That's good. Say ye to the righteous that
it shall be well with them. That's Isaiah 3 verse 10. It is well. All right, go back
to Isaiah 57. Isaiah 57. This great chapter in God's Word
begins by speaking of the righteous, and it ends with the wicked. The Lord tells us at the very
beginning here what has happened to all who
have died in faith, to all who have trusted Christ to the end,
and died believing him. That's who the righteous are.
The Lord tells us what is happening, every one of them. And he ends up this chapter by
telling us what will happen to those who die without Christ. And that's the wicked. He says
in verse one, the righteous perisheth. That is, the righteous leaves
this earth, dies, leaves this earth, and no man lays it to
heart. Now, who is righteous? What does it mean to be righteous? Who is righteous? Very plainly,
Paul said it in Philippians 3. He said, Oh, that I might be
found in Christ, not having my own righteousness, which is of
the law. That is me keeping it. But that
righteousness which is through the faith of Christ. Faithfulness of Christ. Christ
is my righteousness. We are accepted in the beloved. Christ is our law keeper. He's called the righteous one. The righteous one. So to be righteous
is to be found in Jesus Christ, trusting him, looking to him,
is to be found in him and him in you. A new creature created in the
image of Christ. You must be found in Christ.
If you are, you're considered righteous by God. And Christ
in you is the hope of glory. That's a mystery. and cannot
be fully explained the man is a fool to attempt to do so. Beloved now are we the sons of
God right now and it does not yet appear though what we shall
be but we are as he is so are we and I'm thankful and we're
going to leave it right there and rest right there and it cannot
be fully understood a man is a fool to argue it and also a
fool to try to explain it. The best way I think that we
can try to understand this is a babe is created, a brand new
creature, something that wasn't there before. And Christ is in
whom that babe is created. He travailed and birthed like
a mother. There in him and he in them is seed in them. And
that babe is complete, isn't it? A complete human being, but
it has to grow. It has to grow, but it's complete
nonetheless, just like its parent, and we're just like Christ. All
right, the righteous, all in Christ, and in whom Christ is. The righteous perisheth, it says.
Now, you know that all whom Christ gives eternal life to will never
perish. That's not saying that they will
perish completely, but they perish from this earth. And some have
perished in a violent way. They seem to perish in flames. Some were actually burned at
stake. Some were, you know, sawed asunder. Some were slain with a sword.
Some were given to lions and perished in a horrible way was
that God's will. Absolutely. Absolutely. He is God. The righteous, righteous
perish if they leave the earth. And no man lays it to heart when
the righteous perish. The righteous are Described like
this, and I think you see your calling in this too, brethren.
It says this of the righteous, that God hath chosen the foolish
things of the world to confound the wise. God hath chosen the
weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty. God
hath chosen the base things of the world, things which are despised,
to look down upon. Have God chosen. Notice how God
hath chosen, God hath chosen, God hath chosen. things which
are not, that is, nothings and nobodies in this world, just
common people, to bring to naught things that are, that no flesh
and glory in his presence. You know the rest of those verses?
But of him are you in Christ, and so forth. So the righteous
perish, and they're generally nobodies, common people, not
many wise men of the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are
called. We don't have any Former. Intellectuals and here are even
present intellectuals we don't have any. Noble people of noble descent
do it. In here. I mean why I don't mean
mighty not mean noble. We just don't have any body in
here that was anybody to speak of before you came. And. So the righteous parish, God's
people, which are generally very common and poor and lowly people,
they leave this earth and no man, or that is the average person,
doesn't consider them leaving. No man lays it to heart. We've
had blessed men and women from this congregation who were just
very, very common people. Not to God, but to the world. We've had them leave here, haven't
we? They left there and nobody gave
it a thought. We did. God did. The angels in heaven
did. And heavens opened up to receive
little old Ellen Fralin. Virgie Jones little. Little old
lady who was. Just who knows who knew Virgie
Jones. God. Then does it matter if anybody
else does John doesn't matter. And. They perish they leave and
nobody gives it a thought that except God's people. Read on. It says, merciful men, that is,
men of kindness or godliness. You read that in the margin?
Kind men, godly men, Christ-like men and women. Do you remember
whose funeral we preached this at? This was the text we used at
Brother Joe Park's funeral. It fit him perfectly. Godly men and women, Christ-like
men and women. of whom the world is not worthy.
The world thinks they can do without them. God says the world's
not worthy of them, so he removes them. Read on, it says, none
considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to
come. Their life wasn't cut short in
the sense of Job died at sixty-two. His life was not cut short, not
by any means. It was his days were determined
numbers by the law. His bounds were set, he could
not pass, as was Helen, as was your mother, my sister, your
whoever. It was a died in faith. And their
days weren't cut short, but abundant life began early. You understand? You know, man's
days, generally speaking, are three score and ten. It is infinite
mercy and grace for like Shannon to cut that way short so as to
be spared from the evil to come. That's what it says here. The
righteous is taken from the evil to come. Man's days are... Man that is born of woman is
a few days and what? Full of trouble. This world is
an evil place. And we get in it. Evil gets in
us. It's just an evil place. And anybody the Lord removes
at a young age, it's infinite mercy. Maybe only the good do die young. The Lord Jesus Christ was thirty-three.
Robert Murray McShane, how old was he? A real young one. How old was he? Thirty-eight. And on and on it goes. Jeremiah
was very young. And on and on. No man lays it
to heart. Merciful men are taken from the evil to come. And it's
just getting worse, isn't it? This place is getting worse.
Well, what happened to these righteous people? What happened
to these believers? Where'd they go? What happened
to them? Where are they now? Look at verse
two. Well, they entered into peace. What's heaven like? One word. Peace. In this world, you should
have tribulation. In this world, you hear wars
and rumors of war. In that world, you never hear
anything like that. In this world, you have nothing
but tribulation. In that world, nothing but peace. Down here,
you have nothing but sin and evil. Up there, nothing but holiness
and righteousness. Down here, you have nothing but
blasphemy and God-hating. Up there, you have nothing but
praise and honor and glory and worship. Down here, you have
nothing but hate. and violence and Indian strike
up there you have nothing but love and joy. It's not like a place you'd like
to go. Why is that so? Because the Prince of Peace is
there. The King of Peace, King of Salem,
Melchizedek, is up there. The King of Peace is up there.
And he hath declared peace and his kingdom, his everlasting
kingdom is one of peace. He shall He or she shall enter
into peace. They are truly resting in peace
forever. No more laboring and heavy laden.
Coming to Christ, they found peace. Eternal peace and rest. And it says in their beds, I
believe that's their deathbed. The Lord's Scriptures talks about
the Lord making the bed. Making their bed in sickness
and in death. Every believer I believe Scripture
tells us. We'll come to his deathbed if
he has time. If it's not sudden we'll come
to his or her deathbed in peace. Dying peace and in rest. Listen to this. It says in. Psalm thirty seven verse thirty
seven you can quote this mark the perfect man. And behold the upright The end
of that man is peace. It's peace. Yeah. Oh boy, it goes on to say the
same thing Isaiah did there in Psalm 37. But they, and look
at this, verse 2, it says, Each one, each one, every one of them
is walking in his uprightness. Now you could You could rightly
translate that or understand that is walking in Christ. He is upright. And in the margin,
though, it says walking before him. Walking before him, holy,
complete in him, walking before the Lord with the Lord right
now. Complete, the dew of youth on their brow, old virgin, not
old virgin now. She's young virgin. You wouldn't
recognize her right now. You will then. She'll be a beautiful
young thing. Yes, she will. And somehow or
another, she'll be her, but she'll look just like Jesus Christ.
We all together love Him. And that's what He's conforming
us to right now. Now, these next few verses, they
were hard to understand, weren't they? As you read them with me,
I'm sure you Had a hard time understanding. I did, too. He's
talking about. Verse three, he calls the attention
of the world of religious adulterers and adulterous. Religion that
is prostituted, God's word is called the great whore and religion
is called the great whore with whom everyone commits spiritual
fornication. Religion that sells the body
of Christ itself itself of money and so on and so forth. All is
described. What we know is prostitution.
It's spiritual. I believe Revelation 18 best comments on this. Go over there
with me on these next ten or eleven verses. Well, nine verses. Revelation 18 gives a clearer comment on those verses. I read
Gil, I read Matthew Henry, and I like what Brother Barnard said.
Brother Rob Barnard once said, he said, you know, the Bible
will shed a lot of light on those commentaries. And God is the best commentator
on his own word, isn't it? Comparing spiritual things with
spiritual things. And there's so many places we
could go. Proverbs 7, many places that
talks about this religious whore. Revelation 18, read this. After these things, I saw another
angel come down from heaven, having great power. The earth
was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a
strong voice saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen.
Now, Babylon, As you should know, maybe someone doesn't, but Babylon
has always represented false religion. Babylon is the seat
of false religion. Babylon the Great has fallen,
has fallen. Most, most of the old preachers and
writers believe that Babylon represents Rome. More than any
other and there are places in scripture that talks about the
city with seven hills around it and that's wrong. And but now. All the world's
religion is the same now. It's the same. Be it Roman Catholicism
or Southern Baptist. It really is. It really is. It wasn't you and I were talking
the other day about all these. Buildings everywhere. We're talking
about that. We concluded that we don't understand
why there are so many buildings everywhere when they all believe
the same. I mean, really. The reason we meet here is because
there's no place else we could meet. There's nobody else we
could have any fellowship with. There's nobody, I haven't met
anybody around here that preaches this gospel. Have you? Have you? I haven't. If they are. I don't know what you're saying
you're. Going to be in here longer than. I've heard about on the
radio or anybody on TV. And many body in the community. But the rest of them now believe
the same. They really do. It's the same thing. God has
loved you. Jesus died for you. God wants
to, and can't, and you must, and free will, and they all believe
that. Roman Catholicism believes free
will. Southern Baptists believe free
will. Roman Catholicism believes in a works religion. Southern
Baptists believe in a works religion. There's no difference. I don't
know why they have all these buildings. Why don't they just
build one great big building and meet that? because they're not in it for
the things of Christ. They're not in it for the glory
of God. They all seek their own. If there was another Grace Church
in this town, and I said this to a preacher that I met when
I first came here 17 years ago, I met a fellow who reformed the
city. You know who he is. And I tried
to have fellowship with him. I tried to. And I told him, I
said, I am not in competition with you. And if everybody went
to hear you preach, if you're preaching the truth, you'd be
fine with that. And I meant that. Come to find out, we don't preach
the same way. And his bosom buddies are rank
Arminian preachers in this town. And he calls every single person
he professes Jesus a Christian. He's prostituted. And I tell
him that this day. Where am I oh this is talking
about the great horror of Babylon though Rome. Is a clear clear
type and picture. Of religion it's so perverse.
Yet all of religion is represented here all right. And it says,
look at this, verse two, it's the habitation of devils and
the whole of every foul spirit and a cage of every unclean and
hateful bird. Doesn't that describe religion?
It's just full of wickedness. Catholicism was exposed a little
bit. We just saw the tip of the iceberg,
folks. We just saw the tip of the iceberg. Those were just
the ones that got caught. And yet the rest of this stuff,
Read on. And all nations have drunk of
the wine of the wrath of her fornication. Kings of the earth
have committed fornication with her, that is, politicians and
rulers. Who do they court? Who do they go running to? Billy
Gray, Pope John Paul, whoever it may be, don't they? Kings
of the earth. And merchants of the earth are
waxed rich. through the abundance of her
delicacy. It is big money. Why do people have fish on their
signs out front of their businesses? It's not to profess Christ. It's
to get business. That's it. Is that the truth? You know it's the truth. And
we say these things loud and clear on the radio. Have you
ever heard anybody say anything like that, Dan? They wouldn't
do it. They don't believe that. They don't fear God. They fear
man. That's what he said back there.
He said, Of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, that ye have
lied? We said back there in Isaiah 50, Who are you afraid of that
you lie? Not afraid of me, God said. No
fear of God before their eyes. They wouldn't lie, would they,
John? They'd be afraid, too. He's afraid
not to tell the truth. But fear God. Read on. He says, I heard another
voice from heaven saying, Come out of her, my people. You're
being too narrow. You're being too hard. God says
not. He says straight is the gate
and narrow is the way. Come out! Get out of that mess. Come out of her that you be not
partaker of her sins. You receive not of her plagues. The world's going to find out,
I understand. They're going to find out someday. Her sins have reached unto heaven.
God hath remembered her iniquity. And on and on he goes. Verse 7, you know how religion
loves to dress itself up. How much she hath glorified herself and lived gloriously. Oh, verse
7, look at this. She saith in her heart, I sit
a queen. Now, am I making anything up?
Queen. You heard that before? They pray
to the queen of heaven. Well, OK. And, you know, it's
the same in every other denomination or whatever. Their church is
their little queen. bowing before the king, he can't
do anything. He's outside, outside the door. All right, go back to the text
in Isaiah 57. And he says in verse, and they
all consider themselves righteous and, you know, accepted by God
and well-pleasing to God. Verse 12, God said, I will declare
thy righteousness in thy work, and it will not profit you. On over, he says, it's what?
What righteousness? What is our right? Filthy rags. Do I need to translate that for
you? Boy, how the world would shriek
in horror to hear that. Best deeds ever done in God's
sight. Well, we believe that, don't
we? Why do you believe that? Why do you believe that? Because
you're blessed. Flesh and blood didn't reveal
that to you. Our Father, which is in heaven,
He revealed it. They'll all be taught of God. And verse 13 says, When they
cry, let their companies deliver them. They think there's strength
in numbers, and that's what they do. Remember old Elijah on Mount
Carmel? He said he faced a hundred and
fifty fellas. And all the people, these were
people, these were just that was just a prophet. Patrick,
there's 850 preachers. How many people were there? There were 850 evangelists on
that program. You're talking about too many
chiefs, not enough Indians, Kelly. 850 preachers and Elijah wasn't
one. Now have things changed? Yes,
they've changed. There are 850 million preachers
to one now. To one true one. Sins are multiplied. Iniquity
is bound. Well, Elijah, I love that story,
don't you? Elijah said to them all, they
all were hooping and hollering, he said, cry louder. Don't you
love that story, Barbara? He said, cry louder. Maybe he
can't hear you. He doesn't have his hearing aids
in. Your God doesn't have his hearing aids in. He said, oh, maybe he's maybe
he's indisposed. He had to go, you know. That's what that's what Elijah
said, didn't he? That's what he said. Maybe he's
sleeping. You got to wake him up. I love that. Me and Mark are
God so much. I love it the way God's word
mocks their idol. Don't you? David, we just looked at that
Psalm 115, and they said, David, where's your God? They said,
we have our God here. He's on our mantle at home. He's got him around our neck. Here's our God. We got him right
where he does what we let him do. What about your God? He said,
the heavens and the heavens and the heavens can't contain him.
And he sits on the circle of the earth, and the clouds are
the dust of his feet. What does he do, David? Whatever
he pleases. He doesn't do what I let him. I do what he lets me do. You
see, he's God. I'm not God. He's God. He's done
whatsoever he hath pleased. His will is done in heaven and
on earth. He reigns. He rules. I don't
reign over anything. The reign I have, David said
he gave me. He set me up on it. It only lasts as long as he sets
up. He's God. I'm not God. That's my God. And I'm in His hands. They pray to a God who can't
say, don't they? And they think they're strength
in numbers. And it says that vanity is going to take them
all, the wind is going to carry them all away. But, verse 13,
he that putteth his trust in me shall possess the land. Possess the land. What land?
The new heaven. New earth. The land. promised
land, fair Canaan, and shall inherit my holy mountain, Mount
Zion, and shall say, verse 14, here's the first thing that,
well, the preacher says and the people say, upon hearing the
truth, cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the
stumbling block out of the way of my people. In other words,
get rid of all this stuff. We don't need it. We don't need
it. Get it out of here. You may have
had did anybody. Just nod your head, you don't
have to raise your hand. Did anybody in here actually
have any of those religious relics around your house? Crosses or
pictures or statues or something? I know you're ashamed to admit
it, but I'm glad to see that. What did you do when you heard
the truth? You had a little Jesus burning,
didn't you? A cross burning. Huh? It's a worthless, this idolatry
is what it is. That's what I love what old Hezekiah
did. Don't you? When he found that brazen ark,
he crushed it, ground it to powder. He said, Nahushkin, Nahushkin.
People were sacrificing to it. He says, it's just Nahushkin.
What's that mean? Worthless brass. If we found the very cross upon
which Jesus Christ died, we better burn it. If we found the actual
Ark of the Covenant, we better burn it. We don't worship things. Get rid of that. Get rid of that. When the truth was first being
preached here, you know, before all y'all were up here to be
seen, a little choir. Remember that? Everybody in here
was a member of it. I think. You had two or three
pews here. And I know this place wasn't
big enough, you know. I was wondering who was listening.
Everybody was singing. You laugh. That's the way it
is in a lot of these little places. Why do they do that? Why does
everybody want to be in the choir? It's not to give God the glory.
It's to be seen and be heard. That's what it is. What do we
do? Let's get rid of that. We don't
need that. Let's get rid of that. Get that
out of here. Get it out of the way. We need one thing. One thing. Your husband, Brother Joe, used
to say this, and I knew I had maybe come close to preaching
when he said this to me afterwards. He said, well, And it took him a while to say
things. He said, well, I didn't. Get out of the way. I want men
to cry. Get it out of here. Verse 15,
For thus saith the High and Lofty One that inhabiteth the eternity,
whose name is Holy. Who might that be? That's Christ. That's our God. I dwell in a
high and holy place. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord
of hosts. The whole earth is filled with
His glory. His train is filled with the temple. His name is
holy. His person is holy. His temple is holy. His heaven
is holy. But look who He dwells with.
I dwell in a high and holy place with Him also that is of a contrite
and humble spirit. That's God's companions, all
of God's companions, all of God's friends are humble and contrite,
broken and contrite. And though God is high, as the
scriptures say, though he is high, yet he hath respect unto
the lowly. David said, what is man that
thou art mindful of him? Well, whoever says that, God
will be. And he does this to revive the
spirit of the humble, to revive the heart of the contrite one.
Those who think they're nothing, find out. He revives their spirit,
the spirit of the humble. He makes them see how they're in Christ, and so they're
loved of God. To revive the heart of the contrite
one. Brother Elmquist brought up this
point. Contrite means broken. Actually, it's something that
doesn't work. Something that just does not work. Contract. Contract person. I just can't
seem to do what I want to do. I'm broke. I'm broken. Everything about me is broken.
My hearing is broken. My sight is broken. My mouth
is broken. My heart is broken. My feet are
broken. My hands are broken. You know
what I'm talking about? Can't seem to just, Lord, What are
you going to do with an old broken vessel like me? I'm going to
fix it. Verse 16, he said, I will not
contend forever. First thing our Lord does in
his words, contend with us. Approve, rebuke, correct, doesn't
it? Convict, sin, contend with. Neither will I always be wrong.
God contends with us through his word that we're sin come
far ashore, neither will I always be wroth." The first thing we
think is, God's angry with me. And we ought to think that, because
God is angry with the wicked every day, and we ought to think
that. God is angry. God is angry with
some. God does hate some people. He
said, neither will I always be wroth, the spirit would fail
before me, the souls which I have made. But he says, for the iniquity
of his covetousness was our own. And smote him. Now, it's also,
I got to hurry. As his children, once he, once he brings us to Christ by
faith and once we feel some assurance that we're his, we're his children,
yet he's still contends with it. He still convicts us for
our sin. That's good. It's good to know
and keep knowing that you're a sinner. It's a good thing. And he chastens those he loves. If you'd be without chastening
of God's word, you're a bastard. These people who are running
around thinking they're perfect without sin and have no problem
with sin, they're bastards. They're bastards. God's not chastening
them. God's not dealing with them.
God's not convicted of the spirit of the Holy Spirit of God is
not convicted now. And they actually do think they're without sin.
They really do. But not you, do you? But that's
good. That's the spirit of God, the
Holy Spirit of God, convicting, convincing of sin and for iniquity
of covetousness. Anybody still have a problem
with covetousness? Besides me. And he says God smote him. My dad used to hit me. Not with fists, not in anger,
not, you know, abusively, but he used to hit me. Gabe says
his dad hit him every single day. I'm not sure he did, he may think
he did. But whom the Lord loves, he chastens. Let the righteous smite me, the
scripture says. It'll be what? Kindness. It won't
break my head. The righteous being Christ himself,
God, my father. Oh, let him smite me. And generally
the way he does it is with this. Don't think that God you know
God to have to be cruel to do you know. He deals lovingly and
kindly and the way in which he most deals with his people is
with the rod of his word which. You just read that the word of
God is sharper than a two edged sword. pierces the word of God
is what pierces our heart and breaks them all over again. God
doesn't necessarily have to take things away from us or do something
horrible to us. He's smoting and he says that
I hid my birth 17. That troubles a child of God
when God hides his face. The mercy is clean gone, David
said, the clean gone. Lord, you done with me? Have
you finally done? Are you finally done with it?
I can't say. Anybody? God hides his face. I remember
that when my father was not pleased with me and would kind of ignore
me. Oh, that's awful. It's awful. Joseph Aaron, did your dad ever
do that to you? You're not going to be happy
until dad's happy. They'll say, well, mama ain't
happy. Boy, daddy ain't happy. Mama's pretty easy on boys. But
if Dad ain't happy, you're not going to be happy
till Dad's happy. My, my. It says, God said, I
hid me. I hid me. As he should. And it was raw. And he said, and he went on.
Look at this. God describes us to just go,
you went on doing what he did. I mean, it's forward. Read on.
I've seen his way. What's he say he's going to do? Oh, that prodigal son, what's
he going to do with it? What's he going to do with it?
He's going to heal him. Is this the way of man, Nancy?
This is the way of our God. He's going to heal him. That's what I'm going to do.
But he's not worth it. The other son said, He's not
worth it. And you are? He said, I'll heal him. And I'll
lead him also. I'll lead him. I left him to
himself for a while. Boy, he'll heal. A man left to
himself, a woman left to themselves will destroy themselves. Oh,
you pray. May we all pray, Lord, do not
leave me to myself. Whatever way we think is right,
the end is destruction. And God says, I'll lead him.
I left him alone for a while, and all we like sheep have gone
astray. We've left everyone, gone everyone
our own way, but the Lord lassoed us with the rope,
the cords of love. The gospel has come on back and
leads us. Our leader and restore. Comforts,
that's what. Trying to talk about Sunday morning.
The gospel sometimes and sometimes for a long period of time has
no effect on. You don't find any comfort. In the gospel. You don't find
any conviction in the gospel. You don't find any peace in the
gospel. You don't find any joy in the gospel. Anybody? Everybody. Everybody's a believer,
but Scripture says that he came and behold, he preached peace
to them that were far off, preached peace, restored comfort unto
them. And look at this, and to his
mourners, comfort was restored unto them that mourned for him. I say this with absolute conviction
and honesty. that there scarcely a day goes
by that I don't think of every single person in this room. And there's some I really do
worry about. I mean really worry about. You
worry about your own? That's what it means to be a
pastor. That people are your life. And I mean that. There's not
a day goes by that I'm not thinking about somebody. Most days, everybody. And especially those that I see. And I see it. Because this is
the savor of life to life. Death to death. This is the words
of life. And you look for a response.
All my judgment of a person's spiritual condition is based
upon when this word goes out. And if there's no response, something's
wrong. And if it stays that way, something's
bad wrong. And then if they're gone, something really bad wrong.
And if there's no love, no fellowship, I'm worrying, mad worrying. They're not worrying, but I'm
worrying. But bless God. He restores such
a one. And He restores those that mourn
for Him. And he told me, Sunday, that
it's so good to feel again. Restores comfort to the mourners,
to his mourners. And look at this, and I've got
to quit. I create the fruit of the lips. You know, we sing these
songs, sing these hymns. No, this over and over and over
again, that like a river glorious. I know somebody that that song
is well with my soul, man, a whole lot to it, don't you? But we sing these songs over
and over again, and we draw near with our lips. But sometimes, sometimes, bless
God, He brings it home, restores unto us the joy of His salvation,
the comfort of the gospel, and the fruit of our lips. We can
sing songs like that, the fruits of the lips. What we offer unto
God, we have nothing to offer unto God but what? Thanksgiving
and praise. And this is the fruit of Christ's
lips. Christ who made Pete. Christ,
what I quoted a while ago, he said, Peace I give unto you. My peace I leave with you. Peace
with God I give unto you. I earned it for you and I gave
it to you. Now your God's peace with you. And my peace within
I leave with you. And nobody's going to take it
away from you. Peace, Pete. What did he say to his disciples? The hymn that is far off, you
remember that? The hymn that's far off and the hymn that's near.
Sayeth the Lord, and I'll heal him, the butt. And he ends it
up. That's good news, isn't it? That
good news, Jeanette, all of it was just said. I'll heal the
backslider in heart, the wayward son. I'll receive him. I know
his ways. I'm going to bring him back.
I'm going to lead him back home, back into the fold. Restore the comfort
of the message. I'm going to chase him. I'm going
to hide my face from him. I'm going to smite him. That's
what it's going to take. He's hard-headed. He's stiff-necked
and hard-hearted. I'm going to break his heart
all over again, or her, and bring her back, lead her back home,
restore this comfort to her, make her lips burst out from
a heart filled with peace. And it's just and I'm only. But. The wicked. Who's wicked. Those whom God declares finally
someday finally to be eternally finally wicked are those plain
and simple those who are outside of Christ. That's it. Cursing is everyone,
but not in Christ. No Christ being found in him.
And he says they are like the troubled sea. Robert, you were
talking about this just last night. You were talking about
how they can't rest. Troubled sea. They're always
looking for this, looking for that, looking for this, trying
to find happiness, you know, trying to stir up something. That's what religion does. It's
trying to stir it up. And what does it stir up? Dirt.
There is no peace, sayeth my God. Isaiah's God is my God,
our God, to the wicked. No peace. No peace. Young people, do you hear that?
Someday, if you go out in the world and you're seeking happiness,
or whatever it may be, You know husband and wife and job and
career and home and family whatever it may be. You go out looking
for you're not going to find you know we'll find if you're
outside of crime. You don't come to cry no cry
and be found in him you're never going to find. That's. But you mark perfectly. Right. Say to the righteous, it'll be
well with them. But to the wicked, no peace.
Never have any pain. Any persons that's at enmity
with God, no peace. Not with God. And that's where
we need it. OK, stand with me. Our Lord, thank you for your
word. It is truly good news, comfort. You said, comfort my people,
and now know us who they are. So we preach your word as it
is. We do not want to say, peace,
peace, when there is no peace, yet if you speak peace to a troubled
heart, then there is peace. And we thank you, Lord, for this
gospel of peace. Thank you for your restoring
mercy and grace that you would truly call us back, lead us home,
Comfort us, but first convict, rebuke, smite us, Lord, and be
of kindness to us. Lead us in paths of righteousness,
for thy name's sake. Restore us, restore us unto the
foe. Bless your people, Lord. Hedge
this church about. Keep us from the wicked one,
the evil one. Lord, may we Uphold one another
in prayer and love. May each one in here seek the
things of Christ, not the things of our own or anyone else's,
but seek Thy glory and honor, the good of the body, the good
of our brethren. Unite our hearts in one accord,
one mind. Keep us, Lord, as the apple of
Your eye. Don't let anything or anyone harm Your Touch your
anointed. We believe we are by your mercy
and grace in Christ. We ask earnestly from the heart
that you would for your glory and honor, according to your
word, keep us. Keep us safe and watch over us.
Keep us preaching the truth, receiving it, hearing it, and
keep back everything that would Make a line into this piece in
Christ's name we've met here tonight and ask these things
for his glory and honor. Amen. We're going to go ahead and get
started.