your Bibles with you please open
to Acts chapter 17 the Acts of the Apostles and chapter 17 and
we're going to look at the first 15 verses which is the account
of Paul and Silas in Thessalonica and then in Berea and I've given
this message a title take care or take heed how you hear because
when the Word of God is preached when the gospel is preached There's
a responsibility that lies upon all of us as we hear it to take
care how we hear. This is precious, precious stuff
that we're dealing with here. These are precious truths. We
mustn't handle them lightly. We mustn't handle them carelessly. These are great treasures. You
know, it's described in other places in the Gospels as like
the person that finds the pearl. You know, they're picking through
a great heap of fake pearls. And they're all fakes. They're
all fakes. They're just plastic imitations. And then they discover
the pearl of greatest price. This gospel is that pearl of
eternal greatest price. Oh, how we need to treasure it.
How we need to value it. How we need to take care. How
we hear it and listen to it. So they'd been to Philippi and
they'd spent time in prison and they were shamefully treated.
Did you hear that when we read it in 1 Thessalonians chapter
2? He's talked about being shamefully
treated at Philippi. They were. They were beaten with
rods. They were put in the stocks, but God did wonderful things
out of it. That Philippian jailer was saved. What must I do to
be saved? He was brought to see his eternal
state, and he was brought to salvation. And then they move
on, and they come, they pass through Amphipolis and Apollonia,
and then they come to Thessalonica. We don't read any more about
those two places beginning with A. not another word about them
but then they come to Thessalonica and Thessalonica we do read a
lot more about it because later in your New Testament you will
see two letters written to the church that was founded at Thessalonica
from Paul the Apostle two letters to them now I want to see this
morning Paul's method I make no apology for the fact that
this is familiar territory it's what the Word of God is teaching
us and these are things that we really need to take to heart
in this day and generation in which we live. There is such
an abandonment of the scriptural truth that has marked the preaching
of the Gospel in this country in previous generations. And
we need to be sure that we know what foundation we're on. So
I want to look at Paul's method, Paul's message, the response
of the people, and then particularly the Bereans. What it was about
the people at Berea as opposed to other places. So Paul's method
Well, look at it in verse 2. Paul, as his manner was... See? All the words are important.
Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them. And three Sabbath
days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures. There was a synagogue
of the Jews in Thessalonica. And Paul's habit, Paul's method,
Paul's... The way he went about this was
for three Sabbath days he went to them. And what did he do?
He reasoned with them out of the Scriptures. He didn't go
with his own opinions. Now, I want to tell you what
I think my opinion is. You know, the world loves chat
shows on the television, doesn't it? I mean, I can't say that
I'm a great fan of very many of them, but do you know what
I mean? They love the chat shows on the television, where they
get every man and his dog in who's got any sort of a name,
and they bring them in, and, what's your opinion on this? And what's
your opinion on this? And, oh yes, that's an interesting
point of view, and so on and so forth. But Paul's approach? The Scriptures. He reasoned with
them out of the Scriptures. That was his word. That's what
he had to say. The same message, three weeks,
using the same source for his message, the Scriptures. Why?
Because as he later wrote to Timothy, all Scripture is given
by inspiration of God. And all Scripture is profitable
for doctrine, for teaching. That's what doctrine means. For
reproof, where we need to be ticked off. For correction, straightening
us out, pointing us in the right direction, for instruction in
righteousness, where true righteousness is in the Lord Jesus Christ.
And these Thessalonians, we read of them in 1 Thessalonians 2
and verse 13, that they received the word of God which they heard
from us, that is Paul and Silas, and they received it not as the
word of men, Paul stood up and preached, a man stood up and
preached, But they received it not as the word of men, but as
it is in truth, he says, the word of God. What Paul was preaching
was the word of God, the scriptures. And you know, Peter says later
in one of his epistles about our beloved brother Paul and
how he's written some things that are hard to understand.
But people twist what Paul has written like they do all of the
other scriptures. What Peter's saying, the things
that Paul wrote are the scriptures. It's the Scripture. It's the
Word of God. Think about this. It's the Word
of God. The God who has made us has spoken. We saw it in the two books when
we looked at Psalm 19. The book of creation. God has
spoken. And He tells us every day what
He's like. He tells us things about Himself.
Because He's a God of creation. But He's spoken in this book.
The book of the Word. The book of the Scriptures. And
we do well to take heed to it. We do well to take heed. It's
the whole counsel of God. The whole advice of God. The whole wisdom of God. This
is what Paul says in three chapters time when he's leaving the Ephesian
church. And he says to them, I have not
shunned to declare unto you the whole counsel of God. He didn't
hold back. He wanted to tell them the whole
counsel of God. And so that brings us to the
second point. What was the message What was Paul's message? You
see, as his manner was in every place, what was his message?
Well, we know, again, no apology for quoting this scripture often,
but 1 Corinthians chapter 2 and verse 2, for I determined, I
determined to know nothing else among you except Jesus Christ
and Him crucified. You say, Paul, you preach the
whole counsel of God. You preach the whole, everything
that God has revealed in His Word, you preach it. Yes, he
does. Well, what have you been saying then? I determined to
know nothing other than Jesus Christ and Him crucified. What
you mean all those Old Testament stories that people take and
twist? They all speak of Christ. All of them. Yes, they all do.
They all point to Christ. They all say this. They all show
the natural state of the human heart before a holy God. They
all show where we really are and they show what God has done
to save His people from their sins. They show what God has
done through the Messiah, through the Christ, to save His people
from their sins. That is the whole counsel of
God. God has spoken. God has revealed. In this book,
He reveals what He doesn't reveal in nature all around us. He reveals
a lot in nature all around us, but He doesn't reveal this. He
doesn't reveal how a man might be right with God. All He reveals
in nature is that you need to be right with God, because the
God who made you has made you fearfully and wonderfully the
God who has made you is an awesome almighty God but in this book
he reveals how might a man be just with God how might a man
be right with God how might a person be put in a right state of peace
with God that's what this book declares and it's all through
the person and work of the Messiah of the Christ the scriptures
from start to finish speak of the Messiah the Christ the substitute
get that term Get that term, the substitute for sinful people. I need a substitute. If I'm going
to be right with God, I can never be right on the basis of what
I am or what I do, because I'm never good enough. For we've
all sinned and fall short of the glory of God. And there is
none righteous, no, not one. And it is appointed to man to
die once, and then comes the judgment. And it's a fearful
thing to fall into the hands of the living God, for our God
is a consuming fire. That's our state, as we are by
nature. but in the person of a substitute,
a perfect, fitting substitute, a man or a woman can be made
right with the Living God. And that's the message of this
book. It's the Christ, the substitute for sinful people. Because of
what He is, and what He has done, because of everything that He
has done in establishing righteousness for His people, and everything
that His people have done in Him, by being in Him, by being
united with Him, by being one flesh with Him, he makes his
people right with God his name shall be called Jesus for he
shall save his people from their sins and Paul followed Christ's
lead turn over to Luke's gospel Luke's gospel the last chapter
chapter 24 Luke chapter 24 and verse 44 Luke 24 and verse 44 and this
is Jesus speaking to the disciples after he's risen from the dead
and before he goes back to heaven he says unto them these are the
words which I spoke unto you while I was yet with you that
all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law
of Moses and in the prophets and in the Psalms, all the scriptures
all the scriptures, that's the scriptures, the Old Testament
scriptures summarized all things that they said must be fulfilled
In what way? Look at the last two words of
that verse, concerning me. All those things in the prophets,
Moses, the Psalms, they all must be fulfilled, those things which
concern the Lord Jesus Christ. Then opened he their understanding,
that they might understand the scriptures. And he said unto
them, thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ. Thus
it was necessary for Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead
the third day. So Paul follows his example.
And what does he do? Verse 3 of our chapter 17. Reasoned
with them out of the Scriptures, opening and alleging that Christ
must needs have suffered. He had to suffer and rise from
the dead and that this Jesus whom I preach unto you is Christ. Paul followed Christ's lead.
Christ had told them, you search the Scriptures for in them you
think that you have eternal life and you think right, he said
to the Pharisees. But these are they which speak of me." Those
disciples on the Emmaus road in Luke 24, again a few verses
earlier, and they're down and they don't understand what's
going on. The crucifixion has taken place
and they don't realize that Christ has risen from the dead. And
He expounded to them, beginning at Moses and the prophets, He
expounded to them in all the scriptures the things concerning
Himself. You see, Paul's message here
in Thessalonica, as everywhere else, was not what you need to
do, but how God has justified his people. That was his message.
Not what you need to do to be right with God, but how God has
justified his people. How God has paid the sin debt
that we all have. The debt of sin that we all have
to the law and justice of God. How he has established a righteousness
which is acceptable to a holy God, which we must have, for
we must pursue holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. Where are you going to get the
righteousness, the holiness, without which no man shall see
the Lord? There's only one place. You'll
find it in the Lord Jesus Christ, in the Messiah, in the Substitute. The Christ had to pay the sin
debt. This is what Paul preached. He
opened and alleged that Christ must needs have suffered The
Christ, the substitute, had to suffer in the place of His people
and rise from the dead. He had to pay the sin debt. And
the resurrection, that was the proof that the payment was accepted
by the justice of God. The Father accepted that payment
of the sin debt on behalf of His people and raised Him from
the dead. And that was the proof. He had
to suffer. He had to pay the sin debt and
it had to be proven. that it was accepted. So what
was it that Paul opened and alleged, as it says here in verse 3, opening
and alleging from the Scriptures? What was it that he opened and
alleged? If you go and listen to all sorts
of preaching in our country today, you will go and you will hear
men open the Old Testament and they'll tell you how much you've
fallen short of the glory of God and how great your sins are
and what you need to do to be acceptable to God. and the level
of holiness and righteousness that you need before God will
accept you and how dreadful you've been and how you ought to hang
your head in shame for all sorts of things but if you try harder
you might do better by this time next week this is the message
you'll hear again and again and again but Paul didn't do that
he opened and alleged that the Christ must needs have suffered
and risen again from the dead as I said it's the message of
the whole scripture let me give you some examples Let me give
you some familiar examples. You go right back to Genesis
chapter 3 and verse 15. You don't need to turn to it
at the moment, but I'll just remind you of these things. What does
he do there? There's the promise right there
in Genesis chapter 3. Adam and Eve have sinned. Eve
was beguiled by the serpent. She ate the forbidden fruit.
She gave it to her husband Adam, who knowing what he was doing,
ate of that forbidden fruit. And the condemnation came upon
them. and God pronounced the curse on Satan and sin and in
the day that you eat of it you shall surely die and that curse
was pronounced but there in Genesis 3.15 even there right at the
very start of the fall the promise was given of a substitute the
seed would come the woman's seed would come and deal with sin
and that seed was the Christ the Christ must needs come in
the process he would suffer He would have his heel bruised,
but in that same process he would crush the serpent's head. That
promise is given there. And then very shortly after that,
Adam and Eve try and clothe themselves with their own works. They sew
fig leaves together, but it doesn't hide their nakedness. And so
God sacrifices animals. There's blood that is shed, the
blood of animals that they might have skins with which to clothe
themselves. And there's a picture of blood
atonement. For without the shedding of blood there is no remission
of sins, we read in the epistle to the Hebrews. The skin covering
spoke of the fact that blood had been shed to cover these
people. And then we have the picture
of Abel's lamb. You know Cain and Abel, the first two brothers
that we read of, the children of Adam and Eve. And what did
Cain bring to God? The things that he had done.
He brought the works of his own hands. Oh look God, aren't I
good? I've done all these things for you. Surely you'll accept
me because I've tried really hard. And God wouldn't accept
what he had done. Not the work of his own hands.
And his brother Abel, he brought a lamb. He brought a lamb and
offered a lamb and God accepted it. Why? Because it spoke of
the only way that God accepts sinners on the basis of a substitute. on the basis of the precious
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and then he shows us the picture
that this substitute this Christ who must come and must suffer
has to be perfect and has to be the well-beloved son of the
Father and he shows us that picture with Abraham and his well-beloved
son Isaac the promised son and how when Isaac is growing and
he's a strong strapping fit lad and the apple of his father's
eye and his father's over a hundred years old. And God comes and
tells him to go and take your only son, your well-beloved son,
and take him and sacrifice him at the place where I will show
you. Can you imagine that? Can you imagine what must have
gone through Abraham's mind after all those years and years of
promises and doubts and doing the wrong thing and finally the
promise is fulfilled and here he has this perfect apple of
his eye, this majestic son to Abraham, the son of his old age,
the son of promise. Take him and sacrifice him. And
it's a picture of that well-beloved son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the
only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth, who
was to be sacrificed on Calvary for the sins of his people. And
Paul showed them this. He opened and alleged these things
out of the Scriptures, that the substitute for sinners couldn't
just be a nice guy, He had to suffer to pay the sin debt in
the place of those people. And then He would have shown
them Moses and the Israelites in slavery, in bondage, as a
picture of sin. And how are they going to be
brought out? How are they going to be brought out? Only by the
shedding of blood. And so the Passover and the Passover
lamb. And the justice of God pronounces
that the firstborn in all the land, the firstborn of the cattle,
the firstborn of the Egyptians, The firstborn in all the land
must die. The justice, the justice of God,
they must die for their sins. And what does he do? He says
to the Israelites, you take a lamb, a lamb for a household, or as
many as you get together, and slay that lamb at the Passover.
And paint the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and on the lintel.
And when the angel of death comes through the land, he will look.
And when he sees the blood, he will pass over. He will pass
by. One has already died in the place
of the firstborn. The substitute. Do you see? Christ
must need suffer. One has already died in the place
of the firstborn. You see? The firstborn died everywhere. But with the Israelites, the
Lamb had died in the place. And that's Christ. That Christ
must need suffer. And He would have shown them
the tabernacle, the temple, the pictures in Leviticus, and the
temple types and the pictures the holy place the place where
a man could not go other than be struck dead and only the high
priest could go once a year and only then with blood that had
been shed of a perfect acceptable sacrifice picturing how holy
God is and there was the altar which spoke of the need for remission
of sins for the shedding of blood for the offering there was the
sin offering There was the mercy seat on the Ark of the Covenant
where God met with His people and spoke face to face. There
was the High Priest with all of His garments which speak so
much. And the garments were embroidered with the names of the children
of Israel and the jewels with the names set in them. And it's
such a picture of this Christ with His people's name written
upon Him. The garments, the lights, the
bread, even the bread in the temple speaking, speaking. of the Christ who must suffer
and then he would have shown them from the words of scripture
plainly as we saw in Psalm 16 and verse 10 for thou wilt not
leave my soul in hell the Holy One of God when he suffered for
sin when he was made sin for his people and bore the just
punishment of that sin to pay the sin debt yet his soul was
not left in hell neither did he suffer his Holy One to see
corruption but raised him from the dead The promise was there
that Christ must needs have suffered and risen from the dead. And
he would have shown them Psalm 22 where he cries out, my God,
my God, why have you forsaken me? He would have shown them
Psalm 69 where Christ cries out, my sins have weighed me down.
Why? He wasn't a sinner. He never
committed any sins. Ah, but at Calvary he took upon
him the sins of his people. He was made sin. The sin offering
In Leviticus, in the Old Testament, the animal that was chosen, the
words used in the original language, the animal was sin, was made
sin for the people, in the place of the people. He would have
shown them from the prophets. Throughout the book of Isaiah,
the prophets, how it all spoke of Christ. Now that chapter 53,
that the Ethiopian was reading in his chariot, when Philip came
alongside. That chapter there, speaking
of the lamb, as a lamb to the slaughter. Speaking of the Messiah,
that Christ must need suffer. He would have shown them Daniel
9. Daniel chapter 9. And again, speaking of the Messiah
who must come and do all of those things that were necessary to
make an end of sacrifice, to fulfill all things. He would
have shown them Hosea and Zechariah, smite the shepherd and the sword
of judgment falling upon him. Yes, Christ had to suffer. This
is what Paul alleged to these people who were sat there listening
to him. He alleged and He showed and He opened the Scriptures
to show that Christ must needs of suffer. He must suffer and
He must die to save His people. But who is this Christ? Who is
this Christ? Look in verse 3. Yes, we now
understand that there needs to be a Christ as substitute who
will die in the place of His people. You ask Orthodox Jews
today, if they really know their Scriptures, they will tell you.
Oh yes, it's necessary for a Messiah to come. and to die in the place
of his people. Yes, it is necessary. The only
thing is they don't believe what Paul next says. That this Jesus
whom I preach unto you is the Christ. Jesus of Nazareth. The Jesus that was born of Mary.
He is the one. Jesus is all over the world today.
You go to Spanish speaking Catholic countries, you'll find loads
of boys called Jesus. It means Savior, Joshua, it's
the same name. But he's saying this Jesus. whom
I preach to you, Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus who walked the earth 2,000
years ago. He is the Christ. He is God become
man to stand in the place of his people. And the response
then? The response to this, verse 4.
In Thessalonica, as he's preaching, he's been preaching three Sabbath
days and some of them believed and consorted with Paul and Silas
and of the devout Greeks a great multitude and of the chief women
Not a few. A large number. Some believed.
What did they believe? Oh, that Jesus was a real man
and he came. That yes, there is God. Yes,
we do believe that there is a God. No, no, no, no, no, no. That's
taken as read. Far more than that. Far more
than that. What is it to believe as these
Thessalonians believed? It's this. It's to believe that
what the Christ did, what this Jesus did, was in their place. In my place condemned He stood. And He did it to make me right
with God. That's what they believed. He
did it in my place. When He died, He died in my place
that I might die in Him. When He died, He died in my place
to pay my sin debt so that I stand before the law of God with a
clear conscience, with a clean slate, with my debts paid, with
them literally blotted out of the book of God. They're blotted
out. You know, as an old ledger, and
it's blotted out so that there's no trace of it remaining. Taken
away. He's taken it away. He's nailed
it to his cross. He's dealt with it. And God granted
these people repentance. Remember what I keep telling
you? It's a turning around. It's a rethinking, literally,
is what repentance means. He turned them around. Away from
their idols, as we read in 1 Thessalonians, chapter 1. They turned away from
their idolatrous false religion to the living God, to faith and
trust, because it's by grace that they were saved. Through
faith. And that, not of themselves. It is the gift of God. God granted
repentance and faith to trust and to rest. And the letters
to the Thessalonians show how they believed. You know, we keep
repeating it. What manner of entry. Why was
there such a manner of entry? The entry being the entry into
their hearts and minds of the truth of salvation in Christ.
Why was there such an entry? Because God opened the door.
That's the reason why. As He did Lydia's heart. He opened
Lydia's heart. When God opens the door, no man
can shut it. No man can stop it. You can't
stop that door from opening. God opened the door of their
hearts. What manner of entry there was.
And what did it show? Again, you read, I think it's
about verse 4 of 1 Thessalonians chapter 1. that they believed
and as a result Paul says, knowing therefore brethren your election
of God. How do you know that you're the
elect of God? Doesn't it sound such an arrogant thing to say
I am the elect of God? Do you know there's only one
way in this life that you know you believe the truth? You believe
it. You believe the gospel. You believe
the true gospel that the sovereign God has revealed. You believe
that gospel. But many opposed, as they always
did in every place, there was opposition everywhere. The world,
they said, was being turned upside down by Paul. You read that in
verse 6, they were crying out, the Jews who were filled with
envy, they caused a riot in the city and they were crying out,
these people who turned the world upside down, that's what they
called Paul and Silas, people who turned the world, you've
upset our social order. You've upset our religion, and
our churches, and our priests, and our temples, and the way
we do things. You've turned it upside down, and they caused
a riot, and they caused such opposition. You know, don't be
surprised. The more you preach the truth
of the Gospel of Grace, the more you will meet with the opposition,
especially of Orthodox religion. Because Orthodox religion hates
it. Why? Why? Is there such contention
caused around this message? You might be sitting here this
morning thinking, what a lovely message of acceptance with God
on the basis of a substitute. Why would anybody object to that
so strongly? Well, the scriptures tell us.
It's because the gospel assaults the self-righteous pride of people. That's what it does. Self-righteous
pride is what characterizes nearly all of us by nature. All of us
by nature. Self-righteous pride. I'm good
enough. And this gospel message comes and batters that concept
right down because it says it's only in Christ that there is
forgiveness of sins and the payment of the sin debt. Jesus said this,
I came not to bring peace but a sword. Hold on. Gentle Jesus,
meek and mild, I came not to bring peace but a sword. That's
what he said. He said there would be contention,
there would be division among you. Because? Why? Because it's
a horrible message? No. It's the truth. It's glorious. But because it assaults the self-righteous
pride of people. Do you know what the Word of
God is? Hebrews says this, the Word of God is quick and powerful
and sharper than any two-edged sword and it divides asunder
soul and spirit and joints and marrow and is a discerner of
the thoughts and intents of the heart and you read it. and it
shines the light into the darkest recesses of your soul and it
shows what we're like by nature. So there was opposition. Opposition
all around and it meant that Paul and Silas had to be led
away by night. Verse 10, the brethren at Thessalonica
immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea. So they came to a new place.
Now you would think that they would probably keep a low profile
for a while, wouldn't you? Having been such contention in
Thessalonica. You would think that they would
keep a low profile and keep their mouths shut a little bit and
just let things die down a bit, but no. What did they do? As
his manner was, in he goes again, coming thither, went into the
synagogue of the Jews. That's where he went. He went
into the synagogue of the Jews, and it was a synagogue of the
Jews, but as with all these places in the Gentile world where there
were synagogues of the Jews, a lot of the people there were
what's called proselytes. They were converts to the Jewish
religion. they saw the inherent truth of
the scriptures they saw that in them were the words of eternal
life but look look what it says about them verse 11 these were
more noble than those in Thessalonica or another way of putting it
is these were more fair-minded than those in Thessalon... why
were they more fair-minded? in that they received the word
with all readiness of mind and searched the scriptures daily
whether those things were so therefore many of them believed.
They were fair-minded. How? Were they just naturally
more fair-minded people? You know, you come across all
sorts, don't you? No, not by nature, because by nature none
of us have got this level of fair-mindedness concerning the
Scriptures. It was by grace. It was by the grace of God that
he'd given them this fair-minded approach to the Scriptures. And
what were they doing? They were hearing what Paul preached,
and they asked this question, Is this in accordance with the
Scriptures that we have? Remember, we're in a Jewish synagogue.
These are proselyte converts. They were more fair-minded. Is
what he's saying in accordance with these Scriptures that we've
got? And the pages that I'm flicking through now in the Old Testament
are essentially the same Scriptures that they were talking about.
They searched the Scriptures and they asked this question
to the law and to the testimony. If they speak not, if Paul speaks
not according to this word, he's not telling the truth. But is
what he's saying in accordance with this word, Isaiah 8.20?
Or is it in accordance with religious tradition? Is it in accordance
with the sort of things that we've been taught by generations?
Or is it the truth of the scriptures? And they fair-mindedly came to
it and examined what was said and therefore many of them believed.
Now there's a lesson here for us and with this we'll close.
What about you? What about anybody listening
to this? Do you know, we preach sovereign grace, but we also
preach responsibility. And there's a responsibility
laid upon everybody who hears. Jesus says this in Luke chapter
8 and verse 18. Luke chapter 8 verse 18. He says
to them, the people listening to him, take heed, therefore,
how you hear. Take heed. And then he says something
which doesn't sound at all Christian. but it is absolute sovereign
grace. He says, for whosoever has, to him shall be given. You think that doesn't sound
fair, they've already got some. He says, to whomsoever has, to
him shall be given. And whosoever has not, from him
shall be taken even that which he seems to have. That sounds
awfully unfair, doesn't it? No, it's saying this. If you've
got a glimmer of light of the gospel of grace, grasp it. get hold of it, dig, search for
it. The gospel is the greatest treasure
this earth affords. That's what it says in the coronation
ceremony. The scriptures are the greatest treasure this earth
affords because they speak of eternal life, of knowing the
eternal God and what greater treasure can there be? What greater,
greater gift and treasure can there be? And this is why we
have to take heed. Will we despise it? Will we cast
it aside? You know, Jesus warns his disciples
to beware that preaching to some people who despise and reject
and don't hear correctly, he said it's like throwing your
best pearls in front of a herd of pigs in the pigsty. He uses
some graphic pictures. He says it's casting your pearls
before swine. He said don't do that because
they'll just trample all over them. They'll trample them in
the mud. And the warning is to us who hear, Take care, take
heed how we hear. Prayerfully follow the Bereans
example. What did they do? Noble, fair-minded,
they searched the scriptures daily whether those things were
so. Oh Lord, show me. Oh Lord, teach
me. Oh Lord, speak to me. Show me
the truth of your gospel. Give me that faith to see and
to believe and to follow and to discover. the treasures and
the riches that are in your house forevermore. It's a matter of
life and death, eternal life and death. Take heed, take care,
how you hear. Amen.