ORDER OF WORSHIP
Call To Worship
Psalm 145 : 1, 3 – 4
1 I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise Your name forever and ever. 3 Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom. 4 One generation commends Your works to another; they tell of Your mighty acts.
詩篇 145 : 1, 3 – 4
1 我的神我的王啊，我要尊崇你，我要永永遠遠稱頌你的名！3 耶和華本為大，該受大讚美，其大無法測度。4 這代要對那代頌讚你的作為，也要傳揚你的大能。
Worship Through Songs
Good day Church—beloved bride of the Son of God.
The Olivet Discourse is the last long body of Jesus’ teaching recorded in Matthew. Jesus was on the Mount of Olives talking with his disciples and soberly warning them of things that are to come, and notably about the imminent Day of Judgment—the return of the Son of Man. He prepared them and instructed them through parables as to how they should be discerning and anticipating these things. One of these parables recounts ten maidens with lamps waiting for the arrival of the celebrated bridegroom and his wedding procession. Half of them were prepared. Half of them were not. The prepared were welcomed to the feast. The unprepared were not.
Michael J. Wilkins in The NIV Application Commentary expounding on the Parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25 propounds that … “The parable points out the personal nature of our relationship to the Lord. Our commitment and desire to see Jesus face to face when he comes for us should encourage us to prepare appropriately … We must be ready to meet him as our Master and Lord, whether at the end of life or at the end of this age.”
Anticipating the second coming of Christ—in the sense that we eagerly look forward to his long-promised return and yearn to finally be able to see him face to face—is or should be a natural part of a genuine disciple’s frame of mind. To be subjects of his kingdom mean much more than participating in liturgical routines, engaging in acts of service, or representing Christ to the world. Though being serious Christians, we do these things in Jesus’ name, at the fundamental level being a disciple is entering into a life-altering relationship with Christ who then becomes our all-in-all. Christ thus becomes, in increasing measure, our reason for living and our exceedingly great reward. We understand more and more how he is the Pearl of greatest price and the Treasure worth losing everything for. He is the Master worth enduring the sleepless watches of the night; and the bridegroom worth patiently waiting in the dark for.
As David Platt in Exalting Jesus in Matthew Commentary, speaking about the waiting maidens in the same passage, poignantly reminds us … “the kingdom of heaven is not for those who simply respond to an invitation. All of these bridesmaids had done that, so to speak. Similarly, the kingdom of heaven is not for those who simply make a confession. Each of these bridesmaids would have said they were a part of the bridal party … We also need to keep in mind that these bridesmaids were not indifferent to the bridegroom. This was a happy occasion that they were glad to be a part of, but the kingdom of heaven is not for those who merely express some affection. Positive sentiments toward Jesus won’t be enough on the last day … The kingdom of heaven is only for those who endure in salvation.”
The kingdom is for those who endure because those who endure know deep down that for them, there is simply no other option. It is Christ or nothing. They endure because Christ is worth enduring for. They endure because there is no place they would rather be than with the One who, despite their complete unlovability, showed them grace and gave himself for them. The Lord Jesus Christ, who himself endured suffering from sinful men, is able to make them stand, and carries them to the very end. Does this describe us brothers and sisters?
Let us remember, and seek to emulate, the heart of the Apostle Paul, who, near the end of his life, wrote to his beloved son in the faith Timothy the immortal words, ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.’
“ALMIGHTY GOD, Your judgments are unsearchable
and Your ways unfathomable;
from You and through You and to You are all things.
We are not sufficient in ourselves
to claim anything as coming from us.
Our only adequacy is what we receive from Your gracious hand.
You created us; not we ourselves.
By Your grace alone we are Your people
and the sheep of Your pasture.
You have made us partakers in a glorious New Covenant.
In Jesus Christ we can see the unveiled brightness
of Your glory face-to-face.
We come with a deep sense of spiritual poverty,
marveling that we can be so loved and lavished with such grace
when we are so often forgetful of Your goodness
and so prone to self-indulgence.
Lord, we thank You for that endless forgiveness that comes to us,
and we praise You for having prepared for us
a glorious eternal destiny.
We trust You fully for the grace needed
to sustain us until our dying day
or until that day when we meet the Lord in the air
to be with Him forevermore.
Hear our prayer, Father, for we offer it according to Your will
and in Your Son’s precious name. Amen.” [John Macarthur]
Anthem
In Christ Alone
Scripture Reading
Matthew 25 : 1 – 13
1 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
馬 太 福 音 25 : 1 – 13
1 那 時 ， 天 國 好 比 十 個 童 女 拿 著 燈 出 去 迎 接 新 郎 。
2 其 中 有 五 個 是 愚 拙 的 ， 五 個 是 聰 明 的 。
3 愚 拙 的 拿 著 燈 ， 卻 不 預 備 油 ；
4 聰 明 的 拿 著 燈 ， 又 預 備 油 在 器 皿 裡 。
5 新 郎 遲 延 的 時 候 ， 他 們 都 打 盹 ， 睡 著 了 。
6 半 夜 有 人 喊 著 說 ： 新 郎 來 了 ， 你 們 出 來 迎 接 他 ！
7 那 些 童 女 就 都 起 來 收 拾 燈 。
8 愚 拙 的 對 聰 明 的 說 ： 請 分 點 油 給 我 們 ， 因 為 我 們 的 燈 要 滅 了 。
9 聰 明 的 回 答 說 ： 恐 怕 不 夠 你 我 用 的 ； 不 如 你 們 自 己 到 賣 油 的 那 裡 去 買 罷 。
10 他 們 去 買 的 時 候 ， 新 郎 到 了 。 那 預 備 好 了 的 ， 同 他 進 去 坐 席 ， 門 就 關 了 。
11 其 餘 的 童 女 隨 後 也 來 了 ， 說 ： 主 阿 ， 主 阿 ， 給 我 們 開 門 ！
12 他 卻 回 答 說 ： 我 實 在 告 訴 你 們 ， 我 不 認 識 你 們 。
13 所 以 ， 你 們 要 儆 醒 ； 因 為 那 日 子 ， 那 時 辰 ， 你 們 不 知 道 。
Sermon
Dr. Gerardo Lisbe, Jr.
中文翻譯
Tithes And Offering
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Response Song
