Let all the nations be glad. The Lord is God, and He is extending His reign to the uttermost parts of the earth. Since He is doing this, just as He promised, we cannot by our sins and compromises keep it from happening. But our sins and compromises can keep us from exulting in the …
Westminster XXII: Of Lawful Oaths and Vows
1. A lawful oath is part of religious worship (Deut. 10:20), wherein, upon just occasion, the person swearing solemnly calleth God to witness what he asserteth, or promiseth, and to judge him according to the truth or falsehood of what he sweareth (Exod. 20:7; Lev. 19:12; 2 Cor. 1:23; 2 Chron. 6:22–23). Not only is …
Westminster XXI: Of Religious Worship, and the Sabbath Day
1. The light of nature sheweth that there is a God, who hath lordship and sovereignty over all, is good, and doth good unto all, and is therefore to be feared, loved, praised, called upon, trusted in, and served, with all the heart, and with all the soul, and with all the might (Rom. 1:20; …
The Public Cross
Introduction: Jesus was crucified in a public way, and His death necessarily has public ramifications. There is no way to be fully faithful to the message of His death and resurrection in private. Private faith in this public event cannot, in the very nature of the case, remain private. The Text: “For I determined not …
No Doctrinal Grape Nuts
As many of you noted, the front page newspaper article last weekend made clear that some local unbelievers are very unhappy about the influence that our church is having in the community. We are grateful that we are having enough influence to be noticed, and we are equally grateful that our opponents have been judicially …
Do Not Forget the Lord
Chapter eight of Deuteronomy (like chapter seven) is structured chiastically. But because of the richness of this material, we will take two sessions to cover the one chiasm. “All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land …
What His Work Tastes Like
You are the people of God, and this means that you have been saved, you are being saved, and you will be saved. The Scriptures teach us to believe that we have been saved definitively, and yet not to rest in some carnal fashion upon our laurels. We are also warned against that constant temptation …
Do Not Be Quiet, Lord and God
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! Unto You I cry, O Lord my Rock; Do not be quiet. If You are quiet when I pray, Then I will float like those who drift Down to the pit, A floating leaf. So hear my prayers, When I offer prayers, …
An Artillery Exhortation
In the colonial era, it was the practice of ministers to preach what were called “artillery sermons” just before elections. The sermon today is an artillery sermon, taken in a broad sense, but I wanted to be a bit more specific here, with this artillery exhortation. In the civil realm, you will be casting ballots …
Four Men
The task of exegesis is to unpack from the text what is already there. The task is not eisegesis, to import what it would be pleasant for me to find were I to have my druthers. If I go on a trip without my wife, when I get to the motel room, one of my …