WEBVTT 00:00:07.849 --> 00:00:10.630 Excuse me, we've taken a fourth of our service 00:00:10.630 --> 00:00:14.470 to show you videos that demonstrate what the 00:00:14.470 --> 00:00:17.670 real problem is. If we want to pray, we also 00:00:17.670 --> 00:00:19.649 want to take action. In your bullet sets, man, 00:00:19.649 --> 00:00:23.390 there's a sheet that tells you what small step 00:00:23.390 --> 00:00:28.570 you can take in a limited situation. Beyond writing 00:00:28.570 --> 00:00:31.190 those letters, you're able to write out congressmen 00:00:31.190 --> 00:00:35.409 or senators to express your concern for persecuted 00:00:35.409 --> 00:00:38.369 Christians. running the State Department in Washington, 00:00:38.369 --> 00:00:43.429 D .C. as well, being kind but also very clear 00:00:43.429 --> 00:00:46.929 that as Americans do, we expect our government 00:00:46.929 --> 00:00:51.469 to take a stand on the human rights issue. As 00:00:51.469 --> 00:00:53.770 we open our Bibles this morning, the message 00:00:53.770 --> 00:01:02.170 is one that is not only for us in America, it's 00:01:02.170 --> 00:01:06.079 for the church around the world. It's the hope 00:01:06.079 --> 00:01:16.579 of the mystery. 1 Corinthians chapter 15. So 00:01:16.579 --> 00:01:21.640 let me begin reading in verse 51. If all I tell 00:01:21.640 --> 00:01:25.739 you a mystery, we shall not all sleep, but we 00:01:25.739 --> 00:01:28.680 shall all be changed in a moment in the twinkling 00:01:28.680 --> 00:01:33.079 of an eye at the last trumpet. For the trumpet 00:01:33.079 --> 00:01:36.219 will sound and the bed will be raised and perishable 00:01:36.219 --> 00:01:41.120 and we shall be changed. For this perishable 00:01:41.120 --> 00:01:45.260 must put on the imperishable and this mortal 00:01:45.260 --> 00:01:50.560 must put on immortality. Everyone loves a good 00:01:50.560 --> 00:01:53.920 mystery. And the mystery that we're going to 00:01:53.920 --> 00:01:57.040 look at today is one that will lift you literally 00:01:57.040 --> 00:02:02.019 out of this world. It is a mystery that one day 00:02:02.019 --> 00:02:06.060 you're going to be all up in the air about. It 00:02:06.060 --> 00:02:09.479 is a mystery, however, in a different sense than 00:02:09.479 --> 00:02:13.280 in the typical sense that we use that word. In 00:02:13.280 --> 00:02:17.199 the New Testament, the word musterion or mystery 00:02:17.199 --> 00:02:21.900 is used of a matter that was not previously known, 00:02:23.219 --> 00:02:26.500 but which has now been revealed to us by God. 00:02:27.719 --> 00:02:30.939 It is a matter that we could not discover on 00:02:30.939 --> 00:02:35.120 our own. Only God could expose this truth to 00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:40.520 us. That is a musteria. We have a defining chorus 00:02:40.520 --> 00:02:45.280 in Ephesians 3 verses 4 and 5 where Paul writes 00:02:45.280 --> 00:02:49.780 about the mystery of Christ and says, Which in 00:02:49.780 --> 00:02:53.259 other generations was not made known to the sons 00:02:53.259 --> 00:03:00.400 of men as it has now? that revealed the mystery 00:03:00.400 --> 00:03:04.000 of Christ, not known to other generations, but 00:03:04.000 --> 00:03:09.580 now revealed. That's a lusterity. The truth of 00:03:09.580 --> 00:03:13.180 a coming resurrection would not be considered 00:03:13.180 --> 00:03:15.580 a mystery because it was foretold in the Old 00:03:15.580 --> 00:03:20.919 Testament. Even Job, the man who lived the earliest 00:03:20.919 --> 00:03:23.580 of his life as recorded in the Old Testament, 00:03:24.340 --> 00:03:29.930 said, after my skin is destroyed, yet from my 00:03:29.930 --> 00:03:34.150 flesh, that is from within my flesh, I shall 00:03:34.150 --> 00:03:39.469 see God." Which was an early statement of Job's 00:03:39.469 --> 00:03:44.509 belief in the resurrection. Daniel Prophets wrote 00:03:44.509 --> 00:03:47.009 these words that many of those who sleep in the 00:03:47.009 --> 00:03:52.050 dust of the ground will awake. to everlasting 00:03:52.050 --> 00:03:55.710 life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting 00:03:55.710 --> 00:04:00.409 contempt. And so the resurrection would now be 00:04:00.409 --> 00:04:03.430 considered a mystery in the sense that we're 00:04:03.430 --> 00:04:08.030 defining that term biblically. However, the transformation 00:04:08.030 --> 00:04:14.030 of believers living at the return of Jesus Christ 00:04:14.030 --> 00:04:20.490 is a musterion. As Paul concludes, his polemic 00:04:20.490 --> 00:04:23.490 in this chapter against the false notion that 00:04:23.490 --> 00:04:27.550 there is no resurrection of the dead. He addresses 00:04:27.550 --> 00:04:30.930 the reality that some of God's people will in 00:04:30.930 --> 00:04:35.509 fact be alive on that day of the resurrection. 00:04:37.170 --> 00:04:40.430 And they, those who are alive, will not miss 00:04:40.430 --> 00:04:45.470 out on the glorious change from mortality to 00:04:45.470 --> 00:04:52.939 immortality. of the mystery belongs to all believers, 00:04:53.240 --> 00:04:59.040 the living, the living as well as the dead. Paul 00:04:59.040 --> 00:05:04.120 is not going to explain that idea to us. The 00:05:04.120 --> 00:05:06.459 explanation of the hope is found in these verses 00:05:06.459 --> 00:05:08.600 we have just read. We're going to answer some 00:05:08.600 --> 00:05:11.899 very simple questions as we seek to understand 00:05:11.899 --> 00:05:14.379 what this mystery is. The first question is, 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:20.769 who? Paul says, I tell you a mystery, we shall 00:05:20.769 --> 00:05:25.949 not all sleep. We shall be changed. He is using 00:05:25.949 --> 00:05:29.209 we here to set to those who are alive in his 00:05:29.209 --> 00:05:33.209 day, those who are reading the letter. It gives 00:05:33.209 --> 00:05:36.889 us the hint at least that Paul would not have 00:05:36.889 --> 00:05:40.529 been surprised to have been alive himself at 00:05:40.529 --> 00:05:45.009 Christ's return. We know, of course, 1900 years 00:05:45.009 --> 00:05:50.069 have passed. since Paul was martyred. Let those 00:05:50.069 --> 00:05:53.850 of us who are alive today still read this letter. 00:05:55.569 --> 00:05:59.730 And we are the ones who are spoken of here. And 00:05:59.730 --> 00:06:03.250 if we are one day later to the grave, it will 00:06:03.250 --> 00:06:07.990 be the next generation. Paul is addressing especially 00:06:07.990 --> 00:06:11.829 those who are still living in this world and 00:06:11.829 --> 00:06:15.670 who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. But what 00:06:15.670 --> 00:06:18.870 does he say? He says, we shall not all sleep. 00:06:20.129 --> 00:06:22.689 As we have said before, sleep in this chapter 00:06:22.689 --> 00:06:26.970 is a metaphor for death. We shall not all die, 00:06:27.189 --> 00:06:31.430 says Paul, but we shall all be changed. That 00:06:31.430 --> 00:06:35.089 word changed in the original language means we 00:06:35.089 --> 00:06:41.829 will be made other than we are now. We will exchange 00:06:41.829 --> 00:06:46.959 what we are now for something else. Or are we 00:06:46.959 --> 00:06:54.019 now? We are mortal. And we will exchange our 00:06:54.019 --> 00:06:58.759 mortality for immortality when the Lord comes. 00:06:59.899 --> 00:07:03.439 Perhaps a good illustration of this transformation 00:07:03.439 --> 00:07:07.779 is that of metamorphosis. A crawling, lonely 00:07:07.779 --> 00:07:10.259 caterpillar like we have up on the screen there 00:07:10.259 --> 00:07:12.600 this morning, the best I can find in my footwork. 00:07:14.480 --> 00:07:19.879 or the small, lonely caterpillar eats and then 00:07:19.879 --> 00:07:26.160 forms around himself a chrysalis. And that secret 00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:29.600 cocoon in that darkness, a change takes place 00:07:29.600 --> 00:07:33.500 so that later the same creature emerges in a 00:07:33.500 --> 00:07:39.639 new altered form as a butterfly. So our bodies 00:07:39.639 --> 00:07:43.360 now are like that caterpillar. Our bodies now 00:07:43.360 --> 00:07:48.819 are lonely earthly. But one day, our bodies will 00:07:48.819 --> 00:07:53.439 be changed in a moment, it says, to a heavenly, 00:07:53.800 --> 00:07:57.339 spiritual likeness like the body of Jesus himself. 00:07:58.360 --> 00:08:00.459 And how is this going to happen? The book Paul 00:08:00.459 --> 00:08:04.800 says, in an invisible moment of time, in the 00:08:04.800 --> 00:08:08.740 twinkling of an eye, he says as an illustration. 00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:14.029 That is, instantaneously and suddenly, When the 00:08:14.029 --> 00:08:18.029 Lord comes, our bodies will be changed and transformed. 00:08:19.550 --> 00:08:22.389 This will occur when at the last trumpet, says 00:08:22.389 --> 00:08:26.949 Paul. The trumpet in the Bible is used to gather 00:08:26.949 --> 00:08:30.970 God's people together. On that day that Jesus 00:08:30.970 --> 00:08:34.789 comes, there will be the last trumpet, it says, 00:08:34.950 --> 00:08:39.809 of this age, calling out the people of God together, 00:08:39.809 --> 00:08:44.250 together, to meet the Lord in the air. The trumpet 00:08:44.250 --> 00:08:47.450 of ancient Israel was also used to signal the 00:08:47.450 --> 00:08:51.649 moving of the camp. With hundreds of thousands 00:08:51.649 --> 00:08:55.710 of people scattered over many, many square acres, 00:08:56.330 --> 00:08:58.809 how were they able to get them all moving at 00:08:58.809 --> 00:09:02.049 once? Well, it was through the sounding of a 00:09:02.049 --> 00:09:06.289 trumpet. And when the trumpet sounded, then the 00:09:06.289 --> 00:09:09.629 camp would begin to move, their brothers and 00:09:09.629 --> 00:09:13.820 sisters, around the world. trumpet will be heard. 00:09:14.879 --> 00:09:17.720 And on that day that the Lord comes, God's people 00:09:17.720 --> 00:09:21.940 will begin to move out of this world and be gathered 00:09:21.940 --> 00:09:27.460 in his presence. Paul says it this way in 1 Thessalonians. 00:09:27.820 --> 00:09:30.279 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven 00:09:30.279 --> 00:09:33.620 with a shout, with the voice of the archangel 00:09:33.620 --> 00:09:39.080 and with the trumpet of God. Three things accompany 00:09:39.080 --> 00:09:43.269 his descent from heaven. A shout, the voice of 00:09:43.269 --> 00:09:48.690 an archangel, the trumpet of God. And following 00:09:48.690 --> 00:09:51.330 the sound of the trumpet, the dead in Christ 00:09:51.330 --> 00:09:55.409 rise first, and then instantaneously those of 00:09:55.409 --> 00:10:00.769 us living in that day will be changed, transformed 00:10:00.769 --> 00:10:04.070 to have glorified bodies like those who have 00:10:04.070 --> 00:10:08.350 been resurrected. And why is this going to happen? 00:10:08.909 --> 00:10:12.730 Well, verse 53 Paul explains it. It is in order 00:10:12.730 --> 00:10:16.009 that the entire church, the dead as well as the 00:10:16.009 --> 00:10:20.909 living, the entire church around the world, whatever 00:10:20.909 --> 00:10:24.649 place they live in, the entire church Christ 00:10:24.649 --> 00:10:28.830 brought in, will in that instant of time be brought 00:10:28.830 --> 00:10:35.409 into conformity with His likeness. Christ has 00:10:35.409 --> 00:10:39.700 been raised to immortality. And in that moment 00:10:39.700 --> 00:10:44.539 of His coming, we too will be changed to immortal 00:10:44.539 --> 00:10:50.820 persons by the resurrection of our bodies. H. 00:10:51.019 --> 00:10:53.840 L. Turner caught this idea in a hymn that he 00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:57.019 wrote, a poem that he wrote, and we sing as a 00:10:57.019 --> 00:11:02.320 hymn sometimes. Oh, joy or delight should we 00:11:02.320 --> 00:11:08.309 go without dying. No sickness, no sadness. No 00:11:08.309 --> 00:11:11.990 dread and no crying. Caught up through the clouds 00:11:11.990 --> 00:11:16.769 with our Lord into glory when Jesus receives 00:11:16.769 --> 00:11:21.269 His own. What a wonderful expectation we have. 00:11:21.649 --> 00:11:24.870 This hope of the mystery tells us about this 00:11:24.870 --> 00:11:31.009 expectation of our change that is coming. In 00:11:31.009 --> 00:11:35.269 verses 54 to 57, the apostle Paul talks about 00:11:35.269 --> 00:11:41.919 the explanation. of the hope. As he exclaims 00:11:41.919 --> 00:11:44.740 about this hope, he tells us first that this 00:11:44.740 --> 00:11:48.539 hope has a prophecy about it. Look at verse 54. 00:11:49.179 --> 00:11:52.440 And when this perishable will have put on the 00:11:52.440 --> 00:11:55.500 imperishable and this mortal will have put on 00:11:55.500 --> 00:12:00.820 the immortality, then will come about the saying 00:12:00.820 --> 00:12:04.299 that is written, death is all about victory. 00:12:05.500 --> 00:12:09.580 Here he is freely quoting from Isaiah the prophet 00:12:09.580 --> 00:12:14.320 the 25th chapter in the 8th verse. And he is 00:12:14.320 --> 00:12:17.919 saying that when the Lord comes, there is going 00:12:17.919 --> 00:12:21.259 to be the fulfillment of this specific prophecy, 00:12:21.899 --> 00:12:26.980 death is small enough in victory. That is, victory 00:12:26.980 --> 00:12:33.460 is just going to gulp down death. Over the last 00:12:33.460 --> 00:12:36.860 time he lived in Canaan. or some other soft drink 00:12:36.860 --> 00:12:39.399 that you like, and you chug it down because you 00:12:39.399 --> 00:12:42.980 were so thirsty. That is the victory here of 00:12:42.980 --> 00:12:47.139 death just being swallowed entirely by the victory 00:12:47.139 --> 00:12:54.019 that will be ours when Jesus comes. And when 00:12:54.019 --> 00:12:56.759 he comes, he is not simply going to stop death. 00:12:57.960 --> 00:13:02.639 He is going to reverse death. All of the death 00:13:02.639 --> 00:13:10.970 has When the Son of God comes, it is the consummation, 00:13:10.970 --> 00:13:14.649 really, of what is promised in Genesis 3 .15 00:13:14.649 --> 00:13:19.350 and the promise of the Redeemer. We will be redeemed 00:13:19.350 --> 00:13:23.870 from sin and its consequence, which is physical 00:13:23.870 --> 00:13:29.450 and spiritual death. He talks about the contents 00:13:29.450 --> 00:13:34.049 in verse 55. He says, Oh Death, where is your 00:13:34.049 --> 00:13:38.909 victory? Oh Death! Where is your sting? It is 00:13:38.909 --> 00:13:43.450 the content of his exclamation. And again Paul 00:13:43.450 --> 00:13:46.149 is quoting from the Old Testament, here in Hosea 00:13:46.149 --> 00:13:53.730 13 verse 14. He speaks of it as a taunt to death. 00:13:54.950 --> 00:13:59.610 Here he is insulting death, as one might insult 00:13:59.610 --> 00:14:03.909 a killer beast that has been broken. He says 00:14:03.909 --> 00:14:08.230 to death here, personified, where is your victory? 00:14:10.269 --> 00:14:16.850 Death, where is your sting? You see, ever since 00:14:16.850 --> 00:14:22.690 Adam, death has reigned. Unwillingly, it has 00:14:22.690 --> 00:14:25.490 claimed everyone who has ever lived, except for 00:14:25.490 --> 00:14:30.649 three people. Death has worked to claim everyone 00:14:30.649 --> 00:14:35.149 who has ever lived, whatever the age. but there 00:14:35.149 --> 00:14:37.850 is a day coming when the exclamation will be 00:14:37.850 --> 00:14:42.830 fulfilled that will say, oh, death, where now 00:14:42.830 --> 00:14:47.710 is your sting? Where is your victory? What does 00:14:47.710 --> 00:14:51.710 this mean? Paul tells us in verse 56. He says, 00:14:51.929 --> 00:14:57.850 the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin 00:14:57.850 --> 00:15:03.259 is the law. Here we have three. concepts that 00:15:03.259 --> 00:15:07.360 are brought together. Death, sin, and the law. 00:15:09.039 --> 00:15:13.100 Sin provides death with its power to mortally 00:15:13.100 --> 00:15:16.860 wound us. That's what he means when he says that 00:15:16.860 --> 00:15:22.539 the sting of death is sin. It is sin that empowers 00:15:22.539 --> 00:15:26.840 death to claim us, that gives death the authority 00:15:26.840 --> 00:15:34.100 to take us away. It is sin. It's the law of God, 00:15:34.460 --> 00:15:38.460 good and holy in itself, that stirs up the sin 00:15:38.460 --> 00:15:43.080 that is in us. Because the law says thou shalt 00:15:43.080 --> 00:15:48.720 not, and sin says, oh yeah? Just watch and see. 00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:53.600 And so we rebel and we challenge the law of God, 00:15:53.779 --> 00:15:57.179 and when we do that, it only brings death to 00:15:57.179 --> 00:16:02.919 us. But Christ has paid sin's debt. Christ has 00:16:02.919 --> 00:16:07.059 broken death's way. Christ has fulfilled the 00:16:07.059 --> 00:16:11.299 righteous demands of God's law, delivering us 00:16:11.299 --> 00:16:16.679 from all three of them. Ours is the victory through 00:16:16.679 --> 00:16:20.720 our Lord Jesus Christ. He keeps on giving it 00:16:20.720 --> 00:16:25.340 day after day after day. Thanks be to God, says 00:16:25.340 --> 00:16:30.309 Paul, who keeps on giving us the victory. Through 00:16:30.309 --> 00:16:34.370 our Lord Jesus Christ. Victory over the claims 00:16:34.370 --> 00:16:38.610 of the law. Victory over the consequences of 00:16:38.610 --> 00:16:42.870 sin. Victory over deaths plain upon our bodies 00:16:42.870 --> 00:16:52.929 and our souls. He, hell in hell, laid low. Made 00:16:52.929 --> 00:16:58.070 sin he sinned o 'er through. Bowed to grave. 00:16:58.820 --> 00:17:06.839 destroyed it so, and death by dying slew. Thanks 00:17:06.839 --> 00:17:10.359 be to God for the victory through Jesus Christ 00:17:10.359 --> 00:17:14.440 our Lord. Which brings us then to the last verse 00:17:14.440 --> 00:17:18.940 of our text, verse 58, that the exhortation of 00:17:18.940 --> 00:17:22.480 our hope. I want you to notice that this exhortation 00:17:22.480 --> 00:17:25.519 at the end of this long chapter about the resurrection 00:17:25.980 --> 00:17:30.319 first of all strikes the right balance. It is 00:17:30.319 --> 00:17:35.000 a balance between one's spirit and one's service, 00:17:35.000 --> 00:17:39.119 between one's attitude and one's actions. He 00:17:39.119 --> 00:17:43.940 says, therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, 00:17:44.500 --> 00:17:50.240 immovable, always abounding in the work of the 00:17:50.240 --> 00:17:55.509 Lord. Be steadfast. The idea is, brothers, And 00:17:55.509 --> 00:17:59.950 sisters, please stand fast. If you live in Sudan 00:17:59.950 --> 00:18:02.230 and you're under the pressure of that kind of 00:18:02.230 --> 00:18:05.450 persecution, where your children are being sold 00:18:05.450 --> 00:18:10.230 into slavery, be subtle and be firm in your faith. 00:18:11.029 --> 00:18:14.589 Let nothing move you away from it. Be immovable. 00:18:15.490 --> 00:18:18.930 If you live in China, where you're forced to 00:18:18.930 --> 00:18:22.130 worship at a house church, always under the fear 00:18:22.130 --> 00:18:27.329 of arrest and being beaten. Be steadfast and 00:18:27.329 --> 00:18:31.589 immovable to them. If you live in Egypt where 00:18:31.589 --> 00:18:36.329 your sister has been kidnapped and raped and 00:18:36.329 --> 00:18:39.809 forced to live as a wife of a man that she does 00:18:39.809 --> 00:18:44.650 not love and never allowed to see you again, 00:18:45.750 --> 00:18:49.349 be steadfast and immovable in your faith. If 00:18:49.349 --> 00:18:51.809 you live in the United States where persecution 00:18:51.809 --> 00:18:59.950 is more subtle. or it can be more economic, or 00:18:59.950 --> 00:19:03.650 it is more ridicule and mocking than it is arrest 00:19:03.650 --> 00:19:07.490 and beating at this point. Nevertheless, he says, 00:19:07.690 --> 00:19:13.670 be steadfast and immovable, always abound me 00:19:13.670 --> 00:19:18.009 in the work of the Lord, wherever you are, whether 00:19:18.009 --> 00:19:21.049 be it a place of limitation or persecution or 00:19:21.049 --> 00:19:24.500 a country of some political freedom. He says 00:19:24.500 --> 00:19:28.319 that our responsibility is to be always abounding 00:19:28.319 --> 00:19:33.539 in the work of the Lord. Always give yourself 00:19:33.539 --> 00:19:38.299 fully to the work of the Lord. As I strike you 00:19:38.299 --> 00:19:42.440 as a little strange, that there are some who 00:19:42.440 --> 00:19:46.400 are in lands of persecution who are more fervent 00:19:46.400 --> 00:19:50.259 about their service for the Lord than some of 00:19:50.259 --> 00:19:55.400 us who have a lot of liberty. who have really 00:19:55.400 --> 00:19:58.400 given themselves wholeheartedly to the service 00:19:58.400 --> 00:20:02.599 of Jesus Christ. Well, for all of us this exhortation 00:20:02.599 --> 00:20:06.019 comes, whatever our outward circumstances, that 00:20:06.019 --> 00:20:09.980 we are to be immovable in our spirit, steadfast 00:20:09.980 --> 00:20:13.500 in our attitude, and in our actions, we're to 00:20:13.500 --> 00:20:18.460 be abounding in the work of the Lord. Not merely 00:20:18.460 --> 00:20:21.099 involved, but abounding in the work of the Lord. 00:20:21.119 --> 00:20:25.549 Not in some peripheral way, abounding. in the 00:20:25.549 --> 00:20:29.910 work of the Lord, the work that counts for eternity. 00:20:31.329 --> 00:20:34.289 Our vocation may not allow us to spend 40 or 00:20:34.289 --> 00:20:38.750 50 hours a week doing that, but even in the midst 00:20:38.750 --> 00:20:41.789 of our vocation and then beyond that, there are 00:20:41.789 --> 00:20:45.650 ways that we can abound in the work that Jesus 00:20:45.650 --> 00:20:49.569 Christ has called all of us to be part of. Abound 00:20:49.569 --> 00:20:51.890 in the work of the Lord strikes the right balance, 00:20:52.109 --> 00:20:55.329 it seems to me, this exhortation. But it also 00:20:55.329 --> 00:20:58.049 provides the right assurance because he tells 00:20:58.049 --> 00:21:05.450 us, knowing this, that your toil is not in vain 00:21:05.450 --> 00:21:10.529 in the Lord. Your work in the Lord may seem hard. 00:21:11.910 --> 00:21:15.970 Your labor on his behalf may seem at times fruitless. 00:21:16.369 --> 00:21:20.869 But it's never so, says Paul. The work that is 00:21:20.869 --> 00:21:28.849 done for ourselves may indeed be fruitless. It 00:21:28.849 --> 00:21:34.009 may be rain. It may be wood, hay, and stubble, 00:21:34.150 --> 00:21:38.309 as he writes back in chapter 3. But our work 00:21:38.309 --> 00:21:42.630 that is in the Lord, because the tomb is empty, 00:21:42.890 --> 00:21:48.430 is never in vain. Because he has risen from the 00:21:48.430 --> 00:21:52.410 dead. Because one day we will stand with him. 00:21:53.130 --> 00:21:57.730 in the resurrection or the transformation. Because 00:21:57.730 --> 00:22:00.769 one day we will be gathered together at the sound 00:22:00.769 --> 00:22:04.890 of the trumpet to be with Him and like Him forever. 00:22:05.930 --> 00:22:10.650 Whatever we do in this world matters. He takes 00:22:10.650 --> 00:22:16.950 note of it, even if others may not. The exhortation 00:22:16.950 --> 00:22:20.529 of the Hope. No matter where we live in this 00:22:20.529 --> 00:22:23.880 world or what our circumstances, We are the people 00:22:23.880 --> 00:22:27.319 of the hope. And in light of that, there are 00:22:27.319 --> 00:22:30.079 three ideas that I think we can just take out 00:22:30.079 --> 00:22:34.019 of this text before we go in our way. First of 00:22:34.019 --> 00:22:37.900 all, we can be as the people of the hope and 00:22:37.900 --> 00:22:42.680 expectant people. Christ is coming. Yours is 00:22:42.680 --> 00:22:46.460 the victory. Mine is the victory in Jesus Christ. 00:22:46.980 --> 00:22:50.359 Because of our identity with Him when we trust 00:22:50.359 --> 00:22:55.569 Him. Because of our union with Him when we believe 00:22:55.569 --> 00:22:58.410 in Him, because we are joined together with Him, 00:22:58.789 --> 00:23:02.329 His victory is our victory. And so we can be 00:23:02.329 --> 00:23:05.970 an expectant people as we wait for Him to appear 00:23:05.970 --> 00:23:10.289 in victory. We can be an expectant people as 00:23:10.289 --> 00:23:17.269 we look for His appearing. A racist bonar, a 00:23:17.269 --> 00:23:20.769 preacher, and a man of God of another generation 00:23:20.769 --> 00:23:24.660 said, I feel that when I can say the coming of 00:23:24.660 --> 00:23:28.660 the Lord draws near, I have a weapon in my hand 00:23:28.660 --> 00:23:33.460 with no uncommon edge in temper. I can go to 00:23:33.460 --> 00:23:36.400 the scumbling saint against whom the battle seems 00:23:36.400 --> 00:23:40.700 to go badly and say, Saint Knott, the Lord is 00:23:40.700 --> 00:23:44.819 at hand, and he will bring a Satan under your 00:23:44.819 --> 00:23:48.660 feet shortly. To the Christian weary with the 00:23:48.660 --> 00:23:52.619 vexing world. Frag with his manatees and cheer, 00:23:53.460 --> 00:23:56.400 and trouble with the thickening darkness of his 00:23:56.400 --> 00:23:59.460 midnight river. I can say, be of good cheer. 00:24:00.380 --> 00:24:03.920 The Lord is at hand. But a little while, and 00:24:03.920 --> 00:24:07.339 the world will cease to vex you. Sooner than 00:24:07.339 --> 00:24:11.680 you think, the morning will break. To the suffering 00:24:11.680 --> 00:24:14.900 Saint, I can say, Weep not, the Lord is at hand. 00:24:15.789 --> 00:24:18.930 The torn heart shall be bound up with the bitterness 00:24:18.930 --> 00:24:23.849 of bereavement forgotten in the joy of reunion 00:24:23.849 --> 00:24:33.529 forever. My friend, the Lord is at hand. The 00:24:33.529 --> 00:24:40.150 Lord is at hand. The Lord is at hand. Therefore 00:24:40.150 --> 00:24:44.430 we must be an expected people, realizing that 00:24:47.019 --> 00:24:51.839 He may descend, and we will hear that voice as 00:24:51.839 --> 00:24:55.059 the voice of an archangel and the trumpet, and 00:24:55.059 --> 00:24:57.940 in that instant be changed and caught up to be 00:24:57.940 --> 00:25:02.259 with him. We expected for his coming. One hour 00:25:02.259 --> 00:25:05.420 practice when he preached. It is said that every 00:25:05.420 --> 00:25:08.460 night before he went to bed, he would go up to 00:25:08.460 --> 00:25:11.539 this window and pull back his curtain, look into 00:25:11.539 --> 00:25:15.019 the starry heavens and exclaim, Perhaps tonight, 00:25:15.279 --> 00:25:20.150 Lord, A day in the morning as he would awake 00:25:20.150 --> 00:25:22.710 and he would again go to his window and gaze 00:25:22.710 --> 00:25:26.549 out upon the dawn and remark, Perhaps today, 00:25:26.549 --> 00:25:32.710 Lord, perhaps today. What a great way for you 00:25:32.710 --> 00:25:36.829 and me to begin every day, is that perhaps today, 00:25:37.349 --> 00:25:40.609 Lord, you will appear. Be an expectant person 00:25:40.609 --> 00:25:44.849 as one of the people of the Hope. Secondly, be 00:25:44.849 --> 00:25:48.710 engaged. Always abounding in the work of the 00:25:48.710 --> 00:25:55.049 Lord. Be engaged in serving Him. Ask the Lord 00:25:55.049 --> 00:25:59.690 at the beginning of every day, Jesus said, you 00:25:59.690 --> 00:26:07.490 come today, hope you want me to be good. Who 00:26:07.490 --> 00:26:11.769 do I need to talk to? What need would you have 00:26:11.769 --> 00:26:16.789 me do in your name? Be engaged. and serving the 00:26:16.789 --> 00:26:21.450 Lord as one of the people of the open third. 00:26:22.529 --> 00:26:26.089 Be encouraged, knowing that whatever you do for 00:26:26.089 --> 00:26:29.809 Him, even if it be repulsed, even if the door 00:26:29.809 --> 00:26:33.569 be slammed in your face, whatever you do for 00:26:33.569 --> 00:26:37.829 Him is not in vain. It is not an empty being. 00:26:38.970 --> 00:26:42.730 So do not measure the results of what happens 00:26:42.730 --> 00:26:49.509 on that day. perform the deed. But remember that 00:26:49.509 --> 00:26:54.829 on that day, when the Lord examines your deed, 00:26:55.809 --> 00:27:01.890 you will receive a reward from Him. That concludes 00:27:01.890 --> 00:27:05.369 this chapter by reminding us that we are the 00:27:05.369 --> 00:27:10.490 people of the hope. That whether we are alive 00:27:10.490 --> 00:27:14.309 or dead when Christ come, we will share in the 00:27:14.309 --> 00:27:19.039 glory. about the transformation and the resurrection. 00:27:20.920 --> 00:27:25.599 And may that serve as a motivation to our lives, 00:27:26.460 --> 00:27:29.519 a motivation to Godly living and Godly service. 00:27:30.299 --> 00:27:34.259 May we be an expected people, an engaged people, 00:27:35.039 --> 00:27:38.299 an encouraged people, because we're the people. 00:27:49.000 --> 00:27:53.619 If you've come to church today discouraged, disheartened, 00:27:54.039 --> 00:27:56.599 and you feel like your life is not counting for 00:27:56.599 --> 00:28:01.640 much, will you allow these verses to encourage 00:28:01.640 --> 00:28:08.019 you? If you've come today ready to give up and 00:28:08.019 --> 00:28:12.839 to move away, will you listen to what Paul says? 00:28:13.079 --> 00:28:18.710 Oh friend, be immovable. Be encouraged. be strengthened 00:28:18.710 --> 00:28:22.670 and established in Him. Your service for Him 00:28:22.670 --> 00:28:27.829 is not in vain. And if you feel that it's not 00:28:27.829 --> 00:28:31.490 producing what it ought to now, be encouraged. 00:28:32.569 --> 00:28:39.650 The Lord is working through your life. And determine 00:28:39.650 --> 00:28:44.250 as you go from here to live this week with that 00:28:44.250 --> 00:29:03.839 thought in mind, perhaps. that you'll lift up 00:29:03.839 --> 00:29:08.160 the spirits of those who are weary and discarded. 00:29:10.460 --> 00:29:13.200 I pray that you will help me to focus fresh on 00:29:13.200 --> 00:29:19.720 the hope that we share in Jesus Christ. May we 00:29:19.720 --> 00:29:22.619 live in life without hope as we've been exhorted. 00:29:24.359 --> 00:29:28.059 And this week, hold before us that thought that 00:29:28.059 --> 00:29:38.880 it may be And friend, if you're here without 00:29:38.880 --> 00:29:41.559 Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and you 00:29:41.559 --> 00:29:44.019 have no relationship with God, you can trust 00:29:44.019 --> 00:29:48.579 Him today. Come to know Him personally. I'm inviting 00:29:48.579 --> 00:29:52.279 you in your life. I hope that you will do that 00:29:52.279 --> 00:29:56.240 even right now. Receive Him in your heart as 00:29:56.240 --> 00:30:00.200 an act of faith. Trusting Him as your Lord and 00:30:00.200 --> 00:30:07.430 Savior. Now Father, I pray for your blessing 00:30:07.430 --> 00:30:10.890 upon us as we are dismissed from here. To go 00:30:10.890 --> 00:30:13.089 to our Sunday school classes and to our small 00:30:13.089 --> 00:30:16.549 churches. May our fellowship be rich and our 00:30:16.549 --> 00:30:20.809 hearts exhorted as we spend time together in 00:30:20.809 --> 00:30:25.289 prayer and studying the Word of God. In Jesus' 00:30:25.549 --> 00:30:30.670 name, Amen. As before you go, may I say that 00:30:30.670 --> 00:30:32.430 through visiting today, I'm ready to get back 00:30:32.430 --> 00:30:35.450 to the table here. for receiving table, and I 00:30:35.450 --> 00:30:37.650 hope you'll come by and shake my hand. And I'd 00:30:37.650 --> 00:30:39.890 like to meet you personally, if this is your 00:30:39.890 --> 00:30:41.450 first time either. God bless you.