The 48th Psalm offers for us a model for the success and prosperity of human governments. But even though we implement this model, our love of country should never displace from our hearts the affection we have for our eternal home.

The primary concern of the psalmist in Psalm 98 is justice. He calls this justice "God's salvation" (v. 1) and "the salvation of our God" (v. 3).

The world is longing for justice. Every news cycle reminds us of that. The salvation of our God is the justice the world longs for, but is blind to. The world is looking for justice in all the wrong places.

In this message we identify how biblical justice differs from social justice and God's plan to impose His justice on the world.

Psalm 97 pulls back the veil on the throne of Heaven where we see our Sovereign Lord veiled in thick darkness with fire proceeding before Him. Our God is not safe, but He is good because righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.

Our worship is a declaration to an unbelieving world that the Lord reigns, that it is the Lord who has established the world, and that it is the Lord who coming to judge the earth and its peoples with righteousness and equity,

Through our acts of singing and sacrifice in worship, we are witnesses among the heathen and the gods (the "principalities and powers in heavenly places") of the reign of the Sovereign Lord Jesus Christ over all the earth.

Psalms 95 through 100 orient the attention of the people of God to the inauguration of Messiah's Kingdom. Psalm 95 is a two-fold invitation: 1) An invitation to exuberant exultation: "O come, let us sing" and 2) An invitation to reverent intimacy: "O come, let us worship and bow down."

The objective of both of these invitations is resting in the provision and protection of our Good Shepherd.

How is the Spirit-filled believer to live within the reality of societal inequities? Pauls' instruction to the Ephesians does not advocate an abolishment of class distinctions so that everyone is equal, but rather that we apply the gospel in our relationships between the classes.

The Bible does not directly condemn slavery nor does it directly condone slavery. Dealing with this dilemma requires that we view the reality of slavery as resulting not from the Atlantic Slave Trade but rather from the fall of man into sin and the resulting distinctions of class and race.

Due to a technical issue Pastor Paul's message on Ephesians 6:1 -4 was not recorded.

In its place we invite you to listen to the exposition of Ephesians 6:1-4 by Rev. Eric Alexander, minister in the Church of Scotland and retired from the pastorate of St. George's Tron in Glasgow. Pastor Paul noted during his sermon on this text that he drew heavily from Eric Alexander's sermon which you may listen to here.

This sermon is used by permission of tapesfromscotland.org.

Original Source File: http://www.tapesfromscotland.org/Audio5/5107.mp3.

"For we are members of his body, and of his flesh, and of his bones," is the amazing claim that the Apostle Paul makes in Ephesians 5:30 when he describes the relationship between Christ and His church. But what exactly does it mean? And who is included in the "we"?