New Arbor Sunday Messages

Psalm 82

A psalm of Asaph.

1 God presides in the great assembly;  he renders judgment among the “gods”:

2 “How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked?

3 Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.

4 Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.

5 “The ‘gods’ know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

6 “I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’

7 But you will die like mere mortals; you will fall like every other ruler.”

8 Rise up, O God, judge the earth, for all the nations are your inheritance.

Psalm 27

Of David.

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?

2 When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall.

3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.

4 One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.

5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock.

6 Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord. 

7 Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me.

8 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek.

9 Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior.

10 Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.

11 Teach me your way, Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors.

12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations.

13 I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. 

14 Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

1 Corinthians 12:27-31

27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 

28 And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues. 

29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 

30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 

31 Now [you] eagerly desire the greater gifts. And yet I will show you the most excellent way.

Psalm 127

A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

1 Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.

2 In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to those he loves.

3 Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. 

4 Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth.

5 Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court.

1 Corinthians 12:12-27

12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 

13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 

14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 

16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 

17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 

18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 

19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 

20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 

22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 

23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 

24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 

25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 

26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 

1 Corinthians 12:4-11

4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 

5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 

6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 

8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 

9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 

10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 

11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

Acts 8:1b-24

8:1b: On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 

2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 

3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.

4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 

5 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. 

6 When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. 

7 For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. 

8 So there was great joy in that city.

9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 

10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.” 

11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. 

12 But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 

13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 

15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 

16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 

17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money 

19 and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

20 Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 

21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 

22 Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. 

23 For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”

24 Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”

1 Corinthians 12:4-11

4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 

5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 

6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 

8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 

9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 

10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 

11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

Matthew 1:18-23

18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 

19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 

21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 

23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

Acts 4:1-12

1 The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. 

2 They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. 

3 They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. 

4 But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.

5 The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. 

6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family. 

7 They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! 

9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, 

10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 

11 Jesus is “‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ 

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. 

14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. 

15 So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together.

16 “What are we going to do with these men?” they asked. “Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it. 

17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.”

18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 

19 But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him?You be the judges! 

20 As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”