Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
83 Clarence Street, Ballymena BT43 5DR
Rev. Angus Stewart
Lord’s Day, 18 May, 2025
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36)
Morning Service – 11:00 AM
Teach Your Children! [youtube]
Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 6
Text: Deuteronomy 6:7
I. Who?
II. How?
III. When?
Psalms: 1:1-6; 127:1-5; 119:137-144; 78:2-7
Evening Service – 6:00 PM
What Is True Conversion? [youtube]
Scripture Reading: I Thessalonians 5
Text: Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 33
I. The First Part
II. The Second Part
III. Both Parts
Psalms: 22:27-31; 126:1-6; 119:57-64; 85:1-8
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
Quotes to Consider
Martin Luther on Deuteronomy 6:6-9: “Not only in a book, not only in thought, but in the inmost feeling should they be the most precious treasure for you. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (Matt. 6:21). Therefore let nothing reign in your heart except faith and the love of God. On these let your heart meditate day and night (Ps. 1:2). For where they have first been in the heart in this way, there it will follow happily that they are also in your mouth. ‘And impress them on your sons’; that is, repeat and ingrain them daily, lest they become pale and cold, and grow old with rust. Then it will follow that you will speak of them everywhere and always. Finally, bind them as a memorial on your hands and before your eyes; last of all, write them on the doorposts. See the order of treating the Word of God: first, it is to be pondered in the heart; secondly, impressed faithfully and constantly on the sons by word of mouth; thirdly, discussed openly and everywhere; fourthly, written on the hand and drawn before the eyes; fifth and last, inscribed, and that on posts and doorways, not in books, since Moses himself has already written them in a book … He simply wants these words to meet us everywhere and to be in our memories.”
Zacharius Ursinus: “This fifth commandment, moreover, respecting honor due to parents … is placed first in the second table: because it is the foundation, cause, and bond of obedience to all the other commandments belonging to this table. For if the obedience can be maintained and enforced which is due from those who are placed in subjection to their superiors, who should command and preserve in the name of God obedience to the commandments which follow this precept of the decalogue, then will obedience to all the other precepts necessarily follow.”
Announcements (subject to God’s will)
Tuesday Bible study will meet this week at 11 AM to continue our study of the Council of Nicea (AD 325) on its 1,700th anniversary.
The Reformed Witness Hour broadcast next Lord’s day (Gospel 846 MW at 8:30 AM) by Rev. Haak is entitled, “Blessed Are the Meek” (Matt. 5:5).
Rev. Josiah Tan will be preaching for the CPRC on 1 and 8 June, while Rev. & Mary Stewart are at the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the PRCA.
Sven Kuhs and Megan Higgs’ wedding service is to begin at 10 AM on Thursday, 26 June. All are welcome to attend the ceremony.
Offerings: £1,438.41. Donations: $1,000 (Ohio, USA), $794 (Hudsonville PRC), £200 (New Jersey, USA).
Translation Addition: 3 Chinese, 2 Polish, 1 Urdu.
PRC News: Grandville PRC: Rev. Maatman declined their call. Hudsonville called Rev. Engelsma. Southwest PRC called Rev. Barnhill. Lynden PRC called Rev. DeBoer. Byron Center PRC will call a minister-on-loan to the Philippines from a trio of Revs. Bleyenberg, DeBoer and Smidstra. Cornerstone PRC calls today from its trio of Revs. Brummel, Maatman and Spronk. Grace PRC formed a trio of Revs. DeBoer, Langerak and Smidstra. Hope PRC in Redlands will call from a trio of Revs. DeBoer, D. Holstege and Langerak.
Church Discipline (4) by Rev. Josiah Tan
We continue our treatment of true repentance. Previously, we considered from Scripture what true repentance is: a turning of heart and life away from sin unto God in faith, and a deep, godly sorrow of heart for having sinned against the holy and living God.
However, repentance is an inward and invisible work of the Holy Spirit. Since elders cannot read hearts, how then can God command the leaders of His church to judge whether repentance is genuine?
Christ does not leave His church to speculation or human intuition. He commands that the church discern repentance by observing its outward, visible fruits. “By their fruits ye shall know them” (Matt. 7:16).
Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance” (Matt. 3:8). True repentance cannot remain hidden, theoretical or confined to private emotions. It necessarily brings forth outward, tangible fruit in doctrine, confession and life. Without such fruit, there is no true repentance. A changed heart will inevitably reveal itself through a changed life, for the tree is known by its fruits.
Thus the church is called not to attempt the impossible task of reading hearts but to fulfil the Christ-given duty of examining the fruits of repentance, which are the visible evidence of His Spirit’s work.
What are these fruits? First, fruits of true repentance are visible. Just as fruit on a tree is seen, so also the fruits of repentance must be seen. They are both the man’s outward conduct, and also in his confession of truth, life and doctrine.
For example, if a man claims to confess the sin of violating the ninth commandment by bearing false witness, but then minimizes his sin by calling it merely a “mistake” and demands that the elders quickly restore him, there is no fruit of repentance. The essential confession that his falsehood was gross rebellion against the living God is absent. For the mouth speaks from the abundance of the heart (Luke 6:45).
Or if a man claims sorrow for violating the seventh commandment through acts of sexual immorality but, when asked how he has sought to make amends, he stammers, evades and concocts excuses, there is no fruit of repentance. There is no real visible change in the man’s life.
The visible fruits of repentance will manifest unmistakably in what a man confesses about his sin, about himself and about God. They will show themselves clearly in actions that conform to God’s holy Word.
Second, these fruits of repentance always have two necessary dimensions. They include both the putting off of the old man and the putting on of the new man. True repentance is never content with mere sorrow for sin; it necessarily involves a growing hatred of sin, a conscious putting off of sinful ways, and a delighting more and more in the commandments of God. The truly repentant man, by faith, diligently uses the means of grace to strengthen his walk with God. Both of these aspects must be present else there is no fruit of repentance.
For example, a man may say that he has truly turned from his sin, mortifying the old man. However, the elders notice that he is deliberately slow to meet the elders and pastors to receive instruction. The (claimed) mortification of the old man is not accompanied by a quickening of the new, by a desire to embrace instruction and grow in it. Something is gravely amiss, calling into question the genuineness of the man’s repentance.
Third, the fruits of repentance must be governed, not by the man’s own imagination but by God’s Word. They must not be done out of self-reliance or pride, but in humble trusting and faith in God for all grace and strength. This fruit of repentance must not be done with the motive of self-preservation or seeking to save face but be done seeking the glory of Jehovah God.
Lastly, Christ demands that these fruits are meet for repentance. The fruits of repentance must be meet: fitting, worthy and harmonious with the repentance professed. The word “meet” signifies that the fruits must correspond in weight and seriousness to the sin committed. True repentance is not mere sorrow over the consequences of sin but a Spirit-wrought grief over having sinned against the infinite holiness of the living God. Therefore, the fruits of repentance must reflect the gravity of the offense and the power of divine grace at work within the heart.
If a man claims sorrow for his sin but the fruits he bears are marked by carelessness, indifference, excuse-making or impatience, it becomes evident that no true repentance has taken root. His words and actions expose that his sorrow is worldly and self-centred, not godly and Spirit-wrought (II Cor. 7:10).
The Holy Spirit, through the apostle Paul, gives a full portrait of these meet fruits in II Corinthians 7:10-11. These fruits are not isolated deeds but an unfolding spiritual attitude that affects the whole man inwardly, outwardly and relationally. They are the Spirit’s work, shaping the heart, renewing confession and directing conduct according to the will of God.
II Corinthians 7:10-11: “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.”
The Spirit-wrought fruits of true repentance are:
- Carefulness: A holy vigilance against sin. The repentant man no longer walks carelessly, but watches his heart and life with godly fear.
- Clearing of oneself: A longing to walk transparently in the truth, rejecting every form of deceit and seeking to make matters right by open confession.
- Indignation: A holy anger against one’s own sin. The repentant man despises the corruption he once cherished.
- Fear: A reverent trembling before the holiness and majesty of God. True repentance fears offending God more than facing earthly consequences.
- Vehement desire: An intense yearning to be restored to fellowship with God and His people. The repentant sinner seeks reconciliation with a sincere and earnest heart.
- Zeal: A fervent, active pursuit of holiness and obedience. The repentant man does not walk reluctantly but hastens to do the will of God.
- Revenge: A sincere effort to undo, as far as possible, the harm caused by sin. As Zacchaeus declared, “If I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold” (Luke 19:8).
These fruits cannot be manufactured by man’s will or effort. They are the Spirit’s work in the heart that has been broken by grace and made alive unto God. They are sharply contrasted with the attitude and actions of those who exhibit a false repentance, whom we previously considered: Pharaoh, Esau, Judas Iscariot and Saul.
It is by these fruits meet for repentance that Christ commands His church to discern true repentance from false. The church, through her elders, is called to judge whether the repentance of a sinner is genuine or not.
