Worship service 05/24/26.
Greetings and call to worship.
—Greetings and good morning, saints and beloved brethren. Grace, mercy, and peace be multiplied to you through the love of God and the righteousness of Jesus Christ our Lord. We come before Him once again to praise, honor, and glorify His holy name, on His holy day which He hath commanded, and we are delighted so to do, according to the gift and grace of the Spirit. Psalm 90:14-17 says, “O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil. Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children. And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.” Inasmuch as God hath been our dwelling place of old, and hath protected and defended us all our days, let us rejoice in Him, and offer Him the fruit of our lips and the marrow of our service, even as He is worthy and hath commanded us to do on the Sabbath day.
A Puritan minister writes, “The Lord Jesus hath put his name upon the first day of the week. “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s-day.” –Revelation 1:10. There is reason to believe that the Lord’s-day here spoken of was the first day of the week, because it is a certain determinate day, and it is spoken of as a day which was well known among Christians by that name; and the first day of the week being the day of the Lord’s resurrection, and wherein Christians did use to assemble themselves together upon, had the only reason for such denomination. There is also reason to believe that the Lord did put his own name upon this day, because none had authority to put his name upon any day but himself; and the apostle calling it the Lord’s-day, by the inspiration of the Spirit no doubt but it was the Lord’s will it should be so called, and by consequence it was his will that this day should be used and observed as an holy day unto himself. As the second sacrament is called the Lord’s supper, because it was appointed by the Lord; so the first day of the week is called the Lord’s day, because it was appointed by the Lord; and this day being appointed, no other is to be observed now as the Christian Sabbath.”
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 28 [6]: 1 Being in great fear and heaviness of heart to see God dishonored by the wicked, he desireth to be rid of them. 4 And crieth for vengeance against them: and at length assureth himself, that God hath heard his prayer, 9 Unto whose tuition he commendeth all the faithful.
A Psalm of David.
1 Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.
2 Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.
3 Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but malice is in their hearts.
4 Give them according to their deeds, and according to the wickedness of their inventions: give them after the work of their hands; render to them their desert.
5 For they regard not the works of the Lord, nor the operation of his hands, therefore destroy them, and build them not up.
6 Blessed be the Lord, because he hath heard the voice of my petitions.
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.
8 The Lord is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed.
9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: feed them also, and exalt them for ever.
Exposition:
—Previously, we saw that David, being filled with holy indignation against the enemies of God, prayed earnestly that they might be given exactly what they deserve. For although men dream otherwise, their deserts purchase for them naught but shame and death. And it is a strange thing that men seek praise and honor for their deserts, when the scripture promiseth something else entirely. Much like the conceited Prince of Arragon in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice, who chose the silver casket, hoping to receive what he deserved, left with naught but humiliation, as the Proverb saith, “It is not good to eat much honey: so for men to search their own glory is not glory.” For the wicked seek after the justification of their own persons; and all that they do, in thought, word, and deed, tendeth toward that end.
As natural persons, born of Adam’s race, they are bound to the rigour of the old covenant, and obliged to perform it in its fullness. But this they cannot do, because they are sinners, and can do naught but sin. Therefore they labour toward their own destruction, even while they hope to be justified. As it is written, “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.”
And Watson saith: “Whosoever they are that look for righteousness and salvation by the power of their freewill, or the inherent goodness of their nature, or by virtue of their merit, they are all under the covenant of works. They do not submit to the righteousness of faith, therefore they are bound to keep the whole law, and in case of failure they are condemned. The covenant of grace is like a court of Chancery, to relieve the sinner, and help him who is cast by the first covenant. It says, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and be saved’; but such as will stand upon their own inherent righteousness, free-will and merit, fall under the first covenant of works, and are in a perishing estate.”
So Jesus saith, “Many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” And Paul saith of the Jews, “But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone.”
Therefore all those who seek their own honour and glory, and do not seek the honour and glory of God, have but one reward laid up for themselves: humiliation, dishonour, and destruction. As the gospel also witnesseth, saying, “Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased.” And the prophet thundereth, “For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low.”
Therefore, for men to seek their own honour, and to hope to receive what they deserve, there is but one end. Yet we must also observe that, inasmuch as they seek honour for themselves, they do all that they can to obscure the glory of God. For there is no middle ground, and no mean between these two things. On the one hand, there is the gospel of free grace, which attributes all glory, credit, and honour in salvation to the Lord. As it is written, “Salvation is of the LORD.” And again, “Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” And again, “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.” So, to believe that all is grace is the very nature of that faith by which we are justified.
On the other hand, there is the doctrine of man’s merits, works, free will, endeavours, and good intentions. It is enough for them that man is trying his best in religion, because, they say, God loves all men and will supply whatever they are lacking according to the works required in the covenant.
But Scripture does not teach that man is partially good and trying his best. It teaches that all men are sinners, under His wrath and curse and unable to think or do anything that is good; it teaches that God hath mercy on whom He will; and that those whom He hath chosen will be called by the Spirit, brought into the enjoyment of the benefits of redemption, born again, and received into the household and family of God by grace.
These are the works of God which the wicked do not regard; and because they regard them not, they are destroyed and not built up. As it is written, “For they regard not the works of the LORD, nor the operation of his hands, he shall destroy them, and not build them up.” And again, “Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them! And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of his hands.” And again, “O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep. A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this. When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever.”
The wicked knoweth not that he himself is the brutish man, and the fool who shall be destroyed forever. But the righteous acknowledge and rejoice in the works of God: in creation and the Sabbath, in the law and the gospel, in election and predestination, in redemption and the atonement made for God’s elect, in regeneration and calling through the Word of God, in providence and the means of grace, in the preservation of the church, and in the final judgment. The righteous behold the works of God and give Him praise, honour, and glory; while the wicked, as fools, regard them not. They are like the beasts that perish.
For the works of God, as referenced here in the verse, are all the ways and acts of God by which His invisible attributes are made known and set forth in the Word. And the wicked who regard them not are not given a soft rebuke, nor fellowship and honour, as in the churches today, but are said to be destroyed. Therefore, may the righteous boldly and confidently pass judgment on all who regard not the works of the Lord, but hold doctrine which honours man rather than God, and gives liberty to pursue the lusts of the flesh.
For those who regard the works of the Lord, and seek His honour and glory, are built up and established by sound doctrine in the Lord Jesus Christ. As it is written, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” And again, “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” And again, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.”
Therefore, brethren, if we would be built up and increased in knowledge, faith, and godliness, it must be through a holy regard of the works of the Lord, and through seeking His face according to His Word. All others shall not be built up, but destroyed.
Matthew Henry— A stupid regardlessness of the works of God is the cause of their ruin. Why do men question the being or attributes of God, but because they do not duly regard his handiworks, which declare his glory, and in which the invisible things of him are clearly seen? Why do men forget God, and live without him, nay, affront God, and live in rebellion against him, but because they consider not the instances of that wrath of his which is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men? Why do the enemies of God’s people hate and persecute them, and devise mischief against them, but because they regard not the works God has wrought for his church, by which he has made it appear how dear it is to him? See Isaiah 5:12.
In singing this we must arm ourselves against all temptations to join with the workers of iniquity, and animate ourselves against all the troubles we may be threatened with by the workers of iniquity.
Opening Prayer.
— Our gracious and glorious Father in heaven,
the God of all wisdom, mercy, and consolation,
who hast loved thy people with an everlasting love,
and hast called us out of darkness into the marvellous light of thy dear Son:
We give thee hearty thanks for all thy goodness toward us.
We thank thee for the gift of thy holy word,
for the forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ,
for the free imputation of righteousness,
for the indwelling of thy blessed Spirit,
for the ordinances of grace,
and for every mercy both temporal and spiritual,
Above all, we thank thee for thy Son,
our Lord Jesus Christ,
who loved us and gave himself for us.
We bless thee that we are not left to ourselves,
to our blindness, corruption, and misery,
but we have been taught of God,
renewed by the Spirit,
and gathered into the fellowship of the covenant.
And now, O Lord, since thou hast begun a good work in us,
carry it on unto the day of Jesus Christ.
Give us hearts willing to know thy will,
to love thy will,
and to submit unto thy will in all things.
Grant unto us peace of mind,
not the false peace which ariseth from ignorance or fleshly ease, whereby the wicked pamper the flesh and are satisfied,
but that holy quietness which rejeceth the world and springeth from faith in thy promises,
from reconciliation through the blood of Christ,
and from humble submission to thy wise and fatherly providence.
We ask thee not to spare us from all suffering,
for thou hast taught us that it is given as a precious thing unto thy people,
But make us willing to endure hardship as good soldiers of Jesus Christ.
Give us patience to bear the cross,
wisdom to profit by affliction,
faith to justify thee in all thy dealings,
and love to follow thee harder still,
even when thou leadest us through darkness and not through light.
Let not suffering make us slothful, bitter, or worldly,
but more watchful, more fervent, more heavenly-minded,
more zealous in seeking thy face.
Cause us to seek thee early and earnestly,
to cleave to thy word,
to prize thy ordinances,
to love thy truth,
and to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Make us fruitful in every good work.
Increase in us humility, meekness, and spiritual understanding.
Mortify the lusts that remain within us.
Subdue pride, impatience, suspicion, and fear.
Conform us more and more to the image of thy Son,
that Christ may be seen in us,
and thou be glorified by us.
And because our days are evil,
preserve us from all temptation, that we may be holy as thou art holy.
Make us steadfast, immoveable,
Let us finish our course with joy,
Help us to keep the faith,
to love thy appearing,
and at last be presented faultless
before the presence of thy glory with exceeding joy.
All this we ask,
not for our own worthiness,
but for thy mercy’s sake,
through Jesus Christ our only Mediator,
our Prophet, Priest, and King,
Amen.
Lesson 85. [1.2.59.] The Contents of Holy Scripture: The Prophets. Zephaniah. The Prophet of Meekness and Humility.
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—Habakkuk. Zephaniah
All which are given by inspiration of God, to be the rule of faith and life.
Intro. Zephaniah 1.
Lessons from Zephaniah.
- The name of Zephaniah. “The Lord hideth.” Not Himself, but His people. Though it is said in scripture that “God hideth Himself” and when the wicked flourish on earth it is as if God hideth Himself, yet the meaning of the name is directed towards the divine protection over His people, hiding them in the day of trouble as with Noah’s ark. How was Noah kept safe? The Lord hid him in the ark and “shut him in.” Gen. 7:16, see Zeph. 2:3. Also, “Psalm 27:5: “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.”
Psalm 31:20: “Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues.”
Psalm 32:7: “Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance.”
Psalm 91:1: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High
shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”
Isaiah 26:20–21: “Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.”
- Zephaniah is likely of royal lineage, and preaches the word of the Lord as one who knows the corruption in the court. Zeph. 1:1,8
- None will be spared in the day of the wrath of the Lord. Zeph. 1:2-6, Rom. 1:18-32
- Men are guilty before the Lord not only for open rebellion, and idolatry but for turning back from Him, and for their coldness, negligence, and lack of diligent inquiry after His face. The prophet condemneth those “that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor enquired for him” (Zephaniah 1:6). It is therefore not sufficient that men abstain from gross immorality while their hearts remain dull, careless, and unexercised toward God. A hard, earnest, and zealous seeking of the Lord is alone suitable to the Christian profession; for God is not mocked with sluggish worship, faint desires, or sacrifices without heat. Let every sacrifice be offered with fire and salt: with the fire of holy affection, zeal, and reverence; and with the salt of sincerity, purity, and covenant faithfulness.
a. They neglect prayer and thanksgiving in the time of prosperity.
Deut. 8:10-20, Jer. 5:7, Hos. 2:8-9
b. They neglect prayer and supplication in the time of adversity.
Isa. 9:13, Amos 4:6-11, Zeph. 3:2
- The great day of the Lord shall be as a sacrifice, but the bodies on the altar will be the nations of men who serve Him not. Zeph. 1:7, Isa. 34:6, Jer. 46:10, Isa. 9:13-19 No image more terrifying than this.
- Those rich, noble, influential and dwelling in palaces shall be punished with the commoners. Those who have not on a wedding garment of sincerity and holiness. Zeph. 1:8
a. Sincerity is required of all them that serve God.
Sincerity of Doctrine. Sincerity of Life. Psalm 32:2
b. Holiness is required of all them that serve God. Heb. 12:14
Love righteousness, hate iniquity. Mortify sin, separate from the wicked and seek things that are above.
- The wicked live as if there is no reward for the righteous or punishment for the wicked. Zeph. 1:12, Psalm 10:13, Isa. 29:15, Ezk. 8:12, 9:9
- The Lord mingles a curse with the blessings of the wicked and causes them to be destroyed by that which they hope to be saved. Zeph. 1:13, Psalm 69:22 Calvin— “These expressions are metaphorical, and they imply a desire that whatever things had been allotted to them in providence for the preservation of life, and for their welfare and convenience, might be turned by God into the occasion or instrument of their destruction. From this we gather that as things which naturally and of themselves are hurtful, become the means of furthering our welfare when we are in favor with God; so, when his anger is kindled against us, all those things which have a native tendency to produce our happiness are cursed, and become so many causes of our destruction. It is an instance of the Divine justice, which ought deeply to impress our minds with awe, when the Holy Spirit declares that all the means of preserving life are deadly to the reprobate, (Titus 1:15;) so that the very sun, which carries healing under his wings, (Malachi 4:2,) breathes only a deadly exhalation for them.”
- The Lord is to be greatly feared and reverenced for His power and His glory. He reserves terrible destruction for the wicked. Zeph. 1:14-18
- The wealth and prosperity of men will not be able to save them in the day of the Lord. Zeph. 1:18, Psalm 49
Conclusion.
Closing Prayer.