People of God, our text for this morning comes from the book of John, from John chapter 20. That is at or around page 1078, depending on which pew Bible you have. John chapter 20, we'll begin reading at verse 24, and we will read through verse 29. Jesus has been put to death on the cross. He has then appeared on Resurrection Sunday to the disciples, to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, to others as we read in Luke. And now it is verse 24. Let us hear the word of our God. Verse 24. Now Thomas, one of the 12, called the twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, we have seen the Lord. But he said to them, unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails and place my hand into his side, I will never believe. Eight days later, his disciples were inside again and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, peace be with you. Then he said to Thomas, put your finger here and see my hands and put out your hand and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe. Thomas answered him, my Lord and my God. Jesus said to him, have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. So far the reading of the word of God. Dear congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, how important is it to believe? Certainly we can talk about the cross itself. We can talk about John 19. Certainly John 19 is important, but the cross, the cross does not save everyone. Jesus must bring one to a saving knowledge of who he is, of what happened on the cross. There must be belief in Jesus Christ and what he has done and who he is. So for this reason, commentators such as James Boyce would call John chapter 20 and these very verses, the climax of the gospel of John. And we would say, how can this be the climax? Is not Jesus Christ on the cross the climax? That's the climax of the whole word of God, of all of redemptive history. We could say that all of the Old Testament is leading up to the cross. How is the cross not the even literary climax of the gospel of John? That is the importance of belief and the importance of this profession that we find here. That's why this passage is so important, so helpful, so needed in our very day. And we'll consider these things and we'll look at how in this passage the sites of the wounds of Jesus, leads to personal profession of faith. And we'll do this considering three points. First, the arrogant doubt. And second, the loving condescension. and third, the humble profession. So what is the arrogant doubt of Thomas? Well, Thomas does not believe that Jesus Christ has really been raised from the dead. That is his doubt. Jesus has died on the cross, John chapter 19, but Jesus has appeared to Mary Magdalene and to the disciples. We know from the gospel of Luke that he appeared to others also. And That is Resurrection Sunday. That is what we call Easter Sunday. But Thomas wasn't there. And so Thomas hears the report and he does not believe. Now we might remember, especially from the other gospel accounts, that when the other disciples were told by Mary that she had seen the open tomb, that the angel had told her the Lord was risen, they didn't believe either. So it's not as though Thomas is the only one who doubts, but certainly Thomas doubts. And then he does not only doubt, he doubles down. He makes a series of demands. Thomas now thinking that he can demand of God and so he gives his series of three demands in verse 25. Unless I see, unless I place my hands, unless I place my finger, I will never believe. And this is no minor matter. The resurrection of Jesus Christ and to believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ is at the very heart of the Christian faith. The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 says that if we disbelieve the resurrection, that is to be without hope and of all people the most pitied. We are saved by faith alone, a faith alone that looks to Christ alone and what he has done to deny the resurrection is to deny salvation. It's to deny that Jesus conquered death. And so this is important. And to believe is important. The Gospel of John, certainly to believe, is an important theme that runs throughout the whole New Testament. But it's the Gospel of John where we find that verb more than any other book by far. It's about 80 to 50 from first place to second place, if we're just counting the raw numbers. And we might just walk through a handful of those. And there might be some verses we're familiar with. If we start in John chapter 1 and we would read verse 11, we see this believing. John 1, verses 11 and 12. He came to his own, and his own did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. Then just taking a handful of examples of the many instances of to believe found in John, we could turn to John 3.16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. And then we could turn to John chapter 6 and we could read verse 40 and there we see And there we see this, that for this is the will of my father, that everyone who looks on the son and believes in him should have eternal life. And I will raise him up on the last day. So before Jesus goes to the cross, before his resurrection, he's already speaking about that truth made clear in the letters, such as 1st, 2nd Corinthians, the truth that as a people of God, when we believe in him, we share in his resurrection John chapter 12 says this about those who believe John chapter 12 verses 44 and 45 and Jesus cried out and said whoever believes in me believes not in me but in him who sent me and whoever sees me sees him who sent me to believe in Jesus is to see the Father. And then it also talks about walking in the light and not in darkness in that passage. And then John chapter 17, who does Jesus pray for? How do we know who Jesus prays for? John 17 verse 20. I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word. Jesus is not only praying for his disciples, he's also praying for all those who will believe. Do you hear how important belief is? It's tied to being the sons and daughters of God. It's tied to not perishing but having eternal life. It's tied to sharing in the resurrection of Christ. It's tied to believing in God the Father and walking in light rather than darkness. It means that the prayers of Jesus are for you. This is all included in to believe and Jesus. These are just a handful of the benefits laid out for us in the Gospel of John. By contrast, to disbelieve, as the Apostle Paul says, is to be the one most pitied. So is Thomas throwing these great blessings away? Instead of humility, he's showing great arrogance Now, he had a plethora of witnesses. It doesn't say exactly, but it says, so the other disciples told him, verse 25. Again, depending on when they came and told him, if we think back to the Gospel of Luke, this may have included others also. It may have included Mary Magdalene. It may have included the disciples that Jesus spoke to on the road to Emmaus. There was more than just the disciples that heard this and saw Jesus. Luke says that when the ones on the road to Emmaus came, they saw the disciples and those who were with them. In other words, those who saw Jesus on Resurrection Sunday were many. Thomas has a whole host of witnesses. It's not just Mary Magdalene. Now, you should listen to just Mary Magdalene too, we know, if we turn to the other Gospels. But there's a whole bunch. Thomas has all kinds of people who say, look, we've seen him. We also know from those passages we've touched him. But Thomas says, no, I must touch him myself. He becomes arrogant. He will not listen to a host of witnesses. And so he makes a series of selfish demands. But his friends do not abandon him. His friends do not abandon him. Verse 26, eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. the inclusive number counting of the Jews, that eight days later, that would have been the following Sunday, the first Sunday after Resurrection Sunday. Thomas has doubted, he's made these demands, and the disciples say, come, join us, join us this next Sunday, and Thomas is with them. Now, it's Sometimes we have to be cautious when we do a character study without having too much information. But some have said, based on the few things Thomas is recorded saying in all four Gospels, that he is a gloomy Christian. Think of John 14. And Jesus says, you know where I am going. And Thomas is the one who speaks up and says, Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way? And so some have said that Thomas is the gloomy disciple, that he's like Mr. Despondency, Mr. Hopeless, and his daughter, Much Afraid, in Pilgrim's Progress. He doesn't have confidence. He has courage, we see that in another place, but he doesn't have confidence. He's this gloomy Christian. And notice that in his gloominess, The disciples don't leave him alone. This is an application for us. We might think back to just last week when we read Jude 22, have mercy on those who doubt. And the disciples, they don't leave Thomas in his gloominess. They come to him, they speak to him, they hear his selfish demands, but they still bring him in, and eight days later, now he's with them. Now he's with them. They do not leave him alone. And so while remaining in arrogant disbelief would put Thomas in the same position as unrepentant Judas, the disciples have mercy on him. They make sure he is there the next Sunday. This is true of believers in every generation. There will always be those who doubt. Not every Christian is going to be happy and confident all the time. There are times of gloominess and despairing words, but we're called to come alongside. That's the one who should never be left alone. They should never be left alone in the gloominess. And so the disciples come alongside and Thomas is there the next week. And that sets up our second point, the loving condescension of God. Jesus voluntarily goes down to the level of Thomas. Jesus did not need to do this. The demands of Thomas were unjust. But Jesus does it anyway. The three demands of Thomas, Jesus gives three commands to counteract them. Thomas said, I must see the mark of the nails. Jesus says, see my hands. Thomas says, I must place my finger in the mark of the nails. Jesus says, put your finger here. Thomas says, I must place my hand into his side. And Jesus says, place it in my side. Then Jesus adds a fourth command. Do not disbelieve, but believe. Thomas has three demands and a declaration of unbelief. Jesus gives four commands. I'll condescend to your level. That's who I am. I'll break down your arrogant heart. And I'll command you to believe. Now, We don't even know for sure if Thomas touched Jesus. John doesn't record that, at least. Verse 28, Thomas answered him, my Lord and my God. Doesn't record Thomas touching Jesus. Was the sight of Jesus the sight of his wounds enough. Thomas forgets his foolish demands. John may be implying that. Now again, it's not exhaustive. Perhaps he did and John just didn't record it, but it looks as though Thomas didn't even touch. When Jesus condescends, he recognizes his foolish demands, and the sight of Jesus is enough. Ironically, this might mean that Thomas is the only one who didn't touch Jesus. Because the week before on Resurrection Sunday, we know that many of the disciples did. That's implied in Luke, and then John in his letter says it explicitly in 1 John 1 verse 1. 1 John 1 verse 1, speaking of himself and some of the other disciples. John says this, it's not the easiest book to find, 1 John 1 verse 1, that which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and have touched with our hands concerning the word of life. Thomas might be the only disciple that didn't touch the resurrected Jesus. What is certainly clear is that Thomas was humbled. And it's because Jesus, Jesus didn't have to, but Jesus did condescend. He did come down to the level of Thomas. This is one of those times when we think, why don't I get the same opportunity as Thomas We forget ourselves, though, if we ask this, because the demands of Thomas are not good. Jesus comes down to his level despite the demands, not because of them. We also forget that Jesus is now not only resurrected, but Jesus has also now ascended into heaven. And what does Jesus say? When he comes back to earth, he will come on the clouds of glory and with the sounding of trumpets. When Jesus comes again, everyone will know. But are we to then say we have nothing? We can't see him physically as Thomas did. We can't touch him as we know the other disciples did. Does that mean we have nothing? far from it. People of God, the Lord's Supper is not directly in focus here, and we know the bread and the wine do not physically become the body and blood of Jesus Christ, but What is the Lord's Supper? It is a visible reminder and assurance of what Jesus has done. And while the physical body and blood of Jesus Christ is not physically present, there is a real spiritual presence. It's not some sad memorial. It's a joyful celebration and reminder of what Jesus has done. We have been given something. And more than that, because that's the secondary means of grace. What's the primary means of grace? The Word of God. And what is the very purpose of the writing of the book of John? If we look just down to verses 30 and 31, now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples which are not written in this book, but these are written so that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ. How does Jesus come down to our level? How does He speak to us? The Almighty God, infinite, all-powerful, almighty, comes down, reveals Himself clearly in His written Word, and gives us the full revelation of God so that we might know Him, so that we might believe. He does come down to our level. We can know. Jesus died. This is the very reason why the book of John, his gospel, was written. That's the primary means of grace. The secondary means, which accompanies that word, also gets all five senses involved. Taste. Taste. See. and know that the body and blood of Jesus Christ were given, were broken, were shed for the complete remission of all your sins. Jesus lovingly condescends to each of us through the written word of God and through the sacraments which he himself instituted that we might know and be assured of what he has done. And so we all then ought to turn. Why is the book written so that you might believe and then believing to declare? That's that's the profession, the humble profession of faith that we see in verse 28. That is that's the reason why this is the climax. Jesus Christ didn't only die. He also comes down and speaks to to the very heart of believers. and breaks down that heart of stone and makes even doubtful Thomas to say, I am humbled. My Lord and my God. That's the climax. He didn't die and then not save. He died and then he came down. humbled himself, even to death on a cross, and then reveals himself in a book, which seems foolish to man, but it's how God has chosen to reveal himself. Through the foolishness of preaching, as it's called in another place, he comes down. And he not only died, but he also makes us to believe and know the power of that death, and to share in the power of his resurrection. That's why we can call John chapter 20 the climax of the book of John. How sweet are the words, my Lord and my God. These may indeed be the strongest profession we ever have the disciples recorded as making. In Matthew 16, Peter says, you are the Christ, the son of the living God, and Jesus Jesus raises Peter up and says, you are a rock after he says that you are blessed for saying this. But Thomas makes it personal. My Lord and my God. And while Peter understood that to be the son of God was to be equal with God, John now makes it or Thomas now makes it explicit. My God. And with five simple words, my Lord and my God condemns many heresies, old and new. Thomas has surely gone from doubting arrogance to the words of personal and true profession. It is interesting, people of God, that sometimes the sweetest spring follows the deepest winter, and sometimes God takes that which seems weakest, and from him who seems the most weak and the most arrogant and the most gloomy brings out the richest profession. Is this not what God can do? He can take the stammering Moses and make him a great leader. He can take the shepherd boy David and make him a great king. He can take the persecutor Paul and make him a great defender of the faith. He can take your heart and make you believe. Do you hear the rich application, people of God? He can break down the wall of the heart of that arrogant atheist neighbor who we think isn't even worth witnessing for. He would never listen to us. He just slanders. He can break down that wall. He can break down the wall of your own heart. He comes down to your level. He speaks to you. He makes you know and then believe and proclaim with personal profession, my Lord and my God. My Lord, I will follow you. Why do those words come after seeing the nails and the wounds of Christ? Well, if we understand the wounds of Christ, we understand that He bore those wounds for our sins. So then sin becomes the most despicable thing. And from seeing the wounds of Jesus, we say, my Lord, I will follow you. I will walk according to your will. I will follow your commands because I know it's my sin that caused your pain. If no one ever sinned, if Adam and Eve had never taken the apple, Jesus would have never had to die. There would have never been a wound in his side. But we have sinned. We have fallen short. And so the wounds are in the side and in the hands of Jesus. And so we say, How despicable is sin. My Lord, make me follow you. Make me follow you. And my God, it is only God who could bear even the wrath of God against sin and stand in our place. My Lord and my God, know that the body and blood of the Lord was broken for our sakes and from that say, my Lord and my God. And then Jesus declares a blessing because the words of Thomas are great. Thomas is not rebuked like John was in Revelation when he bows down to the angel and the angel says, no, do not bow down to me. No, the words of Thomas are right and true. That's even the very purpose, right? Verses 30 and 31. But how he got there was not the best. And so Jesus says, blessed are those who have not seen and yet believed. This is so contrary to what the world says today. There are many who think that if you do get some kind of sign, or vision, or super blessing, or super extra anointing, or baptism, or something, that that means you're blessed. That that means you're now a super Christian, that really understands, that is actually seeing Jesus, that actually hears him speaking to you directly. That means blessing. It's not what Jesus says. Now, some say, well, to argue that there's no visions, that's difficult. Okay, it's not the most directly stated in the New Testament. I think it's clear when you take the teaching in the New Testament altogether, but this is said directly. If you are going to say that there's visions, then it's not a good thing. We wouldn't say, Matthew 5, Jesus says, blessed are the poor in spirit, but you know what? We should really try to be proud in spirit. We would never say that. So why do people say, well, Jesus said, blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe, but you really gotta see to be a good Christian. You really gotta hear him speak to you. It doesn't make any sense. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believed. And what was done so that we might believe the very writing of this book, verse 30 and 31, and the signs and the seals that were appointed. baptism, and the Lord's Supper. These things we know from the rest of Scripture we are to take hold of, and look at, and gain assurance from. Come to the table, rejoice at what Christ has done. Know the work of Jesus. He has come down to our level and revealed it in his word. You can know and you can believe. Know this, rejoice in it, come to the point of that humble adoration and profession saying, my Lord and my God. Amen. Let us pray. Lord, our Lord in all the earth, how great your name. Bring us to our knees, make yourself clear to us, and humble our hearts that we might say, my Lord and my God. And help us to know that you can do this to any heart. our own stubborn hearts that must be broken down by Your grace, and the stubborn hearts of any who would hear. You can make any seed to bear good fruit. And Lord, give us even assurance of this. We are thankful for Your Word, which can make us sure and also that you have appointed a sign seal, especially for this purpose. And so may we rejoice to take not long from now that that bread and and that wine and to remember and be assured knowing what you have done. Our Lord, our God, in whose name we pray. Amen. People of God, if you would stand, if able, to sing together number 202. Standing to sing number 202. ♪ I see thee face to face ♪ ♪ In the light of death ♪ ♪ And the things I've seen ♪ ♪ In death's winter ever ♪ ♪ In eternal peace ♪ ♪ And all my weariness upon thee be ♪ you. Hear our plea, listen, listen to the Lord, to the great plan ♪ My Lord, He hath given me ♪ ♪ My strength is in my mind, my mind alone ♪ People of God, we now come to Celebration of the Supper will begin reading at page 39 in the Forms and Prayers book. I would like to invite all those who are professing members of this church and of any church that believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and what He has done, and He is Lord and Savior, and He has died on the cross, for your sins, and all those who are not professing believers, in line with the warning of the Apostle, that you would not eat and drink judgment unto yourself, we would ask that you would abstain. Forms of Prayers book, beginning at page 39. A celebration of our salvation in Christ. Let us now consider the purpose for which our Lord has instituted His supper, that we should do this in remembrance of Him, And this is how we remembered him by it. First, let us be fully persuaded. It is green. We want those with us even digitally to be able to hear. It's just a little more important than normal. Yeah. We'll begin at first. First, let us be fully persuaded in our hearts that our Lord Jesus Christ, according to the promises made to our forefathers in the Old Testament, was sent by the Father into this world that he might assume our flesh and blood that he took upon himself for us the wrath of God, under which we should have perished eternally, that from the beginning of his incarnation until the end of his life on earth he fulfilled for us all obedience and righteousness of the divine law. This was especially evident when the weight of our sins and of the wrath of God caused him to sweat drops of blood in the garden. He was bound so that he might be loosed from our sins, and afterward He suffered countless insults so that we might never be put to shame. Let us confidently believe that He was innocent, yet put to death, that we might be acquitted on the day of judgment, that He even allowed His own blessed body to be nailed on the cross so as to cancel the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross. In doing so, he took from us the curse and bore it himself so that he might fill us with his blessing. He humbled himself to the very deepest reproach and anguish of hell in body and soul on the cross when he cried out with a loud voice, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? He did all of this so that we might be accepted by God, never to be rejected by Him. Indeed, with His death and the shedding of His blood, He confirmed the new and eternal covenant, the covenant of grace and reconciliation, when He said, It is finished. In order that we might firmly believe that we belong to this covenant of grace during the Last Supper, Jesus took the bread, and after blessing it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat, this is my body. And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. That is, as often as you eat of this bread and drink of this cup, as a sure reminder and pledge, you shall be admonished. and assured of my great love and faithfulness towards you because you otherwise would have suffered eternal death. I give my body and blood for you in my death on the cross and as surely as this bread is broken before you and this cup is given to you and with your mouth you eat and drink in remembrance of me So surely do I nourish and refresh for everlasting life your hungry and thirsty souls with my crucified body and shed blood. From the institution of this Holy Supper of our Lord Jesus Christ, we see that he directs our faith to his perfect sacrifice once offered on the cross as the only foundation of our salvation. By this sacrifice, he has become to our hungry and thirsty souls the true food and drink of life eternal, for by his death he has taken away the cause of our eternal death and misery, our sin. He has also obtained for us the life-giving Spirit, who dwells in Christ, our Head, and enables us, who are His members, to have communion with Him and be made partakers of His riches, including eternal life, righteousness, and glory. Besides, by this same Spirit, we are also united as members of one body in true Christian love, as the Apostle Paul says, Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. As many grains are ground to prepare one loaf of bread, and as many grapes are pressed together to produce wine, So we who by true faith are incorporated into Christ shall be one body through Christian love for the sake of our dear Savior Jesus Christ. He loved us so greatly in order that we might show His love toward one another, not only in words, but also in deeds. May the almighty, merciful God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ help us in this through His Holy Spirit. Amen. People of God, let us now come in prayer, closing with the Lord's Prayer. Merciful God and Father, we cherish the blessed memory of the death and sufferings of your dear Son, Jesus Christ. We ask that in this supper you will so work in our hearts through the Holy Spirit that with true confidence we might give ourselves up more and more unto your Son, Jesus Christ. We pray that this might allow our burdened and contrite hearts to be nourished and refreshed with the true body and blood of Him who is true God and true man, the only heavenly bread. Empower us to no longer live in our sins, knowing that He lives in us and we in Him. May we truly be partakers of the new and everlasting covenant of grace. May we not doubt that you will forever be our gracious father who does not impute the guilt of our sins to us and who provides us with all that we need for body and soul as your dear children and heirs. Grant us also your grace. that we may take up our cross cheerfully, deny ourselves, confess our Savior, and in all tribulation, with uplifted head, expect our Lord Jesus Christ from heaven. There He will make our mortal bodies like unto His glorified body, and take us to be with Him in eternity. Answer us, O God and merciful Father, through Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray. Our Father, who is in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your 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 yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen. By this Holy Supper, may we also be strengthened in the Catholic, undoubted Christian faith, of which we make profession. And now we say together, The Apostles' Creed, these words, I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From there He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit. the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. That we may be nourished with Christ, the true heavenly bread, let us not cling with our hearts to external things, like bread and wine, but lift our hearts to heaven, where our advocate Jesus Christ is at the right hand of his heavenly father, where the articles of our Christian faith direct us. Let us not doubt that we shall be nourished and refreshed in our souls with his body and blood through the working of the Holy Spirit as truly as we receive the holy bread and drink in remembrance of him. The bread which we break is a communion of the Lord Jesus Christ. Take, eat, remember and believe that the body of our Lord Jesus Christ was broken for the complete forgiveness of all our sins. The cup of blessing which we bless is a communion of the blood of Christ. you Yeah. Take, drink, remember and believe that the precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ was shed for the complete forgiveness of all our sins. Beloved in the Lord, since the Lord has now nourished our souls at his table, let us together praise his holy name with thanksgiving and let everyone say in his heart, bless the Lord. Oh, my soul and all it is within me. Bless his holy name. Bless the Lord. Oh, my soul. And forget not all his benefits. who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy. The Lord is merciful and gracious. He is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will He keep His anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him. As far as the East is from the West, so far does He remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear Him. He who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since therefore we have been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more now that we are reconciled shall we be saved by His life. Therefore my mouth and my heart shall now show forth praise of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. Amen. People of God, let us also come to God in this prayer of thanksgiving. O merciful God and Father, we thank you with all our heart that of your boundless mercy you have given us your only begotten Son for a mediator, the sacrifice for our sins and as our food and drink unto life eternal. We also thank you that you gave us a true faith whereby we become partakers of these benefits. You have united us to Christ and to each other in the communion of saints. You have given Your Son for us and to us and have proclaimed His saving death to the whole world, having signified and sealed the atoning sacrifice of Your Son for us. We ask that You would, by Your Spirit, also make us witnesses to this good news among our neighbors. Strengthen us in faith to live gratefully in this present age as we await our Savior's return in glory. In His name we pray, amen. People of God, having celebrated, we also now at this time give our freewill offerings and our tithes. This morning that's for the General Fund and also the Benevolent Fund. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. People of God, if you would now stand to receive God's benediction. Following that, we'll sing the doxology 567. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you his peace. Amen. ♪ Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts ♪ ♪ Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ♪ ♪ Amen ♪ so