Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
83 Clarence Street, Ballymena BT43 5DR
Rev. Angus Stewart
Lord’s Day, 18 August, 2019
“Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies,
kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering …” (Col. 3:12)
Morning Service – 11:00 AM – Rev. Martyn McGeown
More Than Conquerors [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Psalm 44:1-26
Text: Romans 8:37
I. The Fact
II. The Meaning
III. The Power
Psalms: 65:1-5; 108:7-13; 44:1-8; 2:7-12
Evening Service – 6:00 PM – Rev. Martyn McGeown
The Operation of God’s Wrath in the World (5)
Idolaters Given Up to Vile Affections [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Leviticus 18:1-30
Text: Romans 1:26-27
I. The Shameful Sin
II. The Divine Judgment
III. The Only Remedy
Psalms: 12:1-8; 109:1-7; 81:9-16; 106:40-45
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
Robert Haldane: “The sufferings of believers above enumerated, which, as the Apostle had just shown, verify the truth of the ancient predictions of the word of God, shall not separate them from the love of Christ, but, on the contrary, are to them the sources of the greatest benefits. Through them they are more than conquerors. This is a strong expression, but in its fullest import it is strictly true. The Christian not only overcomes in the worst of his trials, but more than overcomes his adversaries and all those things which seem to be against him. It is possible to overcome, and yet obtain no advantage from the contest, nay, to find the victory a loss. But the Christian not only vanquishes, he is also a gainer by the assault of his enemy. It is better for him than if he had not been called to suffer. He is a gainer and a conqueror, both in the immediate fruits of his sufferings, as God overrules them for his good, bringing him forth from the furnace as gold refined, and also in their final issue; for ‘our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.’ The term conquerors reminds us that the life of a believer is a warfare, in which he is called to combat, both within and without. We may remark, too, the difference between the judgment of God, and the judgment of men, respecting the victory of believers. In the world, persecutors and oppressors are judged as the conquerors; but here, those are pronounced to be such, who are oppressed and persecuted. They are the servants of Him whom the world put to death, but who said to His disciples, ‘Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world’” (Exposition of the Epistle to the Romans, p. 422).
Rev. Cornelius Hanko on Romans 8:37: “Paul assures us that we are more than conquerors! Conquerors! We stand in the battlefield of this world with the fiercest, cruellest enemy that anyone can imagine. He is not interested in our life, our possessions, our home, our natural comfort. He wants our soul! It is not ‘we shall be conquerors,’ although that is true enough. We’ll raise the victor’s song at last, even as the apostle Paul who could say, ‘I have fought the good fight; I have kept the faith … forthwith the crown.’ But this is stronger than that. We are even now conquerors, while the enemy rages and fumes around about us. There is still more. We are more than conquerors. A soldier may leave the field of battle after having driven the enemy to rout. Happily he goes home the victor, and yet he often does that with mixed feelings. He may have been severely wounded, so that he carries the battle scars the rest of his life. The losses to one’s own victorious army may be so great that another victory like that would mean disaster. In wars that are fought among men, there never is a real victor who can boast only of victory. There are sorrows, griefs, losses, destructions that are never again completely overcome. Yet that is not the way in the Christian’s battle of faith. The damages, the losses, the scars of battle are always with the enemy. The damages, the losses, the scars that we suffer are turned to our profit. The enemy can only be instrumental to bless us, to prepare us for heaven, and finally, at death, to give us complete victory with Christ in glory. A glorious reality: ‘We are more than conquerors!’”
Martyn Lloyd-Jones: “The world as it is today is the greatest proof possible of the wrath of God against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men that hold (down) the truth in unrighteousness. Our world today, with its baffling moral problems, with its incredible moral muddle, with all the loudness and the ugliness and the foulness on the increase, is just an absolute proof of what the apostle says here. It is God’s wrath against sin; you cannot explain it in any other way” (Romans: An Exposition of Chapter 1, p. 392).
R. C. H. Lenski: “The prevalence of this beastly sin in the whole Greek and Roman world of Paul’s day which was practiced and fully defended by the most prominent men of that age, is well known. Paul cites these sexual violations of nature as marking the depth of immorality to which godlessness descends, because sexual degradation always constitutes such a mark. The moment God is taken out of the control in men’s life, the stench of sex aberration is bound to arise. It is so the world over to this day. Without God, sex runs wild … In this paragraph we see the floodgates opened wide and the frightful torrent engulfing the ungodly. [Our daily newspapers] record the constant devastation. The question is ever debated by the alarmed as to what can be done to check at least the worst damage. Impotent [social] reformers set up their little dams only to see them swept away. Legislation and the courts are able to do all too little. The one hope, putting the real fear of God into men’s hearts from infancy, is still rejected by the mass of men, and modern educators rather destroy the fear of God. The world is ripening for its doom” (Romans, pp. 115, 117).
John Murray: “’Burned in their lust one toward another.’ The intensity of the passion is indicated by the word ‘burned.’ It is a mistake to equate this burning with that mentioned in 1 Corinthians 7:9. The latter is the burning of natural sex impulse and there is no indictment of it as immoral—marriage is commended as the outlet for its satisfaction. But here it is the burning of an insatiable lust that has no natural or legitimate desire of which the lust is the perversion or the distortion. It is lust directed to something that is essentially and under all circumstances illegitimate” (Romans, p. 48).
Martin Luther: “As the glory of the body (at least in this connection) consists in chastity [purity], continence [self-control], and, at least, its proper use, so its disgrace consists in its unnatural abuse. Just as a golden vessel is ennobled when it is used as a container of a noble wine, and disgraced when it is used as a container of excrement and filth, so our body (in this respect) is ordained to an honourable marriage and to chastity which is still more honourable. But it is most disgraced and humiliated, not by adultery and unchastity [impurity], but by being polluted by an even worse turpitude” (Lectures on Romans, p. 32).
Announcements (subject to God’s will)
We welcome Rev. & Larisa McGeown today. Rev. McGeown will preach at both services while Rev. Stewart is in the Limerick Reformed Fellowship.
We also welcome Philip & Julie Rainey who will be in N. Ireland for some weeks.
On the back table is the July Covenant Reformed News.
The Council meets tomorrow evening at 7:30 PM.
Tuesday Bible Study meets at 11 AM to consider how Christians are Levites (and priests).
John McAuley, a dear saint, went to be with the Lord on Sunday afternoon. His funeral service will take place in the CPRC on Wednesday at noon (UK time). It will be video streamed to enable friends in the British Isles, America (this would be 7AM Eastern Time) and elsewhere to watch the church service live. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints” (Ps. 116:15). https://cprc.co.uk/live-streaming/
Are Unbelievers in God’s Image? Rev. Stewart will continue the discussion on this topic (via phone link) on Iron Sharpens Iron Radio (www.ironsharpensironradio.com) this Friday, 23 August, from 9-11 PM (GMT) or 4-6 PM (US Eastern Time).
The Reformed Witness Hour broadcast next Lord’s Day (Gospel 846 MW at 8:30 AM) by Rev. Griess is entitled “Preservation of the Saints (1)” (John 10:27-29).
S. Wales Lecture: Rev. Stewart will speak in Margam Community Centre on Thursday, 5 September, at 7:15 PM on “The Peace Offering.”
CPRC Reformation Day Speech: “William Tyndale: English Bible Translator” is the title of Rev. Stewart’s lecture on Friday, 25 October, at 7:30 PM. Flyers are on the back table.
Offerings: General Fund: £794.85. Donation: £200 (England).
The Steady Eye
Brian D. Dykstra
“Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee” (Prov. 4:25).
God warns us many times in Proverbs about disobedience. In this section of Proverbs, however, we are told how to obey Him, how to keep the heart for out of it are the issues of life. God just commanded us to put away a froward mouth. He now gives us direction regarding our eyes.
Our five senses connect us physically to creation. They are also inlets to our souls. How we observe and interact with the creation influences our spiritual life. This is especially true for our eyes. Christ warns us, “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light” (Matt. 6:22). Jesus also warns us about the evil eye and the resulting spiritual darkness (v. 23).
Knowing that our eyes exert a powerful influence in our lives, Solomon instructs us how to use our eyes properly. We are to “look right on.” Satan knows how powerful temptations presented through our eyes can be. The things on which we fix our eyes will direct the soul. The inspired apostle Peter knew this as well. He wrote of those who departed from the truth, “Having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin, beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children” (II Pet. 2:14). This is clear to us in today’s entertainment. The music, dancing and various forms of video presentations display to our eyes a world full of adultery which cannot satisfy its depraved desire for sin. The world’s lack of moderation in its use of alcohol fuels the raging fire of hedonistic passion.
Eyes have often led people into sin. Lot’s wife did not keep her eyes straight ahead. She turned to see the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, evidently desiring the life she had enjoyed there, and was turned to a pillar of salt. During the destruction of Jericho, Achan saw among the spoils some treasures which he desired. He coveted, took the accursed thing and all Israel suffered the consequences in a humiliating defeat. Then there is David. Instead of keeping his eyes fixed on the enemy on the battlefield, he stayed in Jerusalem where his wandering eye saw Bathsheba. His life would never be the same.
There are examples of eyes which are looking straight at a goal. The idea is someone who looks steadily at a mark in order to walk a straight path. When I mow my lawn in a diagonal pattern, I do not have the edge of the driveway or side of the road to keep the mower lines nice and straight. I must pick a spot where the grass meets the road on the opposite side of the lawn, stare at it and walk as straight as I can toward it. When I’m successful, the result is a nice, straight pattern.
Job directed his eyes this way. He did not want adulterous thoughts to enter his heart, so he says, “I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?” (Job 31:1). He would not allow his eyes to wander so as to arouse sinful desires. He would be careful with his eyes. Joseph did this, though Potiphar’s wife certainly did not keep her eyes fixed on godliness. We read, “his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me” (Gen. 39:7). With her eyes, she recognized Joseph to be attractive and desired to satisfy her sinful passion. Joseph, however, guarded his eyes. In fact, Joseph would not even allow himself to be in the same room as she, so his eyes could not fall upon her and lead him into temptation.
We must keep our eyes straight before us, on the single goal of glorifying God. Our eyes must be on the path God sets before us by His Word. Keeping our eyes fixed shows our gratitude for all the blessings He has given to us in Christ. The pleasures of sin do not lie in the path of God’s law. Distractions to a thankful life lie to the right and left. If we allow our eyes to wander from the single purpose of living a thankful life, we expose ourselves to myriad temptations. Were we to follow our eyes, seek the things of this world and satisfy the desires of the old man of sin, we would lose the feeling of God’s favour. We would no longer feel the spiritual warmth of God’s gracious countenance which is more than life to us.
This brings us to eyelids: “Let thine eyelids look straight before thee.” None of the commentaries on my bookshelf mentioned the significance of why Solomon switches from “eyes” to “eyelids.” However, there must be more to the divine inspiration of Scripture than allowing writers literary discretion to avoid dull repetition of terms.
Here is my attempt in dealing with “eyelids.” When I walk a pathway which is smooth and has nothing which would cause me to stumble, I can keep my eyes up to see distant things. However, when the path has many obstacles and I must place each step carefully, my eyes are down. This is when someone coming from the opposite direction sees my eyelids, not my eyes. In the next verse, Solomon writes, “Ponder the path of thy feet,” which has the idea of having to walk carefully. We must have our eyelids straight before us when the path of life becomes more difficult or presents more dangers.
We must take this admonition seriously. Living a Christian life is no joke. This world is not a place of amusement for us. God does not call us to serve ourselves. We may not live a frivolous life. We are engaged in a serious spiritual battle. The stakes are high. Satan is as a lion seeking his prey so we had better be alert, keeping our eyes fixed straight before us and not allowing our eyes to see the sinful distractions which the world offers. If we cannot control our eyes, if we realize they constantly lead us into sin, Christ instructs us, “And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell” (Matt. 5:29). It is that serious.
Being careful about the use of our eyes is an aspect of keeping our hearts. We must protect our spiritual eyes at all times. We want to enjoy fellowship with God through grateful living. This is the true life of our hearts. May God help us and our children to have our eyes look right on and let our eyelids look straight before us.
