New People

[0:00] Pray with me. God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, meet us now in your word.

[0:14] Holy Spirit, come. Come. In Christ's name we pray. Amen. Amen.

[0:24] Be seated. Jesus promised the Spirit would come.

[0:40] Acts 1, verse 4. He ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which he said, You heard from me, for you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.

[0:55] Verse 8. Just before Jesus was lifted up, he says, You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and to the end of the earth.

[1:09] The Holy Spirit's coming. So they wait. 120 of them, I'm sure with some uncertainty, and they have to select someone to replace Judas, and they do that, and they're ready, and they're waiting, and then on the day of Pentecost, it happens.

[1:28] And we need to read about it, because these verses haven't been read, and I don't think they were even read last week. So, I'll read from the beginning of Acts chapter 2, verses 1 to 13.

[1:42] And will you, as I read this, will you not just intellectually engage the words and say, Oh, that's very interesting, and what does that mean? And just visualize the scene.

[1:56] Imagine it. Close your eyes if you want. Pretend you're in a movie theater if you need to. Whatever it is, imagine the scene in front of you. Acts 2, verse 1.

[2:07] When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place, and suddenly, a sound came from heaven, like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting, and there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them.

[2:33] And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now, there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout from every nation under heaven.

[2:49] And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?

[3:04] And how is it that we hear each of us in his own native language? Skipping to the middle of verse 11. We hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God, and all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, What does this mean?

[3:22] But others, mocking, said, They are filled with new wine. Pentecost. The noise of a mighty wind, visible tongues of something like fire resting on each one of them, the Holy Spirit filling them as they begin to speak in languages not their own.

[3:42] And this astonished, multinational, multilingual crowd that came to Jerusalem for Pentecost, the Feast of Harvest, the Feast of First Fruits, were now hearing them speak the wonders of God in their own languages.

[3:55] So ecstatically wonderful was it that some mocked in disbelief and accused them of being drunk.

[4:08] That's the scene. That's the scene that precedes our text. As the Apostle Peter now stands with the other Apostles before this crowd, this multitude that's come.

[4:25] And then, verse 14, He lifted up His voice and addressed them, People of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give ear to My words.

[4:36] For these people are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only the third hour of the day. It's nine o'clock in the morning. It's the hour of morning prayer for the Jews.

[4:49] And the Jews ate their first meal of the day after that. They're not drunk at nine o'clock in the morning. So Peter's going to preach. In response to the events they just witnessed, words need to be spoken.

[5:06] Revelation needs to be given. Peter is about to begin a Spirit-inspired sermon. And it's worth at least pointing out that when the church was born at the coming of the Spirit, the Spirit came and then there needed to be a sermon to explain the Spirit's coming.

[5:26] An exposition at that. In preaching class, sometimes they tell you you need to lead off with a bang. Just say something shocking.

[5:36] Just get people on board with you right away so that you've got them and they're ready to listen. Well, if that's the case, then Peter's had the setup any preacher would dream for right now.

[5:51] And so he begins the first Christian sermon. It runs from verses 16 to 36. It's much shorter than my sermon this morning.

[6:04] So much so, I think I'm going to get a polite but firm email from Terry Fullerton telling me I have to be shorter so the choir can practice before the 11 o'clock service.

[6:17] And just jump ahead in the text for a minute and you get the picture after the sermon in verses 37 to 41. Luke records this amazing response to the sermon. 3,000 people received his word and were added, it says.

[6:30] Added to what? To the church. This is Peter, after all, on whom Jesus said he would build his church. This is the birth of the community of those who had repented, had been baptized, of those who were forgiven, and who had received the Holy Spirit.

[6:48] And in the close of chapter 2 that I'm glad Dev decided to read, verses 42 to 47, where Luke provides the details about the new life of this community and how the Lord was at work among them adding more and more who were being saved.

[7:07] So, this chapter has just a few things in it that are worth talking about. And I'm not David Short, so I can't say everything brilliantly and cover the whole text in 25 minutes.

[7:20] I can't, so I'm not going to try to get to everything. What we're going to look at today is Peter's sermon and the response it gets. And as to the life of the new community, I'm not going to do much there because, because, here's the warning, I'm back here in three weeks.

[7:42] And when I come back in three weeks, my text is the end of chapter 4, beginning in verse 32. And in Acts 4, 32 and following, Luke writes again about the life of this new community and a lot of the themes there are the same as those at the end of chapter 2.

[7:58] So, don't think I'm skipping the hard stuff this morning. And don't you skip the hard stuff three weeks from now because you don't want to hear it. Come back then, and I already know that the Lord has a lot that He wants to say to us about what this life together in Christ looks like.

[8:19] But I just think I need to give that its proper focus. So, today, I'll just make one comment at the very end about how those verses relate to the rest of chapter 2 and then we'll get into it when I'm back again in three weeks.

[8:34] So, you know where we're going this morning. Peter's Pentecost sermon. It's a model sermon because, like all sermons, it has three parts.

[8:46] Part 1, Part 1, Peter will explain Christ. Part 2, Peter will explain Pentecost.

[8:57] Excuse me. Part 2, Peter will exalt Christ. Part 3, Peter will exhort the people. He'll explain Pentecost.

[9:10] He'll exalt Christ. He'll exhort the people. Do you like alliteration? I used to be a Baptist so I can alliterate anything. Now, the sermon.

[9:27] 1 Peter explains Pentecost. And I think you see already why the scene requires an explanation. If these guys aren't drunk, then what in the world is going on? Answer, they are spirit-filled prophets in the last days.

[9:43] They are spirit-filled prophets in the last days. How do I know that? Because Peter says as much by quoting the prophet Joel. Verse 16, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel.

[9:55] Actually, through the prophet Joel. Prepositions are important. The point being that what God said through his prophet is what Peter now speaks. And he just quotes from Joel too.

[10:08] No other comment there. And Peter can do that because he has a Jewish audience. And this is their prophet. And this is their text. And this is crucial. Peter does this because this text expressed the hope of every Jew living in the first century.

[10:22] look at verse 17 again. I'm going to read this thing from Joel again and then make a few comments. Verse 17, And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh and your sons and daughters will prophesy and your young men will see visions and your old men shall dream dreams and on manservants and female servants in those days I'll pour out my spirit and they'll prophesy and I'll show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth beneath blood and fire and vapor of smoke.

[10:55] The sun shall be turned into darkness, the moon into blood before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day and it shall be that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

[11:09] Just the beginning of verse 17, quoting Joel, And in the last days it shall be. The key phrase is the last days. Peter is claiming that the events they witnessed here indicate that the last days the prophets spoke of have begun.

[11:26] What does that mean? Last days is shorthand, prophetic shorthand to talk about the kingdom, when the Messiah comes to reign, the time of fulfillment of all the promises of the prophets, the end of the journey, the climax of the story.

[11:40] The last days are messianic times. Peter is saying, people of Jerusalem, what you have been waiting for is here. It's here. It's here.

[11:53] But if you read carefully, you see that there's some things going on in Joel that haven't happened yet. The spirits come, some are prophesying, but it seems there's, I think, even more powerful witnessing yet to come in terms of extent, and I think more certainly there are some other things here.

[12:10] The wonders and signs that are mentioned in verses 19 and 20, that's apocalyptic sort of language, and I can't tell you because I don't know what all of those things signify particularly, but there are a couple things I can say about it.

[12:24] First, and I speak humbly because others have different opinions on this text, but I think we're talking here about earth shattering events that will accompany the final day.

[12:36] That ultimately there's this final day of restoration. It's a great day, but it's not without some terrifying upheaval in the process. And secondly, and here I'm more definite, the imagery, I think, suggests this coming moment of judgment.

[12:54] A judgment that is cosmic and that includes a judgment of all people, and that takes place on this final day, but it hasn't happened yet. So there's first the last days, which Peter says have begun, and then in verse 20, there's the last day, called the day of the Lord.

[13:12] Lord, and that day is yet to come. The last days are here. The clock is ticking. Peter's done this so well. He has his Jewish crowd, and he said, the last days you've waited for are here.

[13:28] We're still in those last days. Now, today, and that's the part I think Joel and the other prophets, if you read them, weren't quite clear on, not because they didn't have any way to be. It wasn't told to them in that fashion.

[13:39] They didn't know that the last days would last such a long time. We're still waiting for the final day to come, the moment of the day of the Lord when judgment and renewal takes place.

[13:52] But it hasn't come yet. But the fact that the Spirit is poured out, not just on one person here and one person there, as in the old covenant, but now there's a lot of people who receive the Spirit, people of all kinds, slaves and free and male and female and young and old, marked by the Spirit as God's people.

[14:11] That's the sign of the last days having started. So that's the picture. But what Peter wants his Jewish audience to pick up on is that this is a sign of messianic times.

[14:26] Imagine their thoughts, how their hearts must have left when he started quoting from Joel. They didn't need an explanation. They got it. If what they just saw as a sign of the last days, then a Messiah has come, so who is it?

[14:42] Who is it? Well, Peter's going to drop that one on them big time. But first, don't miss verse 21, the last part of that quote from Joel, the final day of judgment's coming, but there's a promise, and it shall be that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

[15:02] Now keep that in mind because to Peter's hearers, the name of the Lord means Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel, the God revealed to them in their history and in their scriptures.

[15:16] And Peter's about to rock their world. And 3,000 of them are about to discover the salvation that Joel promised. Verse 22 then starts the second part of the sermon.

[15:31] He explained Pentecost. That's all I needed to say. And now there's the exaltation of Jesus. This is one of the most profound Christological passages in the New Testament.

[15:45] Verse 22, he starts again, it seems. People of Israel, hear these words. And then the first three words he says establishes the subject.

[15:57] Jesus of Nazareth. One commentator says Christian preaching begins with the name of Jesus.

[16:10] I like that. The phenomena of Pentecost, Peter's saying, are a signpost. And he says if you understand what the spirit coming, what Pentecost means, you see it points right to Jesus.

[16:23] Jesus. And now Peter's going to make a sharp contrast between what his listeners have done to Jesus and what God has done to Jesus.

[16:35] What have they done? Oh, it's so direct. Look at the end of verse 23. Peter says, you crucified and killed him. And then as a bookend on this whole section, he says again the last words of verse 36.

[16:51] This Jesus whom you crucified. You killed Jesus, Peter says. And now that had to be hard to take, folks.

[17:05] Because what Peter cannot mean, what Peter cannot mean is that every one of them was physically present at the event of the crucifixion or that every one of them had been in the crowd that shouted to crucify him.

[17:19] What are you talking about, Peter? I wasn't even there. Maybe a few of them were, but not all of them were, certainly.

[17:31] So I think the point is this, and I'm going to have to convince you that this is true. That they may not have been there 50 days earlier when Jesus hung on a cross. but that they had all taken part in the crime that led to Jesus' death.

[17:50] I don't mean the crime of actually ending his physical life. That was the result of the crime. The crime was the rejection of God in Jesus. You say, what do you mean?

[18:03] I mean this. Jesus was handed over to be crucified on the charge of blasphemy. He had claimed to be the Son of God. He claimed that God had endorsed him as Messiah. The Jewish rulers rejected this.

[18:15] They called him a blasphemer. So, if a person knows what God has done in Jesus and rejects that, it is to call Jesus a blasphemer.

[18:28] It is to say, with the crowd at his trial, crucify him. Now, where do I get that from this text? To start, Peter says, you crucified Jesus.

[18:41] And they weren't all there. So, something else is going on. And that something else is the contrast between what they did and what God has done. They crucified him.

[18:53] They handed him over to be killed. And the judgment that reflects on their part is the opposite of what God thinks about Jesus. Jesus. So, here we go.

[19:05] Verse 22. People of Israel, hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs which God did through him in your midst as you yourselves know.

[19:22] This is not new information. Peter's audience well knows that this took place. Peter's asserting that in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, God was at work.

[19:35] God, through Jesus, did these signs and wonders and works to attest to him, to testify who he was, to affirm who he was, to endorse him. The miracles of Jesus were to show that God was in him.

[19:47] God was in him to heal the sick, to still the storm, to cast out demons, to raise the dead. It was to emphasize what God had said. This is my son.

[19:58] Listen to him. Peter goes on. Verse 23. He says, this Jesus was delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.

[20:10] Jesus' death, Peter says, was necessary. It was foreknown. It was all for a purpose. It was for the forgiveness of sins.

[20:22] Now, Luke told us that in his gospel. It's in chapter 24 of Luke, verse 46, when Jesus appeared to his disciples after the resurrection and he said, thus it's written, that is the scriptures foretold it, that the Christ should suffer and the third day rise, that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed.

[20:42] The planned death of Jesus was for the forgiveness of sins. And Jesus, here's the point, is the one being in all the universe who could die for the forgiveness of sins.

[21:01] He is the lamb worthy to die in God's plan of salvation. So don't read this verse as saying, God killed Jesus by the hands of wicked men.

[21:12] It's not God who crucified him and killed him. That's their doing. But it is God who sent Jesus knowing in advance that he would die at the hands of the sinners he came to save.

[21:31] So Jesus is endorsed by God in his life, in his death, and in his resurrection, verse 24. Well, the end of 23 again for the contrast.

[21:41] You crucified and killed this Jesus by the hands of lawless men, but God raised him up, having loosed the pangs of death because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

[21:54] I love that. It was not possible. You killed him. God raised him. Why? Why raise Jesus?

[22:06] I just want you to see what Peter says here about that. See the first word in verse 25? It's the word for, F-O-R. That tells you that what Peter is about to say explains why Jesus could not be held by death.

[22:24] Peter quotes from Psalm 16. The choir sang it this morning. And we don't take, we're not going to take this apart and consider all the implications. It's just simply this, that Peter takes David's words from this Psalm and says they refer to Jesus.

[22:38] That when David says, verse 27, that thou wilt not let thy holy ones see corruption, he's speaking prophetically of Jesus. Peter says, he says, folks, verse 29, I assure you David wasn't talking about himself.

[22:52] David's dead. Verse 30, being a prophet and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on the throne, he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ.

[23:07] In other words, the resurrection of Jesus is a fulfillment of promises made by God through King David. These are Jews. David's a big guy in their world.

[23:21] The one who'd been raised is the true son and heir of David. He's the Messiah. Now, if all that's brand new to you, what you need to know is this, that David was the greatest king of Israel that ever lived.

[23:33] And at one point, there was a promise made to him by God that there would be a descendant in his line that would rule as the king on the throne of David forever and ever.

[23:44] That was the ruler the Jewish people longed for, the one who's coming that would signal the last days. So do you feel the weight of what Peter's saying?

[23:57] When you killed Jesus of Nazareth, you killed the Messiah. You killed your king. Verse 32 then says again, this Jesus God raised up.

[24:12] Had to be that way, just as David said it would be. That's not all. Jesus was endorsed in life, in death, in resurrection and in exaltation. Verse 33, being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he's poured out this which you see and hear.

[24:32] This Jesus raised by God has been exalted to the highest place in the universe, God's right hand. And the implications are awesome.

[24:44] In verse 34, Peter quotes Psalm 110, in which David speaks once again of the Messiah. He says, the Lord, that is the covenant God of Israel, Yahweh, said to my Lord, that is the coming Messiah, who we know is Jesus, sit at my right hand till I make thy enemies a stool for thy feet.

[25:06] In other words, David saw that God would exalt the Messiah to his right hand and give him supremacy over every person and power in the universe so that in rejecting Jesus, they not only rejected the one God declared to be Messiah, they rejected the one God gives the ultimate power and authority in the universe.

[25:28] Jesus. And there's even something else. Jesus now exalted has been granted a promise. He's granted the Holy Spirit by the Father so that he can pour the Spirit out.

[25:43] You see, it's Jesus who's done what Joel promised would happen. The Father gave to Jesus the privilege of pouring out the Spirit, of filling the people with the Spirit, of clothing them with the Spirit's power.

[25:57] Jesus is at work now in the church and in the world by pouring out the Holy Spirit. So Peter comes full circle.

[26:09] They saw the Spirit come on the 120 at Pentecost. Peter says, what you've seen is evidence we're in the last days. That means there's a Messiah. The Messiah is Jesus. You killed Jesus.

[26:19] God approved him and now Jesus is the one pouring out the very Spirit you saw. And even that's not all. I didn't draw it out from Psalm 110, but Peter brings it home.

[26:34] At the exaltation, it becomes clear that Jesus of Nazareth is not just Messiah. He's not just the King. He's not just pouring out the Spirit. He is the Lord himself.

[26:45] He is the same Lord Joel said would judge the world in the final day. He's the same Lord of whom Joel said, call upon his name and you will be saved.

[26:56] Can we, sitting here in 2009, possibly grasp the weight of what Peter's listeners heard as he finished this sermon?

[27:09] Verse 36. Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.

[27:33] Now, listen. There's something we need to realize about this context. Peter's talking to a group of people who believed in God. They're at the Feast of Pentecost.

[27:46] They're there to worship God. And Peter means for them to feel the collision between their rejection of Jesus and God's superlative endorsement of Jesus.

[27:58] You who come to worship God, you who are moral, you who know the Scriptures, you who claim to know and love God, if you reject God's endorsement of Jesus, you are against God.

[28:10] Because you reject God's way of salvation. You crucified the Lord. You did it, Peter says. Though you weren't there at that moment in history, your rejection of Jesus places you in that crowd that cried for his crucifixion.

[28:28] Now, that has implications for us. The test of whether we are against God or not is not whether we say we know God or love God or serve God. We live in a culture that's okay with saying you know God.

[28:42] Lots of gods. Even that you worship God. That you love God. Wonderful. But we do not live in a culture that's okay with saying that the test of whether we know God is whether we embrace God in Jesus Christ.

[28:56] And in our pluralistic society, with its mushy acceptance of truth claims, no matter how badly they collide, who dares to say you are against God if you don't embrace this Jesus?

[29:11] Because I think if you reject this Jesus, Peter's words are true of you. You crucified Jesus of Nazareth, Lord and Christ.

[29:29] Oh, the final section begins in verse 37. Thank God for that. Not that the sermon is almost over. But that there's a final section that doesn't stop there.

[29:43] Peter exhorts the people. This is one of the most poignant moments in scripture for me. Because in my own life, just about exactly 15 years ago, I was in this sort of position they were.

[29:55] And I felt something. I don't claim to feel everything of what these people felt at that moment. But I felt something of this at that moment. And I asked the very question that they asked. Here are hearts that had rejected Jesus and therefore had rejected the way of God that they claimed to know.

[30:11] Here comes a desperate question. What shall we do? What shall we do? They're not just looking for information.

[30:25] This is not the sort of question you ask just for info. It's when you realize something terrible has happened or something terrible is going to happen or both. And usually it's the sort of question that you ask when you're not even sure there's anything left that you can do.

[30:41] What are we going to do? The full weight of what Peter had said comes on them and Luke says they were cut to the heart.

[30:53] Cut to the heart. Let me give you my translation. And because they understood, they felt a stabbing pain of anxiety and remorse in the heart. I'm not making that up.

[31:04] That's how I would translate it. This was a deep cut. It had to be deep. Because Peter says they're part of a crooked generation. Verse 40. They're a crooked generation. The generation was wicked.

[31:16] A society that was corrupt. Heading for disaster because it rejected God in Jesus. And are we not part of a generation that does the same? Save yourselves from this crooked generation, Peter says.

[31:30] It's only if you feel the weight of all of that and you sense what Peter's saying that you see the wonder of verse 38. Peter says to them, I've got an answer for you.

[31:47] Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

[31:58] In the name of the one you murdered, repent and be baptized. Because in that name there's forgiveness available for the sins of all men and women.

[32:10] From those who literally nailed the Lord to the cross, to everyone in Peter's audience, to every single one of you. The requirement is repent and be baptized.

[32:25] You need to turn back. You need to allow Jesus to grab hold of you. To save you from the consequences of the way you're going. And to turn the other way.

[32:37] In Luke, repentance isn't just regret. You've heard that a lot. They already regretted what they'd done. Repentance means following through on this conviction. Turning around.

[32:47] It's a change of mind and heart. So you're no longer at odds with God. But you're in sync with Him. It's a reversal of the direction of your life.

[32:58] Turn back and become a part of the people who claim the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the foundation of their own. You need to be baptized.

[33:10] You need to join the group marked by this sign that we've left sin. That we've found a way to forgiveness and life. And we're on that path. And there's one more thing you need.

[33:22] You need God Himself. That when you turn to forgiveness, the most amazing gift awaits you, Peter says. You will receive the Holy Spirit. It's a gift because it comes, remember, from the hands of the crucified, now exalted, Lord Jesus Christ.

[33:40] It comes from the Lord Jesus at the right hand of the Father to you. If you repent. It's a gift for you, Christian.

[33:52] It's the empowerment you need to live your life toward God. It's the empowerment you need. It's the empowerment we need to live our lives together in God. When you have the Holy Spirit, it brings you into a life lived together with other followers of Jesus.

[34:08] And verses 42 to 47 show us what that life together is like. And that's what we'll spend the whole time on in three weeks. But I'll just say this. It is a new way of life.

[34:21] It is a new way of life. So I plead with you this morning. If you don't know what Peter's talking about, if you have not received God's forgiveness and the gift of the Holy Spirit, they come together, then turn around.

[34:44] Save yourself from the end that comes on this generation against God. Receive the Holy Spirit and join this community empowered by the Spirit. If your heart is cut this morning, don't leave without responding to God's call on you.

[35:02] When communion starts and we do what we do as the family of God, if that's you and you know God's calling you now, then you can find the people who will be in these chapels or in the back praying and you can tell them you just need to do this.

[35:15] Or if that's too much or not what you want, then after the service talk to me or talk to Dan or talk to a friend of yours here in the church or just talk to God on your own, but respond.

[35:27] Turn to Him. Receive the Holy Spirit. And then come be a part of this life with others who are walking in the way of Christ. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

[35:41] Amen. Amen. Let's pray together.

[36:02] Thank you, Father, for the message so wisely brought before us this morning from your word about the birth of the church and its ministries.

[36:19] we are moved by the dedication and the courage, the power, the charisma, the profound unity of that small group.

[36:38] and we thank you. Indeed, we yearn for the fruit of that ministry.

[36:51] Significant growth, radical sharing, miraculous signs. Jesus, we would ask that in this fallen world and tired church today, you may renew and restore your people, empowering us with new life, new conviction, a new response through the same Holy Spirit as filled those leaders at Pentecost.

[37:31] Lord, in your mercy. Father, we are motivated to seek urgently such renewal as we see the church in crisis in much of the global north.

[37:56] A church that sometimes surrenders its authority to speak at all. to a needy world. Jesus, this very week, we learn of a Catholic bishop who has fallen before the temptation of pornography.

[38:16] At the same time, the same media celebrate the visit of the Dalai Lama and his feel-good sentiments.

[38:29] Lord, we have a richer truth to share, but too often we are unworthy vessels. Help your priests, your leaders, and all of us to resist the insidious and disabling reach of sin and dishonorable living.

[38:54] Father, we thank you for the ministries of Living Waters and the Genesis Project with their work of liberation from the brokenness of sexual and other addictions.

[39:08] blessings. Bless these works of Christian love and solidarity. Bring them the funds they need to move forward.

[39:19] Lord, in your mercy. Amen. Amen. Amen. Father, we do pray for church leadership in these trying times. We pray for the growth of the Anglican network in Canada and the emerging province of Orthodox Anglicans in North America.

[39:42] Once again, we bring before you our own corner of a global renewal and the outcome of the legal case for possession of our properties.

[39:53] Lord, it's all in your hands and we dare to pray that you will honor those who seek to honor you as the only true God.

[40:08] Here at St. John's we bring before you our clergy, staff, trustees, church committee and other leaders.

[40:19] We remember Jesus especially David and Bronwyn as they undertake a much needed holiday that you will give them the gift of rest and restoration.

[40:35] We pray for Dan, Jim and others who will have expanded responsibilities. And Lord, we thank you for Ken and Julie's faithful and fruitful ministry with youth and young adults and ask your blessing upon them as they move on to new work.

[40:59] May the good things here they established endure and grow. Lord, in your mercy. Father, this last work, this last week, we have seen the creation groan and storms, earthquakes and tsunamis terrorize peoples in the Pacific and Southeast Asia.

[41:28] We're in awe at such power and destruction. Father, we pray for those who rescue and offer all forms of aid that you will bless their work.

[41:44] and we pray particularly for your people in these lands that they may boldly and sacrificially seek to heal broken lives.

[42:00] We know there is much need much closer to us in our own parish. Jesus, we ask you will maintain our unity as we pass through a difficult period.

[42:15] We pray for those who suffer, who are unemployed, who grieve, who are sick, who feel isolated. Holy Spirit, bind our wounds, lead us all to a place of grace.

[42:34] We remember especially our brothers and sisters, Lee, Harold, Don, Dave, Gordon, and Marguerite.

[42:48] God bless them and may they know the hope of your presence day by day. Lord, in your mercy.

[43:00] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.