As David makes clear in these verses, he is no stranger to the “secret plots” of the wicked (v. 2). He is well acquainted with those who “hold fast” to their evil purpose and talk of laying snares in secret (v. 5). But even so, he doesn’t busy himself with trying to unravel their conspiracies. Nor does he waste time trying to peer into their hidden counsels, as if his hope depended upon exposing every twist and turn of their evil machinations. Instead, David sets his heart upon the sure foundation of God’s immutable and perfect justice.

Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the throng of evildoers, who whet their tongues like swords, who aim bitter words like arrows, shooting from ambush at the blameless, shooting at him suddenly and without fear. (Psalm 64:2–4)
When the human heart bumps up against a lie, and it recognizes it to be a lie, its natural response tends to be one of mistrust. When confronted by another lie, the mistrust deepens. When met by still another, followed by more, which are then sweetened with yet more falsehood, the heart’s initial mistrust quickly ferments into outright skepticism. Unable to cope with the bombardment of deceit, the person soon begins to doubt everything, until eventually the hope of ever arriving at the truth grows dangerously bleak.
This phenomenon is something akin to what many in the West have experienced ad nauseam over the last several years. Whether one points to the masking debacle, the Covid vaccine catastrophe, the “transgender” nightmare, or the sudden ubiquity of creepy, bearded weirdos with a fetish for dresses and young children, the Western mind has been sold a barrel full of steaming horse dung. It has been subjected to a near ceaseless stream of deceit and told to drink without question. Like Winston in Orwell’s 1984, we have been commanded to say that two and two make five, with all the levers of cultural and social pressure applied to procure our compliance.
But, as mentioned above, the outcome of such treatment has not been to produce a serene and glassy-eyed servility among the masses. For many, it has had the opposite effect, resulting in a pervasive and needling skepticism that now colors their entire outlook on culture, politics, and the world at large. For these folks, everything must be questioned. Nothing can be taken at face value. For who can tell how far down the lies go?
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Patience does not mean we simply tolerate deviant practices that violate our church constitution. We must continue to highlight these public actions and compare them to what we have confessed as a Church and agreed to uphold. As we do this, we should pray all our brethren will live with integrity before God and man and likewise fulfill their vows to the Scripture, to our Doctrinal Standards, and to our Form of Government and Discipline (BCO 21-5, 24-6) as we minister together in the PCA.

This is the second of a two-part series. Part one was published be published on Friday, March 3, 2022.
The trajectory of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) seems to have shifted beginning in 2018. Since that time, the General Assembly has delivered several tangible actions indicating greater commitment to the PCA Constitution (Westminster Standards and Book of Church Order).
Despite the encouragement, there remain numerous causes for concern throughout the PCA. In my previous article, I noted several areas creating trouble within the PCA including church-officer-impersonation, women in pulpits, and sacramental innovation, but I do not believe it is yet time to despair over the PCA. Instead, now is the time to continue to contend for the faith and uphold the PCA Constitution
Proposed Remedy
It is clear there are serious deviations of practice from the teaching of Scripture as confessed by our Church. This creates disunity and robs us of the peace we should be able to enjoy when we come together at General Assembly. Additionally, the dissonance between what we confess together (i.e. what we vow to uphold) versus what is practiced sows confusion, which is problematic since our God is not a God of confusion, but of peace.
A. Patience
Calvin encourages us toward patience (see his comments on John 10:31). The deviations in the PCA are not nearly so significant as those encountered by John Calvin in Geneva; we should be able to exercise patience.
Now is not the time to leave the PCA or wring our hands because of these innovative practices. Rather, this is the time to zealously cling to our Saviour, proclaim His truth, and make disciples by teaching the nations to observe all He has commanded.
We should recognize that the work of confessional renewal and reformation takes time. Patterns and habits are in place that must be confronted, in some places church culture must be changed to prize consistency and fidelity rather than latitude and contextualization, and brothers need to be corrected and taught with loving clarity and firmness.
All of these things take time, and we should be willing – even as we hold them accountable – to bear with our brethren as we work toward the goal of purity and peace.
B. Perseverance
Patience does not mean we simply tolerate deviant practices that violate our church constitution. We must continue to highlight these public actions and compare them to what we have confessed as a Church and agreed to uphold.
As we do this, we should pray all our brethren will live with integrity before God and man and likewise fulfill their vows to the Scripture, to our Doctrinal Standards, and to our Form of Government and Discipline (BCO 21-5, 24-6) as we minister together in the PCA.
The future of the PCA is not one of a tiered, latitudinarian approach to the Standards and teaching of Jesus, but of confessional fidelity.

He commanded our fathers to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments (Psa 78:5-7).

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Redefining biblical doctrine to suit what we personally think is loving, gracious, or kind is wrong. Christians are called to love others. They are also called to kill sin in their lives and support fellow believers in godliness with all gentleness and compassion, not to give in to sin and pronounce it as good.

Many Christians today seek to love those who feel judged by the words they find in the Bible. People search the Scriptures in an attempt to prove that certain beliefs they want to hold—or certain actions they want to keep doing—are okay in God’s sight. Lifestyles Christians previously and universally viewed as sinful according to the Bible are now increasingly tolerated, accepted, and even celebrated.
Yet, things that make us feel good are not always good for us. In her Gospel Coalition article, “Love Your Neighbor Enough to Speak Truth,” Rosaria Butterfield writes:

The supernatural power that comes with being born again means that where I once had a single desire—one that says if it feels good, it must be who I really am—I now have twin desires that war within me: “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do” (Gal. 5:17). And this war doesn’t end until Glory.

The Christian life is a struggle, because now there is new spiritual life where there was once just the flesh. This flesh, which God originally made good, is now corrupted because of Adam’s disobedience and fall in the garden of Eden (Gen. 2:16–17; 3:1–19). The Holy Spirit now indwells all believers and is doing the work of sanctification in their lives. This is a lifelong process of dying to the flesh and living unto God.
It is not easy to give up the things in life that we love, but if they are opposed to God’s will, this is what Christ calls us to do:

Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (Matt. 10:37–38)

Love and keeping Jesus’ commands go together. Jesus told his disciples:
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