Command to Build

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.120 --> 00:00:06.080 Come to know you and that through you you would, you would save us 2 00:00:06.400 --> 00:00:10.640 from the world, from ourselves, from the power of the evil one who 3 00:00:10.679 --> 00:00:15.800 would seek to separate us from you. Lord, you have bound US close 4 00:00:15.880 --> 00:00:20.039 to you and such a way that nothing can ever separate us from you. 5 00:00:20.679 --> 00:00:24.559 We ask even now that you would draw near to us in your word, 6 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:30.960 that we might be comforted, assured and strengthened in the confession of our faith 7 00:00:31.000 --> 00:00:37.159 in you. We pray this in Jesus name. A men, brothers and 8 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:42.000 sisters, if you're able to remain standing, please do so and let's try 9 00:00:42.000 --> 00:00:53.759 our attention to Hagi, chapter one. Hagi, Chapter One HIG I is 10 00:00:53.799 --> 00:01:00.399 a small book. Yet the very end of the Old Testament. There's only 11 00:01:00.439 --> 00:01:03.319 two other books after it, I believe, yes, so you'll find it 12 00:01:03.439 --> 00:01:08.239 right at the end in my Bible. It's only on one page, front 13 00:01:08.280 --> 00:01:11.519 and back, so it's really easy to miss. So I'll give you a 14 00:01:11.519 --> 00:01:18.680 second to turn there. We're going to read Hagi one this morning and focus 15 00:01:18.799 --> 00:01:23.879 on the first eleven verses in the sermon this morning. In the next week 16 00:01:23.920 --> 00:01:29.000 we'll look at twelve through fifteen, or, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. 17 00:01:29.239 --> 00:01:30.599 We're going to focus on chapter one. In the next week will look at 18 00:01:30.680 --> 00:01:40.680 chapter two. So let's give our attention to God's word. It is good 19 00:01:40.719 --> 00:01:45.040 for us. Let's hear it. In the second year of King of Darius, 20 00:01:45.079 --> 00:01:47.879 the king, and the sixth month, on the first day of the 21 00:01:47.879 --> 00:01:52.280 month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Hagi the Prophet 22 00:01:52.319 --> 00:01:57.040 to zero Babel, the son of Shale Teal, governor of Judah, and 23 00:01:57.120 --> 00:02:01.319 to Joshua, the son of Jeosedak, the high priest. Thus says the 24 00:02:01.359 --> 00:02:07.439 Lord of hosts. These people say the time is not yet come to rebuild 25 00:02:07.439 --> 00:02:10.680 the house of Lord. Then the word of the Lord came by the hand 26 00:02:10.719 --> 00:02:16.199 of Hagi the Prophet. Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in 27 00:02:16.240 --> 00:02:23.639 your says while this house lies in ruins? Thus says the Lord of hosts. 28 00:02:23.680 --> 00:02:30.199 Consider your ways. You have sown much and harvested little. You eat, 29 00:02:30.240 --> 00:02:35.280 but you never have enough. You drink, but you never have your 30 00:02:35.319 --> 00:02:38.879 fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm, and he who 31 00:02:38.919 --> 00:02:46.599 earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes. Thus says 32 00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:51.840 the Lord of hosts. Consider your ways, go up to the hills and 33 00:02:51.919 --> 00:02:57.680 bring wood and build the House that I may take pleasure in it, glorified, 34 00:02:58.080 --> 00:03:01.000 says the Lord. You looked for much and behold, it came to 35 00:03:01.080 --> 00:03:06.080 little, and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why, 36 00:03:06.560 --> 00:03:10.919 declares the Lord of hosts? Because of my house that lies in ruins, 37 00:03:10.960 --> 00:03:15.080 while each of you busies himself with his own house. Therefore, the 38 00:03:15.120 --> 00:03:20.800 heavens above you have withheld the D and the earth has withheld its produce, 39 00:03:20.879 --> 00:03:23.000 and I have called for a drought on the land and the hills, on 40 00:03:23.039 --> 00:03:27.479 the grain, the new wine, the oil, on what the ground brings 41 00:03:27.520 --> 00:03:32.280 forth, on man and beast and on all their labors. Then Ze Rebeb 42 00:03:32.319 --> 00:03:36.080 all, the son of Shelti, all in Joshua, the son of Jeosedak, 43 00:03:36.400 --> 00:03:39.159 the high priest, with all the remnants of the people, obeyed the 44 00:03:39.280 --> 00:03:44.000 voice of the Lord, their God, and the words of Haggi, the 45 00:03:44.000 --> 00:03:46.319 Prophet, as the Lord, their God, had sent him, and the 46 00:03:46.360 --> 00:03:51.439 people feared the Lord. Then Hagi, the Messenger of the Lord, spoke 47 00:03:51.479 --> 00:03:57.039 to the people with the Lord's message. I am with you, declares the 48 00:03:57.080 --> 00:04:00.159 Lord, and the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerebebel, the son of 49 00:04:00.199 --> 00:04:03.759 Shealtiol, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua, the son of 50 00:04:03.840 --> 00:04:09.159 Jeosdak, the high priest and the spirit of all the remnant of the people, 51 00:04:09.360 --> 00:04:12.759 and they came and worked on the House of the Lord of God, 52 00:04:12.800 --> 00:04:15.079 the Lord of hosts, their God, on the twenty four day of the 53 00:04:15.120 --> 00:04:20.000 month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king, 54 00:04:23.279 --> 00:04:49.160 you may be seated. Right from the very first verse we get a 55 00:04:49.240 --> 00:04:55.639 sense that this book and the events that are happening at this book are happening 56 00:04:55.639 --> 00:05:01.120 in a very particular time and place in history, in the second year of 57 00:05:01.240 --> 00:05:06.680 Darius the king, the sixth month, on the first day of the month, 58 00:05:08.000 --> 00:05:11.120 the word of the Lord came by the hat, by the hand of 59 00:05:11.120 --> 00:05:17.480 Hagi, the Prophet. What is what is the context of these verses? 60 00:05:17.519 --> 00:05:24.399 Who is Darius the king? WHO IS HAGI? It's helpful to know a 61 00:05:24.439 --> 00:05:30.399 little bit of background before we get in to the text. In five hundred 62 00:05:30.399 --> 00:05:35.199 and eighty seven, nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Temple of God. Nebuchadnezzar, not named 63 00:05:35.240 --> 00:05:41.879 here because it's happening earlier, Great King of Babylon. He destroyed the Temple 64 00:05:41.959 --> 00:05:46.199 of God and then, about fifty years later, another king, a King 65 00:05:46.279 --> 00:05:53.319 of another country, the country of Persia. Cyrus captured Babylon. Right, 66 00:05:53.399 --> 00:05:58.120 so one king took over another, and that man Cyrus, the King of 67 00:05:58.160 --> 00:06:03.439 Persia, by the command of God, amazingly commanded the people who were in 68 00:06:03.519 --> 00:06:10.519 exile because Nebuchadnezzar had taken them out of their country. Commanded the people of 69 00:06:10.560 --> 00:06:16.120 God to return back to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. An amazing thing, 70 00:06:16.160 --> 00:06:20.560 right, the King of Persia commanding that the Temple of God be rebuilt. 71 00:06:20.759 --> 00:06:26.199 Not only that, he gave them wealth from the temple that Nebuchadnezzar had taken 72 00:06:26.240 --> 00:06:30.160 out and sent it back with them. Now we know from the book of 73 00:06:30.160 --> 00:06:34.920 Ezra, another book in the Old Testament, that among those people who came 74 00:06:34.920 --> 00:06:41.120 out of first battle and then Persia, came out of Persia and went back, 75 00:06:41.160 --> 00:06:46.720 were Hagi and rebebel and Joshua. These people who are mentioned here in 76 00:06:46.879 --> 00:06:51.600 the book, Hagi, the Prophet, is a Rebebel, the governor of 77 00:06:53.160 --> 00:06:58.759 Judah, and Joshua the high priest. We also know from the book of 78 00:06:58.759 --> 00:07:02.040 Ezra that the first thing that they did when they came back was they rebuilt 79 00:07:02.079 --> 00:07:06.519 the altar. They rebuilt the altar to God so that sacrifices could be offered, 80 00:07:06.560 --> 00:07:13.040 and sacrifices were offered. After that they build the foundation of the temple, 81 00:07:13.319 --> 00:07:18.399 but then the project kind of hit some snags. There were enemies around 82 00:07:18.519 --> 00:07:24.480 them who didn't want this to continue on. They didn't want the work project, 83 00:07:24.519 --> 00:07:28.920 the building of the temple, to happen. They opposed God and his 84 00:07:28.959 --> 00:07:32.639 people and there was sort of some hiccups at first and then eventually it just 85 00:07:32.879 --> 00:07:40.800 stopped. And then for about forty years after the people had returned, the 86 00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:46.040 temple lay in complete undone. And do you remember? Some of you may 87 00:07:46.079 --> 00:07:51.480 remember when the housing bubble collapsed in two thousand and eight a lot of building 88 00:07:51.519 --> 00:07:57.040 just stopped right. Remember this? You could drive around and there would be 89 00:07:57.079 --> 00:08:03.800 neighborhoods right houses that there would be maybe a foundation and some frame and that 90 00:08:03.920 --> 00:08:07.000 was it. You know, maybe even bags of cement and other things lying 91 00:08:07.079 --> 00:08:11.279 around. But where are the workers? And you drive back the next there's 92 00:08:11.360 --> 00:08:16.639 no workers that you drive by next said nothing's happening these houses, these they're 93 00:08:16.680 --> 00:08:22.519 just sitting there undone. That work had had stopped and the project lay unfinished. 94 00:08:22.519 --> 00:08:28.439 What was like that with the House of God started and then just stopped 95 00:08:28.480 --> 00:08:35.440 almost for a whole generation, forty years. However, not all the building 96 00:08:35.480 --> 00:08:41.639 projects stopped in the land of Israel. God's house lay unfinished. But as 97 00:08:41.679 --> 00:08:46.200 he has, Hag I says, is through. The Lord says to Hagi. 98 00:08:46.679 --> 00:08:50.200 You, however, he says, the people are in paneled houses. 99 00:08:50.240 --> 00:08:56.080 It's not. We're not exactly sure what paneled means, whether it's a roofing 100 00:08:56.080 --> 00:08:58.879 thing or something having to do with the walls, but nevertheless, there's this 101 00:09:00.000 --> 00:09:03.480 sense of finishing right. There's a sense in which the house is weren't just 102 00:09:03.559 --> 00:09:09.759 constructed, but they were really finished right. They were brought to a completion, 103 00:09:09.879 --> 00:09:13.200 and even in a nice way. These aren't near just sort of tents 104 00:09:13.919 --> 00:09:20.759 and that people are living in there. They're wimming and built solid houses. 105 00:09:20.919 --> 00:09:26.679 Meanwhile, the House of the Lord was remained unfinished. So as they looked 106 00:09:26.679 --> 00:09:31.279 around them, perhaps for quite some time, you know, people are talking 107 00:09:31.360 --> 00:09:33.840 about, Oh, where did you grow up? All over there is my 108 00:09:33.919 --> 00:09:37.720 childhood home. You know, you could bike around in your neighborhood or whatever. 109 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:43.960 There was a sense of completeness in the people's lives, but all was 110 00:09:43.000 --> 00:09:48.720 not well in the land. Scriptures tell us that there was this prosperity they 111 00:09:48.720 --> 00:09:54.480 were all expecting. Cyrus had commanded them to come back. God had commanded 112 00:09:54.559 --> 00:09:58.639 to the comeback. The project got started on the temple. The sacrifices were 113 00:09:58.679 --> 00:10:01.440 there, the neighborhoods were all built out, the people were living there, 114 00:10:01.480 --> 00:10:09.200 and yet things weren't quite going right. There was a drought. The Earth 115 00:10:09.240 --> 00:10:16.799 withheld its produce. The description of this in verse six is sounds like this. 116 00:10:18.159 --> 00:10:22.960 You've so much and harvested little, like, where's your work going? 117 00:10:24.159 --> 00:10:28.440 You eat, but you're not full. You'd never have enough to drink your 118 00:10:28.600 --> 00:10:31.039 you clothe yourself, but you're never warm. Your own money, it's just 119 00:10:31.320 --> 00:10:37.080 you put it in bags with holes. It's right, it's it's not working. 120 00:10:37.960 --> 00:10:43.519 The prosperity in the productivity and all that is expected, especially with the 121 00:10:43.600 --> 00:10:52.200 Lord's blessing on his people, is not happening. And so we can buy 122 00:10:52.240 --> 00:10:56.639 the dates that are given. We can know that on September nine, five 123 00:10:56.799 --> 00:11:01.919 hundred and twenty BC, God spoke through the Prophet Hagi and called them to 124 00:11:03.039 --> 00:11:09.720 consider their ways. Look around you, look in your hearts, pay attention. 125 00:11:09.759 --> 00:11:13.600 Something is going on here. There is a problem here, and God 126 00:11:13.639 --> 00:11:18.639 wants to explain to them and show them what it is. He calls them 127 00:11:18.679 --> 00:11:24.000 to consider their ways twice in this chapter and then a slightly different form, 128 00:11:24.080 --> 00:11:28.159 twice in the next chapter, so four times in a two chapter book. 129 00:11:28.200 --> 00:11:31.919 It's a big theme and it's significant one. In Hagi he calls them to 130 00:11:33.039 --> 00:11:41.200 examine their heart. Self examination. Have you ever felt there was necessaries necessary 131 00:11:41.279 --> 00:11:46.440 to do some self examination in your own life? Maybe it's sprung up in 132 00:11:46.480 --> 00:11:52.240 your own heart, maybe it was an external sense or a request or command 133 00:11:52.279 --> 00:11:56.080 someone. Maybe you're in the middle of a job transition and you're wondering, 134 00:11:56.120 --> 00:12:00.799 am I really doing what I'm supposed to be doing? Maybe you're at a 135 00:12:00.840 --> 00:12:05.600 doctor's appointment and they're asking questions about the doctors asking questions about your health. 136 00:12:05.679 --> 00:12:11.000 Maybe you're reading scripture and a quiet time with the Lord and you're reading things 137 00:12:11.000 --> 00:12:15.759 that the Lord is bringing to your mind, into your heart. Self examination 138 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:20.279 is an important part of the Christian life. We are called, as the 139 00:12:20.320 --> 00:12:24.799 people were here, to consider our ways. Like anything, of course, 140 00:12:24.840 --> 00:12:31.679 self examination can be abused, but that doesn't mean it's not important. Self 141 00:12:31.679 --> 00:12:37.879 examination is important and we see God calling his people to it here in our 142 00:12:37.919 --> 00:12:43.840 passage. Consider your ways, the Lord says consider your ways. And it's 143 00:12:45.039 --> 00:12:52.279 partly for lack of self examination that God's people have been backsliding. But how, 144 00:12:52.559 --> 00:12:56.879 in particular? Let's look at the passage and and think about that. 145 00:12:56.600 --> 00:13:01.360 So God addresses the exiles and their two leaders. God tells them to consider 146 00:13:01.399 --> 00:13:05.440 their ways. He asked them to consider how they are sinning. And they 147 00:13:05.480 --> 00:13:11.000 have sinned, as we have said, in building their own houses first and 148 00:13:11.120 --> 00:13:15.840 giving priority to themselves and to this world over the Lord. That comes in 149 00:13:15.960 --> 00:13:20.840 verse four. It's comes in the form of a question. Is it time 150 00:13:20.000 --> 00:13:26.120 for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house, my house, 151 00:13:26.360 --> 00:13:33.320 lies in ruins? We hear the justification for that in verse two, 152 00:13:33.360 --> 00:13:37.759 from the minds of the people. Thus, as the Lord of hosts, 153 00:13:37.799 --> 00:13:43.320 these people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the House of the 154 00:13:43.360 --> 00:13:48.080 Lord. So that's their justification right there, saying the time has not yet 155 00:13:48.120 --> 00:13:52.559 come on your one or whatever. The time is not yet come to the 156 00:13:52.559 --> 00:13:56.159 time is not yet come. The time is not yet come. This is 157 00:13:56.159 --> 00:14:01.639 how they're justifying it, and the Lord says really, as the time really 158 00:14:01.720 --> 00:14:05.960 not yet come, look at the Times, look at what you're experiencing. 159 00:14:07.360 --> 00:14:11.919 You are experiencing my wrath, you are experiencing my curse. And if they 160 00:14:11.919 --> 00:14:18.559 would remember what they had been told under Moses back in Deuteronomy Twenty eight, 161 00:14:18.799 --> 00:14:26.200 when the Lord under the Mosaic Covenant found his people to be serving him and 162 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:31.559 honoring him, he would bless them with prosperity, with rain, with fertility, 163 00:14:31.720 --> 00:14:35.519 with wealth, with all kinds of long life, all kinds of good 164 00:14:35.559 --> 00:14:39.919 things. But he tells them very explicitly, when you don't obey, you 165 00:14:39.960 --> 00:14:48.279 will experience curse, you will experience drought and poverty and infertility and all kinds 166 00:14:48.279 --> 00:14:54.679 of ways in your own lives and plants and animals. It won't work, 167 00:14:54.759 --> 00:14:58.039 society won't work, the land won't work, the beasts won't work, everything 168 00:14:58.159 --> 00:15:03.480 won't work. It will be frustrated, just like it was in the curse 169 00:15:03.399 --> 00:15:09.240 that God gave to Adam. Consider your ways, look around you, he 170 00:15:09.279 --> 00:15:13.799 says. Remember my word, remember the curse that you prod, that that 171 00:15:13.840 --> 00:15:20.039 I promised if you did not obey. This is why they are suffering. 172 00:15:20.519 --> 00:15:26.000 And so in verse seven and in Verse Five, God says consider your ways, 173 00:15:26.399 --> 00:15:31.399 which is and that's and as set is essentially a call to repentance. 174 00:15:31.919 --> 00:15:35.000 He doesn't want them to just look at their situation, look at his providence, 175 00:15:35.080 --> 00:15:39.600 understand his curse, see their disobedience and the problem of their priorities and 176 00:15:39.639 --> 00:15:46.600 go okay, considered right. The implication is that you're supposed to do something 177 00:15:46.600 --> 00:15:50.600 with that consideration. Once you examine your heart and you see that things are 178 00:15:50.600 --> 00:15:52.080 wrong, when you see things are messed up, when you see that there's 179 00:15:52.120 --> 00:15:58.399 sin in there, there's a reaction that's supposed to happen to that and obedience 180 00:15:58.440 --> 00:16:03.320 that's supposed to follow, a repentance that's supposed to follow. And most wonderfully, 181 00:16:04.240 --> 00:16:10.360 that's exactly what happens in verses twelve through that end of that chapter, 182 00:16:10.840 --> 00:16:15.759 thirteen, fourteen and fifteen. We read starting verse twelve, that is Rebeil 183 00:16:17.320 --> 00:16:22.039 and Joshua, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of 184 00:16:22.080 --> 00:16:26.159 the Lord, their God, and the words of Hagi, the Prophet, 185 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:30.240 as the Lord, their God had sent him. Notice how obedience is tied 186 00:16:30.279 --> 00:16:37.159 to the fear of the Lord, and the people feared the Lord. And 187 00:16:37.200 --> 00:16:41.759 then what came? Well, in verse thirteen, Haguy speaks, the Messenger 188 00:16:41.799 --> 00:16:45.519 of the Lord, a very short prophecy, very wonderful one. The Lord 189 00:16:45.600 --> 00:16:52.360 says I am with you. I am with you, declares the Lord. 190 00:16:52.919 --> 00:16:57.440 Those are the words that you want to hear all of the time. I 191 00:16:57.480 --> 00:17:02.039 am with you, I am with you, because when the Lord is on 192 00:17:02.080 --> 00:17:07.039 our side, what else do we need? When the Lord is on our 193 00:17:07.119 --> 00:17:15.359 side, even the most terrible circumstances of life are a little thing. And 194 00:17:15.480 --> 00:17:19.559 consider the example of job or or many other things that tonight, when we 195 00:17:19.839 --> 00:17:26.640 consider God's word in Ezekiel, will hear about how the Lord is not with 196 00:17:26.759 --> 00:17:30.279 a Pharaoh of Egypt. The Lord says, I will break both of your 197 00:17:30.440 --> 00:17:34.039 arms, you will separate himself, he will pour. It will be with 198 00:17:34.119 --> 00:17:37.960 him, but only in an act of curse. And in that situation you 199 00:17:37.039 --> 00:17:41.680 can't do anything when the Lord is not with you, when the Lord is 200 00:17:41.680 --> 00:17:48.200 against you, you can't do anything. You are prohibited, you are restrained, 201 00:17:48.519 --> 00:17:53.519 you are cut off. But here, in their obedience, he says, 202 00:17:53.640 --> 00:17:59.440 I am with you. God responds with an announcement of his nearness. 203 00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:07.400 But there's more, and it's more complicated than that too. Notice what happens 204 00:18:07.400 --> 00:18:14.640 in verses fourteen and fifteen. The Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerebebel, 205 00:18:14.680 --> 00:18:18.640 the son of Shelti old governor of Judah and the spirit of Joshua, the 206 00:18:18.680 --> 00:18:23.559 son of Jeosetak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnants 207 00:18:23.599 --> 00:18:27.240 of the people. And they came and they worked on the House of the 208 00:18:27.319 --> 00:18:37.119 Lord, their hosts. So what is it that God wants them to understand? 209 00:18:37.160 --> 00:18:41.480 God wants them to recognize that, after being mercifully brought back to the 210 00:18:41.559 --> 00:18:47.400 land, brought back from exile, brought back from under the hand of their 211 00:18:47.559 --> 00:18:55.319 enemies and now commanding them to rebuild the temple at the he wants them to 212 00:18:55.359 --> 00:19:00.119 understand that they've been slowing down and that for about forty years, this temple 213 00:19:00.160 --> 00:19:04.000 project has become a low priority. In this is not good. He calls 214 00:19:04.039 --> 00:19:10.160 them to examine their hearts, consider their ways, consider their priorities and turn 215 00:19:10.240 --> 00:19:15.160 to the Lord in Repentance. They must recognize their sins and turn towards obedience, 216 00:19:17.359 --> 00:19:22.079 but they also must recognize that that obedience happens because of God's working in 217 00:19:22.160 --> 00:19:30.839 them. Their obedience is empowered by the spirit of God himself. How is 218 00:19:30.880 --> 00:19:33.880 it that these people turn? How is it that they begin to do what 219 00:19:33.920 --> 00:19:38.319 they were formerly not doing? First, the word of the Lord comes to 220 00:19:38.400 --> 00:19:45.119 them. Second, the spirit who gives that word, accompanies that word and 221 00:19:45.240 --> 00:19:51.359 changes their hearts. He enables them to understand the word, to hear the 222 00:19:51.400 --> 00:19:56.359 word, to obey the word and to trust the Lord that he will forgive 223 00:19:56.480 --> 00:20:00.559 them, that he will repent. They come and they hear the work of 224 00:20:00.599 --> 00:20:07.160 God in His Prophet, and they trust in him and his spirit working in 225 00:20:07.200 --> 00:20:12.200 them. This is, of course, a good opportunity for us to consider 226 00:20:12.279 --> 00:20:17.640 our own ways, our own lives. Are there ways in which we let 227 00:20:17.640 --> 00:20:21.680 our priority slip? Are there ways in which we are ignoring things that we 228 00:20:21.799 --> 00:20:25.680 know we've been called to do and yet we put off for another day? 229 00:20:26.200 --> 00:20:32.480 We say, well, it's not yet time, when we know it is 230 00:20:32.519 --> 00:20:38.839 time. This passage teaches us that self examination and considering our ways involves two 231 00:20:38.920 --> 00:20:45.640 things. The first is hearing and comparing our lives with the word of the 232 00:20:45.680 --> 00:20:52.279 Lord in due fear. That's a first part of self examination, hearing God's 233 00:20:52.319 --> 00:20:56.640 word, hearing the stander, and then comparing our lives with that. And 234 00:20:56.680 --> 00:21:02.920 the second is trusting in the faithfulness of the Lord, again with do fear. 235 00:21:03.359 --> 00:21:07.960 Let's think about those briefly. On both of those parts, the first 236 00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:12.400 one hearing and hearing and considering our lives and comparing them with the Lord of 237 00:21:12.400 --> 00:21:18.480 the Lord. Our problem often is that we examine ourselves in the light of 238 00:21:18.519 --> 00:21:23.759 our own standards or the world standards. There's some thing that is convenient for 239 00:21:23.839 --> 00:21:29.440 us at the time. This is not how to judge things. If you're 240 00:21:29.440 --> 00:21:36.720 trying to build something right and you you take out you take out a ruler 241 00:21:36.920 --> 00:21:40.599 and you find that it's been warped for some reason. Maybe it got wet 242 00:21:40.640 --> 00:21:44.119 and then sat in the sun and you know it's all like this. You 243 00:21:44.160 --> 00:21:48.200 should not use that ruler to work on your project, but the very first 244 00:21:48.240 --> 00:21:52.240 thing you should do is just throw it away and go get yourself a proper 245 00:21:52.319 --> 00:21:56.759 ruler. Right. It would be a foolish thing to do that. And 246 00:21:56.799 --> 00:21:59.440 yet we do that with our own lives all the time, our own priorities. 247 00:21:59.440 --> 00:22:03.079 We say, we come up with our own warped, twisted guidelines, 248 00:22:03.160 --> 00:22:06.359 the standards of the world that come to us in all kinds of ways, 249 00:22:06.359 --> 00:22:08.839 and we say, Oh, measure my life by this. Now we ought 250 00:22:08.839 --> 00:22:12.160 not to do that. Instead, we measure our lives, we examine and 251 00:22:12.160 --> 00:22:17.839 consider our hearts by the standard of God's word. They were in trouble because 252 00:22:17.839 --> 00:22:22.480 they were not doing what God had said. It's really that simple. God 253 00:22:22.519 --> 00:22:27.680 had commanded them through Cyrus to build the temple. He had sent them back, 254 00:22:27.680 --> 00:22:32.240 he had supplied them, had given them good leaders, he had given 255 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:34.559 them wealth, he had given them strength, and they all rejoice. And 256 00:22:34.599 --> 00:22:40.720 they started and then they stopped. Now I am happy to raise my hand 257 00:22:40.759 --> 00:22:45.839 among the people who have started good things and stopped. I know what that 258 00:22:45.880 --> 00:22:51.160 feels like and it's hard and it's frustrating. But what can we do right? 259 00:22:51.680 --> 00:22:56.920 Suppose we could despair and fall into ourselves and just give up and say, 260 00:22:56.920 --> 00:23:00.279 well, I guess they're just never is going to happen. Or you 261 00:23:00.359 --> 00:23:06.200 can repent. When we consider these things and we recognize them and we see 262 00:23:06.240 --> 00:23:08.440 that we've got off course, we see that we've gone away from the standard. 263 00:23:08.480 --> 00:23:12.759 We repent and repentings repentance has, of course, turning back to the 264 00:23:12.799 --> 00:23:18.960 Lord in his word, but doing so trusting that he will forgive, trusting 265 00:23:18.960 --> 00:23:25.799 that he will empower new obedience, trusting that he loves US and wants to 266 00:23:25.839 --> 00:23:32.039 be near to us. They stopped because it was hard. Honestly, they 267 00:23:32.079 --> 00:23:37.200 stopped because they feared the opposition that they were really facing. They stopped because 268 00:23:37.200 --> 00:23:41.039 they decided other things were easier to pursue or more worth pursuing. They were 269 00:23:41.039 --> 00:23:51.039 busy with their own lives and their own households and they neglected God's. The 270 00:23:51.079 --> 00:23:56.640 world says that the worship of God is not practical. Why would you build 271 00:23:56.680 --> 00:24:00.799 the House of God and you need a shelter to live in? And of 272 00:24:00.799 --> 00:24:06.440 course we need a shelter. God never said don't build a house, but 273 00:24:06.519 --> 00:24:11.599 he did say build mine, right. But the world comes to as it 274 00:24:11.680 --> 00:24:14.680 says. I don't worry about the worship of God. There's another day, 275 00:24:14.799 --> 00:24:18.400 another time. You're busy, you have things to do. The world says 276 00:24:18.440 --> 00:24:22.599 there's more urgent things. The world says there's better things to spend time and 277 00:24:22.640 --> 00:24:26.799 money on. The world sometimes says that it's not just better, but you 278 00:24:26.839 --> 00:24:30.799 better not spend your money, in your time and your energy on the things 279 00:24:30.799 --> 00:24:34.680 of the Lord, because to do so is an attack on the world, 280 00:24:34.920 --> 00:24:40.720 as how it is sometimes taken, and so there can be sometimes fierce opposition 281 00:24:40.839 --> 00:24:44.519 against the against the things that we do when we make the Lord, our 282 00:24:44.559 --> 00:24:49.359 life with him, a priority. But, brothers and sisters, it's not 283 00:24:49.440 --> 00:24:56.440 about the world, it's about the word. The word of God. God 284 00:24:56.440 --> 00:25:00.640 says, seek first the Kingdom of Righteousness and his righteousness, and everything else 285 00:25:00.680 --> 00:25:07.000 will be added. Unto you, the Word is how we must set us 286 00:25:07.440 --> 00:25:11.559 set our standards, and so that means we must listen to it and know 287 00:25:11.680 --> 00:25:18.640 it and pursue it. But the second part is that we must trust in 288 00:25:18.680 --> 00:25:23.960 the faithfulness of God, as I mentioned before, to forgive us. We 289 00:25:25.039 --> 00:25:30.279 can't simply dig deeper into our own strengths and go off of our own power 290 00:25:30.440 --> 00:25:33.720 and resources, because those are the things that were failing us in the first 291 00:25:33.720 --> 00:25:37.440 place. The word of the Lord not only comes to us in the law, 292 00:25:37.559 --> 00:25:42.000 but it comes to us in the Gospel and tells us that God will 293 00:25:42.000 --> 00:25:47.559 give to us what the law is unable to do. The law sets the 294 00:25:47.599 --> 00:25:51.839 standard, the law commands, the law tells us how we go right and 295 00:25:51.880 --> 00:25:55.480 how we go left and what's wrong and all of that, but the law 296 00:25:55.559 --> 00:25:59.319 is not capable of empowering us to do the right think they knew what they 297 00:25:59.319 --> 00:26:06.599 were supposed to do before. It was the good news of God's being with 298 00:26:06.640 --> 00:26:11.839 them, of desiring to be with them. It was the God's spirit and 299 00:26:11.920 --> 00:26:17.720 his promises to work. Even apart from their disobedience and to keep them near 300 00:26:17.839 --> 00:26:23.039 himself, that all of this works and that he that he brought brings them 301 00:26:23.039 --> 00:26:27.440 back to himself. Notice it happens even in the message of Prophet Hag I 302 00:26:27.599 --> 00:26:36.319 right. God, in His grace, came to them, he came to 303 00:26:36.359 --> 00:26:40.960 them and revealed himself to them. He woke them up in a way. 304 00:26:41.359 --> 00:26:45.079 Again, I raised my hand and thinking about repentance and say, and I 305 00:26:45.119 --> 00:26:52.720 will say, that turning around is sometimes a very hard thing to do and 306 00:26:52.839 --> 00:27:02.200 honestly, it's even impossible to do. It is impossible to repent in such 307 00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:07.160 a way that is faithful enough to the Lord when you are under a curse, 308 00:27:07.880 --> 00:27:14.279 when everything in your heart and in your life is is being ruled by 309 00:27:14.319 --> 00:27:19.559 a bet and twisted ruler. You cannot obey the Lord. You can't. 310 00:27:19.640 --> 00:27:27.640 It just doesn't work. It's not enough to see that we're wrong and understand 311 00:27:27.680 --> 00:27:33.799 that we're weak, but we need to be saved by the grace of God's 312 00:27:33.839 --> 00:27:41.160 spirit working in us. We must come to trust and believe in that salvation. 313 00:27:42.119 --> 00:27:47.359 We have to come to an end in ourselves and say there's nothing I 314 00:27:47.400 --> 00:27:52.559 can do more here and trust entirely in the Lord to be at work in 315 00:27:52.680 --> 00:27:57.920 us, whether it's hard external circumstances, as Israel, looks out at our 316 00:27:59.000 --> 00:28:03.119 enemies and say, these people are impossible. We're trying, Lord, we're 317 00:28:03.200 --> 00:28:04.759 trying to build, we're trying to do the work, and they keep fighting 318 00:28:04.880 --> 00:28:11.319 US and they keep stopping us. We can't control them, we can't manage 319 00:28:11.359 --> 00:28:15.200 them, we can't overpower them. In that moment when they look at those 320 00:28:15.240 --> 00:28:19.039 external stay or circumstances that are keeping them from obeying or making it difficult anyway, 321 00:28:19.559 --> 00:28:23.359 what do you do? You look to the Lord God and you say, 322 00:28:23.440 --> 00:28:27.839 Lord, it is you who wants me to do this, so help 323 00:28:27.960 --> 00:28:33.839 me for Vibe, for me, help me to be faithful, even when 324 00:28:33.880 --> 00:28:38.039 there is external opposition. What I'm going to say to you now is that 325 00:28:38.119 --> 00:28:45.680 it works no differently at an internal level, when your heart like the enemies 326 00:28:45.680 --> 00:28:49.640 and the opposition outside, when your own heart seems to be working against you, 327 00:28:49.880 --> 00:28:53.319 when your own flesh seems to be working against you and you're like, 328 00:28:53.400 --> 00:28:59.319 I can't do this, this is so hard, these temptations are so strong, 329 00:28:59.359 --> 00:29:03.200 I keep failing over and over. Here's what you do. You Stop 330 00:29:03.279 --> 00:29:07.839 Trusting in yourself and you stop trusting in your own heart and you say, 331 00:29:07.880 --> 00:29:11.480 Lord, I can't seem to control this, I can't seem to overpower this, 332 00:29:11.720 --> 00:29:17.559 I can't seem to do this. I need you, I need you 333 00:29:17.599 --> 00:29:19.359 to work for me, I need you to fight for me, I need 334 00:29:19.400 --> 00:29:26.920 you to strengthen me, I need you to win this battle. That's faith. 335 00:29:27.039 --> 00:29:33.559 Whether we're looking at our outside opposition or our inside opposition, we we 336 00:29:33.759 --> 00:29:40.839 look to the Lord and we trust him and we believe that he will do 337 00:29:40.960 --> 00:29:45.160 what he says he will do, and then we get to work. We 338 00:29:45.240 --> 00:29:48.480 get to work, we start laying the bricks, we start fighting the sin, 339 00:29:48.599 --> 00:29:53.599 we do whatever needs to be done with our hands and with our heart 340 00:29:53.680 --> 00:29:59.079 to serve him, but we do so believing that he is at work in 341 00:29:59.200 --> 00:30:06.000 US and has forgiven us for when we have fallen. It's not enough to 342 00:30:06.000 --> 00:30:10.200 just see that you are wrong and you're weak. We must trust the Lord 343 00:30:10.200 --> 00:30:15.680 with everything, and the good news that's revealed in the scriptures and even here 344 00:30:15.680 --> 00:30:19.960 in our passage, is that you can trust God and he will answer your 345 00:30:21.079 --> 00:30:26.839 prayers. He calls them to obedience and then He provides the strength for obedience. 346 00:30:26.920 --> 00:30:33.720 The very spirit of God stirs in their spirits, moves their hands and 347 00:30:33.799 --> 00:30:38.240 moves their hearts, empowering them to do what they were for forty years not 348 00:30:38.279 --> 00:30:47.160 doing, and notice something else. It's easy to skip, but go back 349 00:30:47.200 --> 00:30:52.920 to verse eight. God says, go up to the hills and bring wood 350 00:30:52.920 --> 00:30:57.119 and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I 351 00:30:57.200 --> 00:31:02.960 may be glorified. Okay, you hear the command in that, probably, 352 00:31:03.279 --> 00:31:08.160 but ask yourself this question. Why in the world is it God's pleasure to 353 00:31:08.240 --> 00:31:15.200 have a house for himself? Why is God commanding this obedience? He doesn't 354 00:31:15.279 --> 00:31:22.079 need a house, he doesn't need anything. He doesn't need a house of 355 00:31:22.799 --> 00:31:29.559 bricks and wood. Even find jewels and nice and Gravy, he doesn't need 356 00:31:29.599 --> 00:31:37.839 that. God is eternally self sufficient, forever, always has been, always 357 00:31:37.880 --> 00:31:44.160 will be, full of glory beyond anything that we can imagine. Why does 358 00:31:44.319 --> 00:31:51.119 he need a house? Why does he take pleasure in a house being built 359 00:31:51.119 --> 00:31:57.759 in this little city, this little part of the world? It's not because 360 00:31:57.799 --> 00:32:05.400 God means it, but it's because we need it. God takes pleasure in 361 00:32:05.480 --> 00:32:12.920 it because he has already taken pleasure in us. God takes pleasure in building 362 00:32:12.960 --> 00:32:19.160 a house and being near a people because he loves us, because he loved 363 00:32:19.200 --> 00:32:25.119 them even while they are still being disobedient, even while they were rebelling, 364 00:32:25.440 --> 00:32:30.519 God wants to be near them, love them, change their hearts and have 365 00:32:30.680 --> 00:32:37.799 communion with them. This point about the closeness of God, the nearness of 366 00:32:37.799 --> 00:32:42.680 God and his pleasure and his love and his communion with his people becomes even 367 00:32:42.720 --> 00:32:46.359 more clear in the life of Jesus, and the son of God comes into 368 00:32:46.400 --> 00:32:52.119 this world, whose named Emmanuel, which means God with us. Jesus comes 369 00:32:52.160 --> 00:32:59.359 into the world to be the new temple. One, this temple that we're 370 00:32:59.400 --> 00:33:04.799 talking about in hearing about it Hagi, eventually gets built and then destroyed again, 371 00:33:07.200 --> 00:33:09.680 this house of the Lord. It pleases the Lord for a time, 372 00:33:09.759 --> 00:33:15.000 but he has also it's pointing forward to something else, something that he wants 373 00:33:15.039 --> 00:33:22.119 to do, in which he will establish a union that is forever with his 374 00:33:22.200 --> 00:33:27.480 people, the he will dwell with his people forever, and their own sin 375 00:33:27.559 --> 00:33:31.359 can never even break that apart. He is going to do something in the 376 00:33:31.400 --> 00:33:37.200 world, and he does it through Jesus that covers that sin, forgives it 377 00:33:37.200 --> 00:33:42.960 perfectly and completely, so that God can take pleasure in being with his people 378 00:33:43.079 --> 00:33:52.079 and dwelling with them forever with no risk of separation forever. In the Gospels, 379 00:33:52.160 --> 00:33:58.839 Jesus tells people tear down this temple and I will rebuild it, or 380 00:33:58.839 --> 00:34:02.400 it will rise again in three days. Like, what are you talking about? 381 00:34:02.440 --> 00:34:06.680 You know how long it took to build this temple. Are you going 382 00:34:06.720 --> 00:34:09.159 to raise it up in three days? The scriptures tell us he was talking 383 00:34:09.199 --> 00:34:16.400 about himself. He calls himself the temple. Why? Because it is in 384 00:34:16.480 --> 00:34:22.320 him that the fullness of Deity dwells and it's in him that God draws near 385 00:34:22.360 --> 00:34:27.320 to his people. It's in him that, as the temple complex was, 386 00:34:27.360 --> 00:34:32.280 this point of access and communion and closeness and forgiveness. All that gets gets, 387 00:34:32.320 --> 00:34:37.760 you know, sort of swallowed up and and super charged in Jesus. 388 00:34:39.840 --> 00:34:47.639 He becomes that place for us. In the book of Hebrews A, Chapter 389 00:34:47.760 --> 00:34:51.360 Nine, you can read this with me if you like, or or just 390 00:34:51.400 --> 00:34:55.840 listen, and Hebrews nine, verse eleven, Their Author says this when Christ 391 00:34:55.880 --> 00:35:00.440 appeared as a high priest, of the good things that have come then through 392 00:35:00.480 --> 00:35:06.719 the greater and more perfect tent. This is referring to the Tabernacle and temple 393 00:35:06.800 --> 00:35:12.320 ideas. This tent, this Tabernacle, this temple, not made with hands 394 00:35:12.480 --> 00:35:19.519 that is not of this creation. He entered into that temple once for all, 395 00:35:19.559 --> 00:35:22.960 into the holy places. Now listen to this. Not by means of 396 00:35:23.000 --> 00:35:30.960 the blood of goats and calves, but by means of his own blood. 397 00:35:31.000 --> 00:35:39.159 God provided his own lamb, a sacrifice for all of our sins, all 398 00:35:39.239 --> 00:35:45.159 of our sins, they would perfectly forgive us forever. So, based on 399 00:35:45.400 --> 00:35:50.400 that sacrifice, the sacrifice of the blood of the son of God, he 400 00:35:50.480 --> 00:35:53.480 does this me. Read then a verse twelve. There again I'm in Hebrews 401 00:35:53.559 --> 00:36:00.800 nine, by the means of his own blood, thus securing and eat turnal 402 00:36:00.679 --> 00:36:07.239 redemption, not a redemption that lasts for a little while until you sin again, 403 00:36:07.360 --> 00:36:10.960 but at eternal redemption through the blood of Jesus. For if the blood 404 00:36:12.000 --> 00:36:15.039 of goats and bowls and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a 405 00:36:15.079 --> 00:36:21.760 Heifer, all old testament mosaic economy stuff, if those sanctify for the purification 406 00:36:21.840 --> 00:36:24.960 of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who threw 407 00:36:25.079 --> 00:36:32.119 the eternal spirit, offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from 408 00:36:32.119 --> 00:36:42.039 dead works, to serve the living God, to eternally redeem us? And 409 00:36:42.079 --> 00:36:47.760 then strengthen US and empower us for O for obedience forever. That's what the 410 00:36:47.800 --> 00:36:52.760 blood of Jesus does for us. Amazing. Now, skipping down to verse 411 00:36:52.800 --> 00:36:59.840 twenty three. Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things. 412 00:36:59.840 --> 00:37:05.000 He's talking about, the temple, which is I can't explain it here, 413 00:37:05.079 --> 00:37:08.599 but it was a copy of a heavenly pattern, that heavenly Jerusalem and all 414 00:37:08.639 --> 00:37:15.519 of that. It was necessary for the copies of heavenly things to be purified 415 00:37:15.599 --> 00:37:22.039 with these rights, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than knees. 416 00:37:22.159 --> 00:37:29.119 For Christ has entered not into holy places made with hands, which are copies 417 00:37:29.159 --> 00:37:36.079 of the truth things, but into heaven itself now to appear in the presence 418 00:37:36.239 --> 00:37:44.280 of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as 419 00:37:44.320 --> 00:37:49.119 the high priest enters the whole place every year, with blood not his own, 420 00:37:49.119 --> 00:37:52.079 for then he would have to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. 421 00:37:52.119 --> 00:37:57.440 But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end 422 00:37:57.559 --> 00:38:02.519 of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just 423 00:38:02.639 --> 00:38:07.000 as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment. 424 00:38:07.159 --> 00:38:12.719 So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, 425 00:38:12.760 --> 00:38:16.639 will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save 426 00:38:16.639 --> 00:38:28.320 those who are eagerly waiting for him. Amazing. This is why God says 427 00:38:29.400 --> 00:38:31.920 in verse a of Hagi, go up to the hills, bring the wood, 428 00:38:31.920 --> 00:38:35.760 build the house, that I may take pleasure in it, that I 429 00:38:35.840 --> 00:38:40.280 may be glorified. He is doing something at this moment in history with the 430 00:38:40.320 --> 00:38:47.199 copies of the heavenly things, because he desires this closeness with us, a 431 00:38:47.199 --> 00:38:52.639 communion with us, an eternal redemption for us, and one that will be 432 00:38:52.719 --> 00:38:59.840 completed and perfected in Jesus, as he is a high priest, as he 433 00:39:00.119 --> 00:39:06.039 is the sacrifice, and is he as he establishes in himself this temple, 434 00:39:06.079 --> 00:39:10.360 not made with human hands, that God might dwell with us forever according to 435 00:39:10.400 --> 00:39:20.639 his pleasure. It's God's pleasure to dwell with us. This is how God 436 00:39:20.679 --> 00:39:27.920 removes the curse from us through the forgiveness of our sins in the sacrifice of 437 00:39:28.000 --> 00:39:32.880 Jesus. The curse ultimately is removed, the the vinyl curse, the big 438 00:39:32.960 --> 00:39:39.519 one, the final judgment. It's removed not by our righteousness, it's not 439 00:39:39.599 --> 00:39:45.880 even removed by our God helped righteousness, which is great, but that's not 440 00:39:45.920 --> 00:39:53.039 what does it. What ultimately does it is God's own righteousness in Jesus, 441 00:39:53.199 --> 00:40:05.239 who is a perfect sacrifice without blemish, empowered and anointed by the eternal spirit, 442 00:40:06.159 --> 00:40:12.039 and in him a new temple is raised. In Him we have access 443 00:40:12.079 --> 00:40:16.199 to God and in him the pleasure of God to save us and be with 444 00:40:16.280 --> 00:40:24.159 us forever is brought into fulfillment. So when we come and look at this 445 00:40:24.159 --> 00:40:32.960 first chapter of Hagi we see that self examination the leads to condemnation. It 446 00:40:34.079 --> 00:40:40.239 leads to the revelation of the curse that is rightfully on us, and there's 447 00:40:40.360 --> 00:40:46.800 nothing wrong with that. That is a good thing, but it is not 448 00:40:46.880 --> 00:40:54.199 a sufficient thing for our salvation. We must not only examine our hearts according 449 00:40:54.239 --> 00:41:00.679 to the law, but we must also believe the Gospel promises, according to 450 00:41:00.719 --> 00:41:07.119 God's grace. We must believe that God, route by his spirit, can 451 00:41:07.159 --> 00:41:14.599 and does change our hearts, can and has removed the curse and forgiven us 452 00:41:14.599 --> 00:41:21.599 our sins and has built a temple in which we can dwell with him forever, 453 00:41:22.239 --> 00:41:30.159 a temple that we enjoy and we hear and experience him and his salvation 454 00:41:30.679 --> 00:41:36.599 and know his nearness with us. So let us also learn to consider our 455 00:41:36.599 --> 00:41:40.960 ways, to look to the Lord and all that he says and to trust 456 00:41:42.079 --> 00:41:45.639 him to be at work in us, for the forgiveness of our sins, 457 00:41:45.639 --> 00:41:52.480 our sanctification and, one day, our glorification as well. Let's pray our 458 00:41:52.519 --> 00:41:55.480 father in heaven. We thank you for your word to us. Please help 459 00:41:55.559 --> 00:42:00.199 us to consider our hearts and to do so wisely and truly. And when 460 00:42:00.239 --> 00:42:06.199 we come to see the weakness in ourselves, the sin in ourselves, the 461 00:42:06.199 --> 00:42:08.800 the lack of obedience, oh Lord, we ask that you would help us 462 00:42:08.840 --> 00:42:15.280 to turn not again to ourselves but to you, to strive after new obedience 463 00:42:15.400 --> 00:42:22.800 through faith, to walk in the ways of Christ through faith, trusting and 464 00:42:22.840 --> 00:42:30.639 believing of your work that began even before we were made Lord, we thank 465 00:42:30.719 --> 00:42:35.440 you for doing that work here, and it's a rebable and in Joshua's lives. 466 00:42:35.800 --> 00:42:43.440 Why did they forget? Why did they slow down? They were afraid 467 00:42:43.800 --> 00:42:49.360 of the wrong things. They lost sight of their priorities, they lost sight 468 00:42:49.480 --> 00:42:52.559 of what they were called to do, just as we do. And so, 469 00:42:52.760 --> 00:42:55.639 Lord, as you did for them, we asked that you would do 470 00:42:55.719 --> 00:43:00.800 for us call us again to our first love, call us again to proper 471 00:43:00.880 --> 00:43:07.119 priorities, call us to praise you and worship you and glorify you in all 472 00:43:07.159 --> 00:43:12.800 things. Show US your way and empower us by your spirit to do these 473 00:43:12.840 --> 00:43:17.800 things, to serve you now and forever. We ask, O Lord, 474 00:43:17.880 --> 00:43:22.000 that as we face the enemy is in our own hearts, as we face 475 00:43:22.079 --> 00:43:27.440 the enemies of the evil one and the the spiritual powers that are arrayed against 476 00:43:27.559 --> 00:43:31.199 us, as we face enemies in this world, that you would help us 477 00:43:31.239 --> 00:43:37.159 to wear the armor of God. We would put on those things that you 478 00:43:37.239 --> 00:43:43.679 have freely given to us, an armor that is strong and can put out 479 00:43:43.760 --> 00:43:47.719 all the flaming darts of the evil one. Thank you, Lord, for 480 00:43:47.760 --> 00:43:51.960 your grace to us. Thank you for wanting to be near to us. 481 00:43:52.079 --> 00:43:57.360 We praise you for your the glorious things that you have done and the salvation 482 00:43:57.519 --> 00:44:01.599 that we have and experienced in you. Bless us in all these things through 483 00:44:01.719 --> 00:44:06.760 Jesus Christ alone. We pray this in his name. Amen.