WEBVTT 00:00:00.200 --> 00:00:02.640 I would suppose that many of us here today have 00:00:02.640 --> 00:00:06.719 installed smoke detectors in our homes, the purpose 00:00:06.719 --> 00:00:11.500 being to alert us to the presence of smoke and 00:00:11.500 --> 00:00:16.440 its normal source, which is fire. Not only is 00:00:16.440 --> 00:00:18.699 it important to install a smoke detector, but 00:00:18.699 --> 00:00:21.679 it's important to keep it in good working condition 00:00:21.679 --> 00:00:25.539 as well. Likewise, God has installed a sort of 00:00:25.539 --> 00:00:29.899 detector in our lives. what I would call a sin 00:00:29.899 --> 00:00:35.500 detector. It's what we call the conscience. When 00:00:35.500 --> 00:00:38.399 sin is present, the conscience produces guilt. 00:00:39.659 --> 00:00:43.100 When transgression of the law has occurred, the 00:00:43.100 --> 00:00:46.280 conscience will emit guilt within the life of 00:00:46.280 --> 00:00:50.119 a person. It is important to keep one's conscience 00:00:50.119 --> 00:00:55.799 in good written condition too. The guilt that 00:00:55.799 --> 00:01:00.420 the conscience produces was one of the causes 00:01:00.420 --> 00:01:05.480 of the emotional, mental, and physical disorders 00:01:05.480 --> 00:01:09.200 in the world. I didn't say it's the only cause, 00:01:09.359 --> 00:01:15.120 but it's one of the major causes. Guilty people 00:01:15.120 --> 00:01:20.519 deal with guilt in various ways, through denial, 00:01:20.859 --> 00:01:28.780 suppression, cover -up. by counselors or medication, 00:01:29.239 --> 00:01:37.719 sometimes through drug abuse, even suicide. Genuine 00:01:37.719 --> 00:01:40.719 guilt produced by the conscience can only be 00:01:40.719 --> 00:01:45.260 dealt with by getting to the source of the guilt, 00:01:45.319 --> 00:01:50.079 which is sin. When the smoke detector goes off 00:01:50.079 --> 00:01:54.609 in your home, you do not ignore it. You don't 00:01:54.609 --> 00:01:58.109 turn up the radio to cover up the sound, nor 00:01:58.109 --> 00:02:00.950 do you disconnect the power of it. But rather 00:02:00.950 --> 00:02:03.170 you see what the problem is and you deal with 00:02:03.170 --> 00:02:06.250 that problem. And so it ought to be with guilt. 00:02:07.689 --> 00:02:11.689 Rather than trying to cover it up or ignore it, 00:02:11.729 --> 00:02:15.550 we should get to the source of the guilt, which 00:02:15.550 --> 00:02:21.430 is sin. And God be praised. He has dealt with 00:02:21.430 --> 00:02:26.650 the source of guilt. that is, with sin. He has 00:02:26.650 --> 00:02:29.349 dealt with our trespasses against his righteous 00:02:29.349 --> 00:02:33.210 law. We see that in our text today in Ephesians 00:02:33.210 --> 00:02:38.930 1, verses 7 and 8. We are looking at what God 00:02:38.930 --> 00:02:45.490 has done. God has blessed us, verse 3, just as 00:02:45.490 --> 00:02:51.990 he told us, verse 4. Verse 5, in love he predestined 00:02:51.990 --> 00:02:56.990 us. And in verse 7, we come now to the fact that 00:02:56.990 --> 00:03:01.069 God has redeemed us. What has God done? He has 00:03:01.069 --> 00:03:05.550 redeemed us. It literally says, we have the redemption. 00:03:06.830 --> 00:03:09.169 As we think about that this morning, I'd like 00:03:09.169 --> 00:03:12.449 for us to examine it with three interrogatives 00:03:12.449 --> 00:03:15.909 that we'll try to answer. The what, the how, 00:03:16.050 --> 00:03:19.949 and the wherefore of redemption. First, the what 00:03:19.949 --> 00:03:22.759 of redemption. What does it mean? to be redeemed. 00:03:22.780 --> 00:03:26.939 What is redemption? It is defined as deliverance 00:03:26.939 --> 00:03:32.180 as a result of the payment of a ransom. It is 00:03:32.180 --> 00:03:34.819 a word that was commonly used in the Roman world 00:03:34.819 --> 00:03:36.939 in the day in which the New Testament was written. 00:03:37.819 --> 00:03:42.479 It refers to release from servitude. The term 00:03:42.479 --> 00:03:47.280 redeemed means the purchase of a slave and his 00:03:47.280 --> 00:03:52.340 freeing, his releasing from his slavery. And 00:03:52.340 --> 00:03:54.400 so you bring it into the spiritual realm, it 00:03:54.400 --> 00:03:57.360 has to do with the loosing of one's bondage to 00:03:57.360 --> 00:04:02.439 sin. That loosing being made possible because 00:04:02.439 --> 00:04:05.979 a purchase price has been paid on our behalf. 00:04:07.419 --> 00:04:10.960 He says we have redemption, we being believers. 00:04:12.060 --> 00:04:15.319 We have trusted the Lord Jesus Christ. Going 00:04:15.319 --> 00:04:17.500 all the way back to verse 1, those who are the 00:04:17.500 --> 00:04:20.160 saints, that is those who have faith. who are 00:04:20.160 --> 00:04:23.800 the faithful, who believe in Christ Jesus. He 00:04:23.800 --> 00:04:28.259 says, we have redemption. We have been delivered 00:04:28.259 --> 00:04:37.040 by a price from our former slavery to sin. That 00:04:37.040 --> 00:04:40.160 payment is a final payment. It has been done 00:04:40.160 --> 00:04:42.540 once and for all. There is nothing that we need 00:04:42.540 --> 00:04:46.439 to add to it. One of the things that we can... 00:04:47.160 --> 00:04:50.560 gladly proclaim is the sufficiency of the finished 00:04:50.560 --> 00:04:55.480 work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The work that 00:04:55.480 --> 00:04:58.439 he did at the cross, the payment of his blood, 00:04:58.620 --> 00:05:02.480 the outpouring of his life for our sins, is a 00:05:02.480 --> 00:05:05.620 once and for all work. It never needs to be repeated. 00:05:05.720 --> 00:05:09.279 It cannot be added to by anything that we could 00:05:09.279 --> 00:05:15.480 do. We have the redemption. But the redemption 00:05:15.480 --> 00:05:18.139 that we have based upon Christ's finished work 00:05:18.139 --> 00:05:22.300 has only begun. There is a final consummating 00:05:22.300 --> 00:05:24.560 aspect of it that we have not yet experienced. 00:05:24.920 --> 00:05:27.680 And that is the aspect mentioned in verse 14. 00:05:28.060 --> 00:05:30.860 When talking about the Holy Spirit, Paul says, 00:05:30.920 --> 00:05:34.300 He was given as a pledge of our inheritance with 00:05:34.300 --> 00:05:37.939 a view to the redemption of God's own possession. 00:05:39.660 --> 00:05:42.620 In verse 14, he pictures a future aspect. He 00:05:42.620 --> 00:05:44.699 says there's something yet to come. The Holy 00:05:44.699 --> 00:05:48.079 Spirit is the down payment. He's the pledge of 00:05:48.079 --> 00:05:52.139 our inheritance. The aspect of that inheritance 00:05:52.139 --> 00:05:54.720 which is yet to be given to us, the redemption 00:05:54.720 --> 00:05:56.759 of God's own possession. What's he talking about? 00:05:57.699 --> 00:06:01.060 Well, he's talking about that work in the future 00:06:01.060 --> 00:06:04.800 when our bodies, our physical bodies, will be 00:06:04.800 --> 00:06:09.259 released from bondage to corruption. at the coming 00:06:09.259 --> 00:06:12.319 of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the redemption 00:06:12.319 --> 00:06:16.060 that is mentioned in chapter 4, verse 30, where 00:06:16.060 --> 00:06:19.579 he says, And do not grieve the Holy Spirit, by 00:06:19.579 --> 00:06:23.019 whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 00:06:23.160 --> 00:06:25.680 Once again, he's looking forward to a future 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:29.920 event, the day of redemption, talking about the 00:06:29.920 --> 00:06:32.319 coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and the resurrection 00:06:32.319 --> 00:06:35.800 of believers, the rapture, the taking away of 00:06:35.800 --> 00:06:39.990 the church. When our very bodies, now lowly and 00:06:39.990 --> 00:06:42.949 in corruption to sin, will be delivered from 00:06:42.949 --> 00:06:48.089 all of that. Paul speaks of it in our text in 00:06:48.089 --> 00:06:54.689 verse 7, we have redemption as in the past. His 00:06:54.689 --> 00:06:57.689 point being that even that future aspect is so 00:06:57.689 --> 00:07:00.170 certain that we can speak of it as something 00:07:00.170 --> 00:07:03.740 that's already taken place. He does the same 00:07:03.740 --> 00:07:06.500 thing in Romans chapter 8 when he says, he mentions 00:07:06.500 --> 00:07:08.800 a number of verbs talking about our salvation, 00:07:08.959 --> 00:07:14.079 and he says, we've also been glorified. Past 00:07:14.079 --> 00:07:16.839 tense. Now, we haven't been glorified yet in 00:07:16.839 --> 00:07:20.339 our experience as time falls out, but he's saying 00:07:20.339 --> 00:07:22.860 that that future event is so certain, that time 00:07:22.860 --> 00:07:25.120 when we'll be glorified with Christ, that is 00:07:25.120 --> 00:07:28.800 changed, made like him. So he can speak of it 00:07:28.800 --> 00:07:32.389 as something that's already taken place. The 00:07:32.389 --> 00:07:36.329 thought of redemption involves the release of 00:07:36.329 --> 00:07:40.470 us from our bondage to sin. In every aspect of 00:07:40.470 --> 00:07:44.170 our being, now we have been released from the 00:07:44.170 --> 00:07:49.250 guilt of our sin. One day we will be released 00:07:49.250 --> 00:07:51.930 from the very presence of sin and corruption 00:07:51.930 --> 00:07:55.209 in our being. And we long for that day, do we 00:07:55.209 --> 00:07:59.500 not? But he also talks about the how of redemption. 00:07:59.800 --> 00:08:03.360 He says we have redemption through his blood. 00:08:04.160 --> 00:08:08.060 And he begins the verse by saying, in him. So 00:08:08.060 --> 00:08:11.180 that is the person who is in view when it mentions 00:08:11.180 --> 00:08:14.379 his blood. And it's not difficult to figure out 00:08:14.379 --> 00:08:16.500 who he's talking about, even though it's a pronoun 00:08:16.500 --> 00:08:19.120 that's not directly identified. You get back 00:08:19.120 --> 00:08:22.139 to verse 6 and it's clear. It's the beloved one. 00:08:23.100 --> 00:08:26.879 It's the Lord Jesus Christ. In him. Through his 00:08:26.879 --> 00:08:31.000 blood. That is the how of redemption. The price 00:08:31.000 --> 00:08:35.299 for your redemption and mine was infinite. A 00:08:35.299 --> 00:08:38.919 price we could never pay. It took an infinite 00:08:38.919 --> 00:08:42.740 person to pay the price. Only the Lord Jesus 00:08:42.740 --> 00:08:47.480 Christ was qualified. The price itself was the 00:08:47.480 --> 00:08:50.799 shedding of his own blood. Not just any blood. 00:08:51.340 --> 00:08:55.100 His blood. It could not be the blood of an animal. 00:08:56.110 --> 00:08:58.350 It could not be the blood even of another man. 00:08:58.889 --> 00:09:02.669 It had to be a qualified man. It had to be the 00:09:02.669 --> 00:09:05.529 blood of a sacrifice, one who was worthy to be 00:09:05.529 --> 00:09:10.750 a substitute. The Lord Jesus Christ was worthy. 00:09:11.690 --> 00:09:16.250 The merit of his life, his life of perfect righteousness, 00:09:16.490 --> 00:09:22.830 cannot be calculated. It's unlimited. He was 00:09:22.830 --> 00:09:29.090 a worthy substitute. to pour out his life for 00:09:29.090 --> 00:09:35.250 us. The worthiness of the substitute is important. 00:09:38.610 --> 00:09:40.970 A few days ago, a terrible thing happened in 00:09:40.970 --> 00:09:44.330 Wyoming. That little town where the man and woman 00:09:44.330 --> 00:09:48.490 went into school and held the students for a 00:09:48.490 --> 00:09:53.190 brief time as hostages. One of the news commentators, 00:09:53.190 --> 00:09:55.090 I thought, said it well. He said, well, justice 00:09:55.090 --> 00:09:59.049 has taken care of this one. And it seemed to 00:09:59.049 --> 00:10:02.070 work out that way, didn't it? But for a time, 00:10:02.110 --> 00:10:07.230 there was a ransom price of $300 million on the 00:10:07.230 --> 00:10:10.929 heads of the children in that school. $300 million. 00:10:12.830 --> 00:10:14.649 Now, which of you would have paid the ransom? 00:10:15.789 --> 00:10:21.529 I'd like to meet you after the story. The heart 00:10:21.529 --> 00:10:24.350 of each one of us would say, I'll pay that ransom. 00:10:26.350 --> 00:10:28.789 And we might write out a check for $300 million 00:10:28.789 --> 00:10:31.590 if they're long enough. You have to get the specially 00:10:31.590 --> 00:10:35.090 long ones, I think, for that price. To write 00:10:35.090 --> 00:10:39.350 it all out. We could deliver the check, but the 00:10:39.350 --> 00:10:43.750 check is worth nothing. We could say this check 00:10:43.750 --> 00:10:46.690 is the substitute for the life of these children. 00:10:46.809 --> 00:10:50.320 We could be sincere about that. But there's nothing 00:10:50.320 --> 00:10:53.059 to back up the check in the bank, at least in 00:10:53.059 --> 00:10:57.860 my account. There's either. We don't have the 00:10:57.860 --> 00:11:00.899 $300 million. You see, it's not a worthy substitute, 00:11:01.159 --> 00:11:05.879 as sincere as we might be about it. My friends, 00:11:05.879 --> 00:11:10.600 God has provided a worthy substitute. The only 00:11:10.600 --> 00:11:14.720 one that could be found. We might be sincere 00:11:14.720 --> 00:11:19.899 about paying for our own sins. We might be sincere 00:11:19.899 --> 00:11:22.259 about saying that we would gladly give ourselves 00:11:22.259 --> 00:11:27.179 for someone else. You see, none of us is a worthy 00:11:27.179 --> 00:11:29.840 substitute for ourselves, let alone someone else. 00:11:32.360 --> 00:11:35.779 The Lord Jesus Christ is the worthy substitute. 00:11:36.419 --> 00:11:43.379 The infinite God incarnate in humanity without 00:11:43.379 --> 00:11:47.940 sin. He had lived a life of perfect obedience 00:11:47.940 --> 00:11:51.759 to the law, identifying himself with sinners 00:11:51.759 --> 00:11:55.080 all the way along, but he himself not being a 00:11:55.080 --> 00:11:59.379 sinner. The reason for his baptism was not that 00:11:59.379 --> 00:12:02.720 he needed to repent of sins. That was what John's 00:12:02.720 --> 00:12:05.159 baptism was all about. Jesus insisted that John 00:12:05.159 --> 00:12:07.919 baptize him, but he did not have sins to repent 00:12:07.919 --> 00:12:10.460 of. What was he doing? He was identifying with 00:12:10.460 --> 00:12:15.820 sins. And throughout his life he did that. Until 00:12:15.820 --> 00:12:18.519 the day he came to the cross, which was the purpose 00:12:18.519 --> 00:12:21.320 for his coming into the world. And there he laid 00:12:21.320 --> 00:12:25.460 down his life as a worthy substitute for mankind. 00:12:29.039 --> 00:12:32.259 The substitute not only had to be worthy to die 00:12:32.259 --> 00:12:34.399 for us, but the substitute had to be willing 00:12:34.399 --> 00:12:40.840 to die for us as well. Jesus said, we came to 00:12:40.840 --> 00:12:44.879 give his life. Not to have his life taken from 00:12:44.879 --> 00:12:48.980 him, note. He says, I come to give my life as 00:12:48.980 --> 00:12:53.620 a ransom for many. In John chapter 10, he said, 00:12:53.740 --> 00:12:57.240 I lay down my life. No one takes it from me. 00:12:57.259 --> 00:13:06.200 I lay it down of myself. In 1 Timothy chapter 00:13:06.200 --> 00:13:10.409 1, or chapter 2, that is. Again, the Apostle 00:13:10.409 --> 00:13:13.409 Paul emphasizes the fact that he gave himself 00:13:13.409 --> 00:13:18.250 as a ransom. You see the point? The point is 00:13:18.250 --> 00:13:20.730 that no one could be grabbed off the street and 00:13:20.730 --> 00:13:24.669 made a substitute, even if they were such a thing 00:13:24.669 --> 00:13:29.350 as a worthy person. The substitute had to willingly 00:13:29.350 --> 00:13:32.850 lay down his life. Now, that was not the case 00:13:32.850 --> 00:13:34.789 at all with the animals of the Old Testament 00:13:34.789 --> 00:13:39.259 that were used for atonement. They were not worthy 00:13:39.259 --> 00:13:42.000 either, although they had to be without spot 00:13:42.000 --> 00:13:45.059 and blemish and so on. But their blood, being 00:13:45.059 --> 00:13:47.419 the blood of but an animal, could not fully take 00:13:47.419 --> 00:13:50.960 away the sin of a person. God did provide the 00:13:50.960 --> 00:13:53.639 animal's blood as an atonement, a covering, until 00:13:53.639 --> 00:13:58.620 the payment could be paid by Christ. But they 00:13:58.620 --> 00:14:00.659 weren't really worthy substitutes in the ultimate 00:14:00.659 --> 00:14:04.960 sense, nor were they willing substitutes. They 00:14:04.960 --> 00:14:08.899 were chosen. By the ones who would have sacrificed 00:14:08.899 --> 00:14:12.919 them. And their throats were slit. And the blood 00:14:12.919 --> 00:14:14.759 then poured out in the appropriate way at the 00:14:14.759 --> 00:14:18.159 altar and sprinkled. For the blood of the offerer. 00:14:18.220 --> 00:14:21.299 For the sins of the offerer. But they were not 00:14:21.299 --> 00:14:24.899 willing substitutes. My friend, the Lord Jesus 00:14:24.899 --> 00:14:27.100 Christ is not only the worthy substitute, he 00:14:27.100 --> 00:14:30.299 was the willing substitute. He gave himself because 00:14:30.299 --> 00:14:32.779 he wanted to give himself for you and for me. 00:14:33.080 --> 00:14:35.539 Out of his great heart of love and compassion 00:14:35.539 --> 00:14:39.190 for us. Out of his desire to please God, his 00:14:39.190 --> 00:14:42.950 Father, who had sent him into the world, he became 00:14:42.950 --> 00:14:47.850 obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 00:14:48.950 --> 00:14:52.090 The how of redemption, it's in him, through his 00:14:52.090 --> 00:14:56.210 blood. Peter talks about this, and I'd like you 00:14:56.210 --> 00:15:00.409 to turn there with me to 1 Peter, and look at 00:15:00.409 --> 00:15:12.299 verse 18 of chapter 1. I think it would be good 00:15:12.299 --> 00:15:15.679 to back up to verse 17. We'll come back to this 00:15:15.679 --> 00:15:18.399 a little bit later. But he says, and if you address 00:15:18.399 --> 00:15:22.299 as father, that is, if you call upon, if you 00:15:22.299 --> 00:15:25.639 invoke God as your father, he says, the one who 00:15:25.639 --> 00:15:28.340 impartially judges according to each man's work, 00:15:28.500 --> 00:15:32.379 conduct yourselves in fear during the time of 00:15:32.379 --> 00:15:35.220 your stay, your pilgrimage upon earth, knowing 00:15:35.220 --> 00:15:39.600 that you were not redeemed with perishable things. 00:15:40.190 --> 00:15:43.549 like silver or gold from your beauty way of life 00:15:43.549 --> 00:15:47.289 inherited from your forefathers, but with precious 00:15:47.289 --> 00:15:51.889 blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, 00:15:52.070 --> 00:15:58.009 the blood of Christ. For he was foreknown, he 00:15:58.009 --> 00:16:02.009 was chosen, selected before the foundation of 00:16:02.009 --> 00:16:05.350 the world that has appeared in these last times 00:16:05.350 --> 00:16:08.690 for the sake of you who through him are believers 00:16:08.690 --> 00:16:12.840 in God. The Lord Jesus Christ appeared at the 00:16:12.840 --> 00:16:15.120 appropriate time in the history of the world 00:16:15.120 --> 00:16:18.259 that he might as a worthy and willing substitute 00:16:18.259 --> 00:16:22.740 give himself his precious blood for the sake 00:16:22.740 --> 00:16:27.340 of you who are believers in God through him. 00:16:28.700 --> 00:16:31.120 Therefore, knowing that we are redeemed with 00:16:31.120 --> 00:16:34.539 such precious blood, he says, we ought to conduct 00:16:34.539 --> 00:16:37.240 ourselves during the time of our stay on the 00:16:37.240 --> 00:16:43.669 earth with reverence. and fears about us. We 00:16:43.669 --> 00:16:49.950 are a purchased people. So great was this sacrifice 00:16:49.950 --> 00:16:53.629 and so infinitely sufficient for our redemption 00:16:53.629 --> 00:16:58.549 from sin that it is the subject of heavenly praises 00:16:58.549 --> 00:17:01.409 by the four living creatures and the 24 elders 00:17:01.409 --> 00:17:04.869 in Revelation chapter 5. The eternal song goes 00:17:04.869 --> 00:17:08.309 like this. We are the art thou to take the book 00:17:08.309 --> 00:17:11.299 and to break its seals. For thou wast slain, 00:17:11.299 --> 00:17:15.359 and didst purchase for God with thy blood men 00:17:15.359 --> 00:17:17.920 from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. 00:17:18.259 --> 00:17:21.000 And thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests 00:17:21.000 --> 00:17:24.799 to our God, and they will reign upon the earth. 00:17:26.299 --> 00:17:30.200 And so wonderful is that chorus that it says 00:17:30.200 --> 00:17:33.319 that a memorable company of angels was described 00:17:33.319 --> 00:17:36.700 as myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands 00:17:36.700 --> 00:17:40.650 of angels then. joined together in singing with 00:17:40.650 --> 00:17:44.049 these people. Worthy is the Lamb that was slain 00:17:44.049 --> 00:17:48.789 to receive power and riches and wisdom and might 00:17:48.789 --> 00:17:53.470 and honor and glory and blessing. And then so 00:17:53.470 --> 00:17:56.250 captivating is that scene that it says that everything 00:17:56.250 --> 00:18:00.589 created in heaven, on earth, on the sea, and 00:18:00.589 --> 00:18:04.990 all things in them. Now you see everything in 00:18:04.990 --> 00:18:09.250 God's created universe. begins to sing. And the 00:18:09.250 --> 00:18:13.089 chorus goes like this, To him who sits on the 00:18:13.089 --> 00:18:17.609 throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor 00:18:17.609 --> 00:18:24.069 and glory and dominion forever and ever. You 00:18:24.069 --> 00:18:27.349 see, so wonderfully sufficient, so complete is 00:18:27.349 --> 00:18:32.390 the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus 00:18:32.390 --> 00:18:37.839 Christ. That the song of the ages is all about 00:18:37.839 --> 00:18:44.299 him and will be forever and ever. Let's think 00:18:44.299 --> 00:18:50.759 about the wherefore of redemption. He says in 00:18:50.759 --> 00:18:55.180 him we have redemption through his blood. And 00:18:55.180 --> 00:18:57.279 by the way, don't ever be ashamed to talk about 00:18:57.279 --> 00:19:02.539 the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. There are 00:19:02.539 --> 00:19:05.339 some people who count themselves Christians and 00:19:05.339 --> 00:19:09.460 religious who are ashamed of the blood of the 00:19:09.460 --> 00:19:12.440 Lord Jesus Christ, thinking it to be rather unseemly 00:19:12.440 --> 00:19:15.960 to talk about his blood. There are some denominations 00:19:15.960 --> 00:19:19.220 that have rewritten their hymnals to take out 00:19:19.220 --> 00:19:21.680 the songs that deal with the blood of the Lord 00:19:21.680 --> 00:19:25.680 Jesus Christ. There are those who despise what 00:19:25.680 --> 00:19:28.940 they call the bloody religion. My friend, without 00:19:28.940 --> 00:19:31.720 the shedding of his blood, there is no remission 00:19:31.720 --> 00:19:35.519 of sin. Never be ashamed of the blood of the 00:19:35.519 --> 00:19:38.599 Lord Jesus Christ shed for us and of the great 00:19:38.599 --> 00:19:42.720 truth that is involved in that. Let's talk about 00:19:42.720 --> 00:19:47.099 the whole four of redemption. He says, we have 00:19:47.099 --> 00:19:51.380 redemption through his blood, comma, the forgiveness 00:19:51.380 --> 00:19:54.359 of our trespasses according to the riches of 00:19:54.359 --> 00:20:00.250 his grace which he lavished upon us. Redemption 00:20:00.250 --> 00:20:05.109 is about the forgiveness of our trespasses. You 00:20:05.109 --> 00:20:08.809 see, the Lord Jesus Christ paid the price for 00:20:08.809 --> 00:20:13.589 our sins. And in so doing, he fairly dealt with 00:20:13.589 --> 00:20:19.150 our sins. The word forgiveness in the original 00:20:19.150 --> 00:20:25.369 language means to carry away. You see, the redemption 00:20:25.369 --> 00:20:31.119 that we have has this result. It is the forgiveness, 00:20:31.420 --> 00:20:36.319 the carrying away of our sins, not just the covering 00:20:36.319 --> 00:20:40.259 over of them. It's not merely an atonement. God 00:20:40.259 --> 00:20:44.059 is not sweeping them under the rug, able to do 00:20:44.059 --> 00:20:47.519 that because of the blood of Christ, but he completely 00:20:47.519 --> 00:20:50.599 carries them away so that there is no longer 00:20:50.599 --> 00:20:55.039 any record. God chooses to separate our sins 00:20:55.039 --> 00:21:00.880 from us. One of the most moving parts of Bunyan's 00:21:00.880 --> 00:21:04.500 great story, Pilgrim's Progress, is that point 00:21:04.500 --> 00:21:10.180 when Pilgrim moves before the cross and the burden 00:21:10.180 --> 00:21:13.059 that he has carried all the way in his pilgrimage 00:21:13.059 --> 00:21:16.619 to that point snaps away from his back and rolls 00:21:16.619 --> 00:21:21.980 away, that burden being the guilt of his sins. 00:21:22.990 --> 00:21:25.930 You see, God has caused our sins to be rolled 00:21:25.930 --> 00:21:29.589 away, to be separated from us. John the Baptist 00:21:29.589 --> 00:21:31.910 saw him coming and said, Behold, the Lamb of 00:21:31.910 --> 00:21:38.069 God is taking away the sins of the world. In 00:21:38.069 --> 00:21:43.150 Psalm 103, the psalmist says it this way, As 00:21:43.150 --> 00:21:48.190 far as the east is from the west, so far has 00:21:48.190 --> 00:21:57.230 he removed our transgressions from us. I think 00:21:57.230 --> 00:21:59.450 the very meaningful ceremony that took place 00:21:59.450 --> 00:22:02.109 on the Day of Atonement in ancient Israel beautifully 00:22:02.109 --> 00:22:06.509 pictures this. It was on that day and that day 00:22:06.509 --> 00:22:08.730 alone that the high priest could enter into the 00:22:08.730 --> 00:22:12.430 Holy of Holies and there sprinkle the blood according 00:22:12.430 --> 00:22:18.150 to the commandments of the law. Part of the initial 00:22:18.150 --> 00:22:20.650 ceremony involved the bringing before him of 00:22:20.650 --> 00:22:26.720 two, not one, but two goats. One of the goats 00:22:26.720 --> 00:22:29.119 was sacrificed. The throat was slit. The blood 00:22:29.119 --> 00:22:33.259 was poured out upon the altar. Speaking about 00:22:33.259 --> 00:22:35.880 atonement for sin, dealing with it. Atonement 00:22:35.880 --> 00:22:40.059 for sin has to be carried out. The judgment of 00:22:40.059 --> 00:22:44.420 the law upon sin, which is death, had to be fulfilled. 00:22:44.519 --> 00:22:48.319 It was fulfilled in that first goat who shed 00:22:48.319 --> 00:22:53.319 his blood. The second goat then was brought to 00:22:53.319 --> 00:22:57.880 the priest. The priest put his hands over the 00:22:57.880 --> 00:23:03.859 head of the goat and then confessed the sins 00:23:03.859 --> 00:23:10.259 of the nation of Israel. The goat then was taken 00:23:10.259 --> 00:23:15.279 away alive, taken away, and released in the wilderness 00:23:15.279 --> 00:23:19.539 far from the camp, never to come back again to 00:23:19.539 --> 00:23:23.980 Israel. You see, on the one hand, we deal with... 00:23:24.940 --> 00:23:33.099 The penalty for sin. Death. The shedding of the 00:23:33.099 --> 00:23:38.160 blood of a substitute. In the other, we have 00:23:38.160 --> 00:23:41.519 the result pictured, and that is the removal 00:23:41.519 --> 00:23:45.440 of the very sins themselves from those who are 00:23:45.440 --> 00:23:49.640 under the blood. The wherefore of redemption, 00:23:49.940 --> 00:23:52.960 my friend, is the forgiveness of your sins. All 00:23:52.960 --> 00:23:58.250 of them. All of them. That is emphasized in Colossians 00:23:58.250 --> 00:24:02.809 chapter 2, having forgiven us all of our transgressions, 00:24:02.809 --> 00:24:07.250 says Paul. There was a lady one time who accosted 00:24:07.250 --> 00:24:12.150 Dr. Harry Ironside about that. He was a Bible 00:24:12.150 --> 00:24:15.910 teacher 50 years ago now, well known in the United 00:24:15.910 --> 00:24:17.769 States. Some of you have his books, undoubtedly. 00:24:20.430 --> 00:24:23.470 He was emphasizing the fact that all of our sins, 00:24:23.670 --> 00:24:27.809 past, present, and future, have been dealt with 00:24:27.809 --> 00:24:31.450 by the Lord Jesus Christ. He came to him and 00:24:31.450 --> 00:24:35.809 said, Pastor Ironsides, I believe that my past 00:24:35.809 --> 00:24:38.529 sins have been dealt with, but not my future 00:24:38.529 --> 00:24:41.730 sins. I mean the sins now. And those are all 00:24:41.730 --> 00:24:43.829 committed in the future. I don't believe that. 00:24:44.269 --> 00:24:47.690 The past sins are dealt with. And in a kind way, 00:24:47.769 --> 00:24:51.079 he said, dear ladies. When Christ died for your 00:24:51.079 --> 00:24:58.880 sins, how many of them were past? You see the 00:24:58.880 --> 00:25:02.400 point. When Jesus paid the price for our sins, 00:25:02.480 --> 00:25:06.519 they were all future. There was no past, present, 00:25:06.559 --> 00:25:09.799 and future. As we look at it, there is. But when 00:25:09.799 --> 00:25:12.339 he died for our sins, he paid an eternal price 00:25:12.339 --> 00:25:15.839 and an infinite price that dealt with all of 00:25:15.839 --> 00:25:20.309 our sins. That is one of the blessed reasons 00:25:20.309 --> 00:25:23.890 we believe in the security of the believer. Because 00:25:23.890 --> 00:25:26.809 through his blood we have the forgiveness, the 00:25:26.809 --> 00:25:33.289 removal of our sins. This forgiveness is said 00:25:33.289 --> 00:25:38.690 to be according to the riches of his grace. Notice 00:25:38.690 --> 00:25:41.750 that it doesn't say out of the riches of his 00:25:41.750 --> 00:25:43.990 grace he's forgiven us, but according to the 00:25:43.990 --> 00:25:48.250 riches of his grace he's forgiven us. This may 00:25:48.250 --> 00:25:52.109 be illustrated, the difference that is, by thinking 00:25:52.109 --> 00:25:55.849 of two men of wealth who are approached to give 00:25:55.849 --> 00:26:00.490 to some cause. The first man gives meagerly. 00:26:02.170 --> 00:26:07.450 He gives out of his riches. The second man gives 00:26:07.450 --> 00:26:11.450 generously to the cause. He is the one who gives 00:26:11.450 --> 00:26:20.400 according to his riches. In giving us the forgiveness 00:26:20.400 --> 00:26:25.079 of our sins, God has not merely handed out to 00:26:25.079 --> 00:26:31.619 us a little grace out of his riches, but he has, 00:26:31.740 --> 00:26:37.059 according to his riches, lavished upon us his 00:26:37.059 --> 00:26:41.819 grace. To lavish means to cause to overflow. 00:26:42.700 --> 00:26:45.220 It's a picture of flood. It means just being 00:26:45.220 --> 00:26:50.119 dumped on. It means a deluge. A cloudburst of 00:26:50.119 --> 00:26:55.180 grace, if you please. In Romans 5 .17, the apostle 00:26:55.180 --> 00:26:59.700 took it this way. Grace, for sin abounded. Grace, 00:26:59.700 --> 00:27:04.700 what? Abounded more. The word that he uses there 00:27:04.700 --> 00:27:08.799 is the same Greek word as here. For sin was present. 00:27:09.359 --> 00:27:13.500 Grace was lavished upon us. It abounded more. 00:27:15.109 --> 00:27:18.009 God does not go out his grace little by little 00:27:18.009 --> 00:27:21.589 to us. He does not break off a piece of grace 00:27:21.589 --> 00:27:24.990 and say, here you go for today. You see, God 00:27:24.990 --> 00:27:29.210 gives us all the grace we need all at once. Nor 00:27:29.210 --> 00:27:32.130 does God give us a little bit of grace for each 00:27:32.130 --> 00:27:35.529 act of obedience that we do. That nullifies the 00:27:35.529 --> 00:27:39.470 whole idea of grace, doesn't it? You see, if 00:27:39.470 --> 00:27:41.509 it's out of works that we are rewarded, then 00:27:41.509 --> 00:27:45.170 it's not grace. Grace means it's favor that we 00:27:45.170 --> 00:27:47.089 don't deserve. We've done nothing to earn it. 00:27:48.589 --> 00:27:50.970 Now I emphasize that because some of us have 00:27:50.970 --> 00:27:52.950 come out of backgrounds where we have been taught 00:27:52.950 --> 00:27:56.430 from little children that the grace of God is 00:27:56.430 --> 00:28:00.809 something that we get in pieces. The idea being 00:28:00.809 --> 00:28:03.250 that if we do these certain things, if we keep 00:28:03.250 --> 00:28:05.549 these sacraments, or perform these rituals, or 00:28:05.549 --> 00:28:09.289 say these prayers, God gives to us a little bit 00:28:09.289 --> 00:28:11.920 of grace. And it's as though we can keep it in 00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:15.279 a sack, you see. And with all through life we're 00:28:15.279 --> 00:28:17.880 just sort of collecting grace by doing these 00:28:17.880 --> 00:28:22.859 things. Hoping. Hoping that someday when we have 00:28:22.859 --> 00:28:26.079 to stand before God, our sack of grace that we've 00:28:26.079 --> 00:28:28.019 collected through the years will be enough to 00:28:28.019 --> 00:28:31.640 outweigh our sins that we've committed. Is that 00:28:31.640 --> 00:28:34.720 the idea of grace? Is that what the grace of 00:28:34.720 --> 00:28:37.220 God is? Is that the riches of his grace according 00:28:37.220 --> 00:28:41.049 to which he's forgiven us? Well, I absolutely 00:28:41.049 --> 00:28:43.769 demean the grace of God to think of it in those 00:28:43.769 --> 00:28:47.589 terms. The grace of God is lavished upon us. 00:28:47.690 --> 00:28:51.210 God has not withheld. God is not an ogre. He 00:28:51.210 --> 00:28:54.670 is not meager in his giving. God gives and gives 00:28:54.670 --> 00:29:00.190 freely grace to us. He lavishes it upon us with 00:29:00.190 --> 00:29:04.769 delight. God does not dole it out little by little, 00:29:04.809 --> 00:29:08.599 but he gives all his grace to us. I've compared 00:29:08.599 --> 00:29:11.099 it in the past to a large reservoir of grace. 00:29:11.400 --> 00:29:15.220 But you see, even a reservoir has limits. And 00:29:15.220 --> 00:29:17.619 there is no limit to the riches of God's grace. 00:29:17.680 --> 00:29:21.799 It's infinite. It cannot be drawn upon and depleted 00:29:21.799 --> 00:29:24.200 by anyone. The greatest sinner who's ever lived 00:29:24.200 --> 00:29:28.519 cannot deplete the grace of God. Indeed, if he 00:29:28.519 --> 00:29:30.740 calls upon the Lord Jesus Christ and according 00:29:30.740 --> 00:29:36.450 to his grace is forgiven of his many sins, That 00:29:36.450 --> 00:29:39.589 sinner does not at all diminish the grace of 00:29:39.589 --> 00:29:41.490 God. It cannot be diminished. It's infinite. 00:29:42.849 --> 00:29:46.569 As all of God's attributes are infinite, so is 00:29:46.569 --> 00:29:50.210 his grace. There is no measurement. We can't 00:29:50.210 --> 00:29:52.450 even say that God has great grace, although we 00:29:52.450 --> 00:29:55.549 do say that and we sing that. And I think we 00:29:55.549 --> 00:29:58.690 know what we mean when we say that, but we can't 00:29:58.690 --> 00:30:01.089 even use a term like great to describe his grace. 00:30:01.930 --> 00:30:05.130 Because, you see, that measures it in... in comparison 00:30:05.130 --> 00:30:07.470 to something else, and it can't even be compared. 00:30:08.309 --> 00:30:12.269 The infinity of God is just unlimited. It's boundless, 00:30:12.329 --> 00:30:15.750 and so it is with God's grace. You may feel that 00:30:15.750 --> 00:30:17.650 you have sinned too deeply, that you've gone 00:30:17.650 --> 00:30:19.829 too far, that there are some things in your past 00:30:19.829 --> 00:30:22.910 that God can't deal with. My friend, will you 00:30:22.910 --> 00:30:27.369 listen to what I'm saying today? Out of the riches 00:30:27.369 --> 00:30:30.250 of God's grace, he is able to redeem you and 00:30:30.250 --> 00:30:34.769 forgive you of all of your sins. He is able to 00:30:34.769 --> 00:30:37.130 pay the price for you. Indeed, he has paid the 00:30:37.130 --> 00:30:39.390 price for you through his Son, the Lord Jesus 00:30:39.390 --> 00:30:43.410 Christ. Whatever the purchase price may be for 00:30:43.410 --> 00:30:51.150 you, God's got it. It's there. God is wealthy 00:30:51.150 --> 00:30:55.130 in grace. Have you received the Son? Have you 00:30:55.130 --> 00:30:58.509 received his beloved one as your Savior? Well, 00:30:58.529 --> 00:31:00.329 if you have, you know the meaning. If you don't, 00:31:00.329 --> 00:31:02.329 if you haven't received him, you don't know the 00:31:02.329 --> 00:31:05.240 meaning. Do you have the certainty today of your 00:31:05.240 --> 00:31:08.839 sins being forgiven? Or are you something like 00:31:08.839 --> 00:31:12.539 pilgrims, still laboring under the load of your 00:31:12.539 --> 00:31:16.599 guilt and sin? My friend, for the real guilt, 00:31:16.680 --> 00:31:18.480 and remember there is such a thing as false guilt, 00:31:18.599 --> 00:31:20.539 but for the real guilt in your life, thank God. 00:31:22.599 --> 00:31:24.700 Thank God because it means that your conscience 00:31:24.700 --> 00:31:28.849 is working as God intended it to do. That is 00:31:28.849 --> 00:31:31.269 a detector of sorts in your life. God is sounding 00:31:31.269 --> 00:31:33.750 that detector to tell you you're guilty of sin, 00:31:33.849 --> 00:31:36.869 transgression, that you have offended him. He 00:31:36.869 --> 00:31:41.809 is warning you. Do something about that before 00:31:41.809 --> 00:31:52.269 you come into my presence, before you die. You 00:31:52.269 --> 00:31:55.619 say, what can I do about it? Well, there's only 00:31:55.619 --> 00:31:57.519 one thing you can do, and that is come to the 00:31:57.519 --> 00:32:02.779 Savior. Receive him who died for your sins, who 00:32:02.779 --> 00:32:06.440 shed his precious blood, and who rose again from 00:32:06.440 --> 00:32:09.900 the dead and is alive today, not only to save 00:32:09.900 --> 00:32:13.039 you now, but to save you forever, to take you 00:32:13.039 --> 00:32:15.980 home to heaven at that point. So that when you 00:32:15.980 --> 00:32:19.119 stand before God, he stands there with you. And 00:32:19.119 --> 00:32:21.380 even at this moment, for those of us who are 00:32:21.380 --> 00:32:23.680 in Christ, he stands before God on our behalf. 00:32:27.180 --> 00:32:31.059 You know, there are certain demands upon God's 00:32:31.059 --> 00:32:34.160 redeemed in light of the abundance of his grace. 00:32:36.079 --> 00:32:40.500 We can't take that for granted. We can't pretend 00:32:40.500 --> 00:32:42.859 as though we can live like the devil now the 00:32:42.859 --> 00:32:46.099 rest of our lives, knowing that God has enough 00:32:46.099 --> 00:32:48.059 grace to forgive us of whatever we do. That's 00:32:48.059 --> 00:32:49.940 not the purpose of the richness of God's grace. 00:32:54.279 --> 00:32:56.680 God's riches of grace are given to us that we 00:32:56.680 --> 00:33:00.640 might lead lives that are pleasing to God. I'd 00:33:00.640 --> 00:33:02.599 like to use two words to describe the kind of 00:33:02.599 --> 00:33:04.759 life that we ought to live in light of the abundance 00:33:04.759 --> 00:33:07.680 of the grace of God. We ought to lead in the 00:33:07.680 --> 00:33:11.579 first place a holy life. Come back with me to 00:33:11.579 --> 00:33:17.279 1 Peter again, chapter 1. We'll back up just 00:33:17.279 --> 00:33:19.559 a couple of more verses this time than what we've 00:33:19.559 --> 00:33:30.980 studied before. In verse 14 he says, And as obedient 00:33:30.980 --> 00:33:36.240 children, do not be conformed to the former lusts 00:33:36.240 --> 00:33:39.220 which were yours in your ignorance. But like 00:33:39.220 --> 00:33:43.619 the one who called you, be holy yourselves in 00:33:43.619 --> 00:33:46.759 all your behavior. Because it is written, you 00:33:46.759 --> 00:33:50.779 shall be holy, for I am holy. And notice that 00:33:50.779 --> 00:33:53.099 that is in the same context as the blood of Christ 00:33:53.099 --> 00:33:57.529 and redemption. A few verses down. He says we 00:33:57.529 --> 00:34:01.210 are to lead holy lives. That means lives that 00:34:01.210 --> 00:34:04.869 are separated from sin. Lives that are separated 00:34:04.869 --> 00:34:09.130 from the world. Lives that are set apart for 00:34:09.130 --> 00:34:14.250 God's special purpose. What is there about us 00:34:14.250 --> 00:34:16.650 in our Christianity these days that we think 00:34:16.650 --> 00:34:18.829 that once we are saved, now we can go out and 00:34:18.829 --> 00:34:21.190 be just as much like the world as we want to 00:34:21.190 --> 00:34:25.239 be? Why is it that we think that we have to look 00:34:25.239 --> 00:34:27.719 like the world and smell like the world and live 00:34:27.719 --> 00:34:32.760 like the world being God's children? We are not 00:34:32.760 --> 00:34:37.619 redeemed for that purpose. He has redeemed us 00:34:37.619 --> 00:34:40.139 with precious blood that we might be a peculiar 00:34:40.139 --> 00:34:45.199 people, a different people. Indeed, one who has 00:34:45.199 --> 00:34:47.059 the attitude, I want to go out and live like 00:34:47.059 --> 00:34:50.360 I want to live. Do like the world. It's probably 00:34:50.360 --> 00:34:52.480 giving evidence to the fact he's never been saved. 00:34:54.500 --> 00:34:57.260 You see, the grace of God not only saves us, 00:34:57.300 --> 00:35:00.440 but it sanctifies us. It sets us apart. We lead 00:35:00.440 --> 00:35:04.679 a holy life. The demands of my redemption involve 00:35:04.679 --> 00:35:11.179 a holy life. Secondly, a surrendered life. We 00:35:11.179 --> 00:35:14.519 are freed from slavery to sin, not to go out 00:35:14.519 --> 00:35:19.909 and do our own thing. We are freed from sin, 00:35:20.090 --> 00:35:26.130 not to be independent of God, but we are freed 00:35:26.130 --> 00:35:29.829 from sin so that we can now give ourselves, by 00:35:29.829 --> 00:35:34.610 God's grace, to the Lord Jesus Christ, to be 00:35:34.610 --> 00:35:38.710 his slaves. It's wonderfully pictured in the 00:35:38.710 --> 00:35:41.869 Old Testament in something that was done. In 00:35:41.869 --> 00:35:45.269 Exodus chapter 21 it's mentioned. A man who was 00:35:45.269 --> 00:35:48.190 a slave in ancient Israel could be redeemed from 00:35:48.190 --> 00:35:53.610 his slavery. But if during the time of his servitude 00:35:53.610 --> 00:35:58.889 he married, had children and so on, his wife 00:35:58.889 --> 00:36:02.809 and children still belonged to the master. And 00:36:02.809 --> 00:36:05.650 so there were many times when a man who was in 00:36:05.650 --> 00:36:11.210 servitude chose not to be redeemed. But it was 00:36:11.210 --> 00:36:13.449 really done this way. He was redeemed from his 00:36:13.449 --> 00:36:18.510 servitude by a price. But then willingly, he 00:36:18.510 --> 00:36:23.030 would give himself back to his master. And there 00:36:23.030 --> 00:36:25.170 was a way that they symbolized that and made 00:36:25.170 --> 00:36:27.550 it obvious to everybody that this man was a slave 00:36:27.550 --> 00:36:29.949 from now on, not because of a price on his head, 00:36:30.030 --> 00:36:32.630 but because he was willing to be a slave. That's 00:36:32.630 --> 00:36:34.849 what he wanted. They took a sharp instrument 00:36:34.849 --> 00:36:36.730 and they poked it right through his earlobe. 00:36:38.920 --> 00:36:41.420 So that when anybody saw his earlobe, they knew 00:36:41.420 --> 00:36:44.139 that here is a man who has willingly surrendered 00:36:44.139 --> 00:36:49.260 to his master. That same picture is used of the 00:36:49.260 --> 00:36:52.579 Lord Jesus Christ coming into the world in Psalm 00:36:52.579 --> 00:37:00.659 40. He says, My ears thou hast opened. He's saying 00:37:00.659 --> 00:37:04.739 that I'm coming with an ear that has been opened 00:37:04.739 --> 00:37:09.619 in my willing obedience to you, Father. I want 00:37:09.619 --> 00:37:13.619 to ask you a question. Is your ear open to the 00:37:13.619 --> 00:37:16.940 voice of God? Is your life surrendered to him? 00:37:17.000 --> 00:37:19.980 Are you his slave by voluntary giving of yourself 00:37:19.980 --> 00:37:24.400 today? Your redemption from sin by precious blood 00:37:24.400 --> 00:37:26.679 has not been so that you can go out and do what 00:37:26.679 --> 00:37:30.639 you want to do. That's not the point. The point 00:37:30.639 --> 00:37:32.940 is now you are free to give yourself to Jesus 00:37:32.940 --> 00:37:37.360 Christ. Are you living that way today in your 00:37:37.360 --> 00:37:41.190 lifestyle? Are your decisions made in light of 00:37:41.190 --> 00:37:44.409 Christ's Lordship? Are your motives, are your 00:37:44.409 --> 00:37:47.710 goals in line with what Jesus Christ wants in 00:37:47.710 --> 00:37:50.710 your life? Or are you a redeemed person doing 00:37:50.710 --> 00:37:54.210 your own thing? Please understand that that's 00:37:54.210 --> 00:37:58.230 a contradiction. You're a living contradiction. 00:37:59.489 --> 00:38:02.849 And you need to get yourself consistent. If you're 00:38:02.849 --> 00:38:06.230 redeemed by precious blood, I call upon you today 00:38:06.230 --> 00:38:08.670 to give yourself the Lordship of Jesus Christ. 00:38:09.769 --> 00:38:16.590 In every area of your life. Father, we are redeemed 00:38:16.590 --> 00:38:19.250 by precious blood. Thank you for reminding us 00:38:19.250 --> 00:38:21.190 of that this morning and of the demands that 00:38:21.190 --> 00:38:24.849 come upon us because of it. We are bought with 00:38:24.849 --> 00:38:28.469 a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body 00:38:28.469 --> 00:38:34.449 and your spirit with your God. Lord, remind us 00:38:34.449 --> 00:38:36.650 today as we need to be reminded every day that 00:38:36.650 --> 00:38:43.099 we are not our own. We're yours. And may our 00:38:43.099 --> 00:38:46.380 lives be holy and surrendered in light of that. 00:38:47.360 --> 00:38:54.039 In Jesus' name, amen. I'd like us to sing in 00:38:54.039 --> 00:39:02.940 closing a verse of 557, words by Fanny Crosby. 00:39:06.339 --> 00:39:09.340 If you today are struggling with the matter of 00:39:09.340 --> 00:39:11.920 a surrendered life or a holy life, or if you 00:39:11.920 --> 00:39:15.019 have never trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as your 00:39:15.019 --> 00:39:18.559 own Savior, I want to encourage you to seek us 00:39:18.559 --> 00:39:21.440 out. We're not going to have a public come forward 00:39:21.440 --> 00:39:23.199 invitation this morning. We're going to sing 00:39:23.199 --> 00:39:25.659 and be on our way. But I'll be at this door, 00:39:25.739 --> 00:39:27.420 and there'll be other staff members around, and 00:39:27.420 --> 00:39:29.619 we want to talk with you and help you in that 00:39:29.619 --> 00:39:32.079 spiritual struggle that you're going through. 00:39:32.880 --> 00:39:35.920 Give us that opportunity, will you? Let's stand 00:39:35.920 --> 00:39:38.900 together and sing the first verse of 557.