http://www.trinityopcnovato.org Serving Novato, Marin County, California and the World Wide Web. This site provides information about the Christian ministry of Trinity Presbyterian Church, OPC. This site also broadcasts the latest sermons and Sunday schools from Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) in Novato, CA. Our sermons seek to exposit Scripture, preaching Christ and the cross, and understanding the impact and demand of the Word on our lives. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:54:18 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Copyright © by W. Reid Hankins and Trinity Presbyterian Church, 2011 info@trinityopcnovato.org (Rev. W. Reid Hankins) info@trinityopcnovato.org (Rev. W. Reid Hankins) Religion & Spirituality:Christianity 1440 http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/wp-content/plugins/podpress/images/tpc-vertical144.jpg http://www.trinityopcnovato.org 144 144 http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/?feed=podcast Sermons and Sunday Schools Serving Novato, Marin County, California and the World Wide Web. This feed broadcasts the latest sermons and Sunday schools from Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) in Novato, CA. Our sermons seek to exposit Scripture, preaching Christ and the cross, and understanding the impact and demand of the Word on our lives. Church, Novato, Marin, Hankins, Sermon, Christian, OPC, San Rafael Rev. W. Reid Hankins Rev. W. Reid Hankins info@trinityopcnovato.org no no http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2011/08/28/chief-shepherd-appears/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2011/08/28/chief-shepherd-appears/#comments Sun, 28 Aug 2011 22:13:21 +0000 Pastor Reid Hankins http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/?p=1458 http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2011/08/28/chief-shepherd-appears/feed/ 0 0:39:26 Sermon preached on 1 Peter 5:1-7 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 8/28/2011 in Novato, CA. Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. 1 Peter 5:1-7 8/28/11 “When the Chief Shepherd Appears” In[...] Sermon preached on 1 Peter 5:1-7 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 8/28/2011 in Novato, CA. Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. 1 Peter 5:1-7 8/28/11 “When the Chief Shepherd Appears” In a postmodern culture, one of the things most disliked is authority. Some of you might recall the popular bumper sticker that said, “Question Authority.” This is a mentality that continues in our culture today. Many different types of authorities have been questioned in this postmodern culture. And yet though life has many authority structures in it, one of those structures that often seems most questioned is the authority in the church. Now to be fair, there is often good reason why authority has been questioned in the past. In our country’s history, if authority wasn’t questioned, we’d not have the Declaration of Independence and the democratic republic that we hold so dear. In our church’s history, if authority wasn’t questioned, you wouldn’t have had the Protestant Reformation, something we continue to celebrate. There are times that we must question authority. We should always exercise discernment, and not assume that just because someone has a title that they are exercising their office appropriately. And yet, we do have to guard against a reactionary response. Discernment is not the same as distrust. We should look to guard against the classical abuses of authority. But we have to also guard against a response that would get rid of something very important in the Scriptures. We need to remember, that God has established various authority structures, including those in the church. God is not an anarchist. Given our postmodern culture’s distaste for authority this is something we need to particularly emphasize when we get to it in Scripture. And we should see that the Scriptures not only speak to those under authority. They also constrain those who are in authority as well. That’s what this passage shows us. It exhorts the elders in the church. And it exhorts those who are under the elder’s authority. And what we’ll see today, this is a part of how God lovingly cares for his people. Ultimately, this points us to Jesus Christ, our Chief Shepherd, who is constantly caring for his sheep. Well, let’s begin by examining what Peter has to say to the elders in the church. The elders are those entrusted in the church with the normal rule and shepherding of the church. Some elders have the specialized tasks of ministering the word and sacrament, and we call them pastors. And yet all elders will pastor in some sense, in the sense of shepherding the people. That’s what we see Peter calling the elders to here. Verse 1 Peter addresses the elders of the church. He even identifies with them. He says that he’s a fellow elder. He goes on to say that he shares in common with them the glory that will be revealed. And yet Peter also especially draws out his unique position – as someone who is a witness of the suffering of Christ. To these elders he commands them in verse 2, “Shepherd the flock of God.” Some of you might recall that at our elder visitations, we’ve been reading over Acts 20 where Paul calls the Ephesian elders to pay careful attention to the flock of God. That’s the same idea as what we have here in 1 Peter. Elders are called to shepherd. They are to tend and care for the flock. They are to feed the sheep with the Word of God and guard them from the spiritual wolves and thieves that are out there. They have been called to spiritual oversight. Peter calls them to that right here. This is the elder’s responsibility. It’s not an optional thing. It’s not something that an elder might do if they have enough time. If they have been ordained as an elder, they are to shepherd those who are among them, acco[...] Rev. W. Reid Hankins no no http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2009/10/11/honor-your-father-and-mother/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2009/10/11/honor-your-father-and-mother/#comments Sun, 11 Oct 2009 23:13:57 +0000 Pastor Reid Hankins http://www.novatoopcsermons.org/?p=499 http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2009/10/11/honor-your-father-and-mother/feed/ 0 0:36:34 Sermon preached on Deuteronomy 5:16 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 10/11/2009 in Novato, CA. Manuscript: Honor Your Father and Mother Sermon preached on Deuteronomy 5:16 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 10/11/2009 in Novato, CA. Manuscript: Honor Your Father and Mother Deuteronomy Rev. W. Reid Hankins no no http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/12/28/westminster-shorter-catechism-questions-63-66/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/12/28/westminster-shorter-catechism-questions-63-66/#comments Sun, 28 Dec 2008 23:11:53 +0000 Pastor Reid Hankins http://www.novatoopcsermons.org/?p=228 http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/12/28/westminster-shorter-catechism-questions-63-66/feed/ 0 0:37:26 Topic: Westminster Shorter Catechism Questions 63-66 Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. Adult Sunday School at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 12/28/2008 in Novato, CA. Topic: Westminster Shorter Catechism Questions 63-66 Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. Adult Sunday School at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 12/28/2008 in Novato, CA. Rev. W. Reid Hankins no no http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/11/02/the-baptism-of-john-was-it-from-heaven-or-of-men/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/11/02/the-baptism-of-john-was-it-from-heaven-or-of-men/#comments Mon, 03 Nov 2008 01:12:53 +0000 Pastor Reid Hankins http://www.novatoopcsermons.org/?p=180 http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/11/02/the-baptism-of-john-was-it-from-heaven-or-of-men/feed/ 0 0:36:59 Our country’s elections are fast approaching.  If you turn on the radio or TV, you hear more and more advertisements.  You probably are receiving spirited pleas from various people about why you should vote for one candidate or another.  The passion[...] Our country’s elections are fast approaching.  If you turn on the radio or TV, you hear more and more advertisements.  You probably are receiving spirited pleas from various people about why you should vote for one candidate or another.  The passion and rhetoric is picking up.  Things are getting heated.  Why?  Why does everyone get so excited about the elections?  Because we are picking who will lead our government.  And our government is our nation’s authority.  We recognize that the people in authority have a very powerful role over our life.  And since we live in a nation that allows us to have a role in picking the leaders in our government, we take that responsibility seriously.  And so we pick the people we want to submit to.  We recognize that the government is in a position of authority, and so we want to pick the leaders who we want in that position of authority over us. You see, that’s what I want us to think about today – authority.  That’s the question that is raised in our passage for today.  There is a question of authority in our passage.  This question has to do with Jesus.  Simply put, by what authority is Jesus acting?  Jesus is obviously acting from a position of authority, but whose authority is it?  Let’s take a look at this passage and find out. Passage: Mark 11:27-12:12 Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. Sermon originally preached during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 11/02/2008 in Novato, CA. Click here for the manuscript. Mark Rev. W. Reid Hankins no no http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/03/09/lord-even-of-the-sabbath/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/03/09/lord-even-of-the-sabbath/#comments Sun, 09 Mar 2008 23:23:24 +0000 Pastor Reid Hankins http://www.novatoopcsermons.org/2008/03/09/lord-even-of-the-sabbath/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/03/09/lord-even-of-the-sabbath/feed/ 0 0:36:42 In our passage for today, Jesus’ authority is again being questioned, this time with regards to the Sabbath. Our passage for today has two different scenes in it, both with opposition against Jesus, and both dealing with the question of his authorit[...] In our passage for today, Jesus’ authority is again being questioned, this time with regards to the Sabbath. Our passage for today has two different scenes in it, both with opposition against Jesus, and both dealing with the question of his authority concerning the Sabbath. The question that is being raised is, “Who has authority to interpret God’s law on what is permissible to do on the Sabbath?” Who has authority to declare God’s purpose and intentions of the Sabbath? Is it the Pharisees with all their man-made laws which they had erected around the Sabbath?  No!  Mark shows us that Jesus is the authority even on the Sabbath. Passage: Mark 2:23-3:6 Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. Sermon originally preached during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 03/09/2008 in Novato, CA. Other Scripture Readings: 1 Sam 21:1-9; Revelation 7:9-17 Click here for the manuscript. Mark Rev. W. Reid Hankins no no http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/02/24/that-you-may-know-that-the-son-of-man-has-power-on-earth-to-forgive-sins/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/02/24/that-you-may-know-that-the-son-of-man-has-power-on-earth-to-forgive-sins/#comments Mon, 25 Feb 2008 03:49:05 +0000 Pastor Reid Hankins http://www.novatoopcsermons.org/2008/02/24/that-you-may-know-that-the-son-of-man-has-power-on-earth-to-forgive-sins/ http://www.trinityopcnovato.org/2008/02/24/that-you-may-know-that-the-son-of-man-has-power-on-earth-to-forgive-sins/feed/ 0 0:33:23 Passage: Mark 2:1-12 Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. Sermon originally preached during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 02/24/2008 in Novato, CA. Other Scripture Readings: Psalm 103; Isaiah 53; Romans 3:9-26 In our pa[...] Passage: Mark 2:1-12 Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div. Sermon originally preached during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 02/24/2008 in Novato, CA. Other Scripture Readings: Psalm 103; Isaiah 53; Romans 3:9-26 In our passage for today, Jesus makes a rather bold claim. He claims that he has the power on earth to forgive sins. When Jesus declared that the paralytic’s sins were forgiven, he caught everyone’s attention. Some responded with faith to Jesus’ claim, but many with doubt and skepticism. Such a bold claim, dare I even say, an outrageous claim, demanded some sort of proof. If true, it would suggest that Jesus came with the very authority and power of God himself. And our passage beautifully shows how Christ’s claim was vindicated, verified through his miraculous healing of the paralytic. Click here for the manuscript. Mark Rev. W. Reid Hankins no no