I worshipped this past Sunday in two different churches –
very different. One was a large Southern
Baptist church that has three morning services and the other was a small PCA
church plant meeting in a hotel conference room. The services were as different as the
locations where they met. One featured a
choir, videos and worship led by a trained ‘worship leader’. The other was led by a lay-Elder, hymns sung
from a hymnal and the service very structured and liturgical. Yet in spite of their differences, in both
services God was glorified and the congregations were well-fed through the
faithful preaching of God’s Word. In
both churches the preacher delivered a solid expositional sermon.
One sermon came from Galatians 5:25 – 6:5, and focused on
the Christian and the Spirit of God and brotherly love. The message emphasized the manifestation of
the Holy Spirit that is seen in the Spirit-filled Christian community; how a
Spirit-filled church is distinguished not by ecstatic utterances in tongues or
exciting worship services, but by humbly engaging with those struggling in sin
and gently seeking to restore them. The
Spirit-filled church is also distinguished by the way God’s people lovingly
come alongside each other and bear one another’s burdens. The preacher said “we are no more like Jesus
than when we are loving one another in this way”. Living and loving this way is messy, the
burdens are heavy, the restoration can take a long time, but in humbly loving
others this way we are fulfilling the law of Christ.
The other sermon came
from Ephesians 1:7-10, and focused on the Sovereign love of God which has been
“lavished upon us” through the redeeming blood of Jesus. The preacher said, “to be chosen, loved and
redeemed by God is everything! The cross
is the ultimate answer to every ultimate fear.”
Amen! It was good to be reminded
of the riches of God’s grace that forgives my sins through the blood of
Christ. It was good to be reminded that
God “does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our
iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his
steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us (Ps 103:10-12). It was good to be with God’s people as we
rejoice and rest in the love of God whose will is perfect and whose plan for
the fullness of time promises that all things will ultimately be united in King
Jesus. “All things” includes All THINGS,
even the messed up things we see unfolding all around us.
Though the churches and services were in many ways different
– in the essential centrality of the Word of God they were very similar. I was challenged to examine my life to see if
I am walking with the Spirit in fellowship (Gal 5:16) and following the Spirit
in obedience (Gal 5:26) in such a way that I am engaging with those around me
who are struggling in sin and burdened by life’s trials. I was
also challenged to examine my heart, my fears and my confidence, to confess the
sin of worry and anxiety and to humbly ask God to help me live in the peace and
confidence of His sovereign grace.
It was a blessing to worship with Mount Vernon Baptist Church and Grace Highlands Presbyterian Church.
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