NEWS AND EVENTS

THE INAUGURAL SERMON OF REV. JOHN DEN HOED

Many were again gathered in the Church of Rock Valley as their newly ordained minister, Rev. John Den Hoed, ascended the pulpit and pronounced the blessing for the first time upon his congregation. The first three stanzas of Psalter 375 were sung, after which Rev. Den Hoed read the twelve articles of faith and 2 Corinthians 4, and sought the Lord in prayer for the Congregation and for the labors which were beginning for him in Rock Valley. The need of God’s help was acknowledged in all the present circumstances and in those which lay in the unknown future.

After the singing of Psalter 247, Rev. Den Hoed stressed that this hour marked an important time for himself and for the congregation. He added: Your prayers were for a minister, and God has given an answer. It is a responsibility for the congregation. May you come as hungry and thirsty ones to the house of God. May there be also Aarons and Hurs among you. It is an important time for young people. We hope they may avail themselves of the opportunities to meet with their minister; may willingly seek instruction and prayerfully look for a blessing upon his labors.

The ministry is not of man, but of the Lord, as we find in our text for this evening, taken out of 2 Corinthians 4:5, “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus, the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.” Paul speaks here of The Ministry of the Word, and three points will be considered:

(1) the contents of the preaching,

(2) the power of the preaching, and

(3) the blessedness of the preaching.

Rev. Den Hoed pointed out that preaching must contain the full counsel of the Lord. When centered in Christ, it shall be to the glory of God. His Name is exalted only in Christ Jesus. Man has fallen from God’s image, from being the crown of creation, and by nature there is no need nor desire for the contents of true preaching. It speaks of man’s sad condition, but then also of God’s grace in drawing a people unto the Lord. It is a one-sided work of God. It is so necessary that this be brought out in these days, although we would rather not hear it. We desire to do something; but man is dead in sins and trespasses, and cannot open the way. It is the Lord who opens the way. It is the love of God from eternity which breaks the heart. Trials and difficulties do not accomplish this.

Paul said, “We preach Christ Jesus.” Salvation lies in the satisfied justice of God, and it is the salvation of an elect people, chosen from eternity. Because of this, there is still a church, a pulpit, a minister. Your minister cannot give you anything, but “we preach Christ Jesus the Lord.” It is to the Jew a stumblingblock and to the Greek foolishness.

A beginning is so necessary. God makes alive, and they become a crying, a missing people. Dismal? They wouldn’t exchange their circumstances for all the world around them. Parents and the doctor wait to hear the crying of a newborn child. When God’s power is experienced, there comes a crying, not a speaking.

Paul not only speaks of the contents of preaching, and the power of preaching, but may also point to the blessedness of it. Only in Christ Jesus is there salvation. It is as a light from above. There is a Christmas season, as in the fields of Ephratah, but because Christ experienced the darkness of Golgotha, there may be light. Good Friday speaks of blood which cleanses from all sins, a death in their stead. Easter reveals a resurrected Savior.

The crossing of the Jordan was not with former promises or with former blessings, but the ark of the Covenant preceded. It was Christ who stopped the flow of the river of God’s wrath.

Christ Jesus is preached to a people who have nothing but sin, nothing but darkness. There must be a looking away from oneself, for in and through the preaching of Christ Jesus, the contents, the power, and the blessedness may be known and experienced.

After prayer and singing of Psalter 72:1 and 3, Rev. Den Hoed expressed his thankfulness to Rev. Den Boer for the instruction given him, and also acknowledged the blessing which he had received under the two instructors who are no longer with us. He thanked the wives of all three of these ministers for their sacrifices and friendship. He spoke briefly to his wife, acknowledging her support and assistance, and also to his children, now to be separated by many miles. Other family members and friends were asked to remember him in his needs before the Lord. The consistory and congregation of Rock Valley were addressed by their new minister with the heartfelt desire for the Lord’s blessing in their midst. He told how that almost a year before he had been directed to their congregation, which was later confirmed with the words, “Keep that which is committed to thy trust.” He acknowledged the curatorium, the church custodian and the women of the congregation for all their help, and spoke briefly to the principal and school teachers, the organist, and his father-in-law, Mr. Warmenhoven.

Rev. Den Boer then spoke to Rev. Den Hoed, his wife and children, and the congregation, followed by Rev. Spaans, Elder A. Den Hoed of Sunny-side, and Elder John Van Ginkel of Rock Valley who welcomed him and his wife into their midst. It was his desire that bonds of love may exist between them. He requested the audience to sing Psalter 371, after which Rev. Den Hoed pronounced the benediction, bringing to an end a very special evening for the Rock Valley congregation.

MINISTERIAL CALLS

Call Declined

By Rev. J.J. Van Eckeveld of Zeist, the Netherlands, to the Clifton, New Jersey Congregation.

In Memoriam: Nick Van Beek

In mid-October it pleased the Lord to take away Nick Van Beek at the age of 65 years. Mr. Van Beek had faithfully served the Sioux Center Congregation as deacon for nine years. He leaves behind a mourning widow, children and grandchildren.

As his death occurred while Rev. Den Boer was in Canada, Rev. John Den Hoed officiated the funeral. His funeral message was based on Psalm 130:1, “Out of the depths have I cried unto Thee, O Lord.” At the cemetery, he stressed that the Word of God abides forever.

May the Lord fill the empty place with His presence, strengthen the widow, and grace the bereaved family with the sanctification of their affliction (Hebrews 12:11).

—— JRB

DENOMINATIONAL NOTES FROM THE NETHERLANDS

Cereformeerde Gemeenten

Rev. L Vogelaar and Rev. J. Verweij are presently serving a few congregations in North America.

—— AdB

U.S. COURT ACTION: RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

In general, 1985 has not been a good year for the cause of religious freedom in the United States. In separate decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court has held the following: 1. That prayer or even a moment of silence set aside for private devotions in public schools violates the U.S. Constitution and therefore cannot be allowed.

2. That State laws may not be used to protect workers who refuse to work on their religious sabbath.

3. That any sharing of time between public and religious schools by public school employees violates the U.S. Constitution by failing to maintain adequate separation of Church and State.

There has, however, been at least one significant case which gives reason for religious schools in the U.S. to be thankful. The case involved Dayton Christian Schools in Dayton, Ohio, where the charge against the School was sexual discrimination which the School claimed was based on religious principles. Until now, courts have separated religious discrimination, generally held acceptable, from sexual discrimination, generally held unacceptable. Until the Dayton Christian School case, there was no clear court direction in regard to cases where there was admitted sexual discrimination which was defended on the grounds of being based on Biblical principles (viz., that mothers with pre-school age children will not be hired by Dayton Christian Schools for full-time employment) and therefore deserving of 1st Amendment protection.

The case is significant because it affects the basic right of other religious schools to base their employment decisions on their own Biblical beliefs. In a lengthy (55 pages) scholarly opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals held that sexual discrimination, when based on Biblical principles, deserves the same Constitutional protection accorded to other religious institutions and practices in the U.S. The Court ruled in favor of Dayton Christian Schools both to ensure free exercise of religion by the School but also to avoid excessive entanglement between Church and State. At least one of our denominational schools may benefit directly from this case as it is involved in a lawsuit over nearly an identical situation.

—— DS

S.G.P. REQUEST

Our consistories have received a letter concerning the Dutch political party (S.G.P.), closely associated with our denomination in the Netherlands via the efforts of Rev. G.H. Kersten. Emigrants, who are still Dutch citizens (or possess dual citizenship) are requested to forward their votes to the Netherlands for several party members who are in danger of losing their seats in parliament. The mailing address for forwarding votes and for requesting additional information is: S.G.P., Laan van Meerdervoort 165, 2517 AZ, ‘s Gravenhage, The Netherlands.

CANADIAN LUTHERANS UNITE

Two Lutheran churches in Canada have merged to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. The new church has 209,000 members in 655 congregations. This reduces the Lutheran church bodies in Canada to two; the 100,000 member Lutheran Church-Canada, affiliated with the more conservative U.S.-based Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod (which still maintains the inerrancy of Scripture), was not involved in the merger.

BIBLES IN CHINA

An Associated Press story indicated that 25 million copies of the Bible were printed in Asian and African languages in 1984, but this was still not enough to keep up with the demand. In Africa some converts are buying the Bible on the black market, according to John Dendor-Samuel, vice president of the Summer Institute of Linguistics in Dallas, who cited a case in which the equivalent of $55 was paid for one Bible. The biggest challenge may come in China, where publication of Bibles and other Christian literature is being permitted for the first time since the communist takeover in 1949. A report from Shanghai reveals that a recent printing of 200,000 copies of John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress sold out in three days.

—— WB, Pres. journal

SELF-KNOWLEDGE

John Bunyan’s confession after years of service to God:

“I find to this day seven abominations in my heart.

1) Inclination to unbelief.

2) Suddenly to forget the love and mercy that Christ manifesteth.

3) A leaning to the works of the law.

4) Wanderings and coldness in prayer.

5) To forget to watch for that I pray for.

6) Apt to murmur because I have no more, and yet ready to abuse what I have.

7) I can do none of those things which God commands me, but my corruptions will thrust in themselves. ‘When I would do good, evil is present with me.’”

RENEWAL AND GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS

Most subscriptions to The Banner of Truth expire with the December 1985 issue. To avoid missing future issues, please forward your renewal for 1986 prior to January 1. A self-addressed envelope is provided in this issue.

Costs have risen substantially. Our old subscription price only partially covers incurred expenses; nevertheless, a decision has been made to retain the prescribed rate of $4.50 (U.S.) and $5.50 (Canada and foreign countries) for 1986, payable in U.S. funds. Please bear this in mind when renewing; we are hoping that donations by individuals and churches will meet this gap. (For subscribers outside of the North American context: air mail service remains at $20.00 per year, U.S. funds. Payment by International Money Order is preferable.)

Please note that you are not obliged to respond to this notice if you receive your Banner of Truth via church payment. Nevertheless, we do have a dual request in which you may wish to assist us in sharing our periodical with others.

First, we are hoping to increase our readership substantially by means of gift subscriptions. Would it be possible for you to provide a gift subscription for one year to one or more of your friends? The low rate of $4.50 per year ($5.50 for Canada and foreign countries) is also applicable here. Opportunity is given for this purpose on the enclosed envelope.

Second, we desire donations for the express purpose of distributing our periodical to seminaries and pastors. It is our conviction that the distribution of orthodox, Reformed reading material is a responsible task. Particularly seminary libraries are critical places for such distribution. Should you desire to assist in this regard please check the appropriate box on the enclosed envelope, thereby earmarking your donation for this cause.

Finally, we wish to take this opportunity to thank those who have expressed appreciation for our “new format.” Your comments have been encouraging. It is good to know that our periodical continues to be read, and to fill a need. Please accept this thanks in place of a personal response. Above all, may God bless the reading of our Banner of Truth to each of you, and your families, in heart and life. May He also add His blessing to gift subscriptions provided for individuals, seminaries, and pastors. We are acutely aware that God’s blessing is indispensable in this and every endeavor; hence, we solicit your prayers and support for our united cause in propagating Biblical, Reformed truth under the umbrella of divine grace.

—— JRB

New Address: Rev. John Den Hoed, 824 18th Ave. S, Rock Valley, IA 51247 Tel.: 712-476-2442

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