God brought awakening to the American Indians, adding more than one hundred to Brainerd’s growing congregation. While experiencing sickness, extreme hardship, and loneliness, Brainerd often took up his pen to write of his increased love for the American Indians under his ministerial care. His heart longed to show them the glory of Christ through the preaching and teaching of Scripture. He spent hours in prayer, asking God to bring about their salvation and growth in Christ. However, his time among the American Indian tribes of New England was mingled with periods of severe depression and sickness. His diary is filled with entries chronicling these spiritual and physical battles. 

On a spring day in 1747, mounted on his horse, a frail twenty-nine year old David Brainerd (1718–1747) rode into the yard of the Northampton parsonage of New England pastor Jonathan Edwards. Before this day, Brainerd and Edwards were relative strangers to one another. However, the summer of 1747 nurtured a growing friendship between the two men culminating in one of the most influential missionary biographies in the history of American evangelicalism.
Childhood and Unspeakable Glory
Born on Easter Sunday, April 20, 1718, in Haddam, Connecticut, David was one of nine children born to Hezekiah and Dorothy Brainerd. The Brainerd family were descendants of a long line of men and women noteworthy for their religious zeal. It was said that David’s father, Hezekiah, was a man of “great personal dignity and self-restraint . . . and of extreme scrupulousness in the Christian life.”
As in most eighteenth century New England families with Puritan lineage, David and his eight siblings attended daily family worship consisting of Scripture readings and the singing of psalms. In addition, numerous chores around the house and farm awaited as they rose very early each morning.
David’s father died when he was only nine years old. A month before his fourteenth birthday, his mother died, which left young David incredibly distraught. Vividly depicted in his voluminous diaries, from this point until the end of his life, David experienced the dichotomy of living with the constant fluctuation between overwhelming joy and spiritual darkness. After the death of his mother, David moved to East Haddam to live with his sister. When he turned nineteen, he inherited a farm, but after only one year of farming, he decided education was vital for his preparation to enter the Christian ministry. He returned to East Haddam but remained unconverted. However, on the Lord’s Day, July 12, 1739, after a long battle with his resistance to the doctrines of the sovereignty of God and original sin, Brainerd wrote:
The Lord, I trust, brought me to a hearty desire to exalt him, to set him on the throne and to “seek first his Kingdom,” i.e. principally and ultimately to aim at his honor and glory as the King and sovereign of the universe, which is the foundation of the religion of Jesus . . . I felt myself in a new world.
David had experienced an “unspeakable glory” within his soul. He was twenty-one years old.
Yale College and Awakening
In early September 1739, only two months after his conversion, Brainerd entered Yale College in New Haven, Connecticut.
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In heaven we will be finally free from sin and death. But now, even though sin and death surround us and are still a part of our who we are, now in Christ and by His Spirit, we can actually begin living life more and more in step with what heaven will be like! Praise God for such freedom and power.

“For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” – Romans 8:2
As we move from the great declaration of verse 1, that “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” we now begin to see in verse 2 the reason, or the grounds, for why Paul can say this. We know Paul is giving us the reason because he begins verse 2 with that little, but very important word, for. It’s a word connecting verse 1 to verse 2 and it indicates to us why verse 1 is true. So, when Paul tells us that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, we can ask the question why and see the answer in verse 2: Because the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus.
Reading verse 1 and verse 2 together like this we see immediately an important emphasis in the way Paul repeats (in both verses) the phrase “in Christ Jesus”. Do you see that? Here again is that crucial doctrine so important in Paul’s thinking and so essential to our understanding of the Gospel, namely, that our spiritual union in Christ is alone the grounds for our justification, sanctification, and unending peace with God. As D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones put it, “There is nothing more foolish than the notion that you can be ‘in Christ’ at one moment; then when you sin you are ‘out of’ Christ, then when you repent you are ‘in Christ’ again! … The very idea is ludicrous! No, if you are in Him, you are in Him for ever, you are in Him for all eternity. It is God who has put you ‘in Him’, and no one and nothing can take you out – neither hell, nor Satan, nor any other power. If you are in, you are in. It is absolute.”[1]
That is not only very encouraging, friends, but it is ultimately freeing. And that’s exactly the point Paul makes in verse 2. “The law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” Now, when we read Paul’s use of the word law in this passage it is probably best to understand that word as meaning “power,” or “binding authority” or “motivating principle.”  So, a good reading of this text is how New Testament scholar, Douglas Moo, renders it as “the binding authority (or power) of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the binding power of sin and death.”[2]  In other words, when we are in Christ, and Christ is in us (by His Spirit), there is a new power at work, a power and authority which frees us from that old power of sin, sin which led to death and condemnation.
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At its October 18, 2022 stated meeting, Tennessee Valley Presbytery (TVP) approved an overture from the Session of First Presbyterian Church in Ft. Oglethorpe, Ga., requesting that Missouri Presbytery investigate the Session of Memorial Presbyterian Church in Saint Louis, Mo. The overture based this request on BCO 40-5, where a higher court can be asked to investigate a lower court if a credible report has been made. TVP approved the overture by voice vote.
The overture alleges that “the St. Louis Magazine reported Memorial Presbyterian Church (PCA) hosted an event in ‘The Chapel (Sanctuary for the Arts)’ on September 2, 2022 entitled, ‘Celestial Bodies.’” It further claims that “the poster for this event featured scandalous depictions of people;” and that “one of the headliners for this event who calls himself eldraco, has performed as a transvestite, and boasts of headlining at the St. Charles Pride Festival.” The overture also highlighted that Missouri Presbytery had previously adopted certain actions to redress and remove previous scandal associated with The Chapel, which is on the Memorial PCA property.
TVP adopted the following to be sent to Missouri Presbytery:
Tennessee Valley Presbytery to request Missouri Presbytery, in accordance with BCO 40-5, to investigate the Session of Memorial Presbyterian Church in Saint Louis, Mo. to determine whether hosting the event reported to have taken place on September 2, 2022 violated the vows of the elders of MPC or otherwise reflects grossly unconstitutional or delinquent action by “promoting uncleanness,” failure to keep “chaste company,” failure to preserve “the chastity of others,” and the failure to “shun all occasions of uncleanness, and resisting temptations thereunto.”
The Overture Considered by Tennessee Valley Presbytery
WHEREAS, the Lord Jesus Christ is the King and Head of the church and has entrusted the care of His flock, the Church He purchased with His own blood, to faithful overseers, and
WHEREAS, the Presbyterian Church in America requires overseers to swear vows and agree to the following (BCO 24-6, 21-4):
“Do you accept the office of ruling elder … in this church, and promise faithfully to perform all the duties thereof, and to endeavor by the grace of God to adorn the profession of the Gospel in your life, and to set a worthy example before the Church of which God has made you an officer?”
“Do you sincerely receive and adopt the Confession of Faith and the Catechisms of this Church, as containing the system of doctrine taught in the Holy Scriptures; and do you further promise that if at any time you find yourself out of accord with any of the fundamentals of this system of doctrine, you will on your own initiative, make known to your Presbytery the change which has taken place in your views since the assumption of this ordination vow?”
“Do you engage to be faithful and diligent in the exercise of all your duties as a Christian and a minister of the Gospel, whether personal or relational, private or public; and to endeavor by the grace of God to adorn the profession of the Gospel in your manner of life, and to walk with exemplary piety before the flock of which God shall make you overseer?” and
WHEREAS, the Westminster Standards of the PCA summarize the moral and ethical duty of Christians to include the following (WLC 138):
“chastity in body, mind, affections, words, and behavior; and the preservation of it in ourselves and others…keeping of chaste company, modesty in apparel… shunning all occasions of uncleanness, and resisting temptations thereunto.” and
WHEREAS, the St. Louis Magazine reported Memorial Presbyterian Church (PCA) hosted an event in “The Chapel (Sanctuary for the Arts)” on September 2, 2022 entitled, “Celestial Bodies,” and described it in the following way:
Celestial Bodies is a uniquely bombastic concert event presented by The Chapel (Sanctuary For the Arts) and hosted by Eldraco+FreeNation. Enjoy 2 complimentary beverages provided by the house whilst grooving and moving to jamming performances from four amazing music acts!
Dream-pop/Alt-Soul diva Elle Patterson and her eclectic band The Focus will bring thought-provoking vibes and undulating grooves that will set the atmosphere. Brother Francis will be testifying funktastically soulful noise with his ensemble The Soultones that will bring you to your knees. Eldraco+FreeNation will tear the roof of the building with their usual high-octane musical madness! The evening will culminate in a euphoric dance party led by the party monster D.J. Rico Steez!
Beloved come revel in sonic splendor with the sounds of some of STL’s finest artists! Come clad in celestial whites, silvers, and golds draped across your person so we may experience unity across the senses and party the night away!
Source: https://www.stlmag.com/events/celestial-bodies/?fbclid=IwAR08my26QU7j7UFJxuIY_v1AJUEfhz-7xKs7S3w-1QujkeInfkE1jLy0XD4; and
WHEREAS the poster for this event featured scandalous depictions of people, and
WHEREAS, one of the headliners for this event who calls himself eldraco, has performed as a transvestite, and boasts of headlining at the St. Charles Pride Festival, and
WHEREAS, The Chapel (Sanctuary for the Arts) is a ministry under the control of Memorial Presbyterian Church (PCA), which it describes in the following manner:
We host The Chapel, a volunteer-led not-for-profit arts venue. The Chapel provides all services including drinks free of charge to artists, theatre companies and their guests. This is a practical, real-life way that we can support local artists and manifest the Welcome of Jesus through our hospitality and through our service. Now seeking volunteers to serve people free drinks. (http://www.memorialpca.org/chapel.html) and
WHEREAS, media have previously reported on lewd and scandalous events taking place at the chapel including those featuring “eldraco,” and
WHEREAS, Missouri Presbytery has adopted the following actions to redress and remove previous scandal associated with The Chapel (Sanctuary for the Arts):

Establish greater accountability for the ministry of The Chapel;
Create clearer processes and policies in order to more intentionally curate the art platformed at The Chapel;
Strengthen the leadership of the ministry by developing a more robustadvisory board for The Chapel to report back to the session;
Rearticulate the vision and mission of The Chapel with greater clarity; and

WHEREAS, Missouri Presbytery is responsible to ensure the actions of the Sessions under its care are “in accordance with the Constitution” and “wise, equitable and suited to promote the welfare of the church” (BCO 40-2), and
WHEREAS, the report from St Louis Magazine referenced above seem to suggest some “important delinquency” or “grossly unconstitutional” activity taking place in “The Chapel (Sanctuary for the Arts)” at Memorial Presbyterian Church (BCO 40-5), which warrant investigation.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the Session of First Presbyterian Church overtures Tennessee Valley Presbytery to request Missouri Presbytery, in accordance with BCO 40-5, to investigate the Session of Memorial Presbyterian Church in Saint Louis, Mo. to determine whether hosting the event reported to have taken place on September 2, 2022 violated the vows of the elders of MPC or otherwise reflects grossly unconstitutional or delinquent action by “promoting uncleanness,” failure to keep “chaste company,” failure to preserve “the chastity of others,” and the failure to “shun all occasions of uncleanness, and resisting temptations thereunto.”
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