Praise and Preaching from St Petes: Titus 3 (Bob Akroyd); 1 Thessalonians 1 (Sinclair Ferguson); What a Beautiful Name

Last Sunday I was unable to be at St Peters due to recovering from surgery -but they seemed to manage without me!  In fact they had a great day – the Lord is at work and he doesn’t ‘need’ any of us as his servants – as though he could not work without us!

Morning Service:

Leader: Stewart Macgregor

Praise Leader: John Cooper

Preacher: Bob Akroyd.

Songs: Praise to the Lord Almighty; Strength will Rise as we Wait Upon the Lord; When We Walk With the Lord; Ps 119:89-96; Hear the Call of the Kingdom

Readings: Acts 20:1-38;  Ps 119:89-96

Sermon: Titus 3:8 – A Trustworthy Saying: Regenerated People are Devoted to Good Works 

Evening Service

Leader: Stewart Macgregor

Praise Leader: John Cooper

Preacher: Sinclair Ferguson

Songs: Praise My Soul the King of Heaven; Ps 145(a3b)-21;  Speak O Lord; Christ is Made the Sure Foundation

Readings: Numbers 2

Missions Talk-  Hugh Henderson – Myanmar

Sermon: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 – A Typical Church

“For the Cross is for our sakes, being the work of unspeakable Love towards man, the sign of his great concern for us.” Chrysostom – Sermon on Romans 1:8

Ministers Monday Message

Each Monday I post a message to the congregation on our FB page. 

I was, as most of you know, unable to be with you this past Lord’s Day, because I am recovering from a scheduled operation on Friday. Once again my experience in Ninewells reminds me of how much we have to be thankful for – that we have a national health service. The skill of my surgeon, Mr Shimmi, and the care of the nurses and doctors is always something I am grateful for (with the odd exception!)   I am also immensely thankful that I do not return home with a big bill to be paid.

Many of our members in St Peters are directly or indirectly involved in working in the NHS.   We need Christians who reflect the care and compassion of Christ being involved. It is indeed a high calling. But all of us are to some extent involved – we pay our taxes (do we count that a privilege or a burden?) and all of us will use the NHS at some point in our lives. However it is a service that is under growing pressure. There are many reasons for that but one that is not often mentioned is this – when Beverridge drew up his famous report that resulted in the NHS and our welfare system, he did so on the predication that we were a society based on Christian principles. As that foundation has been removed, it is no wonder that the structure on which it was built is beginning to come apart at the seams. I don’t believe the NHS will survive the decline of Christianity in this country – and I regard that as a cause of profound sorrow. Christ is concerned for the well being of the sick and the poor.

Meanwhile I continue to value your prayers for recovery – and more importantly for those who have more serious illness than yours truly. And please continue to pray for the NHS and the staff who are coming under increasing pressure within it. I’m not saying ‘hug a doctor’ but at the very least find those in our fellowship who are doctors, nurses and dentists and let them know how thankful to God you are for them, and that you are praying for them,

May you all have a blessed week…

David

Praise Song:

This is a song I have been singing and listening to for a few weeks – What a Beautiful Name!

Catch up on Last Week

Dominic Smart on 1 Corinthians 1; Romans 11 – Theology and Doxology