Show Notes
2 Samuel 5
Pastor Christopher Chelpka
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Episode Transcript
[00:00:05] Our Heavenly Father, we praise you for the word that you give to us.
[00:00:10] We praise you that as the Word comes into the world, it brings light into dark places in such a way that not only are things revealed, but hearts are changed.
[00:00:27] Your word is like a fire that purifies and warms and destroys.
[00:00:36] Lord, we ask that you would put to death that which is earthly in us. We ask that you would bring to life the things of the Spirit and the life that you have planned for us in Christ.
[00:00:51] We ask that as we come to the reading and preaching of your word, you would help us to hear it, and that our courage and confidence would be built in meditating and reflecting on the kingdom of God as it is realized first in David and then later in Christ.
[00:01:12] Lord, we thank you for this great salvation that we have in him. Give us ears to hear and eyes to see. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen.
[00:01:23] Well, let's remain standing and turn our attention to 2 Samuel, chapter 5.
[00:01:46] So 2 Samuel 5 begins.
[00:01:53] Well, if this was a TV show, this would be a season. I could call it right, Chapters five through eight, another season.
[00:02:01] And what we see here is the kingdom all coming together.
[00:02:07] We've seen ways in which it's been under attack, ways in which David has waited and waited and waited for these things to come.
[00:02:16] Finally, it's all coming together. And in that we see the promises of the Lord kept and fulfilled.
[00:02:25] All right, let's hear this morning. Second Samuel, chapter five.
[00:02:30] Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, behold, we are your bone and flesh.
[00:02:39] In times past when Saul was king over us, it was you who led out and brought in Israel.
[00:02:47] And the Lord said to you, you shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be prince over Israel.
[00:02:54] So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron. And King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord. And they anointed David king over Israel.
[00:03:05] David was 30 years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 40 years.
[00:03:11] At Hebron, he reigned over Judah seven years and six months. And at Jerusalem, he reigned over all Israel and Judah 33 years.
[00:03:22] And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who said to David, you will not come in here. But the blind and the lame will ward you off, thinking, David cannot come in here.
[00:03:36] Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, that is the city of David. And David said, on that day, whoever would strike the Jebusites, let him get up the water shaft to attack the lame and the blind, who are hated by David's soul. Therefore it is said, the blind and the lame shall not come into the house.
[00:03:57] And David lived in the stronghold and called it the city of David.
[00:04:02] And David built the city all around from the milo inward.
[00:04:06] And David became greater and greater, for the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him.
[00:04:15] And Hiram, king of Tyre, sent messengers to David. And cedar trees, also carpenters and masons, who built David a house.
[00:04:23] And David knew that the Lord had established him king over Israel and that he had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people, Israel.
[00:04:31] And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem after he came from Hebron. And more sons and daughters were born to David. And these are the names of those who were born to him in Shamuah, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliadah, and Eliphelt.
[00:04:55] When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. But David heard of it and went down to the stronghold.
[00:05:05] Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the valley of Rephaim.
[00:05:09] And David inquired of the Lord, shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?
[00:05:15] And the Lord said to David, go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.
[00:05:21] And David came to BAAL Parazim. And David defeated them there.
[00:05:26] And he said, the Lord has broken through my enemies before me like a breaking flood. Therefore the name of this place, that place is called BAAL Parazim.
[00:05:36] And the Philistines left their idols there. And David and his men carried them away.
[00:05:42] And the Philistines came up yet again and spread out in the valley of Rephaim. And when David inquired of the Lord, he said, you shall not go up. Go around to their rear and come against them opposite the balsam trees.
[00:05:55] And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then rouse yourself, for then the Lord has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines. And David did as the Lord commanded him and struck down the Philistines. From Geba to Gezer.
[00:06:13] You may be seated.
[00:06:34] So we don't have enough time to think about all the things that happened when David was waiting.
[00:06:40] But a lot happened, wasn't there? We've been in Second Samuel for a little while. First Samuel, before that, the time of David coming to this place. There's been a lot that's happened. Battles against the Philistines, being chased by Saul, various interactions with Samuel, all kinds of things.
[00:06:59] And now it's happening other places. He's been recognized as leader, even king in Hebron, but now it's happening. The things that the Lord have promised are all coming together.
[00:07:15] There's a way that that happens here. There's a way that this anticipates the things that happen when Jesus comes in the fullness of time. The son of David being born to become king over the kingdom of God forever.
[00:07:32] And there's yet still a time that we're waiting for, that day when the Lord returns. And then finally, in the culmination of all the glory and power that is anticipated in this chapter comes together in such a way that every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord, every knee will bow and the Lord will be awesome and glorious and before all men recognized fully. And you will be there, shining in your glorious resurrection bodies, the enemies of the Lord cast forever away and defeated into the lake of fire, a perfectly safe city and kingdom of Zion, where there will be no more crying, no more tears, no more sorrow, only rejoicing and joy and fellowship forever and ever.
[00:08:30] We have some things to look forward to, and the promises of those things and the fulfillment of those things are anticipated for us here in a chapter like 2nd Samuel 5, and some of the ones upcoming as well. Unfold this more and more in all kinds of ways.
[00:08:50] Years in the wilderness will end.
[00:08:54] The years of wandering, the years of pilgriming, the years of waiting are not forever.
[00:09:02] This was true of David. Chaos, civil war, constant challenges, mistakes on his part. All kinds of things are coming to an end here in the very first verse. Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron.
[00:09:20] An exciting moment in these verses 1 through 5, when Israel is united, represented by these elders who come.
[00:09:31] And David, it says, makes a covenant with them. The order of there is important because he's the Lord, he's the king, he's the one who establishes the terms that are going on with, of course, God over him.
[00:09:47] But we hear their words and their good words. What does Israel say to David? We are your bone and flesh. They recognize that they are united to him.
[00:09:59] They recognize Saul's kingship over them. They are not denying it. They're not trying to hurt Saul like others have done. But they do recognize the truth that David led them, and they honor him for this.
[00:10:15] Even more importantly, they honor not only the Lord's providence, but his promises.
[00:10:22] The Lord Said to you, you shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and shall be prince over Israel.
[00:10:29] This word shepherd here is used here, I believe, for the first time in direct connection with this kingship. But it's been used before for shepherds, our leaders. And it's taken up throughout the Bible in various places to signify kingship, the shepherds of Israel, the kings of Israel leading the people of God.
[00:10:51] And then it talks about the length of his reign there at the end of verse 5, 40 years altogether. An amazing thing. So this is the first thing that happens, right? The people of Israel come together, and this is part of our great hope, the unity of God's people, the communion and fellowship all around the Messiah king under him.
[00:11:14] The second thing that is mentioned is unity around the capital.
[00:11:21] So here, as the kingdom of God is being established in this anticipatory way, in this shadow, foreshadowing way, we see how Jerusalem comes to be the capital of the kingdom.
[00:11:37] It belongs first to the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, although it's always good to remember that it belongs first to the Lord. He allows people to be where they are when he desires and when he pleases. And if he wants to move people around, he's more than within his authority as God of the universe to move you or me or anyone else. He wants, when he wants.
[00:12:05] And so here he gives, as he had promised long ago to Abraham. Fulfilling those promises, he gives the kingdom to David.
[00:12:16] But there's a problem.
[00:12:18] The Jebusites are not faithful followers of the Lord.
[00:12:24] They do not stand up and walk out and say, of course, this is for you.
[00:12:30] Instead, they do what a lot of people do. When the Lord confronts us with things that we want to hang on to when we are in rebellion against him, we double down on our supposed strengths.
[00:12:44] We fight, and we try to put up the best fight we can.
[00:12:48] The Jebusites do that.
[00:12:50] And they do a fair bit of bragging along the way.
[00:12:55] Notice that they say, you will not come in here, but the blind and the lame will ward you off.
[00:13:03] Like, this is going to be so easy for us to defeat you that we'll just send our blind people and our lame people and they'll keep you out and. And knowing. And the narrator reveals to us that this isn't just. They're not just trying to scare David. It's not a bluff in their own minds, because it says they were thinking, david cannot come in here, right? This is like the ship that cannot be sunk, the city that cannot be toppled, the fortress that is impenetrable.
[00:13:39] So Zion is a fortress, a citadel, a stronghold. Here is a term that's used in our translations that's on a mountain called Mount Zion, and it's one of the seven hills that are in Jerusalem.
[00:13:59] Now, I'll admit to you, thinking of mountains inside of city is something I have a hard time getting my mind around a little bit, because the mountains for me are always around the city.
[00:14:13] So if you're like me, Tucson people, Phoenix people, just try the best you can to imagine that a city could potentially be built around mountains and not just under them or in valleys.
[00:14:29] Israel is one of these places. Now, the other thing to kind of keep in mind as you imagine this is these mountains are not quite like the mountains that we have here.
[00:14:40] It's more like sentinel peak, right?
[00:14:43] A hill, prominent, obvious. We call it a mountain. Right.
[00:14:51] Imagine several of those being throughout our city, but a smaller city. And that's maybe part of the way we can think about Jerusalem.
[00:15:01] One of these mountains, Mount Zion, has this stronghold on it, a protective fortress for the city, for the region in this area.
[00:15:12] And the Jebusites are pretty confident about it.
[00:15:16] Well, notice what David says with confidence in what the Lord has promised and given. He says, whoever would strike the Jebusites, let him get up the water shaft. So this would be the ways of getting up into the fortress as it's connected with the Kidron Baruch, go up and attack the lame and the blind.
[00:15:35] Now, this is not David wanting to attack lame people and blind people. This is his response to their braggadocio. Right? You know, so we'll ward you off with the blind and the lime. And then so David responds by saying, well, then I guess that's who we will be defeating.
[00:15:52] Right? So he tells his people, get up.
[00:15:55] And they do.
[00:15:59] And then it says, of course, that they took the city. And it says in verse nine. And David lived in the stronghold and called, and it called it the city of David. And David built the city all around from the milo inward, a particular feature of the city. And then David became greater and greater for the Lord as the God of hosts.
[00:16:21] There's so much that we can say about Mount Zion, about Jerusalem. Sometimes because of the location of these things, they're used interchangeably. Right? So Jerusalem and Zion kind of referring to the. To the same people, the same place.
[00:16:39] Ultimately, though, these things are. God is going to put his name there. That's what's happening. And we'll see that as the ark comes in and as God makes a covenant, when Solomon builds the temple. We will see the glory cloud of God coming down and him resting his presence so that he is said to be there.
[00:17:02] This becomes a holy city.
[00:17:05] But when God's own people reject him, Ezekiel sees a vision later of that holy cloud, of the presence of the glory of God leaving the temple, leaving Zion, leaving Jerusalem.
[00:17:22] And then, sadly, when we see Jesus, Jesus is born. The Son of God is incarnate. And when he comes, Jerusalem, the city of David, the city of God, rejects the Son of God.
[00:17:41] A sad and terrible turn of events in which Jerusalem is cursed by Jesus.
[00:17:49] And the Gospel, as part of that, and as a result of that, goes out to all the world.
[00:17:55] But that doesn't mean that God has no more city anymore.
[00:18:01] It doesn't mean that the people of God don't have a place anymore.
[00:18:06] It doesn't mean that we are forever homeless and lost, with no place, no place to belong to, no Lord to rule over us, no king to rule.
[00:18:18] Because the Lord promises us a heavenly Jerusalem, a Mount Zion. That is the heavenly Jerusalem, as Hebrews talks about it and Revelation talks about it. And as we already read it in Colossians, remember that your life is hidden with Christ, who is there.
[00:18:38] This is an amazing thing.
[00:18:40] So these things that are anticipated here get fulfilled in this greater and final and eternal way, an imperishable way later on, where God dwells with man permanently through the Son, Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us. Which is why Hebrews says that we have come to this Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, as Christians, as those who have put our faith in Christ.
[00:19:18] So this work that God begins here, he continues later on and is doing so with us.
[00:19:26] The next thing we see is in verses 11 and 12, where Hiram, the King of Tyre, sends messengers to David. And we see the glory of Israel being expressed in this particular way in which outsiders and foreigners are supporting the kingdom of God.
[00:19:50] Blessing the kingdom of God in a similar way that the wise men, as they are sometimes called, come and give gifts to Jesus. Not Israelites, people from far away or later, or the Queen of Sheba coming to Solomon to seek his wisdom. Here the King of Tyre gave, giving gifts, building a house for David, blessing and glorying in Israel.
[00:20:19] An amazing thing.
[00:20:22] Another thing we see regarding the dominion and kingdom of God here is the expansion of it, although of course, with a note of concern as David takes on more concubines and wives, something that is warned about in Deuteronomy 17.
[00:20:38] Nevertheless, the Lord is blessing David, even in spite of his sinfulness, not the first time that's happened in your life or in his.
[00:20:49] And we see his house continuing to grow.
[00:20:54] The next thing we see about the growth and expansion and glory of the kingdom is the defeat of the Philistines.
[00:21:02] The Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel in verse 17, and they all went to search for David.
[00:21:10] Remember that throughout this book, going back into first Samuel, the Philistines have been fighting, fighting, fighting against Israel. Constant incursions, constant attacks. And David has had various relationships and complicated ones, beginning with the defeat of Goliath, the great warrior of Gath, at other times living in Gath and having odd alliances with them there.
[00:21:38] And now the thing that the Philistines had been afraid about at various times, that this David, this mighty warrior, this cunning, wise, shrewd man with a mighty. With mighty soldiers who followed him around everywhere, that he would be king and that he would be their enemy. And that has happened.
[00:22:02] What should the Philistines do at this moment? Of course, they should pledge their allegiance to David and the kingdom and their subservience to him. He is, after all, the shepherd of Israel and God is his king.
[00:22:16] But instead they try to kill him.
[00:22:19] They try to destroy the Lord's anointed one.
[00:22:23] And it will not work.
[00:22:30] We've seen two times already something happening, a doctrine emerging through this passage a couple times already where we've heard that it's the Lord who is establishing all these things, right? As David comes to more and more and more power, it's really easy when that happens to look at that person and say, this is my person, right? This is the person I'm going to follow in an almost kind of a divine like way. They can do no wrong. They have all power. Everything they do is good.
[00:23:01] And David is good in many ways. He does have power. But what is the source of it? Where is it coming from?
[00:23:08] Is it David's shrewdness? Is it his cunning? Is it his ability?
[00:23:12] Is it his handsome looks?
[00:23:14] Is it his ability to think on his feet?
[00:23:18] No.
[00:23:19] Verse 10 tells us what we have seen throughout the Scriptures over and over again. Verse 10. And David became greater and greater. Why? Because Yahweh, the God of hosts, was with him.
[00:23:33] It names God here as the God of hosts because host doesn't mean hospitality here, it means big armies, right? Giant armies of men employed that God employs with David and his people and of angels whom God has ready to do his holy will.
[00:23:55] And we'll come back to that in a moment. It is this power of God, the true King, the Lord of the armies, who is making David greater and greater.
[00:24:07] We also see that in a second place, as he becomes greater and greater. Then in verse 12, we hear David's acknowledgement of this.
[00:24:19] David knew that the Lord had established him king over Israel and that he exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people, Israel.
[00:24:28] Here is God acting. God acting in power and God acting in love. He rescued his people out of Egypt and he promised to establish them in a great kingdom in the land promised to their fathers. And here it is happening.
[00:24:45] Praise God, for the sake of his people, he has exalted his kingdom and he has established David king over Israel.
[00:24:57] And then we see it another time in David's actions. So going back into our Philistine account here, verses 17 and following, what does David do? Exactly what you should do. When you are a person who depends on the Lord, whose faith is in him and his promises, you inquire of the Lord.
[00:25:19] So David does that here, and he says he has two questions which I think is important. He says, shall I go up against the Philistines and will you give them into my hand?
[00:25:31] Notice there's two questions there. We are often tempted to merge those two things.
[00:25:37] Shall I go up? And then in our minds, if I win, or will I win?
[00:25:44] And if I will, then I guess that means I shall go up.
[00:25:49] But winning isn't always what God wants for us in a particular moment. Ultimately, of course, the great glory of that we've been talking about and the consummation of all these things becoming more than conquerors, that's the end of the story. But along the way, there's going to be other things that happens, other things that God wants for us.
[00:26:11] And so David rightly separates these things. One, should I go up? And two, just curious, will you give them into my hand?
[00:26:19] And the Lord answers, those go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.
[00:26:25] And then he does.
[00:26:27] And who wins? God wins. The Lord has broken through my enemies. David says before me, like a breaking flood.
[00:26:37] The power of that is described there. The judgment of God and the waters of the flood are described there.
[00:26:46] And the Philistines get separated from their idols.
[00:26:51] Amazing thing.
[00:26:53] Then we have a second battle, again reminding us that this is in the power of the Lord, that the Lord does what he wants when he wants. David doesn't just assume, assume what to do next. He inquires of the Lord, and the Lord says, you shall not go up to them. Instead, go around to their rear, come up to them opposite the balsam trees.
[00:27:17] And then this wonderful detail in verse 24. And when you hear the sound of marching in the top of the balsam trees, then rouse yourself, for then the Lord has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines.
[00:27:32] And David did as the Lord commanded him and struck down the Philistines successfully from Geba together.
[00:27:38] So the Lord gives him this sign. He calls him to. First he inquires, and then he waits.
[00:27:45] And the thing he tells him to wait for is the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees.
[00:27:51] That's an unusual thing, isn't it?
[00:27:54] What did God do there?
[00:27:57] Well, one possibility is that he somehow used a secondary cause, like wind or something like that, to carry sound in a particular way that would allow David to notice and then advance, which would be an amazing thing.
[00:28:13] Not only that God would do this and can do this kind of thing, but that he would tell David about it before it even happens.
[00:28:21] There's another possibility, too, which is that this is referring to those hosts that we heard about earlier, the hosts of heaven, the armies of God moving above David, so to speak, moving before he even gets there.
[00:28:38] Either way, this is the Lord at work, isn't it?
[00:28:42] The Lord at work, the Lord winning the day.
[00:28:47] So as we see these things all coming together, Israel accepting David, the stronghold of Zion being captured, becoming the city of David, the city of God.
[00:29:01] When we see Hiram giving his allegiance, the Philistines who refused to coming under judgment, when we see David's victory and defeat over his enemies and the safety for all the people, what are we learning?
[00:29:16] What's emerging from this?
[00:29:19] Well, it's this line that we've seen, this thread that's been moving throughout this, that David is becoming greater and greater, for the Lord was with him.
[00:29:30] When the Lord is with us, when we attach ourselves to him, when we follow him, we find success in the things that he has promised us.
[00:29:44] Not success on our own terms or on our own timing or in our own ways. Those things, they don't matter, and they often get us distracted. Success as the Lord defines it and the Lord promises it, which is things like an eternal kingdom, the resurrection of your bodies, the elimination of suffering and the enemies of God. These are things that matter.
[00:30:07] These are things that bring us comfort and hope.
[00:30:11] These are the things that God promises to us and he will fulfill.
[00:30:20] What happens when we forget this doctrine?
[00:30:25] What happens when we forget that it's the Lord who is at work?
[00:30:30] All kinds of things can happen. We've seen them as through the books of 1 Samuel, we turn to unreliable sources for help.
[00:30:40] Kings, alliances, powers, internal things, external things that ultimately fall short. And not only do they not allow us to reach our end, they do what between us and the Lord.
[00:30:54] They separate us.
[00:30:56] They bring us low, they bring us into misery. They bring us all kinds of trouble. And ultimately, if it's our heart of hearts that's doing this, if we do not want to follow him, if we are his enemy. Enemies, then we are people destined for wrath.
[00:31:15] We fight battles God never asked us to fight.
[00:31:20] We blaspheme his name and use him as a superstitious thing.
[00:31:25] We panic when we come to things like fortified cities or difficult life circumstances of various kinds of whether it's communally as a church or individually in our own personal lives.
[00:31:38] When we're not trusting the Lord, when we don't have our eyes on him and his promises and his Messiah, things fall apart really fast.
[00:31:49] We scramble, we get scared, we make stupid decisions. We get ourselves into all kinds of messes.
[00:31:59] This is what happens when we forget that Jesus is our true king, that Jesus is the son of God, that Jesus accomplishes all these things and unites his people and defeats his enemies and rules with us and dwells. Rules over us and dwells with us forever.
[00:32:21] So what does this mean for us?
[00:32:25] It means that this passage is calling us to entrust every single part of our lives, our past, our present, our future to God and his Messiah king.
[00:32:40] To trust him to be our good shepherd, to lead us through the valley of the shadow of death, to lead us to places of refreshment and nourishment and safety and rejoicing.
[00:32:59] And these are things that we can do because God is with us. And this is what I want to leave you with.
[00:33:08] God is not in some kind of abstract, distant way with David and his people.
[00:33:18] He's with them, instructing, teaching, guiding, protecting, comforting, building on and on and on. You see that here in this passage, don't you?
[00:33:29] And you see it fulfilled throughout the Scriptures. You'll see it in 6 and 7 and 8 and 9, all the way through the rest of Second Samuel, through all the kings, through all the prophets, until the Son of God, the promised, long awaited, final son of David, comes into the world. And he's called Emmanuel.
[00:33:52] God with us. He's with you. He's with you against sin. He's with you against death. He's with you against the devil.
[00:34:04] Jesus says, I am with you always.
[00:34:08] And he meant it like a child at home that feels secure because mom and dad are home, you can feel safe and courageous.
[00:34:21] We can trust the Lord Jesus because He leads us and he's with us.
[00:34:25] We can trust him because he leads us with wisdom.
[00:34:28] He's not impulsive. He shepherds us.
[00:34:33] We don't run into him and then wander away. No, he's leading us according to his plan, his wisdom and his power.
[00:34:43] Micah 5:4 says, he will shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord.
[00:34:49] And finally, you can trust Jesus because he can tear down the strongholds and the citadels and the legitimately powerful places that we cannot.
[00:35:02] He does this all the time.
[00:35:05] And he does this particularly now, not through the sword, but through the Word and through the Spirit.
[00:35:12] Simple means in one way the world would call them foolish.
[00:35:17] And yet Jesus is doing it in your lives and our lives together as a church, family and throughout the world, people are constantly being changed, brought from death to life. People would say, well, God could never forgive me.
[00:35:35] Forgiven.
[00:35:36] People who say God could never help me are helped. People say, God could never remove my shame or my sadness, find it removed, find themselves rejoicing.
[00:35:52] Jesus is with you.
[00:35:54] He's with us. He's with us in the battle. He's with us in wisdom. He's with us in his power.
[00:36:00] We can trust Him. So lay down your fear, lay down your self reliance, lay down your frantic needs for self control and entrust your whole life to him.
[00:36:15] Let's pray.
[00:36:20] We pray to you, O great and mighty son of David, you who sits on your throne, ruling in might and in glory, with the angels bowing down before you, giving all worship, crying holy, holy, holy.
[00:36:36] You who are our king, ruling from the heavenly places to come again, to bring down the city of the heavenly Jerusalem and reveal it in the world.
[00:36:50] We pray to you.
[00:36:52] You are the one who conquers and makes us conquerors. You are the king and make us citizens.
[00:37:01] You are the victor and give to us crowns of victory.
[00:37:08] What have we done to deserve this?
[00:37:11] We've not loved you enough or served you enough, followed you enough?
[00:37:17] So much of our lives are spent running around and chasing after the the lusts and the idols of our own hearts.
[00:37:27] Put them to death, Lord.
[00:37:30] Break through, silence the lies and help us to see you for who you are.
[00:37:41] Strengthen our faith, forgive our sins as only you can do.
[00:37:47] Bring us from death to life that we might rejoice and trust you with deep confidence and assurance. Assurance, knowing that no one can stand against you, and remembering always the promises that nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus Christ or the love of God. In Jesus Christ our Lord.
[00:38:08] O Holy Spirit, we pray that you would be at work among us, constantly holding us fast in Christ, pouring out on us all the blessings of forgiveness and assurance of peace and joy that we might continue in confidence in our daily walks and enter one day fully into the consummated kingdom of God.
[00:38:34] We pray this in Jesus name, Amen.
