Dear CSOPC brothers and sisters,
As I mentioned yesterday, let’s continue to keep one another in prayer; and pray for those whose homes have been destroyed by the flooding. Pray for God’s purposes to be accomplished – for those who do not know the Lord to be convicted; and for those who do know the Lord to be encouraged by his wisdom, sufficiency, and goodness. We must never separate one of God’s attributes from the others. In other words, his sovereignty is not arbitrary, but is a holy, merciful, and wise sovereignty. And that is where we rest our hearts and minds!
A few announcements:
- The men will meet this Saturday at the Egg and I (Hwy 6 and Little York) at 8:30AM to discuss Dr. Barcley’s book, “The Secret of Contentment.” Plan to come and join us. If you have not read or don’t have the book … no problem … come and join us anyway.
- There will be NO Bible study tonight. We will resume in a few weeks at the VanTubergen’s home with a study of Zechariah. It would be helpful to begin to study and to read through the book on your own.
- Ladies, be on the lookout for upcoming fellowship opportunities throughout the summer.
- This Sunday we will continue or study of Revelation in adult Sunday school by looking at the dragon and the woman in chapter 12. And we will continue in Mark by looking at Jesus’ trial before Pilate.
- Finally, this week’s devotion (attached) is a reflection from Genesis 2 on the God’s institution of marriage.
God bless and I look forward to worshipping with all of you this Lord’s Day!
From the Pastor’s Desk
Mid-week Devotional
“Not Good”
Genesis 2:18, “Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.’”
The glorious refrain throughout the six days of creation in Genesis 1 is … “And God saw that it was good” (vv. 4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25). And the great climax of this ‘good creation’ comes in the summary statement of v. 31: “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” But when we get to Genesis 2:18 (Genesis 2:4-25 NOT being a second creation account, but rather a focused treatment of the 6th day and the creation of man and woman), we find the following shocking statement, “Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone …’” (Gen 2:18a). Not good! Something is not good! And what is that something? “That the man should be alone.” Adam had no one ‘fit’ for him. He had no one with whom to be in relationship – no one with whom to interact – no one with whom to communicate – there was no one suitable for personal interaction, communion, and relationship. And thus the LORD provides the remedy: “I will make him a helper fit for him” (Gen 2:18b). And after the animals are paraded in front of Adam to underscore his isolation and his need (vv. 19-20), the LORD God created a woman and brought her to Adam. How then does the man respond to this beautiful gift from the LORD? With singing! “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (v. 23). That is, Adam rejoices that ‘finally’ – after his isolation has been pressed home through the naming of the animals – there is someone who fits him!! There is someone with whom to talk, share, interact, and live before the face of God! And as it says in Gen 2:25, “And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.” There are a few application we should take from this brief examination of the first wedding!!
First, the LORD created the institution of marriage. Throughout Gen 2:18-25, emphasis is placed on God’s initiating work. The Lord caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam … the Lord took one of Adam’s ribs … the Lord fashioned the rib into Eve … and the Lord brought her to Adan. God created marriage; thus he defines marriage. And marriage is an institution between only one man and one woman.
Second, marriage is to be joyful. The Lord ‘fashioned’ Eve perfectly to correspond to Adam. In other words, Adam and Eve were made for one another. Adam’s joy when presented with Eve is striking. It is not insignificant that Adam’s first recorded words in Scripture are words of joyful song over his bride.
And third, marriage is to be a relationship of mutual trust. Adam and Eve’s shameless nakedness speaks preeminently to the trust they had one with the other (2:25). The first husband and wife trusted one another – there was no envy, shame, or distrust (that was to come after the Fall in Genesis 3). They lived a life of joyful trust with each other as they walked together before the face of the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, what a glorious picture of marriage we are given in Genesis 2. But of course we know that we now live in a fallen world – a world in which our relationships are stained by sin. Thus, we must pray for one another. May we be in prayer for the marriages of our fellow believers. Pray for God to be glorified in such relationships. Pray for humble and joyful trust between husband and wife. Pray for patient and repentant hearts. And pray for those struggling in their marriages. Pray for God’s grace and mercy to shine through in difficult relationships and circumstances.
Rev. Robert Arendale, Pastor of Cornerstone Presbyterian Church (OPC), www.csopc.org