Turn back again this morning
to that portion where Lee read in Zephaniah chapter 3. I hope when we come to read from
the Old Testament that we'll be reminded of what the Apostle
says in the New Testament. when he says that these things
are written for our admonition, for those of us upon whom the
ends of the age shall come. So we read these things knowing
that there is a message for today and for us. I call this message this morning,
The Only Good News. And I thought about it this week.
If the goal of politicians and the media and even most of
religion, if their goal is to discourage men and depress us
and to make us fearful. If that's their goal, they're
doing a fine job. And what I find is that in these
very sad times, there are many people who are seeking what they
might call an inspirational message. They're looking for someone to
inspire them, to encourage them, to challenge them, or to comfort
them. They're looking for someone with
a word of relief or a message of hope. But in truth, who we really are
and the state that we are in as sinners before God, these things mean that there
can be no good news from us or among us. There is just no good
news. about who we are and our state. As a matter of fact, not only
is there much bad news among us, there is much bad news about
us. And in that sense, no matter
what men say with regard to how things are or what will happen
or whatever it is that either false religion, or the news media,
or politicians, or scientists, or whoever they are, no matter
how much bad news that they might speak and say concerning us,
they have no idea the reality of the real bad news about us
as sinners. We are all going out to face
God. And we're going to face God not
as we might think He is, but we're going to face Him as He
really is and as He has declared Himself to be in this book. And just in those verses that
we read in the first part of this chapter, we hear God speaking
this woe to men in general on the earth. And when you go back
to Zephaniah 1 and also in chapter 2, you hear the very same thing,
God pronouncing this judgment to come on men and women because
of their rebellion, because of their sin against God. And these things have not only
to do with our body, but they have most especially to do with
our souls. Now, I know we imagine that we
are bodies and simply have souls, but the Scriptures say that we
are made living souls and we have a body. Every person is
a living soul in the sense that we will exist forever and we
will go out to meet God and spend eternity in either heaven or
hell, and there is no denying that, and there is no good news
in anything we might be told to do or give or anything like
that. A man a long time ago said this,
He said, the gospel is good news, but I know of no other good news
in the world beside it. And yet, the amazing thing is
here that while God does not paint a rosy picture about us,
and our ability to do anything, He does not paint some kind of
picture of us in that we are not what we really are in His
sight. But there is at the same time,
as we find in this portion of Scripture, some good news. As a matter of fact, the Gospel
is called, and the very word itself means, glad tidings. And this gospel age is the very
age that the prophet Zephaniah is led by the Spirit of God to
speak of. If you look back, In verse, let's
see, it's verse, I can't remember which one it is, but in verse
11, that's where it's at. In verse 11, he describes it
like this. He says, in that day. And most of the time in the Old
Testament, when you read those words, they are most particularly
speaking of that day which was ushered in by the coming of Christ
into this world, and also that ends at the second coming of
Christ into this world. He's talking about the age and
day of grace. He's talking about this gospel
age. And the very name of the man
who God uses to give us this message, the name Zephaniah,
is very close akin to the name of Joseph, which means Revealer
of Secrets. Revealer of Secrets. And what we find is in the Bible,
The Scriptures speak in the Old Testament of the secret of the
Lord that shall be revealed to all His people. And that simply
means that which they did not know before and that which had
not previously been revealed to them they will find it to
be made known to them by this revealer of secrets, one of whom
is the Lord Jesus Christ in the person of it, and the other is
the Spirit of God who is the revealer of it. And so what we find is that the
gospel is truly the only good news. And if you'll stop and
think about it and listen to what the Bible says about how
we are spiritually, you know that it can never be good news
to tell a dead man something to do. And that's the way the
Bible describes us as dead in trespasses and sins. You know it cannot be good news
to tell a man who is without life to live. Tell him how to live. Well, you
don't tell lifeless sinners how to live. And not only that, you
don't tell a person who is lame, which is how we're described
spiritually in this book, you don't tell them how to walk straight,
that won't be good news to them. And you certainly don't tell
somebody who is without any ability who is a spiritual paralytic. You cannot take and tell somebody
who has not one red cent, something to pay or something to do, and
it be good news. That's not good news. But if
you notice here, this good news is said to be to a people that
are described in verse 14. How are they described? They
are described as the spiritual people of God are all throughout
the Old Testament. They are described as Zion. What was Zion? Zion was a mountain. And Zion is the place where God
said that He would dwell. And then they're described as
Israel. That is, those who are the princes
of God. The elect of God. A spiritual
people. And they're described here as
Jerusalem. That's the city of God. God who dwells in the midst. And these names represent this
people of God who were given to Christ in that everlasting
covenant. These names describe His church
and His bride, His sheep, this spiritual people and nation,
these that He brings to believe the gospel. And what does He say to them? In verse 14, he says, after he
says all that he says, he says to this daughter of Zion, he
says to his Israel, and he says to his daughter of Jerusalem,
he says, sing. You don't sing at bad news, do
you? But rather, he says, sing. And he says, shout. And he says,
be glad. And he says, rejoice with all
the heart. My friends, he's not talking
about this fleshly emotionalism and sentimentalism such as characterizes
religion in our day. No, he says, sing and shout and
be glad and rejoice for reasons that are given by God Himself,
reasons because of His sovereign and almighty grace which he has
exhibited in Jesus Christ. That's where the good news is. The good news is not that you'll
be happy, healthy, wealthy, and wise. The good news is that God
is not just going to forget about your sin and not deal with them
as this just God. But the good news has to do with
Jesus Christ and Him crucified. And not only does it have to
do with Jesus Christ and Him crucified, it doesn't have to
do with what you'll do with Jesus Christ and Him crucified. And what Zephaniah is led by
the Spirit of God to say is the very same thing that another
prophet, the prophet Zechariah, is led in Zechariah 9 to say
when he says this, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion. Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, thy King cometh unto
thee. He is just and having salvation."
Now, you think about that. He says to His people, to this
Jerusalem, to this Zion, to these daughters of Jerusalem, He says,
you are to rejoice Because your King comes, and He comes, and
as He comes, He comes as one who is just and having salvation. It doesn't say He comes and He
just offers salvation. It doesn't say that he comes
and you ought to rejoice because he gives you a chance at salvation. As a matter of fact, it does
not say here or any other place in the Bible, such as men say
in our day, rejoice if you will accept him as your Savior and
salvation. You see, this good news and these
reasons to rejoice have to do with the fact that this King
is just and has salvation. As a matter of fact, when the
Apostle Paul writes to Timothy, In that first chapter of 1 Timothy
and that 15th verse, he makes this statement, which is among
the most wonderful in all of Scripture. He says, this is a
faithful saint and worthy of all acceptation. that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief. And Paul says the good news is
that he did just that. Now, I want you to notice this
morning what is set forth in these verses and others in this
Bible concerning why the gospel is good news, and it is good
news because of who it is that the gospel is about and what
he actually accomplished. Now hold your place here and
turn over to Acts chapter 13. Acts chapter 13, and listen in
Acts 13 beginning in verse 26. Here we have in the book of Acts
the preaching of Paul and Barnabas and Peter and others in the early
church after the resurrection of Christ, and listen to what
is said beginning in verse 26. Men and brethren, children of
the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you
is this word of salvation sent." In other words, the gospel is
described here and elsewhere as the word of salvation. Not a description of how to be
saved, or three easy steps, or some kind of road to get on to
salvation. It's the word of salvation. Paul describes it in Ephesians
1 as the gospel of your salvation. All right, listen. For they that
dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him
not, nor yet the voices of the prophets, which are read every
Sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him." In other
words, just what the prophets said that they would do, though
they had the very words read to them every Sabbath day, they,
in their unbelief and rebellion, they fulfilled the Scriptures
and condemned Christ. And though they found no cause
of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be
slain. And when they had fulfilled all
that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and
laid him in a sepulchre." They put him in a grave. But God raised
him from the dead. And he was seen many days of
them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are
his witnesses unto the people. And we declare unto you glad
tidings." Now why would the fact just simply that a man was raised
from the dead, why would that be glad tidings to anybody? Well, the reason is this, because
that man, Jesus Christ, did not die an ordinary death because,
first of all, he was not an ordinary man. but because he died as a
representative of this Zion, of this church, of these daughters
of Jerusalem, of his elect people that were given to him by the
Father before the world began. All you have to do is read John
6 or John 17 and you find out that these that Christ came to
die for They were given to Him in that covenant of grace before
the world began. And so He came into this world
representing them and dying as their substitute in their place
on the cross before this just God and all of their salvation. In its entirety, the salvation
from all their sins was entrusted into His hands, and He was made
responsible for it. And so when He came to that hour
to die, it says that He was delivered
by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. Oh, they took him, and by wicked
hands they slew him, and put him to death. But his death was
not an accident, and neither was it a contingency plan in
the mind of God, but this was the will and purpose of God from
old eternity, that he should come as their shepherd, and as
the shepherd of the sheep, lay down his life for the sheep. And so when God raised him from
the dead, when He raised up from that dead, having really and
truly died, Having been obedient unto death, as Paul says, even
the death of the cross, when he rose from the dead, it simply
meant that God had accepted his sacrifice, he had accepted his
work as the great priest of his people, and now there is reason
to rejoice and sing and there be glad tidings. All right, now listen. He says
in verse 30, But God raised him from the dead. And he was seen
of all these people. In verse 32, and he says, And
we declare unto you good news, glad tidings, how that the promise
which was made unto the fathers God hath fulfilled the same unto
us, their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again, as
it is also written in the second Psalm, Thou art my Son, this
day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that he raised
him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption,
He said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of
David. What is that? That's this salvation. That's the promise of eternal
life. That's the gift of God's grace. And everything in this salvation,
which Jonah found out is of the Lord, everything in it, depended
upon, hinged totally in, the doing and dying of Jesus Christ. And there's good news. Everything in that covenant is
now ratified. is now in such a place because
of Christ's death that they must be given to everyone for whom
he died. He says in verse 35, Wherefore,
he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine holy
one to see corruption. For David, after he had served
his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was
laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption. But he whom God raised
again saw no corruption." Now listen. Be it known. Be it known unto you, therefore,
men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you
the forgiveness of sins." Now, our minds work really bad
because we imagine things like this. Well, is that sins that
I've done in the past? And what about the sins that
I'll sin in the future? Is that simply original sin in
Adam? Or does that have to do with
what I am by nature and what I do because of that fallen nature? Does that mean simply the sins
that are little sins and these others that are big sins, that's
another matter altogether? He said, all these sins. As a
matter of fact, John said, the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth
us from all sins. All right? He says, and by Him,
all that believe. Who is that? Well, the Bible
says that faith is the gift of God. I passed a dumb church sign,
and boy, if you want to read things that are anti-biblical
and totally ignorant and absolutely contrary to God's Word, you read
some of these church signs. I read one recently that said,
Do your heart good, or something like that. Exercise your faith. The Bible says that faith, all
men have not faith. They have a faith like devils,
James said, who believe that God is, and they tremble, but
they're not saved. No, he says, for by grace are
ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the
gift of God. And we believe when God gives
us the gift of faith, which He gives to all these that Christ
died for, when they are brought to hear, and therefore as they
hear the gospel, He brings them to believe the gospel. You see, you and I could never
believe that salvation is all together in one outside of ourselves. We could never believe that.
Why? Because we're too proud. Because we imagine that we have
some strength. Because we imagine that we have
some worth. But the truth is, and Paul put
himself in that very place, he said, of whom I am chief. I'm the chief of sinners. But
God brings all His people to see that that's the way that
they are in themselves, the very chief of sinners. They have nothing
to offer. They can do nothing. They're
nothing but sin. And so if they're saved, it has to be all of God's grace. But we, by nature, we want to
hear what we're to do. Preacher, just tell me what to
do. Tell us how to live right. Well, if you live right, you'd
still die in your sin. Well, tell us how to train our
children, and tell us how to do this. If you do that right,
you ought to raise your children up in the nurture and admonition
of the Lord. But they, just like you, will
perish apart from God's grace. Nobody could grow you into a
Christian and you can't grow anybody else into a Christian.
It depends on sovereign, almighty mercy from the Lord who will
have mercy on whom he'll have mercy and be gracious to whom
he'll be gracious. He says, and by him all that
believe are justified. That means declared righteous
by God from all things from which you could not be justified by
the law of Moses which said if you do this, you will live. Beware therefore lest that come
upon you which is spoken of in the prophets Behold, ye despisers
and wonder and perish, for I work a work in your days, a work which
ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto
you. If left to yourself, you nor
me nor anybody else will believe this glad tidings. And when the
Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these
words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. Now, when the
congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes
followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, persuaded them
to continue in the grace of God. And the next Sabbath day came
almost the whole city together to hear the Word of God. But
when the Jews saw the multitudes, They were filled with envy. You see, they thought they had
the corner market on God. They thought they knew God. They
thought they were the only persons who could tell anybody about
God. And so, when they found out that they, and what they
did, and how they dressed, and what they said, and their rituals,
and their ceremony, when they found that it added nothing to
salvation. They were envious and spake against those things
which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. The great majority of those people
who were already religious and very moral and who had some had
knowledge of the Scriptures. He said, you search the Scriptures,
for in them you think you have eternal life. But when Paul and Barnabas began
to preach the gospel, the good news for sinners, that it's not
by works of righteousness which you've done, but by His mercy
He saves us. They got mad, just like preachers
in our day do, who love to have control over people. They want
to keep you on a guilt trip. They want to keep you under their
grip. They do so by promise of rewards
if you will do this, and they do so by threats of punishment
if you don't do that. They don't have any good news. But it says, then Paul and Barnabas
waxed bold and said, it was necessary that
the word of God should first have been spoken to you. But
seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of
everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. For so hath
the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light
of the Gentiles, and that thou shouldest be for salvation to
the ends of the earth." He said, Paul, you and Barnabas
and every other true gospel preacher, I have set you to be lights. to these people who all their
days have sat in darkness." How are you going to be a light,
Paul? Because you'll just hold up the light of the truth of
the gospel. That's all I can do, is by the
grace of God, hold up the light of the truth as it is in Christ.
But you can't see it unless He gives you eyes. You can't believe
it unless He gives you faith. You can't have any understanding
of it unless He gives you understanding. It's just like when Ezekiel is
shown in Ezekiel this valley of dry bones. They're all just
nothing but lifeless, dead, dry bones. And they've been that
way for a long time. And what does God say to him?
He says, son of man, you go prophesy to those bones. No. Surely that's a fool's errand.
to go and preach, to be like me walking up on the hill and
standing there amongst the tombstones preaching to the dead. That's
foolishness, isn't it? If it depends on you, it is.
If it depends on me, it is. But something amazing happens.
Ezekiel began to prophesy, began to preach to those dread dry
bones in that valley. And the Bible says, and the wind
began to blow upon them. That's a type of the Spirit of
God. And all of a sudden it says that bone came to bone and sinew
came to sinew and there rose up an exceeding great and mighty
army. Wow, how could that happen? Because
the one who commanded him to preach was the life giver. You see, I could just say to
you, well, just be saved, don't worry about your sins, don't
let that fret you. I could say, just go out and
be happy and eat right and be healthy and get some exercise
and help one another and do good and all this kind of stuff. I
could say these things to you, but you'd still just be lifeless. But this is good news. And look at what it says in verse
8. And when the Gentiles heard this,
there were some other people out there in that group, most
of whom were Gentiles. When they heard this, they were
glad. Can you imagine hearing something
that would make you in the depths of your soul forever and ever
to be glad? Can you imagine hearing something
that every time you heard it, it would make you glad? When
they heard this, they were glad and glorified the Word of the
Lord. And notice that last phrase,
and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. Now, I know what preachers in
our day say. They say, if you'll believe, God will give you eternal
life. Is that what that says? It says,
and as many as were ordained to eternal life. Who does that? God does that. And as many, though
all this mass of people rejected that good news and glad tidings,
they didn't find it good news to them, but it says, but as
many as were ordained to eternal life. They believed. They believed. You see, the good news about
who Jesus Christ really is and what He actually did is good
news to sinners who've been made alive by the Spirit of God. As a matter of fact, if you remember,
what were the angel's words to those shepherds that we read
about in Luke's Gospel? It says, the angel said unto
them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people. which simply means it will be
to these Gentiles as well as to these Jews, a people out of
every nation, kindred, tribe, it's going to be glad tidings
to that people. What is it? For unto you is born
this day in the city of David a Savior. Not a potential Savior, not a
we hope so Savior, but unto you is born this day in the city
of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. All right, what is this good
news here? Look down back in Zephaniah chapter
3 at verse 15. Shout. Rejoice. Why? Here's the first thing. The Lord
hath taken away thy judgments. What's the first reason for the
Gospel being good news to sinners like we are? He said, Because you're going
to heaven? No. Because you're going to get
a new body one day? No. You see, the good news of
the gospel is this, the Lord has taken away your judgment. How did He do that? How could
He as a just God? Well, one thing He's saying here
is first, the very worst thing that is against us is behind
us. You know, we think we have a
lot of problems kind of looming out there ahead of us. When we
can get that behind us, we'll feel a lot better. Well, there's
the biggest problem of all. And the good news is that for
every sinner in Christ, the Lord hath taken away your judgments. How'd He do that? Well, as a
just God, in the only way He could do it. because he must
punish sin. That punishment for sin is the
judgment against sin, and it's death. But he took away the judgment
of all his people by putting that judgment, making it to be
on his son who dies in their place on the cross and suffers
that judgment. He bore our sins in His own body
on the tree. The Lord laid on Him the iniquity
of His people. He put away sin by the sacrifice
of Himself. By one offering, He perfected
forever these that are sanctified. He suffered as the just one for
the unjust to bring them to God. And your salvation doesn't depend
on what you do concerning what He did. Do you remember what he said
on that cross? He said, it's finished. Salvation. Redemption. It's a finished work. Finished by the Savior. And I know that we're commanded
to do many things as believers. But we are never commanded to
do any of those things in order to be saved. We are to do them
because He has saved us. You say, well, salvation is conditioned
on faith. It is not. Those that Christ saved, because He saved them, He'll
bring them to believe. Their belief is not the cause
of what He did. Their believing has been caused
by what He did. Do you understand that? The Lord hath taken away thy
judgments. Paul says in Romans 5, we shall
be saved from wrath. Then he says this, and I've got
to hurry. He says, he has cast out your
enemy. Who's that? Well, the devil. and every enemy of God's people,
Christ triumphed over every power and most especially the power
of the devil. He not only cast him out of heaven,
he not only cast him out in the temptation, he not only cast
him out from a man such as the man in Gadara, but he cast him
out most of all in his cross death. Paul, writing
to the Colossians, says, and having spoiled principalities
and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over
them in his cross. You see what appears to the natural
man. to be the greatest defeat of
Christ is actually the greatest victory of Christ. That crown
of thorns was a crown of success as He redeemed His people. Hebrews
says, For as much then as the children are partakers of flesh
and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same. What? Flesh and blood. Why? that through
death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that
is, the devil. I hear preachers sometimes talking
about the power of the devil and all this kind of stuff. Well, we're no match for him,
that's for sure. But let me assure you, he was
no match for the King of Glory. And when you read in Revelations,
it says that the devil that deceives is cast into the lake of fire
and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are, and
they shall be tormented day and night forever and ever. It said he's cast out your enemy.
Then he says this, he says, the King of Israel, even the Lord
is in the midst of you. Christ is not simply some little
Jesus boy, wandering the shores of the Sea of Galilee in sandals
helpless and hopeless and weak. He is the King of Glory, the
King of God's Israel, true Israel, spiritual Israel. He is the Lord,
the Lord Jesus Christ. He is in the midst of you. He
is the King of kings and Lord of lords. Where two or three
are gathered together in My name, He says, there I am in the midst. He comes and indwells the hearts
of His people through faith. He dwells in us richly by His
Word and enables us to believe on Him. It's said of his church,
God is in the midst of her. She shall not be moved. God shall
help her, and that right early. One day a king asked a man by
the name of Balaam. He said, Balaam, you're a prophet.
I'm going to give you some money. I want you to prophesy against
Israel. And so Balaam agreed, and he
said, I'll do that. I'll be glad to do that. He'd
do anything for a buck, just like preachers today. He said,
I'll be glad. I'll say whatever you want to
hear said. And so he prepared the day and
the hour, and he got up to stand. But when he started to speak,
the Almighty got hold of his tongue. And instead of cursing
Israel, all he could do was bless Israel. And when that king, Balak, said,
I paid you to curse Israel, he said, he that is God hath not
beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in
Israel. The Lord his God is with him,
and the shout of a king is among them. That's what the gospel
is. It's the shout of a king. Then he says this, he says, sing
and rejoice because thou shalt not see evil anymore. It may appear as evil, but it
won't be evil. Why? Because Paul says, and we know.
that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them that are called according to His purpose. You see, he said, no weapon that
is formed against them shall prosper. Paul says, we glory in tribulation. How can we do that? Because we
know who sent them. We know that in these things
they're sent for His glory and our good. They'll not see evil
anymore. Mainly that's saying they'll
not see anything as evil anymore. They'll know it's the Lord. Let
Him do what seemeth Him good. He can't do anything but good
and right. Then he says in verse 17, the
Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty. Oh, that's a reason to rejoice.
We're being scared to death that the climate's going to burn us
up and the water's going to be gone. And global warming is going
to do this and that and the other. We're being told that the economy
is in a total collapse. And one day, if we're not careful,
we're not going to have food to eat and all this kind of stuff.
And we may have an asteroid attack at some time. Just be miserable if you want to.
But he says to his people, the Lord God in the midst of you
is mighty. David said, our God is in the
heavens, and he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. He said, you
say to Zion, be sure you say this to Zion. Thy God reigns. Thy God reigns. There doesn't anything happen,
just like it was said to Egypt and Pharaoh. He said, against
my people there won't a dog open his mouth to bark or wag his
tail. There won't anybody do anything
that they might know that I made a difference in my people. He's mighty to save, and He's
mighty to keep us. And He's mighty to do all above
all we could think or ask. He's able to keep us from falling. He is the mighty God. And then He says, Rejoice, because
He'll save. And this is a promise of future
deliverance from every enemy, from every attempt to bring us
into bondage, from every circumstance and situation. He'll save all
his people from their sins. And then, amazingly, look at
what else he says. Verse 17. He will say, He will rejoice
over thee with joy, He will rest in His love, He will joy over
thee with singing. How could He ever do that? Such
sinners as we are, because He views us in Christ. Because He's
made us the very righteousness of God in Christ. Because Christ
has put away all our sins. And He views us as His Son. As He is, so are we in this world. Even now, that child of God in
Christ is viewed by God as perfect and good and righteous and holy. He says He'll rest in His love.
He'll never scold His child out of anger. He'll never reach out
to them to touch them in wrath. Or He'll chasten us as a loving
Father chastens us. But He'll rejoice over His people. And this good news has to do
with what he's done and what he will do. So what does he say
to those who believe? Verse 16, In that day it shall
be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not. Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid in the matter
of your sin. Don't be afraid to meet God. Don't be afraid to die. Don't
be afraid to live. Don't be afraid of what will
happen tomorrow. He said, sufficient for today
is the evil thereof. Don't be afraid. If we fear the Lord, we have
nothing else to fear. And then he says this, let not
thine hands be slack. That is labor and work to spread
these glad tidings and to help our brethren and to do good and
to strive against sin. and to encourage and support
His church in the world. Live in the light of this good
news and in the light of eternity. Work, because He has saved you,
not by works of righteousness which you've done, but according
to His mercy. And I'll tell you this, if the
Lord ever reveals this truth to your heart, It'll be the best news you have
ever heard or will ever hear. He's taken away your judgment. That's what's going on in that
cross. And He has cast out the enemy
of your soul and the one who's in our midst. is the King of
Israel, the Lord Himself. And you'll see no evil anymore. He's mighty to save, and He'll
rejoice over you. Salvation isn't God just letting
you get by with something. Salvation is God in Christ doing
something not only to save you, but in a way that He can actually
rejoice over you. He's pleased with what He's done
in Christ. The pleasure of the Lord prospered
in His hand. Look to Christ. Cast off every other hope. It
doesn't matter what your sins are. They were all future to
Him when He died on that cross. You're not going to take Him
by surprise. He knows us better than we know
ourselves. Our Father, this day we pray
that You would Bring one of these, your sheep,
again this day to sing, to rejoice, to rejoice with all their heart
this day in you revealing to them your everlasting love and
grace and mercy through Jesus Christ and Him crucified. That it is not our accepting
Him, but it is in you making us accepted in the Beloved. Be pleased this day to honor
yourself in the calling out of your people. Cause us to find that peace and
that gladness when you say to our hearts, fear not. And move and motivate us out
of love for Christ to do what you'd have us to do in this life
for your glory and that our hands be not slack. May all glory and honor and praise
be to you alone. Amen. We're going to have lunch in
the fellowship hall after the service this morning, and I hope
all of you will come and eat with us. I'm sure there's plenty,
plenty. Thank you.