5 December 2021
Call to Worship: Psalm 105:1-3
Opening Hymn: 288 “We Come, O Christ, to You”
Confession of Sin
O great and everlasting God, Who dwells in unapproachable light, Who searches and knows the thoughts and intentions of the heart; We confess that we have not loved You with all our heart, nor with all our soul, nor with all our mind, nor with all our strength; Nor our neighbors as ourselves. We have loved what we ought not to have loved; We have coveted what is not ours; We have not been content with Your provisions for us. We have complained in our hearts about our family, about our friends, about our health, about our occupations, about Your church, and about our trials. We have sought our security in those things which perish, rather than in You, the Everlasting God. Chasten, cleanse, and forgive us, through Jesus Christ, who is able for all time to save us who approach You through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for us. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon: Ephesians 2:13-16
Hymn of Preparation: 243 “How Firm a Foundation”
Old Covenant Reading: Psalm 5:1-12
New Covenant Reading: Luke 4:31-37
Sermon: The Goodness of God in the Grind of Life
Hymn of Response: Psalm 5 “Hear My Words, O LORD”
Confession of Faith: Q/A 1 Heidelberg Catechism (p. 872)
Doxology (Hymn 568)
Closing Hymn: 246 “Though Troubles Assail Us”
Evening Service
Hymns: 300, 245, 565
OT: Proverbs 30:7-9
NT: 1 Timothy 6:3-10
Sermon: Godliness with Contentment
Suggested Preparation
Monday (11/29) read and discuss Psalm 5:1-12
Psalm 5 (ESV)
To the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of David. 1 Give ear to my words, O Lord; consider my groaning. 2 Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray. 3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch. 4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. 5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. 6 You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. 7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you. 8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me. 9 For there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue. 10 Make them bear their guilt, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out, for they have rebelled against you. 11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. 12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.
Mark Futato writes:
The bulk of the psalm is taken up with reasons as to why the Lord should answer the prayer. The first reason is short and simple: “for I pray to no one but you” (5:2). Prayer to the Lord denotes dependence on the Lord’s answers. While praying, the psalmist waits expectantly (5:3). For what? The fourth reason, also short and simple, provides some detail: The king is waiting for the Lord to “bless the godly … surround[ing] them with [his] shield of love” (5:12). The appeal is to the truth that the divine king characteristically grants protection to those under his sovereign rule (1:6; 2:12; 3:3; 4:8)—i.e., the human king and his followers.
MEMORY WORK
Q. 87. What is repentance unto life?
A. Repentance unto life is a saving grace, whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavor after, new obedience.
Tuesday (11/30) read and discuss Nehemiah 2:1-20
Nehemiah 2 (ESV)
1 In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. 2 And the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of the heart.” Then I was very much afraid. 3 I said to the king, “Let the king live forever! Why should not my face be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ graves, lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What are you requesting?” So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ graves, that I may rebuild it.” 6 And the king said to me (the queen sitting beside him), “How long will you be gone, and when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me when I had given him a time. 7 And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors of the province Beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress of the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall occupy.” And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me. 9 Then I came to the governors of the province Beyond the River and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen. 10 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant heard this, it displeased them greatly that someone had come to seek the welfare of the people of Israel. 11 So I went to Jerusalem and was there three days. 12 Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. And I told no one what my God had put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was no animal with me but the one on which I rode. 13 I went out by night by the Valley Gate to the Dragon Spring and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that were broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire. 14 Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal that was under me to pass. 15 Then I went up in the night by the valley and inspected the wall, and I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned. 16 And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, and I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest who were to do the work. 17 Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.” 18 And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. 19 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” 20 Then I replied to them, “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem.”
MEMORY WORK
Q. 88. What are the outward and ordinary means whereby Christ communicateth to us the benefits of redemption?
A. The outward and ordinary means whereby Christ communicateth to us the benefits of redemption, are his ordinances, especially the word, sacraments, and prayer; all which are made effectual to the elect for salvation.
Wednesday (12/1) read and discuss Luke 4:31-37
Luke 4:31–37 (ESV)
31 And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the Sabbath, 32 and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word possessed authority. 33 And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, 34 “Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” 35 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in their midst, he came out of him, having done him no harm. 36 And they were all amazed and said to one another, “What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!” 37 And reports about him went out into every place in the surrounding region.
R. C. Sproul writes:
Luke records the reaction of the onlookers: ‘And amazement came upon them all, and they began discussing with one another saying, “What is this message? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.” And the report about him was getting into every locality in the surrounding district’ (4:36–37, nasb). Luke uses two words to describe this activity of Jesus: authority and power. We know already that people had earlier expressed amazement at the fact that Jesus did not speak like the Pharisees or the scribes, but he spoke as one having authority. The Greek word for authority is exousia, and it is used frequently in the New Testament to describe the style of Jesus’ teaching and ministry. His teaching was different from other rabbis. It was traditional for the rabbis to take pride in the fact that they added nothing of their own to the orthodox teachings that they taught. It was customary for the scribes, the Pharisees and the rabbis to give their lesson and then cite the earlier rabbinic authorities to substantiate their case or their position. That is still very much the case with scholars today. If you have ever read a scholarly book on any subject you may have found working through the many technical footnotes in small print a bit laborious. There are a number of reasons why footnotes are used in scholarly literature. Firstly, they are used to give credit to another author for the use of information from his or her work. Secondly, they are used to give fuller explanation of a point or a concept. Thirdly, perhaps their most important use is to give evidence to the fact that the author has done his homework and has read the best literature on the subject.
Jesus, however, didn’t do it that way. For the most part, Jesus gave his teaching from within himself and on the basis of his own authority; and, so the Bible tells us, the kind of authority that he had was not like the scribes and the Pharisees, but he spoke as one having exousia.
MEMORY WORK
89. How is the word made effectual to salvation?
A. The Spirit of God maketh the reading, but especially the preaching, of the word, an effectual means of convincing and converting sinners, and of building them up in holiness and comfort, through faith, unto salvation.
Thursday (12/2) read and discuss Proverbs 30:7-9
Proverbs 30:7–9 (ESV)
7 Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die: 8 Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, 9 lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.
George Schwab writes:
The poem of Agur provides a blueprint for a wise life. The first step is to renounce any pretense to independent or intrinsic wisdom. The next step is to remember and name the God of creation—the Father who calls you to listen to his words. A balanced and moderate life is best suited for wisdom, wisdom that comes from his word, not from observations of nature and society.
MEMORY WORK
Q. 90. How is the word to be read and heard, that it may become effectual to salvation?
A. That the word may become effectual to salvation, we must attend thereunto with diligence, preparation and prayer; receive it with faith and love, lay it up in our hearts, and practice it in our lives.
Friday (12/3) read and discuss 1 Timothy 6:3-10
1 Timothy 6:3–10 (ESV)
3 If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, 4 he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain. 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
John Calvin commenting on verse 7 writes:
He adds this for the purpose of setting a limit to the sufficiency. Our covetousness is an insatiable gulf, if it be not restrained; and the best bridle is, when we desire nothing more than the necessity of this life demands; for the reason why we transgress the bounds, is, that our anxiety extends to a thousand lives which we falsely imagine. Nothing is more common, and indeed nothing is more generally acknowledged, than this statement of Paul; but as soon as all have acknowledged it, (as we see every day with our eyes,) every man swallows up with his wishes his vast possessions, in the same manner as if he had a belly able to contain half of the world. And this is what is said, that, “although the folly of the fathers appears in hoping that they will dwell here for ever, nevertheless their posterity approve of their way.” (Ps. 49:13.) In order, therefore, that we may be satisfied with a sufficiency, let us learn to have our heart so regulated, as to desire nothing but what is necessary for supporting life.
MEMORY WORK
Q. 91. How do the sacraments become effectual means of salvation?
A. The sacraments become effectual means of salvation, not from any virtue in them, or in him that doth administer them; but only by the blessing of Christ, and the working of his Spirit in them that by faith receive them.
Saturday (12/4) read and discuss Psalm 5:1-12
Psalm 5 (ESV)
To the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of David. 1 Give ear to my words, O Lord; consider my groaning. 2 Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray. 3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch. 4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. 5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. 6 You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. 7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you. 8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me. 9 For there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue. 10 Make them bear their guilt, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out, for they have rebelled against you. 11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. 12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.
Tremper Longman writes:
Whereas Psalm 4 is a prayer set in the evening, Psalm 5 identifies itself as a morning prayer (see v. 3). Like Psalm 4, this psalm too is a lament asking for help in the midst of distress brought on by evil people. Both psalms also acknowledge that God takes care of his faithful/righteous people.
Psalm 5 opens with an invocation and plea for help (vv. 1–2), and describes God’s displeasure with the wicked and his love for the righteous (vv. 3–7). The psalmist then calls on God to declare the wicked guilty and to banish them, asking for God’s protection and guidance for the righteous (vv. 8–11). He ends with the confident declaration that God does indeed take care of the righteous in particular by protecting them (v. 12).
MEMORY WORK
Q. 92. What is a sacrament?
A. A sacrament is an holy ordinance instituted by Christ; wherein, by sensible signs, Christ, and the benefits of the new covenant, are represented, sealed, and applied to believers.