Who's in Control? Pt. 1

Well, it’s summer time so you would think I would have more time to invest in writing…but the reality is that I am having a busy summer – and also that there are times when I feel too lazy to take the time to write about all the things I would love to share that God has been teaching me.  I’ve been putting off writing something for here for at least two weeks, and I’m finally going to do it!

The last several months have been hectically busy in all areas of my life, and as a result I have a long list of topics I want to cover in this blog but haven’t gotten around to writing yet. So here’s to a beginning to cover the list! This first group is going to be a short series simply because it’s on a couple of different but connected topics.

I moved into an apartment in DC on June 10, and the next week I visited a church that my aunt had suggested and that a family friend’s son happened to also attend.  I can honestly say that the two Sundays I have been there have been my favorite church services ever. The church is Capitol Hill Baptist Church, and it is just a few blocks from the Capitol building.

The service is two hours long. The first half, the worship section, is set up slightly like a liturgy.  We alternate singing (mostly hymns – which I enjoy!), praying, and reading Scripture. The prayers are focused on a specific topic, so there’s one for praise, one for confession, one for petition, and one for thanksgiving.  The offertory and the sermon come next, followed by a closing hymn. Then we have a few moments of silent reflection before the service is over.

The first week, one of the pastors was teaching on Ps. 68, and I think it was one of the most convicting sermons I have ever heard.  Both weeks the pastors have worked their way exegetically through the text, but they are also very intentional at making the sermon applicable to both believers and also those who are unsaved.  It is such a blessing to have this service available for the time I am here!

Anyway, back to June 17.  The speaker, Jonathan Leeman, emphasized God’s authority during the sermon.  The Psalm divides into several sections

• a prologue (1-6)
• God leading His people out of captivity (7-10)
• Routing the enemies of His people (11-14)
• bigger mountains being jealous of Zion because that is where God dwells (15-18)
• God’s people vs. God’s enemies (19-23)
• God’s people entering in joy (24-27)
• enemies either bringing tribute or being scattered (28-31)
• and an afterward focused on praise (32-35)

Leeman pointed out that we as humans tend to question authority, and especially to want to take God’s place of authority. One of the points that he made is that Christians should be living transparently and authentically, both before God and before our fellow believers.

Tomorrow I’ll post the conclusion of a summary of Leeman’s sermon, looking at six characteristics of God’s power.