Read: Nehemiah 5

Last Sunday, Pastor Ken preached from Nehemiah 4 on how servants of God are to respond to opposition. This Sunday, Ronnie Morris will continue in chapter five, where we will see that the fear of God unites and empowers God’s people for the completion of his mission. As you prepare your heart for our corporate gathering, let these words from Milton Vincent move you join the Apostle Paul in the cry of humility and utter dependence upon the grace of God in Jesus Christ.

Heart Preparation

It was while rehearsing gospel truths in Romans 5-8 that the Apostle Paul was moved to speak of his struggle with sin and exclaim, “O wretched man that I am!”  While reviewing God’s abundant saving grace on another occasion, Paul was prompted to confess that he was the “the foremost” sinner of all.

Likewise, the deeper I go into the gospel, the more I comprehend and confess aloud the depth of my sinfulness. A gruesome death like the one that Christ endured for me would only be required for one who is exceedingly sinful and unable to appease a holy God. Consequently, whenever I consider the necessity and manner of His death, along with the love and selflessness behind it, I am laid bare and utterly exposed for the sinner I am.

Such an awareness of my sinfulness does not drag me down, but actually serves to lift me up by magnifying my appreciation of God’s forgiving grace in my life. And the more I appreciate the magnitude of God’s forgiveness of my sins, the more I love Him and delight to show Him love through heart-felt expressions of worship.

“Exposed by the Cross, Part I,” in A Gospel Primer for Christians, by Milton Vincent

Song List for Sunday
1. “I Lift My Eyes,” by Crosspoint Music
2. “This We Know,” Arr. by Shane & Shane
3. “Take My Life,” by Chris Tomlin
4. “Man of Sorrows,” by Hillsong Live