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[0:00] Jesus is in the temple teaching.

[0:16] Matthew 22, 15 through to the end of the chapter. Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his talk.

[0:36] And they sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians saying, Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully. And you do not care about anyone's opinion.

[0:49] For you are not swayed by appearances. Tell us then what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, Why put me to the test, you hypocrites?

[1:07] Show me the coin for the tax. And they brought him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, Whose likeness and inscription is this? They said, Caesar's.

[1:19] Then he said to them, Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. When they heard it, they marveled, and they left him and went away.

[1:34] The same day, Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, Teacher, Moses said, If a man dies having no children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up children for his brother.

[1:51] Now there were seven brothers among us. The first married and died, and having no children, left his wife to his brother. So too the second and the third down to the seventh.

[2:06] After them all the woman died. In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had her. But Jesus answered them, You are wrong, because you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God.

[2:24] For in the resurrection, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what is said to you by God?

[2:37] I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. He is not God of the dead, but of the living. And when the crowds heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.

[2:55] But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. Teacher, which is the great commandment, in the law?

[3:08] And he said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.

[3:20] And a second is like it. You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments depends all the law and the prophets. Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question.

[3:36] saying, What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he? They said to him, The son of David.

[3:47] He said to them, How is it then that David, in the spirit, calls him Lord? Saying, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.

[4:04] If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son? And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

[4:16] Good morning, dear church. Welcome again to anyone visiting.

[4:32] My name's Sam, and we'll be spending some time thinking about God's word for the next half an hour or so. And also welcome to anyone who's returning after time away, Jacob and Annabelle and David and Alison.

[4:46] Welcome back. How about we pray now and ask God for help. Psalm 27.

[4:57] The Lord is my light and salvation. The Lord is the stronghold of my life. Our Father, we ask this morning that we would not just come away with more knowledge, but come away having met your son in these pages.

[5:18] Now that's what we need and that's what we ask in his name. Amen. A teacher of a Grace Kids class asked their young kids, what's brown furry with a bushy tail that makes good socks?

[5:43] A child raises their hand and says, I think the answer you want is Jesus. But it sounds like a possum to me. We half laugh and roll our eyes because often it's the right answer.

[6:03] The kids may not understand why, but they picked up that if you say Jesus, you're really wrong. But as we get older and turn into primary school kids, teenagers, adults, do we get past this answer?

[6:22] Does this answer become too basic, too simplistic, too naive to deal with all of our grown-up needs? Our needs. Most of us this morning come with questions we want answered, our problems and needs we'd like solved, niggles that are defining and disturbing us.

[6:46] It might be work situations, uncertain work, not enough, too much, difficult relationships, marital problems, problems, whether to get married, when to get married, raising kids, feeling stagnant and wanting to grow as a Christian.

[7:06] All good questions. And taking a guess, most of us think that answers to lots of these questions can be found in the Bible, in the book we're reading this morning.

[7:18] So what questions will we ask of this book? And is it possible that we could miss big, life-giving answers by starting with lesser questions?

[7:33] The most surprising thing I've found in thinking about this passage for the last few weeks is the bad guys get their answers from the same place we do.

[7:46] So this morning the question is not where we get our answers from, that's a legit one, but what question to ask? The bad guys were students of scripture like us this morning but not asking the best question.

[8:09] They passed up the invitation to the feast, failed, even refused, remained silent, to ask the question that would bring life.

[8:20] What should we ask of this book? Up to the setting in your bulletin, verse 15, have your Bibles open. It's the Tuesday before Good Friday in the temple courts of Jerusalem.

[8:39] Jesus has just spoken three parables of the Jewish leaders. in the first, they are the son who says one thing and does another. In the second, tenants of a vineyard who kill the owner's servants and eventually the owner's son.

[8:56] In the third, those in the first round of invites, the privileged, but who ignore or kill the messenger. And so verse 15 reads, Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words.

[9:15] The set of three questions that follows is not just what happens next, it is what the Jewish leaders do in response, which is to trap Jesus or attempt to trap Jesus in his words.

[9:30] Thinking back a few years ago to the 2022 federal election, Scott Morrison was asked if he knew the price of bread and a rat test, I think.

[9:42] Not how to grow the economy or how to ensure the country is defended, but the price of a loaf of bread. And the question wasn't neutral, was it?

[9:54] It didn't come from an open-minded journalist humbly seeking the best leader. They'd already decided. So the question was a trap, a gotcha. Gotcha questions miss the point though, don't they?

[10:08] These three gotcha questions from Jewish teachers missed something too. What's missed is the question Jesus asks at the very end.

[10:20] So what should we ask of this book? Have you ever been in the hot seat recently facing a loaded question?

[10:31] Can you stay cool and treat the person with dignity and still get your point across? This week we've been reminded sadly how the world reacts to disagreement on charged topics and even capital T truth.

[10:50] Well, unlike us who flounder and the world that tears itself apart, Jesus' answers show perfect command, direct but never losing his cool sharper than glass but not abrasive, wisdom from outside this world, in his answers giving much more than is deserved and never arguing for the sake of a win or his reputation before others.

[11:18] His answers hit at the question not asked, his identity, who he is. so for us this morning I hope we simply can meet him in these pages and then you can decide what you think of him.

[11:33] Do you trust him? Do you dare to follow him? And for those who know him already, can we trust him and live for him into another week?

[11:44] So verse 16, getting into the passage now, the first gotcha attempt. So verse 16, the Pharisees team up with the Herodians, Jewish supporters of Herod, usually not the best friends and the Pharisees begin by sending in their disciple to do their dirty work.

[12:07] Skipping ahead to verse 17, the gotcha question, it reads, is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar? But at the time in Judea, every person, Jew included, paid a tax to Caesar.

[12:23] Paying tax to a foreign ruler in their own backyard was a sore point. Was it lawful meant what do the scriptures say?

[12:34] What does God expect? Can we be loyal servants to God and pay taxes? In many ways, and in other circumstances, it was a genuine dilemma for the Jew.

[12:48] Yet, beneath the surface was a trap designed to expose Jesus as either a traitor or a rebel. Verse 18 shows their intent was malicious, deadly.

[13:03] Anyway, Jesus evades the trap and answers the dilemma. In verse 18, Jesus says, you hypocrites, why put me to the test?

[13:16] Show me the coin for the tax. And just like that, they brought him a denarius. It seems finding a denarius in the temple is easy.

[13:31] Remember, too, the day before, Jesus has already found the temple overrun with Marcus. The question has a veneer of integrity, but it seems behind the scenes, the Jewish leaders have no problem with the temple using and even benefiting from Roman coin.

[13:52] So, Jesus' answer in verse 21, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's. Meaning, if you use and benefit from Rome's currency, pay for it.

[14:09] We probably don't feel the full weight of this answer, and that's because we don't feel the split loyalty between God and government that was felt by our Jews.

[14:23] There are exceptions for us where governments play God, deciding, for example, when life begins and ends, but by and large, our experience is that government is not God.

[14:37] It's a servant of God. But this separation is a historical abnormality. The Jews had kings and a ruling class who were supposed to lead the people in religion.

[14:50] Rome had Caesars who called themselves gods. What we take as normal today isn't normal. An elder put me on to Jordan Peterson commenting on Jesus' answer, in which he says it's miraculous.

[15:08] Himself, not a believer in miracles, because he sees wisdom in Jesus' answer that's historically out of this world. Who is this person?

[15:20] under the surface, there's also a deeper biblical reason for Jesus' answer.

[15:34] Remember Genesis 12, God establishes a nation and later a kingdom from Abraham's descendants. The whole reason for this nation, though, was to give birth to the Christ.

[15:46] Christ. The Christ had come, and so there was no need to shore up Judea, to return to the days of David's kingdom. There's probably much more we could say about this question, but we'll move on to the second gotcha attempt from verse 23.

[16:06] Gotcha attempt 2. Verse 23, that same day. This time, it's the Sadducees' turn, who denied the resurrection. And to understand their question, we do need to take in verse 24.

[16:22] In the Mosaic law, there was a provision for when a man died, leaving no children. It was possible for the dead man's brother, presumably unmarried, to marry the widow, have kids, and carry on the family name.

[16:40] Strange to us, but I think it was sort of a kind provision in those days, given the importance of offspring. The gotcha question, though, verse 24 to 28, let's read it.

[16:57] Teacher, Moses said, if a man dies having no children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. Now, there were seven brothers among us, the first married and died, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother.

[17:15] father, so too the second and third down to the seventh. After them all, the woman died. In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife shall she be?

[17:30] So which will it be, Jesus? Seven potential husbands in heaven, and all of them brothers? Or some other way to decide which one is the husband?

[17:42] man, or perhaps this dilemma shows that this resurrection, life after death thing isn't a thing at all. Which one, Jesus?

[17:53] Got you there. It's a highly improbable situation, isn't it? I think they're quite proud of the way they've structured their question.

[18:07] But it all shows the intent to trip Jesus up. And Jesus shows there are two problems. Verse 29, they don't know the scriptures, nor God's power.

[18:20] They don't know the power of God, because verse 30, in the resurrection, that is, in the new state of existence, a resurrection brings, is a complete upgrade.

[18:36] And in this upgrade, Jesus says there will be no office of births, deaths, or marriages. No marriage, because there will be no births, and no births, because there will be no death.

[18:53] The Sadducees don't appreciate the power of God. As an aside to the married among us, Jesus does not say relationship will end.

[19:06] Paul rejoices, the apostle Paul rejoices over the thought that he will stand shoulder to shoulder in heaven with those he has toiled over, spent countless hours pouring hours into in this life.

[19:25] Why not to a similar joy for spouses who have helped each other get there? The second problem in their question is they don't know the scriptures.

[19:36] Verse 32. Let's read it again. Verse 32. I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.

[19:49] He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. I suspect without Jesus' interpretation, we may read this verse quite a few times and not reach the conclusion Jesus does.

[20:11] Jesus shows us, though, that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob's earthly life may have finished many years ago, but God's relationship with them holds good.

[20:24] I am, not I was. I am the God of Abraham. One of the elders pointed out to me another significant word and that's of.

[20:39] He is the God of Abraham. Abraham still is God's, even though his earthly life is finished. He belongs to God.

[20:51] And this God plays for keeps. The relationship we have with God will last as long as he does.

[21:03] Death is no full stop. Such clarity in so few words. I think that's another surprising thing is that Jesus really uses very few words words to get his point across.

[21:24] So few words that we can only aspire to. And what about the grace and goodness of his answers, giving far more than these hostile questions deserve?

[21:36] God your attempt three. In verse 33, the crowd's astonished, and we learn in verse 34, Jesus' answer had silenced the Sadducees.

[21:52] So word gets back to the Pharisees, they gather and send in an expert in the law for one last go. Verse 36 reads, Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?

[22:09] Perhaps the tests lay in choosing one commandment and downplaying others, leaving a soft spot exposed to attack. Jesus answers from verse 37, and he said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul, and with all your mind.

[22:38] Isn't that the case for us too? Things are rarely at peace in our own relationships if we have not grasped how worthy God is of our love and devotion simply for who he is.

[22:59] In a book, Marriage Matters, Beth and I have dipped into and previously with our small group many years ago, the author says marriage problems or any relationship problem is firstly a God problem.

[23:14] He recalls a time when he lashed out at his wife verbally, because, this is the author, because she was late to pick up the kids, because she was out with friends and so there was some sort of miscommunication.

[23:30] This then limited his Bible study prep time, and so he became angry, and he reflects on the incident and says, what I was really loving in that time was the approval of my Bible study group.

[23:44] And so he concludes that all our problems are worship problems or what we love, the first and the greatest. And this then leads into a two-for-one deal, not just one commandment but two.

[24:02] Verse 39, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. So taken together, without love for God and neighbor, every other act of obedience is not obedience.

[24:17] verse 40 says, on these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets.

[24:33] The answer brings into focus what's lacking in their own observance of the law and in each of us. Who can follow this law?

[24:46] Who has clean hands and a pure heart? All the mind, all the heart, all the soul. Psalm 27, not us but the Lord of glory.

[25:02] All their study of scripture, the Pharisees that is, their time and efforts pouring over the words did not yield this love or rightly convict them that like us they need heart surgery.

[25:17] the constant reminder of the Old Testament was circumcise your hearts. You need a new one. So the solution for the Pharisees is the same for us. Come to Jesus.

[25:29] He gives you his perfect obedience and a new heart as a gift. The question Jesus asks, verse 41, Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, saying, what do you think about the Christ?

[25:49] Whose son is he? As teachers of scripture, what should have been foremost in their minds? As students of scripture this morning, what should be foremost in our minds?

[26:04] Well, Jesus has to tell them and maybe he has to remind us too this morning. Whose son is the Christ? Occasionally, instead of using the word Christ, I'm going to use the phrase God's forever king.

[26:22] Verse 42, they answer, the son of David. And 2 Samuel 7 does promise that God's forever king would come from David.

[26:36] So their answer is correct. But not complete. Because go down to verse 45, it's the last thing Jesus says, and Jesus is still pressing the question.

[26:57] Yes, he's the son of David, but he's more than that. And Jesus answers for them by going to Psalm 110, a psalm written by David himself about God's forever king.

[27:11] And the quotation shows three things about the forever king. He's lord, he sits, and he's one. All three suggest he's greater than just David's human son.

[27:25] With the implication that if David recognised this, then you too, you teachers of the law, should recognise this as well. The first one, he's lord.

[27:36] His answer starts with a question in verse 43. How is it then that David in the spirit calls him lord? Dads call their sons by all sorts of nicknames, buddy, mate, champ, junior, pup, scoundrel, mischief maker, oi, you.

[28:01] but lord? Any dads dare to do that here? Whose son is David's lord?

[28:14] Well, the word lord is most often used of god. Here's one example from psalm 8. O yahweh, our lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth.

[28:28] Yahweh, God, Lord, all divine names. Let's keep reading in verse 44. It's about to get wonderfully weird.

[28:42] David overhears a conversation in which Yahweh, that's the first lord mentioned, speaks to David's lord. The lord, Yahweh, said to my lord, David's lord.

[28:58] Two divine persons talking. What does Yahweh say to David's lord? He sits. He tells him to sit.

[29:12] That probably doesn't strike you as, it probably strikes you as something fairly normal, something my wife has told me that I'm doing too much of at the moment.

[29:24] But take note of where he's sitting. It makes all the difference. Sit at my right hand. Sitting next to Yahweh in heaven.

[29:39] Who does that? For a comparison, remember how careful the high priest had to be going into the temple once per year, one for many.

[29:52] He would symbolically take the people into God's presence at high risk to himself, but only in a limited way due to their sin. In the real deal, not just the earthly copy, in heaven, not just where God's presence was modelled, but where God dwelled, verse 44, this was a hold-on-to-your-seat moment for me, Yahweh says to David's Lord, sit down.

[30:23] And I'll add from Hebrews, stay forever. Not just David's son or descendant, is he? The last little point is he's won.

[30:40] King David provided rest from Israel's enemies for a time. Even then, as great as it was, it wasn't the real, more ancient enemy, sin and death.

[30:53] King David's Lord has won, and even sin and death will be his foot cushion or footstool.

[31:06] All three, taken together, show the great King David looked forward to God's forever king, who turned out to be God the Son. And Jesus shows the Pharisees should follow David's lead.

[31:22] In verse 46, the last verse, they dare not ask more questions. Silence, as Emma pointed out in the kids' talk.

[31:36] And if you're new to all this this morning, you're visiting, you might not know what questions to ask or even where to start. don't stop asking questions. We've seen how patient and gracious Jesus is in his answers.

[31:52] The question though is sort of left hanging. Jesus' last words to them is a question. Whose son?

[32:06] We do have a fairly good idea of what it is Jesus is alluding to, but we don't have to go too far into Matthew to find an explicit answer.

[32:20] Flick back to Matthew 3, Matthew chapter 3, verse 16 and 17. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened to him and he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him.

[32:53] And behold, a voice from heaven said, this is my beloved son with whom I'm well pleased. Whose son is the Christ? He's the divine son who personally joined himself to human flesh, God and man in the same person.

[33:13] The same person through whom the universe was made is the one giving the answers and asking the question we too should ask. God let's pause for a bit before we go into some more application.

[33:34] What's been your take on the Pharisees? We've been looking at the Pharisees for the last few weeks and Jesus' interaction with them. In stories, it's good to have a villain, isn't it?

[33:48] Someone to point the finger, someone to create a bit of comfortable distance for us. Matthew 16, 6, Jesus says to his disciples, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees.

[34:08] We're his disciples too, so I take it on notice from Jesus that we should be wary of the leaven of the Pharisees. If not a problem today, then maybe in the future.

[34:19] Leaven or yeast, as the bread makers among us know, has a transforming effect, but it happens imperceptibly, sometimes without us realising, hence Jesus' warning.

[34:35] Lots of ways we can be leavened, but what have we seen in this passage? Well, I think in each question that is asked by the Pharisees, and the question Jesus asks, Scripture is the starting point.

[34:52] The bad guys, although they made a few additions and omissions, share with us where we get our answers from. So where did things go wrong? Jesus in John 5, speaking of the Pharisees, says, you search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life.

[35:12] they were teachers, students, scribes of the Old Testament, those who Romans 2 took pride in being a guide to the blind, a light to those in darkness, a teacher of children, but did not teach themselves.

[35:31] Grace kids teachers, ministry leaders, small group leaders, people who preach even. John 5, 39, continues, it is they, this book, the Bible, that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me for life.

[35:55] We can get answers from the right place, but not go to whom the Scriptures point. Jesus, the Son of God, this is the last heading in your outlines.

[36:11] I'm partway through reading a book by Dan Hames, it's not a household name, and the book is a biography of a 5th century Christian, Cyril of Alexandria, but in the book, Dan weaves in his own story into the debates of the time.

[36:31] Centered on, who is Jesus, and whose son is he? The same questions we've been looking at this morning. Was he just a man invisibly assisted by God, so God wouldn't have to get his hands dirty, or God himself joined to human flesh?

[36:51] And Dan relates his coming of age to having this question answered. Growing up, Dan thought Jesus was something of what God is like. He wondered if there was a different God behind the one he saw in Jesus.

[37:08] In youth group years, he saw the experience of other youth and thought he was missing something, some ecstatic experience that he didn't have.

[37:19] At university, he told a friend, I believe in God, but I don't know how Jesus fits in. God is God, he did not know the truth that Matthew in his gospel points to, the truth Cyril defended is this, the man Jesus, who we've thought about this morning, is the same person as God the Son.

[37:43] And as I close, I'll finish with a Dan thought bubble to take away. If Jesus is God the Son, then what we see in Jesus is what God is like.

[38:00] Which means Jesus is bigger than we think. Fullness of God dwells bodily, Colossians 2.9. Wisdom that pierces, using just a few words.

[38:16] Words that heal, bring life, and forgive sin. Dan says he's even so big, he sets the questions we should ask.

[38:30] While it's a Sunday school answer, it's not the ABC. He's the Alpha and Omega, the first and last, the beginning and end.

[38:42] Are you asking the question he set? Dan's thought bubble doesn't stop there. He says that he's good.

[38:55] He gives more than these questions deserve, doesn't he? And he gives us more than we deserve. He's good. What do you think about him?

[39:07] Do you trust him? Do you dare follow him? and if you know him, will you follow him into another week? Thanks, Sam.

[39:47] I'll invite the musicians up again. We'll sing another song now. Yeah, just reflecting on something Sam said, it's easy for many people and maybe we can be tempted to get the answers from the right place but not go to the person who it's all about.

[40:06] So I pray we live out our week looking to Jesus and remembering who he is every day. Now is the time for kids that are older in year three to six to go out to the older Grace Kids Club.

[40:20] Yeah, and we'll sing our next song together. together. Let's together. Let's together. Let's together. I the Saviour say!

[40:41] Thy strength indeed is small child of weakness watch and pray find in me thine all ignore Jesus paid it all all to him I owe!

[41:05] Sin had left the crimson stain he washed it white as snow! Lord, now indeed I find Thy power and thine alone can change the leper's thoughts and melt!

[41:37] the heart of stone! Jesus made it all all to him I owe!

[41:50] Sin hath left the crimson stain he washed it white as snow all and when before the throne I stand in him complete Jesus died my soul to save my lips shall still repeat Jesus made it all all to him my own sin had left a crimson stain it washed it white as snow O praise the one who paid my debt and raised his life up from the debt

[42:57] O praise the who paid my debt and raise this life up from the debt Oh, praise the one who paid my debt and raised his life up from the dead.

[43:17] Oh, praise the one who paid my debt and raised his life up from the dead.

[43:28] Jesus made it all, all to him I owe.

[43:38] Sin had left a crimson stain, he washed it white as snow. He washed it white as snow.

[43:58] I've got the great blessing of praying for us all this morning.

[44:15] Can I encourage you as I'm praying, pray along. We sing in worship together and prayer is another form of worship to our God and an acknowledgement of him. So pray along with me.

[44:26] Heavenly Father, you are our great God. You're greater than all things. You are the creator of all things. Lord, we pray that your spirit might fill us with your love so that we might love you with our hearts, souls and minds.

[44:44] And love our neighbours. Lord, let us turn to Jesus in all things. We bring before you today those that are doing your work out in the world.

[44:54] For Matt and Grace, Lincoln and Leah, Henry and Marie, we lift up their names to you. And we pray for strength, encouragement, safety and wisdom for them in their mission.

[45:07] We also lift up John and Kath Hollier as they serve on the mercy ships, Lord, over the next few months. That that will be a time of great blessing for those that they serve, but for them as well.

[45:20] Lord, more locally, we pray for the ministry opportunities we have here. We thank you for the recharge conference yesterday. We pray that that was a time in which the men here could be encouraged and filled with your spirit and strengthened to go out this week and into the future.

[45:37] And we pray for the women's retreat coming up, that that will be a time of great encouragement for our women. And for the Taste and See series, Lord, that that might be an opportunity for those that don't know you to come here.

[45:52] And we pray that you might be bringing those who don't know you along to that event and that you might be softening their hearts to hear your word. Lord, we thank you again for the wonderful gift of life as well.

[46:05] We pray for Lauren, for Sarah and Emma in their pregnancies. We pray for health and safety and protection over them over the next few months. And we also bring before you Sarah and Dylan.

[46:18] And we pray that we pray for wisdom as they prepare for marriage together, Lord. We pray that you'll fill their hearts with love so that this time and into their marriage it might be a time in which they're able to reflect the love that you showed us.

[46:38] And for those that are sick or caring for those that are sick, we lift them up for prayer in you as well, Lord. We pray for Jodie as she supports her parents. And for Elizabeth and Jane, Lord, as they're trying to provide support and prayer over sick family members.

[46:58] Lord, we lift up them to you and we pray for healing. And Lord, we also pray for those that can't be with us today, those that are sick at home, but also for those in nursing homes.

[47:09] For Arthur, for Diane, Jeff and Margaret. Lord, I pray that even though they're not with us and even though others are not with us, that they can be with us in spirit. And that you can be still encouraging and growing and strengthening their faith as well.

[47:25] And for Chris and Jane, Jess, sorry. Lord, we pray that as they prepare for their move up to Tauri, Lord, that you can be helping them to settle in. And that they'll find a place of worship up there where they can glorify and honour you and serve you in the community.

[47:44] Lord, we thank you for all things. We thank you that you are our great saviour and the perfecter and the finisher of our faith. Amen. Thanks, Lockie.

[48:01] We'll do a few announcements now. So if you've got your bulletins there, grab them out. We'll go through a few things. A little bit of wonderful family news. Firstly, yeah, congratulations to Sarah and Dylan on becoming engaged.

[48:15] That's wonderful news, guys. Put your hands up. Where are you? Can't see. There they are. Yeah, they didn't want to be embarrassed, but I'm going to do it anyway.

[48:27] Congratulations, guys. And also, wonderful news. Dave and Emma are expecting a third bub. So congratulations, guys. Okay, so that's some of the big news lately.

[48:41] As Lockie was praying about, we've got the upcoming Taste NC, which is a four-week series about exploring Christianity for blokes. It's not just another excuse to get together and eat meat.

[48:54] It's not just another excuse to get together and eat meat, although that will happen. But we do have some flyers. So beautiful flyers with a bit of purple on them. But yeah, feel free to grab some.

[49:05] If you're a bloke and you've got someone you want to invite along, you think they're interested in knowing more about Jesus, yeah, we'd love to have them along. And there's a couple of guys already coming, so yeah, why not have a few more?

[49:18] Yeah, it is starting Tuesday, the 23rd of September, and it's on at 6.30, starting at 6.30 across the four nights. There's quite a few things in the bulletin, including people who are sick, to keep in prayer, missionaries.

[49:35] But just to draw your attention to two other things, just remember John and Catherine are on the mercy ships, serving on one at the moment. So yeah, keep them in prayer as they committed to serving the Lord in that way.

[49:51] And also, may not be in here, but the Han family are going back to the US. So Kevin's here, but the kids in Katy are already on the plane, probably right now, Kevin. And Kevin's heading off next week, so keep them in prayer as they head over for a couple of weeks.

[50:05] I'm going to invite Emma up. She just wants to talk to a women's event coming up. Yeah, so very exciting.

[50:20] We've got our women's retreat next weekend. We've got almost 30 ladies staying overnight and more than 10 coming for the day as well. So it's going to be a great day and great two days.

[50:31] And yeah, just a couple of reminders. So if you are able, we're going to have morning tea when we arrive, and we'd just love it if people could bring some slices or fruit or whatever to share.

[50:43] We'll be bringing some stuff as well. And also, you do need to bring your own bedding. So yeah, sheets or sleeping bag or whatever, as well as pillow, pillowcase. Cool.

[50:54] We're looking forward to it. See you next weekend. Okay, I'll invite the musos up. We're going to sing one final song in a moment.

[51:06] Sorry, Emma has been up and down all day today. You've done amazing. He hasn't had a rest.

[51:20] So a couple of things. We are going to have a morning tea after the service. There's lots of leftovers from the men's conference yesterday. So get stuck in.

[51:31] They've got to go. So if they don't go, I'm just going to have to get my kids onto it, and they'll clean it out. But there'll be a few others there too. So yeah, that'll be just over here, I think, in a moment.

[51:42] And I just want to finish with some words from Jude, and then we'll sing together. Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and present you blameless before the presence of this glory with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority before all time and now and forever.

[52:05] Amen. I cannot tell why he whom angels worship Should set his love upon the sons of men For why as shepherd he should seek the wanderers To bring them back they know not how or when But this I know that he was born of Mary When Bethlehem's manger was his only home

[53:06] And that he lived at Nazareth and Laban And so the Savior, Savior of the world is come I cannot tell how silently he suffered As with his speed he graced this place of tears For how his heart upon the cross was broken The crown of pain to three and thirty years But this I know he is a broken hearted And stays of sin and calms out looking feet

[54:12] And lifts the burden from the heavy laden For yet the Savior, Savior of the world is here I cannot tell how he will win the nations How he will claim his earthly heritage How satisfied the needs and aspirations Of east and west, of sin and of faith But this I know, all flesh shall see his glory And he shall reap the harvest he has sown

[55:19] And some glad day his sun shall shine in splendor When he the Savior, Savior of the world is known I cannot tell how all the lands shall worship When at his bidding every storm is still For who can save how great the jubilation When all the hearts of men with love are filled But this I know, the skies will thrill with rapture

[56:20] And myriad, myriad human voices sing And earth to heaven, and earth to earth will answer At last the Savior, Savior of the world is King Just one final thing Thank you for celebrating that we're expecting a baby Sorry It's a sad day as well Because man Sorry Man, this is anniversary of Nara today

[57:22] So yeah, we weep with you I think that song was fitting We cannot tell how he's going to make all things right And just knowing who he is as the Son of God Hopefully you feel some comfort and hope in that Well, why don't we continue fellowship In the good and the bad Whatever's going on in life over at Morning Tea Thanks Thanks Thank you.

[58:54] Thank you.

[59:24] Thank you.

[59:54] Thank you.

[60:24] Thank you.

[60:54] Thank you.

[61:24] Thank you. Thank you.

[62:24] Thank you.

[62:54] Thank you.

[63:24] Thank you.