Good evening. Let's open tonight's
service with hymn number 18 from your Spiral Gospel Hymn book,
The Bible is a Book of Christ. And let's all stand together.
Number 18. God gave his holy inspired word
for only one great end. The prophets and apostles, too,
reveal the sinner's friend. The Bible is a book of Christ. It only speaks of him. On every page it shows us Christ,
it wholly speaks of Him. The prophecies of old record
God's wondrous mighty deeds. Those deeds of power and of grace
set forth a woman's seed. The Bible is a book of Christ,
it only speaks of Him. On every page it shows us Christ,
it only speaks of Him. The prophets all reveal our Lord
as prophet, priest, and king. The types the great redemption
show, Christ's blood and grace now bring. The Bible is a book
of Christ, it only speaks of Him. On every page it shows us
Christ, it only speaks of Him. Behold the Lamb, the Baptist
said, the sin-atoning One. As it was promised long before,
God's Son as man has come. The Bible is a book of Christ,
it only speaks of Him. On every page it shows us Christ,
it only speaks of Him. Our substitute obeyed the law,
then died and rose again. And in his word our Savior said,
Rejoice, I come again. The Bible is a book of Christ,
it only speaks of him. On every page it shows us Christ. It only speaks of Him. Please be seated. How hopeful we are that it will
speak of Him to us again tonight. Reveal the glory of Christ. We're going to be in Psalm 5
tonight, which is our Lord's prayer for his for his people
but before we do that just turn with me if you will to Micah
chapter 6, Micah chapter 6. I guess everybody here has heard,
maybe somebody online hasn't but Lauren Emrick had her baby
early and if you see an ear to ear grin in Susan's face you'll
know why. She's a first-time grandmother
so we're just so very happy at a lighter right at a lighter the shower is on for Saturday
so in case somebody's listening 10 o'clock Saturday morning right
okay alright Micah chapter 6 and we'll read 6 verses 6 7 & 8 wherewith
shall I come before the Lord and bow myself before the high
God How am I going to approach God? How can I come into his
presence? Shall I come before him with
burnt offerings? With calves of a year old? Will
the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams or with 10,000 rivers
of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for
my transgressions the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
Is there anything I can give him that will that will give
me access into his presence. He hath showed thee, O man, what
is good, and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly,
to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God. To do justly, That's to believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ and to have the justice of God satisfied
in his sacrificial death. To love mercy, sinners love mercy. And sinners walk humbly before
God. Broken spirit and a contrite
heart. That's the work of grace in the heart. That's how we come. We don't come with offerings.
We don't come with sacrifices. We come with faith. Let's pray together. Our heavenly father, we do come
thankful into thy presence, knowing that we have access and acceptance
in the beloved. We thank you for the accomplished
work of thy dear son. We thank you for the justice
that was satisfied through his sacrificial death. We thank you,
Lord, for the mercy that you show towards him and show towards
us in him. We thank you for the work of
grace in the hearts of your people, causing us, Lord, to walk humbly
in thy presence, knowing that we are completely dependent upon
you for your grace and for your mercy, and thanking you, Lord,
for the promises that were all fulfilled in the finished work
of our savior, thy dear son. We do pray that you would cause
him to be exalted in our midst tonight. Pray, Lord, that you
would enable me to speak, and we pray that you would give us
ears to hear, most importantly, We pray that you would speak
to our hearts from heaven and comfort us, encourage us and
save us in Christ. We thank you for little Adelita
and pray, Father, for you to place your hand of protection
upon her. We pray for Lauren and Edward
and ask that you would cause them, Lord, to find their wisdom
in Christ and to give them the grace to raise their child in
the nurture and admonition of the Lord. And we pray for your
saving grace on her. We ask it in Christ's name. Amen. Let's stand together again. 229 from your Great Hymns of the
Faith hardbacked hymnal. 229. Tell me the old, old story of
unseen things above, of Jesus and His glory, of Jesus and His
love. Tell me the story simply as to
a little child For I am weak and weary and helpless and defiled
Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story of
Jesus and His love. Tell me the story slowly, that
I may take it in. That wonderful redemption, God's
remedy for sin. Tell me the story often, for
I forget so soon. The early dew of morning has
passed away at noon. Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story of
Jesus and His love. Tell me the story softly with
earnest tones and grave. Remember I'm the sinner whom
Jesus came to save. Tell me the story always, if
you would really be. In any time of trouble, a comforter
to be. Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story of
Jesus and His blood. Tell me the same old story When
you have cause to fear That this world's empty glory Is costing
me too dear Yes, and when that world's glory is dawning on my
soul, tell me the old, old story, Christ Jesus makes thee whole. Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story. Tell me the old, old story of
Jesus and his love. Please be seated. The fear of God. is the beginning of wisdom. The scripture makes it clear
in Hebrews chapter 5, if you'd like to look with me at a couple
of verses there. Hebrews chapter 5 verse 7, who
in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers
and supplications, with strong cryings and tears unto him that
was able to save him from death and was heard in that he feared. The Lord Jesus Christ feared
the Father. And the Father heard him because
he feared him. He trusted him. He waited upon
him. He believed that the hope of
his resurrection was dependent upon the Father. Though he were
a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered,
and being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation
unto all them that obey him, believe on him, trust him, fear
him. Men don't fear God. I heard an
interview by Franklin Graham in the last 48 hours, and I'm
so tired of hearing the answers that men give to this question,
to this question. I've heard the question presented
on many occasions. Every time there's a tragedy,
every time there's a mass shooting, here's the question. How could
an all-powerful, all-loving God allow innocent people to suffer. Now, that question in its assumptions is impossible
to answer. It is impossible to answer. It
is an irrational absurdity. It is an impossible scenario
It's nonsense. It cannot be answered. One of
those three suppositions or two have to be you cannot
have an all-powerful, all-loving, and by all-loving they mean he
loves everybody, allowing innocent people to suffer. And Franklin
Graham's response right just that quick was God didn't allow
that. God didn't allow that. He said that was the devil. He
said all the storms, all the tragedies, and all the things
that take place in this world, he said that's the devil. God
didn't have anything to do with that. So what did he do? He denied
the first assumption. God is not all-powerful. He's
not all-powerful. You see, they won't deny the
fact that God loves everybody or that men are innocent. But
they will deny that God's not all powerful. And if they don't
blame the devil, they'll blame man's free will. I said, well,
you know, that's just that God has abdicated his throne and
he's given the authority over to man. In answering that question,
how can an all-powerful, all-loving God allow innocent people to
suffer? In answering that question, they
always deny the fact that God's all-powerful. They have no fear
of God. We worship a God who is omnipotent. He hath done whatsoever he wills. He's sovereign. Has evil come
to the city and the Lord did not do it? Now, our hearts break
when children and anybody for that matter suffer as a result
of some madman's act. But Adam before the falls, the
only man that was ever innocent, There's no such thing as an innocent
person. Not in the presence of God. Now we call a child innocent,
but what we're doing is we're comparing that child to other
men. You see, that scenario is built
on bad assumptions. We serve and worship a God who
is all powerful. The Lord Jesus Christ feared
his father. He bowed to him in faith and
trusted him. And Psalm 5 is a term with me
in your Bibles to Psalm 5. See, men don't fear God. They
have fabricated a God that they can control. Why would you worship a God who's
not all powerful? You wouldn't. You wouldn't. That's
why the feigned worship of religious people is just that. It's just
pretending. The only God that's going to
be worshiped is a God who is absolutely sovereign, a God that
is all-powerful. And why would you worship a God who
can't control evil? You wouldn't. You wouldn't. And what men call worship is
not worship at all. It's just pretending. May God
enable us to enter into true worship. True worship. You have your Bibles open to
Psalm 5. Hold your finger there and turn
with me over to Psalm 36. Psalm 36, verse 1. I wish they'd asked me that question. I wish I had an opportunity to
answer that question on the world stage. They wouldn't like the answer
though, would they? Psalm 36 verse 1, the transgression
of the wicked saith within mine heart that there is no fear of
God before his eyes. For he flattereth himself in
his own eyes until his iniquity be found to be hateful. Hateful. He hates the God who is sovereign. He hates the God who is omnipotent. He's put himself on the throne
of God and he's believed the lie. The words of his mouth are
iniquity and deceit. He hath left off to be wise and
to do good. He deviseth mischief upon his
bed. He setteth himself in a way that
is not good. He abhorreth not evil. He doesn't hate the God that
he's fabricated. He loves him. Well, the Lord Jesus Christ worshipped
the Father perfectly, didn't he? And he depended upon the
Father. to save Him. It's what we just read in Hebrews
chapter 5. The Lord Jesus Christ was completely dependent upon
the Father to save Him. Psalm 5 is a Psalm of David and
it's prophetic words of the Lord crying out to the Father and
it's the words of His people as they come before God in Christ. Give ear to my words, O Lord,
and consider my meditation. Hearken unto the voice of my
cry, my King and my God, for unto Thee will I pray. So we just pour out our hearts
to the Father, don't we? Lord, we're completely dependent
upon you. We know that whatever you do
is right. We know that you're absolutely sovereign and we can't do anything but
pray to you and cry out to you. My voice, verse 3, shalt thou
hear in the morning, O Lord, in the morning, will I direct
my prayer. You remember Mark chapter 1,
we looked at Sunday. The Lord got up early in the
morning. and went into a solitary place, and he prayed. The Lord
prayed to his father. He was in constant intercession
with the father, depending upon the father, to his dying breath. Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit. Father, if there be any way this
cup can pass from me, let it be nevertheless not my will,
but thy will be done. The Lord Jesus Christ worshiped
the father perfectly, perfectly. The only way that you and I can
come into the presence of God is in the Lord Jesus Christ. God the Father is pleased with
his son and those that trust him. So we're going to see as
the psalm closes those that fear him have access into his presence. Verse four. For thou art not a God that hath
pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell with thee. Lord, no, no evil, no wickedness
is going to dwell in thy presence. Now, the only way that you and
I, there's verses in the Psalm that are quoted in Romans chapter
three, when the Lord speaks of our natural state, our sinful
state. And the only way that we're going
to be able to come into the presence of God is to be found in him. Thou art not a God that hath
pleasure in wickedness. Neither shall evil dwell with
thee. The foolish shall not stand in
thy sight. Thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Well, I know God loved everybody.
Well, it's not what the scripture says. Jacob I loved. Jacob was God's chosen child. Esau, Esau hated. He loves righteousness
and he hates iniquity. And no iniquity can enter into
his presence. Now where does that leave me
and you? With all the wickedness in our hearts, in our flesh,
in our minds. Lord, I'm going to You're going
to have to look to Christ for me. Thou shalt destroy them that
speak lies. The Lord will abhor the bloody
and the deceitful man. David said in Psalm 51, my sin
is ever before me. This is not just a description
of those who deny the deity of Christ, but this is a description
of our sinful nature as well, isn't it? I was talking to Angus Fisher
the other day in Australia and I made a comment and he said,
oh yes. He said, I'm much more concerned about the Pharisee
that's in me than the one that's out there in the world. I thought,
well, that's the truth, isn't it? It's our sin that separates
us from our God. It's our sin that blurs our vision. It's our sin that clouds our
understanding. It's our sin that cools our hearts
and dulls our affections. It's our sin that silences our
tongues when we ought to speak. It's our sin. And the Lord makes
it clear here, I hate it. I hate every bit of it. And our prayer is, Lord, destroy
it. Destroy it, every bit of it.
I want to love God with all my heart and all my mind and all
my soul, but my sin, my sin keeps me from being able to do that.
Oh, wretched man that I am. Who shall deliver me from the
body of this death? Thanks be to God. Through Christ
Jesus, I am free. There is now therefore no condemnation
to them that are in Christ. Lord, I know you hate my sin.
I know you hate iniquity. I know you hate wickedness. All
those that deny your glory, you hate it all. You hate every bit
of it. And I join in with the prayer
of the Lord Jesus Christ, destroy it. Destroy it. Put it away. Put it away. And that's exactly
what the Lord Jesus Christ did on Calvary's cross. He put away
all the sins of all of his people once and for all by the sacrifice
of himself so that God doesn't see it. Look what he says. Verse 7, But as for me, I will
come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy and in thy fear
will I worship toward thy holy temple. The only man that ever perfectly
worshiped God was the Lord Jesus Christ. But we come the same way, don't
we? We come as mercy beggars. We
come looking to Christ alone for all of our acceptance. How
am I going to enter into the presence of God? Am I going to
bring the sacrifice of my own children? Am I going to bring
the blood of bulls and goats? No. No. I've spoken. I've told you what I delight
myself in. Do justly. Do justly. Justice has to be served. God
has to be satisfied. Sin has to be put away. Love mercy. Oh, that's all I am, Lord, is
a mercy beggar. If what you say, if what it says
here is true about you, that you, that you hate all wickedness,
that the foolish shall not stand in thy sight, you hate all workers
of iniquity. Lord, that, that's my sin. All I can do is come into thy
house, in the multitude of thy mercy, and in thy fear, while
I worship toward thy holy temple." Now that temple is a picture
of Christ, isn't it? Everything about that temple
represented something about the Lord Jesus Christ. There's one
door going into the temple. The holies of holies, where the
high priest went once a year and made the sacrifice on the
mercy seat, and the Ark of the Covenant, the showbread, and
everything in that temple, everything pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ.
So when we worship toward His holy temple, we're coming into
the presence of God, looking to the Lord Jesus Christ alone
for all of our acceptance. Lord, if you should mark iniquity,
who should stand? If you judge me based on my sin,
There's no way I can come into your holy presence. I know that
your eyes are too pure to look upon sin. Lord, you're gonna
have to look upon Christ for me. Lead me, oh Lord, in thy
righteousness. Oh Lord, lead me to Christ. Give me the faith to hang all
the hope of my salvation on the Lord Jesus Christ for all of
my righteousness, for all of my salvation. Lead me in thy righteousness
because of mine enemies. Lord, who's your enemy? Who's your enemy? You know, we
have problems with people all the time, don't we? But that's not really the problem. It's us, isn't it? We really
are almost enemy. Lord, my enemies are so real
to me. I'm just not able. I'm not able
to worship you as I ought. And I'm so thankful that I have
a savior who worshiped you perfectly. You heard every prayer that he
prayed. And I find my acceptance in the
presence of God in the beloved. Lead me, O Lord, verse eight,
in thy righteousness because of my enemies. Make thy way straight
before my face. It's hard to keep your eyes on
Christ, isn't it? Well, we're just all over the
place, aren't we? That's why we enjoy coming together
and worshiping and opening God's Word and hearing about the Lord
Jesus Christ, because it's the one time when we can think most
clearly Here's our prayer. Make my way
straight before thy face, for there is no faithfulness in their
mouth. Every man is a liar. God alone
tells the truth. Now, I want to be an honest person. I want to be sincere when I speak. I want to be... but you know
when we When we compare the way we speak to the way the Lord
Jesus Christ spoke, never a man spake like him before. You know,
we're always, always protecting ourselves, aren't we? Every time
we open our mouths. And in that regard, we're always
holding something back. We're always trying to make things
look better and sound better than they are, aren't we? Always. I'm ashamed to have to tell you
that I do that when I stand up here to try to preach. It's awful. That's the way we are. And here's
what God says about it. There's no faithfulness in their
mouth. Oh, but there's faithfulness
in his mouth, isn't there? Every word that he spoke was
pure and perfect, holy, undefiled, separate from sinners. Their inward part is very wickedness. Their throat is an open sepulcher. Now, oftentimes, the scripture
uses our different parts of the body to describe different things.
What? Your throat's an open sepulcher?
What's that? When God looks down our throats,
what does he see? He sees our hearts, doesn't he?
And what does he find there? Other than the new nature, the
heart of Christ, the mind of Christ, what's he find in us?
Every imagination of the thoughts of the heart of man are only
evil and that continually. Lord, how am I going to come
into your presence? You hate all of this. Yes, I
do. Yes, I do. And that's why I died
for you. That's why I put it away. That's
why I'm standing in your stead. That's why I'm giving you a perfect
righteousness before God. All that's been put away. They flatter with their tongue. We flatter ourselves. We flatter one another, don't
we? I'm not talking about being a
dishonest person with each other. We want to be as transparent,
as real as we can be. But we're talking about comparing
ourselves to God here, aren't we? Our tongues are deceitful. Look at what David says. Look
what the Lord Jesus Christ is saying for us now in verse 10.
Destroy thou them, O God. Lord, destroy them. Destroy them
again in my heart. Assure me once more that the
Lord Jesus Christ bore in His body upon that tree all of the
wickedness of my heart and mind. and put them away, destroyed
them, buried them in the depths of the sea, separated them from
me as far as the east is from the west and remembers them no
more. There's my hope, Lord, destroy them. Let them fall by their own counsels. Cast them out in the multitude
of their transgressions for they have rebelled against thee. Lord, destroy my sin. Destroy
my rebellious ways. And let those that put their
trust in Thee rejoice. Rejoice in that the Lord has
destroyed our sin, in that He has put them away. We have reason
to rejoice, don't we? Rejoice, rejoice in the Lord
always. And again, I say rejoice, let
your gentleness be known unto all men. Why? Because the Lord
is at hand. He said, I'll never leave you
nor forsake you. Let those that put their trust
in thee. What is it to fear God? Well, it's to believe that He
holds your life in His hand and He'll do with it whatsoever He
wills. It's to fear standing in the
presence of a holy God without a substitute, without a Savior. How can I stand in God's presence
and have any hope of salvation if the Lord doesn't stand in
my stead? I'm afraid of that. The Lord
said, don't fear men. Don't fear them who can kill
the body. Fear him rather who has the authority to cast both
body and soul into hell. Lord, you've got the right to
do it. You've got the authority to do it. I've got nothing I
can bring to you. All I can do is trust Christ. Let all those that put their
trust in thee rejoice and let them shout for joy because thou
defendest them. The world has no fear of God.
They have no fear of God. They don't believe he's sovereign.
They don't believe he's omnipotent. They honor him with their lips.
They'll say, oh yes, he's God. He can do whatever he wants.
But then their hearts are far from him. And you learn what's
in their heart when you listen to them talk about God, don't
you? But the Lord defends his people. And them that love thy name. Oh, what is his name? He first
gives his name to Moses at Mount Sinai, at the burning bush, doesn't
he? Moses asked the Lord, whom shall
I say sent me? Tell them I am. I am. I am the self-existent one. I'm not created. I'm not derived,
I'm not dependent upon anything or anybody. I do whatsoever I
will and whatever I do is right. Tell them I am. I'm the creator
and sustainer of all of life. Everything is dependent upon
me. And I save in the manner in which I save. I'll have mercy
upon whom I will have mercy and whom I will I'll harden. I'm
the potter and you're the clay. You see, when the world asks
that question, how can an all-powerful, all-loving God allow innocent
people to suffer, you listen to the answer that they give
and they always deny His power. They always strip Him of His
power. He's not God. He's not the I Am. Those who
love His name know what that name means. and they worship
Him, they fear Him, they bow before Him. They know that every,
that their next breath is completely dependent upon Him. Everything in providence, everything
in salvation is dependent upon Him. I am, I am. They that love His name are joyful
in Him. They call him Jesus, the world
calls him Jesus, but they don't love that name. They've changed
the meaning of it. You shall call his name Jesus
for he shall save his people of their sins. He's going to
put away all their sins, all that wickedness that we just
read about, all that God hates, he's going to put it away for
his people. And if He finds any of it on
anybody, He's going to judge them eternally for it. His name is Jesus. He actually
accomplished the salvation of His people. He actually put our
sins away. He actually finished the work
that the Father sent Him to do. He's holy. He's sovereign. He's the Christ, the Messiah. Anointed with the oil of gladness
above his fellows, he came into this world in the full power
of the Spirit of God to accomplish the purpose for which his father
sent him. Even that half-breed Jew at the well at Sychar, she knew
better, didn't she? Remember the woman at the well
when she was talking to the Lord? We know that when Messiah comes,
when Messiah comes, he's gonna lead us into all truth. Messiah
is not gonna fail. He's going to accomplish saving
all Israel. And that's exactly what he did.
And here we have him praying to the father in perfect faith,
trusting God to reward him for his righteousness and for his
accomplished work. He is the Lord. What do you hear
people in the world talking? Religious people begging men
to make Jesus Lord of their life. He is Lord. God has made Him
Lord over the living and over the dead. He reigns sovereign
over believers and unbelievers. And everything that happens in
this world is happening according to His sovereign purpose and
will. For good? Not for everybody. Not for everybody, that's only
for His people. For you know that all things
work together for good for them that love God, those that are
the called according to His purpose. Those that are called out, those
elect of God that love His name, all gonna work good for them,
isn't it? He's the Alpha and the Omega. the beginning and
the end, the first and the last. He's the one that entered into
a covenant promise with the father and eternity past, committed
himself as the lamb slain before the foundation of the world to
lay down his life for his sheep. And here he's praying to the
father to reward him for his faithful work. And he's the one
who's gonna gather us all together around his throne. He's the blessed and only potentate. He's the blessed and only potentate.
He's the King of Kings, the faithful witness, Revelation 1.5. He is
the Most High God, Luke 8.28. He's the Son of God, the Son
of God. How can He forgive sin? Only God can forgive sin. Although
you might know that the Son of Man has the authority to forgive
sin, I say unto thee, take up thy bed and walk. And He healed
him miraculously, didn't He? Proof that He had power to forgive
sin. He's the eternal, immortal, invisible,
only wise God, 1 Timothy 1.17. Isaiah 42, six, he is the covenant
of the people. And in first John two, one, he's
our advocate, our advocate. We have an advocate with the
father, Jesus Christ, the righteous one, and all the names that he
gives up himself in scripture. God's people love it. They love
Him. They love His names. Why? Because
they know that if they have to stand in the presence of a holy
God apart from Him, they will be separated from Him for all
eternity. Let them also that love thy name
be joyful in thee. Be joyful in thee. The true circumcision,
those who have been circumcised by the Spirit of God, in the
heart, exposing their flesh, causing them to realize that
they loathe themselves. They loathe themselves. And the
world can't understand that, do they? What do you mean you loathe yourself?
Yeah. Yeah, I do. Oh, but my love for
Him. and the hope that I have in Him
gives me joy. For thou, Lord, verse 12, for
thou, Lord, will bless the righteous. There's my hope. The Lord Jesus
Christ is our blessing, isn't He? He's gonna bless the righteous. He's gonna make them happy. not
in themselves, not because they have, they've lied to themselves
and they've got some sort of false confidence in themselves.
No, we are the true circumcision, which worship God in the spirit,
rejoicing in Christ Jesus, rejoicing in him and having no confidence
in our flesh. I have no confidence that anything
that I can bring will give me acceptance with God. But oh,
what confidence I have in Him. So that now we come to the throne
of grace with confidence, with boldness, knowing that we shall
find grace, mercy, help in our time of need. We have a high
priest. For thou Lord will bless the
righteous. We're righteous. You're trusting
Christ, you're righteous in the presence of God. Jeremiah speaks of the Lord Jesus
Christ and says, and he shall be called the Lord our righteousness. And then later on he speaks of
his church, and she shall be called the Lord our righteousness. We have perfect righteousness
in the presence of a holy God in Christ. He's the one who earned
righteousness by his faithful fearing of the Father. For thou, Lord, will bless the
righteous with favor With favor. Oh, I want to have favor with
God, don't you? The only way we're going to have favor with
God is to be found in Him. And what favor we have. You know
there's no difference between the love that God has for the
Lord Jesus Christ and the love that He has for His people. And they talk about a loving
God. God is love, and His love is a perfect love, and His love
is a holy love, but He'll love everybody. But He loves those
that are in Christ. He loves those that the Lord
Jesus Christ died for in the same way that He loves His Son.
And He says here, with favor wilt thou compass Him as with
a shield. That's what I need. I need for
the Lord to come pass me about. Cover me up as with a shield. The other day we found a box
turtle in our backyard and I picked it up. And that thing completely
shut up. I mean, it pulled in its legs,
its head, its tail. It had little flaps on both ends
of that turtle. I mean, it was just, there was
no way to get to that turtle. That turtle was completely shut
up inside of its shell. He was compassed about with a
shield, protected from any predators being able to get to it. Lord,
come pass me about. Hide me in Christ. Because the
predator is the avenger of blood. The predator is the law of God. There is a kinsman that's nearer
to you than me. Isn't that what Boaz told Ruth? That I'm gonna go reckon with
him. I'll make things right with that kinsman, and then I'll redeem
you." And that's exactly what the Lord Jesus Christ did. He
met with the law. He made it honorable. He satisfied
all of its demands. He presented Himself before the
Father in perfect righteousness, and He bore our sins and suffered
the wrath of God's justice to put them away. And now He compasses
us about with His shield. And we have nothing to fear. Not from the wrath of God. We
continue to bow in worship in fear of Him, don't we? Now, the assumptions that men
make about People being innocent and God loving everybody are
faulty assumptions. We're not innocent. God loves Christ and those that
are in Christ. But all we fear, we fear denying
His absolute sovereign power. And every time we hear the world
and the religious hucksters of this world deny His power and
His glory, it sends chills. That's not my God. That's not
my God. Our merciful Heavenly Father, we pray that You would speak to our hearts and comfort
us through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and assure us of His faithful,
successful redemption on our behalf. We ask it in Christ's name. Amen. Number 256, let's stand together. When peace like a river attendeth
my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll, Whatever my lot,
Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul. It is well with my soul. It is well, it is well with my
soul. Though Satan should buffet, though
trials should come, let this blessed assurance control. that Christ hath regarded my
helpless estate and hath shed his own blood for my soul. It is well with my soul It is
well, it is well with my soul. My sin, O the bliss of this glorious
thought. ? My sin not in part but the
whole ? ? Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more ? ? Praise
the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul ? ? It is well, it is well, O my soul ? With
my soul, it is well, it is well with my soul. And Lord, haste the day when
my faith shall be sight. The clouds be rolled back as
a scroll. The trump shall resound, and
the Lord shall descend. Even so, it is well with my soul. It is well. It is well. With my soul. With my soul. It is well. It is well with my
soul. th th