Good to be with you this evening.
I'm so thankful the Lord has brought us together again to
worship him. And I do pray that it is in spirit
and in truth that God the Holy Spirit would come and give us
what we need. I need his liberty. I need his
unction to declare to you the things of Christ. And you need
him to bring it to your heart. It does not matter how much I
want you to understand and believe this. I want this to be effectual
to you. I desire your comfort and your
assurance in the things of Christ, but again, I have no ability.
And I'm thankful that God has promised that he will do these
things for his people. He will feed us, He will instruct
us, and I know that He is here. When has He not been here? When
is the only way? Has the Savior ever missed a
service where His name is exalted and His gospel preached? Never. Where two or three are gathered
together, there I am in the midst of them. So we're thankful for
his presence and desire his power and grace. And so I ask you to
pray for me as I preach to you. If you'll take your Bibles and
turn me to Hebrews chapter 13. Hebrews chapter 13. Title of this is just found in
the verse or text be verse 20 and 21. God of peace. God of peace. He said, now, the God of peace
that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd
of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
make you perfect in every good work to do his will. working in you that which is
well-pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory
forever and ever. Amen. The apostle in this chapter
gives many exhortations for believers in Christ. Exhortations are good
things. They're good for us. He begins
this chapter, he says, let brotherly love continue. Is that not a
good exhortation? You that believe in Christ, you
that are loved of God, you that love Christ, is it not just natural
for the believer that we should love one another? It is, for
the new man, it is good that we love one another. And so He
exhorts us to this, that we should love one another as Christ gave
His commandment. He exhorts our conversation. He says, let your conversation
be without covetousness. Who needs that? Who needs to
be exhorted there? He exhorts us in these things
because He knows we need them. We need to be exhorted in this.
that our conversation be without covet, just be content with such
things as you have. Who needs that one? What do you
have? Well, be content with that. Why? Because he has promised that
he will never leave thee nor forsake thee. Is that not enough?
Is God himself not enough for you? and exhorts the church to be
mindful of those gifts that God has given him, namely the apostles,
the prophets, and pastors. He has given these things, preachers
of the gospel. The church is exhorted to remember
them, to be thankful for them, because they're there to edify
you. They're there to edify the body
of Christ. He encourages us. in to remember them. And he also
encourages us by telling us this, that in verse 8, that the Lord
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. What encourages you to these
exhortations? Is it not the immutability of
His love? The immutability of His grace? The immutability of
His redemption? The immutability of His pardon
and forgiveness? Jesus Christ the same yesterday,
right now, and forever. He doesn't change. The church
of the religion of this day thinks that God begins to love somebody. He hated them a moment ago, but
you know, he changed his mind and now he really loves you.
No, if he loves you now, it's because he's always loved you.
He doesn't change. And therefore, if he has always
loved you and he loves you now, he will always love you. Isn't that stupendous? Isn't
that wonderful? How high is the love of God?
Can you measure it? I'm glad he doesn't say anything
about my love. My love is always fluctuating.
His love never changes for me. Never changes for His people.
And so then he exhorts us to this because he's always the
same. He said, don't be carried about by strange and divers doctrines. It's a good thing for the heart
to be established with this one gospel, this one doctrine, grace. Let the heart be established,
settled. Don't be moved about by every
wind of doctrine and the slight of men and the cunning craftiness
as a lying way to deceive. Don't be tossed about by this
world's religion. Let us not be turned aside by
their trinkets. Now, why does he exhort us to
them? Because we can be. If we could not be tossed, then
he would have not given us the exhortation. I was reading Joe Terrell's article
this last weekend about The church of today is all about entertainment. They're always adding something
to the preaching of the gospel, and if not adding to, surely
they're in place of the preaching of the gospel. He said, I've
seen clown shows, I've seen puppet shows, I've seen chalk artists.
I've seen all kinds of things trying to lure men in. Now these things, my friend,
do appeal to the flesh. Look at the numbers, the sheer
massive numbers of these people. Obviously it works, because they
draw large crowds to themselves. We know this, that God has ordained
one means by which the church is edified, one means by which
sinners are saved, and that is the preaching of the gospel of
Jesus Christ. Don't be tossed about. Don't be troubled by them. Don't
be turned aside by their promises of health, wealth, and prosperity. And I know believers that we
are often troubled. Believers are often troubled.
We're cast down in despair because of our circumstances. We're troubled
by this present evil world that is set against the gospel and
against God's sovereign grace. We're troubled by this. We're like Asaph. Oftentimes
we're like Asaph. He said, I know God's good in
Israel, but ask for me. What'd he do? He turned aside.
He looked at the foolishness of the wicked. And he envied
them. Believers, let us be warned that
we are capable of such things. Don't be turned aside by these
trinkets of false religion, by these shiny, flashy things. Let us instead consider the end
of the wicked. Isn't that how Asaph come back
to himself? The Lord brought him back to
himself. He said, when I went into your sanctuary, I considered
their end. Consider the end of this wicked,
religious, wicked age. Don't look at their present state
and present prosperity, for God has set them in slippery places. And they who assume to be accepted
of Christ by their works will wake up in hell. Consider their
end. Don't be allured by them. And
so then we consider how foolish that it is to take our eyes off
of Christ. He's exhorting us not to take
our eyes off Christ. Don't be turned aside. Keep your
eyes on Christ. Let us come to Christ by faith
and bear the same rejection and reproach. Look at verse 13. He
said, let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing
his reproach. This is where Christ was taken.
He was taken outside of the camp. He was crucified outside the
camp. They cast him out of their religion. Good, let's go there. Let's go outside of their religion.
We don't need that. We go to him and we bear his
reproach. He was despised and rejected
a man's sorrows and acquainted with grief. Do we expect anything
different being his followers? We shouldn't, but what does the
flesh do? The flesh does expect something
different. That's the problem, isn't it? How often do we say, why am I
thus? Lord, why are you putting me
through this? Are we not his followers? Are
we not too like our Lord to suffer? We are made to suffer in this
life. That's my sales pitch right there. You come to Christ, you'll
suffer. And we gladly go outside the
camp. we gladly go to him because he
is all our hope and salvation. And so believer, remember that
this world is not our friend and this world is not our home. He says, in verse 14, for we
have here no continuing city, but we seek one to come. And so let us remember not to
dig our roots so deep here. Isn't this why we spend so much
time in Disappointment. It's because we expect what the
world cannot give us. This is not our home. Why are
we so often disappointed with the things in the world? Because
it cannot satisfy or make us happy. It cannot do for us what
it does for the lost. The lost love this world. They
seem very happy. I remember talking to one of
our members a long time ago, and he was just really down and
weeping, and he said, you know, I watched a television program,
I think it was the Gaithers singing or something. He said, man, they're
just a dead gum happy, and I just feel miserable. I said, don't worry about them.
They don't know what you know. They don't believe what you believe.
They don't trust in the same Christ you trust in. They're
happy in this world. We're not. This world is not our home. We
have one yet to come. And the only thing that will
satisfy the heart of a true believer is to know our union with Christ. Am I his or am I not? That's the question. The only
thing that's gonna make me happy is to know that I'm his. I'm
in him. That's what Paul said. He said,
I don't seek to be found in my own righteousness, but in Christ.
That's all. That makes me, if I know I'm
in him, I'm happy. Rejoice, just like he read earlier. Rejoice and sing with all the
heart, for thy judgments are taken away. The King is in the
midst of thee. Thou shalt not see evil anymore. If I'm in union with Christ,
nothing's evil. Nothing's evil for me. Everything's
intended for my good. Believer, this world is not our
own. Therefore, nothing in this world
can fulfill our need of mercy, our need of forgiveness, and
our need of peace. Peace. Is there anything greater than
this matter of peace with God? Peace with God. There's nothing
more needful for man than to know he has peace with God. What else do we need if we are
found in Him? Because when we are found in
Him, we know this. We have peace with God. We have peace with God. Christ
to us is everything. Christ is all is not just a slogan. It is all our hope. It is all
our life. It is all our salvation. Christ
is all. He's all. He's all my wisdom. He's all my righteousness. He's
all my sanctification. And he is all my redemption.
He is all my hope. He is all my glory. Christ is
all. And we who are in Christ Let
us therefore, as Paul says, offer the sacrifice of praise. He said, by him, therefore, let
us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually. That is the
fruit of our lips giving thanks unto him. You know, this is impossible. You cannot give thanks and murmur. If you are murmuring, you are
not thankful. And if you are thankful, you
are not murmuring. That's why he says, let us give
thanks continually. What an exhortation. But you who are believers in
Christ, let me ask you this. When God has come to you and
given you life, you know your union with Christ, you desire
to do everything that these exhortations tell us to do. Have you found
it to be smooth in this life. Have you found peace in this
life? We are believers in Jesus Christ,
that's not our experience, is it? Our experience is we are
often fearful and unbelieving. Though we have peace with God,
though God has made peace for us, yet we and ourselves are
not at peace. were often like the disciples.
When the Lord was so tired, he had worked and labored so much
that he had fallen asleep in the bottom of that ship, and
he told his disciples to go across, and that storm arose. And these
men were sailors by trade. This was a devastating, death-defying
storm. They were going to die. There
was no way they could sail through this. And they came down there
and they said, Lord, carest thou not that we perish? How often do we act like that? Do you care at all for me? Do you not care that I perish? That I hurt? That I struggle? Do you care not? And remember the Lord how graciously
he got up and calmed the storm with just his word. And he rebuked
them with this rebuke. He said, how is it that you had
no faith? Behold, the power of Christ can
surely calm every storm in our life. Yet how often are we so
fearful and have no faith? And so let us, I desire to give
you and impart to you comforting words. you that are troubled. You are in the midst of storms,
midst of trials and difficulties, of pain that no one else could
know. I desire by the word of God to
give you comfort and assurance that no matter what trial we
face, no matter what trouble we have to endure, no matter
our failures, our griefs, our sorrows, This maxim is true. We have peace with God. You are believers in Christ,
you have peace. you have peace with God no matter what comes. So let us behold the comfort
and refreshing of our souls, the God of peace. Now, I want
you to understand, first of all, that we are born in this world,
we are not at peace with God. We are not at peace with God
when we were born in this world. We are born with one nature,
and this nature is full of sin and depraved, and so depraved
that it is fully set to do evil, fully set against God from birth. You don't have to teach a man
to hate God. You don't teach a man to hate
God. We're born this way, haters of
God. I wanna give you two verses of
scripture that really testify of man's depravity. Let's go
to John chapter five. John chapter five. We're seeing,
first of all, that the man by nature is not at peace with God,
but at war. And this proves it right here.
John chapter five and verse 39. Our Lord Jesus Christ speaking
to most religious people on the face of the earth. These men
memorized the scriptures from their childhood. They knew the
scriptures. This was the most insulting thing
he could have possibly said to them. Search the scriptures. Search it. Why should we search
them? He said this. Search the scriptures,
for in them you think you have eternal life. They actually felt
like they had eternal life. No one could tell them any different.
These men, if anybody was going to heaven, they were. And he said, look, no, that's
something you just take. And anybody who seeks to make his
peace with God, if you seem to, like these Pharisees, desire
to make their peace by their obedience, if you desire to make
your peace with God based on something you do, you only think
you're going to heaven. You're not. He says, search the
scriptures for anything you think you have eternal life, but you
missed the whole point. They are they that testify of
me. What a statement. Do you not
hear what he said? He told those priests, he said,
the whole word of God is about me. The Son of God was standing in
front of them. The Savior of Israel had come. Their King, their Messiah was
talking with them like I'm talking to you. What proves depravity? Verse
40. And you will not come to me that
you might have life. The proof of man's depravity
is simply this. They will not come to Christ. They will not come. The Son of
God has provided all that is necessary to save a sinner. And
the only thing they must do is forsake their works and come
to Him. The proof of depravity is that men will not forsake
their works. They will not see that their
works are nothing but sin and come to Christ. But how simple
is this? The words are very simple, aren't
they? Come to me. I'll tell you this, some of you, you will not come. This only proves the depravity
of man. This is the testimony of, this
is depravity on display, that men will not come to Christ for
eternal life. I mean, think of that, eternal
life. This is what he gives. He gives it freely, without cost.
He said, come, those that are hungry and thirst, come to me,
and I'll give you life. And yet they will not come, still
will not come. Why would they not come? You that come, I know it's astounding,
because sometimes we don't remember we were in the same place. We
were in the same place. We would not come. Why would men not come? Listen,
because they cannot come. Men really don't know how Desperately
depraved they really are. They will not come because they
cannot. Go over to John 6, page over,
John 6, 44, our Lord tells these men, he says this, no man can
come unto me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him. Behold the total depravity of
man, is that no one is able to come to Christ except God in
sovereign power draw him. And we know this is the reason
why men will not come. So depraved and so dead and full
of sin, men will not come to Christ, even because they cannot
come to Christ. And so the natural man refuses
to see this, that there's nothing good in it. Man cannot see it,
and they do not desire to see that it's what He is, that there's
nothing good in Him. There's nothing in us that merits
the grace of God. There's nothing that merits God
giving us a new heart. Nothing in us that is pleasing
to God, and nothing we can do to make peace with God. There's
nothing. Nothing a man can do to give
himself spiritual life. Can you understand the helplessness
of this? In this country, we're always
like, there's always something we can do. We got this can-do
attitude. There's just something, there's
got to be something we can do. Nope. Not in this thing. There is nothing
you can do. Friends, in order for you to
have peace with God, God has to do something for you. And He has to do it freely because
you can't merit it. In fact, your heart is so desperately
depraved, you're at war with God. Go to Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter eight. Men will
not come to God Christ for peace. They cannot come to Christ for
peace. And their heart is set at enmity
against God. Look at Romans chapter eight
and verse six. For to be carnally minded is
death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because
the carnal mind is enmity against God. By nature, by birth, it
is not at peace, it is enmity. What's the proof of that? Four,
here's the proof. It is not subject. There's the will. Man is not
willingly subject to the law of God. Notice this. Neither indeed can be. There is ability. Man by nature
neither has the will nor the ability. Why? Because his heart
hates God. Not the God of his own imagination
loves that God. Men love a God that they can
move. They take him here and they put him here. They take
him here and put him here. That's a God they like. They
can manipulate him. They will not have anything to
do with the sovereign God. Why? Because they hate him. They
hate him. Our carnal nature is enmity against
God. Believer in Christ, let us remember,
let us remember this, that our old nature hasn't changed one
bit. That evil nature still resides
in every believer. He has not changed. He is still
just as vile and wicked and corrupt as the day he was conceived in
our mother's womb. Jesus said, that which is born
of flesh is what? It's flesh. It can't be anything
else. But when God saved us, When God
saved us and called us with a holy, effectual calling, He by grace
had given us a new nature. What do we mean by nature? We
say this a lot, nature. Well, a nature consists of three
things. It consists of a mind, a heart,
and a will. Those three things make up a
nature. Our old nature had a mind against
God. Our old nature had a will against
Christ. Our old nature had a heart of
hatred toward God, and still does. But praise God, he has
given us a new nature, a new mind, a new heart, and a new
will, a holy nature, a righteous nature. Isn't this amazing? When God saves a man, he doesn't
change the old one, he gives him a brand new one. Listen to what John says. First
John chapter three and verse nine. First John chapter three
and verse nine. Listen to what he says about
this nature that God gives a believer. First John chapter three and
verse nine. Whosoever is born of God does
not commit what? Sin. Are you born of God? Man, pastor, I see you all the
time. What do you mean? Well, John
takes care of that in chapter one. Remember he said, if he
meant to say you have not seen him, he's a liar and the truth
is not in him. If we confess our what? Sin,
he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin. What does he mean
here? That we sin not. He's talking
about that which is born of God. The new nature that is created
after God in true holiness cannot sin. This nature cannot fail to believe
God. It cannot fail to love the brethren. Why? Because he says this in
1 John chapter 3 and verse, look at 23. He says, this is the commandment
that we, this is his commandment. Let's read verse 22. It says,
for us it is our task to receive him because we keep his commandments.
and do those things that are pleasing to the Son. What are
His commandments? And this is His commandment. I like that,
I don't believe it to our imagination, to guess. It's not a guessing
game. We don't get to guess what His
commandments are. He said, no, this is His commandment.
Here it is. That we should believe on the name of the Son of Jesus,
His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another as He gave His commandment.
What are your commandments? Believe and love. You know what
the new nature does all the time? He believes and loves. Why? It's his nature. What does the
old man do? He sins. He is full of unbelief
and fear. He is full of animosity and hatred. Look at Romans 7, and see if
this is not true of the Apostle Paul. I'm talking about peace. I mean, in the believer's heart,
is there any peace in here? Is there any peace? No, because
that old man that is born of enmity against God is still here,
and yet God gives us a new man, and what becomes of this is not
peace in us, but warfare. Look at Romans chapter 7. Romans
chapter 7. And see if the Apostle Paul,
you can identify with what he's saying in verse 18. He said,
for I know that in me, that is in my flesh, dwelleth no good
thing. How about you? He's talking about his old nature.
He's talking about that old man. He said, in my flesh, in my carnal
nature, there is no good thing. For to will is present with me,
but how to do that which is good I find not. Now friends, we know
that no unbeliever can say this about himself. Remember what
Paul said before his conversion? He said this, but before the
law I was blameless. That's what he said before his
conversion. This is what he said after his
conversion. There's nothing good in me. And
when I try to do good, you know what? He says, now, he said,
for the good that I would do, I knew not an evil that I would
not, that I do. Now if I do that which I would
not, there's no more I but sin that dwelleth in me. He's talking
about that nature again. For I find within a principle,
a maxim of law, that when I would do good, evil is present with
me. For I delight in the law of God after what? The inward
man. That new man, I delight in the things of God, the law
of God. But there's another one of my members warring against
the law of my mind, bringing me into the captivity of the
sin which is in my members. Oh, wretched man that I was! Now what he said. Oh, wretched
man that I am. Who shall deliver me from the
body of this When am I going to be delivered
from this rotting corpse that hangs about my neck? In my heart
I would soar into the presence of Christ, and this flesh drags
me to the earth. Who shall deliver me? Is this
your confession? This is the confession of a believer.
It's my confession. There's a war constantly raging
in me. And when I do good, what do I
find? I find evil present. When I pray, what do I find? I find evil present. When I sing, when I read, when
I preach, when I worship, what do I find? I find evil present
with me. What do I find? I find no peace
in here. I find a warfare. What then is
the only peace and comfort for our souls? Here it is. That God has made peace for me. God has made peace outside of
me, apart from me, that I had nothing to do with. Therefore, you that are at war,
remember this, that God is then the architect of our peace. God is the architect. Before
there was ever sin, consider this, believer, before there
was anything but God alone, it was God the Father that purposed
that we should be at peace with him. Now the God of peace. It was God then that chose us
in Christ. and in an act of sovereign love,
in a covenant of eternal grace and peace, God gave us to Christ
that he should make peace for us. See that in Ephesians 1. Paul exhorts these believers. He gives them this benediction
here, this opening. He says, grace and peace. from
God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Now what's the
foundation? He said, blessed be the God and
Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, who had blessed us with all spiritual
blessing in heavenly places in Christ. Here's the foundation
of our peace, according as he had chosen us in Christ, before
the foundation of the world. That we should be holy and without
blame before him. How can a man have peace with
God? The only way to be as holy as God is this. The only way for a sinner
to have peace with God is this, that he be holy as God. And you
see, God purposed this for you, that you should be holy and without
blame. In love, here's his motive, in
love, having predestined us under the adoption of children, and
here's how peace should come. Here's how the holiness should
come. Here's how we should be made at peace with God, children
of God, by Jesus Christ. By Jesus Christ. Though I find
no peace in my flesh, no peace in this world, though I am often
robbed of the feeling of peace, Here's the foundation of all
our peace with God is this. He purposed to make me accept
it. Purposed it. So that we should have peace
with him. And how could a holy and just God have peace with
rebels is because he chose us in Christ in the covenant of
God the Father with the Son. Jesus Christ, the elect surety
of all our peace with him, Jesus Christ agreed to be all our righteousness,
all our redemption, all our sanctification, and all our wisdom. He agreed
to be all we need. to have peace with God. This covenant was purposed in
eternity. It was purposed. You know, the
difference between the true God and all other false gods is this.
Whatever God decrees to do, He does. That's the difference.
False God can decree all he wants to. He has no power to do anything. Our God decrees the end at the
beginning. Saying, my counsel shall stand
and I will do all my pleasure. What's his pleasure? What in
the world is God doing? He's working everything so that
his people should have peace with him. He purposed it, and
it was completed. Listen, this peace that we have
with God, it was completed when Christ Jesus came into this world
as a representative man. Remember, when Adam came into
this world, he was a representative man. There's a hymn we sing in our
congregation. When Adam sinned alone in his
transgression, we died. Now, when Adam sinned, where
were you? I was there in this, he represented
me. In his transgression, I died. Even so, by the righteousness
of one, shall many be made righteous. When Jesus Christ came to this
world, he came as a representative man so as to accomplish all the
righteousness of God that I needed. That's what he did. He in love
fulfilled the law of God and then made and ratified the covenant
of grace when he died upon Calvary's tree. Remember, it was sin that separated
us from God, but God, with Christ in love, offered his blood as
a ransom price. The scripture says, he was made
sin for us who knew no sin, that we should be made the righteousness
of God in him. Therefore, the mediator of this
covenant of grace, having obtained eternal redemption, By his one
offering, put away our sins forever. We now have peace with God. Look at that in Romans chapter
five. Romans chapter five. Therefore, being justified by
faith. Now whose faith is he talking
about? When you were justified, were you justified by your faith?
Did your faith justify you? No, we were justified by His.
Therefore being justified. Past tense, right? It's already
been done. Therefore being justified. What's the result of this? We
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul said in Ephesians 2, He
is our peace. He is our peace. Believer in Christ, God never
hated you. You got that? God has never from
eternity condemned you. You were justified in Christ
from all eternity. How can we be sure? Because God,
the architect of this covenant of peace, has proven it. There
is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.
Now you want some peace? Here it is. There is therefore
now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. Listen
to it again. There is therefore now no condemnation. And you could do this all day,
every day for the rest of your life. There is therefore right
now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. Why? Because your peace has already
been made by Him. By the death of Jesus Christ,
He has abolished all enmity. He has slain the inmate. The
law has been put, satisfied. And now the God of peace who
raised again our Lord Jesus from the dead. Isn't that what your
text says? Now the God of peace, the God, the architect of peace,
Christ who has made our peace. How do you know he's made your
peace? How do you know that Christ was successful? because God raised
him from the dead. That's how you know it's done.
It's done. God raised him from the dead
as to prove that his death was sufficient to satisfy the justice
of God. He paid the price in full. I believe that while we're still
in this body, we will never have peace with this old nature. We'll
always be at warfare. We should constantly put him
off. We will always contend with the flesh and despise our sin,
but there is nothing that this flesh can do that will ever separate
us from this peace. There is no circumstance. There
is no providence. There is no power in heaven or
in hell or among men or devils that can ever remove you from
this peace. This peace was made outside of
you. You didn't have anything to do
with it. and you didn't want it, you didn't desire it, you
didn't merit it, and yet in grace, God still gave it to you. Look at your text again. Now
the God of peace that brought again our Lord Jesus from the
dead, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood
of the everlasting covenant, The God of peace make you perfect
in every good work to do his will, working in you that which
is well-pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ our Lord. Now listen to this. It was the purpose of God to
give you peace. Christ obtained the peace by his blood. It was
the Holy Spirit that gave you the nature of peace. And I want you to know that the
God of peace shall keep you. The God of peace, who raised
again our Lord Jesus from the dead, he's gonna, he said, make
you perfect. He's not gonna stop till all
of you is perfect. Go to Philippians, I'm gonna
close this, go to Philippians seven, four, Philippians four. Look at verse seven. He said,
and the God of peace, which passeth understanding. In this pass understanding,
why would God give me peace? Why would he make peace for me? If you can answer that question,
then you've not got it right. You don't know the scriptures
at all. If you can answer that question. There's nothing in me. God did
it because he would. pass understanding. The God of
peace that passes understanding. What's going to happen to the
God of peace? What is he going to do? Shall keep your hearts
and minds through Jesus Christ. The God of peace is our hope
of preservation. How do I know I'm going to make
it to the end? Because inside of, there's this
warfare, all around me are dark providences that I can't explain.
Troubles, trials, sorrows, difficulties. Listen, you will never know the
love of God by what you see or what you feel or what you think. Those things change all the time.
How do I know that God's going to keep me? Look at the cross. Behold, what manner of love the
Father bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons
of God, that God sent his son to be the propitiation for our
sins. You want to know how God loves me? Look to Christ. That's how God can be at peace
with me. That's how God can be at peace with me. And this God
of peace shall keep me, preserve me from all Satan's attacks from
all the attacks of my conscience, from all the dark providences
of this world. So seeing we have peace with
God, what then can remove us from his love? Paul said, I am
persuaded that neither light, nor death, nor angels, nor principality,
nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height,
nor depth, nor any other creature, in case there's aliens out there,
I don't care. They're not going to separate
me from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus. You know
why? Because God, through Christ,
has made peace. And I can't mar that peace. And neither can you. Friends, you believers in Christ,
no matter how you feel, what you think, God has made peace. He is the God of peace. He raised
Christ from the dead, that great shepherd of the sheep. Through him we have peace, no
matter what goes on in here. That's why faith don't look in. Faith looks to Christ. I pray God give you peace with
this.