[00:00:01] Speaker A: Hey, thanks so much for listening to this message. My name is Jason and I'm one of the ministers here at the Madison Church of Christ. It's our hope and prayer that the teaching from God's words you hear today will bless your life and draw you closer to Him. If you're ever in the Madison, Alabama area, we'd love for you to worship with us on Sundays at 8:30 or 10:30am if you have any other questions about the Bible or want to know more about the Madison Church, find
[email protected] Be sure to also check out our Bible Study podcast, Madison Church of Christ Bible Studies. Thanks again for stopping by.
[00:00:39] Speaker B: Psalm 19 opens up this way in beautiful language.
The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Now, I don't know where your mind goes when you think about that. I think we've heard that verse a lot. But if you can imagine David as he is writing these words, what is coming across his mind? If you can imagine his reflections, his thoughts, everything that he's imagined, everything that he's seen and observed. And as he sits down to take all of those thoughts and collect them into these beautiful words, it jumps off the page and reminds us of just how powerful God is. And I don't know if the setting was one of those things where he's out with the the sheep and maybe the sun is rising up above the horizon and maybe he sees the beautiful colors in the sky. Maybe he sees the different cloud formations. Maybe as those colors rise and as the colors, you know, electrify the morning sky, they reflect off of the surroundings around them. I don't know how we see that, but maybe that was one of those things where he is looking up and he's thinking about how great what God has done and how he has shared with us who he is.
Or maybe it was one of those things where he's in a moment of reflection and maybe he's feeling lonely. Maybe he's confronting his sin and he's doing some reflection. And maybe, just maybe, he's sitting under the night sky and he looks up and he sees these things and he realizes just how amazing and awesome our God is. And when I think about it, David just had the naked eye.
He didn't have all of the things that we see today. He did not have those magnifiers, those telescopes, those things that we send out into deep space to give us these things. And yet he could clearly look up into the sky, see the patterns and the circuits and the different things that are taking place. And he could see the power and the majesty of God. And, you know, ever since that time, we keep going further into space. We sent the Hubble telescope, and it brought us a lot of different pictures, like this. This Whirlpool Galaxy, or maybe this Butterfly Nebula, or maybe this Veil Nebula. And then, of course, there's some that we've seen that are so vibrant and so vivid that it's almost unimaginable to see the beauty of them. Like, for example, these. The pillars of Creation. And as we look deep into space and we see these things, what I want you to know and what I want you to understand is that God has revealed himself to us through these things. And if we just stop and think about what we can observe, we too should be in awe of who God is.
Listen again to these words in Psalm 19, verses 1 through 6.
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaim his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech. There are no words whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the land and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber. And like a strongman runs its course with joy. Its rising is from one end of the heavens and its circuit to the end of them. And there is nothing hidden from its heat.
I think if we stop and we just pay attention real closely, we can see the majesty and the power of God. We can look into the universe and see the awesome design and therefore a need for a designer. And I think David, in all of his beautiful lyrics here, as imagining this as something that they might sing, as they might proclaim the glory of God in these things. And as he's moved by these things, drawing us to the reality that there is a powerful God above all else, God's creation gives clear voice to his power and his majesty.
And as long as we've been, you know, exploring and observing and learning different things, we've gone deeper into space. And it seems to me that what we're trying to do is find some way that we can figure out how this all came to be and we can explain everything. And the reality is we can't. That pursuit is pretty futile. And so I love this quote by Robert Jastrow. He says this for the scientist who has lived by his faith and the power of reason. The story ends like a bad dream.
He has scaled the mountains of ignorance. He is about to conquer the highest peak. And as he pulls himself over the rock, he is greeted by a band of theologians who have been sitting there for centuries. What is he telling us is creation is in and of itself the evidence of a God who has designed this and has brought it into fruition. And David is bringing us to the awe of that moment.
But here is what Paul said to the Church in Rome. He said, forever, since the world has created, people have seen the earth and sky through everything God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities, namely those two things, his eternal power and his divine nature, so that they have no excuse for not knowing God. So as we continue to grow and as we continue to understand what David is saying here in the majesty of God, I want you to understand he's pivoting to something else. Because while we can look to that God and be amazed and brought in awe of who he is, there's something else that he brings to us to remind us there's a connection that we have with Him. So let's Continue. In verse 7 through 11, he pivots now to not just the awesome power of God, but the Word that He has given us. And his commands, he said, the law of the Lord is perfect. Reviving the soul, the testimony of the Lord is sure. Making wise is simple. The precepts of the Lord are right. Rejoicing the heart, the commandment of the Lord is pure, Enlightening the eyes, the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The rules of the Lord are true and righteous altogether More to be desired than they are than gold, even much fine gold, sweeter than also honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned, and in keeping them there is great reward. What is he saying?
He's saying that God, that we would love to be in the presence of his awesomeness, has left us instructions that are equally powerful and give us insight into what he wants for us. God's Word gives us a clear voice into those instructions that get us into his presence.
What a powerful thing to think about this Psalm, and how beautifully written it is to first build the case for the God and then for the instructions that he's left behind for us. You know, when I was young, this was a big deal.
I was given a pocket knife by my grandfather when I was very young. And through my mother's supervision, I could play with that at times and I could whittle and I could do different things with that knife. But when the Swiss army knife started Circulating around and I started seeing this. I'm like, man, I gotta have one of those. I mean, how amazing are they with those little bitty tiny scissors and, and all those things. And you know, some of the undervalued parts of that Swiss army knife was the little tweezers. I mean, can someone give me some tweezers? Love. And then also the toothpick. That toothpick was invaluable, right? So I thought that was awesome. But then like a couple of years ago, Joe Harless gave me one of these little things called a Leatherman. And I know some of you know what that is. And I was like, man, how cool is this that I don't have just a blade on it. I've got the ability to use pliers and different things. It's really cool. And I thought that was awesome. What an awesome gift that Joe gave me. Until I saw this one and I was like, come on Joe, I thought you loved me, man.
Look at all the different things about these things. And I want you to capture the thing that pulls all of these things together is they're all multi tools. They're all things that have multiple uses and multiple purposes and multiple ways that they can help us in life. And I think if you read closely what David is saying here in Psalm 19, you're going to find that that's exactly what he's saying about God's Word. He connects that all powerful God to the all purpose word of God and the instructions that he's left for us to once again find him and be in his presence one day. So let's talk about this in this passage in Psalm 19. We're just going to kind of go through this real quickly. Try not to spend too much time on each one of these things. But just to kind of hit some of the highlights here, first of all, God's word is revitalizing. What do I mean by that? Well, the Bible says the law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. And I love how as David is introducing this concept, the very first thing that he says is this law that we have heard, that we have read, that we've understood, it's perfect. And by that perfect we mean it's comprehensive. It has every single thing that we could possibly need in this life. That's why second Timothy chapter three. You know, when Paul was talking to Timothy, he said that you've known these holy scriptures which are able to make you wise unto salvation. For all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for what Doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness, that we can be completely equipped for every good work. That's the whole point of the Scriptures, is the totality of them. And every word, as Proverbs 35, Every word of God is tested, and he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. But not only is it perfect, but it has this ability to revive the soul. It brings us back to life. In a sense, it revitalizes us, it refreshes us. And in fact, some translations will use the terminology converting because it takes us from where we are and pushes us into a direction where we need to go. And it's meant to change our lives and to have an impact. That's why when Peter on the day of Pentecost and he was preaching and he looked over that crowd, and after he had told them about the reality that Jesus came and he died, he was buried and he was raised from the dead. And that they he said, with wicked hands, you have killed and crucified the Son of God.
And then Peter looks at them and says, let all of the house of Israel know assuredly that this Jesus whom you crucified, God has made him, both Lord and Christ, has raised him up from the dead. And it says that message alone, the reality that Jesus came and died for them and they missed the whole promise that God had given them already. The reality of that hit them in the heart, it says. It pricked their heart. And they said, men and brethren, what do we do? And of course, he told them, repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins.
But I think about Romans chapter one, that text, as Paul is talking about the gospel, and he says, this powerful gospel, I just want you to understand that. That I'm not ashamed of it. And it has the power to save souls. It has the ability to convert people. It has the power that is needed for that. He's not running away from it. He's saying, this is where the power lies. And then in First Peter, chapter one, Peter says this. He says that we are brought anew. We're born anew. And how are we born anew? By the enduring word of God. What's he saying? The Word itself doesn't save us, but it directs us in a way that brings us to this idea of resurrection in Christ, which gives us that salvation.
And so that word endures forever. And that's one of the things that it says. The second part of this is the Bible is brilliantly simple. And I, being not the sharpest tool in the shed, am A person who can appreciate the reality of this. It is brilliantly simple. And what do I mean by that? Well, God says this. The testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple. And what do we mean by sure? Well, it's not just firm, it's the idea of it can also be confirmed. So it's settled. And I love how in Psalm 119, verse 89, it says, Your word, O Lord, is settled in heaven forever.
How awesome is that? It's sure, it's settled, it's firm. And because it's so consistent, we can go back through life and we can ask ourselves different questions, and we can confirm what we've already discovered in the truth. It's that wonderful.
And he says, the testimony. I may have hit a couple of buttons here. Yep. Nope, that's it. Testimony. The word testimony. Sometimes we run away from it. Right? That sounds kind of a kooky thing like testimony. But in reality, what that means is it bears witness to a truth. And so whenever we take in God's Word and whenever it shapes who we are, whenever it challenges us to change, and we make those modifications in our life, and we can see the results of that. We can see how God has worked through those changes to bring about blessing and joy in our life, and we can see that transformation that's taking place. It's worth sharing that story about how God's Word has helped us. That becomes a witness to the truth of God's Word. It becomes something that we can share with others as a way to lead them closer to you. Spurgeon says this about the witness of God's Word. He said, God's witness in his Word is so sure that we may draw solid comfort from it, both for time and eternity, and so sure that no attack's made upon it, however fierce, subtle, can ever weaken its force. That's the powerful, sure, confirmed word of God is. But it also says that it's simple.
And again, being a person who can appreciate simple things, I love that. I love that God's Word. We have people who will say, it's so complex and it's so difficult. It's really not if we take the time to absorb it. It's a very, very simple message.
And so I want to try to illustrate this in First Corinthians, chapter 1, as Paul is talking to the church at Corinth. You know, you got some people who are kind of wrapped up in idolatry and a lot of different things.
And so Paul is preaching to them, and he tries to help Them understand these lofty thoughts that you guys, these philosophical things that you may find yourself falling into an understanding of those things can actually kind of lead you in a direction away from the very simple truth of God's message. So he says, the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are headed for destruction, but we who are being saved know that it is the very power of God. And then he quotes a passage from Isaiah chapter 29, where it says, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and I will discard the intelligence of the intelligent.
And so what he's saying is there's, there's, there's a certain level that we may think, and these philosophical thoughts may lead us to this, this area of high thinking that we may think. These really deep thoughts may be exactly what we need to be thinking about and challenging our mind to open up and see all kinds of things. But those kinds of things are not really what God is wanting. He's wanting a message for all of mankind. So when he says that, he says, so where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, the world's brilliant debaters? Where does it lead them? Well, God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. Since God in his wisdom, saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. Isn't that awesome? Just a simple message of Jesus coming down to earth to pay the penalty for our sins. And that message in and of itself has such power because what we find out is that when we die, to ourselves, we are raised up and we are, we are blessed with forgiveness and an opportunity to be with God again. So he goes on to say it's foolishness to the Jews and to the Greeks, it's, you know, they're still looking for human wisdom.
But we preach Christ crucified. Jews may be offended by it. The Greeks may say it's all nonsense, but to those of us who are saved, it is literally the power of God and the wisdom of God. It's a very, very simple message. If I can further illustrate this, let's talk about baptism just for a moment, because I want us to be clear about this. The word in and of itself, baptism, if you look it up in the Greek language, you'll find out that this word has inherent in it the idea of a burial.
There's to be a death involved. And so when you read Romans, chapter 6, verse 3 and 4, it says, for we are buried with him in baptism into a death like his, so that we in the same way that Jesus was raised up by the glory of the Father, we too may walk in newness of life. So there are all kinds of folks that will say, well, you know, I asked Jesus, or I confessed Jesus, and I took him on and I was saved. And then later I went back and I was baptized so other people could see that I was following Jesus. But if you notice this pattern, this pattern is very representative of what Jesus did. He came down, he died, he was buried, and then he was raised up. And I think sometimes we get this kind of twisted in our minds a little bit, or some can be twisted in our minds to think that somehow we will get a resurrection before we have the death. And that's not logical. It doesn't make sense. And in this situation, what has to happen is we have to die to ourselves. We have to put. Put that person to death and bury him so that we can be raised up and after that, full surrender to Jesus Christ, have our sins washed away, and we're resurrected to a new life in Christ.
And so we can't take those things out of order. We can't say, I'm saved, and then suddenly say, well, let me go ahead and be baptized. As if it's some kind of spectacle. It's not. It's about your surrender, your death. You're putting to death that old person so you can be raised up to walk as a new person in Christ.
It's a very simple message. And you can see the consistent pattern of how we respond to God through the scriptures. It's simple.
He didn't know this was going to be up here. But this is a young man named Aidan Kletke.
And Aiden Kletke is a friend of Garrison Barchette.
Garrison invited this young man to come. He and I and Garrison, we sat down and studied for maybe four weeks.
And when I say, I think if Aiden were in the room here, he would say, I knew nothing, absolutely nothing. And so we started in Genesis and we began to work through the story of the Bible and to help him see that God was setting some things up along the way and that Jesus was the fulfillment of all those things that he set up. And he said something to the effect of, I knew this is not just it, man. I knew it couldn't be just. We die and we're done. You know, it has to be something greater than that. And so he said, I want to be baptized. I want my sins washed away. I want the new start. So what you see on the left there is a young man Ready to die to himself and ready to confess that Jesus is Lord.
He is buried. He buries that old man, and he is raised up. And look at the face of a man who's been forgiven of his sins and a new fresh start in life.
That's how simple this message is. And this passage in Psalm 119 reminds us of this very truth. The unfolding of words gives light and it imparts understanding to the simple. What a beautiful picture that is when we understand its simplicity. But God's Word is soul satisfying. And what I mean by that is it brings rejoicing, it brings happiness to us. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. Jeremiah, chapter 15, verse 6 says or 16 says this. When I discovered your words, I devoured them, and they are my joy and my heart's desire. For I bear your name, O Lord, God of Heaven's armies. Man, when was the last time we took in God's Word as that kind of delightful intake?
I'm calling all of us. I'm challenging all of us to come to that where we look forward to letting God speak to us through His Word and to challenge our minds and to compel us to deeper thinking and to adjustments in our lives that we will feast upon his words in the same way David talked about. Well, how does His Word bring us joy? Well, you know, first of all, I know God's will. It's really cool when I can look in God's Word and find out exactly what I need to do to be successful in my life, but also that I find comfort in its truth. Let me say a moment, one thing real quickly, a little bit of a side note about this. Truth is really kind of a boundary, right? It gives us the things that we can hope in, that we can trust in, that we can put our, you know, our belief in. But then it also gives us things that are detrimental for us. And knowing that truth draws those boundaries in our life. It helps me to understand what's right and what's wrong. And so parents, please understand this. We have to correct our children. It's not about us being abusive to them. It's not about us, you know, being harsh on them. It's about us defining those lines, those very clear lines of right and wrong. It's about helping them understand the discipline that it takes to stay within those good things. And so I'm encouraging all of us to, not just in the sense of truth, but in the sense of how we live out that truth, to demonstrate that discipline and to hold our kids to those parameters as well. That brings them joy. There's actually comfort in a child when they know what that boundary is. But then also we go through tough times. We go through difficulties in our life, and suffering is a part of how we live. We're gonna go through difficulties. But I know because of the promises of God that that stuff is temporary, that there will come a day where there will be no tears, there will be no suffering, there will be no more sorrow, there'll be no pain.
And those promises, by the way, and this is joyful, they're guaranteed. And so I can confidently say I believe what God says. It gives me that comfort, it gives me that joy, and it gives me something to look forward to. But then God's word is eye opening. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. And what that enlightening means is to bring light to God's law. It just means that when we read it and we see it, actually what happens is we pray to God for understanding and he opens our eyes up to what that truth means and how we can apply that in our life. What happens is we get convicted of the things that we know are in violation. And God helps us to see what we need to do to make those adjustments. Paul said this. He said, I pray. He's talking about the church at Ephesus. He said, I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance, his holy people and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
I really believe this. I believe when we study God's word and we ask for his discernment, I believe he gives us an understanding to help us in life.
But also, God's word is timeless. We talked about this. It endures forever.
And he says, the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. That word for clean means ethically pure.
Isn't it interesting today that all the laws that we read that, and especially nowadays in this current modern history, we're always tweaking laws, we're always going back and putting them up for amendments and these kinds of things, and those laws are constantly being changed and modified. And it usually has something to do with like a political motive or an ethical motive, whatever. But what God is telling us through David here is that his laws are completely ethical. They're trustworthy. They have no underhanded agenda. They don't have a manipulative quality to them. Their message is true. For you, it's true for everybody that you will come in contact with and everyone that you seek to teach. There's no slant to these things. It's just ethically pure. That's why Psalm 119, 160 says this. The sum of your word is truth. All of this stuff collected together is truth. And every one of those rules is everlasting.
And then finally, God unites the truth and righteousness. How do I live righteous before God? Well, I do that by employing His Word and his instructions in my daily activities. And that shapes me into a person who thinks righteously, who wants to live righteously and conducts myself in a way that other people can see the righteousness of God living in me. The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
Also, God's Word is invaluable to our spiritual destination.
And what do I mean by that? Well, he talks about the value of these things. He says, more to be desired are they, than gold. And then he goes on to say, more than fine gold. Now, if we're talking about David here, he would have understood riches. All kings had riches and gold and precious metals and those kinds of things. But he also makes a distinction between, okay, there's gold and that's valuable. And everybody would go, yeah, that's valuable. But he says, much fine gold. The idea is more precious, more purified, the very best of the best. And he's saying God's Word is greater than that. But he's also saying that about like honey and how sweet that is to the taste and how beautiful it is. Well, he's saying, not only is God's word valuable, it's also sweet to the taste. It means I enjoy so much the value of it. I hold it close and make it a value to me.
So God's Word gives us the choice to receive not only his wisdom but also his blessing. What does he say in that last verse? He said, through it, through God's Word, we have warnings.
And again, that's that defining line that says, here are some things that are not what God wants you to be, but it also gives us the other side of that in obedience. And it says, and in this obedience there is great reward. Well, what does he mean by that?
Well, it's not only the reward of heaven in that we receive that as a blessing for, you know, a life lived in faith, but it's also the joy of living life right now and the blessings that you receive from that lifestyle and that obedience right now. I remember my dad talking about how he lived his life. And he would get into studies and conversations with people, and they would ask him about, well, I may have to change everything about my life. I don't know that I can do that. I don't know that. You know, it feels like your way of life is so restricted and so horrible. And so it's just difficult because I don't want to make decisions that are like that. And my dad would say, listen, I live a very enchanted life. I am so blessed. And the things that I do, the decisions that I make every day, you know, they have brought me blessing and joy and happiness and contentment with what I have.
And if there was no God, that would be wonderful.
But because I know there's a God, because I know there's a greater reward than what I have here, then not only is it a blessing here, but it is even more so a blessing in the future.
And so God gives us not a list of do's and don'ts, but a way to see his wisdom. And we have the choice to neglect those things or to be invited into the blessings that he promises. Now, for those of you who love a good chart, this is all of it in review. Okay, real quick, let's look at it. The law of the Lord is perfect. Reviving the soul. Do you see that in that first column? His testimonies are sure. They invoke wisdom to the ordinary person. His precepts are right, and they bring joy to our hearts. The commandments are. Are pure. They're untainted. They give enlightenment to the window of the soul, our eyes, the awe of the Lord. It's ethical. The things that we learn about him are so pure and so untainted, and they endure forever in our mind. And then the judgments, the righteous judgments of God bring either warning or reward. It's our choice to hear those things.
And then it gives us the power and the ability and our own will to do those things out. Do you see how God's word is all purpose?
These are all things that you see in Psalm 19. But I want you to understand something, and we'll get to this point in just a moment. It is not just about reading this word and grabbing that information and being a quotation machine.
It's about that word doing something inside of your heart because you're being shaped by it. And Mike Baker has recorded a message. It's about a minute and a half or so.
And in his message, what he does, he goes not to Psalm 19, but to Psalm 1, where it talks about what happens when we study God's Word, and we meditate upon it day and night and how that affects our life and what it builds us into. So if you'll listen to Mike's words.
[00:29:46] Speaker C: Psalms 1 talks about us being like a tree. A tree that stands by this river, a tree that bears fruit, a tree whose leaves do not wither.
In my life, there's been many Christians whom I've admired, who've taught me, who've been like that tree that's described in Psalms 1. And I decided a long time ago that I wanted to be like them. But how is that possible? Well, if we go back to Psalms 1, Psalms 1 tells us those who delight in the law of the Lord and who meditate on it day and night, they are like that tree.
I think we often mistake what Bible study is for. Bible study is not just to know, but rather Bible study is for us to grow.
As we get into the Word, we want to open our lives so that the Word gets into us.
As I've become a student of the Bible, I realize the more I know, the more I understand, the more I use it, the more I apply it. And then the more I use it, the more I apply it, the more I want to know and the more I want to understand.
It's this wonderful cycle that God has created. And I try to keep that cycle in my life because one day I want to be a tree.
[00:31:09] Speaker B: Amen to that. And I think about this slide that you see behind me now.
These were some of the concluding remarks of Andrew's sermon last week.
And I want us to be clear on this. As we think about God's Word, it is more than just the information intake that's a part of this process.
But if we don't seek to apply those things to our lives, we're going to fall short.
But if we take the time to apply that truth to our life and we begin to make changes, that's great. But it can't just be a change in that moment. It's got to be a change that takes place over and over again. That's the difference here. We've got to study God's Word for the information. We've got to seek to be changed as a result of the application of those things. But then we got to have the guts to stay there and to keep allowing God and his Spirit to work on us and to transform us from within. And when that happens, we find ourselves falling in love with God in the same way David did.
I love how he takes the majesty of the all Powerful God.
And he points us to the Scriptures and the instruction that lead us closer to God.
And when we let God's Word transform us and change us and challenge us, we draw ever nearer. In verse 12 and 13 of that text, there is this sense in which he sees the awe of God. He sees the instructions, and he finds himself going, but I will never be perfect. And he's like, how does this happen? What do I do? And so he prays to God this final prayer. And I'd love for you to pray it with me in your mind as we read it. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable unto you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Do you see how he's in awe? He wants to be transformed by that word. But he recognizes I've got to do the thing that you have called me to do. And I want the words that I say and the meditations of my heart to find their way to being accepting to you.
When I was in middle school, high school, and especially in the college, there was a song that we sang that had these words in it. I want to sing it. And if those of you who know it and you grew up hearing this song, I want you to sing it with me. We'll sing it through twice, and let's pray this prayer together, collectively as we sing.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable unto you.
O my Lord, sing with me. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be accepted.
Let's pray.
God, thank you for your word, for its transforming power.
Father, may we, like David, look at you in awe and splendor.
And may we magnify you in our lives every day.
And as we feast upon your word, Father, give us discernment and wisdom and give us the desire to follow your will with all of our hearts.
And, Father, we pray that what we just sang can be on the heart of every person in this room.
Let the words of our mouth and the meditations of our heart be acceptable unto you.
We thank you, Father, for all that you do for us, but especially this powerful message of the cross that has the power and the ability to change lives. And, Lord, help it to be the fruit of our lips. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
This morning. If there's something on your heart, if you're struggling with something, if you've not applied the Scriptures like you know you should and you want to start now to do that, if you want to put on Christ in baptism and fully surrender, Die to yourself, be buried in baptism and be raised up to walk a new life, freedom from your sin. You can do all those things today, and I hope you will do so, while together we stand and sing.
