Harvester PCA

I.  The Command to Worship the LORD (v. 1) II.  Worship the LORD as the Lifestyle (vv. 2-3) III. Worship the LORD as a Community (v. 4) IV. The Content of Our Worship (v. 5)

When people describe their experience of depression you often hear them talk about pain (often emotional), emotional numbness, dejection, fears, anxieties, restlessness, torment, alienation, suicidal thoughts and guilt.  Possible causes of feelings of depression:  surgery and sickness, childbirth, chemical imbalance in the body, sleep loss, job loss or other losses, financial or relational or other difficulties, ongoing sin: bitterness, worry, jealousy, anger and guilt.  What you and I can do to help someone who is battling feelings of depression: Be physically  present, pray with them, clean the house with them, read the Psalms together, go for a walk or exercise together.  [From the book “Blame it on the Brain” by Ed Welch]  What can you and I do to battle feelings of depression: If the symptoms are so severe that they interfere with daily life, get medical help and possibly counseling. Work to address the physical contributors and symptoms (insomnia, etc.) Work to address relational or circumstantial contributors - Biblically Deal with spiritual problems - Biblically Soak yourself in God’s Word and God’s promises  Other Scripture: 1 Corinthians, 10:13, Philippians 4:13, Romans 8:32, 2 Corinthians 12:9

This Sunday and next Sunday we are exploring how we can find comfort in God’s character.  All of us struggle at one time or other with difficulties, problems, pain, etc.  We can respond with: anger, fear, worry, aggression, depression, avoid, “medicate”, or trust in God. Not all fear is bad.  Some fear is natural.  The kind of fear we are talking about today has its roots in our desires.  Matthew 6:25-34  What should we do when we are tempted to fear and worry?         Be honest with God and yourself and with others         Personalize Psalm 23         Focus more on God and His character and promises than on “the problem”         Choose to trust God         Choose to hold our desires with an open hand ·         Seek God’s kingdom first

Genesis 50:20  As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. WCF 3.1 God, from all eternity, did—by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will—freely and unchangeably ordain whatever comes to pass. 2 Corinthians 5:15 and he [Jesus] died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. God unsettles us: • Covid-19 • Election and politics • Changes in our culture • Personal challenges Romans 8:26-29  

Joseph tests his brothers.  He gives his brothers an opportunity to get rid of Benjamin.  The brothers pass the test God uses Joseph to provide for Jacob’s family. In many sermons and Sunday School lessons, you would hear that Joseph was the hero of the story.  God is the hero. In Jesus, God provides for His plan for us.

Trusting God by Looking for significance and satisfaction in God alone (vv. 1-8) Obeying God by Giving God the glory He deserves (vv. 9-24) Trusting God by Submitting to God’s sovereign control (vv. 25-57)

God is preparing Joseph for God’s plan for Jacob’s family Genesis 39:8-9 God only has a Plan A for your life. We are not tempted by the situations we find ourselves in.  They are the occasion.  We are tempted by our desires. (James 1) What does it mean for you and me that God is with us?

WCF 3.1 God, from all eternity, did—by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will—freely and unchangeably ordain whatever comes to pass. Yet he ordered all things in such a way that he is not the author of sin, nor does he force his creatures to act against their wills; 3.2 Although God knows whatever may or can come to pass under all conceivable conditions, yet he has not decreed anything because he foresaw it as future or as that which would come to pass under such conditions. 5.1. God—the great Creator of all things—upholds, directs, disposes, and governs all creatures, actions, and things, from the greatest even to the least. He exercises this most wise and holy providence according to his infallible foreknowledge and the free and unchangeable counsel of his own will, to the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, goodness, and mercy. As we look at the life of Joseph, everything happens according to God’s plan. This account in Genesis does not minimize the wrong that was done or excuse it. Other Scripture: Genesis 37:18-20; 37:26-28; 42:21; 50:20