["Pomp and Circumstance"] so Well, good morning. Welcome again to the Bethany and Social Reform Presbyterian Church as we come together to worship the Lord our God on this blessed Sabbath morning. And as we begin, of course, we've got a number of announcements as we get into a busy season of the year. If you haven't picked up a copy of the 2025 budget, they're down here on the lectern. So make sure you get one before you leave today. If you need me to get you one, I'll be sure to do that as well. Again, just as a reminder, we'll be having our annual meeting of the congregation on the 15th of December. And of course, as part of that, we'll not only be receiving the budget, but we'll be re-electing the treasurer. And also, we have two deacon nominees who we'll be voting on. So again, just as a reminder, that'll be on the 15th of December and also on the 15th of December will be our annual choir special and so we look forward to that. That'll be in the evening at 5 o'clock and of course we'll have a meal with that. So we look forward to that opportunity to give thanks to the Lord for his blessing. Also, as I announced last week, the new quarterly is in for Adult Sabbath School. In December, beginning in December, we'll be going through the book of Galatians and Ephesians. So again, I do my weekly invitation, invite y'all to come to our time together in the morning. Especially, it'll be important to come for these lessons from Galatians and Ephesians because they teach us quite a lot about the salvation that we have received in Jesus Christ. So again, we invite you to come at 10 a.m. for Adult Sabbath School, starting a new lesson next Lord's Day. Also, next Lord's Day, we will be blessed to have the opportunity to have the baptism of Mr. Marshall Robinson. So again, we look forward to that next Sunday. A couple other things to take note of, we have the sunshine basket being collected in the fellowship hall today from Ms. Katie and her family. So if you haven't dropped stuff off, be sure to do that before you leave today. Another couple things to take note of, We will have our Sunday evening service night at 5.30. Again, you do my weekly invitation. Y'all come at 5.30 as we enjoy fellowship together, but especially as we're spending time in November and December learning more about the humanity of Jesus Christ and why Jesus had to be a man in order to pay for our sins at the cross. So again, we invite you to come at 5.30. And this Wednesday, we will not be having our normal Wednesday night time together. But of course, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving is our annual Thanksgiving service. Again, that will be at 6 o'clock on Wednesday night. So again, we invite everybody for that. As part of that, the ladies are collecting for the pounding. Now again, I always find that interesting because the pounding's for me and I'm sure some of y'all would probably like a different kind of pounding every now and then. But again, we welcome y'all for that service there on Wednesday. Again, that'll be at 6 o'clock as we give thanks to the Lord. And of course, part of the Thanksgiving service is that We take time, each of us takes turns kind of speaking how the Lord has blessed us this past calendar year. So again, be thinking about what the Lord's been done for you. And we look forward to that special time of worship on Wednesday night. One other thing, our Christmas care baskets are due next Sunday, December 1st. We appreciate much your donations for these Christmas care baskets of treats and goodies. We have 13 baskets to fill and we also are asking for volunteers to help deliver them and also as a reminder that your donation items be placed in the fellowship hall on the morning of Sunday, December 1st before Sunday school and worship. So again, make sure you get your items in. before Sunday school next Sunday for the Christmas Care Baskets. Again, thank you for your support of this annual Christmas project for our shut-ins, elderly, and those facing health and life challenges. Again, thank you comes especially from Ms. Karen Jones, WOC Family Living Chair. So again, we give thanks for that opportunity. And so as we prepare to worship the Lord this morning, let us do so as we go through a time of silent prayer. Amen. Get as the Lord calls us into his house on the blessed day of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We turn this morning to Mark chapter 2 verses 16 and 17. as the Lord especially calls us to worship by his blessed and perfect words. So again, we turn to Mark chapter two, verses 16 and 17. As again, God gives us this time to gather together with the triune on his day. Again, starting there at verse 16. Hear the word of the Lord. And when the scribes and the Pharisees saw him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to his disciples, How is it that he eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners? Jesus heard it. He said to them, those who are well have no need of a position. But those who are sick, I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repent. Amen. Again, this simple reminder of the word of the Lord Jesus Christ that He has called us to repentance and faith, that He has granted unto us the gift of eternal life, reminds us that we have opportunity, especially on the Lord's Day morning and evening, to return thanks unto our God. And so let us show that thanks that we have for his mighty work by standing together to sing our opening hymn, hymn number 659. Again, let us stand and sing together the praises of our Christ. Let's stand together. He is the Lord Amen. Again, as we exalt the name of the Lord our God, and as we rejoice at the blessings of his grace, let us now come before the Lord our God as he gives us opportunity once more to hear his name proclaimed as we gather together in prayer. Let us pray. Gracious Heavenly Father, you are the great and the almighty God. For there is none who can compare to the mightiness of your name. Greater God, your name testifies to who you are. That you are the same yesterday, today, and forever. That you are the great I am. And in you we have placed our trust and our faith. And in your name we rest this day. God, as we see your mighty works in the past, the way that you have made the heavens and the earth, the way that you have caused light to shine in the darkness, God, we pray in your mercy this morning as you send your Holy Spirit to gather us up, to gather us into a presence, to gather us from whatever it is we have been dealing with in this week, whatever it is that we've dealt with this morning, whatever it is that is on our heart today, Consider, God, You have gathered us into this house that we might be at peace, that we might be strengthened by the power of Your truth, that we might be convicted in our own sin, that we might see once more the power, the grace that You offer in the sinners. Consider, God, as we read Your Word, as we sing Your Word, as we hear Your Word proclaimed, and as we hear Your blessing today, God, in every way, might you remind us of what it means that we are sons and daughters of the living God in whom we confess this day in front of the whole world, in front of Satan himself, that we would hear no other name and that our hearts would be at rest and no other promise but yours. And so, dear God, we gather together again once more this morning to to testify to these truths by saying the words your son taught his disciples to pray, saying, our Father who art in heaven. Hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen. And as we gather together this morning again, we are reminded once more of the word that God has provided for us in his scriptures. And as is our practice when the sermon comes from the New Testament, our scripture reading comes to us from the Old Testament. And so today, our scripture reading continues in the story of 1 Kings. As we have heard of Ahab's treaty and now we see more of the wickedness of Ahab from the 21st chapter of 1st Kings verses 1 through 16. So again as we hear the word of the Lord let us rest in its promise. In 1st Kings 21 verse 1, hear the word of God. And it came to pass after these things that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard which was in Jezreel near to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. So Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is near, next to my house. And for it I will give you a vineyard better than it. Or if it seems good to you, I will give you its worth in money. Then Naboth said to Ahab, the Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers to you. So Ahab went into his house, sullen and displeased, because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him. For he had said, I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid down on his bed and turned away his face and would eat no food. But Jezebel, his wife, came to him and said to him, why is your spirit so sullen that you eat no food? He said to her, because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, give me your vineyard for money, or else, if it pleases you, I will give you another vineyard for it. And he answered, I will not give you my vineyard. Then Jezebel, his wife, said to him, you now exercise authority over Israel. Arise, eat food, and let your heart be cheerful. I will give you the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite. She wrote letters in Ahab's name, sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the elders, the nobles who were dwelling in the city of Nabok. She wrote in his letters saying, proclaim a fast and seat Nabok with high honor among the people. And seat two men scoundrels before him to bear witness against him saying, you have blasphemed God and the king. And take him out and stone him that he may die. The men of his city, the elders and nobles who were inhabitants of his city, did as Jezebel had said to them. As it was written in the letters which she had sent to them, they proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth with high honor among the people. And two men, scoundrels, came in and sat before him. And the scoundrels witnessed against him, against Naboth in the presence of the people saying, Naboth has blasphemed God and the king. Then they took him outside of the city and stoned him with stones so that he died. Then they sent to Jezebel saying, Naboth has been stoned and is dead. It came to pass when Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money, for Naboth is not alive, but dead. So it was when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab got up and went down to the possession of the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite. Amen. Thanks be to God for the reading of this holy and this perfect word. Please be seated. Well, I invite the chairman to come up for the lesson of the day. Well, good morning, everybody. Let's try that again. Good morning, everybody. That was a little bit better. Oh man, how y'all doing this morning? You doing good? Y'all looking forward to this week? Y'all like Thanksgiving? I see some big head noggins going on over here. You all must have a pretty big Thanksgiving. I always like Thanksgiving primarily because it s just an opportunity to eat, which I m always a big fan of. I figure there s an old saying, the calories don t count on the Lord s Day. I m pretty sure the same principle applies to Thanksgiving. We don't need to tell our doctors or report to our nutritionists or whatever what we do on Thanksgiving. I figure that kind of stays between us and the Lord. But as we think about feasts and we think about all the blessings, one of the things we always have to remind ourselves of is that we have so much that we have not done anything ourselves to get. And that's something we think about in the story that I just read from First Kings. Now, how many of y'all have a vineyard at your house? Any of y'all have a vineyard? Y'all know what a vineyard is? You know where grapes come from? Anybody tell me where grapes come from? You know, we don't really grow grapes around here, do we? No, that's not really what we do. Now you go up north in North Carolina, right, and there's all those wineries and all that stuff up there, but we don't really do that around here. Vineyard is a farm where they raise grapes. Now grapes grow on vines and, you know, one of the things about grape vines is that you can't just plant them one year and get grapes the next year, right? There's a lot of work that goes into growing grapes. In fact, if you really want to grow grapes well, you won't have any of those grapes. Your children will and your grandchildren will, but you're not going to really get any of the fruit of the vine. Now, do we like it when we're doing a lot of work but we don't really see anything from it? Not really, right? If you do something, do you like to get rewarded for it? If you do chores, do you all get paid for that? No, that's a good parent right there. I like to think that. But the testimony we see again of what we just read is that Naboth had a vineyard and Ahab wanted it. Does Ahab have the right to just come take somebody else's vineyard? What do we call that? Stealing, right? Now, are we supposed to steal stuff? No. Now, let's say somebody has something that you really, really want. Is it okay to steal it if you really, really want it? No, right? Good. I'm glad to see y'all are shaking your head in the right direction. Now, you know, can kings just take whatever they want? No, right? See kings and presidents and mayors and all them people, right? They have to follow the law too, right? At least theyíre supposed to, right? But does Ahab the king follow the rules? No, right? Now do you think Ahab the king is going to get away with it? No, right? In a couple of weeks, we're going to read about Ahab getting what's coming to him because of what he did. Now, when we hear about that, there was something in that story that reminded me about Jesus Christ. Now in that story I just read, they got two scoundrels. And what is a scoundrel? Y'all know what that word is. Do you think a scoundrel's a good person? No, right? A scoundrel's a bad person. They took two bad people and they sent them next to Naboth, who they called a blasphemer and who they called bad stuff. Now, is that what they said about Jesus before he went to the cross? That he was a blasphemer and that he made all these claims about himself? Yes, right? And so he was there between these two thieves who deserved their death. And one of the thieves looks at the other thief and says, quit saying bad things about Jesus. He didn't do anything wrong. Did Jesus ever steal anything? Did Jesus ever take what wasn't his? Jesus was perfect, right? But those two thieves, what do you think they did? They took stuff, right? Now, I'm not asking y'all to confess anything, so don't necessarily respond, but have y'all ever stolen something? Has everybody in this room stolen something at some point in time? Yes, right? And what do we call it when we steal? Sin, right? So all the people in this room are sinners, right? Now, what has Jesus done for us? He's died for our sins, right? And so that's one of the lessons we take from this. Naboth did nothing wrong, but he died. And these scoundrels got to live. Now, Jesus has done the same for us. The one who didn't sin has paid for our sins. And so when we read these stories in the Old Testament, we see so much about what our Lord's done for us. That He, who had done nothing wrong, so that we who have done wrong might get to go to heaven and be in the perfect place of the Lord forever. That's why we worship, that's why we sing, that's why we do what we do. Because of what Jesus has done for us. So when you come Wednesday night to the Thanksgiving service, one of the things we're gonna give thanks for is that Jesus has died for us and is on the cross. Because that's the most important gift that any of us have received. And have we done anything to earn that gift? We've been given that gift free of charge by our Savior. So again, remember to give thanks for that, but especially remember the blessings that we've received. So let's go ahead and go to where we're in prayer. nothing wrong. God, he died so that we might live. We might live forever in heaven. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Well, as we again give thanks to the Lord, we come now to our next hymn, which is hymn number 715 from the Red Trinity Hymnal. So again, let us stand and sing. 715, come ye thankful people, come. Let us stand and rejoice together. Praise the sun! Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? Yes! Amen. Again, as we are seated now before the Lord our God, and as we prepare to come into his presence, again, as we rejoice at the opportunity that prayer provides for us, not only to be reminded of the power of prayer, but also the privilege of prayer, that we get to speak to the maker of the heaven and earth. So let us prepare our hearts to be in the presence of our God. Let us pray. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God who called our father Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans. The God who called Moses out of Midian. The God who called Paul from his service unto the Sanhedrin. God who has called all of us who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Out of the family of the evil one. Who by His grace, this free gift has granted unto us the rights that come to those who bear the name, which is above every name. Who have been adopted into the family of God. who are heirs to the promises made to our forefathers. The God who has cleansed us from all unrighteousness, who has cleansed us from our own particular sins, who has cleansed us that we might no longer have the stain of even our father Adam upon us. The God who has testified to the world around us that we belong unto Him, body and soul. Who has sought us as we wandered away from the 99. Who never forsake nor forgot us even when we were in our sins. Who has given unto us the assurance of the forgiveness of sins. in the resurrection of the Son of God. For when we remember that the tomb is empty, we likewise are called to remember that our account is clean and empty itself. That when Satan comes to us accusing us, he has no right and he has no warrant to do so. For we are free from judgment We are free from death. We are free from hell itself. Because Christ has been raised up. Because Christ has laid down His life. Because Christ has bore our transgressions upon Himself. And He has shed His blood for us. And so, Heavenly Father, as we come together on this Lord's Day morning and we remember the power of the Gospel, as we remember the fact of the Gospel, dear God, as You cause each one of us to come to terms with what it means to be forgiven sinners, and as You remind us again of the blessed truth of this reality. God, we do continue to ask your strength and your mercy unto us. For God, not only as we forgive one another for the sins committed against us, but dear God, that we ourselves are willing to seek repentance. For God, there is power in such. We say to God, as we see the witness of the wickedness of Ahab, as we see the holiness and righteousness of Nabal, as we even hear in the words of our Savior from the second chapter of the Gospel of Mark, that Christ has come to call sinners unto Himself. God, we pray this morning that we would be careful not to count ourselves as those who are in no need of a physician. Dear God, we rest in the mercy of grace and of the love poured out on this day. Consider, God, as we think again of the challenges that we face in our own lives, especially, dear God, as we think of this Thanksgiving season, we recognize that as much as Thanksgiving is a time of great rejoicing and feasting, We recognize that there are troubles that come with Thanksgiving. There are awkwardness. There are difficulties related to family. We do pray for Thanksgiving this year that it might be a time of reconciliation. That it might be a time of the forgiveness of sins. That it might be a time of renewing relationships. Reuniting those who have been estranged. For to God, we give thanks again as we think about the reasons for thanksgiving. Again, the providence that you blessed our forefathers with. For how you provided for them. How even the strangers among them gave them food. God, again, your witness is throughout the story. God, may you give us ears to hear and eyes to see. And Heavenly Father, as we continue to think about the needs of prayer to God, we especially ask your blessings upon us as a covenant people. And we pray for the working of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of your children. Dear God, as we consider again the areas of our own lives where we need to grow in faith, where we need to grow in maturity, where we need to grow in understanding, God, we pray that you would make that happen in our hearts. We give thanks again for the opportunities and the means of grace that the elders have provided. We pray your encouragement upon us as we take advantage of these times. Dear God, we especially ask your blessings be upon us as we go out into this unbelieving world. Dear God, the challenges that we face each and every day are seemingly new. We have things come upon us that we ourselves recognize that we are too weak to handle in our own flesh. Dear God, we know that you are strong. We know that you are able and so dear God, we lay these things at your feet. Whether it's something going on at work, or whether it's something going on at school, or wherever it might be, dear God, we pray your blessing upon these matters. And dear God, we also ask your blessing upon unspoken prayers, those things that are at the depths of our heart. We even plead with you this morning, dear God, to answer the prayers that we don't know how to pray. For dear God, you know how. You have sent Your Holy Spirit to dwell in the depths of our hearts. Under God we pray that You would give us the peace to release these things under You. To not hold them under a bushel or to hide them. But to come into the light that they might be seen and known. That we might see the power again of Your work in the answering of prayer. And God, as we again pray this morning, we also pray for those of our number who are dealing not only with mourning this Thanksgiving season. We especially pray for those who are in need of physical healing, for those who are sick this morning. Dear God, we lift them up unto you. This season seems to bring with it illness. And so, dear God, we pray for those who are under the weather, those who have colds and who have the flu and who have other illness, to God we pray that you would release them from these illnesses, that you would make them strong and that you would give them relief. To God we also pray for those of our number who are dealing with physical ailments of muscle and bone, skin and organs. We pray to God that especially for those of our number who are waiting for doctors and waiting for results and waiting for answers, whether they be insurance, whether they be the doctors themselves, to God we pray in earnest for them this morning. That you would have compassion, that you would be with those in particular places of authority that they might answer for. Ask Your mercies also to be with our shut-ins and those who are in need of presence this day. We pray Your comfort upon them. Lord God, as we continue to worship You this morning and as we continue to seek Your face and be blessed by Your presence, Lord God, we ask Your mercies to be with us both this day and forevermore. For You are our God and we are Your people. gathered together by your covenant promise, in your Son, Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen. We are your children, Lord. We bring our thanks to you. We thank you, Lord. We thank you, Lord. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Oh, let me catch you. Oh, let me catch you. I've found a gentle child. I will praise you. Happy birthday to you, dear old Ohio. Sing to the earth, oh, how proud you may be. We are your children, we are your children, we are your children Who will destroy you in final days? Who knows the ways? We are your children, we will face you. One of the words to which I'd like to call your attention this morning come to us from the 21st chapter of the book of Revelations. I invite you to stand as we turn and read from the word of the living God these two verses from Revelation 21. Again, Revelation 21, verses 22 and 24. Hear the word of the Lord. But I saw no temple in it, For the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine. In it, the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. Amen. Thanks be to God for the reading of His holy and His perfect word. Let us pray. Gracious Heavenly Father, As you provide these words on this day in your providence, and as you open your truth under the hearts of your people, to God we not only pray for the work of the Holy Spirit, that you might not just convict us, but that you might open our hearts to receive your truth. God, we pray that you would bless this time in every way, through your Son, Jesus Christ. In his name we pray, amen. Please be seated. One of the questions that often comes to our mind when we read here at the end of the book of Revelation, and it's really something that comes to our mind quite a lot, is what is heaven going to be like? What is the time of God's covenant life going to be as we rest in the peace of the gospel? Because heaven is not like the earth. Heaven is the place where God dwells. And how are we going to experience, again, a place where God dwells and we dwell? Because as we are bespoke with the children, and as the Word reminds us, we're sinners. And the Bible tells us that God cannot be in the presence of sin. God cannot be in the presence of evil. So how does the one go with the other? In the book of Revelation here at the end tells us once again that the Lamb is its law. The light of heaven is the Lamb. We also hear in this passage that the heaven is where God Almighty and the Lamb are and what are they called? But the temple in the city of God. Now Again, imagine yourself a Jew, especially reading this, or hearing John proclaim this, or hearing a minister talk about this. Well, what does the Temple have to do? Well, what is the Temple? Remember, the Temple in the Old Testament is the place where the sacrifices are made. Where animals are slaughtered for your transgression. Why did the tabernacle exist? Why did the temple exist? Why did sacrifice come to us in the third chapter of the book of Genesis? Because blood must be shed for sin. Because what does sin do? Adam's sin introduces into the world death. Adam's sin is, in a sense, the first murder that takes place in the Bible. Yes, we see it with Abel and Cain, but really the first murder that happens is the self-murder that Adam does unto himself. We don't usually think of it in that way, but that's what happens, right? Because remember, what does Satan tell Eve in the garden? You will not surely die. You know, what is Satan good at? Satan's good at lying, right? And his name means a deceiver. Most assuredly, God had told Adam and Eve through Adam, that if they ate of the tree, that there would be consequence. That they would be cast out of the garden. and that they would face not only the consequence of no longer being in the presence of God without sin, but would now live in a world where sin was the norm. As good as Adam and Eve did to repent to the Lord for their sin, and as good as they did in raising their sons up in the fear and admonition of the Lord, we saw what happened one generation. The son killed the son. And the son who killed the son, his descendants made cities, made metalworking, and brought all kinds of evil upon the world. Now there's nothing wrong with metalworking, but again, what were they primarily metalworking to make? Again, the book of Isaiah tells us they were primarily making swords. And what are swords for? Swords have a business in it. You don't use a sword to cut up your bread for lunch today. I mean, I guess you could, but that's what we would call overkill. But what are swords for? Swords are made for killing. And that's what people are good at, especially if the scriptures are any indication. People are good at killing one another. That's all we've been doing since the day of Adam and Eve. And as you think about, again, the shedding of blood that takes place in war, that takes place in anger, that takes place in wickedness of all kinds, and it tells us why it's important here in the book of Revelation that it is noted that the temple, in a sense, no longer exists. Because the temple is the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb. Because in heaven there is no death. there is no shedding of blood, there is no evil, there is no wickedness, there is no darkness in the heaven. Which again is why in these passages references made to the fact that the Lamb is the light. Jesus of course said this of himself in the scriptures. One of the seven I am passages in the Gospel of John tells us I am the light of the world. What are we supposed to do? We have to walk in the light. Again, we have to ask ourselves a question about the beginning of the world. When God made the heavens and the earth, when God made the earth, what existed before all that? Obviously God existed before all that. Now, the opening of the book of Genesis tells us that at the very beginning of the world, before all these things took place, we saw that there was no light. Now, why was there no light when God was existing in this primordial time? There was no need for it. You know, that seems kind of cat and owl to us, right? But why was there no need of light before God made the heavens and the earth? What does God not have? God doesn't have eyeballs. Does God need to see light to see anything? Well, nothing. That's why there's no light at the beginning of the world. Again, the very beginning of the book of Genesis says, in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And the first thing we hear that God does in verse three is he says, let there be light. And there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good, and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light day, and the darkness called night. So the evening and the morning were the first day. Now, where is the light coming from? Again, that's one of those questions we probably don't ask a whole lot, but it means a lot. Because before we see what happens again here on the days that are to come, before God creates the sun and all the other suns in the universe, there's light. Again, there's a testimony happening here that we're supposed to pay attention to at the end of the Bible. Because in heaven, there is light. But what is there not in heaven? There's no sun. Now why is there no sun in heaven? Again, this is rocket science. Why is there no sun in heaven? Because God is the light, right? Jesus is the light. So there's no need for the sun. Now, again, that's kind of the things we probably don't think about a lot, but again, John here is trying to help us understand something about what heaven is going to be like for the people who are there. Not only is there not going to be death, so there's not going to be a sacrificial temple, not only is there not going to be the sun because Jesus is the light, God is the light, but that we are going to experience something that we've never experienced before, which is no night in heaven. Yeah, that's hard for us to comprehend because, you know, unless you live like up near the Arctic Circle, have you ever experienced a time where there was no night? Now imagine, you know, if at the end of the day today, when it's supposed to get dark around five o'clock, or whenever it gets dark nowadays, it didn't. How would you handle that? Would you rejoice and give thanks that you had more light to do things outside? Maybe. But what would most likely be your reaction? Would you recognize that there was something wrong? That something is not the way it's supposed to be? Well yes, because who controls the light and the darkness? Who causes the sun to shine and the moon to rise? The Lord does. He's in charge of all of these things. He's in charge of the sun moving around in the sky. He's in charge of the time when the sun goes down and when the sun comes up. And so we're used again to living in this world where there is lightness and there is darkness. Where it is day and it's night. Now imagine again the glory that it's going to be like when there is no night. I know for some of y'all, night's your favorite part of the day. And why is night your favorite part of the day? Because what do we get to do at night? We get to sleep, right? Now some of us like to sleep during the day, especially at 11 a.m., but the testimony is that what we see going on here is a reminder again of what we shall receive and what we have already received in Jesus Christ. Because again, part of what John has been doing in the book of Revelation is speaking to Christians in the first century who are scared. Christians in the first century who are anxious, who are worried, who don't know what to do. Because as we hear in 2 Peter, there are those coming to them saying, Jesus said he was going to come back. Where is he? They're being mocked. They're being reviled. They're being made fun of by their friends and their neighbors. And what is the answer that we see in the book of Revelation? It's not that Jesus has come back fully. Part of the promise we see here in the testimony of the new heavens, new earth, and the in the city that God has made here in the book of Revelation is the fact that we already experience this truth that we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no darkness in our lives. There is no darkness in our life. There is no darkness that we experience because who is the Lamb? The Lamb is the light of the world. And even when the sun goes dark, does the light of the world go away? Does the light of the world disappear in the darkness of the 24 hours of the clock? And the answer is no. The light is always with us because we are always with the light. And that's one of the great assurances of Christian faith. It's one of the great assurances of those who have placed their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. No matter how dark things may appear to the world, We might be going through the most wicked, evil time. We might be experiencing the darkest thing that's imaginable. But for the Christian, has anything changed with the light? The light still shines as bright as it did on the day that God spoken into existence at the beginning of the book of Genesis. Now, what is Satan trying to tell us all the time? Satan's trying to tell us that it darkens us. Satan's trying to tell us that there is no light, that the light has been hidden from us, that the light has gone away from us, that the light has abandoned us, that it's behind a cloud somewhere. It's kind of the opposite of Mount Carmel, right? Remember Mount Carmel, Elijah and the priests of Baal are kind of vying for their God's attentions. Remember the gods of the Baalites, does he ever show up? Well, no. Why? Because he's not real. But again, the Baalite priests don't know that, so they keep calling for him. See, Satan's kind of like a Baalite priest to us. In that way except he's he's reading the lines of Elijah in first Kings 18, right? He's saying hey your God's off on a trip your God's off doing something else your your God's more worried about somebody else He's he's left you Again what's the promise of the scriptures is that I will never leave you nor forsake you It's one of the beauties again of the Psalms that as David again goes through the difficulties of his life, as Asaph speaks of the difficulties of his life, as Solomon, as Moses, as those who wrote the Psalter, again they are constantly dealing with this because they're human beings. Again, it's okay to admit that there are times in your life where you walk in darkness. where you follow after the darkness, where you listen to the darkness, where you close your eyes and pretend it's dark outside. Because that's what the psalmists cry out unto the Lord, that there are times in their life that this is the case. How many psalms begin with David in Psalm 13 where David cries out wondering where the Lord is? Again, think of the psalm that's on the lips of our Savior on the cross in Psalm 22. God, my God, my God, why is thou forsaken? Now does Jesus doubt that God exists or that God is present or that God's promised? No. But again, the nature of His flesh is on display. Because again, He feels Himself again at the cross. Again, Jesus went through everything that we go through yet without sin. How many times did Jesus need to go away onto the mountain? How many times did Jesus in His humanity get overwhelmed by the crowds and all the things that were being laid upon Him? And what did Jesus do every time He got in that kind of situation in His life? Again, He didn't just go up to the mountains, which is where I love to go, but who did He go to see in the mountains? To see the Lord. Again, one of the testimonies that we see here in Revelation 21 that is so important for us in our own Christian life is, again, not to act like We live in this perfect little Christian world. Where we ourselves have everything together. We ourselves have everything figured out. That we ourselves have everything in our own mind perfectly ordered. Because God is not calling us in a sense to be perfectionists in this life. Now he is in one sense, but in this case he's not. Because what is one of the most important things in Christian life? Most important thing in Christian life is admitting that we are weak. Again, admitting that we don't have the answers. That we cannot fix everything that's wrong with other people, let alone ourselves. And we get ourselves in so many knots in life trying to fix everything around us. Well, that's not our job. We can't do that, because who alone has the power to fix what's going on? Again, when Jesus sees trouble in the world, He has the power to fix things, but what does He witness to the disciples? He goes unto the Lord and seeks His face in these things. Again, Satan is completely right in Matthew chapter 4 when he tells Jesus, jump off this pinnacle and the angels will save you. Because the angels will save him, because who isn't? He's the son of the living God. But again, what does Jesus say in response to what Satan says there? Do not put the Lord your God to the test. How often in our life do we put the Lord God to the test? How often do we doubt, again, the promises that he's made unto us? How often do we Again, set Jesus to the side and act again in this way that we'll take care of it this far and then once we get far enough down the road, we'll let Jesus take over. Again, that's a recipe for disaster because if you're trying to do all that, you're never going to ask for help. You're never going to actually ask for help because again, what does the flesh do? The flesh seeks to serve the flesh. The flesh seeks to do that which the flesh wants to do, whereas those who recognize that there is no power in the flesh, where do they flee? And they flee to the one where they answer. I'm going to go back to the Psalms for a second. When we consider this again, the longest Psalm in the Bible, the longest chapter in the Bible, I went over this Tuesday with the kids at first thing at Clover Middle School. I didn't read the whole of Psalm 119. We didn't have time for all that. But I read to them this verse, Psalm 119, 105. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Again, when we hear that verse, again, that's one of those verses we know real well. The church I served in Mississippi, Ellsville Preparatory Church, had Psalm 119, 105 on the sign out front. That's one of those verses that is kind of ubiquitous in our lives. But what does it mean? It's not simply talking about the Bible. It is talking about the Bible, but it's not simply talking about the Bible. Again, what's one of the other names that we use to describe the Lord Jesus Christ? I am the light of the world, I am the door, and what else is he? I am the word, which has come down from heaven. That's how John 1 begins. And so when we hear this, right, this Psalm 119, 105, your word is the lamp to my feet and the light to my path, we're not doing something wrong when we put Jesus in here and say, your Jesus is the lamp to my feet and the light to my path. Because again, what does Revelation 21 tell us that Jesus is? He is the what? He is the light. And how do we see? We see by the lights. Again, if we're waiting on the sun to show us things, we're never going to see it. But if we're waiting on the S.O.N. to show us things, what are we going to expect? We'll be shown these things. And so again, as you're going through difficulties in this life, and as you're wondering what the right thing to do is, and as you're emptying yourself before the Lord, what is the assurance that you have? Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. But again, one of the things we've got to do is get out of the way and let Jesus work. Or as the kids say nowadays, we've got to let Jesus cook. One of the things I've learned in my young age. That's the thing we've got to do in the nature of what we see. Philippians chapter 3 tells us, Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended, but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Again, the promise we have in Revelation 21, but I saw no temple in it for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb were its temple. The city had no need of the sun or the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. Again, what are we to do but to go to the light? We are to go to the one whose glory is declared in the light. And that's what, again, it means to See, the Word is the lamp to my feet and the light to my path. Again, we are to seek the light. We are to go to the light. And as Paul talks there in Philippians 3, again, think about what he says here. Again, I do not count myself apprehended, but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things of which are ahead. Again, if we're fleeing the darkness, where are we going? We're going to the light. The scriptures use darkness really only in one way. Use it to talk about sin. Use it to talk about the ways of the devil. Use it to talk about the ways of the flesh. Talk about the ways of the wicked one. And if we're seeking after Jesus, well we're seeking after the light. One of the things we're doing is we are forgetting and forsaking the darkness. We are not looking back to the darkness in which we came, but we are pressing toward the mark that is before us. Again, we can't do that in Christian life if we're stuck in the past. Because if you're stuck in the past, if your anchor is still holding on to sin in the past, then you're never going to move towards the light because you're held by that sin. You're held by that thing. Whatever it is, whatever is keeping you from enjoying the fullness of the glory of God until you cut that anchor off and press toward the mark, then you will never experience what it means to be in the light. You're holding on to the darkness. What does the darkness do? The darkness overwhelms you. One of the cool things about being out west in the plains is that you really get a sense for the rising and the setting of the sun. Where I grew up it was pretty common in the winter time for the sun not to come up until about 9.30 in the morning. and to go down about four o'clock in the afternoon. Why was that? Because we were down in the valley and the hills were on either side of us. And the sun was setting to the east, or setting to the west and rising in the east, right? And so it took a little time for the ball of fire to get up above the top of the hilltop. But when you're out west, what happens? There ain't nothing hiding. Right? There ain't nothing getting in the way. There's nothing preventing you from experiencing again the fullness of the rising and the setting of the sun. And there's a sense in which, you know, that is part again of the work of the Holy Spirit and the means of grace. Right? He's in a sense removing the mountains, removing the things that are hiding from us the beauty of the lights of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Again, when we hear that, right, and we think about, again, the nature of that, if we're not taking advantage of the opportunities God provides us to remove the mountains by His grace, then we're gonna be stuck. We're not gonna make it. We're not gonna be able to press toward the mark if we can't get up the hill. Again, that's the beauty of what Jesus does for us. In fact, is that not what the word of God tells us in the prophets? That God removes the mountains, makes flat the land so that the way is straight and the way is clear and the way is understood and the way is seen. Think about Jesus' picture to the disciples of the way to heaven. What is the difference between the wide way and the narrow way? You've got the small gate, you've got the big gate. The narrow way is straight. Wideways, all kinds of curves. Think about how much easier it is just to walk in straight lines than it is to try to weave your way around them. That's another thing that's nice about being out west. If your car's in good alignment, you can practically fall asleep and just drive for hours at a minute. But if you're up in the mountains, what are the roads like? I happen to like driving on them roads, but what are the roads like? If you've ever been to Appalachia, what are the roads like up there? Youíre coming through. You can see yourself going. You can see yourself coming. But again, if youíre walking on a straight and narrow path where the light is shining, not only do you know where youíre going, but also you know again that thereís nothing behind them corners. You donít have to worry about a semi-truck flying down the hill at you. You can see whatís in front of you. The nature, again, of what's being clarified here in the fact that the Lamb is the light of the world and that the Lamb is the temple is that not only are we reminded that the assurance that we have of the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ that the temple is done away with because the sacrifices aren't necessary anymore because Jesus is the sacrifice and Jesus is the one who has been slain for our transgression. All of that is behind us. That's why it is great heresy and wrong think, amongst other words I'd like to say, to think that Jesus is going to wait until another temple is built to come back. Because the Bible tells us the temple is destroyed. And we are not supposed to build another one. And why are we not supposed to build another one? Because the temple is Jesus Christ. And of course, in a sense, who else is in the temple? We're the temple. Because where does Jesus dwell? In the temple. So again, as we see this testimony given to us in Revelation 21, again, as the Word of God is giving us assurance and is reminding us why we are not to be anxious in the day of evil, because we have the light before us, and we have the light in our eyes, we have the light in our heart, we have the light in our soul, which we have received by the free gift of salvation, granted unto sinners by Jesus Christ the righteous. We hear again Him say in John 8, 12, Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. You can go back to Adam and Eve for a second. What did they have in the garden? They had the light. And as soon as they leave the garden, what do they have? They have the darkness. But again, God didn't leave them in the darkness, did he? As they are leaving the garden, remember, what's at the entrance of the garden? Two flaming swords of fire. Now, what does fire give off? Light. You know, sometimes we read that as God guarding the entrance so we can't go back. And there's a sense in which that's true because we're not supposed to go back to the garden because something greater than the garden is here. Again, the nature of that light is a reminder that God had to shut off His promise to Adam and Eve. And that they were to go out from the garden in the light of a greater light, which was the promise given to them in Genesis 3.15. That out of the woman would come a seed, and out of the seed would come the victory over death, over darkness, who is the light of the world. The Lord Jesus Christ, the one who has laid down His life for our sins. So again, as we come to a close this morning and we think again about the nature of what this promise is in Revelation 21, again, we have to be willing and we have to want to press toward the mark of the light. Because only in the light is there peace and comfort. And as long as we're holding on to sin, whether it's our own sin or the sin of others, then we'll never experience the glory of the light. Because remember, what's the nature of that sin, whether it's our own sin or the sin of others? And Jesus paid for that sin. And it's darkness to hold on to sin that Jesus has washed in His blood. Because, again, if God has given His yea and amen to it, who are we to challenge what God has said concerning the forgiveness of sins? Because we're called to press toward the morning, press toward the light, press toward that which is before us. And the book of Hebrews testifies, who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. That's what Jesus has done. Not just for us, but for all who rest and trust in him. Again, as we consider the nature of this, especially as we close out Revelation 21 next week, again, the nature of what is being declared here is of first importance in the Christian life. And we are to see in the light of what Jesus has done and we are to rest in Him. For that testimony that we see here in Revelation 21 is our testimony to have if we believe in Jesus. If we trust that the temple is in heaven, the temple has seemed fit to have its last sacrifice. We seem fit to understand that the sun and the moon no longer bear the light that we need to see, but that the light of Jesus Christ is before us, both this day and forevermore. And that's our peace and our hope each and every day. We walk by what? We walk by faith and not by sight. What do your eyeballs need? Your eyeballs need the sun, but your heart doesn't need anything other than the light of Jesus Christ. That's what it means to walk by faith. We're walking in the light of our Savior, walking in the light that He's given to us by the word of His power, both this day and forevermore. In Jesus' name, amen. Let's pray. Gracious Heavenly Father, we give thanks again, again for this reminder, not only of the power of Your truth, but most assuredly of the fact that You've given us this light when we might walk in it. We might trust in the light. We might not shut our eyes to what you have done and who you are and what you will do for us in the heavens to come. But that is our true home, to live in the lights of our Savior, both this day and forevermore. And in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Let us stand now as we sing our closing Bible psalm, the Marine Bible Psalm book, number 161. Let us stand and sing together. Again, as we enjoy and are blessed by this Sabbath day of rest that the Lord God has provided to us in his grace, and as we take time this day, not only to remember the blessings which we have received in Jesus Christ, but that we live in the light of his gospel grace and the sinners. We are blessed again to hear the benediction once more from God's holy and perfect one. And again, as I say every week, if you have need of anything, the elders and I are here to help in any way that we can. So again, let us hear the benediction this morning. from the fourth chapter of the book of Daniel, beginning there at verse 34. Hear the word of the Lord. At the end of the time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored Him who lives forever. For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom is from generation to generation. Amen. Amen. Amen. I'm wondering if the law is relevant in terms of the taxes that are paid, because we live in a nice large village, and we have a house, and I was wondering if that would be an aspect of the law. I don't know. It's up to you, baby. It's up to you. It's up to you. It's up to you. It's up to you. It's up to you. It's up to you. Yes sir, I can see you. I love it. I've been wanting to thank you for over a week now for helping Randy's out. Oh, I'm glad to do it. That was so nice. I'm glad to do it. Get him a tractor. And I have to sell one thing for wine, and they don't get it now. Because I sell wine. But it was really nice. Any time you need to speak about tradition or tractor work, I'm happy to do it. OK, thank you. And they didn't even tell Logan he was out there doing it, so that's not a good thing. Well, that's why I told him I said, take care. I mean, I've been the same way. I've been cutting that tree in front of y'all. At certain points, we've got to get in and work. If he wasn't going to have to cut up the firewood, that's the best I'd do, just drag it out and pile it up. Yeah, I see what you're saying. I think Luke got that dress ordered so I hope it'll come in Monday. Thanks, Skyler. Hey, big girl. Bye-bye. Go home and eat some lunch. What'd you eat? Meat. That's what she does. Whatever my mom does, eat it. That's right. I like your sweater. Jacket. Jacket, I guess. How do you get lunch, Alice? It drives me crazy. I can't pick anything up. It drives me crazy. And you don't realize how much Tim's lunch really is. Like, I think about Tim all the time. I can hold things. I can hold things. Yeah, I sat there like this. I know that wasn't an easy thing to play with. But it's not. But it's not. You did a great job. Very clever. I would probably play that thing like 300 times. Skylar, you look so cute. Thank you. You look so cute. I would really like to do that one. It's kind of a good guess. It is? I have one. It's a doozy. Yeah, but it's still growing. But it's a long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long. It's like, I am not old. You can move your hands like this. So you just kind of move like this. Is it really kind of like this? Yeah. At least if you get the support from your dad. Yeah, that's right. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, Well, I go to sleep, I go to sleep on the chair and then I get up at about 3 o'clock and I go to bed. I could go a lot worse. Oh, there's my baby. Hey, hey. I love that video you have of him. Hey. I forgot your present again. It's okay. I'll be here Wednesday. Everything on my table are nice. They're so cute, I have them too.