Our Advocate In Christ

The Scriptures tell us to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. We did that very thing this past Sunday at Calvary and God moved mightily in our worship gathering. This week Pastor Paul continues our study in John, examining John 11. We will also have the opportunity to join with three families as they dedicate their children to the Lord.

The songs we have chosen will point us to Christ and help us celebrate the glorious truth of the Resurrection. We open the service singing Matt Redman's Blessed Be Your Name. Over the years this song has become an anthem for us as we deal with the hardships and trials of life. The theme of the song is summed up in the bridge when we sing You give and take away, my heart will choose to say Lord blessed be Your name. The video here is of Matt Redman and the London Community Gospel Choir singing this wonderful anthem.

We will also be singing Vikki Cook's Before The Throne Of God Above. This text was written by Charitie Lees Bancroft a few years after the great Irish revival of 1859. Originally titled The Advocate, this modern hymn declares that although Satan, the accuser of the brothers, will tempt us to despair, will try to squelch our witness by reminding us of our sin, we have an advocate in Jesus Christ who has already accomplished everything we need for forgiveness and restoration. I think it is best stated in this lyric from stanza 2:

     Because the sinless Savior died

     My sinful soul is counted free

     For God the just is satisfied

     To look on Him and pardon me

Another song we will use in our gathering is the Stuart Townend and Keith Getty song In Christ Alone. I believe that this song will endure for generations to come if the Lord tarries. It serves to turn our hearts to the living Christ who has bought us with His precious blood. The closing lyrics reminds us of the truths from Romans 8:35-39:

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written,

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;

we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(Romans 8:35-39 ESV)

The video clip is of Kristen Getty and the Shadow Mountain Church. I hope it blesses you as much as it has me.

We will close the service singing Sovereign Grace's You Have Been Raised. The song begins with a series of questions. How do we know we've been forgiven? How do we know that we have been made clean? How do we know we'll go to heaven? How do we know we've been redeemed? The answers lies in the resurrection of Christ. The powerful chorus gives us hope and assurance in Christ.

     You have been raised, the tomb has been opened

     Nothing can take away our hope in You, You have been raised!

     You have been raised the work is completed

     Hell and its powers have been defeated! You have been raised!

I came across this video from Covenant Life Church of You Have Been Raised from their Easter service a couple of years ago. 

I trust that you will prepare your heart before the Lord in private before we gather to corporately proclaim the glories of Christ.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Trent

Overcome

This week at Calvary we continue our Journey Through John as Pastor Paul is preaching from John 10:22-42. One exciting element of our service this week is that 8 people are coming for Believer's Baptism. We will hear wonderful stories of how God transforms a life.

We open the service with Come Praise and Glorify. This song is really a Trinitarian call to worship. In this song are called to praise and glorify the Father who has poured His heavenly blessing upon us, the Son through whom our sins are washed away and the Spirit who guarantees our hope.

After the baptisms, we will sing Overcome from New Life Worship. This song is a Christ-centered worship song that alludes the passage in Revelation 12:11 which says:

      And they conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives to the death. (ESV)

It is a celebration that the accuser of our brothers is defeated. This video from New Life Worship will be a blessing to you. Watch the second video if you want to know the story behind the song.

Here is the song story video:

We introduced Overcome at Calvary when we were in the middle of our pastoral transition. It was one of those songs that helped us to put our focus on Christ and not on the circumstances that surrounded us.

Before the message we will sing Sovereign Grace's Behold Our God. This truly is one of my favorite worship songs to come along in the last few years. It connects the dialogue between God and Job with the heavenly worship from Isaiah 6 and Revelation 4. It ends in a call to come and adore the risen Christ. The video link is a version that you may not have heard. It is fully orchestrated with a choir and orchestra as the main performance forces.

I know you will be blessed this Sunday as we worship together. I hope these songs help your worship during the week to be meaningful and Christ exalting.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Trent

The Good Shepherd

This week at Calvary, Pastor Paul will pick up in our Journey Through John with John 10:1-21. This is the passage where Jesus declares Himself to be the Good Shepherd. Musically we will focus on goodness of our God.

We open the service with God Is Good All The Time. This song proclaims the goodness of God in every circumstance, whether we understand it or not. Next we will sing the Sovereign Grace song, All I Have Is Christ. We follow that by singing Matt Redman's 10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord). These two songs help us to understand the faithfulness of our God and give us the words to express our surrender to Him.

It has been a while since we have corporately read the Scriptures together but on Sunday we will read Psalm 23 together. Take some time this week to meditate on this Psalm as you prepare for Sunday.


The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.
(Psalm 23 ESV)

We will also be singing The Lord Is from Sovereign Grace. This song is based on Psalm 23 and declares the faithfulness of our God. Be sure to follow the links for each song and watch the YouTube videos. They will help you be ready to worship when we gather on Sunday.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Trent

Preparing for Sunday

I was truly moved in worship last Sunday as I considered the overwhelming reasons that we have to worship God. This week Pastor Paul will finish his series on Samson and we have the return of the Calvary Worship Choir. The Choir has been on hiatus for the last 8 months but I am excited to have a great multitude of singers assisting as we lead Calvary in worship.

We will open the service with a newer, rhythmic arrangement of the classic hymn The Solid Rock. This song points to Christ as our unchanging hope in all of life's circumstances. The Worship Choir will sing By Faith, a song which boldly declares that our salvation is by grace through faith in Christ alone. The congregation will then sing I Will Sing Of My Redeemer (You Set Me Free), His Name Is Jesus, and There Is A Redeemer. All three of these songs proclaim the glory of Christ and His power to set us free.

I trust that you will prepare your heart for our gathering on Sunday and that you will be blessed as we worship together.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Trent