We're going to read God's word together now.
I'm going to read from the passage that David is going to preach from in Hebrews.
!
You endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach
and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated.
For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of
your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.
Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.
For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive
what is promised.
For yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay, but my righteous one
shall live by faith.
And if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.
But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and
preserved their souls.
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
For by it the people of old received their commendation.
By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is
seen was not made out of things that are visible.
Amen.
My name is David Court.
I'm one of the ministers here, and as Chris intimated earlier, we're beginning a series
in Hebrews chapter 11 this evening.
Perhaps one of the most well-known and well-loved chapters of the Bible, certainly I think the
most familiar passage in the letter to the Hebrews.
And it's a chapter that we're going to work through in our evening services over the next
few months, God willing.
However, unlike the renowned Puritan preacher Thomas Manton, we will not be preaching 65 sermons
on it.
You'll be glad to know.
Indeed, over the years, the chapter has been given many titles.
Manton sermons are compiled in a volume.
It's entitled By Faith.
Others include Faith Victorious, Heroes of the Faith, The Biography of Faith, God's Hall of
Faith, and Faith for Life.
And you don't have to be Sherlock Holmes to work out that the great theme of the chapter
is faith.
Faith, I think the central term faith appears, I think, around 24 times in these verses.
And I want just to mention by way of introduction just three things about Hebrews 11.
First of all, it's unity.
The chapter itself is, I think, carefully constructed as a discrete section.
It's bookended in verses 1 and 2, and then at the end in verses 39 and 40 by these two expressions,
faith, and were commended.
It's a well-defined unit of the letter comprising, I suppose, a list of examples drawn from the
Old Testament of those who lived by faith in the living God.
It's a unity, and that's why often preachers, ministers will take this particular chapter and
preach through it.
Secondly, it's structure.
It's more than just a series of examples drawn randomly from the pages of the Old Testament.
There's a very definite pattern, progression through the chapter.
The emphasis here is not merely on the faith of certain individuals, but also on the saving
power of God made known in redemption history.
There's a chronological movement through the chapter.
The men and women of faith that are mentioned all served this unfolding plan and purpose
of God.
And then it's purpose, thirdly.
If the chapter contains this picture gallery of Old Testament saints, then it's a picture
that's set in a very definite frame.
The chapter is given to us in a particular context.
And I think it's important for us to see why the author wrote about these men and women
of faith and where that fits in the flow of the letter.
The letter to the Hebrews, as many of you will know, was written to a group of first-century
Christians, most probably converts from Judaism, and they were being tempted to abandon their
allegiance to Christ to drift back to their old way of life and their old religious practices.
And much of the letter is given over to highlighting the absolute sufficiency and supremacy of Jesus
Christ as prophet, priest, and king, as we were thinking about this morning.
And chapter 10 that Chris read for us, you'll notice concludes with a kind of warning and
a challenge.
The author reminds his hearers of what happened when they first came to faith in Jesus.
Recall the former days after you were enlightened.
You endured a hard struggle with sufferings, publicly exposed to reproach and affliction,
sometimes partners with those so treated.
You had compassion on those in prison, accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew
that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.
So, in those former days, the Hebrews had been zealous for the gospel.
They'd been willing to suffer, put up with hardship.
They'd put up with opposition and indeed public shame for the sake of Christ.
And yet, with the passing of time, things had started to change.
And these Christian believers had become tired, weary.
They were being tempted to drift away from the gospel and indeed turn away from the living God.
They were beginning to subtly, perhaps, move their confidence elsewhere.
And that enthusiasm and commitment that they had to Christ had started to wane.
And that is a very real danger, isn't it, for Christian believers in every age and generation,
ourselves included.
Like the Hebrews of old, we too can be tempted, can we not, to be ashamed of Christ and His gospel.
Maybe ashamed of Him in our families or in our places of work or education.
To withdraw rather than engage.
To keep quiet rather than to speak up.
To turn back even rather than press on.
To blend in rather than stand out.
In Hebrews, the writer often likens his readers to being like the children of Israel.
Having left Egypt, as they made their way to the promised land,
you will remember that they grumbled and they complained.
They failed to believe God's promise to them.
And they didn't press on.
Rather than move forward, they chose to look back to Egypt and to this world.
And so, Hebrews 11 really is a chapter that comes amid a strong, sustained, stirring call
to perseverance and endurance.
To keep on in the way of faith.
And that is the context here.
Verse 35 and 36 of chapter 10.
Do not throw away your confidence, which has great reward.
You have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what He has promised.
We're not to give up, but to press on.
We're not to shrink back, but we're to move forward.
We're not to let go, but we're to hold on.
We're not to be ashamed, but we're to stand up.
And that's what makes this chapter of the Bible so perennially relevant for God's people through the ages.
Because whoever we are and whatever our situation may be, if we're Christian believers, we all need encouragement, stimulation to keep on going and to keep on living by faith.
Because, of course, faith is foundational to Christianity.
You can't be a Christian without faith.
It's fundamental to both being and living as a Christian.
In Reformed theology, three elements are often highlighted aspects of faith.
Often they give them kind of fancy Latin titles, but I don't do very well at Latin.
So, knowledge, assent, and trust.
And yet, in this chapter, the writer's not so much offering us a kind of definition of faith,
as he is encouraging us to join with that great company of Old Testament saints who've gone before us,
traveling in the way of faith.
And he's showing us here how faith works or operates or functions at a practical level.
It's a chapter that reminds us of the need to go on living the life of faith,
despite the problems and the difficulties,
often presented by a culture or society that's hostile to Christianity.
And I hope that as we work through this chapter in the coming weeks,
that if we're believers, we will be encouraged, inspired even,
to keep on in the way of faith.
And if we're not believers,
we'll be challenged to put our faith in the God of the Bible,
rather than simply live our lives looking to and trusting in ourselves.
What I want to do tonight is to look at the opening three verses of the chapter.
Let me read them again.
Faith is the assurance of things hoped for,
the conviction of things not seen,
for by it the people of old received their commendation.
By faith we understand that the universe was created by the Word of God,
so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.
Well, let me mention three things about this great foundation of faith from our text tonight.
We'll take each verse in turn.
The first is this, in verse 1,
Faith looks to the future that God has promised.
Faith is the assurance of things hoped for,
the conviction of things not seen.
Now, the ESV translation that we use here,
I think the NIV is the same,
translate this verse in such a way that kind of emphasizes
what we might call the subjective experience of faith.
In this way of reading the text,
the author highlights faith's inner sense of assurance and conviction,
and that's a perfectly acceptable way of reading the text.
But there is another way of reading or understanding the verse,
and it's preferred by some of the older translations,
including the authorized version.
And those of you of mature years who may be familiar with that
will remember how that reads.
Faith is the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen.
And the emphasis there in that translation
is not so much on the subjective,
but if I can put it this way,
the objective aspect of faith.
The writer uses a word here
that designates a kind of objective reality.
Faith is the substance.
It's the guarantee,
indeed the title deed of what we hope for.
It's something solid.
It's something substantial.
It's not a mist that evaporates
under the heat of life's trials and difficulties.
It is the foundation beneath our feet
when the ground starts to shake.
It's the title deed to the future
that God Himself has promised us in Jesus Christ.
And those things that are hoped for
are not kind of wishful thinking,
but rather something that is certain,
but not yet fully realized in our present experience.
It's the hope.
Paul speaks of that in Romans chapter 5, verse 5.
He says that the hope of glory will not let us down
because we've already tasted the love of God
in our hearts through the Spirit.
Elsewhere in Hebrews, the writer, chapter 6, 19,
tells us that this hope is set before us
as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul,
sure and steadfast substance.
He says that the faith is the evidence
of things not seen.
And indeed, that's a theme that runs throughout the chapter.
And we find that contrast things,
faith and unseen realities,
in verse 3, in verse 7, in verse 13, in verse 27.
The word evidence there is something like proof,
more than just a feeling or certainty of conviction.
Where God grants faith, and through the Holy Spirit,
He brings a piece of the future into the present.
And faith turns that future hope into a present reality.
Of course, we can't know or experience
that future reality fully or completely,
but we can know something of it in the present.
By faith, we take hold of the promise,
and we experience the substance
of what we will one day receive in full.
Thomas Manton writes,
a lively faith gives such a reality,
certainty, and present being to things hoped for,
and yet to come,
as if they were already actually enjoyed.
So, faith is not something unreasonable
or opposed to evidence.
The writer's point in this opening verse
is to highlight the fact
that faith is holding something to be true,
even though we have not yet seen it fully arrive.
The writer wants his readers to continue
believing in something
that has not yet been fulfilled.
He wants them to go on believing
in the promises of God,
despite the fact that what has been promised
has to date not yet been received in full.
And that's a distinction between receiving a promise
and receiving what was promised.
And we see that distinction later on
in the chapter, verses 13.
These all died in faith,
not having received the things promised,
but having seen them
and greeted them from afar,
and having acknowledged
that they were strangers
and exiles on the earth.
Verse 39,
And all of these,
though commended through their faith,
did not receive what was promised.
What was promised?
A great Savior in Jesus Christ.
A glorious future.
A city with foundations
whose architect and builder is God.
Later on in the letter,
that promise is described
in terms of a kingdom
that cannot be shaken.
These men and women
had a conviction
and a belief
in what God had promised to them.
Let me try and illustrate.
If a father
says to his son, for example,
that on Saturday afternoon
he'll take him to a football match,
then at that point
the son has received a promise,
but not yet received
what was promised.
He doesn't receive
what was promised
until the Saturday afternoon.
But nonetheless,
the boy can rely
on the promise
the father has made
and live in the light of it,
looking forward
to Saturday,
anticipating
what lies ahead,
preparing himself,
perhaps,
for the big match.
And that's faith.
It's not a leap in the dark.
It's holding on
to the promises
given by our heavenly father.
It is resting
and believing
in the promises
that God has made to us,
promises that are forever sure.
John Newton's great hymn,
Amazing Grace,
there's those famous lines,
The Lord has promised
good to me.
His word my hope secures.
He will my shield
and portion be
as long as life endures.
And the life of faith
has always meant just that,
to live trusting God
to do what we cannot yet see
in full.
That's what happened to Noah.
The people laughed at him,
but he believed God's promise
of a flood
even in the desert.
Abram was called by God
to go a place,
go a place
he had not yet seen.
And so we walk by faith,
not by sight.
We listen to God's word,
and we set our sights
on the power
and the promises
of our God.
And the hope
of the Christian believer
is nothing less
than God Himself.
His kingdom,
His power,
His glory,
and the consummation
of all His promises
that are yes and amen
in Jesus Christ.
We have received the promise,
but we have not fully received
what was promised.
Like the promise,
however,
of a human father
that can be derailed
by illness,
unforeseen difficulties,
poor planning.
That can never be true
of our Heavenly Father.
And the future
He has promised us
in Jesus Christ
is one of glory and joy.
It's a living hope
in perishable,
undefiled,
and unfading.
There is absolutely
no possibility
it will not be realized.
And so by faith,
we are to hold on
to the promises
that God Himself
has made
and persevere.
We're called
to the same kind of life
as those saints of old,
to be a people
looking forward
in faith.
Because faith
looks to the future
that God
has promised.
And that brings me
to the second thing here.
Faith looks to the future
that God has promised.
Secondly,
you'll notice that faith
is what God
commends.
For by it,
the people of old
received,
the ancients received
their commendation.
Faith is that
which God
commends.
Faith
pleases
God.
Faith
pleased God
in the past,
and faith
pleases God
today.
It's by faith
that the saints
of old
receive commendation.
The author
of the Hebrews
here
is not really
focusing,
I think,
on the nature
of that commendation.
His point
really is this,
is that it was
their faith
that was commended,
not anything else
about them.
Later in the chapter,
in verse 6
of the chapter,
he says,
without faith,
it is impossible
to please God.
And I suppose
there is a danger
in a chapter
like Hebrews 11,
which mentions
so many of the
Old Testament
faithful saints,
and kind of
reducing everything,
I suppose,
to a kind of
character study.
We end up saying
to people to try,
you know,
try to be a bit
more like Noah,
or Abraham,
or Sarah,
or Moses,
or whoever.
Here are these
great men and women
of God
who did great works,
mightily used of God.
You need to pull up
your socks,
be a bit more
like them.
And I think
that would be
a great mistake.
Because even
a cursory knowledge
of the Old Testament
reveals that
these men and women
were far from
being perfect individuals.
They had their faults
and frailties,
just like us.
They were all
weak, sinful
human beings.
And it's interesting,
the writer of Hebrews
has absolutely no interest
in their gifts
and their skills
and their abilities
and their pedigree
and their intellect.
He's only interested
in one thing,
their faith.
This is his point.
The reason they were
so greatly used
to further God's purposes
was that they trusted God.
They relied on God.
They believed in God.
We think of those things
that our world
loves to commend.
Think of those things
that this world
considers praiseworthy.
What are they?
They are things like
status and position,
beauty and celebrity,
wealth and riches,
academic intelligence,
political power,
physical strength.
These are the kinds
of things that are lauded
by the world.
And it's these kinds
of people that our world
wants to put on a pedestal.
They're the kind of folks
that fill the pages
of secular history books.
Human history is so often
about, isn't it,
about the great
and the powerful.
And yet God's assessment
is so very different.
It's those who walk humbly
with Him
that receive His approval.
It's those who choose
the path of a servant
and a slave
that merit His smile.
It's those who travel
the way of faith
that are commended.
And God's commendation
comes to those
who look away
from themselves
towards God.
They trust in Him
rather than in themselves.
They lean on Him.
They believe in Him.
They look to Him.
J.C. Ryle was the
Bishop of Liverpool
in the late 19th century.
He wrote a famous book
put together
entitled Holiness.
And it's a kind of series,
I think, really,
of sermons.
But in one of the chapters,
he writes this.
The true secret
of doing great things
for God
is to have great faith.
I believe we are all
apt to err on this point.
We think too much
and talk too much
about graces
and gifts
and attainments
and do not sufficiently
remember
that faith
is the root
and mother
of them all.
In walking with God,
a man will go
just as far
as he believes
and no further.
His life
will always be
proportioned
to his faith,
his peace,
his patience,
his courage,
his zeal,
his works.
All will be
according
to his faith.
And friends,
that's surely,
is it not,
a message of hope
for us all this evening.
God is not looking
for men and women
of great intellect
or ability.
He's looking for men
and women of faith.
Faith is key.
He's looking for those
who out of a sense
of their own
desperate need
ever cast themselves
and rely
on the living God.
Looking for those
who'll give up
on themselves,
who've despaired
of themselves,
who've abandoned
self-confidence
and instead
thrown themselves
upon the mercy
and grace
of the living God.
I wonder
if you've done
that tonight.
I wonder
who or what
you're really
trusting in.
The saints
of old,
Abel,
Enoch,
Noah,
Abraham,
Moses.
Their faith
was not
in their own
strength
and wisdom,
but in the God
who spoke
promises to them.
And friends,
God is speaking
promises to us
tonight.
Indeed,
the gospel
of Jesus Christ
is one great
and wonderful
promise.
For God
so loved
the world,
He gave
His only begotten
Son,
that whosoever
believes in Him
shall not perish,
but have eternal
life.
Let me ask you,
what are you doing
with that
wonderful promise
tonight?
These Old Testament
saints were commended
not because they
were perfect,
not because they
never wavered,
not because they
never stumbled
or sinned,
but because they
trusted God's
Word
above their
fears,
above their
circumstances,
above the
shouts of a
world that
called them
fools.
Friends,
we're called
to do the
same.
We're called
to trust
God
and His
assessment
of what
is commendable.
Look to Him
in all things
and in all
circumstances,
in both the
sweet and the
sour of life.
Be like those
people of old
who were
commended for
their faith.
constantly
turn to
Him
and trust
Him
in all
things
and for
all
things.
For faith
is what God
commends.
Faith
looks to the
future that God
has promised.
Faith is what
God commends.
And thirdly here,
as time
disappears,
faith understands
that universe
was created
by God.
By faith,
we understand
that the
universe was
created by
the Word of
God,
so that what
is seen
was not
made out
of things
that are
visible.
Verse 3,
by faith
we understand.
Faith in
God brings
with it a
way of
looking at
and understanding
the cosmos.
We understand
that this
world,
what's
complexity
and its
beauty,
did not
spring from
nothing,
by chance.
It is not
self-existent.
It was
called into
being by
the Word
of God.
And that's
a really
important
perspective.
Because when
we believe
this, we
stand against
the tide
of a
culture that
often wants
to worship
the creature
rather than
the Creator.
And the
claim of
the Bible
is that
all things
were brought
into being
out of
nothing
by God.
And in
Jesus Christ,
we therefore
not only have
an anchor
for our
souls,
but one
that brings
us a
true
understanding
of our
world.
We live
in a world
that
frequently
is very
suspicious
of faith,
certainly
amongst
many of
my
generation.
faith is
to be
found in
doubt and
skepticism.
Faith is
deemed to
be the
preserve of
fools,
the gullible
and the
simple-minded.
Their
oft-repeated
mantra is,
we don't
believe in
God,
we believe
in science.
As if
their science
or perhaps
better,
scientism
itself does
not rest
on numerous
faith,
some of
the many
questionable
faith
presuppositions.
Biblical
faith understands
that the
world and
the universe
was created
by God.
God declared
the universe
into being,
and faith
understands
that that
is true.
Creation
is God's
design.
It's an
expression
of His
will.
And so
purpose
and meaning
and order
and reason
have actually
been built
into the
world and
the universe
that God
made.
It's not
all a
kind of
cosmic
accident.
It's only
in the
light of
God's
creative
acts
that the
universe
can make
any sense
at all.
If there
is no
God,
it's all
meaningless.
I'm
reminded
of the
word
C.S.
Lewis,
he gave
a paper
to the
Oxford
Socratic
Club
back in
the early
1960s.
I have
no
idea
what the
Oxford
Socratic
Club
is or
if it's
even still
in existence.
But he
gave a
paper.
I'm going
to read,
not read
the whole
of it,
you'll be
glad to
know,
but let
me read
some
words that
he has
in that
paper.
If he
says,
I swallow
the scientific
cosmology
as a
whole,
then not
only can
I not
fit in
Christianity,
I cannot
even fit
in science.
If minds
are wholly
dependent on
brains,
brains on
biochemistry,
and biochemistry
in the long
run on the
meaningless flux
of the
atoms,
I cannot
understand how
the thought of
those minds
should have
any more
significance than
the sound of
the wind in
the trees.
And this to me
is the final
test, he says.
And then he
goes on,
Christian theology
can fit in
science,
art,
morality,
and other
religions.
The scientific
point of view
cannot fit in
any of these
things,
not even
science itself.
And then the
famous line,
I believe in
Christianity
as I believe
that the sun
has risen,
not only
because I
see it,
but because
by it
I see
everything
else.
And yes,
science is good,
science is great,
but without
God's revelation
it is ultimately
meaningless.
It has to be
rooted and
grounded
in Christian
faith,
because it's
faith that
brings
understanding.
Herman Bavinck,
I'm allowed to,
Corey's not
allowed to quote
Herman Bavinck,
I am allowed to
quote Herman
Bavinck.
He wrote a
book on
Christianity and
science.
I think
Corey may
actually have
been one of
the translators
of the book,
so if you've
got any
questions on
it,
you can
speak to
him.
And he
closes that
book with
these words,
Christian
science,
he says,
that is
science conducted
on the basis
of faith in
God's Word.
It's a science
that investigates
all things by
the light of
that revelation
and therefore
sees them as
they truly are
in their
essence.
In the eyes
of the world
this might be
foolishness,
but the folly
of God is
wiser than
men,
just as the
weakness of
God is
stronger than
men.
And that's
why those
atheists that
try to be
consistent,
like Richard
Dawkins,
say that even
to ask the
question about
purpose and
meaning in
human existence,
existence is
stupid and
irrational.
And it's an
incredibly bleak,
anti-human
perspective,
and we can
see where
that may
take us as
a culture,
as a society.
It's quite
literally a
dead end.
Because it's
faith that brings
understanding,
faith in the
living God.
It helps me to
see that life
does have
purpose and
meaning and
significance.
And that may
not be a
cure for those
feelings that we
have in difficult
times, but it
provides the
basis for not
falling into
utter despair.
Tim Keller
writes,
the Bible tells
us that if you
don't let your
thinking lead you
to Jesus Christ,
it will end in
despair.
By faith we
understand that the
world and the
universe itself are
not eternal or
self-sustaining, but
are utterly dependent
on God.
The universe was
created by the
Word of God.
The God who
brought the cosmos
into being, who
sustains it in the
present, will one
day redeem it in the
future.
That is what the
Scriptures teach.
We are God's
creatures in God's
world.
And so it's only in
looking to God that
we can truly make any
sense of our lives.
Because a believing
response to the
revelation of
Scripture brings
understanding.
It brings
illumination.
The light bulb
goes on.
And yes, the
secular scientific
method is limited.
It cannot
explain purpose or
meaning on its own
terms.
And so the ultimate
answers to the big
questions of life lie
not in the world, as
it were, but in the
Word.
That same Word that
brought the cosmos,
everything into being.
That same Word speaks
to us the great
promises of the
gospel.
It promises us a new
creation.
Peter says in his
second letter, in
keeping with his
promise, we are
what?
Looking forward to a
new heaven and a new
earth, the home of
righteousness.
And it is as we by
faith become men and
women united to Jesus
Christ that we become
new creatures.
If anyone's in Christ,
he is what?
A new creation.
The old is gone.
The new has come.
And so through faith in
Jesus Christ we belong,
not in this old world and
old age rather that is
decaying and dying, but
in that new world, that
new age that God
himself is bringing into
being.
Faith in many respects
cannot really be
understood in the
abstract.
It's always relational.
It's faith in, it's
faith on, it's faith
towards.
The Puritans called it a
leaning grace.
Because there's a sense in
which faith doesn't exist
on its own.
It's always attached
itself to something or
someone.
And here in Hebrews 11,
the great object of
faith is God himself.
The God of the Bible,
the triune God, Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit,
His character, His Word,
His promises.
Time is almost gone.
R.T.
Kendall was the minister in
the late, I think, mid to
late 70s, followed the
famous Welsh preacher,
Martin Lloyd-Jones, at
Westminster Chapel in
London.
And he recounts in one
of his books the
occasion he was planning
to preach through this
particular chapter,
Hebrews 11.
And he was driving Lloyd-Jones
to some preaching
engagement in the
Cotswolds.
And he asked them for a
good definition of
faith.
And they discussed the
matter at some length as
they drove there and as
they drove back.
After about four hours of
driving, they seemed no
closer to a definition.
But the next day, the
phone rang.
And before Kendall could
even say hello, a voice
on the other end said,
Believing God.
That's your definition.
Hebrews 11 is full of
men and women who believed
God.
They believed in Him.
They believed His Word.
They believed His promises.
They staked their whole
existence on those promises.
They left homes.
They built arks.
They offered sacrifices.
They fought enemies.
They wandered this world as
strangers and pilgrims
because they believed God.
Biblical faith is not some
kind of blind optimism.
It is believing God.
Believing who He says He is
and that He will do what He
has promised to do.
It's believing His Word.
Faith looks to the cross of
Christ and says,
here is the evidence of God's
love and the substance of His
promise to me, a sinner.
Faith looks at the empty tomb
and says, here is the victory
of God's power and the guarantee
of my hope of eternal life.
And yes, much in this present
world is fading and dying.
But the Word of God endures
forever.
And the promises of God are
unshakable.
And Jesus Christ is the same
yesterday,
today,
and forever.
So let me encourage you this
evening, if you're a believer,
to look to Him in faith
and to press on.
It can be hard
in the face of bereavement,
illness,
other difficulties.
But the call is to stand
as a child of the promise,
to fix your eyes on Him,
Jesus Christ,
your soul's reward,
to keep running the race,
to keep walking by faith,
not by sight.
And if you're not a Christian,
well, let me encourage you
to come to Him with all your
doubts and fears and questions,
to trust Him with all that you are
and all that you have.
And so join that great company
of men and women
who down through the years
lived by faith.
Let's pray together.
Lord, we thank You
that You are a God
of grace
and mercy
and rich
and abundant love.
We thank You
that You're a God
who reveals Himself
and has revealed Himself
in Scripture,
in the world
that He has made,
and in the person
of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Lord, may You work in us
by Your Holy Spirit.
May You work in us
that which is pleasing to You,
that together
we may be men
and women
of faith
in You,
the living
and eternal God,
as we pray these things
in Jesus' name.
Amen.