Amen. Would you please turn in your Bibles this evening to Luke's Gospel chapter 24. It's Luke chapter 24. And I want to commence to read at verse 13. Luke's Gospel chapter 24, verse 13. When you find the place, then we will read together these verses. Luke's Gospel, chapter 24, beginning to read at verse 13. Let us now hear the word of God. And behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus. which was from Jerusalem, about three score furlongs. That's about seven, seven and a half miles. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. And it came to pass that while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. And he said unto them, what manner of communications are these, that ye have one to another, as ye walk and are sad? And one of them, whose name is Cleophas, answering, said unto him, art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? And he said unto them, what things? And they said unto him concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty indeed, and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him. But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel. And beside all this today is the third day since these things were done. Yea, And certain a woman also of her company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre. And when they found not his body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive. And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the woman had said. But him they saw not, he was gone. He was raised by the power of God. Then he said unto them, O fools and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. And they drew nigh unto the village, willow they went, and he made as though he would have gone further. But they constrained him, saying, abide with us for this the Lord evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. May the Lord be pleased to bless the reading of his word to all of our hearts. For Christ's sake, the story is about two disciples who were traveling along the road to their home. And when the Lord Jesus Christ drew near, he discovered that they were sad. And many of God's people are traveling along the road to glory, and they're sad tonight. And the Lord asked these two disciples what the problem was And they said, do you not know what's been going on in Jerusalem? Do you not know what has happened in Jerusalem? And they talked about the things that troubled them. And the Lord's interested tonight in the things that troubled you. Because Jesus said to these two disciples, what things? So you may be a believer tonight, traveling along the road of life, and you're sad. Things are on your mind. Things concern you tonight. Well, the Lord is asking you what things? Why are you sad tonight? What's the problem? And the Lord really invited them to tell him what was on their mind. And they did that. They opened up, and they told him what was in their mind. And then it came to a point when they reached their destination, and child of God, we're going home. One of these days, we'll reach our desired destination. Maybe sooner, maybe later, but nothing can prevent us reaching our destination. We're going home. When they reached their destination, they made a request to Jesus. They didn't want to lose his company. They didn't want to break with him on that occasion. They were so taken up with what he had said to them. And this is what they said to him. This is my text. Verse 29. This is what these two disciples said. Abide with us. Abide with us. Have you the Lord with you tonight along the pathway of life? Do you know that he's walking with you side by side? that he will walk with you to the end of the journey and take you into the Father's house above. If you haven't that assurance tonight, I pray and trust that God will be pleased to give you grace to repent tonight, to make sure so that you're beyond the shadow of a doubt that one day you'll be with him in heaven. And there's only one way, and that one way is Jesus Christ. So my text is tonight, Abide With Us. Now, most of us here are familiar with the words of Henry Light's well-known hymn. It's a famous hymn, Abide With Me. The hymn is really a prayer for God to remain present with the speaker throughout his life, through his trials, and through his experience of death. The first words are probably the most well-known. Let me just read these words to you. You've often sang them in this church. Abide with me. Fast falls the even tide. The darkness deepens, Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail and comforts flee, help of the helpless. Oh, abide with me. This hymn was a favorite of King George V. It was sung at the weddings of King George VI and of his daughter, the future Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth II. In the aftermath of the sinking of the great Titanic, survivors reported that the ship's band played the hymn as the ship was sinking in the cold, icy waters. Men and women were perishing. Maybe the last thing they heard were the words, abide with me. What a way to go into eternity. People who probably had lived in sin with no thought about God going on a luxury liner, going for the trip of a lifetime, and suddenly they're out into God's great eternity. Since 1927, the first and the last verses of the hymn were traditionally sung at the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium just before the kick-off. It's also sung at many Christian funerals. I'm sure you've attended funerals here, maybe in other places as well. And this was the hymn picked by the person who departed into God's great eternity. So I think that I'm writing, writing, saying that the hymn is well known by many, but not necessarily meaning to them. The text for this hymn was taken from the familiar account here in chapter 24. When these two disciples on the mass road came to a mess where they lived, they asked Jesus, Abide with us for this our evening and the day is far spent. What a thought as we enter another new week on our journey out into the great eternity. We're not always going to be here. We're not always going to be given more opportunities. Who can tell? Only God knows. We don't know how we will end. We don't know what the future holds for us. But there's one thing we're absolutely sure about. The God of heaven knows every step that we take. Now, the pathway before us is an untrodden pathway. But thankfully, it is known to our God. And with Samuel Rutherford, we can say, and you know this him as well, I bless the hand that guide it. I bless the heart that planned, when throned where glory dwelleth in Emmanuel's land. And that's a reference to Christ and to heaven, Emmanuel's land. Let me ask you now, I don't want to be rude in any way, don't want to offend anybody, but I want to ask you lovingly, as a preacher, as a pastor, is this your destiny? will you be in heaven with Christ for eternity. That's what this meeting has been convened for, to give you the message, to make it clear to you that we're not always going to be here. And when we leave, we go to one of two places. It's either heaven or hell. Now, this text before us would be a good prayer to offer today, this evening. Abide with us or make it personal. Abide with me. I want you, Lord, in my life. I want you to be my shepherd. I want you to be my guide. I have three simple things I want to share with you tonight. Some may be relevant to you. Other stuff may not be relevant to you. But latch upon what is relevant to you and take whatever action is appropriate. Whether you're unconverted or a believer, there's a challenge to us all here. First of all, there is the sincere request Well, what was the request they made? They simply said, abide with us. Now, the word for abide there, it's a Greek word, but that simply means to remain or to continue. Now, let me just give you two or three simple illustrations of where the word is used in other places. Luke says that Mary, that's the mother of Jesus, abode with her, that is Elizabeth, her cousin, three months. Luke chapter one, verse 56. So really she was, the Spirit is saying here that she remained, she continued with her cousin for three months. Jesus said to Zacchaeus, remember the little man who climbed up the sycamore tree? Today, I must abide. There's the word today. I must abide. I must continue. I must remain at thy house. And Lydia, in Acts chapter 16, said to Paul and Silas, come into my house and abide there. May you cry tonight, if you know not the Savior. Come into my heart. Come into my home. Come into my house and abide there. Then it will be well with my soul. Then I will have the assurance of sins forgiven. Then I will have hope for eternity. Then I will be saved. Come into my heart and abide there. So the two disciples were really saying, stay with us. For it is nearly evening. The day is almost over. And you can apply that to our situation in the world. It's nearly evening time. You look around the world tonight, and you see what is happening. And if you're looking for the signs of the times, it's very evident what's going on. I'm not here to predict times or give you times. I'm just telling you to read the signs. You can read the signs of the sky. And the Jews were famous for doing that. But you can't read the times that we're living in. And as far as I'm concerned, It's nearly evening time, the evening time of this world. You have the earthquakes, you have the floods, you have the threat of a world, a war, you have wars all over. People are killing each other every day. It doesn't matter what country you look at, what country you consider. If all of these kinds of things, there's something going on. It's the evening of this world's history. The day is almost over. The darkness is closing in, and the request was, abide with us. It was a very sincere request, and I say that for this reason, because it says, they constrained him. And the word that is translated here is only used twice in the Greek New Testament here. And in Acts chapter 16 verse 15 in the story of Lydia, I've mentioned her already, she constrained Paul and Sidas to come and abide in her home. It's a very strong word and it means to press beyond measure. It means to compel by use of force. It might be translated, they held him by force. Matthew Henry, the commentator, wrote, both of them laid hold on him with a kind of friendly violence. We don't want you to go. Will you not stay with us a little bit longer? They urged him, or they pressingly invited him to stay, to remain with them, to pass the night with them. So there was a kind of force. They compelled him. They constrained him. They wanted to hear more from his lips. They enjoyed his company. This is something special for them. What a special day it turned out to be. And their hearts were sad at the beginning of this walk, too amazed. But now there's something happening. The word has been a blessing to them. And the shadows are disappearing, and the light's beginning to shine because Christ has drawn near. He can turn your darkness into light. He can lift that heavy burden you bear tonight, and some of you are bowed down with the cares of this life. Maybe it's the burden of sin that you carry tonight. You can hardly live with yourself because of your sin. You can hardly lift up your head because of your sin. Days are filled with sorrow and care. Hearts are lonely and drear. Burdens are lifted at Calvary. Yes, Jesus is very near. He's what you need. He's the one you need. So this was the request, abide with us, we need you. Don't we all need him tonight? Saint and sinner, right? I need him, you need him, we all need him. Several instances are found like this in the scriptures. Abraham said to the one who appeared, remember the three men in Genesis chapter 18 who appeared? One of them was Christ, a Christophany, the appearing of Christ in the Old Testament. Because the Lord addressed him as Lord, because Abraham addressed him as Lord, that's how he knew that it wasn't an angel, it was the Lord. And Abraham said, pass not away. Come into my camp here. I want to talk with you. I want you to be here. Pass not away, I pray thee, from my servant. Gideon said, when the angel of the Lord came again, the Christophany, the appearing of Christ in Old Testament times, depart not, hence I pray thee, until I come unto thee. Jesus is passing by Lorne tonight. Oh, may you be like Gideon, and may you pray. Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee. Don't pass by Lauren tonight. Don't pass by the door of this church tonight. Oh, just stay there until I get right. I need thee more than ever. I need to get right with God. I'm bringing up a family. I need to be able to guide them in the path of righteousness. This is a wicked world. The devil's after our children. The only foundation they need is Christ. So as a responsible parent, seek ye first the kingdom of God, and then set a standard and set an example to the family that you raise. Minoa, father of Samson, said, I pray thee, let us detain thee. Don't pass on. We need thee. We need thy help. The more we receive the word of God, the more we will want fellowship with the God of the word. The hymn writer expressed it very well. Beyond the sacred page, I seek thee, Lord. And when you get out this book tonight and read the holy scriptures, God has a word for you. And beyond the sacred page, I seek thee, Lord. the God of the book, the Lord of glory, the king of kings, and the Lord of lords. So receiving the Bible truth that they were receiving on the mess road and walking with the Lord, because that's exactly what they were doing. They looked upon him as a stranger. It's just like Mary at the garden tomb on the resurrection morning. She thought Jesus was the gardener, therefore a stranger. And these disciples, for some reason, they could not fully understand who it was. They just called him a stranger. Are they a stranger? Receiving Bible truth, that's what they were doing, receiving Bible truth. They were walking with the Lord, and what happened led them to have a burning heart. For they said in verse 32, did not our heart burn within us? Did not our heart burn within us? A strong expression to indicate warmth, the warmth and the delight of their feelings while they listened to the Lord expounding their word. When was the last time you felt this warmth when you lifted the book of God to read it? Early in the morning, late at night, during the course of the day, when did you last feel this kind of warmth reading God's word? That's the question for us all tonight. Centuries later, John Wesley had this same kind of spiritual experience When on the May the 24th, 1738, at a society meeting somewhere in London, he heard someone read from the preface of Luther's commentary on the book of Romans, and this is what he said. When he heard this reading from the preface of a book by a little monk who was saved out of Romanism and became a great reformer, this is what he said, the great John Wesley. I felt my heart strangely warmed. When was the last time you felt your heart strangely warmed? Under the ministry of God's Word, it's easy to grow cold. Remember Elijah, oh, the great man that he was on Mount Carmel? In chapter 19 of Kings, he's under the juniper tree. He should have been under the apple tree in the Song of Solomon, but he's under the juniper tree. Think about Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan, Saul's son. Where did we find him in 2 Samuel 9? He's down in a place called Lodibar. Lodibar means no pasture. So you have Elijah, he's under the juniper tree. Mephibosheth, he's down there in the place of no pasture. And God and Christ has provided an apple tree. And the son of Solomon, chapter 2, in that apple tree is Christ. That's a place where God wants his people to be. So we can grow cold at times. That's a reality. Happens to preachers. It happens to us all. Have you got a burning heart tonight? I think of the psalmist in Psalm 39. He said, my heart was hot within me. While I was musing, the fire burnt. Then I spake with my tongue. Now the word musing means earnest meditation. It means that he was pondering or considering the scriptures. Now, I don't want you to turn to it now, but in the opening verses of the psalm, the psalmist was discouraged because he says, my sorrow was stirred. So he was sad. It's just like these two disciples here in Luke 24. He was sad. He was discouraged with the rebelling of his people against his message. And then as he mused, something happened. Something happened to these two disciples on the mess road as they heard the word of God expounded. Oh, the heart began to burn. And that's exactly what the psalmist happened to him. My heart was hot within me as I mused. And as he mused in the scriptures, his heart began to burn. Then he said, then he said, then spake I with my tongue. So he's discouraged, he's disappointed, he's downcast in his spirit, he's on the verge of giving up his service for God, and then the Lord suddenly intervenes. He's got this hot spirit within him, he's got a heartburn, and then he begins to speak. Because he's full of the joy of the Lord, he begins to tell others of his grace, of his mercy. So he was praying, and now he's speaking. Meditation is like the oil to the lamp. The lamp of prayer will soon go out unless supported by meditation. Ruth, when she went out into a glean in the harvest field in Ruth chapter 2, she met a man called Boaz, who's a type of Christ, a mighty man of wealth. And in the book of Ruth, he's a type of Christ. When you go to the scriptures of truth and you begin to glean the word of God, you'll meet with Jesus Christ. Some need to meet with him tonight. If you're unconverted, you need Him tonight. You need to seek Him with all of your heart. You'll meet with Him tonight in this meeting. Jeremiah was on the verge of giving up his ministry. In Jeremiah chapter 20, he could not just give up. He was on the verge of it. He was distressed. I will not make mention of him nor speak any more in his name, not as in the name of God. So you can imagine the turmoil that was in his soul at that particular time. This is what he said. This was the secret. But as word was in my bones, as a burning fire shut up in my bones, I could not stay. I could not forbear. I couldn't give up because the word of God was in me like a burning fire. Oh, is that the way you enjoy the things of God? This sincere request, abide with us. Then I've got to move on quickly. There's the Savior's response. How did the Savior respond to this particular request? Oh, we're told he went in to tarry with them. And the word tari that is used there in this particular verse 29 is the same word that is translated abide in the opening part of the same verse, translated abide. So if we read it this way, it makes sense. He went in to stay with them. So they opened their home to him. They testified about a burning heart. And then later in the story, you read about their haste because when Christ eventually revealed himself to them, they couldn't stay in the little home any longer in a mess. So they trudge all the way back to Jerusalem. That's seven miles. That's about 15 miles walking that day. They wanted to tell the good news. Yes, Christ is alive. We met with him. He came into our home. He sat down with us to have a meal. He's alive. And as they were telling the rest of the disciples this, after walking 15 miles in total that day, some people would hardly drive five miles to get to church. Here's these two disciples, what, 15 miles? On foot, no camels, no donkeys? To be in the house of God? Oh, a burning heart makes a difference, you know. It will cause us to go the second mile. Old time religion. Second mile religion. Something we don't hear a lot of these days. We're too busy preoccupied with our things, doing our things, going our way. Matthew Henry said, ready is Christ to give further instructions and comforts to those who improve what they have received. So the Lord gives to us his word. And through prayer and meditation, we are to improve upon those things and come to a clearer, fuller understanding of his mind for us, his will for us. Let me ask you the question right now. Offend or don't offend, I'm going to ask you a question. Are you in the will of God tonight? Are you in the place where God would have you to be, honestly? Are you right with God? He spoke to them, we have evidence of this, verses 17, 19, 25, 28. Now we learn something more about him. So he's been speaking to them along the road and the house. And then we're told in verse 30 that he sat down with them and Moses. And the Old Testament was addressing the people of Israel in Deuteronomy 6 verses 4 through 9. And he was telling the parents to teach your children the laws of God. When you sit in your house, when you walk along the way, when you lie down upon your bed at night, And this is what he also said about the law of God. Bind them upon your hand and not cause them to be frontlets between your eyes. Now the Jews actually took that literally. It wasn't to be taken literally, but they did that according to Matthew 23 verse five, because Maybe you've seen pictures, maybe on the TV or something, and you see the orthodox Jews, and they have this little container here on their forehead, strapped around their head. And in that, the portions of the scripture. So they were taking it literally, to keep the word of God on your forehead, to before you all the time, every day, as you know it, the word of God is there before you. And then they have the phylacteries on their forehead and on their arm. They attach this little container, the mesusa. They're the door. And every house, every door in the house, on the gate, on the door of the house, and then inside the house, on the doors, the mesusa. So when they came in, they were able to touch, reminding themselves of the word. They moved to another door, they did the same thing. They leave at the beginning of the day on the gate, they have the masseuse there, they touch it again. They're keeping the word of God before their minds, on their hands, they're touching it, they're reminded of the word of God. But that's not really what the Lord was wanting them to do. I think the whole truth, Moses is saying, live your life in obedience to the Word of God. Have the Word of God before you in your mind. That's the important thing, obedience. Obeying the Word of God. So in Bible times, it was a sign that the house was to be a sanctuary for God, a place where the Word of God was loved. But apply that to life. The life is to be a sanctuary for God where God is loved and honored when we obey his word and do his truth. I think that's really the lesson that is taught. So Jesus went in and sat down with them. This is what the Lord says in John 1, 14, verse 23. The Lord says, we will come unto thee, child of God. We will come unto thee, the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We will come unto thee and make our abode with thee in the heart of the people of God. If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and dine with him, and he with me." Revelation 3, verse 20. And you get the picture there, he's standing at a closed door. It's not a synagogue of Satan, it's a church. Christ can't even get into the church. He's knocking on the church door. And the people are so hardened against him, they don't open the door, let him in, they don't welcome him. So he bit like Peter in Acts chapter 12. He got out of prison. It was a dangerous time for him. He needed to get in behind the door. And he's knocking on the door. Nobody would open it. And then Rhoda went out, and she recognized his voice. Instead of opening the door and getting the men out of a place of danger, she went in and said, I recognize the voice. It's Peter. And they said, oh, it can't be the case. The point is, he got out of prison easier than he got into a prayer meeting. I will come in and dine with him and he with me." The Lord really wants to have a meal with his people. And this is a setting where lovers share their hearts with each other. You know, when you were courting, you wanted to impress your girlfriend, so you took her to the best restaurant. A bag of fish and chips was no good. That old smelly vinegar would destroy everything and all that kind of stuff. You want to take it in and really impress her. You're a man who loves her and cares for her. You want to show love and so you invite her to this restaurant and have a nice meal. You want to show how much you love her and care for her and all that kind of stuff. It's a picture here of lovers sitting down at the table, Christ at the table, sharing his love with the children of God and his disciples, bringing their needs and burdens to him, telling him how much they care for him. This was Paul's desire for the Athesian church. This is what he prayed for them, that Christ may dwell or settle down, if you like, and be completely at home in your hearts. That's where Christ wants to be tonight. He wants to be a priority in your life. He wants you to give him pride of place, and pride of place is first place. Our wives and husbands, we love them, but we must love Christ more. We love our children, our sons and daughters, but we must give Christ his proper place. He must come first. Everyone and everything else must fall into second place. So there is this request, abide with us. There is the Savior's response, even in the tarry with them, to abide with them, to sit down with them, to enjoy fellowship with them. And then, in closing, the simple or the special revelation. Their eyes were opened and they knew him. Now, prior to that, as they walked on the mess road, they didn't recognize him. It says their eyes were holding, whatever that means. They weren't blind. They could see normally. But for whatever reason, the Lord held their sight so they could not recognize him. But then the Bible says, and their eyes were opened in verse 31, and they saw him as Messiah. King of kings and Lord of lords. And then it says, and it came to pass that he took bread and then he began to serve out the meal. Isn't that an amazing thing? The Christ of the cross, the Lord of glory, is now distributing the elements or the meal. No, it's not the Lord's supper. Passing the wine and the bread, a simple basic meal in those times, is feeding those who are sitting at the table with him. It was the basic meal of ordinary people in those times. And the host would have taken the bread and he would have broken it, he would have offered a prayer of thanksgiving, and then the bread and the wine was passed around. And I think it was Warren Wiersbe said, we must look for him in everyday things. Everyday things. Look for him in everyday things. Now, how did they recognize him in this simple act he did? Well, here's a thought. Maybe as he walked along the road, his hands would have been probably up in the sleeve of his white garment. And now, when they broke the bread, it may have fallen back a little bit and his hands were uncovered and they could see the nail-scarred hands. Maybe it was them. They said, this is Christ. Maybe it goes back to the Feast of the Five Thousand. Maybe some demeanor, some characteristic of Christ. They identified him. I don't know for sure. and their eyes were opened, and that word opened, that original word is found eight times in the New Testament, and it means to open up thoroughly. Remember the deaf and the dumb man in Mark chapter seven, his ears were opened and his tongue was loosed. His eyes were opened thoroughly, he could see. And this particular word that is used carries the idea of something supernatural happening. They could not achieve, the man who was troubled in Mark chapter seven could not achieve anything by himself. It was a miracle that brought about this opening, the opening of his ears and the opening of his tongue, listening of his tongue. It was something supernatural. And we need the work of the Holy Spirit to enlighten us, to open up the scriptures that we might know him more and more. We can't do it naturally, humanly speaking. We need the enabling of the Lord by his Spirit. If you want to study the Bible effectively, pray each day. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. Deuteronomy tells us, The secret things belong unto the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong unto us and our children forever. Lydia's heart was opened. The deaf man's ears were opened. The mouth of Zacharias was opened because in unbelief, because he did not believe the Lord and the angel Gabriel when he appeared to him, he could not speak for the duration of his wife's pregnancy. And so he was struck dumb for those nine months, until the moment they handed him the slate and he was able to write, call his name John. His mouth was opened. Maybe some of God's people have lost their testimony and witness because of unbelief. It will only be opened by a miraculous work of God's grace, liberating the people of God and setting us gloriously free. So here was a visit. It was a brief visit. It didn't take long to prepare the meal, bread and wine. It didn't take long for that to happen, but it was a most blessed visitation. An unforgettable experience was given to them. His conversation had been so engaging, it had been so edifying and encouraging, so powerful and practical that they could not bear him to pass by, hence the words, abide with us. Don't go. Just stay a little longer. Have we got that kind of desire for the Lord tonight? Do we love him so? Do we love him with all our hearts and minds and souls? Don't procrastinate. Don't harden the heart. Because when the heart grows cold, it's difficult. We need the Lord more than ever before. This land needs the Lord. If you're with us tonight on Converted, you need the Lord. You need to repent tonight and seek the Lord. You need to trust him for salvation. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved on thine house. Trust in the atoning blood and the sacrifice that he made. Come to him tonight, repenting of your sins, believing the gospel, seeking him from the depths of your heart, and you will find forgiveness and redemption and a hope for heaven. And at home at the end of the journey of life, I'm blessed for eternity in the presence of the Lamb. And we'll join in that great choir that we read of in the book of Revelation. And we'll sing, what worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain? It's Christ as the Lamb. He's the Savior. The only Savior is ours. You need Him tonight. Why don't you know? In the privacy of your heart, take this simple prayer to him tonight. Abide with me. Abide with us. Abide with my family. Come into my home. Come into my heart. Come into my life. And give me something I can't get anywhere else. Peace with God. Forgiveness of sins. the guarantee of glory. Will you trust him tonight? Child of God, will you go through with him? Abide with us. May God abide with you here and now. May God give the increase in this congregation. May God richly bless you. I don't intend to go to the door tonight for health issues, but I We'll remain here if anyone needs to talk to a pastor. You need to see Mr. Brown. You might feel more at ease with him. Be in contact with our brother Reid here. But don't go away tonight without trusting Christ. It's imperative. So if he can help or if I can help, I'll just be here for a little time. Be easy to talk to. Let's bow for prayer. Father, we do pray that even now, at the end of this service, that thy word will be blessed to those who have heard. Remember the boys and the girls, mums and dads, young people. Let us know where we come from, what our background is, what our plans may be, where we are spiritually. We do earnestly pray that needs will be met, burdens will be lifted, blind eyes may be opened, hardened hearts may be softened. And even tonight, the end of this meeting, May the angels in heaven have cause to rejoice over a man or woman or young person trusting in Christ for salvation. Dismiss us with thy blessing, and in thy fear, for we ask these things all in the Savior's name. Now may the blessing of the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit rest and abide upon all of God's people now and forevermore.