2026.04.15 Midweek Meeting Livestream (live at 6:30p)

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Redemption Is Your History [Family Worship lesson in 1Chronicles 1:1–2:2]

What is God doing, when His church is weak? 1Chronicles 1:1–2:2 looks forward to the hearing of God’s Word, publicly read, in the holy assembly on the coming Lord’s Day. In these fifty-six verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that, even when His church is weak, God is carrying out His redemptive plan, surely and steadily. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary of the transcript of the audio: The devotional unfolds the genealogical framework of 1 Chronicles 1 as a profound declaration of God’s enduring, redemptive purpose throughout human history, tracing lineage from Adam to Abraham and beyond, not only through Israel but also through the descendants of Ham, Japheth, Ishmael, and Esau. It emphasizes that God’s plan is both universal in scope and specific in focus, centered on the line of Abraham and culminating in Christ, the rightful Heir to all thrones and the true King, Priest, and Savior. By highlighting the temporary, fragmented nature of earthly kingships—such as those of Edom—the passage contrasts the fleeting power of human rule with the eternal sovereignty of Christ, affirming that God has no plan B, only His faithful, unfolding plan A. The message calls believers to find their identity and purpose not in their circumstances or lineage, but in their place within God’s grand redemptive story, where Jesus is the central figure connecting all humanity to divine purpose. Ultimately, the genealogy is not merely historical but personal, reminding every listener that Christ came from their family line, offering hope, salvation, and a renewed identity in Him.

2026.04.15 Hopewell @Home ▫ 1 Chronicles 1:1–2:2

Read 1 Chronicles 1:1–2:2

Questions from the Scripture text: What is the first word in the book (1 Chronicles 1:1)? To which three men do 1 Chronicles 1:1-4 trace? Whose descendants do 1 Chronicles 1:5-7 trace? Whose descendants do 1 Chronicles 1:8-16 trace? Whose descendants do 1 Chronicles 1:17-23 trace? Whose ancestors do 1 Chronicles 1:24-27 trace? To which sons (1 Chronicles 1:28)? Whose descendants do 1 Chronicles 1:29-31 trace? And whom do 1 Chronicles 1:32-33 trace? Whose line does 1 Chronicles 1:34 begin to trace? Focusing on whom (1 Chronicles 1:35-37)? Whose line had reigned in Edom before the line of Esau (1 Chronicles 1:38-42)? Whom do 1 Chronicles 1:43-54 focus upon, in the land of Esau’s people? What sort of succession occurs in the kingship there? To which child of Isaac does 1 Chronicles 2:1 now turn? What name does it use for him (cf. 1 Chronicles 1:34)? Whom do 1 Chronicles 2:1-2 list?

What is God doing, when His church is weak? 1 Chronicles 1:1–2:2 looks forward to the hearing of God’s Word, publicly read, in the holy assembly on the coming Lord’s Day. In these fifty-six verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that, even when His church is weak, God is carrying out His redemptive plan, surely and steadily.  

1 and 2 Chronicles were originally one book. Chronicles was written after the Persian decree that the temple should be built. The book’s emphases on the line of Aaron, and on the Levitical temple assignments, strongly suggest that preparation for the rebuilt temple was one of the purposes of the book.

This occurred at a time when the people of God were few in number. The Lord had brought them back from exile, but the lines of David and Aaron seemed nearly extinguished. The question of the day seemed to be: does God still have a purpose for Israel? When the purposes of God seem to take a long time, we may forget that God is always active in history, working out His purpose to redeem.

So, this first chapter of the Chronicles reminds us that God's purpose did not begin with the land of Judah. It did not begin with the temple. It did not begin with David and his family. 

God's purposes were in control at the beginning, with Adam (1 Chronicles 1:1). The text traces from Adam to Noah (1 Chronicles 1:1-4), but it does not go straight to David. In addition to going backward, to include all humanity, at each covenantal juncture, it also extends broadly to include the rest of humanity. It does not trace only the line of Shem (1 Chronicles 1:17-23); it also traces the lines of Japheth (1 Chronicles 1:5-7) and Ham (1 Chronicles 1:8-16). It does not trace only the line of Isaac (1 Chronicles 1:34); it also traces the line of Ishmael (1 Chronicles 1:29-31) and the sons of Keturah (1 Chronicles 1:32-33). It does not trace only the line of Jacob; it also traces the line of Esau (1 Chronicles 1:35-37), and the line of Seir (1 Chronicles 1:38-42, in Edom), before focusing on the kings of Edom (1 Chronicles 1:43-54).

By this broad focus on God’s work in all humanity, the text reminds us why He had begun to focus upon Israel in the first place—which assures us that He is not finished with Judah or with Israel. God is still carrying out His plan for all humanity. There are at least three lessons here:  God's plan is for all the nations; God's plan is specific (He focuses on His visible church, through whom He brings Christ to the world); and, God’s plan endures. 

God’s plan is for all the nations. Whatever God does in Israel is for all of the children of Adam and Noah. This was also emphasized to Abraham, in whom all the families of the earth would be blessed—a promise that was extended to Isaac, and then Israel. 

We would be greatly mistaken if we found Israelite genealogies to be boring. They are a shorthand for the history of each name, and an index for the history of God’s bringing Christ into the world. Even now, what the Lord does in His church is for the rest of the world, to whom He is bringing Christ, through His church.

God’s plan is specific. He is focused upon Christ. The Davidic line isn’t significant merely because they are kings (Edom had kings, long before Israel, 1 Chronicles 1:43-54), but because Christ comes from it. The series of Edom's kings is haphazard. Each one's reign is replaced by another man from a different family in a different place. There is a sense in which this is a microcosm for all the kingdoms of this world. There are kingdoms, and there are kingships, but they are not the rightful heirs of those kingdoms. Jesus is. They are not the rightful heirs of those nations. Jesus is. Jesus is the rightful heir to every throne on earth.

God’s plan endures. No matter how diminished they are, Israel still has a purpose and place. God does not have a plan B, because He does not need a plan B. He is always sovereignly and powerfully carrying out His plan A. 

This is vital for each of us to remember in our own life. Each of us connects back to Adam. We share the same problem of sin and death. Each of us is called to be a subject of Christ. He is our rightful Lord and King. Each of us is offered sure hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Every reader of Chronicles should recognize that the genealogy with which it begins is his genealogy. Dear reader, this is your genealogy. It starts with your ancestors. It shows you that it was through your extended family that Jesus came into the world. Some branches are closer to the main line that goes from Adam to Christ, but this is your family, and Jesus is a Savior for you. Furthermore, the Lord intends to gather all of His elect people into one church, with one King and one great High Priest.

Just as with post-exilic Israel, even so now in postmodernity. God has not lost track of His church, His kingdom, His priesthood. And He certainly has not lost track of His saving purpose for the elect. History feels long to us because we have short lives. History feels overwhelming to us because we are weak. But history is not long or overwhelming to God. The Lord Jesus is King. The Lord Jesus is the temple. The Lord Jesus is the Priest. The Lord Jesus is our Savior. The Lord Jesus is our purpose.

As God’s people were in a low condition and struggling to get their bearings, Chronicles grounded them in their place in the saving and redemptive purpose of God throughout all of human history. When you struggle to find your bearing and your purpose—when you wonder what you are even doing—Scripture grounds you in the fact that you are in a particular place in His redemptive plan, with Jesus as your King, Jesus as your priest, and Jesus as your purpose. 

How do you conscientiously locate your own life in the redemptive plan of God? In what ways are you subject to Christ as King? How are you depending upon His mediation as your Priest? What is your purpose every day? When do you have the hardest time remembering this?

Sample prayer: Lord, thank You for reminding Your people of their history, and indeed of all the history of Your work in the world. Forgive us for forgetting Your sovereign, gracious rule. Forgive us for getting caught up in our own purposes, rather than devoting everything to You, in dependence upon You. Thank you for bringing Jesus from our family, the family of men, so that He might be to us another Adam—the beginning of a new humanity. We pray that You would give us to be subject to Him, to trust in Him, to come to you through Him, and to devote ourselves to Him by His own life and righteousness—we ask through Him and His blood, Amen!

Suggested songs: ARP87 “The Lord’s Foundation” or TPH404 “The Church’s One Foundation” 

The Maturity of the Bride [2026.04.12 Evening Sermon in Song of Songs 8:8–12]

As the bride comes into her maturity, she is awakened to zeal and diligence in church planting and recovery, maintaining her own vineyard, out of regard for the Lord and His ordained servants.

(click here to DOWNLOAD video/mp3/pdf files of this sermon)

The Good News of God's Wrath [2026.04.12 Morning Sermon in Nahum 2:3–13]

God's wrath is right, and just, and holy—and good news for those who have been saved through faith in Christ.

(click here to DOWNLOAD video/mp3/pdf files of this sermon)

How The Bible Talks about Sacraments [2026.04.12 Sabbath School lesson in WCF 27.2—Hopewell 101]

"There is, in every sacrament, a spiritual relation, or sacramental union, between the sign and the thing signified: whence it comes to pass, that the names and effects of the one are attributed to the other." WCF 27.2 (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson)

Missional Duty of the Mature [Family Worship lesson in Song of Songs 8:8–12]

In what does a healthy church desire to participate? Song of Songs 8:8–12 prepares us for the evening sermon on the coming Lord’s Day. In these five verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that a healthy church desires to participate in the planting and making healthy of other churches, and in producing the fruit of mature believers, whom the Lord Jesus so highly values. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary of the transcript of the audio: The passage presents the church as fulfilling her responsibility to nurture and fortify other churches and to actively engage in church planting, revitalization, and missions as co-laborers with Christ. The imagery of the vineyard underscores the immense value God places on every believer, honoring both Christ and Christ-given ministers by bringing forth the fruit that they so highly value.

2026.04.14 Hopewell @Home ▫ Song of Songs 8:8–12

Read Song of Songs 8:8–12

Questions from the Scripture text: What do the bride and bridegroom have (Song of Songs 8:8a)? What does she lack, in her spiritual immaturity (verse 8b; cf. Song of Songs 4:5, Song of Songs 7:3)? What does v8c ask about? With respect to what day (Song of Songs 8:8d)? What might she come to be (Song of Songs 8:9a)? And what would need to be done then (verse 9b–c)? What else might she come to be (verse 9d)? And what would need to be done then (verse 9e–f)? Who is already in the condition of verse 9a (Song of Songs 8:10a)? And already has the improvement of Song of Songs 8:9b–c (Song of Songs 8:10b)? What is the Bridegroom’s view of her, in this condition of maturity (verse 10c–d)? What is the earthly comparison for the Bridegroom and His bride (Song of Songs 8:11a)? How does He design to obtain her cultivated fruit (verse 11b)? How valuable is this fruit to Him (verse 11c–d)? Who else cares about her fruitfulness (Song of Songs 8:12a)? For what value to Him (verse 12b)? And what other value to whom else (verse 12c)? 

In what does a healthy church desire to participate? Song of Songs 8:8–12 prepares us for the morning call to worship on the coming Lord’s Day. In these five verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that a healthy church desires to participate in the planting and making healthy of other churches, and in producing the fruit of mature believers, whom the Lord Jesus so highly values. 

The Church and Her Mission (Song of Songs 8:8-9). From Song of Songs 7:11–8:4, we heard about the bride’s desire for revival of the saints, and for the church to be enabled to give more love to Christ. There is another desire that mature and faithful churches have: the recovery of backslidden churches, and the planting and growing of new churches. 

Already by the time of Solomon, there was some fracturing between the north and south in Israel (cf. 2 Samuel 20:1, 1 Kings 12:16). So, there is an obvious candidate, at the time of writing, for the “little sister.” Later, the apostles are charged by the Lord Jesus, with the subsequent building of a sequence of “little sisters”: Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth (cf. Acts 1:8). Now, we are in a season, where Israel and the remaining fullness of the Gentiles are in the place of the “little sister” (cf. Romans 11:25–26). 

Ultimately, it is Christ, Who builds His church, but He uses means. The “we” in Song of Songs 8:8-9 has nothing to do with brothers, like the editors of the NKJ have interpolated. Christ uses His present church for forming new congregations, for bringing the gospel to new nations, and indeed for bringing all the elect to saving faith in Him. It is difficult to tell whether the speaker in verses 8–9 is the bride, or the Bridegroom, or the two together. As the church matures, His desire is her desire, and His work is her work.

In this case, the sister is still so immature that she is unable to nourish offspring (Song of Songs 8:8b). She doesn’t yet have the capacity to disciple the offspring unto the pleasure of the Bridegroom (cf. Song of Songs 4:5, Song of Songs 7:3). 

Christ produces this maturity by His grace, but Song of Songs 8:8c asks “what shall WE do?” (emphasis mine). 

He has given His church the privilege of duty and responsibility in His mission work. If she is to come to be betrothed to Christ (Song of Songs 8:8d), something must be done. 

Christ Himself is the foundation, and He establishes her with the structural strength of a wall by building her upon Himself (Song of Songs 8:9a). Upon this foundation, the church must build a tower, a royal fortification, but only using the right materials (verse 9b). The apostle alludes to this text in 1 Corinthians 3:10–15. 

Christ Himself is the door (cf. John 10:9, John 14:6). But it is especially in and through the church that He brings the elect to Himself (cf. Ephesians 2:12–13). When a church has become a doorway of the gospel to Christ (Song of Songs 8:9d, cf. Song of Songs 5:4), she reinforces and buttresses that truth (cf. 1 Timothy 3:15), as the Bridegroom and bride do here with the boards of cedar (Song of Songs 8:9e–f).

The Church He Uses (Song of Songs 8:10). To be His instrument and partner in His work, the bride must first be mature herself, and this is what she professes in verse 10. She is already that wall of Song of Songs 8:9a (Song of Songs 8:10a). She already has those towers (verse 10b), that battlement of Song of Songs 8:9c. In this case, the towers are the same by which the offspring are nourished. It is the truth of the gospel by which the saints are nourished in the church. And it is the truth of the gospel that is raised as a battlement by which the church is protected. 

It is this church that the Lord Jesus sees (Song of Songs 8:10c) as her who has found peace (verse 10d). And the church that is mature in the gospel, and fortified in the gospel, is the church that should be multiplying this maturity in “little sisters” via church planting and missions. And in those daughters of Jerusalem who are as little sisters within her assemblies.

The Ministers He Uses (Song of Songs 8:11). Now, the song again uses its writer as something of a living metaphor for Christ. We saw this back on the wedding day in Song of Songs 3:6–11. Now, we see it again with reference to His kingly employment of servants to bring forth exquisite fruit. 

The Lord Jesus interprets Song of Songs 8:11 in the way that we have learned from Scripture to read the song (cf. Matthew 21:33, Mark 12:1, Luke 20:9). The great difference is between the Pharisees and the true bride—the “others” of Matthew 21:41, Mark 12:9, Luke 20:16. The true bride longs to produce for the Lord the fruit that He values at 1000 (!) silver coins. This, of course, is the opposite of an exaggeration, because the “fruit” here are redeemed, godly saints. The friends and beloved ones of the Bridegroom. 

They aren’t worth a “mere” thousand silver coins to Him. They are worth His incarnation and humiliation. They are worth His suffering and death—and that, on the cross. And it is for them that He has instituted the ministry of the gospel. It is for them that He has saved, graced, gifted, called, and ordained the particular men whom He charges with this ministry. 

Let ministers remember this. The vineyard is the Lord’s vineyard. It is the vineyard of “Baal Hamon” (master of the multitude). The fruit is the Lord’s fruit. Ministers are the Lord’s servants, appointed for bringing forth the fruit believers whose faith has matured.

And let church members remember this. The Lord has sent them their faithful ministers. So, while they give regard to their ministers out of reverence for Christ, it is ultimately Christ Who uses those ministers to produce the fruit. And it is Christ to Whom the fruit belongs. Let them make use of the ministry that the Lord has supplied to them. Let them bear fruit for Him.

The Church and Her Ministers (Song of Songs 8:12). Finally, the bride refers to her own vineyard. Even though she is mature and strong, as a wall with towers, she still needs to keep her vineyard. Near the very beginning of the song, she had admitted that she had not kept her vineyard (cf. Song of Songs 1:6e). But that is not the case now. She professes, “My own vineyard is before me” (Song of Songs 8:12a).

She knows Christ’s valuing of her fruit, and she longs to give Him that thousand.

But she knows that, though a minister cannot value the fruit as the King does, yet the minister’s cherishing of the saints comes from Christ’s own. And the bride loves for the vineyard keepers to have their share in the joy of the fruit that is produced. The laborer is worthy of his hire (cf. 1 Corinthians 9:7, 1 Corinthians 9:9–14). But what a congregation should much more desire to give him is the joy of seeing them advancing in grace and the fruit of the Spirit (cf. 1 Thessalonians 2:19, 1 Corinthians 9:2).

What part do spiritually weak churches, church plants, and missionary work have in your prayers? What part does the reformation, revival, and strengthening of your own church have in your priorities? What use are you making of the ordained ministry that the Lord Jesus uses in your own congregation, to bring forth fruit? How are you making use of His valuing the fruit as a motivation for bearing it? 

Sample prayer:  Lord, thank You for loving Your church, Your temple, Your vineyard. Grant that she would worship You, now, as a strong wall, built solidly upon the only foundation, her Lord Jesus Christ. Grant that, for her battlements, she would have the towers that nourish her by the pure milk of the Word, and guard her by the truth as it is in Jesus. We thank You for giving vineyard keepers, whom You Yourself use to make us fruitful. And, we marvel that You have so desired our mature faith, as Your fruit, that You have paid, not one thousand silver coins, but Your own blood, to redeem us. Now, grant that by Your Spirit, we would worship You by the grace that we have from Your own resurrection life, we ask in Your Name, AMEN!

Suggested songs: ARP87 “The LORD’s Foundation” or TPH405 “I Love Thy Kingdom Lord” 

Christ's Atonement for Our Sin [Children's Catechism 48—Theology Simply Explained]

Pastor walks his children through Children's Catechism question 48—especially explaining how Jesus endured and eliminated all of God’s righteous wrath against our sin.

Q48. What is meant by the Atonement? Christ's satisfying divine justice, by His sufferings and death, in the place of sinners. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary of the transcript of the audio: The lesson centers on the doctrine of atonement as the divine satisfaction of justice through Christ’s sacrificial death, grounded in Romans 3:25, where Christ is presented as a propitiation—publicly displayed to demonstrate God’s righteousness. It emphasizes that God’s justice is fully satisfied by Christ’s infinite sacrifice, which is sufficient because the Son of God, in human form, bore the wrath due to sinners, making atonement possible where no creature could. The lesson underscores that God’s forgiveness of sins throughout history was not arbitrary but was sustained by the future work of Christ, Who alone could satisfy divine justice through His blood. It refutes the idea that additional works or rituals are needed for atonement, affirming that justification comes solely through faith in Christ, Who is both just and the justifier.

True Strength [Family Worship lesson in Proverbs 24:3–13]

What strength do we need, and why? Proverbs 24:3–12 looks forward to the midweek sermon. In these ten verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that we need to be strengthened by wisdom for our households, for ourselves, and for the perishing. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary of the transcript of the audio: True strength comes from the fear and knowledge of the Lord, which is eternal life. Wisdom enables effective leadership, strategic discernment in life’s battles, and the moral courage to help the perishing. Rooted in the gospel, this wisdom is not self-derived, but flows from a transformed life in Christ, and enlists God-given, wise counsel.