Guys, we have got not a whole lot of territory, but a whole lot of substance to get through today, so we want to get to that. So take your Bible and turn in it to Isaiah chapter 55. And we're going to look at a message that I have entitled, The Invitation, the Exhortation, the Jubilation. And so with that, would you guys rise to your feet with me so we can actually take to our faces, proverbially speaking, in our hearts before the Lord. God, You are so good, and You are greatly to be praised, and surely Your Word is a fire, O God, and it purifies and cleanses and burns dross from our lives, and so we're praying, Lord, that You would speak to us, that Your Word would burn in us, Lord, that You would cleanse and purify Your bride. Father, we pray that you would encourage and exhort, Father, that you would challenge and change us. God, give us ears to hear you and be glorified. And Lord, may this assembly be edified. Again, Lord, that you might just do what you want to do. God, as we've already sang and lifted our hearts, Lord, that we will make room for you to do what you want to, Lord. So may we decrease that you might increase in our lives. We give you praise in Jesus' name. Amen. Have a seat there, ladies and gentlemen. You know, I think God wants someone to hear this today. Maybe it's you, maybe it's all of you, but you need to know true contentment is only found in Jesus Christ. I love the scene. It's John chapter 4, and there He is, your Lord and mine, and He's talking to a Samaritan woman who had come out to a well to draw And he looks at her and he says to her, give me a drink. You know, his disciples had gone off into town in order to buy some food. And she's all, well, how is it that you, being a Jew, would ask a drink from me, being a Samaritan woman? Because Jews typically didn't have any dealings with Samaritans. Family, you need to know that ethnic and demographic kind of attentions are nothing unique to our day. But Jesus answers her and He says to her, if you knew the gift of God and who it is who says to you, give me a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water. And she's all, sir, I'm just making an observation here, you have nothing with which to draw and the well is deep, and so where do you plan on getting this living water? And Jesus answered her and said, whoever drinks of this water, and you can kind of envision him, there he is, and he probably points to the well, or maybe he's leaning on the well, and he puts his hand on the well, or whatever the case may be. He says, whoever drinks of this water will thirst again. But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." It was an invitation unto salvation to believe on Him and be saved. He was saying, listen, you can drink from the waters of the wells of this life. They don't satisfy. And people will try, won't they? I mean, they'll drink from the wells of fame. They'll drink from the well of fortune, or of partying, or sexual conquest, or power, entertainment, intellectualism, academia, on and on. But they don't satisfy. It's never quite enough. It's always a temporary fix to a permanent problem. But when you receive the free gift offered to you by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, it becomes in you a fountain of living water springing up into everlasting life. And the beauty of it is the invitation goes out to everyone. There are none who are exempt. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever would believe on Him would never perish, but have everlasting life. Family, you need to realize it's not a mechanical offer locked in the airtight compartment of God's election. It rests upon the free-flowing will of each individual hearer. And in chapter 5 of the book of Isaiah 55, pardon me, the hearer is urged, in fact commanded, to seek the Lord. And so with that, let's take and turn our attention to the very first verse of the 55th chapter of the book of Isaiah. He says, Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters. And you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend money for what is not bread and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me and eat what is good and let your soul delight itself in abundance. Ladies and gentlemen, this is God's invitation to the world, to every tribe, every tongue, every people, every nation. But we realize as we read, we recognize that it is limited in its appeal. There are a couple of conditions or criteria that need to be met before this offer is attractive or appealing to you. Did you note them there? Number one, you must be thirsty. And number two, well, you got to be broke. Not physically. perhaps, to state the obvious, but spiritually. And this is that which Jesus was alluding to when He on the last day, the great day of the feast, stood and cried out, if anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. And he who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers or torrents of living water. Ladies and gentlemen, this is not an invitation to those who feel that God would be lucky to have them. It is not an invitation to those who find all that they need in the wells of this world. This is an offer to the desperate soul, the poor in spirit, the one who is thirsting for more than what this life has to offer and has nothing to offer God in return. Listen to me. Spiritual warfare is very real. Satan and his cohorts do a fantastic job of convincing people of their worthlessness. And predicated upon said worthlessness, they have nothing to offer God, and so they do themselves a favor by staying away from God altogether. And nothing could be further from the truth. Number one, and maybe this is where for someone here today, you need to realize that you are of more value to God than all the riches of the world. What Jesus said, does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Translation? One soul has more intrinsic value than all the combined wealth of this world. And number two, it's the one who realizes they've nothing to offer God, to whom the offer of God goes out. You are just the type of person that God is looking for. The psalmist said it this way, the Lord is near to those who have a broken heart and save such as have a contrite, that is crushed spirit. Listen, it is not the well who are in need of a physician, but the sick. And Jesus didn't come to call the righteous, but the sinner to repentance. And so the call goes out, haul everyone who thirsts, come to the waters. Family, I want you to see the love of God in this. That God would cry aloud. The Creator essentially begging His creation to come to drink deeply of the waters of life and be saved. Charles Spurgeon said this, Oh, the condescension of God, that he should, as it were, become a beggar to his own creature and stoop from the magnificence, pardon me, of his glory to cry ho to foolish and ungrateful men. The offer goes out to everyone who thirsts. Come. You must be thirsty. Number two, well, you must be broke. That is, recognize that you have no means, no manner, no method by which you can secure salvation and the good things of God on your own. You just don't have it in you. You who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. And by the way, you might notice the word waters come to the waters, it's in the plural form. In the Hebrew, that expresses a superlative degree. In other words, it's too wonderful to express by the singular form. It speaks to the quantity, it speaks to the quality, the cleansing waters of the word of God, water for your thirsty soul. But what I'm wanting to emphasize in this part or portion of our text is this, it's all free. Waters, wine, milk. It's not like there's an initial free entry. And then if you're interested, you can start making monthly installments, you know. No, listen, salvation, sanctification, spiritual gifts, growth, maturity, spiritual development, it's all...you get it all for absolutely nothing. It is the gift of God's grace to you in Christ Jesus our Lord. And I'm going to be honest with you, this is not something that we are accustomed to, is it? I mean, a true, no-strings-attached offer? Of course, you know, I'm thinking of how marketing works in our culture today. so many apps, everybody's got their phone or computer, smart TV, whatever it is, and so many apps or games online, and they have this initial free entry. And that's how they gain your interest. It's free, enter in, be a part of this fantastic experience. And you're like, man, that looks really good. I mean, I think this might be a great time, might be a wonderful experience, something I might really enjoy. And so what do you do? You download it. And then you quickly realize that, yeah, it was free to download and perhaps even gain the most basic non-essential elements. But if you really want to get the fullness of the experience, if you really want to grow, if you really want to advance, there's a cost involved. There's a price tag attached and everything involves money. That's not the way God works. There are no hidden fees. There are no loopholes through which He will exploit you. All that He has for you, the best He can provide for you, abundantly, eternally free." Well, you say, how can this be? Well, it's because someone else has already paid it all. You see, we get to enjoy chapter 55 because Jesus paid the price in chapter 53. Why do you spend money for what is not bread and your wages for what does not satisfy? What a radically relevant question. We touched on this at the top of our time. You know, we throw so much time and so much effort and so much energy and money at things that have zero ability to truly satisfy and are of no genuine sustenance. They don't sustain and they don't satisfy. But we're always buying the lie, aren't we? Man, if I just got that new fill in the blank, then I'd be satisfied. You know, satisfaction is a brand new vehicle. It's a better home. It's a new rifle, you know, handgun. Maybe it's a new drum set, new guitar or, man, if I just had that new boat, that's all it would take. Maybe just a trip to the Bahamas or, you know, all I need is a trip to the salon, maybe some new shoes and an outfit. And guys, it's not that any of those things are wrong in and of themselves. But so often we spend thinking those things will satisfy us, and they may for a week, a month. I mean, if you're really fortunate in the upwards of a year, though I've never met that person personally, But then we're right back to ground zero, aren't we? Thinking we need something else. And I suppose this is as good a place as any to quote the respected poet, profound philosopher, Mick Jagger. You already know. He sums up the entire human experience apart from Jesus Christ in a single sentence. I can't get no satisfaction. Cause I try, and I try, and I try, and I try. I can't get no. Oh, no, no, no. Hey, hey, hey is what I say. True joy, pretty profound, isn't it? True contentment, true satisfaction can only be found in the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm telling you, He can provide in a manner that goes deeper than the temporary things of this world. He satisfies the deeper thirst, the deepest thirst that abides in the human heart that longs to be filled but always seems to fall just a little bit short with the things of this world. God says, listen carefully to me and eat what is good and let your soul delight itself in abundance. God promises satisfaction for your soul. But there are three things, if you're a note taker, margin etcher, underliner, highlighter, there are three things contingent upon us if we're to walk in it or receive it. Number one, you see it there, you must listen, verse two, listen carefully. Listen carefully. The satisfaction that God promises you will elude you if you will not listen, and don't miss this, listen carefully. It takes time, effort, and attention, yeah? Discipline to listen carefully to what God has to say in His Word. And quite frankly, I'm just going to say it boldly, some aren't willing to do it. They're just not willing. They won't do it. Number two, we've got to, again, you might underline it, eat what is good. Now, this requires some discipline and discernment as well. You have got to determine what is good and eat that, that is, take that in to your innermost being. Most people will just sit down and eat whatever spiritual meal is just set in front of them. You need to take care that what's being placed in front of you is truly good. That it's being weighed contextually within the balance of the Word of God. Then receive it. Allow it to nurture your soul. Finally, number three, we've got to let our soul, kind of to build on this, delight itself in abundance. In other words, you can listen carefully, you can take in what's good, but you still need to let your soul delight itself in said abundance. In other words, you can sit down at a great spiritual meal, and because of your stubborn personality, your bad attitude, or simply because you don't have a teachable spirit, you won't allow your soul to delight itself in the abundance of the goodness of the Word of God. Look at verse 3. He says, and come to me. Here and your souls shall live, and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, the sure mercies of David. Indeed, I have given him as a witness to the people, a leader and commander for the people. Surely you shall call a nation you do not know, and nations who do not know you shall run to you because of the Lord your God and the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you. Now before we get too far down the line here, you might note the emphasis upon hearing, that is truly paying attention in verses two and three. We read, listen carefully, incline your ear and hear. Family, I don't know if there's a plainer way to put it. If you're going to delight your soul in the good things of God, if you're going to truly feast on His Word, you have got to intentionally conscientiously incline, the word is to stretch forth or lean in, okay, your ear toward what God has to say. I wanna say that again. If you are to truly feast on the word of God, you have got to intentionally, conscientiously incline, lean in, stretch forth your ear toward what God has to say. Guys, it can be the difference between two people both sitting under the same teaching, one benefiting tremendously and the other doesn't get anything, not really. One is inclining their ear, they're dialed in, they're there to learn, they want to hear from the Lord, to be changed by the Lord. The other may be listening courteously, but they aren't honestly hearing what's being said. It kind of harkens back to that parable of the sower. You familiar with the passage there in Mark chapter 4? The sower did his thing. The seed did its thing. But the soil, the ground varied in its reception of the seed based on its condition. Now, do you remember what the soil represents? Someone say it. It's the human heart. What kind of, listen, what kind of soil is the seed of God's word finding in your heart? I mean, right here, right now. Now, I trust you can make the connection. Are you leaning in? Are you inclining your ear to the word of God? Ensuring good soil, the preparation of the heart belongs to man, the Bible says. Is it free of the debris of this world that can enter in and spring up and choke out the Word so that it becomes unfruitful in your life? Guys, it all comes back to the hearer. Hear and your soul shall live. Okay, now you've got my attention, right? I mean, if I will hear, my soul will live. And what does the Bible say? That faith comes by hearing, and hearing, hearing, hearing by the word of God. Life for your soul is found in the word of God. He says, I will make an everlasting covenant with you, the sure mercies of David. If you and I will just hear the word of God, now guys embedded within that statement is the understanding of responding accordingly, appropriately to what we hear. You tracking with me? God will make an everlasting covenant with us. He says, the sure mercies of David. Now, there are a significant number of things, for time's sake we won't, there are a significant number of things we could talk about regarding the sure mercies of David. I'll try to keep it a little bit short and sweet. God promised that His mercy would never depart from David. In fact, he promised that his house, his kingdom, that is David's house would be established forever. And, of course, that will be fulfilled through Jesus Christ who will rule and reign forever, both being the root and the offspring of David. Jesus came through David's lineage. And Paul quoted this very verse in Acts chapter 13 and verse 34 and what he was saying is that Jesus makes this everlasting covenant possible through the resurrection. And God is saying that if you will just come to Him, if you will listen to Him and hearken unto Him, He will make with you in Christ a covenant that is just as sure, just as eternal as is the one that He made with David. Now, if you know anything about David, you know that he had a very trying and troubled life. To say the least. Yes, he was the king. Yes, he was a man after God's own heart, meaning he sought desperately the heart of God. He wanted to know God. He wanted to be well pleasing to God. But he was also a man who committed adultery, who committed murder, who had incest, rape and insurrection erupt in his own house. His reign was marked by civil war, yet God never gave up on him but was merciful to him. David was a man who had a tender heart. He was quick to repent when confronted with his sin. And God holds him up here in verse four as a prototype for a great leader. What's the take home? Well, I've heard it something like this, the best of men are at best men. Meaning, even the best and most effective of God's leaders often fall radically short and don't get the luxury of an easy life. Now, we can pick apart David's failures and his faults. He had many, as do we all, yes? Okay. But he also had a relationship with God. He was a witness to the people, this is important, and a leader, notice, for the people. He was not a leader of the people, though that is included, but he was a leader for the people. He had a shepherd's heart. He genuinely desired God's best for the people. Now, many of our nation's leaders are leaders of the people, But they're not leaders for the people. They want to do whatever it takes, appeal to whoever the masses is, that'll get them re-elected, keep them in a place of power. So they say what they need to say, they do what they need to do. They're not leaders for the people, they're leaders of the people. Big difference, okay? That was not the way that David led. He wasn't doing what he did just for his own personal gain. His heart was after God. And it was for the people. And I'll ask for verse 5, guys, and then we'll kind of pick up the pace a little bit. But here's my question to you. You see, he says, surely you will call a nation you don't know, nations who you don't know you, will come and run to you because of the Lord your God. That's the important part, guys. That's the key takeaway in that verse. That's the part you underline, you highlight, you circle, whatever it is you do, because of the Lord your God and the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you. So the question is, what kind of work is God doing in your life? I want you to think about that. God is saying that nations will flock to Israel because of His work of restoration in their lives. They will, and this is, remember, referenced throughout the millennial kingdom, be an appealing and an attractive witness for Jesus Christ. And so the question for you and me to consider would be, are people attracted to Jesus through God's work in your life? Do people see in you someone that they would like to emulate? If your life is no different than anyone else's in the world, They can't distinguish or discern any difference between you and anyone else. Why would they be drawn to you or want to be like you? And so the application would be, give God His way in your life. Verse six, seek the Lord while He may be found. Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake His way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon." Well, I trust you see the urgency in this exhortation. By the way, the verbs seek and call are in what is called the imperative mood. They're in the imperative mood. Now, you know if something's imperative, right? What this means is they're not suggestions. Well, I would recommend that you seek the Lord. May I suggest that you call upon the Lord? That's not what this is. These are commands. Carefully, let me break it down. Here's what he's saying. Carefully, intentionally inquire wholeheartedly after the Lord. Notice, while he may be found. Did you see that? What's the implication? You don't have forever to do this. There is a window of opportunity, and I hope you're hearing me. There is a window of opportunity. You hear me say it occasionally, the most successful lie of the enemy of your soul seems, to me, to be not that there's no God, not that there's no devil, or no heaven, or no hell, but that there's no hurry. Yet nowhere in Scripture is there a sense in which we can just take our time as it pertains to turning from our sin into the Lord. Quite the opposite is true. Hebrews chapter 3, Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God, but exhort one another occasionally What does it say? Daily, while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. And again, today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts. God brings us to a crossroad, doesn't He? You have a choice. You've heard it, now you have a choice. Am I going to open my heart? Am I going to soften my heart? Am I going to receive it into my heart? Or am I going to harden my heart? Am I not going to accept it? Am I going to reject it? You have a choice to make, and it's right here, right now, you see. We're never guaranteed a moment beyond the one we're in. And so to echo the words of Paul the Apostle, behold, now is the accepted time. Behold, now is the day of salvation. Call upon him, cry out to him while he is near. The window of opportunity will not always be there. The dispensation of grace will come to an end. God will judge the world in righteousness. Be wise. Call upon Him while you still can. Let the wicked forsake His way. The unrighteous man, his thoughts, let him return to the Lord. This is a picture of what? Repentance. Turning from our way, returning to God's way. You do realize, I trust, that you can't walk God's way until you turn from and forsake, that is, abandon your way. We can't do that. The restoration and reconciliation of God works through repentance. And just so we're clear, this is what is included in what it means to seek the Lord. Seeking the Lord looks like forsaking our sins and returning to the Lord. And it is a continual, ongoing effort. You don't arrive in this life As we grow in Christ, guys, we're not going to become sinless. You've heard it before, but we should sin less and less. And don't miss the details. It's true that wickedness is demonstrated outwardly, he says, to forsake your ways. But it's rooted inwardly, he says, our thoughts. Did you catch the connection? Often the battleground for a righteous walk with the Lord is found in the mind, in our thoughts. It's why Paul the Apostle wrote of bringing every thought into captivity, into the obedience of Christ. And that we're not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed through the renewing of our mind. So realize that what we do outwardly is important. We would never sell that short. We would never seek to diminish that. But even more important is what is happening in our hearts and minds inwardly. Man looks to the outward appearance. God searches the heart. And this is that sermon on the mount, right, where Jesus was teaching. You've heard that it said, you shall not commit adultery. But I say, if you even look upon a woman with lust in your heart, guilty as charged. The law is aimed at the inward man. This is where the Pharisees fell short because they could say, well, I've never committed adultery. I've never murdered anyone. I've never stolen anything. Right. Jesus says, no, no, no, no, no. It's not about the letter, it's about the spirit. The law is aimed at the heart. And that's where we all fall so radically short. And he says that the one who repents, the one who returns, and I love this, it could be one time, it could be a thousand times. Same sin. How many of you know, realize that Jesus never asks us to do anything that he himself is not willing to do or has done? You remember when Peter was like, Lord, how many times should I forgive someone the same sin? I mean, up to seven times? Seems pretty generous. Because they had like a three-strike rule. And so Peter's doubling it and adding one for good measure, you know what I mean? You probably expected a, wow, Peter, that's, yeah, that'd be really awesome. But instead, he got a, oh, no, man, you've missed it completely. Not seven times, Peter, 70 times seven. He's going, there's no way I could keep track exactly. And God is saying, that's what I will do for you. You will find mercy. You repent, you return, you will find mercy and forgiveness. God says, I will pardon, notice, abundantly. That is continually, increasingly, and exceedingly. And this is so contrary to what the enemy whispers in our ear. What does he say to you? You have blown it way too bad, way too many times, in the same scenario. There is no way God could forgive you, and there's no way that God would forgive you even if he could. You're just a hypocrite, and you need to give up, give in, throw in the towel, and just walk away. But the word of God says, return, repent, mercy, and forgiveness, restoration, reconciliation awaits you. In the New Testament vernacular, we read it like this. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Praise God. Verse 8, He says, For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are My ways your ways, my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." What is God saying? He's saying that the way of mercy and grace and forgiveness is not the way of man. It's the way of God. You see, you hurt me You violate me. You take advantage of me. It does not occur to me naturally to look for a way by which I could forgive you and reconcile you and restore you back to me. No. I want to cast you out, write you off, hold on to my grudge and make you pay. I want you to feel every ounce of hurt you've caused me. That's not God's way. God doesn't think like we think, and we should thank God that He doesn't think like we think. And God doesn't act like we act. Can I say we should thank God that He doesn't act like we act? His ways are not our ways. And guys, this can get us into a lot of trouble. You need to hear me on this. Guys, we're not too far from finished, I promise, but you need to stay with me. This can get us into a lot of trouble when we think God thinks like we think or that He should act like we would act. But He's not like us. There is a great divide in the way we think and God thinks and the way we act and the way God acts. In fact, an immeasurable divide. You see, we use measurements of feet and miles, maybe kilometers, depending on where you're at in the world, right? But when it comes to the way we measure on the earth, we use feet, miles, maybe kilometers. When it comes to the heavens, we measure in light years. Now, a light year is the distance light can travel in the course of a year at the speed of 186,000 miles per second. Okay? Now, I've done the math. I'll save you the trouble. It's 5.88 trillion miles in the course of a year. Now, the Milky Way galaxy, that's your corner of the neighborhood, okay? is about 100,000 light years across. So what that means is that if you just hop on a ray of light, and there you are, you're traveling 5.88 trillion miles per year, in 100,000 years, you would reach the other side. Now that's just the Milky Way. There are hundreds of billions of galaxies. The observable universe is suspected to be approximately 94 billion light years across. So if you could hop on a ray of light and travel at over 5.8 trillion miles a year at a 186,000 miles every single second, you could fly, no bathroom breaks, You could fly across the known universe in a meager 94 billion years. Now God says, you wanna know how much higher my thoughts and my ways are above yours? This'll give you an idea. If your ability to think and act are on one side, And my way in which I think and act is on the other side, there are 94 billion light years that separate our capacity and ability. Or to understand that another way, he's on another level of which you and I will never attain. And this is why, ladies and gentlemen, this is why the arrogance is so unsettling when someone presumes to command God to do anything. Better to say, God, this is my heart. I mean, this is the way I see it. This is my understanding of it. But your understanding, your insight is infinitely beyond mine. And so this is my desire, nevertheless, not my will, but your will be done. Verse 10. For as the rain comes down and the snow from heaven, and do not return there but water the earth and make it bring forth in bud that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth. It shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. This is one reason of several. that we are all about the Word of God here. Rain and snow descend from heaven, water the earth, accomplish their purpose before returning, making the earth bring forth and bud. God's Word is like that. It rains down from heaven. It's full of life and power and it never fails with regard to its intended purpose. It will always bring forth its fruit. Listen, God does not speak just to hear His proverbial head rattle. There is a purpose He is set to accomplish. And this is why it's not open, listen, this is why it's not open to, well, you know, you think this and I think that and, you know, that's your interpretation and this is my interpretation. No, no, no, there's none of that, okay? God has a specific purpose in giving out His Word. There's many applications, many applications, yes, one interpretation. And it doesn't barely get the job done. It prospers. It thrives in the purpose that God has for it, be it salvation, be it sanctification, be it exhortation. This is where you write down so you can read it later. We won't go there. 2 Timothy 3, verses 16 and 17. And whoever's closing, that's your cue. Guys, let's read the final couple of verses here. For you shall go out with joy and be led out with peace. The mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you. And all the trees of the fields shall clap their hands. You know, I have the sneaking suspicion they do a better job than we do a lot of times. Sometimes we're all like, I'm not, I'm losing it. It's all right, God enjoys just a joyful noise. We can do that, can't we? Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, instead of the briar shall come up the myrtle tree, and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off. So the invitation, the exhortation, we could have added the revelation and the jubilation. Here's what he's saying. When God's people turn to Him, listen to Him, and His Word does its work in them, joy Peace, praise, and fruitfulness are always the result. Barrenness is removed and fruitfulness remains. And so God, I pray that our hearts eagerly receive your word today. Father, having listened carefully, leaned in intentionally, because your word is good. And I pray that it find its way deep into the soil of our heart. And may our soul delight itself in the life-giving abundance of your word today. May the waters of your word just wash over us. Accomplish the purpose, Lord, for which you have sent it forth today. May it prosper. While our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed, I would just say that if you're here today and you've not surrendered to the Lord, not really, not truly, come on now, not truly. Or maybe you've drifted off course and away from the Lord. Well, what's the word of the Lord? Repent, return, turn from your way, forsake your thoughts, turn to His way. He wants to give you the mind of Christ. I can tell you with all the authority of the Word of God, He will abundantly pardon. and you will find mercy, forgiveness, and grace, new life, at the cross of Jesus Christ. So I don't want you to worry about who you came here with, or who you're sitting by, or who's in front of you, behind you, or how old you are, how young you are, where you've been, or what you've done. What I want you to worry about is have you given your life to Jesus Christ? Have you surrendered truly and wholeheartedly to Him? Has He come into you? Has He changed you? Has He made you new? I'm telling you, the grace of God that saves your soul will change your life. Going to church won't change your life. Jesus Christ will change your life. And life is found at the foot of the cross. Come to the waters and be satisfied. And so if that's for you, I just want to pray for you. If you need Christ to do a work in you to make you new, Would you just show me who you are? Just raise your hand. If I see your hand, I'll say it. You can just put it back down. But I want to give you a second to say, man, you know what? I don't want to miss this. God bless you. I see you. I see anybody else. God bless you, too. I bless you, too. Today's the day. Remember, don't harden your heart. God bless you. That's awesome. And God bless you. That's incredible. God bless you, man. Don't don't harden your heart. If you'll hear his voice. Well, guys, I'm going to be honest. I never know what's happening in your heart. I can look at the outward appearance, but God is searching your heart. I don't honestly know if this is like, I'm done playing games. It's time to get right with Jesus Christ. Or if it's a man, I'm like a prodigal and I need to come home. But we're going to start from ground zero today. We're just going to start all over. Because the Bible says that all sin and fall short of the glory of God. We all, we all. But there are none who are righteous. There are none who seek after God. But God has sought after us in the person of Jesus Christ. And if we confess our sin, we read it, right? He is faithful and just to forgive us, to cleanse us of all unrighteousness. So that's where we're going to start. I can't pray for you, but I will pray with you. And if you want, you can just kind of repeat after me in your own heart or out loud or however you feel so led. But it's got to come from your heart. You would just come to him and say, Lord Jesus. I am a sinner. And I confess today, I humble myself before you. And I ask you, Lord Jesus, to forgive me of my sin. And Lord, I open the door, please come in to my heart, to my life. And fill me with the person, the power of your Holy Spirit. Teach me to drink deeply of the waters of life. Lord, I believe on you. I turn from my way. Teach me to lay hold of your way. And thank you for putting my name in your book of life. I want to encourage you that if you prayed something like that, or your heart's turning to the Lord, and you're finding yourself like something's resonating in you, like, man, this is what I need. I want you to know that God sees the cry of your heart. That if anyone be in Christ, they're a new creation. Old things pass away, behold, all things are made new. That's the promise of the word of God. I want you to receive that, to rejoice in that, because you're leaving here different than you came in. Welcome home, happy birthday, whatever the case may be. God bless you. Father. We praise you, we honor you. It's our desire to bring glory to you. So we pray you continue to move and minister by the power of your spirit and we'll give you praise in Jesus' name. Amen.