TPW 57 Hungering for the Word of God & Worshipping Together in Church as Entire Families

Often right before the beginning of the public reading of scripture and the preaching of the word children are dismissed.

From the worship service.

Our Reformation forefathers and their successors and the Puritans would recoil in horror at the sight. Welcome to the Protestant Witness. This is Pastor Patrick Hines here at Gridwell Heights Presbyterian Church in Kingsport, Tennessee.

And today I'd like to post the final Message that I preached on the issue of the regulative principle and this particular Sermon what I emphasized is that in the Word of God all the way through from the beginning to the end when it comes to the gathered people of God for worship.

The assumption is that everybody including the children are to be there in worship. And so in this particular message I try to emphasize the importance of that and also the consequences of not having the family together For worship services in Christ's Church.

So without any more Preface, I hope that you'll take the time to listen to this. I know this is a huge problem in churches today the way that age segregation and youth ministry are done today has been to the detriment of our children and future generations and we're losing Generation after generation of people.

To the world, I think in part because they've never really been part of the local church we've pushed them off to the side and have not even included them in the in the worship service and have gotten them used to Having peer-oriented groups that are supposed to do things that they like instead of making sure that the older segments of congregations Have regular contact with the younger so that they can rub off some wisdom and godliness upon them.

So without any more introduction, I hope you find this to be out of fine. Let's pray together, please father, thank you for Giving us the words of eternal life. For speaking to us. Let's remember what our Lord taught us man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God and These words indeed have proceeded from your mouth.

And when we read your word What we are reading all the very words of God and what scripture says is what God has said. It's what you have said. Let's remember why we are here. We are here to meet with the triune God and fellowship with one another to glorify your name together.

You are the audience of all that we do here and it is for your sake. It is to please you that we do everything we do. May our minds and hearts be engaged in the acts of worship and listening to what your word says.

Receiving its truths with faith and love laying them up on our hearts and practicing them in our lives. We ask in Christ's name. Amen. Please take your Bibles in terms of first Peter chapter 2. First Peter chapter 2 we have two scripture readings this morning.

First Peter 2 Verses 1 2. First Peter chapter 2 verses 1 2 is the first one and the Second one is back in the book of Exodus and we'll go there after we read the first one. First Peter chapter 2 verses 1 2.

This is God's Word. Therefore Putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander like newborn babies. Long for the pure milk of the word so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation and.

Then our second scripture reading is Exodus 12 26 and 27. Exodus chapter 12 verses 26 and 27. Exodus 12 verses 26 and 27. Exodus 12 verses 26 and 27. This is God's Word and When your children say to you What does this right mean to you?

You shall say it is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord Who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when he smote the Egyptians? But spared our homes and the people bowed low and worshiped.

May God bless the reading of his infallible word. The last two Sunday mornings we've looked in some detail at the biblical truth that God's service of worship From his redeemed people is to be regulated by Scripture alone regarding the elements of the service of worship.

God delights in and commands from us prayer and the reading of Scripture sound preaching. Hearing the Word of God with faith the singing of Psalms the due administration and worthy receiving of the sacraments instituted by Christ.

Those are all parts of the ordinary religious worship of God along with religious oaths and vows. Solemn fastings and thanksgivings upon special occasions. Our confession says now folks. Those are the non-negotiables and we talked about those the last two Sundays.

Those are what we have to do for our gathering on Sunday to be called a Christian Gathering of worship. Those are non-negotiables a gathering of Christian people on the Lord's Day Sabbath where the Bible is not opened or read or heard that would not be a proper worship service.

A Gathering of Christian people on a Lord's Day Sabbath where no prayer was offered would not be a proper Worship service because one of the essential elements would be missing from it. We are not to add to Scripture nor Subtract from Scripture regarding how God desires his people to worship him on the Sabbath day when they gather for that sacred task.

I hope that that has been made very clear from Scripture the last two Sundays now the circumstances of worship as opposed to the elements the Circumstances of worship whether we have a building a pulpit a pew whether we wear suits use the sound system have certain instruments, etc.

That is to be ordered not necessarily by Scripture alone, but by the light of nature and Christian prudence. Which are always to be governed by the general rules of the word. So those are the basic principles that the scriptures give us on what we're supposed to do as Christians in the church on the Lord's Day.

Now I've given you a two-point outline. This is our final message on the regulative principle and the two-point outline there is in your bulletin. The first point is active engagement in worship. Active engagement in worship.

Now that we've seen what God requires and what he forbids in worship, what is our role as worshippers? The sad tragedy and indeed a great evil in our time is that so many professing Christians today Go to church to be entertained.

Rather than to express their love for Jesus Christ by singing the hymns. Listening carefully to the reading and preaching of the word and making the pastoral prayers their own. Always remember that great biblical truth.

God is the audience of worship. I hope that for the rest of your life. Kids young people for the rest of your life when you go to any church anywhere that you'll be thinking that who's the audience of this.

Who's the audience of this who is watching this? Who is this for it is for God. God is the audience of worship. We don't go to worship to be entertained. Passively, we do not go to take in a performance or a show or a stand-up comedy act.

We go to engage actively in something very sacred. We go to engage in something active. And here's the most important point that I want you to see from the Word of God today Worship is something that you do.

Worship is something you engage in. Worship does not happen to you. Worship doesn't happen to you. It's something that you do and the second point in the outline and worship is something that we do as.

Families.

Worship is something that we engage in it doesn't happen to us. We do it. We are active participants in it. And it's something that we do as Families. We are participants in sacred tasks and divine duties when we gather as the people of God.

One of the most encouraging things that anyone has ever said to me after a sermon was. I feel tired after listening to you. That's good. I'm trying to wear you out. That's someone who engaged worship, that's a good thing.

Worship is not passive. It's it's active we engage With God. We engage in listening. We engage in prayer. And for so many people in our culture today They go to church thinking well, I shouldn't have to discipline my wandering mind.

I Shouldn't have to discipline myself at all. What you do should be like a rock concert and it should keep us it should keep our attention. And you should be entertaining us and you should be funny and witty and everything else.

But we are here to engage in prayer to engage in a Disciplined thing something that God has called us to. These are duties divine and important tasks. We engage in rejoicing. We engage sometimes in mourning over our own sin.

But either way our whole person is engaged in sacred tasks. When we come into the service of worship on the Lord's Day Sabbath in church. Our emotions are involved. We can feel the crushing burden of conviction of sin.

Sometimes we feel joy. Unspeakable and full of glory that our heavenly resting place of blessedness and peace awaits us. The unfulfillable longing to at last be with the Lord in heaven that consumes our whole being.

The terrible sadness and heartache over our lost loved ones. We feel that in service to the incredible humbling that the grace of God Brings to us that Jesus would die to make wretches like us his treasured possession is an amazing emotional thing.

Worship ought to tire us out a little bit. But what a joy it is to be worn out for the right reason, isn't it? To be worn out from loving the Lord Jesus who bled and died to set us free and to give us all things and to.

Away from idolatry. Away from the life of Sabbath breaking to be part of his church. It's a great thing to love him by giving him back a sacrifice of praise by engaging with him in worship. What could be more humbling than acknowledging that all we have is Christ?

It is his cross alone that brings us full pardon of sin. It is his perfect and pristine righteousness alone that clothes our sinful nakedness and justifies us before his terrible tribunal. It is God's loving and altogether Astounding and gracious verdict that we are now adopted into his family once and for all eternity and that that sacred bond and blood-bought Adoption covers us and cannot in any way ever be taken away or broken by anything.

The world can have its fame. It's fading glorious fickle praises the passing pleasures of sin. But Lord Jesus give us a greater heart to know you a Stronger hatred of our remaining and dwelling sin a burden for the lost a hunger for the Word of God and a love for our precious Brothers and sisters in our local church to whom we are all joined together in the family of God.

Yes, indeed for the redeemed child of God worship is draining and it should wear us out. God deserves a zealous and a hearty sacrifice of praise from his blood-bought children. Now look at the passage if you want to turn back to 1st Peter 2 1 2 very key critical important Things revealed by God in this precious two verses.

1st Peter 2 verses 1 2. Therefore Putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn babies long for the pure milk of the Word so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation.

Now in our church of late the the image of longing for milk like a newborn baby has special poignancy. For a number of folks here and will shortly for others the expression used in verse 1 though is a very vivid phrase newborn Babies RT.

Gonna top ref a newborn babies. This is not talking about toddlers. This is talking about babies that are just a few days old. Okay, this is the the tiniest of newborns that are being spoken of here and that term long for that's used here or desire.

It refers to the deepest of longings that a human being can have. These are the deepest longings that are possible for image bearers of God that same word for longing where it says desire. Like a newborn baby the pure milk of the Word that very same term is used in 2nd Corinthians 5 for the longing that the Christian Has to be in heaven.

To be with Jesus at last. Yes, indeed our longing for the Word of God will be on that level and the exhortation here and 1st Peter 2 is Forceful regarding how we are to long for the Word of God here. It says in the opening verse there to do that.

Well, what do you need to do first put aside all malice? All deceit hypocrisy envy slander. Folks don't come to church with a heart full of hatred towards a bunch of other people in your life. It's a very interesting way that that's prefaced long for the pure milk of the Word.

How come to church first and put away all your negative feelings about other human beings? Lay aside all malice all envy of others all of that lay it aside. Don't come to church with a heart full of hate lies hypocrisy envy and slander towards other people.

Lay aside those things be like a newborn baby. Those newborn babies when their stomachs begin to cramp and to hurt them for lack of milk. They devote the entirety of their being to making that known. It's really a sad thing to see how upset they get it really is and yet the scriptures themselves are commanding us to be like.

That.

With regard to the Word of God like a newborn baby Who shrieks? Who shrieks and cries out and kicks its little legs and arms and wants the answer to the stomach cramps right now. Let us remember someone else who was hungry once in the face of brutal temptation and hunger pains Piercing his holy stomach which ached for food in the face of the devil himself saying if you really are What your father just said at your baptism.

The Son of God then command these stones to become bread and satiate.

That hunger.

Remember what Jesus said back to him? He said it is written man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. If only for a day perhaps Our souls would feel the piercing Hunger that they have for the Word of God in the same way that physical hunger pierces us.

There would never be a day that our Bibles sat unopened in our homes. There would not be those occasions in which we make the conscious choices to compromise with sin. My folks in the last two Sundays We've criticized the show business entertainment shallow drivel that has done and so much of evangelical Christianity in America today, which which really has become a competitive marketplace with all of its glitz and nonsense.

But I want to ask all of us what it is that we long for. When we hear the alarm clock on Sunday mornings. When you got a walk around your house and you keep looking at the clock make sure You're gonna get here on time.

You clean yourself up if you have children you get them cleaned up dressed diapered. When you make sure that you leave with enough time to get here, what is it that you long for? What's in your heart mind?

In the previous two sermons we've emphasized that worship is for the triune God and indeed it is. We are here not to be entertained or amused but to meet with. Love adore worship and glorify the creator of all that you see in this whole world.

All that you see in the clear night sky with this majestic wonders and the heavenly hosts. We are to worship the creator of all of that. That's why we're here. But we need to ask another question about why we're here.

Don't you long to hear a word from God? I? Remember listening to R .C. Sproul one of the one of the early tape series that tells you how old I am. One of the early tape series. I got those little audio cassettes for the younger generation.

Used to listen to R .C. Sproul. I remember him saying when before he was a pastor when he used to just go to church. He longed he said. I longed to hear a word from God. I wanted him to speak directly to me.

I wanted someone to open the Word of God and teach me what it said. Doesn't that burn in your heart, too? I? Want to hear what my heavenly father has to say to me his son or his daughter. What needs to be corrected and changed?

What do I need to be rebuked for what at words of encouragement do I need? How do I need to understand the way the world works better from your word? Now notice verse 2 again of first Peter 2. Why are we commanded to long for the pure milk of the word like newborn babies so that by it you may grow in?

Respect to salvation. Now this obviously does not mean that Salvation is a process that we grow and get more and more saved or anything like that. This is the broader usage of the term salvation. This is the broader that includes our sanctification our growth and holiness in our Christian lives.

Just to emphasize to you again to make sure there's no confusion here. We are saved and justified before God legally at the exact moment when God grants repentance unto life and faith in Christ. Justification is a forensic legal declaration.

Made by God as judge once for all eternity our final verdict before God on the day of judgment is forever Changed from condemned by the law to justify before God's law the moment we believe Jesus's cross work is accepted in our behalf as the full payment of all of our sins and his life of obedience is put into Our legal account and there cannot ever be there cannot ever be any legal condemnation to those who truly know Christ the Savior.

Romans 8 32 he who did not spare his own son, but delivered him up for us all. How shall he not with him also freely give us all things who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies you see why the idea of a final salvation by works is not possible.

Once a person is justified no charge can be brought against them. There is no there is no evaluation of works to get you into heaven. It can't happen. Who is he who condemns it is Christ who died? Furthermore is also risen who is even at the right hand of God who makes intercession for us who shall separate us from the love of Christ.

Paul said that in 2nd Corinthians 5 14 for the love of Christ compels us because we judge thus that if one died for all then All died and he died for all here. Listen to this part. That those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him who died for them and rose again.

The redeemed children of God are too long for the pure milk of the word because that's true of us. We want to live the rest of the time that we have the short Bit of time that we've been given. We want to live that for him for the one who died for us and rose again.

Not for ourselves, but for him who died for us and rose again and so the pure milk of the word is what strengthens us and causes us to grow in grace and in holiness and overcoming sin. We want to shine his light more and more we want to grow.

That's what we're here for to worship him and to grow in our walk with Christ. We want to shine his light. We want our spouses if we're married to be loved as no spouse has ever been loved by Their husband or wife.

We want our children to know that their father and mother loved them and we wanted them to go to heaven. We want our employers to know that Christ is alive. We can see that we want our employers to see it in us and our Diligence our dedication our integrity and then the love that permeates the way we work.

Paul goes on therefore from now on we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh yet now we know him thus no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he's a new creation.

All things have passed away behold. All things have become new we desire the pure milk of the word. Because we want to be more and more and more of that new creation. And we want the old man the old woman to die more and more and to go away more and more.

We want to grow thereby by the word that that soul nourishing milk of the word of God. We're new creations. Our pasts are dead and buried with Christ. We are dead and buried with Christ. There is a new principle of self giving love just like God has loved us in our hearts.

And if we would not stagnate in our knowledge of God and if we would go on to maturity and godliness. We must discipline ourselves for the purpose of godliness and that means we go to church. You know in my generation there was a.

There was a real disparaging of you're not a Christian just because you go to church and eventually we had to learn to say yes. But there's no such thing as a Christian that doesn't go to church. There's no such thing as a Christian that doesn't go to church.

The church is the context for Christian growth and discipleship. We hold fast to the words of Scripture and to the great teachings and doctrines which are our life. No matter how we feel no matter what the result no matter what happens.

Our duty is obedience to God. How we feel and the results are God's department. Our duty is simply faithfulness. You may come to church and leave still feeling down and depressed. You may come to church and still feel anxious still be worried about various things.

But Paul said it so well I planted a pollis water. But God gave the increase. God is the one who makes his word to come alive. God will grow you as he sees fit. He may take you through a period of real trial.

That's not an excuse to stop coming to church. It's not an excuse to think it's just not working anymore. Our duty is obedience faithfulness No power on earth. No power on earth can make you grow as a Christian.

No power in this world. Growth as a Christian does not grow in nature's garden. It's something that God gives through his word through that milk of the word that can nourish your souls and make you better and make.

You grow.

We are saved by grace kept by grace. We grow by grace, but we must go with the newborn babies longing to the fountainhead of life. And you know what? It's okay to pray. It's okay to pray Lord. I don't have that longing for the word that this passage speaks of which you created in me.

That word of the Living God make me long for it like a newborn baby longs for milk. That pure milk is how the stubborn strongholds of sin are at last broken and Jesus Christ in us emerges more and more.

I want to ask you a question and myself a question do the demons of your past rear their heads from time to time? Do the sins you once walked in and wore as a red-hot iron yoke around your neck? Do they often stick in your mind like Satan's darts to remind you what you once were?

Remember dear Christians the ruined conscience that you once had in those sins. Remember the shame and the regret that you once lived with every day. Remember the sickness your soul felt like when you ate too much dessert.

So that the thought of another bite of it made you nauseous. Just remember what Peter wrote Peter. Peter was such an interesting person interesting case study later on in the same letter. Look at what he wrote in first Peter 4 1.

He said therefore since Christ suffered for us in the flesh arm yourselves. Also with the same mind for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin. Verse 2 that he should no longer live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men.

But for the will of God for we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles. When we walked in lewdness lust drunkenness revelries drinking parties and abominable idolatries.

In regard to these they think it's strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation. Speaking evil of you as you grow in your Christian life through the nourishment of the milk of the Word of God into a strong and Vibrant godly and upright child of God who has a strong faith a strong constitution.

Who isn't broken by every little thing that happens in your life and brought into the pit of despair you get Stronger and stronger and are able to withstand life's challenges. Perhaps your former friends will begin to think you're really weird.

And you know what? That's okay. Let him think that about you. They'll think it's strange. She doesn't want to run with us in the same flood of dissipation. He doesn't talk like us anymore. He doesn't think it's funny when we joke the way we do anymore.

He won't run in the same flood of dissipation. And so they'll begin to speak evil of you that word. That's translated dissipation means reckless abandon debauchery.

Profligacy.

What happened to your reckless abandon with your soul man? Why aren't you cool anymore? Why aren't you debauched with us anymore? Why don't you do the things you once did anymore. Because I don't want to do those things anymore.

I have grown past being a fool. I am now growing in the grace and knowledge of Christ through the milk of the Word of God. It is nourishing my soul. I have cried out for it. I have confessed my lack of love for it.

God is changing me. He's making me better. People who notice that you're no longer one of them as you grow in Christ will begin to speak evil of you. It's promised here. They'll think it's strange. You don't run in the same flood of dissipation and they'll speak evil of you.

Yes, your righteousness will be identified as evil by the world of unbelief. Peter himself had a pretty rough background. Remember him? He was a foul-mouthed Galilean fisherman one of the most unlikely candidates ever to be an apostle of Christ and an author of scripture and yet we're sitting here reading a letter that he wrote.

Many Christian people can identify with Peter, can't we? Because the poor guy blew it so regularly and so profoundly. I love the guy. He was constantly putting his foot in his mouth and messing up and yet look at what God was able to do with this man who had feet of clay.

But a regenerate heart of gold even as a Christian the guy messed up constantly. But the foul-mouthed fisherman became an apostle of Christ and he wrote two letters which were God breeds which we are now studying.

He knew what he was talking about. Long for the Word of God like a newborn baby. And this is a man who was a newborn baby as a full-grown adult man and he could see how much he needed the Word of God the teachings of Christ and the teachings that they were given about the Gospel and the grace of God.

He's an extraordinary person an ordinary man who became quite extraordinary. I remember reading in Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History of the Church and Fox's Book of Martyrs how Tradition tells us Peter was killed.

He was crucified upside down. Because he didn't think that he was worthy to die in the same posture that Jesus was. And so this ordinary and very sinful man is speaking from his own experience. When he says and you can almost feel it in his heavy heart.

He says we've spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles. When we walked in lewdness lust drunkenness revelries drinking parties. That's the life from which we've been delivered to be brought in here to be brought among the people of God having been subdued By our king our rebel hearts have been subdued by him brought in here.

And he's saying now long for what I have to give you like a newborn baby longs for milk. Long for it that you may grow thereby. And Peter is the one saying that to us. Wherever you are in your walk with Jesus today.

If you're a Christian the pure milk of the Word of God calls out to you to long for it. So that you will grow and maybe it's time. Maybe it's time today to reprioritize your life and to get on your knees before that word.

And say Lord the longing is not there the way that it should be and I want it to be. Or maybe it used to be when you first came to Christ and it's it's fizzled and waned as as life has happened and trauma Has happened and I've been through this experience and that experience and I've got these scars.

I'm dealing with now. Maybe it's time today to pray to God for his forgiveness and to confess the stone-cold hardness of heart that has taken us away from what is true and good and beautiful and Enamored us by the lies and the foolishness of worldliness and the passing pleasures of sin.

If the newborn infant child doesn't get that milk it will get sick and die. And God has given us all that we need for life and godliness and satisfaction in his Word. So when you come in here Long for the Word of God.

Long to listen to his Word. Worship is not something that happens to us worship is what we engage in. When we gather here to meet with the triune God we engage God by praying we listen to him in his Word.

We engage him by singing to him and worshiping him in song. Pray for yourself. And if you have a family pray for and with your family that when you're all in the car Before you get here that God will stir your hearts and make it hungry.

Make it long for the pure milk of the Word pray that God will make your hearts and minds Receptive to his Word and pray that God will stir all of you to give him a sacrifice of actively engaged Praise and worship of which he is worthy.

It's heartbreaking to remember My life before I was 18 and how many Sabbath days were wasted on this fool Who never went to bed on time. Who was here tired every Sunday?

My mother.

Would see me falling asleep on my hand and would push my hand out from under my chin. Wake up.

What a fool.

How many Sundays were wasted where a man labored over the Word of God to? Bring me something that could have helped me. Shame on us. We don't get adequate sweet adequate sweet sleep if I can speak correctly.

Nodding off bleary-eyed. Exhausted shame on us. Read the last four chapters that God gave to the people of Israel before the intertestamental period started through Malachi. What Malachi say what Malachi say to the church back then.

Stop bringing me the sick and the blind and the crippled and the blemished. Stop. God is not pleased with that. What does the Old Testament say you bring me a blemish free animal? Is there a parallel for that today?

Absolutely. Are we ready to hear from him? Do we long like babies for the milk of the Word God? Thunders against the cheap sacrifices of praise and says try it on your governor. Try it on your employer.

Will he be pleased with you? The fact is he deserves our very best. Jesus rose from the grave and Half the time we can't even get up. May we endeavor to be prayed up and read and. And read read up and God's Word every Sunday every Sunday evening to worship God Who has given us eternal life at the expense of the agonized?

Groans of his perfect son and. Remember when you come here. Aren't you thankful that Jesus died for our? Sabbath breaking. Aren't you glad that Jesus died for our lack of hunger for his Word? I am so worship is something that we engage is something that we do.

We are actively engaged in it. Secondly this morning and worship is done as families. Exodus 12 26 and 27. If you want to turn back there, I'll be reading that for you again. There's been a phenomenon that has happened in recent decades in American churches.

That is unprecedented in church history. It is the phenomenon of.

Children's church.

Often right before the beginning of the public reading of Scripture and the preaching of the Word children are dismissed.

From the worship service.

Our Reformation forefathers and their successors and the Puritans would recoil in horror at the sight the assumption all the way through the Church of God in the Old Testament and the New Testament is always that everybody is present for all worship gatherings and There is a disturbing trend in our culture to separate children from their parents and that trend seems to permeate nearly every activity and every age level.

Almost everything families do they do separately. Can you think of any activities which encourage every member of a family to be in the same place for an extended period of time? Anything our culture does anything at all?

Sports no school. No music. No some lessons. No. And sadly nearly everything done in churches. It doesn't promote families being together either. Rarely do church activities involve all members of all ages being together.

And yet what is the biblical model for the faith going from generation to generation? The biblical model for the fulfilling of the Great Commission, please hear me. It's not just foreign and home missions.

There is a massive huge and incredibly neglected component of the Great Commission that has been nearly forgotten to the terrible detriment of generations of Christians in this country. Exodus 12 26 you see it.

And it shall be when your children say to you, what do you mean by this service? That you shall say it is the Passover sacrifice of the Lord who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when he struck the Egyptians and Delivered our households.

So the people bowed their heads and worshipped. Later on in Exodus 13 14, so it shall be when your sons ask you in time to come. Saying what is this that you shall say to him by strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt out of the house.

Of bondage.

Later on the Pentateuch Deuteronomy 4 9. Only take heed to yourself and diligently keep yourself lest you forget the things your eyes have seen unless they depart from your heart all the days of your life.