Good evening, everyone. As you remain sitting, let's turn to our softback hymnal, 134. I once was a stranger to grace and to God. 134. I once was a stranger to grace and to God. I knew not my danger and felt not my load. No friend spoke in rapture of Christ on the tree. Jehovah said, Can you? Was nothing to me. By tears from the daughters of Zion that roamed, I wept when the waters went over his soul. Yet thought not that thy sins had nailed to the tree. Jehovah said, can you? T'was nothing to me. When free grace awoke me by light from on high. And legal fear shook me, I trembled to die. No refuge, no safety in self could I seek. Jehovah said, can you? My Savior must be. My terrors all vanished before the sweet name. My guilty fears banished. With boldness I came to drink at the fountain. life-giving and free. Jehovah said, can you, is all thanks to me. Jehovah said, can you, my treasure and boast, Jehovah said, can you, I dare, can be lost? In thee I shall conquer, by flood and by field, my capo, my anchor, my breastplate and shield. Thank you. I'd like to read Psalm 19. Psalm 19. To the chief musician, a psalm of David, the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day utter a speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven and his circuit unto the ends of it, and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statues of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold, sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is thy servant warned, and in keeping of them there is great reward. Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me. Then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer. Our heavenly and merciful Father, we thank you, Father, for allowing us to gather again this evening. What a great blessing it is, Lord. where you continue to watch over this local assembly and the door can be opened time after time. Father, we thank you for your full and free and complete salvation. Father, we thank you for sending your only begotten son to this world to suffer and die in the place of your sheep. Father, we thank you for all your blessings, your grace, and your mercy that you have given unto us. And much of it, Lord, we take for granted. And Father, will you especially remember us this evening, where we assemble together again, Lord, pour out your grace and mercy upon us, and especially be with brother Eric again, Lord, as he stands here this evening. Lord, will you give him liberty in speaking and open up the scriptures for him, that he may deliver what you want us to hear. Continue, Lord, to be with him and Michelle. Give them strength and health. Continue to watch over them. We thank you for them, Lord. And Lord, we also think of those that assemble with us, especially Brother Scott, who is still in the hospital. Father, you have given some encouragement with some healing, and will you continue to watch over him? Oh Lord, will you lift him up in his spirit that he may be encouraged and that he may once again come here to worship with us. And we do miss him. Remember sister Johnny also continue Lord to give her strength and encouragement and comfort and hope, which only you can give father. Remember our loved ones. You know all things perfectly and nothing is impossible with you, Lord. Will you have mercy on our children, on our loved ones, our parents, Lord, you know all things. And if it would please you, Lord, will you open our mouths that we may declare your goodness and grace to sinners. Father, remember us in mercy this evening for Jesus' sake alone, amen. Our second hymn will be 45 from your softback, 45. Praise God for grace. electing grace, secured for me in heaven a place chosen from all eternity, the Son of God by blood, born ♪ The Spirit came in sovereign power ♪ ♪ At the exact appointed hour ♪ ♪ Revealing Christ, creating faith, my soul ♪ ♪ He quickened from his death ♪ Now I rejoice in sovereign grace. My sovereign God shall have my praise. Praise God for grace. Praise God for grace. Sovereign, eternal, safe in grace. thank you so much You were singing that hymn, My Sovereign God Shall Have My Praise. It made me think of what you shared with me this afternoon about Brother Art at the Jersey Church had just said that we hear the preaching of the gospel and the Lord's teaching us and comforting us, but when we sing the hymns, it's our. It's our opportunity in a sense, you know what I mean? Like we're praising our God for His mercy and grace and His sovereign love. I love a sinner like me. Turn over to Isaiah 66. Isaiah 66. We'll be looking at just a few verses, 17 through 19. And in verse 17, we see how the Lord brings to our remembrance, brings to our understanding by exposing the dead, carnal, fleshly works of man. And the truth is, we know these works well. Maybe we don't always think of them right away, but when we hear them, when we consider what we did in religion and what we do in religion to comfort ourselves, to give ourselves some relief from some sin that's troubling us or some memory of a sin that troubles us, we see what we are in this flesh, how weak we are. And the reality is, even though the Lord exposes what man is, He has a gracious purpose for His child. It's to make us to know what is false and cannot save and just isn't so, isn't true for the believer. And it has no power over us. We let it. We get buried under it sometimes. but it really has no power, even when we let it, even when our feelings betray us, it has no power over us because we are the Lord's and nothing is greater than the Lord. The Lord is all powerful, almighty, he's sovereign and able, able to save us, able to deliver us, able to fulfill his word of promise to us. And so remember that as we look at these verses. This is all for a gracious purpose to the Lord's people. It's to make us to look to Him, to look away from self, and to look to our God and Savior. the glory of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. And so, the Lord in his word, not just here, but all throughout his word, he's constantly exposing to us the dead works of man, the busy works of man in religion. In religion, those things he does to purify himself, to sanctify himself, to justify himself, to make himself righteous. Even as we sang, Jehovah Sidkin, the Lord, my, righteousness. The Lord, our righteousness. That's what we're being brought to see. He's my righteousness, not my works, not the things I do, but what he has done and accomplished for me. So he's constantly exposing these dead works And he's assuring us that they're all going to come, though there's a variety of them, though they show and appear in many different ways, they all have one end, one thing in common, they're all going to end in destruction. God's going to destroy them all, the workers of iniquity. And so while man is busying himself with religious works to please God, to earn favor with God, to make himself more savable to God, whatever it is in his mind that he's doing and thinks will help him with God, God tells us, I'm saving my people by grace. Man's going to do what man's going to do. but I'm going to save my people by grace. I'm gonna tell you the gospel. I'm gonna preach to you the gospel. I'm going to deliver you from dead works and trusting in those things that cannot save because we all have our part in them in this flesh. We all do these things in our flesh. And so our Lord tells us here by the prophet Isaiah, he knows what the wicked are doing. I'd be kidding you if I tried to tell you I don't ever think about those nice big buildings and a church full of people. And they seem to be doing well. They seem to be doing well. They seem to be profiting in their religion. They seem to be profiting in their religion. And the Lord says, I see them. I see what they're doing. I'm not blind or ignorant of what they're doing over there, but I'm telling you, their works are vain. Their works are dead works. That's not salvation. They're not laying up for themselves a treasure in heaven by their own works of righteousness. And so, for all the variety that man employs to separate himself from another, the Lord says, in the end, it's all one. It's all one. They're all going to be destroyed in like manner. They're all coming to an end. And then he outlines for us how it is his glory to save his people by grace, to fill empty vessels, to comfort the heart of those who are troubled, to heal the sick. to bless those who have nothing, who have no one, to bless them, to be kind to them, and to show them His love in Him who is the very glory of God. So the first thing that we see here when we look at verse 17 is that the Lord is marking for us. He's marking out those works that are dead works, those men who are appointed to destruction who continue in this false way. And it reminds me of what Paul said when he tells us, mark them. Mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned and avoid them. Mark them. And so the Lord's marking them. He's showing us what dead religion looks like. Dead religion. So here it is, verse 17. They that sanctify themselves. They sanctify themselves. They purify themselves. In the gardens, behind one tree, in the midst, or one after another, one after another, eating swine's flesh, partaking in hypocrisy. hypocrisy. And if that's not clear, just because the pig, it has that cloven hoof of a clean animal. It has that split hoof that clean animals have, but inside, you don't know it, you don't see it, but it's not chewing the cud. It's not chewing the cud. That's why a pig is not a clean animal that the Jews were allowed to eat. And so it has the appearance of being clean, but inside, It's wicked. And that's a picture of hypocrisy. It's what we are by nature. We can make ourselves look good, whitewashed supplicars full of dead men's bones. That's what's being said there. They eat swine's flesh and the abomination and the mouse. They're just partaking of wicked things. Wicked things that do not please God. They shall be consumed together, saith the Lord. And so, we see here and just in our own experience that man has no problem being religious. Man doesn't have a problem being religious. And I can recall several conversations as I was growing up and just beginning to seek the Lord on my own as a young adult and going to different churches and meeting different people. And I met a lot of people that were excited because they were getting religion. They decided that they needed some religion, or it would be good for the kids. I have little kids now. I'm going to bring them to church to give them some religion, to get them to grow up good and right. People need religion. And men were proud of that. Men are proud of that. And I did things that I was proud of. and confident in, thinking this was my life. This was sanctifying me. This was putting me in a position to be blessed by God. And that's really what progressive sanctification is. It's doing those things that are outlined here as good things to do, and that by doing those things, that by doing those things that they sanctify us, that they will obtain a blessing of God for us. That's what progressive sanctification is. If I do this, then God will bless it. If I do this, then God will bless me in this. If I do those things, I'm not going to be blessed. And so men do things to obtain favor from God. They do those things. That's just progressive sanctification. And so men will do those things to prepare themselves to inherit the blessing, to receive the blessing. And they purify themselves in the gardens, which likely has a reference to water purifications. and just partaking in different activities, in different things, one after another, to give themselves some purification, to provide some purity for themselves, to wash their hands of their filthy works, to try and remove the stain of sin. And we see in religion, Normally, we focus on and attack other religions. And so we see a variety of things. In some religions, they dip themselves and wash themselves in rivers. The Ganges River in India, it's part of the Hindu religion. And that river, they dip them in and it's something that sanctifies them. I think that word Ganges even means goddess. And it's one of the most filthy, polluted rivers that you could go into. It's not good for you to be in there, but it's a good way to see how our works that we think purify ourselves are actually polluting. ourselves even further. They're just filthy works. They're filthy works. But even in, I think it's just Catholic churches, maybe it's some other Christian churches, but don't they have a basin at the back there with holy water? And all it is is tap water, but maybe they say a little blessing over it, and then you can use it for sprinkling or washing your hands and doing things like that. Or they encourage people to go on treks and pilgrimages to holy sites where some miracle is reported to have happened, or to some church or dome or temple that's there. that's old or something like that or on a hill or a mountain and you have this religious experience as you climb up stairs and things like that and other people just wear religious symbols. Whether it's a cross, or a Star of David, or a moon, and whatever, and all kinds of different things, and they wear it as though it's a good luck charm, or to virtue signal that they're righteous, that they have this hope in this thing, that what they're doing is their salvation. And some just go to church. But the Lord's just saying, what he's telling us is that all the works that we do, in this flesh, all the things that man thinks are what makes him righteous with God, which separates himself from the others by his doing, by his sanctifying works and the things he does to purify himself, he thinks this is going to obtain a blessing for him with God, and he'll hop from one thing to another. that we're going into the gardens. It's just one after another, just hopping through the different steps and the different opportunities to make themselves righteous. But regardless of how zealous we are, regardless of what we think we're doing and how we can point out the folly and faults of others, God says they're all going to be consumed. They're all going to end in the same judgment. They shall be consumed together, saith the Lord. And so the Lord warns us. He shows us this. He tells us this in his word that what man does, what man thinks is righteousness, really is pollution. And God is saying, you're not. By your works, progressive sanctification, this is what it is. By your works, you are not going to reach out. and take the fruit from the tree of life. You're not going to do it. God is not pleased with your works. He's not moved by your works. He's not blessing you because of your works God blesses us for work, but it's not our work. It's the work of the Lord Jesus Christ That's the one whom the Father sent to save us from our sins to save us from death and destruction He says it this way in Isaiah 50 verse 11 behold All ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks, walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand, ye shall lay down in sorrow. And that's what man does, he stokes the fire, he builds a fire, he stokes things to stir himself up and to create light and warmth and heat in himself for God by his religious works. And the Lord says, do it, do it, but you're going to lie down in sorrow. You that trust those things, you're going to lie down in sorrow. And so, no matter how we dress it up in religion, no matter what label we slap on it or what name we put to it, if it's not of the Spirit, then it's of the flesh. And we're told in the Word that the Spirit takes the things of Christ and shows them unto you. He shows you the things of Christ, what Christ has done. That's the Spirit of God. Everything else that turns you to what you're doing or not doing, what you need to fix, what you need to improve on, that's the flesh. That's the flesh. And so the flesh is so prevalent in us that the Lord even gave us a parable. A parable. Unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others. And that was the parable between the Pharisee and the publican. And just looking on the surface of the two, you would say the Pharisee is the good man. The Pharisee is the righteous one. The Pharisee is laboring in religion. Surely he is pleasing God. Surely he has made himself more savable. And yet the Lord tells us that the one who went home justified by God was the publican. They both went up into the temple to pray. And one trusted in himself, was so confident that everything he was doing was salvation, but that one who knew himself to be a sinner and had no confidence in the flesh, but cried out, falling upon the grace and mercy of God, asking God for forgiveness, that one went home justified. Justified by the Lord. And you compare that with some who trusted in themselves to how Peter, the Apostle Peter, describes, he uses holy women, holy women, and this is for us all to hear, every one of us, man and woman to hear. He said, holy women also who trusted in God, they didn't trust themselves, they trusted in God, adorned themselves, how? Being in subjection unto their own husbands. And what a picture, the wicked trusts in his own works, in himself. Oh, that we would be in subjection to our husband, the Lord Jesus Christ, that we would trust him. That's how the gospel is adorned, trusting the one who promises us to save us, to be merciful and gracious to us. So one trusts themselves, the other trusts God. And we want to be among those We want to be those who trust God. And we do so by the grace of God. By the grace of God. And part of that is Him showing us what death looks like. What death looks like. Don't trust your works. Don't have confidence in the flesh. Have confidence in me, He says. In me. Trust the Lord. Look to my servant. Listen to me. That's what the Lord's teaching us here. He even says in the next verse, for I know their works and their thoughts. I know their works and their thoughts. And in religion, we can strive with one another, and we can debate with one another, and we can argue over what's important and what's not important, and whose interpretation is right and whose interpretation is wrong or needs to be improved upon. We can argue all those things. We can look at historical men of God and say, whether they're saved or not. We get into these arguments and the Lord says, you potsherds can argue and fight with one another. You can argue. That's just broken clay pots. You guys can argue and fight amongst yourselves, but don't think that you can argue with God. Don't think you're going to get one over on God. You can fool one another. I can fool you. You can fool me. But we cannot fool the true and living God. And that's what he's saying. I know their works. I know their thoughts. He says he even knows our heart. The Lord said in Luke 16, 15, ye are they which justify yourselves before men. But God knoweth your hearts. He knoweth your hearts, for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God. Truly there is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. It just leads to death. And that's how easily deceived we are, because by nature that's all we are. dead spiritually dead corrupt vile sinners we're just walking around bones covered in grave clothes is all we are in this flesh now let's look at verse 18 now let's read it for I know their works and their thoughts it shall come that I will gather all nations and tongues and they shall come and see my glory and so The Lord saying, while man is doing what he's doing, while he's off building his temples to reach up to the heavens, and he's doing his thing, God says, I'm going to do my thing. I'm going to fulfill my will and purpose to be gracious to a people. I'm going to call a people in grace, and I'm going to show them salvation in spite of themselves. in spite of themselves, I'm going to show them the truth, not by works of righteousness, which we have done. according to His mercy. And so the Lord's teaching us, I've got vessels of mercy that I'm going to be gracious to. I'm going to be compassionate to. I'm going to teach them through the preaching of the Word. I'm going to declare to them what I have done, the salvation I've provided in my Son, in the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm going to show them the finished redemption work of Christ. And so in the scriptures we actually see an example of what we're patterned off of. How the outpouring of the Holy Spirit is what saves us through the preaching of the word. And we see this in Acts chapter 2. Let's go over to Acts chapter 2. We have a gathering of all nations and tongues brought by the providence of God who are made to come and to see God's glory. Now, I'm not going to read this whole chapter, but it starts off with the disciples gathered together and praying. And the Lord fulfills his promise to give them the Holy Spirit, who appears above their heads as tongues of fire. And these men began to speak in tongues, speak in other languages spoken by other people in the world at that time. And that with their tongues and other languages, they spoke the wonderful works of God. Verse 11, they were speaking the wonderful works of God. Now, who do you suppose was there to hear this? were told in verse 9, it was Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judea, and Cappadocia, and Pontus, and Asia, Phyrgia, and Pamphylia, and Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews, and proselytes, Cretes, and Arabians. This is just as the Lord said, I'm going to gather all nations in tongues. I'm going to bring them together to see my glory. to behold my glory. And so here they are. And who do you think they were made to see? Who is the glory of God? Who were they made to see? Well, Peter stood up and he declares to them the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, telling them, he's a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs. signs. That's what the Lord, that's what Isaiah, the Lord told Isaiah in verse 19 when he said, I will set a sign among them. I'm going to set a sign among these people that they're going to know that this is of me. This is of my doing. And Christ himself is that sign whom God has set before our eyes and makes his people to see and to know, to behold his glory, to believe God and the word of God and the promises of God in Christ. that we would come and worship God and believe God and follow God, not in our works, not according to the law and our doing, but in Christ, in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the righteousness of God, Jehovah Sidkenu. He is the righteousness. He's our righteousness. He's our hope. He's our glory. He's the glory of the Father. So we're not blessed. because of something we've done, we are blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus because of what he has done, what he's obtained for us, eternal redemption, light, life, salvation, giving us the spirit, a down payment, of what He has given unto us freely in grace, apart from our works, apart from our works. We didn't get ourselves saved. We don't get ourselves unsaved. It's all the Lord's doing. It's all the Lord's doing. You know, when Simeon, Simeon was an elderly man, a Jew, and alive at the time when Christ, the baby, and as a baby, when he was born and only eight days old, Mary and Joseph brought him into the temple to be circumcised and Simeon was there and Simeon came and took the child and said behold this child is set this child is purposed for the fall and rising again of many in Israel and for a sign a sign which shall be spoken against a sign which shall be criticized a sign which shall be rejected and denied One who would be crucified and put away from among the people because they hated him, because they don't love the Lord, they don't hear what the Spirit says. to the churches. And so he's the sign of God. He's the sign that God promised to put before the nations and tongues and all people to know this is my glory. This is my salvation. Stop doing your works to justify yourself. Stop doing your works to sanctify yourself or to purify yourself. Look to my son. He'll teach you all things. You'll not walk in darkness following Christ. That's his promise to you. You'll have the light of life. You'll hear the truth. You'll know the true doctrine. You'll know the purpose and will of God. in Christ, in Christ. And so, Jesus Christ is the glory of our God. And your service and your works, they're not your salvation. He's a man despised and hated, spoken against. And the reason why he's so hated and despised is because it means, if he's my righteousness, then what am I doing in all these religious works? What am I doing? Why am I doing this? And it just reveals what man is in his heart that that's all he was looking for was was God to justify him for his works. He wanted God to say, say, you're something boy, you're special. Harrison, I'm going to give you extra blessings for what you did. But the truth is, Christ is the glory of God. Christ is everything. He's the one that we rejoice in. And it's not that we that believe and hope in the Lord Jesus Christ, it's not that we don't do good works, that we don't desire to honor our God, to understand his word. We want to see fruits, but we know that we don't produce them. We don't effect them. We don't fertilize them. The Lord does it all. If we would see grace in our hearts, if we would see love in our hearts for one another, if we would be good and kind and gentle with one another and be faithful unto our God, all we do is we pray and we ask him, Lord, help me. Lord, bear these fruits of me. And Lord, thank you for giving me a heart to even pray it. Because I wouldn't even care, I wouldn't even pray it. I wouldn't even think about it. I wouldn't even turn to you if it weren't for you turning me to you. Turning my heart to you, to seek you, to ask you. And so we don't do those things to get a blessing. We do what we do because we love the Lord. And we love his people. And we want. to be kind and gentle and patient with one another. We want to do those good works and so we seek Him for it. We ask Him. We ask Him. It's all of Him. So believe Christ. Come to the Father in the blood of Christ. Verse 19 I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lod. that draw the bow to Tubal and Javin, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory, and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles." And so those who have escaped, those who are the escaped, they have been blessed of God. God has done this. He's brought them out. They didn't bring themselves out because all we can do in the flesh are those sanctifying of ourselves and purifying of ourselves that God says are all going to be consumed, all going to be destroyed. And so, those that escape are blessed of the Lord. You can see it in 2 Peter, 2 Peter 1. Just look at verse 3 and 4. where Peter says, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He's blessing God because God has done this. He's praising God, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away reserved in heaven for you. who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. It's all of the Lord. He does that. He saves his people. He works the salvation in his people. And so they're chosen, called, and gathered of the nations who hear and believe the testimony of Christ. And the Lord says, he promises, I'm gonna send those that have escaped out of that dead religion that cannot save. Those who practiced it crucified my son. I'm going to deliver some of my choosing. I'm going to gather them out, and I'm going to send them out into the world to preach this gospel, to spread this good news. And he used various means to do that. Sometimes it was persecution from their countrymen. After the stoning of Stephen, for example, There was a great persecution of the believers at that time and they were scattered and went about preaching the gospel. Sometimes it's persecution by the government. It was Aquila and Priscilla that were told that they had to leave Rome because they were Jews and so they went and met Paul and gained new brethren through that persecution and went about preaching the truth. Sometimes it's just a desire to preach the gospel, to tell others. what they've heard, such as the Lord worked in Paul and Barnabas when they began to go out into the Greek nations. And so these vessels of mercy were sent out to them that have not heard my fame. He says, neither have seen my glory and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles. And so what the Lord's doing is he sends out the gospel so that his people who are sitting in darkness, practicing dead works that cannot save, that they would hear, that they would see the glory of God in the face of not their works, not what they're doing, but in the face of Jesus Christ. That's what the Lord is showing us. And so the Lord is determined, he's purposed to save his people, to show them Christ. This word glory holds a significant meaning in regards to the salvation of God's people. He says, they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles. What does that mean? We'll turn over to Exodus 33. Let's go to Exodus 33 and we'll just look at two verses there. This is the Lord speaking with Moses. And Moses is gonna lead the people out of Egypt. And Moses asks in verse 18, he says, I beseech thee, show me thy glory. Show me thy glory. In verse 19, this is Exodus 33, and he said, God said, I will make my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee, and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. And so in showing Moses the glory of God, we see that God chooses whom He will. And he makes them to see Christ. When every one of us are all from families and nations and peoples and tongues that practice dead works, self-sanctifying works, self-purifying works that are all going to end in destruction, but now we've been delivered from that, it's not because we did anything. but because God was being gracious and merciful to whom He would. It's His glory, and He shows us His glory because we see His glory, the Lord Jesus Christ. We behold him, and we're made to know and understand this is the glory of God. For he saith unto Moses, Paul said, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then, it's not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. It's not of my will or my choosing, it's not of my doing, my striving, my laboring, my spending, but of God that showeth mercy. The difference is a new creature. It's not a matter of whether you're circumcised or uncircumcised, whether you're in doing these religious works or those religious works. It's, are you a new creature? Has God poured out his spirit and made you alive in and by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ? Because he alone is salvation. He is the name of God's salvation. He is the one in whom we know our God, who are brought to our God in and by the Lord Jesus Christ. In religion, we're laboring for death. But Christ labored to deliver you, His people, from that death. That you would know the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. That you would see and know Him. That is, so all those who are laboring for it, they received not what they sought for, just like the Jews. Because they sought it not by faith. There weren't new creatures. They're just religious people, dead in trespasses and sins. But he says, I was made manifest unto them that ask not after me. He chooses whom he will, those who sat in darkness, those who had no life, no nothing to give to God. So I ask, has God shown you Christ? Do you believe that Christ is not only the very righteousness of God for sinners, is he your righteousness? Is he your hope? Is he your salvation? Because he makes each one of his people to know he loved me and gave himself for me. I had nothing. I have nothing. All my works are folly and full of sin and darkness. But Christ is everything. and He put away my sins, and He paid my debts, and He delivered me from death and darkness, so that now I know the mystery of God, that I cannot save myself, but God did everything. He did everything. That is the will and purpose of God. If He is your salvation, then you see the glory of God. You see the sign whom God promised right here to us through Isaiah, in saying, this is how I save my people. I show them my glory, the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray you bless Christ to your hearts that he dwell in your hearts by faith and you trust him and love him and walk by faith in Christ and in him alone. Amen. Let's sing 113 from your softback. Worthy, worthy is the Lamb. Worthy, worthy is the Lamb. Ransomed souls, your voices raise. Sing your great Redeemer's praise. Praise Him, God the great I Am. Praise the sin-atoning Lamb. Worthy, worthy is the Lamb, sinners saved by God's decree. Praise the Lamb of Calvary, praise Him for His dying love. Praise the Lamb enthroned above. ♪ Worthy, worthy is the lamb ♪ ♪ Jesus, Savior, blessed lamb ♪ ♪ We would ever praise your name ♪ ♪ You redeemed us with your blood ♪ ♪ Made us kings and priests to God ♪ Worthy, worthy is the Lamb, Righteous, just, faithful and true, Are the wonders that you do. Grace and glory in you shine, Love and mercy all divine. Thank you. Let's close this in prayer. Our gracious Lord, we thank you father for your grace. We thank you for your salvation, your glory, your sign, which you have made us to see and to believe, to follow the lamb, to be led out of darkness, out of death, out of dead works, the hope of dead carnal men that cannot save. Lord, thank you for delivering us from the wrath to come. It's in Christ's name we pray and give thanks. Amen.