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A Blessed Household · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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Then we're going to begin our worship and we're singing firstly in Psalm 125, Psalm 125 in the
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Scottish Psalter, page 419. Today we're singing Psalm 125, 126, 127 and 128, just as a series of
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psalms. So 125, they in the Lord that firmly trust shall be like Zion Hill, which at no time can be
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removed but standeth ever still. And so on to the end of the psalm. We stand to sing if you're able to stand.
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Time can be removed but standeth ever still. As round about Jerusalem, the merchants stand all way.
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The Lord is full, the compass so, from henceforth and foray.
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For ill men's rod upon the road, all just men shall not lie.
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Lest righteous men set forth their hands unto iniquity.
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Do thou do all those that be good, thy goodness for him far.
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And do thou good to those that are upright within their heart.
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God shall lead for the world, even if they are iniquity.
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But as for such as turn aside, after their crooked way, God shall lead for the wicked men.
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Let's join together now in prayer, a prayer especially for the children and for the young folks just now.
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Lord, our God, we thank you on this lovely bright day that we come before you as a people who worship you and to confess you as our God.
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And we thank you today that this is an opportunity, Lord, for us to worship you and in the worship find further fellowship with you and knowledge of you.
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We thank you today that you give us these opportunities to draw aside from our normal course of activity in the world and to come together on the Lord's day to worship the Lord, to be together as his people and to share in that fellowship with him and with each other.
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Bless our children, we pray today.
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Lord, be with them during these times and grant to them again that they may increase in the knowledge of your own will and of your word and that they may find by your grace that they apply these things to their lives each and every day.
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Remember them, we pray, from the youngest in creche through to those in Bible school, Bible class, we pray that your blessing will be with them.
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And we ask that they will know day by day of the power of your truth working in their lives.
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And so receive our thanks, we pray.
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Continue to guide us and bless us and pardon our many sins for Jesus' sake.
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Amen.
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In Psalm 142, it's just for the children and young folks, Psalm 142,
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we find David in a cave.
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He was being chased by his enemies.
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He found refuge in a cave.
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And this was a psalm that he wrote while in the cave or thought about in the cave.
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It's really a prayer that he made from the cave to God.
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And in verse 3, he says,
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When my spirit faints within me, you know my way.
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Now there's a wonderful verse for memory for those in the Sunday school and for children always looking for verses to learn.
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Here's one verse you could learn.
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It's quite short, but it's also important.
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It tells us about how God looks after his people in all their situations.
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Even though David was in danger and hiding from his enemies, he said to God,
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When my spirit faints within me, in other words, when I'm really afraid, you know my way.
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God's eye is upon him.
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God knows his way.
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For my recent birthday, the family got together and actually got a wonderful gift for me.
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It's a bird feeder.
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And you might say, what's wonderful about a bird feeder?
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A bird feeder is available from many sources.
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But this bird feeder is good because it has a hidden camera in it.
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And it takes videos.
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As soon as a bird lands on the tray, it triggers the camera.
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The camera takes a video as long as that bird is moving.
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The movement begins the camera.
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When the movement stops, the camera stops.
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And it records it onto a little card inside the camera.
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And it's been absolutely wonderful to see close up these birds who have no idea they're being filmed or videoed.
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But you can see all the birds that land there.
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So far, we've seen chaffinches.
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Even a turtle dove the other day or a collared dove actually landed on there.
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There's been green finch.
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There's been sparrows.
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Different kinds of birds over the course of these few weeks.
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And it reminded me about some things that are important for us in our spiritual understanding as well.
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Such as the verse I've just read.
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Here was David saying in the cave.
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Nobody was seeing him there.
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He was safe from his enemies.
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He was hiding, at least, from his enemies.
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And yet he says,
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Whatever our circumstances are like, however difficult your lives may be,
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whatever challenges you're facing as children or young people,
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be thankful that God actually knows exactly where you are, exactly what you're doing.
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He's seeing you all the time.
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You might say that although he sees you all the time,
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there are special occasions, especially when we have a need of really being helped.
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That is, I is special.
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Just like the camera is triggered by the movement of the birds,
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so God's heart is moved when he finds us crying out to him
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out of circumstances that are challenging and difficult.
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You know, he said, my way.
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Now, there's another side to that as well.
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Well, just as that camera picks up the movement of the bird without them knowing about it,
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so God is watching our lives all the time.
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And as well as being really comforting for us
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to know that God is looking over us when we have difficulties in our lives,
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it's also a challenge for us to know that God is looking in on our lives
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at every time.
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Whatever we're doing, God sees it.
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And that should be a means of keeping us from doing things which are wrong,
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keeping us from even thinking wrong thoughts.
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God sees into our minds.
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And as he sees into our minds, the Bible reminds us that he reads our minds.
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He knows our thoughts.
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So I hope today that that little bird table and its camera
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are a symbol for you or a picture for you
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of something very, very comforting, very assuring,
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that God watches over us when we place our trust in him,
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but also that God looks in on our lives
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just to actually see what we're doing
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from day to day, from moment to moment,
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every time he's looking in on us.
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So there's a very important verse for us to remember.
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When my spirit faints within me, you know my way.
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So practice that through the day to day.
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And as you do so, let that word, let that verse sink into your mind
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and use it in your life so that when you have a difficulty,
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you'll turn to God and say,
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Lord, I'm thankful that you know my way,
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that you know my circumstances.
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So now let's say the Lord's Prayer once again together.
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Our Father, which art in heaven,
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hallowed be thy name.
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Thy kingdom come.
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Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
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Give us this day our daily bread.
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And forgive us our debts,
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as we forgive our debtors.
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And lead us not into temptation,
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but deliver us from evil.
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For thine is the kingdom
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and the power and the glory forever.
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Amen.
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Now we're going to sing again.
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This time we're singing Psalm 126.
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Again, it's on page 419.
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When Zion's bondage God turned back,
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as men had dreamed were we,
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then filled with laughter was our mouth,
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our tongue with melody.
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And you can see in this psalm
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that even people who don't follow the Lord
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can actually know and see
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when the Lord has blessed his people.
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It says there in verse 3,
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among the heathen,
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they said the Lord great things
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for them has wrought.
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In other words, the world,
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people who watch us all the time,
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can see when God has blessed our lives
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and we tell them
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about how God has been good to us.
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So Psalm 126,
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When Zion's bondage God turned back.
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When Zion's bondage God turned back,
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as men that dreamed were we,
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then filled with laughter was our mouth,
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our tongue with melody.
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They among the heathen said the Lord,
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great things for them hath brought.
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The Lord hath done great things for us,
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when joy to us is brought.
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As streams of water in the sun,
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our bondage Lord recall,
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whose soul in tears and reeping time,
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of joy in joy they shall.
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that man who bare in precious seed,
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in going forth the poor,
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he does bring him back his sheep,
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rejoice in shall return.
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Our reading of God's Word this morning
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is from 2 Samuel,
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the second book of Samuel,
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and chapter 6.
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And we're reading from the beginning.
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That's the second book of Samuel,
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and chapter 6,
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it's around about page 310 or so,
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in your church Bibles,
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if you're using these.
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So we'll read verses 1 to 19.
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David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel,
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30,000,
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and David arose and went with all the people
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who were with him from Baljudea
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to bring up from there the ark of God,
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which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts,
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who sits enthroned on the cherubim.
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And they carried the ark of God on a new cart
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and brought it out of the house of Abinadab,
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which was on the hill.
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And Uzzah and Ahio,
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the sons of Abinadab,
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were driving the new cart
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with the ark of God.
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And Ahio went before the ark.
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And David and all the house of Israel
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were making merry before the Lord
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with songs and lyres and harps
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and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.
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When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon,
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Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God
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and took hold of it,
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for the oxen stumbled.
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And the anger of the Lord
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was kindled against Uzzah,
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and God struck him down there
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because of his error,
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and he died there beside the ark of God.
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And David was angry
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because the Lord had burst forth against Uzzah,
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and that place is called Perez Uzzah
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to this day.
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And David was afraid of the Lord that day
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and said,
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How can the ark of the Lord come to me?
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So David was not willing
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to take the ark of the Lord
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into the city of David,
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but David took it aside
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to the house of Obadedum the Gittite.
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And the ark of the Lord remained
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in the house of Obadedum the Gittite
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for three months.
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And the Lord blessed Obadedum
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and all his household.
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And it was told King David,
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The Lord has blessed the household
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of Obadedum,
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and all that belongs to him
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because of the ark of God.
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So David went and brought up
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the ark of God
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from the house of Obadedum
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to the city of David
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with rejoicing.
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And when those who bore
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the ark of the Lord
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had gone six steps,
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he sacrificed an oxen
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and a fattened animal.
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And David danced before the Lord
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with all his might.
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And David was wearing
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a linen ephod.
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So David and all the house of Israel
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brought up the ark of the Lord
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with shouting
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and with the sound of the horn.
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As the ark of the Lord
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came into the city of David,
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Michal, the daughter of Saul,
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looked out of the window
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and saw King David
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leaping and dancing
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before the Lord.
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And she despised him in her heart.
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And they brought in
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the ark of the Lord
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and set it in his place,
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inside the tent
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that David had pitched for it.
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And David offered
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burnt offerings
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and peace offerings
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before the Lord.
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And when David had finished
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offering the burnt offerings
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and the peace offerings,
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he blessed the people
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in the name of the Lord of hosts
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and distributed among
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all the people
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the whole multitude of Israel,
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both men and women,
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a cake of bread,
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a portion of meat,
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and a cake of raisins
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to each one.
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Then all the people departed,
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each to his own house.
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May God again follow
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with his blessing
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of reading that portion
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of his word.
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Let's again engage in prayer.
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We do give thanks,
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O Lord, again for your word
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and for every portion of it,
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for we recognize
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your own hand
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as the one who has authored
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and produced this word for us
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and caused it
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to be put into writing
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in a language
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that we ourselves
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can understand.
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We thank you today, Lord,
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for the value
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that's placed upon your word
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by your people now
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and having been the same
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throughout all generations.
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We thank you for the liberty
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that we have
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to read your word in peace,
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the liberty we have
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to hear it explained,
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to find it for ourselves,
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a word that speaks to us
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of our own lives personally
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and of the world
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in which we live.
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It speaks to us
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of things past in history
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and things to come
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in your prophecy.
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We bless you, O Lord,
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that every aspect of your word
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remains the truth,
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however much things may change
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from one generation to another.
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We bless you
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for your unchanging word today.
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We thank you
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for its relevance
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to our own situation today.
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We bless you
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that it never loses
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its relevance.
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And we thank you, Lord,
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that however many
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may turn aside from it
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or cast it aside,
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we pray, O Lord,
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for grace to retain your word
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with relish
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and with love in our hearts.
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That we might be like the psalmist
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to hid your word in his heart,
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to hide it not only
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in a way that treasured it there,
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but also so that it might
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be seen through
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in the life that he lived
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in accordance with your word.
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We ask, Lord,
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that you would give us
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an increased burden
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for this in our own lives.
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And for we need a world
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in which your people
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are shown to be
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a people of your word,
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a people in which
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your word shines out,
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and a people who come
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to speak of that word
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approvingly to the generation
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they belong to.
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We ask, Lord,
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as a people,
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as a congregation,
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that we may indeed be,
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as Paul would say
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to the Philippians,
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holding forth
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the word of life,
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so that we may hold it forth
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for our own use
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and for the knowledge
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of those around us.
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Lord, help us never
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to be ashamed of your word.
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Help us never to be
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in a frame of mind
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that would doubt
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the veracity,
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the truthfulness,
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or the authority
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of your word.
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Help us always
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to be sure
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that your word
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is superior
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to every human ideology,
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every human source
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of knowledge
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that we have.
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We thank you, Lord,
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for all that we come
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to learn during
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the course of our years,
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and yet we pray
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that your word
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may continue
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to be fundamental
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and foundational
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to our thoughts
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and our conclusions
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and our way of life.
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And so,
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blessed to us,
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we pray today,
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as we gather once again
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here to hear
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what the Lord God
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would say to us.
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Bless us,
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we pray,
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that we may speak
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in your name
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and hear in your name,
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that we may come together
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to realize,
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O Lord,
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that this itself
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is such an important occasion
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because it is so intimately
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connected to eternity
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and to our meeting
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with you at last.
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And we pray
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that your word
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may continue
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to prepare us
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for that great eventuality,
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for we know
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that after we leave
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this world,
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we will not have
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the opportunity
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of having your word
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declared to us
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or preached to us
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or read for ourselves.
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We thank you
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for the opportunities
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we have through life
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to know you in word
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and in providence.
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Lord,
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we pray that you,
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by your Holy Spirit,
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enable us to profit
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from those great opportunities
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we have.
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Bless us,
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we pray,
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in the world
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in which we are set.
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Bless us in our life
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as a congregation.
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We ask,
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O Lord,
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that you would be pleased
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to once again
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continue to provide for us.
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Provide for us,
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we pray,
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spiritually,
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morally,
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financially.
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Provide for us,
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Lord,
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encouragement
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that would strengthen us
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from day to day.
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Provide for us
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in the teaching
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of our children.
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We ask,
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Lord,
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when the Sunday School
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requires more resources
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in terms of those
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who would teach
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our young people,
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Lord,
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we ask that you would
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lay this upon
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the hearts of those
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you would want to come
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and help out
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with the teaching
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of the children.
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And we ask,
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Lord,
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that in the search
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for suitable teachers
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for the Sunday School,
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you would help those
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who presently serve,
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grant to them,
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Lord,
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that they may know
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that we value them
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and that they are
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so precious to us
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as they give off
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their time so readily
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to this important work.
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And we ask
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that those who are taught
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will come themselves
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one day
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to take the place
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of teachers,
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Lord,
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over young people
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yet to be born.
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And we pray
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that you would
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continue to provide
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for us as a people
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so that through the gospel,
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not only may
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our own lives flourish,
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but that of our community
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as well
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as we come under
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your blessing
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as we pray.
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And so we ask
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your blessing now
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for all of our number
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today who are
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in specific needs.
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We think of those
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who are ill
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and ask that you
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would bless them,
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some in hospitals,
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some in care homes,
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some in their own homes.
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We pray your blessing
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upon them,
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lay your good hand
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upon them
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for their healing
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if it please you.
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And grant,
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Lord,
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we pray to those
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too who have
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mental health issues
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and struggle at times
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through the course of life.
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Be pleased,
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Lord,
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we pray to help them.
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We ask for any,
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O Lord,
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today who have
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troubles with addictions
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of various kinds.
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We ask that you
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bless the efforts
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made to help them.
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And we pray
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that you would
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release them,
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Lord,
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from such addiction
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if it please you.
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And we ask
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that the help
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they receive
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may truly be
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of benefit to them.
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and we ask
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that you would
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bless all who help
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in that way.
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We pray that you
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would bless
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our health centers,
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bless our hospital
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and our hospice
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and our care homes.
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Lord,
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we ask that you
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would be pleased
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to continue
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to bless us
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and to provide
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resources for us
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in regard to
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this important aspect
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of our life
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in this community.
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Remember those
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who are in authority
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over us today.
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Bless them here
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locally in the Corlea.
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Bless them also
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nationally
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in Edinburgh
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and in London
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and Westminster.
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Gracious Lord,
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we know from
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your providence
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that we live
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in tumultuous times,
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times when we
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can look back
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upon a great shift
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of thinking,
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a great shift
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in those things
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that are regarded
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as priorities
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compared to past ages.
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Lord,
23:25
we pray that
23:26
you would provide
23:26
for us.
23:27
And we pray
23:28
when there is
23:29
so much uncertainty
23:30
and indeed
23:31
at times turmoil
23:32
amongst those
23:33
who rule over us.
23:34
We pray
23:34
that you would
23:35
bring stability
23:36
through the gospel,
23:38
that you would
23:38
turn people
23:39
to yourself,
23:40
that those who
23:41
exercise government
23:42
over us
23:42
and high office
23:43
in our land,
23:45
O Lord,
23:45
our God,
23:46
that they may come
23:46
to be guided
23:47
by your truth
23:48
and set in your ways
23:50
and come to commend
23:52
you to the people
23:53
over whom
23:54
you have set them.
23:56
Graciously,
23:57
Lord,
23:57
hear us
23:57
as we pray
23:58
for them.
23:59
We know
24:00
that it is
24:00
our privilege
24:01
as well as
24:02
the instruction
24:03
of your word
24:04
to pray for those
24:05
who are in authority
24:06
over us.
24:07
Lord,
24:07
we do so
24:08
willingly today.
24:09
We ask
24:10
your blessing
24:10
to be with the world
24:12
in which we live.
24:13
We extend our prayers
24:14
today,
24:14
Lord,
24:15
to this world
24:16
and to its many,
24:17
many troubles.
24:19
We pray
24:19
for places
24:20
where there is
24:22
today war
24:23
and the threat
24:24
of terror,
24:25
loss of life,
24:26
different places
24:27
in the world
24:28
where we find
24:28
this constantly
24:30
before us
24:30
in your news reports.
24:32
Lord,
24:33
we pray
24:33
that all the efforts
24:34
made for peace
24:35
might truly
24:36
prove successful,
24:37
but we pray
24:38
especially
24:39
for the peace
24:40
that only you
24:42
can create,
24:43
the peace of Christ,
24:44
the peace that
24:45
comes through the gospel.
24:47
Lord,
24:47
we pray
24:48
that you bless
24:48
every evangelistic
24:50
endeavor,
24:51
even in these
24:52
very difficult
24:52
circumstances
24:53
in these places
24:55
in the world.
24:56
Bless your word
24:57
there too,
24:57
we pray,
24:58
and bless your
24:59
believing people
25:00
as they continue
25:01
and struggle
25:02
against so many
25:03
different types
25:04
of adversity
25:05
to hold true
25:06
to your word
25:07
and, Lord,
25:08
to know your blessing,
25:10
keeping them
25:11
and guiding them
25:11
and blessing them.
25:13
And so we pray
25:13
now that your blessing
25:14
will continue
25:15
with us here.
25:16
Hear us in our prayer
25:17
and cleanse us
25:18
from our sin.
25:19
For Jesus' sake.
25:21
Amen.
25:23
We'll sing once more
25:24
to God's praise
25:25
this time,
25:25
Psalm 127,
25:27
before we turn
25:28
to a verse or two
25:30
in 2 Samuel
25:31
where we read.
25:33
Psalm 127,
25:34
page 171,
25:37
and sing the whole
25:39
of that psalm again
25:40
from verse 1.
25:41
Unless the Lord
25:42
builds up the house,
25:44
its builders toil
25:45
in vain.
25:46
Unless he keeps
25:47
the city safe,
25:48
they vainly watch,
25:50
maintain.
25:50
in vain you rise
25:52
before the dawn
25:53
and late hours
25:54
vainly keep,
25:55
that you may toil
25:56
for food to eat.
25:58
He gives his loved ones
25:59
sleep.
26:01
Psalm 127,
26:02
Unless the Lord
26:03
builds up the house.
26:05
unless the Lord
26:13
builds up the house,
26:17
its builders toil
26:21
in vain,
26:24
unless he keeps
26:29
the city safe,
26:30
the city safe,
26:33
they vainly watch,
26:37
maintain.
26:39
In vain you rise
26:45
before the dawn
26:49
and late hours
26:51
and late hours
26:52
vainly keep,
26:56
that you may toil
27:00
for food to eat.
27:05
He gives his loved ones
27:11
sleep.
27:12
Sons are a precious
27:18
heritage,
27:21
a blessing from the Lord.
27:29
The children that are born
27:35
to us
27:38
are truly his reward.
27:44
like arrows in a warrior's hand,
27:54
our children of one's youth,
28:01
the man who's quivered
28:07
full of them
28:10
is blessed by God in truth.
28:17
Such men will not be poor to shame,
28:26
that will not be their fate,
28:33
when they condemn
28:37
against their foes,
28:42
who face them in the gate.
28:51
Well, please turn with me now
28:52
to 2 Samuel chapter 6.
28:54
Reading again at verse 11,
28:58
2 Samuel 6 at verse 11.
29:02
And the ark of the Lord
29:03
remained in the house
29:04
of Obadedam the Gittite
29:06
for three months.
29:08
And the Lord blessed Obadedam
29:10
and all his household.
29:11
And it was told King David,
29:14
the Lord has blessed
29:15
the household of Obadedam
29:16
and all that belongs to him
29:19
because of the ark of God.
29:22
I want to take these two verses
29:28
under the heading today
29:30
of a blessed household.
29:33
We've seen a massive shift
29:37
in Western civilization
29:38
over many years now, sadly,
29:42
in terms of what are set out
29:44
as principles and values
29:46
that people hold to in their society.
29:48
And that massive shift
29:51
has meant that
29:52
as the Bible has been rejected
29:54
increasingly,
29:56
so what we call
29:57
moral absolutes,
29:59
in other words,
29:59
absolute truth,
30:00
the truth of God
30:01
has set out for us
30:03
in the Bible
30:03
as that has been discarded
30:06
increasingly or set aside,
30:08
so other things have followed
30:10
where throughout society
30:12
you can see a great shift
30:14
in people's thinking
30:16
as to what is important,
30:18
what should be foundational
30:19
for individual life,
30:22
for communal life,
30:24
for national life, indeed.
30:26
The more the Bible
30:27
has been set aside
30:28
and replaced
30:29
with human ideologies
30:30
and other ideologies
30:32
of different kinds,
30:34
so the more we've seen
30:35
that massive shift in value
30:37
in terms of principles
30:39
and what is important
30:41
for our way of life.
30:43
And that's had
30:44
a drastic effect,
30:46
that redefinition
30:47
of such things
30:49
as truth itself.
30:50
Ask anybody
30:51
in the street today
30:52
what they think truth is,
30:54
and you're very seldom
30:55
going to get them saying,
30:57
well, truth is
30:58
especially
30:58
what God has set out
31:00
for us
31:00
in Holy Scripture.
31:03
Truth is,
31:04
in many ways,
31:05
people's thinking
31:06
of truth is
31:07
truth is what you make of it.
31:09
Truth is what works for you.
31:12
Truth is what is
31:13
really maybe
31:14
the view of a majority
31:16
as to what ought to be
31:17
the principles
31:18
and values of society.
31:20
And it's not just that.
31:21
It's been
31:22
a time of redefining
31:24
not just truth,
31:25
but redefining
31:26
other things
31:27
follow on from that,
31:28
redefining marriage,
31:29
for example,
31:30
redefining gender,
31:33
and the whole concept
31:34
of what a family is
31:36
is part of that great shift
31:38
part of that great change,
31:41
part of that thinking.
31:43
And that's what I want
31:44
to focus on today,
31:45
how you get from
31:46
these verses
31:47
things which are important
31:49
in our thinking
31:50
of what is a family,
31:52
what is a family for,
31:54
what are the benefits
31:55
of family life,
31:57
what should be
31:58
the starting point
31:59
for family life,
32:00
and of course
32:00
that has to be Scripture.
32:02
That's why we're going
32:03
to Scripture,
32:03
where we're going
32:04
to these verses today.
32:05
What does God say
32:07
about the family,
32:08
what constitutes
32:09
a family,
32:10
and what other things
32:11
are related to
32:12
the concept of a family
32:14
as far as the Bible
32:16
is concerned?
32:17
So we're looking at that
32:18
under the heading
32:19
of a blessed household,
32:21
because that's what
32:22
this household became
32:23
and was due to the ark,
32:25
as David was told
32:27
here in verse 12,
32:28
the Lord has blessed
32:29
the household of Obidadum,
32:31
and all that belongs to him,
32:32
because of the ark of God.
32:36
I will look more
32:36
into what that means,
32:38
the ark of God,
32:39
what that signified,
32:40
and why it's especially
32:41
related to the blessing
32:43
of Obidadum's house.
32:45
First of all,
32:46
I want to look at this word
32:47
household itself.
32:50
A blessed household.
32:53
There isn't any single word
32:55
in the Old Testament
32:56
for family,
32:58
and not as the equivalent
32:59
at least of the word family
33:01
as we use it.
33:03
The nearest thing to it
33:04
is this word household.
33:06
You find that often,
33:07
of course,
33:08
in the Old Testament,
33:09
also in the New Testament.
33:10
The word household
33:12
encapsulates what the Bible
33:14
means by family
33:16
and by family life.
33:18
And it means,
33:19
when you use the word household,
33:21
and you find it this way
33:22
in the Bible,
33:23
it actually means
33:23
all who live
33:25
in one home
33:27
or under one roof.
33:28
And of course,
33:29
in those days,
33:31
and even to this day,
33:32
it means more than just
33:33
a father and mother
33:34
and children.
33:35
It also means
33:36
servants,
33:38
relatives.
33:39
In the Old Testament days,
33:41
there were
33:41
especially well-off families
33:43
like Abraham's family,
33:44
for example.
33:45
He had a steward,
33:47
somebody who looked
33:48
after the household,
33:49
who was charged
33:50
with managing
33:51
the household.
33:52
And they became
33:53
part of the household.
33:54
And also,
33:56
you had other servants
33:58
or slaves
33:58
in the household as well.
34:00
So,
34:00
all that came under
34:01
that one roof
34:03
are regarded as
34:04
the household.
34:05
They are the family
34:07
in the extended sense,
34:08
you might say.
34:09
And that carries
34:10
into the New Testament
34:11
as well.
34:13
You remember,
34:13
perhaps,
34:14
in Acts chapter 2,
34:16
sorry,
34:16
Acts chapter 10
34:17
and verse 2,
34:19
the household there
34:20
of Cornelius.
34:22
There was a man
34:23
in Caesarea,
34:24
a centurion,
34:25
a devout man
34:26
who feared God
34:28
with all his household.
34:31
And it describes
34:31
later on
34:32
how that household
34:33
was brought together
34:34
to hear the preaching
34:35
of God's Word
34:35
from Peter
34:36
and how that household
34:38
comprised not just
34:39
Cornelius
34:40
and his immediate family
34:41
but his servants
34:42
and all those
34:44
who comprised
34:44
that group of people
34:46
known as his household.
34:49
So,
34:49
a household
34:50
is somebody,
34:52
is everybody really
34:53
living under the one roof,
34:55
the immediate family,
34:57
and those others
34:58
in connection
34:59
with that family.
35:00
That's what you say
35:01
is the meaning
35:02
of household
35:02
in the Old Testament.
35:04
Now,
35:04
I'm not going to go into this
35:06
in terms of applying it
35:07
to the church,
35:08
but you realize that,
35:09
you know yourselves,
35:10
that the description,
35:11
the household of God
35:13
is actually used
35:15
for the church.
35:16
The household
35:17
of God.
35:18
In other words,
35:19
it is the dwelling place
35:21
of God,
35:22
but in that dwelling place,
35:24
the church is
35:25
the home,
35:26
if you like,
35:27
of God
35:27
where all his people
35:29
also live together
35:30
or are gathered.
35:31
That, of course,
35:31
is a spiritual meaning
35:33
of household.
35:35
But the household,
35:36
literally,
35:37
is like Obadadum here.
35:39
The household
35:39
of Obadadum
35:40
was himself,
35:42
his immediate family,
35:43
servants,
35:44
all others
35:45
who lived
35:45
under that roof.
35:47
And secondly,
35:49
let's think of that household
35:51
as the basic unit
35:54
in human society.
35:57
The basic unit
35:58
in human society.
36:01
Around the household
36:02
of Obadadum
36:03
were other households.
36:05
And together,
36:06
all of these households
36:07
made up that community
36:08
of which the household
36:10
of Obadadum
36:12
was a part.
36:13
And every household,
36:15
as it forms part
36:17
of a community,
36:18
that household
36:19
is itself
36:20
a basic unit
36:21
of that wider structure.
36:24
And you can apply that,
36:25
really,
36:26
to the whole
36:26
of human society.
36:28
Now,
36:28
let me just take you back
36:29
to Genesis,
36:30
to the beginning of things,
36:31
to the creation
36:32
of human households,
36:34
beginning with the creation
36:36
of marriage.
36:37
Genesis 2
36:38
and from verse 18.
36:41
Then the Lord God said,
36:42
It is not good
36:43
that the man
36:44
should be alone.
36:45
That was Adam.
36:45
I will make a helper
36:47
fit or suitable for him.
36:50
So out of the ground,
36:51
the Lord God formed
36:52
every beast of the field,
36:53
every bird of the heavens,
36:55
brought them to the man
36:56
to see what he would call them.
36:57
And you read down
36:57
through there
36:58
until he discovered
37:01
or Adam proclaimed
37:03
there was nobody
37:04
like himself.
37:06
Until he actually found
37:08
this woman
37:09
that God had created.
37:12
He took one of his ribs,
37:13
closed up its place
37:14
with flesh.
37:15
He made into a woman.
37:16
He brought her to the man
37:17
and the man said,
37:18
This at last is bone
37:19
of my bones
37:20
and flesh of my flesh.
37:22
She shall be called woman
37:23
because she was taken
37:24
out of man.
37:25
Therefore,
37:26
see the next thing,
37:28
therefore,
37:28
a man shall leave
37:29
his father
37:30
and his mother
37:31
and hold fast
37:32
to his wife
37:33
and they shall become
37:35
one flesh.
37:36
What's happening there?
37:37
Well,
37:37
it says there's a man
37:38
leaving his father
37:39
and mother.
37:40
There is the household
37:41
he belongs to
37:42
and in order to have
37:44
a marriage
37:45
and to cleave to his wife,
37:47
he leaves that household
37:48
he belonged to
37:49
and he sets up another one.
37:51
Another household
37:52
beginning with the marriage
37:53
of himself
37:54
and his wife.
37:55
And then,
37:56
of course,
37:56
as you go through
37:57
the book of Genesis,
37:59
you'll find children
38:00
born to that couple
38:02
and therefore becomes
38:04
a household
38:05
in the sense of having
38:06
husband,
38:07
wife,
38:08
children
38:08
and eventually
38:10
servants as well.
38:12
So,
38:13
the ideal
38:14
in a family
38:15
is father,
38:16
mother,
38:18
children.
38:19
That is,
38:19
you might say,
38:20
the nuclear family.
38:21
The nucleus
38:22
of the wider household
38:24
is in the marriage
38:25
relationship
38:26
and the children
38:27
that are born
38:28
to them
38:28
in that marriage.
38:31
Ideal is the father,
38:33
the mother,
38:33
the children
38:34
and others then
38:36
are added on to that
38:37
household.
38:38
Now,
38:38
you have blameless,
38:40
I'm calling it
38:41
blameless exceptions
38:42
and the Bible
38:44
takes account
38:44
of these
38:45
and these blameless
38:47
exceptions are,
38:48
for example,
38:49
singleness
38:50
where there is
38:51
no marriage.
38:52
That's not a
38:53
dishonorable situation.
38:55
That's not a
38:56
dishonorable thing
38:57
in the eyes of God.
38:58
In fact,
38:58
when you go to
38:59
Paul's writings,
39:00
he actually says
39:01
that being single
39:02
and unmarried
39:03
has great advantages
39:04
spiritually
39:05
and certainly
39:06
in terms of
39:07
serving the Lord.
39:08
It's not far
39:09
from being despised,
39:10
far from something
39:11
that makes you
39:12
of a lower status.
39:13
It actually gives you
39:14
many advantages
39:15
rather than have
39:17
a household
39:18
where there's a marriage
39:19
where you look
39:20
after your children
39:20
where that takes up
39:21
your time
39:22
and your resources.
39:23
However,
39:24
that's,
39:24
you might say,
39:25
a blameless exception.
39:27
The other blameless
39:27
exception
39:28
that comes to mind
39:29
is a marriage
39:30
where there are
39:31
no children,
39:31
children,
39:32
where children
39:34
can be adopted,
39:35
of course,
39:36
but what I mean
39:36
is where there
39:36
are no natural children.
39:38
That, again,
39:39
is not to be seen
39:40
in any way negatively
39:41
as if God was cursing
39:43
that relationship.
39:44
It's not to be seen
39:45
as other than just
39:46
with God's arrangement.
39:48
And it brings
39:49
its own challenges
39:51
but also its own
39:52
benefits as well.
39:54
But then we live
39:55
in a fallen world.
39:58
And while there are
39:58
these blameless
39:59
exceptions,
40:01
we know very well
40:01
ourselves
40:02
that there are
40:03
other exceptions
40:04
where sin,
40:05
the sin that is
40:06
in each one of us,
40:07
the sin that came
40:08
into the world
40:08
and set about
40:10
destroying relationships
40:13
and destroying
40:14
individuals
40:15
in their own lives
40:16
too,
40:17
where that is set in
40:19
as we live
40:20
in a fallen world.
40:22
So we've seen
40:23
exceptions
40:23
to the family
40:26
as God's ideal
40:27
over the years
40:29
that set in
40:30
from the time
40:30
of the fall
40:31
of Adam onwards.
40:33
In other words,
40:34
an increase
40:35
in such things
40:36
as divorce,
40:37
cohabitation,
40:39
and same-sex relationships,
40:42
and especially
40:42
in our own day,
40:43
those things
40:44
have been multiplied
40:45
sadly more so
40:47
than at other times.
40:49
We live
40:50
in that fallen world
40:52
and are susceptible
40:52
to all of these
40:54
breakdowns
40:55
in marriage
40:55
and homes
40:56
and families
40:57
and households
40:57
and we're very much
41:00
aware of that
41:01
in our own day.
41:02
So you see,
41:03
the household
41:03
is no longer
41:05
regarded widely
41:06
as the basic unit
41:07
in human society
41:09
because the redefinition
41:10
of family
41:11
has really redefined
41:12
household as well.
41:14
We're living in times
41:15
when people say,
41:16
well, you know,
41:16
you should get rid
41:17
of this idea
41:18
of the nuclear family
41:19
of father,
41:20
mother,
41:21
and children
41:22
if God blesses them
41:23
with children
41:24
or father
41:25
and mother,
41:26
husband and wife.
41:28
These things
41:28
are outdated.
41:29
We need something new
41:30
for this century
41:31
we belong to.
41:32
We need something new,
41:34
something fresh,
41:35
something different
41:36
to what the Bible
41:36
actually says,
41:38
something different
41:39
to these Old Testament
41:40
ideas or New Testament
41:41
ideas.
41:42
You need to redefine things.
41:44
Come on,
41:44
keep up with the times.
41:45
That's not what people
41:46
want nowadays,
41:47
so we need to reject
41:48
all of these previous
41:49
models or ideals
41:51
of family life
41:52
of what a household
41:53
is like
41:54
and what it's for.
41:57
Way back in 1980,
42:00
nearly a quarter
42:01
of a century ago,
42:03
a book came out
42:04
called
42:04
Who Needs the Family?
42:06
Written by a man
42:07
called Olaf R. Johnston.
42:10
And in that book
42:11
he says as follows,
42:13
the family chronicles
42:15
of Genesis 11 to 50,
42:18
verses,
42:18
that's chapters 11 to 50,
42:20
are packed
42:21
to the very end
42:22
of the book
42:22
with intense
42:23
personal records
42:25
of family life,
42:27
jealousy,
42:28
hatred,
42:29
betrayal,
42:30
revenge,
42:31
scheming,
42:32
and deception,
42:33
as well as
42:34
forgiveness,
42:36
faithfulness,
42:36
and joy.
42:39
And he went on
42:39
to say,
42:40
few can fail
42:41
to sense
42:41
the utter modernity
42:43
of this ancient account
42:45
full of deep perception
42:46
of the dynamics
42:48
of family relationships.
42:49
It is no mere
42:51
modern discovery
42:52
that the family
42:53
can be the focus
42:54
of destructive urges,
42:57
a place of damage
42:58
and despair,
42:59
as well as of love
43:01
and security.
43:03
Scripture constantly warns
43:05
about the way
43:06
human sin
43:07
can turn the source
43:09
of great blessing
43:10
into the source
43:12
of greatest damage
43:13
and torment.
43:15
that was 1980.
43:20
How much more
43:21
is it the case
43:21
that his words
43:23
are true
43:24
in the generation
43:25
that we actually
43:26
belong to,
43:27
where the household,
43:29
where the basic,
43:30
where the nuclear unit
43:31
of the family
43:32
has been so redefined
43:34
and indeed
43:35
in many places
43:36
so despised.
43:37
You,
43:38
friends,
43:38
have the benefit
43:40
of knowing the gospel,
43:41
of having your Bibles,
43:43
of knowing the teaching
43:44
of your Bibles.
43:45
You live in a society
43:47
that's largely
43:47
discarding those things,
43:49
that's shedding
43:50
the influence
43:51
of that truth
43:52
day by day.
43:54
You have the benefit
43:55
of knowing
43:56
what your Bible
43:56
teaches you
43:57
about family life,
43:59
about what a family
44:00
consists of,
44:01
what a household is
44:02
and what it's for.
44:04
And we have to express
44:05
our thankfulness
44:06
to God
44:06
that we are in
44:07
this privileged position,
44:09
but we have to do it
44:10
by living out
44:11
the ideals
44:12
of God
44:13
in a family setting,
44:15
in family life.
44:17
Because the household
44:18
remains the basic unit
44:20
of human society,
44:22
even if we find it
44:24
largely discarded
44:25
as an ideal.
44:27
For us as Christians,
44:28
for us who follow
44:29
the gospel,
44:31
for us who value
44:32
the truth of God,
44:33
it must remain
44:34
this way.
44:35
And the more you see
44:36
the family broken up,
44:38
the more you see
44:38
the ideal of the family
44:40
discarded,
44:41
the more fractured
44:42
human society
44:43
will become.
44:45
You can see that
44:46
in the generation
44:47
we belong to.
44:48
It's not the only reason,
44:50
but one of the main reasons
44:51
why you find
44:52
so much
44:53
of a breakdown,
44:57
so much
44:57
in society
44:59
of fractures,
45:00
of tensions,
45:02
all of the things
45:03
that follow on
45:03
from a family unit
45:05
being broken up.
45:06
And the ideal
45:07
of the family
45:07
at the center
45:08
of society
45:09
being discarded.
45:11
Friends,
45:11
we have to
45:12
counter that
45:13
with our own
45:15
family lives.
45:16
Here's the challenge
45:17
for us today
45:18
as we live
45:19
as husbands,
45:20
wives,
45:21
children,
45:22
that we follow
45:23
the ideal
45:24
that God has given us
45:26
in His Word
45:27
where the household
45:28
is to be the basic
45:29
unit of human society.
45:31
And where the more
45:32
that's the case,
45:34
and especially the more
45:35
like the household
45:36
of Obidadum,
45:37
was blessed by God
45:38
where there's a blessed
45:39
household due to the
45:41
presence of God
45:42
as we'll see in a minute,
45:43
that proves to be
45:44
so influential
45:45
in any community,
45:47
in any society.
45:50
Household,
45:51
what it means.
45:53
People together
45:53
under one roof.
45:55
People in the structures
45:56
that God Himself
45:58
has defined for us
45:59
at His creation.
46:02
Husband,
46:03
wife,
46:03
father,
46:04
mother,
46:05
children,
46:06
others in the
46:07
extended family.
46:08
Household.
46:09
The household
46:10
being the basic
46:11
unit of human society
46:12
all the way
46:13
through the Bible,
46:14
you will find that
46:15
in some way or other
46:17
mentioned as
46:18
significant.
46:19
How the household
46:20
proves to be
46:21
part of the gel,
46:24
if you like,
46:24
that holds human society
46:26
together
46:26
in a proper way.
46:28
And the more
46:28
the household disappears,
46:30
the more that gel
46:31
is lost
46:32
and the influence
46:33
is lost
46:34
until the household
46:36
continues to be
46:37
the basic unit
46:38
in human society.
46:39
Thirdly and finally,
46:41
what is a blessed household?
46:44
Well, let me take you
46:44
back to the words
46:45
of our text today.
46:47
The ark of the Lord
46:48
remained in the house
46:49
of Obidadim,
46:50
the Gittite,
46:50
for three months
46:51
and the Lord
46:52
blessed Obidadim
46:53
and all his household.
46:55
And it was told
46:55
King David,
46:57
the Lord has blessed
46:58
the household
46:58
of Obidadim
46:59
and all that belongs
47:00
to him
47:01
because of the ark
47:03
of God.
47:06
That was the reason
47:07
why the Lord
47:08
blessed this household,
47:09
because the ark
47:10
of God
47:11
was stationed there
47:12
for these months.
47:13
And as long as
47:13
the ark was there,
47:14
the blessing of God
47:16
followed.
47:16
Now, what was the ark?
47:17
Well, the ark,
47:18
of course, you know
47:18
from Exodus chapter 25
47:20
is that wooden chest
47:24
made of acacia wood
47:25
overlaid with gold
47:26
in which Moses
47:28
was instructed
47:29
to make for the tabernacle.
47:30
It was one of the most important,
47:33
if not the most important,
47:34
article of furniture
47:35
in the tabernacle
47:37
where above the box,
47:40
above the ark itself,
47:42
was placed the mercy seat
47:44
with the cherubim.
47:46
And it was there
47:47
that God revealed himself,
47:49
the cloud that dwelt
47:50
above the mercy seat,
47:51
indicating the presence
47:52
of God.
47:53
The ark is always associated
47:56
with the presence of God.
47:58
And where you find at times
47:59
the people of Israel
48:01
putting their trust
48:02
in the ark,
48:03
but not having
48:03
the presence of God,
48:05
having disobeyed God,
48:06
having gone away,
48:08
as on one occasion,
48:09
fighting the Philistines,
48:10
where the ark of God
48:11
was captured,
48:14
where the sons of Eli,
48:15
Hophni and Phinehas,
48:16
were killed.
48:17
When the news came back
48:19
to old Eli
48:20
as he sat waiting
48:21
for a report of the battle,
48:23
what made him fall
48:25
off backwards
48:26
off his stool
48:26
to his death,
48:29
eventually,
48:30
difficult though it was
48:31
to know that his sons
48:32
had died,
48:33
what really struck him
48:35
was the fact
48:36
that the ark of God
48:37
had been captured
48:38
by the Philistines.
48:41
The very thing
48:41
that indicated
48:42
the presence of God
48:44
was gone.
48:46
And so,
48:47
that word,
48:49
Ichabod,
48:50
as a name for one
48:51
of the children born
48:52
then,
48:53
was actually given
48:54
in relation
48:55
to the loss
48:56
of the ark.
48:56
So,
48:57
the ark
48:57
associated always
48:58
with the presence
48:59
of God,
49:00
and you take that
49:01
on board
49:01
when you look
49:02
at what these verses
49:03
are saying.
49:04
Verse 12,
49:04
the Lord has blessed
49:05
the household
49:06
of Obidadim
49:07
because of the ark
49:09
of God.
49:11
That's,
49:11
of course,
49:11
fulfilled
49:12
in the New Testament
49:13
because the presence
49:14
of God
49:14
is no longer
49:15
above a wooden chest
49:17
like the ark.
49:18
it's now in his people.
49:20
He lives in their hearts.
49:22
God actually comes
49:22
to make a dwelling place
49:24
for himself
49:25
in the hearts
49:26
of his people
49:26
so that together
49:27
they constitute
49:28
the home
49:28
God has made
49:29
for himself.
49:30
John 14,
49:31
verse 23.
49:32
That's the blessed household,
49:33
the household
49:34
that has God
49:35
at its heart,
49:36
the household
49:37
where God lives,
49:39
where God is real,
49:40
where God is worshipped.
49:44
What is it,
49:45
can we say,
49:45
about that household
49:47
that makes it special?
49:49
Why is a household
49:50
as the household
49:51
of God
49:52
so distinct
49:53
and so important
49:54
in this day
49:56
and generation
49:56
we belong to?
49:58
Well,
49:59
four things,
49:59
I think,
49:59
at least,
50:00
you can mention.
50:02
We can mention
50:02
other things
50:04
related to that
50:05
you could think
50:06
of yourselves too.
50:08
A blessed home
50:08
has God
50:10
at its heart
50:10
and one of the
50:12
significant elements
50:13
there is parental faith,
50:15
the faith
50:16
of the parents
50:17
or parent,
50:19
the faith
50:20
that actually
50:21
teaches children
50:22
the importance
50:23
of the Word of God
50:24
and the worship of God.
50:26
What has to be
50:27
in our homes
50:27
must begin,
50:28
first of all,
50:29
in our hearts.
50:31
Where our hearts
50:32
don't have the presence
50:33
of God,
50:33
our home is not going
50:35
to have the presence
50:35
of God.
50:36
Where our hearts
50:37
have God present,
50:38
if this is dwelling place
50:39
of God
50:40
in our souls
50:40
individually,
50:42
in the souls
50:42
of fathers
50:43
and mothers,
50:43
then that's passed on
50:44
to the children
50:46
by way of them
50:46
being taught
50:47
these things of God.
50:48
The fact that God
50:50
is in that home
50:51
makes all the difference.
50:55
That's why it's wonderful
50:56
to have
50:57
Christian families,
50:58
families
50:59
who profess God
51:01
as their God,
51:03
who want God
51:04
to be the God
51:06
of their children,
51:07
their grandchildren.
51:10
We're blessed
51:11
with having many of those
51:12
families,
51:13
and it's something
51:14
we need to pray over.
51:16
Pray for God's protection
51:17
over parents
51:19
who are seeking
51:20
to bring up children
51:21
in a way that
51:23
teaches them
51:24
the things of God
51:25
in a generation
51:25
that largely
51:26
doesn't want to know,
51:27
and not only
51:28
doesn't want to know,
51:29
but it's really
51:29
against those ideas
51:30
and those ideals.
51:33
Parental faith
51:34
at the heart of things,
51:36
first of all,
51:37
and then the home
51:37
benefits from that.
51:38
You see many instances
51:39
in the Bible
51:40
where a home
51:41
has benefited
51:42
from the fact
51:43
that the parents
51:44
or a parent
51:45
has had faith in God.
51:47
That brings blessedness
51:49
into that home.
51:52
The second thing
51:52
is worship.
51:54
A blessed home
51:55
is a home
51:56
where worship
51:57
exists meaningfully,
51:59
where the Word of God
52:00
is read,
52:01
where the Word of God
52:02
is explained,
52:03
where the Word of God
52:04
is important,
52:06
where prayer
52:07
is exercised,
52:08
where praise
52:09
to God
52:10
is exercised.
52:11
It's a miniature,
52:12
really,
52:12
of the life
52:12
of the church.
52:14
The household
52:15
of God
52:15
that the church
52:16
is has its miniature
52:18
in the home
52:19
as the household
52:20
where father,
52:21
mother,
52:22
children together,
52:23
and others maybe
52:23
share in the Word
52:26
of God
52:26
with each other.
52:28
Worship
52:29
in our homes
52:30
is crucial.
52:31
How many homes
52:37
in Stornoway today
52:38
have worship
52:41
as a feature
52:42
of their life?
52:46
I'm quite sure
52:47
they're in
52:47
a majority
52:48
compared to those
52:50
that do.
52:53
But as it was
52:54
for Joshua,
52:55
as he declared
52:56
at one time
52:57
in the book
52:58
of Joshua
52:59
chapter 24,
53:01
choose this day
53:02
whom you will serve,
53:03
he said to the people.
53:04
As for me
53:05
and my household,
53:07
we will worship
53:09
the Lord.
53:09
We will have
53:10
the Lord
53:11
as our God.
53:12
We will serve
53:13
the Lord.
53:15
That's the conviction
53:15
of your heart
53:16
surely today.
53:17
That's the conviction
53:18
of the hearts
53:19
of all today here
53:20
who are parents
53:20
or grandparents
53:21
who want their homes
53:23
to be blessed,
53:23
who want their homes
53:24
and their children
53:25
and their relatives
53:26
to be blessed.
53:27
It begins in your own heart,
53:29
it moves from your own heart
53:30
to your practice
53:31
in the home
53:31
of having the Word read,
53:33
having the Word explained,
53:35
taking time with the children
53:36
to explain it,
53:37
which I know many of you do.
53:38
I'm not saying this
53:40
because it's not the case.
53:42
But just to reiterate
53:43
the importance
53:44
of those issues
53:45
for ourselves today,
53:47
there's parental faith,
53:49
there is worship,
53:50
the worship of God,
53:52
and there is what I'm calling
53:53
shaping of lives.
53:55
The shaping of lives,
53:57
for example,
53:58
in Ephesians especially,
54:00
the Apostle Paul wrote
54:01
to families,
54:03
but he differentiated there.
54:05
He gave a word firstly
54:06
to husbands and wives
54:09
and their marriage relationship.
54:11
He then passed that on
54:12
to children
54:13
and then even to slaves
54:16
or to servants in the home.
54:17
He had instruction
54:18
from the Word of God,
54:19
from God,
54:20
to each of those elements
54:21
in a household.
54:23
And you remember what he said,
54:25
children,
54:25
as far as children were concerned,
54:27
he then said,
54:29
honor your father and mother,
54:31
obey your parents in the Lord,
54:33
for this is right.
54:34
Fathers,
54:35
do not provoke your children
54:36
to anger,
54:37
but bring them up
54:38
in the discipline
54:39
and instruction
54:41
of the Lord.
54:42
In other words,
54:43
these words,
54:44
discipline and instruction,
54:45
really mean that
54:46
in this blessed home,
54:49
in this godly home,
54:50
the home that has God
54:51
at his heart.
54:53
It's a place where
54:54
children's will
54:56
is shaped through training
54:57
and where children's minds
55:00
are shaped through teaching.
55:01
Two things always go together.
55:03
Where a children's will
55:04
is shaped through training,
55:06
through seeing the parents
55:06
as an example,
55:08
and the teaching they receive
55:09
instructs their mind,
55:11
the mind and the will,
55:12
as they're shaped
55:13
by the truth of God.
55:15
And that's literally
55:16
what it means
55:16
in that context
55:18
in Ephesians.
55:19
Our children are to be
55:20
trained, shaped.
55:21
Just like you train a plant
55:22
to follow a certain direction,
55:25
you train it,
55:26
you shape it.
55:27
That's what's needed
55:28
for our lives as well.
55:29
And it's the Word of God
55:31
that brings that shaping
55:33
to our lives.
55:35
It's the Word of God
55:35
that brings about
55:36
that training
55:38
of our lives.
55:41
So there's parental faith,
55:44
there's worship,
55:45
a blessed home,
55:46
it's one where shaping
55:47
takes place for ourselves
55:49
as adults and parents,
55:50
for children as well.
55:52
And fourthly,
55:54
and not least,
55:55
where the Lord's day
55:56
is honoured.
55:58
And I'm putting that in
55:59
because it's something
56:00
which we have to remind ourselves
56:02
is a feature
56:03
of a blessed home.
56:05
A home where the Lord's day
56:07
is honoured.
56:09
Where our children,
56:11
if we have children with us,
56:13
as we have today here,
56:14
come to realise the value
56:16
of being with others
56:18
in the public worship of God,
56:20
to be part of the visible church
56:22
that worships God
56:23
and has that privilege
56:24
of worship
56:26
and of rest spiritually.
56:28
It's a home where worship
56:30
is a familiar feature,
56:32
where the Lord's day
56:33
is a familiar feature,
56:35
where the Lord's day
56:36
is seen to be different
56:37
to the other days of the week.
56:39
Not talking about
56:40
legalistic observance
56:42
of rules and regulations,
56:45
but out of love for God,
56:47
where we actually value
56:48
His Word
56:49
and His day
56:51
and His people
56:52
and His own setting
56:56
of family life
56:57
in His own ideals.
57:01
Now, the greatest endorsement,
57:03
I think, of family life
57:04
really comes from
57:07
the incarnation
57:08
of the Son of God,
57:10
of the coming of Jesus,
57:11
the Son of God,
57:13
taking human nature
57:14
to Himself
57:15
and continuing
57:16
to be God
57:17
and man
57:18
in His own person.
57:20
That really is
57:21
the greatest endorsement,
57:22
I would feel,
57:23
of family life
57:28
because He came
57:29
to be born
57:30
into a family.
57:32
I'm turning to Luke chapter 2,
57:34
where you find Him there
57:35
with Mary, His mother,
57:37
and Joseph,
57:38
her husband,
57:39
regarded there
57:40
as His parents
57:41
as they went
57:42
to Jerusalem
57:43
every year
57:44
at the Feast
57:45
of the Passover.
57:46
And you remember
57:46
when He was 12,
57:48
they found Him
57:48
in the temple
57:49
teaching and disputing
57:51
with those who were skilled
57:52
in the teachings
57:53
of the law.
57:55
And of course,
57:55
they turned back
57:56
and went to look for Him.
57:57
This is where
57:58
they found Him.
57:59
And
57:59
He said to them,
58:05
His mother said to them,
58:07
Your father and I
58:07
have been searching
58:08
for you in great distress.
58:10
He said to them,
58:11
Why are you looking for me?
58:12
Do you not know
58:13
that I must be
58:14
in my father's house?
58:16
And they did not understand
58:17
the things
58:18
that He was saying to them.
58:19
And He went down
58:20
with them
58:20
and came to Nazareth
58:21
and was submissive to them.
58:24
And His mother
58:25
treasured up
58:26
all these things
58:26
in her heart.
58:27
You see,
58:27
He spoke about
58:28
His father's house,
58:30
the spiritual dwelling
58:31
place of God
58:32
which was associated
58:33
then with the temple
58:34
where they found Him.
58:35
But then He went home
58:37
to His own household
58:38
and He was submissive
58:40
to them there.
58:41
The Son of God
58:43
in our human nature,
58:45
the Son of God
58:46
being an obedient child.
58:49
At 12 years of age,
58:51
He submitted Himself
58:52
to the authority
58:53
of His parents
58:54
even though He knew
58:55
they were somewhat wrong
58:57
in their thinking
58:57
of why He wasn't
58:59
actually with them
59:00
on the journey.
59:02
Then you see this.
59:03
And Jesus increased
59:05
in wisdom
59:06
and in stature
59:07
and in favor
59:09
with God
59:09
and man.
59:11
Now that's not just
59:12
tacked on
59:12
to the previous verses
59:14
loosely
59:15
or just added
59:17
just by way
59:18
of an added thought.
59:20
What that is telling us
59:21
is that
59:21
the context
59:22
in which Jesus
59:24
increased
59:24
in wisdom
59:25
and in stature
59:26
and in favor
59:27
with God
59:28
and man
59:29
was in His family home,
59:31
in His family setting,
59:32
and being brought up
59:33
there as a child
59:35
in that family
59:36
that He had willingly
59:37
given Himself to.
59:39
There is your great example.
59:42
There is your endorsement
59:43
of family
59:44
and of family life.
59:46
It's stamped
59:47
by the Son of God
59:49
in His incarnation
59:50
as the central,
59:53
important,
59:55
instructive unit
59:56
in human society.
59:59
Today we belong
1:00:00
to a household.
1:00:03
Today we find
1:00:04
the household
1:00:05
as the basic unit
1:00:06
of human society.
1:00:09
Even today
1:00:09
that's still the case.
1:00:11
And today we find
1:00:12
a blessed household
1:00:14
as a household
1:00:15
where the presence
1:00:16
of God is known,
1:00:18
where God is worshipped,
1:00:21
where His truth
1:00:22
shapes our lives,
1:00:23
and where the Lord's day
1:00:25
is an important feature
1:00:27
of it.
1:00:29
And may God bless
1:00:30
these thoughts
1:00:31
to us today.
1:00:33
We're going to conclude
1:00:34
by singing
1:00:34
in Psalm 128,
1:00:36
128,
1:00:38
page 172.
1:00:45
How blessed are all
1:00:46
who fear the Lord,
1:00:47
who walk the way
1:00:48
that He has shown.
1:00:50
Success and blessing
1:00:51
will be yours.
1:00:52
You will eat the fruit
1:00:53
that you have grown.
1:00:55
Your wife will be
1:00:56
a fruitful vine,
1:00:57
and round your table
1:00:57
will be placed.
1:00:59
Your children,
1:00:59
like young olive shoots,
1:01:00
thus he who fears
1:01:01
the Lord is blessed.
1:01:03
May you behold
1:01:04
Jerusalem's good.
1:01:05
From Zion may God's
1:01:07
blessing flow.
1:01:08
Your children's children
1:01:09
may you see.
1:01:11
May God on Israel
1:01:12
peace bestow.
1:01:14
We'll stand to sing
1:01:15
these verses.
1:01:15
How blessed are all
1:01:22
who fear the Lord,
1:01:26
who walk the way
1:01:30
that He has shown.
1:01:34
Success and blessing
1:01:38
will be yours.
1:01:42
You will eat the fruit
1:01:46
that you have grown.
1:01:50
Your wife will be
1:01:54
a fruitful vine,
1:01:59
and round your table
1:02:03
will be placed.
1:02:07
Your children,
1:02:09
like young olive shoots,
1:02:15
thus he who fears,
1:02:19
the Lord is blessed.
1:02:23
may you behold
1:02:27
Jerusalem's good.
1:02:32
From Zion may God's
1:02:37
blessing flow.
1:02:40
Your children's children
1:02:44
may you see.
1:02:49
May God on Israel
1:02:52
Israel peace bestow.
1:02:57
This morning I'll go
1:02:58
to the door here
1:02:59
to my left.
1:03:01
Now may the grace
1:03:02
of the Lord Jesus Christ,
1:03:03
the love of God the Father,
1:03:05
and the communion
1:03:05
of the Holy Spirit
1:03:06
be with you now
1:03:07
and evermore.
1:03:08
Amen.
1:03:22
Thank you so much.
1:03:27
I hope you wonderful
1:03:28
for all your time.
1:03:30
All my time I should
1:03:31
tohida Him,
1:03:49
to shepherd him Melanna