Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
83 Clarence Street, Ballymena BT43 5DR
Rev. Angus Stewart
Lord’s Day, 21 September, 2025
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36)
Morning Service – 11:00 AM
Judges Deborah and Barak (11)
The Curse Upon Meroz [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Judges 5:1-23
Text: Judges 5:23
I. What?
II. By Whom?
III. Why?
Psalms: 5:1-8; 141:6-10; 79:6-12; 109:8-14
Evening Service – 6:00 PM
Preparatory
The Necessity of Prayer [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Colossians 4
Text: Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 45
I. Before Praying
II. While Praying
III. After Praying
Psalms: 96:8-13; 142:1-7; 6:1-10; 55:16-22
For CDs of the sermons and DVDs of the worship services, contact Stephen Murray
If you desire a pastoral visit, please contact Rev. Stewart or the elders
CPRC Website: www.cprc.co.uk • Live Webcast: www.cprc.co.uk/live-streaming
CPRC YouTube: www.youtube.com/cprcni
CPRC Facebook: www.facebook.com/CovenantPRC
Quote to Consider
Prof. David J. Engelsma: “Such is the closeness of the union of God with his people that he is present with them. When the enemies of the covenant fight his people, they are fighting him. Indeed, the ultimate object of their attack is not Israel, but Jehovah God. When godly men and women arise for the defense of the people of God against their foes, it is God himself who is defending his people and himself by means of these heroes and heroines. To help these human defenders of the covenant is to help Jehovah himself. To decline to help them is to be guilty of refusing to help Jehovah God” (Unfolding Covenant History, vol. 5, p. 58).
Announcements (subject to God’s will)
On the back table is a new CPRC address list. Please check for errors and omissions, making corrections or ticking to indicate that your entry is OK.
This evening will be a preparatory service with the view to the administration of the Lord’s Supper next Lord’s day morning.
Brian Crossett has been nominated for another 3-year term as elder. A vote by male confessing members to approve/disapprove of this will be held after this evening service.
Monday night catechism classes:
5:00 PM: Felicity & Sophie (Juniors NT)
5:45 PM: Grace, Jonas, Liam & Sammy (Beginners NT)
6:30 PM: Eleanora, Hannah, Jorja, Penelope & Xander (Seniors NT)
7:15 PM: Jason, Maisie & Sebastian (Heidelberg Catechism – Book 2)
8:00 PM: Abbie, Jack, Josh, Samuel & Taylor (Essentials)
Tuesday Bible study will meet this week at 11 AM to consider further Paul’s sermon in Pisidian Antioch in Acts 13:14ff.
Family visitation scheduled for this Tuesday evening:
6:30 PM – Colm (D. Crossett/Rev. Stewart)
7:45 PM – Sinead (D. Crossett/Rev. Stewart)
The Belgic Confession class will begin again this Wednesday at 7:30 PM. We will consider the revelation, appearance and coming of Jesus Christ at the end of the age.
The Reformed Witness Hour broadcast next Lord’s day (Gospel 846 MW at 8:30 AM) by Rev. Haak is entitled “Much More Than Enough” (Exodus 36:4-7).
Offerings: £1,409.02. Donation: £200 (New Jersey).
Translation Additions: 4 Hungarian and 2 Polish.
PRC News: Southwest PRC called Rev. Eriks. Hudsonville PRC formed a new trio of Revs. DeBoer, D. Holstege and Maatman. Grandville PRC will call from a trio of Revs. Brummel, Barnhill and Spronk. Hope PRC (Redlands, CA) formed a new trio consisting of Revs. J. Engelsma, D. Holstege and DeBoer.
Right and Wrong Motivations for Seeking the Office of Elder or Deacon (1)
The first article in a series written in 2020 by Rev. Angus Stewart for the Salt Shakers
I Timothy 3:1 declares, “This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop [i.e., elder], he desireth a good work.” By extension, this applies to the office of deacon. But are all desires for church office good? Does the text mean that it is good to want to be an elder or deacon in God’s church for the wrong reasons? No!
There are God-honouring and holy motives for preparing for and seeking church office, and for allowing one’s name to go forward for election and accepting the call of the congregation (and of the Lord) to an ecclesiastical position. But there are also sinful reasons why some desire to be an elder or a deacon.
Wrong Motivations for Seeking to Be an Elder or Deacon
First, some seek church office in order to gain the esteem of others. Consider a man in the church who realizes that his wife has lost respect for him, because of his own foolishness and sinful behaviour, especially in his treatment of her. However, instead of repenting before God and receiving forgiveness through the blood of Christ, and confessing his sin to his wife and living with her as a godly husband, he reckons that, if he were to become a deacon or an elder, he would regain her good opinion of him.
This manipulative policy, in all probability, will not achieve its earthly and carnal ends, even if the congregation votes the man into office. The Christian wife still sees his disobedient and unloving lifestyle, and so is more likely to lose respect for the church that elected her husband than to regard him more highly.
Others desire to be an elder or deacon to rise (as they think) in the estimation of their children or the members of their congregation or the wider Christian community or their work mates. This too is the “wisdom” from below that is “earthly, sensual, devilish” (James 3:15).
Second, some want to be installed in church office because they “lost” in the congregational vote last time or a previous time or several times. In other words, they view the ballot of the male confessing members as a popularity contest or a referendum on their piety, gifts and abilities, and are sore at what they view as past defeat or defeats.
A third sinful reason for desiring to become an elder or deacon could be summarized like this: “It will give me power to make decisions in the church!” This is not the spirit of a servant of Christ and His people, but of one who wants to be a lord “over God’s heritage” (I Pet. 5:3).
Fourth, this is a motivation for some in seeking church office: “Then I’ll know what is going on in the congregation!” This is plain nosiness and the members of the church will soon detect it in an office-bearer, causing resentment in the congregation and limiting the effectiveness of the elder or deacon.
“I need to get into office,” says a fifth person, “because I have been in the church longer than X and it looks like X could become a deacon or an elder soon.” This is simply a worldly desire to “keep up appearances,” involving sinful competition and jealousy.
Sixth, some seek to become an office-bearer because they have an agenda. “If I get in, I will really shake the church up and get things moving”—invariably in the wrong direction!
Pride
What one word best encapsulates the root sin in the wrong motives for church office? Pride!
This is involved in all of the six instances above: wounded pride (1, 2) or the fear of wounded pride (5), and the pride of power (3), knowledge (4) and rule (6).
This is also borne out very clearly in biblical instances of people wanting church office and/or its power for the wrong reasons. What does the Bible say about the attitude and motivation of King Uzziah who went into the Lord’s temple to burn incense upon the golden altar, as if he were a priest? Pride: “his heart was lifted up to his destruction” (II Chron. 26:16).
Think of Simon Magus in Acts 8. He desired “power,” apostolic power, to give the Holy Spirit by the laying on of his hands (v. 19). His problem was his evil “heart” (vv. 21, 22) for he had not really been converted but was still gripped by the same insatiable pride (vv. 9-10) that had characterised him before Philip preached the gospel in Samaria.
Korah, Dathan and Abiram in Numbers 16 committed the same sin. They were not content with being a Levite (Korah) or rulers in the tribe of Reuben (Dathan and Abiram). They “envied” Moses and Aaron (Ps. 106:16). They wanted even higher offices in God’s (Old Testament) church: the priesthood or national leadership. Since Dathan and Abiram sought to be lifted up to heaven (as it were), the Most High opened the ground which swallowed them up. For unlawfully desiring to draw too close to Jehovah in His holy tabernacle to offer incense to him, God showed Korah His awesome holiness and burned him up.
For further proof that pride is the primary wrong motivation for church office, we need only look at I Timothy 3, the number one chapter and chair passage on the qualifications for (teaching and ruling) elders and deacons: “Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil” (v. 6).
There are two main options for the meaning of “the condemnation of the devil” in this verse. First, Satan will condemn a proud office-bearer. Second, pride is the very sin for which God condemned the devil who thereby lost his high place among Jehovah’s holy servants. Both of these positions are correct but the latter is the meaning of I Timothy 3:6. (to be continued …)
