Welcome… this is the personal website of
David W. Norris
Proclaiming the Gospel of Christ
Promoting the authentic, historic, God-centred and biblical reformed faith
Presenting the Christian faith for all of life
The theological standpoint of THE REFORMED PULPIT is that of Protestant orthodoxy. I am thoroughly in accord with the great Confessions of the early Church and of the Reformation. I recognise the words of Holy Scripture as the final authority in all matters of faith and practice. Clarification: when I say that I follow the Reformed Faith, this is not to say that I advocate a particular Church structure or denomination. What it does mean is that I confess those truths recovered at the Reformation but were hidden and obscured over the centuries by paganism and apostasy. I adhere to the Confessions formulated as a result of the Reformation, which I believe to a large degree align with the teaching of Holy Scripture.
“For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16)
“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:20-21)
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Some of you will know that my dear wife, VALERIE, suffered for many years with Parkinson’s disease. It was my priviledge to be her sole carer for over ten years. It was devastating for me to see her pass away in her armchair here at home on the 9th June 203. I loved her deeply and miss her terribly every day.
In her final months on this earth, caring for her was indeed a very precious time for us both. In the final two years, her care took most of my time. Had the roles been reversed, she would have tended to my needs even better than I did to hers.
She had a very eventful life and I recounted some of this at her funeral service.
Valerie, a remembrance of her extraordinary life recounted by me at her Funeral Service on 28th June, 2023
read here >
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Salvation: more than an insurance policy to escape punishment and secure eternal life.
The temptation to which, alas, so many succumb, to continue at the Cross, and on Golgotha to close up their account with Christ, is fatal to the faith. The way it happens is as follows: The conscience wakes up for a moment; the weight of sin burdens the soul; fear of the coming Judgement strikes fear to the heart. In such a moment, the comforting thought of the Cross arises invitingly in the soul. For if the Atoning Sacrifice is but accepted, one is saved. Nothing needs to be done for it save to believe. One lets himself be persuaded to do this. And to say it as sharply as the case deserves, one closes the bargain. And now one deems himself saved. Now he accepts the fact that he assured of eternal life. He finds the Atoning Sacrifice to be glorious. It brings perfect salvation. Thus to such a one, Christ has become the Saviour. But of a more intimate, tenderer tie that binds his soul to Christ, nothing is learned from his conversation, nothing suggests it in the utterances of his religious life. He is now saved and that ifs the end of it.
Yet this is nothing but self-deceit. Nothing stirs in it save spiritual egoism. Escape is sought from eternal punishment. One wants to insure himself for eternal salvation. But nothing in this suggests thirst after the living God; nothing of the child’s home-sickness after the Father’s house; nothing of holy jealousy for the honour of God’s Name.
From this no spiritual power can go out. No religion can operate in it, nor come out from it. And what is more, it can not be true that in this wise Golgotha can bring propitiation for the life of the soul.
So the Gospel does not speak like this. It does not interpret the Atoning Sacrifice in this way. Never in Scripture is the power of redemption attributed to Golgotha, except as the mystical union binds our inner life to the life of Christ.
It must be a being buried with Christ in His death in order to rise with Him unto life. They alone who have become one planting with Christ share in the grace which He has obtained.
They alone who have become sheep of His flock can follow the great Shepherd of souls.
It is not the Cross that saves us, but He who saves us is the Christ who died on the Cross
You must be one with Christ, member of His Body, accepted and incorporated under Him as your Head before one single drop of His grace can be sprinkled upon you.
You must have been given in the Father to the Christ in order that His glory may become manifest in you.
The mystical union must have laid the tie of love forever between Christ and your soul.
Yes, it must become Christ in you, in order that, through this middle link, your life near unto your God may become a reality.
For so prayed your Saviour Himself in His High Priestly prayer: “Holy Father, I in them, and Thou in Me!” (John 17:23)
Yet, if our mystical union with Christ shall preserve its truly religious character, and not degenerate into sentimental Christolatry, this tie that binds us in Christ must never find its final end in itself.
The Christ is your Mediator, and there can be no Mediator save for the one purpose of causing you to approach God.
To be near to God, with a child’s confidence; to feel yourself close by God; here on earth to abide in the nearness of God through faith, and once after your death, to serve God eternally in the Father-house above ― that is and remains the final end; and all that the Scriptures reveal unto us regarding the Mediatorship of Christ must result in this, and can never rest within itself.
Abraham Kuyper, To Be Near Unto God
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THE BIBLICAL USE OF PARABLES
In Mediterranean countries to this day, when someone wants to convey some information or make a point, they will often tell a story. This indirect approach may be for reasons of safety and security so that the teller of the story can always say that he never said such and such a thing. Generally, those intended to know the meaning of the tale will fasten onto what is being said and to whom it is directed. For those not party to the purpose, it may just seem to be a story and nothing more. Sometimes these stories are like a riddle and the hearers will be left to puzzle out the meaning, or they will miss the whole point and need to have everything explained to them clearly.
Just uploaded
The last of my three messages on the parables in Luke 15
Video messages on
THE LOST SHEEP
THE LOST COIN
THE LOST SON
more here >
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THE PRE-MILLENNIAL CREED OF BISHOP RYLE
In the Preface to his book Coming Events and Present Duties, Bishop J. C. Ryle with marvellous simplicity and power has given us his expression of the true faith with respect to the Second Coming of Christ in the following Pre-Millennial Creed, which he believed the Scriptures require.
Apart from one or two of the finer points, I find myself in broad agreement with the good bishop and commend his observations to your further study.
read here
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THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT
By Abraham Kuyper, theologian, reformed pastor and one-time prime minister of the Netherlands
Although the love of God, failing in its purpose, always causes hardening of the heart, yet at times it has a still more terrible effect. For it may lead to the sin against the Holy Ghost.
The results of this sin are especially crushing and terrible. Christ’s words concerning it are startling and penetrating, casting the guilty soul into everlasting despair:
“He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.” (Matthew 12:30-32)
read here
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A VALLEY FULL OF DEAD BONES
“It is upon a field of the dead that the Sun of righteousness has risen, and the shouts that announce His advent fall on deaf ears; yea, even though the morning stars should again sing for joy and the air be palpitant with the echo of the great proclamation, their voice could not penetrate the ears of the dead. As we sweep our eyes over the world lying in wickedness, it is the valley of the prophet’s vision which we see before us: a valley that is filled with bones, and lo! they are very dry. What benefit is there in proclaiming to dry bones the greatest of redemptions? How shall we stand and cry, O, ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! In vain the redemption, in vain its proclamation, unless there comes a breath from heaven to breathe upon these slain that they may live.”
Benjamin Warfield, Studies in Theology, p.9
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IF GOD IS SOVEREIGN…
“If God is sovereign, then His Lordship must extend over all of life, and it cannot be restricted to the walls of the Church or within the Christian orbit. The non-Christian world has not been handed over to Satan, nor surrendered to fallen humanity, nor consigned to fate. God’s sovereignty is great and all-dominating in the life of the unbaptized world as well. Therefore, Christ’s Church on earth and God’s children cannot simply retreat from this life. If the believer’s God is at work in this world, then in this world the believer’s hand must take hold of the plough, and the Name of the Lord must be glorified in that activity as well.”
(Abraham Kuyper, (De Gemeene Gratie, vol.i, pp. xxxvi-xxxvii)
Only one King can make the world His Kingdom
And hold it for His own;
God’s ancient covenant His house established,
An everlasting throne;
Majesty, glory, power and dominion
Are His and His alone, Lord of all lords and King of kings, eternal,
Great David’s greater Son.
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Blessed with all spiritual blessings
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3)
Without Christ men are lost. Though they may seek salvation elsewhere, they will not find it wherever they look. There is no salvation outside the Lord Jesus.
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
Unless we encounter the Person of Christ in this life, we are without hope in the next. Unless we have a soul knowledge of the Saviour, salvation is still beyond us. We need to be very clear: it is not enough simply to know or even to believe the truth of the Gospel. Something more than a simple mental acceptance of the truth of the Gospel is required. It must reach our hearts and extend to our whole being.
READ HERE
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