Worship service 08/23/26.
Greetings and call to worship.
—Greetings and good morning, saints, the elect and beloved of the Lord, called out of darkness that we might bear witness to His glorious mercy in the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ, whom He sent for our salvation. Let us praise His great and awesome name through Him. We are gathered together once more on the Christian Sabbath to celebrate the glorious resurrection of Jesus Christ which is the life of the church and the hope of our souls. Psalm 16:8-11 says, “I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Inasmuch as the Lord has promised to us everlasting felicity and immortal joy, let us come before Him and worship, with understanding, zeal and great delight, for these things the Lord is pleased with, more than all sacrifice.
A Christian minister writes, “ if we suppose, in general, that God rested on the seventh day from his work, that is, not only desisted from creating new species of creatures, but acquiesced and took complacency in the work which he had now finished, especially in man, who was formed after his image, and furnished with those faculties by which he was enabled to acknowledge and celebrate the perfections of God shining forth in his works; and that he set this his resting before man as a pattern by which he should be taught to acquiesce in nothing but in God, for whom he was created; please himself in nothing but in glorifying God, which is the end of his creation: moreover, that he sanctified this day, of which we are speaking, by commanding it to be employed by man for that sacred work, adding a promise that all that time thus employed by man should be highly blessed to him; if, I say, we thus in general suppose as all these things are evidently truth, there is good hope that all equitable judges will allow that we adhere to the simplicity of the letter, and interpret this history of Moses as the narrative of a thing done at that time, which the holy prophet was then describing.”
Prayer unto the public reading of the Holy Scripture:
Our holy and righteous Father,
full of all glory, justice, mercy, and truth;
Our faithful and righteous God who will by no means clear the guilty,
yet thou showeth mercy unto thousands that love thee and keep thy commandments:
We come before thee in all holy reverence,
as those whom thou hast chosen in Christ,
redeemed by His precious blood,
called out of darkness,
and brought into the fellowship of the gospel
and the kingdom of thy dear Son.
We bow before thee in true humility,
acknowledging the severity of thy law,
the holy requirements of the gospel,
and our own vileness and unworthiness
to draw so near unto thee.
We confess, O Lord,
that apart from the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ
we lie under thy wrath and curse,
without hope, and without access to the covenant promises.
For we are guilty and polluted by sin,
unable of ourselves to repent, believe, or return unto thee.
Therefore we rest wholly upon thee for grace and mercy:
upon the Father’s electing love,
the Son’s obedience for acceptance with thee,
and the Spirit’s work to make us meet for thy service.
Pardon our iniquities,
cleanse us by the blood of Christ,
sanctify us by thy truth,
strengthen our faith,
subdue the lusts of the flesh,
and enable us to perform this holy service
in the strength which thou dost so freely supply.
And now, as we come to the reading of thy holy word,
grant a special blessing upon this portion of Scripture.
Make it effectual by thy Spirit
to build up thy Church,
and establish thy kingdom.
Open our hearts to receive the word with meekness;
give us eyes to see and ears to hear;
and cause us by thine own grace to live by it,
that we may be built up a holy temple in the Lord—even through Jesus Christ.
Our Captain, Governor, and Deliverer,
Our Prophet, Priest, and King. The Author and Finisher of our faith.
In His most worthy name we pray,
Amen.
Devotional and doctrinal exposition on the Psalms:
Psalm 29 [7] : 1 The Prophet exhorteth the princes and rulers of the world (which for the most part think there is no God.) 3 At the least to fear him for the thunders and tempests, for fear whereof all creatures tremble. 11 And though thereby God threateneth sinners, yet he is always merciful to his, and moveth them thereby to praise his Name.
A Psalm of David.
1 Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength.
2 Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
3 The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory maketh it to thunder: the Lord is upon the great waters.
4 The voice of the Lord is mighty; the voice of the Lord is glorious.
5 The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars; yea, the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He maketh them also to leap like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.
7 The voice of the Lord divideth the flames of fire.
8 The voice of the Lord maketh the wilderness to tremble; the Lord shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh.
9 The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests: and in his temple doth every one speak of his glory.
10 The Lord sitteth upon the floods; yea, the Lord sitteth King for ever.
11 The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.
Exposition:
—We saw previously that the purpose of the Psalmist here is to glorify and magnify the power and majesty of the LORD by declaring the efficacy of His voice, and the ease with which He shaketh heaven and earth by it, so that no person, place, creature, or kingdom is beyond His dominion. The whole description therefore proceeds by a remarkable augmentation, each successive image carrying the manifestation of divine power farther and higher than the one before it.
First there is the preparation: “The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters.” Then followeth the general declaration: “The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.” After this cometh the proof of that power, and an augmentation thereof: “The voice of the LORD breaketh the cedars; yea, the LORD breaketh the cedars of Lebanon.” And now the Psalmist proceedeth unto another heightened expression, showing the dominion of the LORD not only over the trees, and those the mightiest of trees, but over the mountainous regions themselves upon which they take root and grow: “He maketh them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.”
Thus that which appeareth most firmly rooted is moved at His pleasure. The cedar which hath stood for generations is broken; the mountain which seemeth fixed from the foundation of the world leapeth because of His voice. Lebanon and Sirion, vast and ancient, which no strength of man could move from their places, are represented as skipping like young beasts before the LORD. That which is immovable to us is easily moved by Him. The distinction between great and small, strong and weak, movable and immovable, belongeth to the creature; it establisheth no difficulty with God. Before His power the cedar is as the reed, and the mountain as the calf.
The Psalmist then proceedeth to describe another terrible sight which accompanied the storm: “The voice of the LORD divideth the flames of fire.” The heavens, already filled with the sound of His voice, are now rent with lightning, the fire branching and dividing through the darkness according to His command. Nothing here is represented as loose, accidental, or independent. The thunder is directed by His voice; the waters are moved beneath Him; the cedars break at His word; the mountains leap before Him; and even the flames of fire take their appointed course according to the word of His providence. What men call the powers of nature are themselves bound to obey the God of nature. Not one fire bolt hastens to its course without His divine appointment, not one flash cleaveth the heavens with astonishing light apart from His will.
Nor doth His voice spend itself only upon the inhabited and cultivated places of the earth. For “The voice of the LORD shaketh the wilderness; the LORD shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh.” He maketh even the solitary and uninhabited places to tremble. Where no palace standeth, where no city hath been built, where no congregation of men hath assembled to behold His works, even there the LORD reigneth. For His dominion dependeth not upon the presence or acknowledgement of man. The wilderness itself shaketh before Him.
And herein there is a severe reproof of the hardness of men. For the insensible creatures answer readily to the voice of their Creator. The waters are moved; the cedars break; Lebanon and Sirion leap; and the wilderness trembles: yet man, endowed with reason, conscience, and the knowledge of God, heareth and does not fear. The creature which hath neither understanding nor will fulfilleth immediately the ordinance appointed unto it, whilst man, who was made to know and glorify God, hardeneth himself against His voice.
Thus are men rebuked for the hardness of their hearts. The trees, the mountains, the wilderness, yea, the heavens themselves bear witness unto the sovereignty of God; yet men remain deaf unto His warnings and dumb in His praise. They do not stir themselves unto godly fear, neither do they cease from their idols. They continue in their lusts though they are destroyed by them. “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” The heavens thunder above them, the earth trembleth beneath them, and still they go on in rebellion.
Herein, the madness and foolishness of idolatry is likewise exposed. Men worship the creatures which themselves tremble before God. They bow down unto idols made of wood, whilst the voice of the LORD teareth the living cedar from its roots. They adore the workmanship of their own hands, though both the hand which fashioned it and the material from which it was fashioned are alike upheld by another. What madness is it for man to fear the image and not the God whose voice breaketh the tree from which the image was made?
Thus the whole creation is made, as it were, to preach against the idolater. The thunder saith, He commandeth me. The cedar saith, He breaketh me. The lightning saith, He directeth me. The wilderness trembles before Him. And shall man alone answer, I will not fear?
Therefore the idolatry and foolishness of men are reproved, and the glory of God alone is magnified throughout the Psalm. The heathen are put to silence; the false gods are shown to be nothing; every creaturely confidence is shaken from beneath the feet of men. The LORD alone remaineth upon His throne. He sitteth above the waters; He thundereth from heaven; He breaketh the cedars; He moveth the mountains; He divideth the fire; He shaketh the wilderness. He alone is worthy of that glory which the Psalm requireth of the mighty.
Let all men therefore tremble before Him. Let none trust in that which His voice can overthrow. Let none worship that which itself trembleth before its Maker. Let the mighty give unto the LORD glory and strength; let the whole earth fear before Him; and let the Church, beholding His works with reverence, confess that there is none like unto the LORD our God, whose voice alone shaketh heaven and earth.
Opening Prayer.
—
Amen.
Lesson 97. [1.2.70.] The Contents of Holy Scripture: The Gospels. Matthew. The Gospel of the Kingdom. Part 4. Confrontation with the Pharisees, Crucifixion and Resurrection.
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—Malachi. Matthew.
All which are given by inspiration of God, to be the rule of faith and life.
Intro.
Read Matt. 23-28
Lessons from Matthew 23-28.
- Hypocrites in the Church say and do not, seem and are not; and the greater their pretence of holiness, the more dreadful their condemnation when religion is used to oppress, deceive, or persecute the saints. (brief record of Roman Catholic persecution) Matt. 23
- There are passages of Scripture easy to be understood, yet exceedingly difficult to perform, as Matthew 22:36–40. And there are others upon whose sacred ground we must tread with particular care, attending closely to every word and turn of phrase, lest, by abusing the text or reading our own mind into it, we wander from the truth and fall into an abyss of error. Matthew 23:37–39 is such a passage. Observe first the exact language of Christ. He does not say, “I would have gathered thy children, and they would not.” Neither does He say, “I would have gathered you, and ye would not.” He says: “I would have gathered thy children together … and ye would not.”
The distinction is vitally important. There Jerusalem is addressed corporately; then “thy children,” whom Christ would gather; and then there are the rebellious “ye,” particularly the rulers and religious teachers whom Christ has been condemning throughout the chapter. Verse 13 therefore furnishes a governing interpretation: “Ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.” “By thy light we see light.”
Thus we see in the text a distinction between those who are entering, and those who neither enter themselves nor suffer others to enter. The same distinction sheds light on the lament itself: “I would have gathered thy children … and ye would not.”
Again, Christ does not say, “I would have saved thy children, and ye prevented me from saving them.” He says, “I would have gathered.” We are therefore by this to understand the outward ministry of God through the preaching of His Word: in this context, especially, the summons to repentance and faith which He had repeatedly sent to Jerusalem through His prophets, and which had now reached its highest manifestation in the ministry of His dear Son. Hence the words “how often” look backward upon the long history mentioned in the same sentence: “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee.”
Yet neither was this gathering an unsuccessful enterprise. Christ willed to gather Jerusalem’s children. He did gather His own from among them. The rulers nevertheless resisted that ministry, persecuted its instruments, corrupted the people, and attempted to prevent others from entering. Throughout Israel’s apostasy God preserved His remnant. Jerusalem killed the prophets, yet the prophets themselves belonged to Jerusalem and Israel; many heard their word; and through their ministry God preserved His elect. Thus the general call and the effectual gathering of the elect must neither be confused nor separated: “many are called, but few are chosen.”
This also explains the peculiar guilt of the rulers. God sends His ministers for the good and salvation of men; therefore those who persecute His ministers, corrupt their doctrine, intimidate their hearers, and hinder others from receiving the truth actively resist the revealed will of God concerning their own good and the good of others. Hence Christ had warned so severely concerning those who offend His little ones, while commanding, “Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me.” Christ receives and gathers the lowly; but false prophets and hypocrites obfuscate and scatter. (what else does cage stage mean?)
Far from establishing the freedom of the fallen will, therefore, the passage condemns it. He lays the guilt upon their own wicked inclination: “Ye would not.”
So also Wisdom declares, “I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded” (Prov. 1:24); and Christ elsewhere says, “Ye will not come to me, that ye might have life” (John 5:40). Man must not pry into the secret decree of God to discover an excuse for his unbelief. The revealed cause of his condemnation lies before him: God called, and he refused; Christ commanded, and he would not come. If any sinner comes, therefore, the glory belongs wholly to the grace of God; if he refuses, the guilt belongs wholly to himself. And after prolonged mercy despised, judgment follows. Proverbs 1 establishes the same order: “I have called, and ye refused” is followed by, “Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer.” So here:
“How often would I have gathered…”
“Ye would not.”
“Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.”
Mark also the dreadful change of language. Christ had formerly declared, “My house shall be called the house of prayer” (Matt. 21:13). Now He says, “your house is left unto you desolate.” And immediately afterward, “Jesus went out, and departed from the temple” (Matt. 24:1). The sentence is followed by the sign: Christ departs from the temple which Jerusalem had polluted and rejected Him within. The glory departs. Ichabod. Was it a thing worthy of lament for the Philistines to have taken captive the ark of the covenant? Is it not much more lamentable that Israel rejected the true ark insomuch that He departed from the temple on account of their wickedness?
Matthew 23:37 is therefore not the lament of a frustrated Saviour whose purpose has been defeated by the will of man. Rather, it is the lament and final indictment of a righteous Lord against a bloody city: He called, gathered, warned, and sent His prophets; He truly gathered His own from among her children; yet her rebellious rulers rejected His Word, slew His messengers, corrupted those entrusted to them, and sought to prevent others from entering. Their resistance did not frustrate His purpose, but it filled up the measure of their guilt. Therefore the lament ends, not with defeat, but with judicial abandonment: “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.” Lamentations 1:1.
- He that endureth unto the end shall be saved. Matt. 24:13
- Because the day of Christ’s coming is unknown, the Christian must live continually prepared for it, in holiness, diligence, sobriety, and watchfulness. Matt. 24:36-44
- Watchfulness is not barren expectation, but faithful service in the duties presently committed to us; blessed is the servant whom his Lord finds doing when He comes. Matt. 24:45-51
- Because perseverance cannot be maintained by an empty profession, Christ commands continual spiritual readiness; the wise employ the season of grace before the Bridegroom comes, while the foolish discover too late that outward profession cannot supply them with the necessary grace. Matt. 25:1-13 Calvin— “Towards the close of the former chapter, our Lord specially required steward to be wise, (Matthew 24:45) for it is reasonable, that the heavier the charge which any man sustains, and the more important the matters in which he is employed, the wisdom with which he conducts himself should be the greater. But now he demands wisdom from all the children of God in general, that they may not, through inconsiderate rashness, expose themselves to be the prey of Satan. Now this kind of wisdom he describes by saying, that they are to provide themselves with the supplies necessary for completing the course of their life. For the warmth of our impatience makes us look upon the time, however short, as far too long protracted; and next, our poverty is such, that we need supplies for every hour. Some interpret this slumbering in a bad sense, as if believers, along with others, abandoned themselves to sloth, and were asleep amidst the vanities of the world; but this is altogether inconsistent with the intention of Christ, and with the structure of the parable. There would be greater probability in explaining it to denote death, which overtakes believers before the coming of Christ; for it is not at that time only that we must look for salvation, but also when we have left the world and are sleeping in Christ. But I take it more simply as denoting earthly occupations, in which believers must be engaged, so long as they dwell in the body; and, though forgetfulness of the kingdom of God ought never to steal upon them, yet the distracting influence of the occupations of this world is not inappropriately compared to sleep. For they cannot be so constantly occupied with the thought of meeting Christ, as not to be distracted, or retarded, or entangled by a variety of cares, in consequence of which, while they watch, they are partly asleep.”
- Christ shall sit upon the throne of His glory and judge all nations; and so closely does He identify Himself with His brethren that what is done to them for His sake He accounts as done unto Himself. Matt. 25:31-46
- The saints may sincerely intend to follow Christ and yet greatly overestimate their own strength; therefore confidence must be placed not in present resolution but in preserving grace. Matt. 26:31-35, 69-75
- Another example. The disciples unable to stay awake unto watchfulness and prayer. Matt. 26:36-46
- Christ Himself perfectly submits His will to the will of His Father, teaching us that true prayer brings our desires honestly before God and yet resigns them wholly to His wisdom. Matthew 26:36–44.
- The enemies of Christ commonly veil hostility beneath honourable professions: Judas calls Him Master and greets Him as a friend while delivering Him to death. Matt. 26:49
- Christ willingly submits to His arrest and death; His passion is not the triumph of His enemies over Him, but the voluntary accomplishment of Scripture and the Father’s counsel. Matthew 26:52-56.
- The resurrection of Jesus Christ is God’s public vindication of His Son, the defeat of death itself, and the foundation of the Church’s hope and mission. Matthew 28:1-10.
- The command of Christ to His ministers is to disciple the nations and teach them all things according to His word. Matt. 28:20, 5:19
- The success and preservation of the Church depends ultimately on the presence of Christ: “lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” Matthew 28:20.
Conclusion.
Closing Prayer.