How to Persevere (Romans 12:12)

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.440 --> 00:00:03.919 Fear will remain standing. Lets turn our attention, please do. And let's 2 00:00:03.960 --> 00:00:17.829 turn our attention to Romans chapter, Romans Chapter Twelve, Romans twelve, verse 3 00:00:17.910 --> 00:00:24.940 nine through Verse Twenty One. Pay attention to God's word. Let's hear it 4 00:00:26.379 --> 00:00:33.859 and believe it. Romans twelve nine, let love be genuine. Abhor what 5 00:00:34.020 --> 00:00:38.130 is evil, hold fast to what is good, love one another with brotherly 6 00:00:38.210 --> 00:00:43.929 affection. outdue one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, 7 00:00:44.810 --> 00:00:50.759 be fervent in spirit. Serve the Lord, rejoice in hope, be 8 00:00:51.159 --> 00:00:57.640 be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer, contribute to the needs of 9 00:00:57.679 --> 00:01:03.320 the saints and seek to show hospitality. Bless those who persecute you. Bless 10 00:01:03.399 --> 00:01:07.430 and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those 11 00:01:07.510 --> 00:01:11.709 who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, 12 00:01:11.829 --> 00:01:17.109 but associate with the lowly lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. 13 00:01:18.030 --> 00:01:22.939 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable 14 00:01:23.099 --> 00:01:26.859 in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on 15 00:01:26.980 --> 00:01:32.459 you, live peaceably withal beloved. Never avenge yourselves, but leave it to 16 00:01:32.540 --> 00:01:36.329 the wrath of God, for it is written vengeance is mine. I will 17 00:01:36.409 --> 00:01:41.250 replace as the Lord. To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, 18 00:01:41.250 --> 00:01:44.769 feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink, for 19 00:01:44.969 --> 00:01:49.120 by doing so you will he burning coals on his head. Do not be 20 00:01:49.280 --> 00:01:57.599 overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. You may be seated. 21 00:02:04.670 --> 00:02:07.710 As we continue working through the section of Romans twelve, we find ourselves this 22 00:02:07.949 --> 00:02:15.620 morning at Romans twelve, verse twelve. Romans twelve verse twelve. Rejoice in 23 00:02:15.860 --> 00:02:23.620 hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Each of these 24 00:02:23.780 --> 00:02:30.210 words you could meet. This sense of being in has a sense of with 25 00:02:30.449 --> 00:02:34.889 regards to so you could say, with regards to hope, rejoice, or 26 00:02:35.050 --> 00:02:42.770 with regard to tribulation, be patient, with regard to prayer, be constant. 27 00:02:44.520 --> 00:02:50.719 And in that the apostle is giving to us these various realities of the 28 00:02:50.759 --> 00:02:53.000 Christian life and how we ought to live in them. And this is true 29 00:02:53.000 --> 00:02:58.560 of every calling, isn't it every calling that you find yourself and life has 30 00:02:58.629 --> 00:03:02.909 particular aspects that are attached to it, realities that always go with it. 31 00:03:05.110 --> 00:03:07.469 So, for example, if you're a sailor, you have to learn to 32 00:03:07.750 --> 00:03:10.669 tie knots. If you're a cook, you have to learn how to time 33 00:03:10.750 --> 00:03:15.659 your food and season things. If you are a father, you need to 34 00:03:15.819 --> 00:03:20.939 protect and provide for your children. These are the aspects or the realities that 35 00:03:21.099 --> 00:03:27.289 always go with that particular calling that you have. But in every calling it 36 00:03:27.409 --> 00:03:30.930 you can't just say what things are attached to it. There's also the how 37 00:03:31.169 --> 00:03:36.250 you do them. So, if you are a sailor, you just you. 38 00:03:36.409 --> 00:03:38.370 It's not just that you tie knots, but there are certain kinds of 39 00:03:38.449 --> 00:03:44.080 knots. You need to know when to use them, for what purposes those 40 00:03:44.159 --> 00:03:47.080 kinds of things. If if you're a cook, you have to know when 41 00:03:47.120 --> 00:03:51.639 to season things, how to season things, how to time things, what's 42 00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:55.830 appropriate. There can be good seasoning, there can be bad seasoning. Merely 43 00:03:55.990 --> 00:04:00.430 to recognize that there's an aspect attached to that calling is not really good enough. 44 00:04:01.030 --> 00:04:08.750 You have to know how to fulfill that or father's yes, provision is 45 00:04:08.750 --> 00:04:12.620 a part of your calling, but that doesn't mean that you have to stop 46 00:04:12.740 --> 00:04:15.660 there or that you can stop there. What do you provide? How much? 47 00:04:16.259 --> 00:04:19.779 How do you balance time with your family versus the money that you need 48 00:04:19.860 --> 00:04:24.180 to earn for them? They're all these kinds of questions that go into the 49 00:04:24.529 --> 00:04:30.610 fulfillment of that calling and the fulfillment of that particular aspect. So the aspects 50 00:04:30.649 --> 00:04:36.209 of any calling can be done well or done poorly, and, of course, 51 00:04:36.689 --> 00:04:42.319 if they're neglected or rejected all together, you might not be a part 52 00:04:42.360 --> 00:04:46.959 of that calling at all. So if you're not dealing with food and ingredients 53 00:04:46.000 --> 00:04:49.040 and shopping and the oven and all those things, well, you just might 54 00:04:49.120 --> 00:04:54.750 not be a cook. If you're not on boats and tying knots and doing 55 00:04:54.870 --> 00:04:58.430 that sort of thing, you might not be a sailor. If you don't 56 00:04:58.470 --> 00:05:01.990 have children, then you might not be a father. We're talking about those 57 00:05:02.029 --> 00:05:08.060 aspects that are essential to that calling and how we go about fulfilling them. 58 00:05:09.379 --> 00:05:13.620 Well, all this applies to our passage because through the apostle, God is 59 00:05:13.740 --> 00:05:18.779 instructing us about our calling as Christians. He's talking about those things that are 60 00:05:18.819 --> 00:05:25.209 essential to it, these aspects that belong to the Christian life necessarily. So 61 00:05:26.250 --> 00:05:30.970 they're always there. But he doesn't just say the things that are there. 62 00:05:30.170 --> 00:05:36.560 He then talks about how we go about fulfilling them. So in regard to 63 00:05:36.720 --> 00:05:41.720 hope, well, we rejoice. In regard to the tribulation that all Christians 64 00:05:41.759 --> 00:05:46.600 experience, we are to be patient into in regard to the prayer that all 65 00:05:46.680 --> 00:05:51.709 Christians have, we are to be constant. He's talking about the various aspects 66 00:05:51.750 --> 00:05:59.389 of our we are calling and how we are to fulfill them. Well, 67 00:05:59.389 --> 00:06:02.750 in this verse, in Verse Twelve, he's addressing three aspects that deal particularly 68 00:06:02.910 --> 00:06:11.980 with perseverance, this pushing forward, this continuing on, hope, tribulation prayer. 69 00:06:13.259 --> 00:06:17.180 These aspects of the Christian life are attached very much to these in between 70 00:06:17.259 --> 00:06:21.810 times, the sort of waiting that we are doing as we wait for the 71 00:06:21.970 --> 00:06:29.769 Lord's return. Hope, tribulation in prayer, three things that are always a 72 00:06:29.889 --> 00:06:34.240 part of being a Christian, three things that every Christian experiences in one form 73 00:06:34.439 --> 00:06:43.120 or another, if indeed you are a Christian. So let's consider each and 74 00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:46.990 consider how we are supposed to live in regards to them, how it is 75 00:06:47.230 --> 00:06:56.029 we fulfill these these aspects of our faith, of our Christianity. So first, 76 00:06:56.029 --> 00:07:02.019 hope. Hope is an essential aspect of the Christian faith. Now we 77 00:07:02.379 --> 00:07:05.939 talk about hope in different ways. Sometimes we talk about it is a feeling 78 00:07:08.139 --> 00:07:12.660 which we sometimes have or don't have. Another times, the Bible describes it 79 00:07:12.699 --> 00:07:16.850 as as as something that we possess, not so much a feeling but almost 80 00:07:16.850 --> 00:07:20.490 like an object, a thing that we have, and that's the way in 81 00:07:20.529 --> 00:07:27.170 which it's described here. The hope that's described here is does it isn't dependent 82 00:07:27.370 --> 00:07:30.519 on whether or not you feel it. It's it's something that you you have. 83 00:07:31.560 --> 00:07:33.920 So, for example, I heard a story this week about a man 84 00:07:34.000 --> 00:07:39.720 who was flying on one of the major airlines and they goofed up his flight 85 00:07:39.959 --> 00:07:43.920 and then as pretty bad. And then, as a response to that, 86 00:07:44.910 --> 00:07:47.509 they said here you can have a free flight anywhere you like in the Caribbean. 87 00:07:48.910 --> 00:07:53.790 So let's imagine that he gets those tickets in the mail and he sets 88 00:07:53.870 --> 00:07:57.829 them on his desk. How might he feel about that? Well, he 89 00:07:57.829 --> 00:08:01.899 might feel really happy, or maybe he'd feel upset that they didn't do enough, 90 00:08:01.899 --> 00:08:05.779 or maybe he'd feel some other way. But in a sense it really 91 00:08:05.819 --> 00:08:09.379 doesn't matter. It doesn't change the fact, in other words, that he 92 00:08:09.459 --> 00:08:13.170 still has those tickets. They're still on his desk. He has two, 93 00:08:13.410 --> 00:08:16.689 or let's say one, one free ticket to anywhere in the Caribbean that he 94 00:08:16.810 --> 00:08:20.689 wants to fly. No matter how he feels about it, that's what he 95 00:08:20.769 --> 00:08:28.120 has well's Christians. It's kind of like that. For us. We have 96 00:08:28.399 --> 00:08:35.279 received this ticket into the Kingdom of God. It belongs to us, it 97 00:08:35.559 --> 00:08:41.399 is ours, but of course it's a lot different in several ways from the 98 00:08:41.470 --> 00:08:46.549 story I tell, because going to heaven is not some kind of great vacation. 99 00:08:48.509 --> 00:08:52.389 Going to heaven and belonging to the Kingdom of God is not a vacation 100 00:08:52.429 --> 00:09:01.940 at all. It's the ultimate salvation. Another thing we might add to really 101 00:09:01.980 --> 00:09:05.500 appreciate what it is that we've been given the hope that we have in Christ 102 00:09:07.340 --> 00:09:11.570 is also to recognize that God's giving us entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven. 103 00:09:13.529 --> 00:09:18.090 It's not a mistake like it was with the airline. The airline goofed up 104 00:09:18.169 --> 00:09:22.370 and apologized by saying here, let's help you out. God did not goof 105 00:09:22.450 --> 00:09:28.519 up and make a mistake when he gives us the Kingdom of Heaven. In 106 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:33.919 fact, he gives us the Kingdom of Heaven as a response to our sins, 107 00:09:33.879 --> 00:09:41.389 our mistakes. To understand how sort of different that is from the other 108 00:09:41.470 --> 00:09:46.710 things we experience in this world, imagine not buying a ticket to an airline. 109 00:09:46.710 --> 00:09:52.980 Imagine saying hateful things online to the airline imagine calling them up every day 110 00:09:54.139 --> 00:09:58.019 and cussing them out and speaking poorly to them and just being a real pain, 111 00:09:58.580 --> 00:10:03.700 and then they call you up the next day and say, guess what, 112 00:10:03.740 --> 00:10:07.889 Mr Cholpka, we're going to be sending you a ticket to anywhere you 113 00:10:07.970 --> 00:10:13.129 like in the Caribbean. It doesn't make sense. It's not a sort of 114 00:10:13.250 --> 00:10:18.289 proper response to sin. It's not a proper response, it's not a just 115 00:10:18.610 --> 00:10:22.919 response, but that's what it is. As will see, though, it's 116 00:10:24.000 --> 00:10:28.720 proper not because it's responding to our sins. It's proper because it's responding to 117 00:10:28.320 --> 00:10:33.559 God's forgiveness of those sins. It's the gift he gives us that we didn't 118 00:10:33.600 --> 00:10:41.789 deserve. To understand the hope that we have in heaven, we have to 119 00:10:41.909 --> 00:10:50.580 remember that our sins completely preclude us from belonging to that sin less heavenly country. 120 00:10:52.820 --> 00:10:56.580 In fact, our sins don't gain US entrance into heaven, they consign 121 00:10:56.779 --> 00:11:03.570 us to judgment in Hell. If that sounds too harsh, you have to 122 00:11:03.649 --> 00:11:13.169 consider this question. What does Sin Deserve? Really? What do your sins 123 00:11:13.250 --> 00:11:20.039 deserve? The Bible says that the sin deserves death, that the wages of 124 00:11:20.120 --> 00:11:24.440 sin are death. That's the proper payment, that's the proper penalty for our 125 00:11:24.559 --> 00:11:30.519 sins. They deserve the judgment of God. And really, how could it 126 00:11:30.600 --> 00:11:33.549 be otherwise? How could you say of any of the sins that you have 127 00:11:33.710 --> 00:11:39.110 committed in your life that you deserve to be treated well because of what you 128 00:11:39.190 --> 00:11:48.259 did? To understand your sin properly, you have to really press and become 129 00:11:48.460 --> 00:11:54.940 sensitive to that sense of justice that God has given to us. Let me 130 00:11:54.980 --> 00:11:58.860 tell you about another story I heard this week. Somebody was telling me, 131 00:12:00.100 --> 00:12:03.929 someone who goes to one of our sister churches here in town, was telling 132 00:12:03.970 --> 00:12:09.370 me about the death of his father. His father had just gotten a new 133 00:12:09.450 --> 00:12:13.169 motorcycle. He had kind of exchanged one. was driving from Phoenix to Camp 134 00:12:13.250 --> 00:12:18.120 Verdi. He was driving at or under this, I think a little bit 135 00:12:18.159 --> 00:12:22.000 under the speed limit, and a lady driving behind him look down at her 136 00:12:22.039 --> 00:12:28.120 phone, texting, messing around with it. We don't know. We know, 137 00:12:28.360 --> 00:12:31.789 though, because there was an ambulance that was nearby and was filming it. 138 00:12:33.429 --> 00:12:35.269 There was a witness that said she was weaving around on the road and 139 00:12:35.429 --> 00:12:41.710 for six seconds she didn't look up and she rammed him and he flew over 140 00:12:41.830 --> 00:12:48.100 her car and he died, this man lost his father, his wife lost 141 00:12:48.220 --> 00:12:54.340 her husband, all because this woman decided to pay more attention to her phone 142 00:12:54.980 --> 00:13:00.570 for six seconds. Close Your Eyes and count to six. That's a long 143 00:13:01.250 --> 00:13:07.210 time to be negligent. So what, after all that pain and after all 144 00:13:07.370 --> 00:13:13.799 that loss and after that great, is great and terrible thing that she did, 145 00:13:13.879 --> 00:13:18.200 she was fined the total of two hundred dollars, given a ticket. 146 00:13:20.559 --> 00:13:28.269 That's it, despite the video, despite the testimony of witnesses, despite what 147 00:13:28.350 --> 00:13:33.549 it obviously happened. Well, this sun is now. You obviously tried and 148 00:13:33.669 --> 00:13:41.429 he pressed and he now belongs to organizations that work on anti texting laws and 149 00:13:41.539 --> 00:13:45.700 things like that. All that to say, I want you to feel that. 150 00:13:45.820 --> 00:13:50.779 I want you to ask yourself if I was if someone did this to 151 00:13:50.820 --> 00:13:54.500 me or to my husband or to my son or my daughter, would I 152 00:13:54.659 --> 00:14:00.289 be satisfied? What I feel that two hundred bucks was a sort of fair 153 00:14:00.370 --> 00:14:07.649 exchange for that life. Of course it's not. Now, when we think 154 00:14:07.690 --> 00:14:09.480 about any of our sins, we have to be honest in that kind of 155 00:14:09.600 --> 00:14:15.519 way. Now you may say, well, I haven't murdered anyone, or 156 00:14:15.559 --> 00:14:20.759 I haven't been grossly negligent so much that I've taken another person's life? Well, 157 00:14:22.840 --> 00:14:30.389 perhaps, but have you ever caused great pain and loss? Have you 158 00:14:30.470 --> 00:14:37.590 ever driven someone to despair? Have you ever said something that was crushing to 159 00:14:37.750 --> 00:14:41.460 someone, or have you ever done something that was truly faithless when you were 160 00:14:41.860 --> 00:14:50.980 required to be faithful? I have. We are all guilty of these things 161 00:14:54.090 --> 00:15:01.090 and we feel rightly guilty and shamed as a result. What I'm asking you 162 00:15:01.169 --> 00:15:05.690 to do when you think about your sins is to judge yourself rightly, be 163 00:15:05.970 --> 00:15:13.960 fair, be just. What do your sins deserve? Put before your mind 164 00:15:13.159 --> 00:15:18.159 every sinful thought, every sinful word, every sinful deed, if you can 165 00:15:18.279 --> 00:15:24.990 remember them all, and why have you forgotten? Now, remember that you 166 00:15:24.029 --> 00:15:28.549 committed them not only against other people who were made in the image of God 167 00:15:28.190 --> 00:15:33.350 and were Pressius precious to him, but you have committed these sins against God 168 00:15:33.470 --> 00:15:39.299 himself, who sees all things, knows all things, the motivations of your 169 00:15:39.419 --> 00:15:45.460 heart and all that comes with that. The you sinned against a God who 170 00:15:45.820 --> 00:15:50.169 is perfectly just and, by the great and awesome goodness of his character, 171 00:15:52.009 --> 00:15:58.730 is required to be against evil. He has a great and divine warrior for 172 00:15:58.889 --> 00:16:08.480 goodness and justice. He cannot simply let sin go. So you see why 173 00:16:08.480 --> 00:16:15.519 I say that my sins and your sins do not grant us entrance into the 174 00:16:15.559 --> 00:16:19.029 Kingdom of God. They throw the bars over the Kingdom of Heaven and they 175 00:16:19.110 --> 00:16:26.909 consign us to the very pits of hell. So when I say that God 176 00:16:27.070 --> 00:16:33.620 has given to you a hope in Jesus Christ, that brings you into the 177 00:16:33.659 --> 00:16:37.659 Kingdom of God, you see why I say it's not a vacation, but 178 00:16:37.779 --> 00:16:45.740 it is the most ultimate salvation that you could ever imagine. It's beyond our 179 00:16:45.820 --> 00:16:56.210 imagination. It is a hope that is amazing, remarkable, marvelous and gracious. 180 00:16:59.210 --> 00:17:06.200 We Are Christians not because of our sins, not because of our righteousness. 181 00:17:07.519 --> 00:17:12.559 We Are Christians because of the forgiveness of our sins and the righteousness of 182 00:17:12.720 --> 00:17:23.029 God imputed to us. God didn't make a mistake like the airline. God 183 00:17:23.109 --> 00:17:29.589 isn't atoning for his sins. The Salvation we have, the hope that you 184 00:17:30.059 --> 00:17:37.259 have, the guarantee of heaven, is because God atoned for your sins. 185 00:17:40.940 --> 00:17:45.569 He did this by sending his perfect son to die a death that you and 186 00:17:45.730 --> 00:17:52.369 I deserve, deserved, on the Cross. Jesus Christ bore every sinful thought 187 00:17:52.809 --> 00:18:00.599 every sinful word, every sinful emotion, every sinful deed. He sacrificed himself 188 00:18:00.119 --> 00:18:06.799 for us. He bled for us so that he could forgive us off all 189 00:18:06.920 --> 00:18:11.240 of our sins, so that he could wash us and make us pure, 190 00:18:11.400 --> 00:18:19.309 so that he could give us all of the heavenly blessings that we never deserved 191 00:18:22.029 --> 00:18:30.059 but that he loved and wanted to give to US anyway. The truth about 192 00:18:30.099 --> 00:18:37.059 our sins is devastating, but the good news of the Bible is that on 193 00:18:37.180 --> 00:18:45.730 the Cross, Jesus Christ devastated the devastation. He put to death death and 194 00:18:45.890 --> 00:18:55.759 he gave life to a thing called hope. In the Heidelberg Catechism that we 195 00:18:56.640 --> 00:19:02.880 recited earlier, if you remember the question, the very first question, what 196 00:19:03.119 --> 00:19:07.279 is your only comfort in life and death? Here the words of the catechism, 197 00:19:08.039 --> 00:19:14.190 it speaks to the hope that we have received in Jesus Christ. What 198 00:19:14.390 --> 00:19:21.309 is your only comfort in life and death? Answer that I with body and 199 00:19:21.549 --> 00:19:26.579 soul, both in life and death, and not my own, but belong 200 00:19:26.819 --> 00:19:32.299 to my faithful savior, Jesus Christ, who, with his precious blood, 201 00:19:32.299 --> 00:19:37.980 has fully satisfied for all my sins and delivered me from the power of the 202 00:19:37.140 --> 00:19:42.089 Devil and so preserves me, that that with, that without the will of 203 00:19:42.210 --> 00:19:48.650 my heavenly father, not a hair can fall from my head. Yay, 204 00:19:48.049 --> 00:19:53.880 that all things must be subservient to my salvation. wherefore, by his Holy 205 00:19:53.960 --> 00:20:02.319 Spirit, he assures me of eternal life and makes me heartily willing and ready 206 00:20:02.359 --> 00:20:11.509 henceforth to live undo him. If you are a Christian, that comfort belongs 207 00:20:11.710 --> 00:20:18.309 to you. You have it, it is your hope. If you are 208 00:20:18.349 --> 00:20:23.859 a Christian, by believing in this Jesus of your salvation, by believing in 209 00:20:25.059 --> 00:20:33.420 Jesus your only hope, you have hope, hope against every sin, hope 210 00:20:33.460 --> 00:20:40.089 against every injustice, hope that all the things that you could ever need will 211 00:20:40.089 --> 00:20:45.490 be richly provided for you forever, that every tear, every sorrow, every 212 00:20:45.529 --> 00:20:52.079 terrible thing will be wiped away, both in you and outside of you. 213 00:20:53.640 --> 00:20:59.920 In Jesus Christ, God has given us a guarantee from God himself and in 214 00:21:00.200 --> 00:21:07.589 God himself, that atonement has been made, justification has been declared and that 215 00:21:07.829 --> 00:21:15.509 corresponding justification will come to you as surely as Jesus Christ himself rose from the 216 00:21:15.549 --> 00:21:21.619 dead. Of course, if you are not a Christian, the none of 217 00:21:21.740 --> 00:21:27.500 this belongs to you and you remain dead in your trespasses and in your sins. 218 00:21:30.539 --> 00:21:38.130 But to become a Christian only requires letting go of those sins by coming 219 00:21:38.250 --> 00:21:45.089 to Jesus, by clinging to him and all the things that he offers us 220 00:21:45.730 --> 00:21:52.720 in his death. So, Beloved, when the Apostle Paul says, rejoice 221 00:21:52.799 --> 00:21:56.799 and hope, that is the hope you have. We have been brought from 222 00:21:56.839 --> 00:22:02.750 death to life, from slavery to freedom, from falling apart and returning to 223 00:22:02.910 --> 00:22:07.309 dust to everlasting life. They can never be taken away because it's given to 224 00:22:07.390 --> 00:22:15.940 you by God himself. Any sin that you can throw at it is taken 225 00:22:15.980 --> 00:22:25.339 up and cleansed by the blood of Jesus. So now we ask, how 226 00:22:25.380 --> 00:22:30.289 do you respond to that? How do you respond to the greatest gift that 227 00:22:30.450 --> 00:22:34.410 could ever be given anyone? How do you respond to when God himself says, 228 00:22:34.450 --> 00:22:40.009 all your sins are taken care of by my son on the cross. 229 00:22:40.410 --> 00:22:48.119 Here is eternal salvation. Well, I think you should rejoice, and that's 230 00:22:48.119 --> 00:22:55.359 what God thinks to with regards to hope that you all have. Well, 231 00:22:56.079 --> 00:23:02.670 rejoice, rejoice, consider the hope that you have in heaven. Consider the 232 00:23:02.750 --> 00:23:08.069 forgiveness of your sins. Imagine being trapped forever in a prison, locked and 233 00:23:08.269 --> 00:23:14.420 bound and knowing that you are facing certain death, and then all of a 234 00:23:14.500 --> 00:23:17.299 sudden, one day the prison guard comes to the door and says, you 235 00:23:17.380 --> 00:23:22.819 know what, someone paid for your sins and we're letting you go. Opens 236 00:23:22.900 --> 00:23:29.369 the door and you walk out. You are a choice. Don't you say, 237 00:23:29.690 --> 00:23:33.250 I can't believe this. How did this happen? And when you find 238 00:23:33.289 --> 00:23:36.930 out how it happened, what do you do? You Go and you thank 239 00:23:37.049 --> 00:23:42.960 the one who saved you. You are you rejoice. We face a lot 240 00:23:44.000 --> 00:23:49.680 of difficulties in this life. Indeed, we will have to die, but 241 00:23:49.799 --> 00:23:55.359 we still rejoice because we know that even in our deaths, even in our 242 00:23:55.440 --> 00:24:00.910 sins, even in our tribulations, whatever we can imagine, Jesus Christ has 243 00:24:00.950 --> 00:24:07.109 overcome. I think we're going to finish with hope to day and get to 244 00:24:07.190 --> 00:24:14.819 the other two tomorrow or next time. I hope that some of you got 245 00:24:14.859 --> 00:24:19.900 to know Bruce Baling in our evening services. His memorial service was yesterday. 246 00:24:22.460 --> 00:24:26.569 For those of you who didn't know him, Bruce was a textbook example of 247 00:24:26.609 --> 00:24:37.849 a Christian who had hope and rejoiced. John Calvin once wrote. I'm going 248 00:24:37.890 --> 00:24:41.440 to read this to you so I get it right. John Calvin once wrote 249 00:24:41.480 --> 00:24:48.240 that there's a maxim we all must hold to. He says no one has 250 00:24:48.319 --> 00:24:55.910 progressed in Christ's school except the man who awaits, enjoy and Gaiety the day 251 00:24:55.990 --> 00:25:03.349 of death and the final resurrection. For Saint Paul describes all the faithful by 252 00:25:03.470 --> 00:25:07.460 this mark, and too it's scripture habitually recalls US whenever it would set forth 253 00:25:07.660 --> 00:25:12.740 reason to rejoice. Rejoice, says the Lord, and raise up your head 254 00:25:14.140 --> 00:25:21.890 for your redemption. Years when Bruce found out he had cancer. Before that 255 00:25:22.049 --> 00:25:25.130 he had suffered all kinds of other things. When Bruce found out that he 256 00:25:25.170 --> 00:25:30.490 had months to live, weeks to live, days to live, he rejoiced. 257 00:25:33.210 --> 00:25:37.519 If the if the man who makes progress in the School of Christ and 258 00:25:37.559 --> 00:25:41.200 awaits and enjoy and gaiety the day of death and the final resurrection. I 259 00:25:41.599 --> 00:25:45.319 can't help of thinking of Bruce's sort of at the top of the class. 260 00:25:45.720 --> 00:25:52.230 He always rejoiced as his death came nearer and nearer. You talk to him 261 00:25:52.269 --> 00:25:56.630 and he'd ask you, are you loving Jesus? Are you hoping in him? 262 00:25:56.630 --> 00:25:57.869 How are you doing, Bruce? Are you worried? Are you scared? 263 00:25:59.309 --> 00:26:03.269 No, I'm fine, I'm going to heaven. He always rejoiced, 264 00:26:03.390 --> 00:26:07.900 he always had hope. It was ever true gift of God. He had 265 00:26:07.980 --> 00:26:12.500 it in great measure. For those of you who knew him or knew people 266 00:26:12.660 --> 00:26:21.930 like him, I think the Lord has blessed us with those examples. He's, 267 00:26:22.089 --> 00:26:26.970 example, given US examples of the martyrs who have gone to great depths, 268 00:26:26.490 --> 00:26:32.329 endured great pains because the hope that was set before them in Christ Jesus, 269 00:26:33.400 --> 00:26:40.480 and that's what I want to leave you with today. Let's dwell on 270 00:26:40.519 --> 00:26:45.039 the Lord, or Jesus Christ, and all that he is accomplished. Hold 271 00:26:45.119 --> 00:26:49.430 it tightly to your hearts, hold fast Christ that, because that is where 272 00:26:49.430 --> 00:26:53.069 our hope is, that's where our rejoicing comes from. And for those of 273 00:26:53.150 --> 00:26:57.349 you have known Bruce, for those of you have known people like him who, 274 00:26:57.390 --> 00:27:06.259 when they face dark trials, it's not just being overly optimistic, it's 275 00:27:06.339 --> 00:27:14.500 being perfectly realistic because they have their sights set on heaven. Consider those things, 276 00:27:15.210 --> 00:27:19.769 consider those examples, consider Jesus Christ. Let go of your sins, 277 00:27:19.809 --> 00:27:25.569 let go of your worries, let go of your fears and learn to fix 278 00:27:25.650 --> 00:27:30.319 your eyes on the bright and heavenly city which the Lord has given to us. 279 00:27:30.359 --> 00:27:38.400 Learn how the things of this world are passing away, learn to hold 280 00:27:38.440 --> 00:27:47.029 them lightly and let the spirit fill your heart and mouth with overflowing praise at 281 00:27:47.069 --> 00:27:52.269 the things that God has done. Brothers and sisters, rejoice in mercy, 282 00:27:52.470 --> 00:28:04.099 rejoice in justification, rejoice in the Cross of Christ, rejoice in hope. 283 00:28:04.140 --> 00:28:07.539 Let us pray