Pastoral Ministry in Gathered Worship

As mentioned in a previous post, worship is not only meant to express our emotions and thoughts toward God, but is also meant to form them aright. In other words, when gathered worship is carried out Biblically, it is doing something to us, making us different sorts of men and women than we were before, so that we should notice an increase in our sanctification after a three month period of faithful corporate worship.

Because worship itself is a prime means for forming godliness in my people, I have come to see the great value not only of carefully planning the gathered worship time beforehand, but then actually leading my people through the service, and explaining what we are doing as we go along. Some may object that this disrupts the flow of worship, but I am convinced that far greater mischief is done by saying too little. How many believers have sat for decades through even the most beautiful, biblical worship services, without ever grasping the deep significance of what they were doing? How much more beneficial is it to be lead by the hand through gathered worship by the loving overseer of your souls?

One example will suffice. Without any explanation, the traditional offering collection can be seen as just a convenient time for special music at best, and a time for earning favor with God at worst. But how beautiful this time becomes when it is explained in light of the Gospel! There is something so powerful, after hearing the promise of God’s grace in Christ read aloud from, say, 1 Peter 2:22-25, to then be reminded that our offering time is a physical response to that grace, not a means of earning merit. What a joyful time it should be for a believer whose burdened soul has just been relieved by the knowledge that the Lord Jesus bore his sins in his own body on the tree, to be able to respond with joy by giving. It has been especially sweet to sing hymns about the perfect sufficiency of Christ’s work while the offering is being collected, such as “Jesus Paid it All” or “I Will Sing of My Redeemer.”

I don’t want to take it for granted that everyone is going to make those Gospel-connections for themselves; I am more than willing to take the time to explain the deep significance of what we are doing. I have so very much to learn in this area, but I can say with confidence that explaining the significance of the various elements of our gathered worship has already proved greatly beneficial in the life of our church.

Ryle’s Holiness Chapter 3: Holiness (Part 1)

Post by Landon Preston

Ryle’s third chapter of Holiness takes the name of the title of his book. This chapter, like others in the book, is broken up into three segments which asses the tremendous topic of holiness. For purposes of length and my own ability to process, I will cover each segment in a different post. Today I wanted to begin with Ryle’s definition of holiness.

Holiness: the habit of being of one mind with God.

I find this definition so simple yet clear and practical. It is insightful he chose the word habit, indicating that its a work or discipline to be pursued by the believer, emphasizing responsibility. While sanctification is the work of God as Scripture indicates (Rom. 8:28-29; Phil. 1:6), it is our responsibility to pursue it (1 Cor. 9:27; 1 Tim 6:11). It is also not a mere action, but a series of repetitive actions that leads to way of living. Holiness is not an act; but a daily pursuit of living by the Christian.

Being of one mind with God: I found this extremely practical and tangible because any believer can know what the mind of God is by reading the Bible, by which God reveals his nature and character. I also like how he uses the phrase “one mind with God’ as Paul encourages the believers in Philippi to have the same mind of Christ (2:5-11). God has revealed his mind and what he desires, and believers are capable of becoming more and more familiar with God’s desires. We also know the Holy Spirit is the One Spirit of God himself, and so to try to be “of one mind with God” also indicates supreme obedience to the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to the heart of every believer. The Spirit of God who inspired the authors of the Bible to reveal God’s nature is the same Spirit who dwells within each believer today. The two will never be in conflict.

Therefore, desiring holiness according to Ryle’s definition is to habitually discipline one’s self to pursue and embody the character of God as revealed in the Scriptures and as the Holy Spirit reminds and prompts the believer. In my mind, this is a wonderful and simple definition to encourage God’s people in a broad way of their responsibilities to pursue holiness. I do believe that with a greater and more sensitive knowledge of the Scriptures and of the leading of the Holy Spirit, that a deeper love for God and holiness can be cultivated as well as a corresponding hated of sin and the world. May God lead us all into a deeper desire to have one mind with himself.

Talking Like a New Man

We continued our four-week series of specific pastoral issues yesterday morning by turning to the issue of our speech in Ephesians 4:29. “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouth, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” This verse has been an immensely practical verse for my wife and I to memorize together over the past month.

This is not just moralism or behavioral modification from the apostle. If we have been united with Christ by faith, the old man has died, and we have been made new men. Paul urges believers in this text, as those awaiting the completion of Christ’s new creation, to learn to talk like new men. You can listen to the sermon below:

Talking like a New Man Ephesians 4:29

Interview with Dr. Ray Van Neste

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Hebrews 13:7

Dr. Ray Van Neste is Associate Professor of Christian Studies and Director of the R.C. Ryan Center for Biblical Studies at Union University. He has a published a number of articles, recently the notes on the Pastoral Epistles in the ESV Study Bible. He is also an elder at Cornerstone Community Church, and taught the Pastoral Ministries class at Union which forever changed my life. He is the husband of Tammie, the father of six children, a fellow West Tennessean, and constant source of encouragement to this would-be shepherd. He was kind enough to answer a few of my questions about following the Way and shepherding the flock of God.

1. Could you describe how you came to faith in Christ?

I came to faith as a child in a Christian home. I was privileged to hear the gospel early, from home, church and school. I responded to an “invitation” at church at about age 6, and was baptized but I really did not understand all that was going.

I then wrestled for some time with assurance, fearing that Jesus would return and I would not be ready. I prayed repeatedly to be saved and feared I did not mean it enough, that I was not sincere enough. From this confusion and anxiety, in the end I came to realize I could not save myself but had simply to trust in Christ.

I could not pinpoint the day this occurred. It was more like I entered a dark valley and when I came out on the other side I was believing.

2. Could you describe your call to ministry?

I don’t seem to come to anything without struggle. I began to think that perhaps God was calling me to pastoral ministry during my senior year in high school. The summer prior I had been on my first mission trip and had the privilege for the first time of leading someone to Christ. From that experience a friend and I committed to sharing the gospel more boldly in our last year of high school. God blessed us in a number of ways, with opportunities private and public of sharing the gospel. During that year some adults suggested to me that pastoral ministry might be my calling. I resented the suggestions, and in my heart I wondered why these suggestions bothered me so. I seriously wondered if I was bothered by this because I thought it was true. I had my plans to pursue a career in physics.

My wrestling came to a head at a Centrifuge camp after my senior year. There I finally relented. It still took some time for me to find clarity in the calling, but the general picture was certain then.

In college I saw more thorough teaching of the Bible and my heart began to yearn to see this sort of teaching in the church. This has flowered into one of the central driving motivations of ministry for me.

3. Could you describe your personal devotional time (what time of day, what it consists of, whether or not you pray according to a list/schedule for various people, use a Bible reading plan, etc.)?

My personal devotional time has varied quite a bit over the years. I have read with a plan and without. I have prayed with a specific list and without. Realizing that I have the freedom to approach this in different ways has been valuable to me.

At this point in time my daily reading is typically a portion from my Readers Greek New Testament and a Psalm. Then, I aim to pray through the Psalm. I pray for issues related to my family and try to incorporate the list of needs from my church from the previous Sunday. With my older boys at night we pray for mission/church efforts/people with whom we have connection.

4. Which two or three books outside of the Bible have had the greatest impact on you? Are there any authors from the past or present of whom you would recommend we read all their works? Why?

This is always a difficult question to try to focus on (there have been key books at different stages of my life). The first book that comes to mind that had a profound impact on me was Elisabeth Elliot’s Shadow of the Almighty where she recounts the life of her husband Jim. The portrait here of a godly, though real and fallible man challenged me deeply while I was in college. Outside the Bible I have no doubt this book was the key formative influence on my life at that time. Mrs. Elliot’s book Passion and Purity also had a big impact on me at this time, shaping my approach to relationships, etc. In fact, I thought no woman would ever appreciate my convictions. When I met a beautiful young lady named Tammie who was reading and appreciating Elisabeth Elliot I knew something special was going on.

After that Knowing God by J. I. Packer was important for me. As I grew in appreciation of theology the writings of R. C. Sproul were a delight. In Sproul’s Tabletalk magazine I found rich theological discussion unlike anything I had seen before. Michael Horton was also beneficial to me especially at this time. From here I was turned on to the Puritans, among whom I have dabbled more than reading a lot from certain authors. This was not by design but simply what has occurred.

This is getting long, so I will jump forward to say that D. A Carson’s books and lectures have also been very beneficial.

I have probably not read all the works of anyone. I am sure I could benefit from doing this but I have tended to read more thematically rather than working through a certain author.

5. Because the Puritans are of special interest to me, is there any Puritan work which you have found to be particularly helpful? Why?

Actually, Packer’s book Quest for Godliness about the Puritans is the first thing that comes to mind. He gives a wonderful introduction and overview of helpful themes from the Puritans. It is a great place to start. One can then pursue authors and topics of particular interest.

Baxter’s Reformed Pastor has been influential for me. He provides such a strong, healthy portrait of pastoral ministry which is far different from what is typically seen today.

Thomas Brook’s Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices is an amazing book both due to the wisdom given for dealing with temptation and as a model of a pastor seeking to help his people in practical ways. This is no abstract teaching.

Thomas Boston’s The Art of Man-Fishing (the title differs a bit in various editions) is a wonderful treatise on evangelistic fervor. If anyone thinks of the Puritans as lacking in evangelistic zeal, this book destroys such a thought. It is great for lighting a fire under you!

Those are some that come to mind.

6. As a pastor, do you have a particular strategy for continuing to study and learn? When do you do this? Why is this important to you?

Great question. In one sense also being a professor might make this easier, but it is very easy to get flooded with planning, grading, etc. that you never really learn more or grow.

So, here is my basic approach. I seek to consistently read my Greek New Testament. I want to grow in a deep familiarity with the text of the New Testament in its original language. I can’t do this all at once but if I plod faithfully along then over time this will grow.

Second, I push myself in reading books in theology and biblical studies. The number of things coming out is overwhelming so it is impossible to keep up with everything (at least if you really want to read and digest). I have more books that I want to read than I can read, but keeping these books around assures that I have something to move on to when one book is finished.

I also read history and novels for fun. I find that these also help me to learn as I better appreciate biblical history (in relation to other history) and better understand human nature.

I keep a list each year of each book I read. This provides me with a bit of an intellectual history along the way, reminds me of what I have read, and lets me know how much I have read each year. This plays on my competitive spirit because I want to read more this year than last. This can have downsides (e.g., wanting to read a book just to get it on my list), but any good attempt can be distorted. At least this provides me with a prod, some discipline and encouragement (as I look back to see what has been accomplished).

I have mentioned pushing myself in this, but that could be misunderstood. One reason I read is because I enjoy it so. I push and discipline myself here not because I don’t want to do this but because I often fail to accomplish things I like if I don’t have a plan or goal.

7. What do you find to be the most discouraging and the most encouraging in your ministry, leadership position, or walk with Christ?

One of the most encouraging things to me in ministry is to see people in my church growing, flourishing. To see young people I have invested in marry well, or enter into parenthood, or take the next step in life is very encouraging. Sometimes at church I have been moved, for example, just seeing some of the men standing at the front to hand out communion and thinking of how God’s grace has been active in their lives.

The flip side is then true. It is discouraging to see people turn away from truth or act as if they have not heard the truth. It is discouraging when it seems there is no fruit from your labors or when it seems people do not recognize or appreciate your labors. This is a tricky one though. It is easy to seek self-exaltation and to crave the recognition of man. As pastors we must recognize that much will be unseen and to serve for the One who sees in secret.

8. If there was one word of advice, encouragement, or challenge to pastors, what would it be?

Great question. So much could be said. These two passages come to mind:

“Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Timothy 4:16)

“Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28).

Thank you, Dr. Van Neste, for your thoughtful answers! You can read more of Dr. Van Neste’s thoughts on pastoral ministry at his excellent blog, Oversight of Souls.

For further encouragement in Christ, please read my previous interviews with Dr. Walton Padelford and Dr. James Patterson.

Charles Bridges: Working Hard in the Ministry

And then, as for thyself – grow in intense energy in thy high calling. Remember, faith without diligence is slumbering delusion. Faith is the practical energy of a living faith. Always, therefore, look at sloth, not as an infirmity, but as a sin, affecting the whole man; growing upon us with unexpected power. Allow it therefore no rest, no time to root itself. Resist it in all forms – bodily, mental, spiritual; indulgence of sleep and appetite; self-pleasing in all its subtle and plausible workings. Live by rule. Have your time strictly arranged. Be employed early in the work of God. Store the mind with useful knowledge; ever reserving the first place for an industrious and prayerful study of the book of God. Mortify this baneful work through the Divine Spirit (Rom 8:13), drawing all your motives from the death (Rom 7:6), the life (Mark 1:32-35), the rules of Christ. (Luke 9:23; Rom 8:11-14) Victory will soon declare for you; and how enriching will be the spoil!

(Charles Bridges, A Manual for the Young: A Practical Exposition of Proverbs 1-9. First Edition: 1859 Second Edition: Vestavia Hills, AL: Solid Ground, 2005, 62)

Christ Calls Us Away from Anxiety

We recently finished our Sunday morning exposition of 1 John, and plan, if the Lord wills, to begin Paul’s letter to the Galatians at the end of August. In this time between the times, I am planning on addressing four pastoral issues from selected texts. We began this last Lord’s Day with Christ’s gracious words about worry from the Sermon on the Mount. You can listen to the sermon here:

“Christ Calls Us Away from Anxiety” Matthew 6:25-34

Wedding Charge: A Gospel-Shaped Marriage

I was privileged to officiate my first wedding on Saturday evening. In the sight of God and in the presence of many witnesses, a young couple with whom I have been meeting for the last two months exchanged vows and were joined in a beautiful, solemn covenant of marriage. Though we addressed many individual issues in our counseling sessions together, there was really only one “big idea” that we tried to grasp the whole time: the “deep mystery” that marriage is about the Gospel. (Eph 5:22-33) Whether we know it or not, and whether we want to or not, our marriages are preaching a message about the Gospel to the world, because God has designed it to be so in the mists of eternity past. On Saturday evening, I wanted to trace out a few of these implications for their new life together.

A Gospel-Shaped Marriage

Paul tells us in this passage that marriage is a great mystery, created by God to offer a picture of Christ’s love for his church. Chris, the way you love Nicole as her husband is meant to show the world how Christ loves his church. Nicole, the way you honor Chris and follow his leadership is meant to show the world how the church submits to Christ. We have spent several hours together during your engagement talking about how God has intended for the Gospel message to shape every aspect of our marriages. Now, as you begin your marriage, I want to offer a few important reminders.

Chris, because the Gospel tells us of a Christ who loves his bride by laying his life down for her, so you must love Nicole. You must not measure your love for her by our culture’s standards, but by Christ’s. He loved his bride, he came for his bride, he died for his bride. The way you lay down your life for Nicole, placing her before yourself, providing for her needs, taking burdens away from her and placing them upon yourself, remaining faithful to her in difficult times, should reflect the way that Christ loves his bride. I charge you to love your wife.

Nicole, because the Gospel tells us of a church who follows and honors Christ, so you must follow and honor Chris as your husband. This means you will give him honor by respecting him, encouraging him, helping him fulfill his calling by God, and following his leadership as he does his best to love you. The church does not fight Christ’s leadership; she responds to his love by gladly following him. You do the same. I charge you to honor your husband.

Chris and Nicole, because the Gospel is a message about the forgiveness of sin, I charge you both to forgive one another. Both of you are sinners, and both are marrying another sinner. This means it should be no surprise when you do in fact sin against one another, in small ways and larger ones. You will at times be impatient and short with one another, you will neglect one another, you will be selfish with your time, you will rude and demanding. When you do sin, confess your sin to one another quickly, humbly, and sincerely. When you receive this confession, forgive one another whole-heartedly, freely, as God in Christ has forgiven you. I charge you to forgive one another.

Chris and Nicole, because the Gospel tells us that Christ keeps his Word to his church, so you must both keep your word to one another this day. Christ will never forsake his bride. When he made her a promise, he bound himself to her and made her his own, even when it cost him his life. So your love for one another is not built on an emotion that can change from day-to-day, but on a promise to one another. You have already vowed to one another in the sight of God that you will remain faithful to one another until death itself parts you. Keep that word. Chris, this responsibility lies largely with you. Your job is to ensure that Nicole is secure in your love. So that means when the storms come, the first thing you need to tell her is, “I’m not yet sure how we are going to fix this problem, but I do know this: I am not going anywhere. I am going to stay with you forever. I will never stop loving you.”

And because you have chosen to be married in a church this day, in the presence of witnesses, you are asking them to help you keep your word. And so I exhort you, congregation: You may not have realized this when you received your invitation, but you were being asked to witness the exchange of solemn vows today: this man and woman have promised that it will take death to separate them. Help them keep their word. Do not drive a wedge of discontentment between them by your words or actions. Encourage them, support them, and help them keep this word. I charge you this day: keep your word.

Chris and Nicole, because the Gospel tells us that Christ makes the church a part of his own body, so that they are joined together in a union, so you must now see that the two of you are one. This has been the most helpful counsel given to me by my own wedding minister: you are not two separate people living under one roof: you are one person. You do not have separate agendas, separate strengths, separate weaknesses. Instead, you are one. That’s what Paul says in this passage: what man does not love his own body? That’s the way you view each other from now on. There is no competition between the two of you. Chris, when you see a weakness or fault in Nicole, do not exploit it, because it is your weakness. Nicole, when you see a weakness in Chris, do not insult him, because it is your weakness now. Love one another through those weaknesses. I charge you on your wedding day to remember that you are one; so love one another as you love yourselves.

Finally, because the Gospel is a message of joy, let me encourage you: marriage is also full of joy. There is joy in the sweet companionship between a godly husband and wife, lived out in every day life. There is joy in knowing and being known by another completely, without any fear.  There is joy when you look back and realize that God has used your marriage to kill some of the selfishness within you and make you more like Christ. There is joy when, over time, you are able to see that God has truly taken two people and made them one. God has designed marriage to be full of joy. So I charge you today to be joyful in one another’s love.

May the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ shape your marriage in all these ways, so that when people see you out – in the grocery store, at school, at church gatherings – they are able to say, “There is something different about the two of them; something different about the way they treat one another and care for one another. What could it be?” Scripture calls that a mystery. It calls it “Gospel –love” May God’s grace be with you .

Psalms Express and Shape our Emotions

From “The Psalms as Scripture” in the introductory material about the Psalms in the ESV Study Bible:

“Their primary function has already been mentioned: the Psalter is the songbook of the people of God in their gathered worship. These songs cover a wide range of experiences and emotions, and give God’s people the words to express these emotions and to bring these experiences before God. At the same time, the psalms do not simply express emotions: when sung in faith, they actually shape the emotions of the godly. The emotions are therefore not a problem to be solved but are part of the raw material of now-fallen humanity that can be shaped to good and noble ends. The psalms, as songs, act deeply on the emotions, for the good of God’s people. It is not “natural” to trust God in hardship, and yet the Psalms provide a way of doing just that, and enable the singers to trust better as a result of singing them. A person staring at the night sky might not know quite what to do with the mixed fear and wonder he finds in himself, and singing Psalm 8 will enrich his ability to respond.”

The purpose of the psalms, then, is not just to express the way we already feel; it teaches our hearts how they ought to feel, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, shapes our hearts so they do feel as they ought to. This is the purpose behind all Christian worship, which we should keep in mind as we gather together from week to week. Are we purposefully shaping our people into the right kinds of worshipers, and are we ourselves being so shaped? We should have a deeper grasp of our sinfulness and God’s mercy after six months of corporate worship than we did before. We should be more quick to forgive, more patient in suffering, more grateful in abundance, more hopeful for the future in our every day lives as a result of steady participation in corporate worship. May it be so.

A Scottish Christian Heritage

I have come to grips with the fact that I cannot read every edifying book that catches my eye. Thankfully, I am surrounded by book-loving brothers who can thoughtfully distill the highlights of some of the best books that are out of my reach. One of those brothers just so happens to be my dad, Gene Smith. I asked him to give me his review of Iain Murray’s recent book A Scottish Christian Heritage.

There is a famous saying that goes something like this: “We must study history and learn from its mistakes, or else we will be doomed to repeat them.” Or as Paul writes to the church at Corinth: “These things happened to them as examples, and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.” (1 Cor 10:11) Thoughts such as these come to mind in the reading of Iain Murray’s A Scottish Christian Heritage. As Murray states in his foreword, he is not attempting to give a summary of Scottish church history, nor to write “a book in praise of things Scottish as such.” Rather, he singles out certain leaders in particular and draws from their biographies lessons for us to learn for our walk of faith today.

Who has not heard of John Knox and his battle with Mary Queen of Scots? But what of Robert Bruce, Thomas Chalmers, John MacDonald, and the Bonar brothers? Murray’s treatment of each whets the appetite for further exploration of these men of the highlands and moors. As he quickly points out, there is nothing holy about Scotland in and of itself, but there were so many Scottish Christians of “adoring and heavenly minds” because of their recovery of biblical truth, and the persecution that followed. Murray traces that recovery, and battle to maintain it, and then the sad erosion of those biblical foundations. The subtle invasion of theological liberalism which resulted in a quenching of the fire which once burned brightly within those of the Scottish kirk led Robert Louis Stevenson to write in 1887, “The most influential books, and the truest in their influence, are works of fiction.” What happened and how did such a reversal occur for the spiritual climate set by the likes of Knox and Bonar? As Murray sums it up, “Faith in God cannot long survive disbelief in his Word.”

Murray takes the reader on a fascinating journey with the men who shaped the Scottish reformation from the 16th to 19th centuries, in the form of their biographies, their sermon content, and of course their struggles and the lessons that we can learn from them today. As Murray puts it, “The most frequently used word in John Knox’s vocabulary was undoubtedly ‘battle’; and the battle, as he knew it, was ‘not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world’” However, in spite of Knox’s at times coming across as severe and extreme in his day of harshness of persecution, he also had a strong ministry of encouragement to struggling believers. “Your imperfection shall have no power to damn you,” he writes to a Mrs. Bowes, “for Christ’s perfection is reputed to be yours by faith, which you have in his blood.” And of course, we must not leave out the power of Knox’s preaching. As the English ambassador exclaimed upon hearing Knox preach, “The voice of one man is able in one hour to put more life in us than five hundred trumpets continually blustering in our ears.” Even so, Knox was quick to admit that he was not a good orator, but that his powerful preaching was a result of the grace and working of the Holy Spirit within him.

A study of Knox’s life also reminds us of how God is active in history. It was a result of Knox’s exile to England that his friendships were formed that helped draw the two long-hostile nations together. And as Murray continues to point out, his exile to Calvin’s city contributed to bringing Britain the Geneva Bible. A touching portrait of Knox is presented through these words spoken to gathering friends in his final days of earth: “Live in Christ. Live in Christ, and then flesh need not fear death – Lord, grant true pastors to thy Church, that purity of doctrine may be maintained.”

In reading of the lives and prayers of the Scottish reformers, it is almost as if they arise heavenward as the aroma and smoke of the burning peat rising from the bogs of the highlands. May they continue to inspire us to offer up our lives to God as vessels of reformation and restoration of Biblical truth for the kirk in our day.

Singing Psalm Twenty-One

I’ve jumped on the West Tennessee Psalm-singing bandwagon.

I posted a morning meditation on Psalm 21 a few months back, and this Sunday evening I will attempt to preach it at my church. In addition to my exposition, the truths of Psalm 21 will be proclaimed by obeying Paul’s instructions in Eph 5:19 and Col 3:16. I’m no Chad Davis, but here’s my first attempt at Psalm versification.

“Triumph of the Lord’s King”
Psalm 21:1-13
To the tune of “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name”

(1) O LORD, in your great strength the King
exults and lifts his voice,
In your salvation brought to him
He greatly will rejoice!

(2) The heart’s desire of the King
You freely did bestow
And the requests upon his lips
LORD, you did not withhold!

(3) For you do come to meet your King
with blessings rich and good
And on his head, LORD you have set
a crown of purest gold!

(4) Your dying King asked life of you,
you gave him life, O LORD!
You blessed him with such length of days,
He’ll live forevermore!

(5) Great is the glory of the King,
through your salvation, LORD!
Splendor and majesty on him
You freely do bestow!

(6) For you have made the King most bless’d
He’s bless’d forevermore,
You make him glad with the joy of
The presence of the LORD!

(7)Because the King trusts in the LORD,
And him he looks unto,
Through steadfast love of the Most High
The King shall not be moved!

(8-9) Your hand will find your enemies,
Who hate you without fear,
Your wrath consumes them with a blaze,
When you, the LORD appear.

(10) The names of all your enemies
Shall not for long endure;
For their descendants you destroy,
Their offspring from the earth

(11-12) Though planning evil ‘gainst the Lord
Their plans will not succeed
You’ll aim at them with mighty bows,
Before you they will flee!

(13) Now be exalted in your strength,
Your pow’r we praise and sing,
In all the earth, LORD, you are God,
There is no other King!