Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
83 Clarence Street, Ballymena BT43 5DR
Rev. Angus Stewart
Lord’s Day, 8 April, 2012
“Those that be planted in the house of the Lord
shall flourish in the courts of our God” (Ps. 92:13)
Morning Service – 11:00 AM Rev. M. McGeown
The Sweet Fragrance of the Gospel [youtube]
Scripture Reading: II Corinthians 2:1-17
Text: II Corinthians 2:15-16
I. The Meaning
II. The Effect
III. The Calling
Psalms: 146:1-6; 128:1-6; 29:3-9; 45:3-8
Evening Service – 6:00 PM Rev. M. McGeown
The Happiness of Belonging to Jehovah’s Flock [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Psalm 23:1-6
Text: Psalm 23:1
I. The Dependent Sheep
II. The Dependable Shepherd
III. The Rich Provision
Psalms: 77:14-20; 129:1-8; 34:1-10; 23:1-6
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: https://cprc.co.uk/live-streaming/
CPRC YouTube: www.youtube.com/cprcni
CPRC Facebook: www.facebook.com/CovenantPRC
Quote to Consider:
John Calvin: “If, then, amidst so universal a corruption and depravity of our nature, some few do believe the gospel, to ascribe the faith of such to their own goodness would be perfectly impious. No! Let thanks, on the contrary, be given to God continually, according to the admonition of the apostle, ‘because God hath from the beginning chosen such believers unto salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth’ (II Thess. 2:13), in which words the apostle traces faith and sanctification to the eternal election of God as its source and cause” (Calvin’s Calvinism, p. 86).
Charles Spurgeon: It has been said that what the nightingale is among birds, that is this divine ode [i.e., the 23rd Psalm] among the Psalms, for it has sung sweetly in the ear of many a mourner in his night of weeping, and has bidden him hope for a morning of joy. I will venture to compare it also to the lark, which sings as it mounts, until it is out of sight, and even then is not out of hearing” (A Treasury of David, vol. I, p. 353).
Announcements (subject to God’s will)
We welcome Rev. McGeown. He will be preaching for us at both services today while Rev. Stewart preaches in the LRF.
Prof. Engelsma’s new book, Federal Vision: Heresy at the Root, has arrived. These are available for £5 for book club members and £8 for others.
Our Tuesday morning Bible study meets at 11 AM on “Eschatology and Time.” We will discuss the “The Last Days.”
Belgic Confession Class meets Wednesday at 7:45 PM to study Article 14 on the fall of man.
Rev. & Mary Stewart travel toS. Wales this Thursday where Rev. Stewart will give a lecture on “God’s Sovereignty & Man’s Responsibility. Please remember this witness and these saints in your prayers.
The Reformed Witness Hour broadcast next Lord’s Day (Gospel 846MW at 8:30 AM) will be “Not Faithless but Believing” (John 20:24-29) by Rev. R. Kleyn.
The Council will hold its monthly meeting at 7 PM on Monday, 16 April.
Ballymena Lecture: Friday, 20 April, at 7:30 on “God’s Sovereignty & Man’s Responsibility.” Plan to attend and invite your friends!
Men’s Bible Study will be (DV) held on Saturday, 21 April, at the Kennedys. We will begin our discussion on the first chapter of Disciplines of a Godly Man. Question sheets will be on the back table.
CPRC Website: One Spanish, three Hungarian, and three Afrikaans translations were added.
Offerings: General Fund: £564.40. Building Fund: £311.50. Donations: £200 (DVDs), £40 (DVDs), £20 (CR News).
Reprobation in the Preaching
Herman Hoeksema
(an excerpt from “The Place of Reprobation in the Preaching of the Gospel“)
On this basis we can determine the place of reprobation in the preaching of the Gospel, and, for that matter, its place in every presentation of the truth. Surely reprobation must be preached. This follows from the very fact that God has revealed it, and the complete counsel of God must certainly be preached. We can understand this necessity. Without the preaching of reprobation, not only can election, its counterpart, not be preached, but neither can justice be done to God’s electing love. God’s great love must always be our chief concern. That love is manifested in this that He has given His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. However, this becomes still more glorious if we understand that to realize this love, God has given people in the stead of His people, and given the wicked as a ransom for the righteous.
Secondly, it surely must become evident in the preaching that God is sovereign, also when a part which He first formed falls away. When we see a farmer pull out the little plants which he had previously planted, it seems sad and foolish to us, until we understand that this has its purpose. So too it is with the work of God. Unless we consider the matter from God’s viewpoint, and unless we are enlightened by His wise counsel, the world’s history seems a great pity, a great misery. For, although God is the ultimate Victor and will finally glorify His people, the fact remains that many creatures which He had first formed are eternally lost through the wiles of the devil and the powers of death and sin. Not so, if we present reprobation in the proper light. Then God remains sovereign. There is then no accident. Whatever God does is well done, for He does all things in wisdom.
We must not surrender an inch of ground to the idea that God wills to save all, some of which are nevertheless lost. God’s counsel shall stand, and He shall remain sovereign—sovereign in regard to eternal life, and at the same time sovereign in regard to eternal perdition. Therefore reprobation must be preached; for God must remain sovereign even over the kingdom of darkness. Reprobation must be preached to the congregation from the viewpoint of election. The believers must understand that salvation is not of him that runneth, nor of him that willeth, but of God that sheweth mercy. According to God’s good pleasure they have received a place in the consummation of all things. This means so much more to us when we understand that God could also sovereignly have reprobated us. There can be no question that reprobation should be preached, if one wishes to divide the Word of truth properly.
Thus, it has become evident how reprobation should be preached, and what place it should be given in the preaching of the gospel. In the first place, it has become evident that we must not have sermonettes devoted to reprobation. This is also true of election. This is true of every aspect of the truth. He who occasionally preaches only on election, without relating it whatsoever to reprobation, is not preaching election. This is still more true of reprobation, which is the antithetical counterpart of election. It belongs with election. It can be understood only in the light of election. It must accordingly be presented in its relation to election.
It is also evident that, when preaching on election and reprobation, we must not place them dualistically over against each other. They are not on the same level. They are not corresponding halves of the same thing, but together they form a unity. Reprobation should always be presented as subordinate to election, as serving the latter according to God’s counsel. From this it follows that reprobation should not be preached with a certain delight in the doctrine. He who is forever preaching reprobation shows not only that he is harsh and cruel, but also that he has not understood the work of the Lord God. God’s love remains the central thought. He has chosen in His eternal love; and, for the sake of this love, He has also reprobated. Thus all God’s work becomes a beautiful organic unity. In this way He is and remains God, and He alone. Thus, at the conclusion of all this, we exclaim in adoration with the apostle, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God; for of him and through him and to him are all things! To him be glory forever!”
God will presently make all things new. Then He will fully reveal His everlasting and glorious Kingdom to all His children. Then the kingdom of Christ, including His chosen church, will be inseparably united with God. And it will appear that this divine and beautiful work is so marvelous and so glorious that not only was it doubly worth all the suffering of this present time, but also it is costly enough to give people as a ransom for it. The glory of the Lord shall, through Jesus Christ, shine forth with heavenly radiance over all the works of His hands, forever!
