The Semper Reformata Podcast

Catechism Class, Lord’s Day 36. Blessed be the Name of the Lord!In this lesson we are going to look at the Catechist’s instructions on the Third Commandment. Let’s read the commandment itself first, and then the Catechism…   Exodus 20:7 You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.H/C LD36 Q99. What is required in the third commandment?We are not to blaspheme or to abuse the name of God by cursing, perjury, or unnecessary oaths, nor to share in such horrible sins by being silent bystanders. Rather, we must use the holy name of God only with fear and reverence, so that we may rightly confess him, call upon him, and praise him in all our words and works. Q100. Is the blaspheming of God’s name by swearing and cursing such a grievous sin that God is angry also with those who do not prevent and forbid it as much as they can?Certainly, for no sin is greater or provokes God’s wrath more than the blaspheming of his name. That is why he commanded it to be punished with death.

Why Did God Rescue Us?Text: Ephesians 2:4-7 Paul has given us a shocking assessment of the very nature of all humanity, in every age, in every location, people of all races and creeds, men and women… They are all polluted with sin, and we discovered in Ephesians 2:4, that Paul had inserted two very important and pivotal words: BUT GOD. Someone once remarked that right here we have the biggest BUT – a contrast – in the Bible. Here’s why. Because it is an unexpected twist. There’s many’s a novel has a twist like that. But none of them can compare with this twist, this BUT.To red the NOTES CLICK THIS LINKThis sermon was preached at Ballymacashon, and at Templepatrick Reformed Church. It was recorded at Templepatrick, and is used here with their kind permission.

Victim WarsVictimhood and Intersectionality - A Biblical Response Psalm 11Have you noticed that nowadays it seems that victimhood is actually fashionable. Gone are the days of looking adversity in the face, determined to overcome it. We have great sympathy with those who have suffered, who are genuine victims, and there are many. But ‘fabricated victimhood’ is now a prevailing attitude in society. In this study, we will try to find out how this happened.Read the NOTES HERE.Recorded at Templepatrick Reformed Church

Catechism Class: LD35B Q97-98 Use and Misuse of Imagery and ArtRead Isaiah 40:18-31 and see how the prophet Isaiah compares the greatness of God with the pathetic worthlessness of the idols made by man hands. He says, “To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to Him?” The question is rhetorical. There is nothing that can compare with Almighty God, – no image, no idol, no statue.Read the NOTES HERE

The Soul's PollutionText: Ephesians 2:2-4To fully appreciate how vast the work that God has done for sinners we must understand the problem, the dreadful polluted corrupt nature into which and with which we are born.  To read the NOTES CLICKThis sermon was preached at Ballymacashon Congregational church and at Templepatric Reformed Church. It was recorded live at Templepatrick an is used here with their permission.

Passover People: Thomas.Thomas the Doubter? Or more like us all than we care to think?The disciples of Jesus all had their own individual personalities, and these characteristics all come out in the Biblical record.Universally, the disciple Thomas has become known as a doubter – his name and his story has become legend – he is ‘Doubting Thomas’ – a pejorative description to this day, of anyone who has legitimate concerns about some concerning matter. Yet Thomas was not the only disciple who had periods of doubt. Mark 16:9-11 Luke 24:10-11 Thomas’s experience simply mirrored that of the rest of the disciples. So let’s set aside thinking of ‘Doubting Thomas’ for a few minutes and ask, “What can we learn from Thomas’s examination of the wounds of Christ; his personal encounter with the risen Saviour?”Read the NOTES HERE.Message preached at Ballymacashon Congregational and Templepatrick Reformed Church, - recorded at Templepatrick and used here with their permission.

Catechism Class: Lord's Day 35 Q96 How NOT to Worship GodThe second commandment is a rule to help us to keep the first commandment. There is a danger that if we invent some image of God, using our own imagination, that we will be deflected from worshipping the One True God who reveals himself to us in Scripture. Because this is so serious, after all our very soul’s salvation is at stake, our instructor warns us about the danger of any form of idolatry slipping into our worship.Read the NOTES HERE.

From Death to LifeText: Ephesians 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins. Ezekiel 37:1–14.We have reached chapter two. Ephesians chapter one is full of superlatives, – an amazing charge through the wonderful works of God on behalf of his people, his elect, his church. Now we come to Paul’s clear declaration of the Gospel of Free Grace in Ephesians 2.Read the NOTES HERE.

Catechism Class: LD34C - The Value of the Soul"...for the sake of my very salvation"We remain with Lord’s Day 34B for this short lesson, for I have been greatly concerned by the solemnity with which the Catechist begins his answer to Q94. He implies the importance of the human soul, its value, and the danger that it might be lost forever. It is for the sake of our very salvation that we must flee from idolatry and come to known God through a saving relationship with Jesus. He is of course echoing the solemnity of the words of our Saviour himself, in Mark 8, "What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"Read the NOTES HERE