Sunday September 13, 2020 liturgy 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 22:11-21 He who loves purity of heart And whose speech is gracious, the king is his friend. The eyes of the Lord preserve knowledge, But He overthrows the words of the treacherous man. The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside; I will be killed in the streets!” The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit; He who is cursed of the Lord will fall into it. Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of discipline will remove it far from him. He who oppresses the poor to make more for himself Or who gives to the rich, will only come to poverty. Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, And apply your mind to my knowledge; For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, That they may be ready on your lips. So that your trust may be in the Lord, I have taught you today, even you. Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge, To make you know the certainty of the words of truth That you may correctly answer him who sent you?

"It was as though some huge force were pressing down upon you—something that penetrated inside your skull, battering against your brain, frightening you out of your beliefs, persuading you, almost, to deny the evidence of your senses. In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five, and you would have to believe it. It was inevitable that they should make that claim sooner or later: the logic of their position demanded it. Not merely the validity of experience, but the very existence of external reality, was tacitly denied by their philosophy. The heresy of heresies was common sense." Excerpt from George Orwell's book 1984.

Whether it is the lie that BLM is good for black people, the normalization of pedophilia through drag queen story hour and TV shows like Cuties coupled with the loosening of child predator laws in California, we are witnessing astonishing things take place with our eyes as we browse the web and consume the media propaganda. All of these ungodly practices and decrees  have very real ramifications in the physical world that we must fight against, but in reality the true battle is in our minds.

Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, And apply your mind to my knowledge; For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, That they may be ready on your lips

Widespread suppression of the truth is en vogue now, and if you are not a careful, discerning Christian, you will quickly be swept away. Scripture warns of the dangers of endless speculations, ears which like being tickled. What we allow our minds to be engaged with is of vital importance to the Christian.

Allow no worthless thing to come before your eyes.
Set your mind on the things above.
Meditate on good things.
Look to Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith.

The proverb today tells us that we are to apply the knowledge of God to our minds. This means to lay your hands on, to lay hold of, the knowledge of God, through the diligent study of His word.
We hide God's Word in our hearts that we might not sin against Him. Amen?

God's Word is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path during these very dark times in which we live. It can be tempting to repay evil for evil as we see violence unfold in the streets. It can be tempting to rebel against authority as our godless magistrates crack down on constitutional liberties while getting their hair shampooed. While all sexual restraint is cast aside, from fornication to pedophilia, with baby murder at the end of the road, you may be tempted to join in. It was just one glance. I visited that website just one time. My wife, or husband, mom or dad, or my Pastor will never know.

Maybe you are tempted to bitterness over the loss of a loved one, health issues, or injustice in your life. Perhaps you are tempted to be afraid. Past sins have left deep scars and the truth of God's Word highlights them painfully. Don't be like Adam and Eve in the garden, fleeing in shame, seeking to hide yourself from Almighty God. As we keep God's Word within us, the Proverb tells us it will be pleasant for us. Despite what our lying eyes tell us, we can have hope, joy, and peace in the midst of the chaos and ruin sin has brought to our lives, and we see unfolding before us in 2020.

Apply the knowledge of God to your mind, things like:
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is with me.
Your Savior, King Jesus, is making all His enemies, your enemies, a footstool.
All these things are working together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purposes.

Jesus says come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Are you weary this morning? Tired of running from your past? Emotionally exhausted from your war with God? Put down your sword and pick up His, the sword of the Spirit, His word. Are you heavy laden? Does sin have you weighed down like a heavy pack on your shoulders? Come to the One Who carried the cross on His shoulders for your sin, and be set free.

In looking to Christ, in applying your mind to His knowledge, God will see fit to equip you to be His ambassador, proclaiming the life giving words of God to other weary travelers and the sin burdened lost. Apply God's Word to your mind and you will have a sure, steady anchor for your soul, and be a beacon of hope for others in times of trouble.

Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, And apply your mind to my knowledge; For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, That they may be ready on your lips
 
Please kneel as we confess our sins to our Heavenly Father.
"Grace active", Valley of Vision.
Lord Jesus, Great High Priest, You have opened a new and living way by which a fallen creature can approach you with acceptance. Help me to contemplate the dignity of your Person, the perfectness of your sacrifice, the effectiveness of your intercession. O what blessedness accompanies devotion, when under all the trials that weary me, the cares that corrode me, the fears that disturb me, the infirmities that oppress me, I can come to you in my need and feel peace beyond understanding! The grace that restores is necessary to preserve, lead, guard, supply, help me. And here your saints encourage my hope; they were once poor and are now rich, bound and are now free, tried and now are victorious.

Every new duty calls for more grace than I now possess, but not more than is found in you, the divine Treasury in whom all fullness dwells. To you I repair for grace upon grace, until every void made by sin be replenished and I am filled with all your fullness. May my desires be enlarged and my hopes be emboldened, that I may honor you by my entire dependency and the greatness of my expectation. Be with me, and prepare me for all the smiles of prosperity, the frowns of adversity, the losses of substance, the death of friends, the days of darkness, the changes of life, and the last great change of all.

May I find your grace sufficient for all my needs. Father, please forgive us when we turn from your Son, trusting instead in the perishable things of this world. Please forgive us for delighting in man's wisdom, rather than in Your Word which is sweeter than honey. Please forgive us for doubts, fears, and anxiety which spring from unbelief, and help us with our unbelief. Father please heal the wounds which sin has wrought on our hearts, minds, and bodies, and enable us to walk in newness of life. In Jesus Name we pray, Amen.
 
Please stand and listen to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: 

One will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. -Romans 5:7-9

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 22:1-10 A good name is to be more desired than great wealth, Favor is better than silver and gold. The rich and the poor have a common bond, The Lord is the maker of them all. The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it. The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord Are riches, honor and life. Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse; He who guards himself will be far from them. Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it. The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower becomes the lender’s slave. He who sows iniquity will reap vanity, And the rod of his fury will perish. He who is generous will be blessed, For he gives some of his food to the poor. Drive out the scoffer, and contention will go out, Even strife and dishonor will cease.
 
 
John Gill said:
"A wise man, whose eyes are in his head, who looks about him and before him, and is cautious and careful of his conduct and behaviour; he foresees the evil of sin he is liable to be drawn into by such and such company, snares, and temptations; and therefore he keeps from them, and abstains from all appearance of evil, or what would lead him to it; and he foresees the evil of punishment, or the judgments of God that are coming on for sin; and he betakes himself to the Lord, to those hiding places and chambers of retreat and protection he has provided for his people, till the indignation be overpast; but the simple pass on, and are punished: foolish persons, devoid of the grace of God and the fear of him, go on careless and unconcerned in their sinful course of life, transgressing the law of God; they proceed from evil to evil, from lesser to greater sins; they go on in the broad road to destruction, and are punished with temporal judgments here, and with everlasting destruction hereafter."

He spoke these words in relationship to Proverbs 22:3 which states:
The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it.
When it comes to temptations, snares, or the company we keep, all of which can lure us onto the broad path of destruction, it is a wise man, woman, boy, and girl who recognizes the danger and seeks shelter. It is not brave to frequent a website, entertain a conversation, or meditate upon a certain subject, knowing that each and every time you have done so, sin was there lurking for you, waiting in ambush. Jesus said that if your right eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out.

Attempting to flirt with sin, wanting to see how close you can come without getting burned, reveals a rebellious heart. Knowing that God has eyes which are so pure that He will not even look upon sin, we foolishly believe we can toe the line between obedience and warfare with God. Like good little Pharisees we outwardly conform to the letter of the law, while inside we are full of death.

Jesus said that if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off. A prudent, wise person, one filled with the Holy Spirit, is one that recognizes the pitfalls where they are prone to stumble, and avoids them at all cost. In another Proverb it is said in relationship to an adulterous woman, that young men ought not even go past the door of her house.

But mere avoidance of temptations is not enough. Temptations will come, whether they be temptations to murder, or covet, steal, or commit adultery. Think about the last six months, with the mask mandates and civil unrest. How many of you have been tempted to sin in response to these things? How many of us have sinned, by rebelling against authority, grumbling, trembling in fear, doubting whether God is really working all things for our good?
 
When tempted, our response cannot be to simply try harder next time, or put ourselves into some pharisaical box. When temptations come, the plucking out of eyes and cutting off of hands is an element of the equation, but as we turn from the temptations, and turn from the sins, we must turn to Jesus.

Jesus, my brothers and sisters, is where we hide ourselves from evil.
He is our:
Refuge,
Strong tower,
Mighty fortress,
Shelter from the storm,
Our peace.

We are not saved by works, by attempts to appease and conform like Pharisees. We are not saved by our best efforts, or by trying harder. We are not saved by wrapping ourselves up in a veneer of holiness and self righteousness. Rather, we are saved from sin, rescued from temptations, and spared the wrath of God Almighty through the perfect sacrifice of God's Son Jesus Christ.

We are saved from temptation, sin, and the wrath of God when we flee to Christ as Noah and his family ran into the ark for shelter from the coming floods.
 
He alone is our refuge.
He alone is mighty to save.

A person born of the Spirit of God will recognize Christ as their only hope in life and death. They will be satisfied with a drink from the eternal fountain, their appetite  satiated by eating the bread of life. But to the natural man, the one led along by the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the prude of life, things like warring against sin, trusting in Jesus, and His death, burial, and resurrection, are foolish. The natural man sees no harm in pursuing his base appetites. The natural man foolishly believes that he is a good person, and his righteousness will carry him on the day of judgement.

This is true. An unbelieving fool will be carried by his self righteous rags on the day of judgement: right to hell, that place of weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it.

If you are able, join me in kneeling as we confess our sins to God Almighty.
Heavenly Father,
We come before Your throne this morning burdened by sin, plagued by temptations, and in desperate need of rescue.
Time and again temptations to sin come upon us, and rather than turning to You for shelter, we make war in our own strength, and sometimes not at all, and we succumb.
Father, we are weak and need mercy like the tax collector who cried "please be merciful towards me the sinner!", yet far too often find ourselves like the Pharisee holding up our own righteousness as if that can save us.
Father please forgive us for our impenitent hearts. Please forgive us for flirting with sin and temptations rather than setting our minds upon Your Son. Please forgive us for our pride, believing that we can harbor sin in our bosom, forgetting that You see even into the dark places of our hearts.
Help us Father to turn our eyes upon Jesus, and look full into His wonderful face.
In Jesus Name we pray, amen.
 

Please stand and listen to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: 

1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

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 09/06/2020 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 21:22-31 A wise man scales the city of the mighty And brings down the stronghold in which they trust. He who guards his mouth and his tongue, Guards his soul from troubles. “Proud,” “Haughty,” “Scoffer,” are his names, Who acts with insolent pride. The desire of the sluggard puts him to death, For his hands refuse to work; All day long he is craving, While the righteous gives and does not hold back. The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination, How much more when he brings it with evil intent! A false witness will perish, But the man who listens to the truth will speak forever. A wicked man displays a bold face, But as for the upright, he makes his way sure. There is no wisdom and no understanding And no counsel against the Lord. The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But victory belongs to the Lord.

In ancient times, a war horse was considered to be a symbol of strength and power in combat. Fearsome, brave, and noble creatures, even today horses are used by police officers to assist in crowd control maneuvers and they perform quite well. In modern warfare however, horses are generally overshadowed  by tanks, helicopters, warships, and bombers. Machine guns, unmanned drones, and nuclear bombs make warfare in 2020 dreadful, and those who wield these weapons of war are very confident that their advanced technology and weapons will deliver them the victory. More primitive, but still deadly, we see angry mobs in the streets of America, using gasoline filled bottles, skateboards, clubs, and sheer numbers, with people, image bearers of God, roaming around in packs like unreasoning animals. Their weapons of choice are chaos, confusion, disinformation, and fear. They wield it quite well, and are very confident that their threats and promises of more destruction will ensure their victory.

Mankind has always put hope in their weapons of war.
Pharaoh had a vast army and many chariots at his disposal, yet was drowned in the sea.
Goliath trusted in his size and strength, yet wound up beheaded by a young shepherd named David.

The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But victory belongs to the Lord.

The history of warfare should serve as a lesson for us, and that lesson is this: God removes kings and establishes kings; God ordains all things which come to pass, the end from the beginning; the battle is not to the warriors; and ultimately, as the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain, even angry mob peoples who seek to overthrow Christ and His Kingdom, God who is a Man of War, sits in the heavens and laughs.

And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND Lord OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16 NASB)
 
 
Brothers and sisters, this is our Commander. The One called faithful and true. While wicked men scheme and plot, aligning against those who value peace with their sticks and stones, remember that your commander has given you weapons as well. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, perishable weapons prone to break, malfunction, and fail us, however.

The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. Fortresses like indwelt sin. Temptations. Ungodly worldviews. Fortresses like the marxist philosophy of BLM, feminism, the LGBT movement, and liberalism.

The weapons of our warfare are prayer, the sword of the Spirit, and all the accompanying armor: helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, belt of truth, the feet shod with the gospel of peace. You can, you must stand firm therefore behind the shield of faith, and endure hardship as good soldiers of Christ. Look to the Saints of old dear brothers and sisters: Joseph, Josiah, Paul, Polycarp, and Luther. See their joy in suffering for the cause of Christ. Look to saints like Robert E. Lee, Richard Wurmbrand, Rusty Thomas, and Cal Zastrow, and see their warfare. Observe Cox,  Govanus, and Johnson, as they persevere under the banner of their King Jesus as good soldiers.

Let us not grow weary in these troubling times.
Let us not grow faint.
Let us not look back.

Let us lay hold of promises like the promise that God gave to Joshua prior to entering the promised land:
Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory. No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.

Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:3-9 NASB)

Let us repent of our fear in the face of man and his scheming.
Let us repent of retreating from the battle, rather than pressing into it.
Let us repent of our forgetfulness, failing to remember God's promises to us, His love for us, and how He has time and again delivered His people from enemies far worse than BLM, antifa, and commies, namely the enslavement to sin and death itself.

If you are able, please join me in kneeling as we cry out to our Heavenly Father.
Prayer from The Valley of Vision titled "The servant in battle".
O LORD,
I bless thee that the issue of the battle
      between thyself and Satan
        has never been uncertain,
        and will end in victory.
Calvary broke the dragon’s head,
  and I contend with a vanquished foe,
    who with all his subtlety and strength
    has already been overcome.
When I feel the serpent at my heel
  may I remember him whose heel was bruised,
    but who, when bruised, broke the devil’s head.
My soul with inward joy extols
    the mighty conqueror.
Heal me of any wounds received
    in the great conflict;
      if I have gathered defilement,
      if my faith has suffered damage,
      if my hope is less than bright,
      if my love is not fervent,
      if some creature-comfort occupies my heart,
      if my soul sinks under pressure of the fight.
O thou whose every promise is balm,
    every touch life,
  draw near to thy weary warrior,
  refresh me, that I may rise again
    to wage the strife,
  and never tire until my enemy is trodden down.
Give me such fellowship with thee
    that I may defy Satan,
      unbelief, the flesh, the world,
  with delight that comes not from a creature,
  and which a creature cannot mar.
Give me a draught of the eternal fountain
  that lieth in thy immutable, everlasting love
    and decree.
Then shall my hand never weaken,
  my feet never stumble,
  my sword never rest,
  my shield never rust,
  my helmet never shatter,
  my breastplate never fall,
    as my strength rests in
the power
      of thy might.
 
In Jesus' Name we pray, Amen
 
Please stand and listen to the comforting assurance of the grace of God, promised in the gospel to all that believe: 

Hebrews 10: 14-25 For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, “This is the covenant that I will make with them After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws upon their heart, And on their mind I will write them,” He then says, “And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh,  and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds,  not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

 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!