Sermons

Introduction

Our text this morning, if you have a Bible invite you to turn there, is Luke chapter 10, verses 13 through 16. Luke 10, verses 13 through 16. I'll read the text, and then we'll go to the Lord in prayer and ask for His blessing on our time around His word.

Luke's gospel, chapter 10, beginning verse 13: "Woe to you, Corazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. The one who hears you hears Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me, and the one who rejects Me rejects him who sent Me." Let's pray.

[Prayer] Father, we thank You this morning for Your word. We thank You for the privilege of coming around Your word as brothers and sisters in Christ. We ask now that You would humble our hearts. Soften our hearts to receive the truth. Build us up to the praise of Your glory, we ask in Jesus' name. Amen. [End]

So, Rule Number One, when you are traveling, when you are invited to speak somewhere, Rule Number One: Bring an encouraging text. Bring an encouraging message. Just preach a message about grace, about fellowship, about the gospel. This is not my fault. This is not on me. I texted Mark two weeks ago saying, "Hey, any idea what text you guys would like me to preach?" He just replied. No explanation; he just said, "Luke 10:13-16," and that was the end of our conversation. I'm not to blame, but the word of God is sufficient. What do we do with a text like this?

When you look at any text, it's important, of course to study the words that are inspired by the Holy Spirit, the words and how the words are arranged to form sentences. It is, of course, important to look at their context. And one of the most important questions you need to ask of any text is, "How does it fit into the flow of thought in the broader context? Why is this text here?" You're not just asking what's before it and what's after it but, "What's the flow of thought? How does it fit into the argument that's being developed?"

So, perhaps the most important thing that we can understand about these few verses is that they form part of Jesus' instructions to the disciples as He sends them out. That's maybe the most important thing to understand, which is to say, when Jesus says, "Woe to you, Corazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!" He is not walking around to these unrepentant cities pronouncing these judgments on them. He's still stood amongst the 72, still giving them instructions about how to represent Him well as He sends them out. These judgments form part of Jesus' instructions.

Certainly, Jesus intends to warn these cities about their rejection of Him, certainly. But first, these words form, as it were, a rhetorical purpose. They have this rhetorical function because they're part of His instructions to His disciples. That is to say, Jesus wants His disciples at this moment to hear how they should think about judgment and how they should speak to those who reject Christ. As Jesus pronounces these woes to the unrepentant cities, the purpose is to instruct His disciples as to how to think about judgment and how they should speak to those who reject Christ.

Now, from there, another difficult question that we always have to wrestle with when we work through any text is, "How do we then apply that text to our lives?" And I say difficult because it's not normally as easy as, perhaps, we think, especially when you're in the Gospels. This is a very unique period in redemptive history and it's not always a straight line from the text to where we are today.

In this case it is fairly straightforward. So if we back up a little bit, Jesus gives these instructions, beginning in chapter 10, to His disciples as He sends them out, "This is how you are to represent Me and preach the gospel." And if we look at the things He says a lot of them are readily applicable to us today. He sends them out. He says, "The harvest is plentiful," that is always true. "The laborers are few," that is always true. He instructs His disciples to pray; we should be praying. He tells them not to take very much, which is a sign of their dependence on Him and the ministry of the Spirit to them, which would be Christ and the Spirit. He tells them to proclaim peace when they arrive: "We bring good news. We proclaim peace." He says, "Receive what they have to offer, receive their hospitality. But if they reject you, speak to them judgment," and then that leads to our verses today.

So, actually in this case, the application is quite simple. A different period in redemptive history, but through these words, Jesus wants us to think about judgment and understand how we are to speak to those who reject Jesus Christ. So I pray that through these verses, we would be reminded of the truths that we already believe, that we would be equipped further to represent Christ to the world, and that we'd be encouraged towards the work of evangelism.

Speaking About Eternal Judgment

How is it that Jesus instructs us through these words? Five observations that we can make. The first is this: Jesus reminds us very simply of the importance of speaking about eternal judgment. Jesus, with these words, reminds us of the importance of speaking about eternal judgment.

"Woe to you, Corazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!" These are cities around His ministry where He was ministering who had rejected Him. He says, "If the mighty works done in you" – referring to His ministry – "had been done in Tyre and Sidon," – Old Testament cities that were godless – "they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But" – He says – "it will be more bearable in the judgment for them" – Tyre and Sidon – "than for you."

Hell is not a popular topic to speak about, and we understand why because it is difficult to speak about it. It's difficult to hear the realities of hell. It is so unpopular that many change their doctrine, their belief in hell. They accommodate, perhaps, their fears, perhaps, the world's dislike of this doctrine so as to change their belief. Perhaps, they believe that hell isn't eternal. That's a popular misconception, that the suffering in the judgment does not go on forever but is limited, which is not what the Bible says.

Jesus doesn't shy away from speaking about the eternal judgment, and neither should we. If you stop speaking about the judgment, the eternal judgment that comes to sinners who neglect to repent of their sin and trust in Christ savingly, ultimately you lose the gospel. Ultimately, you have no real meaning to the word "salvation."

"What are you offering salvation from?" You might say, "Well, sin." And certainly, that's true, but to what end? Salvation from your sin, but to what end? If you neglect to speak about judgment, you ultimately lose the gospel. What happens when you do speak about the truth of hell is that you bring eternity into view; and that is what people need to hear. That's what saints need to hear of every Sunday, that eternity lies ahead of us. That is what unrepentant sinners need to hear of, that eternity lies ahead of them.

We have to bring eternity into view. And it is somewhat ironic here that Jesus is speaking to cities. If you think about our day, cities, or even more broadly, Western society, does everything that it can to remove from our view and our thoughts the reality of eternity. Society would have us live exclusively in the here and now as if this is the sum total of our existence.

You serve people well when you bring eternity into view, both in terms of heaven and hell. You need to not just tell them that it is real but show them with your words. If you have trusted in Christ for the forgiveness of your sin, the truth is very soon you will be in heaven. And when you are in heaven, there will be no sin left inside of you.

The struggle against pride will be over. The struggle against the flesh will be done. You will be without sin. And as you look around you, there will be no sin to be found. And Jesus Christ will be there. And the Bible says you will look Him in the eyes, you will see your Savior face to face, and you will be like Him because you will see Him as He is. That is the glory. of eternity for those who have trusted in Christ for salvation. If you have not trusted in Christ for salvation, if you reject the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Bible says your eternity is one of suffering.

The Bible describes hell as a place of torment, of darkness, of fire, of weeping and gnashing of teeth. It is a place of remorse and regret. Hell offers no mateship, no friendship, no fellowship. It is the loneliest place in all of the universe, and it lasts forever. And a sinner might object and say, "How can a just God punish someone forever when, perhaps, their life on this earth didn't look that bad?" and you're fundamentally missing the point as it concerns the nature of sin. Even the smallest sin is committed against an infinitely holy God. So if you commit a sin against an infinitely holy God, the just punishment is infinite suffering. That's how God's can send sinners to hell forever. And you serve people well as you bring eternity into view.

Now, to be clear, I understand it requires much sensitivity to speak of these truths. So just think about the unbelievers that the Lord has placed in your life. In a room of this size with this many people, there are many, many relationships represented here with loved ones, people whom you dearly cherish who have rejected Jesus Christ. It requires much sensitivity to speak about these issues. How can you be sensitive when speaking about hell? You have to remember the reason that you would bring such truths before them: very simply as a warning issued in love.

I really don't think there is much place for the proverbial banging on the pulpit when you're speaking about hell. Jesus wept over Jerusalem. You are to speak of these things in love. And so the irony is this: when you neglect to speak of eternal suffering in the name of loving someone, there's few things you could do that is less loving.

The irony of the seeker-sensitive movement is that everything, the philosophy of ministry is that everything is done in the name of love, "Just welcome people in, don't talk about sin, certainly don't bring into view hell. If they can just feel comfortable, then we'll usher them into the kingdom." There are a few things that you could do that are less loving.

A few years ago, I read Dante's Divine Comedy. If you haven't read it, I would recommend you do. It's not necessarily that you'll agree with every single thing that he says. The middle section of the book is all about purgatory, a doctrine that is not biblical and we wouldn't agree to. But if you know anything about the book, it's Dante traveling through, beginning hell, and then purgatory, and finally, heaven. It's a poetic exposition of scriptural ideas, especially relating to hell and to heaven.

I remember when I was reading through the first third of that book, one day at a time, I would read a chapter, and what we see is such a vivid and powerful description of the suffering that goes on forever. One of the things that Dante does so well is to speak about varying degrees of suffering in hell, which is entirely biblical. Jesus says here, "It will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. You will suffer more than they will." There are different degrees of suffering in hell.

When we preach the doctrine of total depravity, it's not to say at all that every sinner has pursued every sin to its fullest extent. That's not what total depravity means. It means that every sinner is inherently sinful. They can do nothing that has goodness at its core. But understand this: the sins that the sinner has pursued, he will be punished for. The more sin, the more that he's pursued it, the greater the punishment.

And so, Dante takes you through these layers of hell going deeper and deeper and deeper and showing more and more suffering. And as I read, I found that my heart was heavy. It was so heavy for the lost in my life, those who have not accepted Christ as Savior. And I just grew in love for them, and my desire to speak about the realities of eternity grew. Jesus would have us think and speak about the truth of eternal judgment.

Speaking About Repentance

Secondly, through these words, Jesus reminds us of" the importance of speaking about repentance, repentance." He says, "If the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Siden, they would have repented long ago."

As much as we are faithful to speak about heaven and hell, we must also be faithful to explain to the sinner that there is a way to avoid eternal punishment, that the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, provides a means by which you do not need to face God in judgment. There is a means that God has provided to the sinner to not face judgment eternally. The Bible calls it repentance. Why is it that the sinner is in hell? Simply because of their sin. That is the only reason anyone goes to hell. How is it the sinner can be found elsewhere, namely in heaven? Because by the grace of God they turned from their sin.

Now, as we think about repentance, I would encourage you to consider just how nuanced this doctrine is and may need to be. As you speak to people in your life, it requires, perhaps, a measure of skill that we don't appreciate. The reason I say that is because most likely you know of folks who have not turned to Christ for salvation but are very good people. I know many. They do lots of good things. Their lives, from a human perspective at a societal level, are wonderful. They're contributors to society. They're nice people to be around. They do not trust Christ for salvation.

And so, how is it that you call them to repentance? Or more specifically, what is it that you are calling them to repent of? The man in my church who comes every single Sunday, who is very friendly to people, who in many ways is a blessing in other people's lives, but I know for a fact has not trusted Christ savingly, I don't want him to stop coming to church, I want him to stop being friendly. What is it that you are calling people to repent of?

These verses in Matthew's gospel are located in a slightly different context. I always find it a fascinating study to look at how verses across the different gospels are used by the gospel authors to different effect. These verses in Matthew's gospel come in chapter 11 right before Jesus says, "Come unto Me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Now we're going through Matthew in the mornings at Bethany, and when we got to those verses, it was a wonderful, rich time. We spent several weeks there, and I enjoyed thinking so much about Jesus' offer of rest and wrestled with the question, "What is it that He's giving rest from?" And the answer is, if we can just spend a little time borrowing from Matthew, the answer is this: the burdens in Jesus' day that the Pharisees were putting on those around Him. A legalistic standard of righteousness, the Pharisees teaching people that they're to work their way up to heaven. And Jesus says, "You shut heaven's door in their faces."

Today we don't have the Pharisees around us, but there's a sense in which we don't really need them because we create those same burdens all by ourselves, a standard of righteousness that we try to attain in and of ourselves by which we can say, "I did it." Everyone wants justification. Everyone wants to say that they did it, that, "I am justified in my existence, my life, the way I spent my time. I made it." And Jesus says that way of living is what makes you weary. That's the burden that you're putting on yourself, you'll never get there. "Come to Me, and I will give you rest."

So when you speak the truth of repentance to your friend that doesn't know Jesus Christ savingly, what are you calling them to repent of? A life that does not have rest in the completed work of Christ as its center. Lots and lots of good things going on in your life, lots and lots of really wonderful things. For as much as you do not have rest in Christ as your center, you need to repent.

Now look, there's a word for us here as Christians. There's a line of application here for us as Christians. Will we ever face the judgment of God? The answer is no, wonderfully, because of the completed work of Christ on the cross. Might we face the discipline of the Lord? Yes. Why would the Lord discipline us? Because even as Christians, we can create burdens. We can stop resting in Christ and go back to our old ways, behaving as if there is nothing externally righteous credited to us. We are working our way to heaven, and God will not have us live that way.

And so as Christians, we need to be praying often that God would show us where we are creating burdens. As Christians, we need to pray that God would give us a spirit of repentance, the grace to turn away from self-justifying ways and learn how to rest in Christ. And as much as we have learned to rest in Christ, we need to speak the truth of repentance to others.

Third observation: What is it that Jesus instructs us through these words? He reminds us, "The importance of speaking about the singularity of Christ." Eternal judgment, repentance; thirdly, the singularity of Christ. Look at what Jesus says to Capernaum. He says, verse 15, "You, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You should be brought down to Hades."

Jesus asks a rhetorical question, and the question, in a sense, is a metaphor, because it's not that literally Capernaum was trying to elevate themselves up to heaven, it's a metaphor that is representative of their pride. Capernaum was working their way to heaven, that is by their pride, but the way Jesus phrases the question is so telling. It is very revealing about the nature of pride. Put simply: pride is the sinner's means by which he tries to attain heaven. Pride is the sinner's means by which he tries to attain heaven. A more fundamental truth very simply is that everyone wants heaven.

So, if you were to go out to the street today and stop just a half dozen people and ask them, "Where do you want to be when you die?" My guess is most, if not all of them, would say heaven. Nobody, unless they're out of their mind, says, "I want to suffer eternally." Everyone wants to go to heaven. Those in Capernaum were working to get right with God. Ours is the privilege and the responsibility of telling the sinner that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one gets to heaven, no one comes to the Father except through Him.

Now, if the doctrine of hell is offensive, the singularity of Jesus Christ even more so. The singularity of Jesus Christ is the most offensive doctrine that you will speak to the unrepentant sinner, because what you're saying, in essence, is, "Whatever is your worldview, whatever is your system of belief, if it doesn't have Jesus Christ at the center as the Bible represents Him, it's wrong. Oh, and by the way, the way in which I can say that is because my worldview is right." It's really offensive.

So, the challenge is this. As you think about those relationships that God has put in your life, the challenge is this: "How do you preach faithfully the singularity of Jesus Christ without adding to the offense?" The truth will offend, your job is to not add to the offense. You understand that in your efforts to speak the good news, you must never be the point of offense. If the truth offends, so be it; you may not add to that. How do you preach this truth without adding to the offense?

The most effective and sensitive preaching that I've heard of this truth was just over a year ago and it was from my brother, who is a pastor back home, at my mom's memorial service. She passed away very suddenly, and we weren't able to get back in time. We flew home as soon as we received the news, and then a week later, we sat in her memorial service. Life changes really quickly.

And so we were in this small church with maybe 50 people at the memorial service, and my brother – who's my hero; I want to be like him when I grow up – he stood up and preached a short message to a room mostly full of unbelievers. All of mom's work colleagues had been there, had come, and maybe just a small handful of Christians, and he got up and he said, "You all want me to tell you that mom is in heaven today. You want me to tell you that." And he said, "And I can because she trusted in Jesus Christ for salvation, which is the only reason that anyone is in heaven."

The tone with which you speak this truth is important, the time of which you speak this truth. The benefit of pursuing relationships with unbelievers is that you don't have to accomplish everything in one conversation. Pray for wisdom that God would give you the right time to speak of this truth. Speak about the singularity of Christ always with reference to a much greater context.

My brother said, "You want me to tell you that my mom is in heaven. What do you want for yourself? You want an eternity that has no suffering. That's what everyone wants. And there's nothing wrong with that." And speak about the sufficiency of Christ to give you that. Speak about what Christ has done for you. Speak about the fact that Christ is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep, that Christ has died so that you may have no more suffering. Speak about the fact that Christ is a friend of sinners, that there is no sin that you have done that overtakes the grace of the gospel.

However great your sin, Christ's grace is more. Speak about the fact that whatever it is you are trusting in to get you there, it is insufficient. Whatever you have put your confidence in, look around and see the brokenness of life, see the hideous nature of sin, evil wickedness, and understand whatever you have put your confidence in, it is insufficient to carry the weight of sin. But Jesus, my Savior, hung on the cross and absorbed all of God's wrath so that I may be in heaven with Him.

Speaking About The Goodness Of The Gospel

You see, as you appeal to a greater context, you are, in essence, speaking of the sufficiency of Christ, and so you speak about the sufficiency of Christ so as to make the singularity of Christ obvious. Jesus wants us to speak about the singularity of Christ. Fourth point: "He reminds us of the importance of speaking about the goodness of the gospel, the goodness of the gospel."

Just back up a little bit and remember the context, you studied verses 1 through 12 last week, and you'll remember that Jesus' instructions are the very, very, very first thing you say is, "Peace." You don't lead with the truth of eternal judgment. The first thing you say when you show up is, "Peace." We are the messengers of good news. The gospel is good news for sinners.

And then when Jesus does speak about eternal judgment, He says this, verse 13, "I the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon," referring to His ministry, specifically of healings and of miracles. You see, Jesus had shown them everything that they needed to see to trust in Him. Jesus' ministry, from beginning to end, was one of goodness overflowing towards sinners. That is why He can say, "The kingdom of heaven is near."

He comes and He heals the sick, and He gives the blind sight, and each and every healing is to be understood as a window into the kingdom. It's not that the fullness of the kingdom has arrived, but it is near. And as everyone in Jesus' day witnessed His ministry, they were to look at Him and come to the reasonable conclusion, "This man is good." "If the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented." Jesus is saying they would have seen and acknowledged the goodness of the gospel.

Now, our ministry, to be sure, is different. Jesus is not here with us bodily. And this was a very unique time in redemptive history. The normative way in which God is moving forward, His plan today isn't through miraculous healings. But that isn't to say that there aren't good works that should be happening today testifying to the goodness of the gospel. You need to put the goodness of the gospel on display in your life. Speak to the unrepentant sinner about the fact that the way of the transgressor is hard. You see, the destiny of the sinner, eternal judgment, is already working its way back into their life now. They are tasting something of the eternal misery they will experience now through their sin.

The way of the transgressor is hard. Speak the truth plainly: "The reason that you are feeling so worn out, so miserable, is because you are choosing the path of sin. God has established this world, and it works according to His ordinances, and you are running against the grain; and that's why life is so hard." And then speak about the goodness of the gospel.

I do not have it all figured out and, certainly, I make foolish choices; but look, I am trying by God's grace to get under His will, and it is a good path to be on. The wonder of the Christian life is this: the heaven that we will enjoy forever, that is working its way back into our life now. The path of the Christian is always beside still waters and is in pleasant pastures. Even when the Lord ordains for us great trials, we can taste something of heaven now.

Speak to people about the goodness of the gospel, the present experience   goodness of the gospel. It's like C.S. Lewis says in The Great Divorce: "Earth in the end will not amount to all that much because for the one that chooses heaven first, heaven works itself back, he experiences it now so that when he arrives he will say, 'I have always lived here.' And for the one that refuses to pick heaven now and chooses the world first, hell works itself back so that when he arrives there he'll say, 'I've never known anything but this.'"

When you speak about Jesus Christ, smile. Communicate to people with your face that you love Christ because of what He's done for you. And we may even here at this point make application to the church. Again, it's fascinating to me that Jesus pronounces these woe oracles to cities. We live in such an individualistic time; we think only about points of application on the individual level. Jesus speaks to cities, or communities, unrepentant communities.

The church is the heavenly community. By God's grace, washed in the blood of the Lamb, all we are is blood-washed sinners. We know the grace of God, and we are going to glory to be with Christ forever. And so there should be a corporate testimony coming from the local church that boasts to the community that Christ is good.

Smile and sing heartily on a Sunday. Pray, as I do, that every single Sunday there will be unbelievers amongst us. Pray that they will see and hear the gospel, that they would hear the gospel in the songs that you sing and in the preaching of God's word but pray that they would see the gospel being enacted in your love for one another. Work hard to ensure that there is a testimony of good works issuing from this heavenly community; and the good works, very simply, is a loving of one another in a self-sacrificial way, so that when that unbeliever is amongst you, they would say, "I have never seen anything like this before," that they would be compelled and drawn by God's grace to Jesus Christ.

Speaking Of God's Sovereignty To Ourselves

Finally, "Jesus reminds us of the importance of speaking of God's sovereignty to ourselves. Jesus reminds us of the importance of speaking about God's sovereignty specifically to ourselves." So, if you look at verse 16, Jesus says, "The one who hears you" – to His disciples – "hears Me, the one who rejects you rejects Me, and the one who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."

Again, just pay attention to what's happening in the text, always looking at, "How does this fit within the flow of thought?" Verses 13 through 15, Jesus is, in this hypothetical way, pronouncing woes on these cities, though still amongst His disciples. So those verses have this rhetorical function instructing His disciples indirectly how they are supposed to think and speak about judgment.

But then there's a shift when you get to verse 16 specifically that Jesus stops speaking to the unrepentant cities and He brings it back to His disciples and addresses them directly: "The one who rejects you" – to the 72 – "rejects Me. The one who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me." He is reminding them of God's sovereignty in the task as they go out to represent Christ. He is reminding them, certainly, of the importance of the task: "What you are doing, "Jesus says, "is functioning as ambassadors for Me, and I am an ambassador for the God who sent Me." That's a weighty responsibility. But at the same time, wonderfully, this truth in verse 16 should put them at ease because God is over this; somebody's salvation doesn't depend ultimately on you.

Now just think how liberating that truth should be. It means this: as you speak to the lost about Jesus Christ, you don't have to have all the answers. Please hear me on that. You do not have to have all the answers as you speak to the lost about Jesus Christ. You don't have to know who the Nephilim were, it's okay. You don't have to be able to answer every question about creation or the flood, just determine to be excellent with the gospel. That's what you're responsible for, to present the gospel faithfully. Determine to be excellent with the gospel. And if somebody asks you a question and you don't know, say, "I don't know. But I know Christ has saved me."

When somebody trusts in Jesus Christ savingly, it wasn't because of you. When somebody rejects the gospel, you have not failed. You see how wonderfully liberating it is. And Jesus gives this verse, verse 16, as the very last thing He says before He sends them out. And I think He does that to encourage them and to comfort them. These are the words that are still ringing in their ears as they go and represent Christ. It is so important for us to meditate often on the truth of God's sovereignty in salvation as we are faithful to evangelize the lost.

In fact, look at what happens next. I don't know who's up next week, but I'll just steal a little bit of that text for a few minutes. I won't be here, so we can do this.

The very next thing that happens: the disciples go out, they come back rejoicing, "Even the demons are subject to us in Your name." And Christ says, "Well, hold on. Do not rejoice" – verse 20 – "in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." He says, "Remember what's important here. Don't think too highly of yourselves. God saved you." It is by God's grace that you are saved. Think often upon your own testimony of salvation. You were dead and lifeless and truly you were not seeking Christ, and He quickened your spirit and caused you to live. Remember that as you preach the gospel to the lost.

Now to be clear, this is not the last time that Jesus will instruct His disciples about how to represent Him well. As you keep going through this gospel, you see just how prone they are to mess things up. But if we were to jump ahead to the book of Acts written by this same man, Luke, what you find is a group of men who preach the gospel with clarity and with boldness. In the face of all adversity, they preach the truth of God's sovereignty and the truth of repentance and the truth of the singularity of Christ.

Conclusion

Just by way of example, listen to what Paul says. He says, "God" – in Acts 17 – "commands all people everywhere to repent." Why? Because He's fixed a day on which He will judge the world. In righteousness by a man, by one man, Jesus Christ, whom He has appointed; and of this He has given assurance to all by raising Him from the dead.

And after this ministry, the disciples handed to us the Epistles. You know how blessed we are to sit here with God's word in our hands this morning, and we can study the letters that they gave to us. And what do they teach us? They teach us of God's sovereignty and salvation. They teach us of the singularity of Jesus Christ, the reality of sin and the need for us to turn from it and cast ourselves upon Him. And they teach us that Christ will soon appear. And when Jesus appears, we will see just how much He loved us, just how pleased He was to use our efforts to represent Him, and just how sufficient the gospel is to save sinners. May we believe in those truths today. Would you pray with me now to close?

[Prayer] Father, we praise You this morning for the saving gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank You that in Your grace You have saved us. Thank You that You have given us faith in the Lord Jesus and that ours is now the privilege of representing Him to a lost, needy world.

Father, I pray that You'd help us to be faithful to speak of eternity with grace and with humility and with wisdom, help us to bring into view heaven and hell. Help us to speak accurately about what it means to repent, to turn away from everything that does not have Christ as its center. Help us to speak about the singularity of Christ, to speak about His sufficiency and His singularity. Father, help us to put on display the goodness of the gospel, to truly believe that it is good news to rejoice in the gospel day after day that the world may see in us something that is so different. And I pray that You would help us to meditate upon Your sovereignty over our lives, over our efforts. Help us to believe that You are sovereign over salvation.

We wait for the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. Help us to be faithful until He comes, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.