Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
83 Clarence Street, Ballymena BT43 5DR
Rev. Angus Stewart
Lord’s Day, 9 March, 2025
“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36)
Morning Service – 11:00 AM
The Assyrian Crisis (1)
Woe to the Crown of Pride! [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 28:1-18
Text: Isaiah 28:1-5
I. The Dual Imagery
II. The Fitting Judgment
III. The Royal Remnant
Psalms: 18:9-14; 119:65-72; 107:23-30; 103:1-7
Evening Service – 6:00 PM
Righteousness by Faith Alone [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Genesis 15
Text: Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 23
I. The Method of Teaching
II. The Nature of Righteousness
III. The Role of Faith
Psalms: 8:1-7; 119:73-80; 136:1-12; 147:1-8
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
Matthew Henry: “He will be to them for a crown of glory and for a diadem of beauty. Those that wore the crown of pride looked upon God’s people with disdain, and trampled upon them, for they were the song of the drunkards of Ephraim; but God will so appear for them by his providence as to make it evident that they have his favour towards them, and that shall be to them a crown of glory; for what greater glory can any people have than for God to acknowledge them as his own? And he will so appear in them, by his grace, as to make it evident that they have his image renewed on them, and that shall be to them a diadem of beauty; for what greater beauty can any person have than the beauty of holiness?”
Announcements (subject to God’s will)
Sadly, the membership papers of Jacob Buchanan were sent to him at his request.
Monday catechism classes:
5:00 PM: Hannah, Penelope & Xander (Seniors OT)
5:45 PM: Grace, Jonas, Liam & Sammy (Beginners OT – Book 2)
6:30 PM: Eleanora, Felicity, Jorja & Sophie (Juniors OT)
7:15 PM: Jason, Kyan, Maisie & Sebastian (Heidelberg Catechism – Book 1)
8:00 PM: Bradley, Jack, Josh, Samuel & Taylor (Essentials)
Tuesday Bible study will meet this week at 11 AM as Paul heads to Cyprus (Acts 13).
The Belgic Confession class will meet on Wednesday at 7:30 PM to consider the question: What is Antichrist’s main purpose?
We’re planning to have a book/pamphlet table at the Ballymena town centre bandstand this Saturday afternoon, probably from 2 PM until 3:30 PM. If interested in joining in, please see Julian or Joe.
The Reformed Witness Hour broadcast next Lord’s day (Gospel 846 MW at 8:30 AM) by Rev. Haak is entitled, “Spiritual Lethargy” (Song 5:1-8).
The next Lord’s Supper is scheduled for the morning of 30 March, with the preparatory in the evening of 23 March.
There will be two weddings this June in the CPRC. Timothy Spence will marry Huiyi Koh on Friday, 13 June, and Sven Kuhs will marry Megan Higgs on Thursday, 26 June.
Offerings: £1,598.30. Donation: £200 (England).
Translation Additions: 1 Chinese (by Cheryl Lim), 3 French (including “The Biblical Ground for the Baptism of Infants”), 2 Hungarian, 1 Polish, 2 Russian and 7 Spanish.
PRC News: Rev. Maatman is considering calls from Southwest PRC and Grace PRC. Hudsonville PRC called Prof. Huizinga. Grandville PRC called Rev. J. Engelsma. Byron Center PRC is the calling church for a minister-on-loan to Provident PRC in the Philippines. They will call from a trio of Revs. Lee, Brummel and DeBoer.
The Church That Echoed (1)
Rev. Carl Haak in the Standard Bearer, vol. 91, issue 14
“For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing” (I Thess. 1:8).
In this chapter of I Thessalonians the apostle Paul states that he knew that the believers in Thessalonica had been eternally chosen of God unto salvation. He says to them in verse 4, “Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.” How was it that Paul was able to know that they were the elect of God? Was Paul given by God a look into the Lamb’s Book of Life, the registry of God’s eternal election, where God recorded the names of those whom He would give to Christ? No, Paul did not look into that registry. Paul knew their election because he saw the fruits of election in their lives.
The truth of election is not only that God chose who will be saved and did so from eternity, based only on His own grace, but also that God determined to work in these elect to bring them to faith and to the fruits of faith. We read in Ephesians 1:4, “According as he hath chosen us in [Christ] … that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.” We read in II Thessalonians 2:13 that God has chosen us to salvation “through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” The truth is this: God, with an unchangeable and eternal decree of election, not only determines who shall be saved but determines also that in them He will work His good and holy pleasure, so that they will bring forth the fruits of saving faith.
What were the fruits of faith that Paul saw in the Thessalonians? He says in verse 3, “Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father.” That is, the apostle saw the great trio of Christian graces (faith, hope and love).
But more. The apostle says that he recalls how they had received the preaching of the Word of God. That, especially, was an evidence to him that God had worked faith in their hearts. He says in verse 5, “For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance.” The gospel came to these Thessalonian Christians not merely as a discourse on religious issues, but, in the power of the Holy Spirit, as the very Word of God, it had given them unshakable assurance. Paul sees the effect of the gospel that was preached. He sees the effect that it had upon their lives and especially the effect that it produced in their witnessing. He says, “for from you sounded out [or echoed] the word of the Lord.” Having received the Word of God, the believers in Thessalonica began to echo that Word of God. It reverberated from them to others.
Now Paul is reasoning back from effect to cause. He sees that the Thessalonians showed faith and love and hope. He sees that the Thessalonians had received the gospel in all of its power. He sees that the believers of Thessalonica engaged in sincere evangelism and witnessed of the truth of the gospel. And all of this, says the apostle, could be true only if God had first elected them unto salvation. A fruit of God’s sovereign election is that He works in us the desire to echo forth the Word of the Lord.
It is alleged that those who believe in the doctrine of God’s eternal election are people who do not evangelize. The truth is that those who are elected of God show their election by evangelism. Nothing is lovely, attractive, or catches our eye in the gospel unless God wills of His grace to soften our hearts so that we receive the Word. But then God also makes the believer a sounding board to echo the word that he has heard. This, in fact, was the reason for our election. God has, from the beginning, chosen us in order that we might show forth His praise. The church built by God’s sovereign election, the church that is built because God from the beginning chose it to salvation out of His own free grace, will also, by the power of God’s grace in them, become an echo of the Word of God.
The Thessalonian church echoed. The Word of God reverberated from them.
We want to answer this question: What is the connection between the life of the Thessalonian church and their witnessing? Usually we think of evangelism or witnessing in terms of special activities: going door-to-door with tracts, or holding special classes. These are good and profitable. But these activities are not first and are not most important. The Word of God teaches us that the spiritual condition of the congregation is most clearly seen in the witness that the congregation gives to the community. Our witness does not begin when we go forth in various activities. But it begins in how we live together as fellow believers in the church, and how we stand towards the Word of God. Jesus said, “Ye are the salt of the earth.” But a church that loses its salt, its savour, is good for nothing.
You see, we leave a witness before we go out, before we speak. In all that we do and at all times, we leave a witness. It is not a question of whether or not we witness. It is a question of what kind of witness we leave. And everyone plays a part in this, as members of the church: children, youth, adults—all the members of the church. Witnessing is, first in the way of living a sanctified life, a holy life together in the church, under the Word of God, obeying that Word of God.
From this chapter we learn that there were a number of things that characterized the life of the church in Thessalonica that are given for our example.
First of all, they genuinely received the Word of God as it was preached to them. In this chapter Paul is reminiscing. He is recalling how the gospel he preached to the Thessalonians had been received. He says that it came not only in word, not only some new philosophy or fad. But it came in power, a power of the Holy Spirit, even as Jesus had promised. And it came in much assurance, so that the people came under conviction. As Paul preached to them, the Holy Spirit of God worked in their hearts, and that Word possessed them and brought them assurance and conviction and joy of their salvation.
And they had received that Word, says Paul, in much affliction and joy. That is, that Word came at a cost to their families and to their business. They had to suffer for the Word of God. But the very power of heaven broke into their souls through the gospel as Paul preached it to them in all of its truth and wonder. By the Holy Spirit, their hearts were opened so that they embraced it. (to be continued …)
