Biblical theology and apologetics from Tokyo. Trinity, the finished cross, the authority of Scripture. Host of CONTEND (@weCONTEND on YouTube). Husband, dad.
Tokyo, Japan
Joined January 2023
- Tweets2.2K
- Following358
- Followers206
- Likes904
Reformation week. WCF 1.6 calls Scripture that "unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men."
Sola Scriptura isn't anti-tradition. It's tradition kneeling under the Word.
The Westminster Confession of Faith is one of the most important confessions in the Christian faith. Here are 10 facts that you might not have known.
Learn more: crossway.org/articles/10-thi…
A dream that contradicts Scripture isn't a word from God.
Jesus already settled marriage: "the two shall become one flesh" (Matt 19:5). And an overseer must be "the husband of one wife" (1 Tim 3:2).
God doesn't revise by night what He wrote by day.
Cleveland polygamous 'pastor' Israel Ford explains that, as he considered taking Wife#2, all three fasted and prayed about it. He claims God spoke to him and the new woman in a dream and told them he approved of it, but notably did not appear to or tell Wife#1 these new plans.
Later, he says he came out and married a second wife to set an example for other pastors and people, so he could "walk the walk" and not just "talk the talk."
Grace isn't God's reward for people who tried hard. It's His rescue of people who couldn't.
"He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy." Titus 3:5
That's sola gratia. Not grace plus our effort. Grace alone.
The Reformers never said the church vanished. They quoted Augustine and the creeds constantly.
They said what Paul showed: "When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face" (Gal 2:11).
Even Peter answered to the gospel. Christ kept His church by keeping His Word.
📖🔨 EVERYONE WAS WRONG UNTIL MARTIN CAME ALONG!
A Child's Guide to 15 Centuries of FAILED Christianity.
Jesus founded a Church.
He promised that the gates of Hell would not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18)
He promised to remain with His disciples ALWAYS, even to the end of the age. (Matthew 28:20)
He promised that the Holy Spirit would guide them into all truth. (John 16:13)
And then, apparently...
The whole thing fell apart.
Oops.
For fifteen hundred years, Christians baptized their children, celebrated the Eucharist, honored the saints, ordained bishops, held councils, defended the Trinity, preserved the Scriptures, and handed down the faith.
But according to certain versions of the Reformation story, somewhere along the way, the Church Jesus established became so hopelessly corrupted that somebody needed to start over.
Enter Martin Luther.
Finally! Someone who could read the Bible!
Never mind Ignatius of Antioch. Irenaeus. Justin Martyr. Augustine. Athanasius. The councils of Nicaea and Constantinople. The generations of Christians who lived, prayed, suffered, and died for Christ.
Apparently, they were all building the wrong building.
Now, to be fair, the Church absolutely needed reform in the sixteenth century. Corruption was real. Abuses were real. Some clergy were scandalous. Catholics don't have to pretend otherwise.
But there's a rather significant difference between saying:
"The Church needs reform."
And saying:
"The Church Jesus established fundamentally lost the faith and needed to be restored."
One is entirely compatible with Christ's promises.
The other raises an awkward question.
If Jesus promised to preserve His Church, how did it manage to lose the plot for fifteen centuries?
And if the answer is that the TRUE Church survived invisibly, scattered among believers who somehow maintained the authentic faith...
Well, that's a rather interesting historical claim.
Can we meet these Christians? What did they believe? Where did they worship? Who were their bishops?
Because the historical record isn't exactly silent.
The Church didn't begin in 1517.
And the Reformation didn't invent the Gospel.
📖 This is Reformation Week at Peter's Barque! Monday's song, "Masquerading as Light," explores the dangers of mistaking something that appears good for the truth itself. Wednesday's Peter's Bite tackles another question: How do we know which books actually belong in the Bible?
Because before we can argue about what Scripture teaches, we should probably establish which Scriptures we're talking about.
#Reformation #MartinLuther #ChurchHistory #CatholicApologetics #ApostolicSuccession #CatholicFaith #PetersBarque #PetersBites #ChristianHistory
Peter's Barque is a catechetical musical project by Justin West, a catechist, not a musician. The music and art are created principally through digital means, including AI-assisted production. Peter's Bites extends that project into short reflections on Christian teaching and apologetics.
⛵ FOLLOW PETER'S BARQUE
🌐 petersbarquemusic.com
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@peters-barque
𝕏 xitter.cf/petersbarque
📸 instagram.com/petersbarque
🎵 tiktok.com/@petersbarque
📘 facebook.com/petersbarque
🎧 LISTEN
Spotify: open.spotify.com/artist/07uv…
Apple Music: music.apple.com/us/artist/pe…
☕ SUPPORT THE PROJECT
ko-fi.com/petersbarque
The lawless one gets a whole chapter of buildup. Jesus needs only a breath.
"...whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth" (2 Thess 2:8).
The outcome was settled at the cross, where "he disarmed the rulers and authorities" (Col 2:15). Evil never had a chance.
1/3 Many in the first century wanted a Messiah with a sword. Zechariah foretold a different kind of King:
"Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey" (Zech 9:9)
2/3 Standing before Pilate, Jesus did not call for a revolt. He said, "My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36).
Rome expected a rebel. Heaven sent a Redeemer.
3/3 "He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." (Phil 2:8)
The King won His kingdom not by taking lives but by giving His own.
xitter.cf/robalso/status/1986626…
1/5 Popes and councils can err. God's Word cannot. That's what sola Scriptura means.
Scripture isn't the only authority in the church, but it is the only infallible one.
4/5 Jesus modeled this. When Satan tempted Him, the Son of God answered three times with "It is written" (Matt 4:4, 7, 10).
If the Lord Himself settled the question by Scripture, so can His people.
3/5 That's why the Reformers placed popes and councils under Scripture, not beside it.
Tradition can serve the church well. But a servant is not the master, and only one voice in the church is God-breathed.
2/5 "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work" (2 Tim 3:16-17).
God-breathed, and enough to make us complete.
Today is day 300 of 2026, and only 65 days remain. Plenty of time to finish the year close to the Lord.
"Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you" (James 4:8).
Open your Bible each morning, gather with God's people each Lord's Day, and seek Him on purpose. He is faithful.
1/3
Four Gospels, one Jesus.
Matthew presents the long-awaited Messiah. Mark writes with urgency for Roman readers. Luke gives an orderly, historical account. John writes so that all who believe may have life.
Four portraits. One Savior.
2/3
They were written while eyewitnesses were still alive to confirm or deny them.
John closes his Gospel this way: "This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true." (John 21:24)
Faith alone doesn't make faith a new good work God grades. Faith is the empty hand that receives Christ.
Paul wanted to "be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own... but that which comes through faith in Christ" (Phil 3:9).
The righteousness is His. We receive it.
What does it mean to be justified by faith alone?
In this brief clip, @RCSproul reveals how we are graciously linked to Jesus—all that He is and all that He has done.
1/3
Luke opens with an angel announcing "good news of great joy that will be for all the people." (Luke 2:10)
Then he spends twenty-four chapters showing just how wide "all the people" reaches.
2/3
In Nazareth, Jesus reads Isaiah and claims it as His own mission: "to proclaim good news to the poor... liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind" (Luke 4:18)
The people the world overlooks are first on His list.
3/3
Luke ends with the risen Christ sending that same news outward: "repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations" (Luke 24:47)
Good news for all the people means no one is too far gone.
xitter.cf/robalso/status/1997811…
