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My beloved sheep. Rev Luke Sheldrake and I were talking the other day, and he said to me, "It's ten shekels and a shirt", to which I was very confused. Apparently, it is a comment pretty common in the UK which comes from a famous sermon from Judges. He shared the sermon with me and I listened to it while driving yesterday. In spite of the very poor audio (considering it was recorded in 1965 we can forgive that!), it is an incredibly powerful and convicting sermon about the glory of God. We exist for the glory of God, but do we truly understand the implication of that? Have a listen! May the Lord convict you, as he has convicted me and many others.

My dear sheep. Josella and I have been reading through a fantastic devotional in the evening called, "365 Days with Spurgeon" (highly recommended!). Last night we read one that comes from a sermon that is entitled, "A Sermon for the Week of Prayer". It obviously caught my attention because we are going to be having a week of prayer at Church in July (22nd to 28th). This morning, after my devotions, I decided to have a read through the full sermon that it is quoted from. It was absolutely excellent - not that I am surprised! Below you will find some excellent quotes that come from it, but I would strongly recommend reading the full sermon.[1] Also, would you please mark the dates in your calendar? It would be wonderful for the entire church to gather in prayer to beseech the favour of God. Charles Haddon Spurgeon: There is a great distinction between the prayer of the real convert and the merely convinced sinner. The merely convicted sinner, terrified by the law, calls but once; the awakened heart, renewed of the Holy Spirit, never ceases to cry until the mercy comes. A few days ago, by the seaside, on the coast of the Isle of Wight, a woman thought she heard, in the midst of the howling tempest, the voice of a man. She listened; it was repeated; she strained her ear again, and she caught, amid the crack of the blast and the thundering of the winds, another cry for help. She ran at once to the beachmen, who launched their boat, and some three poor mariners who were clinging to the mast were saved. Had that cry been but once, and not again, either she might have doubted as to whether she had heard it at all, or else she would have drawn the melancholy conclusion that they had been swept into the watery waste, and that help would have come too late. So when a man prays but once, either we may think that he cries not at all, or else that his desires are swallowed up in the wild waste of his sins, and he himself is sucked down into the vortex of destruction. If the Church of God shall offer prayer this week, and then shall cease to be in earnest, we shall think her never to have meant her prayers. If she shall but now and then start up and make her supplications, we shall write her down a hypocrite intent for a moment upon keeping appearances, but afterwards relapsing into her lukewarm Laodicean condition... It is not possible that God should refuse to hear prayer. It is possible for him to bid the sun stand still, and the moon to stay her monthly march; it is possible for him to bid the waves freeze in the sea, possible for him to quench the light of the stars in eternal darkness, but it is not possible for him to refuse to hear prayer which is based upon his promise and offered in faith... I think I see the Church as I fear she is now. There she is upon her knees, with hands clasped; she mutters a few words; her head droops, for she is weary; again she pleads, and yet again her head is well nigh fallen on her bosom; she is a sleeping Church in prayer. Am I too severe in this my picture? I believe it is true; I think there are some members of the Church thoroughly awake, but they are few... [1] C. H. Spurgeon, “A Sermon for the Week of Prayer,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 7 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1861), 50.

My dear sheep. You may have heard people say things like, "I don't need to go to church because I can worship God everywhere." It seems like a really good answer, and holy too! However, as the directory of public worship rightly points: 47-2. A service of public worship is not merely a gathering of God's children with each other, but before all else, a meeting of the triune God with His chosen people. God is present in public worship not only by virtue of the Divine omnipresence but, much more intimately, as the faithful covenant Saviour. To say it a different way, if a believer decides to forsake meeting together, not only is he disobeying God, but he is neglecting the most important gathering in the world. As one author put it: Therefore, when God's people meet together for worship, that meeting is of more significance than a summit meeting of heads of state to decide on a treaty of peace between great nations. It is more important than a meeting of the city council or the state legislature, more important than a meeting or the United Nations or of Congress or Parliament. For in that meeting God Himself meets with His people. (Worship in the Presence of God) Church is important, not just because God commands us to gather with his people, but because public worship is the place of the greatest blessing! The other day I was speaking with someone about why gathering for public worship twice on the Lord's day is a good idea and something came out of my mouth that I hadn't really thought about until that moment. If you attend a second time, you get God's call to worship, twice; God's blessing, twice; prayers prayed for you, twice; God's word preached, twice; God's worship, twice; God's blessing, twice; and God's people in fellowship, twice. The real question when you stop to think about it is, why don't I want a double portion of God's blessing? Now that I have written all of this to you, it reminds me of an excellent discussion between Sinclair Ferguson and Bob Godfrey on the Sabbath and Worship. I would strongly urge all of you, my dear sheep, to watch. It is deeply challenging and encouraging!

My dear sheep. When I was at Bible college, we had to read a book called, "How to Read the Bible for All It's Worth." What advice would you give to a friend if they asked you how to understand the Bible?[1] Once Martin Luther was asked that very question. He answered: It is very certain, that we cannot attain to the understanding of Scripture either by study or by the intellect. Your first duty is to begin by prayer. Entreat the Lord to grant you, of his great mercy, the true understanding of his Word. There is no other interpreter of the Word of God than the Author of this Word, as he himself has said: They shall be all taught of God. Hope for nothing from your own labours, from your own understanding: trust solely in God, and in the influence of his Spirit. Believe this on the word of a man who has had experience. (Quoted by d'Aubigne, History of the Reformation, 106) Do you know this? When you read your Bible, do you begin by giving yourself to prayer first and entreating God to grant you understanding? What about when you come to church on Sunday? Will you come prayerfully, recognising that you will not benefit from the sermon unless God enables you to hear? If you are struggling to benefit from the Word read or preached, consider d'Aubigne's commentary on Luther's words above: The purest, the sublimest, the holiest source God himself, consulted in humility, confidence, and prayer, was that at which he drank. But in our days he has found few imitators... (History of the Reformation, 106) [1] If you need help to read your Bible, I'd encourage you to reach out to me. The elders and myself would love to come alongside you and help you. But don't forget to start with prayer!

Luther had many other attacks to endure. At Erfurth, he was blamed for the violent and haughty manner in which he condemned the opinions of others: this is the reproach usually made against those men who possess that strength of conviction which proceeds from the Word of God. He was also accused of precipitation and levity. They require moderation in me," answered Luther, "and they trample it under foot in the judgment they pass on me!......We can always see the mote in our brother's eye, and we overlook the beam in our own ......Truth will not gain more by my moderation, than it will lose by my rashness. I desire to know (continues he, addressing Lange) what errors you and your theologians have found in my theses? Who does not know that a man rarely puts forth any new idea without having some appearance of pride, and without being accused of exciting quarrels? If humility herself should undertake something new, her opponents would accuse her of pride! Why were Christ and all the martyrs put to death? Because they seemed to be proud contemners of the wisdom of the time, and because they advanced novelties, without having first humbly taken counsel of the oracles of the ancient opinions. Do not let the wise of our days expect from me humility, or rather hypocrisy, enough to ask their advice, before publishing what duty compels me to say. Whatever I do will be done, not by the prudence of men, but by the counsel of God. If the work be of God, who shall stop it? if it be not, who can forward it? Not my will, nor theirs, nor ours; but thy will, O Holy Father, which art in heaven."-What courage, what noble enthusiasm, what confidence in God, and above all, what truth in these words, and what truth for all ages!" (History of the Reformation)

My dear brothers and sisters. I am immensely grateful for your prayers for this past weekend and the encouraging messages that I received from many of you. The weekend went amazingly, and the word was powerful and effective in the hearts of many. A few of you have asked for recordings of the messages. Below you will find a summary of each message and an audio recording (the video didn't work apparently). Talk 1 — Hollow Joys and Fleeting Treasure Life in this world can feel so hollow and empty. Why is life so hard and joyless? Why is there so much pain? At times it feels like no matter what we do, we never manage to find joy, it can feel like chasing the wind. On top of that, when we do obtain an object of joy, it is fleeting and never leaves us satisfied. In this message, we will consider the reason why we have a feeling of emptiness and sorrow in this world. Is it meant to be this way if the Lord is on the throne? Talk 2 — Joy has Dawned upon the World We grasp at joy in this life, but like sand, it perpetually slips through our fingers. Where do we go to find joy that will not disappoint? Well, at the birth of Jesus Christ, the angels declared, “We bring you good news of great joy”. Why is the coming of Jesus Christ a story of joy and how does that help us? In this message we will contemplate why the incarnation of Christ was a moment of great joy for humanity and how it helps us in our pursuit of joy and delight. Talk 3 — Joy that Seekest me through Pain All Christian’s lives continue to be filled with much pain and sorrow. How do we find joy in the darkest of times? Are afflictions a sign of God’s displeasure? In this message we will consider the key to facing the vales of sorrow in the Christian life. Talk 4 — Solid Joys and Lasting Treasure Often we hear people say that a loved one is in a “better place”. Is there a greater joy to come? Is there a joy that is worth obtaining in heaven? After all, doesn't heaven sound pretty boring with all the harps and angels? In this message me will look towards eternity and contemplate whether there is an infinitely greater joy to come, what that joy is, and what difference it makes to us here and now.

Like most people, you probably find directories pretty boring. I mean, who really wants to read a list of names, or a bunch of boring points in a document? There is one directory that is worth reading. It is called "The Directory of Public Worship". You may not be aware that our denomination (Grace Presbyterian Church of New Zealand) has a book of church order. This book details how we govern our church. At the bottom of this document, there is a section on how we, at Covenant, ought* to order our worship. Rather than giving you the whole document and telling you to read it (though you can definitely do that!), I thought it might be helpful to share it with you in chunks, with some commentary. Chapter 47 - The Principles and Elements of Public Worship 47.1. Since the Holy Scriptures are the only infallible rule of faith and practice, the principles of public worship must be derived from the Bible, and from no other source. The Scriptures forbid the worshipping of God by images, or in any other way not appointed in His Word, and requires the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire all such religious worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in His Word (WSC 51, 50). The Grace Presbyterian Church of New Zealand holds to what is called the regulative principle of worship. As 47.1 states, this means God alone regulates how he is to be worshipped. We are to make sure that we do not do what God forbids AND we are to do what God appoints. Commonly people will say, "But God hasn't said we can't do 'x'". That misses the very heart of this principle. We do not have the freedom to worship God as we please, because we cannot know how to worship God in a way that he approves unless he tells us. Therefore, we must worship him according to what he declares. I unpack this further in a sermon on 2 Chronicles 29-31 and a devotion on 1 Corinthians 14. I'd encourage you to check them out for a deeper explanation. The regulative principle of worship is an essential aspect of the life of our Church and all the decisions the elders make around worship are bound by it. Let me encourage you to consider the different aspects of our worship and, if you ever see anything done that is not set forth in Scripture, to approach one of us. As we close out the first point of the directory for public worship, let me leave you with the thoughts of the Westminster divines on the subject: The acceptable way of worshipping the true God is instituted by Himself, and so limited by His own revealed will, that He may not be worshipped according to the imaginations and devices of men, or the suggestions of Satan, under any visible representation, or any other way not prescribed in the Holy Scripture. (Westminster Confession of Faith, 21.1) *It is important to note that I used the word "ought" above. This is because the directory does not have the force of law, but rather should be taken seriously as an approved guide.

My dear sheep, it is hard for us to appreciate life without the free grace of the gospel. For many dark years, the people of God lived in a world where grace had to be earned. The father of Myconius, just before the dawn of the Reformation, would say the following: "The blood of Christ, is the only ransom for the sins of the whole world. O my son, though three men only should be saved by Christ's blood, believe, and believe with assurance, that thou art one of those three men. It is an insult to the Saviour's blood to doubt that he can save." - J H Merle d'Aubigne It's a precious reminder for us that our salvation belongs to God alone, through Christ alone. It is only the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ that is sufficient to wash away sins. Which reminds me of the blessed sermon we had from Egimar on Sunday morning. If you were away, I would strongly encourage you to listen to it. It was a very precious reminder for us of the all-sufficient work of Christ upon the cross. Speaking of substitutionary atonement. Last week I read a fantastic article on the subject by Nick Batzig. Why is the substitutionary atonement essential? Well worth a read!

Welcome to a shepherd's pen. If you thought that was a play on words, you are correct. It may have been an accidental play on words, but it is a play on words, nonetheless! This blog is named, 'A Shepherd's Pen', because it is directed from a shepherd's hand to a shepherd's flock. I wanted to briefly introduce why I (Pastor Logan) have created this blog. The Purpose The purpose of this blog is to provide a way for me to communicate with you (my sheep) in a way that is much simpler than emails and newsletters. As a shepherd, I frequently stumble across a variety of important things that I would love to share with you all. However, it is not easy to achieve this. This, Lord willing, is the solution. So, in a nutshell, this is a place for your shepherd to communicate with you outside of Sunday. The Content So what are you going to find in this place? You will find quotes, recommended material for consumption, answers to your questions, a comments section to interact together, warnings about matters swirling around the internet, and anything else that mind come to my mind! On top of this, I would delight to share and interact with things that you find interesting. Worth adding that I am not going to be working to create highly polished content. It'll be a bit rough around the edges. In my mind, that is okay. It is simply the thoughts of the shepherd to the sheep. The Frequency I have no idea. To be honest. The Lord knows. However, worth noting that this will replace the weekly newsletter, "Gems from the Pages". If you have been blessed by that, I trust that you will be equally blessed by this. I will send out an update about this matter to the newsletter email list. The Audience As you might have picked up from the introduction of this post, the intended audience of this blog is my own congregation. My aim is for the shepherd of Covenant Presbyterian Church, to have the sheep at CPC in view, and them alone. If other sheep from other pens are blessed, that is wonderful, but I will be very glad if only my congregation read my posts, because they are the sheep I have been given to care for.