Isaiah forty-three. But now,
thus saith the Lord, that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed
thee, O Israel, fear not. For I have redeemed thee. I have
called thee by thy name, thou art mine. I have redeemed thee. We've been redeemed by the precious
blood of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we're not our own.
We've been bought with a price. We're his, and he'll have what
he paid for. He won't lose one of his redeemed. Verse 2, when thou passes through
the waters, I will be with thee. And through the rivers, they
shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the
Holy One of Israel, thy Savior. I gave Egypt for thy ransom,
Ethiopia and Seba for thee, since thou wast precious in my sight. Precious in my sight. Peter says,
to us who believe he is precious. But he tells us here that we
are precious, precious to him. Since thou was precious in my
sight, thou has been honorable, and I have loved thee. Therefore
will I give men for thee and people for thy life. Fear not,
for I am with thee. I will bring thy seed from the
east and gather thee from the west. I will say to the north,
give up. and to the south, keep not back. Bring my sons from far and my
daughters from the ends of the earth. Even everyone that is
called by my name, for I have created him for my glory. I have
formed him, yea, I have made him. Direct your attention back
to verse one. verse one. This is where we ended
this morning by ending or rather reading this verse. Let's begin
our message tonight here. Verse one of Isaiah forty-three. The Lord speaks to his Jacobs. His Jacobs. Jacob, you know,
was a deceiver. His very name means that. A sub
planner. He was Jacob by nature. That's the name he was born with.
He was Jacob before God changed his name to Israel, being a prince
and prevailing with God. Yet, even in his character as
Jacob, God says, I have loved thee. Jacob have I loved, our
Lord said. And that love will never cease
to be, never cease to be. This conniver did change God's
love to him. And that's who God speaks to,
the Jacobs. I'm a Jacob. God's people are
Jacobs. God's true Israel. God's love
for Jacob had no beginning. It's like God himself. It changes
not. That's bigger than me. That's
bigger than me. I believe it. and I rejoice in
it, and I'm so thankful for it, that God's love for his children,
God's love for this sinner, this Jacob, had no beginning. My little brain can't get too
much of a hold of that. As I said, it's bigger than I
am. One time, I may have told you
this story, I don't recall. I'm at that age now where I might
repeat myself. But I was visiting a friend in
the hospital. When I went in, it was near lunchtime,
and he was trying to wrestle with a pork chop. And I told
him, you continue to eat and I'll do the talking. I'll visit
with you. And after a while, he just pushed the tray away
and he said, Larry, I declare, the more I chew this piece of
meat, the bigger it gets. So I'm done with it. And so it
is with God's everlasting love. The more I think about it, the
more I consider it, the more I chew it, the bigger it gets. Oh, I can just dive into it,
can't you? Just let it overflow my soul.
God loves me. God loves his children with an
everlasting love. And neither will this love diminish. It'll never be less. Todd, it's
not contingent upon what you do. It's not contingent. It doesn't vary by what you do
or fail to do. Notice what he says again in
verse 4. I have loved thee. I have loved thee that was precious
in my sight. God doesn't only say I have loved
thee or he proves it over and over again. God acts on his love. This is what we're told in Romans
eight, that familiar passage, whom he did for know. The word there is for love. Not that he had knowledge of.
In that sense, he knows everyone. Oh, but those whom he did for
love. Did it stop there? Does the verse
end there? Is there a period after for knowledge,
for know, for love? No. No. This is what all the
acts of God spring from, whom he did for love. He predestinated
and he called and he justified and he glorified. It's in view
of that astounding fact that Paul says, if God be for us,
Who can be against us? What shall we say to these things? What shall be our response to
these things? And Paul said, I'm persuaded.
I'm convinced. Nobody can tell me different. I'm sure of this. If God be for
me, God be for me in the way of everlasting love, in the way
of predestination, in the way of calling, in the way of justification. If God be for me in all those
acts that spring from His everlasting love to my soul, then who can
be against me? What can separate me from God's
love? What can do it? And Paul went
on to say, I'm convinced that nothing can. God so loved, we
read, God so loved that he gave. God didn't so love that he did
nothing. God so loved the world. Remember, that's probably not
necessary, but he's talking the Nicodemus. People look at that
verse John 3.16 and say, aha, there it is. It says plainly,
he loves the world. He loved every man in the world.
He's talking to a bigoted Jew, a man who thought God only loved
Israel, only loved the natural Jew, and our Lord says to him,
not so, Nicodemus, God so loved the world, a world of lost sinners,
a world that includes Jew and Gentile. He so loved. That he did what? That he gave. That he gave whom? That he gave
whom? Heaven's most precious possession. Heaven's best. He gave his only
begotten son. Paul said, he loved me and gave
himself for me. When I read that verse, others
like it. That word, himself. He gave himself. I think, how much of that do
I really understand? The giving of himself. He gave himself without spot
to God. He gave himself, not a part of
himself, not some of himself, but he gave himself. He didn't
give one attribute. No, he gave himself. He gave
his entire self to God as a sacrifice for sin, and he did it for me. How much of that again? Again,
I ask myself, do I understand? God commended his love toward
us that while we were yet sinners without strength, unthankful,
unholy, when we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Not that we loved God, but that
God loved us and sent His Son to be what? The propitiation
for our sins. Oh yes, God's love makes the
difference. It makes all the difference.
his love for his Jacobs. He said concerning Esau, not
so. Esau I ever hated, but Jacob
have I loved. And as you've often heard said,
I'm sure, when we see something about what we are by nature,
it's not surprising that he should hate Esau. What's amazing is
that he could yet love Jacob, who was no different. no different
by nature. Oh my Jacobs have I loved. Notice again in verse one, I
have called thee by thy name. As we mentioned this morning,
we won't spend but a moment here. This was a special discriminating
call. He called Jacob. Jacob is that
one he loved. So he called him. This is what
Paul asked the church at Corinth to remember. to stop their childishness,
to stop their squaring off with, I like this preacher, I like
that preacher. Paul said, let me ask you, you're
forgetting, you're forgetting, who maketh thee to differ from
another? You know what the word is. What
it should have been translated, could very well have been translated,
who distinguished you? When he said, who made you the
differ? Who distinguished you? Who set you apart? Who? And the answer is God. Paul asked
them, what do you have? What do you have that you didn't
receive? Why are you boasting? Why are
you bragging? You don't have nothing that's
not a product, a gift of God's amazing grace. Who made you the
differ? Who distinguished you? Isaiah. In verse 2, before we come to
that, he says in verse 1, remember. Remember this. Remember, O Israel. Remember, O Jacob. Fear not. I have redeemed thee, your mind. And when the rivers of affliction
come your way, remember that. When you pass through the waters,
remember that. When I call you to go through
the fire, remember that. You're mine. Let that be with
you, that I'll never leave you nor forsake you. When trials
come, and they will, notice how the verse reads, not if thou
passest through the waters. There's no if to it. There's
no doubt about it. Through much tribulation, we
must inherit, we shall inherit the kingdom of God. But when
thou passest through the waters, what will happen, Jacob? You're
weak. When you pass through the waters,
what will happen? Will you drown? Oh, no. That's not possible. Why? Because
I will be with you. I that have loved you. I that
created you. I that have purchased you. You're
mine. When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you. That makes all the difference
in the world, does it not? A young lady, recently converted,
recently saved by God's amazing grace and just rejoicing, rejoicing
in the wonder of that. Someone pulled her aside and
cautioned her, you ought to be careful. Perhaps you're rejoicing
prematurely. After all, how do you know, how
do you know you won't pass through A fiery trial. How do you know
that you won't pass through the waters of tribulation and drown? And she said, how can that be?
How can I drown with my head so high above the water? Her head is Jesus Christ. How
can one member of his body possibly drown? Although they pass through
the waters, it's not possible. Because I am with thee. I will be with thee. The old
hymn writer expressed it like this, and I like these old hymns.
They comfort my soul. They are scriptural. It's what we read up right here.
The old hymn said, when the storms of life are raging, stand by
me. When the storms of life are raging,
that's a pretty accurate description, isn't it? Sometimes they just
rage. Rage. Oh, but when they're raging,
stand by me. When this world is tossing me
like a ship upon the sea, thou who rulest wind and water, Stand
by me. And he tells us right here that
he will. He promises us that he will. When you pass through
the waters, I will be with thee. And through the rivers, they
shall not overflow thee. He will stand by me. Remember what our Lord said to
his disciples on that occasion? Let us pass over unto the other
side. That's a sweet thought. and a
sweet reminder. I'm not telling you nothing you
don't know. Oh, but it's a sweet reminder,
isn't it? Who's responsible for their safe arrival? In whose
hands are they entrusted? Whose responsibility is it to
keep the sheep? Who did the Father give the sheep
to? Christ said He gave them to Him. I came down from heaven, He said,
to do my Father's will. And this is my Father's will,
that all which He had given me. Oh, hear the claim. Hear the glorious claim of the
Captain of our salvation. He says, of all my Father gave
me, That multitude that can't be numbered. A multitude of redeemed
sinners. Of all He gave me in that covenant
of everlasting grace. All that I became responsible
for, I came down from heaven for them. And all He gave me,
I'll lose. none. None. Is it any wonder? Is it any wonder that being the
case, the cry in glory, the theme of the song in glory is this.
Thou art worthy to him who have loved us and washed us from our
sins in his own and ever. Oh, let us pass over
and we read and they came over. Oh, how I like that, don't you?
When you pass through the waters, they shall not overflow thee.
And they came over unto the other side like Moses at the Red Sea. No, not at the Red Sea, after
he crossed over the Red Sea. Turn back there in Exodus chapter
15 for just a moment. I love this song of praise. I
love this song of praise that Moses led the children of Israel
in when they crossed the Red Sea. Pharaoh said, I will pursue
after. I will overtake him. I will divide
to spoil. My lust shall be satisfied upon
them. And God says, well, my will says
it won't. My will is greater than your will. Pharaoh is drowned
in the Red Sea with his mighty army and his horsemen and his
chariots. And look what Moses says in verse
1. Then sang Moses and the children
of Israel this song unto the Lord. And Spake saying, I will
sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously. Well, he's
the Lord, why wouldn't he? He's the Lord, he always does.
The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The Lord
is my strength and song, and he has become my salvation. He
is my God. Oh, that's sweet, isn't it? He
is my God. He's my God. I'm his. That's what we read in Isaiah.
You're mine. I've called you by name. I redeemed
you. You're Jacob. You belong to me. And I am his and he is mine. He is my God and I will prepare
him in habitation. My father's God and I will exalt
him. Look down at verse 11. This is
an appropriate response, is it not? to someone who had just
witnessed such power, such glory, such a manifestation of His God,
God being true to His Word, God doing what He promised, God being
able to perform what He promised that He would do. Stand still,
Moses, and tell those Israelites all just to stand still. Quit
complaining. Stand still and watch me. Watch me. Stand still and see
the salvation of the Lord. And they did. They did. David
said, What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits
toward me? And they render thanksgiving
and praise. Verse 11. Who is like unto thee,
O Lord, among the gods? Who is like thee? Who is like
Thee? Glorious in holiness, fearful
in praises, doing wonders. Doing wonders. And of course
you remember, in Revelation chapter 15, we read of the multitude
of the redeemed singing before the throne of God. the song of
Moses and of the Lamb. And it has much the same theme
as this song at the Red Sea. Unto Him who loved us, unto Him
be the glory. Look what He's done. Look what
His blood has done. Look what He's done by power
and blood. He's brought us all before the
throne of God. He's present every one of His
people before God's throne without a spot. without a blemish, without
any trace of sin whatsoever. My soul worthy. Worthy. He's worthy of all of
our praise, of all of our gratitude, of all of our worship. He's worthy
is the Lamb. One hymn writer expressed it
this way. Though troubles assail and dangers
affright, Though friends should all fail and foes all unite,
This one thing secures us whatever be tied, His promise assures
us the Lord will provide. The birds without barn or storehouse
are fed. From them let us learn to trust
for our bread. His saints what is needed shall
ne'er be denied. So long as it's written, the
Lord will provide. And so he will. Storms, yes. Rivers to pass over it, yes.
Fiery trials, yes. But preceding those, preceding
those, God says, remember this, but now, But now I'm with you. I've redeemed you. You belong
to me. But now thou art mine and we
always will be. Whatever now involves. Does this sound familiar? Well,
if you read the article I wrote for the Bulletin today, it is.
But now, this is just a continuation of that thought. But now, thou
art mine. And wherever now may find you,
does it find you in the waters of tribulation? Does your now,
does your present find you going through a fiery trial? God says
to you, to you, his Jacob, his Israel, but now God sends this
word to you that created you, O Israel, fear not. I have redeemed
thee. Redeemed thee. Where he is. And he won't lose his own. Again, referring to the bulletin.
I printed an article by dear brother Jack Shanks, who's now
in glory, entitled The Four P's. Excellent article. God's purpose
was one. God's power was another. The
title of the article was content. And Jack said, oh, if I can remember
these four things, these four Ps, as he calls them, I'll be
content. God's power and God's purpose,
God's promises, all sure, yea and amen in Christ, and God's
presence. God's presence. This is what
he says, I will be with thee. I'll never leave you. I'll never,
never, no, never forsake." This was the whole basis of the apostle's
exhortation in Hebrews chapter 13 when he said, be content with
such things as you have. Just be content. Why, Paul? That seemed like a tall order.
Be content. Why? For he had said, I will
never leave thee nor forsake thee. And Christ is all. Having him, I have all. Look
what the prophet says in verse 10 of Isaiah chapter 43. He says,
You're my witnesses, saith the Lord. You're my witnesses. Sayeth the
Lord and my servant whom I have chosen, that ye may know and
believe me and understand that I am he. Before me there was
no God formed, neither shall there be after me. From everlasting
to everlasting thou art God and you are my witnesses. He addresses
that to all his servants, all his chosen, all his redeemed,
every child of God, no matter who they were, where they were,
or when they lived. Call any one of them you want
to to the witness stand, and they'll testify to God's love
and faithfulness. Ask Noah. Ask Noah, was God faithful? Was he able to perform, bring
to pass what he promised? When you went through the fire,
when you went through the waters, Noah, did God keep you? Oh, Noah
would testify to God's faithfulness and love. What about you, Abraham? Is God faithful? Oh, yes. The Lord will provide. That's
why he named that mount Jehovah-Jireh. God will provide. Moses, one
after the other, and you. and me. Can we not take the witness
stand in God's honor, for God's glory, and bear witness to the
truth that nothing he has promised us has ever failed? Has there
ever been a time since he called you out of darkness into his
light? Has there ever been a time that
he called you, come, follow me? Has there ever been a time that
he wasn't there with you? Ever been a moment? Ever been
a time? Oh, I'm not asking you, did you
feel like he was? But wasn't it in those darkest
hours when you thought, have you ever thought this? Let's
be as honest as David was in the psalm we read a moment ago.
Lord, why is thou forsaken me? And we tell ourselves that cannot
be. Oh, but I feel that it is. I feel that it is. Oh, I can't
trust my feelings. Oh, but I feel that it is. Oh,
but in those hours, in those hours you feel all alone. How often? As often as that happens,
just as often, He comes to you, comes to me, and takes me up
in His arms, those everlasting arms, and all just wraps me up
in them. And I feel again His sweet presence,
the comfort of knowing that I serve a Savior that will never leave
me or never forsake me. He's going to keep me. He's going
to keep me, Lord. You know why? Because His very
honor is at stake. His reputation is at stake. He's promised to keep me. He's
promised to bring me to glory. And if He doesn't do it, it'll
be His honor, not mine. Oh, but He's promised to keep
all of His own because He loves us. He loves His sheep. He laid down His life for the
sheep. You are my witnesses, saith the
Lord. There is no shortage of God's
love and faithfulness. No variation. His grace has been
sufficient. That's what makes it amazing
grace. It's sufficient. Looking back
on the sea of your life, can there be any other explanation? Can there be? Can there be any
other explanation? Have there not been times you
thought, well, I think I'll just chuck in the towel? I think I'll
just assume like Job's wife told him to do, won't you just roll
over and die? Get it over with. Why do you
hold your integrity? Why do you still believe in God?
We've lost everything. Why don't you curse God? Curse
God like I'm doing in my heart. Curse God and die, she said. Why didn't he? Why didn't he? Only one reason. Job wasn't made
out of anything different than you are. He was a man of like
passions just like you are. Why did he not do that? Why was
he able from the sackcloth and the ashes left his head to God
and say, the Lord gave and the Lord took away. Blessed be the
name of the Lord. And we read, he bowed his head
and worshipped. The only explanation for that
is not found in Job. It's found in Job's God. and
his amazing grace that brings us safe thus far. And that same
amazing grace will lead us home. But now, turn if you will to
1 Corinthians chapter 15. Let's just look at a couple of
these precious promises of our God to his children. These blessings
we have now. The church at Corinth, among
their many other problems, there were those who denied the resurrection. How ignorant was that? Denied
the resurrection. And Paul's dealing with that
in 1 Corinthians 15 and in verse 12 he asks, now if Christ be
preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you
that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be
no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen? And
if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain? We're
wasting our time preaching. So we're preaching a living Savior.
We're preaching men to look to a living Savior. And your faith
is vain. If you're looking to a dead Christ,
a dead Christ can't save anyone. Verse 15, Yea, and we are found
false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that
he raised up Christ, whom he raised not up, if so be that
the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then
is not Christ raised. And if Christ be not raised,
your faith is vain, and you're yet in your sins. Pretty serious. then they also
which are fallen asleep in Christ, they're perished. They died lost. If in this life only, We have
hope in Christ. We are, for all men, most miserable. And Paul seems to have gone about
as far as he wants to go with that line of thought. And he
says, enough of this. Enough of this. Away with this. He says, but now. But now. Oh, and all those suppositions,
they're all swept away. Because now is Christ risen from
the dead. But now. Think of that, brothers
and sisters in Christ. Just as really and just as truly
as I see you sitting there and you look at me standing here,
just as surely, just as real, Christ himself is risen from
the dead. And right now, at this very moment,
he sits on the throne of omnipotent power and majesty ruling everything. calling out His elect, ruling
this world for His own glory and the salvation of His people. And pretty soon, when He's called
His last sheep for whom He shed His blood, when He calls Him,
He's going to fold this world up and lay it aside and all mankind
will be ushered into His presence. Oh, but now is Christ risen from
the dead and his resurrection is the guarantee of our resurrection. Wherever the head is, the body
will be. As we said, a dead Christ doesn't
save anybody. The Catholics seem to have two
images that they always portray as being Christ, these idols
anyway, but it's either the baby in the manger, helpless, or on
the cross. That's it. Nothing else. The
baby in the manger or on the cross. I read of a man who was
a woodworker. He lay dying and his priest came
in and held up a wooden crucifix and told the man, behold, you're
God. And the poor man looked up and said, my God, I made that. I made that. That's my God. That's
all you have? Oh, no. No, our Lord is a living
Savior. The apostles went forth preaching,
not a doctrine of the resurrection. They preached a living Savior. And what does the writer in Hebrews
tell us of our living Savior? He can be touched. He can be
touched because He's flesh of our flesh and bone of our bones. He's made like unto His brethren. Come to the throne of grace.
Come to the throne of grace. that ye might find grace and
help in time of need. We have a high priest who identifies
with his people because he was in all points tempted just like
they are. He knows, he understands, he's
not aloof, he can be touched. Come therefore unto him, that
one who is mighty to save. Our elder brother, our Redeemer,
Our mediator, our all in all. When he rose from the dead. Let's
look again at one verse of scripture. Turn back, if you will, in Romans
along this line. Romans chapter 4. When our Lord
rose from the dead, it validated everything he claimed when he
was alive. Everything he claimed to be.
Everything he said he came to do, it was validated by his resurrection. It proved that everything he
said was so. And it also proved this, his
father's satisfaction with the sacrifice of his son. That's
exactly right. Lord, if God Almighty was not
a hundred percent, was not completely satisfied with the sacrifice
of his son on the behalf of his people, he would never have risen
him again from the dead. Look at verse 25 of Romans chapter
4. Speaking of Christ who was delivered
for our offenses, that word for would be better if we read it
like this, who was delivered because of our offense. was made
sin for us because of our offenses and was raised again because
of our justification. Because God was satisfied. Because sin was already put away. Because we're justified, he raises
his son from the dead. Our sins are gone. Hallelujah. done away forever by the sacrifice
of his dear son. You're still in Romans? Look
at verse 1 of chapter 8. Another blessed now. Right now. In Romans chapter 1, there is
therefore now. Did you think you had nothing
to rejoice in tonight? had nothing to be grateful and
thankful for. Oh, no, no, look. There is therefore
now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk
not after the flesh, but after the spirit. Now, in Christ Jesus. Now, no condemnation. Right now, made righteous in
him. In Christ Jesus, covered up in
that perfect robe. That perfect robe, that robe
that God looks at and says, don't see any fault whatsoever. It's perfect. I'm satisfied. When I was a young boy at home
living up to Holla, my brothers and I had our rooms in the attic.
There's five of us and two bedrooms, so we shared the bed. When we
would misbehave and my father would yell from downstairs his
bedroom, fellas, y'all better be quiet up there. I've got to
get up early and go to work. Be quiet and go to sleep. You
don't want me to come up there. Of course, we wouldn't listen.
Just keep it up. And man, we'd hear his feet hit
the floor. Taking steps. I counted the steps
because he was going right to that doorway where he hung that
belt. And I'd hear it jiggle as he got it off the bell. And
he'd come up those steps, Todd taking about three at a time.
You know what me and my brothers would do? Start fighting for
the blanket. We'd be jerking it back and forth. And my dad would come in and
just start whacking, whacking, whacking. There wasn't enough
cover to protect me from that bell. But the cover the cover
of Christ's perfect righteousness the cover of that robe of absolute
perfection. It covers me. It covers me, Louie,
from head to foot. And my Heavenly Father looks
at me and says, no condemnation. Right now. Right now. I stand before Him right now. Uncondemned. No reason I should
be because my substitute was condemned in my place. He was
made sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Turn if you will to Ephesians chapter 2. You know where we're
going. Ephesians chapter 2. Here's another blessed present
blessing. another but now from the hands
of God's grace. Verse thirteen, after describing
where we were by nature, where we would yet be, child of God,
are you like me? Do you have to pray much that
God would continue to remind you of that, where you were,
where you would yet be? Aren't you thankful that he didn't
leave you where you were? Aren't you glad of that, brother
Aren't you glad that he didn't leave you alone? When he first
came to me in grace, I said, oh, no, no, no, no. Not me. Not me. I don't want nothing
to do with that. Oh, I'm so glad he didn't leave
me alone. Paul says in verse 13, but now,
now, in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were afar off, could
you have been any further off? But now, you're made nigh by
the blood of Christ. The blood of Christ, that's what
brought us nigh. Oh my soul then, I can't be any
closer. I can't be any closer than that. We'll not turn there. But in
1 John chapter 3, another blessed now. Beloved, now are we the
sons of John D. Rockefeller. No, no, no, no. Much better than that. Much better
than that. Someone who is rich in grace,
rich in mercy, rich in love. Beloved, now are we the sons
of God. Oh, my soul. Behold, behold. Look, look. adore and wonder,
bow down and worship. Behold, beloved, now are we the
sons of God. God Himself. We're God's children. We're heirs and joint heirs with
Jesus Christ. And it doth not appear what we
shall be, but we know that when He shall appear, we shall what? Be Baptist-like? Oh, no. We shall be Christ-like. We shall be like him. For we
shall see him as he is. In Romans chapter 13, Paul said,
Now, now is our salvation nearer than when we first believed. Nearer. Oh, whether he He comes
in the clouds of glory to call all His children home or He comes
to us individually at the hour of death like that thief up on
the cross to whom He said, today. Isn't that remarkable? Today. And that promise is true to all
His children. Today. That shall be with me
in paradise. I can't preach on that. There's
no sense in trying. Today, with me in paradise, Joshua
is dying. God's ready to call him home,
to be with him in paradise. And he calls the elders of the
children of Israel around and he says this, Behold, this day
I'm going the way of all the earth. And you know that in all
your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing hath failed
of all the good things which the Lord your God spake concerning
you. All are come to pass unto you
and not one thing hath failed thereof. Joshua, as you know,
is just a Hebrew word for Jesus. or Joshua or Jesus can say the
same thing. When He gathers all His elect,
all His redeemed ones, when we're all brought before
the throne of God, He shall say, Father, I and the children that
you gave me. I lost none. A couple more verses of that
old hymn, The Lord Will Provide, say this. No strength of our
own, nor goodness we claim. Our trust is all cast on his
precious name. In this our strong refuge for
safety we hide. The Lord is our refuge, the Lord
will provide. When life is most o'er and death
is in view, the word of his grace will see us safe through. Not
fearing nor doubting, with Christ on our side, we hope to die shouting,
the Lord will provide. Jude said, now, now, this is
the last now, now unto him that is able to keep you from falling. and to present you faultless
before the presence of his glory. To him be glory and majesty,
dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen. Amen. God bless you. Thank you
for your attention.