Camden Bucey and Ryan Noha sit down at Reformed Forum headquarters in Libertyville, Illinois, for a special ministry update. They discuss upcoming events, new and forthcoming Reformed Academy courses, publishing projects, international translation efforts, and ways listeners can pray for and partner with Reformed Forum.

This update includes information about the OPC General Assembly, the Rome Scholars and Leaders Network, the PCA General Assembly meetup in Louisville, the Greenville Seminary summer seminar on apologetics and evangelism, the Birmingham seminar on discovering Christ in all of Scripture, the 2026 Reformed Forum Theology Conference, and the Christ the Center 1000th episode celebration in Austin, Texas.

• 0:00 Welcome and purpose for this update
• 1:14 Upcoming events and the OPC General Assembly
• 2:48 Christian identity and OPC history course
• 4:05 Rome Scholars and Leaders Network
• 5:55 PCA General Assembly meetup in Louisville
• 7:18 Greenville Seminary seminar and Defending Our Hope
• 10:08 Birmingham seminar on Christ in all of Scripture
• 11:43 2026 Reformed Forum Theology Conference
• 14:23 Christ the Center 1000th episode celebration
• 25:37 Reformed Academy: 39 free courses and active students
• 27:52 Reader's guides from international cohort courses
• 30:13 Why guided reading matters
• 33:32 Reformed Academy community and group study
• 35:20 Courses in production and the need for support
• 38:07 Upcoming Reformed Academy recordings
• 40:02 Companion books and translated resources
• 41:40 Partnership, prayer, and Reformed Forum's mission
• 44:02 Closing and how to stay connected

Participants: Camden Bucey, Ryan Noha

We welcome Matthew Vogan to discuss The Nature of the Church by John Brown of Wamphray, a concise seventeenth-century work on Presbyterian ecclesiology republished by Grange Press. Brown, a Scottish Covenanter exiled to the Netherlands, wrote with deep conviction about Christ's headship over the church, the visible and invisible church, church government, discipline, unity, and the distinction between church and state.

This conversation explores why Brown's work remains timely for pastors, elders, seminarians, and church members today. Rather than treating church government as a secondary or merely practical matter, Brown presents the church as a visible spiritual society established by Christ, governed by his Word, and ordered for the edification of his people.

Watch on YouTube

• 0:00 Introduction
• 1:15 The Nature of the Church by John Brown of Wamphray
• 4:30 John Brown's life, ministry, exile, and Covenanter context
• 8:40 Matthew Vogan's introduction to John Brown
• 9:36 Brown's 32 theses and the Westminster Confession
• 10:54 A majestic view of Christ's church
• 12:33 The scope of Brown's ecclesiology
• 15:12 The church as a visible spiritual society
• 21:43 Church and state under Christ's authority
• 27:08 Scripture and Presbyterian church government
• 30:53 Brown's polemics against Erastianism, prelacy, and independency
• 35:00 Ministerial authority and edification
• 39:17 The church's spiritual government
• 42:14 The spirituality of the church
• 44:59 Key insights from Brown's work
• 46:06 Communion within the visible catholic church
• 52:21 Further reading: Durham, Gillespie, Rutherford, and Bannerman
• 53:55 Final thoughts on The Nature of the Church
• 55:00 Scottish football and closing conversation
• 56:57 Reformed Forum resources and conclusion

• Camden Bucey
• Matthew Vogan

• Grange Press
• The Nature of the Church by John Brown of Wamphray
• Trinitarian Bible Society
• Christ the Center 682: David Dickson's Sermons on Lamentations

This is the fifth lesson in Dr. James J. Cassidy's Reformed Academy course, The Gospel of John: A Study in the Truth. This lesson covers the following topics:

00:00 The True Vine Discourse (vv. 1–17)

17:07 Abiding in the Vine amidst the Hatred of the World (vv. 18–27)

Register for this free on-demand course on our website to track your progress and assess your understanding through quizzes for each lesson. You will also receive free access to dozens of additional video courses in covenant theology, apologetics, biblical studies, church history, and more: https://reformedacademy.org/course/go...

Your donations help us to provide free Reformed resources for students like you worldwide: https://reformedforum.org/donate/

#truth #gospel #reformedtheology #biblestudy