We're turning for a short reading in Luke chapter 13, the gospel of Luke, the chapter 13, a very short reading, beginning at the opening verse of the chapter. So it's Luke chapter 13 and the verse number one. Let's hear God's precious word. There were present at that season some that told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galileans were sinners above all the Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you nay, but except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen upon whom the tower of Salome fell, and slew them, Think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you nay, but except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Amen. I said it was short today. Our reading will end at the verse five. Let's unite in prayer. O God, our Father, we come to thee in the Savior's holy name. Ever thankful, O God, that the work has been done. And there is therefore no more to be done. Oh God, we can say hallelujah to that verse that we've just sang. We praise thee, dear Father, for a work that was taken by Christ to do on our behalf. We thank thee that he did the work. He cried at his finish. He was raised from the dead, and he's now at the Father's right hand, ever living, to make intercession for us. We thank thee for the gift of the Spirit, poured out on the day of Pentecost in a greater measure than what his ministry was known even in the world before that day. We thank Thee that we are, O God, in that era. We thank Thee for the blessed Spirit of God who convicts of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. O God, come, help us, we pray, and grant, O God, now His unfilling. we might preach the word that God has given even for this this hour we pray these are petitions and prayers and through our Savior's precious name amen amen a couple of years ago I sat in a church not far away I listened to a minister as he preached at a funeral service I suppose one of the bad habits that preachers have is that they scrutinize what is being said by other preachers. It's just one of those occupational hazards that comes with a person's calling to the gospel ministry. As I sat listening to the minister that day, a question during that funeral service came repeatedly into my mind. The question was this, what is missing? What is missing? I continued to listen to the minister that day, and that question kept running through my mind, what is missing? The minister talked about trusting in Christ. He talked about a person's need to have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. He spoke even about a person's need to be saved from their sin. And all of those things were proper, and all of those things were right. However, the questions kept coming into my mind, what is missing? There's something missing. What is it? And then it suddenly dawned upon me what was missing in that preacher's and that minister's message. It was repentance. Repentance. Never once did that minister challenge the congregation about their personal need to turn from their sin. Yes, he spoke about faith. But he never spoke about repentance. I fear that the repentance-free message that I listened to that day is a message that is repeated over and over again in churches across this province and across the world. People listen to ministers tell them about their need to trust in Jesus Christ, to have a relationship with Jesus Christ, to be saved. But if that's all they hear, They don't really hear the gospel. Because the gospel is not simply about faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is another great need. Another great need if a person is to be truly converted. There is the need to repent of sin. Now the Apostle Paul certainly didn't feel in this area of preaching true to his word that wherever he would go, he would not feel to declare all the counsel of God's precious word. Paul testified both to Jews and to the Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. You see, the great theologian of the Bible understood something. He understood that if the gospel was to be preached properly, and if the gospel was to be preached biblically, there had to be two edges to the gospel sword. There had to be preaching about repentance, and there also had to be preaching about faith. Now, last Lord's Day, we thought about the first side of conversion's coin, that of faith. Today, we want to look at the second side of the coin, that of repentance. Now, I want you to remember what we said last Lord's Day. Although faith and repentance are two distinct aspects of conversion, They are inseparable truths and aspects. So that when there is true faith, there is always true repentance. And where there is true repentance, there will always be true faith. You can never have the one without the other if you want a true biblical conversion experience. Reverend James Begg said, until there is restored to the nation, biblical ministry under the Holy Spirit, exposing the natural and practical sin of the heart and life. Men will never feel the weight of sin and the absolute need for godly sorrow and repentance for sin. And so today we want to look at this matter of repentance, a truth that has fallen out of fashion in neo-evangelical circles and sadly in certain evangelical circles, the call for sinners to repent. Now I want to begin, as we normally do, by defining our terms. Let me give you a definition of repentance. Now we go to the Word of God. To understand from the use of the word there, what is meant by this term repentance. Now the word repentance appears only once. in the Old Testament Scriptures. It's found there in Hosea chapter 13 and the verse number 14. I will ransom them from the power of the grave. I will redeem them from death. O death, I will be thy plagues, O grave, I will be thy destruction. Repentance shall be hid from mine eyes. This is the only occurrence in the Old Testament Scriptures of this word, repentance. Now, that translates to mean desistance or de-sistance. You've heard of a person who desists. Well, that simply means that they stop They cease doing something. And that is true when it comes to repentance. The sinner stops living for sin, and they cease living in sin. There is a desisting. There is a stopping. There is a ceasing. Now while it is true that the word repentance doesn't appear in the Old Testament, the biblical truth does find itself expressed in various verses in the Old Testament. I suppose the most well-known is there in Isaiah chapter 55 and the verse 7. Let the wicked forsake his way. and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. The wicked forsaking his way, that's repentance. Remember what we said. Repentance, or what we will say, repentance is a turning away from sin. The wicked forsaking his way, And returning on to God, that's what repentance is. In Ezekiel chapter 18, we find this biblical truth, repentance, expressed again. The verses 21 and 22. But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. Here it is again, maybe not the word repentance, but we have it expressed. The wicked turning from his way, a turning on to God, a keeping of God's statutes, that individual shall live and shall not die. And so the Old Testament speaks about repentance. We come into the New Testament and the word repentance appears with more frequency. In actual fact, it appears some 25 times in the New Testament Scriptures. And the word that the New Testament writers use is the Greek word metanoia. It translates to mean compunction or regret of guilt that leads to reformation. Let us make it a little simpler. Regret that leads to reformation. It can also mean to change one's mind. The word metanoia comes from a root word that means to think differently, to think differently. When a sinner repents of their sin, they come to think differently about their sin. They think differently about it now, that which they once loved they now hate. that which they once ran after they now run from. Because they've come to understand that their sin is offensive to God. They've come to understand that their sin is a transgression of God's law and has brought them into a state of guilt before God. And so there is a change of mind that comes upon an individual as they repent of their sin. But that change of mind then leads a person to have a life that is reformed. It's not just a change of mind about sin, but that leads then to a reformation of life. There has been many a person, many a person who has had a change of mind with respect to their sin. They felt regret over it, they felt remorse They felt guilt concerning it, and yet that change of mind has not led them to a reformation of life. It has never resulted in a reformation of life. Now, there are many examples I could point you to. Let me point you to three. The first person that I think of that exhibited this kind of superficial repentance was a man by the name of Pharaoh. Well, that was his title. I speak of the Pharaoh in the days of Moses. Do you remember whenever God sent heel into that land of Egypt during those 10 plagues? That heel smoked every green herb, it broke every tree in the field. And we're told over there in Exodus 9, verse 27, that Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron and said unto them, I have sinned this time. The Lord is righteous and I and my people are wicked. Now you would think that is a credible confession of sin. You would surely think, here's a man now, he's on the right road. Here's a man now who's acknowledged that he's a sinner, and he's acknowledged that God is righteous, and he's acknowledged that the people that he governs over, they are a wicked people. Surely here's a man who has saw the light. Here's a man who's come to an understanding of his sin before God. Pharaoh goes on to indicate that if the heel would cease, that he would amend his ways and let the people go. But do you know the story as I know the story? What happens? Moses goes out of the city and he prays to God that the heel would stop. Exodus 39 verse 34 says, when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the heel and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more and hardened his heart, he and his servants. His life after his supposed conversion experience, this realization that he was a sinner, his life after such evidence that it was simply remorse. It was simply a kind of regret. that he confesses that he had sinned this time against God. It was never a confession that pointed to a genuine repentance on the part of the Egyptian ruler, because if it had been, there would have been an amending of his life, a reformation of his life. He certainly would not have sinned yet more, and he would not have hardened his heart against the Lord. Another example is that of King Saul. You'll remember that Saul was confronted by Samuel. He oversteps the parameters of a king. The king was never to sacrifice to God, that was to be given simply to the priests. And Samuel told Saul that he had to remain for some days and await for God's message to his heart. Saul decided time was running out. He takes to himself that which belonged simply to the priests he offers to God, the sacrifice. And Saul, he's confronted with Samuel as Samuel hears the bleating of the sheep. And he asks, what is this bleeding of the sheep? He said, Saul, behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken on to the fat of rams. And as Saul is confronted with respect to his sin by Samuel, this is what he says, I have sinned. For I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord in my words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. I have sinned." Here it is again, a confession of sin. If he had have been in the evangelical church, he would have been prayed out on the prayer meeting night and said, you know, someone profess faith. On Sunday night, he said, I have sinned. But his life after, he goes to speak to the witch of Endor. He lives a godless life. Life and rebellion against God. It certainly did not evidence a true repentance on the part of Saul when he said, I have sinned. I think of Judas Iscariot, another example. He's betrayed the Son of God with 30 pieces of silver. Matthew tells us, Matthew 27, 3 and 4, that when Judas saw that he was condemned, repented himself. And brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? See thou to it. Matthew tells us that Judas repented himself, but this wasn't true repentance. And I'll tell you the reason why. True repentance leads to a holy life. Judas's repentance led to an increase in crime when he took his own life. True repentance leads a sinner to Christ. Judas' repentance led him away from the Savior. He had regret, he had remorse, but not true repentance. Some people will think, well, surely if I truly repent of my sin, then there will be sorrow over my sin, and there will be tears over my sin. Let me say that there will be sorrow, but tears are not the evidence that someone has repented. How do I know that? Well, I know that because of what the Scriptures say. Hebrews chapter 12 and the verse number 17, speaking of Esau, for ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected. For he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears." Here's a man who weeps over what he has done in selling the birthright. But even though he prayed, and even though he cried with tears, he found no place of repentance. We must be very careful that we do not add We do not add our works to our repentance with respect to coming to Christ. You see, the word repent means more than regret or sorrow. It means to turn around. means to change direction. It means a change of mind and will and of life. It denotes a change from wrong to right, from unrighteousness to righteousness, from sin to the Savior. Therefore, true repentance, evangelical repentance, yes, it does involve sorrow for sin, but that sorrow leads a person to change their thinking, their conduct, and their desire. If you want it, Put in simple terms, repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of conduct. A shorter catechism says, repentance unto life is a saving grace whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his own sin and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth with grief and hatred of sin turn from it unto God. with full purpose of and endeavor after new obedience. In light then of what the Word of God says about this matter, let me ask you, have you genuinely repented of your sin? Has your repentance been followed, being you endeavor implanted within the soul by the Spirit of God after new obedience? that will be the evidence that you have repented of your sin. Repentance, a change of mind that leads to a change of conduct. We move on to a second thought. When you think about the necessity of repentance Repentance is one of the foundational stones of Christianity. It is necessary, and its necessity is emphasized to us in the Word of God in a number of ways. The necessity of repentance is firstly seen in the precedence that it is given in the preaching ministries of the Lord Jesus Christ and his apostles. The necessity is evidenced in the precedence that it's given in the preaching ministries of the Lord Jesus Christ and his apostles. Let me ask you, what was the first doctrine that the Lord Jesus Christ preached? Matthew or Mark chapter 1 verse 15. His opening gambit as he preached was, repent ye and believe the gospel. Repent ye and believe the gospel. What did the apostles proclaim when the Lord sent them forth the first time? Mark 6 verse 12 tells us that they preached that men should repent. What was the charge that Jesus Christ gave his disciples there? In Luke chapter 24 verse 47, prior to his leaving this world, he said that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations. What was Peter's closing statement and appeal in his great sermons there in Acts chapter 2 and Acts chapter 3, repent and be baptized, Acts 2 verse 38. Acts 3.19, repent ye and be converted. What was the summary of the doctrine that Paul preached as he expressed it to the Ephesian elders before he parted from them? He told them that he had testified both to Jews and to Greeks repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. What was the description which Paul gave of his own ministry when he defended himself before Festus and Agrippa? We are told that he taught all the people that they should repent and turn to God. and do works meet for repentance. Acts 26 verse 20. What does the account given to the believers at Jerusalem at the conversion of the Gentiles there in Acts 11 verse 18? That they then have God also to the Gentiles granted repentance on to life. Repent. Repent. Sinner, repent. Repent. All through the Savior's ministry, all through his ministry, he calls sinners to repentance. The apostles, they take up the same message, repentance toward God, faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, if the Lord Jesus Christ and his apostles emphasize the need to repent in their preaching, it begs the question, why is it that preachers today hardly even mention repentance when they come to preach the gospel? Why is it? I'll give you the reason why. We've all heard about hard Brexit and soft Brexit. Can I say that there is a soft gospel that is being preached today? I don't know the reason why, but maybe it is that a preacher is more interested in getting as many professions of faith as they can in order that they may boost about such things. And so they preach a softer gospel that they hope will appeal to the masses. And so a person can have faith in Jesus Christ. They can have a relationship with Jesus Christ. They can trust in the Savior. They can have a belief in God. But don't call the sinner from their sin. Don't tell the sinner that they need to forsake their sin. That they need to divorce from their sin. That they need to leave their sinful life behind. That they need to stop their gambling and their smoking. That they need to stop their drinking and their immorality. No, no, no. Let the sinner have such things and they'll be brought into the very presence of God. They'll be brought into the very glory of God someday. No! The only way that you can ever be genuinely converted is that you have turned from your sin and you have put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let me be very clear. You cannot have your sin in Jesus Christ. Let me be clear. You can't have it. You may go down the road and they may tell you that you can have it. But this Bible tells me that there must be a forsaking of your sin. There needs to be a turning from your sin. There needs to be a willingness to give over your sin to Christ. You cannot have your sin on Jesus Christ. If you want to enjoy all that the gospel holds out to you, and all that the gospel offers to you, then there must be a leaving of sin and a cleaving to Christ. That's the message of this book. And it doesn't go down very well. And some people like to preach a softer gospel. It is not my intention to inhibit you from trusting in Jesus Christ, but I must be faithful to you. And I must remind you that if you're ever going to be a Christian, you're gonna have to leave your sin behind forever. And you're gonna have to walk in holiness and walk in obedience. And so the necessity is seen in the precedence that is given with respect to the Christ and his apostles as they preached. The necessity of repentance is also seen in the direct commands of scripture. You'll find many commands, whether they be direct or indirect, that cause the sinner to repentance. I think of the one there in Ezekiel 33 verse 11, as I live saith the Lord God. I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. And then he makes this direct appeal, turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways. I tell you, the many hyper-Calvinists, they wouldn't like this type of preaching. This is God preaching here. He's making a direct appeal. Oh, we'll just leave the general appeal of the gospel and allow God to do His work, yes, but God is the preacher here and He speaks to them eyeball to eyeball, repent ye, repent ye or turn ye from your evil ways for why will ye die, O house of Israel? Mark 1 verse 15, repent ye and believe the gospel. Luke 13, verse 3, I tell you nay, but except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Luke 13, verse 5, I tell you nay, but except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Acts 13, verse 19, repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out. Acts 17, 30, and the times of this ignorance God went at. But now commandeth all men, everywhere to repent. And that brings you in. Amen, everywhere to repent. This is a command of God. So let me ask you sinner, what have you done with that command? What is sin? It is a breaking, it is a transgressing of God's commandments, of God's law. I tell you, as you sit in your sin, As you break this commandment to repent, all men everywhere to repent, you add to your sin. You add to your sin. This is a command. It is a prerequisite, if you're ever to be saved, that all men found to the very uttermost parts and regions of this guilty world, men must repent. Is there any other way to heaven? No. No other way. All men everywhere, they need to repent. The necessity of repentance is also seen in the punishment of the one that awaits the one who does not repent. This necessity, you're saying, preacher, there is a necessity for me to repent? Show me it. Well, if you do not repent, you will perish. You will perish. Jesus Christ said it. We read his words. It's here in the book. Nay, I tell you, but except you repent, ye shall all likewise perish. You will perish. You'll know well the account in Luke chapter 16. You read from the verse 31 onwards right to the end of the chapter. You'll read there about two men, a rich man, and then a poor beggar called Lazarus. Lazarus dies, he's carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. The rich man dies, he's buried, and in hell, he lifts up his eyes, being in torment. He speaks with Abraham, Father Abraham, and he makes a request that he will send Lazarus back to earth, raising him from the dead in order to go to his five brothers who were still living. And he tells them that if one went on to them from the dead, they will repent. they will repent. You see, this man in hell, this rich man was convinced that if they repented, they would escape. He was convinced that their repentance from sin would mean that they would never have to occupy the place that he was presently occupying. And therefore, we can but infer that that man was in hell because he hadn't repented. He sees the necessity of repentance. You see, even sinners in hell believe in repentance. There are sinners in hell that believe more than preachers and pulpits today. They no need to repent. Can I say that if you do not repent, you will go to hell. You'll never see a saved mother again. You'll never see a Christian father again. because they repented of their sin. And by that repentance, they escaped hell, but not for you. There is a punishment. Punishment that awaits the one who does not repent shows us the necessity of repentance. Think thirdly with me about the source of repentance. Although the sinner repents, like its twin grace, faith, repentance does not originate in man. Repentance originates in the grace of God, because repentance is a gift of God. Where is that to be found? Well, it's to be found in God's precious Word. Let me give you a number of verses, Acts 5 verse 31. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a prince and a savior for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. To give repentance. What is given? A gift. Acts 11 verse 18, when they heard these things, they held their peace and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life. There is the granting, the bestowing of repentance unto life. It is a gift. 2 Timothy 2 verse 25, in meekness, instructing those that oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. There it is again, a giving of repentance. Repentance, just like faith, is a gift of God. And so sinner, put it out of your mind today that repentance is in your own power, and that you can just turn to God whenever you desire. That is not the case. It is only when God bestows the gift of faith and the gift of repentance that any sinner can ever trust in Jesus Christ. It is not something that you naturally possess. And therefore, since it is a gift of God, sinner, seek God for it. Be in earnest about this. Lord, give me the gift of repentance, because if I do not repent, and if I never exercise faith in Christ, I will perish. Give me this gift, and seek God for it, and get on your face before God, and pray that God will give you it, knowing that heaven can never be gained. by those who never repent, earnestly then seek God for it. God give me this gift, lest I die, lest I perish, lest I be lost. It is a gift from God. Thirdly, or fourthly, and finally, the fruit of repentance We're really dealing here with the outward evidence that someone has repented of their sin. The first fruit that will evidence true evangelical repentance is holy living. Holy living. You see, repentance in its essence is a turning away from sin. And unto God, that's what we've said. The change of mind that involves a reformation of life, that will involve us turning away from sin and on to God. It would therefore be a contradictory claim for a person to say that they have repented of their sin and they still live habitually and happily in their sin. That is a contradictory claim. When Jesus Christ saves a person, he does not leave them in their sin, but rather he saves them from, out of their sin. Proverbs 28, 13, he that covereth his sin shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. It is very clear from that particular verse that the person who does not fully turn from their wicked ways and forsake their wicked ways, that person is not saved. They have not truly repented. If you hate your sin, if you've got a new sight of your sin, I tell you, you will gladly abandon your sin and live a life of holiness. William Swan Plumer remarked, a holy life is the invariable fruit of genuine repentance. So examine your life. Examine your life. That's what the Bible tells you to do. Examine yourself whether you be in the faith. So examine your life, and I will examine my life. Examine your life and ask yourself this fundamental question, am I striving to live a holy life by the grace of God? And do I gladly forsake my sin? And do I gladly live for Jesus Christ? a holy life. Secondly, the second fruit that will evidence true repentance is confession of sin. Denying sin, excusing sin, minimizing sin is not the fruit of true repentance. The person who truly repents will freely admit to their sin and will willingly confess their sin as they repent. When Holy Spirit works within the soul, sin is brought into the light, and the sinner will then acknowledge that sin to God. Let me add this, that confession of sin is not something that you just did the night you got saved. You didn't just repent the night you got saved. I hope you know that. I hope you understand that your repentance just didn't happen the night that you bowed the knee and you cried the sinner's prayer, and that's really all the repentance that you need to do. Folks, I repented this morning. I repented of my coldness. I repented of my backsliding. I repented of my lack of desire for prayer. I repented today. You see, the Christian life is a life of repentance. Whenever Martin Luther went to kneel the 95 theses on the door of Wittenberg Castle Church there in Germany, there was one of his 95 theses. In actual fact, it was the very first. It was going to be the very first that everyone was going to read. And this is what it's saying. When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, repent, he willed that the entire life of believers to be one of repentance. It was his will that the entire life will be one of repentance. Brethren and sisters, all of the Christian life is to be marked by repentance, a turning from sin, day after day. Not just something that we do when we first trust in Christ. Repentance, it ought to be a daily habit for the Christian. Is this not highlighted to us in the disciples' prayer? What did Christ teach his disciples to pray? Forgive us our debts. That's repentance, a confession of sin. So let me ask you, did you repent today? Did you repent as a Christian today? If we say that we have no sin, the truth is not in us and we make God a liar. Did you repent today? Aware of your sin in the life, in your life in a week that has passed, did you confess your sin and turn from it and turn to God? The third and final fruit, it's not an exhaustive list, True repentance is restitution. I mentioned it whenever I spoke in the gospel about Zacchaeus. Do you remember he saved? One of the indicators that this man had truly repented of his sin was that he was then going to restore fourfold that which he had taken by illegitimate means. It evidenced that he had truly turned from his sin. Another example is found in the little book of Philemon. You know about Onesimus, he runs away from Philemon. He encounters Paul in Rome. Onesimus is saved, but Paul encourages Onesimus to go back to Philemon again to make an amends for a wrong that he had done in the past. There's restitution on the part of Onesimus. A.W. Pink said, no repentance can be true which is not accompanied by a complete amendment of life. And that may require the repentant one putting wrongs right. It may require the repentant one putting wrongs right. What I'm simply trying to get across is that when a person has truly repented from their sin, that will evidence itself. in a person's life one way or another. You may have been saved as a child. There may not be restitution required, but I'll tell you there'll be holy living. There'll be at least holy living. The holy ones. I trust that today you have repented of your sin and have not Let this Lord's day be the day that you walk the road of repentance and accept Jesus Christ as your Savior, because except you repent, we shall all likewise perish. This is the gospel, faith toward our Lord, repentance toward God. We bring them together. It's called conversion. Have you been converted? If not, seek him until you find him. And may God in his grace give to you the gifts of faith and repentance. Let's bow our heads in prayer. O God our loving Father, our gracious God, we come before Thee today and we do cry to Thee, O that sinners will repent, that there might be that great change of mind. It comes about as the light of the gospel begins to penetrate in, as the mind is renewed and the mind is enlightened to the truths of the gospel. The Spirit of God so takes that truth, troubles the soul now about their sin and about their wicked way of living. And they come to understand that their sin kneeled Christ to the cross. They come to understand that they need a Savior. And there is a great change of mind. I now abhor myself. I now repent, as Job said, in dust and ashes. Oh, that that would be the cry. Oh, that we as believers would do what Job did, that we would repent in dust and ashes because of our sin. Help us not to put repentance some way down the history of our own life experience. And say we did it then, and that covers it all. Oh, and help us to see, Lord, day by day, the great need for us to repent. So that, not that we're saved, but Lord, that there's nothing between me and thee. Nothing between my soul and the Savior. not of this world delusive's dream, nothing between Christ and me. Oh, help us, dear Father, to live a holy life. Help us to confess our sin. And if there be wrongs that need to be put right, give us the grace to do it, as God will lead us. So answer prayer, minister to hearts, We cry to Thee for those who will attend funerals today. We pray, O God, that even the reality of death and eternity will be impressed upon their minds and hearts. And may there be a turning on to the Savior, for we offer prayer in and through Christ's precious name. Amen and amen. Thank you.