Jonathan L. Master on the PCA at 50
"He Has Brought Us Together"

As mentioned on Monday of this week, the Gospel Reformation Network (GRN) released a series of videos featuring Executive Council members and friends reflecting on the the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) at the fifty-year mark.

Today, we are happy to direct readers to a personal and theological reflection on the PCA from GRN Executive Council member Dr. Jonathan L. Master of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Greenville, SC. Whether you were born and raised in the PCA or you came into the PCA from a different denominational background, you will find much encouragement in Dr. Master’s reflection. Here is a transcript of his remarks:

“As we come to the 50^th Anniversary of the PCA, our first response should be – and my first response is – one of gratitude to the Lord. God has been immensely kind to us as a denomination. He has brought us together. Many come into the PCA from other denominational backgrounds. Some are raised in the PCA and serve faithfully, and what a blessing that is. And we have to acknowledge first of all that all of this is from the Lord’s hands. We do not exist apart from God’s grace. The Scriptures tell us that ‘in Him we live and move and have our being.’ Paul says, ‘what do you have that you did not receive’? And that’s of course at the core of our understanding of the Bible: this truth that God’s grace is what grounds us. It’s because of God’s grace that we’re saved.

“As we look forward to what the Lord’s gonna do in the future, my prayer would be that we continue on in the same path that we’ve followed thus far: that we continue to be grounded in the Scriptures, that we continue to be faithful to the Great Commission, and true to the Reformed Faith. Each of those components is important. We can’t lose sight of the supremacy and sufficiency of the Bible. We need to be committed to our doctrinal standards, to the Reformed Faith. And then we’ve got to be active in pursuing those Great Commission priorities that the Lord Jesus Christ gave to us.

“One of the things that is so comforting when we come to the Great Commission in particular is that the Lord gave that commission to disciples that Matthew says were worshiping and doubting. And it’s into that context that He says ‘all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me,’ and he ends with ‘and I will be with you always to the end of the age.’

“So what we can know for certain is that moving forward beyond this anniversary, the Lord Jesus Christ is going to be with those who are faithful to carry out His call and to obey the Scriptures, and to hold fast to the pattern of sound words which we’ve been entrusted with.”

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8aK-kbjaQw?si=Pr3cFDHDp9WDGmQO]