Word of Salvation – Vol. 20 No.40 - July 1974   Happiness Is...!   Sermon by Rev. A. l. de Graaf, B.D. on Psalm 144:15b Youth sermon ( - esp. suitable for Calvinettes) Scripture: Matt. 6:19-34 Psalter Hymnal: 316; 94:1,2 (law); 296:1,2,7,8; 38:1,2,3,4; 38:5   You all know how the fairy-tales end: "they lived happily ever after."  Yes, that prince and that princess, who got each other after all these terrible and exciting adventures, they got happy after all.  But you know.... there's never a fairy-tale that tells THAT story!   Of how happy they were and what they MEAN. What DOES...

Word of Salvation - Vol.48 No.2 - January 2003   The Eye of the Storm   New Year's Sermon by Rev. C. Berends on Psalm 46 Scripture Readings:  Mark 4:35-41; Psalm 46   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The sea has often been a symbol for chaos. Biblically, the stories of the flood, the drowning of the Egyptians in the Red Sea, the crossing of the Jordan, have all reinforced the idea that the sea is chaotic. It does not always behave in a rational manner. One minute it can be calm and flat, the next minute a pounding wave....

Word of Salvation – June 2022   My Soul Thirsts for You   Sermon by Rev C.  Berends on Psalm 63 Scripture Reading: Psalm 63 Suggested Songs:  Lord from Sorrows Deep I Call,  O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer   One of my highlights in taking holidays in Australia has been the few times that we have spent time driving through the outback. There is something about these wide open spaces, somewhat desolate, that I just really enjoy. Long lines of horizon. The orange of the desert sand. The law lying shrubs. The night sky where you just have a...

Word of Salvation – Vol.39 No.30 - August 1994   The Resurrection And Our Righteousness In Christ   Sermon by Rev. J. Rogers on Acts 3 Scripture readings:  Psalm 130, Acts 3   INTRODUCTION   Congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ, In Lord's Day One of our Catechism, we confess that, 'my only comfort in life and in death is that I am not my own, but belong, body and soul, to my faithful Saviour, Jesus Christ.' I am very glad about that.  To be left to ourselves in death, or in life, is a terrible thing.  And the reason for...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 22 No. 24 – February 1976   A New Song For Each New Day   Sermon by Rev. H. Pennings, Th Grad on Psalm 98 Psalter Hymnal: 281:,2,8,9; 412; 289; 191 after sermon; 490 doxology   A question which Christian people invariably ask of themselves as they seek to be better disciples is, "How should I be acting in this situation?"  This question is not always consciously asked, of course, just as it is true that we don't always consciously say to ourselves, "I am a Christian – therefore I must be a disciple therefore I'd...

Word of Salvation – Vol.  23 No.  37 – June 1977   Cup Day   Sermon by Rev.  A.I. de Graaf, B.D. on Psalm 23:5(b) Scripture Reading: Psalm 23; Matthew 6:24-34 Psalter Hymnal: 318; 94: 1,2 (after law); 428:1,2, (after grace); 380; 38; 402   Brothers & Sisters, Boys and Girls, Young People, Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ Quite a few Christian people are somewhat embarrassed about the special holiday that Melbourne has every year: "CUP DAY”, when every business will be shut and every school closed (except for our Christian Schools by way of protest) and we all have...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 24 No. 34 – May 1978   The Greatest Is Love   Sermon by Rev. H. L. Hoving, B.D., on Lord's Day 2 Scripture reading:  Psalm 119:169-176, Colossians 3:1-17 Psalter Hymnal: 162; 249; 239; 390   Congregation, one thing is for sure: when we confess the Biblical truth summarized in the Lord's Day 2, we are out of tune with today's world.  In a permissive society where everyone is supposed to do his own thing, it is completely unacceptable that some higher authority should give binding commands.  And it is equally unacceptable that good people would...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 25 No. 12 – December 1978   An Invitation With Three Promises New Year's Sermon by Rev. J. F. H. Vanderbom, B.D. on Psalm 25:12, 13 Scripture reading: Psalm 25 Psalter Hymnal: 301; 140; 156; 160:3; 45   Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, The opening of a new year is the time to look at the future. With all the happy smiles and good wishes of the day, nobody can conceal the burning question in every heart: what will the future be like? The future poses such intriguing questions. A whole new science, futurology, deals...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 02 – October 1979   New Year's Sermon Sermon by Rev. P. C. Tuit on Psalm 121   Congregation of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, only a few hours ago we thought about the fact that another year had almost passed. This morning all this is history; 1979 is now history. A new year has begun, 1980 has made its few new footsteps into a new period of time. Last night, we basically thought about the year that was past. Today, we look not backwards, but forwards. We come anticipating many things for...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 40 – July 1981   The Light of God’s Word   Sermon by Rev. D. J. Van Garderen on Psalm 119:105–112 Scripture Reading: Psalm 119:105–112 Psalter Hymnal: 183; 235; 95; 414; 249; 409   Dear congregation, In the "Nun" section of Psalm 119 the Psalmist seems to stand back and look at his life as a child of God. He thinks about the past, the present and the future and talks about his faith from the beginning of his commitment to the Lord till its end. In making an examination of this so-called "review"...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 31 – May 1981   The Christian Citizen   Sermon by Rev. H. W. Pennings on Psalm 15 Scripture Readings: Romans 12, Psalm 15   Beloved of the Lord, The psalm which is our text for this sermon starts with a question and ends with its answer. In order to see this it is necessary for you to keep your Bible open, so that you can follow the argument which is so clearly and logically presented in this Psalm of David. If perhaps you came to this worship service without your Bible -- if...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 47 – August 1980   The Lord Our Shepherd   Sermon by Rev. W. Wiersma on Psalm 23:1 Scripture Reading: John 10:11-30; Psalm 31 Psalter Hymnals: 183, 148, 38, 211   Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, the Lord. It is amazing, isn't it, how much meaning can be packed into a few words. When David said, the Lord is my Shepherd, he was saying: I've got the Lord God to look after me, and the Lord will see to it that I get everything I need. This well known and loved psalm is,...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 46 – August 1980   Overcoming Spiritual Depression   Sermon by Rev. M. P. Geluk on Psalm 42:11 Scripture Reading: 1Peter 1:1-12; Psalm 42   This Psalm speaks about a person who is longing for God. He is suffering from a kind of home sickness that yearns for a deep and meaningful relationship with God. We do not know who this person is. He appears to be somewhere close to the Jordan, near Mount Hermon but why he is there, again we do not know. Possibly he is oppressed by the enemy. He hints...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 24 No. 39 – July 1980   A Resolution Threatened   Sermon by Rev. D. J. Van Garderen on Psalm 119:9 Scripture Reading: Psalm 119:1-16 Psalter Hymnal: 51:1, 2, 3, 4 94:1,2 (Hymn of Confession) OR 72:1,2 (used in conjunction with Apostles' Creed) 237 (Response to the preaching of the word) 407 493 A RESOLUTION THREATENED "How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word." (Psalm 119:9)   Dear congregation, Having resolved, with God's help and for His name's sake, to be a child of God, the Psalmist is immediately...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 29 No. 40 – October 1984   God’s Mercy And Justice   Sermon by Rev. S. Voorwinde, v.d.m. on Psalm 103:8 & Nahum 1:2 (Belgic Confession Art. 20) Scripture Readings: Psalm 103; Nahum 1:1-8 Suggested Hymns: 196, 369, 350, 353, 170   Brothers and Sisters and young people, in Christ our Saviour, The German writer Franz Kafka once described an old book that was lying on a shelf.  The binding had come off and as it lay open it had almost become two books which were barely held together by just a few stitches of binding...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 29 No. 31 – August 1984   Original Sin   Sermon by Rev. S. Voorwinde v.d.m. on Psalm 51:5 & Romans 5:12-18 (Belgic Confession Art.15) Scriptures: Psalm 51; Romans 5:12-21. Suggested Hymns: 94; 273; 430; BoW.302:1,5,6; 355:3,4   Dear brothers & sisters in Christ, There's one great advantage in preaching a series of sermons on the Belgic Confession, or on the Heidelberg Catechism for that matter; and that is that we don't just cover doctrines that are pleasant and easy and that people like to hear.  As preachers we are forced to deal with subjects that...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 40 No.42 – November 1995   The Childlike Spirit   Sermon by Rev. R. Brenton on Psalm 131 Scripture Readings: Matthew 18:1-4   Brothers and Sisters. One day Jesus' disciples asked Him, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"  In reply, Jesus called a little child and had him stand among them.  "I tell you the truth," He said, "unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:1-4).  Like a...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 30 No. 48 – Dec 1985   Be Still And Know That I Am God   Sermon by Rev. A. I. de Graaf on Psalm 46:8-11 (Suitable for New Year's Day. Readings: Psalm 91, Acts 4:18-31, Psalm 46 Songs: 219: 1,2,3; 219: 4,5,6,7; 337; 374: 1,3; 280: 1,2; 280:3   Isn't it amazing what a lot of noise people usually make when a new year starts? Fire-works... car horns...  ships' whistles... fog-horns... and loud shouts, Yippee and Yahoo and what have you. Why do we do that? Because we are scared in the dark? To chase...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 37 No. 18 – June 1992   The Rule Of God / The Devil’s Broken Back   Sermon by Rev. M. Vanderree on Psalm 47 Reading: Acts 1:1-11   People of God, Welcome to a celebration of coronation!  Had this been the celebration of the coronation of some earthly monarch, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, then the media would be out in force, or at least the Women's Weekly camera crew, but not so for the Ascension of Christ.  For many churches and Christians, the Ascension is no more striking than any other day.  Pity!  Because...

Word of Salvation – Vol. 37 No. 39 – October 1992   A Troubled Soul Hopes In God   Sermon by Rev. John Haverland on Psalm 42 Readings: Lamentations 3:1-27, 2Corinthians 4:6-18   Beloved congregation, We all know what it's like to be standing around waiting for someone.  You've made an arrangement to meet the person at a certain time and place.  You arrive on time, but the other is nowhere to be seen.  You check your diary to make sure you've got the right time and place and then you wait, patiently. But after a while you begin to get...