WEBVTT

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 In this chapter 1, we're going to look at the section verse 3 to 11, verse 3 to 11.

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 We can just read again at the beginning of that section at verse 3.

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 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy

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 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

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 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

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 And so on.

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 How many of you came in here this evening and sat down and just let out a sigh?

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 You come in from a busy week, you come in here this evening and you feel to yourself,

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 well, thank goodness just for a time, just to sit, sit among brothers and sisters in Christ.

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 Sit and come to hear people praying.

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 Sit and tune in our hearts in prayer and worship of God.

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 Because I'm sure many of us come in this evening with that sense of feeling distracted,

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 sense of looking at so many different things that are going on in our own lives or the lives of others.

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 And our heads can just be a spin, a wash with different things.

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 But we come and we should be thankful for this time just to pause,

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 stopping for a few moments, looking beyond ourselves and our own situations and our own circumstances

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 and come just for this time and focus on God

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 and see and give thanks to him for what he is doing and has done for us.

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 When we sing through so many of the Psalms, we find that kind of experience in the Psalmist's life.

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 A variety of different Psalmists, but very often they find themselves in these kinds of experiences

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 that we have ourselves today.

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 So many different things going on, but just coming into the presence of God,

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 stills them, calms them and gives them a new focus and a new sense of thankfulness.

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 And that's what we want to do each time we come to worship God.

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 We want to be still and know that he is God.

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 We want to be still in his presence.

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 And as we come this evening and as we look ahead, God willing,

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 tonight as we prepare our hearts and also as we approach the weekend preparing our hearts,

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 a communion time is a time when we focus on the Lord.

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 When we think of what he has done for us.

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 When we think of the peace that he has given to us through what he has done at the cross at Calvary.

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 We come to God in prayer.

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 We come preparing our hearts in prayer for this evening and for the days ahead.

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 Each day we want to prepare our hearts by coming into the presence of God and seeking his peace and presence with us.

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 And we want to do that this evening by turning to this letter of Paul to the Philippians.

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 And it gives us an insight into how to prepare our hearts before God.

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 Paul opens up his own heart before the people of Philippi and before his Lord here as he's writing to them from a prison cell.

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 And you may expect to find someone who is downcast and despondent and in despair.

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 And yet as you read through this letter you find how uplifting it is.

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 It is a letter that's often called the letter of joy.

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 You find rejoice and you find joy and you find all of these words used often throughout the letter.

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 But that's not to say that everything was fine and well in Philippi.

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 It had its problems like every church does.

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 But Paul writes this letter to give them a real sense of focus.

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 You get the sense of affection from Paul for the people of Philippi.

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 As you see there in verse 3, I thank my God in all my remembrance of you.

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 Often remembering, often praying for them and thanking God for them, for the partnership in the gospel that they have.

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 There's an affection for the people, but above all there's an affection for his saviour.

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 And that is how they are together rejoicing in God.

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 And personal letters are an amazing thing.

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 When you think of maybe letters you've received yourself, someone who's taken the time to write a letter, it shouldn't be disregarded.

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 Having been at sea myself, I received a number of letters when I was away in different parts of the world.

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 And it was always so encouraging to get letters from home, to hear a little of what was happening.

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 It was before we could get emails on the ship, you were relying on the communication being through letters arriving.

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 Some of them were amusing and some of them were moving, depending very much on who had written them and in what circumstances.

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 But it was always a joy.

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 And it's always so interesting going back and just looking over them again.

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 And as a family, we've got another personal letter in our belonging.

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 And it dates back to 1940.

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 And it was a letter written by my great uncle to my grandfather.

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 My great uncle was still away from home.

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 It was during the war.

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 And he was on a minesweeper.

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 And my grandfather had been injured during the war.

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 So he was now at home recovering.

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 And reading the letter is very moving.

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 And you might think that the focus would be on maybe the troubles that are around my great uncle at that time.

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 The things that were going on around him.

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 But it wasn't.

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 It was a focus of love and concern and encouragement towards his brother who was back home recovering.

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 And what makes it even more poignant is the fact that a few months later, my great uncle lost his life.

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 When his minesweeper was sunk.

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 So that letter has a special meaning behind it.

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 And this memory goes on in many ways.

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 But when we look at the letters that we find in the word of God, there's so much more behind them.

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 And there are letters that are not just personal to Paul and to the church at Philippi.

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 There are letters that are personal to us.

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 They are written not just to the people then.

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 They are written to ourselves today.

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 They are letters that are here for our encouragement now.

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 For our upbuilding now.

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 For doing all to us.

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 To encourage us to a deep seated joy in the Lord ourselves.

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 To remind us of the very reasons that we have to rejoice in God.

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 And we want to see in this section that we're looking at in verse 3 to 11.

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 That the letter opens with this thanksgiving and prayer.

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 They're not two separate things.

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 They both go hand in hand.

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 It's prayer and thanksgiving as one.

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 And we want to just focus on this prayer for a time this evening.

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 And just see what the prayer says to us.

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 As we think of preparing our own hearts for coming to a communion weekend.

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 And there's three things I want to see about this prayer.

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 There's a prayer here of thanksgiving.

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 That's the first thing we'll see.

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 Then secondly we'll see there's a prayer of confidence.

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 And then there's a prayer of growth.

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 With a desire for growth.

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 Thirdly we'll see.

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 So the first thing we see here is a prayer of thanksgiving.

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 Having written the greeting in the letter in verse 1 and 2.

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 Even the greeting itself.

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 We shouldn't just scan over.

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 You see there Paul and Timothy.

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 Servants of Christ Jesus.

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 That's where they see themselves as servants of Christ Jesus.

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 And they see the people of Philippi as saints in Christ Jesus.

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 So we see there the relationship that the people have with Christ.

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 And then grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

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 There's a wonderful introduction there to the prayer.

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 It's rich in Christ.

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 And that's the theme that then continues as you go on into the main body of the letter.

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 And what we see first of all at its foundation is prayer and thanksgiving.

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 The church at Philippi, it's not without its problems.

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 And you might expect Paul to write to them as though the problems are going to be the main issue of the letter.

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 Things that are dividing the church.

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 That are spoiling their fellowship.

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 The struggles that the believers are facing.

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 That the thanksgiving part of this letter might just be a short section.

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 But what you find is that that's not the case at all.

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 The thanksgiving just continues to flow right through the letter.

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 And there's lots going on in Philippi.

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 You get that sense as you read through this letter that there are things going on in the background too.

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 There's adversity.

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 There's rivalry.

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 There's conflict.

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 There's people looking for their own self-achievement.

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 There's the struggle with finding the way to holiness.

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 There's all kinds of different challenges going on among the people.

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 But what Paul is almost determined to give to the people, to show to the people as he writes to them,

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 is the difference that a focus on Christ makes in all of that.

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 The way believers respond in all different situations is to have a focus on Christ.

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 And when we think of our own lives, we can have all of these different things going on.

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 Different kinds of adversity, conflict, rivalry, a sense of seeking our own achievements.

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 There's all sorts of things and struggles that we have in our lives.

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 But Paul is writing to us to remind us, have our eyes fixed on Jesus.

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 Thanksgiving, joy, and our eyes fixed on Jesus is what Paul is reminding our people of here and ourselves as well.

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 And so Thanksgiving doesn't just focus on one or two verses in this letter.

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 It goes right through it.

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 It's a thread that's running right through the letter.

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 You can look through this prayer.

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 And in every verse, as we have verses to break it up for us in our Bibles,

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 in every verse you see that there is something to give thanks for,

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 something to give a sense of joy to the people.

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 Each verse has something.

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 Paul in verse 3 is thankful to be able to remember the people.

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 He is thankful that they are there, that they have not abandoned them, that they are with them.

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 In verse 4, you have a prayer that's full of joy.

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 Thankful for the joy that there is.

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 Verse 5, thankful for the partnership that there is in the Gospel.

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 Verse 6, thankful for the confidence that there is in Christ.

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 Verse 7, thankful for the grace of God in Christ.

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 Verse 8, yearning with affection of Christ.

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 Thankful for that.

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 Verse 9, the love and fellowship that they enjoy.

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 Thankful for that.

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 Verse 10, that there is the day of Christ to look forward to.

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 Thankful for that.

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 Verse 11, thankful that it's all for the glory and praise of God.

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 So you can go through this whole prayer.

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 And there's a sense of thankfulness in every part of it.

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 Paul had his difficulties himself.

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 He was writing this letter from prison.

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 And yet, in verse 12 to verse 18 there, you see that his situation, his imprisonment, has all worked for the advancement of the Gospel.

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 He's thankful for that.

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 And so it goes on.

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 And so when we think ourselves of coming in here this evening, of sitting down with a sigh and just a thankfulness to be here,

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 we start thinking, well, what do we have to be thankful for?

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 When we come to God in prayer, what we are thankful for?

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 So we've heard in both the prayers, so much to give thanks for, so much we often take for granted.

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 So much that we often feel it's just ours to have day after day, week after week.

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 But yet, let's pause and prepare our hearts with a sense of thankfulness in prayer.

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 Thankfulness for all that is ours in Christ Jesus.

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 Thankfulness for all that we have through his goodness and mercy each day.

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 Thankful for the Gospel.

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 Thankful for the fellowship.

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 Thankful for the fact that we can approach a communion season, that we can look forward to that with the freedoms that we enjoy.

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 We have much to be thankful for.

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 Let us prepare our hearts as we seek to approach the Lord's Supper.

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 Let us prepare our hearts with a prayer with a sense of thankfulness and joy in the Lord.

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 The second thing we see here is it's a prayer of confidence.

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 There's so much assurance in this prayer.

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 The assurance that Paul is seeking the people at Philippi to have and enjoy themselves.

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 The assurance that he knows in his own life and experience.

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 When we think of what a Christian needs to be able to have that joy of the Lord as our strength.

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 To be able to rejoice even in the midst of adversity.

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 To be able to see our sin in our heart.

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 But yet to be able to see the hope that Christ gives to us.

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 What do we need for that?

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 Well it is confidence in the work of Christ.

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 Not in ourselves.

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 But confidence in the work of Christ for us and in us.

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 The work that is finished in Christ.

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 And you see how Paul starts his prayer here in verse 3.

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 What he says is,

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 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you.

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 He knows God.

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 And he knows all the goodness that there is in God.

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 And the confidence that this gives to him.

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 As he is praying, even at a distance from the people of Philippi in a prison cell.

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 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you.

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 There is a confidence in God.

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 And it's not just a confidence for a moment.

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 It's not just a confidence that is his.

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 It is a confidence that every believer can have.

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 And that's what he goes on to expand on.

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 As he prays for the people of Philippi.

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 He says in verse 4,

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 Always in every prayer of mine for you all, making my prayer with joy.

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 Because of your partnership in the gospel from this day until now.

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 Then you have verse 6.

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 And he says,

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 And I am sure of this.

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 There is confidence here in what he is about to say.

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 And I am sure of this.

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 That he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

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 There is confidence.

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 There is assurance there.

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 I am sure of this.

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 That he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion.

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 And that is a word, a verse that every Christian needs to hear again and again.

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 And to pray and to remember and to give thanks to God for that.

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 That it's not our work.

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 It is the work that he has begun in you.

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 And too often and so often, our focus can be on our work.

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 On how we see ourselves.

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 Or how we think others would see us.

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 But here Paul is reminding every one of us,

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 It's not about us.

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 It's about the good work that he has begun in us.

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 And that he will bring it to completion.

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 How many of you have an unfinished project at home?

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 I'm sure many of us will have something that we've started out on.

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 A thing we've started with all good intention of completing this work.

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 But it's still there.

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 Unfinished.

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 It can be all kinds of things.

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 It can be a DIY project.

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 It could be a knitting.

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 It could be a jigsaw.

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 It can be all kinds of things.

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 And we start with all good intentions of finishing.

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 But it's still there.

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 And maybe it's not just one thing.

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 Maybe there's, as we say, many irons in the fire.

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 We're trying to juggle so many different things.

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 That nothing is getting done.

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 Many things are left undone.

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 But here we're reminded that when the Lord begins a work,

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 he doesn't leave it unfinished.

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 He never leaves any work incomplete.

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 It is finished.

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 And here we are reminded that in every one of us

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 who he has begun a good work in,

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 he will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

00:18:49.660 --> 00:18:53.200
 He will bring it to completion.

00:18:54.120 --> 00:18:54.920
 Not us.

00:18:55.640 --> 00:18:57.259
 He will do it.

00:18:58.160 --> 00:19:01.160
 And so there is a great confidence.

00:19:01.400 --> 00:19:03.980
 There's a great assurance for us here.

00:19:04.700 --> 00:19:09.320
 The writer James Boyce, he calls verse 6 here

00:19:09.320 --> 00:19:11.900
 one of the three greatest verses in the Bible

00:19:11.900 --> 00:19:16.019
 that teaches about the perseverance of the saints.

00:19:16.019 --> 00:19:19.379
 That's the teaching or the doctrine

00:19:19.379 --> 00:19:22.460
 that no one whom God has brought

00:19:22.460 --> 00:19:26.180
 into a saving knowledge of Christ Jesus will be lost.

00:19:27.700 --> 00:19:31.359
 And this is one of, he says, the three greatest verses.

00:19:32.539 --> 00:19:36.440
 There's another two, he says, Romans 8, verse 38 and 39.

00:19:37.059 --> 00:19:39.740
 That great passage that speaks of the fact

00:19:39.740 --> 00:19:43.359
 that nothing will separate us from the love of God

00:19:43.359 --> 00:19:44.980
 that is in Christ Jesus.

00:19:44.980 --> 00:19:48.980
 Nothing will separate us of that love.

00:19:49.660 --> 00:19:51.779
 Those wonderful verses in Romans 8.

00:19:52.180 --> 00:19:57.180
 The other text he has in mind is John 10, verse 27 and verse 28,

00:19:57.900 --> 00:19:58.960
 where John 10 says,

00:19:59.120 --> 00:20:02.360
 My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me.

00:20:02.880 --> 00:20:06.940
 I give them eternal life and they will never perish

00:20:06.940 --> 00:20:10.420
 and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

00:20:10.420 --> 00:20:15.400
 There are these great texts of confidence and assurance

00:20:15.400 --> 00:20:18.820
 that the people of God will persevere,

00:20:19.220 --> 00:20:23.259
 that the Lord will keep them till the day of Christ.

00:20:23.340 --> 00:20:24.279
 And this is the other one.

00:20:24.700 --> 00:20:28.140
 I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you

00:20:28.140 --> 00:20:32.779
 will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

00:20:32.779 --> 00:20:36.779
 And we all go through that times when we fear,

00:20:37.180 --> 00:20:38.500
 these times when we fear,

00:20:39.000 --> 00:20:41.960
 when we give God our lives and we trust in Christ

00:20:41.960 --> 00:20:43.700
 that we are going to fail,

00:20:44.299 --> 00:20:46.259
 that we are going to let them down.

00:20:46.420 --> 00:20:47.420
 And we do.

00:20:48.420 --> 00:20:49.200
 We fail.

00:20:50.460 --> 00:20:52.899
 We're afraid because we're not good enough

00:20:52.899 --> 00:20:54.220
 and we're not good enough.

00:20:54.220 --> 00:20:57.799
 And we're afraid because we might let people down.

00:20:57.900 --> 00:20:59.460
 And we do let people down.

00:21:01.799 --> 00:21:03.559
 We do all of these things.

00:21:03.680 --> 00:21:05.740
 And it's one of Satan's greatest weapons

00:21:05.740 --> 00:21:08.039
 to think that then we are not Christians,

00:21:08.220 --> 00:21:09.180
 that we're not good enough,

00:21:09.279 --> 00:21:10.420
 that we are not saved.

00:21:11.819 --> 00:21:14.480
 But we have to come back to God, to Jesus,

00:21:14.860 --> 00:21:17.339
 and focus on what he says to us.

00:21:18.279 --> 00:21:20.200
 And these three great texts

00:21:20.200 --> 00:21:22.259
 are where we can go and remind ourselves

00:21:22.259 --> 00:21:24.339
 that when he works,

00:21:24.960 --> 00:21:26.740
 when he loves us,

00:21:27.160 --> 00:21:28.799
 when he calls us,

00:21:29.619 --> 00:21:33.940
 nothing and no one can separate us from that love.

00:21:35.559 --> 00:21:38.559
 Now the fact that God does all this,

00:21:38.960 --> 00:21:42.039
 it does not imply that we are just passive,

00:21:42.759 --> 00:21:44.799
 that we have nothing at all to do.

00:21:45.920 --> 00:21:47.779
 We, the Bible tells us,

00:21:47.839 --> 00:21:50.680
 must work out our salvation with fear and trembling.

00:21:50.680 --> 00:21:53.580
 We must come to God.

00:21:53.660 --> 00:21:54.940
 We must trust in God.

00:21:56.160 --> 00:21:59.279
 We must pursue him with all our heart.

00:22:00.060 --> 00:22:03.259
 But it is he who works in us.

00:22:04.680 --> 00:22:08.140
 And then we delight in serving him,

00:22:08.420 --> 00:22:09.519
 in honoring him,

00:22:09.940 --> 00:22:13.880
 in being obedient to him with all our hearts.

00:22:13.880 --> 00:22:18.140
 What a wonderful privilege it is

00:22:18.140 --> 00:22:20.920
 to be the children of God

00:22:20.920 --> 00:22:23.620
 and to know his love.

00:22:24.900 --> 00:22:27.280
 And doesn't that help to prepare our hearts

00:22:27.280 --> 00:22:30.600
 as we come and approach the Lord's Supper?

00:22:31.260 --> 00:22:32.800
 To know that we are doing it

00:22:32.800 --> 00:22:35.500
 not for ourselves or through our own works

00:22:35.500 --> 00:22:36.520
 or our own ways,

00:22:36.519 --> 00:22:40.400
 but because he is working in us.

00:22:41.359 --> 00:22:44.220
 And he will bring that work to completion.

00:22:46.299 --> 00:22:48.759
 He has done all things well.

00:22:50.539 --> 00:22:51.980
 And let us remember that

00:22:51.980 --> 00:22:54.900
 as we come to remember him.

00:22:54.900 --> 00:22:59.300
 The third and final thing we see in this prayer,

00:23:00.000 --> 00:23:02.140
 it's a prayer for growth.

00:23:03.340 --> 00:23:06.019
 As Paul concludes his prayer here

00:23:06.019 --> 00:23:09.019
 in verse 9 to verse 11,

00:23:09.120 --> 00:23:12.160
 you see that it is my prayer

00:23:12.160 --> 00:23:15.519
 that your love may abound more and more.

00:23:15.620 --> 00:23:19.019
 And so he goes on at the end of these verses.

00:23:19.019 --> 00:23:25.299
 His desire is to see the church at Philippi flourish

00:23:25.299 --> 00:23:29.039
 and the people at Philippi flourish in the Lord.

00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:31.680
 And that's the prayer that we long

00:23:31.680 --> 00:23:33.500
 for ourselves as well.

00:23:34.359 --> 00:23:38.859
 That our love may abound more and more

00:23:38.859 --> 00:23:41.779
 for each other and for the Lord.

00:23:42.900 --> 00:23:43.839
 And this was a time

00:23:43.839 --> 00:23:46.160
 when there were many against the Christian faith.

00:23:46.160 --> 00:23:50.120
 And there was divisions going on.

00:23:50.220 --> 00:23:51.960
 There was individual desires

00:23:51.960 --> 00:23:53.120
 that were coming to the fore.

00:23:53.220 --> 00:23:55.240
 There was grumbling and questioning

00:23:55.240 --> 00:23:56.420
 going on in the background.

00:23:56.560 --> 00:23:58.740
 There was questioning the goodness of God.

00:24:00.080 --> 00:24:01.259
 But what's the answer?

00:24:01.820 --> 00:24:05.160
 Again, it's to focus on the Lord.

00:24:06.620 --> 00:24:09.640
 That our love may abound more and more

00:24:09.640 --> 00:24:12.900
 with knowledge and all discernment.

00:24:13.759 --> 00:24:15.540
 That we might know God.

00:24:15.539 --> 00:24:17.399
 That we might know his word

00:24:17.399 --> 00:24:21.139
 and trust him with all our hearts.

00:24:22.180 --> 00:24:25.420
 There's both a learning from the word

00:24:25.420 --> 00:24:28.720
 and putting that word into practice.

00:24:29.200 --> 00:24:31.299
 Living by these truths.

00:24:31.599 --> 00:24:33.240
 So they're not just things that we hear

00:24:33.240 --> 00:24:36.039
 and listen to and enjoy together

00:24:36.039 --> 00:24:37.279
 in a place like this.

00:24:37.940 --> 00:24:40.180
 But it's something that we put into practice

00:24:40.180 --> 00:24:42.279
 in our daily lives,

00:24:42.460 --> 00:24:43.119
 in our homes,

00:24:43.119 --> 00:24:44.319
 in our communities.

00:24:44.319 --> 00:24:46.000
 That we have a place to go.

00:24:46.659 --> 00:24:48.459
 That we have a prayer we can offer.

00:24:48.899 --> 00:24:50.859
 That we have a saviour who is with us.

00:24:51.099 --> 00:24:52.859
 That we remember all of these things.

00:24:52.919 --> 00:24:54.219
 And we grow in our knowledge

00:24:54.219 --> 00:24:55.339
 and our understanding

00:24:55.339 --> 00:24:57.259
 of all of these things.

00:24:58.399 --> 00:24:59.479
 And that we look forward

00:24:59.479 --> 00:25:02.119
 with that sense of anticipation.

00:25:02.619 --> 00:25:03.899
 Because it speaks here

00:25:03.899 --> 00:25:05.679
 of the day of Christ.

00:25:05.680 --> 00:25:08.920
 that we will be presented to him.

00:25:10.180 --> 00:25:12.820
 And that we will have that sense of joy

00:25:12.820 --> 00:25:15.259
 as we live for him in this world.

00:25:15.360 --> 00:25:17.100
 But always with that longing

00:25:17.100 --> 00:25:18.519
 and looking forward ahead

00:25:18.519 --> 00:25:20.120
 that Paul speaks of.

00:25:20.240 --> 00:25:22.860
 Even in this letter himself,

00:25:22.980 --> 00:25:25.680
 he speaks in verse 23

00:25:25.680 --> 00:25:26.279
 as he says,

00:25:26.360 --> 00:25:28.060
 I am hard pressed between the two.

00:25:28.440 --> 00:25:30.320
 This is to go to be with the Lord

00:25:30.319 --> 00:25:31.220
 or to stay.

00:25:31.679 --> 00:25:33.619
 It's this dilemma that he has.

00:25:35.279 --> 00:25:37.519
 So he's in this turmoil.

00:25:37.519 --> 00:25:39.679
 But he has that wonderful message.

00:25:40.139 --> 00:25:42.480
 For me to live is Christ.

00:25:44.079 --> 00:25:45.480
 As he goes on in this world.

00:25:45.579 --> 00:25:46.759
 To live is Christ.

00:25:47.460 --> 00:25:48.740
 And then when that time comes,

00:25:49.299 --> 00:25:51.059
 to die is gain.

00:25:52.299 --> 00:25:53.559
 There is that confidence.

00:25:54.319 --> 00:25:56.419
 That ongoing living for Christ.

00:25:56.420 --> 00:25:58.240
 But with that great confidence

00:25:58.240 --> 00:25:59.019
 and assurance

00:25:59.019 --> 00:26:01.860
 that to die is gain.

00:26:03.259 --> 00:26:05.039
 We still have so much

00:26:05.039 --> 00:26:06.700
 to learn ourselves.

00:26:06.960 --> 00:26:08.519
 We still have so much

00:26:08.519 --> 00:26:10.580
 to understand ourselves.

00:26:10.680 --> 00:26:12.160
 And we will never know it all

00:26:12.160 --> 00:26:13.539
 and understand it all

00:26:13.539 --> 00:26:14.980
 in all its fullness.

00:26:16.960 --> 00:26:18.180
 But we know that

00:26:18.180 --> 00:26:19.580
 to know Christ

00:26:19.580 --> 00:26:21.759
 and to love Christ

00:26:21.759 --> 00:26:23.640
 is a precious thing.

00:26:24.480 --> 00:26:25.340
 It is a gift

00:26:25.339 --> 00:26:26.819
 of God.

00:26:28.819 --> 00:26:29.779
 And so we let

00:26:29.779 --> 00:26:30.879
 God's word

00:26:30.879 --> 00:26:31.740
 be what

00:26:31.740 --> 00:26:32.899
 instructs us

00:26:32.899 --> 00:26:34.240
 and teaches us

00:26:34.240 --> 00:26:35.000
 and gives us

00:26:35.000 --> 00:26:35.679
 that growth.

00:26:36.659 --> 00:26:37.599
 That's what he speaks about

00:26:37.599 --> 00:26:38.459
 when he speaks of

00:26:38.459 --> 00:26:39.500
 in verse 9

00:26:39.500 --> 00:26:40.039
 knowledge

00:26:40.039 --> 00:26:41.500
 and all discernment

00:26:41.500 --> 00:26:42.819
 so that you may approve

00:26:42.819 --> 00:26:44.019
 what is excellent.

00:26:45.459 --> 00:26:46.539
 As we go on,

00:26:46.679 --> 00:26:47.439
 we go on

00:26:47.439 --> 00:26:48.980
 through the teaching of God

00:26:48.980 --> 00:26:50.319
 through the word of God

00:26:50.319 --> 00:26:50.899
 to us

00:26:50.899 --> 00:26:51.419
 not being

00:26:51.419 --> 00:26:52.939
 taken and distracted

00:26:52.939 --> 00:26:54.019
 by anything else

00:26:54.019 --> 00:26:55.720
 but just having

00:26:55.720 --> 00:26:56.379
 our eyes

00:26:56.379 --> 00:26:57.339
 fixed

00:26:57.339 --> 00:26:58.639
 on Jesus.

00:26:59.559 --> 00:27:01.240
 We have that

00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:02.440
 wonderful blessing

00:27:02.440 --> 00:27:03.879
 of Christ

00:27:03.879 --> 00:27:05.779
 as our Lord.

00:27:07.379 --> 00:27:08.920
 And so as we approach

00:27:08.920 --> 00:27:10.460
 the Lord's

00:27:10.460 --> 00:27:11.160
 Supper

00:27:11.160 --> 00:27:12.759
 as we prepare

00:27:12.759 --> 00:27:13.619
 our hearts

00:27:13.619 --> 00:27:14.799
 in worship

00:27:14.799 --> 00:27:15.740
 and praise

00:27:15.740 --> 00:27:17.299
 of our Lord

00:27:17.299 --> 00:27:19.139
 let us have

00:27:19.139 --> 00:27:19.920
 that sense

00:27:19.920 --> 00:27:21.759
 of thankfulness.

00:27:21.759 --> 00:27:23.559
 thankfulness

00:27:23.559 --> 00:27:24.119
 for all

00:27:24.119 --> 00:27:25.559
 that he has done

00:27:25.559 --> 00:27:26.339
 and is doing

00:27:26.339 --> 00:27:26.900
 for us

00:27:26.900 --> 00:27:28.339
 and will do

00:27:28.339 --> 00:27:30.019
 until the day

00:27:30.019 --> 00:27:31.259
 of Christ

00:27:31.259 --> 00:27:32.200
 until the day

00:27:32.200 --> 00:27:33.859
 when it is complete.

00:27:34.779 --> 00:27:35.500
 Let us have

00:27:35.500 --> 00:27:36.980
 that confidence

00:27:36.980 --> 00:27:38.619
 in Christ

00:27:38.619 --> 00:27:40.220
 that though

00:27:40.220 --> 00:27:41.059
 we fail

00:27:41.059 --> 00:27:42.720
 in so many ways

00:27:42.720 --> 00:27:43.640
 we have that

00:27:43.640 --> 00:27:44.400
 great assurance

00:27:44.400 --> 00:27:45.200
 and confidence

00:27:45.200 --> 00:27:46.720
 that he who began

00:27:46.720 --> 00:27:47.559
 a good work

00:27:47.559 --> 00:27:48.460
 and you will bring

00:27:48.460 --> 00:27:49.299
 it to completion

00:27:49.299 --> 00:27:50.539
 at the day

00:27:50.539 --> 00:27:51.659
 of Jesus

00:27:51.659 --> 00:27:52.299
 Christ.

00:27:53.659 --> 00:27:54.399
 And may we have

00:27:54.399 --> 00:27:55.079
 that longing

00:27:55.079 --> 00:27:56.639
 and that desire

00:27:56.639 --> 00:27:57.859
 to grow

00:27:57.859 --> 00:27:58.700
 in our love

00:27:58.700 --> 00:28:00.079
 that it may abound

00:28:00.079 --> 00:28:01.099
 more and more

00:28:01.099 --> 00:28:02.279
 and the knowledge

00:28:02.279 --> 00:28:03.319
 and discernment

00:28:03.319 --> 00:28:05.500
 of all of God's word

00:28:05.500 --> 00:28:06.659
 and all of his truth

00:28:06.659 --> 00:28:07.379
 to us

00:28:07.379 --> 00:28:09.000
 that we would live

00:28:09.000 --> 00:28:10.079
 by it.

00:28:11.359 --> 00:28:12.220
 The writer

00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:14.059
 Aidan W. Tozer

00:28:14.059 --> 00:28:15.139
 A. W. Tozer

00:28:15.139 --> 00:28:15.779
 as he is more

00:28:15.779 --> 00:28:16.899
 commonly known

00:28:16.900 --> 00:28:17.780
 he speaks of

00:28:17.780 --> 00:28:19.340
 God's people

00:28:19.340 --> 00:28:20.560
 as the Bible

00:28:20.560 --> 00:28:21.380
 describes them

00:28:21.380 --> 00:28:22.240
 as those who are

00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:24.300
 crucified with Christ.

00:28:25.460 --> 00:28:26.200
 Those who have

00:28:26.200 --> 00:28:27.440
 come to believe

00:28:27.440 --> 00:28:28.220
 in the Lord

00:28:28.220 --> 00:28:29.720
 with all their heart

00:28:29.720 --> 00:28:30.340
 and he says

00:28:30.340 --> 00:28:31.740
 they have three

00:28:31.740 --> 00:28:33.880
 distinct marks.

00:28:35.280 --> 00:28:36.480
 And this is what he says

00:28:36.480 --> 00:28:37.960
 of the Christian.

00:28:38.960 --> 00:28:39.880
 He says the first one

00:28:39.880 --> 00:28:40.259
 is this

00:28:40.259 --> 00:28:41.100
 they are facing

00:28:41.100 --> 00:28:43.700
 only one direction.

00:28:43.700 --> 00:28:46.720
 they are fixed

00:28:46.720 --> 00:28:48.100
 on Jesus.

00:28:49.580 --> 00:28:50.700
 Then he says

00:28:50.700 --> 00:28:52.059
 number two

00:28:52.059 --> 00:28:52.380
 is

00:28:52.380 --> 00:28:54.039
 they can never

00:28:54.039 --> 00:28:55.360
 turn back.

00:28:56.460 --> 00:28:57.700
 Again that ties in

00:28:57.700 --> 00:28:58.840
 with what we have

00:28:58.840 --> 00:28:59.580
 in verse six.

00:28:59.680 --> 00:29:00.539
 He who has begun

00:29:00.539 --> 00:29:01.360
 a good work

00:29:01.360 --> 00:29:02.580
 will bring it

00:29:02.580 --> 00:29:03.559
 to completion.

00:29:04.319 --> 00:29:05.160
 They can never

00:29:05.160 --> 00:29:06.680
 turn back.

00:29:07.880 --> 00:29:08.779
 And then the third

00:29:08.779 --> 00:29:09.539
 thing he says

00:29:09.539 --> 00:29:10.120
 is this

00:29:10.120 --> 00:29:11.940
 they no longer

00:29:11.940 --> 00:29:13.140
 have plans

00:29:13.140 --> 00:29:14.759
 of their own.

00:29:16.460 --> 00:29:17.340
 How many of us

00:29:17.340 --> 00:29:18.480
 have been living

00:29:18.480 --> 00:29:19.160
 our lives

00:29:19.160 --> 00:29:20.440
 making all

00:29:20.440 --> 00:29:21.720
 our own plans

00:29:21.720 --> 00:29:23.519
 thinking we've

00:29:23.519 --> 00:29:24.180
 got it all

00:29:24.180 --> 00:29:25.200
 sorted out.

00:29:25.279 --> 00:29:25.700
 This is what

00:29:25.700 --> 00:29:26.320
 we're going to do

00:29:26.320 --> 00:29:27.100
 and when

00:29:27.100 --> 00:29:27.720
 but the Lord

00:29:27.720 --> 00:29:28.620
 reminds us

00:29:28.620 --> 00:29:29.779
 that's not

00:29:29.779 --> 00:29:30.720
 how it works.

00:29:31.980 --> 00:29:32.480
 Now we have to

00:29:32.480 --> 00:29:33.340
 come to the point

00:29:33.340 --> 00:29:33.860
 where we just

00:29:33.860 --> 00:29:34.980
 submit ourselves

00:29:34.980 --> 00:29:36.580
 into the will

00:29:36.580 --> 00:29:37.759
 of God

00:29:37.759 --> 00:29:39.840
 so it's no longer

00:29:39.839 --> 00:29:41.439
 our plans

00:29:41.439 --> 00:29:42.079
 that matter

00:29:42.079 --> 00:29:43.959
 but the plans

00:29:43.959 --> 00:29:45.179
 that God

00:29:45.179 --> 00:29:46.559
 has for us

00:29:46.559 --> 00:29:48.359
 and to do

00:29:48.359 --> 00:29:49.720
 his will

00:29:49.720 --> 00:29:51.039
 remembering

00:29:51.039 --> 00:29:52.439
 how he

00:29:52.439 --> 00:29:53.240
 fulfilled

00:29:53.240 --> 00:29:54.319
 the will

00:29:54.319 --> 00:29:55.079
 of the Father

00:29:55.079 --> 00:29:56.980
 not my will

00:29:56.980 --> 00:29:58.539
 but yours

00:29:58.539 --> 00:29:59.139
 be done

00:29:59.139 --> 00:30:00.000
 he said.

00:30:00.899 --> 00:30:02.019
 So these three

00:30:02.019 --> 00:30:02.599
 marks

00:30:02.599 --> 00:30:04.539
 they are facing

00:30:04.539 --> 00:30:05.839
 only one direction

00:30:05.839 --> 00:30:07.819
 they can never

00:30:07.819 --> 00:30:08.679
 turn back

00:30:08.679 --> 00:30:10.339
 and they no longer

00:30:10.339 --> 00:30:11.319
 have plans

00:30:11.319 --> 00:30:13.019
 of their own.

00:30:14.119 --> 00:30:15.259
 As we prepare

00:30:15.259 --> 00:30:15.980
 our hearts

00:30:15.980 --> 00:30:17.539
 as we look

00:30:17.539 --> 00:30:18.579
 at this letter

00:30:18.579 --> 00:30:19.579
 of Paul

00:30:19.579 --> 00:30:20.399
 to the Philippines

00:30:20.399 --> 00:30:21.939
 it's a very

00:30:21.939 --> 00:30:22.579
 personal

00:30:22.579 --> 00:30:23.720
 it's a very

00:30:23.720 --> 00:30:24.619
 intimate letter

00:30:24.619 --> 00:30:25.980
 but it's not

00:30:25.980 --> 00:30:26.779
 just for them

00:30:26.779 --> 00:30:28.599
 it's God's word

00:30:28.599 --> 00:30:29.159
 to you

00:30:29.159 --> 00:30:30.199
 and to me

00:30:30.199 --> 00:30:30.779
 as well

00:30:30.779 --> 00:30:32.240
 to help us

00:30:32.240 --> 00:30:33.939
 prepare our hearts

00:30:33.940 --> 00:30:35.299
 to give us

00:30:35.299 --> 00:30:36.220
 a sense

00:30:36.220 --> 00:30:37.299
 of thankfulness

00:30:37.299 --> 00:30:38.640
 to give us

00:30:38.640 --> 00:30:39.160
 a sense

00:30:39.160 --> 00:30:40.519
 of confidence

00:30:40.519 --> 00:30:41.120
 in him

00:30:41.120 --> 00:30:42.640
 and to give us

00:30:42.640 --> 00:30:43.799
 that desire

00:30:43.799 --> 00:30:44.980
 to grow

00:30:44.980 --> 00:30:46.420
 in our knowledge

00:30:46.420 --> 00:30:47.160
 and love

00:30:47.160 --> 00:30:48.320
 of him

00:30:48.320 --> 00:30:50.480
 and one another.

00:30:51.039 --> 00:30:51.620
 So may the Lord

00:30:51.620 --> 00:30:52.360
 help us

00:30:52.360 --> 00:30:54.160
 prepare our hearts

00:30:54.160 --> 00:30:55.460
 and fill us

00:30:55.460 --> 00:30:56.480
 with thankfulness

00:30:56.480 --> 00:30:57.779
 and praise

00:30:57.779 --> 00:30:59.380
 and it all be

00:30:59.380 --> 00:31:01.320
 to his glory.

00:31:01.319 --> 00:31:03.779
 we're going

00:31:03.779 --> 00:31:04.720
 to conclude

00:31:04.720 --> 00:31:05.639
 by singing

00:31:05.639 --> 00:31:07.000
 to God's praise

00:31:07.000 --> 00:31:08.059
 in Psalm 13