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[0:00] Very warm, welcome to everybody this morning and we pray that we'll all know God's blessing and welcome to all who may be joining with us on behalf of Stornoway Free Church. I want to give an intimation first of all and it's with regard to next Lord's Day.

[0:17] Next Lord's Day we plan to extend the attendances in the church. There'll be a Gaelic service here next Lord's Day at 11 o'clock but in the church we hope to extend the number who are able to attend both services in Kenneth Street and information about the numbers were made during the week once more once the the sort of the we're able to reckon keeping the two meter distancing how many will be able to go. It's reckoned between 100 to 130 but information will be given later in the week as to how many actually will be able to go. So that's for next Lord's Day in Kenneth Street Church and you do remember the prayer meeting will be on Wednesday here in the seminary. Again we'll be just keeping to the to the 50 and it'll also be on Zoom. We're going to begin our worship this morning singing from Psalm 122 and this is in the Scottish Psalter Psalm 122 and it's a recorded singing Psalm 122 from the Scottish Psalter. I joyed went to the house of God go up they said to me Jerusalem within thy gates our feet shall standing be Jerusalem as a city is compactly built together and to that place the tribes go up the tribes of God go thither to Israel's testimony there to God's name thanks to pay for thrones of judgment even the thrones of David's house their stay. Pray that Jerusalem may have peace and felicity let them that love thee and thy peace have still prosperity therefore I wish that peace may still within thy walls remain and ever may thy palaces prosperity retain.

[2:16] now for my friends and brethren sakes peace be in thee I'll say and for the house of God our Lord I'll seek thy good always. Psalm 122 the whole psalm I joyed went to the house of God I joyed went to the house of God O faith and through me Jerusalem within thy gates our feet shall stand in the erro the gate for the Lord at one altro p Tammy and through me Jerusalem üç god stay so high so high so high and through me effectivement what are they will see shall I that peace be in thee I our Lord my faith and through me Jim galera and through him of God over there.

[3:33] To His righteousness in all He's there through God's chains and to faith.

[3:46] All our thrones of judgment in the thrones of the earth of the day.

[4:01] Straight and can't use the land they have peace and ferris they take.

[4:15] Let them have all even thy peace and till prosperity.

[4:29] Therefore I wish that peace may still within thy halls remain and and never may thy power says prosperity retain.

[4:53] Now for thy friends and brethren say, he's he is he has said, and for the house of God our Lord I'll seek thy good always.

[5:25] Let us bow in prayer. O Lord our gracious God as we bow in your presence today we ask that you will grant us grace to worship you aright.

[5:38] We give thanks Lord for being able to gather together in this way. We give thanks Lord for the way that things are beginning to open up and we pray that that will continue.

[5:50] We pray that we will not go back into another lockdown but that there will be a development and a progression and that we'll soon be able to sing together as we worship you because we know what an integral part of the worship that is.

[6:05] We long to be able to sit closer together because we know that the fellowship, the togetherness is such a vital part of our worship of being collectively together in the presence of God.

[6:20] We pray that you will watch over us and that you will open the word to us afresh today. We give thanks Lord for the way you work with us and the way you work in us.

[6:31] And so often even as we look at ourselves we realize what difficult projects we are because we are so complex and we are so slow to learn.

[6:46] And so we pray for teachable spirits and we ask Lord that we might be made willing to conform to your word and to your will and to your way. We ask you Lord to forgive us for our stubbornness and for how slow we are to comply with what your word requires of us.

[7:05] Because so much of the time we want to do our own thing and we are not prepared to submit under your word and under your way and to your will. And although there is a desire within us so to do, there is another force and power within us that fights against that, that resists that.

[7:27] But we give thanks O Lord for the all conquering power of your spirit. And we give thanks O Lord that this ongoing work is such that we are being changed more and more into the image of your son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

[7:42] And we pray then that you will bless us this day as we wait upon you. And we ask Lord that you will be with us in body, mind and soul. We pray for all our loved ones.

[7:53] We pray for families and friends and ask that you will do them good. We give thanks for the great privilege of prayer. And that we are able to bring before you our needs, our requests, our petitions, our desires, our longings.

[8:07] We are able to bring before you our confessions and bring before you our praise and adoration. And we are able to bring before you our intercessions and supplications.

[8:20] And so we ask O Lord that you will hear us and that you will do in us and for us, far and beyond anything that we could ask or think. We pray that you will prosper your cause.

[8:31] And even although the doors have been closed of your churches up and down this land over this last year, we give thanks Lord for the way that the gospel has still been communicated.

[8:44] And we pray that through that lockdown that there will be many an open door has been made into people's hearts and into people's homes. And we pray that there will be a, people will be receptive to the gospel, maybe in a way that they hadn't been before.

[9:01] We pray that barriers will be broken down. And we ask O Lord that the powers of atheism and humanism would so flood our land, that these powers might be broken more and more.

[9:15] So that people will acknowledge you as the God of heaven and earth. We pray that you will bless us, bless us nationally and bless us internationally. And we think of places like India just now in the face of the, of so much suffering in light of the COVID pandemic, which is sweeping through that great nation.

[9:38] And we pray that you will help them in their distress. Pray for all other areas where it is taking grip. Remember Cambodia and Muriel, we commit her and her work to you there.

[9:51] We pray Lord that you will, that you will prosper your, your cause and your work throughout the nations of this world. And particularly areas which are, which do not allow the freedom to worship as we enjoy.

[10:06] And we pray that we might always enjoy that freedom. And we know that there are influences at work that will try more and more to prevent the freedom that we do have. But we pray Lord that you will never allow the liberties that we enjoy to be taken from us.

[10:23] They were won at a cost. And we pray Lord that they will always be given to us and help us to remember that they are given to us by yourself. And so we pray that we do not take them for granted, but we give thanks for them and pray Lord that we will always have the freedom to worship and to proclaim your name and your truth.

[10:47] We ask Lord that you will be with the sick and the suffering, those who are laid aside. Remember those of our own number who are ill at this time. We commit them to your care and keeping. Pray for those who mourn, whose hearts are heavy and sore.

[11:00] Those Lord who have found that their lives have been turned upside down. And whether it's weeks ago or months ago or years ago, their life still feels upside down.

[11:11] And they're still sad and they're still sore. And so we pray that you will bring peace into their troubled souls. And that you will fill their soul with blessing and with good things.

[11:23] Lord we pray for our young people. We give thanks for them. Give thanks Lord for all the work that has been done in Sunday school and in day school throughout this period of lockdown.

[11:34] And we pray Lord that you will continue to bless teachers and pupils alike. And we pray Lord that your word will go into young hearts.

[11:46] And that souls will come to know you at a very young age. We give thanks oh Lord for all our young people and we commit them to your care and keeping.

[11:57] We ask now that you will do as good as we come unto your word. And we pray that we will hear what God the Lord will speak. Have mercy upon us we pray oh Lord. And cleanse us from our every sin we pray.

[12:11] In Jesus name we ask all. Amen. Amen. Amen. Ae-eni . And I'm just going to say a wee word to the young folk just now.

[12:24] At the back of the house there's a huge clump of earth because we're hoping to make a garden.

[12:35] earth has all been flattened and we're hoping to make a lawn out of that. And if I don't know, I have no idea, I'm sure some of you young people, if you don't know now you'll be able to find out, I'm sure there's a scientific reason as to why stones keep appearing. But when we started to rake stones out of the earth, the more we raked, the more the stones appeared because we've shifted barrel loads of stones and then the next morning you look out and there's even more stones. And you'd almost think that somebody came at night and started scattering stones. Now there'll be a reason as to why stones must rise up the surface, I don't know, but there must be some reason. But it seems that the more stones you gather, the more stones appear. And the funny thing is that to begin with, when I looked out, I thought, oh, there's not that many stones here. All we need to do is really get a roller in, flatten it completely properly and then sow the seed. But then I thought, oh no, we'll have to lift some stones. But as I say, it's once you start raking it up, more and more and more seem to appear. And I began to think, how like our own sinful heart that is, the way what the Bible shows us about ourselves. Because when we look at ourselves, very often we look at ourselves and we measure ourselves against other people. And we look at maybe other boys and other girls or other teenagers or grown-ups do the same thing and they say, oh, I'm not too bad. They look at what people do and they say, oh, well, that's kind of, it's kind of like what I do as well. But you know, when we begin to scratch under the surface, when we begin to really look in, and when we ask God to show us what we're really like, and when

[14:46] God's Spirit shines into our heart, we begin to see, dear me, it's like when you start raking and stones and more stones and more stones and more stones appear. That's the kind of way it is within our heart, of stones of sin and big boulders of sin and all sorts of things that maybe you didn't see before. Maybe the great sin of idolatry where you put somebody else or something else in place of God. Sins of being jealous. Sins of being covetous, wanting what other people have. Sin of being angry or proud. Of course, the great boulder of sin is not wanting Jesus as your Savior. That's the worst sin of all. And people sometimes don't realize what a big sin it is. So it's when we begin to, by God's Spirit, with God's Word to look into our heart, we begin to see what we're really like. And that's what we need to ask for Jesus to cleanse us, to clean us from all our sin, because only He can. And ask

[16:02] Jesus to become Lord for life. Let's say the Lord's Prayer. Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.

[16:33] We're going to read God's Word now from the Gospel according to Luke, chapter 2. The Gospel of Luke, chapter 2. We're going to read from the beginning of the chapter, Luke, chapter 2.

[17:00] In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria, and all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David to be registered with Mary, his betroth, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over the flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, Fear not, for behold,

[18:02] I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you. You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased. When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us. And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.

[19:02] But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen as it had been told them.

[19:14] And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the time came for their purification, according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of the Lord, every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord, and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord. A pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons.

[19:50] Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel. And the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple.

[20:13] And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him according to the custom of the law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, Now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word. For my eyes have seen your salvation, that you are prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for the revelation of the Gentiles, and for the glory to your people Israel. And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him.

[20:46] And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, Behold this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed. And God's sword will push through your own soul also, so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed, and so on. Amen. And may God bless to us this reading of his own Holy Word. Now before we reflect upon that, we're going to sing again from Psalm 84.

[21:24] And this is from Psalm 118 from Sing Psalms. And we're going to sing the last four verses of the Psalm.

[21:35] And Ali's going to sing for us Psalm 118. We're going to sing from verse 25. It's three stanzas, sorry.

[21:48] Save us, O Lord, we humbly pray. O Lord, we pray, grant us success. He's blessed who comes in God's great name. You from the Lord's house we will bless.

[22:01] And so on. Psalm 118 verses 25 to 29. Save us, O Lord, we humbly pray. Save us, O Lord, we humbly pray.

[22:16] O Lord, we pray, grant us success. He's blessed who comes in God's great name.

[22:30] You from the Lord's house we will bless. The Lord is God and He has made His glorious light upon us all.

[22:54] Let us approach the altar's horns and celebrate the festival.

[23:08] You are my God. You are my God. I'll give you thanks. You are my God.

[23:21] I'll give you praise. O thank the Lord for He is good.

[23:31] His steadfast love endures always. O thank the Lord for He is good.

[24:08] O thank the Lord for He is good.

[24:38] O thank the Lord for His love. O thank the Lord for He is good. Now, we don't know very much about this man Simeon. He obviously was, without a shadow of doubt, a lovely Christian.

[24:55] He was somebody, we're told, who was full of the Spirit. These were dark days in Israel. The true faith was at a fairly low ebb.

[25:07] There was a lot of religiosity, but not much in the way of true active faith. But this was a very spiritual man. And it's very obvious he was a man who was very content with his lot.

[25:22] And you know, there's a great contentment. When the Lord is at the center of a person's life, and it's very obvious that the Lord was at the center of Simeon's life, it gives a contentment.

[25:34] And I believe that that's part of what's wrong with society today, as Jesus is pushed more and more away, pushed out from the center of society, that there is a genuine lack of contentment.

[25:50] As the Bible says, godliness brings great godliness with contentment. It's great gain.

[26:01] And it is the great gain. Now, a little of the background to this, we find in verse 21, that Jesus is given his name at the time of his circumcision.

[26:16] And you remember that this was a name, the name that Jesus was given, was not a name that was chosen by Mary and Joseph, but a name that was given by the angel. And of course, for the Jews, a name was very significant.

[26:30] The name meant a lot. Every name has a meaning. And maybe the name that you have been given is a family name. It's maybe run through your family for generations.

[26:43] Or maybe it's just a name that your mom or your dad liked. And if you don't already know what your name means, look it up, because every name does have a meaning. But for the Jews, the name was very important.

[26:58] And it often signified an event within their lives. For instance, the likes of Samuel, which means asked of God or heard of God. And you remember how Hannah was childless and was so desperate to have a child.

[27:14] And remember how she went to the temple and she prayed. And she asked the Lord, Lord, if you will give me a child, I'll give this child back to you. And of course, the Lord heard Hannah's prayer.

[27:26] And she had little Samuel. And of course, she dedicated Samuel, gave Samuel back to work in the temple from a young age.

[27:38] So that was heard of God, harassed of God. So the name, of course, was very important. But Jesus' name was given from heaven. The angel had told Mary what his name was going to be.

[27:51] There were four babies that were named from heaven. We have Ishmael, who was the son of, well, Abraham's son with Hagar.

[28:03] Isaac was also named. God told Abraham and Sarah what the baby was going to be. And of course, we have Jesus. And we have John the Baptist.

[28:14] His name, the angel, of course, told that the name was to be John. Now, as we know, Jesus, the name Jesus, is the same as Joshua in the Old Testament, which, of course, means Jehovah is salvation.

[28:32] And we've often said it before, that the Old Testament, which foreshadowed and taught us all that was happening in the New, you remember how Moses, who represented the law, led Israel all the way to the borders of the promised land.

[28:54] And it was very harsh on Moses. It always seemed, I always thought it was so harsh on Moses, how he wasn't allowed into the promised land, because it was his great dream to lead the people all the way in.

[29:06] But remember, because of how he had sinned in front of the people, God said, you won't enter in. But of course, there was a spiritual meaning as well, because Moses, who represented the law, couldn't take, the law can't take a person into salvation.

[29:23] Bible tells us, the law is the schoolmaster to lead us to Christ, that takes us all the way to the borders of. But it is Joshua, Jehovah's salvation, Jesus, who takes us into salvation, who gives us salvation.

[29:40] So, remember, I always used to say that the Old Testament was God's picture book. And that is so true, all these pictures in the Old Testament are so illustrative of what God is doing.

[29:54] And so, we find that Jesus, this is the name, the angel said, his name shall be Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins.

[30:05] Now, back in verse 10, we find there, it tells us, the angel said, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

[30:21] Now, of course, the Christ is the equivalent of the Hebrew Messiah, the anointed one, the one chosen by the Father who was going to come to redeem and to save his people.

[30:33] He anointed the chosen one to carry out the great work of salvation. But he is also Lord, which, of course, was the word used for the God of Israel.

[30:45] So, Jesus, his name shall be called Jesus, is also the Christ, the Messiah, the anointed one, who is also Lord. Lord. So, you see that in Jesus, we have Jesus being completely human, a baby, as human as you and me, not a bit human, not mostly human, but totally human, apart from sin.

[31:11] He was sinless. But he is also God, a very God, Lord, the God of Israel. So, this is, this is Jesus here. And that's what qualifies him to be saviour, to save us from our sins.

[31:29] And you know, the wonderful thing is that this is how Jesus came. He came as a saviour. Because Jesus is a lot of things. He's the lawgiver. Jesus is prophet, he's priest, he's king, he's judge.

[31:44] Because remember, we've all to appear before the judgment seat of Christ. And how thankful we are that he didn't come the first time as Jesus the judge, as Christ the judge.

[31:57] Because if he had come simply as a judge, people would have been hesitant in going near him. But he came as a saviour who came to deal with our sins.

[32:08] One day he's coming, he will be as a judge. But at present, he is still the saviour. And the great question is, has Jesus saved you?

[32:19] Has he saved me? Has he saved us from our sins? If he has, then, you know, we're like Simeon. We can say, now let your servant depart in peace. If he hasn't saved you from your sins, the question is, why not?

[32:35] Because it's the most important thing that can ever happen to you in this world. So if you haven't asked Jesus to be your saviour, please go to him and ask him now.

[32:46] So we find Jesus as a little baby. he's brought to the temple here. And it was according to the law at the time of purification here that when a baby was 40 days old, this was part of the Jewish law, a law that is found in Leviticus.

[33:05] And we find there that they had to bring the sacrifice that was found was two turtle doves and two young pigeons. Now it's very interesting. If we go to Leviticus, I think it's in chapter 12, and if we read there, the requirement actually is for a lamb.

[33:23] But if the family are too poor to provide a lamb, then it was two turtle doves and two pigeons, which shows us that Mary and Joseph were poor.

[33:35] Jesus, and this is something that's worth highlighting, Jesus was brought up in what we, close to poverty. Jesus grew up in a home that had very, very little.

[33:47] And I think that's important for us to understand because people often today, when there is so much poverty around, and people will say, well, does the Lord understand?

[33:59] The Christians understand? Well, we've got to remember that Jesus Christ, his whole life was marked out by poverty. In fact, he made himself poor in order that we might become rich.

[34:10] That's what we're told, that it is through his poverty that we have been made rich. That's the wonder, the beauty of the salvation.

[34:22] And, of course, Jesus wept in order that we may rejoice. Jesus experienced death that we might have life. Jesus experienced all these things for us.

[34:34] He went under the law in order that we might be made free. So, here we are and they've come to the temple and in the temple there's this man called Simeon who lived very, very close to the Lord.

[34:49] And, you know, there are some Christians and there's a stamp about them, there's a mark about them. There's something about their life and it's very, very obvious that they live close to the Lord.

[35:02] There seems to be a spiritual discernment that characterizes our life. and we're told in the Bible that the secret of the Lord is with them that fear him. And it's very obvious that this man, Simeon, was such a person that the secret of the Lord was with him.

[35:21] And God had given Simeon a promise and the promise was very simple that he was going to see, before he died, he was going to see the Lord's Christ.

[35:35] He was going to see the Messiah. And his faith was such that he grasped that promise and he clung to it, lay a hold upon it and he was absolutely persuaded of the reality of it.

[35:49] You know, maybe God has given you a promise. Maybe something in God's word has been made very, very close and powerful and real to you in your life. And when you read it or heard it or the verse came to you, it came with a power that enabled you to believe and you lay hold upon that and it's still with you today.

[36:13] Sometimes it might parents can often find that with regard to their children, with regard to their children's salvation. But the thing is that very often when we're given a promise, a promise will be tested because God builds up our faith by testing it.

[36:31] and quite often his promises are tested within our life. And there will be days when God's promise is really tested because sometimes your heart will be filled with doubts and fears and you wonder if this promise is true.

[36:50] And Satan often has a field day with God's promises particularly if it appears the providence is going directly against what God has promised. and even other Christians can call into question and say are you sure?

[37:07] Maybe you've got it wrong. Do you really believe that? Is that what God really said? Well if you have been given that promise by the Lord you hold to it and ask God to enable you to see the fulfillment of that promise at some point or another.

[37:26] So the Holy Spirit had made clear to Simeon that he would see the Lord's Christ before he died and one day he was the Spirit prompted him to go to the temple.

[37:43] Now we should be open to the promptings of God's Spirit and because I'm sure all of us at times have been made aware of things maybe to go and see someone or pray for somebody come strongly before your mind.

[38:03] Pray for that person. I remember I may have said this before but I remember it was one of the many many lessons that you learn and sometimes you remember lessons sometimes you forget but I remember when we were in Muir of Ford and it was at a presby day in Ruskin and I was on my way home and it came very strongly in my mind to go and see this man who was in our congregation and there was nothing wrong with him he wasn't ill or anything like that and I said I'll go and see him in the morning because it wasn't too late but it was later on and I said I'll go tomorrow because it was so pressing that man died through the night and remember my good news the next day I felt terrible because there's no question whatever the Lord had placed that on my heart to go and see and I said I'll put it in my mind and I thought because it seemed so pressing I'll go the next day so I'm sure we've all had experiences where we felt it's like being being pushed in a particular direction about somebody or to go and see or something to do and we should be open to the leading of

[39:17] God's spirit where he prompts us in certain areas certain things well there's no doubt that this is what happened with Simeon he was prompted to go to the temple and Mary and Joseph came with baby Jesus and what I love about Simeon here is the wonderful spiritual discernment and understanding because here is a baby of 40 days old and Simeon is filled with joy and he takes baby Jesus in his arms fully persuaded that this little baby that he's carrying is the Messiah the saviour of the world that's great faith because Jesus is just a little baby and you know there have been great elements great moments of faith throughout Jesus' time here in this world you think of the centurion below the cross the centurion who was over the execution of Jesus and do you remember at the end when it was all over and the centurion was looking at the broken battered bleeding body of Jesus what did he say truly this was the son of God if any person in this world looked less like the son of God at that moment it was

[40:35] Jesus and yet that was the confession of the centurion you think of the thief on the cross remember me when you come into your kingdom at that moment Jesus looked less like a king than anybody in this world he was being put to death as a criminal between two criminals and put to death in the way that was reserved only for slaves and the worst of prisoners in the most barbaric cruel way and he had been so beaten and flogged beforehand and yet he turned and he said remember me when you come into your kingdom that was great faith and sometimes we dismiss our own faith but you know if you today believe in the Lord Jesus Christ your faith is equally as great as that because you say to yourself what great faith Simeon had in just holding this little baby of 40 days old and saying this is the Messiah but you know when you think about it you believe in

[41:42] Jesus and your eyes have never seen him at all the centurion and the thief on the cross they saw Jesus although he never looked less like a king than at that particular moment and that's why Jesus said to Thomas remember when he said to Thomas put in your stretch out your fingers put your fingers into the holes in my hands put your hand into the hole in my side Thomas said no no my Lord and my God and Jesus said blessed are those whom having not seen yet believe and that's where we are we've never actually seen Jesus with our eyes we see him with the eye of faith and that's why there is so much blessing on that sometimes we we put down on our faith and we wonder about our faith and we think have I got faith well if today you're laying hold upon

[42:45] Jesus and you fully believe in Jesus then that's great faith because you're believing in the one your eyes have never seen but your heart has seen by faith and so here's this Simeon and he takes Jesus in his arms and you know it's quite amazing when you think because as Simeon takes Jesus in his arms Simeon actually is in Jesus his arms because as the son of God Simeon is being held by the son of God although he has the incarnate son in his hands and you know there's no safer place in the whole wide world than being in the arms and the hand of Jesus because there's no force or power in this world or even in hell that can prize open the grip that Jesus has in his people it's the greatest security this world has ever known or ever seen and so Simeon is so overwhelmed and he blessed

[43:47] God and said Lord now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word you see Simeon is so thankful to God for fulfilling that promise here he is this is the actual promise that God gave and now he has him in his hand I've seen your salvation I'm holding the one who is salvation as the AV says now let your servant depart in peace and you know that's a wonderful thought because Simeon is saying now that your promise has been fulfilled Lord that's it I'm ready now to go and you know at one level any person who has seen the Christ by faith can say now Lord you can let your servant depart in peace because once you have come to see Jesus by faith you are ready to leave this world it's not that we're looking forward and saying oh I'm ready now to want to die or something but death no longer has the dread that it once had we recoil at the thought of death it's unnatural it's just that which we hate it causes so much pain and devastation within the lives of those who are left behind it is the king of terrors as it has been described but you know for the

[45:20] Christian the sting has been removed that's what we're told you know if you had a poisonous serpent and you were told the sting is removed you could pick up that serpent and it wouldn't do you any harm and so it is for death it's still late and it's still going to come but the sting of death has been taken oh grave where is your victory oh death where is your sting so you're letting your servant depart in peace but you know death really is just the gateway to glory that's what it is at the end of the day and Simeon is completely at peace he says Lord you have fulfilled your promise I'm ready now to go it's something beautiful here and it's to depart you know Simeon actually is speaking about using the same words in many ways as Paul did remember

[46:23] Paul said for me to live is Christ to die is gain and then he says it is better to depart and to be with Christ and Simeon really in many ways is saying the same thing great question that we have to ask ourselves is this if tonight a message were brought from heaven to you supposing it was possible that tonight was to be your last night in this world how would you how would I react do we have the spirit of Simeon and say Lord I'm ready even so come Lord Jesus or that tonight Jesus is going to return how would we react it tells an awful lot about where we are where our standing is in how we react to these things because remember how it tells us in the book of

[47:24] Revelation it shows us very clearly the different reactions the church says even so come Lord Jesus whereas those who are without Christ when he does return they're going to call on the rocks and the hills to cover them from the wrath of the lamb these are the two there are only two reactions really so where are we today are we like Simeon we've seen the Lord Christ he is we only we haven't just seen him he's in our heart he's our portion we live with him we live for him and if so then obviously we hope we have many more days but if we don't are we ready to go if we're not then it's time that we got ready and there's only one way that we can get ready and that is by meeting with Jesus so ask him today if you haven't already that he will come into your heart and into your life let us pray

[48:27] Lord our God we give thanks for your word again we give thanks for every blessing that we receive from it we give thanks that your word teaches us so much so much that we could never understand from a natural world and we pray that we might be ready listeners that we might be receptive to your truth oh Lord bless us and pity us shine on us with your face cleanse us we pray from our every sin take us all home safely do us good in Jesus name we ask all amen our our concluding singing is from Scottish Psalter Psalm 84 and we're going to sing verses 1 to 5 Psalm 84 verses 1 to 5 from the Scottish Psalter how lovely is thy dwelling place O Lord of hosts to me the tabernacles of thy grace how pleasant

[49:29] Lord they be my thirsty soul longs vehemently yea faints thy courts to see my very heart and flesh cry out O living God for thee behold the sparrow findeth out and house wherein to rest swallow also for herself hath purchased a nest even thine own altars where she save her young ones forth may bring O thou almighty Lord of hosts who art my God and King Psalm 84 these verses how lovely is thy dwelling place take my own praise or like of my grace of

[50:36] God My thirsty soul longs even free Yea, it's my heart to see My heavy heart and bless thy heart O'er, ain't God for thee Behold the star of fire's heart And house where in to rest The slab with heart so far

[51:36] Has Amen. Remember to keep the social distancing on the way out and also to use the hand sanitizer as well.

[52:34] Now may the grace, mercy and peace of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit rest and abide upon each one of you now and forevermore. Amen. If you all stay safe and stay well.

[53:13] Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you.

[53:51] Thank you.

[54:21] Thank you.

[54:51] Thank you.

[55:21] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Donald! Donald!

[55:33]  Come on! Good boy!