WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:13.320 Now can we turn together in our Bibles to Paul's letter to the Colossians. 00:00:13.880 --> 00:00:18.640 And we're going to spend the next few weeks working through Colossians 1. 00:00:19.480 --> 00:00:25.460 Thinking about some of the wonderful images that we find to help us to see the glory of Jesus there. 00:00:25.460 --> 00:00:31.120 So this evening we're going to read and concentrate on the first eight verses. 00:00:31.300 --> 00:00:35.460 Especially from verse 3, Paul's Thanksgiving section. 00:00:36.399 --> 00:00:39.420 So Colossians 1 from the beginning. 00:00:55.460 --> 00:00:56.820 From God our Father. 00:00:57.560 --> 00:01:02.799 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you. 00:01:03.299 --> 00:01:09.480 Because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God's people. 00:01:10.299 --> 00:01:14.760 The faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven. 00:01:15.240 --> 00:01:21.020 And about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel that has come to you. 00:01:21.019 --> 00:01:26.819 In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world. 00:01:27.219 --> 00:01:33.319 Just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God's grace. 00:01:33.859 --> 00:01:37.599 You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant. 00:01:38.099 --> 00:01:41.420 Who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf. 00:01:42.079 --> 00:01:46.840 And who also told us of your love in the Spirit. 00:01:47.799 --> 00:01:48.199 Amen. 00:01:48.200 --> 00:01:56.840 So this evening we're going to concentrate on verse 5 and the wonderful picture of hope that we have there. 00:01:56.960 --> 00:02:00.500 Jesus Christ, our heavenly hope. 00:02:01.280 --> 00:02:06.060 I guess it's been apparent to us that the notion of hope is something that's important. 00:02:06.240 --> 00:02:10.039 Not just personally but on the world stage. 00:02:11.039 --> 00:02:17.960 Colossians 1 and this good news of hope is something that connects with our hearts and our longings. 00:02:18.199 --> 00:02:24.239 And we've just been, I'm sure, all sort of catching up with what's been happening at COP26. 00:02:24.659 --> 00:02:29.679 And people have been sort of swinging between a sense that there is a hope, though it is fragile. 00:02:30.539 --> 00:02:34.159 But perhaps others feeling that there is a sense of hopelessness. 00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:39.959 People experiencing a new sense of eco-anxiety. 00:02:39.960 --> 00:02:43.360 People being questioned on the streets of Glasgow. 00:02:43.500 --> 00:02:45.180 And no doubt you could replicate it elsewhere. 00:02:45.980 --> 00:02:48.659 What world are our kids going to enjoy? 00:02:48.780 --> 00:02:50.600 What world is going to be left behind for our grandkids? 00:02:51.379 --> 00:02:56.480 There's that wanting of hope but sense of growing hopelessness. 00:02:57.780 --> 00:02:59.460 We see it too in the world stage. 00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:01.879 It's the other thing that's been capturing the news. 00:03:01.879 --> 00:03:03.759 The migrant crises. 00:03:04.419 --> 00:03:14.620 You know, we are used to seeing those desperate attempts to cross the water to find a better life in southern Europe. 00:03:14.620 --> 00:03:20.139 But now we're seeing people trying to get through Belarus into Poland and beyond. 00:03:20.280 --> 00:03:21.859 We're seeing it in South America. 00:03:21.860 --> 00:03:33.180 And we understand that there are those who will risk everything and pay everything for even just the slight chance of the hope of a better future for them and for their children. 00:03:34.720 --> 00:03:36.620 But of course, it's not just something in the headlines. 00:03:36.740 --> 00:03:38.460 It's something deep in our hearts. 00:03:38.560 --> 00:03:43.700 We all have hopes and dreams, no doubt, for the present and for the future. 00:03:44.260 --> 00:03:48.420 Those dreams often serve to motivate and energize. 00:03:48.419 --> 00:03:54.699 But sometimes when hopes are dashed, we can find despair growing. 00:03:56.139 --> 00:03:57.719 Hope is important. 00:03:58.939 --> 00:04:03.099 And Christianity then presents us with good news. 00:04:03.859 --> 00:04:08.699 When Barack Obama wrote his biography, he wrote of the audacity of hope. 00:04:09.239 --> 00:04:12.399 And that big dream of better race relations. 00:04:12.400 --> 00:04:18.860 Well, the gospel of Jesus Christ gives us a far more audacious hope. 00:04:19.540 --> 00:04:23.300 A mind-blowingly epic hope of glory. 00:04:23.480 --> 00:04:31.560 It's central to the gospel and crucial to our hope, as we'll see today, is the coming of Jesus and his personal work. 00:04:31.800 --> 00:04:36.280 And the eternal hope that is wrapped up in what he came to do. 00:04:36.279 --> 00:04:46.339 And so perhaps as we think about this theme of hope, and we find ourselves at the school gates or in a coffee shop, or we're talking to colleagues, 00:04:46.619 --> 00:04:49.679 and perhaps this is a talking point for us. 00:04:50.519 --> 00:04:52.739 Hope streams longings for the future. 00:04:53.459 --> 00:04:59.879 Perhaps opportunities for us to weave the hope of our Creator and Redeemer into those conversations. 00:04:59.879 --> 00:05:06.800 But let's take a look with Paul to see how hope fits into the gospel message. 00:05:06.939 --> 00:05:11.019 So let's read again verse 5, or verse 4 as well. 00:05:11.180 --> 00:05:16.800 Because we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, the love you have for all God's people, 00:05:17.519 --> 00:05:20.939 the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven, 00:05:21.699 --> 00:05:24.860 and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel. 00:05:24.860 --> 00:05:27.819 It's by way of background. 00:05:28.340 --> 00:05:33.580 Paul is writing to this church in Colossae, and it becomes clear in his thanksgiving, verse 7 and 8, 00:05:33.639 --> 00:05:38.699 they've heard the message of the gospel of grace through Epaphras, and they have believed. 00:05:39.980 --> 00:05:44.420 And so Paul wants to encourage them to keep on in their faith in the Lord Jesus. 00:05:44.980 --> 00:05:49.420 But he's also very aware, and if you read the letter, and please do read the letter, 00:05:49.420 --> 00:05:51.939 you find lurking in the shadows there are false teachers. 00:05:51.939 --> 00:05:56.779 That seem to be suggesting perhaps that all we have is now, 00:05:57.420 --> 00:06:00.980 and so Paul will deliberately draw attention to future hope. 00:06:02.240 --> 00:06:05.079 But certainly these false teachers saying, yes, you need Jesus, 00:06:05.420 --> 00:06:08.680 but you also need this special knowledge that we and only we can provide. 00:06:09.500 --> 00:06:13.500 Yes, you need Jesus, but have you heard of these other ceremonies that you need? 00:06:13.500 --> 00:06:21.220 And so what Paul does to answer that is to focus on Jesus as supreme, unique, and all we need for salvation. 00:06:21.939 --> 00:06:24.680 And so that kind of underpins the letter. 00:06:25.139 --> 00:06:29.019 The section that we have just read is Paul's thanksgiving. 00:06:29.439 --> 00:06:38.420 You notice in verse 3, he's thankful to the Father for the church and for God's work in the lives of his people, 00:06:38.860 --> 00:06:44.839 and especially the reality that they have believed the gospel, the true message. 00:06:44.839 --> 00:06:53.959 And then central to this thanksgiving section is verse 5, and it's this hope that Paul speaks of. 00:06:54.000 --> 00:06:56.219 This hope which is a heavenly hope. 00:06:57.299 --> 00:06:58.679 It's stored up for them in heaven. 00:06:58.799 --> 00:07:02.079 It's a hope found in the true message of the gospel. 00:07:02.819 --> 00:07:04.519 So you put those three things together. 00:07:04.659 --> 00:07:06.319 There's the hope, there's the hope stored up in heaven. 00:07:06.399 --> 00:07:07.359 It's hope found in the gospel. 00:07:07.360 --> 00:07:13.100 We realize that for Paul, their hope is rooted in the Lord Jesus himself. 00:07:13.720 --> 00:07:17.180 Jesus is the hope of the church. 00:07:17.720 --> 00:07:20.040 So what does Paul say about the gospel? 00:07:20.360 --> 00:07:22.199 How does the gospel connect to hope? 00:07:23.160 --> 00:07:26.020 Well, first of all, and I suppose fundamentally, 00:07:26.439 --> 00:07:32.160 to remember that when Paul uses the word gospel, that word gospel means good news. 00:07:32.160 --> 00:07:37.680 And that word was borrowed from language of the day. 00:07:38.540 --> 00:07:41.580 So if you were in the Roman Empire at the time of Paul's writing, 00:07:41.760 --> 00:07:45.640 you might hear a message of gospel good news. 00:07:45.860 --> 00:07:50.040 If the Caesar had won a great victory in battle, 00:07:50.100 --> 00:07:52.200 if the Roman Empire had conquered another land, 00:07:52.220 --> 00:07:59.400 or you might hear gospel being announced because a son had been born to the emperor. 00:07:59.399 --> 00:08:04.359 Gospel in the Roman Empire, in other words, was centered on Caesar. 00:08:04.959 --> 00:08:08.279 And so what the Christians do is really radical and significant 00:08:08.279 --> 00:08:12.099 because they make good news, not all about Caesar, but all about Jesus. 00:08:12.500 --> 00:08:15.359 Good news because Jesus is Lord. 00:08:16.120 --> 00:08:19.339 There is good news because King Jesus has been born. 00:08:19.459 --> 00:08:20.259 He has come. 00:08:20.939 --> 00:08:26.120 There is good news because of the victory of Jesus at the cross and the resurrection. 00:08:27.120 --> 00:08:28.679 So to say the gospel is good news. 00:08:28.680 --> 00:08:34.659 It is challenging the culture of the day to consider who really is Lord. 00:08:36.060 --> 00:08:41.919 And the point is that from the beginning, the church understands where does hope lie? 00:08:42.460 --> 00:08:45.440 Hope lies in Jesus, who he is. 00:08:45.519 --> 00:08:46.240 It's the Son of God. 00:08:46.299 --> 00:08:48.820 What he's come to do, bring salvation. 00:08:49.340 --> 00:08:50.120 So gospel is good news. 00:08:50.240 --> 00:08:52.919 Gospel is also truth. 00:08:52.919 --> 00:08:59.399 Verse 5, they have heard the true message of the gospel. 00:09:00.039 --> 00:09:05.439 It's important for us to recognize that the gospel is a body of teaching. 00:09:06.559 --> 00:09:09.740 The gospel is revelation from God. 00:09:09.819 --> 00:09:12.059 In other words, it's not human speculation, 00:09:12.179 --> 00:09:14.799 not something created by Paul and the disciples and the apostles. 00:09:14.799 --> 00:09:18.979 It's not morality or ethics. 00:09:19.779 --> 00:09:23.479 The gospel is not, here's some steps for how to live. 00:09:23.539 --> 00:09:26.419 It's about God's salvation. 00:09:27.539 --> 00:09:33.139 And it's revealed by God himself in this word, the gospel. 00:09:33.139 --> 00:09:38.879 For Paul, our author here, gospel and truth can be interchangeable. 00:09:39.639 --> 00:09:42.080 You can see that in the book of Romans, for example. 00:09:42.199 --> 00:09:44.240 You go to Romans chapter 2, verse 8. 00:09:44.960 --> 00:09:48.759 There are people who are being challenged because they are rejecting God's truth. 00:09:49.639 --> 00:09:53.980 But then in chapter 10 and verse 16, people are being challenged because they're rejecting God's good news. 00:09:54.120 --> 00:09:55.039 Truth and good news. 00:09:55.399 --> 00:09:57.279 Truth and gospel interchangeable. 00:09:57.279 --> 00:10:04.899 And I think this matters when it comes to talking about our faith with others. 00:10:05.620 --> 00:10:12.139 Because it's rooted in truth, this isn't, here's my feelings about God versus your feelings about God. 00:10:13.240 --> 00:10:17.339 Our hope and confidence isn't built on our warm feelings. 00:10:17.339 --> 00:10:19.699 It's built on a body of truth. 00:10:20.519 --> 00:10:22.399 God has engaged our mind. 00:10:22.519 --> 00:10:23.939 God has sent revelation. 00:10:23.940 --> 00:10:29.620 And so we can have confidence because we have objective truth, not just something subjective. 00:10:30.900 --> 00:10:39.660 But then it's important to recognize, as Paul tells us in verse 6, the gospel is also about God's grace. 00:10:40.700 --> 00:10:46.160 See there at the end of verse 6, having said the gospel is bearing fruit and growing, 00:10:47.080 --> 00:10:53.140 just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God's grace. 00:10:53.139 --> 00:10:58.759 To understand the gospel is to have a firm grip on this reality. 00:10:59.279 --> 00:11:02.179 That we are not saved by our own merit. 00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:05.899 We are saved by God's grace. 00:11:06.340 --> 00:11:11.819 We are saved because of God's commitment to us in Jesus Christ. 00:11:11.820 --> 00:11:19.480 We are saved because God has freely chosen to make a free and merciful offer to us, 00:11:19.540 --> 00:11:23.280 to forgive us and give us eternal life in Christ Jesus. 00:11:24.420 --> 00:11:29.040 So the gospel is about God's grace. 00:11:29.039 --> 00:11:40.099 So good news and hope then come together for Paul because the gospel is rooted in the work of God. 00:11:40.179 --> 00:11:46.919 Here's the basis for confidence, not in ourselves, but in what God has done through Jesus. 00:11:46.919 --> 00:11:52.620 It's the Father's eternal plan that leads to the sending of Jesus. 00:11:52.620 --> 00:11:59.039 Our hope is in Jesus, the Son's willing obedience and in the work of the Spirit in opening our eyes 00:11:59.039 --> 00:12:02.519 and doing that work of conversion in our hearts. 00:12:05.899 --> 00:12:08.659 Paul speaks of the power of the gospel a little later on. 00:12:08.659 --> 00:12:12.399 If you have your Bibles, look at verse 21 to 23. 00:12:13.559 --> 00:12:19.159 As he comes to look at the power of the gospel and the importance of hope within that, 00:12:19.219 --> 00:12:24.539 he talks about them being alienated from God and previously being enemies, 00:12:25.259 --> 00:12:31.100 but now reconciled by Christ's physical body through death. 00:12:31.100 --> 00:12:37.399 Through faith in Jesus, we will be presented wholly in his sight. 00:12:37.940 --> 00:12:39.019 But then look at verse 23. 00:12:39.200 --> 00:12:47.820 If you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. 00:12:49.180 --> 00:12:55.960 So we need to hold on to this hope, this certainty presented to us in the gospel. 00:12:55.960 --> 00:13:00.420 The gospel is confident expectation, not wish fulfillment. 00:13:00.419 --> 00:13:04.620 It's rooted in Christ, that greater things are still to come. 00:13:05.179 --> 00:13:08.339 That what God has begun to do, he will complete. 00:13:10.279 --> 00:13:13.500 And that explains why, when we come back to verse 5, 00:13:13.579 --> 00:13:18.139 there is a future focus to the hope that Paul speaks about. 00:13:18.219 --> 00:13:22.240 So let's think about that, Jesus and future hope. 00:13:23.360 --> 00:13:27.679 But perhaps, before we get there, boys and girls, we can switch our brains on. 00:13:27.679 --> 00:13:35.879 So have a little think how many famous trios you can think of, or things that come in threes. 00:13:36.479 --> 00:13:37.959 I was having a little think earlier. 00:13:38.019 --> 00:13:43.979 I could think of the three musketeers, the three little pigs, the oldie locks and the three bears. 00:13:44.939 --> 00:13:46.259 But I bet you have more. 00:13:46.599 --> 00:13:47.399 You can think about that. 00:13:47.879 --> 00:13:51.839 Well, for Paul, there is a trio that keeps coming again and again. 00:13:51.840 --> 00:13:55.440 We heard it in 1 Thessalonians, as we began. 00:13:56.220 --> 00:13:57.420 And we find it here, too. 00:13:57.500 --> 00:13:59.519 It's the trio of faith and hope and love. 00:14:01.000 --> 00:14:03.899 Perhaps when we hear those, we think of 1 Corinthians 13. 00:14:04.040 --> 00:14:06.540 We think of a wedding service, perhaps. 00:14:06.660 --> 00:14:08.899 Now, these three remain, faith, hope and love. 00:14:08.920 --> 00:14:11.639 And the greatest of these is love. 00:14:11.639 --> 00:14:18.819 It seems like for Paul, this trio represents the basic description of the true Christian. 00:14:19.519 --> 00:14:25.199 A true Christian is someone who has faith and hope in God's work in Christ Jesus, 00:14:25.360 --> 00:14:28.759 and who has love for God and love for the church. 00:14:29.340 --> 00:14:32.699 This trio, faith, hope and love, serve as evidence, 00:14:33.399 --> 00:14:36.100 pointed to the reality of God's work in a person's heart. 00:14:36.899 --> 00:14:40.659 So let's have a little think about these as they are presented here. 00:14:40.659 --> 00:14:44.319 Faith, love and hope, because the order is changed. 00:14:44.399 --> 00:14:45.620 And we'll see why. 00:14:46.019 --> 00:14:48.240 So what is faith, first of all? 00:14:49.120 --> 00:14:53.740 Well, we need to recognize that faith itself is a grace from God. 00:14:53.819 --> 00:14:54.459 It's a gift. 00:14:55.679 --> 00:15:00.059 We need to understand that to see, to hear, to believe Jesus is good news, 00:15:00.939 --> 00:15:03.500 to believe that we have a need of salvation, 00:15:03.759 --> 00:15:06.019 that we have a sin problem that only Jesus can fix, 00:15:06.579 --> 00:15:08.480 that's not natural to us. 00:15:08.480 --> 00:15:11.580 That's a supernatural work. 00:15:11.860 --> 00:15:13.259 It's a gift of faith. 00:15:14.340 --> 00:15:19.940 Paul makes clear that faith, verse 4, is in Christ Jesus. 00:15:21.539 --> 00:15:25.659 As a family, we've been trying to learn the New City Catechism. 00:15:26.519 --> 00:15:27.519 A very helpful device. 00:15:27.720 --> 00:15:29.399 It comes in song, which is even more helpful. 00:15:29.960 --> 00:15:31.440 And one of the questions is, what is faith? 00:15:32.039 --> 00:15:33.519 And what is faith in Jesus Christ? 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:35.500 I have to say it in the way that the song goes. 00:15:35.819 --> 00:15:39.199 And it's receiving and resting on him alone for salvation, 00:15:39.439 --> 00:15:42.519 as he is offered to us in the gospel. 00:15:43.299 --> 00:15:46.779 It's receiving the gift of Jesus Christ, 00:15:46.860 --> 00:15:50.139 and resting and trusting in that gift, 00:15:50.240 --> 00:15:52.620 as we hear it in the true message of the gospel. 00:15:52.740 --> 00:15:53.360 That's faith. 00:15:53.360 --> 00:15:57.659 It's rooted in the Lord Jesus for salvation. 00:15:58.659 --> 00:16:00.659 But we can say more than that, too. 00:16:01.039 --> 00:16:05.440 Faith is about life under the lordship of King Jesus. 00:16:07.379 --> 00:16:09.460 United to Jesus by faith, 00:16:09.519 --> 00:16:14.080 we now live under his rule in glad obedience. 00:16:15.039 --> 00:16:17.279 Our citizenship has changed. 00:16:17.379 --> 00:16:18.539 We're in a new kingdom, 00:16:18.620 --> 00:16:19.800 no longer the kingdom of darkness, 00:16:19.799 --> 00:16:22.419 and we're in the kingdom of light. 00:16:23.519 --> 00:16:25.500 And just as in any kingdom, 00:16:26.359 --> 00:16:29.659 the ruler sets rules to live by, 00:16:30.519 --> 00:16:33.259 the Bible then becomes our rule of faith 00:16:33.259 --> 00:16:36.879 for how to live under the lordship of King Jesus. 00:16:37.979 --> 00:16:42.639 So faith is both in Jesus and under his rule. 00:16:43.939 --> 00:16:45.219 Now, what about love? 00:16:45.219 --> 00:16:47.419 What does Paul say about love here? 00:16:47.419 --> 00:16:50.939 How do we see this love in action? 00:16:51.199 --> 00:16:52.139 Look at verse 4. 00:16:53.199 --> 00:16:56.199 Paul is thankful because we've heard of your faith in Christ Jesus 00:16:56.199 --> 00:17:00.659 and of the love you have for all God's people. 00:17:01.659 --> 00:17:05.059 So this love has a particular direction. 00:17:06.240 --> 00:17:09.259 Now that a person belongs to Jesus, 00:17:10.259 --> 00:17:13.960 brought into the family of God, 00:17:13.960 --> 00:17:18.579 there is a new love for our brothers and sisters in Christ. 00:17:19.519 --> 00:17:21.420 One of the things the gospel does 00:17:21.420 --> 00:17:23.380 is it creates this new community, 00:17:23.579 --> 00:17:24.840 this new family, 00:17:24.940 --> 00:17:27.019 which is utterly unique. 00:17:27.880 --> 00:17:30.279 Paul points to its uniqueness in chapter 3, 00:17:30.759 --> 00:17:32.100 verse 11, 00:17:32.500 --> 00:17:33.160 when he says, 00:17:33.160 --> 00:17:35.380 here there is no Gentile or Jew, 00:17:35.960 --> 00:17:37.160 circumcised or uncircumcised, 00:17:38.160 --> 00:17:39.360 barbarian, Scythian, 00:17:39.559 --> 00:17:40.559 slave or free, 00:17:41.140 --> 00:17:42.700 but Christ is all and is in all. 00:17:42.700 --> 00:17:47.440 So every barrier that would normally be there in a society or a culture, 00:17:48.279 --> 00:17:50.380 every dividing line of race, 00:17:50.539 --> 00:17:51.259 of language, 00:17:51.400 --> 00:17:52.580 of ethnicity and culture 00:17:52.580 --> 00:17:54.420 are broken down in the gospel 00:17:54.420 --> 00:17:57.759 or should be broken down in the gospel 00:17:57.759 --> 00:18:01.039 because we're all one in Jesus Christ. 00:18:01.700 --> 00:18:02.860 But what Paul is saying here, 00:18:02.940 --> 00:18:04.259 the evidence of our love for God 00:18:04.259 --> 00:18:05.980 is love for his people, 00:18:06.120 --> 00:18:07.620 love for his church. 00:18:07.619 --> 00:18:09.279 John, 00:18:09.359 --> 00:18:09.819 the apostle, 00:18:10.039 --> 00:18:12.379 wrote something along the same lines 00:18:12.379 --> 00:18:13.399 in his first letter, 00:18:13.500 --> 00:18:14.279 chapter 4. 00:18:14.779 --> 00:18:16.039 He said to them effectively, 00:18:16.559 --> 00:18:18.339 we can't say we love the God 00:18:18.339 --> 00:18:19.399 who is invisible 00:18:19.399 --> 00:18:21.899 if we don't love our brothers and sisters 00:18:21.899 --> 00:18:23.579 who are right there in front of us. 00:18:23.599 --> 00:18:24.859 We can't claim to love the God. 00:18:24.919 --> 00:18:26.339 We can't see if we don't love 00:18:26.339 --> 00:18:29.359 those in God's family that we do see. 00:18:29.359 --> 00:18:32.939 So Paul says to love Jesus 00:18:32.939 --> 00:18:34.039 is to love his church 00:18:34.039 --> 00:18:36.319 and he's thankful that that's in evidence 00:18:36.319 --> 00:18:38.179 in their lives, 00:18:38.259 --> 00:18:39.339 in that active way, 00:18:39.719 --> 00:18:40.779 a costly way, 00:18:40.959 --> 00:18:41.299 serving, 00:18:41.500 --> 00:18:41.979 encouraging, 00:18:42.579 --> 00:18:43.419 sacrificing, 00:18:43.679 --> 00:18:45.359 helping one another. 00:18:45.359 --> 00:18:49.759 But I think what's interesting from Paul 00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:50.719 is that while we're used to 00:18:50.719 --> 00:18:53.139 probably hearing faith and hope and love, 00:18:53.839 --> 00:18:55.839 here we have faith and love and hope. 00:18:55.919 --> 00:18:57.199 Now, what is hope 00:18:57.199 --> 00:18:58.279 and why does that come 00:18:58.279 --> 00:18:59.899 as the third of the trio? 00:19:01.039 --> 00:19:02.579 Look with me at verse 5. 00:19:03.279 --> 00:19:04.719 We find the reason why. 00:19:05.319 --> 00:19:07.299 He says that our faith and our love 00:19:07.299 --> 00:19:09.599 spring from the hope 00:19:09.599 --> 00:19:11.439 stored up for you in heaven 00:19:11.439 --> 00:19:13.379 and about which you have already heard 00:19:13.379 --> 00:19:14.819 in the true message of the gospel. 00:19:14.819 --> 00:19:16.619 So hope is the foundation 00:19:16.619 --> 00:19:18.259 of the other two, 00:19:18.399 --> 00:19:20.099 or to use another image, 00:19:20.220 --> 00:19:21.519 hope is the root 00:19:21.519 --> 00:19:23.379 and faith and love 00:19:23.379 --> 00:19:24.839 are the fruit that grows. 00:19:26.279 --> 00:19:28.119 And here we discover that this hope 00:19:28.119 --> 00:19:30.339 that encourages our faith 00:19:30.339 --> 00:19:31.279 and encourages our love 00:19:31.279 --> 00:19:32.700 is future-focused. 00:19:32.839 --> 00:19:34.480 It is stored up for us. 00:19:34.720 --> 00:19:36.319 We are still awaiting 00:19:36.319 --> 00:19:38.399 the full realization of it 00:19:38.399 --> 00:19:40.279 and there's that sense of expectation 00:19:40.279 --> 00:19:43.700 that comes with hope. 00:19:44.819 --> 00:19:49.179 I can't speak for every child here, 00:19:49.419 --> 00:19:51.059 but any given day, 00:19:51.659 --> 00:19:52.460 if I ask our children 00:19:52.460 --> 00:19:53.439 how many days till Christmas, 00:19:53.859 --> 00:19:54.779 they'll know in a heartbeat. 00:19:56.220 --> 00:19:56.740 Expectation. 00:19:57.019 --> 00:19:57.279 Hope. 00:19:57.960 --> 00:19:58.659 The day's coming. 00:19:59.779 --> 00:20:01.359 Hope is future-focused so often 00:20:01.359 --> 00:20:02.139 and so it is 00:20:02.139 --> 00:20:04.099 in the gospel. 00:20:04.099 --> 00:20:07.799 And that's something really powerful. 00:20:09.299 --> 00:20:10.579 Alexander the Pope 00:20:10.579 --> 00:20:13.819 had the proverb that said, 00:20:14.039 --> 00:20:15.059 hope springs eternal 00:20:15.059 --> 00:20:17.240 in the human breast. 00:20:17.899 --> 00:20:19.759 But as we look around our world 00:20:19.759 --> 00:20:20.339 just now 00:20:20.339 --> 00:20:21.659 and as we see that people 00:20:21.659 --> 00:20:23.399 kind of despair about the future, 00:20:23.500 --> 00:20:25.279 we see a loss of hope 00:20:25.279 --> 00:20:26.399 among so many. 00:20:26.400 --> 00:20:30.580 The statistics on addictions 00:20:30.580 --> 00:20:31.600 bears that out. 00:20:32.220 --> 00:20:34.019 The rise of anxieties 00:20:34.019 --> 00:20:35.019 bears that out. 00:20:35.100 --> 00:20:36.840 The sense of hollowness 00:20:36.840 --> 00:20:40.060 that people are beginning to feel 00:20:40.060 --> 00:20:41.240 bears that out. 00:20:42.360 --> 00:20:43.880 And it's a reminder to us 00:20:43.880 --> 00:20:44.580 as the church 00:20:44.580 --> 00:20:45.820 that we for ourselves, 00:20:45.920 --> 00:20:48.500 we need to hold on to gospel hope 00:20:48.500 --> 00:20:49.140 to recognize 00:20:49.140 --> 00:20:51.920 all we have is not now, 00:20:52.400 --> 00:20:53.880 so much is still to come. 00:20:53.880 --> 00:20:55.560 And it gives us good news 00:20:55.560 --> 00:20:56.640 to present to a world 00:20:56.640 --> 00:20:58.000 that is desperately in need 00:20:58.000 --> 00:20:59.640 of a hope that is solid 00:20:59.640 --> 00:21:00.300 and eternal. 00:21:01.580 --> 00:21:03.560 When Paul speaks of future hope 00:21:03.560 --> 00:21:04.400 in other letters, 00:21:04.580 --> 00:21:06.440 he points in different directions. 00:21:06.660 --> 00:21:08.440 So in 1 Thessalonians 5, 00:21:09.380 --> 00:21:11.600 he emphasizes the reality 00:21:11.600 --> 00:21:13.720 of future salvation. 00:21:14.680 --> 00:21:15.780 Jesus has begun 00:21:15.780 --> 00:21:17.400 the work of salvation. 00:21:17.620 --> 00:21:19.060 He has begun building his kingdom, 00:21:19.420 --> 00:21:20.620 but that work is not completed 00:21:20.620 --> 00:21:22.940 until the day he returns. 00:21:22.940 --> 00:21:24.900 And his people are with him 00:21:24.900 --> 00:21:26.340 forever in the new heavens 00:21:26.340 --> 00:21:26.940 and the new earth. 00:21:27.019 --> 00:21:29.160 That's salvation complete. 00:21:29.620 --> 00:21:30.980 And that's still waiting 00:21:30.980 --> 00:21:31.759 in the future. 00:21:33.080 --> 00:21:34.240 1 Corinthians 15. 00:21:35.539 --> 00:21:36.700 Hope for the future there 00:21:36.700 --> 00:21:39.259 is of bodily resurrection. 00:21:41.559 --> 00:21:42.200 That as Christians, 00:21:42.340 --> 00:21:43.259 we believe that the moment 00:21:43.259 --> 00:21:44.640 a believer dies, 00:21:44.799 --> 00:21:46.519 their soul goes to glory, 00:21:46.860 --> 00:21:47.980 to be with the Lord. 00:21:47.980 --> 00:21:50.700 But it awaits the return of Jesus 00:21:50.700 --> 00:21:52.279 and resurrection, 00:21:52.519 --> 00:21:54.360 perfect resurrected bodies. 00:21:56.019 --> 00:21:57.440 Titus chapter 2. 00:21:58.279 --> 00:21:59.599 There the anticipation 00:21:59.599 --> 00:22:00.839 for the future 00:22:00.839 --> 00:22:02.920 is of the glory of Jesus 00:22:02.920 --> 00:22:05.380 being fully revealed. 00:22:05.380 --> 00:22:08.580 Now we see through a mirror 00:22:08.580 --> 00:22:09.600 just dimly. 00:22:10.520 --> 00:22:11.520 But there's going to be a day 00:22:11.520 --> 00:22:12.580 when we see perfectly. 00:22:13.680 --> 00:22:14.520 There's going to be a day 00:22:14.520 --> 00:22:15.420 when we see Jesus 00:22:15.420 --> 00:22:16.300 face to face. 00:22:17.460 --> 00:22:18.140 When we know 00:22:18.140 --> 00:22:19.120 and are known fully. 00:22:19.820 --> 00:22:20.860 And that's a wonderful hope. 00:22:20.900 --> 00:22:21.740 But all the time, 00:22:22.460 --> 00:22:23.560 when Paul is writing 00:22:23.560 --> 00:22:24.700 about present hope, 00:22:25.240 --> 00:22:25.780 or he's writing 00:22:25.780 --> 00:22:27.080 about future hope, 00:22:27.480 --> 00:22:28.740 he's talking to us 00:22:28.740 --> 00:22:29.700 about Jesus. 00:22:30.460 --> 00:22:31.720 Jesus and Jesus alone 00:22:31.720 --> 00:22:32.380 is our hope. 00:22:32.380 --> 00:22:35.840 I wonder as we read 00:22:35.840 --> 00:22:36.740 verse 5 00:22:36.740 --> 00:22:37.740 and we heard 00:22:37.740 --> 00:22:38.740 the hope stored up 00:22:38.740 --> 00:22:39.140 for you in heaven, 00:22:39.200 --> 00:22:41.000 I wonder if it made 00:22:41.000 --> 00:22:41.760 any of us think 00:22:41.760 --> 00:22:44.020 of Jesus teaching 00:22:44.020 --> 00:22:44.760 where he said, 00:22:45.100 --> 00:22:45.580 don't store up 00:22:45.580 --> 00:22:46.500 for yourself treasures 00:22:46.500 --> 00:22:47.580 on earth 00:22:47.580 --> 00:22:48.500 where moth and rust 00:22:48.500 --> 00:22:49.420 destroy and thieves 00:22:49.420 --> 00:22:50.260 break in and steal, 00:22:50.320 --> 00:22:51.060 but store up 00:22:51.060 --> 00:22:51.920 for yourselves 00:22:51.920 --> 00:22:53.440 treasure in heaven 00:22:53.440 --> 00:22:54.480 for where your treasure is 00:22:54.480 --> 00:22:55.120 there your heart 00:22:55.120 --> 00:22:56.200 will be also. 00:22:57.940 --> 00:22:58.480 You get that sense 00:22:58.480 --> 00:22:59.820 that Paul is echoing that. 00:23:00.520 --> 00:23:01.180 And for Paul, 00:23:01.280 --> 00:23:01.920 what's the treasure 00:23:01.920 --> 00:23:02.320 in heaven? 00:23:02.400 --> 00:23:03.100 The treasure in heaven 00:23:03.100 --> 00:23:03.759 is Jesus. 00:23:04.660 --> 00:23:05.600 Nothing less than 00:23:05.600 --> 00:23:07.300 Jesus, our Lord 00:23:07.300 --> 00:23:08.320 and Savior. 00:23:10.259 --> 00:23:11.980 And so Paul is thankful 00:23:11.980 --> 00:23:14.220 that this future hope 00:23:14.220 --> 00:23:16.340 is motivating their faith 00:23:16.340 --> 00:23:18.700 and their love. 00:23:19.700 --> 00:23:21.340 How does heavenly hope help? 00:23:21.860 --> 00:23:22.539 Help us today, 00:23:22.620 --> 00:23:23.300 help us tomorrow. 00:23:24.560 --> 00:23:25.400 Dick Lucas, 00:23:26.060 --> 00:23:27.440 who was a Bible teacher 00:23:27.440 --> 00:23:28.060 down in London, 00:23:28.200 --> 00:23:29.779 he said that it leads 00:23:29.779 --> 00:23:31.160 to a proper balance 00:23:31.160 --> 00:23:32.599 between experience 00:23:32.599 --> 00:23:34.559 and expectancy. 00:23:35.740 --> 00:23:36.960 So that sense of 00:23:36.960 --> 00:23:39.279 having faith in Jesus now, 00:23:39.960 --> 00:23:42.220 getting to know Jesus now, 00:23:42.899 --> 00:23:44.839 is preparation for eternity 00:23:44.839 --> 00:23:45.619 with him. 00:23:46.619 --> 00:23:47.899 So there's experience now, 00:23:47.980 --> 00:23:48.799 but there's expectancy 00:23:48.799 --> 00:23:49.720 that grows 00:23:49.720 --> 00:23:51.039 as we come to see 00:23:51.039 --> 00:23:52.500 how good he is. 00:23:53.519 --> 00:23:55.779 Loving our fellow Christians now, 00:23:56.839 --> 00:23:58.579 committing to one another 00:23:58.579 --> 00:23:59.439 in a local church, 00:23:59.599 --> 00:24:00.559 provides for us 00:24:00.559 --> 00:24:02.099 an imperfect, 00:24:02.399 --> 00:24:03.539 and it is an imperfect mirror 00:24:03.539 --> 00:24:05.539 of life in the new heavens 00:24:05.539 --> 00:24:06.199 and the new earth. 00:24:06.879 --> 00:24:07.839 We'll be with our brothers 00:24:07.839 --> 00:24:09.359 and sisters for all eternity. 00:24:09.359 --> 00:24:09.479 See? 00:24:11.899 --> 00:24:13.379 And remember that good news, 00:24:14.119 --> 00:24:14.839 that heaven, 00:24:15.399 --> 00:24:16.299 to use Jonathan Edwards' 00:24:16.639 --> 00:24:17.399 wonderful phrase, 00:24:17.459 --> 00:24:18.639 heaven is a world of love. 00:24:19.479 --> 00:24:20.259 One of the challenges 00:24:20.259 --> 00:24:21.179 I guess we have 00:24:21.179 --> 00:24:22.519 as brothers and sisters 00:24:22.519 --> 00:24:23.000 in Christ 00:24:23.000 --> 00:24:23.959 is our own sin 00:24:23.959 --> 00:24:25.079 and the sin of others, 00:24:25.159 --> 00:24:25.839 so we can find 00:24:25.839 --> 00:24:28.019 that we let one another down, 00:24:28.379 --> 00:24:29.559 we speak and act 00:24:29.559 --> 00:24:31.000 in ways that are unhelpful 00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:31.659 and unkind, 00:24:31.779 --> 00:24:32.839 but then 00:24:32.839 --> 00:24:34.219 that will be a thing 00:24:34.219 --> 00:24:35.019 of the past. 00:24:35.719 --> 00:24:36.659 Then there'll be nobody 00:24:36.660 --> 00:24:38.300 we are in a rush 00:24:38.300 --> 00:24:38.940 to avoid 00:24:38.940 --> 00:24:40.600 or to pass by, 00:24:40.700 --> 00:24:42.160 then we will be so glad 00:24:42.160 --> 00:24:43.120 to share fellowship 00:24:43.120 --> 00:24:44.660 with one another 00:24:44.660 --> 00:24:47.460 and with our Lord Jesus. 00:24:49.380 --> 00:24:51.680 And so what we experience now 00:24:51.680 --> 00:24:53.480 creates that sense 00:24:53.480 --> 00:24:54.740 of expectation 00:24:54.740 --> 00:24:57.019 for the future. 00:24:58.400 --> 00:24:59.519 On Friday, 00:25:00.000 --> 00:25:01.480 we were round at Friends 00:25:01.480 --> 00:25:03.900 having a meal together, 00:25:03.900 --> 00:25:05.420 and the high point 00:25:05.420 --> 00:25:06.120 of the meal 00:25:06.120 --> 00:25:07.340 was the dessert. 00:25:08.120 --> 00:25:10.980 It was a gingerbread trifle 00:25:10.980 --> 00:25:12.900 with a blackberry sauce, 00:25:13.120 --> 00:25:14.160 some creme anglaise, 00:25:14.259 --> 00:25:14.940 some double creams 00:25:14.940 --> 00:25:15.660 and blackberries 00:25:15.660 --> 00:25:16.580 on the top. 00:25:16.840 --> 00:25:16.880 Right? 00:25:17.460 --> 00:25:18.800 It was as good as it said. 00:25:20.480 --> 00:25:21.840 Getting the taste 00:25:21.840 --> 00:25:23.540 of the sauce 00:25:23.540 --> 00:25:26.320 before the main course 00:25:26.320 --> 00:25:28.640 was even on the table, 00:25:28.640 --> 00:25:29.780 what did that do 00:25:29.780 --> 00:25:31.660 as we were getting things ready? 00:25:31.800 --> 00:25:32.460 It created a sense 00:25:32.460 --> 00:25:33.799 of anticipation 00:25:33.799 --> 00:25:36.900 of this wonderful flavor, 00:25:37.000 --> 00:25:38.140 this wonderful dessert 00:25:38.140 --> 00:25:40.059 that was still to come. 00:25:41.500 --> 00:25:42.480 And what the Bible 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:43.779 is wanting us 00:25:43.779 --> 00:25:44.920 to understand 00:25:44.920 --> 00:25:47.340 that all that we know 00:25:47.340 --> 00:25:48.559 of the goodness of God, 00:25:48.640 --> 00:25:49.620 the love of God, 00:25:49.700 --> 00:25:50.240 the mercy 00:25:50.240 --> 00:25:51.340 and the kindness of God, 00:25:51.400 --> 00:25:52.799 the wonder of the Lord Jesus 00:25:52.799 --> 00:25:55.059 is just a taste. 00:25:55.940 --> 00:25:57.259 It's just a drop 00:25:57.259 --> 00:25:58.220 in the ocean 00:25:58.220 --> 00:26:00.120 of what is coming to us 00:26:00.120 --> 00:26:01.039 for all eternity. 00:26:01.039 --> 00:26:02.740 And so we need 00:26:02.740 --> 00:26:04.759 that sense of future hope 00:26:04.759 --> 00:26:07.879 to give us that help. 00:26:08.220 --> 00:26:09.220 Probably when life 00:26:09.220 --> 00:26:09.960 gets difficult, 00:26:10.180 --> 00:26:10.960 when life is full 00:26:10.960 --> 00:26:11.759 of struggles 00:26:11.759 --> 00:26:13.700 to remember 00:26:13.700 --> 00:26:15.299 and to hold on. 00:26:16.639 --> 00:26:17.720 That's not all 00:26:17.720 --> 00:26:18.700 that we discover 00:26:18.700 --> 00:26:19.500 about hope 00:26:19.500 --> 00:26:21.359 from Paul here. 00:26:21.859 --> 00:26:22.740 We also see 00:26:22.740 --> 00:26:24.879 Jesus brings 00:26:24.879 --> 00:26:26.539 global hope. 00:26:27.420 --> 00:26:29.279 This is in verse 6. 00:26:29.279 --> 00:26:31.559 He talks about 00:26:31.559 --> 00:26:32.259 the true message 00:26:32.259 --> 00:26:32.879 of the gospel 00:26:32.879 --> 00:26:33.559 that's come to you 00:26:33.559 --> 00:26:34.319 in the same way 00:26:34.319 --> 00:26:35.539 the gospel 00:26:35.539 --> 00:26:36.859 is bearing fruit 00:26:36.859 --> 00:26:37.859 and growing 00:26:37.859 --> 00:26:40.359 throughout the whole world 00:26:40.359 --> 00:26:42.079 just as it has been 00:26:42.079 --> 00:26:43.099 doing among you 00:26:43.099 --> 00:26:44.500 since the day you heard 00:26:44.500 --> 00:26:45.539 it and truly understood 00:26:45.539 --> 00:26:46.619 God's grace. 00:26:47.619 --> 00:26:48.899 Now this is 00:26:48.899 --> 00:26:50.059 something that we really 00:26:50.059 --> 00:26:51.940 need to focus on 00:26:51.940 --> 00:26:52.539 as Christians 00:26:52.539 --> 00:26:53.279 and something that 00:26:53.279 --> 00:26:53.879 runs 00:26:53.879 --> 00:26:55.619 counter to 00:26:55.619 --> 00:26:56.539 culture. 00:26:56.539 --> 00:26:57.740 it's the question 00:26:57.740 --> 00:26:58.920 what is the greatest 00:26:58.920 --> 00:26:59.960 hope 00:26:59.960 --> 00:27:01.299 that anyone 00:27:01.299 --> 00:27:01.980 could be offered 00:27:01.980 --> 00:27:02.339 today? 00:27:02.440 --> 00:27:03.700 What is the one 00:27:03.700 --> 00:27:04.299 thing 00:27:04.299 --> 00:27:05.579 that regardless 00:27:05.579 --> 00:27:06.980 of the age of a person, 00:27:07.059 --> 00:27:08.039 the culture of a person, 00:27:08.139 --> 00:27:09.079 the place of the globe 00:27:09.079 --> 00:27:09.740 where they find themselves 00:27:09.740 --> 00:27:11.299 with the greatest hope 00:27:11.299 --> 00:27:13.099 that they could be offered? 00:27:15.460 --> 00:27:15.899 Biblically, 00:27:16.039 --> 00:27:17.059 the answer we give 00:27:17.059 --> 00:27:17.359 is that 00:27:17.359 --> 00:27:18.599 the great hope 00:27:18.599 --> 00:27:19.180 is that someone 00:27:19.180 --> 00:27:20.880 can wake up 00:27:20.880 --> 00:27:22.220 a sinner 00:27:22.220 --> 00:27:24.039 far from God 00:27:24.039 --> 00:27:24.980 dead in 00:27:24.980 --> 00:27:26.200 their sins 00:27:26.200 --> 00:27:27.100 heading for 00:27:27.100 --> 00:27:27.700 a lost 00:27:27.700 --> 00:27:28.320 eternity 00:27:28.320 --> 00:27:29.620 but they can go 00:27:29.620 --> 00:27:30.120 to bed 00:27:30.120 --> 00:27:31.460 a child of God 00:27:31.460 --> 00:27:32.940 they can go 00:27:32.940 --> 00:27:33.380 to bed 00:27:33.380 --> 00:27:34.340 with eternal hope 00:27:34.340 --> 00:27:35.420 knowing sins 00:27:35.420 --> 00:27:36.380 are forgiven 00:27:36.380 --> 00:27:37.600 made alive 00:27:37.600 --> 00:27:38.220 in Christ 00:27:38.220 --> 00:27:38.880 through hearing 00:27:38.880 --> 00:27:39.600 and believing 00:27:39.600 --> 00:27:40.400 the gospel. 00:27:41.680 --> 00:27:43.039 That's the greatest 00:27:43.039 --> 00:27:43.380 hope 00:27:43.380 --> 00:27:44.200 as a church 00:27:44.200 --> 00:27:45.360 that's all we've got 00:27:45.360 --> 00:27:46.140 in that sense 00:27:46.140 --> 00:27:47.840 but it's all we need. 00:27:49.180 --> 00:27:51.700 And that hope 00:27:51.700 --> 00:27:52.680 we can offer 00:27:52.680 --> 00:27:55.700 not because of 00:27:55.700 --> 00:27:56.080 our 00:27:56.080 --> 00:27:58.180 wonderful 00:27:58.180 --> 00:27:59.920 personalities 00:27:59.920 --> 00:28:01.039 that will draw 00:28:01.039 --> 00:28:01.620 people 00:28:01.620 --> 00:28:03.220 to faith in Jesus 00:28:03.220 --> 00:28:04.360 because we have it 00:28:04.360 --> 00:28:05.700 not because of 00:28:05.700 --> 00:28:06.560 our ability 00:28:06.560 --> 00:28:07.900 to argue 00:28:07.900 --> 00:28:08.600 or convince 00:28:08.600 --> 00:28:09.900 someone into the kingdom 00:28:09.900 --> 00:28:12.060 the hope 00:28:12.060 --> 00:28:13.840 rests in the gospel 00:28:13.840 --> 00:28:15.160 and the gospel 00:28:15.160 --> 00:28:16.160 being powerful. 00:28:16.980 --> 00:28:17.519 The gospel 00:28:17.519 --> 00:28:18.279 is a message 00:28:18.279 --> 00:28:19.120 and it's a message 00:28:19.119 --> 00:28:19.699 that's living 00:28:19.699 --> 00:28:20.259 and powerful 00:28:20.259 --> 00:28:21.279 or to use 00:28:21.279 --> 00:28:22.159 Paul's phrase 00:28:22.159 --> 00:28:22.879 it's a gospel 00:28:22.879 --> 00:28:24.159 that bears fruit 00:28:24.159 --> 00:28:25.639 and grows 00:28:25.639 --> 00:28:27.359 bearing fruit 00:28:27.359 --> 00:28:27.879 and growing 00:28:27.879 --> 00:28:29.179 throughout the world. 00:28:29.939 --> 00:28:30.879 Again I think 00:28:30.879 --> 00:28:31.339 here we have 00:28:31.339 --> 00:28:31.719 from Paul 00:28:31.719 --> 00:28:32.619 another echo 00:28:32.619 --> 00:28:33.299 of Jesus 00:28:33.299 --> 00:28:35.399 the parable 00:28:35.399 --> 00:28:36.179 of the sower 00:28:36.179 --> 00:28:37.559 and the seeds 00:28:37.559 --> 00:28:38.879 and the seed 00:28:38.879 --> 00:28:39.339 that fell 00:28:39.339 --> 00:28:40.239 on the good soil 00:28:40.239 --> 00:28:41.019 and that seed 00:28:41.019 --> 00:28:41.500 grew 00:28:41.500 --> 00:28:42.379 and produced 00:28:42.379 --> 00:28:43.419 a crop 00:28:43.419 --> 00:28:45.259 that seed 00:28:45.259 --> 00:28:46.199 the good news 00:28:46.199 --> 00:28:46.779 of Jesus 00:28:46.779 --> 00:28:48.339 that good news 00:28:48.339 --> 00:28:49.099 of salvation 00:28:49.099 --> 00:28:49.839 by grace 00:28:49.839 --> 00:28:50.200 alone 00:28:50.200 --> 00:28:51.519 produces a crop 00:28:51.519 --> 00:28:54.119 when the church 00:28:54.119 --> 00:28:54.819 expands 00:28:54.819 --> 00:28:55.700 when mission 00:28:55.700 --> 00:28:56.259 happens 00:28:56.259 --> 00:28:57.420 when people 00:28:57.420 --> 00:28:58.839 submit to Jesus 00:28:58.839 --> 00:29:00.660 as Lord 00:29:00.660 --> 00:29:04.300 and Paul 00:29:04.300 --> 00:29:05.420 gives thanks 00:29:05.420 --> 00:29:07.400 because he sees 00:29:07.400 --> 00:29:07.820 that this 00:29:07.820 --> 00:29:09.940 future hope 00:29:09.940 --> 00:29:12.340 of eternity 00:29:12.340 --> 00:29:14.060 with Jesus 00:29:14.060 --> 00:29:15.960 that's so central 00:29:15.960 --> 00:29:16.720 to the gospel 00:29:16.720 --> 00:29:17.820 is being believed 00:29:17.820 --> 00:29:19.519 not just in Colossae 00:29:19.519 --> 00:29:20.460 but all around 00:29:20.460 --> 00:29:21.360 the world 00:29:21.360 --> 00:29:24.100 and it's this 00:29:24.100 --> 00:29:25.560 same hope 00:29:25.560 --> 00:29:28.460 that should drive us 00:29:28.460 --> 00:29:29.120 in mission 00:29:29.120 --> 00:29:29.500 too 00:29:29.500 --> 00:29:32.360 when we really 00:29:32.360 --> 00:29:33.039 believe 00:29:33.039 --> 00:29:34.200 that the gospel 00:29:34.200 --> 00:29:35.779 is powerful 00:29:35.779 --> 00:29:38.100 that the gospel 00:29:38.100 --> 00:29:39.279 is the greatest 00:29:39.279 --> 00:29:40.440 need for men 00:29:40.440 --> 00:29:40.779 and women 00:29:40.779 --> 00:29:41.220 and boys 00:29:41.220 --> 00:29:41.640 and girls 00:29:41.640 --> 00:29:42.240 today 00:29:42.240 --> 00:29:44.039 we begin 00:29:44.039 --> 00:29:44.960 to understand 00:29:44.960 --> 00:29:45.680 just how much 00:29:45.680 --> 00:29:46.980 mission matters 00:29:46.980 --> 00:29:49.460 I think it's 00:29:49.460 --> 00:29:50.600 as we understood 00:29:50.600 --> 00:29:51.200 to apply this 00:29:51.200 --> 00:29:52.019 to our local 00:29:52.019 --> 00:29:52.519 context 00:29:52.519 --> 00:29:52.860 I think it's 00:29:52.860 --> 00:29:53.240 as we 00:29:53.240 --> 00:29:55.240 grasp this 00:29:55.240 --> 00:29:57.319 that we will 00:29:57.319 --> 00:29:58.420 really support 00:29:58.420 --> 00:29:59.160 our mission 00:29:59.160 --> 00:29:59.680 partners 00:29:59.680 --> 00:30:00.660 both prayerfully 00:30:00.660 --> 00:30:01.519 and financially 00:30:01.519 --> 00:30:03.500 as we think 00:30:03.500 --> 00:30:04.099 about becoming 00:30:04.099 --> 00:30:04.920 a mother church 00:30:04.920 --> 00:30:05.700 to Gala Shields 00:30:05.700 --> 00:30:06.059 I think it's 00:30:06.059 --> 00:30:06.359 as we 00:30:06.359 --> 00:30:07.480 understand 00:30:07.480 --> 00:30:08.460 that it's 00:30:08.460 --> 00:30:09.400 the gospel 00:30:09.400 --> 00:30:10.019 that people 00:30:10.019 --> 00:30:10.720 in Gala Shields 00:30:10.720 --> 00:30:10.859 need 00:30:10.859 --> 00:30:11.240 that we'll 00:30:11.240 --> 00:30:12.200 commit to 00:30:12.200 --> 00:30:12.960 Craig and Amy 00:30:12.960 --> 00:30:13.480 and the team 00:30:13.480 --> 00:30:13.920 that will be 00:30:13.920 --> 00:30:14.740 formed there 00:30:14.740 --> 00:30:17.079 I think as we 00:30:17.079 --> 00:30:17.839 believe in the 00:30:17.839 --> 00:30:18.660 power of the gospel 00:30:18.660 --> 00:30:19.140 it's what will 00:30:19.140 --> 00:30:19.839 cause us to 00:30:19.839 --> 00:30:20.960 pray for 00:30:20.960 --> 00:30:21.940 local mission 00:30:21.940 --> 00:30:22.920 for international 00:30:22.920 --> 00:30:23.500 mission 00:30:23.500 --> 00:30:24.460 it will cause us 00:30:24.460 --> 00:30:24.880 to give 00:30:24.880 --> 00:30:25.220 and it will 00:30:25.220 --> 00:30:26.000 lead some 00:30:26.000 --> 00:30:26.300 of us 00:30:26.300 --> 00:30:26.820 to go 00:30:26.820 --> 00:30:29.160 perhaps just 00:30:29.160 --> 00:30:29.700 to go to 00:30:29.700 --> 00:30:29.980 the other 00:30:29.980 --> 00:30:30.420 side of the 00:30:30.420 --> 00:30:30.720 office 00:30:30.720 --> 00:30:31.380 to begin 00:30:31.380 --> 00:30:32.180 a conversation 00:30:32.180 --> 00:30:33.380 to establish 00:30:33.380 --> 00:30:34.040 a relationship 00:30:34.040 --> 00:30:34.720 with the hope 00:30:34.720 --> 00:30:35.500 of sharing 00:30:35.500 --> 00:30:35.940 Jesus 00:30:35.940 --> 00:30:36.840 but perhaps 00:30:36.840 --> 00:30:37.440 it will lead 00:30:37.440 --> 00:30:37.880 us to go 00:30:37.880 --> 00:30:39.180 to the other 00:30:39.180 --> 00:30:39.600 side of the 00:30:39.600 --> 00:30:39.900 world 00:30:39.900 --> 00:30:40.980 to give our 00:30:40.980 --> 00:30:41.460 lives 00:30:41.460 --> 00:30:43.420 for the 00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:43.860 mission 00:30:43.860 --> 00:30:45.040 of Jesus 00:30:45.040 --> 00:30:47.520 to see 00:30:47.520 --> 00:30:48.620 his kingdom 00:30:48.620 --> 00:30:49.440 come and his 00:30:49.440 --> 00:30:50.140 will being 00:30:50.140 --> 00:30:50.580 done 00:30:50.580 --> 00:30:51.740 in our life 00:30:51.740 --> 00:30:52.120 and in the 00:30:52.120 --> 00:30:53.040 lives of 00:30:53.040 --> 00:30:53.780 others 00:30:53.779 --> 00:30:55.500 as we 00:30:55.500 --> 00:30:55.980 understand 00:30:55.980 --> 00:30:56.599 that people 00:30:56.599 --> 00:30:57.259 need 00:30:57.259 --> 00:30:58.619 the hope 00:30:58.619 --> 00:30:58.920 of the 00:30:58.920 --> 00:30:59.440 gospel 00:30:59.440 --> 00:31:00.379 the world 00:31:00.379 --> 00:31:01.079 needs 00:31:01.079 --> 00:31:02.220 the hope 00:31:02.220 --> 00:31:02.740 of the 00:31:02.740 --> 00:31:03.240 gospel 00:31:03.240 --> 00:31:04.740 for now 00:31:04.740 --> 00:31:05.940 and eternity 00:31:05.940 --> 00:31:07.960 so as Paul 00:31:07.960 --> 00:31:09.119 begins his 00:31:09.119 --> 00:31:10.299 letter to 00:31:10.299 --> 00:31:11.079 the Colossians 00:31:11.079 --> 00:31:11.940 he begins 00:31:11.940 --> 00:31:13.399 by reminding 00:31:13.399 --> 00:31:14.139 them and by 00:31:14.139 --> 00:31:15.180 reminding us 00:31:15.180 --> 00:31:17.759 of how important 00:31:17.759 --> 00:31:18.480 hope is 00:31:18.480 --> 00:31:20.180 Jesus 00:31:20.180 --> 00:31:20.200 and Jesus 00:31:20.200 --> 00:31:21.420 as our 00:31:21.420 --> 00:31:22.579 great hope 00:31:22.579 --> 00:31:24.180 perhaps 00:31:24.180 --> 00:31:25.039 you saw 00:31:25.039 --> 00:31:25.720 in the news 00:31:25.720 --> 00:31:26.720 this week 00:31:26.720 --> 00:31:28.319 the church 00:31:28.319 --> 00:31:28.880 in Glasgow 00:31:28.880 --> 00:31:30.019 they put up 00:31:30.019 --> 00:31:30.360 a sign 00:31:30.360 --> 00:31:30.860 outside 00:31:30.860 --> 00:31:31.860 its church 00:31:31.860 --> 00:31:32.380 building 00:31:32.380 --> 00:31:33.860 that basically 00:31:33.860 --> 00:31:34.400 said I think 00:31:34.400 --> 00:31:34.799 it was that 00:31:34.799 --> 00:31:35.299 the world's 00:31:35.299 --> 00:31:36.120 greatest need 00:31:36.120 --> 00:31:37.099 is for 00:31:37.099 --> 00:31:37.680 churches to 00:31:37.680 --> 00:31:38.259 preach Christ 00:31:38.259 --> 00:31:38.799 crucified 00:31:38.799 --> 00:31:40.059 not claim 00:31:40.059 --> 00:31:40.720 it change 00:31:40.720 --> 00:31:43.960 perhaps provocative 00:31:43.960 --> 00:31:45.980 perhaps we 00:31:45.980 --> 00:31:46.519 might question 00:31:46.519 --> 00:31:46.920 the wisdom 00:31:46.920 --> 00:31:47.240 and say 00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:48.200 well perhaps 00:31:48.200 --> 00:31:48.600 we could have 00:31:48.600 --> 00:31:49.500 shown solidarity 00:31:49.500 --> 00:31:51.980 with the 00:31:51.980 --> 00:31:53.039 emphasis on 00:31:53.039 --> 00:31:53.660 stewardship 00:31:53.660 --> 00:31:54.120 and such 00:31:54.120 --> 00:31:54.380 things 00:31:54.380 --> 00:31:56.360 but we need 00:31:56.360 --> 00:31:56.840 to understand 00:31:56.840 --> 00:31:57.180 that the 00:31:57.180 --> 00:31:57.620 point 00:31:57.620 --> 00:31:59.319 holds 00:31:59.319 --> 00:32:02.259 what the 00:32:02.259 --> 00:32:03.259 world needs 00:32:03.259 --> 00:32:05.059 far more 00:32:05.059 --> 00:32:05.600 than 00:32:05.600 --> 00:32:07.640 any 00:32:07.640 --> 00:32:08.160 significant 00:32:08.160 --> 00:32:09.160 climate change 00:32:09.160 --> 00:32:10.720 is to hear 00:32:10.720 --> 00:32:11.279 the good news 00:32:11.279 --> 00:32:11.660 of the Lord 00:32:11.660 --> 00:32:12.000 Jesus 00:32:12.000 --> 00:32:13.359 and to 00:32:13.359 --> 00:32:13.839 believe 00:32:13.839 --> 00:32:16.259 if the 00:32:16.259 --> 00:32:16.700 world is 00:32:16.700 --> 00:32:17.059 at one 00:32:17.059 --> 00:32:17.539 minute to 00:32:17.539 --> 00:32:17.819 midnight 00:32:17.819 --> 00:32:18.279 as Boris 00:32:18.279 --> 00:32:18.660 Johnson 00:32:18.660 --> 00:32:20.220 borrowed that 00:32:20.220 --> 00:32:20.680 phrase 00:32:20.680 --> 00:32:21.059 we need 00:32:21.059 --> 00:32:21.319 to 00:32:21.319 --> 00:32:22.619 recognize 00:32:22.619 --> 00:32:24.759 the eternal 00:32:24.759 --> 00:32:25.519 urgency 00:32:25.519 --> 00:32:27.140 of people 00:32:27.140 --> 00:32:27.740 hearing the 00:32:27.740 --> 00:32:28.680 gospel message 00:32:28.680 --> 00:32:30.279 for the 00:32:30.279 --> 00:32:30.700 world to 00:32:30.700 --> 00:32:31.220 hear 00:32:31.220 --> 00:32:32.240 the truth 00:32:32.240 --> 00:32:33.000 of eternal 00:32:33.000 --> 00:32:33.640 hope 00:32:33.640 --> 00:32:34.839 that's found 00:32:34.839 --> 00:32:35.119 in the 00:32:35.119 --> 00:32:35.779 Lord Jesus 00:32:35.779 --> 00:32:37.480 that's why 00:32:37.480 --> 00:32:37.779 the world 00:32:37.779 --> 00:32:38.359 still needs 00:32:38.359 --> 00:32:39.119 the church 00:32:39.119 --> 00:32:40.500 because the 00:32:40.500 --> 00:32:40.980 church has 00:32:40.980 --> 00:32:41.660 the gospel 00:32:41.660 --> 00:32:43.940 it's why 00:32:43.940 --> 00:32:44.600 our friends 00:32:44.600 --> 00:32:44.860 and our 00:32:44.860 --> 00:32:45.180 neighbors 00:32:45.180 --> 00:32:45.779 they need 00:32:45.779 --> 00:32:46.960 our faith 00:32:46.960 --> 00:32:47.360 and our 00:32:47.360 --> 00:32:47.740 love 00:32:47.740 --> 00:32:48.200 and our 00:32:48.200 --> 00:32:48.600 hope 00:32:48.600 --> 00:32:49.560 that it 00:32:49.560 --> 00:32:50.100 might point 00:32:50.100 --> 00:32:50.440 them 00:32:50.440 --> 00:32:51.740 to Jesus 00:32:51.740 --> 00:32:55.560 to move 00:32:55.560 --> 00:32:56.000 a little bit 00:32:56.000 --> 00:32:56.519 forward 00:32:56.519 --> 00:32:58.220 to Colossians 00:32:58.220 --> 00:32:58.980 chapter 2 00:32:58.980 --> 00:32:59.400 and verse 00:32:59.400 --> 00:33:00.120 13 00:33:00.120 --> 00:33:01.580 here is our 00:33:01.580 --> 00:33:01.920 hope 00:33:01.920 --> 00:33:03.160 here is the 00:33:03.160 --> 00:33:03.600 hope of the 00:33:03.600 --> 00:33:04.040 gospel 00:33:04.040 --> 00:33:05.400 when you were 00:33:05.400 --> 00:33:05.920 dead 00:33:05.920 --> 00:33:07.360 in your sins 00:33:07.360 --> 00:33:08.740 and in the 00:33:08.740 --> 00:33:09.600 uncircumcision 00:33:09.600 --> 00:33:10.000 of your 00:33:10.000 --> 00:33:10.620 flesh 00:33:10.619 --> 00:33:12.159 God 00:33:12.159 --> 00:33:13.099 made you 00:33:13.099 --> 00:33:13.559 alive 00:33:13.559 --> 00:33:14.279 with Christ 00:33:14.279 --> 00:33:15.919 he forgave 00:33:15.919 --> 00:33:16.339 us all 00:33:16.339 --> 00:33:17.059 our sins 00:33:17.059 --> 00:33:18.239 having 00:33:18.239 --> 00:33:18.619 cancelled 00:33:18.619 --> 00:33:19.239 the charge 00:33:19.239 --> 00:33:19.519 of our 00:33:19.519 --> 00:33:19.879 legal 00:33:19.879 --> 00:33:20.679 indebtedness 00:33:20.679 --> 00:33:21.179 which stood 00:33:21.179 --> 00:33:21.979 against us 00:33:21.979 --> 00:33:23.279 and condemned 00:33:23.279 --> 00:33:23.759 us 00:33:23.759 --> 00:33:25.019 he has 00:33:25.019 --> 00:33:25.659 taken it 00:33:25.659 --> 00:33:26.000 away 00:33:26.000 --> 00:33:27.759 nailing it 00:33:27.759 --> 00:33:28.039 to the 00:33:28.039 --> 00:33:28.500 cross 00:33:28.500 --> 00:33:29.919 dead in 00:33:29.919 --> 00:33:30.619 our sins 00:33:30.619 --> 00:33:31.679 that God 00:33:31.679 --> 00:33:32.099 made us 00:33:32.099 --> 00:33:32.799 alive with 00:33:32.799 --> 00:33:33.279 Christ 00:33:33.279 --> 00:33:34.419 by forgiving 00:33:34.419 --> 00:33:35.000 our sins 00:33:35.000 --> 00:33:35.399 that's 00:33:35.399 --> 00:33:36.099 that's our 00:33:36.099 --> 00:33:36.959 great hope 00:33:36.960 --> 00:33:38.640 it's our 00:33:38.640 --> 00:33:39.200 great need 00:33:39.200 --> 00:33:40.299 and it's 00:33:40.299 --> 00:33:40.720 the great 00:33:40.720 --> 00:33:41.140 need 00:33:41.140 --> 00:33:42.180 of our 00:33:42.180 --> 00:33:42.660 world 00:33:42.660 --> 00:33:44.360 let's pray 00:33:44.360 --> 00:33:44.940 in that 00:33:44.940 --> 00:33:45.299 light 00:33:45.299 --> 00:33:49.180 our 00:33:49.180 --> 00:33:53.539 father 00:33:53.539 --> 00:33:54.620 in heaven 00:33:54.620 --> 00:33:56.579 we are 00:33:56.579 --> 00:33:56.900 so 00:33:56.900 --> 00:33:57.740 thankful 00:33:57.740 --> 00:33:58.880 and humbled 00:33:58.880 --> 00:33:59.880 this evening 00:33:59.880 --> 00:34:01.160 as we 00:34:01.160 --> 00:34:01.720 consider 00:34:01.720 --> 00:34:03.319 the hope 00:34:03.319 --> 00:34:03.860 that is 00:34:03.860 --> 00:34:04.360 held out 00:34:04.360 --> 00:34:04.759 to us 00:34:04.759 --> 00:34:05.019 in the 00:34:05.019 --> 00:34:05.460 gospel 00:34:05.460 --> 00:34:07.860 that hope 00:34:07.860 --> 00:34:09.000 that you 00:34:09.000 --> 00:34:09.860 have sent 00:34:09.860 --> 00:34:10.699 your 00:34:10.699 --> 00:34:11.980 son 00:34:11.980 --> 00:34:12.639 the Lord 00:34:12.639 --> 00:34:13.059 Jesus 00:34:13.059 --> 00:34:14.519 to become 00:34:14.519 --> 00:34:15.340 one of us 00:34:15.340 --> 00:34:16.940 to die 00:34:16.940 --> 00:34:17.400 in our 00:34:17.400 --> 00:34:18.000 place 00:34:18.000 --> 00:34:19.659 the 00:34:19.659 --> 00:34:20.519 just 00:34:20.519 --> 00:34:20.980 for the 00:34:20.980 --> 00:34:21.559 unjust 00:34:21.559 --> 00:34:23.079 to bring 00:34:23.079 --> 00:34:23.480 us to 00:34:23.480 --> 00:34:23.820 God 00:34:23.820 --> 00:34:26.760 we thank 00:34:26.760 --> 00:34:27.079 you 00:34:27.079 --> 00:34:28.400 that by 00:34:28.400 --> 00:34:28.980 faith 00:34:28.980 --> 00:34:29.740 in Jesus 00:34:29.740 --> 00:34:31.500 we can 00:34:31.500 --> 00:34:31.940 know 00:34:31.940 --> 00:34:32.639 that our 00:34:32.639 --> 00:34:32.940 sins 00:34:32.940 --> 00:34:33.559 are forgiven 00:34:33.559 --> 00:34:35.500 that we 00:34:35.500 --> 00:34:35.840 are no 00:34:35.840 --> 00:34:36.299 longer 00:34:36.299 --> 00:34:38.119 alienated 00:34:38.119 --> 00:34:38.500 from you 00:34:38.500 --> 00:34:38.960 no longer 00:34:38.960 --> 00:34:39.779 strangers 00:34:39.779 --> 00:34:40.880 or enemies 00:34:40.880 --> 00:34:42.179 but brought 00:34:42.179 --> 00:34:43.000 into your 00:34:43.000 --> 00:34:43.599 family 00:34:43.599 --> 00:34:45.539 given the 00:34:45.539 --> 00:34:45.960 hope 00:34:45.960 --> 00:34:46.619 of 00:34:46.619 --> 00:34:47.279 eternity 00:34:47.279 --> 00:34:50.219 Lord we 00:34:50.219 --> 00:34:50.860 thank you 00:34:50.860 --> 00:34:51.239 that you 00:34:51.239 --> 00:34:51.860 have given 00:34:51.860 --> 00:34:52.380 to us 00:34:52.380 --> 00:34:52.960 in Jesus 00:34:52.960 --> 00:34:54.259 a hope 00:34:54.259 --> 00:34:54.639 that is 00:34:54.639 --> 00:34:55.099 solid 00:34:55.099 --> 00:34:56.279 and secure 00:34:56.279 --> 00:34:58.039 that is 00:34:58.039 --> 00:34:58.940 stored up 00:34:58.940 --> 00:34:59.320 for us 00:34:59.320 --> 00:34:59.880 in heaven 00:34:59.880 --> 00:35:01.780 thank you 00:35:01.780 --> 00:35:02.039 for the 00:35:02.039 --> 00:35:02.460 promise 00:35:02.460 --> 00:35:03.079 that Jesus 00:35:03.079 --> 00:35:03.480 who is 00:35:03.480 --> 00:35:03.940 in heaven 00:35:03.940 --> 00:35:04.380 now 00:35:04.380 --> 00:35:05.539 as Lord 00:35:05.539 --> 00:35:05.880 of the 00:35:05.880 --> 00:35:06.260 church 00:35:06.260 --> 00:35:06.980 caring for 00:35:06.980 --> 00:35:07.400 the church 00:35:07.400 --> 00:35:08.039 praying for 00:35:08.039 --> 00:35:08.500 the church 00:35:08.500 --> 00:35:09.059 that same 00:35:09.059 --> 00:35:09.599 Jesus 00:35:09.599 --> 00:35:11.380 will return 00:35:11.380 --> 00:35:13.140 and he 00:35:13.140 --> 00:35:13.680 will make 00:35:13.680 --> 00:35:14.360 all things 00:35:14.360 --> 00:35:14.740 new 00:35:14.740 --> 00:35:16.079 and he 00:35:16.079 --> 00:35:16.500 will 00:35:16.500 --> 00:35:17.660 take his 00:35:17.660 --> 00:35:18.099 people 00:35:18.099 --> 00:35:19.059 to live 00:35:19.059 --> 00:35:19.660 with him 00:35:19.660 --> 00:35:20.180 forever 00:35:20.180 --> 00:35:21.260 in the new 00:35:21.260 --> 00:35:21.700 heavens 00:35:21.700 --> 00:35:22.220 and the new 00:35:22.220 --> 00:35:22.740 earth 00:35:22.740 --> 00:35:23.900 and perfect 00:35:23.900 --> 00:35:24.680 resurrected 00:35:24.680 --> 00:35:25.280 bodies 00:35:25.280 --> 00:35:26.500 where sin 00:35:26.500 --> 00:35:27.260 and death 00:35:27.260 --> 00:35:27.940 are no 00:35:27.940 --> 00:35:28.380 more 00:35:28.380 --> 00:35:32.360 Lord 00:35:32.360 --> 00:35:32.920 to a 00:35:32.920 --> 00:35:33.360 world 00:35:33.360 --> 00:35:34.079 that is 00:35:34.079 --> 00:35:34.980 looking 00:35:34.980 --> 00:35:35.700 and longing 00:35:35.700 --> 00:35:36.440 for hope 00:35:36.440 --> 00:35:37.760 as we 00:35:37.760 --> 00:35:38.400 understand 00:35:38.400 --> 00:35:39.240 how crucial 00:35:39.240 --> 00:35:39.820 hope 00:35:39.820 --> 00:35:40.400 is 00:35:40.400 --> 00:35:42.039 to life 00:35:42.039 --> 00:35:42.680 and to 00:35:42.680 --> 00:35:43.640 motivation 00:35:43.640 --> 00:35:44.280 and to 00:35:44.280 --> 00:35:45.099 perseverance 00:35:45.099 --> 00:35:47.039 and may 00:35:47.039 --> 00:35:47.400 you give 00:35:47.400 --> 00:35:47.880 us both 00:35:47.880 --> 00:35:48.559 wisdom 00:35:48.559 --> 00:35:50.340 and boldness 00:35:50.340 --> 00:35:51.760 and love 00:35:51.760 --> 00:35:53.599 and urgency 00:35:53.599 --> 00:35:55.880 to share 00:35:55.880 --> 00:35:57.180 the good 00:35:57.180 --> 00:35:57.599 news of 00:35:57.599 --> 00:35:57.960 the Lord 00:35:57.960 --> 00:35:58.360 Jesus 00:35:58.360 --> 00:35:58.960 with 00:35:58.960 --> 00:35:59.400 others 00:35:59.400 --> 00:36:01.360 we pray 00:36:01.360 --> 00:36:01.779 that we 00:36:01.779 --> 00:36:02.380 would be 00:36:02.380 --> 00:36:03.639 a people 00:36:03.639 --> 00:36:04.599 of faith 00:36:04.599 --> 00:36:05.839 and of 00:36:05.839 --> 00:36:06.380 love 00:36:06.380 --> 00:36:07.599 that would 00:36:07.599 --> 00:36:08.179 spring 00:36:08.179 --> 00:36:08.699 from that 00:36:08.699 --> 00:36:09.579 great hope 00:36:09.579 --> 00:36:11.279 and all 00:36:11.279 --> 00:36:11.639 to your 00:36:11.639 --> 00:36:12.119 praise 00:36:12.119 --> 00:36:12.940 and glory 00:36:12.940 --> 00:36:14.619 and in 00:36:14.619 --> 00:36:14.920 the name 00:36:14.920 --> 00:36:15.219 of your 00:36:15.219 --> 00:36:15.839 son Jesus 00:36:15.839 --> 00:36:16.500 we pray 00:36:16.500 --> 00:36:17.659 amen 00:36:17.659 --> 00:36:23.619 now we'll 00:36:23.619 --> 00:36:24.359 close our 00:36:24.359 --> 00:36:24.739 time 00:36:24.739 --> 00:36:25.859 this evening 00:36:25.859 --> 00:36:27.059 singing the 00:36:27.059 --> 00:36:27.299 hymn 00:36:27.299 --> 00:36:28.500 Isaac 00:36:28.500 --> 00:36:28.879 what's 00:36:28.879 --> 00:36:29.019 hymn 00:36:29.019 --> 00:36:29.460 when I 00:36:29.460 --> 00:36:29.940 survey 00:36:29.940 --> 00:36:31.199 the wondrous 00:36:31.199 --> 00:36:31.639 cross 00:36:31.639 --> 00:36:32.059 and let's 00:36:32.059 --> 00:36:32.460 stand 00:36:32.460 --> 00:36:33.079 to sing 00:36:33.079 --> 00:36:33.420 together 00:36:33.420 --> 00:36:35.500 we 00:36:35.500 --> 00:36:35.659 roll 00:36:36.119 --> 00:36:37.460 ío 00:36:37.460 --> 00:36:38.180 together