Convention
Where:
Redeemer University, Ancaster Ontario, Room 212
Speakers:
Rev. Christian Sebastia
Carismah Church, Katy TX
Rev. Michael Bentley
Trinity CRC, St. Louis, MO
Rev. Richard Grift
Crosspoint CRC, Brampton, ONT
Rev. Chris deWinter
Langley Immanuel CRC, Langley, BC
Convention Schedule
Wednesday, August 13
8:00 - 9:00 AM - Breakfast
9:00 - 9:40 AM - Welcome and Opening Worship
9:40 - 10:35 AM - Sermon, Philippians 1 - Rev. Christian Sebastia
10:40 AM - Break
11:00 AM - Panel Discussion with Q&A - Review of Synod 2025 (Ken Benjamins)
12:00 - 2:00 PM - Lunch
2:00 - 3:00 PM - Interview with General Secretary, Rev. Zach King
3:00 - 3:20 PM - Break
3:20 - 4:20 PM - Sermon, Philippians 2 - Rev. Rich Grift
4:30 - 5:30 PM - Roundtable Discussion - How are we engaging our communities with a gospel witness?
5:30 - 7:00 PM - Dinner
7:00 - 9:00 PM - Public Lecture and Q&A - Above and Below, Above in Below: Transposition and the Glory of Preaching - Rev. Dr. Ed Gerber
Thursday, August 14
8:00 - 9:00 AM - Breakfast
9:00 - 9:30 AM - Morning Worship
9:30 - 10:30 AM - Sermon, Philippians 3 - Rev. Michael Bentley
10:30 - 10:50 AM - Break
10:50 AM - 12:00 PM - Panel Discussion - Binationality in the CRC (Stephen Terpstra, Brian Dunn, Rich, Grift, Ken Benjamins)
12:00 - 1:30 PM - Lunch
1:30 - 2:30 PM - Panel & Q&A - The Future of the Abide Project (Abide Project Steering Team)
2:30 - 2:50 PM - Break
2:50 - 3:50 PM - Panel Discussion and Q&A - Mission 46 (Curtis Meliefste, Aaron Vriesman, Michael Bentley)
3:50 - 5:15 PM - Sermon and Closing Worship, Philippians 4 - Rev. Chris DeWinter
FAQ
Are there discounts for seminarians?
If you are in seminary and in the track for ordination to the CRC, the registration fee for the convention is discounted 100%. Please email abideprojectorg@gmail.com for more information.
Are there group discounts?
Because of a generous donation, the first 100 attendees receive a discounted, early-bird rate of $70 instead of $120, so there is no group discount beyond that. Register soon to secure the discounted rate!
When should I book flights?
The convention will begin at 9:00 AM on Wednesday, August 13th. The convention will end at 5:15 PM on Thursday August 14th. It is approximately a 50 minute drive from Redeemer University to Toronto Pearson Airport.
I want to promote this to my church. Is there promotional material?
Yes! Click here and you will find a google folder with logos, slides, and a bulletin announcement.
Public Lecture:
Above and Below, Above in Below: Transposition and the Glory of Preaching
Evening, August 13, 2025. Room 212 @ Redeemer University
Is preaching the Word a sacramental version of ‘Protestant transubstantiation’? In his talk, Rev Dr. Ed Gerber will explore this question while interacting with CS Lewis’ brilliant essay ‘Transposition.’
Taking the strange phenomenon of glossolalia or ‘speaking in tongues’ (as opposed to xenoglossolalia or ‘speaking in other nation’s tongues)’ as his point of departure, Lewis observes the limitations of the human body with reference to the soul. Since the experiences of the soul outdistance the body’s range of manifesting abilities, tears flow for joy, relief, anger, and sadness. Similarly, the experience of spiritual rapture or union with God, Lewis argues, can be seen to result in the effusion of non-words or gibberish or glossolalia. Scripture recognizes other experiences wherein the movement of the soul is stopped short of articulate speech, as when in prayer the soul groans and the Spirit renders these groans intelligent before the throne of God. As with the inarticulate creation and creatures of creation itself, then, there are times when the human being speaks more than they utter. All of this is fine at the level of private experience. For the good of church and world, however, I will argue that, in accord with our uniquely human vocation conveyed in Scripture as it relates to Lewis’ concept of transposition, followers of the Word must strive with zeal and passion to Word-keep and word-make as sanctified sense-makers. For as Christians in cooperation with the Spirit preserve and work with the truth(s) of Scripture to make the inarticulate articulate, the unutterable uttered, the as-yet unspoken spoken into languages and idioms that are comprehensible in our day (as in days gone by), we participate sacramentally in God’s creative and redemptive purposes in the world.
