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Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

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"I will heal their backsliding, I will lovethem freely; for mine anger is turned awayfrom him. I will be as the dew unto Israel:he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth hisroots as Lebanon. His branches shallspread, and his beauty shall be as the olivetree, and his smell as Lebanon." Theprophecy of Hosea is a wonderfulexhibition of the love of God shown topeople upon confession of their sins andupon their doing His will."Lesson based on International Sunday SchoolLessons: the International Bible Lessons forChristian Teaching, copyrighted 1967 by the Divisionof Christian Education, National Council of Churchesof Christ in the U.S.A."Junior TopicFor May 16,1971UNIT: OUR PUBLICWORSHIP AND SACRAMENTSThe BenedictionBy Mrs. lohn RussellWe now come in our studies to thelast major part of the public worshipservice itself. Perhaps you never thoughtof the benediction as being important, butonly a formality in which the ministercloses the service. It is much moremeaningful than that!Remember when we studied aboutthe invocation—the prayer usually at thefirst of the service? This prayer was to seekthe presence and power of the Holy Spiritto prepare the hearts of the people forevery part of the service. And now in theprayer of benediction the minister is askingfor the blessing of God, the Father, the Son(Christ), and the Holy Spirit to be upon thepeople in the congregation. The commonform used is "The grace of the Lord JesusChrist, and the love of God, and thecommunion of the Holy Spirit be with youall. Amen" (II Cor. 13:14). This is the holyduty and privilege of the minister of theGospel.Do you notice that all three personsof the Trinity—or the triune God—arementioned in this prayer? Let us think ofthe part that each person of the Trinityplays in our salvation. First, God theFather loved us and chose to adopt someinto His family. Secondly, Christ the Sonpaid the awful price for sin by dying on thecross for us (we must believe on Him).Thirdly, the Holy Spirit guides, directs,comforts, and keeps us close to God afterwe are saved.What kinds of benedictions doesyour minister use? You have probablyheard the three we will mention here. 1)THE MIZPAH BENEDICTION (Gen.31:49) "The Lord watch between me andthee, when we are absent one fromanother." 2) THE OLD TESTAMENT12BENEDICTION (AARONIC). (Num. 6:24-26) "The Lord bless thee, and keep thee;the Lord make His face shine upon thee,and be gracious unto thee: the Lord lift upHis countenance upon thee, and give theepeace." 3) THE NEW TESTAMENTBENEDICTION (APOSTOLIC). (Heb.13:20,21) "Now the God of peace, thatbrought again from the dead our LordJesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep,through the blood of the everlastingcovenant, make you perfect in every goodword to do His will, working in you thatwhich is well-pleasing in His sight, throughJesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever andever. Amen." Notice in this last prayer the(a) title given to God, (b) great workascribed to Him, (c) titles given to Christ.Christ is the great Shepherd; ministers areunder-shepherds. (d) the way God isreconciled and Christ raised from the dead(discuss meaning of reconciled) (e) themercy prayed for. There is no good thingwrought in us but it is the work of God,through Jesus Christ; He works in us,before we are fit for any good work.Therefore, eternal glory is due to Him.How is the benediction differentfrom other prayers? 1) It is an officialblessing from God pronounced upon thepeople by the minister at the close of theservice. Only a man ordained to theministry of the Gospel is to pronounce thisfull benediction and is properly done onlyin a congregation of Christ's church forChrist's people (not a community or schoolprogram). 2) It usually includes theTrinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 3)Prayer that tells what God has done or isable to do for His people.The passage in Numbers 6:22-27 (theAaronic Benediction) is basic to the use ofbenedictions in Christian worship. Thepriesthood of Aaron has passed away, ofcourse, but some of its duties and functionsare exercised by those set apart asministers of Jesus Christ. We don't offeranimal sacrifices, as they did then, becauseChrist was the complete and perfectsacrifice. But the Christian minister is insome sense successor to the Aaronicpriests. In Isaiah 66:21, which predicts thatChrist will save Gentiles as well as Jews, itsays, "And I will also take of them forpriests and for Levites, saith the Lord."How is it decided what verses of theBible are to be used as benedictions?Ministers may use the Old Testamentbenediction or one of the forms used bythe apostles in the New Testament. It isnot proper for ministers to make their ownbenediction. No unordained man is topronounce the benediction. But a manthat has completed the requirements of thesecond year in seminary and has beenlicensed by his own presbytery (a licentiate)may conclude the worship servicewith a benediction in the form of a petitionwhich includes himself, such as : "May thegrace of our Lord Jesus Christ,...be with usall..."To recite benedictions together inunison at the close of a regular churchservice is not proper. But in informal orfellowship meetings, such as prayermeeting, young people's or your juniors'meetings, it is not improper to say togethera form of a benediction. The one mostused is the Mizpah Benediction — "TheLord watch between me and thee when weare absent one from another." The originaluse of these words by Jacob and his uncle,Laban, was not a benediction. (Review thisstory in Gen. 31:36-55. Notice the quarreland agreement).As part of the congregation, juniorsand all the people should wait quietly andreverently to receive the benediction,thinking about the prayer being offered.We should not be whispering, putting oncoats, or looking around, which would beirreverent in God's presence. Rememberthat this is the bestowal of the blessing ofGod, the Father, the Son, and the HolySpirit upon us as Christian people!TO LEADER:1. Catechism questions — 84, <strong>86</strong>.2. Review Memory Psalms for Unit. Singin meeting: Psalms 45:1,2,6,7, p. 116;27:1,4,5,8, p. 62, other favorites of juniors.3. Worship Verse — (put in notebook)Psalms 29:11.4. Worship Notebook — a) Notice whichbenediction your minister uses in themorning and evening services and writedown the references, b) Write out yourfavorite benediction of any listed or read.c) Here is a list of other benedictions: NewTestament — Rom. 16:20, II Cor. 16:14; IIThess. 3:18, Jude 24,25, Rev. 22:21, Eph.3:20,21, I Tim. 1:17, I Pet. 5:10,11. OldTestament— Lev. 9:22, Josh. 22:6, II Sam.6:18, I Kings 8:55,56, I Chron. 16:2. Talkabout occasion of each one, whopronouncedaddressed.these, and to what peoplePrayer MeetingTopicFor May 19,1971THE REFORMED PRESBYTERIANHOMEBy Mrs. Melville W. MartinThe halls are quiet just now outsidemy office — but not for long. I hear somefamiliar footsteps coming from theelevator, and I'm sure they will either stophere or I will hear a cheery "Hi" as they goby. (Did you know that elderly people say"Hi" instead of the more dignified "Hello"or "Good morning"?) And the smiles! Oh,the smiles!! Sometimes we try to cheer upCOVENANTER WITNESS

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