[0:00] All right, so we're going to end up on a sugar high tonight, right? Dessert, dessert, dessert. I kind of like dessert. I like dessert anytime.
[0:13] All right. Hey, if you have a Bible, go ahead and take it. And, hmm, well, let's go to Psalm 19 again. Psalm 19, verse 1.
[0:24] And this is, of course, a verse that we looked at already this morning. Speaking of canvassing that your pastor mentioned, we have a canvassing ministry at Treasure Valley. My wife and I are involved in it.
[0:36] We just participate in it. We're not, we don't lead it or anything. But we do, in fact, they went out yesterday. They go out twice a month. And, again, it's very simple.
[0:48] You hang, you use a plastic. We have something, a plastic folder? Okay. Well, we have something, we have these plastic inserts that will fit on the doorknob.
[1:02] It will work out really well. And we have a John and Romans in it. And then a track that invites them out to church. And that's the gist of it. And go door to door, pick out an area. He designates areas and he's checked it out and whatever as far as houses and, you know, how many you need and whatnot.
[1:17] And we'll take a bunch and you can go in pairs or you can split up. My wife and I typically split up. And she'll go on one side of the street. I'll go on the other and we'll just hang them on the doors.
[1:29] If you get a chance, if people are outside or in the garage or, you know, that type of thing, then you might have opportunities to talk to people. The other side, of course, you can take it to where you, you know, you go knock on the doors and give them out.
[1:41] And I've done that before, too. But simply door hanging, however you, you know, distribute, however you put them there, just put them at the door. It's a very non-confrontational way and a good way to get your feet wet.
[1:55] A good way to get started as far as, you know, introducing and getting the gospel out to people and feel like you're at least getting something, you know, done and accomplished. What do you see of it? Hard to say.
[2:07] Hard to say. Hard to say. I've said before, you know, street preaching ministry, I've enjoyed and did a lot of it in Poland. But it wasn't so much that you felt you were going to build your church with the street ministry, but you could build your people.
[2:21] What I mean by building your church size-wise through it, but you can build your people up through it because they get a chance to be in front of others and in witness to them and speaking to them and all. And that's, you know, that's what's very important.
[2:34] All right, we're going to, let's have a word of prayer first and then we'll get started. Our Father and our God, we thank you for this opportunity once again to open your word, to declare it.
[2:47] I pray, Father, that you will bless and minister and may you be honored and glorified. Lord, we don't want to take any glory from you. We don't want to take any praise from you.
[2:57] You are worthy by all means. And Lord, we want to bow before you and recognize you, exalt you this evening. And Lord, take me out of the way and let Jesus Christ be seen through me.
[3:11] Let your word be seen through me. Your Holy Spirit work through me and not by any way, shape or form that I'm magnified. I pray, Father, that we might get something tonight that might be icing on the cake.
[3:25] It might be something that just helps us through, again, these trying times. And we ask it in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. So it says here in Psalm 19, verse 1, the heavens declare the glory of God.
[3:37] The firmament showeth his handiwork. And as we looked at some other verses, the Bible itself unfolded itself and declared that God's holiness is his glory. That God's power, omnipotence, is his glory.
[3:50] And the fact that his brightness, his very appearance is his glory. And so when the heavens declare the glory of God, they're declaring this triune God that he's holy and he's almighty and he's full of splendor, majesty whatsoever.
[4:07] So in light of the fact that what we saw this morning and in light of the fact that we're living in trying times in these last days, building up to the tribulation period and everything else, before we get started in the actual message, there's three things I want to say.
[4:25] First is a sobering reality. And the sobering reality is such that we're not exempt from tribulation or persecution or suffering.
[4:35] And, you know, we as American Christians, we haven't, you know, we've had a history where we've had a great history as far as, you know, looking through, you know, revivals that have occurred and great awakenings and everything.
[4:49] We've had pretty much a trouble-free history as far as Christianity and Bible Christianity in our land. Well, that may very well be coming to an end.
[5:02] We may not, we may lose the freedoms that we enjoy today. We're not promised a trouble-free future. There's no guarantee whatsoever. We're not promised tomorrow as far as that goes.
[5:13] So there's no reason to believe that we of all people, I mean, people in China are going through it. People in India are going through it today. People in countries around, you know, Russia and whatever, you read of like Harlem Popoff and things like that going back after World War II.
[5:27] People that have endured suffering for the Lord, Christians, because they're Christians. It's happened in the past and it's not to say it won't happen here. We never thought it would.
[5:39] But it's not to say that it won't happen or can't happen here. By the way, you know, as I quoted this morning, all they live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. And that doesn't mean you try to get out on the edge someplace and push somebody so they'll persecute you.
[5:54] That's not it at all. But if you live for the Lord, something's going to come up here or there. It can be within the family. It can be at a workplace. It can be, you know, because you confront somebody about their need for salvation.
[6:07] Second thing is simply this. It's a comforting consolation. And that's this. Now, the devil we know is the god of this world. Okay? He's the one that's producing the chaos around us.
[6:21] It's a direct result of his work. All right? So, but we have to remember something. The devil is not the one that's omnipotent.
[6:34] The devil's not the one that's all-powerful. The devil has, he has powers, but he's limited. He has limitations. And he is, in essence, he's on a leash. Now, we understand what the book of Job talks about.
[6:46] How, you know, God, you know, unleashed the devil on Job. But at the same time, the devil could only do what God allowed him to do. The first time, touch his family.
[6:58] The second time, touch him, but not, you know, not kill him. So, there were still limitations that he had. And the devil's running loose now. There's no doubt about it. But listen, whenever God chooses to, all he has to do is yank him on the chain.
[7:12] So, that to me is a comforting consolation. Not that he can't create problems for me and for all of us and for our churches, but for the fact that God has him in control.
[7:23] He can only do what God allows him. And the third thing is simply an encouraging assurance. Guess what? You're on the winning side. You're on the winning side.
[7:35] Whatever takes place in the next, you know, weeks, months, years, and whatever else, until the Lord takes us home to glory, until the rapture sounds and whatnot, we're still conquerors in Christ.
[7:48] We're on the winning side. We know what's going to happen. So, God tells us to be steadfast and unmovable. So, there is no reason, there's no room in our lives for fear or despair or whatever.
[8:00] As I said before, God's still on the throne. He's in total control. With those things in mind, I want you to turn, please, to Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8.
[8:13] So, in light of what we talked about this morning, I want to bring this message from this morning to a practical conclusion.
[8:25] I want to make a personal and a practical application to the glory of God.
[8:38] And I think we see it here, and this is the verse, this verse I trust will not be something brand new to you whatsoever. I'm sure you've read this verse, you've seen this verse. But I want you to see this verse in light of what we talked about this morning.
[8:52] So, we're in Romans chapter 8, and read with me in verse 18. For I reckon, Paul's a southerner, right?
[9:03] For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed, where?
[9:15] In us. In us. Not beside us. Not alongside us. Not with us. But he says, in us. You know what it's like to get in the car.
[9:29] You're not on top of the car. You're not beside the car. You're not under the car. You're not in front of the car. You're inside the car. Paul says, the sufferings of this present time, we can't compare it.
[9:43] So, whatever we're going through now, whatever other Christians have gone through in the past or are going through in other countries today, as far as a persecution and tribulation and all, we can't even compare it to the glory which shall be one day revealed, made known, made manifest in us.
[10:06] You say, what's that verse saying? Well, according to that verse, one day we're all going to be changed and we're going to be like Christ. Now, this is not anything new, is it?
[10:16] But that glory is going to be revealed in us. When we talked about it at the beginning of it, talking about the glory of a kingdom, the glory of a king, the glory of celestial bodies, that glory, that greatness, that magnificence, that splendor is going to be revealed in us.
[10:35] Boy, if that doesn't, if that's something that couldn't charge you up when you're going through a down time, I had, unfortunately, I got a hold of COVID somewhere.
[10:48] COVID got a hold of me this fall, September, whatever, and laid me low. I didn't go through any kind of pneumonia and anything like that, but it just wiped out completely.
[10:59] And really, it was like four or five weeks until I was even back on my feet as far as feeling somewhat normal, at least five weeks. And that was in me.
[11:12] That was in me. And it controlled me. Well, forget about that. Those are things that we go through, but this glory is going to be revealed in me one day.
[11:24] And it's going to be revealed in you one day. So that means, simply put, that the glory of his holiness is going to be revealed in you one day. The glory of his power is going to be revealed in you.
[11:40] The glory of his beauty and brightness and luminescence is going to be revealed in you and me one day. These young people here are saying, Well, I don't see that being young today, you know.
[11:57] Hey, just think, the resurrected Christ. Jesus, holy. He was holy before he resurrected. Sinless. But his perfect holiness is going to be in us.
[12:10] The resurrected Christ, the supernatural body that could be present even within a locked room, that could ascend from the Mount of Olives.
[12:22] I mean, do things that we cannot do in a normal body, and that power is going to be in you. And that luminescence is going to be in you and in me one day.
[12:39] This is God's glory revealed in us. Go to 1 John chapter 3, please. We're going to come back here, but go to 1 John chapter 3 for a second.
[12:49] Again, no new verses. Obviously, we haven't added any verses to this Bible. They're all there, and if you've been reading through your Bible, you've read through these verses. But we're concentrating more and to put them all together to see them in the same context.
[13:04] You know, we sing a song, Amazing Grace. How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. But doesn't the last verse say, when we've been there 10,000 years, what?
[13:17] Bright, shining as the sun. Hey, when Newton wrote that, he had a hold of this. When we've been there 10,000 years. Bright, shining, radiant, brilliant like the sun.
[13:31] We've no less days to sing God's praise than when we first begun. That's going to be a reality. That's going to be in your life. That's your future. Look at this verse here.
[13:45] 1 John chapter 3. We'll start in verse 1. They're all connected. Behold, John says, What manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God?
[13:59] Therefore, the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God? Oh, by the way, excuse me a second. Let me just interject.
[14:10] My son was teaching this morning. If you were in Sunday school, sons of God, and describing the fact that, I don't know how you ladies take that. Were you here? Any of you ladies were here for that? No. Yeah.
[14:21] Don't raise. If you're not a lady, don't raise your hand there. But anyway, if you were here not, and he said, you know, I don't know how it's going to be, and how it's going to go for the ladies. But again, as he said, you know, even anything about himself is not going to be, they're going to be wiped away.
[14:36] But keep this in mind. You ladies may become the sons of God, but guess what we men are? The bride of Christ. You may not like the idea, the prospect of being a son of God, but how do you think us fellas think about being the bride of Christ?
[14:55] So you've got both sides of those things. We lose both of us. We lose our identity in Christ, and that's a good place to lose it. So verse 2 again, beloved, now are we the sons of God.
[15:07] And look what he says, because he's got a little bit of a problem here, you know, when he's talking. It seems like it's a bit of a contradiction just the way he words it. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be.
[15:23] He makes that statement. But then he says, but we know that when he shall appear, we should be like him, for we shall see him as he is. So on one hand, he says, well, we can't see what it's going to be, but we know.
[15:36] Well, here's the deal. The way I look at it is this. I get up in the morning, I go in the bathroom, and I'm looking in the mirror. It does not yet appear. I'm looking in that mirror, and I'm seeing a reflection of myself.
[15:49] It does not yet appear what I'm going to be like. Because I'm looking at my body, and he says, yes, as we all know, and it was mentioned this morning, I've gotten older.
[16:00] And I'm going to get older until the Lord comes back. So I look at that. The same eyes are looking at this old fellow who used to be a teenager.
[16:11] But it's the same eyes. Used to look in the mirror and see a teenager. Now he's looking and he's seeing a 70-year-old fellow. I've used other terms.
[16:22] I don't want to use them here. But when I look at that guy in there who barely can hold on to some hair and whatever and is losing strength and whatnot, and can't work as long as I'd like to work and everything else, but when I look at him, I say, I don't see it.
[16:38] I don't see glory in that guy. I don't see my future in that guy. I don't see my being like Christ in that guy with my eyes. All I see is an aging individual.
[16:50] But at the same time, when I look at the mirror of the Word of God, and when I look at the Word of God, I know that I will one day be like him. My reflection doesn't tell me that, but the Word of God tells me that.
[17:04] And one day I will be just like him. Our Christian life has three stages.
[17:18] It's what happened to us, what's happening to us, and what will happen to us. What happened to you? Well, at one point in your life, at some point, I don't know when it was for you. I know when it was for me.
[17:31] 1972. And I trusted Christ as my Savior. And God saved me from my sins. And He gave me a new life in Christ. And I was born again.
[17:43] Became a child of God. Hallelujah. My sins were washed away. I mean, my wife, she was my girlfriend at the time. And she can remember me coming over, whatever.
[17:53] I found the truth. You know, like, what's that? You know, found the truth, right? She was a good Catholic girl. Going to Catholic church Sunday morning. And I got saved and started going to a church in our area.
[18:06] It was a Bible church, but it was the best church in our area. It was right actually between our house. Probably a mile from my house, half a mile from her house. And I started going there and growing in the Lord.
[18:16] Just growing as a Christian and everything else. But, you know, I found the truth. What does that mean? Well, she started coming out too. And then she started seeing the difference between Catholicism and Christianity.
[18:30] And guess what? We got married in that church after she got saved and everything else. That's how God worked in my life in the past.
[18:42] That's how He began the work. But then God's working in our lives now, right? If you're saved and you have a past in Christ, and He worked with you yesterday, how He began His work in you.
[18:52] Now He's working in you. And as you submit yourself to the Word of God, and as you yield to the Holy Spirit, and as you read the Word of God, as we heard this morning too, read the Bible and pray sincerely, and you begin to grow.
[19:06] And God wants to conform you to the image of His dear Son. That's His goal and plan in our lives now. That we would become more and more like Christ in this life.
[19:18] Not just to be little Christ walking around, but to be a testimony and witness. Let your light so shine that you want people around you to see it. So they can be one to Christ.
[19:29] That's the whole goal of it. Have a testimony. The only way you can have a testimony is if you have a walk with the Lord. So that's how God's working in our life now. But there's also a future work.
[19:40] And one day God is going to perfect that which He began when He saved you and I. And what He's trying to do and wanting to do in our lives now.
[19:50] And one day He's going to perfect that. And we will not just be conformed. We will be perfectly formed into the image of Christ. You're not going to be little gods.
[20:01] We're not Mormons. We're not Buddhists and whatever else. We don't become God and whatever. All that kind of a thing. That's not it at all. But you will one day have all the holiness that Jesus Christ has.
[20:18] You'll have access to the very power that He has as a supernatural body. And you will shine as the sun. And that's our future.
[20:30] I want you to turn. You don't need to turn there. Let's see. Yeah, go to Philippians chapter 3. Go to Philippians please, chapter 3.
[20:43] A verse that you all know again. Nothing new. Not pulling a rabbit out of the hat. All that kind of a stuff. This is all verses, material that we know. Philippians chapter 3, verse 21.
[21:00] I'll tell you what. I don't know about you. This is meat, but this is dessert. I mean, this is, again, the icing on the cake. This is what we have to look forward to.
[21:10] This is what, as we're going to talk about, should inspire us to love the Lord and live for the Lord. Look what he says in Philippians 3, 20 and 21. For our conversation, not speech, but our manner of life, the way we live our lives.
[21:24] Our conversation is in heaven. From whence also we look for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
[21:44] You say, well, I don't have a vile body. Well, if cancer gets a hold of it, guess what? It's a pretty vile body. And when you have something like the COVID stuff, it's a pretty vile body.
[21:55] Our bodies are corruptible. And that's why in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, in the 50s, 51 and on, where it talks about this mortal, this corruptible will put on incorruption.
[22:09] The mortal will put on immortality. Those that are already dead in Christ and with God in glory now, with Jesus Christ now, their bodies are what? They're corrupting in the grave, right?
[22:20] Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. They're corrupting in the grave. So that corruptible, but their spirit, soul are in heaven, is going to put on incorruption. It's going to get a body that will not corrupt.
[22:34] And this mortal, he's talking about the rapture now, this mortal, this one that's alive, we that are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, we're going to put on immortality.
[22:46] And zap, all of a sudden I now have an immortal body. It won't be vile anymore. It'll be changed. And like he says here, it'll be changed in fashion like unto his glorious body.
[23:00] We're not talking, you know, in fairytale terms. We're not talking just mystically speaking, spiritualizing, allegorizing whatsoever. We're talking reality.
[23:11] This is our future. God began a work in you. He's continually working in you and wanting to turn you into the image of Christ.
[23:21] And one day he'll perfect it. And it'll be final fulfillment of his goal from the beginning. And you'll be like Christ. Like Christ.
[23:33] When John saw Jesus Christ in Revelation chapter 1, did he see him as this little babe in a manger? No. No. Did he see him just as a savior hanging on a cross, dripping blood?
[23:45] No. He shone. Or he shined. However you want to, you know, look at it. Not an English major whatsoever. Turn with me to...
[23:59] We'll go to 1 Peter chapter 5. 1 Peter chapter 5. 1 Peter chapter 5.
[24:11] Look what Peter says here. Just look at how it connects. 1 Peter 5 verse 1. The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also, look what he says, a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed.
[24:36] Hey, I'm a witness. I saw Christ suffer. I saw him hanging on a cross. I was there. But I'm also a partaker in one day of that glory that shall be revealed.
[24:48] And look at chapter 5, please. We're also there. Look at verse 10. Look at verse 10. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his, what?
[24:59] Eternal glory. By Christ Jesus. That's where we're... That's our calling. Our calling is to be like Christ.
[25:09] And one day, you are going to be like Christ. And I want you to turn back to our text. And that's in Romans chapter 8. So I want to show you the whole purpose of this. This is not for head knowledge.
[25:20] This is not just to say, oh, this is what I'm going to be one day. Now, that's good. But Paul had a reason for writing what he wrote. It wasn't just to pump us up. Look what he says again.
[25:32] For I reckon... We're in chapter 8, verse 18. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time... Well, that's his time. But you can look at Christians that went through suffering under the Roman Emperor Nero.
[25:48] You can look at those that were, you know, thrown into the Colosseum to be ripped apart by beasts and whatever. You could look again at whether they were Christians that were in Russia and sent to the Archipelagos.
[26:01] And they had, you know, in cold and everything. And are chained. And whatever time period you want to deal with, you can identify here.
[26:12] I reckon, though, that the sufferings of this present time, the ones that person reading it can identify with, aren't worthy. When we set all the things that we've done and gone through and any suffering that we've experienced on this side.
[26:29] Sufferings, we'll talk about it in a minute. Sufferings for the Lord or sufferings simply because of life. Any sufferings that we've experienced in this life. We put all of them on one side and we, you know, try to pile it up and magnify it, whatever.
[26:44] And then we put on the other side the glory that's going to be revealed in us. Guess what? Paul says, there's no comparison.
[26:56] You can't, once you get here, you're not going to remember that there. It'll just be gone that quickly. So this, what Paul's writing to us, is a form of encouragement.
[27:10] It's an incentive, motivation to comfort us in the times that we go through sufferings. And see, our problem is typically we like to magnify our problems.
[27:21] We like to magnify our sufferings. And listen, I know when I was laid out with the COVID, you know, it's like, woe is me. And fortunately, my wife didn't get it and she was able to take care of me.
[27:32] And I know my son had COVID here before and kind of took care of him. And that's what wives are for, to take care of their husbands. Because husbands sure aren't there when their wives get sick.
[27:42] The husbands, no. Anyway, that's a whole other story. We don't want to get in there. That's going to preaching. We don't want to start doing that. But hey, this is a comfort to us.
[27:53] This is putting balm on our wound. Not salt on a wound. This is putting a balm on our wound. This is comforting our soul and our heart.
[28:04] This is encouraging us to keep a hold on that plow in front of us to continue to work for the Lord. He wrote it to encourage and comfort believers so we continue to live for Christ and continue to endure the trials and sufferings of this present time.
[28:21] Hey, Paul went through sufferings. You can read about it in Corinthians. And the sufferings that he went through and the shipwrecks and the beatings and whatever else. And then he concludes it, you know, with saying just something like, you know, and yeah, and then the troubles and problems I had, you know, with the churches.
[28:37] Like, just like that was just the drop in the bucket. And he was talking about all the physical problems and sufferings that he went through. But Paul said, hey, any trials you've gone through, any fears, anxieties that you've had, any struggles that you've had, any just problems, whatever they might be, Paul says, you will not one day be able to compare it.
[29:00] Amen. It won't be apples to oranges. You just can't compare it whatsoever. One is going to far outweigh the other. You know, when we get the glory, we're going to look back.
[29:13] All this stuff here is going to be just like the, you know, smoke coming out of a chimney. You know, it's here today, gone tomorrow. And, you know, the Bible says, what is our life?
[29:25] It's a vapor that appeareth for a while and vanisheth away. And all these things that we're going through, and they are struggles, and I'm not minimizing it. Don't get me wrong. I am not at all minimizing something.
[29:36] If you're going through a problem now, I'm not minimizing that. If there's a heartache that you've endured recently, I'm not minimizing that. If you were to go through some physical problem, and again, I mentioned cancer before, or a heart problem, or whatever it might be.
[29:52] I am not at all minimizing. And God and Paul are not minimizing. But what he's saying is, when we make a comparison, the one is going to evaporate.
[30:04] One day, when we get to glory, we won't even look back at what we endured here. Now, we know, Job said this, yet man is born unto trouble as sparks fly upward.
[30:16] You have a fire going, fire pit, whatever, and those sparks go. Man is born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward. Our lives are filled with troubles, problems, afflictions, trials, suffering, tribulation, heartaches, whatever the case is.
[30:32] That is life. We can't escape it. Our problem is that we like to magnify it. And Paul says, no, don't magnify that. Let's magnify this. Magnify our glory that's going to come.
[30:45] Magnify the goal that God has for us. Look what he says in the context. Go back one verse. Verse 17. Look what Paul says again. And if children, then heirs.
[30:56] Well, let's go back to 16. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs. Heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.
[31:07] If so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. And then verse 18. So in 18, actually, he's repeating himself from verse 17.
[31:20] I'd like you to turn two books over to chapter 4 of 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians chapter 4. Let's look at another verse here. 2 Corinthians chapter 4.
[31:40] Look what Paul says in verse 17. Now, keep in mind what Paul said, you know, regarding himself and all the things that he went through and the trials and struggles, you know, that he endured.
[31:55] And you consider all those things that he, you know, that he went through. And then yet he sums it up and says this, verse 17. For our light affliction.
[32:07] Here's a man that was whipped and beaten. Here's a man because of the gospel sake and was out, you know, going from one area to another in ships and was in shipwrecks and all.
[32:18] Here's a man who was stoned to death and came back to life. And he says, for our light affliction. I mean, can we identify with him?
[32:28] No. No. But yet, you know, we, you don't know. Preacher, you don't know what I've gone through, right? That's how we are. And yet Paul says, for our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.
[32:48] Glory. That word keeps popping up. And when we see it and in the context, Paul's pointing his finger at our future. That the glory of God that's going to be revealed in us one day.
[33:03] Now, we do have a privilege to serve the Lord. And as I mentioned already, in serving the Lord, we may suffer persecution. We may suffer troubles.
[33:13] Paul said in Philippians chapter one, for unto you it is given on the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake. So it's great to believe on him.
[33:26] But in believing in him, we're going to be set apart from the world. And the world's not going to accept us. And you may lose friends over it. Well, that's a suffering. All the suffering doesn't have to be that you're thrown into a prison or that you're being whipped or beaten and all.
[33:42] But you may lose your best friend over it. You may lose family. You may be ostracized from family because of your faith of Christ. I mean, there's so many different ways. But you believe on Christ and you trust him.
[33:56] And yes, then you may have to suffer for his sake. You say, well, I didn't understand that. When I got saved, I didn't know that was in there in the bargain. And maybe if I'd have known that, I wouldn't have gotten saved.
[34:07] Well, listen. He's already said, he's already said, our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more. It works for a moment. Our life is fleeting.
[34:19] It's here today. And what? Gone tomorrow. I said already, you know, I look in the mirror and I can still see the teenager. The teenager is looking at the old guy in the mirror.
[34:31] That's who we are. You never, you grow up, but you still have a memory of who you were. And that who you were was a young kid running around the block or whatever.
[34:42] Or playing ball or all kinds of different things. Whatever it was you did. And look at your life. My wife can have, you know, visual memories of Toby being born or raising our son.
[34:59] And look at now. He's got four of his own children. And a 16-year-old whippersnapper here. Life goes like that.
[35:14] Each day can seem like forever. But all of a sudden, they just zoom. And you're like one of those, you know, those films where somebody's just speeding through a time lapse.
[35:25] And that's life. It's here today and it's gone tomorrow. We can't compare. So, yeah, you trusted Christ. Guess what? You got. Sins forgiven.
[35:37] Reconciliation with God. A new glorious body one day. You're saved. You're eternally secure in Christ. You've been redeemed. You've been baptized.
[35:47] You've been justified. God declares you righteous. All the blessings that we've received instantaneously because of trusting Christ as our Savior. Oh, yes.
[36:01] You might actually suffer for him in some form if you live for him. But don't let that bother you, Paul says, because you get up in glory, you won't even remember it.
[36:14] You get up in glory, you won't even be able to compare what you went through and say, don't fantasize and think to yourself, yeah, but one day when I get to glory and I get to stand in front of the Lord and I'm going to say, yeah, but look what I did.
[36:28] It ain't going to be that way. Because of what you're going to get in glory, you are going to forget what you did for him or what happened to you because of him in this life.
[36:41] It's just you won't be able to compare it. So at the same time, the Christian life, you can suffer for him. But on the same token, life itself just has troubles.
[36:52] Life itself has problems. Life itself has heartaches. And you might be experiencing problems within your work or a job or trying to earn a livelihood.
[37:05] You know, you, I don't know, you might be confronted. I mean, good night. Look at the police, firemen, soldiers, whatever else. And if there's a vaccine mandate and you've got to make a choice, this is something I don't want to do.
[37:16] If you don't want to do it, I'm not trying to tell you what to do or not to do. But if you have an opinion not to do it and not to take a vaccine, and then you can lose your livelihood over it. That's a real issue that you're confronted with and faced with.
[37:32] Problems at work, family problems, prodigal son, marriage problems. These are real issues. They take place all the time. Health problems, physical problems, like we've said.
[37:47] If you haven't experienced anything up to this point, get ready. Now, if you're younger, I understand. But young people still suffer.
[37:59] Young people are in cancer wards. There's young people in, they have, you know, St. Jude's Children's Hospital and whatever else. And you see, if you see any of the ads that they have for it and some of these, you know, kids deformed or whatever.
[38:11] A sad, sorry situation. Just, you know, your heart bleeds for them. That's life. So whether it's because you suffer as a Christian or you're just living life out, whatever the case is, keep in mind.
[38:28] The suffering of this present time is not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us. Didn't Paul say in Colossians chapter 3, set your affections on things above, not on things of this earth.
[38:39] What we go through on this earth, those troubles, problems, ups and downs, but set your affections on things above, on the future, on the glory that's going to be revealed in you one day.
[38:52] For our last verse, I want you to turn to John chapter 16. John chapter 16, please. Listen, when we see Jesus Christ, you know that song?
[39:21] I don't know if you have it in your hymn or not. When we see Christ, that was when we went to Bible school, that was like our favorite song down there. And we just, you know, lifted the roof with it.
[39:33] We loved it. When we see Christ. All, how does it go? All trials will seem so small, etc. When we see Christ.
[39:44] You know, everything's going to vanish away when we see Christ. Look at what it says here in chapter 16. And we'll start in verse 20. It's talking about a woman in labor.
[39:55] Verily, verily, I say unto you, Jesus speaking, that ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice. Ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.
[40:05] A woman, when she is, now he's talking about the fact that he's going to be leaving. They will be sorrowful, but one day that'll turn to joy because they're going to see the resurrected Christ. So it will.
[40:16] Their sorrow will be turned into joy. So he gives a, just gives a story, an analogy. A woman, 21, when she is in labor hath sorrow because her hour has come.
[40:27] So she's going through labor pains. And as soon as she is delivered to the child, she remembereth no more the anguish for joy that a man is born into the world.
[40:39] And ye now therefore have sorrow, but I will see you again. And your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man take it from you. So yes, a woman, when a woman goes through that nine months of labor, and that first part, you know, is easy unless it's morning sickness.
[40:57] But then later on, as, you know, as the baby is heavy in her womb, and, you know, it just gets hard to waddle around or to sit and to lay in bed and everything else, all that types of things.
[41:07] And then when she starts going through the contractions and she's going through all that type of a thing, that's, it's painful and it's hard. But guess what happens? As soon as the baby's delivered.
[41:21] That tears of anguish are just, she's overwhelmed by the fact that she's brought a new life into the world. And that sorrow and that pain and anguish, as I said, is turned into joy.
[41:35] Now, I remember what I heard my, our youngest say, Rose, said to, I guess, maybe the last birth that she had or before, I can't remember which one.
[41:45] But I think her husband, Nathan, was saying to her, you know, you know, it's turned into joy. And she says, it's a little too soon. It's just a little too soon. I'm not ready yet for the joy.
[41:56] I still remember the pain. But you get the gist of it. Regardless of the case, the woman said, you know, maybe going through, it's like, you know, the typical thing, you know, the woman, you get the picture of the woman getting her husband by and dragging her down.
[42:11] You're to blame for this, right? It's your fault. Well, maybe for a moment or so, but once it's over, then it's, that's gone. That's released. Why?
[42:22] For the joy that she brought a man child into the world. Or a girl child into the world, whatever the case is. But you get the gist of it. We go through our trials and heartaches.
[42:33] Why? We're, our feet are, we're made of feet of clay. We're on this earth. This is all we know. And we can't see God in his face. We can only see him by faith. And as we put our nose in his book and we commune with him, we can see him and understand him and have fellowship with him.
[42:52] But one day we're going to see him. Listen, whatever you're going through, Paul says, don't worry. Get the perspective that you won't be able to compare that with what he's got for you.
[43:09] And one day when we get to that other side, you're going to realize you're going to be forever holy. Not just, I mean, we are, we each now, if you're saved right now, you have the righteousness of Christ in you.
[43:26] God sees you in Christ, correct? He doesn't see you in yourself. He sees you in Christ. There's a filter, a Christ filter between him and you. And he looks at you and he sees his son.
[43:38] You better believe it. He sees Jesus Christ. And that's why you're going to go to glory. Because he's seeing Jesus Christ. If he's not seeing you in your flesh. But that's a reality now, but we don't experience it.
[43:55] As we live for the Lord, we can experience bits and pieces of it. But one day you will experience it 100%. Holy. Holy.
[44:07] Not tempted by anything. Holy. No remembrance of your sin life. Holy. I mean, what would it be like if we're in heaven and all we have is our past life keeps flaring up at us.
[44:24] And the sins and whatever. How holy would that be? Jesus Christ never sinned. He had no regrets. He had no remorse. He had no guilt. And guess what?
[44:35] In that glorified, holy body that you're going to have, I don't believe you're going to have any. Guilt. And remorse. Whatsoever. I believe it's going to be gone.
[44:48] And you talk about hulking up. And you're going to have that supernatural body. I don't know if that necessarily means, you know, you're going to look like some weightlifting mega guy or whatever else.
[45:01] Or the little, the hulk that turned green and all that kind of stuff. I don't think it's that at all. But in the body that God gives you, it'll be supernatural. Natural.
[45:13] And then to top it off, you won't have any electric bills. Thy word is a light and a lamp.
[45:25] But you're going to be the light and the lamp in that day. There'll be no night there. And that's why there's no night in New Jerusalem.
[45:37] There's no light. There's no need for a light or the sun or whatever in New Jerusalem. Why? The lamb is a light thereof. And guess what? You're going to be in there because you're going to be like him.
[45:48] Raptor takes place today. Guess what? At the conclusion of that, we're going to see Christ.
[46:03] I don't know if at that moment, I doubt in that moment, we're going to become like Christ. There's still the judgment seat of Christ to go through. I personally think it would have to be after that. But whatever the case is, you're going to be like Christ.
[46:21] If that, if we don't, you know, this morning's message, if we can't rise above the problems of this world and the things that keep coming up against us, that incite us, by looking up at the Lord and seeing him and his glory on that throne and all the three aspects that we saw, and then on top of it, to realize that that God in glory is going to produce his glory within each and every one of his children, believers in Christ.
[46:50] It's a reality. It's not science fiction. It's a reality, and it's what your future is and what my future is today.
[47:02] So you know what that does? That wants me to keep in the fight. I want to remain faithful to the end. I want to be found worthy of him to whatever shape, degree I can be until he comes for me.
[47:18] I want to finish my course, as Paul says in Acts chapter 20, I want to finish my course with joy. Not just finish it. I want to finish it with joy. I don't want to be an old codger that just gives up on God because he just got too old to do this or whatever.
[47:34] I want to finish my course with joy, so we're involved in doing some things up there at Treasure Valley, even though we're not on the field anymore. And that's okay, but I just want to keep doing something for him because he did so much for me.
[47:48] And you know what? He's worthy of it. He's worthy of my time, my money, my efforts, my affections. He's worthy of it. And he's worthy of yours.
[47:59] And I'd like to see this place filled up today like it was, you know, the people that were here this morning, that were all back today. I'd love to have seen that. It's not here. But I'd like to see that each time that we do get a chance, Lord willing, to come back, that we see numbers grow.
[48:12] It's not for numbers' sake. Don't get me wrong. Not for numbers' sake. But it's the fact that you're influencing more people, individual people. Each individual is important.
[48:24] It's not having mass numbers, but it's individual lives of people that you can affect because they can therefore affect other people for the Lord, but it'll balance their life out for the Lord.
[48:37] They can live for the Lord. Let's be found faithful until he comes. Keep your eyes on where you're going to be going and what's going to take place inside of you. Next time you look yourself in the mirror, realize that guy or that gal is going to glow like the Lord one day.
[49:00] That's right. One day, because you're going to be like Christ. And one day you're going to have his supernatural body, and one day you're going to be perfect holiness. Our Father, we thank you for your goodness to us and your mercy.
[49:15] I thank you for this privileged opportunity to be here this evening. I ask, Father, that you just help us to focus our attention on you and not on the world and the troubles and the heartaches or the things that we individually go through.
[49:28] For Lord, you've gone through so much for us. You deserve us to go through whatever we can and whatever you allow in our lives.
[49:39] For you, you are worthy. We thank you for it. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.