Prayer Meeting 19/3/2024
Parting Advice to His Beloved Congregation - Part 2
(Thomas Watson)
Watch the sermon HERE.
Before I go into Watson’s sermon and advice again, let me start with reading our puritan prayer. This prayer, which I read a part of, is by Watson himself as part of his farewell sermon, and not therefore in any of the main prayer books we draw from.
As I said, it’s a lengthy prayer and well worth spending time in it. I read a section last time and will read another this evening before we go into Watson’s sermon.
This is the opening part of the prayer, as I read it, think of your prayers and ask are they as revealing and as honest and confessional? It can be found on page 135-136 Of ‘Sermons of The Great Ejection’ puritan paperback, published by the Banner of Truth.
Oh Lord God, all our springs are in Thee. It is good for us to draw nigh to Thee through Jesus Christ. Thou art all fullness, the quintessence of all sweetness, the centre of all blessedness. Thou art the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and in him our Father. Thou art our light. Thou givest us the blessed opportunities of enjoying communion with thyself, God blessed for ever. These mercies are forfeited mercies; we have abused the blessings of thy house; we have grieved thy blessed Spirit. Therefore it is just for thee to deprive us of these comforts and to make us know the worth of these mercies by the want of them. Lord, we desire to judge ourselves, that we may not be condemned with the world. Righteous art Thou, Oh, Lord, and just in all thy judgments. We confess we are unworthy to have any converse with so holy a God; we are polluted dust and ashes, not worthy to tread thy courts; and it is of thy mercy that we are not consumed. How often have we plucked fruit from the forbidden tree! We have sinned presumptuously against the clearest light and the dearest love; always have we sinned. Thy footsteps have dropped fatness. Thou hast shown mercy to us, but the better Thou hast been to us, the worse we have been to Thee. Thou hast loaded us with Thy mercies, and we have wearied thee with our sins. When we look into ourselves, oh, the poison of our natures! Whatever a leper touched, was unclean; thus by our spiritual leprosy we infect our holy things. Our prayers need pardon, and our tears need the blood of sprinkling to wash them. How vain are our vows! How sensual are our affections! We confess we are untuned and unstrung for every holy action; we are never out of tune to sin but always out of tune to pray. We give the world our main affections and our strong desires; whereas we should use this world as if we used it not. And alas, we pray as if we prayed not and serve thee as if we served thee not. There is not that reverence, nor that devotion, nor that activeness of faith that there should be.
Watson’s farewell sermon was called ‘Parting Counsels’, and draws from the life and ministry of Apostle Paul. And in particular his love for his fellow believer, and those he pastors and fathers.
Watson’s text is from 2nd Corinthians 7:1
Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Watson only draws from the first half of the verse, as he speaks of Paul’s love for his people, and in turn his love for his own congregation, from whom he now must depart. Just, I’m sure, like his own love for his congregation - hence him drawing from it.
Watson gives twenty directions to his people. He says:
There are, my beloved, twenty directions, that I desire you to take special notice of, which I would leave as advice and counsel about your souls.
So as you hear, all Watson has in mind is for the spiritual wellbeing of his congregation’s souls, not his own situation. They are going to be pastor-less, he therefore is deeply intent on them not stumbling.
Last time we went through seven, which I will very quickly remind you of, then I will walk through the rest and see how far we get.
Just briefly again to say: these instructions are coming from a pastor who both loves and knows his congregation, but more than that, knows that God’s Word and Christ Himself will never leave them or forsake them but will be forever with them by His Spirit.
Okay, let me quickly run through the first seven.
- Keep your constant hours every day with the Lord.
Meaning: pray in the morning, spend time throughout the day in the Word, make it part of your daily life, every day.
- Get good books in your house.
Watson knew his congregation needed to build a sanctuary at home.
- Have a care of your company.
Watson adds: ‘take heed to any unnecessary familiarity with sinners.’
The truth is, brothers and sisters, some of us are way too comfortable around sinners. And by that I don’t mean in a Christlike way with sinners. But in a ‘we take off our coat’ way.
As Watson says: ‘we can’t catch health from another, but we can catch a disease’.
- Have a care for whom you hear.
We must be very careful of the people we listen to. Look at the state of how humans truly became sponges when they were stuck in the house during lockdown, with no one to listen to but the poisonous media. The same is true with false teachers.
I built who I listen to by writing down the names of who those I already listened to would mention - then I would listen or read the people they mentioned. The more I listened, the more names I learned who were worthy of my ear.
- Follow after sincerity.
This I love. Watson is referring to being truly honest in our inward parts; honest to the core. The human condition and flesh is a worldclass salesman. It can sell you anything that it doesn’t want to surrender, or anything that feeds our carnal desires, and makes everything valid.
It can take the most ugly of sins and wrap them up in cotton wool, and parcel it with a big bow called justification. True sincerity, jarring our conscience to keep it alert, is vital. Lest we turn truth into a blunt instrument.
If you’re not being convicted by truth, you will soon be contaminated with lies.
- (Very similar to five, and in fact just an extension of it, such is its importance.): ‘As you love your souls, be not strangers to yourself.’
To love our soul, to nurture or spiritual walk, I must become deeply aware of the man I am and can be. Of all my flaws and weaknesses. Of how I can lie about my patterns.
Some believers act like every new drama is a premiere - meaning it never happened before. They are so ignorant to their behaviour patterns. Their emotions nullify their memory it seems, as does their lack of intentional living of course.
Watson says:
Among all the books you read. Turn over the book of your own heart.
He adds:
Let the Word be a looking glass.
We take every thought captive and line it to the Word. That’s how we see clearly, that’s how we determine truth.
Way, way too many believers don’t take thoughts captive, and then line up feelings with lies. And wonder why things are not all well with their souls. A sick soul is birthed in the uncaptured mind.
- (Again a follow on from five and six. Watson must have known how vital a battle and discipline this is): ‘Keep your spiritual watch'.
Watson says:
The heart is a subtle piece and steals out to vanity, and if we are not careful will decoy us into sin.
John Owen warns how we find ‘perplexing reasons’ as to why we do what we do, in order to not crucify it.
Sin often starts with a sense of self-importance. I think this is why John MacArthur said ‘the psychology teaching of self-esteem is demonic.’ Because it leads people to think they are both better than they are, and also more important.
Modern Christianity, and the seeker friendly church, use the same method: ‘you’re so special that Jesus died for you’. Another is: ‘if you were the only person on earth, Jesus would die for you.’.
Here is another one for good measure: ‘you’re so unique and special that you’re a one off, you’re not like anyone else. God made you so special.’
Listen, it’s not that your special, it’s that He is. It’s not that you’re so valuable, it’s that He is. Your uniqueness reveals Him, not you. Your salvation reveals His love and grace, and mercy, not your worthiness.
Okay, let me move through some more…
- You who are the people of God, associate together.
Of course this was vital, as they no longer could meet in the church. But more than that, believers need each other. We know that from Corinth when there was no unity.
Fellowship matters. I used hate that word. I thought it was too ‘churchy’, now I love it, and champion it all the time.
Watson mentions that certain plants grow better in certain company of other plants. Some of you know that. Like marigolds are good around tomato plants, they keep insects away. As is growing garlic and leeks around tomatoes for similar reasons.
We can say the same for believers. We stop things that affect us from infecting us, and also help each other grow.
- Get your hearts screwed up above the world.
Or said another way: set your minds on the things of the Lord.
Proverbs 23:7
For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “eat and drink!” He says to you, but his heart is not with you.
We can go through the motions, we can even sing worship songs. Yet our hearts are far from a holy thought.
Jesus himself says in Matthew 15:8, of course He was quoting from Isaiah 29:13 when He says:
These people draw near to me with their mouth, and honour me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.
It’s not about going through the motions people, but looking up to the heavens.
A man who can’t pray, is a man who can’t look up. And a man who can’t look up is a man who has an eye way more on self.
Just read the next verse in Matthew:
Matthew 15:9
and in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.
Vain glory, self-worship,
- Trade much in the promises.
Some say 8000, others say there are 7000 promises of God in the bible. For sure there are many. In fact every Word in this bible that’s not fulfilled is a promise. Every Word He says is true. All He does is true. All He is going to do is true.
Nothing should keep us in a place of peace and joy more than God’s Word. Which are His promises.
He will never leave us or forsake us, He never left us as orphans, He did send the Paraclete, the Comforter. He is coming back for His people, He is sitting at the right hand of the Father interceding for us. All things do work for good.
He who began a good work will bring it to completion. We will reign with Him and have authority over the heavenly angels when He returns.
This is our currency brothers and sisters, let’s not lose sight of it. And use God’s Word to strengthen our faith. We sing a song don’t we? ‘Every Promise of Your Word’.
- Live in your calling.
Now I know this word has been highjacked within the charismatic church. But simply it means to walk in the ways of the Lord. You have been called out of darkness, as a witness to Christ, we need to walk daily with that call in mind.
Watson says: ‘don’t be idle.’
He says:
An idle man is useless; but a good Christian acts within the sphere of his own calling.
Isn’t it all too easy to lose sight of our very call?
Okay, last but one…
- Piety to God and equity to people.
If I put it this way: faith without works is dead.
James 2:17-18
Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “you have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
Our actions show our love of God, and people. All the commandments can be defined by these Jesus says:
Matthew 22:36-40
Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him, “‘you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ this is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘you shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ on these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
When it says it’s like it, it means its comparable, its joined.
ὅμοιος - hom- oi- os - It’s in conjunction.
Loving God and loving people can’t be separated. If you say you love God, but not your fellow brother, you’re a liar, you do not love God.
1 John 4:20-21
If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.
Okay, lastly - this is profound this one, and as time has gone I may furnish it more next time, as we go through the final seven.
- Join the serpent and the dove together.
What does Watson mean by this? Well let me first give you his own words:
We must have the harmlessness of a the dove, that we may not wrong others, and we must have the prudence of a serpent, that others may not abuse and circumvent us.
Watson adds more clarity when he says:
Not to wrong truth by silence - here is the innocence of a dove. Not to betray ourselves by rashness - here is the wisdom of a serpent.
If we are going to stand on God’s Word and truth let us do so not with pride or ego, or by our own issues.
I’ve seen a whole lot of viper behaviour while using scripture to hide behind. I’ve also seen such feeble dove-like behaviour, that truth seems to be irrelevant.
Let us fight the good fight of faith. If we are going to stand on truth, let us do so with a Christlikeness and not like a serpent on the attack.
However, let us also not neglect our duties to defend truth by calling our fear gentleness and kindness. We need to be the lion and the lamb, at the same time.
Amen.
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