Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary

Equipping preachers, pastors, & churchmen for Christ's Kingdom

GPTS Prayer Points 8(1) – March 2019

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Curt Straeter delivers his Senior Sermon in chapel during the Fall semester in this still from the Seminary’s new promotional video, due to release later this Spring.

Our second PrayerPoints dispatch of 2019 is now available in printable-PDF format here.

This document is designed to be a resource to our friends around the world. We compose it with church prayer meetings in mind.

In this second edition of 2019, we are requesting prayer for the following:

  • Our “Amazing Grace” Spring Theology Conference speakers, Dr. Ian Hamilton, Dr. Joseph A. Pipa, Jr., Dr. Ryan McGraw, Dr. L. Anthony Curto, Dr. Jonathan Master (Cairn University), Pastor Daniel Hyde (Oceanside URCNA), Pastor Phil Proctor (Sterling Orthodox Presbyterian Church), and Pastor Jeff Kingswood (Grace ARP).
  • Our Seminary faculty, staff, and students, who are laboring diligently in preparation for next week’s conference.
  • Our guests to the conference as they travel to the Upstate and join us for a week of preaching, teaching, fellowship, and singing.
  • Our Admissions Team (and especially Mr. Jonathan Bartlett) as we host 10 prospective students for GPTS EXPLORE next Monday and Tuesday, leading into the Conference.
  • Our Advancement Team as we host our 2019 Spring Scholarship Banquet on March 14, benefiting our International Student Scholarship Fund (which is 40% funded so far this fiscal year).
  • Faculty Spotlight on Dr. C.N. “Nick” Willborn, who teaches Church History and pastors Covenant PCA in Oak Ridge, TN.
  • Recent graduates and current seniors who have received calls to congregations around the country: Mr. Stephen Richman, Mr. Stephen Spinnenweber, Mr. Bennie Castle, and Mr. Rick Appleton. Pray especially for Mr. Spinnenweber, Mr. Castle, and Mr. Appleton as they continue to work through their respective presbyteries exams.

Thank you for praying for our faculty, staff, and students.

Veteran Board Member Mr. John Van Voorhis Granted Emeritus Status, Endowed Scholarship Established

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Mr. John Van Voorhis

After 24 years of service as an active Board member, Ruling Elder Mr. John Van Voorhis has graciously joined Dr. George W. Knight III and Pastor Randy Riddle as an Emeritus Trustee. Mr. Van Voorhis has been one of the Seminary’s strongest proponents for many years, serving on the Board since 1994 in several capacities. He has served as both Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Board for over two decades. He has also consistently and sacrificially served on the Administrative Committee of the Board, which is responsible for recommending strategy and personnel-related decisions to the Board as a whole.

Mr. Van Voorhis is the first graduate of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary’s Master of Ministry for Ruling Elders (MMRE) program, and he currently serves on the Session of Covenant Community Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Taylors, SC. However, his history of Presbyterian churchmanship and involvement in Christian education goes back 57 years, to 1961.

In 1961, Mr. John Van Voorhis took vows and was ordained as a Ruling Elder in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church at Knox OPC, and immediately went to his first General Assembly. That year, Professor John Murray served as Moderator of the Assembly. Within ten years, Mr. and Mrs. Van Voorhis were involved as one of four founding families in the formation of Covenant Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Burtonsville, MD. He served as an elder in the Burtonsville congregation from 1968 to 1970, before moving first to Charlotte, NC, and then to Philadelphia, PA. In both Charlotte and Philadelphia, Mr. Van Voorhis served as a Ruling Elder in the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod (RPC-ES). From 1970-1973, he served on the Session of Faith Church in Charlotte, and from 1973-1980, he served on the Session at Christ Church in Oreland (outside of Philadelphia).

John & Mildred “Millie” Van Voorhis

During the Van Voorhis’s time in Philadelphia, Mr. Van Voorhis served as Vice Moderator of the Philadelphia Presbytery for two years, Moderator for two years, Chairman of the Permanent Judicial Commission, active member of the Board of National Presbyterian Missions, and member of several synodical committees. He also served as Vice Chairman of the Board of Philadelphia-Montgomery (Phil-Mont) Christian Academy in suburban Philadelphia, and as a member of the Board for The Presbyterian Guardian.

From 1983 to 2005, Mr. Van Voorhis served as a Ruling Elder at the Second Presbyterian Church (PCA) of Greenville, SC. In that time, he served twice as Moderator of Calvary Presbytery and from 1996 to 2000 as an active member of the Standing Judicial Commission of the Presbyterian Church in America’s General Assembly.

In 2006, Mr. and Mrs. Van Voorhis were involved as one of the founding families of Covenant Community Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Taylors, SC, where he currently serves as a Ruling Elder. Reflecting on his vast and varied experienced as a Presbyterian churchman, Mr. Van Voorhis testifies, “I have found, to no one’s surprise, that no denomination is perfect, but it has been a great joy to serve in Christ’s Kingdom for 57 years as an elder, and for 25 years on the Board of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.”

Mr. Van Voorhis with other GPTS Trustees (May 2018)

When asked for a statement of reflection on his time of service to the Seminary, Mr. Van Voorhis warmly recalled,

“It has been a tremendous blessing and encouragement to me to sit under the instruction of Dr. Morton Smith and other good men, and then to become a part of a Board which has been fully committed to the Reformed faith since Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary had its onset. As I leave my active participation on the Board, I am greatly encouraged by the godliness and quality of my fellow Board members, in whose hands I feel confident of God’s continued blessing in future years.”

In honor of Mr. Van Voorhis’s many years of service to the Seminary, the Board of Trustees voted to establish the John & Mildred Van Voorhis Endowed Scholarship to fund full-tuition need-based scholarships for full-time resident Divinity students. Details about the endowment and scholarship are forthcoming, and additional announcements will be made in coming weeks. Ω

Editor’s Note: Click here for more information about the John & Mildred Van Voorhis Endowed Scholarship, and to contribute to the fund.

The Gift of Peace

By

Rev. Zecharias Abraham (MDiv ‘15)
Senior Pastor, Redeemer Presbyterian Church (OPC)

Doraville, Georgia

Isaiah 9:6 – Unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Through the prophet Isaiah, God said that there is no peace for the wicked (Isaiah 48:22; 57:21). Some people might respond by saying, “But I am not a wicked person! I am a nice person – I do good things to people.”

But it is a fact that doing good cannot grant us peace. Well-doing cannot cure our sin problem described in Isaiah 64:6, We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. Paul likewise testified to this universal human problem in Romans 3:23, For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

We lack true peace in this life because our sin separates us from God. A perfectly holy God must hide His face from our sin. Yet, men seek for peace in this world, and they meet with failure at every turn. Some look for it in wealth, some in fame, some in earthly success, some in politics, and many in their own good deeds. But again, both Scripture and daily experience show us that true and lasting peace cannot be obtained through these things.

The peace that we need is found only in God our Creator and Redeemer. When we come to God’s Word seeking for peace, we find the God of the Bible to be the Source and Giver of all that the restless sinner needs. We find the answer to our need in the glad tidings of Luke 2:10-11, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people, For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, Who is Christ the Lord.

Do you remember the response of the host of heaven to this great news? It was this: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth PEACE among those with whom He is pleased.

Your only source and ground for true and lasting spiritual peace is Jesus Christ the Son of God, Who was born in a manger in Bethlehem to reconcile wretched sinners to our holy and perfect God. Romans 5:1 reads, Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have PEACE with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Remember the greatest gift that God gave you and your children was not Santa or any of the gifts that you will buy from stores this year. It was Christ your righteousness and peace.

Our reason for the season is God’s greatest gift for you – Christ the prince of PEACE! Ω

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