Christ Centered Worship

the following message is made available by truth for life for more information visit us online at truthfortheworld.org let me tell you what I'm going to try and do over the three sessions I have the themes are somewhat disparate in a sense but I think you'll see that they they belong together in terms of our service in the gospel ministry I want to consider with you first of all how to help our people in relationship to worship and I mean they're the regular week by week worship that we share together with the people of God then this evening how are we to help our people by which I mean and both of these help ourselves to appreciate coming to the lord's table which we may not do weekly but we certainly do regularly and then thirdly tomorrow morning how we can help ourselves and our people to deal with temptation which we do constantly so there is a there is a kind of orderliness about this what we do weekly what we do often however often often is and what we are summoned in the gospel to do daily and I want to by God's grace to minister to ourselves to sit with you under the Word of God in the expectation that this may feed us so that we may feed the flock of God that God has placed us over so on this occasion I want you to turn with me in your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 2 Hebrews chapter 2 ticka I don't need to tell you the page number in this occasion or where you'll find it on your cell phone but we're going to read there from verse 10 to the end of verse 18 Hebrews chapter 2 verse 10 to verse 18 and then a couple of verses at the beginning of Hebrews chapter 8 the author here is engaged in a kind of meditation on Christ first of all as the fulfillment of the eighth son and seeing the eighth son as itself our meditation with eschatological perspective on Genesis 1:26 228 so in a sense this is part of the 8x of a whole strand of redemptive history and he is spoken about the fact that we do not yet see the command of Genesis 1:26 following fulfilled dominion under Adams feet we do not yet see what is in view in the exam but we do already see Jesus who has been given all Dominion in heaven and on earth so Matthew 28:18 2:20 not so explicit in our translations but in terms of biblical theology is a direct reference back to the arena in which Adam failed what Adam failed to accomplish Jesus Christ has accomplished and will consummate and so he said we don't see everything under man's feet but we do see Jesus already crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone for it was fitting that he for whom and by whom all things exist in bringing many sons to glory should make the founder the pioneer they are chaos of their salvation perfect through suffering for he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one origin that is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers saying I will tell of your name to my brothers in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise and again I will put my trust in him and again these words of the Old Testament placed into the mouth of Jesus and again behold I and the children God has given me since not for the children share in flesh and blood he himself likewise / took of the same things that through death he might destroy the one who is the power of death that is the devil and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to like long slavery for surely it is not angels that he helps but he helps the offspring of Abraham Dhafir he had to be made like his brothers in every respect and now we're getting near to his main point in this whole section so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God to make propitiation for the sins of the people but because he himself has suffered when tempted he is able to help those who are being tempted and then if you fast-forward to chapter 8 and verses 1 and 2 over the page you can tell the author of Hebrews was a good preacher chapter 8 verse 1 know the point in what we are seeing is this great example easy to lose your place in things Melchisedec e'en but the point in what we are saying is this we have such a high priest one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven a minister in the holy places in the true tent that the Lord set up not man we still go to pastors conferences I think where eventually the question is asked what is the worship style in your church or as I have sometimes experienced without asking that question I don't think I've ever asked anybody that question I wish I had asked that question because before I have the opportunity I'm told that in our church we had church consultants in to review everything we do and they gave us some good pointers but what they said to us was the quality of your morning worship is quite outstanding at which point I experienced a crisis of conscience should I say it or should I not see it church consultant saying the quality of your morning worship is outstanding I do want the heavens to open eyes at the River Jordan and our heavenly voice to see let me be the judge of that the quality of your band may be outstanding your preacher may be eloquent the songs may be good but there is no human being who is able to discern the quality of your worship and so rather mischievously because I'd known I wouldn't be staying long under such circumstances I've said to such eager and quietly I'm thinking to myself rather arrogant statements well I have developed a litmus test for the quality of morning worship and since theirs is excellent they're always interested to know what it is and I can my voice and I say my litmus test is the quality of evening worship I'm usually told there's nothing about evening worship in the New Testament and if I get into an argument I say actually that nothing about morning worship in the New Testament and it looks as though after the resurrection Jesus came to evening services because I realize I have just caused an amazing offends a deep offends and if I have the opportunity I will simply say look if you love the girl and met her at 11 o'clock one day during the week would you say to her at 12 noon this has been just the greatest hour of the week can we do this again this time next week it's not a matter of a of some peculiar form of ecclesiology one holds it's a matter of the passion of the heart and if we are to help people from Scripture to share that passion that we have as ministers of the gospel that will draw them in to appreciate the privileges that are given to us as we gather together for worship it's very important for us to know what actually happens when we worship I went to a Bible class as a young Christian as a teenagers and every Sunday we would sing together Jesus stand among us in your risen power let this time of worship be a hallowed hour and as a youngster you you obviously ask the question well if he's standing among us what is he doing standing among us and what this passage teaches us when we when we flow through from Hebrews two's exposition of the high priesthood of Jesus Christ to the statement at the beginning of chapter eight now this is the point I want you to understand it's very interesting to notice that the author moves from one kind of priestly Ministry of the Lord Jesus to another kind of priestly Ministry of the Lord Jesus from the high priestly ministry of atoning sacrifice to the liturgical priestly ministry of the exalted Christ and so in Hebrews eight verse two he describes the Lord Jesus as a minister a light tour goes a little just the liturgist in the holy places in the true tent that the Lord set up because he wants to emphasize and of course this is so relevant to the Hebrews they used to have temple worship they used to have the drama of the temple worship the numbers of the temple worship the music of the temple worship and all that God know is somebody's front room and he's trying to tell them what with God now is better why is it better because he's teaching them that the Lord Jesus who became incarnate who shared our weaknesses who died our death is risen and ascended and glorified is present among his people in their worship or more accurately they gather around him as he becomes the worship leader of the Church of God and with him led by him they enter into the presence of the holy place the true tent and they share together in the heavenly worship so that later on when says at the end of Hebrews 12 as Salm all are read last night that we have not come to the Old Covenant community gathering at Mount Sinai the great congregational gathering in which every following congregational gathering saw itself as participating in that we have come to the heavenly Jerusalem we have come to Myriad's of angels in the festal assembly we have come to the spirits of the righteous made perfect in heaven unto Jesus the mediator of the new and as he's been emphasizing the better covenant that's where we go to church we go to heaven for church you know the older people used to sing and sometimes say on the way out heaven came down and glory filled my soul and say pastor that was glorious today and it was glorious but not just because heaven came down because in the mystery of the Holy Spirit's ability to close what is the the temporal and geographical gap between where we are and where Jesus is we find ourselves being caught up into this heavenly worship and there are those occasional punctuation points in the Bible where you see this is what happens to individuals Isaiah wanders into the temple just another day at the temple for the great prophet and when he goes down to see his old friend Benjamin shaking after the experience what does he say to him I think he says I think I've been at church for the very first time in my life I saw the reality of which the Psalms have spoken to me of which the Word of God has promised to me experience it even under the old covenant he'd experienced it and then the like experience in the opening chapters of the book of Revelation when in there surely significantly they're on Patmos the Lord's Day in the spirit and he sees heaven opened and he becomes part of the worship and the glory of that's so real to him he's able to ask people questions what's the meaning of this don't you understand who are these people and if you had greeted John as he maybe got off the boat eventually from Patmos and said tomb that's a pretty bleak thing there that day rocky outlet there's nothing much to see there or no you would say I think I really went to church for the very first time in my life and I can never see going to church in the same light again now this is this is what the Scriptures teachers we may have unusual experiences of this and my observation for what it's worth is if you ask people tell me about the four most significant experiences you have had when you've been caught up in worship then all of the things of Earth grow strangely then the size the geographical location even what we often call the worship style is utterly incidental to the one reality that is always common but we understood that we have two or three were gathered together in his name Jesus stood among us and we met with him and he met with us because he is the real worship be done I do not mean to tread unnecessarily on tours but when someone bounces up to me and says I'm the worship leader here I don't know that personality of Alistair Alistair would just see it as it is I want to say sunny boy you may be the drummer here for all I know but Jesus is the worship leader and until you grasp that Jesus is the worship leader there is a lacuna there's a space in how you think about what is actually happening in worship because the Scriptures promise that it is going to happen he is going to stand among us and he's going to lead us in worship to his heavenly Father isn't it John Owen who says as in his salmon Ephesians 2:18 we have access to the Father through the blood of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit all true worship takes place in heaven and so there is this sense that we are engaged perhaps on the outskirts but nevertheless in reality in a heavenly activity that brings heaven down into our souls and enables us in measure to live heaven out in a fallen world nothing more transforms our lives than this this is more than simply transforming a book a behavior pattern this is transforming our entire disposition so that we come as it were down in the Mount of Transfiguration having seen the Lord Jesus and knowing that he has brought us to the Father that we've been empowered by the Holy Spirit and we can never be the same again because people take note that we've been with him so back to Hebrews chapter 2 just to draw out a few strands from this tapestry it's a very tightly woven tapestry with Jesus at the center as the high priest but he's teaching us some things but eventually as we want the strands of colors in the tapestry leaders to say all of this is because Jesus is the litter just all of this is because Jesus is a little bit undressed so what is he doing first at four points no points first Jesus is gathering us as God's family Jesus is gathering us as God's family here am i he says he he puts the words of a Isaiah onto the lips of Jesus there's a whole study in its own how how do those words about Isaiah and the remnant how do they how did he end up on the lips of Jesus Jesus saying father Here I am and the the children you've given me and what this teaches us immediately is the combined sense of the exalted holiness of the Father Holy Father says the Lord Jesus as he is the liturgist of our worship here am i and the children you have given me and that's such an important statement for this reason it indicates to us that Jesus essential understanding of the nature of the church that he is called is Jesus churches become family and if you explore the the New Testament and ask yourself the question what is the quintessential perspective of the New Testament upon my church what is it called to be the New Testaments answer is not the body of Christ it is not the body of Christ that's not the principle perspective how do I know that there's only one writer in the New Testament uses that perspective on charge the principle New Testament perspective on the church is what it's called to be as family and I don't need to be sidetracked to say we're not Church no matter how big or how small begins to understand that it's family that has a tremendous impact on anyone who comes among this people and so worship is family time and has this in terms of biblical teaching this marvelous combination that we are coming to a great king he is majestic and glorious and we are filled with awe in his presence but all the more so because he is our Heavenly Father and through Jesus Christ we've become his children and we share the family likeness and every time we gather is like a little family reunion and the cry of our hearts as always Alba our dear father and it transforms the way we look at one another and it changes everything we need to understand brethren but it's not programs that change everything and I don't say that because of any malicious perspective and programs with an organization as well as an organism but it's this dispositional understanding of what has happened to us we've been born again and adopted into the family of God we're going to be with the family and with the family the elder brother in the power of His Holy Spirit is going to come among us and he's going to say as was said to the Apostle John come up here to angels and archangels gathered together in glory and that point is important for this reason sometimes I think overlooked that Jesus Christ not only reconciled you to God nor did he only reconcile you to your fellow believers he reconciled you to that other branch of the family of God from which as a sinner you were estranged he has reconciled you as Colossians 1:15 to 20 explains he has reconciled you to the branch of the family that gathers perpetually in heaven and to those strange and glorious creatures who every time they adore the Father for his holiness are so overawed that they have to reproduce the word to try to communicate the sheer glory of what they have seen in him so that there is such a reality in this family a solemn joy solemn joy and the one without the other can never satisfy us because he is the holy father and he is also the father of our Lord Jesus Christ so that when we go to church we go to church with angels and archangels and cherubim Sarafine and dear brothers if you don't believe that you don't believe the Scriptures if you think to yourself that can't possibly be happening you're living in a morass of interpreting reality subjectively rather than biblically so this is a stunning reality that we are learning about here but our Lord Jesus gathers us into the presence of the Lord as his own dear family remember a moment in the church I served in Glasgow a service where there was literally only one seat left downstairs and a lady came in who was a wonderful Christian lady she had sadly married in her teens a man who turned out to be an alcoholic who mistreated her she had been faithful and had been gracious and had loved the Lord and of course needed encouragement an ordinary lydian and I looked to see who was sitting in the next seat that was the only man in the church who had been made a knight of the realm by the Queen and she sat down beside him and I thought this is going to be interesting she turned round she hugged him she gave him a great big kiss planted on his cheek couldn't help thinking what his wife on the other side might be thinking about this but I thought to myself that's why I love the church family but there's more than that Jesus gathers us as his family secondly Jesus actually leads us in our worship notice the words that the author here picks out from the 22nd Sam the twenty second son the cry of dereliction son which you need to read to the end don't you when you get to the end it's not dereliction but exaltation and it's these words in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise now we need to understand we need to understand our Christology at this point Jesus did not abandon his humanity like one of those space rockers once they've got a zit we're out of the Earth's atmosphere or whatever happens and the thing falls back that got them there he did not divest himself of his humanity because he had finished his work on the cross he was raised in that humanity for the very reason that he has kept that humanity perpetually and means to keep it for all eternity as great old John Duncan rabbi Duncan used to say to his students man the dust of the universe sits today on the throne of glory and so this is part of his ongoing ministry there was a priesthood of Christ that was brought to a consummation when the great day of atonement came and the sacrifice of Calvary was made but there is a priesthood of Christ as well as a prophethood of Christ as a kingly Ministry of Christ that goes on forever and part of this amazing Ministry of our Lord Jesus as the liturgical priest is to lead the singing lead the singing who do you look when you're singing incidentally what really captures and captivates your imagination when you're singing is it that you're singing under the leadership of the Lord Jesus that he is there in glory and he is he is leading the praises as well as receiving the praises he is leading the praises I think actually there's a great deal to learn from the praise of the Lord Jesus that has been abandoned in our own time we know the hymn book Jesus used I may be treading on thin ice here but when Paul says be filled with the spirit as you sing sounds he was not writing in the Old Testament Scriptures and he says that because he knew that Jesus would sing sounds why is that important and why is the abandonment of singing Psalms such a tragedy for the Christian church in our own day I ask new incoming theological students the first time I get a reference to Essam how many of you sing psalms in your church you know most of them they've all got university degrees most of them do not know it's not as no matter whether they sing sounds or not they don't know what are they sing songs because of course praise was invented within our lifetime in the last 25 years now why is this so important well how many days of we god he is one reason it's important you cannot know the inner life of the Lord Jesus without being profoundly familiar with the sounds I mean you can't read the New Testament can you really without realizing that's the case that he was a Sam boy that had flowed from him what was he doing on the cross he wasn't he was at the very least meditating on the sands had he actually reached Sam 22 I don't know but the whole of the whole of Jesus emotional life we very little access to Jesus emotional life you know that I mean you know what the odds I see on the emotional life of Jesus hardly anything ever been written on the emotional life of Jesus but access to the emotional life of Jesus is in the sands and the access we have the offer to the emotional life in praise of those who are united to Jesus is surely also going to be in the sands now I am NOT speaking here as an exclusive samadhis I'm speaking here as as what seems to me to be written into the scriptures that we've lost sight of in the contemporary church I had a message just recently from a retired minister who number of months ago lost his wife and he he went to a rather well-known church and he wrote to me afterwards and he said why does our worship have to be so unremittingly cheerful so unremittingly cheerful do you know what he did the night before he had been a bar cantata now I don't hold any brief for back or day over not anyone else but he sent me the text of the cantata 199 for those of you who are interested in those things the heart-rending cry of a sinner who had discovered that his sin had become a mountain and he needed to sink his sin into the wounded side of Jesus Christ and this this man comes into a in many ways very fine contemporary church and the subliminal messages brothers not so very far removed at times from the prosperity gospel if you're a Christian you will be unremittingly cheerful and the sounds to just something about that don't they it teaches all kinds of things the teachers it's ok to sing songs that aren't directed to God did you know that that it's okay to do mind they teach us to sing songs to the south so let's not be arrogant and say we all this kind of stuff it's all about the self some of the fans are all about the self but they're all about the self to get you out of the self and into him and then to his glory and to experience the turning point from your awful sinfulness and dereliction to the power and majesty and grace and glory of God you may think I'm glad the question-and-answer session is over for this conference but shame on as if we don't sing sounds because Jesus sang sands for all I know he's still singing sands and he wants to hear our voices he wants he wants us to upwards when our hearts are broken so that we can sing ourselves out of our heart-rending sorrows into the comforts of his heavenly presence and so there's a great deal to learn from the worship style of the Lord Jesus isn't there he marvelously taught us in the salt or the balance of the sanctuary and we are living in a time I think it may be the first time in history when men in the ministry have assumed they know better than nineteen hundred and fifty years of the church's wisdom we are the first generation actually that has really abandoned singing the songs that the Lord Jesus sang and it's so interesting that when Hebrews the New Testament saying we're in a new era brothers and sisters we're in a new era the Old Covenant has gone Jesus has come then he uses sound so much to tell us about Jesus but the things that Jesus loves well if that's offensive to you then sure me and the preaching of the word enough grace to listen to the next point because it will not be offensive to you I hope but it could be you can just never tell Jesus leads us in worship because Jesus has gathered us as his family and Jesus does the preaching of the word so it's not just that you know we're in an age now when who who is the big name the worship leader is going to be and you know thousands may turn up because he's going to be the worship leader the poor preacher nobody turns up and we need badly to recapture this that Jesus is the one true preacher in the church there is not only his priestly ministry but his prophetic ministry continues and fascinating to see Warren into Hebrews chapter 2 the kingly Ministry of Jesus the priestly ministry of Jesus and the prophetic ministry of Jesus back to verse 12 I will tell of your name to my brothers now everything is there absolutely everything is there Matthew 28:18 220 jesus says dear ones for the very first time in history you're gonna be the first people ever to learn how to pronounce the name of God properly Father Son and Holy Spirit so back ties them into that name and teach them and this is what Jesus is saying missus the this is his summary of the proclamation of the gospel and all we are doing is proclaiming the name of God and all the wonders of what that name means that triune name the wonder of being brought to the Father the Marvel of the advocacy of Jesus Christ the power and energy of the Holy Spirit it's it just runs through the rest of the New Testament isn't it everything you find there it's got to do about the work of the name the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit and our preaching is in vain unless he actually does the preaching and this is it's not just a pious platitude this is the New Testaments teaching and oddly enough often for people it's clearer because they give expression to it without realizing what they're saying they say I had the voice of Jesus say come unto me and rest were you there were you in Matthew chapter 11 were you walking the dusty roads no you weren't there so when did you hear the voice of Jesus or are you just imagining things no in the preaching of the gospel it is Jesus himself who speaks and this is my hope isn't it it's my only hope if all they hear is poor me I will declare your name in the midst of the congregation number how he told his disciples my sheep here is my sheep hear my voice I have other sheep if somewhere else they are going to hear my voice this is the mystery and the Wonder and the romance of preaching this explains so much that takes place in preaching Jesus himself preaches himself preaches his father in the power of his spirit right into the hearts of the people who are assembled and we've no idea really what marvelous things he is doing as in the power of the Spirit he preaches it's the same teaching Paul gives isn't it and in Romans chapter 10 in that gray passage but he speaks about how the gospel comes he says how are they to believe in him this is the English standard version although it improves itself I think in the footnote how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard unconvinced should be translated remember ikuo takes the genitive of the objects remember that somewhere distant past how are they going to believe in him whom they have never had that was you wasn't it young Milan listen to a hundred sermons he never had the voice of Jesus speaking to you and so you never came to believe until you heard the voice of Jesus and the preaching of the word and the power of the Holy Spirit or take Ephesians to the work of Christ is done what happens next while says Paul Christ came and preached peace to those who were near well that's good for Matthew and Mark and John and Simon Peter yes he says Christ came and preached peace to those who were near and to you who were afar off when did Jesus go to Ephesus when we went to Ephesus when called preached in Ephesus and this explains so much I don't mean explain so much but it helps us to get a handle and so much doesn't of this mysterious about preaching and gives us this is why we come to the Lord and say Lord Jesus please do the preaching through this poor instrument that you've called into the ministry because I know if you do the preaching your voice will be hard and everything will be okay you know what it is you must know what it is to be in a passage where you you give this blundin and it your your ripping up the consciences of the people in front of you and then you spy old mrs. Smith who lost her husband just three months ago and she's all in our own and you die inside you better die inside you really die inside you say you know how so many things go on in your mind when you're preaching and in God's mercy few of them actually come out like Spurgeon when the women berated him for his humor in the pulpit and he said madam you should congratulate me on my self-control you know we're all like that you know we are our minds are enlarged there's so much going on and we spotted on our heartbreaks and if we go to the door we've hardly bear to go to the door we're all mrs. Smith is gonna come out and she shakes your hand and she says I was just fine he did that was such a comfort to me you know you're not stupid enough to see it wasn't meant to be a comfort to your mrs. Smith why does that happen was mrs. Smith not listening no here's the explanation it was Jesus who was doing the preaching and as long as he is doing the preaching whatever needs mrs. Smith may have are going to be met because he's speaking to her it's more than our words now in God's mercy I learned this when I was I was I was an assistant minister in a church law allister's familiar with though my boss was very generous with the pulpit I preached one Sunday night I'd been there a few weeks phone call comes Monday morning a man who didn't usually attend our church he needs to see me the ministry was so helpful and important to me and I think this is how it always is it's always going to be like this God does his ways of humbling us doesn't it and I met this man I've never forgotten it because it was so unusual and it proved to be so helpful to me always said that son so that was so helpful to me and they said but you know what was really helpful to me it was that point in the sermon when you quoted the lines of lat him and then he quoted to me a verse of him I'd never had in my life before never had my life before and I remember thinking is it you know it was wrong before cell phones it was it was I mean they were good to go to a box to phone in those days and then the phone was ripped off the wall in Glasgow anyway so you know what is this for you you call the man in white coats and I don't know what's going on here and then it dawned on me it really was both illuminating and encouraging but the Holy Spirit as Jesus preaches does all kinds of things in people's lives no counselor can do this only Jesus can do this and this is what's a wonderful thing to know that it's Jesus who does the preaching of his own word and when he's doing the preaching you some of you have had this experiences is kind of embarrassing and encouraging administers to your pride and the same time it can humble you I'm so glad you're preaching tonight or the big thing is we're all so glad Jesus is preaching tonight it's part of what Lloyd Jones calls the romance of preaching that Jesus comes and preaches his one that's why it is so foolish when people say I mean I've had it said to me you know the standard these days is twelve minutes but lawyers tell me like I said when did you last when I made your case on twelve minutes and you know they've had nothing although they've had this your attempt an exposition they've had nothing of the voice of Jesus because when you're caught up with Jesus it see me as Roland altogether isn't it and and when you are caught up with Jesus because nobody sits under our ministry more than we sit under our ministry which is probably explanation why it can be such a wretched experience and why sometimes your preacher Sam and you'll think that was so unclear and if you've got the the moral courage to go back and listen your thing but I was really clear what was happening it was that Jesus was dealing with you because he's doing the preaching what a privilege Lass's and what a great thing you know think what we were talking about earlier on today you don't kind of walk into the boat see it the preacher today is Jesus Christ but when he is the children the dear children and all their differing circumstances are fed and you were able to say to them when they say their responses are that was the Lord Jesus wasn't it let's both look to him let's understand that but this is what it means to come this is why it's so marvelous and this is why it is so you know people want dialog these days there is never such intense dialogue as there is in real preaching in the power of Jesus as long given the experience sure many of you have you've been sailing away in your pitch and suddenly somebody in the congregation starts talking back to you and sometimes when you meet them at the door you know from their demeanor they are the only person in the building who doesn't realize what was because they've been wrestling with Jesus and Jesus has been wrestling with them and they've come to a crisis and they've responded and they don't even know that the whites came out of their mouths I heard the voice of Jesus say come unto me and rest and thus in Jesus finally comes to help us all in our need and this is why at the end of Hebrews chapter two there we have this marvelous picture of our Lord Jesus which will be repeated in different ways he had to be made like his brothers in order to be able to say to the father here am I and the children you've given me and I will tell of your name to my brothers he is able to do that because he's been made like his brothers in every respect so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God to make propitiation for the sins of the people for because he himself has suffered when tempted he is able to help those who are being tempted the goal of worship is not to meet our needs but the wonder of worship is that as he leads us he also graciously meets our needs and heaven comes down and we go up and glory those are so I don't hear them so often nowadays and I'm getting I'm becoming elderly and crotchety and need to mortify crochetil crunchity leaders but most of my life the most magical words in all the world have been these letters worshiped God let us wash in God and if by God's grace we can ease our people into understanding the privilege of entering these anti chambers of heaven week after week after week and being led by Jesus in our praises hearing Jesus speak to us in his wine learning that he is all-sufficient for all of the needs of all of his people because he is able to save us to the uttermost and what it means for us to Minister the Word of God among the people of God well more and more become the treasured privileges of every week of our lives Oh may he help us let us pray out Heavenly Father we thank you for your word and for its truth and power we thank you especially for the ministry the ongoing ministry of our Lord Jesus we look forward to the day when he will present his kingdom finished to you and leaders so profoundly into your presence that we will like those cherubim and Seraphim be able to sing and say your praises without sin and without end cover the sins of our worship the sins of our ministry more and more Lord Jesus minister through us for your glory we pray this in your name this message was brought to you from truth for life where the learning is for living to learn more about truth for life with Alistair beg visit us online at truth for

Channel: Alistair Begg

Views: 7,997

Rating: 4.9117646 out of 5

Keywords: Pastoral Ministry, Worship, Church Worship, Preaching, Sinclair Ferguson, Basics Conference

Id: KKKPraouO8E

Length: 53min 1sec (3181 seconds)

Published: Wed May 24 2017