Daily Readings for Sunday 3rd November 2024

Dear Congregation,

I want to thank all of you who have prayed and supported the work of the Gospel through the church in 2023 and this first month of 2024. It is a great joy to minister at Westminster Baptist and I love the church here greatly. Through this past year, there have been heart-wrenching tragedies alongside blessings too. This is often the case in Christian life and yet we are called to keep trusting and believing. We often bear the battle scars of past experience and circumstance, as we live in this sinful world and anticipate heaven. We see Mordecai, mocked and scorned for years in Esther and on the brink of execution, yet he latterly knew blessing from God. The most important thing was he was faithful in serving the Lord.

Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful - 1 Corinthians 4.2. This verse especially applies to ministers, church workers, but to all Christians. We are stewards of the oracles of God and to us has the light of the gospel been revealed. We should therefore be striving to be faithful, not popular, faithful. May that be our aim by the grace of God.

In the beginning month in recent years we have spent a week praying together on each day for certain things. As a reminder that with continuing faith that prayer is essential. Key to our hope and joy and endurance and love, and with new resolve to make time to pray regularly alone and with your family and with some group of fellow believers.

Alongside reading the Scriptures these should be our daily routine. There are various encouragements in the Scriptures to pray:
- Pray without ceasing (1 Th. 5:17).
- Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; (Ep. 6:18).
- Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving; (Col. 4:2).

These are a few verses of the many that encourage us to pray and undoubtedly set before us a biblical mandate that we should be concerned to pray. Maybe you have fallen out of the 'habit' or relegated prayer to a part time practice; or you only pray when trouble or danger comes. To that end I would ask the church to pray, if led, the suggested topics below so we might pray for the same things (roughly speaking) on the same day to encourage us.

Let us be prayerful people and realise we too need prayer. To say we are praying for someone should be an expression of concern but an indication of our own action to bring the matter before God, before the throne of Grace through the believers mediator and High Priest. Jesus Christ, Paul even requests prayer for himself and those labouring for the Gospel with him twice in 1 and 2 Thessalonians saying 'brethren pray for us'. May we be a prayerful church and prayerful individuals, knowing that we have a prayer hearing and answering God.

Pastor Jonathan Arnold


Daily Prayer - Sunday
- God thanks to God for His character, perfect, unchangeable, the same yesterday today and forever.
- Give thanks to God that we can meet in the church and have fellowship with one another.
- Pray the Lord would grant the preaching of his word power and clarity, and there are ready ears to hear and believe it. (2 Thes. 3.1.)
- Pray we would be granted faithful ministry and good spiritual food from God's Word. (1 Peter 2.2.)


Daily Reading
Preface - The distress and captivity of Israel for their sins, especially their idolatry.
Hosea 9
Psalms 126) Preface - The church celebrating her incredible return out of captivity, prayeth for and prophesieth her own future joyfulness.
Psalms 127) Preface - The vanity of human endeavours, without God's blessing. Children are God's good gift.
Psalms 128) Preface - The various blessings which follow them that fear God.
Psalms 126-128


Daily Light - Morning
The ways of the LORD are right,
and the just shall walk in them:
but the transgressors shall fall therein.

Unto you...which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient...a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence. - The way of the LORD is strength to the upright: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.

He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. - Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LORD. - The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. - If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God. - Whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance.

He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God. - Ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. - My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
Hos. 14.9; 1 Pe. 2.7,8; Pro. 10.29
Mt. 13.12
Jn. 8.47; Jn. 5.40; Jn. 10.27


Daily Light - Evening
The everlasting Father.

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.

I and my Father are one...the Father is in me, and I in him. - If ye had knows me, ye should have known my Father also. - Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. - Behold I and the children which God hath given me. - He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied. - I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. - Before Abraham was, I am. - God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

Unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever. - He is before all things, and by him all things consist. - In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
Isa. 9.6; Deu. 6.4
Jn. 10.30,38; Jn. 8.19; Jn. 14.8-9; He. 2.13; Isa. 53.11; Rev. 1.8; Jn. 8.58; Ex. 3.14; 
He. 1.8; Col. 1.17; Col. 2.9


A Puritans Catechism
Q 75 - What is baptism?
A - Baptism is an ordinance of the New Testament, instituted by Jesus Christ, to be to the person baptized a sing of his fellowship with him, in his death, and burial, and resurrection, of his being ingrafted into him, of remission of sins, and of his giving up himself to God through Jesus Christ, to live and walk in newness of life.


The 1689
Baptist Confession of Faith
Of Christ the Mediator
Chapter 8
PARAGRAPH 3
​The Lord Jesus, in His human nature thus united to the divine, in the person of the Son, was sanctified and anointed with the Holy Spirit above measure,13 having in Him all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge;14 in whom it pleased the Father that all fullness should dwell,15 to the end that being holy, harmless, undefiled,16 and full of grace and truth,17 He might be throughly furnished to execute the office of mediator and surety;18 which office He took not upon himself, but was thereunto called by His Father;19 who also put all power and judgement in His hand, and gave Him commandment to execute the same.20
13 Ps. 45:7; Acts 10:38; John 3:34
14 Col. 2:3
15 Col. 1:19
16 Heb. 7:26
17 John 1:14
18 Heb. 7:22
19 Heb. 5:5
20 John 5:22,27; Matt. 28:18; Acts 2:36

Robert Murray M'Cheyne - God Makes a Path - Daily Devotional Readings
Justified
And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Acts 13 v 39

Once Jesus was unjustified - once there were sins laid to His charge - the sins of many. It was this that occasioned His agony in the garden - on the cross. His only comfort was, 'He is near that justifieth me.' He knew the time would be short. But now the wrath of God has all fallen upon Him. The thunder clouds of God's anger have spent all their lightnings on His head. He is now justified from all the sins that were laid upon Him. He is now justified from all the sins that were laid upon Him. He has left them with the grave-clothes. His fellow men and devils laid all sins to His charge; He was silent. Do you believe this record concerning the Son? Do you cleave to Jesus as yours? Then you have fellowship with Him in His justification. You are as much justified as Christ is. There is as little guilt lying upon you as there is upon Christ. The visuals of wrath have not another drop for Christ, not another drop for you. You are justified from all things.