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[0:00] Let us resume our public worship of God by singing to his praise from Psalm 84. Psalm 84. We will sing from verse 4 through to the end of the psalm.

[0:17] Psalm 84 from verse 4. Blessed are they in thy house that dwell, they ever give thee praise. Blessed is the man whose strength thou art, in whose heart are thy ways.

[0:32] Who passing sorrow bake as veil, therein do dig up wells. Also the rain that falleth down the poles with water fills. So they from strength and weary to go, still forward into strength.

[0:47] Until in Zion they appeared before the Lord at length. Lord God of hosts, my prayer here. O Jacob's God give ear.

[0:58] See God of shield, look on the face of thine anointed ear. For in thy courts one day excels a thousand. Rather in my God's house will I keep adored and dwell in tents of sin.

[1:14] For God the Lord's a sun and shield. He'll grace and glory give. And will withhold no good from them that uprightly do live. O thou that art the Lord of hosts, that man is truly blessed.

[1:30] Who by assured confidence on thee alone doth rest. We can sing these stanzas. Psalm 84 from verse 4. Blessed are they in thy house that dwell, they ever give thee praise.

[1:44] Blessed are they in thy house that dwell, they ever give thee praise.

[2:04] Blessed is the man who stand in thy heart. And who start the underlying ways.

[2:22] Who passing a thought of the anxious hill. That end you deep dwells.

[2:37] Also the rain that falleth down. The pools with water bills.

[2:56] So they from strength can be here in go. Still forward and to strength.

[3:13] And turnstay on the earth. And turnstay on the earth. Before the Lord at land.

[3:30] Lord God of hosts, my prayer here.

[3:41] Lord God of hosts, my prayer here. For Jacob's heart here here. Lord God of hosts, my prayer here.

[4:10] When thy force on the air excels, a thousand rather end, My God's as well I keep a door, and dwell in tents of sin.

[4:43] For God the Lord's a sun and shield, His grace and glory give, And dwell with what new good from them, That you uprightly do them.

[5:19] O thou that art the Lord of us, That man is truly blessed, To by assured confidence, On thee I'll hold your rest.

[5:56] Let's try together in prayer. O Lord of God, as we come before you in this act of worship, We give thanks for the privilege that we enjoy.

[6:15] It is indeed a privilege to gather in your name, And to seek to worship, to have your word upon our lips, To be assured of an access to the very throne room of heaven, That the invitation of scripture applies to us, That we can come in the name of Christ, And to seek your blessing in his name.

[6:55] We pray that you would remember us, As we appear in your presence at this time, With all our felt needs, And with needs that we may have, And be known to ourselves.

[7:11] We know that those who are the children of men, Inevitably have their portion, Of this world's woes, This world's cares and concerns, Whether they recognize them as such or not.

[7:31] We know that, In our earthly sojourn, There are many joyous moments, That we experience, And we do not deserve the least of these.

[7:50] But they are mercies, That you have endowed us with, Far in excess of our asking for them, Or far more so, More than we deserve.

[8:06] We have sinned against you, Our God, And we do so daily, In thought, In word, And in deed. We acknowledge these sins, And know that there are countless others, That we fail to identify.

[8:26] Help us to understand, How far short we come, Of the glory, That is divine. We have some, Limited capacity, To understand, The word of truth.

[8:45] Sufficient to ensure that, What we encounter within it, Will enable us, To understand our fallen condition, And our need of salvation, And our need of salvation.

[9:00] Sufficient to leave us without excuse, In that great day, When we must answer, Each one for himself, For herself, For what we have done, With the graces, And privileges, That we have enjoyed.

[9:19] We pray that you would, Ensure that not one of us, Would be found, Without excuse on that day, But that we would be clothed, With the, Unspotted righteousness, Of the only begotten son of God, Who is the righteousness, Of his people, And who has ensured, That, That which was woven, By his hands, Will in no way, Be found, To contain, Blemishes or flaws, Even, The all seeing eye of God, As it falls upon it, Will find, Nothing, There are those who have, Found fault with him, Even in his earthly sojourn, He was confronted by those, Who were his accusers,

[10:21] Even the enemy of our soul, And yet he was able to, Look him in the face, And, Say of him, That when he came, He would find nothing in him, We bless you, And thank you, That that is so, Not only with his detractors, But with the God, Who examined him, As his judge, And who brought him, To the judgment seat, In place of his own people, And we bless you, And thank you, And thank you, That even though, He was condemned, For their sin, For which he stood, That there was no sin, Of his own, That could be laid, At his charge, We acknowledge that, And you in your presence, And ask for a, Clarity of understanding, That is, Divinely given, Amen, We pray for,

[11:24] Every soul present, That he would know, That they are in the presence of God, That he would search their hearts, And our heart, Each one, That we would know, That we are, Under the scrutiny, Of the all-seeing one, With whom we have to do, And that we would, Under the sense of that scrutiny, Be persuaded of our need, To confess our sin, And to forsake it, And flee to Christ, That he may cover us, We pray that you would remember, Those unable to be present, Who are very much part, Of the number of your people here, They have disclosed that, By their own public profession thereof, But more so, By the way, In which their longings, Are declared, And their, Emptiness,

[12:26] Which they feel, Because of their inability, To join with others, In the public means of grace, Give thanks for the provision, Made for them, That they are able, Even by their fireside, To hear your word, To read it, And to contemplate it, And to, Experience the blessing of God, Upon it, And even more, Miraculously, That, Where the desire is, That they may fellowship with us, At this evening hour, As they pray, Alongside us, And as they, Think, Through the hand of the Spirit, Upon their hearts, And minds, Of the truth of God, As it is set before us, Even at this time, Remember every gathering, Of the saints, Throughout the world, Who are united, By faith to Christ, And by Christ, United one to the other,

[13:27] We pray for all, The gatherings of your people, Be this small or great, Whatever town, Whatever nation, They belong to, Amongst them, We believe, That you have a people, And that they are all one, In Christ Jesus, May the proclamation, Of truth, Delivered to them, Encourage them, In their faith, And add to the number, That would be, Declared, Amongst the saints, Of the most high God, We remember, Those who are persecuted, For their faith, And we pray for them, That they would be delivered, From any threat, And all the sufferings, That would be inflicted, Upon them, By enemies, Who are altogether, Too ready, To assail them, We pray for your, Help and assistance, To the church of Christ, In proclaiming the truth, In the face of adversity, Those who declare the truth,

[14:31] As if it was, In error, And those who live their, Lives in error, As if it were truth, We pray for our nation, Which has departed, From the truth, So, Flagrantly, And so, Defiantly, Turn us again, We pray, And upon us, Vouch save, As though, We might know the truth, Lived out once again, Amongst a people, Who, Know and love the Lord, Remember our King, His family, The parliaments, That serve in his name, In Holyrood, And Westminster, We pray for those, Who love the Lord, Amongst that number, Though they be few, We pray that you, We pray that you, Would sustain them, By faith, That you would, Encourage them to, Seek the truth, Pursue it earnestly, And live out, All that it teaches,

[15:32] To them, In a meaningful way, In their, Public, And in their, Private lives, We pray for the nations, Of the earth, And all that are embroiled, In war, All who are suffering, Because of, Of the calamities, That inflict themselves, Upon the world, From time to time, We remember, In your presence, All who are grieving, And sorrowful, The voice of death, Frequently, Makes its presence, Left even in our, Communities here, For the grieving, And sorrowful, We bring your petitions, And ask your blessing, That you may, Alleviate suffering, And that you may, Assuage that, Sorrow, By the balm, Of your own presence, And love, Continue to watch over us, Now the short time, That we're together, As we praise your name, We give thanks, For your word, That is upon our lips,

[16:32] That it is, That which sets, Christ before us, Meaningfully, May we see him, With the eye of faith, For giving every transgression, Through him, All we ask, In his name, Amen, Let us sing again, To God's praise, Verses from Psalm 21, Psalm 21, Verse 1, Turn to verse 6, The King, The King in thy great strength, O Lord, Shall very joyful be, In thy salvation rejoice, How vehemently shall he, Thou hast bestowed upon him, All that his heart would have, And thou from him, Didst not withhold, Whate'er his lips did crave, For thou with blessings, Sin prevents, Of goodness manifold, And thou hast set upon his head, A crown of purest gold,

[17:33] When he desired life of thee, Though life to him didst give, Even such a length of days, That he forevermore should live, In that salvation wrought by thee, His glorious made great, Honor and comely majesty, Thou hast upon him set, Because that thou forevermore most blessed hast him made, And thou hast with thy countenance, Made him exceeding glad, And so on, We'll sing these verses 1 to 6, Psalm 21, The King in thy great strength, O Lord, Shall very joyful be, In thy salvation rejoice,

[18:42] How vehemently shall he, Thou hast his truth upon him, All that his heart would have, And thou from him didst not withhold, What he is, His life did claim, For thou with blessings, And thus a conservative of the Father, Within thee every eben, As he is, Good for thee.

[19:47] However, Thou has set upon his head a crown of purest moon.

[20:04] When he decided life only, thou life should make its give.

[20:22] In such a land of this lady forevermore should live.

[20:40] In that salvation wrought by thee, his story is made great.

[20:58] On earth and heavenly majesty, how has Japan set?

[21:16] Because that thou forevermore must let the heaven of it.

[21:35] And earth and heavenly majesty, how has Japan set?

[21:54] Let us hear God's word as we find it in the New Testament scriptures. The book of the Revelation in chapter 21.

[22:15] The Revelation of John, chapter 21. We can read the whole chapter. The Revelation of John, chapter 21.

[22:57] And he will dwell with them, for they shall be his people. And God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

[23:07] And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying. Neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away.

[23:23] And he that sat upon the throne said, behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, write, for these words are true and faithful.

[23:35] And he said unto me, it is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is a thirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.

[23:46] He that overcometh shall inherit all things. And I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable and murderers, and whormongers and sorcerers, and idolaters and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

[24:13] And there came unto me one of the seven angels, which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.

[24:29] And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God.

[24:44] And her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal. And at a wall great and high, and at twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel.

[25:06] On the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. At the wall of the city are twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

[25:22] And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof. And the city lieth four square, and the length is as large as the breadth.

[25:36] And he measured the city with a reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.

[25:55] And the building of the wall of it was of chasper, and the city was pure gold like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones.

[26:08] The first foundation was chasper, the second sapphire, the third a chalcedony, the fourth an emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth spell, the ninth a topaz, the tenth a chrysophrasis, the eleventh a chacent, the twelfth an amethyst.

[26:34] And the twelve gates were twelve pearls. Every several gates was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, as if it were transparent glass.

[26:46] And I saw no temple therein, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple offered. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it, for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

[27:06] And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it, and the kings of the earth to bring their glory and honour into it.

[27:17] And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day, for there shall be no night there, and they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.

[27:29] and there shall in no wise centre into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a lie, but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

[27:46] Amen. And may the Lord add his blessing to a reading of this word, to his name be the praise. We're going to sing now from Psalm 45, Psalm 45, the second version of the psalm.

[28:07] And we're singing from the beginning to verse 5. Psalm 45, And so on.

[28:58] We're going to sing to verse 5. Psalm 45, the second version, six stanzas to verse 5. My heart and I think is good matter in a song.

[29:09] My heart and I think is good matter in a song.

[29:28] I speak the things that I am made, which to the King belong.

[29:46] My tongue shall be as sweet, His honour to end I, and as a pen of any scribe, that you suffice to write.

[30:23] The Lord that you are drunk. God bless you, Lord.

[30:36] God bless you, And therefore blessings evermore Only death God bestow Thy sword peered on thy side Thou that art most almighty Apear in dreadful majesty And in thy glory bright

[31:38] For meekness, truth and right Right cross, rest, in his gate And thy right hand shall teach to thee Faith, charitable and great Thy shallot's abuser Thou that foes are to the king Where by in true subjection

[32:43] The people thou shalt bring I'd like us now to turn to the book of Revelation In chapter 21 And we can read again at verse 9 And there came unto me one of the seven angels Which had the seven vials Full of the seven last plagues And talked with me Saying, Come hither I will show thee the bride The lamb's wife And he carried me away in the spirit To a great and high mountain And showed me that great city

[33:45] The holy Jerusalem Descending out of heaven From God Having the glory of God And her light was likened to a stone Most precious Even like a chasper stone Clear as crystal And so on Try us just for a while this evening To think of these words of invitation Come hither I will show thee the bride The lamb's wife I will show thee the bride The lamb's wife I'm sure every one of you will understand From your own reading of the scripture That the book of the Revelation Is replete with symbolism

[34:47] And sometimes When we're confronted with biblical symbolism We find it a difficulty to interpret We find it a difficulty to understand Why it should be presented the way it is Because if the Bible is meant to convey truth to us Then why not make the truth plain?

[35:27] Why not make it straightforward? Well you have to remember that There are teachings that the Bible contains That present to us truths that are mysterious And the mystery is maybe enhanced through the typology And the symbolism that the prophets and the apostles use But bear in mind how this book begins The revelation of Jesus Christ Which God gave unto him To show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass And he sent and signified it by his angel And to his servant John

[36:28] Who bare record of the word of God And of the testimony of Jesus Christ And of all things that he saw And through these words of introduction We are able to glean and gather That what John has to teach us What John has to reveal to us Are these things that took place in the past These things that are current That are taking place in the here and now And these things which are yet to occur That the word as it is presented by him Using plain language at times Using symbolism at other times Using symbolism at other times That conveys to us truths relevant to the reader

[37:34] But that they must interpret in light of what has taken place What is now taking place and what will yet occur In the past One of the commentators One of the commentators Don Fortner Puts it like this His visions revealed to John What the Lord had done And what the Lord is doing And what the Lord will yet do for his church But he doesn't leave it at that He says what the Lord will do in his church Between his church And with his church He means us to understand that God is not just simply speaking about what he himself is doing But also reminding us that through the church that bears his name in the world

[38:39] He is continuing to be active Now one thing we know about this book Is that the Apostle John frequently speaks to us about heaven He doesn't just speak about heaven We know that he speaks about judgment And he speaks about the powers of darkness The powers of evil that are at work in the world The judgment that God is to bring to bear upon the devil and his angels and all who follow their ways But he speaks clearly, loudly and repeatedly about the destiny of God's people And that wouldn't or shouldn't surprise us Because we know that when the Lord himself spoke with his disciples

[39:42] He reminded them of what awaited them You'll be familiar with the promises And there are many of them That he gave to his disciples Concerning not just the immediate future But the future that belonged to them By virtue of their relationship with himself Remember the words of John 14 In my Father's house are many mansions If it were not so, I would have told you I go to prepare a place for you And if I go to prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you unto myself That where I am, there you may be also Again in the High Priestly Prayer What is called the High Priestly Prayer In John chapter 17 He is speaking to his Heavenly Father

[40:45] And he says to God the Father Father, I will that they also whom thou hast given me Be with me where I am That they may behold my glory Which thou hast given me For thou lovest me before the foundation of the world So there are many passages of that nature That we could go to That reminds us of God's promises to his own people The Lord Jesus has promised to his people That there is more to their existence in this world Than the world in which they live That their world is but a temporary residence That there is a more sure place of abode That awaits them, that is prepared for them And that they will ultimately occupy

[41:48] So here in the book of Revelation We get a clear glimpse of what heaven will be like For those that the Lord takes to be with him in heaven And at this point in the letter While there is a clear reminder to us Of the awful reality of the judgment of God Upon those who are his enemies There is also what appears to be an invitation To come and see And what we are invited to Lufkart Makes no sense If this is the first time That he spoke of it But he has previously referred to heaven To the location where he resides himself

[42:51] Where the saints of God in glory reside And where they will reside And where they will reside In the full completeness of the glorified body That is his And we want to look at what is being shown To them very simply It's just two thoughts really The invitation that is given Is given to see Or to I think to comprehend But probably I will show thee the bride And then he tells us who the bride is The lamb's wife The lamb's wife I will show thee the bride And the bride the lamb's wife

[43:53] So these two things I really want us to To think about very briefly this evening And We couldn't have a bride if there was no groom And there was no groom There would be no bride And vice versa I suppose that's the way to put it In verse 2 The beginning of this chapter The apostle writes I John I John Saw the holy city New Jerusalem Coming down from God Out of heaven Prepared as a bride adorned For her husband And The symbolism Is I suppose Meant to convey to us The beauty that belongs To the bride The beauty The ornateness The

[44:56] The way that this bride Can be admired Because Of how she is presented We cannot And we must not Forget the symbolism That is prevalent Throughout the book And that the language is meant to be symbolic And John Or the Lord Through the Spirit Is not concerned With the physical Geographic Location of Jerusalem As the capital Of the state of Israel Or the people of God He is not concerned To speak of Jerusalem As a physical city But rather To speak of it As a spiritual entity That bears his name Because he Is resident Within it Some of you will know the name

[45:59] William Hendrickson And William Hendrickson In his In his writing Reminds us of a simple truth A simple truth That That we should bear in mind Simply this That The Jerusalem Of which he speaks That is occupied Is occupied By Those who have Who have been Made its occupants By God Jerusalem Is always Born from above Every Every resident Of this city A spiritual city Is a resident Of that city Because they are born Again by the Spirit Of God They have been translated From the kingdom Of darkness Into the kingdom Of his marvelous light And this is a city Prepared

[47:01] By God For God's people We have Even in the Outset Of the Old Testament Scripture We are reminded Through The affections Of Abraham The father Of the faithful How he Longed For a place Where he would reside Abraham Had his eyes Fixed Not on a city That was of Man's making But a celestial city A city Whose builder And maker Was God And We need to Remind ourselves Of Of What the symbolism Here is telling us about That What matters What is of Material worth To many Is not what is Worth Or of worth To the believer

[48:02] The things That truly Matter are of God's Provision And the Spiritual realm That he has Translated his People in Has a capital Into which his People Are to be brought But Earlier on In chapter 19 19 The The The same The same Truth is Brought home To us If you remember When When John is there Speaking He says A voice Came out of the throne He's saying Praise out God All ye servants And ye that fear him Both small and great And I heard as it were The voice of a great multitude And as the voice of many waters And as the voice of mighty thundering Saying Hallelujah For the Lord God

[49:04] Omnipotent reigneth Let us be glad and rejoice And give honour to him For the marriage of the lamb Is come And his wife Hath made herself ready And to her And to her was granted That she should be arrayed In fine linen Clean And white For the fine linen Is the righteousness Of the saints So that doesn't allow us Much leeway In understanding Who the bride is The bride as far as John is concerned As far as the scripture is concerned He The bride is The bride is The people of God Who are in a saving relationship With the Lord Jesus Christ The people of God Who have united by faith to him And who are the possessors of his righteousness

[50:08] And they are clothed by him With clothes that are clearly Perfectly woven And without spot or blemish What we have to overcome Overcome I suppose In our thinking Is this That every child of God Is a nobred In this world They are wandering As ten dwellers Until the city of God's provision Becomes their home This is what is true about their life Here in this world Whatever is in the world for them And by God's grace They are allowed Many good things That they may celebrate That they may enjoy That they may praise him for

[51:12] But these things Are temporal These things Are temporary These things Are for time And for sense But they will perish Ultimately But because they are Because they are like Abraham With their eye fixed On something more permanent When the good things Are not good When the evils of this world Are more pronounced Than that which is good They are able to be sustained Through the promises of God And enjoy And enjoy The prospect Of something better Their permanent home Is something That God Sets before them And That is The Jerusalem

[52:14] That is spoken of here Coming down from God Out of heaven And Prepared as a bride Adorned for a husband Sometimes you have these Conflicting images As it were You've got on one side This bride But the same bride Is identified As the heavenly Jerusalem And the invitation That he gives To go up as it were And look Look upon This Jerusalem He carried me away In the spirit To a great And high mountain And showed me That great city The holy Jerusalem Descending out of heaven From God Having the glory of God And her light Was likened to a stone Most precious And the description Goes on And the preciousness Of the city The glory of the city The completeness The completeness of the city Perhaps it's lost

[53:17] On many people When you read through How it's four square The size of it Is meant to convey to us The vastness Of the number That occupy This blessed position Of being part of the Church of God And those Who are part of it And identified simply As the bride of God The bride of Christ Permanence is written All over this picture That we are given The nations of them Which are saved Shall walk in the light of it And the kings of the earth To bring their glory Their glory and honour Into it In other words What you have subsumed Into the picture Is a glory that far exceeds

[54:23] The glories that this world presents to us When we are presented with worldly glory Worldly glory Worldly wealth Worldly activities that suggest to us The splendours and the magnitude of man's own activities And man's own glories They are nothing in comparison With what the apostle brings to our attention here And it is meant to convey to us something That will not perish You go back in history You go back even in the history of the Bible That speaks to you about These dynasties that arose And that disappeared Whether they are Greek Or Roman Or whatever They appeared They lasted For a time They disappeared Their memory is a fading one

[55:25] But this Is meant to convey An enduring reality That will go on It will not diminish The famous Preacher Richard Baxter Who was greatly blessed in his ministry In one of his servants said When you look at The Garden of Eden He said You will find that the Garden of Eden There was a way to go out of it But there was no way to get back into it There was a gate That allowed those who were in it to go out But there was no gate to get back in And that is how Adam discovered it For himself But he said When you look at the heavenly Jerusalem When you look at The paradise of God There is a gate to go in But no gate to go out

[56:28] It is a permanent fixture It is not something And the image that we are given Is some place where Sin will not enter in None of the griefs And the sadnesses And the sorrows of this world Will ever be allowed access And those who are in it Are in it for keeps But look at What is necessary for this to be so Yes, the Lamb Is necessary for the Church of Christ to exist There is a bride There is a bride But there is a bridegroom And the bridegroom Is Even more glorious Than the glory of the bride Humanly speaking On the day of our wedding Everybody's eyes on the bride Everybody's eyes looking At the dress And all the accoutrements And very few would

[57:29] Give a second glance To the groom Well not for long anyway But here The picture is Completely different Because as another put it in In a composition The Lamb Is all the glory In Emmanuel's land If the Church is the bride Christ is the groom And within the book of Revelation One thing that you will find If you read it From chapter 1 To chapter 22 You will always come across A picture of the Lamb Of the Lamb And it's not just a lamb But very often If not always It is a picture of a lamb Or the lamb that is slain A lamb that was Dead But is alive And we are meant to

[58:32] Remember that That the groom Whose bride the church is Has a church Because Once He experienced death If you go back In this Book Of Revelation And in chapter 5 You You read there Of the Lamb Be held And low in the midst of the throne And of the four beasts And in the midst of the elders Stood a lamb As it had been slain Having seven horns And seven eyes Which are the seven spirits Of God Sent forth into all the earth And he came and took the book Out of the right hand Of him that sat upon the throne And when he had taken the book The four beasts And the four and twenty elders Fell down before the Lamb Having every one of them Harps and gold and vials Full of orders

[59:34] Which are the prayers of the saints And they sang a new song Saying Thou art worthy To take the book And to open the seals thereof For thou wast slain And hast redeemed us to God By thy blood Out of every kindred And town And people And nations And made us For God Kings and priests And we shall reign On the earth Again and again You are confronted With this picture Of a lamb that is slain But a lamb that is In every place That is I think anyway You could find That although He is a lamb slain That it is always With a view To reminding you That his death Was victorious It wasn't the end This morning We mentioned Or spoke of the Of the birth of Jesus Christ

[60:37] And God's eternal purposes In required The Lord Jesus The son of the most high God To be born into the world And the manner of his birth His birth And everything that was Encapsulated within it Was a God According to God's Own provision But whenever This subject is dealt with In light of what The scripture says We are reminded That his death Was with a view To bringing salvation To lost sinners Sinners One of the commentators Says Because of the victory Of the cross The security of those Whose names Are written In the Lamb's book Of life Is absolute We read that In this chapter Every saint Every person

[61:39] Who belongs To this city They are secure Within the city Because their names Are writ large In the Lamb's book Of life Remember again In chapter 7 And verse 15 He says Therefore are they Before the throne of God On servant day and night In his temple And he that sitteth on the throne Shall dwell among them They shall hunger no more Neither thirst any more Neither shall the sun Light on them Nor any heat For the Lamb Which is in the midst Of the throne Shall feed them And shall lead them Into living fountains Of waters And God shall wipe Every tear From their eyes Countless passages Can be referred to Concerning The groom The lamb Who is the groom That is espoused

[62:42] To the bride And yet The image The imagery Is sullied By our experience Of marriage In this world Of marital relationship In this world The world knows Little of the love That the lamb Had for his bride It is a love That took him to the cross And the church Is the focus Always of that love And they are recipients Of a love that is without equal And without bounds An eternal love When the church speaks Of its own love And often the church Does that Individual Christians May well be able to speak Of a depth of love For Christ But

[63:44] Even though they may say That very truth Which is true for them It is nothing Nothing like Or nothing like the equal Of his love for the church It is no surprise It is no surprise If the church Should declare An interest in him For them As we said already The lamb Is all the glory The fact that they are arrayed In fine linen Is attributed entirely To what he has wrought in them Everything that is true here Is true because of what he has done In his people in the world We cannot imagine That the picture that we have here Of a bride Who is adorned Ready to experience The The I think One of the preachers says

[64:48] That what we have here Is really akin to the wedding reception Because He says the marriage Has already taken place The marriage has already occurred In the world When a person Who is a sinner Destined to a lost eternity Encounters Christ And by faith close in with him Then they are espoused to him Then they are married to him And this is And this is The fruition of that This is the conclusion of that Christ alone Brings his people to heaven Is that not what is suggested to us here He met with his own people in the world And He alone Is the one who receives The people of God's praise He washed The robes And make them white In the blood of the Lamb He did that

[65:51] Or They did that Because they were unable to do it By his spirit It's interesting The preacher Rabbi Duncan And It is interesting The preacher Rabbi Duncan Said After After I see the Lamb He said I want to see the Lamb But next to the sight of the Lamb I want the sight Of the Lamb's bride And that's an interesting Declaration Thanks to the sight of the Lamb, I want sight of the Lamb's bride.

[66:39] Surely it is true of him as a believer in God that he is what he wants to see. Because the Bible tells us that those who are Christ's not only are his, but that they will be with him.

[66:57] And if they are with him, they will be like him. And when they are like him, they will have the glory that they wish to see, even in the church, if I understand Robbie Duncan right.

[67:14] What does the apostle advise you to do? Come hither, he says. Come hither and see. Come and see for yourself.

[67:25] The bride, the Lamb's wife. I don't suppose there are many who are in the world and of the world, and not of that number, who see any glory in the Lamb.

[67:46] Who see any glory in the bride. They see a ractaggled bunch of all kinds, and one person in their eyes, as bad as the next.

[68:01] But that's not the way Christ sees them. Christ sees them with the eyes that adore those that he has bought with his own blood.

[68:14] He sees them with affection so deep that you could swim in it, and with love that knows but no bounds. Who would not want such a bride?

[68:28] Who would not want such a groom? Who would not want such a bride? The scripture tells us that this is the bride that Christ has purchased for himself.

[68:40] That this is the bride that he has secured to be with him for all eternity. Whose company he will delight in. And in his company, countless immisurable hours will be sent, bent, gazing into the glory that is portrayed in the face of those who are present.

[69:08] Well, let God bring home this imagery, this symbolism to you with power. God's people are fond of reading these words, thinking what will it be like?

[69:25] What is heaven going to be like? Occasionally, they will take a wander, and they will skirt the boundaries and the borders.

[69:38] And they will say to themselves, well, one day I will go in. Well, that day they go in will be the day that they never come out again.

[69:48] And if they go in, they go in with a longing to see the groom. Because the groom is the one who brought them to be of that number for whom the heavenly Jerusalem was that home.

[70:05] May God bless these few thoughts. Let us pray. O Lord, O God, our words are mean words.

[70:19] Our words are shallow and empty to us in contrast with the glory that is portrayed within your word.

[70:30] That heavenly glory that you have projected through your word through our mind's eye. We give thanks for the Christ of which it speaks.

[70:43] For the work that he has accomplished that no other could. For the promises that are ye and amen in him, that are secure.

[70:56] And all who are beneficiaries of his finished work will delight in his presence for all eternity. Enable us to be numbered amongst them.

[71:07] To desire wholeheartedly. To put our trust in him and him alone. Forgive our sins. We ask God in his name.

[71:18] Amen. We're going to conclude by singing again from Psalm 45. Psalm 45 and at verse 13.

[71:33] Singing to the end of the psalm. The daughter of the king. Again we're singing the second version of the psalm. The daughter of the king. All glorious is within and with embroideries of gold.

[71:48] Her garments wrought have been. She cometh to the king in robes with needle wrought. The virgins that do follow her shall unto thee be brought.

[71:59] They shall be brought with joy and mirth on every side. Into the palace of the king. And there they shall abide. To the end of the psalm.

[72:12] The daughter of the king. All glorious is within. The daughter of the king.

[72:26] All glorious is within. The daughter of the king. The daughter of the king. And with embroideries of gold.

[72:46] Her goddess of gold. The daughter of the king. She cometh to the king.

[73:02] In robes with needle wrought. The virgins that do follow her.

[73:22] Shall unto thee be brought.实 the throne.

[73:48] In turn of hearts of the King, and there they shall abide.

[74:06] And in thy father's stead, thy children love me free.

[74:24] And in thy place of the earth, then all the princes may.

[74:43] I will show thine aim to generations all.

[75:01] Let more of thee burneth the Lord to thee, dear precious God.

[75:20]  Amen.