Sermons

Reformed sermons preached at our church.

Ask Now Concerning The Days Past

Today, I want us to think about how God is describing himself in terms of history. God describes himself here as the God of history. He is the God of the past, the present, and the future. Well, of course we know that’s true, just by the fact that he’s God. God is eternal, he’s the creator, and he’s in control of all things. Surely he’s in control of human history.  But this passage shows how he is especially the God of redemptive history.  That he has worked in history to save a people.  It’s in this that we find our connection with this passage, even as we see how wonderfully God has worked in Israel’s history to bring salvation to them.

Sermon preached on Deuteronomy 4:4:15-43 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 08/23/2009 in Novato, CA.

Manuscript: Ask Now Concerning The Days Past

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That You May Live

This week we delve into the heart of the book of Deuteronomy, beginning to study the law of God.  This week’s passage commends to us the goodness of God’s law.  Study along with us as we consider life according to the law and according to the gospel.

Sermon preached on Deuteronomy 4:1-14 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 08/16/2009 in Novato, CA.

Manuscript: That You May Live

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Until The Lord Has Given Rest To Your Brethren

All throughout life we’re faced with different responsibilities that we have before us.  Often times those responsibilities aren’t things we’re really that excited about, but we take them on if our duty requires them or our circumstances dictate it.  But of course, often it’s those circumstances that are before us that we wish were different.  We’re then called to follow through on our responsibilities, even when things aren’t the way we like.  But when we still do step up and serve in those situations, that’s commendable.  Hopefully the attitude of our heart at such times is equally commendable.

I raise this for today, because we have a passage here were God’s people are being called to serve their fellow brothers and sisters.  Actually, this passage is full of different groups of people all being called to different responsibilities in the family of God.  I want us to look at these different groups today and see how they’re being called to serve.  I’m sure not everyone in these different groups thought their responsibility was exactly what they wanted.  But God was calling them to serve as a part of a bigger plan to bring all God’s people into a state of rest.  That’s what verse 20 says.  Even though some of the tribes of Israel had now already received their inheritance of land, their men of fighting age still had to go with the rest of the Israelites to war, until the Lord had given rest to all the brothers.

Sermon preached on Deuteronomy 3:12-29 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 08/09/2009 in Novato, CA.

Manuscript: Until The Lord Has Given Rest To Your Brethren

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We Utterly Destroyed

Holy war.  That’s a scary subject today, with Muslim terrorists in the name of jihad, their concept of holy war, going around killing civilians in things like 9/11 and suicide bombings.  And this was a scary thing in the past, when Crusaders in the name of Christianity went to war over the so-called holy lands, killing people, sadly, in the name of Christ.  Those are just a couple of examples of the many atrocities that have been committed under the guise of holy war.

Well, what about this passage?  In this passage, Israel begins their military conquest of the Promised Land.  The Hebrew word for this sort of conquest is the word cherem.  Cherem warfare.  It’s when they utterly destroyed man, woman, and child, in the name of God.  It’s basically the biblical word for a sort of holy war.  I hope this causes you to sit up straight in your seats when you hear this.  So the question becomes, is this an atrocity, akin to what Muslim terrorists do today, and what the Crusaders did in the past?  If you do think so, and you’re a Christian, do you just try to ignore passages like this?  Or, if they are not the same sort of thing, then why?  What’s the difference?

Listen in as we consider this topic and it’s impact on our lives today.

Sermon preached on Deuteronomy 2:26-3:11 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 08/02/2009 in Novato, CA.

Manuscript: We Utterly Destroyed

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