“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:29-31, ESV).

These words remind us of the awesome power of the sovereignty of God and the comfort that comes from resting in it. This passage falls in context of Matthew 10, a chapter where Jesus warns the apostles that they WILL face persecution as they serve him. Jesus is not only preparing the apostles for what is to come but, more importantly, is providing a source of stability for their future service. In the immediate context (v.28-33), he reminds them that fearing God and focusing on his sovereign will reduce the fear of man. As John MacArthur states, “The number of hairs on our heads is controlled by his sovereign will. In other words, divine providence governs even the smallest details and even the most mundane matters” (MacArthur Study Bible, Matthew 10:29). Therefore, Jesus encourages his disciples to “fear not” (v.31), for if He controls the flight of the sparrow, then he surely controls the works of man.

So, I find great comfort and encouragement in these verses. I pray that as you begin the week, you too will be reminded of God’s sovereignty – that he is so infinitely and intimately involved in the affairs of our lives that not one sparrow will fall to the ground without his command. I pray that His sovereignty will be your support as you serve in your area of ministry this week. Finally, I pray that this will fuel your worship for the Savior and cause you to delight in his love for you. A closing prayer:

“There is no comfort in anything apart from enjoying Thee and being engaged in Thy service…I rejoice to think that all things are at Thy disposal, and it delights me to leave them there.  Then prayer turns wholly into praise, and all I can do is to adore and bless Thee” (From The Valley of Vision: Puritan Prayers, God The All).

1. Proclaim the testimony about God. Paul reminds the church at Corinth that the reason he came was to proclaim the testimony about God , namely, the gospel of Jesus Christ (v.1). Carson encourages us to be a “re-presentation” of God’s gospel, the only means by which men and women are saved. So, I am constantly asking myself: how are we doing in this area in the Worship Ministry at Kings? Are we selecting songs for our congregation that are bringing them again and again to the gospel message? Are the methods we employ encouraging our congregation to enjoy our music and talents more than our message of the gospel? Someone once said: “What you win people with, you win people to.” It is essential for any ministry to ask the question: “What are we winning people to?”

2. Focus on Christ crucified. In verse 2, Paul says, “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (2:2). Wow! If only this were always our intention. It can be so easy to focus on all of the seemingly urgent things in a corporate gathering and miss the truly important things. Carson mentions an example of people moving on or off of the stage during times of prayer just to create a smooth effect. He writes, “Has the smoothness of the performance become more important than the fear of the Lord?” (On reading this chapter I was once again convicted of this and also had my thoughts confirmed as to why we must guard against this). The main point: we do not want people to focus on us. We want them to focus on Christ. As a worship leader, I do not want to do anything that would distract someone from that goal.

3. Do not fear your weaknesses. This has been a big one in my life. I have led in worship ministry for almost ten years. And, there are still times when I get nervous and anxious when I step onto a stage in front of people. In those moments, it is difficult not to fear my own weaknesses. However, it is also in those moments that I remind myself of God’s truth – “His strength is made perfect in my weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). The apostle Paul came to the Corinthian church in “weakness and in fear and in much trembling” (2:3). I am learning that in those weak moments, other people can see Christ’s strength rather than my own, and I pray they are drawn to him. I like Carson’s statement: ”As long as people are impressed by your powerful personality and impressive gifts, there is very little room for you to impress them with a crucified Savior.” So, in whatever capacity we lead, let us continue to boast in our weaknesses!

4. Avoid manipulating people. Finally, Paul states that his message was not presented in “plausible words of wisdom.” In other words, he wasn’t trying to use his own cleverness to persuade the crowd. Rather, he wanted to allow the Spirit to demonstrate his power (2:4) through the presentation of the gospel – as Paul preached Christ crucified. I recently heard CJ Mahany say, “Our goal is to be as unoriginal as possible. We must aim to bring people again and again and again to the gospel of Christ.” To this end, Carson writes, “It is the truth and power of the gospel that must change people’s lives, not the glamour of our oratory or the emotional power of our stories.”

These four practices will help us prioritize and centralize the gospel in our ministry. Ultimately, our goal is to point people to Christ! As I write this post tonight, I am grateful for the reminder that in the worship ministry at Kings, we must keep the cross of Christ and him crucified at the center of what we do! Thank you Don Carson for your excellent commentary on this passage. The book will definitely be on my top ten must-reads for every ministry leader!

Pastor Dale

Just a quick reminder that Adult Choir rehearsals will be resuming soon! Be sure to mark the date and time and join us as we kick off the fall semester with food, games, fellowship, give-aways, and most importantly, new music. See you there!

1. Website. I want to encourage everyone who is a member of the Worship Team to subscribe to this blog site by entering your email in the right hand column under “Email Subscription.” Once you have registered, you will receive regular email updates from me as I post on the blog.

2. Schedule. From this point on, the Worship Team schedule will only be posted online. If you are a team member, it is your responsibility to check the schedule monthly and contact me if you need to make any changes.

3. Rehearsals. Beginning Sunday, August 15, weekly worship team rehearsals will resume at 5pm in the Sanctuary. The Worship Team will be rehearsing every week from August 15 until December 19 unless otherwise instructed. If you are scheduled to lead worship, you need to be in rehearsal the Sunday afternoon a week prior to your scheduled date. For example, the team that is leading worship on August 22 needs to be at rehearsal on August 15.

4. Adult Choir. This is just a reminder that Adult Choir rehearsal has been moved to Sunday evenings from 6pm –7:30pm. Adult Choir rehearsals resume Sunday, August 15. Please invite others to join us as we kick-off the fall season!

Thanks for an awesome summer! It continues to be a joy for me to serve alongside you in the ministry at Kings. As I look over this month’s worship schedule, I am so grateful for the growth we have experienced in the last year. Please be praying that God would continue to bring more people to help us lead our faith family in corporate worship as we begin a new semester. I am looking forward to worshipping with you in the days ahead!

Pastor Dale

• Should July 4th Affect Our Sunday Planning?

Bob’s reminder that God’s kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36) is a refreshing reminder to celebrate a much higher accomplishment than America’s Independence Day. In the above-mentioned blog, Jeff Pursewell comments: “We’re most grateful for the freedom we have as a nation this day. We’re completely undeserving, and most in the world don’t experience this common grace. However, it should remind us of a greater freedom we have…”

As we gather tomorrow to celebrate our nation’s freedom, may we prioritize our gratitude for a greater freedom that was granted to us through our Savior Jesus Christ.

Thanks,

Pastor Dale