Thus says the LORD: “Stand in the ways and see, And ask for the old paths, where the good way is, And walk in it; Then you will find rest for your souls.”
– Jeremiah 6.16

Dear Friends,

This month we have a much-quoted Bible text for consideration. It appears in Jeremiah’s prophecy, where the Lord God announces judgment against His people for their rebellion against Him. But the Lord still shows mercy to them. He speaks about ‘walking in the good way’, on the ‘old paths’, and about how this will bring ‘rest for your souls’. The sad truth was that the people responded to God’s gracious call to His Way: ‘we will not walk in it’. He also shows how the people refused to hear the ‘watchmen’ God had appointed — His prophets, but the people said ‘We will not listen’. It is a great tragedy when the Lord has given His truth, and we foolishly refuse to listen to, or follow Him.

Our verse this month is often picked out by those who are troubled about changes in the modern church. Sometimes you will hear a preacher speak approvingly of a Church or a Christian who ‘follow(s) the old paths’.

Sadly, this often means little more than that a Church is following traditions. We have to be very careful that the ‘old paths’ we walk in are not the things which our ancestors did, or commanded us, but the things which the Lord has commanded us!

So, what are the ‘old paths’ we are to walk in? Is it that we should have pews in the chapel, or an organ? Is it that we should use a particular Bible version, or meet at certain times, or wear suits and ties? No. The Lord was angry with His people because ‘they have not heeded My words nor my law, but rejected it’ (Jer 6.19). We are to walk in God’s Way, which is to say, in His Truth. This will bring us true Life. Who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life? Our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. We are to follow Him, and be faithful to His voice, and His commands. We are to love His Word.

So when we read that the Lord calls us to stand apart from error, we’ll do it. We’ll take no part in ecumenical ventures. When we read that the Lord is Holy, and that we are to approach Him with reverence, this will mean that we keep our public meetings simple and orderly. When we see the importance of the Word of God and of preaching, this means that we will give the public preaching of the Word the highest priority.

But what we do, let us do with humility. We are not guardians of some ‘dying tradition’ which we must preserve in aspic and be proud of. We are servants of the Living God, and proclaimers of His Holy Word to a dying world. Let’s not sin by gossiping about other Christians or criticizing other churches. Rather, let our lips and lives show that we have found ‘the good way’, and may the banner of truth which we hold high attract many to join us in serving the King of Kings, who alone truly can bring our souls rest.

Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him

– Mark 15.32

Dear Friends,

As we approach the end of our studies in Mark’s gospel on Sundays, we will come to the account of the crucifixion of our dear Saviour. I hope and pray that we would all be delivered from any sense of ‘familiarity’ when we consider these things together. The events of which we read are the most staggering and appalling ever recorded in words.

In passing, this is why there is no profit in making films or images of those events. We could never do them justice. But we should certainly dwell upon what the scriptures teach us, in the gospels, about Calvary’s Cross. As we consider the amazing love of Jesus Christ, which is ‘writ large’ in His death, nothing short of awe and wonder should grip us. Why would the eternal God submit to such indignity? Why would the Creator become subject to His creatures? Why would the Judge of all the earth bow before such injustice?

Stop and ponder that the answer to these questions, for every believer, is most personal. ‘Why would He go through all of that?’ — ‘For me!’
Why must it be so terrible? Why must He suffer so? Because sin is serious. It separates us from God and would condemn us to eternal hell. We all-too-easily downplay sin, and fail to recognise its powerful grip upon us. Nothing but the highest price would pay the debt — no-one but the Lamb of God could turn aside, and bear, the righteous anger of a Holy God.

If you need evidence of the power of sin, then consider the verse I have quoted. Here are men condemned and dying, who yet join in with the religious leaders in mocking the Saviour. What blindness! What darkness! We gave thanks for the knowledge that one of them was saved — but it should be for us a matter of the greatest and gravest consideration that we all were once as lost, as blind, as opposed to God, as the vilest of the offenders at Calvary; and yet the sovereign love of God has sought us and saved us — Hallelujah! We live in days when many seem to hate God, but remember — our Lord saves His enemies!

Be encouraged, give thanks, and press on with Kingdom work!

God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.

– Exodus 2.24

Dear Friends,

By the time you read this, we will have just begun a new series of studies on Wednesday nights in the book of Exodus. Let me encourage you to join us at our friendly meetings, where questions and discussion are encouraged, and where prayer requests can be brought and discussed. But back to the text:

The great theme of the book of Exodus is, of course, the exodus of God’s people, Israel, from slavery in Egypt. Why did God set His people free? Of course, ultimately because it was through this nation that the Saviour of all the world would be born, and this was His grand purpose, but we read of how the people cried to Him, and He ‘remembered His covenant’ with their ancestors.

We have a God who makes, and keeps, covenants. A covenant is a contract or agreement between two or more parties. God’s covenant with Abraham was  gracious and unconditional – Abraham was not required to do anything, and the Lord promised to bless Him. Because of this promise, the Lord rescued His people from Egypt. As Christians, we are parties to God’s New Covenant (of which the covenant with Abraham is an early unfolding part) in which He undertakes to save us from sin, and grant us eternal life. This great promise does not depend on our good works, but rather on Jesus Christ’s blood shed for us.

At the end of this letter you will find a wonderful hymn by John Kent which expresses God’s covenant love in a clearer way than I ever can! It will be one of the hymns featured in our supplemental hymnbook.

Our God remembers His promises. If you have repented of sin and trusted in Christ, you are in covenant with the living God – a bond which cannot be broken by any failure of yours. It all depends upon Him – and He will not fail you

May you know His powerful covenant love!

*********

WITH David’s Lord, and ours,
A covenant once was made,
Whose bonds are firm and sure,
Whose glories ne’er shall fade;
Signed by the sacred Three in One,
In mutual love, ere time begun.

2 Firm as the lasting hills,
This covenant shall endure,
Whose powerful shalls and wills
Make every blessing sure:
When ruin shakes all nature’s frame,
Its promises shall stand the same.

3 Here the vast seas of grace,
Of love and mercy flow,
More than the blood-bought race
On earth can grasp or know:
O sacred deep without a shore,
Who shall thy wonders here explore?

4 Here, when our feet shall fall,
Its mercy we shall see:
Grace to restore the soul,
And pardon, full and free;
We, with delight, shall God behold
As sheep restored to Zion’s fold.

5 And when through Jordan’s flood
Our God shall bid us go,
He shall our souls defend,
And vanquish every foe;
And in this covenant we shall view
Sufficient strength to bear us through.

John Kent, 1766-1843 (altd)

JANUARY 2013

  Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths

– Proverbs 3.5-6

Dear Friends,

It never fails to amaze us how quickly ‘the year rolls round’ – a reminder, if ever we needed it, of how brief life truly is. How many things did we hope to accomplish, even promise to accomplish, which we have not been able to, in the past year? Perhaps we visualized ourselves in a much different situation in a year’s time, when we read the January 2012 Messenger 12 months ago. Our ‘cover text’ is our church motto text for 2013, and it is the subject of our first sermon of the year, so I won’t labour it here.

I just want to focus on one aspect of the text, and ask one question. Are we, as a church, willing to allow the LORD to ‘direct our paths’? We might answer ‘yes’, but what does such a willingness look like in reality?

You might say at this point ‘The LORD will direct my paths whether I am willing or not’ – and in a sense that is true. It is deeply comforting to know that our God does lead and guide us, teaching us through our mistakes, and keeping us from greater ones; leading us into gospel opportunities and inspiring us by the Holy Spirit in our daily lives as we seek to live for His glory.

But what is your attitude to the God you profess to serve? Do you really ‘acknowledge Him’ in your life? Is He the first one to whom you turn in all of life’s circumstances whether good or bad? Is Jesus Christ in first place in your heart?

We say that we want to see people saved here at Morton, lives changed and a powerful witness for the gospel established for future days, but do our actions speak louder than our words and say that actually, we’re more interested in the ‘here and now’ than eternal things?

Make no mistake, we live in difficult days for the gospel in our land. Every conversion to Christ is a miracle, and a direct act of God’s sovereign power. We need His power and blessing so very badly. Psalm 110 v3 speaks of God’s people being ‘willing’ (KJV) in the ‘day of [His] power’.

We need His power. Are we willing?

…They shall call His name Immanuel … [which means] … God with us – Matthew 1.23

Dear Friends,

We are approaching the end of another year which has been memorable for us. There are both happy and bittersweet things which we will look back on as a church, but of course there have also been significant national events such as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympics. Despite these remarkable experiences, we could not say that 2012 has been a year of good news. Life is never like that, and many personal trials and difficulties come to us, along with news from around the world of wars, natural disasters, and so forth.

What a privilege it is, then, to focus on good news – which is never old, never irrelevant, and just as powerfully exciting however many times we hear it:

That news is that Almighty God has intervened in history in a wonderful way – that He Who is eternal, infinite, and holy, has entered His own creation, which has been ruined by man’s sin and rebellion. He has, in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, shared in all the joys and troubles of life. Our God is no remote ‘loner’, but rather the God who can be known to us – for the Lord Jesus IS Immanuel – God WITH us!

And that is by no means all of the good news. This great God, who is with us, has come into this world to suffer and to die for all who believe in Him – paying the price for our sin at Calvary’s cross and bringing us peace with God and eternal life. He has done what is necessary to restore the ruin of all nature!

We might find it wonderful that God is with us, but we need to understand why He had to come to Bethlehem as He did. It is because He had to live a perfect life, and then offer that life in place of ours – He must become one of us in order to represent us in life and death, and redeem us. The always-thrilling and never-failing message of Christmas is that He has done just that.

For the second time, it is my privilege to wish a very Happy Christmas to all the congregation and friends of Morton Baptist Church – God is with us, and He always will be.