By your word, Father, you caused the worlds to come into being. And by your word, you have redeemed the creation. And you have called us out of darkness into light. Lord Jesus, you have accomplished salvation for all who call upon you. And Holy Spirit, you are in our midst. guide and direct us. Open our hearts that we might hear what you are saying to us in this moment. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. Please be seated. I'm glad I'm closer to my retirement than to my ordination. I recently heard that from a fellow pastor. And I thought, that's not good. And if I told you who said it, some of you might agree. You also are glad that he's closer to his resignation and retirement than he is to his ordination. And that's not good either. I sense that the Reformed Presbyterian Church is in the devil's crosshairs. We know of pastors and elders who have resigned in the last year. We know of congregations that have been reduced, some have closed, and some have departed from the RPCNA. I know of sessions that are at odds with their pastor, sessions that are at odds with another session, and a session that's at odds with an institution. Congregations continue to suffer the harm of sexual abuse. I'm aware that differences that began online between brothers have made their way towards and into the church courts. And I'm glad that at least one of those was settled before it needed to be dealt with by the court. I've heard of men threatening boards and institutions when they don't get their way. Brothers, I am deeply concerned. We hear too many complaints. And whether that's coming from unjust actions or undue harshness by courts, or whether they're coming from unwilling persons to receive correction To actually submit to all brotherly counsel which your brethren may tender you in the Lord, I'm not sure, but either way it's not good. Enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions are not from the Spirit. Rather, Paul warns that if you bite and devour one another, take care lest you be consumed by one another. But the way to peace, the way to blessedness, the way to happiness lies in a different direction, where Jesus says to his disciples in Matthew chapter 5, blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy." That statement comes in the context of other Beatitudes. And Jesus here is not describing various distinct kinds of persons, but his disciples holistically. Each of us should be merciful, poor in spirit, pure of heart, and so forth. Blessed, happy are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. At first, this almost sounds transactional. But I think more, it's reflective. Followers of Jesus gladly show the mercy for which we have already been recipients. We show mercy because we have received mercy. It's not only in the future. We will receive it, but we already have. And so we of all peoples should be the happiest. Mercy comes from the very being of God. He reveals his glory to Moses. And what is that glory? That he is compassionate. or merciful, and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in chesed and truth. Would someone describe you or me like that? Oh, I love this pastor because he's compassionate and gracious and slow to anger, and abounding in loving kindness and truth. Could your fellow elders on your session say that of you? Could they say it of me? We just sang Psalm 103. And that psalm unpacks the implications, because God doesn't deal with us according to our sins. He does not repay us according to our iniquities. Our God is a forgiving God. And we hear this offer of forgiveness in the prophets, Jeremiah 3. Return, faithless Israel, declares the Lord. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares the Lord. I will not be angry forever. When we were dead in our sins and trespasses, that's when we received mercy. That is when Jesus saved us. We all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. This then becomes the basis for our own demonstrations of mercy towards one another. Be merciful, even as your father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged. Condemn not, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. What measure do we use? What measure do you use with your congregation? What measure do you use with your fellow presbyters? What measure do you use with your wife and children, should you have them? What measure do you use with your aging parents? What measure do you use with the men in this room. Jesus goes on to press this home in the Sermon on the Mount. He taught us to pray, forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. He says at the end of that, For if you do not forgive, you yourself will not be forgiven. He goes on to say, and whatever you want others to do to you, do also to them. Show mercy, and you will receive mercy. Now for us, this should be easy. It should be natural. We show mercy because God in Christ showed mercy to us. We forgive because we have been forgiven. And yet, we are too much like Peter. And we want to know, well, just how often should I forgive? What's the limit to my mercy? And Jesus, in answer, tells his story of the unforgiving servant. You know that story. In light of God's mercy towards us, there is no limit. But the mercy that we show and the forgiveness that we grant must come from the heart. And that can be hard. That's where we begin to run into the limits. And so, my friends, we must continually preach the gospel to ourselves. We must be continually reminded of our own debt and what has been forgiven. Some of us think, well, I have to say something about that, or I have to do something about that or be seen as a great loser, to use Spurgeon's language. OK, but why not be wronged? It is to one's glory to overlook an offense. Personally, I want to commend the board of RPTS that while they might have grounds to pursue a recently parted professor, are choosing not to. That's mercy. And in the grand scope of things, we will be quibbling over pennies, because God has so much more. Show mercy, and you will receive mercy. We can wait on the Lord. He sees. Jesus knows. He will judge. But we must not give the devil an opening. We must not be ignorant of his designs. We cannot let ourselves be outwitted. And I'm afraid that we have fallen into that. He's the accuser. He's the one who spreads discord. And bitterness and resentment will spread like infection and defile many. We must stop it. And it is hard. I was a church planter in Maryland. And soon after arriving, there to work in church planting, our mother church imploded. The pastor and an elder became disenchanted with the Reformed Presbyterian Church and abandoned our mother congregation. Our small group had to send a presenter every week lest our mother die. And I thought, she's hemorrhaging in the midst of childbirth. But I had to deal in my own heart with how I was feeling towards a pastor and an elder. And I remember the day I went out into the woods and left it there. Because I knew that if I had hung on to that, it would defile many. I had to release those guys. And it was 20 years later that the elder sent me an email asking for my forgiveness. I said, that's been dealt with years ago. Glad to tell you that it's been done and I'm not carrying that. Haven't been carrying that for years. But thank you for acknowledging that wrong. And then I had to go through the very same thing again after my presbytery tried my friend Bruce Hemphill. And he appealed to this court, and this court upheld the findings of the Presbytery of the Alleghenies. And I had to deal with my disappointment in the court. And I had to deal with my disappointment with individual members of my presbytery and of this synod. And I felt resentment. But I knew the devil could use this in me and in covenant fellowship. And I said, it's not going to happen. I won't allow myself to be used like that. And I and my elders did a lot of work in the membership of covenant fellowship. But I had to deal with my own heart. I sought out some of the brothers in the presbytery and in this court. And I intentionally spent time with them. Because I said, I cannot. must not allow the evil one to divide us. And I still pray, and I still check my heart when I go to presbytery and when I come to synod. But that's how I preach the gospel to myself. Jesus has forgiven all my debts. Who am I to carry something against another? Yeah, there's some times I might wish that some of you would retire, or that some of you might leave the denomination. But that comes from a heart of pride and arrogance. And I see in myself a lack of humility, as if since we don't agree, Maybe you're not like me. I have no need of you. But I do need you. You see things I don't see. You feel things I don't feel. And as hard as it might be for you to admit, yeah, you need me too. We need each other. And through love, we are called to serve one another. And from time to time, that will mean confrontation and correction. It will most definitely mean some debate and argument. And we will hear that in probably just about 25 minutes. That's OK, as long as it doesn't fall into quarreling That's a different thing. But in our confrontation, in our debating, in our arguing, it is all to be done with gentleness. In our relationships, we should lead with mercy, not judgment. Don't for once think you understand why the other guy thinks the way he thinks, not unless you have sat and talked with him and listened to him. So lead with mercy, not judgment. Lead with care, not condemnation. Lead with curiosity. not arrogance. And that can be as simple as, brother, you seem really spun up about this issue. What is it that makes this so important to you? And then listen. Don't break the bruised reed. Don't snuff the smoldering wick. Use the cross of Jesus Christ. View the other through the cross. See the other as he is in Christ. Remember and consciously think, you know, the other guy also has the Spirit of God. He's also trying to glorify God and to enjoy him. And it was that fact, by the way, that got me through the fallout and the implications for my congregation after Bruce Hemphill's trial. I had to remember, you also have the Spirit of God. You also are seeking to glorify God and to enjoy Him. And I will submit to the judgment of the court." And then I went home. And I had somebody look at me and say what they did. And the person spoke poorly about the Presbyterian Synod. And I said, wait, wait, wait. You're indicting me. Because I'm part of the presbytery, and I'm part of the synod, and it was our decision. There is never a good reason not to uphold your fellow elders' dignity, whether it's in front of others, in private conversation with others, even in your own mind where nobody else can see or hear, belittling a fellow elder, or giving him a cold shoulder, or even calling him a name, tearing him down, undermining his dignity in any way is always destructive and never helpful. Happy, blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Life as a pastor can be hard. Life as an elder can be hard. And many of us bear the scars to prove it. But we keep them hidden. But I can tell you, my heart has been bruised. My assurance has been undermined. My joy has been diminished. I have felt isolated, vulnerable, of little account. And if I have felt those things over the last 30 years, I'm pretty sure you have too. And it wouldn't surprise me that somebody in this room has even thought through ending his life. Even here among us brothers, Some don't feel safe. We don't really want to reveal our struggles because we don't feel safe. There's a lack of trust. So let me encourage us this week to sit a little longer and listen a little more. This is what Spurgeon says on this text. This day, let us try to give and to forgive. Let us mind the two bears, bear and forebear. Let us be kind and gentle and tender. Let us not put harsh constructions upon men's conduct, nor drive hard bargains nor pick foolish quarrels, nor be difficult to please. Surely, we wish to be blessed, and we also want to obtain mercy. Let us be merciful that we may have mercy. So before speaking, think. How would I receive this if this were said to me? We won't always agree. We need to leave room for one another. Our consciences differ in certain areas. We must not despise the other guy. We must not judge the other one, but allow for differences. Arrogance tries to control others. Humility controls itself. So in love, and with reverence for Christ, submit to one another. Blessed are the merciful. We might need to repent of pride, impatience, anger. Do so. If there's a brother you need to be made right with, pursue it today, this week. Have dinner together, breakfast, meet at some point, But let's make it our ambition to lead with mercy in light of the mercy that we have received. And we should remember that blessed, happy are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Lord Jesus, thank you for coming into the world, that we through you might receive the forgiveness of sins. And, O Lord, our sins are many. My sins are many. And you have covered them all. You are gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving kindness and truth. Lord, may this be the hallmark, not just of this synod, but may this become the hallmark of our relationships all of the time, marked by mercy and marked by compassion and patience and understanding and gentleness and care. Forgive us for our impatience. Forgive us for our anger. Forgive us for our self-talk where we have run down your servant, when we have belittled your servant. Oh, forgive us. Give us an extra measure of your Holy Spirit today. Right now. Because there are some divisive issues before us. May we make it our intention not to give the evil one an opportunity. We are not unaware of his schemes. Protect us. Protect our speech. And may we honor one another. Jesus, we can only do that through you. And it's in your name we pray. Amen. We often end synod. In fact, I think we always end synod with Psalm 133. But we ought to start synod with 133. So take your book of Psalms if you need it. 133, bravo. Let's stand together and sing and remain standing for the Constitution of the court. Behold how very good it is, a pleasant thing to see, where brothers join to live as one in peace and unity. Yes, it is like a precious oil poured out upon the head, which running down from Aaron's beard upon his garments spread. It is as though the firmament's dew on Zion's hills descend, for there the Lord besold the gift of life that never ends. Lord God in heaven above, may we, the synod, of the Reformed Presbyterian Church experience that blessing this week. Oh, refresh us by your word as it's preached and as it's sung. Refresh us by our unity. And while we may not yet agree, may by your spirit we come to agreement. Lord, spare us from 55% to 45% votes. And if we find ourselves as a divided court, may we find the will to sit longer, to listen a little longer, so that we might go home at the end of the week saying, it seemed good to us and to the Holy Spirit. We invoke your blessing, please. Grant us peace and unity. And now, in the name of Jesus, we constitute ourselves as the Synod of the Reformed Presbyterian Church. And we do so in that most precious name of Zion's king and head. Amen. You may be seated.