[0:00] Take your Bibles if you would and go with me to Psalm chapter 65 of the 65th Psalm. And we will look at a Psalm that I think has a lot to do with being thankful to our God.
[0:12] He is the God who has done everything for us. It is a Psalm about being totally dependent upon God. But probably one of my favorite days in Arequipa, Peru, where we lived there for quite a few years, was Thanksgiving Day.
[0:33] The first year on Thanksgiving Day, the Americans invited us over and we watched American football from last year on a VHS.
[0:45] And I don't watch it when I'm here just because I don't know much about it and I don't watch any sport.
[0:56] Mike Staley would watch two roaches race and I could care less about any sport, really. And so that first year we went over and it was like Turkey Day.
[1:07] That's what most people make Thanksgiving into, you know. We watched football. And the next year I had these guys I was training. I'd finally gotten some guys that we spent every day except Monday.
[1:20] We spent almost all day together. And so I told them, I said, now on Thursday I won't be able to be here. So y'all will be doing your own thing and I won't be meeting with you because I have something else to do.
[1:32] And they said, what are you going to do? I said, it's an American thing. They said, what is it? I said, don't worry about it. It's an American thing. I'm not supposed to make Americans out of you. And they said, what is it?
[1:42] I said, I'm going to punch you. I'm not going to tell you. They said, oh, come on, tell us. And so like a nagging wife, you know, gets her way. I said, I didn't say a word about Betty.
[1:54] I was talking about your wife. And I said to them, I said, look, it's called Thanksgiving, the Day of Thanks. And they said, wow, what is it?
[2:04] I said, well, you know, I don't know how to explain this to you. But supposedly when we got to America and Indians fed us and we got together and we had Thanksgiving.
[2:16] And I said, so it's kind of a day to say thanks to God. And but most Americans don't do that anymore. They've turned it into just eat a lot of turkey and watch a bunch of football.
[2:28] And they said, well, we'd like to do that with you. I said, you wouldn't like football. They said, no, just eat with you and thank God. And I'm like, oh, sure, you'd like to eat with me, you little turkeys.
[2:40] And so that Thursday, Betty fixed a big old turkey. And there's six of us and about five guys. And none of them were married. And it was the sweetest day of my life.
[2:51] They got in there and I said, all right, we're going to do it. Let's do it Bible style. It's not even in the Bible, but I didn't know. But I said, let's say thank you to God. And they just started thanking God.
[3:02] And it was the sweetest thing. And people crying. And we just had a blast. And we did it the next year. And there were, I don't know, 10 people. And we did it the next year. And it was like two turkeys.
[3:13] And by the end of it, we were doing bunches of turkeys and 100 people. And it was a wild and crazy thing before we left here. They would say thank you. The very first one, they just said, I just want to thank God for sending you here.
[3:28] You're coming here and telling us about Jesus. And we got saved. And I'd be like, thank you very much. Praise to God. Amen. And a few years later, they'd be in there and somebody would go, I just want to thank God for my pastor.
[3:41] I don't even know you, missionary. But I know my pastor likes you. And so, but you led my pastor to Jesus and my pastor led me to Jesus. I just want to thank God.
[3:52] The sweetest time in the world. See all those people. I'm afraid that we won't take time to say thank you. And Psalm 65 is a big chapter on saying thank you.
[4:05] If you have your Bible and you'll mark it, I wish you'd go through Psalm 65 and just underline or circle all the vowels. And just look at it. It's an intimate relationship with God.
[4:17] The first thing I want you to see, we'll go to Psalm 65 too. This probably was written at the end of the harvest year. And they're saying thank you because you'll see that in the passage.
[4:31] Whatever they're giving God, thanks for all the blessings and all the success that came from him. And you ought to worship God for who he is and what he's done and what he is doing in your life.
[4:44] But the Psalm is also a prophetic Psalm because much of it wouldn't have been true yet. It's going to happen when Jesus sets up his kingdom. But when we worship, we worship the God of salvation.
[4:57] Look at chapter 65 and verse 2. The Bible says, O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come. You need to stop.
[5:10] Right there with that verse is a ton of things. God is approachable. But look at this. No pagan, no heathen, no one who knows any other God has a God that they even want to go to.
[5:25] But in Psalm 65 too, the Psalm has said, you hear prayer and everybody wants that.
[5:36] Everybody would like to know a God that hears and answers prayer. The world is hungry to know a God like our God. Look at that verse of me.
[5:48] O thou that hearest prayer, God you hear prayer. We're going to talk about prayer tonight. A little bit about learning about prayer. But I wish you'd just underline in this verse here.
[6:01] Wouldn't God let them write the Bible? God gave, you know, this is God's word. The psalmist didn't write this on his own. It's inspired. God breathed word of God. And when, you know, when they talk about who God is, they say, one of your names is the God that hears prayer.
[6:18] You're the almighty, but you're the God that hears prayer. Hey, you're the God that loves, but you're the God that hears prayer. You serve a God who wants you to talk to him.
[6:29] You serve a God that says, I am, and I'm a rewarder of them that diligently seek me. You serve a God who wants you to pray to him. He's approachable. Look, if you would, in Psalm 65 one, as saved sinners made saints, we come before him.
[6:46] I wish you'd get that. We are saved sinners made saints. See, we were sinners, but he saved us.
[6:58] If you're born again, if you know Jesus as your savior, if you've come to a place in your life where you put your faith and trust in him, and he made you a saint, and they stand before him here in reverence and awe.
[7:11] Look at verse one, praise waits for thee, O God, in Zion, and unto thee shall the vow be performed. That word wait, if you want to put a circle around it and draw a line to the margin, that means silence, stillness, quiet, trust, waiting, praise.
[7:33] It's, I got a lot of praise, but just to be honest with you, God, when I'm in your presence, I can't even get it out, you're so awesome. I can't even say what I think of you. You're beyond my expression.
[7:46] We are to be quiet before the Lord. That's part of worship. We know he's really God. I mean, do you realize how big he is? You realize he's a God that takes your breath away.
[7:59] He's a God that's bigger than you. Habakkuk 2.20 says, But the Lord is in his holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before him.
[8:10] Why? Because we come recognizing our unworthiness. I do not have anything in me that would make God be willing to listen to me, but he will.
[8:22] I have nothing in me that would make God say, Come, except the goodness of God. Nothing in me. We're so full of praise. We don't even know how to express it. We wait in awe before him.
[8:36] Praise waits for thee, O God. There is no temple currently, but here's a promise of one to come in Zion, in Jerusalem. And the people will worship God and do what they promised.
[8:48] God's people will one day again worship like that. Go back to verse 2 if you would. I just want you to realize this. God is known for hearing and answering prayer.
[9:01] O thou that hearest prayer. Unto thee shall all flesh come. There is a God that is alive. Now you have to understand here, there's a thousand things going on in the psalmist's mind.
[9:15] There's a thousand things going on in the Holy Spirit's mind as he gives us this. But you have to understand that hanging on the wall might be an image of some God or there might be one standing on a stand here.
[9:28] I've lived among idols many years of my life and I've watched them being paraded down the streets and I've watched them put them on their shoulders and walk them down. And the psalmist says, you know God, you're not like any idol people can make.
[9:43] You live. You are alive. You hear prayer. Everybody wants to hear that. Men need not bow to painted wood and plaster and stones.
[9:57] Men need not serve a God that needs them to move them and carry them. You realize that if your God was one of those chunks of wood, God wanted to go in that room, we just had to pick him up and move him in there.
[10:14] But this is a God who lives and breathes and has an answer's prayer. Men need to realize there is one that hears an answer's prayer. But look who comes before our God.
[10:26] Look at Psalm 65 3. Iniquities prevail against us. Sin wins. Sin defeats us.
[10:38] Sin would send us to hell. But as for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away. You know, nobody gets to come before God without acknowledging they needed God to save them.
[10:52] Amen. You realize that you realize and I don't know everybody. So just can I just say this to you? Going to a Baptist church doesn't do you much good.
[11:03] Being a Baptist doesn't do you any good. Being baptized doesn't do you any good. What God expects you to do is to realize you have sinned against a holy God. The Bible says that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
[11:16] The Bible said there's none righteous, nobody right, nobody perfect, nobody good. No, not even one is like that. And we come before God not in our goodness, not in our merit, not in what we do.
[11:31] We come before God because God rescues sinners. He reached down and saved us where we were in our failure. God brought us out and God saved us.
[11:43] I wish you'd underline he purges away the transgressions. You realize sin had us beat? Do you realize that sin had us condemned?
[11:56] Do you realize that sin had us on our way to hell? Those that come before God must come knowing their condition, their need. They need to realize sin won until Jesus comes along.
[12:09] We come before God acknowledging our utter dependence, our deep need of him. When we see our sinful, needy condition, we realize that only Jesus, only God saves.
[12:26] And he takes our sins, the sins of the world upon himself. Let me give you a few verses to write in the margin of your Bible right here. 1 John 4.14. 1 John 4.14.
[12:38] The Bible says, And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. You should underline that.
[12:49] Did you know when Jesus died, God took the sins of the world and placed them on his shoulders? Do you realize that when Jesus died, he paid the sin debt of every man from the past, his present, to the future.
[13:01] God paid the sin debts with every man of every man through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. He didn't sin. He didn't deserve to die.
[13:12] He died for me. He died for you. In 1 Timothy 4.10, the Bible says, We both labor and suffer reproach because we trust in the living God.
[13:26] You don't know that word living God in your Bible. You understand, the reason that's said is because Baal's not alive. The reason that's said is because Buddha's not alive.
[13:38] And the reason that's said is none of the other gods are alive. There's only one living God. The God of the Bible. The living God who is the Savior of all men.
[13:51] Especially those that believe. Do you know he's the Savior of lost people? He's already paid your sin debt. If you're sitting here this morning and you're in this room and you've never trusted Christ, let me just go ahead and tell you, he's already paid your sin debt.
[14:07] But it won't be yours unless you believe and receive the gift. The Bible says the wages of sin is death. But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
[14:20] Go with me to Psalm 65 and verse 4. And he satisfies. Sinners are satisfied with Jesus.
[14:32] Look at verse 4. Blessed, happy is the man whom you choose and cause to approach unto thee that he may dwell in thy courts.
[14:42] Now we need to stop there. We probably don't understand that. Because that doesn't work in our society. Because this is a Jewish thing. And the psalmist says, you know God, there are people that are actually chosen to live and work in the temple.
[15:00] They don't have a temple yet. But in the tabernacle, in the presence of God. And God reaches down and chooses a guy and says, you're the high priest. And not only do you get to go into the past where the Gentiles go and past where the Jewish women go and into the holy place.
[15:17] But you get to go into the holy of holies. Oh, what a special man that is. That God would say, come and talk to me. Come in here and be my man. He said, boy, that guy's blessed.
[15:30] When you read that, you might not be catching that. But in all of Israel, there's only one guy, one day a year, that gets to go in there. He's the blessed one.
[15:41] He's the blessed one. He's the happy one. God chose him and God allowed him to go in. And the psalmist says, we shall be satisfied with the goodness of the house, even of the holy temple.
[15:59] There's something special about being chose to serve God as a priest. Not everyone got that chance or that privilege. But did you know that even in the Old Testament, God wanted every one of the Jewish people to live like priests, like people that knew God and people that would take the message.
[16:22] Look, if you would, at Exodus chapter 19 and verse 6. I want you to know that God always wanted this relationship with people.
[16:33] Fact is, when he built the tabernacle, it was so he could tabernacle with them. He built a tent of fellowship. Come and spend time with me. Put me in the middle of your camp.
[16:45] Spend time with me. I'm the God that's alive. I'm the God that hears prayer. I'm the God that answers prayer. Come and be here. Look, if you would, at Exodus 19, 6.
[16:56] And you shall be unto me a kingdom of priests. All of them were supposed to be talking about him, talking to him, and going to him.
[17:08] But you live in the most wonderful time in history. You live in the time after that Jesus has come and been born of a virgin and lived among us and died on a cross and was dead and buried and rose again and ascended into heaven.
[17:26] And you know what he did when he did all that? He didn't let us come to the temple. He made us the temple. You understand how great that is?
[17:36] We don't have to go where God is. God came where we are. And God lives in us. In 1 Corinthians 3, verse 16, the Bible said, Know ye not, you are the temple of God.
[17:50] And that the Spirit of God dwells in you. Don't y'all know that? You understand? I don't hear it so much now. And maybe it's because I'm at Vision Baptist Church. And maybe it's because I'm with you.
[18:01] But when I was a young guy, I started my first church at the age of 23. People would come in. And they'd come in. They'd throw their cigarettes out before they got in the building. And then they'd come on in the building. And they'd start to tell a dirty joke.
[18:13] And they'd go, Oh, I'm in the house of God. I won't do that. And I'd ask them a question. They'd say, I can't lie to you. We're in the church. It used to be kind of like people felt like that.
[18:23] But the house of God was holy. You're the house of God. We leave here in just a little bit. The temples are all going home. Amen.
[18:35] That's what the book says. Amen. He's called us to holy living. Look at 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse 9. I'd like to talk to you about you just a minute. The psalmist said, Boy, the guy who is honored to go into the presence of God.
[18:51] The guy who's allowed to be the one who offers that sacrificial lamb. The one who's allowed to go in past the veil and go into the holy. Whoa. He's blessed.
[19:02] But in the New Testament, you're the temple. The veil has been torn in two. And the entranceway is open for you to get in. And God has made you a royal priesthood.
[19:16] Look, if you would, at 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse 9. But you are a chosen generation. All of you. You're born again in this morning.
[19:29] If you know Jesus as your Savior, you've been handpicked to honor him, to serve him, to magnify him. A chosen generation. You're a royal priesthood.
[19:42] That's like something no one could ever have. You're a holy nation. A peculiar people. That means you belong to him.
[19:53] That you should show. Why? That you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. You know what happened? He saved you.
[20:04] He changed you. He called you out of that. And you ought to walk around going, Glory to God. I'm the one that gets to go to the Holy of Holies. I'm the one that gets to talk to God.
[20:15] I'm the one that gets to hear from God. I even talk directly to God. You believe that? God hears and answers my prayers. I don't have to seek out a priest. I don't have to find a preacher.
[20:26] I don't have to get an anointed one. I talk to God. God hears me. Amen. You can't beat our God. What a wonderful God.
[20:38] And he satisfies. Chapter 65 and verse 4. We shall be satisfied. What God is there like this God?
[20:50] Who else chooses us and blesses us like this? Who else cleans up the filthy sinner and makes us saints?
[21:01] And there's still a temple coming. The book of Psalms is not there yet. Solomon will build the temple. And that temple won't be the real temple that's going to be where Jesus himself sits.
[21:13] That's still coming. In the Old Testament, very few got to go to the Holy of Holies. Because very few were chosen. But Jesus ripped the veil and gave us all entrance.
[21:26] But it doesn't stop with Jews. We get down to verse 4. We get down to verse 4. It's about like we've been talking about the Jewish people.
[21:36] God's chosen people. And how God was doing things with them. And now he moves to say, I'm not just the God of the Gentiles, of Israel. I'm the God of the Gentiles too.
[21:47] I'm not just the God of the Jew. I'm the God of the world. Look with me, if you would, at Psalm 65, 5. By terrible things and righteousness wilt thou answer, God of our salvation, who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth and them that are far off unto the sea.
[22:09] This word terrible. Circle it right. Awesome. Mighty. But it is terrible. It scares you to death to watch what God can do.
[22:24] And he is, you know, God used terrible things to get the nation of Israel out of Egypt. I mean, he came across the country.
[22:35] He saw people die. The firstborn died. The sea opened. The people drowned in the middle of the sea. Terrible things. Awesome things. All striking things.
[22:47] He did them for Egypt. He brought them up out of Egypt. He destroyed a country to liberate them. The world saw the greatness and the power of God over the enemies of Israel.
[22:59] God's people. God took care of them. By terrible things. By awesome things. By fear-inspiring things, God answers.
[23:11] But God's not only the God that rescued Israel, but he reaches into all nations. Look at verse 5. Underline the last part. Who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth.
[23:24] Of them that are far off upon the sea. So he's not just the God of Israel. And he never was supposed to be just the God of Israel.
[23:35] He saved people that weren't Israelites all the way back. From before Abraham till after Abraham. He saved people that weren't. He saved people in Nineveh, if you recall. He did a lot of great things.
[23:47] He saved some people in Jericho. He's always been a God that's doing that. And when they showed up in Jericho. It had been quite a long time since the people had got out of Egypt.
[23:58] Over 40 years. And they said, we know about your God. We know how mighty. How awesome. How terrible your God is. We've heard about you. We know about your God.
[24:09] And he is the God that brings confidence to the whole world. I just wish you'd underline it. God reaches out to all the world.
[24:20] Look at the verse. That who are the confidence of all the ends of the earth. What other God gives the confidence that the God of the Bible can give.
[24:34] I'd like to start. It's a missionary verse. Did you know Israel was supposed to be carrying the gospel and they got off track? And they forgot what they were supposed to do? And I hope we don't do that at our church.
[24:46] Look if you would at Isaiah. Chapter 42. Verses 6 and 7. If you would. Isaiah 42. 6 and 7. I the Lord have called thee in righteousness.
[24:59] I've called you Israel in righteousness. I will hold your hand. I will keep you and I'll give you a covenant of the people. Look at it. Underline it. For a light to the Gentiles.
[25:12] See God didn't pick this group of people for them to get blessings. He picked this group of people and he did big things in them for them to be a light to the pagans.
[25:22] To the godless. To those who had false gods. And God didn't pick you. And God didn't pick me. And God didn't save us. And God didn't bless us. So we could enjoy blessings.
[25:34] God did it for us to be a light to the Gentiles. To the pagans. To the heathen that have never heard. In verse 7 he said I gave you to be a light for the Gentiles.
[25:44] To open blind eyes. To bring out the prisoners from the prison. And then that set in darkness out of the prison house. Go make a difference. Go make a difference.
[25:57] In Isaiah 49 in verse 6. He says this. I will give thee for a light to the Gentiles. That thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
[26:10] I want you to listen. Because this puts awesome responsibility on us as a church. A church isn't a social club. A church isn't a Bible college. A church isn't a place where you come to learn more about Jesus.
[26:22] A church was put in place to do his job. His ministry. And his ministry was that we would be a light to the world. That we would take the gospel and go to the world.
[26:32] And before he ascended to the Father. Five times at least. He said this is what I want you to do. As my Father has sent me. So send I you. After that the Holy Ghost has come upon you.
[26:44] You shall be witnesses unto me. Both in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria. And the uttermost part of the earth. Take it to the world. We worship him because he saved us.
[26:57] We worship him because not only did he love just the Jewish people. But he loved all of us. God wants people everywhere to hear of him. And his greatness. And his salvation.
[27:07] That's a missionary truth. Read verse 5 with me again. Who are the confidence of all the ends of the earth? Is he?
[27:25] He should be. But they haven't heard. He wants to be. But we won't tell. He's supposed to be.
[27:37] But we won't go. We won't give. We won't make that happen. The confidence of all the ends of the earth. And after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you.
[27:50] Acts 1.8. You shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem. Both in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria. And unto the uttermost. Or unto the ends of the earth. Go unto all.
[28:02] We're going to preach the gospel to every creature. Mark 16.15. Those that never knew God will know him and be saved. God will one day raise up Jewish people.
[28:13] It will take the gospel message. 144,000 in the book of Revelation. I want you to go back to 65.5. And I want you to notice something. And them that are far off upon the sea.
[28:25] He didn't leave anybody out. Can I get an amen there? You know what? Our God loves those that live in China. And our God loves those that live in coming. And our God loves those that live in Asia.
[28:37] And our God loves those that live in Alpharetta. Our God wants the world to know about Jesus. And what he did on the cross of Calvary. This is a praise thing.
[28:50] I worship him because he saved me. I worshiped him. I worshiped him because of who he is. And he is 65.6. The creator. Look at Psalm 65.6.
[29:01] He's the creator. You can't take the creation out of the Bible. If you do, it just all falls apart. Would you like to know why they so hate the creation and love their theory of evolution?
[29:16] Because with that, you can just destroy the Bible. In Psalm 65.6. Which by his strength sets fast the mountains. He's so powerful.
[29:26] He puts mountains in their place. He can still move mountains. This is praising God for how great and powerful he is. Oh, he's the creator.
[29:37] He's still in control of even nature. Psalm 65.7. He steals the noise of the seas. He did that on a boat, didn't he? Huh?
[29:48] He's on a boat and he's all screaming and crying and worried. And he just gets up and goes, hey, sit down. See, boom. Boom. That would have been a wonderful thing to be able to see, wouldn't it? That would have been a wonderful thing to be able to see.
[30:01] The noise of their waves, a tumult of the people, even people. God's in control. They also that dwell in the uttermost part afraid of thy tokens. Thou make us the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice, even sunset and sunrise.
[30:16] God's in control. God's in control. You can thank God this week. You may not know what's going on in some elections, but God's in control. You may not know what's going on in the financial world, but God's in control.
[30:31] He controls nature and people. He controls sun and stars. He's the almighty God. He's in control of the now and the future. And you can still trust him.
[30:43] What I love about Psalm 65, and I don't know if you'll look at this, but so much of Thanksgiving is about me. And my family and my children and my life and my grandchildren.
[30:56] But in this Psalm, from here to the end of the Psalm, over and over he goes, you God, you God, you God, you, you. Thou, thou, you, God.
[31:06] It's about you. The focus is on God. Look at the number of times thou is used. Notice where the worship turns. Notice the power of the God who the whole world seeks and has confidence in.
[31:21] It's God. By the way, he's a God who is intimately involved in our world. In Psalm 65 and verse 9, you know that God causes everything.
[31:32] He's intimately involved in our world. He's in charge. Verse 9, you visit the world and water it. You know, you don't believe that, do you?
[31:47] He's in charge of the rain. I know you think the weatherman is. But Scripture says you water it. In your verse, it says in verse 9, thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God.
[32:01] You prepare them corn. I don't know what you know about this, but you're going to have the greatest plants and the greatest seed and the greatest fertilizer, and God can make it where you won't get a harvest.
[32:20] One time he told a very famous king, he said, you have seven wonderful years. You better save up all you can, because there's seven years coming after you're going to eat all the first seven. The big fat grains of corn will be swallowed up by the skinny ones, and the big fat cows will be eaten by the small cows.
[32:39] I'm in charge. I'm in charge. Notice all the references to God. The psalmist recognizes that it's God and God's power.
[32:51] Focus on God and what he's doing in your life. You and I need to stop and do what the old song said and count our many blessings and name them one by one, and it will surprise you to see what God has done.
[33:05] Psalm 65, 11 is why I think it might be a harvest psalm. Thou crownest the year with thy goodness, and thy paths drop fatness.
[33:18] It's a bunch of agricultural terms. It may not mean a whole bunch to city people. You know, milk really doesn't come in plastic jugs. It comes out of a cow, and they've got to get it into the jug.
[33:35] On the farm as a boy growing up, which I didn't do much work. I was still a kid, and I left home as soon as I could, because I'd done enough work to know. They said, not where I want to live the rest of my life.
[33:47] But I've been many a time. We walk out there, and the corn crib was slapped full of corn, and the hay barn was slapped full of hay.
[33:57] And I've walked and watched my parents have this unusual sweet time and just thank God for how he had blessed him in that year and how my dad at the beginning of the year had sat down and said, I remember so many times he would do it.
[34:14] He'd say, boy, if we're going to get through the winter, I'm going to need this much hay. I'm going to need this much corn. I'm going to need this and this and this. And now it's the end of the year, and they're going, God, you've been good.
[34:27] God, you've crowned us. You can just give us what we need. Lord, God, you've been good. God, you've been good. It was God that gave the blessings.
[34:40] You know, it was God that blessed them when they were in the wilderness, but even in Israel, it was God. They don't live in a lush area like here.
[34:52] We brought some of our Peruvian friends to America. We were riding down the road one day, and I was actually in Rome, Georgia, coming out of Rome, and they were in the car with me. One of them goes, I'm feeling claustrophobic.
[35:05] We're in the car. I said, you need me to stop and let you out of the car? He said, no, it's all the green. They lived in a desert. All they ever saw was brown dirt. And he said, like the greens taking over everything.
[35:19] And Israel is more like Peru than it was here. But guess what God did? Verse 12, little hills rejoice on every side. God, you're dropping down pastures on dry land.
[35:34] And it says in verse 13, your clothing are pastures with flocks. I still do it when I drive by. I drive by and I see a bunch of cows on a farm, on a place.
[35:46] I'll even tell Betty, I said, well, my daddy likes to see that. My daddy, he'd stop. If he saw a whole bunch of cows, he'd just stop and go look at that. You see what God did? He took all those desert hills and he made grass grow, and then he just covered them up with sheep.
[36:02] And they're like, wow, is God good or not? Is God worthy of our thanks or not? What's really fun, if you like the Bible, I hope you do, believe you do.
[36:18] They didn't say, look how good I did this year. Look how many sheep I bought. Look how many cows I got. They didn't say, boy, I sure put out the right seed this year to get a good pasture.
[36:28] I fertilized just right. I bought the right kind of sheep. They said, oh, God, you did it. Oh, God, you did it. Verse 13, even the valleys and the hills shout for joy and sing a song to God.
[36:47] God, you've been good. Read verse 13. The valleys are covered over with a corn. They shout for joy. They were seeing God everywhere in their lives.
[36:58] I really think a lot of this will be a millennial promise, but that's not for today. It's an attitude we ought to have. Are you going to this week? Would you just say thank you to God?
[37:14] Would you this week when maybe would your family say, you know, I could have lost my job. God kept me in a job. And God provided all my needs. And God's taking care of our family.
[37:26] And kids, I want you to know today, it's not because daddy and mom are smart and we know how to do everything. It's not because we got business savvy. You know, just to be honest with you kids, we serve a good God.
[37:38] Because I know a guy that went to sleep for 21 days and he had no idea he was going to do that. Nor did he know he was going to wake up because God's in charge. Not you.
[37:49] Not you. And not me. And our kids ought to hear us give praise to God Almighty. Thank you, God. You crowned our year with blessing.
[38:04] My Sunday school class. We're in the book of Daniel and it's so funny. Daniel tells old Nebuchadnezzar, you're the head of gold.
[38:16] And so Nebuchadnezzar worships Daniel. That's kind of backwards. He worshiped Daniel. And he gave offerings to Daniel. And then he built an image out of gold.
[38:28] And said, y'all bow down to it. That's me. I want y'all to praise me. You say, well, I would never do that. Well, I think you might. I think you just might have this week and you'll have a table spread with great bounty.
[38:43] And your kids will think it's all about the food. And the football. And there will be little mention of the great God of heaven.
[38:54] Who did it all. And some of you might be under the circumstances. Funeral yesterday in Florida. Funeral tomorrow in Virginia.
[39:06] Of our missionaries. Things that would discourage you and depress you. But look up. Believe God. Trust God. He'll work in whatever's going on.
[39:18] Here's what I know. You can trust God. The God that hears prayer. That all the world wants to come to. Father in heaven, I love you.
[39:29] And I thank you for the chance to just open your Bible. So beautiful to see what a wonderful God you are. What a wonderful passage of scripture. Oh God, help us from our hearts to magnify you.
[39:43] Help us to say thank you. God save you that might not know you today. With heads bowed and eyes closed, I'd like to start with believers. It might be a good time for you to come.
[39:56] Get on your face. And say thank you God. It might be a time to say I don't always thank God like I should. But today I want to. And I want to kind of straighten that up for this week.
[40:06] Would you come right now and just say boy. Thank you God. Thank you for sparing my life. Thank you for saving me. Thank you for blessing my family. Thank you God. I just magnify you.
[40:18] Let's thank God. Let's give God honor and glory. As believers, just tell God how you love him. And how you thank him. And how you magnify him. You might be here today and you might not know Jesus as your Savior.
[40:32] And I need you to understand that God loves you. And he died. He sent his son to die on a cross and pay your sin debt. And you can have your sins forgiven. And you can know that you go to heaven today if you would but trust Jesus.
[40:47] Today I want to offer you the chance. There are people that would take the Bible. And show you how to know for sure you'd go to heaven. If you would just come today. Raise your hand. I'll send them to your side.
[40:58] We'll answer your questions. No pressure. And you can know for sure you're saved. Would there be anybody like that? I ask you to pray in your seat or pray here. I ask you to tell God thank you.
[41:09] He has crowned our year with goodness. No matter how weird 2020 has been. He has crowned our year with goodness. You're still here. You're still alive. He's a good God.
[41:20] He's crowned our year with goodness because we're saved. He's crowned our year with goodness because he's still using us. Let's say thank you to him. And whenever you're through praying, you can stand and sing with Stephen as he leads us in his song.
[41:32] He's crowned our year with goodness. He's crowned our year with goodness. of the King.
[41:44] Clothed in majesty, let all the earth rejoice, all the earth rejoice.
[41:56] He wraps himself in light, and darkness tries to hide. It trembles at His voice, trembles at His voice.
[42:14] How great is our God. Sing with me, how great is our God.
[42:25] And all will see how great, how great is our God. And age to age He stands, and time is in His hands, beginning and the end, beginning and the end.
[42:57] The Godhead three in one. Father, Spirit, Son, the Lion and the Lamb, the Lion and the Lamb.
[43:14] How great is our God. Sing with me, how great is our God.
[43:26] And all will see how great, how great is our God. Well, thank you very much.
[43:37] You can have a seat. I hope you enjoyed that. I hope you'll say this week, boy, God has crowned my year with goodness. And God sure has crowned my family with goodness, way beyond and above.
[43:49] A little over 150 days, I got out of a, came off a ventilator, and God has allowed me to live. I think God's been real good to me. I think God's been good to our church, to have all of you here today.
[44:02] And we're healthy. I just think God's been good. And I think we ought to tell God how much we think he's been good. Amen.