Well, good morning. Welcome again to Bethany Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church as we gather together to worship the Lord our God on this blessed Sabbath morning. And as we get going this morning, just a few announcements. First of all, and probably most importantly, we are blessed and honored to be able this morning to have a service of ordination and installation for Mr. Caleb Robinson. And so we look forward to that as he takes on the office of deacon here at Bethany. And so we, again, offer our congratulations, our prayers for Mr. Caleb and Ms. Cassidy as he takes on this responsibility. Other announcements to take note of. First of all, just as a reminder, we'll be going ice skating on the Friday of this week on the 24th. I sent out a link to those who are going that if you're going, please sign up ahead of time through Pineville Ice House. That helps a couple different ways. One, we can get all the payment stuff taken care of before we go up there. But also, that's something they're requiring now, is that folks sign up before they get there. Now, you can come and not have signed up, but it costs a little extra money to get in that way. But again, we invite everybody who wants to come, to come with us Friday when we meet here at the church at 6 o'clock. for pizza and for beverages and then we'll be heading up to Pine. So again, we look forward to that annual trip. Other things to take note of, also down in the front of the queue is the sign up for the senior citizens list. If that encounters you, make sure to check your information, make sure it's correct. Or if you need to add your information, please make sure to do that as well. Also, just as a reminder, we'll be taking up the sunshine basket next Sunday. So I'll take note of that. Also, as a way of a reminder, not next Sunday but the Sunday after, I will not be here. That'll be the first Sunday of February. I'll be leaving to go to Rwanda on the 29th of January. I'll be back on the 8th. But on that first Sunday of February, we'll have with us Reverend Greg Delaney. Some of y'all may remember that name. He was a state rep down in Chester County for 40 some odd years, and he is now an ordained minister in ARP. He'll be with us that first Sunday of February. And we look forward to his bringing the word. Also, just as a way of reminder, we'll be gathering together tonight for Sunday evening service at 5.30. Again, we invite everybody back out for that as we continue to look at our order of service. Tonight we'll be talking about Bible songs and why we sing them. So we invite everybody for that on Wednesday night at 6.30. We'll be continuing our series of looking at particular topics. I think this week is end of life care and things around euthanasia and those questions. If you're interested in learning more about a physical response to that, that's what we'll be going over this week. installation. I would be remiss not to announce this. We'll be having a luncheon after worship this morning in honor of Mr. Califf. So we invite everybody to stay for that as we rejoice and give thanks again for God's gift. So let us go ahead now and come to a moment of silent prayer. Amen. Again, our call to worship this morning in God's blessed grace comes to us from the first letter of the Apostle Paul to the church at Thessalonica, and so I invite you to turn in your copies of God's word to 1 Thessalonians chapter one, as we read these two verses, or three verses, verses two through four, as God calls us into his presence on this blessed Sabbath morning. So again, we come here to 1 Thessalonians chapter one, beginning there at verse two. Hear the word of the Lord. We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God. Amen. We hear this testimony, this reminder, again, of the work that God has done to call us unto himself, to bring us unto this house of worship on this Sabbath morning. We invite you to now stand as we sing this opening hymn, hymn number 179 from the Red Trinity Hymnal. Let us stand, let us sing, and let us sing to our glorious God. I love you I do not know the reason why Hallelujah. Praise ye to the name of our God, who is the one alone worthy of our praise and our thanksgiving and our worship on this blessed Sabbath morning. So let us come now once more before the Lord our God as we come to him in prayer. Let's pray. Our great and almighty Heavenly Father, the God who has called us into one foundational world, the one who might walk in the light of your marvelous grace. that we might gather together on this day that you have made and declared holy, that you have called your own, that you have witnessed to us from the very beginning of creation to be the day of rest, the day in which we look back and see your mighty works. We see the work of creation. We see the works of your providence. We see the way in which you have protected us in the week that has passed. We consider again how you have protected not only us from the enemies which are outside, but also from ourselves. You have guided us towards holiness, how You have convicted us of our sin, how You have provided that we might know more of Your grace through the reading of Your Word, through the time that we spend in prayer, and most especially, dear God, in the way that we watch over one another by the fellowship of the saints. And so, dear God, as we come on this blessed Sunday morning, It's the culmination of the week and it's preparation for the week that is to come. God, we pray that you would move our hearts and our minds over to the heavens themselves where our souls reside. To God that we might be renewed and that we might have opportunity to renew our own faith in the risen Christ. And so to God we come now to say 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, And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen. As we continue to worship the Lord our God, one of the ways we worship God is by reading his holy scriptures. And as we are reminded in this portion of God's holy and perfect word, we come to see the day of Pentecost. of the preaching of the Word of God upon the hearts of sinners. Again, we come here to Acts chapter 2, beginning there at verse 1. Hear the Word of the Lord. When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. there appeared in them divided tongues as a fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling Jerusalem Jews, about men from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, multitude came together and were confused, as everyone heard them speak in his own language. Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, look! We're not all these who speak Galileans. And how is it that we hear each one in our own language, in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya, adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans words of God. So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, whatever could this mean? Others mocking said, they are full of new wine. Amen. Thanks be to God for reading us wholly in this perfect Word. Please be seated. As is our practice when we have special orders in our service, I do invite you to come down and sit down in front so y'all can see and witness to these events, if y'all want to come up. The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ was given unto us by our Lord Himself. In the days of His youth, Our Lord Jesus witnessed unto the works that He had prepared for all men to walk in. And we know that the church of the Lord Jesus Christ was founded not in the days of Jesus, but in the days of Adam. And the church has been a part of God's plan from the very beginning. In the Old Testament, God had ordered His church in certain ways. He gave Levites. He gave priests. He gave governors. that the church of God might be rightly ordered and well led. And in the days of the New Testament, this was no different. God had ordained through his son Jesus Christ that those offices would continue but under different names. Just like prophets in the Old Testament spoke the word of God and convicted sinners, so too ministers now perform that work. Governors, those men who sat in the gates and ruled, are now called elders. But those whom God had given to take care of the needs of the people, physical needs, spiritual needs, which were largely covered by the Levites in the New Testament, they have now come to be called deacons. These three offices witness to us again the love of Jesus Christ for us. And as a way of reminder, the establishment of deacons comes to us in Acts chapter 6. Now in those days when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, it is not desirable that we should leave the Word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business, but we will give ourselves continually to prayer, to the ministry of the word. And the saying pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith in the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Procorus, and Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas, a proselyte from Antioch, whom they set before the apostles, and when they had prayed, they laid hands on them. And the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith. Now this witness of the holiness required of gods of people is particularly given over to their officers. And so when the Apostle Paul laid out the qualifications for deacons in 1st Timothy 3, he says, likewise, deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, nor greedy for money, holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. But let these also first be tested, and let them serve as deacons, being found blameless. Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderous, temperate, faithful in all things. Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their houses well. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and a great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus." Now these requirements that are given unto us by the Word of God have been set aside in the life of our brother Caleb Robinson. He is witness to these things. He has testified to these things. And most especially, he has met with your approval. But we understand that these offices are not given out of a small matter, but are to be taken up with much care and much diligence. And you, the members of the Bethany Associated Reformed Presbyterian Church, have chosen Caleb Robinson be ordained and installed as a deacon. So to do these things, we have questions and answers that we ask of our ordinands. And so, Mr. Caleb, would you please respond? Do you believe in one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and do you confess anew the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord and acknowledge him head over all things for the church, which is his body? Do you reaffirm your belief in the Bible, the Scriptures, the Old and New Testaments as the Word of the Living God, the only perfect rule of faith and practice, infallible in all that it teaches, in inerrant original manuscripts into which nothing is to be added and from which nothing is to be taken at any time or upon any pretext? Do you accept the doctrines of this church contained in the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms as adopted by the ARP in 1799? as founded on the word of God and the expression of your own faith, and do you resolve to adhere thereto? Do you accept the government, discipline, and worship of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church? Do you accept the office of deacon in this congregation, and do you promise to perform faithfully all the duties of the office, and do you promise to endeavor by the grace of God to live your life in Christian commitment over the church and in the world? Do you promise to submit in the spirit of love to the authority of the session and to the higher courts of the church? Do you promise in all things to promote the unity, peace, purity, and prosperity of the Bethany Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church? These questions, having been asked in the affirmative, it is now my responsibility to address you, the members of the Bethany Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. Do you, the members of this congregation, acknowledge and receive this man, Caleb Robinson, as your deacon? Do you promise to give all honor, obedience, encouragement, and assistance in the spirit of love to which his office, according to the word of God and the standards of this church, entitles him? the members of this congregation having signified their affirmation by the answer to this question. It is now my responsibility to ask you, Mr. Caleb, to kneel. Any elder or deacon who has been ordained in the Associate Foreign Preparatory Church, I invite you to now come as we lay hands on our brother. Let us pray. Gracious Heavenly Father, you are our God and we are your people. And you being the God of the heavens and the earth, the one who has ordered all things in accordance with your will and with the glory of your promise, we who have been set aside by the laying on of hands, we who are ministers, elders, and deacons in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, through the authority granted unto us by you and by our Savior Jesus Christ. We now confer on our brother, Mr. Caleb Robinson, this office of deacon. To God we pray that you would hold him near unto you. To God that your Holy Spirit would most especially come upon him at this very moment. God that He might know again your love, your care, and that through this great gift that He might be witness unto the obedience of the faith, not by the will of the flesh, not by the power of His own Spirit, but purely resting upon the grace of Jesus Christ, the author and the finisher of our faith. Dear Heavenly Father, by the powers vested in me, I now declare that Caleb Robinson is a deacon in the Bethany Associate Board of Presbyterian Church. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the great head of the church, I now declare you duly ordained and installed in the sacred office of deacon. Amen. Please rise. It is now due for the members of the session and the diaconate to take Mr. Caleb by hand and say unto him, we give you the right hand of fellowship. Take part in this ministry with us. As is our practice here at Bethany, after the worship service, Mr. Cable and I will be out on the front porch there. And so we will gather together. Oh, y'all can go sit down. Or you can stay there. Either one. Thank you, Mr. Cable. I appreciate y'all's obedience. That's a testimony that all of you parents out there waited. But again, Mr. Cave and I will be out on the front porch, so please come by and offer congratulations to him, and of course we'll be gathering after that down in the festive hall for food and fellowship, which of course all of us are welcome to attend. We give thanks again for this grace. It is good for us now to rejoice and praise the name of our God through song. And so I invite you to now stand as we sing Bible song number 236 from the Green Bible Songs book. Let us stand and let's sing this portion of Psalm 113, Blessings of a Godly Man. And he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he's a man, and he When all the earth becomes white, the world shall rise, and Jesus shall stand, and the world shall know my name. It's time to go, and all the earth will be my home. Now is the day that we shall know that this is not the state of mind. This is the state of mind, and all the earth we shall know. This is the state of mind, and all the earth we Stand up to the King today, and raise your spirits high above. Now is the time that we should go, and raise a song to save your life. This is the day that is made for all, and all the earth will hear of it. Now listen up, it's time to choose your side. It's time to make things up your mind. Now listen, make things up, and make it right. And that's the way it should be as we do rejoice in the mightiness of the hand of our God let us now be seated as we come before our God Let us pray. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the God of all grace and mercy and love, the God who has opened our hearts to receive your truth, and the God who challenges us every day to live up unto that confession of faith which we have made. The God who not only challenges us towards obedience, but gives us the power by which to obey. The God who has called us to not be slow in responding to the call, but has quickened our hearts and our souls that we might walk with our heads on high. We might walk with our eyes focused upon the glory of Jesus Christ, upon the amazement of the heavenly places. How our Lord and Savior sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty from whence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. And to God as we are reminded soberly this morning of the consequences of disobedience. Of the consequences of not trusting in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. as you give us opportunity to once more seek out our own soul, to look unto our own heart, to be reminded again that we rest not in the works of the flesh, that our hope is not in our being a good person, that our hope is not in doing enough or doing more than others, that our hope alone is in the free gift of the gospel grace of Jesus Christ. Lord God, may you help us to be more aware of how that practically affects us day by day. And how freeing it is to walk by faith and not by sight. Lord God, as we see so much of the trouble around us, so much of the tribulations that are ongoing in cultures, in governments, in nations around the world. Lord God, it is our confident plea that the only hope that any nation has is the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so dear Heavenly Fathers, we especially come to this time in our nation's history where we will see a new man be placed into an office of authority. And not just one man, but a whole branch of government change over. Dear God, these are sobering events and they should cause us to be humble. Dear God, they should cause us not only to be humble, but dear God, they should move us to be on our knees. Dear God, we pray for those who are going to take oaths tomorrow and then the weeks to come. We pray that their yes would mean yes and their no would mean no. We pray that you would watch over them and keep them. We pray that as they are able, that they would understand the gravity of what they are taking on. Not only in their responsibilities to the state and to the people of this nation, but ultimately how they will have to give an account for the authority that you have given unto them. So we pray that You would open their hearts and their minds to be obedient unto You. That they might rule in accordance with Your will and with Your law. That they might understand again the covenant that they are swearing is not just with man. Dear God, we do pray earnestly. And we covenant with You, dear God, this morning to be in prayer each day. Each opportunity that You give unto us. that we might see not only an opportunity that you are providing, but dear God, that we might take advantage of the opportunities that we have to share the gospel with those who know not. And dear God, we do pray for these mission opportunities you give us in our own community. Dear God, we pray for the words that we have spoken, the words that we will speak, and the opportunities that you will open that we least expect. God, we pray that you again would watch over us in these things as we seek to bring your covenant care upon our community. As we lift up the needs of Bethany and of Clover and of York County, especially those near unto us, God, we do pray for your mercy to be seen. We pray for an outpouring of your Holy Spirit. We pray for a revival We pray for commitments. We pray for belief. We pray, dear God, most of all, for a humble reliance on Jesus Christ. As we pray those prayers this morning, dear God, we do begin with our own hearts. For any reformation and revival that we would like to see around us must start in our own home, in our own church. We pray, dear God, that You would open minds and our eyes and our hearts to see where it is that we as a community of faith need to repent, where we need to forsake the error of our ways, where we need to be reconciled, where we need to seek forgiveness. We pray these things to God because we know that you are powerful and that you are over all things unto your glory. and we believe in the promises that you have made. So, Heavenly Father, as we continue to worship you this morning and as we continue to serve you in the days to come, God, we rest and trust alone in your sovereignty over all things. And God, we also take time this morning to pray for those who are in need, whether those who are sick, those who are infirm, those who are waiting for responses from doctors, we pray to God that you would give comfort and encouragement. And to God, ultimately, that you would bring healing unto our brothers and sisters. And to God, we also lift up unto you those who are spiritually lost, those who are trusting in their own ways, trusting in their own understandings, those who are putting up a stubborn face to the witness of the Holy Spirit. We pray to God that you would soften hearts, that you would open hearts and minds. Dear God, we pray these things not for our own benefit, but for the benefit of those we love. Gracious Heavenly Father, as we come now to close this prayer, dear God, we do all things in the name of your assurance and promise in the gospel, both this day and forevermore. And in Jesus' name we pray, amen. Oh, it's safe at bay I must, I'm calling out in vain. I had to try myself. I am so very weak. I'm just a silent voice. Forgive me, forgive me. I cannot be perfection. And all for me is weak. Here you are, abiding one, for joy will come to rise, to rise, to rise, to rise with one new voice. For this shall all our longing prepare to be, We've reached our goal so high. To lead the world, I am huge. And I embrace our pride. Oh, we will rise. We will, we will, we will rise. In and out, the blind and blind, the blind and blind. Holy shit! Well, the words to which I'd like to draw your attention to this morning come to us from the book of Jeremiah. We're going to be in chapter 10, beginning there at verse 11. So if you would, please stand for the reading of God's word. Jeremiah chapter 10, beginning there at verse 11. Again, we're going to be beginning here at verse 11 in Jeremiah 10 and going through verse 16. Hear the word of the Lord. Thus you shall say to them, the gods that have not made the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under these heavens. He has made the earth by his power. He has established the world by his wisdom and has stretched out the heavens at his discretion. When he utters his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, and he causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth. He makes lightning for the rain and brings the wind out of his treasuries. Everyone is dull-hearted without knowledge. Every metalsmith is put to shame by an image, for his molded image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them. They are futile, a work of errors. In the time of their punishment, they shall perish. The portion of Jacob is not like them, for he is the maker of all things. And Israel is the tribe of his inheritance. The Lord of hosts is his name. Amen. Thanks be to God for the reading of this holy book and this perfect word. Let us pray. Gracious Heavenly Father, as you give us time this morning to be in your word and to be in your presence, we pray dear God that you would help us through this time, that you might encourage us to be strengthened by your word. And in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Please be seated. Well, as we come now to this third time, learning of the doctrine of God, we are here in the second part of chapter 10. We looked at the first part last week, and we talked about last week how the prophet is interested in one particular thing, as he is expressing these truths to the people of Israel who have been taken into bondage in Babylon. As they're in Babylon, they need to remember that they belong to God. Not the God of the Babylonians, not the God of the Canaanites, not the God of the Persians, but the God of Jacob in Israel. Now the reason why this is important is because God alone is God. God alone is the one, as we are told, has made the heavens and the earth. The reason why Jeremiah focuses on that is because we often are kind of confronted with the question by unbelievers, why does it matter that you believe in God? What is the practical effect that it has on your life day by day? Whenever we are kind of asked those questions, you know, our tendency is to talk about, well, you know, God helps me through the day, which He does. We tend to say that, well, you know, I can't imagine getting through life without Him. This is true. We can testify that we believe that Jesus Christ loves us and cares for us and watches over us. We talk about His providence, how He has provided for us day by day, how He has caused us to not walk in the minds of the flesh but in the fruit of the Spirit, and how that's benefited us in our life. And all those things are true and all those things are blessedly true and we should respond in some sense when people ask us why we believe in God. We do get a lot of benefits from believing in God. But one of the problems that the Israelites run into and often Christians run into is that that's all we care about is the benefits. what we can get from God, what God can do for us, what God has done for us, what God will do for us. And to talk only about the benefits of God is to miss who God is. It's to not rightly understand our relationship with God. And what it means that God alone is worthy of praise and of worship and of our obedience. See, Israel, when they were comparing their God to the God of Canaan or the God of Babylon or the God of Egypt, they always talked about benefits. They always talked about what God could do for them. Why did they sacrifice their children to Molech and Asherah? because the God of Ashtoreth, the God of the Philistines promised that if you offer up your firstborn that you would have a good fruitful family life. And not only that, but if you offer up your firstborn your crops would come in, in the fall and over the summer and into the fall into the harvest. So if you wanted something good in your life, well you might as well throw your child into the fire. Because again, that's what most people think of when they think of God. Again, these benefits that come from God. But again, if you're asking that question, again, what can God do for me? You're missing the point of the whole exercise. And that's what Jeremiah wants the people of Israel and wants us to reconsider and rethink about. Again, we serve and love God because He is God. Because of His person, because of who He is, what He is, and also what He alone is. You notice how Jeremiah here at the very beginning tells us in verse 11, then you shall say to them, the gods that have not made the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and run to these heavens. God, that is He, has made the earth by His power, He has established the world by His wisdom, and has stretched out the heavens at His discretion. When He utters His voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, and it causes the vapors to ascend, and at the end of the earth, He makes lightning for the rain, and brings wind out of His treasury. That sounds quite a lot like Psalm 19. What is it about the nature and the world around us that testifies that there is a God? Well, the mountains declare His majesty. The oceans declare His bigness. And the universe witnesses to His greatness. power and authority. And when you look unto the heavens themselves, when you look unto the mountains and the oceans, we are meant, according to Psalm 19, to be humbled in the face of these things, right? The creation itself testifies to the power of God. Because what has the God of the Canaanites done according to the words of Jeremiah? Has he made the earth? Has He ordered all things in accordance with His will? Has He done anything for you outside of provide you with fleshly promises? With fleshly rewards? With earthly benefits? Because yes, you should want your families to be fruitful. You should want the harvest to come in. You should want to live a good life. You should want all of the benefits that we think about when we think about why we believe in God. But before we get to that point, we first again have to understand who God is. Job, who was a holy and a righteous man, who refused to blame God for all of the difficulties that had come upon him by the will of God, was still in need of hearing this message. That's why when the time of the talking ends, And God comes in Job 38 and God speaks to Job in this way. He says, Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man. I will question you, and you shall answer me. Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding, who determined its measurements? Surely you know. Or who stretched out the line upon it to what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? I mean, I don't know about you, but if I'm sitting there minding my own business and God appears out of the whirlwind and starts challenging me about my understanding of the world, I don't know what I'd do, but I'm sure I would try to hide because that is a fearful thing to be in the presence of a holy and righteous God. But what does God intend by those words in Job 38? Those words aren't meant to cause Job to die. Those words are to cause Job to remember why it is that he has not failed in the previous 37 chapters. But the reason why Job did not give in to his counselors, the reason why he didn't blame God and die, the reason why he has been maintained through all of these things is because God made the heavens and the earth. But the reason why Job is at this point is because God has established the rules of the universe. Why is it raining today? Because God made the heavens and the earth. Why do we know that it's going to stop raining? Because God made the heavens and the earth. Why do we know that the sun is going to rise tomorrow? Because God made the heavens and the earth. That's why in the previous section we looked at Jeremiah 10, we see Jeremiah talk about that the Gentiles are dismayed at the signs of heaven. They see earthquakes, they see tornadoes, they see hurricanes, they see blizzards, they see all these things and they're dismayed because they don't know where they came from. Now they might scientifically decipher that these things come when the air pressure changes or we get wind out of Canada and it makes everything cold again. They might know those things but What good is that knowledge? It's good for only as far as you can take it. Again, the testimony of knowing who God is, is the greatest comfort that anyone can have. Again, consider Job. At the beginning of that book, where is he? He's the richest man in the land. He has more sheep and goats and animals than can be counted on one hand. They're on many hands. Some people might even have to take their shoes off to count that high. You know, all of the blessings of his family, right? He has everything that the world declares to be good and right, and yet it is gone in an instant. The only thing that enables Job to get through those days is the fact that God has ordained all things that come to pass. When you are going through difficulties in life, when you are brought low by the nature of this fallen world, what is it that allows you to withstand these realities? The psalmist in Psalm 62, 11 says, God has spoken once, twice, I've heard this, that power belongs to God. God has revealed to us that all things are in His hand. The great promise of Philippians 4.13 that we see blazoned everywhere, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. The only reason that verse makes any sense is because God made the heavens and the earth. Because again, it's true that you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. But where does Christ get the power to strengthen anything? Did He already have that power when He was born in the manger in Bethlehem? Absolutely! Why? Because He is God. That's why it matters what we understand about the Trinity. That's why it matters what we believe about God being 1 in 3 and 3 in 1. Because if Jesus is not God, He has no power to do anything for you outside of what God the Father gives Him. And as we see in the scriptures, delegated authority is only worth so much. Again, Jesus Christ is able to strengthen your soul in the days of trial because He made the heavens and the earth, right? That's what the first chapter of the Gospel of John says, right? That Jesus Christ spoke the world into existence. And so when Jeremiah here in John 10, 11 through 16 is saying, I should say to them, the gods that have not made the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under these heavens. He has made the earth by his power. He's established the world by his wisdom. He's stretched out the heavens at his discretion. Again, it's in this power that we have peace and comfort in life. We go back and look at all the examples in the Old and New Testaments of the way that God gathered His people and brought them through difficulty, and the message is always the same. In Exodus chapter 14, as the people of God are leaving Egypt, Moses tells the people something fairly simply. He says, the Lord will fight for you and you shall hold your peace. Again, it's one of those passages that probably should be up on our wall somewhere because what does that mean to you? That the Lord will fight for you and you should hold your peace. Again, if we just understand that, that God's in your corner and He's going to root you on through life, well that's cold comfort. If all that means is that God is cheering you on as you're going through difficulties, well, anybody can do that. The gods of this earth can do that. Satan can cheer you on for all that matters. But it radically changes how we understand that verse if we believe that God made the heavens and the earth. But it radically changed what we understand by the Lord will fight for you when we understand that that covenant promise that has been made in God to Moses, to the people of Israel, is established not by the circumstances, but by the fact that God made the heavens and the earth. And as it says here in Jeremiah, He has made the earth by His power and established the world by His wisdom. What does the book of Proverbs tell us? That we are not to do what? We are not to lean on our own understanding. But what are we to do? We are to lean on God's understanding because God made the heavens and the earth. God declares what is right and what is true. God declares the parameters of things. There is an illustration that pops up throughout the prophets in the Old Testament. This idea that God is the one with the plumb line. Now I haven't done much construction in my life, mainly because I ain't no good at it, but the one thing I know about it is you better know what you're doing. And one of the things you better know how to do is establish the cornerstone. Because what does the cornerstone say about what you're getting ready to do? Well it tells you everything, right? If you don't set the cornerstone right, then everything else is going to get messed up. Because nothing else is going to be straight. Nothing else is going to be supported. You know, you have to have a different kind of cornerstone depending on what kind of building you're putting together. And that plumb line, right, one of the things that we imagine with that, right, is, you know, it's one of them pieces of string that's got the powder on it and you pull it out and what do you do? You flick it and it goes down and it makes you a line. And what are you supposed to do with that? Well, what's the point of that? We're supposed to follow the line. Are you supposed to kind of make a decision halfway through that line? Well, I don't really think this is straight. I'm going to go this way three degrees. Well, what kind of wisdom is that? We would call that foolishness, right? A man who doesn't trust his tools is a fool. When we think about, again, the fact that God is the one with the plumb line. He's the one who has set the cornerstone He is the one who has established the building. He is the one who has ordered all things before the foundation of the world. And then what best we ought to do? Pay attention to the way He's ordered all things because He's the one who made the heavens and the earth. Again, He is the one who has set the parameters of how this world operates. And that's really what the sin of Adam was in the garden. Yes, it was eating the fruit. Yes, it was disobeying. But ultimately, it was Adam saying unto himself that I have a better way than what God has ordained. I know better than the one who made the garden how the garden ought to operate. So now I'm God. Well, that's kind of an Arabic thing to say, wouldn't you think? But the same thing is true for all of us whenever we sin. That's what we're doing. We're telling God he's wrong. We're telling God that, you know, I know you told me not to steal, but I really need that. I know you told me not to commit adultery, but boy it looks nice. I know you told me not to make raven images, but you know that's perverted. In the idea that we see in this passage, again, is it is meant not so much to make God so unapproachable that we don't know what to do with Him. But a passage like this is meant, again, to reorient our minds around the reason why we're Christians to begin with. Because we don't know, and we don't understand, and we don't comprehend, and we're not aware We don't know these things. That's why one of the very central identity markers of a believer is humility. And it's not just humility in the sense of not taking credit for things. Part of it, but that's not really what we're talking about when we're talking about Christian humility. Our Christian humility really is trusting God and recognizing that His ways are above our ways. And if God has told us to worship in a particular way, what should we do? Worship in a particular way. Why? Because God made the heavens and the earth. You didn't. And so we humbly rely on the witness of the scriptures, of the testimony of the truth, and we obey him, and we come to find out that life's a lot easier when you just do what God says. Now, the world don't agree with that, so they're going to try to make your life harder if you obey God. But what are those two verses we read, right? I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace. The only reason those verses make any sense, again, is because we understand that God has called us to walk on a straight and narrow path, which leads to heaven. Another verse that often comes up, again, which comes from Mr. Jeremiah here, is the passage that I see all over the place, especially Now, when these fellows are entering the transfer portal, you know, Jesus seems awfully concerned, evidently, with what college you play football at. But one of the passages that comes up all the time in these things is, you know, Jeremiah chapter 29 and, you know, verse, isn't it, right? He testifies in 29 verse 11 that because you have said the Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon, Therefore, thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, concerning all the people who dwell in this city, and concerning your brethren who have not gone out with you into captivity, thus says the Lord of hosts, behold, I will send on them the sword, the famine, the pestilence, make them like rotten figs that cannot be eaten, they are so bad, and I will pursue them with the sword, with famine, with pestilence, and I will deliver them to trouble among all the kings of the earth, to be a curse, an astonishment, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them. Because they have not heeded my word, says the Lord, which I sent them by my service to the prophets, rising up early and sending them neither. Go to heed, says the Lord. Therefore, hear the word of the Lord, all of you, the captivity whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon. Now, that's not the verse you thought I was going to say. Because the verse you thought I was going to say, Verse 11 says, For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not evil, to give you a future and a hope. That's the verse that we usually think of in Jeremiah 29 when we think of the plans the Lord has for us. This beautiful testimony of that again as God says there, For I know the thoughts that I think toward you. Those are great words if you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. But those words judge you if you don't. That's why I read to you what I did. Because again, these people of Israel who have gone into the land of Babylon, they're gonna have to make a choice. They're gonna have to make a decision. They're gonna have to think deeply about their relationship with the God of Israel, the God of Jacob, the God of all men. And having brought them into this land, They're going to have to, again, ask themselves a simple question. Do I believe and trust in the God of Israel or do I think now that I'm in the land of Babylon, I might as well live as the Babylonians do? I might as well worship the gods of Babylon. I might as well serve the gods of Babylon because I'm in Babylon. And what did the God of Israel do for me other than bring me here? Again, if we understand again who our God is, again, that he is the one who has made the heavens and the earth, then that verse 11 is a wonderful testimony to us. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. What is the future and hope of somebody who's living in Babylon? Well, it's not gonna come next week. It's not gonna come if you work harder, if you pray harder, if you do things harder. What's the assurance of Jeremiah 29.11? It is that God has made a promise to you and that if you keep that promise, then you'll see the promise through. And the promise is pretty simple. Jeremiah had told them that they were going into exile for 70 years. And when Cyrus the Great came up, he would return them back to the land. You see, sometimes in the Christian life, we think we ought to only have good things happen to us. We think we ought to be experiencing joy and peace and comfort and all these things. And we define those things wrongly. There used to be an old Marine Corps advertisement, enlistment ad, that had a mean old drill instructor standing there with his hat on and looking down at a poor, measly young man with Coke bottle glasses on. I was going to use the other term for him. the coke bottle glasses on and what did it say underneath of it? We didn't promise you a rose garden. There's some truth to that in the Christian life. God doesn't promise you a rose garden. God doesn't promise you that everything's going to be hunky dory. God doesn't promise you that everything's going to be wonderful. But He does promise you that everything's going to be hunky-dory. He does promise you everything's going to be wonderful. He does promise you that everything's going to be comfort, everything's going to be joy, everything's going to be good and righteous. Because again, how do we define that? If we, like Job in Job 38, are being told these things about the power and the foundations and the cornerstone and the morning stars and the sons of God shouting for joy, then it doesn't matter what is happening to us. It doesn't matter the circumstances of our life. It doesn't matter how much the world is trying to destroy us, how much Satan is trying to tempt us away, because what do we have that the world doesn't have? We have the God who made the heavens and the earth. Jesus, as he's talking to his disciples, tells them, right? If they hated me, what are they going to do? They're going to hate you. If I'm going to suffer, guess what you're going to do? You're going to suffer too. But the book of Acts witnesses to us very clearly. What's the difference between those who believe in God and those who don't? Stephen, who we referenced already from Acts chapter 6, who was a deacon of the Lord, witnessed to his own faith. Because he refused to bow the knee to the Jews. And the Jews killed him for it. But how is Stephen, how is his countenance as he's being stoned to death? What is he doing? He's preaching. He's telling these people about Jesus while they're on Roxanne. Why? Because he understands what it means to be comforted in the Lord, right? He understands that God made the heavens and the earth, and God made a promise that he will not forsake or forget his people, that he will hold them unto him, he will comfort them, he will guide them, he will protect them, and he will save them. See, even as he draws his last breath, what is the witness that we see there in the book of Acts as he's being stoned to death? He looks up, and what does he see? He sees Jesus. And all Pharisees get angry and act more angry because this guy's got a smile on his face while we're trying to kill him. Shouldn't he be cursing us and all these things? Well he's not because he understands again the promise that God made to him through his son Jesus Christ. That he has gone ahead to prepare a place for him. He's gone ahead in order to build a mansion in heaven. He has gone ahead to prepare the way. He's gone ahead to make all things well and good and new. This is the God that Jeremiah is trying to get us to think about. That's the God that the people of Israel have forgotten and forsaken themselves. Because all they want from God is what they can get from Him. And all they want from God is what He can provide them in the flesh. But those things are not important in the scheme of things are. What matters in this life? What matters in this life is the simple testimony of hearing those words on the day of judgment, well done, good and faithful servant. That's what matters. How do you get to hear that? You don't get to hear that if your life is your life's searching after every God who comes around. You only get to hear that if you rest and trust alone in the God who made the heavens and the earth. This is the simple reality that all of us have to come to grips with each and every day as we wake up every morning. There's a reason why the scriptures tell us to observe the morning and evening sacrifices. Because when you wake up in the morning, what do you think you ought to do? What do you need to do? You need to reconfirm and recommit yourself to Christ every day. Because what's the day going to be full of? The day's going to be full of temptations. The day's going to be full of opportunities. The day's going to be full of all kinds of things. And if you don't prepare yourself for that day, then how easy is it going to be to fall into those temptations? How easy is it going to be to fall into those doubts? How easy is it going to be to fall into all those things? Now, that doesn't mean you've got to get up at 4 AM and pray for four hours every day. See, the thing about preparation, the things about being made ready, is if you do the work, then you really don't got to do the work. It's one of them things we try to teach our children, right, but they can't quite seem to understand it. If you do it now, you don't have to do it tomorrow. If you put in the work in now, you'll have more free time later. The Christian life, again, is no different. as we close this morning, as we think about this again, how again do we do that? How do we make preparation for these things? Well, one of the things that Jeremiah is pointing us to here, again in verse 14, everyone is dull-hearted, without knowledge. Every metalsmith is put to shame by an image, for it is as molded an image as falsehood, and there is no breadth in them. They are futile, a work of errors in their time. Their punishment shall perish. And all these truths are laid on to us. So again, how do we do these things? Well again, the prophet Isaiah tells us where to seek the Lord while He may be found. Call upon Him while He is near. The writer of the Chronicles tells us to seek the Lord in His strength, thick as faith evermore. Again, God's given us the means to do that. The primary means is the Lord's Day, is the Sabbath. There's again a reason why we have morning and evening worship on the Sabbath. Because today is a day of preparation. Today is a day of being made ready. Today is a day of preparing ourselves for the week that is to come. That's why it's a day of rest. Because we rest from our worldly labors and we engage in our spiritual labors on this day. Right? That's part of God's plan. His perfect order of the universe. That we have six days to do everything that we need to do in this world. And we have one day that God's given in order that we might rest from all those things. But how much of our day on the Sabbath is taken up with worldly matters, with things of the world? And should it surprise us then that we aren't ready to face the week? Should it be amazing to us that we're not spiritually prepared for the battles that we face in the week to come? Well, it shouldn't. But again, that's how God has ordered all things. That we might again take advantage of His ordering of the week, His ordering of time, His ordering of all things might redeem that time and we might make use of that time in order. That we might be more ready to face this fallen world around us. Where Satan himself is just waiting for the opportunity to grab us and tear us down. That's the problem again with the modern life and the world we live in. It's going to become harder and harder every day. But the simple reality is that God is not just working. God has commanded us to do so. God has ordered us to do so because he's the maker of the heavens and the earth. And the Lord's portion is his people. And he desires that we might rest and trust in him alone, not just for salvation, but for all of life. So brothers and sisters, as we come again to enjoy this day that God's given to us, again, let us hear the word of the psalmist. I will both lie down in peace and sleep for you alone, O Lord. Make me dwell in safety. Amen. Let's pray. Gracious heavenly Father, we give thanks again for the glory of your name and the glory of your truth. But we give thanks also for the way in which you are alone, the God of the heaven and the earth, the God who has laid down the plumb line, the God who has set the cornerstone, the God who is witness to us, again, the power of your truth and the power of your word, that we might rest alone in you. of both this day and forevermore. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Let us stand now as we come to sing our closing Bible song, number seven in the back in our green Bible song book. Again, seven in the back. ♪ For Christ's sakes ♪ ♪ Sing glory on your name ♪ ♪ And on earth peace praise ♪ ♪ Praise ye the God of heaven ♪ ♪ When all thy works are done ♪ ♪ You have made thy work full to infinity ♪ Praise Him! Praise Him! Praise Him! Praise Him! Praise Him! Praise Him! Praise Him! Praise Him! Praise Him! The Lord our God, with adoration sing. Give her peace again, our sad and lowly king. May you guide in her music and pray a blessing. And the home of the brave Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave ♪ All we need, oh, that's enough ♪ ♪ For now proclaim his praise ♪ ♪ Who saved me from death so I might die ♪ ♪ I know that's what he says ♪ ♪ And all he does is worship me ♪ ♪ And all he does is worship me ♪ ♪ He's true, he's true, he's true, he's true ♪ Again, as we close our time, we invite you to join us downstairs for fellowship and food. Of course, we give thanks again for each and every one of you and all you do for the Bethany Church. So let us go ahead and close our benediction today. It comes to us from the 13th chapter of the Book of Proverbs, verses one through three. Hear the word of the Lord. A wise son heeds his father's instruction, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke. A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, but the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence. He who guards his mouth preserves his life, but he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction. Amen. I'll take you home, take you home, take you home