truth to the ordinary person as well as the highly educated.

I remember how impressed I was as a young Christian when I worked al a summer camp whose seal was the Calvinistic seal. The seal showed a heart held securely in a hand; and the slogan was, my heart I give thee promptly and sincerely, or another translation could be willingly and honestly.

It is obvious from Calvin’s leaching and life example that the only successful teacher and educator is the one who lives a life consistent with his teaching. Some of Calvin’s biographies have been titled, The Genius of Geneva, The Man God Mastered, Calvin the Contemporary Prophet, and Selderhuis’ John Calvin: A Pilgrim s life. He set a standard for us to be people of the Word with an understanding of the world into which the Word of God has penetrated. He set a standard for godly living by following the Word of God. He challenged us to see God’s hand in all things working to accomplish His purpose and to know, whether we understand or not, that God controls all things that come to pass. He will complete the work He has begun in us; and yes, there will be a final restoration of all things. It was Calvin’s understanding and insistence on the sovereignty of God over all things that has given us a kingdom perspective. along with a world and life view that enables us to see truth and reality as God reveals it to us through His special and His common grace.

Recently, I was asked to serve on a committee for my presbytery dealing with the role of deacon and to explain the Book of Church Order’s position on the topic. Since I helped to write the Book of Church Order, I was a good source to explain our original intent. On making the presentation to the presbytery, I realized that some of my brothers present were not even born at the time the book was written. In our officer training at CEP, we are often asked this same kind of question. Here is a very brief summary of what I said.

What does the BCO say on the topic?

In order to understand what the present BCO says, it has to be understood historically and in keeping with our identity as “the Continuing Church.” The PCA polity agreed with historical Calvinism, the Scottish Presbyterian Church, historic American Presbyterianism, and the Presbyterian Church in the united states. From that perspective there are three offices in the church: teaching elder, ruling elder, and deacon. Though often debated in the 1800’s, such was the southern Presbyterian Church’s position reflected in the 1933 BCO and adopted in the PCA BCO. There was also the inclusion of the involvement of others working with the officers in the areas of diaconal ministries without ordination.

Keeping the deacon as one of the three official offices in the PCA requiring ordination, we included a statement in 9-2 of the BCO that makes the BCO appear to contradict itself and has caused confusion today. The issue revolves around the question of the authority of the offices. In 9-2 and the entire book, including the ordination questions, we were attempting to distinguish between the ruling authority of the church session and that of the deacon based on the premise that as an ordained office, there was some authority, though not ruling authority, posited in the office of deacon. According to the BCO, while the office of deacon obviously carries some level of ordained authority, in this case ministerial (of service) and not ruling authority, it was viewed as a key office in the church that enabled the church to carry out various ministries under their leadership and with the session’s final authority.

Because the PCA claimed to be a grassroots movement within the framework of Presbyterian polity, the Book of Church Order committee’s approach was to leave as many details as possible to the local churches to develop. Many details, especially implementation, were left to local churches and presbyteries, including the role of women and other unordained persons, though the details and implementation would have to agree with the general principles spelled out in the BCO.

Welcome! We have chosen this issue to highlight our 2008 Discipleship Conference, Making Visible God’s Invisible Kingdom, which took place Nov. 13-15, 2008. This conference was strategic to the PCA not simply because of the speakers, program, or arrangements, but because it was about the kingdom of God, remembering that our Lord came preaching the Good News about the kingdom. You can read the summary inside, but you can also take advantage of CDs and DVDs from the conference.

They are available from the CEP Bookstore at www.cepbookstore.com or 1.800.283.1357. It has been a great encouragement to the CEP committee and staff to receive e-mails, evaluations, phone calls, and personal comments from attendees. They have underscored the tactical importance of the conference. If the church is ever going to rise above mediocrity and really make a difference in the world, it cannot be like the world in its life and ministry nor can it embrace a self-centered, isolated view of Christianity. CEP prayed, worked, and planned for a kingdom focus with the hopes that God might use the PCA to challenge and model for other churches a kingdom perspective– the foremost thing on Jesus’ agenda. His message was the Good News, sealed in the death and resurrection of our Lord but totally inclusive with Christ the King.

“Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God,” Rev. 12:10. The church is plagued with a capitulation to the enemy’s tactics, as he wages war on the church. This is because, as the accuser, he is also the deceiver. We were reminded by Dr. Christian Smith at the conference that the best description of today’s religion in America is “moralistic, therapeutic, deism,” which has been handed down from the previous generation. Today’s church is quite vulnerable to Satan because it is so unaware of his clever deceitful tactics. Sunday after Sunday, thousands upon thousands hear nothing more than the above description of religion presented– no gospel of salvation, no message of the kingdom, and no submission to the authority of Christ, all in the name of religion and Christianity. Revelation continues to tell us that the dragon (Satan) seeks to destroy the church, but he is not successful against those who keep God’s commandments and are faithful to the testimony of Jesus. God keeps His covenantal promise and “the gates of hell will not prevail against the church.”

Through adult training and resources, the Sunday school curriculum and program, and ministry to the leadership in the church, CEP is committed to using its energies to challenge, assist, and remind the church of its role of making kingdom disciples. We are further committed to helping churches coordinate an effective strategy with their covenant families through the home, school, and church. CEP also conducts training conferences and makes resources available to help local church leaders be more effective in their various discipleship roles. The book reviews in this issue have been carefully chosen, and we believe they are important books that church leaders and teachers should know about and read.

Click here to read entire publication in PDF (Acrobat Reader required)

We use Equip to Disciple not only to highlight books and events such as the 2008 Discipleship Conference, but to also keep the local leadership aware of upcoming events and other resources that can assist and encourage them. As you read the highlights of the conference, my hope is that you will be encouraged and challenged to utilize the recordings from the conference.

Editor’s Note: Please read this article in conjunction with the book review of Young, Restless, Reformed by Collin Hansen and the review of Quitting Church by Julia Duin.

---

Recently, I was asked a very pointed question by a well known PCA teaching elder: Would you invest in the PCA?” What a question! My first response was: “I have invested my life in the PCA. As one of the original group that organized the PCA, plus having spent the major part of my life and ministry working at the denominational level, of course I have invested in the PCA.” But his question had more of a future thrust to it. “Would you invest in the PCA?” Realizing he was pressing for my thoughts about the present and future of the church, after thinking for a few minutes, I replied: Follow me carefully. I believe the denominational paradigm is valid. as long as it does not isolate us from believers in other settings. Having said that,1 think the PCA is the best option available to anyone wanting to identify with a biblically Reformed body of believers. I know of no better at this point, as long as those who are part of the denomination feel accountability within that model. But honestly, I am deeply challenged and concerned about the future of the PCA There seems to be a growing nonconfessional focus, even with our official ‘good faith’ or ‘loose subscription’ position to our standards, which creates some new and challenging problems.” Some people are embracing the doctrines of grace but not necessarily from our Reformed, confessional theology, which can and will work against the denominational paradigm.

Of course my teaching elder friend continued to press for further explanation. Having recently given my “state of the church” analysis to the Christian Education and Publications staff and committee, I began to elaborate on both my hopes and concerns for our PCA.

As I reminded my friend, and as you read my general response, please realize my history, background, and involvement in the PCA. As a minister in the Southern Presbyterian Church for several years, I was defrocked by that denomination when I announced my withdrawal and my commitment to being a part of organizing what became the PCA. I could handle that circumstance because I believe truth is real and truth matters, including integrity. I wanted to be part of a younger generation that would have a great love for Gods truth in all areas life; but as an idealist in that objective, I was realistic enough to know that we often pay a price for such an ideal.

Click here to read entire publication in PDF (Acrobat Reader required)

From the beginning, the PCA has had things that have made it special; and I have had hopes that our denomination would set the tone for others to follow: It has been my positive experience to see the PCA grow from its small roots in mainly the southeastern part of the country to a church that has spread all over North America. It has been my privilege as well as delight to travel across the church working with local church leaders and teachers. Our church is blessed with some extraordinarily gifted men and women who love the Lord and desire to serve Him.

The PCA has not only had unity of commitment to the Sovereign Lord, His Word, and His church, reflected by a common confessional commitment, but it has had diversity within that framework. I explained further to my friend that while I have appreciated the unity/diversity of the PCA I can begin to see a shift in the balance toward theological diversity. Then I said that my thoughts are not intended to offend anyone but to merely give my description of our church.

I believe there are five sub-groups within the PCA. They represent both our unity and diversity. If you will, notice the following schematic, looking from left to right. Realize the names of the five groups are my humble effort to be descriptive and not evaluative at this point.

View Chart

The first group I call the “Reformed fundamentalists.” Some have called these churches “‘TRs” or “truly Reformed.” They operate on the foundation and authority of God’s Word. They are confessional from a “strict subscription” position. They demonstrate a great love for the church, value the denominational paradigm and have no problem with the church’s foundational authority base in the Word of God. Although some have been accused of elevating the standards to an equal or higher plane than Scripture, I do not believe this is the case. Our ultimate allegiance is to the Word of God. Our confessional commitment merely expresses our commitment to the system of doctrine found in Scriptures.

The second group, the “Reformed evangelicals,” also has a strong commitment to God’ s Word accompanied by a love for and commitment to Reformed confessional theology, though in a less strict or “good faith” approach. This group has a great love for the church within the denominational model as well and takes our standards seriously, as “containing the system of doctrine” found in Scripture.

The third group, “the neo-Reformed,” has a high view of Scripture but in a somewhat more broadly eclectic manner regarding confessional boundaries. This group has a strong leaning to focus more on the local church and its ministry with less emphasis on the denominational paradigm, and thus has the tendency to act more independently. (A fuller description of this group is seen in the book review in this issue of Young, Restless, Reformed byColin Hansen.)

The fourth group, the “post-conservative evangelicals,” appreciates Scripture but may have a different perspective, or maybe even a new perspective, on Scripture. Those of us who were taught neo-orthodox theology in seminary see much similarity here regarding the Bible. This group tends to prefer few to no confessional boundaries; and theologically, they would be more broadly evangelical and generally embrace only a local church commitment. They would tend to make more of an antithesis between being Reformed and evangelical than the previous three groups.

The fifth group, the “emergent movement,” is only somewhat present at this time in the PCA, at least in a more sympathetic way than with groups one, two, and three. This group is intentionally non-traditional, non-confessional, and committed to embracing a Christianity placed within a postmodern paradigm that makes truth and authority subjective at best. It also questions the entire organized or institutionalized church model as we have known it, especially the denominational paradigm, which is generally viewed from this perspective as out of touch, authoritarian, or negative and judgmental.

The first three groups are strongly committed to the sovereignty of God, truth and authority, the doctrines of grace, love for the church, and faithfully preaching and teaching within and among those with a Calvinistic theology. Groups four and five adopt more of a non-foundational postmodern framework, which attempts to fit Christianity into it As a generalization, admitted by some who have already left this movement, the emergents desire to focus on a non-Calvinistic and non-traditional model which talks not about biblical, universal truth or institutional Christianity but rather conversations and relationships.

As my conversation continued with my friends, remarked that as you move from left to right on the the chart on the previous page, especially beyond groups one and two, the next three groups, while having a presence in the PCA, diminish in size considerably.

Here is what I have observed and experienced over the years. While groups one and two have learned how to work together, even with their differences, groups three, four, and, five tend to operate differently, Please understand, I believe groups four and five are only embryonically present in the PCA but could continue to grow if we move further away from our authority base, confessional boundaries, and the denominational model.

What happens in the next few years will be extremely important. While some remain committed to the denomination theologically, as well as ecclesiastically, others are not as intentional in reflecting that commitment. Consequently, we need to be extremely careful in what we teach, advocate, and promote in the PCA. We have been quick to advocate some potentially good things and also some things that could end up working against the very denominational paradigm that provides our framework, Here are two examples. While we appreciate and encourage the new concept of the church being missional (meaning that missions starts at home in our neighborhoods and then moves out into the entire world), when churches carry the concept to the extremes, many do not actively participate in the life of the denomination as a whole, Even now, some churches within the PCA are not supporting the whole work of the church. Presently, less than one half of PCA churches support the denominational committees and agencies. Though the PCA Book of Church Order 14.1 has adopted the organizing principle that it is the duty of each church to support the whole work of the church, this present situation works against the denominational model and the PCA has not satisfactorily addressed it. ]t is not enforced even though the principle is part of the PCA Constitution.

Another example is an emphasis on “movements” and “networks.” Men such as D. M. Lloyd Jones and John R.W. Stott have cautioned us in the past that movements have a history of pulling people and resources away from the local church, as well as the denomination; hence they ultimately work against the denominational paradigm. In practice the PCA has demonstrated more of a supportive posture to the movement concept and the results are challenging. The committees and agencies of the PCA have to work within a denominational paradigm but each has to raise its own funds. With the reality mentioned previously regarding the number of supporting churches, doing realistic budgets and funding assigned or approved programs becomes challenging, difficult, and sometimes impossible.

So to answer the question, “Would you invest in the PCA?” I would say yes. as long as we maintain our identity with theological integrity and honesty. As long as we are committed to the authority of God’s truth, especially revealed in His Word, within our confessional boundaries, preaching and teaching the doctrines of grace within the context of a biblically Reformed kingdom perspective. I would say yes as long as we continue to manage our unity/diversity and do not allow Satan to cause us to lose our uniqueness by tipping the scales either way. Diversity without unity is chaos. Unity without diversity is mere uniformity.

The PCA is a confessional church. That’s what its founding in 1973 was all about. Our confessional commitment is to the Westminster Standards. even though we have a high appreciation for other similar Reformed creeds and confessions. We do value continuing to do theology and being Reformed according to the Word in a way that communicates with people today There are many issues to which our standards do not speak because they were written at a specific time in history, but we are called on to give a biblical response to those issues today Within the PCA there is and should always be a freedom to speak to those issues from a biblical base that will keep us within our confessional boundaries. When we adopted our Constitutional Standards in 1973. we also adopted a process that allows us to study, rethink, and restate some things. always with the aim to be reforming according to God’s Word.

There is a basis of hope found in the very things that have brought us together. If we will stay the course, speak the truth in love, and come along side and minister to one another. including holding one another accountable with integrity and authenticity, there is hope. One of our unique challenges is trying to be a denomination with a large number of members who have never really seen a denominational paradigm in action, at least not in a positive way. Yet, the truth remains. We can accomplish more together than we can alone, especially with those with whom we share doctrinal affinity. That’s the biblical model: working together at all levels of the church.

Time will tell for the PCA if we are a solid investment. Presently, the clock is ticking. Lastly, I said to my friend, “Tell me what you heard me say lest i have not been clear in my response.”