Covenant Protestant Reformed Church
Ballymena, Northern Ireland
Rev. Angus Stewart
Lord’s Day, 11 May, 2008
"Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help,
whose hope is in the Lord his God" (Ps. 146:5)
Morning
Service - 11:00 AM
Psalm 55:12-14
I. David’s Friend
II. David’s Fellowship
III. David’s Response
Psalms: 106:1-7; 119:161-168; 41:7-13; 55:7-14
Evening Service - 6:00 PM
Psalm 55:20-22
I. Smooth Words
II. Drawn Swords
III. Spiritual Warfare
Psalms: 95:1-7; 119:169-176; 109:6-12;
55:19-25
For audio cassettes of the worship services or CDs of the
sermons, contact Sean Courtney (cprcaudiostore@yahoo.co.uk)
CPRC website: www.cprc.co.uk
Quotes to Consider:
John Calvin on Psalm
55:14: "We are
taught by the Spirit to reverence all the natural ties which bind us together
in society. Besides the common and universal one of humanity, there are others
of a more sacred kind, by which we should feel ourselves attached to men in
proportion as they are more nearly connected with us than others by neighbourhood, relationship, or professional calling, the
more as we know that such connections are not the result of chance, but of
providential design and arrangement. Need I say that the bond of religious
fellowship is the most sacred of all?"
C. H. Spurgeon on Psalm
55:21: "He
lauded and larded the man he hoped to devour. He buttered him with flattery and
then battered him with malice. Beware of a man who has too much honey on his
tongue; a trap is to be suspected where the bait is so tempting. Soft, smooth,
oily words are most plentiful where truth and sincerity are most scarce
..."
Announcements (subject
to God’s will):
The Standard Bearers and
Beacon Lights are available on the back table.
Offering:
General Fund -
£491.36. Building Fund - £313.50. Donations: £50 (building
fund), £15.70 (S. Wales), £20 (CR News), £9 (CDs).
The Reformed Witness
Hour next Lord’s Day (8:30-9:00 AM, on Gospel 846MW), is "I Will Pour Out My Spirit Upon Your Sons & Daughters" (Isa. 44:3-5).
The yearly family
visitation is scheduled to begin soon. Next Lord’s Day we plan to have a
sermon in connection with the family visitation.
Upcoming Lectures: Friday, 6 June, in Ballymena,
on "The Antichrist." Friday, 20 June, in Limerick, on
"Prayer & the Sovereignty of God" Friday, 4 July, in S. Wales,
on "Prayer & the Sovereignty of God"
PRC News: Rev. Spriensma
and Rev. Bill Langerak will be leaving for the Philippines
on Monday. Besides preaching for the Berean
Protestant Reformed Church of the Philippines, they plan for the celebration of
the Lord’s Supper, visit the church extension work in Gabaldon,
and meet with the Bastion of Truth Reformed Church pastors. Pastor Spriensma will be with Pastor Langerak
for ten days, and then Rev. Langerak’s wife, Karen,
will join him as they consider the call extended to them to work in the Philippines.
A devastating cyclone has
struck the country of Myanmar (Burma). While no members of the
Protestant Reformed Churches of Myanmar (PRCM) were seriously injured, three
families in the Yangon (Rangoon) congregation had their houses destroyed and
Rev. Titus had his home damaged. The Hope PRC Council, using a special fund
created to help the saints in Myanmar, sent emergency aid to the PRCM this past
week and is keeping in close contact with Rev. Titus.
Considering Orion (II)
In thy light shall we see light (Psalm 36:9b)
Orion, the great hunter,
now sets in the west just after dusk. Soon he will not be visible at all. His
hunting season is over. Orion is known for his two brightest stars of markedly
different colours and his glowing nebulae.
The star which depicts
Orion’s right shoulder, the eleventh brightest star in the night sky, is
Betelgeuse, notable for its reddish/orange colour.
The people who were among the first to study the stars in a systematic fashion
were the Arabs, which is why so many of the stars have names of Arabic origin.
One would think a bright, beautiful star with an uncommon colour
would have a name reflecting its beauty, but such an assumption would be
mistaken. The Arabic name of this star is most often translated, "the
arm-pit of the giant." Sadly, it is what it is.
The position of the
hunter’s left leg is depicted by Rigel, which means
"left leg of the giant." It’s the seventh brightest star and is a
brilliant bluish-white colour. Comparing Rigel and Betelgeuse is a good way to practice one’s ability
to discern star colours. By examining the light of
these stars with modern instruments, astronomers have been able to learn much
about them. They’ve found stars do not have the same temperature. It runs
counterintuitive, which becomes especially evident when trying to teach this to
children, but the hottest stars burn blue, and the coolest stars burn red.
Today Orion is most well
known for the nebulae which are there. The brightest part of the nebulae can be
found by starting at the middle star of Orion’s belt, then proceeding down to
the middle of three dimmer stars which form the Hunter’s sword. Some observers
claim that under the best conditions, they can see that the sword’s middle star
appears to be a small, fuzzy patch of light, not the typical point of light of
stars. However, binoculars are all that is needed to obtain a view of this
well-known object.
Astrophotographers have furnished books and magazines
with many stunning pictures of Orion’s nebulae. Modern photographic equipment
shows the amazing extent of Orion’s glowing clouds of dust and gas. These
nebulae are easily large enough to be seen with the unaided eye, stretching
from his head to his knees, but they are far too dim. If our eyes were large
enough to furnish us with pupils a few inches in diameter, we would see large,
swirling patches and streamers of greenish light. The reds and blues of the
images seen in books and magazines are possible only because of sensitive film
and long time-exposures, or modern digital photographic equipment.
For many years men had no
idea Orion possessed such beauty. The tools needed to observe his treasures had
not yet been developed. The nebulae were there, we simply could not see them.
Orion’s nebulae remained unseen, hidden in the darkness.
Something similar happens
with spiritual truth. The evolutionist will assert, often quite vigorously,
that there is no God. Despite God’s revelation to them in His creation, which
is enough to leave them without excuse, they claim that their expensive,
delicate, finely-tuned scientific instruments provide no physical evidence of
His existence. The faithless astronomer practically bathes himself in celestial
light which he gathers with enormous telescopes, yet he dwells in darkness and
does not comprehend true light. The ungodly astronomer, the observer of light,
defiantly clings to the darkness of evolution.
Light reveals much about
the physical world to us. By studying light from the heavens, we have
discovered the composition of the stars. For astronomers, light is the currency
of knowledge. However, when man’s study of light is not governed by the light
of God’s Word, he is penniless, credited with no spiritual currency. If it were
not for God shedding His light in our hearts, we too would remain in darkness
and be blind to Him. As our children learn of their Redeemer’s creation, let’s
remind them that only "in thy light shall we see light."
Mr. Brian Dykstra, teacher at Hope Protestant Reformed
Christian School
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Covenant Protestant Reformed Church & Bookstore
www.cprf.co.uk