The Sign of Christ's Coming [Family Worship lesson in Matthew 24:1–44]

What is the sign of Christ’s coming? Matthew 24:1–44 looks forward to the evening sermon on the coming Lord’s Day. In these forty-four verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that Christ’s coming is the sign of Christ’s coming. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary of transcript of the audio: Jesus teaches on the signs of the end, distinguishing between the predictable and escapable destruction of the temple—marked by the abomination of desolation—and the unpredictable, inescapable return of the Son of Man, which will be unmistakable and universal. He warns against deception by false Christs and prophets, emphasizing that no earthly signs, including wars, famines, or persecution, indicate His coming, as these are merely the 'beginnings of sorrows' characteristic of the age between His resurrection and return. The true sign of His coming is His visible, glorious appearance in the heavens, like lightning flashing across the sky, when all will see Him and the elect will be gathered from every nation. While the timing of His return remains unknown to all except the Father, believers are called to live in constant readiness, not in fear of signs, but in faithful service, knowing that their eternal destiny hinges not on external events or religious rituals, but on being united to Christ through faith. The passage concludes with a sobering call to self-examination: will His return be a day of judgment and mourning for the unprepared, or a moment of joy and redemption for those who have been gathered by grace?

2025.10.25 Hopewell @Home ▫ Matthew 24:1–44

Read Matthew 24:1–44

Questions from the Scripture text: Where did Jesus go (Matthew 24:1)? Who came to Him? To show Him what? What is the point of Jesus’s question in Matthew 24:2? What does He tell them will happen? Where is He in Matthew 24:3? Who come to Him? In what circumstance? What two things do they ask? With what command does Jesus initially answer (Matthew 24:4)? What does He say that many will do (Matthew 24:5)? Of what will they hear (Matthew 24:6)? What does He tell them not to do? What else will happen (Matthew 24:7)? Taken altogether, what are these things (Matthew 24:8)? What will be done to them (Matthew 24:9)? What will happen to many in the church (Matthew 24:10)? What else will happen in the church (Matthew 24:11)? And what else (Matthew 24:12)? What must they do, unto what result (Matthew 24:13)? For what is the coming of the end waiting (Matthew 24:14)? But what event will they see (Matthew 24:15), and how should they respond (Matthew 24:16)? How urgently (Matthew 24:17-18)? Under what distress (Matthew 24:19)? For what are they to pray (Matthew 24:20)? How dreadful will the destruction of the temple be (Matthew 24:21)? What is the only reason that it would not be worse (Matthew 24:22)? Even after the destruction of the temple, by what must they not be deceived (Matthew 24:23)? Who will arise, doing what (Matthew 24:24)? What does He command them to consider in Matthew 24:25? What application does He make of the doctrine in Matthew 24:23-25 (Matthew 24:26)? Why won’t they need anyone to announce that Christ has come (Matthew 24:27-28)? What (Who!) will be the sign that the Son of Man has come (Matthew 24:29-30)? What will this day be like for the nations (Matthew 24:30)? What will this day be like for the elect (Matthew 24:31)? What are they to do with the predictability of the destruction of the temple (Matthew 24:32-33)? When will that happen (Matthew 24:34)? How sure is Christ’s Word (Matthew 24:35)? How does His return compare (Matthew 24:36)? How surprising will it be to the world (Matthew 24:37-39)? How subtle will the difference be between the elect and the condemned (Matthew 24:40-41)? What are they to do (Matthew 24:42)? Why (Matthew 24:42-43)? What does “watching” mean doing (Matthew 24:44)?

What is the sign of Christ’s coming? Matthew 24:1–44 looks forward to the evening sermon on the coming Lord’s Day. In these forty-four verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that Christ’s coming is the sign of Christ’s coming.

Impressed with the wrong thing. At some distance from the temple, its buildings were still impressive to the disciples, who thought Jesus would be impressed too (Matthew 24:1). But Jesus’s response in Matthew 24:2 reminds them that He has been emphasizing His own kingdom, over-against what was superficially impressive. They were impressed with big stones, but they should have been impressed with Him Who is the Chief Cornerstone. Jesus informs them that those big stones will soon be toppled.

Confusing two events. The disciples receive Jesus’s reminder well, but incorrectly conclude that the destruction of the temple will occur at the same time as Jesus’s coming into His kingdom and ushering in a new age (Matthew 24:3). So, Jesus’s first answer to them is a command not to let anyone deceive them. He proceeds to give them extended instruction that differentiates between the destruction of the temple (which is predictable and escapable) from His return at the end of the age (which is unpredictable and inescapable).

“Signs” that predict neither event. Jesus tells them that many will claim to be the Christ (Matthew 24:5), and that there will be many events that seem so significant that they could be signs (Matthew 24:6-7), but that are just the chief sorrows of a fallen world (Matthew 24:8; “beginning” can also mean “principal” or “chief”). Then, there is the persecution that will happen to them (Matthew 24:9), and spiritual failures in the church (Matthew 24:10-12) that will seem like they could be signs. But, they are events to distinguish the elect, who will endure even through them (Matthew 24:13). What the end is waiting on is the preaching of the gospel to all the nations from which he Lord is saving people (Matthew 24:14, cf. Romans 8:22–23, Revelation 6:10–11).

The sign that predicts the destruction of the temple. Just as had happened once before, when Antiochus Epiphanes had erected a pagan altar in the temple, fulfilling the prophecy of Daniel (cf. Daniel 11:31, Daniel 12:11), a pagan conqueror would come and desecrate it again. When the Roman general, Titus, entered the temple in a.d. 70, Jews rushed into the temple, but Christians immediately fled. This was because Jesus had not only given them a very specific sign (Matthew 24:15), but also pressed the urgency of fleeing immediately (Matthew 24:17-18) from the terribly woeful (Matthew 24:19) tribulation that will come (Matthew 24:21). 

Jesus commands prayer, in advance of the temple’s destruction (Matthew 24:20). This is amazingly instructive for the doctrines of prayer and of the Sabbath. On the doctrine of prayer, the Lord has decreed the timing of the temple’s destruction, but He has also decreed that, in response to His people’s praying, it would not occur in winter or on the Sabbath. On the doctrine of the Sabbath, Jesus clearly teaches here that consecration of the day continues under the New Covenant. Referring to 70 a.d., the consecration of the Sabbath is still so important that their praying with respect to the destruction of the temple would focus on safeguarding their consecration of the day. This necessitates that the moral quality of Sabbath-keeping continues with the Lord’s Day.

The sign of Jesus’s coming. After the destruction of the temple, there will still be false prophets who claim to have secret knowledge of Christ’s location and return (Matthew 24:23-24). But we know that the Lord sometimes permits the signs of false prophets to come true, as a way of testing our commitment to His Word above all (cf. Deuteronomy 13:1–4). Jesus gives us a great reason never to listen to someone who claims secret knowledge of His return (Matthew 24:26): His return won’t be a secret (Matthew 24:27-28)! When someone does make such a claim, Jesus sets His own Word (Matthew 24:25) against that of the false prophet. The sign of the coming of the Son of Man will be… the Son of Man Himself in the sky (Matthew 24:28-30)! 

Be ready for the destruction of the temple. Matthew 24:32-33 refer to a predictable event. They are speaking, again, of the destruction of the temple—something that will happen before the current generation has passed away (Matthew 24:34). We cannot apply this teaching by fleeing Jerusalem. But we can, indeed, apply it by rejecting false signs, and affirming the perfect reliability of the words of Jesus (Matthew 24:35). 

Be ready for the coming of Christ. As Jesus changes the subject back to His coming (Matthew 24:37), He clearly indicates that it is as unpredictable as the temple’s destruction is predictable (Matthew 24:36). If they cannot know what time it will happen, then they must be ready for it at all times. Just as the world was not ready for the flood (Matthew 24:37-39), many will not be ready for Jesus’s return. 

Jesus’s return will be a day either of great horror (Matthew 24:30) or great joy (Matthew 24:31), depending upon whether you are of the nations (Matthew 24:30) or of His elect (Matthew 24:31). And we must not presume that we are elect just because we are in their company. Matthew 24:40-41 describe the scene at the angels’ gathering of the elect, and among people in identical circumstances, one will be elect while the other isn’t. 

We must always be ready for Jesus’s coming (Matthew 24:42-44). This means to close with Christ immediately: to believe in Him for salvation from sin and to be made right with God. And it means to be living always in the manner in which we would like to be found when Christ returns. Whatever you are doing, dear Christian, may I pass the question: “Would I wish to be found doing this, when Christ comes?” 

How have you resisted attempts to predict Christ’s return? How are you valuing His Word over signs? How are you living, in the way that you would wish to be found, when Christ returns?

Sample prayer:  Lord, thank You for caring that we would not be deceived. Grant us the ministry of Your Spirit, that we may hold to Your perfectly reliable Word and not be taken in by false prophets. Give us faith in Christ, and conform us to Him, that we may be ready for His coming, we ask in His Name, AMEN!

 Suggested songs: ARP96B “Ascribe unto the Lord” or TPH389 “Great God, What Do I See and Hear”

Christ's Help in Our Failings [Family Worship lesson in Song of Songs 1:8–11]

How does the Lord respond to His Bride’s discouragement over her present failings? Song of Songs 1:8–11 looks forward to the evening sermon on the coming Lord’s Day. In these four verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that the Lord responds to His Bride’s discouragement over her failings with encouragement and instruction. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary from the transcript of the audio. The devotional reflects upon the believer’s identity and hope, rooted in the Bride’s longing for sanctification and the Bridegroom’s loving response. It emphasizes that spiritual growth is not found in novel methods or self-reliance, but in faithfully following the well-worn paths of the faithful—through the ordinary means of grace and the pastoral ministry, which Christ has appointed and employs. The Bridegroom’s declaration of the bride’s incomparable worth—comparing her to His prized filly among Pharaoh’s chariots—affirms the dignity, value, and divine purpose of His church (and His elect), not by inherent merit, but by union with Christ. This dignity is being progressively adorned by God Himself, Who is actively refining His church through a Trinitarian work of sanctification, culminating in a glory that surpasses all earthly splendor. The passage calls the church and individual believers to hold fast to this truth, especially in seasons of discouragement, recognizing that their worth is defined not by failure or external appearances, but by the unchanging love and sovereign work of Christ, Who is both the Author and the Finisher of their faith.

2025.10.24 Hopewell @Home ▫ Song of Songs 1:8–11

Read Song of Songs 1:8–11

Questions from the Scripture text: What may be the case with the Bride (v8a)? What does the King call her? Where does He tell her to go (v8b)? What does He tell her to do (v8c)? Where/with whom (v8d)? Who has done what to her (v9a)? What does He call her now? To what has He compared her (v9b)? What other observations does He make bout her (v10)? What will He continue to make for her (v11)?

How does the Lord respond to His Bride’s discouragement over her present failings? Song of Songs 1:8–11 looks forward to the evening sermon on the coming Lord’s Day. In these four verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that the Lord responds to His Bride’s discouragement over her failings with encouragement and instruction.

“If you do not know” (v8a). The Bride has been speaking as the invisible church (she loves Him, cf. v7a). But she is sill susceptible either to ignorance or forgetfulness. Let believers, and/or healthy churches, keep vigilance and diligence to learn from Her Chief Shepherd.

“O fairest among women” (v8a). She is painfully aware of her deficiency, and she has taken pains to warn the daughters of Jerusalem against focusing upon her deficiency (v6a). But, this is not how her Beloved sees her. To Him, He is the fairest among women. This teaches us to see the church, to see believers, through the eyes of Christ. Scripture teaches us several ways in which He values the church above all else. 

He esteems her for her election by God, her union with Himself, her indwelling by the Spirit, her adoption by the Father. 

His own righteousness has been counted unto her; she is righteous with the righteousness of God, and is to be esteemed accordingly. 

His own personal delight in her, and love for her, assigns to her a value at which we all ought to esteem her. 

He sees her with respect to how glorious she will be when He is done with her. And so ought we.

For all of these reasons, He has counted her (reckoned, “compared” in NKJ, v9) as the most excellent, in comparison to animals that are the most beautiful, strong, and noble/glorious. 

And, she has a beauty that is more and different than what horses ordinarily have, represented in v10 with the ornaments and gold. Note, that this beauty is added to her from the outside, represented by ornaments and chains. Where does she get them? The Lord Himself. In fact, He is still making them for her (v11). The plural here does not indicate a change in speaker. Just as, in His making things in Gen 1:26, the change from third person singular to first person plural is not a change in Actor. Using the same word for “make” in both places, Scripture talks about the same, glorious, Triune God. 

So, the Lord answers her discouragement with encouragement—but also with instruction. He gives her two commands in v8. 

First, follow in the tracks of the flock that has gone before. Take the old paths. What is needed is not some innovation. The same means that the Lord has appointed, He has used in the paths, and He continues to use today. If we wish to be sanctified until we are glorified, then we follow in the same path, the ordinary means of God’s grace—chief among which are Word, sacraments, and prayer.

Second, bring our little ones (the kids of the goats, in v8c) to the shepherds whom the Chief Shepherd, the King, the Beloved, has appointed. He employs pastor-teachers (v8d, cf. Eph 4:11). This is what the church’s children need. And, indeed, this is what we all need. We are all little ones. Lambs. Kids of the goats. And, in availing ourselves of the pastoral ministry for them, we will avail ourselves of it for ourselves as well. 

Thus, the Lord answers us, when we are discouraged by our ongoing failings: with encouragement and instruction.

Over what failings in the church have you been discouraged? But how does Christ see her? And what does Christ tell her to do? Over what spiritual failings in yourself have you been discouraged? But how does Christ see you? And what does Christ tell you to do?

Sample prayer:  Lord, thank You for valuing us with Your own love, delight, and esteem. Grant unto us to view Your church, and ourselves, in accordance with how You view us. And grant unto us to walk in the old paths, shepherded by the pastors whom You have given us, that we might have Christ Himself as the One Who feed us, we ask in His Name, AMEN!

 Suggested songs: ARP23B “The LORD’s My Shepherd” or TPH403 “Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken”

Christ, Our Only True Righteousness [Family Worship lesson in Ecclesiastes 7:16–29]

Who can be truly righteous? Read Ecclesiastes 7:16–29 looks forward to the hearing of God’s Word read in the public worship on the coming Lord’s Day. In these fourteen verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that Jesus is our only hope for righteousness that is according to God’s standard, in God’s strength, and unto God’s praise. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary from the transcript of the audio: The devotional unpacks Ecclesiastes 7:16–29 as a meditation on the futility of self-righteousness, and the necessity of fearing God as the only true path to righteousness. It corrects a common misinterpretation of verse 16 by emphasizing that the warning is against self-justification—seeking righteousness for one’s own glory, strength, or approval—rather than against striving for godly virtue. The passage highlights Solomon’s own failure, despite his extraordinary wisdom—demonstrating that human effort, no matter how great, cannot achieve the righteousness God demands. True righteousness is found not in human wisdom or moral striving, but in the fear of the Lord and union with Christ, Who alone is the sinless, upright Man. The passage ultimately points to Jesus as the only perfect human, the one righteous Man among thousands, Whose righteousness cannot be imitated through self-achievement but imputed by grace through faith, and which transforms the believer’s life to conform to God’s standard, not for self-glory, but for His eternal glory.

2025.10.23 Hopewell @Home ▫ Ecclesiastes 7:16–29

Read Ecclesiastes 7:16–29

Questions from the Scripture text: What does Ecclesiastes 7:16a say not to be “overzealous” for? What else (verse 16b)? Why not—what does the rhetorical question in verse 16c imply? For what else should one not be overzealous (Ecclesiastes 7:17a)? What else (verse 17b)? Why no (verse 17c)? What is good (Ecclesiastes 7:18a)? But what shouldn’t they do (verse 18b)? Who will escape both destruction outcomes (verse 18c)? How strong is wisdom (Ecclesiastes 7:19)? What isn’t there, where (Ecclesiastes 7:20)? What shouldn’t we do (Ecclesiastes 7:21a)? If we did, to what would we respond wrongly (verse 21b)? What must we remember when this occurs—what have we done (Ecclesiastes 7:22)? What had Solomon tried (Ecclesiastes 7:23a–b)? With what result (verse 23c)? What did he conclude from this—what is the implied answer to the rhetorical question in Ecclesiastes 7:24? So, how did he try (Ecclesiastes 7:25)? But how, specifically, did he discover it to be far from him (Ecclesiastes 7:26)? What does Ecclesiastes 7:27 introduce? How did his search for the truly righteous, truly wise man go (Ecclesiastes 7:28)? Why (Ecclesiastes 7:29)?

Who can be truly righteous? Ecclesiastes 7:16–29 looks forward to the hearing of God’s Word read in the public worship on the coming Lord’s Day. In these fourteen verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that Jesus is our only hope for righteousness that is according to God’s standard, in God’s strength, and unto God’s praise.

The construction in Ecclesiastes 7:16 is reflexive. The idea is not an overzealousness in the pursuit of true righteousness and wisdom, but righteousness and wisdom that are according to oneself, by oneself, for oneself. The sort of faux righteousness (verse 16a) and wisdom (verse 16b) that Jesus condemned in the Pharisees. It is not just the pursuit of such “righteousness” that would destroy you (verse 16c), but attaining it. Any righteousness that is according to our own standard is not true righteousness. Any righteousness that we can do in our own strength is not true righteousness. And any righteousness that we would do unto our own praise is not true righteousness.

Giving up on righteousness altogether (Ecclesiastes 7:18b) is not the solution. To do so—to give in to wickedness (Ecclesiastes 7:17a) and folly (verse 17b)—is also a recipe for self-destruction (verse 17c). Grasping (Ecclesiastes 7:18a) the futility of both self-righteousness and wickedness ought to drive us to the only solution: righteousness that is by the fear of God (verse 18c). 

Wisdom is immensely valuable (Ecclesiastes 7:19), and if there were anyone who could have achieved righteousness or wisdom, it would have been Solomon (Ecclesiastes 7:23, Ecclesiastes 7:25). But it’s not possible for the children of Adam; they all sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20). This is important to remember, when others sin against us (Ecclesiastes 7:21). If we forget that we are full of sinfulness ourselves (Ecclesiastes 7:22), then we may foolishly take to heart others’ sin against us. 

But, Solomon’s extreme effort (Ecclesiastes 7:25) to pursue wisdom in his own life fell short (Ecclesiastes 7:23c) due to his own sinful nature. God’s Word had warned against the hearts and hands of foreign women, but in his sinful nature, Solomon had pursued those hearts and hands, and found himself bitterly (Ecclesiastes 7:26a) ensnared and bound (verse 26b–e). His greatest efforts arrived at the conclusion (Ecclesiastes 7:27) that of all humanity, only one man (Ecclesiastes 7:28b), and zero women (verse 28c), achieve what Solomon pursued. And that man is not Solomon! Indeed, it is a Man Who is not subject to the fall of Adam. God created him in righteousness (Ecclesiastes 7:29b), but in his fall, all of mankind fell into depravity (verse 29c).

What are you aiming at with your life? How do you hope to get there? Whom do you hope will be glorified by it?

Sample prayer:  Lord, thank You for holding up to us the mirror of Your Word, so that we can see ourselves and our depravity in it. Truly, we have pursued our own standards, in our own strength, to our own praise. And, we deserve destruction. But, we praise and thank You, for Jesus Christ, that one Man Who is righteous. In Him, count us righteous, and from Him and His life, make us to live according to Your standards, in Your strength, unto Your praise. Thus, forgive us and cleanse us, we ask through Him, AMEN!

 Suggested songs: ARP1 “How Blessed the Man” or TPH457 “Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness”

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Lives that Honor God's Name [Family Worship lesson in Deuteronomy 12:32–14:21]

How was Israel to apply the third commandment to their life in the land? Deuteronomy 12:32–14:21 looks forward to the hearing of God’s Word read in the public worship on the coming Lord’s Day. In these forty verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that Israel was to apply the third commandment to their life in the land by carefulness in theological speech, by church discipline, and by consecration of all of life. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary from the audio transcript: This devotional centers on the profound responsibility of honoring God’s Name in both word and life, rooted in the third commandment’s call to not take His Name in vain. It emphasizes that God’s Word is to be preserved without addition or subtraction, and that even miraculous signs cannot validate false teaching, as God may allow deception to test true devotion. The passage calls for rigorous personal and corporate discipline, including the removal of false prophets, family members, and entire communities that promote idolatry, underscoring the necessity of holiness to honor the sanctity of God’s Name. This moral law was applied to Israel through dietary regulations and cultural practices, illustrating that holiness extends to everyday life—how believers eat, dress, and live—because they are God’s chosen, holy people bearing His Name. Ultimately, the passage calls for a life marked by conscious reverence, where every action reflects the weightiness of being a child of God, a holy and treasured possession, and a living testimony to His glory.

2025.10.22 Hopewell @Home ▫ Deuteronomy 12:32–14:21

Read Deuteronomy 12:32–14:21

Questions from the Scripture text: What must Israel do with God’s commands (Deuteronomy 12:32)? What mustn’t they do? To what type of person does Deuteronomy 13:1 refer? What does he give? And what happens (Deuteronomy 13:2)? But what does he say? What shouldn’t Israel do (Deuteronomy 13:3)? What is happening? So, what shall they do (Deuteronomy 13:4)? And what shall be done with the prophet (Deuteronomy 13:5)? Why? Who else might entice them similarly (Deuteronomy 13:6-7)? What must they do with them (Deuteronomy 13:8-10)? Why (Deuteronomy 13:10-11)? Who else might entice them similarly (Deuteronomy 13:12-14)? What is to be done to a city that has permitted its members to do so to others (Deuteronomy 13:15-16)? Why (Deuteronomy 13:17-18)? How are Israel to view themselves (Deuteronomy 14:1)? What mustn’t they then do (Deuteronomy 14:2)? Why? What must be governed by this consecration (Deuteronomy 14:3-21)? 

How was Israel to apply the third commandment to their life in the land? Deuteronomy 12:32–14:21 looks forward to the hearing of God’s Word read in the public worship on the coming Lord’s Day. In these forty verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that Israel was to apply the third commandment to their life in the land by carefulness in theological speech, by church discipline, and by consecration of all of life.

In this section of Deuteronomy, the Spirit applies the third commandment to the life of Israel. Deuteronomy 12:32 is actually grouped with what comes after it. So the Hebrew Masoretes made it the first verse of chapter 13 in their reckoning. It provides an apt introductory summary to the third commandment: do not add to, or take away from, the Word of God.

The bulk of chapter 13 warns against the second-commandment-dangers of third-commandment-breaking. Those who alter God’s Word on their lips, or otherwise take it lightly, or blaspheme Him, influence others to take YHWH lightly as well. So much profane swearing and misuse of God’s Name does this. And there is little that is more blasphemous than for the prophets, those who speak in YHWH’s Name, to direct the people to idolatry.

Though the wider world around us is definitely a threat to influence us to sin, it is not the greatest threat. It is those who are officers in the church (Deuteronomy 13:1-5), and nearest of kin (Deuteronomy 13:6-11), and other churches (Deuteronomy 13:12-16), that are the greatest threats of influencing us to sin. The more impressive the church officer, the nearer the kin, and the more influential the church, the greater the threat. We must have such regard for the Name of God, and the Word of God as the greatest expression of that Name, that we will be vigilant even (and especially) with respect to such people.

In the dealing with the city from which these spiritual seducers came, there is an important lesson that is seemingly lost upon the churches of your author’s own day: the need for corporate church discipline of churches that fail to exercise it locally. Though the church no longer has the power of the sword, it does have the keys of the kingdom, which are exercised disciplinarily via excommunication. And, when gospel-corrupting, soul-destroying, God-blaspheming spiritual poison spreads from undisciplined members of one church into the surrounding church, as occurs in Deuteronomy 13:12-16, that entire church needs to be censured, not preserved. Church discipline is a corporate responsibility. Even the non-officer member in such a circumstance has a duty to bring charges, and a duty to transfer membership if discipline is not exercised. One of the reasons that this is generally taken lightly is that we do not see it as Deuteronomy does: a third commandment issue in which the properly weighty bearing of God’s Name is at stake.

Of course, the third commandment requires us to bear God’s Name weightily, not only upon our lips, but upon our lives. The introduction to chapter 14 makes this plain. Being “YHWH’s children” (Deuteronomy 14:1) means, especially, to have His Name upon them. They are too consecrated to Him to be desecrated for others: a holy people, a chosen people, and a special treasure (Deuteronomy 14:2). This is the way to think about (or talk to others about) things like tattooing: you are already invisibly (but much more “real”-ly) “tattooed” by the Name of God upon you. You mustn’t employ this, or other measures to try to stamp your identity, when you already have this glorious identity: “holy, chosen, special treasure!”

The rest of our passage (Deuteronomy 14:3-21) consolidates a number of food laws from Leviticus 11, helping us to see, once again, the point of those laws. It was not that those foods were inherently unhealthful or corrupting. (This would make no sense of the Lord’s permitting them under the gospel, as if He would apply Christ’s finished work to us by permitting us to poison ourselves!). Rather, it was a way of distinguishing the holy people by prescribing to them a diet that He Himself has chosen, rather than man. Parents often prescribe a particular diet for their children, and that is what YHWH is showing about His people by the holiness code of the food laws: they are a chosen and treasured people whom He has consecrated to Himself. 

We must live this way: as those Who have His Name upon us, so that in everything that we are, and everything we do, we seek the honor of Him Whose Name is upon us, and in Whose Name we must speak and act and live.

How are you exercising carefulness to say only those theological things that are certainly true and helpful to God’s people? In what ways and circumstances do you most need to be more careful with God’s Name upon your lips? How are you careful to participate in the holiness of the congregation’s theology and discipline? What are some circumstances in which you have not presented yourself in a way, or behaved in a way, that was intentionally seeking to bring honor to the Name of God upon your life?

Sample prayer:  Lord, forgive us for how often we have spoken carelessly theologically. And, forgive us for how often we have carried ourselves in a way that does not treat Your Name as weighty or behaved ourselves in a way that does not treat Your Name as weighty. Thank You for honoring Your own Name by atoning for us in Jesus Christ. Please help us, by Your Spirit, to treat Your Name like He does, we ask in His own glorious Name, AMEN!

 Suggested Songs: ARP8 “Lord, our Lord” or TPH174 “The Ten Commandments”

Shepherded by Supreme Love [Family Worship lesson in Song of Songs 1:2–7]

What does the Bride of Christ desire? Song of Songs 1:2–7 looks forward to the evening sermon on the coming Lord's Day. In these six verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that the Bride of Christ desires that His love would take the initiative in stirring up her love to Him. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson) Summary from the audio transcript: The devotional unfolds the Song of Songs 1:2–7 as a profound reflection on the believer’s deep longing for intimate, experiential communion with Christ, Who is known as King, Shepherd, and Bridegroom. Central to the message is the bride’s passionate plea for His kisses, which symbolize the living, transformative expressions of His grace. Her identity as both flawed and beloved—dark yet lovely—illustrates the condition of the church in this world as holy, but not yet glorified. The devotional emphasizes that true spiritual health is marked by single-minded devotion to Christ, a desire to be drawn by His grace, and a desire for genuine, Scriptural nourishment over-against merely human ministry. Ultimately, the believer is called to seek Christ in His Word and means of grace, where His love is made real, His name is exalted, and His people are gladdened and strengthened in Him.