Worship service 03/29/26.
Greetings and call to worship.
Greetings and good morning, saints and faithful brethren. Grace, mercy, and peace be multiplied to you abundantly through the gift of the Spirit, which is poured out on us in the mercy and grace of Jesus Christ our Lord through the everlasting love of the Father. We are gathered once again to worship God on this most blessed Sabbath morning, to offer our hearts in sincere praise and thanksgiving for His goodness to us, and especially for His wonderful work of redemption. Praise be to God for Jesus Christ.
Psalm 90:1 says, “Lord, thou hast been our habitation from generation to generation.” Even as Israel wandered in the wilderness, Moses saith verily that God was their habitation. Let us therefore abide in Him, and walk in truth and in love, even amidst the ungodly in the world, for this is truly the service required of us, and the proof of His word in our hearts.
A Puritan minister writes, “Not a part, but the whole day is the Lord’s; and it is as dangerous to halve it with God in point of time, as it was for Ananias and Sapphira to halve their dedicated goods, and bring in but a part. Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath-day, is the command.”
Prayer unto the public reading of the Holy Scripture:
Our holy and righteous Father,
Full of all glory, justice, and righteousness,
Merciful and faithful—The Covenant God who will by no means clear the guilty, taking vengeance on them that follow after other gods, yet showing mercy to thousands that love thee with the whole heart and keep thy commandments:
We come before thee solemnly and sincerely, as those whom thou hast elected from before the creation of all worlds and purchased by the precious blood of thy Son, called out of darkness and brought into the fellowship of the gospel and the kingdom of Jesus Christ. We bow in all reverence before thy throne, knowing the severity of thy law, the holy requirements of the gospel, as well as our own vileness and unworthiness to draw so near unto thee.
We freely confess, O Lord, that apart from the mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are denied access to the covenant promises, are under the wrath and curse of God, and must be cast from thy presence as an abominable thing. Moreover, we confess that without faith in the Mediator, consent to sound doctrine and a repentant heart, endeavouring to walk evenly and zealously for thee, which is the gracious work of the Spirit, we have no evidence of fellowship with thee. For we are by nature guilty and polluted, unable of ourselves to repent or return, and altogether unfit to render thee any service that is not defiled by sin. Therefore, do we confess our utter dependence on the Father’s love for our election, the Son’s righteousness for our justification and the Spirit’s work in our hearts for our sanctification. We believe that thou art our God, and the rewarder of them that diligently seek thy face. Therefore, inasmuch as we are convinced of our sin in Adam and the redemption in Jesus Christ alone, we cry out to thee for mercy: For pardoning mercy to cover our iniquities, And sanctifying mercy to make us meet for thy presence. Hear our prayers, deliver us from all trouble, cleanse us by the blood of Christ and the washing of the Spirit by the word. Sanctify us by the truth of thy word. Defend us from all evil, Strengthen our faith, subdue the lusts of the flesh that swell within us, And enable us to perform this holy service, Not in our own strength, But in the virtue which thou dost supply of thine own free goodness. And now, O Lord, as we come to the reading of thy holy word, we pray for a special blessing upon this portion of Scripture, that it may be effectual to build up thy holy church, which thou hast called thy special possession, and thy little flock. Open our hearts to receive it with meekness; Give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and cause us by thy grace to live by it; And may the same Spirit who breathed life into the church in all ages; the fathers, apostles and prophets, the reformers and Puritans, so guide our whole lives, That we may grow up in Him in all things, even He who is the Bridegroom and Head of the Church, Jesus Christ, our Prophet, Priest and King. All this we ask in his most worthy name, Amen.
Devotional and doctrinal exposition on the Psalms:
Psalm 27 [24] (Verse 13): 1 David maketh this Psalm being delivered from great perils, as appeareth by the praises and thanksgiving annexed: 6 Wherein we may see the constant faith of David against the assaults of all his enemies. 7 And also the end wherefore he desireth to live and to be delivered, only to worship God in his Congregation.
A Psalm of David.
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.
3 Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.
4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I request; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.
5 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his Tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.
6 And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord.
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8 When thou saidst, seek ye my face; my heart answered unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.
9 Hide not therefore thy face from me; nor cast thy servant away in displeasure: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.
10 Though my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.
11 Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a right path, because of mine enemies.
12 Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as speak cruelly.
13 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
14 Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.
Exposition:
—We have seen previously that David has shown, by eminent example, the right manner of conducting ourselves in the midst of adversity. For, quite contrary to the manner in which the world lives and moves and breathes—inciting violence, exacerbating passions, inflaming wrath, and in all things seeking revenge and the hurt of those who injure them—the Christian, who has been given the grace to practice meekness, seeks after the Lord and prays for His deliverance. As we read from Dickson:
“Because it is easy for the Lord either to mitigate the fury of our enemies, or to break their power, or to elude both their craft and strength, let us pray, Deliver, and let God choose the way of deliverance.”
Thus the Christian gives sound evidence of his meekness before God, inasmuch as he prays instead of prating.
And here, in the next verse, David gives his final resolution. For even in this present life we are comforted, encouraged, upheld, and strengthened by the goodness of God, insomuch that the apostle saith, “Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.” This was undoubtedly a chief pillar and stay of David’s support in the text. Previously, and in many other portions of Scripture, David vindicates the righteous man, and assures himself through the word and promise of God that all shall be well with the righteous.
He expected a kingdom, yes, even in this life, and waited for it patiently. If therefore God should promise David a kingdom, shall He not also give it to him? Yes, verily. And the course David must undoubtedly take is that of meekness and godliness, contrary to the violence and rebellion so often resorted to in the world. For David is not promised a kingdom by any means whatsoever, and least of all through evil and self-seeking means, but through righteousness and godliness, as it is written:
“Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.
For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.
But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”
And again:
“Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the LORD, and he shall save thee.”
And again:
“For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.”
Therefore be at peace, and rest in the lovingkindness and mercy of the Lord. Trust in Him even when all things appear doubtful, and follow hard after godliness. He will bring His goodness to light, and we shall taste of it sweetly in the land of the living.
Moreover, let us remember not to set our affections too keenly upon the things of this life. For what cause have we of hope, unless it be grounded in the life to come? Surely none of the fathers fixed their hope and glory in this present realm of mortal chaos. But David sets his affection, his trust, and his eternal expectation upon the world to come, being so expressive as to declare, “I had fainted”—though this is supplied by the English translators to complete the sense, David means thus to say: The troubles that surround me daily are too much for my frail flesh to endure. I cannot have hope, unless it be to see the kingdom of the Lord.
As it is written in another Psalm:
“My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.”
(Psalm 73:26)
And again:
“Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”
(Psalm 16:11)
And again:
“Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:
From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.
As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.”
(Psalm 17:13–15)
For to awake, in that context, must follow sleep; and life must follow death. As it is written again:
“Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.”
(1 Corinthians 15:51–53)
This is that immortality which David earnestly desired to put on, that all his troubles, being swallowed up in immortal joy, he might behold the King in righteousness; and, beholding Him, might be made like Him, and adore His face forever.
This is that which the saints hope for; and this alone is the reason why David should not faint beneath his many troubles.
Henry— “He believed he should see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living; and, if he had not done so, he would have fainted under his afflictions. Even the best saints are subject to faint when their troubles become grievous and tedious, their spirits are overwhelmed, and their flesh and heart fail. But then faith is a sovereign cordial; it keeps them from desponding under their burden and from despairing of relief, keeps them hoping, and praying, and waiting, and keeps up in them good thoughts of God, and the comfortable enjoyment of themselves. But what was it the belief of which kept David from fainting?–that he should see the goodness of the Lord, which now seemed at a distance. Those that walk by faith in the goodness of the Lord shall in due time walk in the sight of that goodness. This he hopes to see in the land of the living, that is, (1.) In this world, that he should outlive his troubles and not perish under them. It is his comfort, not so much that he shall see the land of the living as that he shall see the goodness of God in it; for that is the comfort of all creature-comforts to a gracious soul. (2.) In the land of Canaan, and in Jerusalem where the lively oracles were. In comparison with the heathen, that were dead in sin, the land of Israel might fitly be called the land of the living; there God was known, and there David hoped to see his goodness; see 2 Samuel 15:25; 2 Samuel 15:26. Or, (3.), In heaven. It is that alone that may truly be called the land of the living, where there is no more death. This earth is the land of the dying. There is nothing like the believing hope of eternal life, the foresights of that glory, and foretastes of those pleasures, to keep us from fainting under all the calamities of this present time.”
Manton— “Of his practice, that he did not aspire after great things, nor seek to wrest the kingdom out of the hands of Saul. He would not step forward, nor backward, but as God directed him; which certainly was a great effect of humility and modesty in David, though the promises of God gave him such hope, and the persecutions of Saul irritated him. And therein becometh a pattern to the people of God, that they should not aspire to nor look after worldly greatness, but be contented with the condition and estate of life wherein Godplaceth them ; and our utmost ambition should be to be serviceable to God and his people, without presuming beyond the bounds of our calling or strength to manage things.”
Opening Prayer.
Our merciful and Faithful Father in heaven, thou who art exalted above all heavens and holy beyond our highest apprehensions. Truly thy works are a great deep and thy ways past finding out. Thou art wise and doest all things according to justice and prudence. Give us humility therefore to submit to thy way in all things, for we are too prone to vanity and an undue searching into that which is hidden from us. Give us knowledge of thy commandments that we might know to do thy will and do it with faith and love, for this is the end of our calling. Perfect us, bless us and sanctify us by the might of thy Spirit and may we ever bless the name of God through Jesus Christ in whose glorious and awesome name we pray, amen.
Amen.
Lesson 77. [1.2.51.] The Contents of Holy Scripture: The Prophets. Amos. The Prophet of Righteous Judgment. Part 2.
Westminster Confession of Faith 1.2.
Under the name of holy Scripture, or the Word of God written, are now contained all the books of the Old and New Testaments,
Genesis—Joel. Amos.
All which are given by inspiration of God, to be the rule of faith and life.
Intro.
Augustine, City of God Book X, iii-vi,
On true sacrifice the central message of all the prophets—
“[III] These things being so, if the Platonists, or any others who thought thus, while knowing God, had glorified him as God and given thanks, and had not become vain in their imaginations, nor either become in part the authors of the peoples’ errors, or in part lacked the courage to resist them, they would surely have confessed that, both for them, who are immortal and blessed, and for us, who are mortal and miserable, that we may be able to become immortal and blessed, one God of gods is to be worshipped, who is both ours and theirs.
To him we owe that service which in Greek is called latreia, whether in whatsoever sacraments or in ourselves. For we all together, and each one severally, are his temple; because he deigns to dwell both in the concord of all and in each individually; not greater in all than in each, since he is neither extended by bulk nor diminished by division. When our heart is lifted up unto him, it is his altar; by his Only-begotten, as priest, we make him propitious; to him we slay bloody victims when we strive even unto blood for his truth; to him we burn the sweetest incense when we glow before his sight with pious and holy love; to him we vow and render both his gifts in us and our very selves; to him by the solemnities of his benefits, in feast-days and appointed times, we dedicate and consecrate the memory, lest through the lapse of time an ungrateful forgetfulness should steal upon us; to him we sacrifice the victim of humility and praise upon the altar of the heart, glowing with the fire of charity. That we may behold him, as he may be beheld, and cleave unto him, we are cleansed from every stain of sins and evil lusts, and are consecrated in his name. For he himself is the fountain of our blessedness; he himself is the end of all our desire. Choosing him, or rather choosing him again—for we had lost him through neglect—therefore choosing him again, whence religion is said to take its name, we tend unto him by love, that in attaining we may find rest, and therefore be blessed, because by that end we are made perfect. For our good, concerning whose end there is great contention among philosophers, is nothing else than to cleave unto him, by whose embrace alone, incorporeal if it may so be called, the intellectual soul is filled with truth and made fruitful in virtues. This good we are commanded to love with all the heart, with all the soul, and with all the strength; unto this good we ought both to be led by those who love us, and to lead those whom we love. Thus are fulfilled those two commandments on which hang all the law and the prophets: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind”; and, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” For that a man might know how to love himself, there was appointed for him an end, to which he should refer all that he doeth, that he might be blessed; for he that loveth himself willeth to be nothing else but blessed. And this end is to cleave unto God. Therefore, when to one who knoweth how to love himself it is commanded that he love his neighbour as himself, what else is commanded, but that he commend unto him, as far as he can, the love of God? This is the worship of God, this is true religion, this is right piety, this is the service due to God alone. Therefore whatsoever immortal power, endowed with however great virtue, if it loveth us as itself, willeth us to be subject unto him, that we may be blessed, to whom it also is subject and blessed. If therefore it worship not God, it is miserable, because deprived of God; but if it worship God, it willeth not that itself should be worshipped for God. For it rather assenteth unto that divine sentence and favoureth with all the strength of love that wherein it is written: “He that sacrificeth unto gods shall be utterly destroyed, save unto the Lord only.”
[IV] For, to pass over other things for the present which belong to the service of religion whereby God is worshipped, certainly no man would dare to say that sacrifice is due save unto a god. Many things indeed belonging to divine worship have been usurped, that they might be rendered unto human honours, whether by excessive humility or by pestilent flattery; yet so that they to whom such things were rendered were still accounted men, though men said to be worshipped and venerated, and, if much be added, even adored. But who hath judged that sacrifice should be offered save unto him whom he either knew, or supposed, or feigned to be a god? And how ancient the worship of God by sacrifice is, those two brothers Cain and Abel sufficiently show, of whom God rejected the sacrifice of the elder and regarded that of the younger.
[V] But who is so foolish as to think that those things offered in sacrifice are necessary for any use of God? Since divine Scripture testifieth this in many places, to be brief it shall suffice to recall that short saying from the Psalm: “I have said unto the Lord, Thou art my Lord: for thou hast no need of my goods.” Therefore it must not be believed that God needeth not only cattle or any other corruptible and earthly thing, but not even the righteousness of man itself; and whatsoever is rightly rendered in the worship of God profiteth man, not God. For no man would say that he hath consulted the fountain if he drinketh, or the light if he seeth. Nor is this to be understood otherwise, that the ancient fathers offered other sacrifices in victims of cattle, which now the people of God readeth of, but performeth not, save that by those things were signified those things which are wrought in us to this end, that we may cleave unto God and seek our neighbour’s good unto the same end. Therefore the visible sacrifice is the sacrament, that is, the sacred sign, of the invisible sacrifice. Whence that penitent man in the prophet, or rather the prophet himself seeking to have God propitious unto his sins, saith: “Thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offerings. The sacrifice of God is a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” Let us observe in what manner, where he said that God willeth not sacrifice, there he showeth that God willeth sacrifice. He willeth not therefore the sacrifice of slain cattle, and he willeth the sacrifice of a contrite heart. Therefore by that which he said he willeth not, this is signified which he afterwards added that he doth will. Thus he said that God willeth not those things in the same way whereby fools believe that he willeth them, as though for the delight of his own pleasure. For unless he had willed that those sacrifices which he doth will—of which this is one, a broken and contrite heart with the sorrow of repentance—should be signified by those sacrifices which men thought he desired as pleasing unto himself, he would surely not have commanded them to be offered in the old law. And therefore they were to be changed at the fitting and appointed time, lest men should believe them to be desirable to God, or at least acceptable in us, and not rather the things signified by them. Hence also in another place of the Psalms: “If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?” as though he said, If these were necessary unto me, I would not ask them of thee, seeing I have them in my power. Then, adding what those things signify, he saith: “Offer unto God the sacrifice of praise, and pay thy vows unto the Most High: and call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.” Likewise in another prophet: “Wherewith shall I lay hold on the Lord, and take hold on my high God? Shall I take hold on him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of fat goats? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? Hath it not been showed thee, O man, what is good? Or what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do judgment, and to love mercy, and to be ready to walk with the Lord thy God?” And in the words of this prophet both things are distinguished and sufficiently declared: that God doth not require those sacrifices for their own sake, by which these sacrifices are signified, which God doth require. In the Epistle which is entitled To the Hebrews: “To do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” And therefore where it is written, “I will have mercy, and not sacrifice,” nothing else is to be understood but that one sacrifice is preferred before another; because that which all men call sacrifice is the sign of the true sacrifice. But mercy is the true sacrifice; whence it was said, as I mentioned a little before: “For with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” Therefore whatsoever things are read to have been divinely commanded concerning sacrifices in the ministry of the tabernacle or temple in many fashions, are referred by way of signification to the love of God and of our neighbour. For on these two commandments, as it is written, hang all the law and the prophets.
[VI] Therefore the true sacrifice is every work whereby it is brought to pass that we cleave unto God in holy fellowship, being referred, that is, unto that end of good whereby we may be truly blessed. Whence even mercy itself, whereby help is given unto man, if it be not done for God’s sake, is not sacrifice. For though it be wrought or offered by man, yet sacrifice is a divine thing; insomuch that the ancient Latins also called it by this very name. Hence man himself, consecrated in the name of God and vowed unto God, in so far as he dieth unto the world that he may live unto God, is a sacrifice. For this also pertaineth unto that mercy which a man doeth upon himself. Therefore it is written: “Have mercy on thine own soul, pleasing God.” Our body also, when by temperance we chasten it, if we do this, as we ought, for God’s sake, that we yield not our members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but as instruments of righteousness unto God, is a sacrifice. Exhorting unto this the apostle saith: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, your reasonable service.” If therefore the body, which the soul useth as an inferior servant or as an instrument, when its good and right use is referred unto God, is a sacrifice, how much more is the soul itself, when it referreth itself unto God, that, kindled with the fire of his love, it may lose the form of worldly lust and, being subjected unto him as unto the unchangeable form, may be reformed, and so pleasing unto him by that which it hath received from his beauty, become a sacrifice! To which the same apostle immediately addeth: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that will of God, that which is good, and acceptable, and perfect.” Since therefore true sacrifices are works of mercy, whether towards ourselves or towards our neighbours, which are referred unto God; and works of mercy are done for no other cause than that we may be delivered from misery, and thereby be blessed—which cometh not to pass save by that good of which it is said, “But it is good for me to cleave unto God”—it most certainly followeth that the whole redeemed city, that is, the congregation and fellowship of the saints, is offered unto God as a universal sacrifice through the great Priest, who also offered himself in his passion for us, that we might be the body of so great a Head, according to the form of a servant. For this form he offered; in this form he was offered; because according to this he is the Mediator, in this the Priest, in this the Sacrifice. Therefore, after the apostle had exhorted us to present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, our reasonable service, and not to be conformed unto this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind, that we may prove what is the will of God, that which is good, and acceptable, and perfect—because we ourselves are that whole sacrifice—he saith: “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to all that are among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same offices: so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another, having gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us.” This is the sacrifice of Christians: many, one body in Christ. Which also the Church continually celebrateth in the sacrament of the altar, known unto the faithful, where it is shown unto her that in that which she offereth, she herself is offered.”
Amos 4-9
I. Lessons in Amos.
- The Lord condemns sinners with harsh and derogatory language. Amos 4:1.
i. Female impiety is highly offensive to God. Num. 12
ii. Women have only so much authority as is given to them. - The Lord by His providence governs all things, plenty for our thanksgiving and emptiness for our repentance. Let us learn to be well acquainted with both. Amos 4:6-9, Phil. 4:12-13
i. Material plenty is not a sure sign of favor, yet loss is ever a warning. Job 33 - The servants of God will ever find opposition in the religious and idolatrous cities. Amos 5:10
- The Lord rejects all superstition and idolatry. Amos 5:21-27, Acts 7:37-53, Matt. 15:7-10. GNV— “The same men are condemned for hypocrisy and superstition, because they made the kingdom of God to stand in outward things…Christ teacheth us that hypocrisy of false teachers which deceive our soul, is not to be borne withall, no not in indifferent matters, and there is no reason why their ordinary vocation should blind our eyes: otherwise we are like to perish with them.”
Calvin— “Well hath Isaiah prophesied concerning you. Our Lord now proceeds farther; for he decides on the question in hand, which he divides into two clauses. The first is, that they relied on outward ceremonies alone, and set no value on true holiness, which consists in sincere uprightness of heart; and the second is, that they worshipped God in a wrong way, according to their own fancy. Now though his reproof of pretended and hypocritical holiness appears hitherto to be restricted to persons, yet it includes the substance of this doctrine, from which the full conclusion was, first, that the worship of God is spiritual, and does not consist in the sprinkling of water, or in any other ceremony; and, secondly, that there is no reasonable worship of God but what is directed by the rule of his word. Although Isaiah (Isaiah 29:13) did not prophesy for futurity alone, but had regard to the men of his own age, yet Christ says that this prediction relates to the Pharisees and scribes, because they resemble those ancient hypocrites with whom the prophet had to contend. Christ does not quote that passage exactly as it stands; but the prophet expressly mentions two offenses by which the Jews provoked against themselves the divine vengeance. With their lips only, and by an outward profession, they made a pretense of godliness; and, next, they turned aside to modes of worship invented by men. First, then, it is wicked hypocrisy, when the honor which men render to God is only in outward appearance; for to approach to God with the mouth, and to honor him with the lips, would not be in itself evil, provided that the heart went before. The substance of what our Lord states on this subject is, that, since the worship of God is spiritual, and as nothing pleases him that is not accompanied by the inward sincerity of the heart, they who make holiness to consist in outward display are hypocrites.
But in vain do they worship me The words of the prophet run literally thus: their fear toward me has been taught by the precept of men. But Christ has faithfully and accurately given the meaning, that in vain is God worshipped, when the will of men is substituted in the room of doctrine. By these words, all kinds of will-worship, ( ἐθελοθζησκεία,) as Paul calls it, ( Colossians 2:23,) are plainly condemned. For, as we have said, since God chooses to be worshipped in no other way than according to his own appointment, he cannot endure new modes of worship to be devised. As soon as men allow themselves to wander beyond the limits of the Word of God, the more labor and anxiety they display in worshipping him, the heavier is the condemnation which they draw down upon themselves; for by such inventions religion is dishonored. Teaching doctrines, commandments of men In these words there is what is called apposition; (402) for Christ declares them to be mistaken who bring forward, in the room of doctrine, the commandments of men, or who seek to obtain from them the rule for worshipping God. Let it therefore be held as a settled principle, that, since obedience is more highly esteemed by God than sacrifices, (1 Samuel 15:22,) all kinds of worship invented by men are of no estimation in his sight; nay more, that, as the prophet declares, they are accursed and detestable.”
Examples of blind superstition:
• The Mass
• Auricular confession
• Veneration of images, saints, Mary
• Indulgences, money, prayer, pilgrimages
• Eucharistic centrality
• Clerical celibacy - Those who do not mention the Lord’s name in thanksgiving and humility, will fear to mention it in dread! Amos 6:10 — “Zephaniah 1:7: “Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand…” Habakkuk 2:20:“But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.”
- The Lord will be merciful to His people, yet only through a Mediator. Amos 7:1-6
- The Lord will not spare nor pity according to the justice of the law. Amos 7:8, 8:2-3, 7-8
- The most terrible judgment that can befall a nation is the removal of the word of the Lord. Amos 8:11
- The promise we wait for is the restoration of all things and the destruction of the wicked. Amos 9:5-15
Conclusion.
Closing Prayer.
Fearless Puritan: 