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The Psalm writer wrote: Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. As we come before a Holy God and hear his word, may we have eyes open to the wonderful and fearful things from his law. May it move us to repent and seek forgiveness, fear disobedience, and live in light of the grace we have received. This is the word of God. It is eternally true and applicable for all of life.  Proverbs 2:1-10 My son, if you will receive my words And treasure my commandments within you, Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding; For if you cry for discernment, Lift your voice for understanding; If you seek her as silver And search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will discern the fear of the Lord And discover the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, Guarding the paths of justice, And He preserves the way of His godly ones. Then you will discern righteousness and justice And equity and every good course. For wisdom will enter your heart And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. A friend once told me a story of his brief stint working in a coal mine. He told me about riding on a motorized sled lying flat on his back, travelling several miles underground. Respirators, air filters, and other such equipment were needed to keep his lungs from filling with coal dust. He said at the end of a shift your body from head to toe would be covered in a black soot. Treacherous conditions, long hours, and back breaking work are the norm in this type of environment. Most people have a notion that treasure or something of value can be found as easy as a pot of gold sitting at the end of a rainbow, but the truth is, true treasures, whether coal or diamonds, must be mined, and it is hard work which demands the sweat of your brow. When you flip on your lightswitch today, just know that the electrical current that flows through it and causes your light to turn on, is not happening by magic: someone searched for and worked very hard to mine coal that was converted into electricity so that you could reap the benefits. The Proverb today equates understanding, discernment, and wisdom with hidden treasures meant to be sought after. Proverbs 8:11 says that “For wisdom is better than jewels; and all desirable things cannot compare with her.” Attaining wisdom, which makes one wise in regards to salvation (2 Tim 3:15), is something which demands toil, perseverance, and is difficult work. We are frequently content with the milk of God’s Word, and shy away from the hard work of getting to the meat. The temptation for us is to seek a short cut. For instance, scrolling through facebook reading all the one-liners that hint at scripture and walking away feeling woke, is NOT a substitute for you cracking open your bible every day and feeding from the meat. Listening to a lineup of sermons or your favorite podcasts each week is fine, but CANNOT be a replacement for you sitting under the faithful preaching of a Pastor, one who knows you intimately and will feed you with an all you can eat buffet of meat treasures from God’s Word week in and week out. Eve took a shortcut. She saw the fruit that God had forbidden, that it was good for food, delightful to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, so she ate. She did not trust that God would provide. She did not believe Him when He said, “You will surely die”. She was wise in her own eyes, and became a fool. Rather than trusting God, we seek the easy route as well. “Just give me Jesus” many are apt to say. Translation: “Mining God’s Word is too difficult, takes too much time, isn’t interesting, or fun, so I will skip church, put down my sword, spiritualize everything, and talk about Jesus as if he is my best buddy or boyfriend, and suddenly, He looks just like me, and is ok with whatever I want to do.” The wisdom from God gives discernment to know righteousness, justice, equity, and every good course. In other words, it teaches you how to love God, love your neighbor, and how to recognize the path which leads to eternal life. God’s Word says we must STRIVE to enter through the narrow gate. Having a right relationship with Christ demands digging. How can you know Him without searching the scriptures? Hidden is Christ Jesus, the one called the Word, are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Little children, put down the Pokemon cards and comic books, and pick up your bibles. There isn’t anything wrong with play, and fun, and using your imagination, however, you are called to warfare. You are called to follow after Jesus. You are called to put your sins to death. This isn’t just a call for grown ups, it is a call for you. How will you know good from evil, light from dark, the straight gate, versus the broad road of destruction, if God’s Word is not hidden in your hearts? Perhaps you are easily distracted. Life always seems to get in the way of you digging deeper into the Word of God. The Proverb says to make your ear attentive, incline your heart to understanding, and you say “Easier said than done”. Brother and sister, strive, STRIVE to enter through the narrow gate. Maybe you are saying to yourself today “Studying the Word of God is difficult”: Cry for discernment. “But if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” (James 1:5) If you are able, let us kneel at this time and confess how we often choose ease and comfort over the hard work of mining for the treasures that God supplies, and let us cry out for discernment. Dear Gracious Heavenly Father, we are a prideful people. We believe that we can take shortcuts in our relationship with You. We want all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge handed to us in soundbites and one liners, because we are too lazy to dig, and mine. This is hard work, and we frequently prefer ease and comfort. We do not enjoy the hard work of digging for wisdom, understanding, and discernment, because we fail to recognize that these are true treasures. Father, because we frequently take our eyes off Your Son, we drift, and seek to satisfy our craving from the things of this world, which are passing away. Please forgive us for our sins against You, our pride, our laziness. Give us an appetite for the battle, that we might relish digging into Your Word. Father, help us to fear You, so that we can discern good from evil, recognizing the narrow gate which leads to life. It’s in Jesus’s Name we pray, amen. Listen now to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: Psalm 103:10-14 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust. To all those who thus repent and seek Jesus Christ for their salvation, your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Lift up your hearts!
(from the 7-14-19 liturgy of Sovereign King Church written by Aaron Sabie.)
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The Psalm writer wrote: Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. As we come before a Holy God and hear his word, may we have eyes open to the wonderful and fearful things from his law. May it move us to repent and seek forgiveness, fear disobedience, and live in light of the grace we have received. This is the word of God. It is eternally true and applicable for all of life.  Proverbs 1:20-33 Wisdom shouts in the street, She lifts her voice in the square; At the head of the noisy streets she cries out; At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings: “How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded? And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing And fools hate knowledge? “Turn to my reproof, Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. “Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; And you neglected all my counsel And did not want my reproof; I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes, When your dread comes like a storm And your calamity comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently but they will not find me, Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the Lord. “They would not accept my counsel, They spurned all my reproof. “So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way And be satiated with their own devices. “For the waywardness of the naive will kill them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them. “But he who listens to me shall live securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil.” In this passage we see the mercy and grace of God displayed toward sinners. The naive, the scoffer, and the fool all hear wisdom crying in the street, yet do not hear. They do not hear, because they are what 1 Corinthians 1:14 calls “natural men”: they do not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. These natural men love their simple-mindedness. They are beguiled, duped, and unrealistic. They are akin to a man with stage 4 cancer stating “all is well, I am perfectly healthy.” They flippantly say things like “all of us are God’s children”, “I am a good person”, “God loves everyone”, or “God knows my heart”. They believe these things without ever considering their Creator, His hatred for sin, and without examining themselves in light of His Word. They wrongly assume that all is well. In their naivety, they are not sinners, and have no need of a physician. They are mockers, and delight in it. We can see a clear picture of this in Luke chapter 23 verses 35-37: And the people stood by, looking on. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, "He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One." The soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him, offering Him sour wine, and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!" When mockers mock, they show themselves to be not children of God, but rather children of the Devil. They rebelliously ask what sounds like innocent, intelligent, truly inquisitive questions, yet their asking reveals that their depraved heart is at war with their Creator. God says that what can be known of Him is plain to them, and in their mocking they ask “ What God? Where is He? I cannot see Him.” Remember Satan’s words to Christ in the wilderness? “If You are the Son of God?” Finally, these natural men are fools. Unlike the mocker who asks “If there is a God”, the fool boldly declares NO God. They are wise in their own eyes. Romans 1 says “professing to be wise, they became fools”. This foolishness isn’t speaking of mere intelligence. There are many highly intelligent fools breathing in the air God has given them, using the reasoning abilities their Creator has blessed them with, enjoying the good things that God has rained down on both the wicked and the good. Just yesterday I saw on facebook, that social media platform full of wisdom, a meme with a well known, highly intelligent Astrophysicist named Neil Degrasse Tyson. It read “ If you believe in the Christian story of Jesus, you can’t call scientology crazy”. Why, Mr Tyson, surely you realize that by giving your opinion on this matter, you show yourself to be more than stardust? A few questions for you: How can stardust believe anything? How can one bag of stardust, tell another bag of stardust, what they can and cannot believe? By what stardust standard do you as a bag of stardust get to judge something as crazy? We quickly see that being a fool, goes far beyond lacking intelligence. It is a willful, deliberate choice to reject the Creator. How might you be duped this morning, thinking to yourself “ I don’t have a sin problem.” Maybe you’re a mocker. “If there is a God, He can’t see my sin. It’s hidden deep within my mind.” Have you managed to fool those around you, while you yourself play the fool? You look like a Christian, sound like a Christian, walk, talk, and fit the part, looking to satisfy your spouse, your mommy, or your daddy, but inwardly, you say “No God”? Our passage today tells us that wisdom is crying out in the streets and God is calling upon us to turn at His reproof. Won’t you heed His call today? Won’t you lay aside the weight, and the sin that so easily ensnares you, and look unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of your faith? At this time, if you are able, let us kneel and pray together to our Heavenly Father Who hears and answers our prayers. O GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT, That which I know not, teach thou me, Keep me a humble disciple in the school of Christ, learning daily there what I am in myself, a fallen sinful creature, justly deserving everlasting destruction; O let me never lose sight of my need of a Saviour, or forget that apart from him I am nothing, and can do nothing. Open my understanding to know the Holy Scriptures; Reveal to my soul the counsels and works of the blessed Trinity; Instil into my dark mind the saving knowledge of Jesus; Make me acquainted with his covenant undertakings and his perfect fulfilment of them, that by resting on his finished work I may find the Father’s love in the Son, his Father, my Father, and may be brought through thy influence to have fellowship with the Three in One. O lead me into all truth, thou Spirit of wisdom and revelation, that I may know the things that belong unto my peace, and through thee be made anew. Make practical upon my heart the Father’s love as thou hast revealed it in the Scriptures; Apply to my soul the blood of Christ, effectually, continually, and help me to believe, with conscience comforted, that it cleanseth from all sin; Lead me from faith to faith, that I may at all times have freedom to come to a reconciled Father, and may be able to maintain peace with him against doubts, fears, corruptions, temptations. Thy office is to teach me to draw near to Christ with a pure heart, steadfastly persuaded of his love, in the full assurance of faith. Let me never falter in this way. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen. Listen now to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: Psalm 128: How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways. When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, You will be happy and it will be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine Within your house, Your children like olive plants Around your table. Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the Lord. The Lord bless you from Zion, And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life. Indeed, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel! To all those who thus repent and seek Jesus Christ for their salvation, your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Lift up your hearts!
(From the 7-7-19 liturgy of Sovereign King Church written by Aaron Sabie.) The Psalm writer wrote: Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. As we come before a Holy God and hear his word, may we have eyes open to the wonderful and fearful things from his law. May it move us to repent and seek forgiveness, fear disobedience, and live in light of the grace we have received. This is the word of God. It is eternally true and applicable for all of life.  Proverbs 1:8-19 Hear, my son, your father’s instruction And do not forsake your mother’s teaching; Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head And ornaments about your neck. My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent. If they say, “Come with us, Let us lie in wait for blood, Let us ambush the innocent without cause; Let us swallow them alive like Sheol, Even whole, as those who go down to the pit; We will find all kinds of precious wealth, We will fill our houses with spoil; Throw in your lot with us, We shall all have one purse,” My son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your feet from their path, For their feet run to evil And they hasten to shed blood. Indeed, it is useless to spread the baited net In the sight of any bird; But they lie in wait for their own blood; They ambush their own lives. So are the ways of everyone who gains by violence; It takes away the life of its possessors. Parents, the duty, responsibility, and charge laid at your feet from the Word of God is that you, and you alone, are responsible for the education, discipline, and training of your children. Fathers, as the head of your households, the buck stops with you. Not the state. Not your wife. Not some well intentioned youth pastor or Sunday school teacher. A quick look at Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and Ephesians 6:4 reveals to us the foundation of our instruction towards our children: the Word of God. Men, we are often lazy and find it simpler to outsource the training of our children to others, allowing the pursuit of stuff, ease, entertainment, and status in life be the legacy we leave behind, rather than a quiver full of sharpened arrows. Women, your desire to rule over your husband (Gen 3:16, Isaiah 3:12) often leads to the children suffering, being trained in the ways of the world by hirelings who have little concern for your children's souls. Children, the first verse of our passage today highlights two temptations which you will be prone to entertain: 1) Not hearing your father’s instruction, and 2) forsaking your mother’s teaching. We talk much about biblical manhood and womanhood here at Sovereign King Church, and there are many reasons for this. Whether in our workplace, doing street evangelism, on the TV, or in our own homes, we recognize that the distinctions between man and woman, father and mother, boy and girl, are foundational issues which our enemies found in the world, our own flesh, and satan himself, seek to not only blur, but rather tear down and do away with. We recognize the importance of faithful men and women of God training their children in the fear and instruction of the Lord. Far too often we encounter young men and women who have been trained by sesame street that they can be whatever they want, do whatever they want, “love” whoever they want, and have not been taught the ramifications of this thinking in light of a Holy, Just God Who says “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it”. This narrow gate found only in the Word of God must serve as the foundation upon which your child is trained and educated. So fathers, what is a practical way you can begin instructing your children today? Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong (1 Corinthians 16:13). This means men, that you must lead your home. You must be aware of the pitfalls that your children face. Your teaching of them must be grounded in the Word of God. Do not teach your children a version of manhood which places the duty of protecting, providing, and working hard with your hands upon the shoulders of your wife.. Teach your sons the value of work. Whatever God gives you to do, do it mightily unto the Lord and let your son see it, and participate in it as much as possible. Make war with your sin, and teach this to your children. Teach your sons how to love their wives the way Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for her. You can do this by being willing to swallow your pride and make tough, unpopular decisions meant for the good of your home, decisions which may rail against your own desires and flesh. Mothers, the world is full of hard women. Just a few days ago the Pastor and I were speaking hard truths to two female deathscorts at the abortion mill. These women had chopped of their hair, were covered in tattoos, and sought to look tough. What they wound up looking like were cheap imitations of sailors and construction workers. They had a hardness to them that definitely distorted their femininity. However, the manliness they sought to convey was nothing more than a pathetic caricature of male masculinity. Mothers, teach your children that women are soft, that women are the weaker vessel, that submission to headship is a beautiful, God honoring quality. Teach them with your gentle and quiet spirit. Mothers, your sons and daughters will have their relationship with the opposite sex greatly impacted by how you relate to your husband and manage your home. Do not fall into the trap of believing that you as a woman have nothing to teach your children. Show them what a godly wife and mother looks like. Children, these instructions and teachings from your father and mother “are a graceful wreath to your head And ornaments about your neck”. Albert Barnes said “To the Israelites mind no signs or badges of joy or glory were higher in worth than the garland around the head, the gold chain around the neck, worn by kings and the favorites of kings”. Brothers and sisters, the instructions of fathers and teachings of mothers toward their children are signs of God’s love and grace towards us, and of your love for your children. They are treasures to be cherished. Scripture teaches us “and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, "My SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR faint WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM; For THOSE whom THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES." It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”Hebrews 12:5-11 NASB Fathers and mothers, to fail in your duty to train your child in the fear and instruction of the Lord, leaves your child as illegitimate children with no father or mother. This is not how our heavenly Father deals with us as His sons and daughters. We must repent of this. If you are able, at this time let us kneel together and ask God for grace, mercy, and the forgiveness of sins. Heavenly Father, we come before you this Lord’s Day, with hearts that are frequently full of pride. We often believe we can flip Your created order upside down and still enjoy the benefits of Your blessings. We as men and women believe that we can shirk our responsibilities as fathers and mothers, live a life contrary to Your best for us, and our homes will still thrive. Father, we are very weak in this area. We are susceptible to trusting in our weak arm of flesh rather than in Your might. We are frequently led along by our circumstances and appetites, rather than by Your Word and Spirit. Father, far too often we say we love our children, yet fail to teach them as we ought. Far too often our children feign obedience, while despising our teachings from Your Word. Please be merciful towards us Father. Please forgive us for our hearts of rebellion. Please forgive us for when we throw off duty and despise Your teachings. Please help us to be faithful men, women, boys and girls in the midst of a wicked and perverse generation. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen. Listen now to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: Colossians 1:13-14 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. To all those who thus repent and seek Jesus Christ for their salvation, your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Lift up your hearts!
The Psalm writer wrote: Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. As we come before a Holy God and hear his word, may we have eyes open to the wonderful and fearful things from his law. May it move us to repent and seek forgiveness, fear disobedience, and live in light of the grace we have received. This is the word of God. It is eternally true and applicable for all of life.  Proverbs 1:1-7 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, To discern the sayings of understanding, To receive instruction in wise behavior, Righteousness, justice and equity; To give prudence to the naive, To the youth knowledge and discretion, A wise man will hear and increase in learning, And a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel, To understand a proverb and a figure, The words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction. Here we see in the Proverb, the purpose and necessity of Godly wisdom. Godly wisdom gives understanding. It teaches us the path of righteousness, justice, and equity. This wisdom transforms us from naive thinkers, into those who are shrewd, capable of discerning good from evil. Godly wisdom teaches even the oftentimes childish youth to exercise sound judgement. The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, and without hypocrisy (James 3:17). Godly wisdom will drive one to Christ, in whom are hidden ALL the treasures of true wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3). True wisdom is found in those who fear the Lord. Worldly wisdom is not so. James in his letter paints a dark picture of worldly wisdom. It is characterized by: bitter jealousy, selfish ambition, arrogance, lies, and disorder. It is demonic (James 3:15,16). The wisdom of the world reduces one's thinking to absurdity, leading to belief in things such as big bangs, evolution, and a broad spectrum of genders. Worldly wisdom contains a worm which weaves its way into our thinking and shapes our whole life. “Did God really say?". Because of pride and arrogance, we doubt God's Word, exchange the truth about God for a lie, worship the thing created rather than the creator, and God gives us over to depraved thinking. Fools, those who say "no God", despise wisdom and instruction. They are above being corrected. Fools will not endure sound doctrine. They will not submit to the teaching of God's Word, only to the authority of their appetite. On page 20 of the book titled Always Ready, Dr. Greg Bahnsen says this regarding the pursuit and acquisition of knowledge: “To make God's word your presupposition, your standard, your instructor and guide, however, calls for renouncing intellectual self-sufficiency - the attitude that you are autonomous, able to attain unto genuine knowledge independent of God's direction and standards. The man who claims (or pursues) neutrality in his thought does not recognize his complete dependence upon the God of all knowledge for whatever he has come to understand about the world. Such men give the impression (often) that they are Christians only because they, as superior intellects, have figured out or verified (to a large or significant degree) the teachings of Scripture. Instead of beginning with God's sure word as foundational to their studies, they would have us to think that they begin with intellectual self-sufficiency and (using this as their starting-point) work up to a "rational" acceptance of Scripture. While Christians may fall into an autonomous spirit while following their scholarly endeavors, still this attitude is not consistent with Christian profession and character. "The beginning of knowledge is the fear of Jehovah" (Prov. 1:7). All knowledge begins with God, and thus we who wish to have knowledge must presuppose God's word and renounce intellectual autonomy. "Talk no more proudly: let not arrogance come from your mouth, for Jehovah is a God of knowledge" (1 Sam. 2:3).” So, in our passage we can clearly see two paths: a path of wisdom, with Christ as the foundation, and a path of folly, with our appetites leading us along. Which path do you find yourself on this morning? Let us kneel if able, and ask God for Grace, forgiveness of our sins, and wisdom. Our Father Who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Father, though we are Your children, we frequently find ourselves led along by our appetites, walking down paths of foolishness. We do this in our arrogance, believing that we can be wise apart from You, and in those moments lack the Fear of You that true wisdom demands. Father please forgive us when we forget Who You are. Please forgive us for when we doubt Your hatred of rebellion and pride. Father we ask for Your mercy and grace. Please grant us eyes to see, and ears to hear. Please help us to hear the voice of Your Son, our Good Shepherd, and follow Him onto paths of righteousness. Father, please grant us wisdom, to discern good from evil, and the courage and strength and love for You and neighbor that we will need to exercise it. It’s in the name of Your Son Jesus we pray, Amen. Listen now to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: Ephesians 1:7-14 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory. In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory. To all those who thus repent and seek Jesus Christ for their salvation, your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Lift up your hearts!
(From the 6-23-19 liturgy of Sovereign King Church written by Aaron Sabie.) The Psalm writer wrote: Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. As we come before a Holy God and hear his word, may we have eyes open to the wonderful and fearful things from his law. May it move us to repent and seek forgiveness, fear disobedience, and live in light of the grace we have received. This is the word of God. It is eternally true and applicable for all of life.  Deuteronomy 5: 1-21 Then Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: “Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the ordinances which I am speaking today in your hearing, that you may learn them and observe them carefully. The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. The Lord did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, with all those of us alive here today. The Lord spoke to you face to face at the mountain from the midst of the fire, while I was standing between the Lord and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the Lord; for you were afraid because of the fire and did not go up the mountain. He said, ‘I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. ‘You shall have no other gods before Me. ‘You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. ‘You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain. ‘Observe the sabbath day to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant or your ox or your donkey or any of your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you, so that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to observe the sabbath day. ‘Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, that your days may be prolonged and that it may go well with you on the land which the Lord your God gives you. ‘You shall not murder. ‘You shall not commit adultery. ‘You shall not steal. ‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. ‘You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, and you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field or his male servant or his female servant, his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.’ Ever hear the expression “keeping up with the Jones’”? Inextricably linked to the pursuit of the “American dream”, this term is meant to convey the idea that one should never be content with what they have, but rather, must be slavishly led along by their neighbors possessions. Advertising plays upon this base sin of ours. All of it is geared towards appealing to your lack of contentment. Newer, bigger, better, more...mine, mine, mine! Everyone wants what they want, when they want it, and like good little slaves, they blindly allow the world, their flesh, and the devil to lead them to conclude that God, and His provision, are not enough. We take our eyes off of Christ, look at the shiny trinkets owned by our neighbors, and like a fish chasing a lure, we get caught up in an evil snare. Whether it be material wealth, power, or your neighbors twenty-something wife, lack of contentment with the blessings of God leads us to desire things God has forbidden. ‘You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, and you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field or his male servant or his female servant, his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.’ The story of David and Bathsheba paints a pretty clear picture of the dangers of coveting does it not? David, in the season that kings went off to war, stayed behind in his kingdom. Up on the roof he observed Bathsheba bathing. Instead of averting his eyes and leaving the roof, he became enchanted by her form, and sent for her. She was a married woman. David, the serial adulterer, was not content. Knowing she was Uriah’s wife, he took her anyway. This coveting, and taking, led to David becoming a murderer, and resulted in God taking the life of his first son born of Bathsheba. Coveting has consequences in real time. How might coveting your neighbor's possessions bear consequences in this life, here and now? First, it is a sin against Almighty God. God gives good gifts to His children (Matthew 7:11), supplies for all of our needs (Philippians 4:19), and stands alone as the One Who is worthy of worship (Revelation 4:11). Secondly, coveting impacts the people who you say you love. Your discontented spirit, never being satisfied with God’s blessings, leads to bitterness between husband and wife. Men, as you surf the internet for porn, your mind is being altered to expect a very distorted picture of femininity that your wife, or in the case of you unmarried young men, your future wives, are not equipped to fulfill. Wives, young ladies, the temptation for you is to look at the women of the world and ask yourself, “Well, why not #metoo? These women have it all.” Yes, they have it all: emasculated husbands, kids being raised by total strangers, and the right to look and behave just like men. Children, your temptation will be to gaze out at the world and see all the “fun” your peers are having and say to yourself , “Self, when I get out of my parents' home, I am going to pursue _______________”. Forsaking your fathers teaching from the Word of God, you will believe you are more wise, and more capable to indulge in all this world has to offer, not content with the blessings of God in your life. The remedy for covetousness isn’t simply to sell all of your stuff, cancel your subscription to spectrum, and flee to the hills like the amish. The remedy, is being thankful to God for all of the blessings He has given you. What are some of these blessings? First of all, you have been saved by grace through faith, it is a gift of God: give thanks! Secondly, you have been blessed to be led to a church where God’s Word is proclaimed and lived out right before your eyes, which cannot be said of many churches in 2019: give thanks! Lastly, we have all of God’s promises to us. Church, He promises to never leave us or forsake us. Can we not rest in that promise alone? Isn’t this simple little promise, from the Creator of the universe, to His people, good enough for you today? Give thanks. If you are able, please kneel as we confess our sins to our Just, Holy God, knowing that He is faithful to forgive us of our sins. HEAVENLY FATHER, If I should suffer need, and go unclothed, and be in poverty, make my heart prize thy love, know it, be constrained by it, though I be denied all blessings. It is thy mercy to afflict and try me with wants, for by these trials I see my sins, and desire severance from them. Let me willingly accept misery, sorrows, temptations, if I can thereby feel sin as the greatest evil, and be delivered from it with gratitude to thee, acknowledging this as the highest testimony of thy love. When thy Son, Jesus, came into my soul instead of sin, he became more dear to me than sin had formerly been; his kindly rule replaced sin’s tyranny. Teach me to believe that if ever I would have any sin subdued I must not only labour to overcome it, but must invite Christ to abide in the place of it, and he must become to me more than vile lust had been; that his sweetness, power, life may be there. Thus I must seek a grace from him contrary to sin, but must not claim it apart from himself. When I am afraid of evils to come, comfort me by showing me that in myself I am a dying, condemned wretch, but in Christ I am reconciled and live; that in my self I find insufficiency and no rest, but in Christ there is satisfaction and peace; that in myself I am feeble and unable to do good, but in Christ I have ability to do all things. Though now I have his graces in part, I shall shortly have them perfectly in that state where thou wilt show thyself fully reconciled, and alone sufficient, efficient, loving me completely, with sin abolished. O Lord, hasten that day. In Jesus Name we pray, Amen. From The Valley of Vision, titled “Contentment” Listen now to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. To all those who thus repent and seek Jesus Christ for their salvation, your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Lift up your hearts!
(From the 6/16/19 liturgy of Sovereign King Church written by Aaron Sabie.) |
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