Weekly Sermon
 
James 2:8 reads, “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well.” 
 
In James 2:8 we find the commendation of the Lord our God Himself in His Holy Word unto all who fulfill His royal law.  Herein the law of the Lord our God is described as His royal law because He is the divine Lord and King of our lives.  Indeed, this reveals that we believers in this time of the New Testament do have the responsibility to serve under our Lord’s authority and to submit ourselves in obedience under the authority of law for our lives.  Furthermore, we have the responsibility to fulfill our Lord’s royal law, that is – to obey it completely and consistently.  Finally, we are brought to understand that we must fulfill our Lord’s royal law over our lives in accord with the Old Testament Scripture from Leviticus 19:18, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”  If we do this, then the Lord our God through His Holy Word by the inspiration of God the Holy Spirit commends us with the declaration, “Ye do well.”  If we do this, then in our Lord’s sight we are walking in the way of righteousness.
 
So then, what does it mean to love our neighbor as ourselves?  In Leviticus 19:17-18 this instruction was first given, wherein God’s word declares, “Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.  Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.”  Then throughout the New Testament, this instruction of our God’s law was quoted by our Lord Jesus Christ on two occasion in Matthew 19:19 & 22:39 (with Mark 12:31 being a parallel passage to Matthew 22:39), by the apostle Paul on two further occasions in Romans 13:9 & Galatians 5:14, and by James in James 2:8.  Even so, through a study of these and of some supporting passages, we may develop a greater understanding concerning what it means to love our neighbor as ourselves.

Weekly Sermon

James 1:16-18 reads, “Do not err, my beloved brethren.  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.  Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.”

James 1:16-18 brings the third paragraph of the epistle to its conclusion.  As we have not-ed, the subject matter of this paragraph is arranged in order to move our focus and understanding from the outside toward the center.  Even so, verse 12 & verses 17-18 give counsel concerning our right motivation for endurance in godliness.  Then verse 13 & verses 16-17 give counsel concerning our right attitude toward the Lord our God.  Finally, verses 14-15 give counsel concerning our right understanding of temptation to sin. 

James 1:16 serves as a turning point in this paragraph with the loving, pastoral admonition, “Do not err, my beloved brethren.”  This admonition renews that of verse 13 and returns the focus of the paragraph to the counsel concerning our right attitude toward the Lord our God.  Yet with this admonition the focus of this counsel turns from the negative truth that the Lord our God never tempts anyone with sin and turns to the positive truth that the Lord our God provides every good and perfect gift.  On the one hand -- “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man” (verse 13).  On the other hand -- “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (verse 17).  On the one hand, we must never attribute to the Lord our God or accuse Him of any sinful temptation.  On the other hand, we must acknowledge and appropriate the truth that He is eternally good and that He is the Source of all good.

This truth concerning our Lord God’s eternal goodness is revealed in the declaration of verse 17 and illustrated in the declaration of verse 18.  Grammatically, verses 17-18 provide two separate declarations of truth, wherein verse 17 may be divided into three parts and verse 18 may be divided into two parts.  First in verse 17, there is a revelation of our Lord God’s care through the opening declaration -- “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above.”  Second in verse 17, there is a revelation of our Lord God’s character through the second verb phrase -- “And cometh down from the Father of lights.”  Third in verse 17, there is a revelation of our Lord God’s constancy through the adjective clause -- “With whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”  Then in verse 18, there is the illustration of our Lord God’s good provision through the main clause -- “Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth.”  Second in verse 18, there is the illustration of our Lord God’s good purpose through the adverb clause -- “That we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.”

Weekly Sermon

Psalm 119:12 reads, “Blessed art thou, O LORD: teach me thy statutes.”

Throughout Psalm 119 we encounter four primary themes.  First, we encounter the theme concerning God’s Word as the perfect guide for life.  Second, we encounter the theme concerning God’s servant in his right relationship with God’s Word.  Third, we encounter the theme concerning God’s servant in his desire to walk with the Lord through God’s truth.  Finally, we encounter the theme concerning God’s servant in his suffering for the Lord’s sake.  Thus the theme of Psalm 119 as a whole might be viewed as – The desire of the Lord’s suffering servant to seek the Lord through His Holy Word.

Yet why did the Lord’s suffering servant have such a driving desire to seek the Lord through His Word?  Why did he exclaim in verse 5, “O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!”  Why did he make searching request in the opening portion of verse 9, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way?”  Why did he express the burden of his heart in the opening portion of verse 10, saying, “With my whole heart have I sought thee”?  The answer is to be found in the opening portion of verse 12, wherein this young servant of the Lord proclaimed, “Blessed art thou, O LORD.”  This young servant of the Lord was motivated to seek the Lord with all his heart through God’s Word because he was convinced with full assurance of faith that the Lord was abundantly worthy of his love, trust, submission, and service.  

In fact, throughout this psalm the psalmist gives notice to seven characteristics by which he was convinced that the Lord was so abundantly worthy, and by which he was moved to proclaim, “Blessed art thou, O LORD.”

Outlines in Psalms

“Praise ye the LORD.”

  I.  The Commitment of the Lord’s Servant. (Psalm 146:1-2)
 II.  The Counsel of the Lord’s Servant. (Psalm 146:3-4)
III.  The Consequence of Trusting the Lord. (Psalm 146:5)
IV.  The Cause for Trusting the Lord. (Psalm 146:6-10)

“Praise ye the LORD.”

Weekly Sermon

2 Corinthians 5:14-15 reads, “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead; and that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.”

Again and again throughout God’s Word we are instructed to "walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing."  Yet why should we so live our lives?  What motivation is given to move us to live our lives in such a manner?  Certainly the very fact that our Lord has instructed us to so walk and to so live should be motivation enough.  Yet our Lord has also provided us with the greatest and most gracious motivation possible.  Even so, 2 Corinthians 5:14 opens with the declaration, “For the love of Christ constraineth us.”  Now, the word “constraineth” here conveys the idea of that which takes a hold of us with force and moves us with that force to act in a certain manner.  In this statement our Lord Jesus Christ”s own love for us is the very force that takes a hold of us and moves us to live as we ought to live. Even so, 1 John 4:19 proclaims, "We love him, because he first loved us.”  This is the believer's motivation – “For the love of Christ constraineth us.”  Then as 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 continues, it reveals three truths that give substance to this motivation.  Thus we find the truth concerning our need, the truth concerning Christ's provision, and the truth concerning our responsibility.

Outlines in Psalms

“To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.”

Psalm 11:1a – “In the LORD put I my trust.”
(Note:  The two questions of this psalm are significant for the flow of thought in this psalm.)

  I.  The challenge against the Lord’s trusting servant. (Psalm 11:1b)
 II.  The conflict for the Lord’s trusting servant. (Psalm 11:2)
III.  The concern of the Lord’s trusting servant. (Psalm 11:3)
IV.  The confidence of the Lord’s trusting servant. (Psalm 11:4-7)

Meditations in Jeremiah

Jeremiah 31:3 reads, “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”

Those who believe in a Calvinistic system of doctrine in relation to salvation often employ Jeremiah 31:3 as a proof text for the doctrinal position of “unconditional election.”  It is acknowledged that this verse deals specifically with the Lord’s relationship toward the children of Israel as His chosen nation.  From this verse it is argued that from eternity past the Lord God chose to love the children of Israel “with an everlasting love,” and that on the ground of this predetermined love, the Lord our God drew the children of Israel unto Himself “with lovingkindness” to elect them out from all other nations as His own chosen nation.  Then it is further argued that this verse reveals the principle of our Lord God’s elective process concerning individual believers, that He unconditionally chose in eternity past to love certain ones, and then graciously drew them with loving kindness unto Himself for eternal salvation.  Yet is this really a correct understanding of Jeremiah 31:3, both specifically and principally, within the context of Jeremiah 30-31?