[0:00] Welcome to our service this morning, a special welcome to any who may be visiting with us this morning.
[0:16] We are going to begin our worship by singing to God's praise from Psalm 9. Psalm 9, and from the beginning of the psalm, we're singing 1 through to 9.
[0:37] Lord, thee I praise with all my heart, thy wonders all proclaim. In thee, most high, I'll greatly joy and sing unto thy name.
[0:48] When back my foes were turned, they fell and perished at thy sight. For thou maintain'st my right and cause, on thrones at judging right.
[1:02] The heathen thou rebuked hast, the wicked overthrown. Thou hast put out their names, that they may nevermore be known.
[1:13] O enemy, no destructions have an end perpetual. Thou cities raised, perished with them in their oesthet memorial.
[1:24] God shall endure for aid. He does for judgment set his throne. In righteousness to judge the world, justice to give each one. God also will a refuge be for those that are oppressed.
[1:38] A refuge will he be in times of trouble, to distress. And so on then. We can sing these verses 1 through to 9 of Psalm 9.
[1:51] Lord, thee I praise with all my heart, thy wonders all proclaim. Lord, thee I praise with all my heart, thy wonders all proclaim.
[2:12] Lord, thee I praise with all my heart, thy name.
[2:28] Lord, thee I praise with all my heart, thy name.
[2:58] The heathen thou rebuked hast, the wicked overgrown.
[3:13] The thou hast put out their names, that they may nevermore be known.
[3:29] O, and be none destructions of uninterfect to love.
[3:44] Thou sin is rich, bearish with them, this heavenly holy young.
[3:59] God shall lend you for a love, for justice is strong.
[4:15] And righteousness to trust the world, justice to the end is strong.
[4:31] God of sovereign, our great unity, our host of our own best.
[4:48] Our value to the end, I'm so proud of to destroy.
[5:07] Let us join together in prayer. Gracious God, as we come before you in this act of worship, we pray for your helping hand to be upon us, that you would guide us in the truth.
[5:24] For your word is truth. And as we lift up our voices in singing your praises, may we make sweet melody in our hearts that is in keeping with the thought that our worship is directed towards the only living and true God.
[5:46] We know from your word that there are the hosts of heaven who are constantly engaged in your worship and who sing your praises.
[5:59] And we cannot but imagine them to be a choir who have the most blessed sound as they engage in your worship and to be a prayer without anything intruding upon their desire to elevate the name of their God.
[6:25] And we bless you and thank you that that is what a picture of heaven drawn on the pages of experience taken from the scriptures that we can imagine a place where there is no sin and where there is no darkness intruding into the light of the fellowship of the saints with God before them at all times.
[6:55] We bless you and thank you that your word encourages us to believe that sitting upon the throne of the universe is one who is the great Lord of all, even an advocate with the Father in whose name we come and upon whom we depend to plead our cause in your presence.
[7:22] And we thank you that he is that great high priest, one who came with the sacrifice of his own life, who offered the blood that was to cover the sins of his people and who is now at your right hand forevermore.
[7:42] And we bless you and thank you that inevitably even the angels will magnify his name, but most particularly the saints, because the angels may look into things that are not really there to speak of by reason of experience, because the Lord Jesus Christ came into this world not to seek angels or to seek anything other than the saints that would bear his name, even of the fallen race of Adam, and that he came to seek any and all of that number who would look to him for the salvation of their souls.
[8:32] So we pray that as we think of these things that you would encourage us, even in these thoughts, to lift up our voices even more. And as we pray, we come with petitions and prayers that we do so need your guiding hand to be upon us, so that what we ask, we would ask for the things that are in order for us to ask, the things that we should ask for, the things that are to the praise of your name, the things that do not satisfy our earthly longings and lusts, but the very things that you encourage us to seek, so that we would be of that number who in their prayers would desire the things of God.
[9:30] Help us to that end. We ask your blessing upon our service this morning. We pray that our worship would be in accordance with your revealed will to us.
[9:41] And we pray that we would realize that while our numbers may be few, that we are always to have before our mind the many who in unison lift up their voices in praise of their God wherever they are dispersed throughout the world.
[10:01] And that is the way your church is described. The church of the dispersion. From the beginning of time, we find that from the very moment that our first parents were taken out of the garden, that they were in part fugitives in the world.
[10:24] and those who bore your name as your people, they were at odds with those who were not your people. And sometimes they were driven even far afield.
[10:38] And the church today is to be found in all the continents and in all the countries and in all the towns and cities and villages of our land.
[10:50] And there are some to be found there, some few in number, some larger numbers and all of the same heart and of the same mind and of the same desire to praise the name of their living saviour through whom they have life and in whom they live, move and have their being as spiritual entities engaged in the praise of the God who is their God.
[11:17] So encourage us with these thoughts, direct us to your food store, committing our ways to you, blessing us as a people, blessing us as a nation where we have gone far from you.
[11:29] We pray for our Queen, we pray for our family and ask that you would bless them with spiritual blessings. We may look upon them and the world marvel at the regality that marks out the royal family.
[11:44] And there are so many things there that nations of the earth envy and some despise. And yet, whatever they may possess, all these possessions will be taken from them at the last.
[11:58] And if they are not found within the royal family of God, they are not part of that heritage who will possess the kingdoms of the earth by reason of the fact that they are co-heirs with Christ and who have a right to all things, they will be denuded of all these earth-born glories.
[12:23] And we pray that you would bless not just the Queen, but all who do service to her in the parliaments. We think of the parliament in Holyrood and Westminster.
[12:37] We pray for our first minister and we pray for the prime minister, whoever that may be, when that role was given over to another. Whatever we pray, we pray for wisdom from on high.
[12:51] We pray for a spirit of humiliation, a spirit of humility to dominate with their hearts and minds so that they would bow the knee to Christ the King.
[13:07] remember the nations of the earth who are engaged in warfare. We pray for the Ukraine once again and all who have suffered devastating loss to their homes and families and loved ones, those who have been driven from their homes.
[13:25] And we pray for the frail elderly in particular and the immature young who some have lost their parents and are devastated by reason that may never be able to recover the mental torment that is there by reason of the devastation that war brings.
[13:45] We remember the other nations that are also embroiled in war and there are many of them, some that we may not know anything about and yet the devastation is there always and the need that there is to bear the burdens of those who have such lives to lead.
[14:08] We give thanks for the relative peace that we enjoy, whatever we have to struggle with in our own lives. There are many issues that affect every one of us here within our own homes and we pray that you would remember any who may have these struggles and who may require the grace of God to make itself felt by them and that they may know the God of grace that he the one to whom we worship and upon his name we call that you our God would visit them whatever they are suffering from be they suffering from poverty or want or fear of the same for those who have children who are being raised in a context of uncertainty we pray for them we remember to you those who are grieving and sorrowing those who are struggling with the frailties of the body illness contained with their own or the problems that others have to bear we bring them before you
[15:13] Lord and ask that you would remember each one of us and we pray that you would direct us to your footstool bowing the knee before Christ seeking the grace that abounds even to a chief of sinners go before us now we pray blessing your word to us and pardoning us every sin in Jesus name Amen we are going to hear the word of God as we have it in the book of Acts the Acts of the Apostles and we're reading from chapter 17 and we're going to read from verse 16 to the end of the chapter the book of Acts chapter 17 from verse 16 now while Paul waited for them at Athens the spirit was stirred in him when he saw the city holy given to idolatry therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews and with the devout Persians and in the market daily with them that met with them then certain philosophers of the Epicureans and of the Stoics encountered him and some said what will this babbler say other some he seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods because he preached unto them
[16:37] Jesus and the resurrection and they took him and brought him unto Areopagus saying may we know what this new doctrine whereof thou speakest is for thou bringest certain strange things to our ears we would know therefore what these things mean for all the Athenians and strangers which were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing then Paul stood in the midst of Marsh Hill and said ye men of Athens I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious for as I passed by and beheld your devotions I found an order with this inscription to the unknown God whom therefore ye ignorantly worship him declare I unto you God that made the world and all things therein seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth dwelleth not in temples made with hands neither is worship with men's hands as though he needed anything seeing he giveth to all life and breath and all things and hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth and hath determined the times before appointed and the bounds of their habitation that they should seek the Lord if happily they might feel after him and find him although he be not far from every one of us for in him we live and move and have out being as certain also of your own poets have said for we are also his offspring for as much then as we are the offspring of
[18:39] God we ought not to think that the Godhead is likened to gold or silver or stone graven by art and man's device and the times of this ignorance God winked at but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent because he hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained whereof he hath given assurance unto all men in that he hath raised him from the dead and when they heard of the resurrection of the dead some mocked and others said we will hear thee again of this matter so Paul departed from among them albeit certain men clave unto him and believed among of which was Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named
[19:42] Damaris and others within Amen and may the Lord add his blessing to a reading of his word and to his name be the praise well as you know the Sunday school will resume today so first of all welcome back to all who are going to Sunday it's nice to see you and to see you come back to enjoy Sunday school and when I was thinking of my own welcome to you I hope you believe it sincere but I was told what you would be learning today and you're going to begin looking at the way the gospel the teaching about Jesus Christ began to be taught and the first lessons had to do with
[20:47] Jesus leaving the world now before Jesus could actually leave the world he had to have been in the world to leave it that's not right and when he came to the world as a little baby he was welcomed by some and some said to them welcome and the people were thinking who would welcome Jesus when he was born well obviously Mary and Joseph welcomed him into the world as a new baby they were pleased to see him born but there were others that the Bible tells us about there were the wise men who came from afar to find out for themselves who is
[21:50] Jesus was there were the shepherds who were told by the angels that there was this person born who was going to be a king and they welcomed him they delighted to hear that he was born there were the angels the angels were pleased that Jesus was born seems strange but we were we were told that there was an angel that came to the shepherds and a heavenly host came to be with that angel and they sang songs of praise to Jesus there were others and perhaps we don't really think of them as being welcoming to Jesus but there was the mother and father of John the Baptist you remember
[22:52] Zacharias and Elizabeth they were old when they were told that they were going to have a baby and when John was born they were told that he was going to be somebody special and everything that was told to them about who their son was going to be all pointed towards Jesus so when Jesus was born obviously they were pleased they were delighted to welcome him and then there were the believers who were working in the temple there was Sanna the prophetess and there was Simeon both of them waiting for the coming of Jesus so obviously if you're waiting for someone you welcome him all of that made me wonder well here we have these people and the Bible tells us that they made him welcome and then at the end of his ministry after he has gone to the cross after he has died he rose from the dead and he went back to heaven he went back to his home
[24:07] I wonder if they were saying to him there welcome back we're not told the Bible doesn't tell us but it would be very strange if they didn't welcome him back if he didn't receive the welcome of the angels when he you know you're reading your Bibles in the end of the Gospel of Luke how Jesus left the world and the church was looking at him the disciples were bidding their farewell to him they were so sad to see him go and he disappeared from sight in the beginning of the Gospel the Acts of the Apostles we find the same but I wonder what awaited him when he went to heaven I wonder if he welcomed him surely they did were not told probably for a good reason now is that the end of the story no it's not the end of the story because the story goes on and we read it here part of it that we're going to be looking at it when you're out in
[25:16] Sunday school we're going to look at a day when the Jesus who has gone is going to come back he's going to come back to this world I wonder how many who will be in the world when he comes back will be saying welcome back welcome back we've been waiting for you I wonder try and get your heads around that think about what it means for yourselves we're glad to see you back in Sunday school and I hope that you're here much to get you to think much and often about the passion of the Lord Jesus Christ now usually what we do is before you go out we sing but today we're just having an extra bit and that is to present Bibles to two boys who were part of the
[26:20] Sunday school and who because of Covid didn't receive their Bibles and we thought or the Sunday school teachers thought it would be right and proper for them to receive their Bibles with yourselves here to see them receive their Bibles because they spent all their school years coming to Sunday school and everybody else has been given a Bible so why should they not and that's what we're going to see today and I hope that you'll remember them not just as they receive their Bibles but as they go on I hope for myself that they read their Bibles and continue to come to church although they're not coming to Sunday school so and that's these two boys we've got Matthew and DC both Cal and Angus
[27:21] Macdonald one of the teachers is going to give you your Bibles I was told he wasn't going to make a long speech Lois Morrison isn't here no but three of them were they came to the end of their Sunday school years during Sunday school so I don't call I don't assure you read it now it's Matthew usually at the price giving they get a big cheer but seeing it's Sunday they're not getting any well we sing a psalm now as the children go out to the Sunday school and we're going to sing some verses from Psalm 96
[28:21] Psalm 96 we're singing from verse 8 to the end of the psalm psalm give you the glory to the Lord that to his name is due come ye into his courts and bring an offering with you in beauty of his holiness or do the Lord adore likewise let all the earth throughout tremble his face before among the heathen say God reigns the world shall steadfastly be fixed from moving ye shall judge the people righteously let heavens be glad before the Lord and let the earth rejoice let seas and all that is therein cry out and make a noise let fields rejoice and everything that springeth off the earth then woods and every tree shall sing with gladness and with mirth before the
[29:22] Lord because he comes to judge the earth comes he he'll judge the world with righteousness the people faithfully these verses psalm 96 from verse 8 to the end give the glory to the Lord that to his name the stew give give ye the glory to the Lord that to his name is true come ye into his courts and bring an offering with you in beauty of his holiness O do the Lord adore likewise let all the earth throughout tremble the space before among the heathen sick on range the world shall set fast he he is strong willing he shall judge the people righteous live let hands be ground before the
[31:11] Lord and let thee rejoicekids let season do the permission Let feet chore pound everything that singeth of the air.
[31:46] Then wolves and every tree shall sing with gladness and with men.
[32:00] Before the Lord, because he comes to judge the earth come see.
[32:13] He'll judge the world with righteousness that he loved him holy.
[32:32] I'd like us to turn now for a short while to the book of the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 17. And we can read at verse 30.
[32:50] And the times of this ignorance God winked at, but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent.
[33:09] Because he hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.
[33:27] And so on. Many of us were taught the shorter catechism when we attended Sunday school.
[33:42] And one of the questions that is asked in the catechism has to do with what awaits the believer at the resurrection.
[33:58] Obviously, the Lord's people will be interested in that question, in the answer that is given to that question.
[34:08] And the answer that is given is that the resurrection believers being raised up in glory shall be openly acknowledged and acquitted in the day of judgment and made perfectly blessed in the full enjoying of God to all eternity.
[34:30] Now the reaction of many to the teaching of the catechism as a whole, I suppose, but to this question and answer in particular is that it's probably the same in every generation.
[34:49] There are those who dismiss out of hand the idea of anything like beyond death. Certainly they don't think that the resurrection is a possibility.
[35:04] and they do not want to think of judgment following the resurrection. They might have an aversion to the resurrection, but certainly they are opposed to the idea of judgment.
[35:21] As you can see in verse 32, when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. that's not a contemporary experience.
[35:36] I suppose contemporary in the sense that we might think that we have exclusive rights to the idea of mocking the gospel or mocking what the gospel teaches or mocking what the word of God teaches.
[35:51] it's not new. It's always been the case. There are many things the Bible teaches and the world in its entirety.
[36:04] Those who are not of Christ will laugh at it and despise it. And the unbeliever rejects all notions of resurrection and judgment to come.
[36:21] Now, if it were just unbelievers, that would be bad enough. But unfortunately, there are certain things that are taught in the Bible.
[36:32] We have no right to believe anything other than what the Bible teaches, especially when it comes to the theology or to the teachings that the Christian church holds dear.
[36:47] They're found in the Bible. If they're not found in the Bible, we should disregard them. But there are those who are professing Christians and there are certain things that the Bible says that they are not comfortable with.
[37:02] They profess to be Christians, but there are those who are given the title or the name Universalist. And they believe that Christ died, fair enough, but that when he died, he died for everyone, without exception.
[37:21] And the sense in which they mean that is that his death ensures that everybody will be in the same boat when they die.
[37:32] They will all go to heaven. Everybody will go to heaven. We're all going to live happily ever after. But we're going to enjoy these things that the Bible tells us is the exclusive provenance of the people of God.
[37:51] But they want to expand that. Now, what their warrant for that is is very much debated and debatable.
[38:06] But if we believe the word of God, if you believe the word of God, you understand that clearly the Bible teaches that not only is there a judgment to come, that that judgment will determine the eternal destiny destiny or destination of everyone.
[38:31] There will be some who will go to be with Christ and his people and will spend eternity in their company and there will be those who will be denied that.
[38:42] There is a heaven and a hell. There is a place appointed for the devil and his angels and that will be occupied by those who have lived their life rejecting the gospel and rejecting the Christ of the gospel.
[39:00] And there are two ends, there are two clear stated positions and only the two.
[39:16] And sometimes because we we we're loathe to think about it and it's it pains us to think about it and it's awful to think about it that anybody should have a hell to go to and yet we have to believe it because the Bible wants us to believe it.
[39:41] I often I always listen to the prayers of God's people because I'm expected to pray with them and I can't pray with them if I'm not listening to what they're praying for.
[39:58] And I always remember listening to the prayers of many of the Lord's people and very often you would have them quote passages of the Bible where reference is made to what awaits a person at the day of judgment.
[40:21] One particular text was quoted often. If the tree fall toward the south or toward the north in the place where the tree falleth there shall it lie.
[40:37] Now if you read that passage you'll find it in the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 11 verse 3 I think. The context in which the verses found may not really support the application that is given to that verse.
[40:54] But the understanding of the men and women who would probably quote that verse in prayer is that when it comes to the time of death that is the time where you're beyond change.
[41:13] when you come to die if you are dying out of Christ your eternity will be separated from Christ.
[41:27] If you die and you die in the Lord you will be forever with the Lord. That moment is one moment and what happens beyond that you have no control over it.
[41:43] And I think that's what most people who quoted that were understood by it. If the tree fall toward the south or toward the north, where it lies is where it will lie.
[41:57] It's not going to get up again. Now looking at the text that we have here, we have a statement.
[42:08] I don't think you can really twist what the apostle is saying. He is speaking a truth and it's not difficult to understand what he is teaching, what he is saying.
[42:24] Everybody who heard him speak knew perfectly well that he was speaking of a time when the dead would rise and when they rose they would be judged and those who would be judged would be judged by Christ.
[42:47] And those who would be judged by Christ could be persuaded that that Christ was one who experienced the resurrection first and foremost. So I just want us to look at this text and look at it just as it is here.
[43:03] God has appointed a day of judgment. He has appointed a judge. He has appointed the grounds upon which the judgment is to be carried out.
[43:18] And he has given us sufficient grounds to believe it from the gospel itself. And the final thing is that the very fact that these things are known to us.
[43:35] The very fact that I can go to a verse such as this one and point you in the direction of countless other passages which have the same treatment of what God intends, I can point you towards that with the intention that that would prompt you and insist upon you to, as it says here, those who God commands to repent.
[44:06] To change your life if it needs to be changed because judgment waits. Judgment awaits every one of us without exception. Now we know from the scripture, from various passages, we sang two psalms and it spoke there of God looking upon the world and looking upon the world as a judge.
[44:33] There's a whole host of different psalms we chose to, but there are several psalms and you find God there spoken of as one who brings this world to judgment.
[44:45] Sometimes he speaks of the world, sometimes he speaks of his people within the world, sometimes he speaks of a generation and sometimes his judgments are spoken of as temporal judgments, that is, that he will at that moment judge the world and bring that world under the heel of his displeasure and pour it his wrath upon that generation or that person.
[45:15] We've experienced this of it recorded for us when God visited Egypt, he did so to judge that nation. When Israel were in bondage in Egypt, he judged it, he brought his judgments to bear the plagues that are recorded are part of God's judgment.
[45:37] But these judgments are temporal judgments, they are visited upon a people specifically for God's ends. But he has appointed a day in which he will judge the world finally.
[45:56] And that is what the scripture tells us. In Isaiah chapter 5, the Lord of hosts shall be exalted in judgment and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness.
[46:14] righteousness. What the prophet is saying there is that when he judges, rather than this world despising him for it, his name will be proven, will be shown as consistent with his very nature.
[46:38] Of course, there are countless temporal judgments that are identified as such. But if we go to the New Testament, and many people say, I've said it often, but you come across it so frequently that it requires to be stated again and again, that the image that a person prefers to cocoon in their heart of hearts is the gentle Jesus, meek and mild.
[47:12] a picture of the infant who would not harm a fly. And they superimpose that image on everything the world is doing, everything that I am doing, and say, well, Jesus is a good guy.
[47:36] Jesus is harmless. Jesus is one of these people that you want alongside you, and you know, he'll just buddy up to you, and he'll be your friend.
[47:49] It doesn't matter what kind of person you are. It doesn't matter what kind of life you lead. It doesn't matter the things that you do that are wrong, or the things that you don't do that should be done because they're right.
[48:02] he doesn't mind. He doesn't care. He just wants to be your friend. Yet Jesus speaks more often about the wrath of God as something that is real, something that awaits a world that is lying in sin, something that God will pour out upon this world because he is a God who is just and holy and will deal with sin and the sinner.
[48:32] And he speaks of it more than the prophets. Do you remember the passage that we have in the New Testament where he teaches us again and again, but one passage in particular, I'm sure you're familiar with it, where he describes to us the great day of judgment and what will happen on that great day.
[49:02] when the Son of Man shall come in his glory and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory.
[49:13] Do you think he knew what he was talking about? He most certainly did and he's looking forward to that day when he shall come not as a gentle Jesus, meek and mild, wrapped in swaddling clothes, carried in his mother's arms, impotent and weak and infirred, he shall come.
[49:41] Before him shall be gathered all nations, he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divided his sheep from the goats, he shall step the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
[49:55] Then shall the king say unto them on his right hand, come, ye blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, and so on.
[50:07] Read it for yourself. This is what Jesus taught, speaking about himself and his second coming and what his task would be when he comes again to judge the world.
[50:26] I find it almost incredible that there are some who are prepared to reject the idea of a judgment day because their God is a God who is, well, go to Psalm 103 and you'll find a God there who is spoken of, who is forgiving, who is gracious, who is compassionate, who is slow to anger, who abounds in love.
[50:52] all of these things are true above God. But the same Psalm tells you that God is just and it doesn't mean that God is unjust if these things are not maintained by him.
[51:09] It's because he is compassionate that he doesn't allow this world to continue as it is ad infinitum without bringing this world to an end and judging those sinners who have rejected him willfully.
[51:28] The God that Jesus speaks about executes righteous judgment and he cannot execute righteous judgment and fail to deal with sin or sin in the sinner.
[51:45] If God is angry it is an anger that is without sin. We think that there is only one kind of anger the kind that we frequently allow ourselves to fall prey to a very sinful kind but God can be angry and sin not.
[52:03] This wrath is a holy anger that burns with indignation because his character is besmirched. Theologian John Blanchard writes the following righteousness and justice are the foundation of God's throne.
[52:26] For some the day of judgment of which we speak will lead to an eternity of unimaginable uninterrupted joy.
[52:38] For all others an eternity of love. Exact opposite. Uninterrupted torment under the wrath of God.
[52:50] Jesus we are told is the judge. He has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained.
[53:09] I think in the ESV it says that man he has designated appointed by God to this throne. it is the judgment seat of Christ.
[53:25] The Father Jesus says judges no man but has committed all judgment to the son and it will be on the basis of what the son has to say that judgment will be carried out what we have done whether by faith or not and all will answer to him whatever witnesses they choose to propose in their defense.
[53:57] Do you have a witness who will stand stand at your shoulder on the day of judgment? Is there somebody that you can take with you to that day?
[54:11] All of us will stand by ourselves but if we had a witness who would we call? There are some very public trials that have gone on recently those who are in the public eye those who are considered to be celebrities and very often and shamefully a comment that is made by the judge about those who are cited as witnesses that they are unreliable that they are not truthful that their testimony is not worth repeating well friend the day will come when we will stand before God in the person of Christ Jesus and if all we have is the testimony of our best friend who will do their utmost to spare our blushes we have no hope we have no hope the only advocate that we can possibly apply to is the person who is also the judge might seem strange but that's what the
[55:38] Bible says to us he is our advocate with the father of the present he is the great intercessor he is the one who pleads our cause in the courts of heaven he is the one who will judge the world at the last and who knows exactly what he has when he is judging every single individual who will be there before him will not be a stranger to him he he he he he knows he knows he he knows he knows us better than we know ourselves and when he judges us he knows exactly what he is judging he was able to preach and on one occasion he he was preaching in a congregation and he said he cited the day of judgment and this is what he said if you do not believe in
[57:12] Christ the son will testify against you in the day of judgment if you do not believe in Christ the moon will testify against you in the day of judgment if you do not believe in Christ the rocks will testify against you on the day of judgment three witnesses which sound strange to us but stranger still was the fact that after him preaching that service three individuals professed conversion on the basis of what they heard each one one was impressed by the thought of the sun bearing witness the other by the moon bearing witness the other by the rocks bearing witness but Christ who knows who he has before him he knows every word that you ever heard of the gospel he knows every intimate moment that you had at your mother's knee at your father's knee when you sat perhaps in a place in your home and the worship was conducted and you heard prayers offered on behalf of the family he was there he's not a stranger do we not have plaques on our door that tell us that
[58:50] Christ is not a visitor in this home he's not he's a silent visitor he's somebody who's there all the time he's been present when a Christian friend spoke to us about our soul warned us about our destiny our Sunday school teachers he knows every word that we heard that counseled us to think about our eternal destiny and he can write rightly ask the question what did you do to these words of counsel what did you do to these words that that challenged you regarding the way you lived your life will he hold you answer up well God assures us that this Christ will be the one he has given us assurance given it to all men in that he hath raised him from the dead you know he spoke to the children about
[60:01] Jesus Christ the living Christ the one who died on the cross and rose again and his own disciples go up into glory and they went out in the strength of every encounter that they had with Christ not before he died but after he died knowing that this is the Christ who lives whoever lives and that this is the Christ who promised to come back and in the strength of the knowledge that they had of him they went out to preach this gospel Peter and Paul and John and all of the disciples who knew perfectly well Jesus had died Jesus had been buried they also knew that Christ who had been raised from the dead and on the basis of the knowledge that they had of him they went out to persuade men to believe in him because the risen Christ would come again this is the day according to
[61:04] Paul when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ he doesn't stop there he judges the secrets of men's heart by the gospel according to the gospel we have many secrets many secrets which we wouldn't want to share with anybody not even our most intimate acquaintances they are not a secret from God or from his son what does this passage tell us all not well it tells us believe this you know believe this whatever it has you believe maybe when you open your eyes this morning you are saying to yourself well what am I going to do today well maybe you are going to do a lot of things maybe you are going to read read something maybe read something spiritual who knows maybe you are going to watch the television watch some sport which many people do maybe you are thinking about the menu is today what you are going to have for your dinner did one thought of the day of judgment enter your heart
[62:35] Jesus says that there is this day here you can't say that this day is not that day there are some people and they have the privilege of being told that their death is imminent so that a privilege well it's a privilege in this sense that they know that the time that they have is limited and they must make use of it they must make their peace with God if at all possible if they have a sense to do that and it's wise if you know that that is the case to make your peace with God through Christ Jesus but there are many people and their death took them by surprise and as sure as death took them by surprise if it wasn't the fact that they knew
[63:42] Christ as their Lord the judgment the judgment will take them by surprise comest it's difficult for us to understand that or to to put the time when you close your eye in death you're told the soul at that moment returns to God who gave it at that moment that very moment if I'm not mistaken is the moment when you will be assured into the presence of Christ Christ doesn't need time you know you might think from the time that C.H. Spurgeon died a hundred years ago and more that a hundred years are past and he's still waiting for judgment in one sense he is but in another sense it's a twinkle
[64:47] God is a God who overarches time who governs time, who's sovereign in all the affairs of this world and death is under his sway and judgment is appointed and committed to his son when we die, we die instantly and we experience judgment it's hard to understand but the graves contain the mortal remains of those who are in the world but when the judgment comes and it will come the remains that that will be reunited with what was spiritual and God will take his own to be with himself body and soul that will be with the Lord forever it's a solemn solemn thing to think of judgment but the opportunity is given to you as you live and breathe in this world to believe to believe on this to allow you to repent to turn from a life that is
[66:11] Christless to a life that has Christ in it to turn from a life that is the life of an unbeliever to the life of somebody who has entrusted your soul to the keeping of the only one who can keep it may God give you that grace and help you to think long and hard but instantly about the appointed day that is waiting each one of us let us pray the Lord our God we cannot impress these thoughts upon any heart we lift our eyes to the God of heaven and earth and ask that these words would be taken by you and solemnly apply to the souls of those who need to know as we all do the day that beckons that we are fast hastening towards hear our prayers forgive our sins in Jesus name we ask
[67:18] Amen the closing psalm is psalm 50 psalm 50 the second version of the psalm and at verse 3 at verse 3 our God shall come and shall no more be silent but speak out before him fire shall waste great storms shall compass him about he to the heavens from above and to the earth below shall call that he his judgments may before his people show let all my saints together be and to me gathered those that by sacrifice with me a covenant have made and then the heavens shall declare his righteousness are brought because the Lord himself doth come none else is judged but God these verses of God shall come and shall no more be silent but speak out of God shall come and shall no more be silent as the earth before before them by shall wish the storms shall compass him about he to the heavens from above and to the earth below shall all the his just men say before his people show let all my saints together be and to me the they who will lo c with me a covenant of me and then
[69:58] La the heavens Heavens shall degrade this righteousness of God.
[70:13] He calls the Lord himself to come, none else is judged but God.
[70:31] May grace, mercy and peace be God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit rest and abide with you all, never and always. Amen. Amen.
[71:03] Amen. Amen., yol, được d Window. A B läh conseils Punktский thứ to get to know, Hiamo Cóächen Zelmey, Bemat la ex.