Did you grow up learning about Bible stories through Sunday school felt boards while holding your storybook picture Bible? Does your grandmother have a picture of blonde-haired, blue-eyed Jesus hanging in her home? Have you watched Mel Gibson's The Passion or Dallas Jenkins' The Chosen and felt as if it helped you to better connect with Jesus' humanity?

In this episode, we dive deep into the scope of the Second Commandment - "You shall not make for yourself an idol" - exploring both what Scripture has to say and how it was viewed historically. From Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 4, we unpack God's prohibition against fashioning representations of Himself, including the two-fold command against making and worshiping them. We trace the regulative principle of worship through church history: from early Christian symbols to the Roman Catholic veneration of images, the Reformers' ban under Calvin and the Puritans, and its modern relaxation.

Drawing on the golden calf in Exodus 32, we see how "good" intentions don't excuse transgression, as God declares His jealousy and promises blessings for obedience (Exodus 20:5-6). God's holiness (Leviticus 19:2) and invisibility (Romans 1:20; Colossians 1:15) demand faith in the unseen (Hebrews 11:1), not visual aids.

We address common concerns: intentions of the heart, classical art, teaching children about Jesus, and more, all while affirming the Westminster Larger Catechism's clear stance against any depiction of the Godhead. Whether you're Reformed or curious, join us for a Scripture-saturated discussion on worshiping God as He commands, especially in the season celebrating the Incarnation.

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Six weeks ago we experienced our third miscarriage. Losing a child, at any stage, is a profound tragedy, yet Christians alone have a hope and a comfort that the world cannot offer.

Scripture tells us suffering is guaranteed in this broken world, but we are often unprepared when it comes. Much of the unnecessary despair comes from misunderstanding the curse that rests on creation and from forgetting the sovereign goodness of the God who rules over every detail of our pain.

In this episode we share our recent story openly: what happened, how we have been walking through the grief, and the biblical truths that are sustaining us. We also spend time giving pastoral counsel both to believers who are suffering and to those who want to know how to minister faithfully to the hurting.

Our prayer is that this conversation will strengthen grieving parents and equip the church to weep with those who weep, to comfort others with the comfort we ourselves have received from God (2 Cor 1:4).

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• "Don't Waste Your Suffering" - article adapted from a by Caleb Stomberg
• "The Glorious Purposes of God in the Life of Isabella Hope" - Sermon by Matthew Cooke at Maynardville Fellowship Baptist Church in Maynardville, TN

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• Read the latest articles: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://reformedfaithandfamily.com/blog/⁠⁠⁠
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• Good Dog Bible Rebinds: ⁠⁠⁠https://reformedfaithandfamily.com/good-dog-designs-and-rebinds/⁠⁠⁠

WE HAVE A FAVOR TO ASK! If you are excited about our mission at Reformed Faith and Family to guide men and women as they seek to learn more about Reformed theology and equip families as they disciple their children, then please leave our podcast a 5-star review and share it with a friend. We appreciate each one of our faithful listeners, but we also depend on you to help us get the word out. Thank you for your continued support!