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[0:00] If you would take your Bibles and turn over to the Gospel of Luke, chapter 17. If you're visiting with us, there's a black Bible in the chair in front of you.

[0:15] Take that black Bible out, go towards the back, and then find page 62. Page 62. Because we're going to go to Luke, chapter 17, big number 17, little number, verse 22 through verse 37, the end of the chapter of chapter 17.

[0:34] That's what we will study this morning. And I have a PowerPoint for you. Oh, gee, that was just a nightmare.

[0:46] That's never happened to me before. It's the first time it's ever happened. It was just crazy. It still says it's there, too. The computer says it's there. Where?

[0:58] It's not there. That's just funny. So, computers are like that. You love them and you hate them. Okay, so, Luke 17, verse 22 through 37.

[1:10] And Jesus said to the disciples, The day shall come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, look there.

[1:20] Look here. Look here. Do not go away. And do not run after them. For just as the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, signs to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in his day.

[1:35] But first, he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it shall be also in the days of the Son of Man.

[1:47] They were eating. They were drinking. They were marrying. They were being given in marriage until the day that Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them all. It was the same as happened in the days of Lot.

[1:59] They were eating. They were drinking. They were buying. They were selling. They were planting. They were building. But on the day that Lot went out from Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.

[2:11] Verse 30. It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, let not the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house go down to take them away.

[2:24] And likewise, let not the one who is in the field turn back. Remember Lot's wife. Whoever seeks to keep his life shall lose it and whoever loses his life shall preserve it.

[2:38] I tell you, on that night there will be two men in one bed. One will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two women grinding at the same place. One will be taken and the other left.

[2:50] Dropping down to verse 37. And answering, they said to him, Where, Lord? And he said to them, Where the body is, there also will the vultures be gathered.

[3:08] Women are losing hair in their twenties. Read the article. It's usually associated with aging, but stressed out working women today are suffering hair loss as young as their twenties, a survey has found.

[3:25] A third of women polled said they had suffered hair thinning with nearly three quarters blaming life and work stress on the condition of their hair. A sixth of women surveyed with nearly three quarters. A sixth of women surveyed said they had experienced hair loss by their 30th birthday.

[3:39] While eight percent said their locks had started to thin by the time they were 25. Yikes! I'm sure you ladies don't want that. Us men don't want that either.

[3:50] I mean, who likes to lose, especially their hair? Don't want to lose your hair? Don't want to lose a key ball game? Don't want to lose something valuable to you?

[4:04] Or how about this loss? U.S. youth losing religion.

[4:15] The article says more young Americans are turning away from organized faith as millennials question the mix with politics.

[4:29] Later, the article says this. American adults under 30 increasingly identify with no religion whatsoever. A landmark peer research from 2012 shows that attachment by young people to organized religious bodies is on the decline.

[4:45] It was amazing to me even as I was looking through the Operation World, the book, and looking at New Zealand. New Zealand is, by now 2014, it's about 46% is non-religious.

[5:03] That's almost half the population. To lose. It means you don't win. Defeat.

[5:15] Shame. Humiliation. Overcome. Weakness. You're crushed. You're conquered. That's what it means to lose, right?

[5:28] If you lose a game, you're defeated. Now, what if I said to you that lose means to overcome?

[5:39] It means to be, to conquer. Not to be conquered, but to conquer. To overcome.

[5:51] Strength, not weakness. What if I told you that lose actually means you win? Now, you might be thinking I'm taking too much allergy medication.

[6:02] But what if lose actually meant you gained? When Jesus calls His followers, calls people to come follow Him.

[6:18] He's Messiah. He's the servant. He's the Lord. And what we see here, He's the Son of Man. You will find forgiveness of your sins. And from our text this morning, losing all for Him when He returns.

[6:34] Come follow Jesus. You'll find forgiveness of your sins. Losing all for Him when He returns. Lose it all and you will gain. Lose it all for Him and you'll be strong.

[6:47] Not weak. Lose it all for Him. And you will overcome. You will conquer.

[6:59] You will be preserved. See, it seems like an oxymoron, but it's a paradox. If you lose, you will gain. If you try to gain, you will lose.

[7:12] When He returns. Here's a statement for you. Sum up the message in one statement. Two statements. We will long for Jesus' return, which will be obvious, sudden, and quick.

[7:25] Our response should be to lose all for His sake. There you go. Close and perfect. No, just kidding. We will long for Jesus' return.

[7:35] His return is going to be obvious. It will be sudden. It will be quick. What shall our response be? Lose all for His sake. Lose all for His sake.

[7:47] The focus in our passage is the consummation of the kingdom at Jesus' return. He had just said to the Pharisees, You want the kingdom? Check me out.

[7:58] I'm right here. I am the kingdom. But then He goes into the consummation of the kingdom. It will be unexpected, yet evident to all. After Jesus suffered His return, will take place at a time when people will be godless.

[8:17] Jesus will once again step into our world, but now He will step into our world to judge, not to save. Here, this time, He's saving.

[8:29] At that time, though, He will judge. At that time, God's judgment will come upon those who have not embraced, who have not followed, have not committed to Jesus.

[8:41] Yes, the kingdom is here, but there's more to come. The glorious day of the Son of Man's return is yet to come, and His arrival will be sudden, visible.

[8:52] No. All will see it. That will be a fact, friends. And it will come after the Son of Man suffers and is rejected by His own people, which we'll see later on in the Gospel.

[9:06] Just before His coming, people will be godless and self-focused, just like the days of Noah, just like the days of Lot. And then, judgment. One day, God's kingdom will show itself in great power, glory, and judgment upon all.

[9:20] When He comes, everybody will recognize what is happening. It will be visibly clear to all that His glorious kingdom has finally arrived. So if you're here and you don't know Jesus, you're a follower of Him, come to Jesus who saves.

[9:40] He will save you. There's also warning for us who are Christians, and an encouragement for us as His followers, to endure and remain steadfast.

[9:51] Do not fall away. Don't look back like Lot's life. No, be loyal to Jesus and to the Gospel.

[10:02] Lose all for His sake. Lose all for His sake. So two points we will see. In our message, first point, we will see His return will be obvious, sudden and quick.

[10:15] That's the bulk of what we're going to be seeing in our passage. That Jesus' return is obvious. It's sudden. It's quick. Notice how it begins, 22.

[10:27] He said to the disciples, literally He said toward His disciples. This is vital. Because He was telling them that they will desire His coming, but they won't see it.

[10:39] The days will come. You will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. So Jesus spoke this to reassure His disciples, us, that He will eventually come to wield His just judgment for them, for us.

[11:00] And obviously when He says Son of Man, He's talking about Himself. A type of authority, denoting that when Jesus, when the Son of Man returns, He will act in judgment.

[11:13] With authority, with power. The days of the Son of Man means the day of Messiah. His return. The fulfillment of the kingdom is now.

[11:25] It's been inaugurated, but soon there's going to be a consummation. It will be totally fulfilled when Jesus returns. But as He says, you're going to long for this day, but it's not going to happen.

[11:39] You're going to want it to happen, but it's not here. So, why is Jesus saying this? Just a side note. So be patient during times of pains, tribulations, trials, and sufferings, when trials come no longer fear.

[12:01] Because Jesus will be turning glory to judge. And there will tell His faithfulness of old. And there will see and tell of His faithfulness of old.

[12:13] He will bring vindication for His people and total rule upon the earth. He will return, be encouraged. He will speak more about that in just a moment, but He goes into this coming, His second coming.

[12:29] Verse 23, He says, they will say, look there, look here, don't go away, don't run after them. You're going to hear stuff. Here, there. They must not let their desire to see Jesus mislead them.

[12:45] Don't listen to their claims. People will speak about some secret, unexpected way that Jesus is going to come. Jesus came. He came. You see, He's just there.

[12:56] He says, no way. Why? Because it's going to be obvious to all. We will long, yes, we will long to see Jesus return because of the evil, the suffering, the sin, the brokenness of the world, but we must be discerning and wise.

[13:15] His return is going to be obvious. Notice, 24, for just as the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines in the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day.

[13:26] Jesus was thinking about people in northern Arizona when He said this. Because we get the monsoon season, right? You don't need to hunt for Jesus coming. When He comes, it's going to be obvious.

[13:38] Like what? Like lightning. It stretches and flashes across the sky. When a lightning storm is here, everyone sees it, especially at night.

[13:51] Right? Because you're standing at night, all of a sudden, it just lights up the sky. Right now, He's talking about here, He's talking about something visible, not sudden. Sudden is going to be later. Right now, He's talking about something that's visible.

[14:03] Everyone will see it. When you're looking up at the sky, we're all looking up at the sky, boom, you see that lightning bolt? Oh, did you see that? Yeah, I saw that. Jesus coming will be seen.

[14:17] Thus, Jesus' followers don't need to go and find out when. The start of the day of the Lord will be obvious to everybody. I mean, imagine, from the United States to Russia, from Japan to China, from India to the Middle East, from Africa to South America, all the islands throughout the world, from the North to the South Pole, everyone will see the Son of Man coming.

[14:49] It's obvious. It'll be obvious. Notice how Jesus breaks in, though, what must happen first, verse 25. But first, He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

[15:05] He puts this in there because He wanted to give them a perspective. He's talking to the Twelve. Jesus, the Son of Man, must suffer and be rejected. And Luke here, you can't see it in the English, but that word, must happen, is that Greek word that we've talked about before, day.

[15:21] Delta Epsilon Iota, D-E-I. It means, it must happen. It must happen this way. This is God's plan. Jesus has to die for sinners.

[15:34] It is God's plan to have it happen this way. See, Jesus had to live and die in the place of sinners so that, through the means of trusting in Jesus alone, we may be credited with righteousness and our sin would be placed upon Jesus.

[15:54] Jesus who faced God's wrathful justice at His betrayal, at the verdict by Pilate, and at His crucifixion. He was facing all of God's wrath where we should have been betrayed, where we should have been condemned, where we should have died and hung on a tree and be cursed forever.

[16:11] Remember, Jesus was in the place of sinners. Living for us. For you. Dying for you. Resurrected for you.

[16:23] That had to happen. That's God's plan. That's the gospel. The gospel must happen because that's by which you could be saved. Respond to Christ if you don't know Him today.

[16:34] Respond to Jesus. Say, I turn from my sin and trust in Him and you will be saved. Jesus knew that this generation and it was His people who would condemn Him to death. He had to be made a curse so that sinners would not be cursed by God, but have His blessing through faith alone in Jesus.

[16:54] Faith alone, by grace alone, in Christ alone, that we see in the Scriptures alone, to the glory of God alone. So He puts that in there first.

[17:08] That must happen. And then He continues on. Okay, so what will the times of the coming be like? What can I give you in illustrations that you will understand it? Verse 26.

[17:21] Just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it shall also be in the days of the Son of Man. 27. Eating, drinking, marrying, being given in marriage until the day that Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them all.

[17:34] just like that time, people will be living life with no attention to God, to Jesus, truth, judgment to come, the mundane things of life along with the actual evil deeds.

[17:52] Genesis chapter 6 is pretty clear. People were very evil. and they were living this way right up to the very day that Noah entered into the ark. As people were living life in sin, right up to the time that Noah entered the ark, so will the period just be just before his return.

[18:16] It would be the same way. Life and celebration, that's how they rule. Plus moral corruption. People are not concerned about God.

[18:30] And all perished in the flood. And will be a day of judgment for those who fail to embrace Jesus. A judgment will come suddenly. People will be totally exposed to God's judgment when Christ comes.

[18:45] If you fail to decide to follow Jesus, you will be defenseless before God. Don't let it be too late. What's another time period?

[18:56] 28. The same has happened in the days of Lot. Eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building. On the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.

[19:10] Like the days of Lot with Sodom and Gomorrah, people eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building, houses and everything. Just having a good time. Doing and living life, ordinary life, but also lives that display sin.

[19:26] In the case of Sodom and Gomorrah, there was rampant homosexuality and immorality. These people have lied with no thought of God and what concerns Him.

[19:40] They didn't care. And people still don't care. They are willfully blind. And that very day, that very day, Lot was dragged out.

[19:54] You know, I've got to get something. What, you get out of here? Remember the angels? They're like dragging, you know, dragging Lot. They dragged them out. They said, leave, get out of here.

[20:05] Get out of here. They dragged them out of the city of the two angels and then the Lord rained down fire and brimstone upon Sodom and Gomorrah. And once Lot left, death and destruction resulted.

[20:19] There was no hope at all. It's going to be obvious. And it's going to be sudden. Verse 30, it will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed.

[20:34] When Jesus is revealed, then will come the consummation of history. God will sovereignly reveal the presence of His eternal Son in all His glory, power, and splendor.

[20:51] And people today, they're busy with life, unprepared for God's activity, they're unconcerned about Jesus, unconcerned about spiritual things, well, I don't, I don't like organized religion, but I'm spiritual.

[21:05] Right? But people are thinking about their own lives and own concerns and the normal everyday things of life that they will take no time and pay no attention to the warnings of judgment given to them.

[21:24] But this coming, this return is going to be obvious. Everyone's going to see it. It's going to be sudden. It's going to happen. It's going to be quick.

[21:38] Verse 34. Drop, go up to verse 34. I tell you, on that night, He mentions the night as a metaphor for the end of a period and the dawn of a new day.

[21:51] On that night, there will be two men in one bed. One will be taken, the other will be left. So fast, so sudden that two people will be in bed. Maybe a better translation would be as a husband and wife here instead of two men.

[22:05] But the idea is one's taking the other's left. 35, there will be two women grinding at the same place. One will be taken the other left. Now, is one taken for judgment or is one left to face judgment?

[22:22] What does Jesus mean by this? Well, it seems to note that one is taken, the one taken is saved because those who have left, the vultures have gathered around them. But either way, the point is this, these two have opposite fates.

[22:40] There's two classes of people in the world today, followers of Jesus and not followers of Jesus. Christians who love Jesus and people who don't love Jesus.

[22:51] There's only two. There's no three. Five, twelve, there's two. When Jesus returns, He will separate those who have embraced Him from those who have rejected Him.

[23:08] It's going to be sudden. It'll be obvious. It'll be quick. It'll be fast. And as people are just going about their business, He'll return.

[23:20] Everyone will see it. It will be sudden. It's going to be fast. So He can come at any time. The point, be ready for His coming.

[23:33] The point, be ready for His coming. Verse 36, most likely not in the original.

[23:43] It's not in certain key papyruses, key unseals, Sinaticus, Alexandrinus, Vaticanus, Washington, manuscripts, what's known as Family One, and also many of the later Byzantine manuscripts.

[24:01] Verse 37, excuse me, 36 is not there. If you want more clarity from me for that, speak with me afterwards. words. And I can show you from my Greek New Testament.

[24:14] But then drop into verse 37. Notice, the disciples are trying to figure this out, which is a valid question. Where? Answering, they said, where? Where is this going to happen?

[24:26] You're saying, when? It's going to be sudden, obvious, it's going to be fast. But where? Where? Where would this judgment happen? Where would one be judged?

[24:36] Where would one be taken to be saved? He wants to know the location of the judgment of God. I mean, that's a valid question, right? I mean, if I'm going to go somewhere, I probably should want to know where.

[24:50] It usually helps. And he said to them, where the body is, there also, will the vultures be gathered? What?

[25:05] What does that mean? Where is that? Is that someplace in Texas where the vultures are? I knew there's a city named that in Texas.

[25:20] God's judgment will be visible, right? It'll be universal. And it'll be permanent. When he separates, there's no going back, right?

[25:33] Now, when you're in the desert, if there's carcasses, dead carcasses in the desert, vultures gathered, circled around the body. And you kind of have that today.

[25:48] You're driving on 89A, right? And you see that big raven in the road. And you're saying, raven, you're a loser. I'm going 50 miles an hour.

[26:00] I'm going to hit you, right? And you're driving right up to it. And right before you get up to it, what does it do? It flies away, right? Isn't it amazing that they do that? I think amazing. I'm going to hit you.

[26:10] You have no idea how fast I'm going. I think right in the nick of time, they just fly away. And then you look and you read the mail, they come right back and they go back to the little, the rabbit that's there. A little, you know, thing that's for them.

[26:22] Delicatessen, I guess. So as vultures gathered around their bodies, so all will see the horrible finality of judgment.

[26:34] So what's Jesus' point? In other words, it doesn't matter where. It doesn't matter where because one judgment, excuse me, where, it doesn't matter where because once judgment comes, it will be too late.

[26:51] It will be visible to everyone. Some will be saved, but others will be condemned for not being prepared. How are they prepared? They embrace Jesus. As vultures circling in the air point to a dead body, bodies, judgment will be pointed out.

[27:13] Jesus is giving a very gruesome image here. Judgment occurs where death reigns. It will be a terrible day of judgment for Jesus.

[27:25] Rejectors, what matters most to you will be seen that day. What's most important to you will be seen that day. Jesus' disciples will desire the consummation of the kingdom.

[27:40] It will not come as soon as they want it. Yet it will come, so they won't have to look for it. It will be quick. It will be visible like lightning. It will be obvious. This is His return.

[27:53] And so what should our response be? How should we respond? We've already started to tackle that just now. Our response should be, lose it all for His sake.

[28:09] Lose it all for His sake. For the sake of Jesus, you lose it all. See, what matters most to you will be seen on that day.

[28:20] If stuff matters to you, it will be seen that day because you will want to go to your stuff, your possessions, your money, your whatever. You'll go back for it.

[28:31] How should a disciple respond? 31. On that day, let not the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house go down and take them away.

[28:44] And likewise, let not the one who is in the field turn back. Remember, watch, wife. Whoever seeks to keep his life shall lose it, and whoever loses his life shall preserve it.

[28:57] How does a disciple respond? Move fast. Don't turn back. When Jesus returns, one must escape quickly to avoid imminent danger.

[29:08] Run! Flee! That's right. Two pictures He gives. First, don't go back to get your stuff in your house.

[29:22] Second, don't turn back when you're in the field. Get out! In other words, don't be attached to your stuff, your possessions.

[29:34] Get out! Leave in all your stuff. Stuff doesn't matter. Your soul does. Don't be so attached to your earthly things just like Lot's wife.

[29:48] I believe it was Jonathan Edwards who did a long sermon on those three words. Remember Lot's wife. Don't be like Lot's wife.

[30:02] A negative example of someone who faced the consequences of holding on to the things of this life. Remember, take heed to the lesson of his wife.

[30:16] She looked back and lingered. She looked back and lingered to Sodom, lingered for the things of Gomorrah, for all those delights, and she became a pillar of salt.

[30:34] Don't look back. Don't stop. Forget your stuff, your possessions, your focus must be upon Jesus. Are you ready to give it up, all of it up for Jesus?

[30:44] Are you ready to do that? People in our culture, the American culture, we want a better home, we want a better car, we want a better retirement, we want a better garden, we want a better restaurant, a better profit, a better marriage, a better friend, a better church.

[31:03] Because it's all about what benefits me. What I want. It's not Jesus-focused.

[31:17] Well, how do you know if you're Jesus-focused? You just give, and you give, and you give, and you give, and you give, and you give. You're willing to give. You're generous because your stuff won't last.

[31:29] Isn't it interesting that Jesus keeps bringing up your stuff, your money, why? Because where your treasure is, that's where your heart is. What matters most to you will be seen on that day.

[31:44] One writer said this, quote, Some people are taken up with material things that Christ thinks it's necessary to warn them that on the very day in which He will be revealed to execute the wrath of God on evil centers and conglomerations of human equity, they will be tempted to go back into the house or city to get their favorite possessions because they cannot imagine life without them.

[32:15] For the sake of things, they will lose life itself. Where's my cell phone? Right? Oh no, where's my cell phone? For the sake of things, they will lose life itself.

[32:32] And Jesus puts it another way there in verse 33. Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it. If you lose your life, you'll gain it. You lose your life to gain true life.

[32:46] In other words, a disciple of Jesus must be prepared to suffer for their relationship with Jesus so that a disciple who loses his life for the sake of Jesus will gain true life. There's the paradox.

[32:58] If you lose, you'll gain. What do you say? It doesn't make any sense. If you lose, you lose. If you gain, you gain. No. Not so for Jesus. Not so for Christianity.

[33:10] It's the opposite. If you lose everything for Jesus, you will gain. If you want to gain everything, but you lose Jesus, you lose everything.

[33:24] Seek to gain your life, you will lose it. The first half of the verse, whoever seeks to keep his life shall lose it. It deals with physical preservation.

[33:36] Whoever loses his life shall preserve it. That deals with spiritual preservation. Jesus has said this before. Chapter 9, verse 24. He said, whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it.

[33:52] But whoever loses his life for my sake, he is the one who will save it. Losing it all for Jesus' sake. If you are willing to lose your life now for the sake of the truth, you will end up saving it in the end.

[34:12] Lose your stuff and put your full trust in Jesus. If you identify yourself as a follower of God through Jesus, you will suffer for it.

[34:23] If you seek to avoid persecution, it simply shows you have a lack of commitment to God. Period. Jesus suffered. So will you.

[34:38] God doesn't promise immunity from death. God does not promise you immunity from suffering in this life. As a matter of fact, if you become a Christian today, you're probably going to suffer more.

[34:48] But what does he promise? True, abiding, eternal life with him for the one who embraces his eternal son as Savior and Lord.

[35:02] That's what you get. True, real, genuine, eternal life. You'll probably suffer more as a Christian than you ever were for anything else.

[35:15] You will. Most likely. Sometimes not. It's true. But all those who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

[35:30] This is for free. When I was in Jerome, it was about a month ago, a month and a half, there was a guy there that I know.

[35:42] He was just hammered. Can I tell you this story? About how he pushed me in the street? Did I tell you this story? So, I mean, he was just cussing me out like there's no tomorrow.

[35:56] I didn't know much. I was like, hey, I'll call him Joe. His name's not Joe. Hey, what's going on? He, I walked over across the street. He walked over to me, pushed me, and then spit on the ground in the street right in front of me.

[36:11] Pushed me again. Get the blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, fill, fill, fill, fill, fill, fill, fill, fill, fill, fill, fill. Kept going and going. And I just kind of let things go and calm down.

[36:28] There's a guy inside spirit room who plays for spirit room, plays music. I know him. And so I go up on the steps, the amphitheater steps. I'm sitting up there. And he comes over.

[36:38] He's a moon dog. He comes over. He's looking at me. He's kind of shaking his head. He says, man, your line of business is pretty dangerous work. And I didn't say anything.

[36:53] Just a couple of weeks ago, I told him, I said, remember when you said that? He said, oh, yeah. And I said, because all those who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

[37:05] If you become a Christian, you will be persecuted. My line of work is dangerous. He didn't say anything at that point. When the end comes, normal life will be interrupted forever.

[37:19] So be ready to flee with no commitment to your stuff. If you try to preserve the things in this life, it will result in your sure death. A disciple of Jesus is willing to lose his or her life in order to gain true, eternal life.

[37:35] Be warned because judgment will be quick and permanent, obvious to all. It will be terrible. Like when vultures gather around dead bodies. It will be seen by all.

[37:48] It's serious. It's gloomy. That's why the question is posed to you today. Have you responded to Jesus? Do not forgo this opportunity. Respond to Christ. Turn away from your sin and place your trust in Jesus alone.

[38:02] Or else it will be too late. One writer says it like this. Quote, The Son of Man returns to execute judgment on those who refuse to respond to Him in faith.

[38:15] Don't wait. Come to Him today. Jesus must be everything to you. He's the maker and goal of all creation. He's the source and goal of redemption. He's the heir of all things.

[38:28] Jesus must be our focus. When He is, our lives will be drastically different from the world around us. And this calls us today as Christians to endure hardship for the sake of Jesus and to remain steadfast in the midst of persecution.

[38:46] Let's remain strong and unwavering in the truth. May God give us grace to be faithful because the world is looking to you to fail. The world is watching us to see if we will fail.

[39:03] So let's keep our eyes on Jesus as the writer of Hebrews says, Let Him go of the sin that so easily entangles us. Do not fall away and don't look back. Like Lot's wife.

[39:17] Be loyal to Jesus and to the gospel to the very end. May God give us grace to be faithful. I'm going to give you a few moments to think and ponder about the message.

[39:31] And I also would like for you to take a few moments to examine your heart before we take the Lord's Supper. I want you to do this at this time as well.

[39:43] So there will be time for you to ponder and to think about the message. And as well to examine your heart before we take the Lord's Supper. I will give you some instruction in just a moment.

[39:56] Again, a time for you to think about, am I losing all for His sake? What am I holding on to? Is it money? Is it possessions? Is it relationships? What is it? And in the midst of that, the connection that though there is sin, we run to the cross.

[40:13] So that we are sinners, there is an advocate, Jesus Christ the Righteous One. Who is a propitiation for our sins. Amen. So let me give you some instructions and then I'll give you some time of silence.

[40:29] A longer time of silence, Michael, if we could prepare for the Lord's Supper. If you don't know Christ, this is not for you. Do not partake of the Lord's Supper.

[40:40] If you do know the Lord Jesus, you might not be a member here. I'm not a member of Cottonwood Bible Church. Hey, if you come from a church of light, faith and practice. Or if you've been baptized by immersion as well from a church of light, faith and practice.

[40:54] You can take the Lord's Supper with us. You don't have to be a member here. Okay? But if you are a believer and you have some strife or conflict with someone. You have not resolved.

[41:05] And there's bitterness in there. I adjure you. I ask and plead with you to not partake of the Lord's Supper.

[41:15] Because this depicts relationship with God. And then we can have relationship with each other. If this is severed, how you have relationship this way.

[41:28] First go and deal with your relationship this way with this person. Christian or non-Christian, whoever. Then this, you can have this relationship continue with the Lord's Supper. With the Lord's Supper.

[41:39] Okay? So first deal with that. And the next time when we have the Lord's Supper and celebrate that. Then you can partake of it with us again. Okay? So I'll give you a few extra moments of pondering and thinking and preparing your heart.

[41:54] Examining, preaching the gospel to yourself. And then we'll sing one song, Depth of Mercy. Depth of Mercy. You're gonna sing one song, Depth of Mercy. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[42:06] pandemia. Come Newman's supper. It's a pain andсячie. Yes. You can. You can. You can.