The Christian Family Portrait

Why does the Bible put the dirty laundry of its greatest families on full display? In this episode of Abounding Grace Radio, Pastor Chris Gordon welcomes back Dr. Dan Borvan of Christ Reformed Church to walk through the messy, deceit-filled story of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Esau — especially the deception in Genesis 27. Rather than presenting the patriarchs as moral role models, Scripture shows them as deeply flawed people whose faith was a gift and whose only hero was God himself.

Along the way, Chris and Dan tackle what this means for our own families: the temptation to project a perfect image, the danger of losing all objectivity about our children, the call to speak the truth in love even when a child goes astray, and the serious biblical warning against marrying outside the faith. The encouraging thread throughout is grace — the same God who kept his covenant promises through wretched, scheming people is faithful to do the same for us.

Chapters:
0:00 - Cold Open
1:20 - Welcome Back: Dr. Dan & a New Pastor
3:32 - No Heroes but God
6:16 - Abraham: A Pagan Called by Grace
10:01 - The Barbershop & the Perfect-Family Myth
12:37 - Land and Seed: The Promise of Christ
16:19 - Genesis 27: A Family in Ruins
19:24 - Marry Well in the Lord
21:34 - Savory Food & the Transmission of Sin
23:51 - When Parents Lose Objectivity
25:43 - Rebecca's Scheme
30:04 - Trusting the Means of Grace
32:11 - Jacob the Deceiver
37:10 - By Faith Isaac Blessed Jacob
40:43 - Esau: A Warning & Resting in the Promise

Rev. Dr. Daniel Borvan is pastor of preaching ministry at Christ Reformed Church. Daniel earned his Master of Divinity degree from Westminster Seminary California in 2011. As a student at Westminster Seminary he learned that all study of Scripture, theology, and church history is put into practice in the worship and work of the church. The goal is to glorify Christ by serving His church. At Westminster Seminary he also earned a Master of Arts degree in Historical Theology. His thesis paper was on Faustus Socinus.

Daniel is chairman of the Heidelberg Reformation Association. Some of his published articles are on the Heidelblog website. Daniel was installed as pastor of preaching ministry at Christ Reformed Church, September 29, 2023. Daniel is married to Marcy and they have two daughters and a son.

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