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Lessons on Romans

In this next series of lessons, I would like to share with you a study of the epistle, letter, of Paul to the Romans. This will take a few weeks or months to accomplish so I pray you will take the time to study alongside me and see what wonderful blessings God has for us. We begin with an introduction and will go through a look at Paul's three missionary journeys for our time today. So let's begin.

Part 1

The Book of Romans is considered to be one of the greatest letters Paul wrote. Some have said that it contains the heartbeat of Christianity. Alexander Campbell said the message of Romans becomes a key to all of Paul's letters. A man by the name of John R. W. Stott describes Romans this way:

"The Epistle to the Romans is the fullest and most coherent manifesto of the Christian gospel in the New Testament. In it the apostle Paul unfolds "the whole counsel of God."...There is a grandeur, a comprehensiveness, a logic about his exposition which has commanded the admiration and compelled the study of all succeeding generations."

Many more quotes could be made that all talk about how great this letter is. It is also the longest letter that Paul wrote. Though this was the 6th letter Paul wrote, you will notice that it is the first letter of his in the New Testament right after the Book of Acts. Some think maybe the reason it was put first was that it was the longest and because this letter is considered his masterpiece.

Paul did not write the letter with his own hands but dictated it to Tertius (Tur-shee-uhs) who added his own greeting near the end of the letter (Romans 16:22). Of course, if you want to get technical, the Holy Spirit is the true author of Romans. It is implied that Phoebe was the one who delivered this letter to Rome (Romans 16:1). Most believe that Paul wrote this letter while he was at Corinth for 3 months on his third missionary journey around A.D. 57-58.

Since Paul is the author of this letter, I want to take a quick look at his life by looking at his timeline.

3 BC-AD 34

Paul was born an Israelite in Tarsus around the same time as Jesus and John the Baptist were born (Acts 22:3, Phil 3:5).

He was a Roman citizen by birthright (Acts 22:28).

He started school at age 6 or 7, and the Old Testament would be the focus of his study.

At age 13, he would go through Bar Mitzvah (assuming the full obligation of the law).

In Jerusalem, Paul studies and trains under the famous teacher Gamaliel (Acts 22:3).

 

AD 35 – AD 43

Paul watches and consents to Stephen's death (Acts 7:58, 8:1).

He helps to inflict great persecution on Christians, those of what was called "The Way." (Acts 8:1-3; 26:10-11; Phil. 3:6).

On the road to Damascus, Paul comes face-to-face with Jesus Christ and is later converted and baptized as a result of his faith. (Acts 9).

At some point over the next 3 years, Paul goes to Arabia and then returns to Damascus (Gal. 1:17).

Paul's life is in danger, and he escapes Damascus by being lowered down the outside wall through a window in a big basket (Acts 9:24; 2 Cor 11:32-33).

Paul makes his way to Jerusalem and Barnabas brings him to the apostles (Acts 9:26-29; Gal. 1:18).

Once again, Paul's life is in danger and he travels to Tarsus (Acts 9:30).

Later, Barnabas goes to Tarsus and finds Paul, and they go to Antioch and teach a great number of people over the next year (Acts 11:25-26).

Paul and Barnabas deliver aid to the brethren in Jerusalem (Acts 11:29-30).

When they complete their mission, they return to Antioch with Mark (Acts 12:25).

 

First Missionary Journey AD 44 – AD 49

The Holy Spirit separates Paul and Barnabas out for this particular Journey (Acts 13:2-3).

They travel to Seleucia and set sail to the island of Cyprus (Acts 13:4).

They preach in the Synagogues at Salamis and Mark assists them (Acts 13:5).

At Paphos, they encounter a false prophet named Bar-Jesus who tries to keep the proconsul, Sergius Paulis, from hearing the word of God. Paul strikes Bar-Jesus blind by the power of the Holy Spirit, and the proconsul believes (Acts 13:6-12).

When they arrived at Perga, Mark leaves them and returns to Jerusalem (Acts 13:13).

Paul and Barnabas continue on to Antioch in Pisidia. Paul preaches his first and longest recorded sermon in the synagogue (Acts 13:14-49).

They are driven out of Antioch and they go to Iconium where they stay for a long time boldly speaking the word of God (Acts 13:50 - 14:3).

Their lives are threatened so they leave and head toward Lystra and Derbe (Acts 14:4-7).

In Lystra, Paul heals a crippled man and the crowds try to worship them (Acts 14:8-18).

Paul is stoned and dragged outside the city, presumed dead, but he gets up and goes back into the city, and the next day, Paul and Barnabas go to Derbe (Acts 14:19-20).

At Derbe, they make many disciples. They return to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch to strengthen the churches and to appoint elders (Acts 14:21-23).

They preach at Perga and return to Antioch in Syria where they report to the church everything that happened on their journey (Acts 14:24-28).

Paul and Barnabas are sent to Jerusalem to ask the apostles and the elders if the Gentiles must be circumcised. They decide that Gentiles don't have to be circumcised, and they send Paul and Barnabas and other men back to Antioch with a letter explaining this (Acts 15:1-34; Gal. 2:1).

They preach and teach at Antioch (Acts 15:35).

It's possible that Paul writes the letter to the Galatians from Antioch.

2nd Missionary Journey AD 50 – AD 54

Paul and Barnabas separate from one another over a sharp dispute with Mark (Acts 15:36-39).

Paul and Silas join forces and go through Syria and Cilicia strengthening the churches (Acts 15:40-41).

They go to Derbe and Lystra, and Timothy now joins in the journey (Acts 16:1-5).

They go to Troas, and Paul has a vision of a Macedonian man asking for help (Acts 16:6-10).

They sail to Neapolis and travel to Philippi where they meet Lydia and she is converted along with her household (Acts 16:11-15).

Paul and Silas are thrown into jail after Paul cast a demon out of a slave girl (Acts 16:16-25).

A great earthquake opens the jail doors and loosens the chains holding the prisoners. Paul and Silas convert the Philippian jailer and his household (Acts 16:25-34).

They preach the word of God in the synagogue at Thessalonica and convert men and women (Acts 17:1-10).

They flee to Berea, converting more people. Paul goes to Athens while Timothy and Silas stay behind. Paul sends word for them to come and join him (Acts 17:10-15).

Paul preaches to the people at Athens converting men and women (Acts 17:16-34).

Paul goes to Corinth and Timothy and Silas join him there. They teach the Word of God for a year and six months there (Acts 18:1-17).

Here, Paul writes 1st and 2nd Thessalonians.

Paul returns to Antioch of Syria after stopping at Ephesus, Caesarea, and Jerusalem (Acts 18:18-22).

3rd Missionary Journey AD 54 – AD 58

Paul travels through Galatia and Phrygia strengthening the disciples (Acts 18:23).

At Ephesus, Paul baptizes some disciples in the name of Jesus who had only heard of John's baptism (Acts 19:1-7).

Timothy is sent to Corinth (1 Cor. 4:17). He returns to Ephesus later (1 Cor. 16:10-11).

Paul writes 1st Corinthians.

Paul preaches in the synagogue for 3 months and then at the school of Tyrannus for 2 years (Acts 19:8-10).

He sends Timothy and Erastus into Macedonia (Acts 19:21). 

On his way to Macedonia, Paul stops at Troas to meet up with Titus, but he never shows up (Acts 20:1; 2 Cor. 2:13).

Paul meets up with Titus possible in Philippi and writes 2 Corinthians sending Titus with the letter to the Corinthians (2 Cor. 7:6, 8:6; Acts 20:2).

He goes to Greece for 3 months and there writes the book of Romans (Acts 20:2-3).

From Greece, Timothy and other brethren go ahead of Paul to meet him later at Troas (Acts 20:4-6).

Paul stays 7 days at Troas and partakes of The Lord's Supper on The Lord's Day (Acts 20:7-12).

He travels to Assos by foot and sails to Mitylene, Chios, Samos, Trogyllium, and stops at Miletus (Acts 20:13-16).

Paul sends for the Ephesians elders, and he strongly encourages them (Acts 20:17-38).

From there, he sails to Cos, Rhodes, and Patara, and they stop at Tyre for 7 days (Acts 21:3-6).

Next, he stays at Ptolemais for one day (Acts 21:7).

At Caesarea. Paul stays with Philip the evangelist (Acts 21:8-14).

We will pick this up next time. May God bless, Mark

Restoring True Biblical Christianity Part #2

 Welcome back. Let's continue our thoughts from our previous lesson.

Romans 12:2 "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

Colossians 2:8 "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ."

 

The only way that we can be prepared to deal with false teachings and the influence of the world is by being students (disciples) of God's Word, The Bible. Far to many 'Christians' are ignorant when it comes to God's Word. I am sure you have heard that phrase "ignorance is bliss", but when it comes to ignorance of God's Word, your ignorance can cost you your soul and cause you to face the torments of hell.

As Hosea said:

Hosea 4:6 "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children."

As Jesus said in Jn. 8:32, "...the truth will set you free...", but if we continue to neglect God's Word and The Truth it holds and live in ignorance, we will be destroyed, and we will have no idea when something false is being taught. So, we must never stop teaching the basic principles of God's Word so that the faithful will remain faithful, and so that next generations will be properly trained in the way of God.

We have a great challenge before us, but we must never relent on emphasizing 'The Truth' about God and how we must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. One of the most important places that we must begin in training the next generation of Christians is in the home. Far too many 'Christian' parents have become lazy at the job that God has given them.

Deuteronomy 6:6-9 "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 "You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 "You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 "You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

Ephesians 6:4 "And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord."

Parents I want you to understand that if you do not get involved with teaching your children about God by your example and through God's Word, then you are going to lose your children to the world. Recent statistics I have come cross says that more than 7 out every 10 children raised up in the church will leave the church by their 2nd year of college.

If a congregation has 30 children in worship on Sunday morning that would be wonderful, but if those numbers hold true, only 9 of that 30 will remain faithful to God. Only 9 will most likely make it to heaven. Those numbers should upset every parent reading this, but I can promise you this, we do not have to let these number remain true. We can defy this trend and take action starting today and make sure that we keep the majority of our children faithful to Lord Jesus Christ!

We can do this by training them at home. We should not expect our children to get all their education about God at church because it is not enough. Your children are being influenced by the world in so many ways. For example, when you send your children to public school, not only do they get taught the fundamentals of education, often they are also taught about evolution, as well as how we should accept everyone no matter what they believe or how they live or their sexual orientation.

The language in the text books is being changed and some text books starting at the youngest grades are teaching how its normal for a child to have two moms or two dads. They are teaching that truth is relative and many other things contrary to God's Word.

The world understands that if they train our children with information like this, that they can change our nation. Adolf Hitler understood this, which is why he said:

"Let me control the textbooks and I will control the state..." Adolf Hitler

During a speech he delivered on November 6, 1939 Hitler said:

"When an opponent declares, 'I will not come over to your side,' I calmly say, 'Your child belongs to us already...What are you? You will pass on. Your descendants, however, now stand in the new camp. In a short time they will know nothing else but this new community,'" unquote.

If we do not combat the worldly views our children are being taught in their textbooks, then we will lose our children without even knowing it.

I heard of a man on the radio from Dallas, Texas who got fired because he had was asking his fellow teacher what she thought about Obama. She complained, and his boss told him did not have freedom of speech at school and he also has been written up earlier for saying 'Merry Christmas' to one of students.

I also read an article about teacher in Florida that might have to go jail for saying prayer before she ate her lunch at school. Stories like these show how things have changed in the school system in last 20-30 years.

Of course, our children are also being influenced by their friends and by what other kids their age are telling them. Many times they will start thinking and behaving like those around them because they don't want to be different or bullied, they want to be popular.

If that doesn't make our jobs hard enough, we have to combat what Hollywood and the internet is teaching our children. If we are going to save our children from all these worldly influences, we must take time out of our busy lives to teach our children about God, and why some things are right and some things are wrong. We need to teach them that God's Word is our only guide, and that there is no reason to doubt God's absolute truth.

Before you can ever begin to train up your child in the admonition of the Lord, you must be committed to serving God. You cannot teach your child with mere words on how they should live their lives and expect them to remain faithful because, they must see you living the life of a Christian. They must see your dedication to God because your example is the greatest influence on your child because if you do not practice what you preach, then your children are not going to listen.

For example, if you tell your children how important it is that they attend all the church services because Christ purchased The Church with His own blood, but they see you only attending when you feel like it, or they see you missing church because you want to watch some game on TV or pursue a hobby, do you really think they are going to consider that attending church is important when you do not do it.

Many other examples could be given, but the simple message is, practice what you preach. You are the first in their lives to set the standard, so don't be surprised when you child follows your example, instead of your empty words.

Once you have made the commitment to serve the Lord and you are being a Christ-like example, then you can be effective at training your child up in the way of the Lord, but you must make time to do this. We don't seem to mind to make the time to get involved in our children's activities such as sports, choir, band, or some hobby, but many times we cannot seem to find the time to have Bible study or to talk about God.

Which is more important? I hope that you agree that God is more important. So, if you examine yourself and you realize that you are neglecting opportunities to train your child in the way of the Lord, I hope you start making time for it and I would suggest that you pray to God for guidance in this area because the fate of our children, and the fate of Christ's Church rests in your hands.

I hope this lesson will open your eyes to how important it is that we train this next generation so they will not compromise God's truth and will in turn teach their children the same message, so that the Lord's Church will remain strong and faithful to The Lord for generations to come.

So, may we never grow weary of doing our part to restore true Christianity by teaching God's Holy Word to future generations and teaching them to live by it so they will not compromise God's Truth or turn to the world.

God bless untill our next time, Mark

Restoring True Biblical Christianity

Restoring true Biblical Christianity must be unending. More than 200 years ago our forefathers in the faith realized that it was time for them to get back to the Bible and break free from denominationalism. They were willing to take a stand for God's truth and to hold fast the doctrine within God's Holy Word as Paul commanded Timothy:

2 Timothy 1:13 "Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus."

All it takes is one generation to either grow the church correctly or to severally damage the church. Unfortunately, it did not take long after the forefathers in the faith had moved in the right direction that a new generation was born that was in desperate need of being taught the importance making the Word of God their rock. Since they were not taught properly, history shows that the church began to suffer once again from lack of knowledge, and many Christians slowly but surely left the church and went back to existing denominations, or they created new ones.

This is why restoring true Christianity must be unending. Each new generation must be taught about God because if they are not, the church will suffer, and she is. Even those that are "in The Faith" must constantly refresh themselves with God's teachings because it seems to be in man's nature to forget about God and what He has done for us in our lives.

An example of how a new generation can affect the church can be seen from Joshua. During Joshua's days the children of Israel saw and experienced the great works of God. That generation was committed to serving God, which is why they were successful at conquering the promised land. But that generation died out and a new generation came along that had not been properly taught about God and they had lost their way. We read about them in:

Judges 2:10-13 "When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the LORD nor the work which He had done for Israel. 11 Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baals; 12 and they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods from among the gods of the people who were all around them, and they bowed down to them; and they provoked the LORD to anger. 13 They forsook the LORD and served Baal and the Ashtoreths."

I want you to understand that all it took was one generation to change the children of God from being faithful to being unfaithful. Understanding this should motivate us to teach each new generation about God and the importance of holding fast to the doctrine of Christ.

 

We also cannot be like the Samaritans that we read about in:

2 Kings 17:33 "They feared the LORD, yet served their own gods -- according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away."

It is not enough to fear God or just to know about Him, we must be fully committed to Him and His Holy Word. We cannot serve Him on one hand and continue to live in sin on the other. We cannot sit in a pew on The Lord's Day and praise Him and forget He exists throughout the week. The further we move away from God's Word, the more we are going to find ourselves compromising God's Truth with the ideas of man.

It is easy for us to drift away from God's Truth, and to let the next generation be unfaithful because moving away from God's Word happens gradually. When things happen gradually, we don't realize the damage that is done until much later.

It is kind of like the story of the frog, whether true or not, that if you try to put a frog in boiling water, it will jump out right away, but if you put it into cool water and slowly turn the temperature up it will not jump out and will be boiled alive because gradual change is much more difficult to notice. This is why the writer of Hebrews warns us:

Hebrews 2:1-3 "Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. 2 For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, 3 how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation,"

As Paul taught:

2 Thessalonians 2:15 "Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle."

We need to understand that Satan is at work and he wants us to fail to teach the next generation, and he wants us to wavier in our faith and compromise God's Truth. We must never forget the devil is the father of lies (John 8:44) and as Paul says:

2 Corinthians 11:14-15 "And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works."

Satan wants you to believe that restoring Christianity as it was 2,000 years ago is impossible and impractical in a modern society. He wants you to believe that the Church that belongs to Christ is just another denomination and is no different from any other denomination. He wants you to accept any idea of worship at a church of your choosing. He wants you to think that God does not care about the details as long as you worship Him in your own way.

But Paul says:

Ephesians 5:6-7 "Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not be partakers with them."

Do not be deceived by the devil or those who are working for his cause because God has not changed and His Word will not changed. If we are going to be pleasing to Him, we must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:24). If we worship Him any other way, then our worship will be in vain.

People have a tendency to want to do whatever is popular, and Christians who are weaker in The Faith will allow the world to influence them and they will adopt manmade doctrines just so they can fit in, but John tells us:

1 John 2:15-16 "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world -- the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life -- is not of the Father but is of the world."

Jesus warned us that the road to heaven is difficult (Matthew 7:14), but the reward of heaven is worth it all, so we must be willing to go against the grain of the world. Sometimes a church will find itself chasing after  manmade ways because the elders of the church do not stand up for what is right, and they allow themselves to bullied into something false.

Elders, God's leaders, should never compromise God's Truth, even if half a congregation walked away because God would rather have half a church worshiping Him correctly then a whole church worshiping Him in falsely or in vain.

The world has been pressing in hard against Christ's church trying its best to corrupt the faithful and to train the new generations in the way of the world. Usually, if you want to see the direction the Lord's Church is headed just look at the denominations and how they are being influenced by the world because they will usually adapt worldly practices before they end up influencing the Lord's church later down the line. We are not to look to denominations for how to please God! God has given plenty of instruction for how to please Him!

 

One example that comes to mind is how many denominations have started losing membership with their youth, so in order to try to save their youth, they created a worship service just for them. These youth often decide how they will worship with little regard as to what God's Word says. They are attempting to appeal to a generation who is no longer satisfied with traditional worship as they call it and so they allow them to dress how they want, and then "jam out" with so-called "Christian" music.

Some from these denominations would disagree with me, but it easy to see that they are simply trying to entertain these younger folks and not teach The Word of God as written.

But they are finding out that it is not working because their membership is still declining. As far as I am concerned, if worshipping God His way is not good enough for these younger folks, then they are lost anyway because they are not interested in worshipping God "in spirit and is truth."

The denominations have been doing things like this for years, and in the last few years we have heard of several congregations of the Lord's church that have started thinking this way as well. They have started giving women roles that God has not authorized, thereby removing the Elders of Christ's Church from their proper position of leading and feeding the flock of God from the Word. Some have started neglecting Bible teaching that baptism is necessary for salvation or glossing over it quickly as though they are embarrassed to preach it properly.

If we want to remain true to God we must plead with our brothers and sisters in Christ about the importance of restoring true New Testament Christianity and to reject all manmade doctrines.

We will pick this up again in our next time together. God bless, Mark

"But We Believe"

The world in which we live today is filled with people who have a "belief system" of one type or another, whether in THE ONE TRUE GOD or a god-myth of tradition or culture or convenience.

In trying to deal with many of these folks and persuade them of the ONE and ONLY GOD, we often hear at one point or other, "...But we believe...", and on they go with the reason for where it is they stand even if that stand is somewhat based on the Holy Scriptures known as The Bible.

 

          "BUT WE BELIEVE..." should never be an excuse or a replacement for, "THE WORD OF GOD SAYS..." but I fear it has become just that way. A question each of us must ask now and then is, "Am I following God's Word as it was originally written (after all, HE wrote it by way of His HOLY SPIRIT through inspired men), or am I more concerned with the sect or group with which I am associated, whether a denomination or other false teaching religion."

I fear there is a large percentage in this country and around the world who, for whatever reason, have been absorbed into one religion or other without much thought or personal study into what is truly being taught and from where it originates. In other words, too many today are following blindly what the large group is teaching and not asking the proper questions to find the truth.

First Thessalonians 5:21 tells us, "Prove (question, examine) all things. Hold fast that which is good."

Many big names seem to attract people. To question a certain man or his religious group is certainly out of the area of possibility for some. After all, he has been to school and knows so much more than the average person so we should trust him as he speaks.

         Let's understand that God's Word will never change!! God will never change!! No matter how many people vote to make certain religious items "The Way Things Are Today", God's Word says we will be judged by what God has already said in His Word as it is written.

 

Deuteronomy 4:2 "You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. (NKJV)

Re 22:18,19 "For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book." (NKJV)

God is today and will always be faithful to His Holy Word! We should be diligent to to faithful to it as well.

                God Bless until we meet again...Mark

WORSHIP

There are several words translated "worship" in the New Testament, but the most frequent is the Greek word proskuneo. Literally this word means to "kiss toward." A background study will help show why this word came to mean worship.

In a semi-feudal state, land was owned by lords who would rent or assign out this land to husbandmen, farmers who would raise the crop. Naturally a portion of this was to be brought to the lord at harvest time.

Several of Jesus' parables are based on this custom, such as the "Wicked Husbandman" of Matt. 21 33-46. When the husbandman would bring the fruit of the land to the lord he would bow in humble obeisance to the master. The master would extend his hand in formal gesture of acceptance of the fealty of the servant. The servant would then kiss to­ward the hand. He would not deign to touch it for he was too menial and sub­servient, but he showed his gratitude to the lord, his acceptance of his oversight, his adoration and love by "kissing toward."

Therefore in worship of God, we come to Him as His humble creation, recognizing that we are human, He is divine; we are earthly, He is heavenly; we are material, "He is spiritual; we cannot actually touch Him, but we can kiss toward Him in token of our adoration of His greatness, power, goodness, and mercy."

Many lessons concerning worship can be learned from this beautiful word picture. One lesson is that humility is necessary to worship. We must recognize that God is love; we are servants. We cannot worship aright when self-will, self -love, self-conceits make us feel we do not need God.

Another lesson is that when we worship, we must bring something to the Master. No husbandman would dare come to worship the lord without the fruit of the ground that was due him. So, we bring to God in worship our gifts as the wise men of old who worshipped the Christ child with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Our gifts include our financial support and offerings (gold), our allegiance and adoration to Him in songs of praise and love (frankincense), and our lives completely dedicated in service to him (myrrh).

We can have the attitudes of worship -­ love, gratitude, prayer, humble service -­at all times and everywhere, just as the husbandman had these as he went about his daily tasks. But there is also a definite time and place to kiss toward God just as there was a time for the husbandman to come before the lord to pay his respects. On the Lord's Day, commemorating the resurrection of our lord, around the Lord's table, commemorating His death for our salvation, in church, the assembly of the Lord’s people, we do this.