31st December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Matthew 1v1-17)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


“First posted Year 3rd January 23”


Back when I had a TV license one of my great pleasures was watching "Who do you think you are?" It was a show that took a celebrity on a journey through the various branches of their family tree. It usually ended with the celebrity in question looking out to sea and pondering how they never knew that they were actually related to Adolf Hitler and Julian from UTV. At times I have followed my own family tree and although I haven't been able to go too far back, it was a delight to trace my roots back to Glenarm and Harryville in Ballymena.


Matthew's Gospel begins with the family tree of Jesus. Christ's birth was miraculous but before we rush to the wise men, angels and young virgin we should do the difficult work of  reading every name in the opening seventeen verses of Matthew's Gospel. There are the famous names of giants like Abraham, Jacob and David, there are the surprising names of Ruth the foreigner and Rahab the prostitute and there are the little known names like Abiud, Azor and Eliud.


But why begin a Gospel with a long list of names in the first place? The answer is found in verse seventeen. "So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations." Do you see Matthew's great concern? Jesus who is called Christ (v16) is a direct descendent of Abraham and David and is therefore the fulfilment of the promises made to both men.


Abraham was once told that his descendants would be as numerous as the sand on the shore and the stars in the sky. Christ is the true offspring of Abraham and Christ brings fulfilment to the promise of a large family. In Galatians Paul would make this clear by stating "Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, 'And to offsprings,' referring to many, but referring to one, 'And to your offspring,' who is Christ." (v16) Christ is the offspring of Abraham and if we belong to Jesus by faith then we too are spiritual descendants of Abraham (Galatians 3v29).


Years after Abraham, David was promised that a member of his family would sit on his throne forever. By the time of Christ's birth this promise seemed to have failed. The Romans ran Judah and a man called Herod was on the throne. But just as the promise to Abraham was fulfilled in an extraordinary manner, so too did Christ magnify the promise made to David. Jesus didn't come to remove Herod from the throne and reintroduce a Davidic king to Jerusalem reigning over a reestablished Israel. Instead Christ's kingdom and throne are not of this world and Christ's kingship will never come to an end. Even now in the early days of 2023, a descendent of David called Jesus Christ is still the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Where is Jesus now? He is reigning and "he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet" (1 Corinthians 15v25).


I'm told that most of us will abandon our new year's resolutions quite early in January. Today is only the 3rd day and I hope we're still actively trying to maintain all of the things we promised ourselves. If you are, then well done, if not then it isn't the end of the world. I'm comforted today by Christ who is the great fulfilment of all of the promises of God. As the Apostle once put it "For all the promises of God find their Yes in him."(2 Corinthians 1v20) Therefore my friends, do not fear what this year will bring, do not celebrate your successes too much and do not lament your failures as if the sky is falling.


We have received Christ by faith and so everything for us has changed dramatically. Paul explains it this way "And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee." (2 Corinthians 1v21-22) Nothing in this new year will change the truth of these verses. Today we confess Christ as the promise keeper not the promise breaker and the supreme fulfilment of God's plan of redemption. May you enjoy Him this year and find your rest in His beautiful face. Christ is all we have and Christ is all we need.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q75. What is forbidden in the eighth commandment?
A. The eighth commandment forbiddeth whatsoever doth, or may, unjustly hinder our own, or our neighbor’s, wealth, or outward estate.
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30th December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Ezekiel 16 focus v1-14)


Message (Alan Burke) 


In February I’ll be taking a two week sabbatical, the reason why I mention this is because Hiram is coming to preach when I’m away and he’ll just continues the series on the book of Ezekiel but he told me when I gave him the passages he is preaching on “who in their right mind preaches Ezekiel”. Every time I’ve spoken to him since I gave him the passages in October he’s given off at me repeating what he has said in different ways, last week it was “nobody with an ounce of sense would preach Ezekiel”. So it seems that I’m not in my right mind and I don’t have an ounce of sense but let me tell you this, 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the people of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Ti 3:16–17). Today we return to the book of Ezekiel after a two and a half year break and I worked out the series so that this Lord’s day as we join around the Sacrament of the Lord’s supper that it would be this chapter that we would be on and if you can get past the imagery that likely offends your woke sensitivities this is a chapter that is wonderfully rich, it teaches us about God’s amazing grace, our ingratitude that is often displayed towards that grace and also his everlasting covenant that means in spite of our sin we can have confidence this day that God has done everything required of us. 


A brief shout out because to help prepare for this week's sermon I spoke to a friend who works in Woman’s Aid and I want to thank her for her help so thank you Mrs C. Also before we get into the text I do not know what has happened in your past, we all put the face on for the watching world but we all have sinned, the exploited as well as the exploiter and everyone in between. If you know your sinfulness, then the saviour calls you to himself, for he came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance (Lk 5:32). God’s response when you come in repentance is redemption, renewal and restoration. For all of you who turn to the saviour then you will have salvation.


This parable is all about Jerusalem, the city of God. The Lord compares it to the birth of an unwanted female child. What God is reminding his people off is that he is the one who brought them out of their hopeless and hapless situation. The imagery that is given is that of a baby girl who had been abandoned. Sadly there are many parts of this world that what is described here continue on. While this might offend our ears this would have been an all too common practice in Babylon and one that would have been familiar to the hearers of Ezekiel and no one in Babylon would have sought to rescue a baby girl left like found like this, left it to die, exposed to the elements.


Figuratively the Lord is reminding his people what they once were, but how he saw her, adopted her, told her to “live”. He helped her to flourish, she grew, when this child reached maturity he became her husband. No longer was Jerusalem abandoned, unloved, uncared for. Both what God had done in choosing her would have been a striking word picture for all of those in Ezekiel’s day. They would have heard it and understood the grace in what the Lord had shown, how he had not allowed her to die, but more than that, there is much more of the wonder of what the Lord had done for the Lord took him to herself as his wife. The imagery is that of a king taking and preparing the one that he loves, giving her all the best that life has to offer, the clothing that she wore are symbolic of those who served in the temple, he had made her holy, he had set her apart.


As we see the grace of God towards Jerusalem there is a parallel to us. For we too without the Lord’s grace would be left to die as an infant left to die in their own blood, yet the Lord God had pity on us and took us for his own. He showed his grace towards us by sending his only begotten son, he redeemed us out of the situation that we were in and bought us to himself. How we live towards his grace should not be with lives of ingratitude but instead lived in response to what the Lord God has done.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q74 What is required in the eighth commandment?
A. The eighth commandment requireth the lawful procuring and furthering the wealth and outward estate of ourselves and others.
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28th December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Hebrews 11)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


In a recent devotion I made the claim that Adam and Eve were the first members of the church of Jesus Christ. Their son Abel was also a man of faith and even though he died at his brother's hand, he will one day stand again upon this earth. The covenant of grace did not begin with the coming of Christ just as the church did not begin at pentecost.


As we read Hebrews 11 two words constantly jump out as the apostle discusses Old Testament believers.."by faith". From Abel (v4) to the unnamed saints of the final verses the passage is clear, that all of them found their commendation (the favour of God) by faith (v39). Certainly Christ had not yet taken on flesh but He was on His way and the saved in the Old Testament looked forward to His arrival.


In the Old Testament, the covenant of grace was active and effective, yet it was administered differently than today. Back then it was administered by promises, prophecies, sacrifices, circumcision, the passover lamb, and other types and ordinances. All of these pointed forward to the Christ who was to come. Paul speaks of the baptism of those who followed Moses and the fact that such men and women drank from the spiritual Rock who was Christ (1 Corinthians 10v1-4). There is a unity among God's people. We are not divided between Old and New Testament, instead we are united by the covenant of grace.


As the Gospel was proclaimed to the nations and Jew and Gentile alike came to know Christ as their Saviour, there was great tension within the church. Even Peter was dragged into the controversy and would refuse to eat with Gentile Christians when Jewish Christians were present (Galatians 2v11-12). Should Christians follow the practices of the Old Testament? Paul's answer was no. Such conduct would not be in step with the Gospel (Galatians 2v14).


Christ has come and everything has changed. The types, signs and shadows have found their substance in Jesus (Colossians 2v17). Gentiles may have at one time been separated from Christ (Ephesians 2v12) but that is no longer the case. Christ is the peace of His people (Ephesians 2v14) and has reconciled both Jew and Gentile to God by His cross (Ephesians 2v16).


If anyone has ever been saved, it is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. The covenant of grace stretches from Eden to this present day, from Adam and Eve to the last person who will ever be saved. One church for whom Christ died. Men and women from every corner of this world and all of them, every single one, a recipient of the unrivalled and unparalleled grace of God.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q73 Which is the eighth commandment?
A. The eighth commandment is, Thou shalt not steal.

27th December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Titus 2:11-14)


Message (Alan Burke)


Did you get what you wanted? Did you eat too much? I suspect there are many of us who were left disappointed and who ate far too much but now that it is all over what is your focus? Getting the belly off? Being good all year so you might get what you actually wanted next year and not another pair of socks and a toothbrush. For we as believers our focus should be on something else, for Christ has come and he is coming again, our focus should beyond this life to the hope of Christ’s return that will drive us onward, to holiness. His first appearance is one that is based on a historical event and his second appearance is a prophetic hope for the believer and we are to live in response to that hope, we look expectantly forward to what will be when Christ returns because for the believer there great hope, if we fall asleep before the second appearance of our Lord as many have we at our death are made perfect in holiness, immediately passing into glory, but our bodies being united to Christ rest until the resurrection where they will be raised up in glory, where we shall be openly acknowledged and acquitted in the day of judgment, and made perfectly blessed in the full enjoying of God, to all eternity. (WSC 37&38). 


All of this is based on he who v14, gave himself up for us, to redeem us. The first advent Jesus came to redeem us from all wickedness, lawlessness, iniquity, however it is translated before you, Jesus has redeemed a people for himself, and we in this life live in response to who he is, what he has done, and what he will come to do. The first advent speaks of God himself who has come to us, Immanuel, God with us, the promised one whom was promised of old to save their people from their sins. The second advent speaks of how the Lord will come again to fulfil the promises that he has made, destroying the final enemy bringing his people into the new heaven and the new earth a kingdom that shall never end that the first advent had brought about. But he is coming again and will receive a people to himself.


Knowing that he is coming again, that what we celebrate at Christmas is not one advent but two, how it is not only his coming but his coming again helps us for we we live as those with hope. In the midst of hardship, failure, what ever it may be the hope of the second advent, the coming of Christ will enable us to go forward knowing that this will not be it that there is something better that awaits for us. This matters because in a world of darkness, where we see mans inhumanity to man our hope needs to be lifted from the first advent to the second advent, it should be the coming of the Lord Jesus for the second time that we long for, for this world is far from how we would want it or desire it to be, where many of us were left disappointed, how the indulgence we partook in added a few pounds to the waistline, it is a time that has left the bank balance in a shocking state, where marriages are stressed, family politics abound, where we realise that we are getting older, but we look to the hope that we have in the advents of Christ, the first advent based on a historical event and the second advent based on a prophetic hope. 


A hope that means that these days will be long forgotten by God’s people. Remember Jesus’ words before the crucifixion as he comforted his disciples in the upper room said to them “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” He is coming back so that we may be with him (Jn 14:3)


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q72 What is forbidden in the seventh commandment?
A. The seventh commandment forbiddeth all unchaste thoughts, words, and actions.
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26th December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Ephesians 2v1-10)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


The covenant of works died in the garden of Eden. It once offered eternal life to Adam and those who came after him based on Adam's perfect and personal obedience. But after Adam's sin the covenant of works could only condemn. What was needed was another Adam who would be completely obedient and offer a perfect sacrifice to pay for our sins. Christ would be the second Adam whose works are righteous in the sight of God.


Wonderful. Christ has done it all and therefore we're all okay! Sadly no. Broadly speaking "universalism" teaches that God is love and therefore everyone will one day get to heaven. Needless to say I reject universalism in all of its forms. Christ died for His church alone and it is as Paul says "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved." (v4-5) 


This is why we speak of the covenant of grace. Salvation is not dependent upon our works, instead it depends upon the grace of God. Grace is God's unmerited favour to those who deserve His wrath. Let's simplify that statement. Grace is unmerited or in other words we have done nothing to deserve it. Grace is God's unmerited favour or in other words He loves us and approves of us. Grace is extended to those who deserve God's wrath or in other words we deserve God's righteous and holy anger but instead we receive His grace. This is what we mean when we speak of God's grace.


Christ's sacrifice is all of grace. When we were weak, Christ died for the ungodly (Romans 5v6) and to know the benefits of His sacrifice we must receive Him by faith. Faith is a receiving and resting in Christ as He is offered in the Gospel. It is a gift of God so that no one may boast (v8). It is the means by which we enjoy the covenant of grace and saving faith is worked in us by the Holy Spirit who makes us willing and able to believe (John 6v44).


Even as the covenant of works lay destroyed in Eden, the covenant of grace was proclaimed by God Himself. Weak, sinful humanity could not save themselves. By their own works they had been faced with a sinful chasm that no amount of time or progress or human advancement could bridge. But God, at the right time, sent His only begotten Son who would pay the price for our sin. Salvation is all of God and, praise be, it is all of grace. Brothers and sisters, I hope you had a wonderful Christmas but maybe on this Boxing Day you have been on the internet returning all the things you did not want. I understand and I do not judge you. Granny is well meaning but it has been a long time since we were able to slip into medium sized pyjamas. Needless to say, the gift of salvation is so glorious that only a fool would seek to return it. As you enjoy a slower pace today may you meditate on the Gospel. Humanity has never seen such a glorious gift.  


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q71 What is required in the seventh commandment?
A. The seventh commandment requireth the preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity, in heart, speech, and behaviour.
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25th December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Titus 2:11-14)


Message (Alan Burke)


The big day is finally here and we celebrate the coming of the Lord Jesus, I reckon this will be the least read devotion of all year because you’re all busy with the excitement but think of those words of the hymn Joy to the world that many of us no doubt have sang over the last couple of weeks and answer me this did earth receive their king? No when Christ Jesus came as Isaiah 53 reminds us about the coming king that was foretold; He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. (53:3). The king was not received, but there is a day that is coming the second advent that Jesus will come again when earth will receive her king. Look first to verse 11 and then to verse 13 of this passage. For in verse 12, we are told of “the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men”. The appeared is speaking of the first advent, the first coming of the Lord Jesus, as he took on flesh, by his conception in the womb of the virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit within her, called Jesus for he would save his people from their sin and called Immanuel, God with us as Isaiah foretold. But then in v13, “we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ”. 


Paul is directing Titus as well as us that we live as people who behold two advents, how Christ has come and how he will come again. In the first coming, the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. The grace of God there speaks of the unmerited favour of our God, the God who has been infinitely wronged by our sin shows us grace to us, it is not something that we merit, we cannot earn it, we do not deserve it, it is unmerited. It comes as a result of God’s action on our behalf, bringing salvation which has appeared to all men. The word for men does not mean only males who have reached a certain again but rather it speaking of all people, men women and children. It is not that all people responded to the grace that has appeared rather that he has appeared, it is through his appearance that salvation, God’s grace in Christ Jesus is offered to all. 


Christ was born in the manger an animal feeding trough, grew up under poor parents, worked as a carpenter, lowered Himself to be baptised by a man, faced the temptations of the devil after a death-defying fast and prayer, made friends and disciples of fishermen and tax collectors, who constantly vied for position, lacked a place where He could lay His head at night, touched the poor and the sick, was chased from place to place because of the people, was betrayed and denied by His own disciples, was wrongfully accused by the authorities of Israel, was sentence to death by Pontius Pilate, a Roman, was forced to walk the road to Calvary with the cross on His crushed shoulders, was stripped, shed His blood and bodily fluid and suffered death all that we might know the grace of God and as a response we live not the way of the world but we live a better way the way of godliness that brings together faith in or knowledge of God and its visible outworking in the life of the believer. 


We are to as verse 13 directs us to live in this way “while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ…”. We have experienced the grace of God, we look forward to what is to come, the second advent, the glorious appearing of our great God and saviour. We wait and while waiting. when we get old normally means waiting in line, waiting in the waiting room at the GP and it is anything but exciting or something we do eagerly, the word wait here carries with it the connotation of eagerness, like the wains who eagerly awaited what would greet them this morning, with excitement, expectation, joy, hope, many emotions all held together as there is very little sleep had. We are to be like this when it comes to the glorious appearance of our Great God and savour Jesus Christ, as we try to turn from our sin as we live godly lives. Look to the hope that there is if the nostalgia is running high or you wish it would all go away for something better is to come.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q70 What is the seventh commandment?
A. The seventh commandment is, Thou shalt not commit adultery.
​

24th December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Genesis 3v14-15)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


If someone ever wrongs you then common wisdom says that you learn your lesson and never allow that person to get the better of you again. "Fool me once" we say "then shame on you. Fool me twice, then shame on me." Today we can be thankful that the Lord did not adopt this approach.


We have spoken over these Christmas weeks of promise and specifically God's promises. He willingly lowers Himself and deals with us by way of covenant. The covenant of redemption is a promise made in eternity past between the three persons of the Trinity. The Father chooses a people, the Son dies for them and the Spirit draws them to the Son. The covenant of works was made between God and man whereby eternal life was promised on the basis of Adam's obedience. With those foundations, this week we speak of the covenant of grace.


Amazingly the covenant of grace is proclaimed in the aftermath of the fall. The covenant of works lies in tatters and Adam and Eve's relationship with God is broken. Soon they will be put out of the garden and murder will enter their family dynamic. Sin and death have entered
the world and God's perfect creation has been utterly marred as a result. None of us could argue if at this stage, the Lord decreed "We're finished. I'll never be fooled again. I will have nothing further to do with sinful humanity." but thanks be to God because His response to our fall was a proclamation of grace.


In today's passage we meet the covenant of grace and stunningly it is first preached to the devil himself. We would be wrong to say that the covenant of grace begins at this point. It is an eternal covenant. We would also be incorrect if we stated that the covenant of grace and the covenant of redemption are two separate promises. By no means. The covenant of redemption is the covenant of grace as we see the three persons of the Godhead working for the salvation of humanity.


With that stated, the eternal covenant of grace is proclaimed in history as God tells the liar and father of lies that there will be constant trouble (enmity) between the children of God and the children of the devil. In just a few short words the rest of history is mapped out. We shouldn't be surprised when the world wages war against the church. In the world today Christianity is the world's most persecuted religion. We may not yet see it in the West, but ask a Christian in Saudi Arabia how easy life is and you will see the scale of enmity between the offspring of the woman and the devil.


This enmity would continue until a child would arrive. Jesus was the offspring promised and would wage war against Satan and his minions. The Lord would be beaten and bruised and would ultimately lose His life, but in victory He would stand again on the earth. Christ's heel would be bruised or in other words a non-fatal blow would be struck against Him. Not so for Satan. The Lord describes his wound as having his head crushed. At Calvary, Jesus Christ the offspring of the woman, would utterly destroy the enemy.


Today Satan still rages for he knows his time is short but he is not and will not be victorious - he is a bound and defeated foe who will know the punishment of eternal hell. The covenant of grace was declared in Genesis 3 and in Jesus Christ it was fulfilled. All those who believe in Jesus will be set free from Satan's chains and the one who Christ sets free, is free indeed. Brothers and sisters, happy Christmas! 


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q69 What is forbidden in the sixth commandment?
A. The sixth commandment forbiddeth the taking away of our own life, or the life of our neighbor unjustly, or whatsoever tendeth thereunto.
​

23rd December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Titus 2:11-14)


Message (Alan Burke) 


There are two sleeps until the big day. Are you excited? You may be the person for whom the nostalgia is running high, you’re hoping that it won’t go too quickly or you might be reading this wishing that it would all just go away. There is part of me that gets both for while some there is excitement I know for many of you who read this that this time of year is reminder of what you’ve lost, the empty chair is there, the hopes and dreams of children than never came true, how your body is broken, age has been cruel. 


Whether you love this time of year or hate it, when we peal back the veneer it is about so much more than it has become. There was a time that Christmas in the church calendar was focused advent, the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ but not as it has become, it was rather a tale of two advents, how Christ has come and how Christ will come again. Today in many quarters Chrismas has become nothing more than an excuses for time of feasting, indulgence, work place affairs, domestic violence, marriage breakdowns, disappointments, the debt, the family politics, the reminder that we are all getting older, the loved ones that aren’t around, and the music which exports us back and I love the music except for that one by Paul McCartney that is just lies and irritates the life out of me, ‘Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time’ and if you like it there is an 11hour remix of it on YouTube that you can put on in the background if you want the link just get in touch. 


In the midst of it all we should remember that what we celebrate is not one Advent but two. Paul’s letter to Titus points us forward to the hope that we have 2:11-14. The epistle to Titus is a letter that inseparably links faith and practice, ie this is what we believe and as a result this is how we should live, belief and behaviour are inseparably linked for the believer. We cant claim to believe if we do not live accordingly, if we live in a way that is contrary to the moral principles laid out in scripture for the people of God then we cannot claim Christ. 


Crete was an interesting place to say the least, if you look back at Chapter 1 where Paul’ repeats the words of one of their own prophets, saying; 12 Even one of their own prophets has said, “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” 13 This testimony is true. (1:12-13).  We may wonder is Paul not just egging it a little bit, you know like with a national stereotype, like British people queue, the Irish fight, Italians are passionate, Germans love rules, the French are rude and only eat frogs legs and snails. Well no he is not. Cretan's were not regarded well across the Roman Empire, we have many historical sources that are basically slagging them off, from things like saying it was “almost impossible to find … personal conduct more treacherous or public policy more unjust than in Crete” (Histories 6.47) to “Moral principles are so divergent that the Cretans … consider highway robbery honorable” (Republic 3.9.15). 


Cretan’s had a reputation but for the believers among them, Cretan’s who had become Christians they were not to be such hence this teaching, chapter 1 about the qualifications for an elder, then it leads on in chapter two by how men and women are to live in accordance with the gospel, living lives that accord as he says in verse 1 with sound doctrine. Their behaviour and our behaviour should not be that which fits the culture that surrounds us but rather it should be behaviour that is grounded in the word of God. Why are we to live in this way? Well it is because of the two advents, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. v11 the grace of God has appeared to all men and v13 we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ. The basis for living in a way that accords to sound doctrine is that because of what has been done for us and what is coming, the people of God are to live as the people of God in Christ Jesus. 


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q68 What is required in the sixth commandment?
A. The sixth commandment requireth all lawful endeavours to preserve our own life, and the life of others.
​

21st December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Genesis 3v21)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


What became of Adam & Eve? Despite them playing a fundamental part in human history they very quickly disappear from the pages of Scripture. In Genesis 4 we read about how they are blessed with a family. Cain arrived first and Eve understands the Lord's help in providing her with a son (Genesis 4v1). Cain and his brother Abel worship the Lord with offerings and so it is reasonable to assume that Adam and Eve would have done the same. Eve is thankful again with the arrival of her third son Seth (Genesis 4v25) but very quickly the Genesis account moves to Noah and our attention shifts to his great big boat.


So what should we think of Adam and Eve? Some might argue that because of their sin, Adam and Eve are lost. But here is what I think - Adam and Eve were the first members of the church of Jesus Christ. That might seem like a bold claim but I promise I haven't just plucked it from thin air. In today's reading we see an extraordinary act of grace from almighty God. His perfect creation now sees the enemy of death running rampant, sin has entered the world and the shadow of the cross looms large over Eden. The Lord would have been perfectly justified if He had decreed the immediate death of the first couple.


Soon Adam and Eve would be driven from the garden. Their relationship with a holy God has been ripped asunder by their sin, but before they go, the Lord clothes them with animal skins (v21). We should be familiar with this imagery. God covers our sinful shame with spotless white garments. We have our nakedness covered by the actions of another. Christ's righteousness is credited to our account by faith and so the same grace filled action is carried out by the Lord in Eden. Blood is shed and animal skins are given to the first people as a covering.


I believe this verse gives us reason to believe that Adam and Eve were saved. Notice that by this stage the covenant of works is over. Adam has ripped it up and eternal life is no longer in reach via his own works. Instead Adam and Eve are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. I know some struggle with such a statement but look at chapter four once again. How do we explain Eve's reaction to the birth of Cain and later the birth of Seth? She delights in the birth of her sons, her offspring, for she knows and understands that the Lord will bring redemption to His people with the coming of a child.


She has heard the promise of God as outlined in Genesis 3v15. We call this the covenant of grace and will consider it more fully next week, but already Eve and her husband know that without the grace of God and the perfect sacrifice of a coming Redeemer, they have no hope. Instead, with eyes of faith, Adam and Eve in their own offspring see the promises of God being fulfilled. The road is not without its bumps, Adam and Eve soon will have to bury their own son Abel, but the road will certainly see God's promises fulfilled.


So what became of Adam and Eve? Today they are in glory with all the saints of God who have gone on before. Some died before Christ's coming and some died after, but all of them received Christ by faith. Their sins are remembered no more, they have been washed clean by the blood of the Lamb and they are clothed in sparkling white robes. Even in the dark days of humanity's rebellion the Lord was still extending His strong hand of grace. Today it is still extended and this Christmas there is no sinner so sinful and beyond the reach of His hand. Christian, rest in that grace, you stand forgiven! Sinner, receive that grace, call upon the Lord today and be saved.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q67 Which is the sixth commandment?
A. The sixth commandment is, Thou shalt not kill.
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20th December 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (John 1:4-5)


Message (Alan Burke)


I was out with a fella last week as I was doing my rounds visiting all those people who are unable to get out because of age and infirmity and we chatted one of his struggles was why God would allow this world to be in the state that it is in. My response to him was to tell him, that the reason why the world is the state that it is in is because of your heart, my heart, the state of the hearts of every person. For while we like to think we are good, inherently good we are not. The scriptures makes it clear that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Gen 6:5). This is reverberated throughout the scriptures, we are evil, all of us have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23), we love the darkness (Jn 3:19). That does not mean that we are as sinful or evil as we could be but that we are altogether sinful and evil. This is why we by our nature are described as being in darkness for are without Jesus the light. Later in John Jesus says; 36 Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light. (Jn 12:36). For …; 46 I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. (Jn 12:46). 


For each and every one of us, by our nature we are in the darkness, from the moment of our conception we are in darkness, we are sinners. But for all who put their trust in the light, all who believe in the light we become sons of light, we are brought from darkness into the light. Let us be those who love not the darkness but love the light. What makes this so wonderful is that if we have come into the light, that we are light, In Ephesians Paul teach us that …you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light (Eph 5:8). 


We are like little stars in the night sky, shining, or like fairy lights wrapped round the tree that shine in the darkness, we are men, women, boys and girls of light, we are those who have repented of our sin and trusted in the light himself, trusting Jesus as their Lord and saviour. If you have trusted in Jesus then we are no longer in the darkness and through your lives, your actions and attitudes you shine forth with the light of Christ. Sine we are light we are to let our light shine. Our task as the church as those who have been called from darkness to light is to live in the light and to make known the light of God’s kingdom in how we live and as we proclaim the good news of the Gospel about Jesus Christ the saviour of the world. This is what we are to do as children of the light, as sons of light. If we as the church loose sight of what we are, if we loose sight of the wonder of the grace of God through the Lord Jesus Christ then even our best works are worthless. 


The incarnation, the birth of Jesus was a remarkable event, when God sent forth his son, born of a woman so that we who walked in darkness might be brought into the light. God had promised the messiah, the Christ to our first parents, he preached the gospel to Satan in the midst of the fall as darkness came in about the light that would come and not be overcome. 


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q66 What is the reason annexed to the fifth commandment?
A. The reason annexed to the fifth commandment is, a promise of long life and prosperity (as far as it shall serve for God’s glory, and their own good) to all such as keep this commandment.
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