We turn in the Word of God together to Job chapter 19. Let's stand to hear the reading of the Word. Job chapter 19 and then Luke chapter 5. We begin in Job chapter 19 and verse 23. And we have a longing here in Job long ago to see God. Oh, that my words were written. Oh, that they were inscribed in a book, that they were engraved on a rock with an iron pen and lead forever. For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth. And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold and not another. How my heart yearns within me." And then to Luke chapter 5 verse 33, And they said to him, Why do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees? But yours eat and drink. And he said to them, can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from him, then they will fast in those days. And he spoke a parable to them. No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old, otherwise the new makes a tear and also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled and the wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new, for he says, the old is better. And this is the word of the living God. And we turn together in the word of God to Luke chapter 5. And looking in the preaching of the word, the preaching of the word will be from verses 33 to 39. in that text. The Bible tells us, the Gospel proclaims to us, that there is a very close and tender relationship between God and His people, between Christ and His Bride, the Church. As a matter of fact, the relationship between Christ and His church is that described through the Scriptures in the Lord and the Old Covenant already as the relationship between a bridegroom and a bride, a husband and wife. It's what Paul says in Ephesians 5 when he's talking about marriage. He points the arrow the other way and he says, I tell you a mystery concerning Christ. This picture of marriage, the reality of marriage, husband and wife together in communion and love with one another. I speak to you concerning Christ and His church. And this is even a more glorious mystery that means that in the original creation when God made Adam and then Eve and then brought them together that there was already something there in that marriage covenant of pointing to greater and better things which is the communion of God himself with his people. Now we have to know that, remember that the Bible speaks of these things in collective terms. In other words, Christ with his people. But what is true of the whole should also be true individually of everyone who confesses the name of Christ. If you follow the Lord Jesus Christ, that means He is your friend, the friend of sinners. He is your Savior. He is your Lord. And you love Him. And there's particularly a lovely phrase that Peter uses He says, as he writes to the churches, he describes Jesus Christ, and he has this little phrase, he's saying, whom having not seen, you love. You've never seen him, but you love him. That's how Peter can write to the churches where the gospel's been preached, far from Palestine, after the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. There were people that he could write to who loved him. and longed to see him. This was also expressed in the other direction by our Lord Jesus Christ to his church and to his own disciples at the end of his ministry when he told them that he was going away. Simon Peter asked him at the end of John 13, Lord, where are you going? Jesus answered him, where I'm going, you cannot follow me, but you shall follow me afterward. Peter said to him, Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for your sake. Jesus answered him, will you lay down your life for my sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow until you have denied me three times. Peter had to learn a lesson about his own sinfulness, but he would have to wait. But then Jesus said something very beautiful. He said, let not your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In my father's house were many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go and prepare a place for you. And then hear these words. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am, you may be also. In Jesus' high priestly prayer he prayed just before the cross that his disciples would be with him and see his glory and the glory of the Father. That there is something about the purposes of God in your redemption that one day you would see Jesus Christ face to face, whom having not seen yet you love, but then when you see Him, you will do so with joy inexpressible and full of glory." Again, as Peter says. Again, Jesus prayed, I desire that those who you gave me would be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory which you have given me, because you love me before the foundation of the world. There's this movement in redemption. Where you body and soul, like Job longed for, would see your Redeemer and be with Him. With affection, deep affection also comes often deep pain. And that pain comes by separation. So made for closeness with God and especially to be in the presence of Christ, that's the end of our redemption. But there's also the reality of separation, and we feel that profoundly. For example, at the death of a loved one, we feel the deep pain of separation. And that describes, in some sense, the church's present experience of being far from Christ. Now, not dead, alive in Christ, having the Spirit, tasting the glory of Christ, but the idea of not being near a loved one. Maybe you've been on a trip. and you've been far from your family. My family knows this, that probably 24 hours into a trip, we have a family group chat and I start saying to my family, please send me pictures. And everyone's like, dad, why do you need pictures? And there's some joy and communion. There's a sense of being far away. I want to know what everyone's doing and see everybody again and be reminded, even though I'm far away. It can only be resolved, this tension, by a reunion. Separation for a time creates this longing. The only resolution is a reunion. And there's something in these broad principles that I'm speaking of that lies at the heart of the text here today. And that is this, the joy and the significance of life in the presence of Jesus Christ. The highest order, communion. The greatest blessing, the joy of life in the presence of Jesus Christ, better than all others. There's a question that forms the beginning of our text that will lead us into this theme, the joy of the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are introduced again to some questioners, and we read, then they said to him, why the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink? Before we get into the questioners and who they are in the question, I want to deal with a single concept that runs through the text, and that is the idea or the central picture or question, let me clarify, the question of fasting. What is fasting? And why are these people, we'll see who they are in a moment, what is this fasting business that we're talking about? The period of not eating food for the purpose of focusing on spiritual realities is a basic definition of fasting. A period of not eating food for a period of time, maybe water only for a period of time, with the intentional purpose of focusing on spiritual realities, communion with God and prayer. The principle behind this is, and this is true, it's that self-indulgence makes the soul lethargic. And if you have a problem with particular sins that you go back to and you have a hard time overcoming, the practice of fasting may be a spiritual practice that would be of great benefit to you as you learn in another place just to say no to basic longings. And this one's hunger. Believing that there's something better. It's also a confession of faith. There's something better than this food and this perishing life. That's God himself. And this deprivation is intended to be for a time of focus, intensity, and prayer. And it's linked to prayer in the scriptures again and again. Nehemiah goes into a period of fasting and prayer. In Mark chapter nine, we read about fasting and prayer. In Acts chapter 14, after the ascension of Jesus, we read about the apostles having periods of fasting and prayer. And these two things go together. So turning away from food for a focused, Spiritual concentration on the Lord marked by communion with Him in prayer. Why this spiritual discipline? Again, it is a recognition here that there are things more important than this passing world and even this present life, spiritual and invisible and eternal realities. And the second thing is the act of fasting is also an act of humbling of the self. It's a practice that's found all through the Old Testament. In the book of Judges, I could just say, in 1 Samuel, Israel at Mizpah is fasting before the Lord as they confess their sins. In 2 Samuel 1 and verse 12, when Saul dies, David fasts. because Saul is gone and he's grieving because Israel has lost their king. Ezra fasts as he's longing for Israel to be established in the land. Nehemiah does the same. Esther and the Israelites do the same as they are in danger of being annihilated. David does the same thing in Psalm 35. Jehoshaphat does it as he considers the enemies of Israel in 2 Chronicles 20. Daniel does it. in exile as he waits on the Lord for an answer that would bring the Jews and his people salvation instead of persecution by Nebuchadnezzar. And the whole city of Nineveh, even pagans when they hear the message, repent, turn to the Lord, you've lived in sin, the whole city of Nineveh is marked by fasting and prayer and sackcloth, a humbling of self before God and a seeking Him and Him alone. This self-repudiation, this humility, dependence, and repentance are all wrapped up in fasting. It was commanded by the Lord often for Israel. And I want, this is a critical text to understand the spirit of this command to fast. Joel chapter 2. Verse 12, now therefore says the Lord, turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping and mourning, so rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for He's gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness, and He relents from doing harm. This idea was to turn to God, to ask for mercy, to focus on His glory, and to leave self and sin behind. The New Testament opens with descriptions of fasting. In Luke 2, verse 37, we read of Anna. She had served God with fastings and prayers night and day in the temple, longing for God to show mercy to Israel, praying for the salvation of the Lord through the Messiah. John the Baptist, we read from our text, fasted. The Pharisees fasted. Christ himself fasted for 40 days before being tempted by the devil. And later in the New Testament, the apostles fasted. Acts chapter 14, 1 Corinthians 7 and verse 5 says there's times for fasting for a husband and wife, for example. And so now if we go back to the text, there's a reasonable question. Why aren't your disciples fasting? When everybody else does, what's wrong? If this spiritual discipline is missing from your disciples, who is speaking, they said to him, if we roll back up into the text, it appears to be those who also criticized Jesus because of the feast at Levi's house and those who didn't believe that he could forgive sins on the paralytic. It's this crowd of critics, scribes and Pharisees and others who resent the ministry of Jesus. And they notice something. Disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees fast and you're not doing this thing. And the context, if you look at the immediate context, not just not doing this, Levi gave him a great feast in his own house. He's not just not fasting, he's feasting with sinners. And all those around him are somehow captivated by this joy and abundance. It's not right, they're saying. There's something wrong. Well, this question, reveal and betray, revealed that these critics had a pretty good concept of outward forms and ceremonies, and that they, at the same time, had betrayed that they had, and here's the critical point, they had no idea who they were talking to. They didn't know Jesus. So how does he answer them? They're unable to see Jesus. We'll see why in a moment. But here's the question. What's wrong with you as a teacher in Israel if there's no fasting? Jesus gives two answers. The first answer is going to reveal the privilege the disciples of Jesus were enjoying. And that was communion with God through the presence of Jesus Christ. So we'll look at that first. Jesus answered it with a particular analogy. Can you make friends of the bridegroom while the bridegroom is with them? It's pretty simple. Lord willing, there will be a wedding here on Tuesday night. And if you've been to weddings, unless something's really, really wrong, a wedding is supposed to be what? A feast. And we rejoice. Closest of friends come together with the hope and prayer and promise of life. This is the time for exuberant feasting. Matter of fact, we know that our Savior went to the wedding of Cain at Galilee. He feasted at a wedding. And Jesus says, there's something about this picture that applies to what is happening when I am with my disciples. Who would think that a wedding is a place to be fasting? It's against the character and nature of the thing. Jesus is saying something in verse 34 profound. I am the bridegroom, the disciples are my guests. Now there is some reason for this because earlier in this narrative of the Lord Jesus in Acts chapter 4 when he was teaching in the synagogue, Our Savior went to Isaiah chapter 61, and he had been preaching from this section of the text. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to preach glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, the opening of the prison to those who are bound, and proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. In the same chapter, the same voice says this, I will greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my God, for He has clothed me with the garment of salvation. He's covered me with the robe of righteousness. as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. The servant of the Lord who's anointed by the Spirit of God, when he comes, he's coming with all the joy of a wedding feast. It pervades everything that he does. It is central to who he is. That's Jesus Christ. And in Jeremiah chapter 2 and Hosea chapter 2, the Lord of Israel uses a marriage analogy to describe his relationship with his people. And the line our Savior is drawing is this, I am the bridegroom, these are my friends, and this, by definition, is a feast. Because I am with them. I am with them. Now, we know that from the Gospel of John, that this imagery was not just in the mind of Jesus. John the Baptist preached this just before this text. You yourselves bear me witness that I said I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before. This is John chapter 3. He who has the bride is the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom who stands and hears him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. Therefore, this joy of mine is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. He who comes from heaven is above all." John was saying, the bridegroom of Israel has come in Jesus Christ, and this is my joy. Paul in Ephesians 5, he has the same language when he speaks of marriage, and I speak of mystery concerning Christ and His church. And again, the profound reason for this in the context is Isaiah 61 and verse 16. The servant of the Lord who has the Spirit of the Lord is the one who brings the wedding feast of God as God meets with His people in saving glory. Now, here's the principle. So, let's move that from the grand themes of redemption to what actually is happening as they walk. This means, Jesus says, my disciples will not fast. That it would be incompatible with being with me. To be in my presence. is to experience the glory of communion with the Living God and this is the gift of salvation. It is right to think of the present age. So let's think about some periods in what we call redemptive history. To the coming of Christ, then we have the presence of the living Christ from his birth to his ascension. Now we have the present age where Christ is not with us, but he's coming again, which is the age of the spirit. And we remember that Jesus said something good about him departing, which was to give us the Holy Spirit. It's better that I go, he said, John 16, so that I might give you my Spirit, not leave you as orphans. But we need to remember that the best is yet to come, which is to have our hearts filled with the Spirit, to be in the presence of Jesus Christ, the God-man, and gazing on the glory of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit before the throne of God with His holy angels. And Jesus is saying there's something of that present reality, future reality, in the present experience of my disciples as they walk and talk with me now. They are with the Bridegroom. They are in the presence of the Lord God Almighty. This is an inestimable privilege of the disciples. They are walking with the Lord Jesus Christ. And the Bible repeatedly teaches us about the blessing of the privilege of the presence of Christ. We know already from Luke that He's the Messiah and that He's God with us. Elizabeth said that Mary was the mother of my Lord. He's the Most High, the Holy One of Israel. The Son of David will sit on the throne forever. He is both the eternal Son of God and the Messiah King in David's line who would bring salvation to Israel. This all in one person, the God-man Jesus Christ walking the earth. Which is why Peter would later write this to the church, we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. And why John would write, the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory. The glory is of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. That we saw something, we witnessed something. We bear witness to you of the Lord of glory, Emmanuel, God with us. We walked with Him. We talked with Him. John would write this in 1 John. Our ears heard, our eyes saw, our hands handled the Word of Life. Although shrouded in its humiliation, If we compare with what Paul saw in Acts chapter 9, the light of the glory of God shining and striking them down on the road to Damascus, or John in Revelation chapter 1, his face shining like the sun in full strength. I fell at his feet as though I were dead, John writes. No, that glory is no longer shrouded, yet it was sufficient glory for the disciples to truly experience the wonder of life in the presence of God. They were in the presence of unfathomable, infinite greatness and love. They were in the presence of the one who had fulfilled all the types and shadows of the tabernacle and the temple. They were walking with the Lord of glory. And Jesus said, this is not a time for fasting. They're with the bridegroom. They're experiencing Emmanuel, God with us. Leon Morris wrote this very simply. To follow Christ, to walk with Christ, is to enter into a happy and blessed experience of life. And consider the special blessings of life with Jesus Christ. Consider them. His presence means blessing for His people. It means provision in the feeding of 5,000. It means safety in the storms of life. It means healing. For the sick, it means victory over sin and evil as He cast out demons. And they were seeing all of these things in the front row. The power of the ministry and salvation of Jesus Christ. To be in the presence of the Lord, and to know Him, and to follow Him, and to take up their cross and deny Him means to have salvation and everlasting life. To have this great hope that John writes about. To see Him. To hear Him. To know Him. It means final salvation. You ever think about this? The Apostle John would write later, that there's going to come a time in the life of every believer, and here this is profoundly connected to the theology of this text, when you will see him. And John said, so immeasurably great. That you will be like Him as He is. That that view of the glory of God shining in the face of Christ will have a transformative power. And that you will be with Him where He is, John 4. And as he prayed, that you will be with Him where He is again. As Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 4, that you will ever be with the Lord. When He comes, the glory is to ever be with Him. His presence as the Son of God, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father, Jesus said, that means, if you have seen Me, what does He say? You have seen the Father. Paul says, the light of the knowledge of the glory of God shines in the face of Jesus Christ. If you've come to Him by faith already, you see something of this. But one day, Paul says, your faith will be sight. Again, John could say, we beheld His glory. The glory is of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. And this is why John writes in Revelation 19, why the moment of the church's final reunion with Jesus Christ in glory in Revelation chapter 19, verse 7, is called the marriage supper of the Lamb, a feast. A spiritual blessing that will last forever and ever. And this is the answer to the question when Jesus was asked, why are they not fasting? Jesus says, because all these things are true about me. A question for you. Do you long for this? I want to read you a narrative of somebody who knew the saving mercy of Jesus Christ and was heartbroken when he was gone. It's after the cross and it's in John chapter 20 and it's Mary who had been forgiven to the Lord. Mary Magdalene who had lived a life of rebellious sinfulness against the Lord. The text says that she was standing outside the tomb weeping and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb and she saw two angels in white sitting one at the head and the other at the feet where the body of Jesus had lain. And they said to her, woman why are you weeping? And listen to why she is weeping. Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." Her instinct was to find Jesus. And even in some way after His death, she is drawn to find the Lord who saved her. And when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there and didn't know that it was Jesus. And Jesus said to her, woman, why are you weeping? Who are you seeking? She, supposing to be the gardener, said, sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him and I will take him away. Jesus said to her, Mary. And she said, Rabboni, master, teacher. Jesus said to her, do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father, but I go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. You see her impulse, her impulse was to be with Jesus Christ. And the question is, do you have the same impulse or longing? Are you waiting for that day that's described in shadow form, or at least in the present form in Revelation 4 and 5, when the whole of heaven is praising God, casting down their crowns before the throne of God, saying, blessing and honor and glory and dominion belong to the Lord, and worthy is the lamb who was slain. Is there something in you that wants not to be here, but rather to be there, body and soul in the presence of the Lord? Here's the principle of the text. Jesus said, for these disciples to be with me is a foretaste now of that eternal glory in the future. And then he answers in another way. He takes this principle of his presence and the blessing tied to his presence as Redeemer to something about the nature of his kingdom. The second part of his answer in verse 36 to the end, he says this, with two more parables and two more illustrations, he's now saying, there's something that has happened in my coming. Something has changed fundamentally about all of history. Nothing will ever be the same for my people. He does it in two ways. The first, he says, no one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one. Otherwise, the new makes a tear. Now, children, you probably don't know this. Clothes don't shrink. Is it just me? As bad as they did when I was a child. Used to be if you bought something. Now, somehow people have figured out how to pre-shrink things before they sell them to you. probably even 20 or 40 years ago that wasn't the case and certainly not in the time of Jesus. If you had a new piece of cloth, you would expect that as it is used and washed and cleaned that it would settle into a final shrunk form as it got older, which would make new cloth incompatible with old cloth because if you put the two in one garment, they would change shape at different ways and even tear the garment. Jesus uses a second illustration that would be understood less today, more in Jesus' day, but we can't understand it. He talks about wineskins. What's a wineskin? You can actually, I found out this week, you can still buy wineskins. There's a Spanish bota that you can buy today to put wine in, which is a leather bag, a leather flask for wine. And wineskins are still used in the Middle East today. Why does Jesus use the second illustration? He says, if you have an old one where the leather is brittle and you put a new wine still fermenting in it, it will burst. There's something incompatible between what is old and what is new. And in both of these illustrations, what is Jesus saying? He's saying there is a fundamental difference that has come with my coming between an old age and an old era and the present age of glory and my presence. The idea of incompatibility. The new and old are not the same. They are not to be confused or mixed. There is something different that is happening. And your question with fasting has given me an occasion to tell you something about the nature of my kingdom. And here it is. There is now the reality, the possibility of a life without fasting. What does that mean? Joel chapter 2. Fast, mourn, and weep because of your sins. I have come to deal with sin. Fasting is linked to sin. It's also linked to the Day of Atonement in the Old Testament. To afflict one's soul before the presence of God and the act of repenting from sin. Jesus is saying, there's something in me in which a new age has dawned. in which the fundamental problems of sin and evil will be dealt with, how? Two ways, by my cross, by the empty tomb. Then the age of the spirit will apply the work of Christ to us, leading ultimately to what? The reality of life, feasting life in the presence of God forever and ever. Jesus speaks of this in Luke 22. What Jesus is saying is now in the new covenant and in my coming, there is something better than has ever been realized in me, in my presence, in my incarnation, my person, my work. I am the beginning of the new creation. And now there is a fundamental incompatibility between the past age and all of the future. And this in turn reveals the blindness of the question, why are you fasting? They asked because they could not see the glory of Jesus Christ or understand his mission. Jesus is the bridegroom, and with tender love for sinners, he has come for all those who believe in him. What was really behind the fasting question? It was not only a blindness to the glory of Jesus Christ, but it also reveals in some sense a superstitious and legal way of looking at communion with God. An emphasis on outward ceremonies, on the ceremonial aspects of the old covenant law, for example, without a true understanding of the heart of the thing, which is that to be in communion with God is to receive the forgiveness of sins. And now, in these pages of the New Testament, through Jesus Christ, which brings you into the presence and life of the triune God by the power of the Holy Spirit, and to feasting. Jesus here is saying, the glory of the new covenant has come in me. Some concluding applications for those hearing the word, for us hearing the word here this morning. And there are a number of them. And the first one is a simple note that runs through the text. And it is that true Christianity is a religion of joy in the presence of God. True Christianity is a religion of joy in the presence of God. What do people usually say about Christianity in the world? What are people quick to say? You are killjoys. Because of all the rules and regulations and the pursuit of holiness and all these things, you are missing out on what this world has to offer in the way of pleasure and really living a true authentic life. The world mocks Christianity for this. The reality is that it is the only truth, the truth of the gospel that brings liberty and lasting happiness to the sin-sick soul. It is the only structure and message under which you might feast before the presence of God and praise Him for His goodness. You know, when we pray for our meals, for example, and we say, Lord, please bless this food and drink for Jesus' sake, that's not a small prayer. That is a prayer that acknowledges that because of the mediation, power and glory of Jesus Christ, every gift he gives me now tends to my good and I receive it in him and because of him I do it with joy. Every blessing, all of life. At the heart of Christianity is this deep-rooted happiness and rejoicing that I live life now under the care of, in the presence of, under the mercy of the bridegroom has come to redeem the bride from her sins. Which is why, and I will put this carefully, if you are a fundamentally unhappy and morose person, there's something profoundly wrong with your view of Jesus Christ. Like the Pharisees, I've met people who profess Christ and are like this. They are bound and determined to remain miserable and make other people miserable. Jesus says, this is fundamentally against the whole glory of my kingdom. I came for feasting and life. True Christianity is a religion of joy. Second, how about the present age? If you go back to verse 35, Jesus says, that the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them and they will fast in those days. It's an interesting little phrase. That's where we're living right now. The present age. Now the present age is the age where two things are real. One, our Savior Jesus Christ, John 13 and 14, is gone. He ascended into heaven. He is not here with us. He has gone to the right hand of the Father. And so we have to live by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us. We have not seen him, but we love him. And that means that this present age is an age where there are two realities. One, by the power of the Spirit of God, this is the age of the Spirit, we have better blessings, we are united to Christ and we truly enjoy fellowship with Him. But at the same time, we are in a period of waiting and even fasting. Which is why when you read Acts chapter 14, for example, the apostles are fasting and praying as the church proceeds. because there is an already and not yet reality, the already glory and triumph of Jesus Christ, the not yet because we are not with Him in His presence. This is why Paul could write to the Philippians that the nature of the Christian life is one of striving and longing for This, our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to his glorious body. I do not count myself to as apprehended, but the one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind, reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the call, upward call of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. He's looking for something better. The writer of the Hebrews who run the race, looking to Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, that the finish line is life in the presence of God forever. That also means that in the present life, we're not surprised by fiery trials, for example, because we are not yet in that fullness of glory. Third, we meditate on the profound coming nature of heavenly rest. If in the shrouded glory of the incarnate one before the cross, the empty tomb, and the ascension. It was warranted for the disciples not to fast. How much more heavenly glory. In Revelation chapter 22, we have this description that runs through the scriptures. We read it from Job. in our Bible reading, what was Job's longing? I know that my Redeemer lives and that in my flesh I will see him. My eyes will see him, not another. In my flesh I shall see God. Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. Revelation chapter 22 we read They shall see, there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in the heavenly city. And his servants shall serve him, they shall see his face. I wanna ask you another question. You profess faith in Jesus Christ, how much time have you thought about seeing Jesus Christ? And what is the nature of the longing of your heart for that day? when you, finally leaving behind all sin, sorrow, sighing, and tears, will see and forever be with the Lord." This is the great, ultimate promise of the gospel. He said, I'm coming back for you, and you will see me. Matter of fact, every eye will see me. And there will be a massive gathering of saints from every nation, tribe, and tongue, and age, and place, who have lived and died across the lifetimes, believing that in Him there is salvation, life, and forgiveness, and eternal life, and will rush with arms and hearts open like Mary Magdalene, having looked for Him, and finally finding Him, and realizing that it's true. Blessed are the pure in heart. for they shall see God. This is the joy and promise of the presence of Jesus Christ. Let us pray. Lord our God, we come to you now and we honor, bless, and adore you. We praise your holy name. We ask for a greater longing that we might know and live life in your presence. Lord, we thank you that you are with us by your Holy Spirit in the present age, but we know that you have reserved better things for the age to come. We thank you that you gave us both an insight into that glory in the Incarnate One who walked with His disciples in festal procession in order powerfully to lay down His life and take it up again and one day to bring us to glory in that Holy Presence forever. But we ask that in the present age while we wait for the better day that you would give us a longing to see Jesus, and to share in the greater glory but real participation that the disciples had long ago of life in the presence of the incarnate one. Lord, we pray if there are any here are living for any other hope or end or purpose or there would be repentance and that you would even Lord as we your people think about all the ways that we have been distracted by the things of this world with new devotion turn to you. And we ask now that you would especially be pleased to be present with us as you remind us of the glory of that presence at your holy table. And we pray, help us to sing and worship evermore until the better day. In Jesus' name, amen. Look up and receive the blessing of the Lord. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you his peace. Amen.