Great, well it's wonderful to see you this morning.
Folks, let me invite you to turn to Acts 17 and to have God's Word open in front of you
because what Jackson said there is actually pretty much the point of the sermon.
Is what he is saying, what it says, is what he is saying true.
So Acts 17 open in front of you, come with me to verse 7.
And as you're turning there, let me tell you about a minister who lived in Edinburgh
many, many years ago.
He free church to Scotland minister.
He lectured at New College on the Mount.
His name was Rabbi Duncan.
That was his nickname, I think, because of his heart for Jewish people to come to know Jesus.
They called him Rabbi Duncan.
But he was a very clever man and he talked about the biggest question
that each of us as human beings face.
And he called it the ultimate trilemma.
Quite like that, trilemma.
And talking about Jesus, he said this.
He said, Christ either deceived mankind by conscious fraud,
or he himself deluded and self-deceived, or he was divine.
There is no getting out of this trilemma.
Okay, so here's the essence of what he's saying.
When it comes to Jesus, there's a call that each of us need to make.
Deceiver, deluded, or divine.
What is he?
Who is he?
I wonder if you've ever considered that in your life.
Who is this man, Jesus?
The trilemma.
Now, as you're chewing on that, let me tell you about the most dangerous thing
that you could say in the first century Greco-Roman world.
And it's straight in the passage, verse 7.
The most dangerous thing you could say, Jesus is king.
If that confession is heard to come from your lips, then you're in some serious bother.
Because on the one hand, you're offending the Romans.
You're a threat to them.
Because the chant that's heard all over the empire in this day is,
Kaiser Keros, right?
Caesar is king.
The king is Caesar.
It's what you hear all over the empire.
It's emblazoned on coffee cups.
You will buy fridge magnets with it on.
It's what people believe.
Caesar is king.
Caesar is the one who's in ultimate power.
Caesar is the one who dictates what is right and wrong.
And so if anyone so much as gets a whiff of a claim
that someone else might be setting themselves up as a rival,
then you have to understand that that is not grounds for a debate.
That is a qualification for death.
Because for Rome, they hear about Jesus and Jesus equals deceiver.
And on the other hand, if you claim that is your phrase, Jesus is Lord,
you're a threat and an offense to the Jews.
Because the people have at the core of their very identity,
the belief that there is one God.
And so when Jesus of Nazareth,
he turns up from this backwater town of Nazareth in the Gospels,
and he claims to be equal with God.
No wonder the Jews wanted him dead.
It's an offense to their whole way of living.
For the Jews, Jesus equals deluded.
And yet Paul in our passage today,
he rocks up in these cities of Thessalonica and Berea,
and with both his life and his lips,
he dares to say divine.
Divine.
And so here's the challenge that comes at us today.
As we go about our everyday lives as followers of this Jesus,
as disciples of him.
On the school run,
in the classroom,
at the office,
at home,
as we care for others,
as we live our lives in our marriages,
as we live our lives in our families,
as we live our lives with our friends,
as people see us in action,
both with our lives and our lips,
the challenge of this passage is,
will we dare to do the same?
I think that's what Luke is saying.
Will you dare to do the same?
Now, why would you do that?
That's the question to ask, isn't it?
Why would you dare to do that?
Because to do it is to put yourself in some serious bother,
I take it,
in whatever culture you are in,
living wherever you do across the world.
Why would you choose to do it?
Well, I take it,
the heart of it is,
is a deep conviction
that there is just none like Jesus.
That I've never met anyone like him.
That I've never had a message like this.
That there is no message like the gospel.
That this Jesus loved me.
That he gave himself for me.
That he died for my sins.
That he was raised for my justification.
That I would be right with this God.
Not because of what I have done,
but because of him.
This message of who he is.
I take it that there's no one like him.
And so far from this being an exercise
where we walk out this morning
and feel guilty
because we're not daring to do it.
I take it this is just an invitation
to come and meet Jesus.
Come and know him.
Come and have him transform your life.
And we'll see the central character.
One of the central characters in this
is a man who has his life
flipped upside down by Jesus Christ.
And I take it they're just,
here's all I want to do this morning.
There are two timeless truths
at the heart of this passage.
I think they're just two truths
that Luke wants his readers to see.
We're just going to spend some time
thinking about them, okay?
And there are two claims about Christianity.
And if you're here today
and you wouldn't call yourself a Christian,
I invite you to get into
what Luke is telling you here.
All 2,000 years later,
this is what he is saying about Christianity.
You ready for these?
Here's the first one.
Christianity, investigate it
and you'll find it compelling.
Verse one, what does Paul find
and where does he go
when he gets to Thessalonica?
Come with me to the text.
What does he do?
Where does he go?
Oh, he goes to the synagogue, do you see?
As is his pattern,
he goes to the Jewish meeting house.
Now, if you've been with us
in the Acts series so far,
and if you haven't,
you can go on the website
and check them out.
You will know that that is a daring
and a bold move.
Because all the way through Acts,
where is it that Paul has encountered the bother?
Where has he gotten trouble
for preaching Jesus?
It ain't really on the streets.
It's in the synagogue.
So that's a bold move.
How often does he go?
Again, seeing the text,
he reasons for three Sabbath days.
So Sabbath being the Saturday.
Okay?
So he's there for just over three weeks,
which is not a long time.
But this is what he does.
And notice the three words about what he does.
I think these have got a lot to teach us here.
What did he do?
He reasoned with the Jews.
Do you see the words in the text?
He explained,
and he proved.
And I take it there are just
almost three sides.
I was going to say of the same coin,
but that doesn't work, does it?
You know what I'm saying.
There are three ways of describing the same thing.
Right?
So what he's doing is he gets the Old Testament scroll,
and if you like,
he lays it down.
I think this is what the Greek words mean.
He lays it down,
pulls it out,
and he gets people to understand what's going on.
He's saying,
let me show you in the scroll
how Jesus is the fulfillment
of everything that God promised here.
Because this is not just Paul's hot take on Jesus.
This is what Jesus said about himself.
That it was all about him,
that he was the very fulfillment
of everything that the Old Testament story
is leading up to.
And of course,
Luke is the very one who recorded those words
in the prequel to Acts
in Luke chapter 24,
right at the end.
It's the same guy who's written both of them.
Okay?
Luke 24,
when Jesus is risen,
when he talks to his disciples
on the road to Emmaus,
Jesus says to them,
and beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
he explained to them
what was said in all the scriptures
concerning himself.
So this is a book about Jesus.
This is what Paul is saying.
You know,
I remember a friend once telling me
when they started reading the Bible
through this lens,
that it almost became like
one of those pop-up books
that you used to get as a kid.
Do you remember those things?
You used to open it and
it used to pop up.
I remember he just said that.
Every time I read the Old Testament,
there was Jesus coming up.
There he was.
The story is about him.
In the words of Sally Lloyd-Jones
in her Jesus storybook Bible,
every story whispers his name.
Every story whispers his name.
It's what Paul is saying to the Jews
in the synagogue.
This is about him.
Because they're living by the mantra.
Do you remember the words of that U2 song
many, many years ago?
I still haven't found what I'm looking for.
If you're an Old Testament Jew
or even a modern day Jew,
who are you waiting on?
Who are you looking for?
Again, in the passage,
you're looking and waiting for the Messiah.
This figure that God said
he would be for his people,
this figure he would send
who would be a mighty savior king
and who would liberate his people
from their enemies.
He would deal with their biggest problem,
their sin problem,
and he would usher in God's rule.
It's the Messiah.
He reads about this figure.
He will be the lion.
He will be the mighty king
who will rule for his people.
And how will he be that mighty king?
Because he will be the lamb
who will lay down his life
for the sins of his people.
And that's why Paul says,
do you see the phrase,
he had to die.
He had to die
for the sins of his people.
He takes the punishment
that their sins deserve on himself.
He is the lamb
and he rose victoriously
on the third day.
He is the lion.
And Paul's sitting there.
He's reasoning.
He's proving.
He's explaining
that this figure
that they're waiting on,
he's come in the person of Jesus.
And so here's Paul's point.
I'm going to sum it up.
Jesus makes sense
of the scriptures.
And if I flip it around,
the scriptures make sense
of Jesus.
And I just wonder
if some of us
need to be reminded
this morning of who he is.
In the same way
that Paul reasons
and he proves
and he explains
that Jesus is this savior,
that you need to come to him
for your forgiveness of sins,
you need to come to him
as the one who's come
to give life,
I wonder if some of us
need to be reminded
that this is who he is.
That this is no
intellectual exercise
that Paul is
participating in here.
This is about
where people find life
and hope
and joy
and forgiveness
and renewal.
And they find it
in this Messiah.
And you can find it
in this Messiah too.
You want to come to him today
and say,
yeah,
Lord Jesus,
it's about you.
The scriptures make sense
of Jesus
and Jesus makes sense
of the scriptures.
And you see the reaction,
some hear what he's saying,
verse four,
and they're persuaded.
You see that in the text?
They see it.
Makes sense.
The coin,
penny drops.
I keep saying coin this morning.
The penny drops
in their minds.
And notice in passing,
who?
Who's responding to this?
The Jews,
the God-fearing Greeks,
and the prominent women
in culture.
Again,
I love,
if you not love this,
seeing this in the book of Acts,
the diversity of the people
who are responding
to this message.
They accept it.
And yet others,
they reject it.
It's interesting,
isn't it,
that the Jews
reject it.
What do they do?
They go to the marketplace
and they round up this mob.
We'll come back to them
in a minute.
I just take it,
troublemakers.
They just love nothing more
than a fight.
They're up in arms,
raging about this message.
I don't think they probably
have a clue
what the message is.
Let me just ask again,
if you're here today,
if you maybe are caught up
in this crowd
rejecting Christianity,
let me ask you,
what reasons
are you
taking for yourself
that you're rejecting it?
Could it be
that actually you're believing
what other people
are saying about Christianity?
You're believing
what is written
on the side of buses
that there probably
is no God?
What was that famous one
down in London?
There probably is no God.
Stop worrying
and get on with your day.
You're believing
what people are saying.
Is that what you're
basing it on?
Or would you come
and see the scriptures
and see who Jesus
is for yourself?
Paul's forced out of the city
and having only spent
three or so weeks there,
he gets to Berea
down the road.
And the same thing happens.
You see,
they go to the synagogue
and they speak
the same message.
This is verse 11.
And the people
in Thessalonica,
what were they?
They were bad characters.
But notice verse 11.
What are the people
in Berea described as being?
Of noble character.
And I think that's
a deliberate contrast
we're meant to see
that Luke's bringing out.
It's the contrast
we're supposed to see
and I think it's the example
that we're called upon
to emulate.
Because what did
the Bereans do?
Verse 11.
They listened to what
Paul is saying
and they do so
and see the word.
It's an awesome word.
I love it.
Eagerness.
Which I take it just means
they're sitting there thinking,
wouldn't it be brilliant
if what he said is true?
Wouldn't it be great
if it was true?
Wouldn't it be great
if Jesus really
is this person?
He did these things.
Wouldn't it be wonderful
if this were true?
But they don't just swallow it.
And I want you to see this
and there's two E's here.
What's the other E
in the passage?
Do you see it?
What do they do with this?
They receive it with eagerness
but what do they do?
They examine it.
And so here can I just address
the notion that is popular
in our culture
that faith is a blind leap
in the dark.
Right?
Like if you go to the library
you'll find the Bible
in the mythical section
along with Hansel and Gretel
and Jason and the Argonauts.
It's another myth
that people base their lives upon.
Would you see that Christianity
is true based on evidence?
In other words,
if you read this stuff
it will hold together.
You know G.K. Chesterton
who was a famous theologian
from years ago.
He once compared our
and get this okay
he once compared our minds
to our mouths.
And he said
when it comes to our minds
they need to operate
like our mouths.
Right?
We should think how we eat.
Think about your mouth.
He said
the very reason
that you open it
is that you would
close down on something solid.
And if something solid
would enter your system
and make a difference.
The very reason you open it
is to bite down
on something solid.
And he said
it's exactly the same
for your minds.
Why do you open them?
You open them
that you could bite down
and base your life
on something solid.
And Luke's saying
remember this historian
come doctor
who investigated these things
right at the beginning
of Luke chapter 1
that you may have certainty.
He's saying
here's something solid.
Here's something true
in which you can build
your lives.
Let me ask you
have you read it?
Have you read the Bible?
Have you investigated
Jesus for yourself?
There is no greater pursuit
that you could have
in your life.
Let me just plug two books
which are really helpful
for this
and these are freebies.
We've got a few of them
in the back
if you want one.
First one is called
Are You 100% Sure
You Want to Be an Agnostic?
And it's a brilliant book
read as a staff team
a couple of weeks ago.
Thinking about
what is it you're basing
your life
and your trust upon.
Come and grab it.
I'll just put it
on the stage afterwards
so you can get it.
Another one is just
called The Gospel.
What is this message
about Jesus?
Who is he?
Just a wonderful
and succinct job
of summarising it.
But if you want
to investigate Jesus
these are great books
but go to the sources.
It's what you do
in a court of law
isn't it?
It's not hearsay
it's sources.
Did it actually happen?
Because this is what
Luke is saying
in this passage.
He's saying
if you get stuck in
you'll find
that this stacks up.
You get stuck in
you will find
that this stacks up.
You see the Bereans
they examined it.
Does it stack up?
Does it hold?
And here's the
million dollar question
they asked themselves.
Verse 11
at the end.
Is what he is saying
and are the claims
that he is making
you see the words?
Are they true?
That's the question.
Is it true?
Do you know
who I feel
sorry for?
I feel sorry for
stand-up comedians.
Do you know why?
Because I don't
envy the task
of the pressure
of having to come up
with new material
all the time.
constantly asking
yourself
have they heard
that one before?
Do you think
they're going to
laugh at that?
Oh they won't.
Oh they have.
I better come up
with something new then.
That pressure
as a stand-up comedian
to come up
with new material.
I just say
not so
with a Christian preacher.
Right?
You have to be
committed
to unoriginality.
It's all
in the scriptures.
You know
every week
when I'm preparing
for the sermon
I just take that line
from the game show
Catch Freaks
and I make it my own.
Remember that motto?
Do you remember that line?
What is it?
Just say what you see.
Say what you see.
That's
the question
you need to ask
in the years
and the centuries
that go on
from this church family.
Is what the person
up here
is saying true?
Is it right here?
It's exactly
what Justin prayed.
I didn't even tell him
to pray that.
He prayed it.
It's great.
Is what they are
saying true?
And if it's not
question it.
If it's not
tell them it's not.
Is what they are
saying true?
Is what
they are saying
what God is saying
in his words?
Got to be committed
to unoriginality.
First thing
about Christianity
you investigate it
you will find it
compelling
Luke is saying
and the second thing
and this will be
a lot shorter
don't worry
you associate
with it
and you'll find
that it's costly.
Verse 5
the jealous Jews
you see how they
gather a mob
back in with
their mob here
bad characters
from the marketplace
I take it
just local hooligans
who love nothing
other than a bit
of bother
and they riot
and what's interesting
here in the text
is that Luke
wants us to know
about one man
in particular
do you see?
do you see
how his name
comes up four times
in these little
verses here
who is he?
do you see him?
Jason
and I take it
that's just an
eyewitness detail
that these things
actually happened
I take it
it's another
eyewitness detail
to say
if you wanted
to go and find
out that this
happened
Jason just lives
over there
he's here
people knew him
you can ask
I love how the
Bible holds up
gives you people's
names
these things
happened
Jason's probably
one of the
locals
who've just
responded to
Paul's message
about Jesus
and presumably
he's the one
who's housing
Paul in silence
during their trip
to Thessalonica
and just in the
context of Acts
do you see how
he's playing
the same role
that Lydia's
played back
in Philippi
I love it
again a diversity
of people who
are involved
in gospel work
Luke's showing
us the beautiful
diversity of what
Jesus is doing
and see what
happens to Jason
they target
Jason
they run to
his house
look for Paul
and Silas
they can't find
them but Jason
will do
and they drag
them before the
city officials
you've got to
notice all these
verbs
he's shouted
at
he's accused
why
because he
is associating
himself
with Jesus
you know
see often
these people
that just have
the t-shirts
that say
I'm with him
I'm with her
and there's a
big arrow
that's it
isn't it
Jason is
associating
with Paul
and Silas
who are
associating
with Jesus
and then
these Jews
they travel
all the way
to Berea
which if you
do the maths
is not a
short journey
I think that's
the equivalent
I think
if I'm right
off the top
of my head
they're going
to Glasgow
to Edinburgh
walk
they really
hate this
message
and track
the chain
of suffering
Jason's
suffering
because before
him Paul
suffered
and before
Paul suffered
Stephen
suffered
and before
Stephen
suffered
Jesus
suffered
I take it
this is the
cross shaped
life
for all those
who would
associate
themselves
with this
king
and who
would claim
that phrase
as their
own
Jesus
is
king
can I just
say if you're
going through
a really hard
time just now
because of that
at university
you're standing
for a Christian
sexual ethic
you're in work
where there's
pressure on you
to conform
to say that
there are many
ways to God
all these
different ways
that pressure
can come on us
that we feel
the pain
of suffering
associating
ourselves
with Jesus
can I just
say be encouraged
that your king
went that way
first
I take it
this is the
path for all
those who
would claim
Jesus as
their king
but look at
the nature
of what they're
saying about
Paul and
Silas
verse 6
and I love
this
I want you
to love it
as well
these men
what have
they done
they've caused
trouble
everywhere
but if you
got an
ESV
here's what
it says
they've
turned the
world upside
down
love that
do you not
love that
non-believers
were saying
about this
Jesus revolution
about Christianity
way back in the
day they've
turned the
world upside
down
maybe for
Jesus and
a bunch of
unimpressive
looking followers
turned the
world upside
down
love it
the disruptive
witness of
Christianity
is it's
sending shockwaves
through culture
is it's
challenging
societal norms
as lives are
being transformed
by the grace
of Jesus
as people
are oozing
radical love
and obedience
the rest of
the culture
like dead
fish going
down the
stream
and all
of a sudden
these alive
salmon start
swimming up
the stream
so it's going
on in the
words of
19th century
author H.G.
Wells
I'm a historian
not a believer
but I must
confess that
the penniless
preacher from
Nazareth is
irrevocably the
very centre of
history
it's turning the
world upside
down
because
it's turning
people's lives
upside down
right
I love that
in this one
you make no
mistake that to
be a Christian
is not just to
sign up to
attend something
right
it's not what
Jason is doing
he's given his
life to Jesus
and automatically
he's committing
his life to
serve
I love this
and you start
seeing the
connections
I've said I
love this a
lot
you start seeing
the connections
all the way
through scripture
Jason is the
person that's
mentioned at
the end of
Romans 16
that Paul
gives a
list of
people
what that
means is
Jason is
listed there
as one of
Paul's
co-workers
in other
words Jason
who was doing
I imagine
not a lot
with his
life before
this happened
all of a
sudden what
does he do
his life is
transformed
he starts
suffering
but the
joy
that has
come because
of who
Jesus is
and his
life is
transformed
and he
joins Paul
in his
work
he's probably
a wealthy
man
that's what
they reckon
about this
guy Jason
because many
understand it
to be him
who pays
the bail
money
at the end
you see
that to
calm things
down in
the midst
of this
riot
he started
using the
things that
God has
given him
his money
his house
his whole
life
in the
service of
this Jesus
God
turns
lives
upside
down
grace
transforms
and God
gives people
new purposes
to live for
when they
come to
know this
Jesus
doesn't mean
you do a
different job
doesn't mean
you travel to
a different
part of the
world
but it
means what
we do
now
in our
day to
day lives
there's a
new purpose
because whatever
we're doing
in word and
deed we're
serving
the Lord
Jesus
as we
begin to
wind this
to a
close
here's
what I
want you
to
appreciate
that this
was no
verse 15
Paul heads
to Athens
this was no
hit and run
evangelistic
mission
Paul
loves
these
people
and he
sends
Timothy
back to
see how
they're
doing
he gets
to
Corinth
and he
sends
Timothy
back
would you
go and
see how
they're
getting
on
my
heart
is
broken
for
them
but I
only
got to
spend
three or
so
weeks
with
them
I
want to
know
how
they're
doing
are they
still
going
with
the
Lord
how are
they
getting
on
and he
writes
in
Corinth
these
letters
in our
Bibles
known as
1st and
2nd
Thessalonians
again you
just see how
the Bible
is fitting
together
here
wonderful
thing
for you
to do
in your
own
time
this
week
is
read
1st
Thessalonians
in light
of this
a lot
of it
will begin
to make
sense
two themes
dominate
those letters
really quickly
endurance
okay
Paul is
pleading
with them
now that
he's heard
that they're
doing well
keep on
going
keep on
doing
what you're
doing
that they'd
be even
more convinced
of the
truth
that they
keep on
going
despite the
intense
pressures
that are
coming on
them
keep on
going
Christ
is going
to hold
you
he's
got
you
he will
see
you
home
keep
trusting
him
endurance
and another
example
and I love
this and you can see this in the opening verses of chapter 1
because they're keeping on going despite persecution and suffering
and daring to speak for Jesus in their city just as Paul did
God is using that and word about that is getting around to the neighboring regions
I love it
and Paul says that that example and other people who are being encouraged by your example
is ringing out like the noise of a gong all the way through the regions of Macedonia
and Achaia people that they've never met people that they never will meet
remember you don't just travel around in this day like we do people Christians
all over the world who they will never meet and yet I've heard about these Christians
and how they're standing and keeping going for Jesus and Paul is saying
do you know how amazing it is that God is using this all over the world
because of your example
is that not encouraging?
that's not encouraging you'd find that if you're a believer in Thessalonica up against it
my life's nothing special what am I doing?
again friends let's just never underestimate what God can do through a simple act of obedience and faithfulness to him
these believers are joining Paul in what he's doing
God is using this in ways way bigger than they could ever imagine
so Jesus Christ
deceiver
deluded
God is seeing the invitation here
to do what Paul is doing
to do what the believers are doing
to come and dare to say divine
and just as we close I want to tell you about a guy called Campbell McLennan
his nickname is Kumba
thing about Kumba
I've never met him
I don't know if I ever will meet him in my life
but here's the thing
I feel like I know him
and the reason I do is because my good friend Doogie keeps on telling me about him every time I see him
used to play football with Doogie at university
Doogie would always tell me about Kumba
okay
Doogie wasn't a Christian at the time
he played in the same football team at Kumba
at university before I played with him
and they're out one Saturday night in Glasgow
and Doogie turns to Kumba and says
I hear you go to church
you do that weird thing
what's that all about?
maybe I can come along and see what it's about
and Kumba says
no no no Doogie
you don't understand
Christianity
it's not just simply about attending church
Christianity is about a relationship with Jesus
knowing who he is and what he's done
but at that point of the conversation
the two of them are talking away
at that point of the conversation
somebody comes along and the conversation moves on
and the moment's gone
but that Saturday night
the Wednesday night comes the next week
and the boys
you do it football
you're going to run the laps around the pitches
and at certain points you stop
and you warm up together
okay
just do your stretches
so they're doing that
and they're all warming up together
and Kumba says to Doogie
do you remember how the other night
I told you about how being a Christian
wasn't just about attending church
but I was about a relationship with Jesus
and Doogie goes
yeah I remember that
in front of all the boys
Kumba says
but I never got to tell you why
so Kumba starts
in front of everyone
just starts telling Doogie about Jesus
it's great
it's a conversation between two people
with everyone else listening
and Doogie's blown away by his bravery
why would he do that
in front of all those guys
but Doogie's blown away
he's intrigued
and he joins Kumba
an alpha course
and in Doogie's words
and he left me a whatsapp message this week
I came to see in that course
that the bible is true
and he becomes a Christian
and he traces it all the way back
to Kumba
and his faithfulness
just to tell him about Jesus
and so this guy
who I've never met
I don't even know where he lives
I don't even know what he does now
but all I know
is that his witness for Jesus
hugely encouraged me
and I hope it encourages you as well
fast forward 20 or so years
and Doogie's now the pastor
up in Aberdeen
and what's he doing
he's working to tell others
about Jesus
and here's what it says
in his Twitter bio
you know what that is
who I am
how I got here
what I do
here's what he said
someone once had the courage
to tell me the truth about Jesus
and it changed everything
so there's the challenge
for us today
as we look at this example
of what this early church
what Luke is writing here
in our lives
think about what's happening
tomorrow for you
think about what's happening
this week
in our everyday lives
with our everyday words
will we dare to call them
divine
let's pray
and so Father
we just thank you so much
for your word this morning
and I pray Father
for us
some of us here today
who are perhaps doubting
the sufficiency
of your words
oh Lord
thank you for what Paul writes
in the letter of 1 Thessalonians
about how these Thessalonians
received it
about how it came
with a depth of conviction
through your Holy Spirit
Father I pray
that each of us
Lord
that you would help us
to ground our lives
on your word
we thank you
for what we've seen
this morning
that you are the good
God of the gospel
who can transform
any and every life
and maybe even
for the first time
for some of us today
we would respond
to the message
of this Jesus
and come to have life
in his name
by believing
in his word
Father we just praise you
that you are the God
of all grace
and Father we pray
that as your word
continues to do
its work in our lives
that your spirit
would come
and plant it
deep in us
why?
so that we would
continue to grow
as your people
Father thank you
for your love for us
and we pray
these things
in Jesus'
beautiful name
Amen