Helping Little Ears

By Pastor Brian Phillips

What is the most important part of a worship service? Is there one aspect of the liturgy that stands out from the rest?

Not too many years ago, I believe I would have said, "The sermon." As a pastor, that answer would surprise almost no one. After all, I spend more time preparing that aspect of the liturgy than any other part. Writing a sermon takes far more time than delivering it - even on my most "long-winded" Sunday mornings. And delivering a sermon takes far more time than any other aspect of the liturgy - even on my most "short-winded" Sunday mornings. 

But, that is not my answer today, and has not been for quite a while. So, what is the "high point" of the liturgy? That is hard to say because the liturgy is a conversation between God and His people. He speaks, and we respond. So, claiming one part of the liturgy misses that the liturgy is a conversation, and thus it cannot be so neatly divided. Rather, it comes as a whole, with each movement connected to the previous and the next. 

Thus, the sermon is not the "high point" of the liturgy, but it is one of the many tools God has given to equip and teach His people. It is also a time of intense work - study, preparation, and delivery by the pastor; focus and attentiveness by the congregation.

This can be particularly challenging for little ones, who are a great number in our congregation! It is also one of the few aspects of the liturgy that changes each week. Children so quickly memorize responses, prayers, confessions, and creeds, but the sermon cannot be memorized. It is new each week.

So, to help these little ears in their great task, I venture to offer a word or phrase to listen for in each week's sermon. These will be sent out to the congregation in the Midweek Update and posted in our church Facebook page. Make sure to look for them, then pass them along to your children, asking them what they learned about that word or phrase in the sermon.

Vespers & Bible Study for May

On Wednesday, May 3rd, we will continue the series, "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History", with a study of Charlemagne - King of the Franks and eventual Holy Roman Emperor.  

Charlemagne was known as a fierce warrior, and a powerful man, but he was also devoted to education, committed to protecting the Church, and concerned for the poor and needy of his kingdom 

Join us as we explore the life, work, and lingering questions of Charlemagne!

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

Vespers & Bible Study for April

On Wednesday, April 5th, we will continue the series, "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History", with a study of Pope Gregory I, also known as Gregory the Great.  

Gregory turned away from a life of comfort and wealth for the monastery, eventually being appointed as Pope against his will! He was a skilled theologian, hymn writer, and preacher, and was greatly concerned for the training of pastors and missionaries. And, he did it all in the midst of one of Rome's most trying times. 

Join us as we explore the life and work of Gregory the Great!

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

New Literature Guide by Pastor Phillips!

From the Canon Press website:

Worldview Guide for Meditations of Marcus Aurelius
by Dr. Brian Phillips

"The Worldview Guides from the Canon Classics Literature Series provide an aesthetic and thematic Christian perspective on the most definitive and daunting works of Western Literature. Each Worldview Guide presents the big picture (both the good and the bad) without neglecting the details. Each Worldview Guide is a friendly literary coach -- and a treasure map, and a compass, and a key -- to help teachers, parents, and students appreciate, critique, and begin to master the classics. 

The bite-size WGs are divided into these ten sections (with some variation due to genre): Introduction, The World Around, About the Author, What Other Notables Said, Setting, Characters, & Argument, Worldview Analysis, Quotables, 21 Significant Questions & Answers, and Further Discussion & Review. A free classics test and answer key are also available online."

The Love of St. Valentine

by Brian Phillips

St. Valentine was a priest in Rome during the reign of Emperor Claudius II.  According to tradition, Valentine, having been imprisoned and beaten, was beheaded on February 14, about 269 A.D., along the Flaminian Way.  Now, that’s nowhere near a “romantic” tale, but his martyrdom was connected with an enduring and biblical kind of love.

Valentine undercut an edict of Emperor Claudius.  Wanting to more easily recruit soldiers for his army, Claudius had tried to weaken family ties by forbidding marriage.  Valentine, ignoring the order, secretly married young couples.  When these activities were uncovered, it led to his arrest.

Furthermore, while in prison, Valentine continued to express his concern and love for his congregation.  Being deprived of books, it is said that he would pluck leaves from the tree branches that grew near the window of his cell, and would write notes to the church, primarily encouraging them to obey the two great commandments – to love the Lord and love one another.  His last note arrived on the morning of his death and ended with the words “Your Valentine.”

In 496, February 14th was named as a holiday in his honor.  By this time Christianity had long been legalized in the empire, and many pagan celebrations were being replaced with Christianized celebrations.  One of them was a Roman festival named Lupercalia, which was a pagan celebration of love. This holiday, some claim, was replaced by St. Valentine’s Day with its more innocent customs of sending notes and gifts and other expressions of affection.  Perhaps that is true.

While many skeptically say that Valentine’s Day is nothing more than a greeting card conspiracy, it serves to remind us that love is more than mere sentimentalism or overflowing emotions. It is a commitment that pledges my life for yours.  And that is something to celebrate.

Vespers & Bible Study for February

On Wednesday, February 1st, we will continue the series, "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History", with a study of St. Augustine and his mother, Monica.  

St. Augustine's conversion story is particularly inspiring because of the heroic role his devout mother played.  Following his conversion, Augustine would become an influential bishop and defender of the faith, as well as the author of two of Western literature's most significant works. 

Join us as we explore the life and work of St. Augustine, as well as the powerful influence of his godly, praying mother, Monica!

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

Dependent Creatures

From Pastor Phillips's exhortation on Sunday, January 29th

In Psalm 51:12, David prays, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” This is a significant part of David’s prayer of repentance because here he acknowledges his need to be restored and upheld by God. Like our first parents, we are tempted to believe that we can be self-sufficient, or independent.

But, we are created to need others. A baby is born needing his parents and others to care for him – food, diapers, sleep, protection, teaching, nurture, affection, etc. And, no matter what we tell ourselves later on, we can never be truly independent and self-sufficient without doing great damage to our souls. We need other people.

Of course, more than that, we were created to know God. We are created in His image, made for His glory, destined for eternity somewhere. We are given souls that will never die. And when we live instead for our selves and our sins, our souls feel it.

It is God’s loving and severe mercy that brings us again to a place of dependence, a place where we recognize our need to be restored and upheld. We are dependent on Him, and that is not shameful. It is as it should be. We are made in God’s image - to know Him, to love Him, to dwell in union with Him through Christ.

Let us, then, confess our sins to the Lord…   

Defending Ourselves or Pleading Guilty?

From the exhortation given by Pastor Brian Phillips on Sunday, January 8th, 2017.

Psalm 51:1 says, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.”

David’s great psalm of repentance, written after his sin with Bathsheba, is characterized by brutal honesty. In no way does David try to sugarcoat his guilt, or excuse his sin. Rather, he begins directly and openly – “Have mercy on me, O God…”

This is an important matter for us to remember because, too often, we can be tempted to come to God as our own defense attorney, rather than as people confessing that we are guilty. And, we must learn to practice this kind of spiritual honesty, not just with “big sins” (as we may like to categorize them), but with every sin. After all, most of our lives are affected, not by the major things but by the little things we struggle with day after day.

Paul Tripp wrote, “The character of a life isn’t set in ten big moments. The character of a life is set in ten thousand little moments of everyday life. It’s the themes of struggles that emerge from those little moments that reveal what’s really going on in our hearts.”

Let us, then, honestly confess our sins to the Lord…   

Vespers & Bible Study for January

On Wednesday, January 4th, we will continue the series, "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History," with a study of St. Wenceslaus - most commonly known for the song, "Good King Wenceslaus." 

Sadly, the story of Wenceslaus is generally unknown, and even the details behind the familiar Christmas carol bearing his name are unfamiliar to most.  But his story is inspiring, challenging, and closely connected to Epiphany (which is celebrated this week - January 6th).  Join us as we remember our brother, "Good King Wenceslaus."      

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

Conference Audio Now Available!

We're very excited to bring you these five talks from our LIFELONG Conference, delivered on September 2016, in Concord, NC.

AVAILABLE HERE Only $15!
 

Speakers and Titles:

• Karen Kern - A Habit Is the Way We Wear Our Days
• Brian Phillips - Well-Read: The Importance of Imaginative Reading
• Andrew Kern - What is Learning & Why Does It Matter
• Matt Bianco - Overcoming the Tyranny of the Blank Page
• Andrew Kern - The Courage to Think: Speaking & Listening as a Family

Learning does not keep office hours. It does not begin with a bell, or cease with the end of a class period. Rather, learning is a lifelong journey that includes math lessons and dinner conversation, Latin verbs and nature walks. Join us as we consider what it means to cultivate lifelong learning in our homes.

Vespers & Bible Study for December

On Wednesday, December 7th, we will continue the series, "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History", with a study of St. Athanasius - one of the Church's most brilliant and influential theologians.  

St. Athanansius made particularly important contributions to our understanding of the Incarnation, and his work On the Incarnation remains the standard work on the beautiful mystery of the doctrine.  

Join us as we explore the life and work of St. Athanasius, a fitting study as we prepare for Christmas!

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

Hanging of the Green

On Saturday, November 26th at 10:00 a.m., we will gather for the Hanging of the Greens - decorating the church for the coming Advent and Christmas seasons, including the Advent wreath and the church Christmas tree.

The Christmas tree is deeply rooted in Christian tradition, going back at least to the story of St. Boniface, an 8th century missionary to modern-day Germany, a region controlled by Norsemen who brought their religion with them.  They worshiped many gods, Thor being the chief of them and they consecrated a gigantic oak tree in Thor’s honor at the top of Mt. Gudenberg. They would gather around the tree for feasts, idol worship, and animal sacrifices.

St. Boniface, in the company of these pagans, chopped down the tree. Angry at first, the response of the Norsemen turned to repentance – if Thor could not defend his own holy place, what good was he?

Boniface then used that tree as an object lesson to tell them of a tree that actually does save, not because the tree was magic, but because on that tree, Jesus Christ died for the sins of men. That tree, Boniface said, is an evergreen, an eternal tree.  Many Norsemen were converted to Christ and it was there that they began the practice of decorating evergreen trees (even in their homes) in celebration of the Savior's birth.  Increasingly, the tree became a focal point in the home and gifts were laid under it, not in honor of the tree, but in honor of the Savior who died on the tree. It is His birth that we celebrate during Advent and it was for our sins that He died on the tree, the cross.

When: Saturday, November 26th at 10:00 a.m.

How Christians Tell Time

Vespers & Bible Study for November

On Wednesday, November 2nd, we will continue the series, "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History", with a study of Constantine the Great - an important, but controversial figure in Church history.

We learn from the heroes of the faith, of course (Hebrews 11), but we also learn from the sins and mistakes of those gone before us, whether in Scripture itself or in the history of the Church (1st Corinthians 10:6-13).  But, history also teaches us that some figures defy such black and white approaches.  Constantine the Great was certainly a Christian, but his actions as emperor leave us with many questions.

- What is the relationship between Church and State?
- Should political leaders impose explicitly religious laws?
- And many more!

Join us as we explore the life of Constantine, along with the questions his life leaves us to consider.

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

Men's Prayer Breakfast: October Edition!

C. S. Lewis argues that it takes a community of people to get to know an individual person. Reflecting on his own friendships, he observed that some aspects of one of his friend’s personality were brought out only through interaction with a second friend. That meant if he lost the second friend, he lost the part of his first friend that was otherwise invisible. “By myself I am not large enough to call the whole man into activity; I want other lights than my own to show all his facets." If it takes a community to know an ordinary human being, how much more necessary would it be to get to know Jesus alongside others? By praying with friends, you will be able to hear and see facets of Jesus that you have not yet perceived.

- Tim Keller, Prayer: Experiencing Awe & Intimacy with God 

On Saturday, October 15th, we will host our first Men's Prayer Breakfast after our summer hiatus.  All men (and sons) are invited to attend!  We will cook together, eat, talk, and pray for one another. 

When:  Saturday, October 15th at 9:00 am

Where: Church Fellowship Hall (3747 Trinity Church Road)

If you need more information, feel free to contact us HERE!

Vespers & Bible Study for October: "Saints & Sinners" (Part Two)

On Wednesday, October 5th, we will pick up with the second part of our new series, "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History", with one of history's most notorious villains: Nero.

We learn from the heroes of the faith, of course (Hebrews 11), but we also learn from the sins and mistakes of those gone before us, whether in Scripture itself or in the history of the Church (1st Corinthians 10:6-13).  And, having first studied the life and martyrdom of Bishop Polycarp, we now move on to the life of Nero, a man whose actions greatly affected the first century Church.  

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

Nero - taking a break from fiddling and burning people

Saints & Sinners: A New Wednesday Night Study

Following our summer break, we are ready to launch back into our Wednesday night dinners and Vespers/Bible study.  As we start anew, we open a series entitled "Saints & Sinners: Stories from Church History."  

We learn from the heroes of the faith, of course (Hebrews 11), but we also learn from the sins and mistakes of those gone before us, whether in Scripture itself or in the history of the Church (1st Corinthians 10:6-13).  

We begin with some of the saints - the apostles (after the Ascension of Christ) and Polycarp.

Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church (3747 Trinity Church Road, Concord, NC)
When: 6:00 pm (dinner) & 6:45 pm (Vespers & Bible Study)

2016 Family Education Conference!

Join us for our Family Education Conference

(in partnership with The CiRCE Institute)!

You're Not Bothering God

The Exhortation given by Pastor Brian Phillips on Sunday, July 31st, 2016

“The only person who dares wake up a king at 3:00 a.m. for a glass of water is a child.  We have that kind of access.”

- Tim Keller

In today’s Gospel reading (Luke 11:1-13), we hear Luke’s accounting of Jesus teaching the Lord’s Prayer to the disciples.  But, after that, Jesus gives further instruction on prayer, telling them of a man who has a friend show up late at night, but he has nothing to feed his friend.  So, he goes to his neighbor, appealing to him for help – "Can you let me borrow a few loaves of bread to feed my friend?"

Jesus makes the point that even a neighbor who is not a close friend, or even a particularly nice guy, would help out in such a situation.  If for no other reason than wanting to be left alone, the neighbor would give him bread.  If for no other reason than the frustration of being awakened in the middle of the night (the "impudence" of it - v. 8), the neighbor would help.  

Then Jesus says:    

“And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.  What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?  If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (vv. 9-13).

These are shockingly plain statements from Jesus, yet we seem to miss them or gloss over them in practice.  Jesus simply says, if even that neighbor would rise late at night to help, how much more would your heavenly Father help you – His child whom He loves? 

If you as an earthly father, sinner and imperfect though you are, know how to give good gifts (and want to give good gifts) to your children, how much more does your heavenly Father want to bless you, hear you, and help you?

And notice that Jesus ends by saying, "how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"  Jesus did not say the Father will simply give good gifts, or that the Father would give us what we ask, but rather, the Father will give the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is the Helper, the Comforter that never leaves.  He teaches us all things, brings the teachings of Christ to remembrance, gives us peace, and guides us into all truth (John 14:15-27, 16:7-15).  

In other words, God does not simply give good gifts or "stuff."  He gives us the Holy Spirit.  He gives us Himself.  If God would give us His Son, and give us His Spirit, then there is no need for which He does not care.

The exhortation here is so simple, yet so difficult - believe what Jesus says.  Whatever your need, take it to God in prayer.  Do not gloss over or excuse away the promises that Christ makes here.  Trust Him.  

Leave the Miracles to Jesus

From the exhortation delivered on Sunday, July 24th, 2016 by Pastor Brian Phillips

"Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman namedMartha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, 'Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.' But the Lord answered her, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.'”

The Gospel reading for today recounts a familiar event in the life of Jesus.  In Bethany, Jesus enters the house of Mary, Martha, and their brother Lazarus.  And, as Jesus is teaching, the two sisters have very different reactions.  Mary sits at Jesus’ feet to listen, while Martha busies herself with preparations – serving Jesus and the disciples.  Finally, Martha has had enough and she says to Jesus, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.”

This is an astounding thing to say to the Son of God - “Do you not care?”  Yet, we all know our anxiety and worry can make us think and say all kinds of things, can’t it?  

But, Jesus does care, so He replies with compassion; not responding to Martha’s complaint directly, but getting to the heart of the problem: “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

It was not that Jesus did not care.  It was not that He was ungrateful for Martha’s service.  The problem was, rather, that Martha had it backwards.  The desire to serve or labor, coming even from the best of intentions, can cause us to miss the “one thing needful.”  And, all of our work – even if done for Christ Himself – must be done from a state of rest and worship, not out of anxiety, worry, and harried frustration. 

This exhortation is certainly for all of us, but we have a number of stay-at-home moms and homeschooling moms in our congregation that need to take encouragement from this.  Jesus wants you to rest at his feet, not serve yourself ragged.  Jesus wants you to hear Him, not worry yourself to death about everything that could be done.  The list of what could be done, after all, is never-ending.  

Did you know that one of the (relatively) few events that all of the Gospels record is when Jesus took just a couple of fish and a few loaves of bread and fed thousands?  Give what you have, but leave the miracle to Jesus.  The miracle is His to do, not yours. 

Rest at His feet, then rise to serve Him in faith, knowing that He can multiply your service into whatever He needs it to be...with baskets left over.