Oh, to grace how great a debtor
daily I'm constrained to be. Let thy goodness, like a fetter,
bind my wandering heart to thee. Prone to wander, Lord, I feel
it. Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, oh, take and
seal it. Seal it for thy courts above. You don't grow tired of seeing
that, do you? No way. That's a good sign. The gospel is called good news.
News about his mercies that are new every morning. That's what
we need. Sinners need the most. Mercy.
So the Lord's mercies that we're not consumed. And we're not because
he's the God of Jacob who doesn't change. Oh, happy. as he hath the God of Jacob for
his head, and his compassions they fail not, but new every
morning. These verses of Scripture are
old ones, yet may they be new. Psalm 37. Go there with me. Psalm 37. We've been looking at this psalm. Read with me Psalm thirty-seven
verses thirty-seven to the end of the chapter. Psalm thirty-seven verse thirty-seven. Mark the
perfect man or woman and behold the upright. The end of that
man is peace. But the transgressors shall be
destroyed together. The end of the wicked shall be
cut off, but the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord. He is their strength in the time
of trouble. And the Lord shall help them
and deliver them. He shall deliver them from the
wicked and save them. Why? Because they trust in Him. God's Word, if it is heard, if
the Lord will enable us by His Spirit to hear it, will do two things. It will create
fear. Fear of the Lord is the beginning
of wisdom. Our Lord said, to this man will
I look, to he that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and tremble
at my word. The word of God convicts and
causes us to fear and also the word of God will comfort. These things, both these things,
if the word of God is really heard. It will give us both fear,
as it should, and comfort. God's Word is called a two-edged
sword, isn't it? A two-edged sword. The first
thing it does is it wounds us. It kills us. But then it heals. It wounds and then it heals.
It kills us and makes us alive. It's a powerful call to awaken
us, God's word, quicken us, according to your word, David said. Awaken
us lest we sleep the sleep of death. So many do, so many are,
so many shall sleep right on through into eternity, then suddenly
be awakened in a horrible, horrible, horribly awakened as if in a
bad dream, but it's not going to be a dream. Waken us by your word, lest we
sleep the sleep of death. And then it's it's a it's a balm,
a soothing thing that. That makes us rest, fall asleep. The word of God. The subject
this morning and in our text, it says the end, verse 37. Mark
or note, take note of the perfect man, behold the upright, the
end of that man. Verse 38, the transgressors,
the end, their end, the cut off end of all things. That's what
our subject is this morning. A word that caught my attention. Peter, the Apostle Peter, the Lord had
him write this, the end Of all things, it's at hand. Be therefore sober, he said.
Watch unto prayer. Keep your eyes open. Pray. The end, that's our subject.
What if today were our, was our last? It might be. Did not our Lord
himself say, boast not thyself of tomorrow? Don't even worry
about tomorrow. You don't know if there will
be one. End of all things. Most do not
want to think about it. It frightens most people. Most
people would rather not think about it, would rather not bring
it up. Let's not talk about it. But
shouldn't we talk about the inevitable? Isn't it foolish to avoid it? Over in Deuteronomy 32, Moses
said in his song, Oh, that they were wise and would consider their latter
in. Look at across the page of Psalm
39, this caught my attention as we were reading it right across
the page, Psalm 39 verse four. David said, Lord, make me to
know money. Money, everything must end. Everything must, mustn't it? Doesn't it? Sure it does. All
right, let's we're going to look at a few verses of Scripture
that I hope will arrest our attention and come back to this Psalm 37. Before we look at the end, you've
got to look at the beginning. All right, you with me? Let's
go back to Genesis chapter 2. Genesis chapter 2. See, our God
declares the end from the beginning. That Genesis chapter 2, you have
to go back to the end. You have to see where it all
started. You have to see the beginning so you can see how
it's going to end. Like reading a book, Wesley,
you don't start in the middle of it. You don't start at the
end of it, do you? You've got to start at the beginning. If
you don't read the first part, you don't know what's going on.
Genesis chapter 2. Man is in paradise. Man is perfect. He's upright. He's sinless. He's happy. He's happy. He's alive. He's living with
God, Christ living. Genesis 2, and look at what the
Lord said to him in verses 15 through 17. To him and his wife,
the Lord God took the man and the woman, put him into the garden
of Eden to dress it and to keep it. He lived in paradise. Surely
a man is happy living in paradise. That's where everybody wants
to live, isn't it? Verse sixteen, The Lord God commanded
the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely
eat, nothing withheld but one thing, as a symbol of God's absolute
sovereignty, that I am the creator and you're the creature. And
cannot I do with my own what I will, give what I will withhold
of you, make commands as I will? And you will abide by them. And
they're not unreasonable. Every tree. Look at verse 17. Of the tree
of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it. For in the day that thou eatest
thereof, thou shalt surely die. It's going to end. God declared
in. From the beginning. It's going
to end for you. Life as you know it. In the margin,
you see, in the margin, if you have one, it says thou shall
surely die. What does it say in your marginal
reference? Dying now shall die. You're going to die that day
and then everything and everyone It's going to die before your
eyes. It's all going to end. It's all going to end. Dying, you shall surely die.
Dead and dying. The life of God. The Lord is
talking here about the life of God. A life more abundant that
we have a hard time understanding. Life more abundant. Spiritual life is what he's talking
about. Life with God. Light, understanding, love, joy,
peace, unbroken peace, goodness, holiness, happiness, contentment. He said that's over. It's over. Dead and dying. Everything and
everyone from then on, including you, will end. It will come to
an end. It will die. This is where it all started.
Oh, what man started. What Adam started. First Adam,
by his sin. By one man's disobedience. And
oh, what a weighty statement this is. Sin. entered the world. People, all sorrow, all sadness,
all unhappiness, all misery, all evil, all everything that
torments, that troubles, that breaks us down, that kills us
full of pain, everything by one man's sin. Adam, later on, when
he walked out of the garden, it wasn't long after that he
saw his son lying on the ground with his brains beaten. And he
thought, what have I done? And he lived 930 years with the
guilt of it. Will it ever end? Isn't it a
mercy that we only live three score and ten? We just don't
know. Man wants to live forever. No,
you don't. Not if you're a child of God,
you don't. They had to live back then, yet their strength, he
said, yet their strength, labor and sorrow. Man that is born
of woman is a few days and full of trouble. Why? Because of this
thing of sin. Misery. You see, Adam, you want
a good picture of what happened to man? the distance that he fell. You
look at man in the garden. He's in paradise. He's happy. He's happy. They could not have
anything else. And now walk, go to a nursing
home. It's a great eye opener. If you
go to a nursing home and you walk through that front door,
And look at man now. Nearly everyone is all, you know,
they're curled over and bent and broken and the smells and
the sounds and the sights. It's sad. That's the end. And this is where it began. Who's rich in mercy? You know, God's not like us.
If I'd have been God, I'd have said, this creature called man
is a worthless creature. The animals aren't as bad as
him. I'm just going to destroy man.
Never have anything more to do with it. No, that's not God.
God, in order to show His greater glory. God, whose great glory
is His mercy, His love. undeserved love and his grace
and his compassion and his long suffering and his tenderness
and his salvation. Couldn't have been seen otherwise.
God is rich in mercy, came walking in the pool. Who's that? Who's that? Who's walking? Who's
going to talk to this man and this woman? Christ, the Word
that maketh life. In the beginning was the Word.
The Word was with God. The Word was God. Christ came
walking. He said, Adam. Adam wasn't looking
for him. Adam was running, wasn't he?
We weren't looking for him. We were running. Why would you
run from God? You need to run to Him, don't
you? We won't unless He comes to us. God, rich in mercy. Adam, where
are you? Show Him what He's done. Where
He is now. Look where you were. Now look
at you. And in a marvelous, God preached
the gospel to them. God told them about the woman
seed, the second Adam from above, the Lord of glory. It's going
to come, Adam. And he's going to put an end
to this misery you've started. This thing called sin that you
have plunged your race into, and you just don't know what
you've done. You just don't know. You will. And he's going to come, he's
going to put an end to it all. It has an end. You see, John,
God declared the end from the beginning. Sin had a beginning,
right there it was. Well, God in the beginning declared,
it's going to end. My son, and then he showed them.
Then he showed them. He took that lamb. That's one
of the most graphic and wonderful displays of the gospel ever.
And God's the first one to do it. That man and that woman,
before they're cast out, they don't know where they're going
or what's going to happen to them. They're scared. They're huddled together. God takes a lamb right before
their eyes, and they don't know what's going on, but I believe
He's explaining it to them. And He slit that innocent lamb,
that lamb without spot or blemish, slit its throat until they watched
its life, blood flow out, and it died. That's death, Adam. That's death. And you're going
to die. And your wife's going to die.
And your children are going to die. And everything around you
is going to die. It's going to end. But that's
not the end for my people. And He took that skin of that
lamb as they stood there shivering before God in shame and guilt
and fear. God in mercy and warmth and love
and grace wrapped that lamb's skin, lamb's wool around their
naked body and said, I'm covering you. That sin that you've committed,
I'm going to cover it. My son's coming. He's going to
cover it all. Love covers the multitude of
sin. And herein is love, my son. The
son of my love. He's going to come. He's going
to die. But you don't have to. He's going to cover you. Isn't that wonderful? So death passed
upon all men. Passed upon all men. And as I
said, God raised up a man named Moses, and God chose a people
called the sons of Jacob. God had Moses write five books,
and in that one book, Deuteronomy, he said, oh, that they were wise,
speaking of his people, and that they would consider their latter
end. End. I want you to consider with
me our latter end, OK? Let's think about the end. And
I hope after this, it won't be something you're afraid of. I hope already it's not something
you're afraid of. Christ came to put it away. Death and
hell and so forth. The latter end. You know, Scripture
says this in Ecclesiastes 12. Man goes to his long home. And
another place says from which he won't return. He's going to
his long home. You've heard this, I've preached
a little while and I'm going to tell you something. Some of you
have heard this illustration. Years ago, back when they had
kings and their courts, and kings often had a man called a court
jester. A clown is what he was. A fool,
that's what he was called, a fool. A court fool. He'd act foolish,
try to cheer up the king, he'll tell his jokes and do his little
Court fool you know, bring in the fool, make me laugh. Court
fool. King was dying. Supposed to be
a true story, I don't know who it was, but King was dying. And
the court fool, who was a long time friend of his, came in to
see him as King was lying there in his bed. And the court fool, you know,
had on his little cap, you know, the fool's cap, dunce cap, We
came up with. Took his hat off and said, OK.
What's wrong? King said, I'm leaving, I'm going
away. Who said, where are you going,
OK? He said, I don't rightly know. And the fool said, well, how
long will you be staying? He said, forever. And the fool said, well, O king,
what preparations have you made for this journey? And the king said, no. And out
of fright. And then the fool took the cap
that he was wearing and put it on the head of the king and said,
O king, pardon me, but thou art the fool. You're going to a place
you don't know where. From which you shall never return,
and you've made no preparation for it, thou art the fool. Man goes to his long home from
which he shall not return. It would be wise to prepare for
it, to consider the latter end. It would be wise to look at all
things that way. have an end. Okay, I sure don't
want to lose you here, this is vital. But it'd be wise, oh that
they were wise, they would consider their latter end. It'd be wise,
listen to me carefully now, to look at all things as they are. They're going to end. A temporal, that which is seen. What's seen? Right there. Look around you. Whatever you
see is temporal. It's in. It's going to have an
end. That person sitting beside you. Right? Isn't that why? Isn't this why?
This is why. Consider all things as they will
be. An end. They'll have an end. Job said this of a certain that
we came naked I was born in this world and naked shall I return.
It's certain I brought nothing into this world he said it's
certain that I can take nothing with me. All things as they are
soon to end. Things let's look at people and
things as temporal how would that make us use this that how
would it make us react to how would it wouldn't be why. We
said why am I so taken up with this thing it's just so. Or things that we do or whatever
we ought to look at the end what's the result of this. What's the result of this. We need to look at people. as
eternity bound soul, don't we? Our children, oh my, we want
to hold on to them, don't we? And we can't. But here's the thing
about it. And so, if we looked at them
as eternity bound souls and we were consumed with them knowing
Christ. From an early age. Oh, they were
wise, oh, remember that creator in the days of values, we were
consumed with if we really considered that there they have a soul.
And our one great hope and desire and prayer for them is not that
they'd be a doctor or a lawyer successful even marry well all
of that is that they know cry. Because you know why if they
do that if if the Lord gives them this life eternal. Then
your relationship with them will never. End. If not it will. Never seem to. And there's nothing wrong with
wanting to see those you love again. That's love, isn't it? Look at
others as eternity-bound souls, and then what would be pressing? Are you with me? Anybody? What's
really important? That my daughter grow up having
the best of this and best of that? Well, that's foolish. What's important is that she'd
be sitting right here under the sound of the gospel. Lord, please,
please, please. I love her. Would you please pierce her heart?
After that, everything's going to be all right if she has nothing.
If she grows up a beggar, no, that's not possible. The righteous,
they'll never beg. We need to look at others as
the last time we would see them wouldn't this be why wouldn't
it be wonderful if we could look at one another as it were as
if it were the last time we would say it might be it has been several
times hasn't it for those that we know and I hadn't last time
we saw we didn't know it at the time. Would that be a good way to look
at it by the end. What would how would you treat
that person? Would you let them go without
telling them? I love you. Some of you love to have that
opportunity again. Wouldn't you? Just one more time, just tell them. Huh? Well, there's going to come a
time when you're going to walk in here and somebody's missing. Wouldn't that be wise? Look at
our lives, our days. Scripture says that we would
redeem the time because it's short. Think back on the time, how we've
wasted. Time wasted. Man, oh man. Redeem
the time. It's short. Time spent wisely. What is time spent wisely? Did
you read the article in the Bulletin about Martha and Mary? Did you? Did you read it? Talks about
two women, two sisters, one of them is so taken up with doing
that. And, you know, it's good, it's
a profitable, I mean, it's, you know, cleaning and so forth is
good and cooking and all that. But she was so full of trouble
and anxiety and fear and distress and depression and all of that,
she got mad at her sister, she got mad at the Lord. Why? Because there was one thing that And the Lord, in gentle rebuke,
but it was a rebuke, said, Martha, you're careful and troubled about
many things. Those are things that can wait. Necessary thing, but they can
wait. This is the one thing. This is the best part. You see,
this is where we begin to do what we're going to do for eternity.
You're not going to be careful in trouble about anything in
eternity. We're going to be doing one thing.
This right here. This is it. This is the good
part. It really does not in this life
get any better than this. It really doesn't. Some of you
know what I'm talking about. Mary, he said, by my grace, hath
chosen the good part. What was Mary doing? Just sitting
and listening to the Lord. And he said, What is that? It's
not going to end. It's not going to end for her. It will not be taken away. Oh, go back to our text in Psalm
37. You know how you know if we listen
to the message preached, the word preached as if it were our
last. Wouldn't that be smart? Wouldn't
that be wise? It might be. It might be. It might be if tomorrow you are
struck you found out you find out. That you have a terminal
illness. It might it happens all the time
that all the time your husband has a massive heart attack. Your
wife. Then what matters. And we will be groping and grasping
and praying and asking for help. What help? The disciples, the Lord kept
telling them, I'm going to Jerusalem and I'm going to die. But the
third day I'm going to rise again and I'm going back to glory.
And they didn't want to talk about it. Remember that they
didn't want to talk about. I didn't want to listen to it. Till finally. In the end, they
realized he really is we're here, they were right on outskirts
of Jerusalem in the garden and they said, Lord, don't go. Then they start begging him for
answers, signs, Jeanette, Lord, show us the way. He said, I'm
going to the Father. No, don't. Show us the way. Show
us. And he said, I am the way. Remember that? Philip, show us
the Father. Show us the Father. Show us something. Philip, have I been so long with you?
All this time, you haven't heard a thing? Haven't you heard a
thing? This is it. Are you with me? This is it. This is what your children need.
This is what you need. This is the one thing needful.
One thing have I desired of the Lord, David said. That will I
seek after. Really? Really? This is the good
part, Kevin. This is the good part. In the world you shall have tribulation.
This is the good part. And this is where it starts,
this life more abundant, this eternal life. Look at our text,
Psalm 37, verse 37, it says, Mark the perfect man, you behold
him, you watch him, set your eyes on him, you behold a man,
a woman, a person, perfect. You know what that means. We've
been looking at Psalm 37, haven't we? The righteous man. Righteous
never forsaken. If you were here, you heard it.
Look at verse 39, the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord.
Who's righteous? Those that are righteous in Christ.
Those that believe Christ. Those that trust Christ. Those
that love Christ. Those are perfect. They're upright. They're perfect in Him. Right? Accepted in Him, in the
Beloved. Holy, unblamable, unapprovable
in God's sight. Do I have to keep saying that?
Yes, I do. So we won't get all down and because of our sin,
so we won't get all puffed up and self-righteous. But the perfect
man is that person who's complete in Christ, trust in Christ. Oh,
Psalm 34 says, none of them that trust in him shall be guilty.
None! That's the best verse in the
Bible. One of them. None! Not one person, not one
sinner, all manner of sins would be forgiven. All manner. Not
one single person has ever trusted Christ has been cast away, guilty,
forsaken. And you mark it down, God says.
Kellie, you mark it down. When He comes to His grave, it's
going to be in peace. He's going to pass away. He's
going to rest. in peace. You can only put R.I.P. on a
gravestone of a believer. Where does it start? Now. We rest in Christ now, don't
we? In this world you shall have tribulation, but he gives us
rest. Mark it down. Oh, he wrote this
for our understanding, for our learning. Mark it down. Mark
him. Watch him. I've beheld a few, haven't you?
Have you watched a few die? Believers die? What a wonderful thing, wasn't
it? Proof to us. God's Word is true. You watch
Him. The end of that man is peace. And really, it's not the end
at all. His end here. The end of this life. The end
of this life for that man. Is the truly an end all pain,
all tears, all suffering, all sin, all sorrows, all troubles,
all trials, all temptation. It's an end to that. The end.
These things have an end. The end of that man is peace,
eternal peace, rest. Verse 40. Oh, that struck me
when we were reading it. The Lord shall help them. Don't
you think the Lord will be near to you at your most needy hour? Certainly. This is that peace
that passes understanding. For the world that doesn't know
God going out into an eternity that they don't know what's there,
like that old fool, and kicks and doesn't want to
leave this place and Anything there's their thought is the
inward thought the psalm says is that they shall continue forever. But the end, you mark it down,
is peace. The Lord shall help them, deliver
them, shall deliver them from the wicked one, that is. Deliver
them from fears and the condemnation and he's the accuser of the brethren.
Brother Todd was in the hospital. Thought he was dying. We all
thought he was dying. And he thought he was dying. And he
said some fear came over him. He wasn't dying. Thought he was. I've been there. I've had something one time.
I thought this is it. I was scared to death. I really was. Brother Todd said, it was as
if someone spoke out loud to me. Scripture. No one did, but this
is how God's Word is. These verses that he had quoted
and preached from and read for years, yet in his hour of what
he thought was death, the end, these words came loud and clear
to his heart and his conscience. whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord imputed not iniquity." And Todd said, I was ready to die. I had peace. Well, when it does come to that
time, he will. You would mark it down, peace,
peace, end of that man is peace, but it's not the end. Consider
this with me just just a few more minutes, OK? It's it's we enter into eternal
life. Our Lord cannot lie. He said
this is life, eternal life, life without end. Life somewhat like
we know it now, but so much more better. So much better. Our English will be perfect.
Our Greek or whatever we speak. Heavily language. It'll be perfect.
Life without end. So much better. Life, you know,
when the Lord first created man, he put him on this earth, didn't
he? Created an earth and put him in a garden, and it was wonderful. It was wonderful. God said, this
is good. And God, it was so good, Robin,
that he came down and walked around with him and lived with
him. This is good. His delights, Scripture said,
were in the habitable parts of the earth. He rejoiced with the
sons of men. Adam, Christ's cherry, came down
and walked in the garden. Well, yes, this is a such-and-such-and-such-and-such-and-such. Oh, and taste this. Look at this. Wonderful. Wonderful. Life without end. Life, paradise in a garden with
the Lord. Life without sin. and no possibility
of ever entering again. Life with God. Life with Christ. Life with His people, who are
the salt of the earth now. Everybody there is like Christ. Wouldn't that be wonderful? Huh? Wouldn't that be wonderful? Everybody there is like Christ.
Well, it shall be. eternal life and as we said it
begins here. And here. This this new creature this this
glorious the sons of God which he creates the new creatures
created in Christ Jesus. Of which the whole universe waits
for the manifestation of the sons of God the whole creation
grown up. travail of waiting for this this
new earth to be created this new heaven. This it begins here
with a seed so miraculous so amazing so wonderful Scott. It's how we know it's God is
with a seed. It's planted it's a mystery something
like natural birth but it begins with a seed God Almighty takes
this incorruptible seed like And at a dead center, he walks
in, he comes in, the Lord brings him in, he's just dead, can't
hear, can't see, can't, no light, no heart, no mind. But God puts his seed in the pot. All
of a sudden he has eyes, he has ears, he has heart, new heart,
new life, steps, and quickened eyes. Life has begun. And it
changes a lot of things anyway. Most things, all things do become
new. New way of thinking, new way of Considering things, it begins here. New loves, new
pursuits, new so forth. Oh, that old man's still there,
isn't he, to keep you down, but this new creature. And he groans,
waiting for this, to get out of this body of death, like a
worm in a cocoon, waiting for his wings. That's what it is. But it begins here, and then
one day in God's good time, and it seems like a sad thing. And it is for us worms who are left
back on this earth. We don't want to leave them.
That's love. Love is nothing wrong with not wanting to part
with one you love. And then God takes that worm
and puts it in the ground. Except the corn and wheat fall
on the ground, John, and die. And he puts it in a literal coffin,
cocoon, and puts it in a grave, and that's the end. Oh, no. Oh, no. It does not yet be, or
share, what we shall be. We sow this body in corruption. Isn't that a glorious picture? It has some resemblance that
butterfly comes out it. Butterflies, it's no coincidence
that those creatures are so many and so beautiful. They bear little
resemblance to what went in there. Little resemblance that worm,
but not much. It does not yet appear what we shall be. I have
not seen, ear hath not heard, neither have entered into the
heart of man the things that young people. I've said this
many times, there's nothing wrong with enjoying these things. God
giveth us richly all things to enjoy. He gave you these children.
Why? Because you're joy. They bring you great joy, don't
they? God is so much better than we
are. Do we deny our children things
that they enjoy? Of course not. Oh, you've had
me in evil. How much more, huh? Why does
he give us these things? Homes and families and things
to enjoy? He wrote a whole book about it.
Ecclesiastes is what it's called. The preacher. He says, enjoy
it, but remember, keep this in mind always. Keep this in not
just the back of your mind, the forefront, but for the This front
looks to your eye. It's going to end. But then the good part starts. And
God will give you grace to go through this, this world and
in the world, you should have tribulation. But Christ said,
I've overcome it. And. It's not there's nothing wrong
with enjoying these things. It's not sin to enjoy your children
in these things. It's not sin at all. The sin
is when you forget God. Sin is when these things take
precedence over. Sin is when idolatry starts. When you start putting these
things in place of and devoting all your time to and don't worship
the God who gave you these things. And then you're one of his children. It's a tough lesson. So, enjoy. Enjoy. But remember, it has an end.
It has these little babies that we enjoy so much. We don't want
to see them grow up, really do. But there will. Right there sits
my baby. She was Isabella just yesterday. Right, Minnie? A tale that's told. Her life
is already a tale that's told. I'm going to be 80 years old. Lord willing. I don't know. Maybe
not. But it's going to end. And then what? It's not the end. It's not at
all the end. Oh no. And it begins here. This soul, this spirit, this
new creature goes on to be with the Lord, where scripture says,
at his right hand are pleasures for evermore. Pleasure. That's right. Pleasure. New heaven,
new earth. He said, you rejoice in what
I create. You will rejoice. And I will
rejoice in joy in my people. He said, we'll sing. We're going
to be doing what we're doing right here. As well as and joy
in the new creation, a vast congregation, a family of God and joy in Christ
and each other. And what's there to fear about
that? Doing what we're doing here,
except perfect, more better, without sin, without guilt, without
shame, without... Hmm? Oh, that they were wise, that
they would consider their latter end. It might apply our heart. Lord, make me to know my end.
I might apply my days to wisdom. Look at things as I should. Look
at people as I should. Do things as I should. Redeem
the time and so forth. Listen to this word like it's
my last. And how vital, how needful it
would be. And go to my grave in peace. Oh, that I might die the death
of the righteous. At peace, I'll be ready. My wife
and I were sitting talking the other morning and talking about
the end, about the Lord coming. Psalm 90 said, David wrote, Oh,
Lord, come. How long? Did you read that?
How long? Come. And she was saying to me,
she said, you know, I really do want the Lord to return. And
it would be wonderful for right now. And she said, and this is
a good sign because she said, I'm not doing without. I don't
have any real, I don't have any physical problem. I don't have
any, I'm not having real needs. I'm not sick. You know, we all
want our troubles to be over. We like to die when we're in
a bad shape. And she said I'm happy and I'm
not really sad and she said. That's a good time. For the Lord to come for his
sake. You desire him. And as I say
as we're trying to show you from the word of God that. The thing
the Lord kept telling his disciples more than anything you're not. You're not. Fear not. Oh, but fear not. I came to deliver you from fear
of death. Those of you who are all your
lifetime subject to this bondage and this fear. Fear not, Dickie. The Lord said this. Fear not. I am in control of this thing.
You die when I say you die of what I've sinned. Everything
I give it, I take it. I am the Lord, that's my name.
And when time comes, when it's the end, fear not. It's not the end. It's just the
beginning. You wait. Wait on the Lord. Wait, I say. Be of good courage.
You'll see. You'll see the end of all this,
and you'll see it's not the end for His people. It's just the
beginning. An eternal beginning. All right. Let's sing in closing number
509, isn't it? 509, the sands of time. Sing
the first two verses of that wonderful hymn, The Sands of
Time are Sinking, The Dawn of Heaven is Breaking. 509. Stand together. The sands of time are sinking,
the dawn of heaven breaks. The summer morn I've sighed,
for the fair sweet morn awakes. Dark, dark hath been the midnight,
but day spring is at hand. And glory, glory dwelleth in
Emmanuel's land. Second as the last. O Christ,
He is the fountain, the deep sweet well of love.