Greetings from Seoul: The Blessing of Fellowship Among Reformed Churches

Greetings from Seoul, South Korea!

I am part of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian (ARP) delegation to the International Conference of Reformed Churches (ICRC), meeting here in Korea this week and next. Interchurch relations was one of the first areas in which I served our Synod. Over the years, I have had the privilege of getting to know many men from our sister denominations, and those friendships have been a great blessing.

I think particularly of how the Lord has brought the ARP and Reformed Presbyterian (RP) denominations closer together over the last twenty-plus years. Just last month, Erskine Seminary hosted a preaching conference at the Orlando RP Church, where Rev. Nathan Eshelman delivered a lecture on the preaching of Thomas Boston. Events like these, coupled with our regular meetings at NAPARC and the ICRC, as well as sending fraternal delegates to one another’s synods, continue to draw us closer together. As we spend time together, share in fellowship, and encourage one another in the work of the Lord, we are all blessed.

Another example is the ARP’s growing relationship with the Canadian Reformed Churches (CanRC). In 2016, their fraternal delegate to the OPC General Assembly was my roommate. We became good friends, and he has since preached in ARP pulpits. Through that friendship, relationships have developed between churches and ministers who previously had little contact with one another. What began as a simple friendship at an interchurch meeting has opened doors for greater fellowship and cooperation.

These relationships remind us that interchurch fellowship is about more than meetings, reports, and ecclesiastical business. It is about brothers in Christ getting to know one another, encouraging one another, and finding opportunities to serve our common Lord together.

Please pray that the Lord will bless our meetings here in Korea. May He deepen our friendships, strengthen the bonds between our churches, and give us greater opportunities to labor together for His glory.