The Village Church in Greenwich Village

The Pastoral Purpose of Predestination

Annie — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 20:41:33 +0000

Ephesians 1

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
²Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

³Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.⁴For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love⁵he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—⁶to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.⁷In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace⁸that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.⁹And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,¹⁰to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

¹¹In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,¹²in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.¹³And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,¹⁴who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

¹⁵For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,¹⁶I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.¹⁷I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.¹⁸I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,¹⁹and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength,²⁰which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,²¹far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.²²And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,²³which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

Discipleship for Dummies

Annie — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 11:48:09 +0000

Mark 1:1-20

¹The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

²It is written in Isaiah the prophet:
“I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way”—
³“a voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’ ”
⁴And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.⁵The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.⁶John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.⁷And this was his message: “After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.⁸I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

⁹At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.¹⁰As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.¹¹And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

¹²At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert,¹³and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.
The Calling of the First Disciples
¹⁴After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God.¹⁵“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”

¹⁶As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.¹⁷“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”¹⁸At once they left their nets and followed him.

¹⁹When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets.²⁰Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.

Pornography: What’s the Big Deal

Annie — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 14:59:04 +0000

Proverbs 5:15-23

¹⁵ Drink water from your own cistern,
running water from your own well.
¹⁶ Should your springs overflow in the streets,
your streams of water in the public squares?
¹⁷ Let them be yours alone,
never to be shared with strangers.
¹⁸ May your fountain be blessed,
and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth.
¹⁹ A loving doe, a graceful deer—
may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be captivated by her love.
²⁰ Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress?
Why embrace the bosom of another man’s wife?
²¹ For a man’s ways are in full view of the LORD,
and he examines all his paths.
²² The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him;
the cords of his sin hold him fast.
²³ He will die for lack of discipline,
led astray by his own great folly.

Romans 16:1-27

Annie — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 12:07:52 +0000

Romans 16:1-27

¹I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Cenchrea.²I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a great help to many people, including me.³Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus.⁴They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.⁵Greet also the church that meets at their house. Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.⁶Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.⁷Greet Andronicus and Junias, my relatives who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.⁸Greet Ampliatus, whom I love in the Lord.⁹Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.¹⁰Greet Apelles, tested and approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus.¹¹Greet Herodion, my relative. Greet those in the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.¹²Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.¹³Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.¹⁴Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the brothers with them.¹⁵Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the saints with them.¹⁶Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings.

¹⁷I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them.¹⁸For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people.¹⁹Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I am full of joy over you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.

²⁰The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.
The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
²¹Timothy, my fellow worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my relatives.

²²I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.

²³Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings.
Erastus, who is the city’s director of public works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings.
²⁵Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past,²⁶but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him—²⁷to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.

The Excellencies of God: He Is Independent

Brandon — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:59:21 +0000

Exodus 3:12-14

¹² He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

¹³ Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” ¹⁴ God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

The Excellencies of God: He Is Infinite

Brandon — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 19:48:54 +0000

Psalm 139:7-10

⁷Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? ⁸If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! ⁹If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, ¹⁰even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

Psalm 90:1-4

¹Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. ²Before the mountains were brought forth,or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. ³You return man to dust  and say, “Return, O children of man!” ⁴For a thousand years in your sight  are but as yesterday when it is past,  or as a watch in the night.

The Excellencies of God: He Is One

Ken — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 02:55:27 +0000

Deuteronomy 6:4-5

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. ⁵ Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

Do Not Worry

Ken — Mon, 26 May 2008 02:26:12 +0000

Luke 12:13-34

¹³Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

¹⁴Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?”¹⁵Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

¹⁶And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop.¹⁷He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

¹⁸“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.¹⁹And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’

²⁰“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

²¹“This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
Do Not Worry
²²Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.²³Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.²⁴Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!²⁵Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?²⁶Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

²⁷“Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.²⁸If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!²⁹And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it.³⁰For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them.³¹But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

³²“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.³³Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.³⁴For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Greater Pain and a Greater Promise

Ken — Mon, 19 May 2008 01:20:31 +0000

Genesis 3:8-21

⁸ Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.⁹ But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”

¹⁰ He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”

¹¹ And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

¹² The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

¹³ Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
¹⁴ So the LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,
“Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.
¹⁵ And I will put enmity
between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
¹⁶ To the woman he said,
“I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”
¹⁷ To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat of it,’
“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.
¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
¹⁹ By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”
²⁰ Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.

²¹ The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.

An Instructive Farewell

Ken — Mon, 12 May 2008 02:03:59 +0000

Acts 20:17-48

¹⁷From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church.¹⁸When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia.¹⁹I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews.²⁰You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house.²¹I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.

²²“And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.²³I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.²⁴However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.

²⁵“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again.²⁶Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men.²⁷For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.²⁸Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.²⁹I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.³⁰Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.³¹So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

³²“Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.³³I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.³⁴You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions.³⁵In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

³⁶When he had said this, he knelt down with all of them and prayed.³⁷They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.³⁸What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.