June 3, 2012

Morning Meeting

• Hymn 85* - The cross! the cross, oh, that’s our gain

• Scripture:

  • Luke 22:41 & 42 - ”Because He loved and pitied us”
  • John 17:24 - Both of these references begin with ”Father, I will”. “Because He loved and pitted us.”
• Hymn 85 - O Lord, Thy love’s unbounded

• Scripture:

  • Philippians 2:5b - 8
  • Galatians 2:20c
• Prayer
• Hymn 213 - On Calvary we’ve adoring stood
• Scripture: Exodus 21:5 - This passage came to mind after our Brother read Philippians 2, about the Lord taking it upon Himself to be a servant. We started this morning with some ”I will“‘s: here we have an “*I will not *“.
• Breaking of Bread
• Hymn 88 - O blessed Saviour, is Thy love
• Ministry: Jeremiah 31:3
• Prayer

Ministry: Norman Burgess

Let’s turn to Jeremiah 31:3. Human love can ebb and flow; it can grow cold. “I have loved thee with an everlasting love.” The love shown at Calvary is unchanged: it is a love that wants us near itself.

Children Meeting: Norman Burgess

I’ve been speaking of the Lord’s ministry. In John’s gospel, we have seen how the Lord dealt with individuals. We’ve read of Nicodemus, the woman at the well, and the nobleman.

John 5:1-9

Today we are going to read the swimming pool story. It begins with Jesus going to Jerusalem, and coming up to one of the gates. Each of the gates in the wall of Jerusalem had names. This gate was the sheep gate. I believe it was located near the temple and was where all the sheep for the offerings would go in.

Outside of this gate was the pool of Bethesda. Bethesda means House of Mercy. The dictionary says that mercy is “kindness beyond what is expected.” I would call it super-kindness. This is the super-kindness pool. This pool had five porches, or arches. I imagine it looking something like this:

Around this pool was a multitude of sick people: the deaf, lame, and blind. These people were waiting for something amazing to happen. Every so often, an angel would come down and trouble the waters. When the water was troubled, the first person into the water would be healed of their disease.

There was one man at the pool who was the individual Jesus was there to minister to. This man had been lame for 38 years. He had been hoping for a long time to be the first into the water. Jesus asked this man a very strange question: He asked the man if he wanted to be healed. We can ask the question to ourselves in different words. Do we want to be saved? We are sick with sin and the Lord Jesus can heal us.

Do you think that the man would have wanted to be healed? The man told Jesus that he wanted to be healed, but that he had no way to get to the water first.

In the end, this man didn’t need the troubled water to be healed. Jesus healed him. Jesus did a miracle at the pool of Bethesda: all He said was “Rise up and walk.” Jesus wants each one of us to rise up and live for Him.

Reading Meeting

Luke 12:22-40

We talked briefly last week about how the man with the bumper crop left God out of his plans, and his soul was required of him. That story ended with: “So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (v.21). This is an important verse. We try to make wise investments and deposits here on earth, but even more than that we need to make deposits in the bank of Heaven. We need to go mining in the Word and get gold or maybe some diamonds. Once we get those jewels, we need to then record them by writing notes or typing them up on the computer. What the Lord gives us we need to have ready to share with others. We can lay up those treasures from our reading, but we don’t just have a savings account at the heavenly bank: we have a chequing account. We can take things out to give to others. The best part is that we don’t lose them!

If we lay up treasure on earth, it will all be gone when we leave. If, however, we lay up treasure in heaven; we’ll have it whether we go or stay, and we might get a reward for it at the Judgement Seat of Christ.

The Lord brought out that this man took care of the physical, but he neglected the spiritual.“And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; n**either for the body, what ye shall put on.” (v.22a). Now, when we’re young, we prepare for our lives and jobs - and it’s important to grow academically - but we can’t let those things squeeze out the spiritual. When that happens, we need to reexamine what we’re doing. Taking no thought for our life means that we’re not anxious for it, that we don’t worry about our life. We think about it, but we don’t worry. The disciples would have been traveling from place to place staying in different areas. Not all of us have been called to that life, but we can still learn from this instruction.

There are many businesses today that would want us to think that the body is the main thing, but Jesus tells us in verse 23: “The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment.”

It’s interesting that Jesus is already speaking of the Father (verse 30), even though He hasn’t died yet. We’re not just dealing with a God, we’re dealing with someone Who is our Father. Earthly fathers feel the weight of their great responsibility for their children; and so much more will our Heavenly Father watch over and care for us. In verse 24 & 27, Jesus gives us two examples of the Father’s care to consider: the raven and the lily. God provides food for the raven and beauty for the lily - beauty that even Solomon couldn’t rival! (And the Queen of Sheba thought he was pretty grand.) Now ravens aren’t the prettiest of birds, nor do they have a beautiful song; yet God provides for them. And verse 24 sounds like a promise that God will care for us.

“And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit?” (v.25). We can’t add a cubit to our stature, and yet - in verse 26 - God calls this act “least”. If that’s the case, why are we anxious? Why do we worry? We work feverishly to lay up a stock of riches, but everything’s in God’s hand. Why do we think of the rest? Why do we fret?

How do the lilies grow? The seed they spring from doesn’t diminish, and the soil around them doesn’t get less; and yet you end up with a big plant. Where does it all come from? It’s amazing. God takes care of them. The lily didn’t do anything to grow, and we can’t take care of ourselves. God will care for us. The fruit tree doesn’t try hard to bare fruit, it bares fruit naturally because of what it is.

“If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?” (v.28). Faith is a lesson that we all need to learn. If we are not going to think about our lives, we’re going to need faith. The good news is that the God Who is behind the plants is behind us. We can be grateful for that.

“Your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.” (v.30). Whenever we pray, we’re telling God things that He already knows. We’re to tell Him anyway, though. That’s part of prayer.

We’ll leave with verse 31: “But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.” We need to consider the ravens and lilies, and seek the kingdom.

Hymn 116 - See mercy, mercy from on high

Prayer