Come Down, Lord!

  A few listeners have requested a pdf of the following sermon, which was preached in November of 2020. I have attempted here to transcribe the sermon as closely as possible with only very minor edits. Quotes from the Bible are taken from the KJV unless otherwise indicated. That morning, following the service, I found the police waiting for me in the lobby. Though I was not fined on that occasion, the timing of the visit struck us all. This morning I want to face the issue head on; but before I do, I want to make a few preliminary comments. So, five preliminary comments. 1. Number one, there are good men — men that I love and admire — who will not agree with my conclusions. On this I am convinced that they are wrong, but my love for them is not diminished in the least. My hope and prayer is that you will all play the part of Bereans, that you will search the Scriptures to see if these things are so. It is sometimes tempting to play favourites, or to go along with the crowd, to be ...

Today I heard a reformed church elder argue from John Calvin for submission to the magistrate's current restrictions on worship.  Though he was not quoted, we were exhorted to read from Book IV.     Ironically, the following is taken from Book IV of the Institutes: Bold emphases are mine. "But in that obedience which we hold to be due to the commands of rulers, we must always make the exception , nay, must be particularly careful that it is not incompatible with obedience to Him to whose will the wishes of all kings should be subject, to whose majesty their sceptres must bow. And, indeed,  how preposterous were it, in pleasing men, to incur the offence of Him for whose sake you obey men !    The Lord, therefore, is King of kings. When he opens his sacred mouth, he alone is to be heard, instead of all and above all. We are subject to the men who rule over us, but subject only in the Lord .  If they command anything against Him let us not pay the...

  * I have heard some say that I have changed .  They mean by that that I am not preaching and teaching what I used to, that my emphases have changed, my convictions have changed, my leadership has changed.  In fact, it hasn't .  Anyone can go back and listen to the sermons preached at Faith even 8 years ago, and they will find I was saying the same things then.  Actually, I used to grieve over the fact that people seemed to be hearing without hearing.  I suspect that with the onset of the pandemic and the legal implications of what I was teaching that suddenly congregants who weren't hearing began to hear.  And that is why they have become unhappy under the preaching, because they are hearing now with ears that hear!  And now it isn't just theoretical but profoundly practical. The following is a sermon preached in December of 2013.  I have not updated it except to highlight in bold portions particularly relevant now.       Rom...

  The Lord is our judge, the Lord is our law giver, the  Lord is our king; he will save us. - Isaiah 33:22 Thomas Manton says if we take these words in a spiritual sense "the words are exclusive : God, and no other , our only judge, our only lawgiver, &c.  God only knoweth the conscience, and therefore God only must judge it, and give laws to it.  God only can punish the conscience for sins, and therefore he only can make a sin." But this raises a question (and probably from some quarters an objection).  What about Romans 13:5?  Paul says, "Wherefore ye must be subject, not only for wrath, but for conscience' sake."  Doesn't this mean that the laws of men can 'oblige' the conscience.   True - to a point.  The laws of  men do oblige the conscience, but - as Manton put it - "not in that order and manner that God's do."  He names three differences.  I will name them here and explain them in my own words. 1. "Not...

I have been hearing some strange things about my position and the position of Faith Presbyterian Church with regard to masks, social distancing and civil obedience/disobedience. I hope here to set some of the record straight.   1. First the opinions expressed here on this blog are my own and not necessarily those of my Session. 2. Second, we do, indeed, allow people to wear masks when they gather for worship.  In fact, the position of our elders has been quite straightforward.  Rather than imposing on the consciences of God's people, we have decided to allow each one to do as their conscience dictates.  Some choose not to wear masks and they are not barred from worship for that decision.  Others choose to wear them and they are not barred from worship either.  Many churches are divided over this subject.  I believe our Session's approach has served the unity of the church because where others have mandated we haven't.  We understand some...