1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:12,440 Welcome to the Potter's House Salmon Arm podcast. We are a Bible-Believing Church located 2 00:00:12,440 --> 00:00:16,680 in beautiful British Columbia, Canada. We are proudly part of the Christian Fellowship 3 00:00:16,680 --> 00:00:21,920 Ministries with 3,000 churches around the world. We are a church focused on world evangelism, 4 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:27,300 discipleship and church planting. Here we will share recent sermons from P.H.S.A. Church 5 00:00:27,300 --> 00:00:31,600 and other sermons from throughout our fellowship. I am Pastor David Bickford and I will be 6 00:00:31,600 --> 00:00:35,880 your host for this podcast. I thank you for listening today and we hope these messages 7 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:40,320 are a blessing to you and bring you closer to God. 8 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:50,360 Hello and welcome back to the podcast. My name again is David Bickford. I'm the pastor 9 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:55,320 here at the Potter's House in Salmon Arm, British Columbia. And today's message that 10 00:00:55,320 --> 00:01:02,560 I put together is called, Wait on the Lord, A Journey of Rescue, Mercy, Trust and Hope. 11 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:07,680 The text that I'll be using as a jumping off point for today is going to be Psalm 130, 12 00:01:07,680 --> 00:01:13,120 verses 1 through 8. So if you have your Bible and you're following along, you can turn there. 13 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:20,420 And as we jump in, I was thinking about the idea of rescue and how God has rescued us 14 00:01:20,420 --> 00:01:26,420 and through Jesus Christ. And so I came across this article called, The Unlikely Rescue at 15 00:01:26,420 --> 00:01:35,160 Ground Zero by Brandon Higelman. And this article was written back in 2016 and it's 16 00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:44,120 about the World Trade Center and the events of that day on September 11th in 2001. And 17 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:50,640 so this is a pretty important day in American history. And even for myself, I remember where 18 00:01:50,640 --> 00:02:00,480 I was that day. And it was quite the interesting day, you know, being in the military active 19 00:02:00,480 --> 00:02:05,800 duty on the West Coast and hearing the reports of what was going on during that period of 20 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:13,320 time. And you're wondering what that meant for us. And the next day, the day after that, 21 00:02:13,320 --> 00:02:19,080 I remember being, I was an air crewman being tasked to jump on an airplane and we were 22 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:25,320 going to go rescue some people who were in Arizona because there was the thought, there 23 00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:31,360 was so much fear. There was this thought that there was going to be another attack because 24 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:35,000 there was a crop duster missing. And so they thought there would be a chemical attack. 25 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:40,360 And so they were going to send us in to rescue people. We didn't have the proper gear. We 26 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:45,400 didn't have respiratory equipment for that kind of event. So we didn't know if we were 27 00:02:45,400 --> 00:02:53,040 going in to our death or if we were going to go and save some people. And it wasn't 28 00:02:53,040 --> 00:02:58,920 until the very second before we headed out that the entire mission got scrubbed because 29 00:02:58,920 --> 00:03:05,680 it was a false alarm. But it just gave me a little bit of a perspective that might differ 30 00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:12,600 from some from those events that happened on September 11th and 12th in 2001. And so 31 00:03:12,600 --> 00:03:20,800 I come to this story now, you know, about the unlikely rescue at ground zero. Jesus 32 00:03:20,800 --> 00:03:25,360 left heaven and came to earth on a rescue mission in the same way he rescued us. And 33 00:03:25,360 --> 00:03:29,240 we have joined the rescue mission to seek and save the lost people. That's something 34 00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:34,800 we need to keep in mind. And remember, as we go through today's message is that we 35 00:03:34,800 --> 00:03:42,120 are part of the rescue party. We've been saved. And now it is our opportunity to also 36 00:03:42,120 --> 00:03:47,640 pick up the responsibility to go and seek and save the lost in Jesus name. So when the 37 00:03:47,640 --> 00:03:52,280 World Trade Center crumbled to the ground on that dreadful day in September 11th, more 38 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:57,020 than 3000 people died. But a few of those who were buried beneath the rubble miraculously 39 00:03:57,020 --> 00:04:02,960 survived the toppling of the towers. Two of these individuals were Will Gimeno and John 40 00:04:02,960 --> 00:04:07,440 McLaughlin, a pair of Port Authority employees who had responded to the attacks and were 41 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:12,600 on the bottom floor when the south tower began to fall. They raced to an elevator shaft and 42 00:04:12,600 --> 00:04:18,440 amazingly survived the 100 story collapse around them, but were buried dozens of feet 43 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:23,880 down in the midst of the array of rubble trapped without water breathing smoke filled air, 44 00:04:23,880 --> 00:04:30,800 both Will and John had little hope of survival. 45 00:04:30,800 --> 00:04:37,000 Yet as they laid there, pinned under the mountain of debris, something was stirring inside an 46 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:41,720 accountant in Connecticut that they had never met. 47 00:04:41,720 --> 00:04:47,560 Let's look at our text in Psalm 130 verses one through eight. My soul waits for the Lord, 48 00:04:47,560 --> 00:04:53,680 a song of a sense out of the depths. I cry to you, Oh Lord, Oh Lord, hear my voice. Let 49 00:04:53,680 --> 00:04:59,320 your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy. If you, Oh Lord should mark 50 00:04:59,320 --> 00:05:05,200 iniquities, Oh Lord, who could stand, but with you there is forgiveness that you may 51 00:05:05,200 --> 00:05:11,200 be feared. I wait for the Lord. My soul waits. And in this word, I hope my soul waits for 52 00:05:11,200 --> 00:05:16,320 the Lord more than the watchman for the morning, more than the watchman for the morning. Oh 53 00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:22,600 Israel, hope in the Lord for the Lord is there or the Lord. There is steadfast in love and 54 00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:29,960 with him is plentiful redemption and he will redeem Israel from all of its iniquities. 55 00:05:29,960 --> 00:05:34,960 So the world around you seems at a loss or your heart feels wary. You can still count 56 00:05:34,960 --> 00:05:40,200 on God. In Psalm 130, the poet uttered a cry for God to show mercy to his people. And 57 00:05:40,200 --> 00:05:45,400 he encouraged his fellow Israelites to wait on the Lord to deliver them. Psalm 130 is 58 00:05:45,400 --> 00:05:49,800 one of the 15 Psalms known as a Pilgrim songs and the songs of a sense sung by a Jewish 59 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:55,080 traveler, making the trek to Jerusalem for annual festivals. The song of a sense are 60 00:05:55,080 --> 00:06:03,600 comprised of Psalms 120 to 134. This is one of the penitential Psalms as well as an individual 61 00:06:03,600 --> 00:06:11,800 lament or a Psalm of a cent. So what does that mean? That means that this, this song 62 00:06:11,800 --> 00:06:16,720 is for when you are going through something hard, something challenging, we could turn 63 00:06:16,720 --> 00:06:24,160 to the Lord with our troubles and our trials here. Here is, you know, he is here for us 64 00:06:24,160 --> 00:06:29,060 and listening. This song has no title nor author's name, either in Hebrew or in any 65 00:06:29,060 --> 00:06:34,760 other versions, though the Syriac tradition says it was spoken by Nehemiah, the priest. 66 00:06:34,760 --> 00:06:40,040 It was most probably composed during the captivity and contains the complaint to the afflicted 67 00:06:40,040 --> 00:06:44,800 Jews with their hopes of the remission of those sins, which were caused, which were 68 00:06:44,800 --> 00:06:51,120 the cause of their suffering and their restoration from the captivity to their own land. This 69 00:06:51,120 --> 00:06:56,560 brings me to our first point, which is mercy, a desperate cry for mercy that we read in 70 00:06:56,560 --> 00:07:02,480 verses one and two of our text. Before we jump into that, I want to give praise to God 71 00:07:02,480 --> 00:07:10,040 because we did move. We're in a new building starting today, which will be June 9th. It's 72 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:14,040 a little bit of a soft grand opening as we have some stuff to still do and set up to 73 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:19,560 make it fully ready. But we are holding service in there regardless. So I'm very excited. 74 00:07:19,560 --> 00:07:25,800 We're right off Highway 1. If you're coming through Salmon Arm, we're just above the Bank 75 00:07:25,800 --> 00:07:31,360 of Montreal, right downtown. And so it's unit 201. So if you're in and around the area and 76 00:07:31,360 --> 00:07:37,160 you want to come to church, by all means, we have Sunday service at 1030 and we have 77 00:07:37,160 --> 00:07:43,040 Wednesday Bible study at 630. So and you can only the all the contact information is in 78 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:50,360 the show notes. So please come and join us if you're in town. So let's look at mercy 79 00:07:50,360 --> 00:07:54,560 and this desperate cry that we read in verses one and two. The writer felt that he was at 80 00:07:54,560 --> 00:08:00,400 the very bottom of his resources at the end of his rope. This expression stresses the 81 00:08:00,400 --> 00:08:06,400 urgency of his request. The particular situation he faced is unknown, but in view of Psalm 82 00:08:06,400 --> 00:08:12,440 130 verse eight, it may have been oppression by an enemy. The author was at the end of 83 00:08:12,440 --> 00:08:17,360 his rope calling out to God to ease his pain and burden. In our walk with God, there are 84 00:08:17,360 --> 00:08:22,320 many periods where we need to cry out to God for help. In our walk with God, there are 85 00:08:22,320 --> 00:08:26,960 many periods where we need to cry out to God for help. Maybe you're exhausted, like we 86 00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:31,520 can tend to be at times. Maybe there's a lot of family stress that you're dealing with 87 00:08:31,520 --> 00:08:38,680 right now. It's not only okay, but it's right to reach out to God in prayer with your struggles, 88 00:08:38,680 --> 00:08:46,440 your needs and laments. Acknowledging his miserable condition, the Psalmist prays and 89 00:08:46,440 --> 00:08:50,480 it can be heard, it can be felt in verses one or two. The Psalmist likens himself to 90 00:08:50,480 --> 00:08:57,320 a man at the bottom of a pit. Out of the depths I've cried, a true pentanent cry out of the 91 00:08:57,320 --> 00:09:03,560 depths of his misery and from the depths of his heart. This means that we can cry out 92 00:09:03,560 --> 00:09:09,920 to our Father, Oh Lord hear my voice. Our God hears us and sees us no matter what is 93 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:16,080 going on in our lives. He wants us to draw near to him. Let your ears be attentive to 94 00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:21,800 the voice of my pleas for mercy. This lament is heartfelt because we trust that we are 95 00:09:21,800 --> 00:09:28,760 not crying out in vain to an unhearing or uncaring God. In Isaiah 30, 18 it says, Therefore 96 00:09:28,760 --> 00:09:35,200 the Lord waits to be gracious to you and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For 97 00:09:35,200 --> 00:09:41,320 the Lord is the God of justice. Blessed are all those who wait on him. As those men were 98 00:09:41,320 --> 00:09:47,640 sitting in their rubble, you can only imagine that they were crying out to God. You can 99 00:09:47,640 --> 00:09:55,520 only imagine that they were crying out in lament and pain and fear. How often in our 100 00:09:55,520 --> 00:10:04,040 lives are we doing the same thing? Are we sitting and crying out because we feel stuck, 101 00:10:04,040 --> 00:10:09,320 because we feel trapped? Maybe we're trapped in our own busyness. Maybe we're trapped because 102 00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:17,020 of our own self-imposed responsibilities. Maybe there's a lot of things that could be 103 00:10:17,020 --> 00:10:20,960 going on in your life that you feel trapped by. And this brings me to my second point 104 00:10:20,960 --> 00:10:26,720 which is trust. As we continue on with our September 11th story, Dave Kearns, who had 105 00:10:26,720 --> 00:10:31,000 spent 23 years in active duty in the Marine Corps, was watching the scene play out on 106 00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:36,400 his television like the rest of us. But more than allowing it merely to trouble him, he 107 00:10:36,400 --> 00:10:40,640 decided to do something about it. He went to his boss and told him he wouldn't be back 108 00:10:40,640 --> 00:10:45,160 for a while. And Dave went to the barbershop, asked for a high and tight haircut, and then 109 00:10:45,160 --> 00:10:49,560 stopped by his home to put on his military fatigues, hoping the uniform would allow him 110 00:10:49,560 --> 00:10:54,480 access into the blocked off area surrounding ground zero. He drove to Manhattan at speeds 111 00:10:54,480 --> 00:11:00,320 of 120 miles an hour and arrived by late afternoon. While rescue workers were being called off 112 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:04,440 the wreckage pile because of the danger, Dave was able to stay because of the clout and 113 00:11:04,440 --> 00:11:09,440 credentials that came with his military uniform. Finding another Marine nearby, the two men 114 00:11:09,440 --> 00:11:14,800 walked the pile together seeking to save the lost. The men that were trapped in the rubble 115 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:19,840 had to hold on to hope that people were searching for survivors. They had to trust that their 116 00:11:19,840 --> 00:11:27,400 rescue was on the way. We see this in verses 3 and 4 of our psalm. We see a strong expression 117 00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:31,880 of trust being given to us in this portion of scripture. The psalmist realized that if 118 00:11:31,880 --> 00:11:37,120 God gave people what they deserved, no one would be able to survive. To mark iniquities 119 00:11:37,120 --> 00:11:42,760 means to keep a record of them, to hold the sinner accountable for each one. Fortunately, 120 00:11:42,760 --> 00:11:48,160 God forgives. He does not keep track of every sin and exact punishment for it. The psalmist 121 00:11:48,160 --> 00:11:55,440 was speaking of how God deals with his redeemed people. The consequences of God's forgiving 122 00:11:55,440 --> 00:12:02,360 should be that his forgiven people fear him. Fearing God in a term that's constantly used 123 00:12:02,360 --> 00:12:10,140 in the Old Testament virtually means trusting God, showing itself in obedience and worship. 124 00:12:10,140 --> 00:12:17,460 If you take seriously the guilt of sin, you will take seriously the grace of forgiveness. 125 00:12:17,460 --> 00:12:23,880 So we see here too that God desires the remission of sins, but there was a reason why God couldn't 126 00:12:23,880 --> 00:12:32,120 hear them in Israel. They were grievous sinners, but all men are sinners. So if you, O Lord, 127 00:12:32,120 --> 00:12:38,600 should mark iniquities because we have nothing of our own that can cover our sins, but with 128 00:12:38,600 --> 00:12:44,320 you there is forgiveness. True repentance requires two things, the recognition of your 129 00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:52,720 own misery and the persuasion of God's mercy. Both are needful for if you deny our sin or 130 00:12:52,720 --> 00:13:00,200 misery we won't seek mercy. That you may be feared, it says in the text. Again, fearing 131 00:13:00,200 --> 00:13:05,780 God is an Old Testament term that means trusting God. Our Father is righteous and holy because 132 00:13:05,780 --> 00:13:13,280 of his nature. We know that we cannot be in his presence without a covering. Our sin separates 133 00:13:13,280 --> 00:13:20,840 us from God, but through covering the blood of the Lamb, Jesus, we can have a relationship 134 00:13:20,840 --> 00:13:27,800 with the Father. This brings me to the idea of hope. After the hours of searching they 135 00:13:27,800 --> 00:13:34,920 heard the faint sound of tapping pipes and yelling. Will and John had been trapped for 136 00:13:34,920 --> 00:13:39,920 nine hours by this time, completely incapable of working themselves free. Yet amid all the 137 00:13:39,920 --> 00:13:44,280 rubble a Marine who earlier in the morning had been working a spreadsheet in Connecticut 138 00:13:44,280 --> 00:13:50,800 found them. Of the 20 people pulled from the heaped up remains of the World Trade Center, 139 00:13:50,800 --> 00:13:58,240 Will Gimino and John McLaughlin were number 18 and 19. And all because David Carnes took 140 00:13:58,240 --> 00:14:05,720 off his suit, put on rescue fatigues, and stepped into the despair and darkness of Ground Zero. 141 00:14:05,720 --> 00:14:12,120 In verses 5-8 we see a deliberate decision to hope. The writer purposed to continue to 142 00:14:12,120 --> 00:14:17,160 wait for the Lord to deliver him while he reflected on God's forgiveness. He compared 143 00:14:17,160 --> 00:14:22,140 himself to a guard on duty late at night. He could only wait for the morning light when 144 00:14:22,140 --> 00:14:31,620 someone else would relieve him. And when all that was now dark would then be clear. God's 145 00:14:31,620 --> 00:14:36,740 people should put their hope in the Father and their present distress because he is loyal 146 00:14:36,740 --> 00:14:42,240 in his love. He will finally provide complete redemption. Ultimate deliverance was sure 147 00:14:42,240 --> 00:14:48,940 in the future and this was the ground for the Israelites' confidence. Today God's 148 00:14:48,940 --> 00:14:53,540 redeemed saints can call on him out of the depths of their affliction too. We can find 149 00:14:53,540 --> 00:14:59,120 encouragement in the fact that God has forgiven us of all our sins past, present, and future. 150 00:14:59,120 --> 00:15:05,040 However, we can also look forward to our full ultimate redemption when we see him. Until 151 00:15:05,040 --> 00:15:10,800 then we should hope in the Lord as watchmen waiting for the dawning of our new day, namely 152 00:15:10,800 --> 00:15:16,200 our glorification. In Isaiah 40-31, But they who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength, 153 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:21,980 they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall 154 00:15:21,980 --> 00:15:30,040 walk and not be faint. The psalmist expressed his hopes in verses 5-6. The method of God's 155 00:15:30,040 --> 00:15:36,120 servant in their address is in their addresses to heaven that they believe, hope, pray, and 156 00:15:36,120 --> 00:15:46,960 expect, so that the psalmist did trust. I expect the Lord in faith. I will wait for 157 00:15:46,960 --> 00:15:53,840 the Lord. My soul waits. His expectation was active, it was real, and it proceeded from 158 00:15:53,840 --> 00:16:00,540 a feverish sea of his heart. His expectation was not presumptive but grounded upon God's 159 00:16:00,540 --> 00:16:08,240 words and promise. In his word is my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen 160 00:16:08,240 --> 00:16:12,520 for the morning, which he illustrates by the reference to a watchman who longs for the 161 00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:21,020 morning. More than watchmen for the morning. It was now night with him, darkness and misery 162 00:16:21,020 --> 00:16:26,040 upon his soul. The morning he expected was the remission of his sin which must come from 163 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:32,560 God's mercy. For this he eagerly awaited. In Psalm 27-14 it says, wait for the Lord, 164 00:16:32,560 --> 00:16:41,880 be strong, and let your heart take courage. Wait for the Lord. The psalmist exhorts God 165 00:16:41,880 --> 00:16:49,380 and it puts his trust in him. This continues on in verses 7-8. The psalmist proposes his 166 00:16:49,380 --> 00:16:55,200 own example to God's people. He says, O Israel, hope in the Lord like me and cry from the 167 00:16:55,200 --> 00:17:05,040 depths, he says. For the Lord there is mercy. For the Lord there is steadfast love. This 168 00:17:05,040 --> 00:17:13,120 is the reason and encouragement for the hope. Mercy flows from him and with him is redemption, 169 00:17:13,120 --> 00:17:17,440 which we need being all born into sin. And this redemption was purchased for us by the 170 00:17:17,440 --> 00:17:26,160 death of his son Jesus Christ. And this redemption is plentiful for it is enough to redeem the 171 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:32,680 whole world. 1 John 1-2 says, the life was made manifest and we have seen it and testified 172 00:17:32,680 --> 00:17:38,760 to it and proclaim to you the eternal life which was the Father and was made manifest 173 00:17:38,760 --> 00:17:44,960 to us. And this is to take effect upon Israel and he will redeem Israel from all of its 174 00:17:44,960 --> 00:17:53,560 iniquities. It is not as the Jews expected, a temporal redemption, but one that is spiritual. 175 00:17:53,560 --> 00:17:58,000 As the angel told Joseph, his name shall be called Jesus for he shall save his people 176 00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:04,560 from their sins. So as we come to an end, we remember September 11th in the survival 177 00:18:04,560 --> 00:18:10,440 story the reality of being pulled from darkness into light. In the same way but infinitely 178 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:15,680 to a greater degree, God took off his royal robes and stepped into our dark and depraved 179 00:18:15,680 --> 00:18:21,720 culture and served us. We were buried in the depths and the rubble of our own foolishness 180 00:18:21,720 --> 00:18:28,640 with zero chance of pulling ourselves out of our sin. Chuck Smith, the leader of Calvary 181 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:33,920 Chapel says, so if the Lord should begin to keep an account of iniquities, none of us 182 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:41,760 would make it. Oh how thankful we are that with God there is mercy, there is forgiveness. 183 00:18:41,760 --> 00:18:47,640 Oh happy is the man whose sins are forgiven with the Lord. There is mercy and plenteous 184 00:18:47,640 --> 00:18:54,920 redemption. Psalm 33, 20 through 22 says, our soul waits for the Lord. He is our help 185 00:18:54,920 --> 00:19:01,040 and our shield for our heart is glad in him because we trust in his holy name. Let your 186 00:19:01,040 --> 00:19:08,160 steadfast love, oh Lord, be upon us even as we hope in you. If I could have every head 187 00:19:08,160 --> 00:19:14,440 bowed every eye closed, I know this message might have been a bit short today but it's 188 00:19:14,440 --> 00:19:21,720 one that is critically important to our lives as Christians as we wait upon the Lord. And 189 00:19:21,720 --> 00:19:28,880 we have to remember too in terms of this waiting on the Lord, the reason why we have the capability 190 00:19:28,880 --> 00:19:33,720 of waiting on the Lord is because we've already been redeemed, we've already been rescued. 191 00:19:33,720 --> 00:19:38,800 But there are other people who are waiting on the Lord that we come in contact with every 192 00:19:38,800 --> 00:19:42,640 day. They don't know they're waiting on the Lord. They're living in sin still. They're 193 00:19:42,640 --> 00:19:50,840 trapped in the rubble of their lives. And that's why it is a journey of rescue, mercy, 194 00:19:50,840 --> 00:19:58,320 trust and hope. Because we, those who know the love of Jesus Christ have a responsibility 195 00:19:58,320 --> 00:20:05,080 to bring the message to others so that they too can be rescued, so they too can see them, 196 00:20:05,080 --> 00:20:11,080 feel the mercy that comes through salvation, so they can put their trust and their hope 197 00:20:11,080 --> 00:20:17,280 and a risen Savior. If this message has impacted you today and you're not right with God, you're 198 00:20:17,280 --> 00:20:21,840 still trapped, you're trapped by your sin, you're trapped in your old life. I want you 199 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:27,660 to signify that with a love today and wherever you are, being safe if you're driving. I want 200 00:20:27,660 --> 00:20:32,080 you to raise your hand though and signify that because I can't see it but God can see 201 00:20:32,080 --> 00:20:38,280 it. No matter where you are, God knows what's in your heart. So if you rose your hand and 202 00:20:38,280 --> 00:20:42,840 you meant it, I want to lead you through a quick prayer. It's an invitation we do at 203 00:20:42,840 --> 00:20:49,840 the end of every message, every service, because we want people to have the opportunity to 204 00:20:49,840 --> 00:20:53,560 give their lives to Jesus Christ. So with that, if you could just repeat after me, Dear 205 00:20:53,560 --> 00:20:58,600 Lord God, I know that I'm a sinner but I know that you sent your Son Jesus Christ and that 206 00:20:58,600 --> 00:21:05,520 He died for my sins. I repent of my sins and I accept Jesus as my Savior and I thank 207 00:21:05,520 --> 00:21:11,280 you for the salvation that comes through grace in Jesus' name. Amen. It's a simple prayer 208 00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:19,020 but if you said that and you meant it, then you've moved into a new stage of your life. 209 00:21:19,020 --> 00:21:24,000 The grace that flows from God is now yours as well and you can partake of it. You've 210 00:21:24,000 --> 00:21:29,160 been rescued, you've received the mercy of Jesus Christ and now you can put your trust 211 00:21:29,160 --> 00:21:37,160 and hope in Him and you can too wait on the Lord. It's a powerful, powerful idea and it's 212 00:21:37,160 --> 00:21:41,520 not to be taken lightly. So where do you go from here though if you've done that prayer? 213 00:21:41,520 --> 00:21:46,080 Well I would recommend you start praying to God, crying out to Him like this psalmist 214 00:21:46,080 --> 00:21:52,300 did. Get into the Word of God, pick up a Bible, start reading from John. John's a great place 215 00:21:52,300 --> 00:21:59,280 for new believers. The Gospel of John in the New Testament. And then find a Bible-believing 216 00:21:59,280 --> 00:22:07,360 church to serve, not to just attend but to serve so that you too can join the rescue 217 00:22:07,360 --> 00:22:16,480 party and see others to be brought to Jesus Christ just like you've done today. If you're 218 00:22:16,480 --> 00:22:27,040 in Samanar, please come and visit us for Unit 201 at 231 Trans-Canada Highway right downtown. 219 00:22:27,040 --> 00:22:34,040 Very excited to have you come and visit us on Sunday or Wednesday. If you're not from 220 00:22:34,040 --> 00:22:39,580 here but you're looking for a church, we have over 3,500 churches globally. There's a good 221 00:22:39,580 --> 00:22:45,680 chance I'll be able to find you a church that's from our fellowship that you could connect 222 00:22:45,680 --> 00:22:52,040 with and you could dig into. But with that, I know this message might have seemed a bit 223 00:22:52,040 --> 00:22:57,720 short but I think it's a critical thing that we understand that we need to persevere and 224 00:22:57,720 --> 00:23:02,700 we need to wait on the Lord. And then as Christians we need to understand that we are on a journey 225 00:23:02,700 --> 00:23:07,880 of rescue, mercy, trust, and hope. So with that, I want to thank you for listening to 226 00:23:07,880 --> 00:23:12,200 me today and I'm just going to close in prayer real quick. Dear Lord God, I thank you for 227 00:23:12,200 --> 00:23:16,560 everything that you're doing in the lives of the people who listen. I pray, Lord God, 228 00:23:16,560 --> 00:23:21,080 that this would go further and further out into the world, that more people will be touched 229 00:23:21,080 --> 00:23:27,720 by this message. In Jesus' name, amen. Remember to like, share, and subscribe to the podcast. 230 00:23:27,720 --> 00:23:31,640 It really helps us get this message out. And thank you again for listening. I can't wait 231 00:23:31,640 --> 00:23:33,960 for you to come back next time. God bless.