The Tulip Driven Life

  Matthew Henry on the Church/People of God in the state of glory (heaven), from part of his commentary on Revelation 21: "The subject-matter of the vision—the bride, the Lamb’s wife (v. 10); that is, the church of God in her glorious, perfect, triumphant state, under the resemblance of Jerusalem, having the glory of God shining in its lustre, as uxor splendit radiis mariti—the bride comely through the comeliness put on her by her husband; glorious in her relation to Christ, in his image now perfected in her, and in his favour shining upon her. And now we have a large description of the church triumphant under the emblem of a city, far exceeding in riches and splendour all the cities of this world; and this new Jerusalem is here represented to us both in the exterior and the interior part of it. 1. The exterior part of the city—the wall and the gates, the wall for security and the gates for entrance. (1.) The wall for security. Heaven is a safe state; those that are there are encl...

By: Thomas F. Booher Matthew Poole's commentary on all of Genesis 10 is well worth reading, but let's just take his remarks on Genesis 10:5 and relate it to all the prissy Protestant Popes who are persecuting men for believing what their prominent forefathers believed: Genesis 10:5, "By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations." Poole: "The isles of the Gentiles; not isles properly so called; for why should they, having their choice, forsake the continent for islands, and thereby cut off themselves from their brethren? And where had they ships to transport them? But the word isles here and elsewhere signifies all those countries that had the sea between them and Judea, as it doth Isaiah 11:10-11, Isaiah 40:15, Jeremiah 2:10, Jeremiah 25:22, Ezekiel 27:3, Zephaniah 2:11. And isles are here put for the inhabitants, as the words earth and land are commonly used. This division of t...

William Perkins on True and False Churches (from his commentary on Galatians):   "Now follow the churches to which the epistle is sent: "to the churches of Galatia." At this time the Galatians had made a revolt, and were fallen from justification by the obedience of Christ; so as Paul "was afraid of them" (ch. 4), and yet he called them churches still, using great meekness and moderation. His example must we follow in giving judgment of churches of our time. And that we may the better do this, and the better relieve our consciences, mark three rules. The first is that we must rightly consider of the faults of the churches. Some are faults in manners; some in doctrine. If the faults of the church be in manners, and these faults appear both in the lives of ministers and people, so long as true religion is taught, it is a church and so to be esteemed, and the ministers must be heard (Matt. 23:1). Yet may we separate from the private company of bad men in the churc...

From Reformed Presbyterian (PCA) Pastor Zach Garris ' book Masculine Christianity, which I will be quoting from often again today and then giving my running commentary beneath the quotes: "Graglia argues that feminism operates on two flawed assumptions: (1) Equality means sameness (meaning men and women must do the same things); and (2) Most differences between men and women are imposed by culture. Both of these assumptions will be challenged throughout this book. We will show that “equality” should only be used to speak of men and women having “equal value” before God and man, not equal functions, and we will show that men and women have different natures rooted in God’s design, not culture." MY COMMENTS: In Luke 15:1-10, Jesus gives two stories/parables about heaven rejoicing when just one sinner repents. The first example is a man losing one of his sheep and leaving the 99 to find it. The second is the woman who has lost one of her 10 silver coins, and finds it after...

 The problem in our nation right now is the feminization of our society and churches. Does that mean it is “the woman’s fault”? Yes and no. We can go in circles about whether men or women are more to blame for our spiritual and political issues today. It is clear that both men and women are spiraling downward. Men are weak and cowardly, women are gruff and rude. Men are abandoning their duties, and women are abandoning their duties, trying to take on the duties of men in the name of “equality”. But men and women are different. They are not the same, and they are not “equal”. God made woman for the man, not man for the woman, 1 Cor. 11:8-9 , “For man is not from woman, but woman from man. Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man.” If you hear this and think of some kind of twisted handmaid’s tale depravity, repent. This is God’s holy word. But if you think that women are not to be submissive to their husbands, and in general submissive and helpmeets to men, you...

  Matthew Henry on Genesis 34: "Dinah was, for aught that appears, Jacob’s only daughter, and we may suppose her therefore the mother’s fondling and the darling of the family, and yet she proves neither a joy nor a credit to them; for those children seldom prove either the best or the happiest that are most indulged. She is reckoned now but fifteen or sixteen years of age when she here occasioned so much mischief. Observe, 1. Her vain curiosity, which exposed her. She went out, perhaps unknown to her father, but by the connivance of her mother, to see the daughters of the land (v. 1); probably it was at a ball, or on some public day. Being an only daughter, she thought herself solitary at home, having none of her own age and sex to converse with; and therefore she must needs go abroad to divert herself, to keep off melancholy, and to accomplish herself by conversation better than she could in her father’s tents. Note, It is a very good thing for children to love home; it is parent...