Hopewell Herald – February 28, 2026
Jesus says
something shocking in Luke 14:26–27
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and
children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My
disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My
disciple.”
Obviously, He teaches us to honor our father and mother, and to love our wife and children and brothers and sisters. So, what does this mean? It gets close to say that one’s love for Christ must be comparatively greater than these other loves. But, for the believer, loving them is part of loving Him, so that doesn’t quite hit the mark of what it means.
Rather, I think we get help from the expansion upon the idea in v27. The believer carries his cross throughout his life. At any moment, he may be called upon to halt, the hole will be dug, and he will be crucified upon it. Jesus must be enough for us. We must be so content to have Him, that we are ready to lose our life, so long as we might keep having Him. Indeed, in that case, we would have Him even better! But carrying your cross means always being ready for Him to come, by His providence, and say, “now die on it.”
That brings us back to v26. Is Jesus enough for you? If you lose father and mother, will He still be enough for you? If they turn against you, would Jesus still be enough for you? If you lose your wife, would Jesus still be enough for you? If you lose your children, would Jesus still be enough for you? If they turned against you, would Jesus be enough for you?
It is one thing to ask, “does Jesus mean everything to me?” But, it hits differently to put yourself in the place where your children turn against you, or die, or even are themselves lost (God, forbid it!); and, in that place, you say, “you know what? Jesus is still enough for me.”
Of course, one chief way that He drives into our hearts His all-surpassing worth and glory is by His public worship on the Lord’s Day. We gather to God through Him, Who is our God and Savior, and we behold His glory, and find that He is not only sufficient for us, but abundant. May His Spirit give us to perceive that worth and glory in His worship!
Looking forward to finding Him abundantly satisfying, with you,
Pastor
Audio lessons to help you prepare for the
Lord’s Day:
▪Theology
Simply Explained — CC41, A Covenant That Can Only Kill
▪Theology
Simply Explained — WSC18, Guilty Sinners Who Sin
▪Song of Songs 5:9–16, “He Is Altogether Lovely”
▪Deuteronomy 30:11–20, “Grace to Love and Cling to God”
▪Ecclesiastes 12:8–14, “The Bible's Chief Message (Man's Chief End)”
▪Matthew 28:1–15, “The First Lord's Day”
▪Song of Songs 6:1–3, “Where Jesus Makes Himself Known”
LORD'S DAY – March
1, 2026
9:50 a.m. Breakfast Line Opens
10 a.m. Sabbath School
We are preparing our minds and hearts for
public worship by studying our Confession of Faith from Scripture, affirming
that Scripture is our only ultimate authority, but also discovering that what
we confess is thoroughly Scriptural.
11 a.m. Public Worship
▫Children’s Catechism for March 1. Q41 Can any one be saved through
the covenant of works? None can be saved through the covenant of
works. [CC 41 Simply Explained: “A Covenant That Can Only Kill”]
▫Shorter Catechism for March 1. Q18. Wherein consists the sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell? The sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell consists in the guilt of Adam’s first sin, the want of original righteousness, and the corruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called original sin; together with all actual transgressions which proceed from it. [WSC 18 Simply Explained: “Guilty Sinners Who Sin”]
▫Songs for public worship on March 1: TPH282 [mp3], ARP108A [mp3], ARP24 [mp3]
Scripture Text for first portion of worship service
Song of Songs 5:9–16
Scripture Readings and basis for confession of sin
and petition for help
Deuteronomy 30:11–20
Ecclesiastes 12:8–14
Sermon Scripture text and topic
We will be hearing the sermon from Matthew 28:1–15
about “The First Lord’s Day Message”
Lord’s Supper! (Please see the section at the end of the Worship Booklet on how rightly to prepare for and take it).
1 p.m. Coffee Fellowship and Catechism Class
1:30 p.m. Fellowship Lunch
▫Memory
Verse for March 1, Matthew 28:5–6, But the angel answered
and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who
was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place
where the Lord lay.”
3:00 p.m. Evening Praise and Preaching
We will be singing at least ten Psalm
selections and hearing the sermon from Song of Songs 5:9–16
about “Where to Find Jesus”
Hopewell this Month
Hopewell’s Presbytery
Prayer Focus for March
New Days ARP in
Duluth, GA
March Psalm of the
Month
ARP108A God,
My Heart Is Steadfast
• Wednesday, March 4, Midweek Prayer Meeting.
6:30 p.m. in the Chapel. We will hear a sermon from Proverbs 22:1–9 then
pray until 8 p.m.
• Thursday, March 5, Diaconate Meeting, 8
p.m.
• Wednesday, March 18, Session Meeting, 8
p.m. in the Pastor’s Study
• Saturday, March 28, Men’s (and future men)
breakfast, 7a in the Fellowship Hall
• Saturday, March 28, Church Workday, 8:30a
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