[0:00] Thank you, Treg. If you would, please take your Bibles and open them up to the Gospel according to John. And we're going to be in chapter 16 this morning, verses 16 through 33, through the end of the chapter.
[0:16] And I'll remind you, just for the sake of context, that we're continuing our series here in John's Gospel, and we are in the moments leading up to the cross and the upper room discourse, as we're functioning like flies on the wall listening in to some of Jesus' last words to his disciples.
[0:33] So John chapter 16, verses 16 through 33, when you found that in your Bibles, I ask that, would you please stand for the reading of God's Word and follow along with me as I read? Jesus says, a little while and you will see me no longer.
[0:57] And again a little while and you will see me. So some of his disciples said to one another, what is this that he says to us? A little while and you will not see me.
[1:07] And again a little while and you will see me. And because I am going to the Father. So they were saying, what does he mean by a little while? We do not know what he's talking about. Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him.
[1:20] So he said to them, is this what you are asking yourselves? What I meant by saying a little while and you will not see me. And again a little while and you will see me. Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.
[1:36] You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come. But when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish for joy that a human being has been born into the world.
[1:53] So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again. And your hearts will rejoice and no one will take your joy from you. In that day you will ask nothing of me.
[2:05] Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
[2:18] I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you plainly about the Father. In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf.
[2:34] For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.
[2:49] His disciples said, Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech. Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you.
[2:59] This is why we believe that you came from God. Jesus answered them, Do you now believe? Behold, the hour is coming. Indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone.
[3:15] Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation, but take heart, I have overcome the world.
[3:27] This is God's holy, inspired word. Please be seated as we pray. Lord, would you take these words and implant them in our hearts with faith and joy in believing.
[3:43] We pray in Christ's name. Amen. I'll ask you a probably strange question as we begin. Do you treat the gospel more like tap water or like a stream of water in the desert?
[4:02] Do you treat the gospel more like tap water or like a stream in the desert? I had this image in my mind this week. I spoke with some missionary friends who are serving in the deserts of North Africa.
[4:15] Very hot, hostile, humid territory. They are bringing the gospel to unreached people groups there in the deserts of North Africa, scattered throughout that harsh terrain.
[4:26] I just want you to get in your mind this morning the image of a desert. It is hot. Temperature is hotter than we could possibly imagine. It's dry. It's dusty.
[4:37] It's difficult terrain. But imagine that right there in the middle of that hot, dry desert is a flowing stream of water.
[4:48] And of course we know that that water is so precious. It's so important. It's life-giving for the area. But I just want to think for a moment about all of the benefits that that flowing stream of water might provide.
[5:01] Of course it provides hydration. And I would imagine that men and women would travel for miles throughout all that harsh, dry desert in order to come and drink from this flowing stream.
[5:13] It would provide nourishment. It provides strength for the crops that would grow up around the area which would in turn provide food for the people nearby. It gives life to the animals that live in the desert.
[5:26] They drink from the water and then they in turn provide strength for labor for those who live nearby. They would provide meat to eat. The stream is a place to wash and to clean. If you lived in this harsh, dry desert you would be well acquainted with the benefit, all the many benefits that this flowing stream of water might provide.
[5:48] You would spend time here often drinking and washing and benefiting from this stream of water. Now, compare that to water from the tap. Of course we know that water is important, but let's be honest, when is the last time you got excited about water from the tap?
[6:07] We drink it because we know that it's good for us, but we hardly think about it. We turn on the tap, the water comes out, we know we need it, but most of the time it is an afterthought.
[6:19] Church, sadly, far too often, this is how we tend to think about the gospel. We know that it's good, right?
[6:29] We know that it's life-giving for us, we know that we need it, but we are so slow to fully grasp the depth of what Christ has done for us in his life, his death, his resurrection.
[6:46] What I want us to see this morning is that the gospel of Jesus Christ is a life-giving stream of spiritual benefits to all who come and drink.
[6:58] So this morning, what I want us to do with God's help from John chapter 16 is I want us to see just three life-giving benefits of what Jesus has done.
[7:09] Just three this morning. Three life-giving benefits of the gospel of Jesus Christ so that you and I might more fully enjoy this gospel, the gift of life that God has given us in Christ.
[7:22] Three life-giving benefits benefits of what Jesus has done. Benefit number one, permanent joy. Permanent joy.
[7:33] Look there with me to our passage starting in verse 16. Jesus is trying to explain to his disciples what is about to happen. You remember again, this conversation is happening on the eve of his crucifixion.
[7:46] And so he tells them, in a little while, you will see me no longer. And again, in a little while, you will see me. And I don't think it's too hard for us to understand that he's talking about his death and then his resurrection.
[8:00] In just a matter of hours, he will be betrayed, he will be hung on a cross, and he will die. And the disciples in the room who see him right now will no longer see him.
[8:14] They won't see him anymore. But he assures them, again in a little while, after I have died, after I have been laid in a tomb, you will see me.
[8:25] He's speaking about his miraculous resurrection. Well, again, as usual, the disciples don't understand what he's talking about. What is this that he says to us?
[8:37] A little while, and you will not see me. And again, a little while, and you will see me. And because I'm going to the Father, what does he mean by a little while? I love this in verse 18, at least they're being honest. They say, we don't know what he's talking about.
[8:51] And Jesus, of course, knew that they were having some issues with this, and he knew what they wanted to ask him, and so he explained it to them like this. Look there to verse 20. He said, Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.
[9:09] You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. This is a promise of a stunning reversal.
[9:21] For a moment, it will feel like all is lost. For a moment, it will feel like the world has won, but your sorrow will turn into joy. How can this be?
[9:33] I know it's hard for us. We know how the story ends. So it's hard for us to place ourselves in the events of the cross without thinking of the events of the resurrection, but I want us to try just for a moment.
[9:47] Try to place yourself in the events of Good Friday and the death of Jesus without knowing how this all pans out in the end. Your friend and your teacher is on a cross, the man who has revealed God to you in more powerful and tangible ways than anything you've ever experienced.
[10:08] this man who has made incredible promises to you, come to me and be saved, come to me and drink freely of my life. I am the way, the truth, the life.
[10:18] No one comes to the Father except through me. And then he's laid to rest in a tomb and you would wonder, well, has all of this been for nothing? Can we trust his promises?
[10:32] Has all of our hope been a waste? Is this all just in vain? And then he dies, he's laid in a tomb and for three days, those who are still in their sin, the world, the unbelieving world will rejoice at the death of the Son of God.
[10:50] And for three days, you will grieve and you will mourn, your heart will be consumed with sorrow. For three days, you will question whether all of this has been in vain.
[11:04] This sorrow is very, very real for his disciples. They are defeated. You get a sense of that defeat on the road to Emmaus.
[11:15] You know the story from Luke chapter 24. You have to love Jesus' sense of humor in this story. Two of his disciples are walking on the road to Emmaus. This is after Jesus has been crucified and Jesus risen from the grave.
[11:31] He comes and he walks with them but it says that their eyes were kept from recognizing him and he asks them, what are you guys talking about? And they said, and when he asked them this, they stood still and they looked sad and they said, are you the only one around here who hasn't heard what's happened?
[11:49] This man, Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty indeed and word before God and all the people and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death and crucified him but we had hoped that he would be the one to redeem Israel.
[12:07] You hear that? We had hoped. Do you hear the hopelessness in their voice? They were sorrowful. They were defeated. What do you think their reaction was when their eyes were opened to recognize that this was in fact the risen Jesus speaking with them?
[12:30] That Jesus was now back from the dead. Jesus himself showing himself to them, telling them that all of this that's happened was according to plan. All of this was God's design.
[12:41] Satan has not won. The world has not won. I have overcome the world. I have defeated the grave. All of my promises are true and trustworthy and you can believe my word because I've risen from the grave.
[12:55] What do you think they would feel in that moment? Their sorrow would be swallowed up by joy at the resurrection of Christ.
[13:08] Jesus is promising his disciples here yes, you will have sorrow. Yes, this will be hard but when you see me again you will have unshakable joy.
[13:24] He compares it to a woman who's giving birth to a child and those who have given birth know what this is like. When that hour comes it's not easy, it's painful, it's scary, it's a terrifying moment, it's an anxious moment and I just had to watch.
[13:41] I wasn't the one actually doing it but for me it was scary as well and I can't imagine what it was like for her but all of that pain and sorrow is eclipsed by joy the moment that you hold that baby in your arms.
[13:56] It is not that the pain didn't happen. It's that that moment of pain has now transformed into a moment of joy. But for those who know the resurrected Jesus it's much more than just a moment, isn't it?
[14:13] Look at what he says. He says, you also will have sorrow now but I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice and no one will take your joy from you.
[14:25] Did you hear that? No one will take your joy from you. The resurrection of Jesus is an ever-flowing stream of endless permanent glorious joy for all who know him.
[14:42] And unlike anything else that you might enjoy in this life in this world no one can take that joy away from those who believe. Not sickness, not sorrow, not death, not loss, not pain, not grief.
[14:58] Why? Because Jesus lives and will never die again and because you by faith live in him forever. What did we just read from Psalm 1611?
[15:09] This promise that in your presence in the presence of God there is fullness of what? What did it say? Fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures for a little while, pleasures forever more.
[15:24] This is what Christ has invited you into by what he has done in the gospel. One of my boys brought home prayer requests this week from friends.
[15:35] I love this, y'all. We sat down to pray at the dinner table before we ate and he had a bag where each of his friends had filled out a little slip of paper with something to pray for and his plan was just to draw one out and pray for whichever one he drew is so sweet.
[15:52] And his friend, the request that he had was I guess his grandfather had recently passed away and so he wanted prayer that he would not be lonely in heaven.
[16:03] Isn't that sweet? That he would fit in up there, that he wouldn't be anxious, that he would have friends. I got to explain to them that heaven is not like it is down here.
[16:16] Here we have sorrow, here we have grief, here we have that social anxiety, we want to fit in, we don't want to be lonely. In the presence of the resurrected Jesus, there is no sorrow, there is no loneliness, there is no grief, there is no loss, there is no pain, there is fullness of joy that can never be taken from you who believe.
[16:42] Amen? We have entered in to a never ending moment of joy by faith in the resurrected Christ.
[16:56] That's the status of you, Christian, you who believe. We have been transformed from a moment of sorrow with no hope, a moment of hopelessness, to a moment of joy.
[17:08] Yes, with its challenges in this world, yes, with its sorrows in this world, but joy in a resurrected Savior that can never be taken away. We have entered in to a never ending moment of joy and no one and nothing can take it away from you.
[17:24] Because Jesus lives, we can drink from that stream of resurrection joy, not just in eternity when we get there, but right now. Isn't that glorious? And we don't have to wait until heaven to enjoy what Christ has done.
[17:41] Our mission and vision, again, we aim to magnify the glory of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ, number one, way number one that we aim to do that. What is it? By enjoying Him, by enjoying God.
[17:56] Christians of all people in the world ought to be marked by unusual joy. Does that describe you? when people talk about members of Seaweed Bay Baptist Church, one of the things I want them to see and to say about us is, man, that's the people that enjoy God.
[18:17] That's a joyful people. They rejoice in what Christ has done in the gospel. And if that doesn't describe you, well, Jesus tells us one of the ways that we can tap into that stream of joy right now is through prayer.
[18:34] Look there with me to verse 23, through prayer. Jesus says, in that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, He will give it to you.
[18:48] Until now, you have asked nothing in my name. Ask and receive that your joy may be full. You know, we've been talking this year a lot about prayer, and it seems like the Lord isn't done teaching us to pray, is He?
[19:03] We saw a few weeks ago a similar promise from Psalm 37 verse 4. It said, delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.
[19:13] Well, here, Jesus says, ask in my name for my glory, for my purposes, and not for your selfish agenda, but for my name's sake. Ask in my name and receive.
[19:24] We can say receive the desires of your heart. And what's the result of this God honoring, asking, and receiving in the hearts of those who believe? Joy.
[19:36] Ask and receive that your joy may be full. You know, one of the purposes of prayer for believers, one of the aims that God wants to work in your heart as you come to Him and ask and then receive is joy.
[19:52] Here's the point, church. God is far more ready to give us joy than we are to ask. Christ has purchased permanent joy for His people in the gospel.
[20:08] There's a river of endless joy available for all who believe, but you and I tend to be satisfied with drips from the tap. Church, are you asking God to move?
[20:20] Are you asking God to save, to redeem those around you who are lost? Are you asking God to replace your sorrow with His joy?
[20:31] Are you asking? The gospel is the source of permanent joy. Not only this, benefit number two, benefit number two of what Christ has done in the gospel, paternal love.
[20:46] Permanent joy, and second, benefit number two, paternal love. Look there with me to verse 25. Jesus, He says, I've said these things to you in figures of speech.
[20:59] The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but I will tell you plainly about the Father. We saw this last week. If you remember, again, up to this point, Jesus has been sort of veiled.
[21:15] His purposes have been veiled. His full work and full identity has not been entirely clear to His disciples, but after His resurrection, what did He promise?
[21:27] He's promised His Spirit, the Helper, will come and will guide them into all the truth, specifically, the truth about who Christ is and what He's done in the gospel.
[21:39] So for these disciples, the cross will be clarified for them. The resurrection will be clarified for them. The Old Testament promises that are fulfilled in Christ will be clarified for them.
[21:52] All their questions about why Jesus had to die, why like this, why in this way, the gospel message will be clarified for them. Church, one of the greatest blessings of the gospel is that if we want to know about God, if we want to learn about who He is, how He thinks about His heart, His character, this is where we look.
[22:19] We look to the gospel. If you want to judge for yourself, how well do I understand God? How well do I understand His ways? How well do I understand His heart?
[22:31] Ask yourself, how well you understand the gospel? The gospel is God's plan to save sinners through Jesus Christ. The Puritans, I love to read the Puritans.
[22:43] Most of the people I read are old, dead people that are much wiser than me. Sinclair Ferguson, he really said it best, he said that the Puritans, they often treat the gospel like a diamond.
[22:56] It's a precious gospel message. They take it and they slowly, very slowly, sometimes painfully slowly, they turn it and they look at this gospel message from every angle to see every facet, every reflection of the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
[23:13] They want to examine every little reflection, every little detail so they can know the heart of God. We ought to do this as well. As we think on what Jesus has done, we can see with stunning clarity the character of God on display.
[23:31] Think about it with me. Do you want to see the justice of God? Where else can we look but on the cross? Where sin, our sin, not Christ's sin, our sin was punished on the cross.
[23:46] God judged sin at the cross of Christ. Do you want to see the mercy of God on display? Look to the cross. Where sinners like you and me are spared the punishment we deserve, we are spared from the judgment of God.
[24:00] Do you want to see the grace of God on display? Look to the cross. Where Christ himself died in your place to take what you've earned so that you can have what he earned.
[24:12] Not by our merit, but by the grace of God. See, we can turn that diamond of the gospel every which way we want and we can see the heart of God. But here in our passage, Jesus draws our attention to one particular gloriously bright shining side of this diamond.
[24:32] Do you see it? It's the love of God on display. The love of God is seen and extended to sinners in the cross of Jesus Christ.
[24:48] If you want to know the love of God, where do you look? You look to what Christ has done. If you ever wonder whether God is able or willing to love a sinner like you, you look to the cross.
[25:04] You look to what Jesus has done. We know this verse, John 3, 16, for God so loved the world, loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
[25:26] That's gospel love. God demonstrates his own love for us and that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us, Romans 5, 8. See what kind of love has been given to us, that we should be called children of God and so we are, 1 John 3, 1.
[25:44] Paul tells us nothing will be able to separate us who believe, nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, Romans 8, 39. We were dead in our trespasses and sins in which we once walked but God being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead in our trespasses made us alive together with Christ, Ephesians chapter 2.
[26:13] All of our salvation from beginning to end, all of it is a work of divine profound love for sinners.
[26:27] Of course this shatters the idea that God is a God of wrath and Jesus is a God of love. have you ever heard anybody say that to you? Maybe you've ever thought that yourself that God the Old Testament God he's the wrathful one and Jesus over here he's the good one God the father's bad cop Jesus the son is good cop Jesus just has to twist God's arm to make him like us that couldn't be further from the truth the cross of Jesus Christ is God's plan God's plan to remove the fullness of God's wrath from us so that we might know the fullness of God's love for us in Christ and again he gives us another incredible lesson on prayer here doesn't he that's that's rooted in the love of God look there to verse 26 he says in that day you will ask in my name and
[27:27] I do not say to you that I will ask the father on your behalf for the father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I have come from God this is astounding when we understand this church when we pray you heard us pray this morning we ask in Jesus name there's no other way for us to pray Jesus is the mediator between God and man it's like when Moses went up on the mountain to speak with God only Moses out of all the people of Israel he served as mediator between God and the people if the people had something they wanted to bring to God guess who they went to Moses he was the man they said go tell God this for us we can't go up there and likewise when God wanted to deliver his word to the people how did he do it through his mediator through
[28:28] Moses well this is a bit it's a shadow it's a bit like the priestly work of Jesus Jesus is the one who mediates between sinful man and holy God he's the one that makes it possible for sinners like us to speak to a holy God but he says it's even better than what Moses did on the mountain because you've loved me because you believe me God himself loves you you see the difference here because of what Jesus has done you and I are invited to come to God in Christ not simply as a go between but but in him listen to this church we are invited to share in the relational love that has existed before eternity began between the father and the son do you hear that not as an unwelcome third wheel but in the full acceptance and love of the son himself that's unthinkable access
[29:37] I'll give you another illustration I'll see if this helps clarify this for us there is a there's a pastor who has influenced me and in profound ways I won't say his name right now I don't know that that'd be helpful but this man's writing has influenced me his preaching has influenced me he's not perfect of course he's not he's human but he's been a major impact on my life he's shaped my theology my ministry he's helped me see more clearly the gospel than just about anybody else indirectly I've never never met him never spoken with him but he has he's shaped me and countless thousands of others in ways that he probably won't even realize until he gets to glory well interestingly enough again I don't know him I've never spoken to him but over the past few years
[30:39] I have gotten to know his son and listen I have never once over the past three years that I've known the son I've never once asked him anything about the father we talk almost weekly over text we talk exclusively about basketball that's it but you've got to understand that this man his father is a hero of mine and I could in theory I could at any time I could text the son and ask him to bring to the father a request or a question or a thank you or some sort of message from me if I'm struggling with a text and preparing for a sermon I could in theory text the son and ask him to ask the father hey can you help me out here that sort of access to one of my theological heroes is at all time right there in my pocket I'm two degrees removed from one of my my men that's shaped me in profound ways that's I think pretty incredible but what
[31:41] Jesus says here in John 16 listen to this is that what he has worked up in the gospel is even better than that you have an even sweeter access to God the father than that yes your access to the father is through the son in the name of the son but church you come to God not just through the son but in the son as a son God the father sees not just the son representing you he sees the son in you and you in him do you see the difference what a difference that makes praise Jesus we are not two degrees removed from God the father we are made one with God through faith in Christ that's what Jesus has done for all who love him and believe in him you see that that qualification there at the end that love of the father is offered to you non-believer if you would turn from your sin and trust in Christ you can enter into the love of the father for all who love the son and believe that he came from God if so you can enjoy one more benefit here of the work of Christ benefit number three persevering peace persevering peace
[33:11] Jesus says in verse 28 I came from the father and have come into the world and now I am leaving the world and going to the father and the light bulbs come on all of a sudden for the disciples the disciples finally get it or so so they thought right they said ah now you're speaking to us plainly and not using figurative speech now now we know that you you know all things do not need anyone to question you this is why we believe that you came from God and Jesus he knows better he calms down their enthusiasm just a bit doesn't he he says do you now believe behold the hour is coming indeed it has come when you will all be scattered each to his own home and will leave me alone you think you get it you think you understand you think you see me for who I am just wait and of course this prediction will in just a few short hours prove true
[34:15] Mark's gospel shares that in the same upper room discourse they they take the Lord's supper together they they sing a hymn together and then Jesus looks around to the men in the room and he says you will all fall away for it is written I will strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered and Peter in typical fashion what does he say not me Lord I will die before I deny you it can't be me how many of us would say the same thing Jesus is arrested in Mark 14 verse 50 it simply says they all left him and fled only Peter and John followed Jesus after his arrest and of course you know the story that Peter stayed outside the courtroom door and while Jesus was questioned Peter Peter was asked three times do you do you know the man are you his disciple didn't I see you with him three times he had the opportunity to claim allegiance to Jesus and three times he denied him
[35:20] I don't know him I don't know him I don't know the man Jesus' words here this promise sadly came true the shepherd was struck and all the sheep were scattered and you know at the hour of his death on the cross you know only one apostle remained you know who it was John the author of this gospel account and I just want to say briefly as an aside as we prepare in the weeks to come to walk with Jesus towards the cross as we hear from the lips of John about his brutal beatings about his death on the cross I want you to hear from John's perspective as an eyewitness to the sufferings of Christ I want you to place yourself there and see with John's eyes that's what he wants you to do he wants you to consider the things that have been done he wants you to consider what Jesus has done he wants you to consider what he's seen he wants you to consider with him the words that were spoken and the promises that were kept in Christ most of them gloriously good but this this one this promise filled with sorrow you profess to understand but you will all leave me alone yet he says in verse 32
[36:39] I am not alone for the father is with me I've said these things to you that in me you may have peace in the world you will have tribulation but take heart I have overcome the world you know wouldn't you think that this would distress the disciples even more he says I've said these things to you that you might have peace what does he just say that you will all leave me alone I'm about to die and you're going to be going to be scattered to hear that they're all going to fall away and yet Jesus says I tell you this that you might have peace why it's peace that comes not from their righteousness not from their goodness not from their faithfulness not from their victory but because Jesus has overcome the world he says in this world you will have trouble and probably a lot of it is going to come from you but take heart believer take heart unfaithful disciple take heart sinner struggling again and again and again and again cling to me trust in me because
[37:54] I have overcome the world so you in me can be at peace I love the quote from Dodd who says it is part of the character and genius of the church that its foundation members were discredited men it owes its existence not to their faith their courage or their virtue but to what Christ had done with them and this they could never forget see the good news of the gospel is that the peace that we're offered again it's not based on our goodness but on his it's not based on our righteousness but on his it's not based on our faithfulness but on his it's not based on our victory but on his that's the source of a believer's peace Christian I wonder what sort of trouble you're walking through right now what sort of tribulation you're walking through in your life this moment
[39:05] I don't know I wonder what sort of trial is right around the corner God only knows I want to encourage you this morning right now to resolve your soul to lay hold of the peace of God that he offers you freely in Christ peace that is not in the absence of trials but peace in the midst of the trials of this world peace unshakable that's purchased for you in the death and the resurrection of your savior who has overcome this world whatever it may be Jesus here in our passage and in the weeks to come as he walks to the cross he shows us what it looks like to have peace in the presence of God of course Jesus as God enjoys perfect fellowship with God the father as God the son he enjoys the perfect unity and fellowship and love with
[40:06] God the father that he had before the ages began but here Jesus as man shows us what it means to be completely satisfied in God alone in the face of unthinkable suffering all his disciples scattered betrayed with a kiss denied three times nothing but trouble lies ahead of this moment but Jesus says I am not alone and the father is with me and church what about us I wonder where you turn for peace when you're lonely what's your peace when you're sorrowful when you feel abandoned when your life is full of trials and tribulations what do you turn to for peace is it the fact that through the work of the son God the father is always with you because of the work of Jesus you and
[41:07] I as believers can walk through anything this world can throw at us and be at peace what a gift do you have the peace of God that comes from having peace with God have you received what Jesus has done for you by faith in the finished work of Christ are you drinking freely from all the benefits of the gospel friend you are invited Christ invites you now and and again and again and again to this ever flowing stream of benefits in the gospel of
[42:14] Christ until he comes again and our hearts will see him our eyes will see him at last and our joy will be complete let's pray Lord Jesus we thank you for the gospel there's no other hope for sinners but your righteousness but your life but your death but your resurrection from the grave Jesus we thank you that you offer eternal life to any who come to you in faith we pray Lord that believers here in the room that we would continue to drink freely from the gospel of Christ that we would know your joy that we would know the father's love that we would know your peace and God we pray that if there are any here with us who do not know the love of God in Christ or we pray that you would transform them from sorrow to everlasting joy by faith in
[43:17] Jesus we pray all this in Jesus name amen