In my early days as involved in ministry, going back a number of years now,
I wasn't particularly schooled in the traditions of the church.
And so therefore you make a number of mistakes.
I remember that one day distributing communion was my first time, in fact, ever distributing communion.
And there was a bunch of people out the front there.
The bread had gone through.
And I knew the system.
I'd watched people do this.
It seemed pretty straightforward.
You went along, followed the person with the bread, and you gave them a bit of a drink from the cup.
You said a few words, and you wiped the cup in a certain way, and you handed it to the next person, and next person, next person.
On this particular Sunday, which was my first time, there was a number of guests there at church.
And I just assumed, quite ignorantly, that everyone took it exactly the same way.
Until I got to this gentleman, and I had the cup.
I said a few words, and I put the cup in front of him.
And he didn't take it.
Well, he mustn't want it.
So I stood there, and he looked at me, and I looked at him.
We're trying to communicate silently about what's meant to happen at this point.
He didn't take it.
And then eventually, all he did, kneeling in front of me, was grab the cup just with that much of his fingers and his thumb.
I didn't realize at that particular point that in some church traditions, you're not actually meant to touch the cup at all.
I still regard it as, in fact, the actual body and blood of Christ.
And only a person who's me, who's been ordained like a priest, should touch this thing.
More full than him, because I actually wasn't one at the time.
But he only touched it.
And I'm sort of standing there thinking, he hasn't got a good grip on that cup.
I didn't realize that what I'm meant to do is to sort of tip it towards him.
I didn't know that.
I was completely ignorant.
And I'm thinking, he hasn't really got a grip.
He's looking at me.
He's just touching it.
I'm looking at him thinking, get a better grip.
And then I thought, well, he's an early gentleman.
He must know what he's doing.
So I let it go.
And so what happened in that particular moment was,
these little tiny grip he had meant that the cup, which was about three quarters full,
tilted and went bang, under his nose.
And I think that's why one of the reasons why one of the church traditions is you should use white wine and not red wine,
is because red wine has a tendency of staining.
And this three quarters of a full cup hit his nose, went onto his glasses and down his shirt.
And so I had no idea what to do.
Of course, the minister at the time saw this unfolding, decided not to rescue me.
He ducked off into the vestry and was killing himself laughing.
I could see him from where I was.
And all I could think of was, well, I've got a cloth, put my hand on his head,
and I was wiping his glasses so he could see.
And whatever sins he thought he was being absolved for in that moment didn't include the glare on his face at me,
I can tell you after that.
I had no concept at all that for some people in church traditions,
the traditions mattered a lot to them.
A lot to them.
And it's interesting that when you turn to the Bible,
that Jesus debates with the religious leaders of his time the subject of the traditions we have.
It came up often for the religious people that Jesus dealt with.
The religious guys were constantly outraged with this Jesus,
who did not observe their traditions as he said they thought they should be observed.
That they thought were actually, in fact, mandatory.
And in Matthew 15, Jesus, he zeroes in on this issue of the real problem with traditions.
He says that they have this awful potential to undermine, over time,
the very obedience in God's word that they were originally may have been intended to express.
He says that the human heart is almost limitless in its capacity to come up with rules and regulations and traditions
that may at some point have been quite useful and helpful,
but which gradually become more distorted, more corrupted,
more, in fact, important than the word of God and obedience to the word of God.
The human heart's almost limitless in its capacity to do that.
And that's the issue, or certainly one of the issues,
one of the sparks that ignited the Protestant Reformation in the 1600s.
Sorry, in the 16th century.
In 1516, Johann Tetzel, a Diminishian friar,
was sent to Germany by the Roman Catholic Church to sell these things called indulgences.
According to Roman Catholic theology,
an indulgence is kind of like a get-out-of-jail-free card
to lessen the amount of time that a person needs to suffer in order to go to heaven.
So they would have this view that you would go to purgatory,
and an indulgence could be granted by a priest
to lessen the amount of time in purgatory
so that you could eventually go to heaven.
You see, Roman Catholic teaching states that purgatory is the place that the soul goes to
after death to get purged.
Their thinking is that while Jesus died on the cross for our sins,
his death was not effective for complete cleansing of sin.
Roman Catholic teaching states that there is still a corruption of the human heart,
of the soul that remains, which needs to be purged.
And the way you purge it is by suffering.
And then once you've gone through the appropriate amount of suffering,
you can then go from that stage into heaven.
That's what purgatory is.
And it's in this climate in the Middle Ages
that saw the abuse of these indulgences which were granted by priests,
and ultimately the exploitation of the poor and the ignorant.
What happened was indulgences came up for sale.
You could buy an indulgence to raise funds,
and the reason why the church started to sell them
is because they needed money to build St. Peter's Bastillica in Rome
and many other building projects.
And the easiest way was to sell indulgences,
to get guilty people out of purgatory,
relatives out of purgatory,
myself out of purgatory,
in order that I could go into heaven.
And masses of money was raised.
But the unsuspecting masses of people
didn't know that purgatory nor indulgences
weren't in fact in the Bible,
let alone that it wasn't possible to buy someone into heaven.
He said, back in the 1500s,
the members of churches, unlike us today,
did not have the Bible in their own language.
You would walk into church as a German-speaking person in Luther's time,
and everything would be done in Latin.
And you would just sit there and watch.
They couldn't read the Bible for themselves.
The only authority on the way of salvation
was what they were told by the priests
and what they were told by the church,
what they were told was in the Bible.
And it was a situation that got under the skin
of the German monk and the theologian Martin Luther.
On the 31st of October, 1517,
Martin Luther wrote to his bishop, Albert of Mainz,
protesting the sale of indulgences.
He enclosed in his letter a copy of his disputation of Martin Luther
on the power and efficacy of indulgences,
which came to be known throughout history as the 1995 Thesis.
As Sam said, it was nailed to the door of Castle Church Wittenberg
so that all who could read could engage with Martin Luther's writing.
This letter began the Reformation,
which swept through Western Europe,
saw the establishment of the Protestant church,
and recaptured the heart,
the very heart of the Christian message.
Luther ultimately saw indulgences as a travesty of God's way of salvation,
which was one for us,
through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
He saw that this church tradition had grossly subverted
what the Bible taught about getting right with God
and receiving eternal life.
And so Luther and a whole bunch of other men and women
were moved to put their livelihoods and their homes
and their fortunes and their very lives on the line
to restore to the Christian church
the core teachings of the Christian faith
so that the masses of people could have freedom in Christ,
could know the joy, the joy of salvation,
the Christian gospel.
And so translated into English,
the five assertions from the Reformers
is that salvation is according to Scripture alone,
in Christ alone,
by grace alone,
through faith alone,
all for the glory of God alone.
And Martin Luther, when he was called to account,
took his stand on the Bible.
This was the key principle of the Protestant Reformation
and remains one of the striking differences
between the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant Church
to this very day,
that the final authority in all matters of faith and of life
is found only in the written word of God.
Only in the written word of God.
Other sources and authorities of knowledge have their place,
such as reason and experience of tradition,
but the final, the overruling authority,
belongs to God as he speaks to us through his word, the Bible.
Now that's a claim that is just as challenging today,
in 2017, as it was 500 years ago in 1517.
You see, we exist in a culture that asserts
that there's no absolute truth
that must be understood,
that needs to be accepted,
and certainly is not authority for everyone's life.
Now, ironically, the culture that we exist in
that says there's no absolute truth
is a bit hypocritical,
because the assertion that there is no absolute truth
is in fact an absolute truth claim in and of itself.
Our culture says that truth is what you make it.
It's what seems right to you,
and whatever truth is right for you
might not be right for someone else.
So truth is up to the individual,
which ultimately means follow your feelings.
And therefore, what flows from that,
when there's no absolute truth,
and you make up truth,
that means that truth and authority flow together.
If I believe this is true for me,
you've got no right to tell me it's not true for me.
Truth and authority go together.
And what I want us to come to see here,
to become awakened to,
is the authority of God's word over our life
does not lead to bondage as our culture claims.
It leads to salvation.
It leads to freedom.
It leads to joy.
That's what biblical authority leads to.
2 Timothy 3, 14, 15,
continuing what you have learned
and have become convinced of
because of those to whom you've learned it,
and how from infancy you have known the holy scriptures,
which are able to make you wise for salvation
through faith in Christ Jesus.
That's what the scriptures do.
They lead you into salvation and joy and hope.
We need to know that the God who defines all things
and creates all things and rules all things,
has worked to save all things,
has spoken.
He's spoken.
He has spoken loud.
He's spoken clear.
He's spoken with more authority.
That every other voice we will hear
on YouTube and Facebook and everywhere else
over every situation that we face in life.
So let's just go for a bit of a journey there.
I want to go back to Psalm 119.
Make the connection between God and truth,
and therefore what flows from that
is authority over our lives.
That's Psalm 119 verse 155.
Let me just go on a little bit of excursion here
just for a little bit,
and I'm going to probably hit this point a little bit later.
500 years ago, you go to church,
you don't get the Bible in your own language.
You sat there and you observed.
500 years later, we got in our own language.
I think it's appalling that we would ever go to church
and not have the Bible in front of us opened.
So please do that right now.
Psalm 119.
People died in order to get the Scriptures
in our hands right now
so that we would understand God clearly speaking to us.
If you have not got a Bible in your hand right now,
put your hand up,
and our ushers will come to you
and they will get you a Bible in your hand right now.
Okay, back on topic.
Psalm 119.
Psalm 115.
All your words are true.
All your righteous laws are eternal.
Notice those words are talking about,
those sentences are talking about God communicating.
Decrees, laws, statutes, words, precepts.
Then it says in verse 160
that when God speaks,
precepts, laws, decrees,
when he speaks,
what he speaks is true,
it's eternal,
it's righteous.
And the word translated all
at the beginning there
in verse 160
in the NIV
literally means
head.
Means head.
It could mean the head of a body,
it could mean the head of a tribe,
it could mean the head of a river.
And the word used here in verse 119
as head
is the same word
that's used in Exodus
30 verse 12.
I'll read it to you.
When you take a census
of the Israelites
to count them,
each one must pay
the Lord a ransom
for his life
at the time he is counted.
It's also used in Numbers
chapter 1 verse 2.
Take a census
of the whole Israelite community
by their clans
and families.
What Psalm 119 says
is that if you took
a census
of the word of God,
the conclusion would be
is that the sum total
of the word of God,
the Bible
is truth.
The totality
of the Bible
is truth.
But notice
the second half
of verse 160.
It says,
all your righteous laws
are eternal.
So it's not just
the sum total
which is truth.
It's all the individual parts
that are truth.
The census would reveal
that all of it
as well as the parts of it
are all true.
It's truth.
So what it's saying here
is that when God speaks,
what he speaks
is truth.
Truth is what he says.
And the reason why
God's word
is ultimately truth
and it's overruling
and it has final authority
is because God
is ultimate reality.
that's the reason.
God is absolute.
There is nothing higher
than God.
There is no one,
no thing
equal with God.
There is
not another opinion
beside his.
back in Exodus
when
at the burning bush
God
said to Moses
go to Egypt
and sort them out
and
get my people
out of there.
And God
Moses said to God
well
if they ask me
who sent you
what should I say
to them?
God said
tell them
I am.
And you go
that's not helpful.
You know
someone rings up
can I speak to Steve
Jeffrey?
Yes you can.
Who is he?
I am.
You know like
it's
someone asked me
what's your name?
I am.
I mean
what's
I'm defined
by certain things
because God
stands over
I am
I am absolute.
There is
nothing
apart from me.
There is
no reality
before God
all is void
all is formless
he is the God
from everlasting
to everlasting
no beginning
no end
he stands
outside of all
things that he's
created
he doesn't
need anything
that he's
created
never beginning
never ending
never becoming
never improving
simply
and absolutely
is
there to be
dealt with
on his terms
or not at all
that's God
every other
God
that we've
formed in
our minds
it's less
than that
it's simply
because we've
formed it
in our minds
we cannot
comprehend
the absoluteness
of God
let it hit you
brothers and
sisters
God
the God
in whose
name
we gather
today
the one
who has
spoken to us
through his
word
who we
sing about
the one
who we
pray to
never
ever
had a
beginning
there's
nothing
that we
look at
in this
world
or could
touch
or feel
a sense
that has
never
had a
beginning
the one
who never
had a
beginning
but always
was
and is
and will
be
he's the
one
who defines
all
things
that is
and are
whether we
want him
to be there
or not
he's there
we do not
negotiate
with what
we want
reality to
be
and what
we want
God
to be
God
defines
reality
that's
why the
reformation
state
begins
with
scripture
alone
and finishes
all to
the glory
of God
alone
no ranting
no raving
no sophisticated
doubt
or skepticism
has any
effect on
the existence
of God
he simply
and absolutely
is
and if we
don't like
it we can
change for
our joy
or we
can resist
for our
destruction
but one
thing remains
absolutely
true
absolutely
unchanged
God
is
he was
there before
we became
he'll be there
when we are
gone
and therefore
what matters
above all
things in
life is
this
God
I cannot
escape
the simple
and the
obvious truth
that God
must be the
main thing
in life
because he
defines
all things
you see
when God
speaks
he doesn't
just
interpret
history
when God
speaks
history
it's not
his interpretation
on the way
things have
happened in
the world
when God
speaks
he creates
history
if he didn't
speak
it wouldn't
have existed
he doesn't
interpret
history
he creates
history
therefore
this church
has to do
with God
because life
has to do
with God
and life
has to do
with God
because all
the universe
has to do
with God
and all
the universe
has to do
with God
because every
atom
and every
emotion
and every
soul
of every
angelic
demonic
and human
being
belongs
to God
who
absolutely
is
he created
everything
that is
he sustains
everything
in being
he created
and directs
the course
of all events
because
from him
and through
him
and to him
are all
things
and to him
be glory
forever
according to
Romans 11
36
reality
is created
it is
determined
it's defined
by God
and truth
is when
this God
chooses
to communicate
reality
the way
things
actually
are
that's
what truth
is
it's
when
God
chooses
to
communicate
reality
that is
for something
to be
true
it has
to
represent
reality
otherwise
it's a
myth
it's a
fantasy
or it's
a lie
when
God
speaks
he reveals
reality
left to
our own
devices
we've got
no
ability
as human
beings
don't care
how smart
we are
we've got
no ability
at all
to discover
reality
and truth
but God
has revealed
the way
things
simply
are
the one
who exists
in
inapproachable
light
has come
to us
and made
himself
known
so that
we are
not left
in the
darkness
and the
place
where
reality
the way
things
actually
are
and the
communication
of that
reality
come
together
in their
most
profound
sense
is in
the person
of the
Lord
Jesus
first
it's
because
Jesus
speaks
truth
Jesus
says this
in John
18
for I
came into
the world
to testify
to the
truth
everyone
on the
side
of truth
listens
to me
that is
Jesus
saying
here
that he
speaks
truth
when
Jesus
speaks
he
speaks
truth
he
came
to
testify
to
truth
and
if
you
want
to
know
what
truth
is
you
need
to
listen
to
Jesus
but
he
said
something
slightly
more
profound
than
that
in
John
14
I
am
the
way
the
truth
and
the
life
and
no
one
comes
to
the
father
except
through
me
he
says
I
don't
just
speak
truth
I
am
truth
the
most
ultimate
reason
why
he
could
say
that
he
was
the
truth
is
that
he
is
the
God
that's
why
and
that's
what
in fact
John
one
affirms
it
says
in
the
beginning
was
the
word
that
is
he
existed
before
anything
was
made
this
word
existed
before
anything
was
made
and
the
word
was
with
God
and
the
word
was
God
and
he
was
with
God
at
the
beginning
and
through
him
that's
through
the
word
all
things
were
made
without
him
nothing
was
made
that
has
been
made
and
then
down
in
verse
14
we
see
something
incredibly
startling
this
word
this
communication
of
reality
and
the
connection
of
reality
became
flesh
and
he
made
his
dwelling
amongst
us
we
have
seen
his
glory
the
glory
of
the
one
and
only
who
became
the
father
full
of
grace
and
truth
and
so
the
question
in
John
1
is
who
is
this
word
who
is
God
who
existed
before
creation
who
created
everything
and
this
word
who
is
full
of
grace
and
truth
verse
15
John
testifies
concerning
him
he cries
out
truth
and
reality
the
way
things
actually
are
that's
why
Jesus
has
authority
over
all
things
as
Philippians
2
says
he
doesn't
just
speak
the
word
of
God
he
doesn't
just
speak
the
truth
he
is
the
word
of
God
he
is
the
truth
he
is
God
the
place
where
reality
and
the
communication
of
that
reality
come
together
in the
most
profound
sense
is
in
the
person
of
Jesus
and
Jesus
himself
endorsed
the
message
of
Psalm
119
verse
60
when
he
says
in
Matthew
5
do
not
think
that
I've
come
to
abolish
the
law
of
the
prophets
I've
not
come
to
abolish
them
but
to
fulfill
them
I
tell you
the
truth
until
heaven
and
earth
disappear
not
the
smallest
letter
not
the
least
stroke
of
pen
will
by
any
means
disappear
from
the
law
until
everything
is
accomplished
in
is
that
the
whole
Old
Testament
is
pointing
to
him
all
of
God's
revelation
of
reality
and
truth
is
pointing
in
the
person
of
Jesus
the
Bible
as
the
word
of
God
is
where
we
have
God
revealing
the
way
things
actually
are
and
so
the
assertion
I'll
make
and
I'm
happy
to
argue
this
in
much
more
detail
you
can
buy
one
book
on
scripture
alone
it's
got
491
pages
in
it
it's
massive
so
trying to
summarize
a little
bit
66
books
of
the
Bible
with
Jesus
at
the
center
is
truth
that
is
absolute
revealed
to
us
from
a
God
who
defines
all
things
who
creates
all
things
who
sustains
all
things
it's
truth
and
Jesus
says
this
about
the
truth
it
will
set
you
free
it's
about
liberation
it's
not
about
bondage
it's
not
about
having
a
God
who
is
ogre
over
the
top
of
all
things
the
gospel
that
he
came
the
truth
that
he
revealed
is
that
we
as
sinners
have
been
saved
through
the
glorious
work
of
Jesus
on
the
cross
and
his
resurrection
and
so
the
Bible
is
where
God
speaks
what
is
real
what
is
absolute
and
so
it's
true
the
Bible
is
the
way
that
God
the
ultimate
all
important
reality
reveals
himself
to
us
with
clarity
and
with
authority
today
if
God
is
more
important
than
anything
else
then
the
Bible
is
more
important
than
anything
but
God
and
what
we
need
to
embrace
what
we
need
to
be
confident
in
is
the
whole
word
of
God
as
truth
with
the
Lord
Jesus
at
the
center
of
that
truth
and
the
gospel
the
glorious
gospel
that
sets
us
free
from
all
of
our
bondage
to
sin
and
darkness
is
at
the
center
the
God
who
made
everything
controls
everything
has a
purpose
for
everything
this
is
the
God
who
has
spoken
and
in
2
Timothy
3
16
it
says
that
all
scripture
is
God
breathed
that
comes
it
all
came
from
him
and
is
not
left
without
the
revelation
the
way
of
salvation
what
we
have
hopefully
you've
got
in
your
hands
right
now
is
simply
priceless
and if we could awaken our hearts
and our minds
that this is with confidence
that this is so
just imagine how we would live our lives
just imagine how we would navigate
the complexities of life in this world
that we see on Facebook and Twitter
and the political scene
just imagine how we would navigate
the relational issues
the implication for our lives
would be countless and vital
God has not left us
without a way to measure
every single vital thing
that we face in this life
he reveals himself only so much
and in so far as he thinks is necessary
for us to know him for our salvation and life
but everything that's vital
he touches
either directly or by implication
the Bible is God's provision for us
it is sufficient for life and faith
everything we face in this Bible
is touched in the Bible
I've got no doubt that there are plenty things
that we need to know about
but the Bible is the sun of the solar system
of all learning
it gives light
it gives perspective
it gives meaning
its truth needs to permeate everything
it's not one
it's not one among many books
it's the central book
all ideas will be judged by this book
this book will be known first and better
than all other books
and all other ideas
and all other information
but hear the warning of John 5
Jesus said in John 5
to the religious elite
you diligently study the scriptures
because you think that by them
you will possess eternal life
these are the scriptures that testify about me
and yet you refuse to come to me
to have life
it is possible to search the Bible for God
and miss God
it is possible to be fluent in the scriptures
to be able to quote scriptures offhand
and yet totally miss relationship with God
in the whole process
if we pursue knowledge of God for its own sake
it is bound to go bad for us
it will make us proud
it will make us conceited
you can always tell
if someone's proud or conceited
in terms of their knowledge of God
it comes out in the way of their attitude
as theologian J.R. Packer has written
to be preoccupied with getting biblical knowledge
as an end in itself
to approach Bible study
with no higher motive
than a desire to know all the answers
is the direct route
to a state of self-satisfied self-deception
it's not good enough just to know your Bible
we must know the God of the Bible
so what's the ultimate aim
in wanting to know God through the Bible
the supreme desire of the writer of Psalm 119
was to know and enjoy God himself
and he valued knowledge about God
simply as a means to that end
he wanted to know about God
in order to know God
he wanted to know the truth about God
so that his heart might respond to
and his life might be conformed to him
it is not good enough to simply know your Bible
our aim is in seeking to know Jesus
and to be led to Jesus
and in being led to Jesus
have life in Jesus
our concern must be to enlarge our acquaintance with God
who defines all things
and so one tip
if I can just go here a little bit practical
one tip on how to turn your knowledge about God
into a knowledge of God
is by both
and I think this is demanding and simple at the same time
so here it is
turn every truth
that we learn about God
into a matter of meditation before God
leading to prayer and praise to God
say it again
turn every truth that we learn about God
into a matter of meditation before God
leading to prayer and praise to God
meditation is simply the activity of calling to mind
and lingering over and dwelling on
and applying yourself
what you've learnt from the Bible
about the works, the ways, the purpose, the promises
and the character of God
and the effect
will be to humble us
as we contemplate God's greatness and glory
in our own smallness
our own sinfulness
and to encourage and to comfort us
and reassure us
as we contemplate the unsearchable riches
of God's mercy to us in Jesus
there's so much more that could be said
the church of the middle ages
cut people off from the word of God
they cut people off from the word of God
and therefore they cut people off from God
it was a capital crime in the 1400s
in Britain to translate the scriptures
into the language of the people
a capital crime
they burn people alive
for even reading fragments
of the English Bible
taking a page out of the Bible
I mean just a page
you got burnt at the stake for that
including children
they burnt children at the stake
it was an evil
that ultimately descended people
into darkness and fear
but Martin Luther
as a German monk
had access to the Bible
he could read Latin
and he discovered something
in his reading of the Bible
something that he had not heard
from the priests
something he had not heard
from the official doctrines
of the church
and it was simply this
sinners are attractive
because they are loved
they are not loved
because they are attractive
he read that in Romans
and joy filled his heart
Luther discovered in the Bible
that God is glorious
that he is beautiful
that he is good
that he is kind
that he is generous
he discovered
it was possible to know God
and enjoy him through his word
and this year
we celebrate
500 years
since
that discovery
went public
it was all about
the recovery
of beautiful truth
that has changed
Luther's life
and changed the lives
of millions of people
around this world
from all different cultures
and backgrounds
even from kids
as 2 Timothy says
even from your infancy
you could know
the way of salvation
so may we be thankful
that we have the scriptures
in our language
and that we can know them
and that they can make us
wise for salvation
and one of our commitments
as a church
standing in that
500 year tradition
is written on the board
out there
Christ centred
Bible saturation
is a core value
of our church
it says that
we value individual
and corporate
biblical reflection
and assessment
of life and ministry
of authority
of Bible teaching
and preaching
over reason
experience
and tradition
the God
centredness
of all biblical truth
passing on to the next generation
of biblically informed
love for God
every believer
taking responsibility
to be spiritually
and physically prepared
to listen
and obey
as God's word is taught
every believer
having a vital
personal study time
where the Bible
is read
meditated on
memorized
prayed over
and obeyed
so let me just
stand aside here
very quickly
we're signing up
for community groups
the core thing
we do in community groups
is to sit around
and study the scriptures
and pray
and encourage each other
pastor one another
through God's word
we're signing up
for them
in the next couple of weeks
join a community group
that's first of all
second thing
Adrian's running a course
in the next couple of weeks
soon
it's in the bulletin anyway
on investigating Christianity
through the word
understanding who God is
and what he's done for us
so Adrian stick your hand up
so we know who you are
go and see Adrian
if you want to sign up
for that one
and thirdly
if you haven't done it already
get involved
in a personal
personal
walk with God
the battle
for the authority
of God's word
in our lives
is a personal battle
it's not just one
that the church
holds to
it's a personal battle
is it easier for you
to go to the opinions
of others
than it is to go
to God's word
how often are you
soaking yourself
in God's word
this battle
is a personal battle
that starts with me
I've
a couple of you know
I've been going through
a period lately
of what I would call
spiritual dryness
and one of the things
that has helped me
enormously
is to get a help
like this
buying from Curon
and a bunch of other places
a help like this
of daily devotions
and I've been going
just slowly
through Galatians
and rediscovering
and applying
the gospel
the core teachings
of the Bible
the gospel
the Christian message
into my life
grab one of these
or something like it
and get into the word
yourself
you can only be
malnourished
if all you're relying
upon is a sermon
from me
week in week out
that's all you're doing
and as we look
at our future together
do we have confidence
in the word of God
to accomplish
the work of God
in our life
and in this community
temptation of our society
to say get rid of it
it's archaic
do we have confidence
that God speaks
through his word
and when he speaks
through his word
life
and joy
and salvation
is the result
so as we pursue
Christ-centered Bible
situation
for the next 500 years
here at St. Paul's
may our reading
our memorizing
our songs
our ministries
our missions
all of our theological
questioning
all of our relational
issues
be submitted
to the word of God
fads and fashions
will rise
and they will fall
our fame
will rise
and it will fall
but the word of God
stands forever
Isaiah 40
the word of God
will outlive you
so submit to it
all people are like grass
and all their faithfulness
is like the flowers
of the field
the grass withers
and the flowers fall
because the breath
of the Lord
blows on them
surely the people
are grass
the grass withers
and the flowers fall
but the word of God
endures
forever
let's pray
gracious father
how thankful we are
for William Tyndall
480
something years ago
he was strangled
to death
and his body
was burnt
so that we could
have your word
in our laps
today
in this church
so father
may there be
nothing trivial
about the way
we speak
about your word
may there be
nothing trivial
about the way
that we treat it
here as a church
or we as individuals
not primarily
because we owe
a debt to Tyndall
but because
it is you
you
the God
who sits over
all things
speaking to us
and without
your word to us
we are dead
we are in
darkness
father we
we pray
that the children
amongst us
will be
shaped
by the
reverence
they see
from us
adults
coming in
from your word
and to your word
may there be
thousands
would grow up
revering
the God
of
the Bible
and the word
of the God
of the Bible
and so father
we pray
for transformation
in the lives
of our culture
and our society
and we pray
for transformation
amongst us
cause
and awakening
to the truth
as you revealed
it from yourself
from your word
to us
we ask it
for your glory
that your name
might be praised
above all things
amen