Well, good morning again, church.
Our sermon passage today is Luke chapter 21, starting in verse 5.
That's page 827 in the Pew Bible.
Let me invite you to turn there with me.
Luke 21, page 827.
This winter and spring, we're walking passage by passage through the last third of the Gospel of Luke.
And in our text today, Jesus is going to teach us about the future.
Now, if you think about it, we spend a lot of time living now in light of what's to come, don't we?
You know, for example, we go to school now because in the future we want to get a job.
Or we maybe save and invest our income now because in the future we want to retire.
Or we draft a will.
Or we do the hard work of repairing broken relationships now because in the future we want our loved ones to remember us well.
But what if there was a way to live now in light of our ultimate future?
In other words, how should we live now spiritually in light of God's future, our ultimate horizon?
That's what Jesus is going to teach us in Luke 21.
So let me pray and then I'll read this passage for us.
Let's pray together.
Father, it's right for us to pause before coming to your word and to pray for illumination.
To pray that you by your spirit would give light to our finite minds, to our weak minds.
Father, help us above all to know you better through your son Jesus and your unending love as we consider this text.
It's in his name, the name above all names that we pray.
Amen.
All right.
Luke 21, verses 5 through 38.
Let me read this long text for us.
And while some were speaking of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings, he, that is Jesus said,
As for these things that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.
And they asked him, Teacher, when will these things be?
And what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?
And he said, See that you are not led astray.
For many will come in my name, saying, I am he, and the time is at hand.
Do not go after them.
And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified.
For these things must first take place, but the end will not be at once.
Then he said to them, Nation will rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom.
There will be great earthquakes and in various places famines and pestilences.
And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.
But before all this, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you,
delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons,
and you will be brought before kings and governors for my namesake.
This will be your opportunity to bear witness.
Settle it, therefore, in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer,
for I will give you a mouth and wisdom,
which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict.
You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends,
and some of you they will put to death.
You will be hated by all for my namesake,
but not a hair of your head will perish.
By your endurance, you will gain your lives.
But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies,
then know that its desolation has come near.
Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains,
and let those who are inside the city depart,
and let not those who are out in the country enter it,
for these are days of vengeance to fulfill all that is written.
Alas, for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days,
for there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people,
that will fall by the edge of the sword and be like captive among all nations,
and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles,
until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
And there will be signs in sun, moon, and stars,
and on the earth distress of nations and perplexity,
because of the roaring of the sea and the waves,
people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world.
For the powers of the heavens will be shaken,
and then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
Now when these things begin to take place,
straighten up and raise your heads,
because your redemption is drawing near.
And he told them a parable.
Look at the fig tree and all the trees.
As soon as they come out in leaf,
you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near.
So also when you see these things taking place,
you know that the kingdom of God is near.
Truly I say to you,
this generation will not pass away until all has taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.
But watch yourselves,
lest your hearts be weighed down
with dissipation and drunkenness
and cares of this life.
And that day come upon you suddenly like a trap.
For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth.
But stay awake at all times,
praying that you may have strength to escape all these things
that are going to take place.
And to stand before the Son of Man.
And every day he was teaching in the temple.
But at night he went out and lodged on the mount called Olivet.
And early in the morning,
all the people came to him in the temple to hear him.
Well,
it's easy in a long and intricate passage like this
to lose the forest for the trees,
to major on the minors,
and to miss the main things
that Jesus wants us to know.
So, in order to try to keep our focus on the main things,
I want us to see that Jesus here talks about two events,
one encouragement,
and one warning.
He gives us two events,
one encouragement,
and one warning
as we seek to live now
in light of God's future.
So, first,
what's the first event?
Well, the first event that Jesus talks about here
is right in the opening of the passage.
The destruction of Jerusalem in the temple.
Look again at verses five and six.
And while some were speaking of the temple,
how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings,
Jesus said,
as for these things that you see,
the days will come
when there will not be left here
one stone upon another
that will not be thrown down.
Now, when Jesus spoke those words
around 33 AD,
they may have struck some of his listeners
as hard to believe.
You see, the temple complex in Jerusalem
in Jesus' day was massive.
For the past 50 years,
beginning with Herod the Great,
the temple complex
had been under constant construction
and enlargement and beautification.
The whole structure,
the temple itself
and all the courts surrounding it,
was about 35 acres.
That's the size of about 12 football fields.
Imagine going to church
in a space that's the size of 12 football fields.
It's giant.
Some of the stones used in the walls
around the complex,
archaeologists have discovered,
are 42 feet long,
11 feet high,
and 14 feet deep.
That's like the size
of one of our children's ministry classrooms
next door.
Just like one stone.
The whole thing.
Some of the columns in the portico,
this sort of entryway,
were so thick
that according to the Jewish historian Josephus,
it took three men
with outstretched arms
to reach around one of the columns.
And the sanctuary,
the temple itself,
in the center of all this,
was 165 feet high
and it was covered
in such an array
of gold and silver,
crimson and purple,
that people said
it looked like a snow-clad mountain
radiating the morning sun.
The Roman historian,
Tacitus,
would later call
the Jerusalem temple
immensely opulent.
In fact,
the magnitude of the temple mount
and the stones used to construct it
exceed in size
any other known temple
in the ancient world.
And yet,
Jesus says,
not one stone
will be left upon another.
And what we know
is that in 70 AD,
what Jesus said
would come to pass.
War broke out with the Romans
in about 66 AD
and four years later,
Titus,
the son of the emperor of Aspation,
would finally topple Jerusalem
and burn it
along with the temple
to the ground.
In verses 20 through 24,
Jesus describes
that coming event
of AD 70,
Jerusalem surrounded by armies,
people falling
by the edge of the sword,
being led captive
among all nations.
And today,
you can actually go to Rome
and you can still see
what's called
the Arch of Titus,
a giant monument
erected by the Romans
to recall
the triumphal procession
of Titus
into Rome.
and what's depicted there
are prisoners
captured from the fall
of Jerusalem
being led back
to Rome in chains.
So what are we to learn
from this event
that Jesus spoke of
and that came to pass
just as he said?
Well, the first thing
we learn about
is the reliability
of Jesus.
Of course,
it's been tempting
for some to believe
that the gospel writers
simply put these words
into the mouth of Jesus
after the fact.
But you know,
when we compare
Jesus' words
with the words
of the Old Testament
prophets,
we see that Jesus
was predicting
the downfall
of Jerusalem
in language
very much
like those prophets
of old.
And given the fact
that many scholars
date the gospel
of Mark
before 70 A.D.,
that is before
the fall of Jerusalem,
the picture that we get
is not one of later writers
sort of putting words
into the mouth of Jesus,
but later writers
unpacking the words
that Jesus taught.
Jesus,
knowing how God
had dealt
with his people
in previous times,
knew that the Jerusalem
of his time
was headed
for a similar fate.
And so the words
of Jesus
are reliable.
Look down at verses
29 through 33.
And Jesus told them
a parable,
look at the fig tree
and all the trees.
Soon as they come out
and leave,
you see for yourselves
and know that the summer
is already near.
So also when you see
these things taking place,
you know that the kingdom
of God is near.
Truly I say to you,
this generation
will not pass away
until all has taken place.
heaven and earth
will pass away,
but my words
will not pass away.
Now,
verse 32
is a tricky verse.
What does Jesus mean
when he says
this generation
will not pass away
until all has taken place?
Well,
I think the best way
to understand it
is that Jesus
is referring here
to the fall of Jerusalem.
And that becomes clear
when you compare Luke 21
to Mark 13.
Mark 13
is Mark's account
of that same speech
of Jesus,
which Luke probably drew upon
in his own research
and writing of his gospel.
And in Mark 13,
if you go back
and read that,
you see that all these things
that will take place
in Jesus' generation
is a reference
to the fall of Jerusalem.
And so Jesus
is telling his disciples
that Jerusalem will fall.
All of that
is going to happen
within their lifetime.
And it does.
But then Jesus
goes on to say,
heaven and earth
will pass away,
but my words
will not pass away.
Now that's
an astounding statement,
is it not?
Sometimes I think
we get so caught up
with verse 32,
we miss what Jesus says
in verse 33.
Heaven and earth
will pass away,
but my words
will not pass away.
Jesus says
his words
are more permanent,
more lasting
than the creation itself.
Now there's only one person
who ought to say
such a thing.
And that person
is God himself.
So do you see
what Jesus is claiming
for himself here?
A claim to be identical
with the one true God of Israel,
the creator and sustainer
of all things.
whose words
will not pass away.
So the fall of Jerusalem
in AD 70
is one more piece
of evidence
that Jesus is
who he says he is
and his words
can be trusted,
they can be relied upon,
even if heaven
and earth pass away.
But the fall of Jerusalem
points us
not just to the reliability
of Jesus,
but also to the reality
of judgment.
Notice in verses 20
through 24
that the fall of Jerusalem
is described
not just as a day
of distress
and desolation,
but also,
Jesus says,
a day of vengeance
to fulfill all that is written
and as a day of wrath.
Those are phrases
that are used
for God's just judgment.
you see,
what God is looking for
from us humans,
from us image bearers,
isn't large stones
and opulent buildings.
What God is looking for
isn't massive,
outward religious show.
If that's what God
is looking for,
then Herod's extravagant
temple project
should be what we all
strive for.
And yet,
when Jesus entered
the temple,
he said it had been
made a den of robbers.
You see,
the prophets of Israel
again and again
warned the people
that it's not outward show
that God desires,
but a contrite
and humble heart.
God looks at the heart.
And the great tragedy
of the first century
is that God's own people
had become heart of heart,
even to the point
of rejecting
their own Messiah
in the person of Jesus.
So the fall of Jerusalem,
this unique event in history
that we've seen fulfilled
when God disciplined
his own people,
this event presses to us
a question as well.
What are you relying on?
Is it the work of your hands?
Vast religious,
spiritual works?
But friends,
our piety can be
as massively opulent
as the Jerusalem temple.
God looks at the heart.
And what God looks for
is humility before his word
and trust in his son.
And this brings us
to the second event
that Jesus describes.
In verses 25 through 28,
Jesus speaks about
the coming of the son of man
in glory.
Now having just described
the terrible judgment
that will fall on Jerusalem
within a generation's time,
Jesus lifts our gaze
to an even greater reckoning
to come further off.
And on that coming day,
Jesus says,
it won't be stones that fall,
but the sun, moon, and stars.
And it won't be
a single city in distress,
but the whole world.
The language here
is what biblical scholars call
apocalyptic language.
That is,
it's heavily figurative language
to describe
the indescribable.
After all,
when the creator
enters creation
to bring his world
to account,
what language
would you use?
When heaven comes
to earth in fullness,
when the glory of God
covers the earth
like the waters
cover the sea,
when every human heart
is laid bare
before the one
who made us,
how shall we describe it?
Words are hard to find.
I think verses 25 and 26
do a pretty good job.
But even though
we have a hard time
putting it in words,
is this not what
our hearts long for?
Deep down,
isn't there something
in our gut
that longs for this?
After all,
the world
is not how it's
supposed to be,
is it?
There's evil
and injustice
and suffering
and death.
And if there is a God,
shouldn't God come
and put it to an end?
Shouldn't God come
and make things right?
And the Bible's answer
to that longing,
that question,
is yes.
the good and holy
creator will not
allow his creation
to suffer
under sin
and evil
and injustice
forever,
but God will come
and will make things
right.
There is hope
for the world.
But at the same time,
doesn't that provoke
another question?
if there is hope
for the world,
if God will come
and put an end
to evil and wrong,
what hope is there
for me?
Because in my heart,
I see evil
and wrong.
I see selfishness
and greed
and lust
and impatience,
all the things
that are wrong
with the world,
I see in myself.
So how could I stand
when God comes?
There might be hope
for the world,
but what hope
is there for me?
What hope
is there for you?
Our only hope
when God comes
to make the world right
is that he will come
in the person
of his son.
Jesus calls himself
the son of man
here.
It's a reference
to Daniel chapter 7.
In Daniel 7,
Daniel describes
the triumph of God
over evil in the world
and the rescue
of his people
and God does that
in and through
one Daniel calls
a son of man,
which Jewish interpreters
for ages
identified as
the coming Messiah,
the one who would
represent God's people
and the one who would
rescue God's people.
When God comes,
he comes in the person
of his son.
Now, the return of Jesus
is a bit hard
to wrap our minds around.
If you're here
and you're exploring
Christianity for the
first time,
that idea probably
seems a little weird.
I get it.
But I want us to see
that the bodily return
of Jesus means this.
The bodily return
of Jesus means
that the one
who took flesh
and who lived
the life
that we should have
lived in perfect
obedience
and the one
who died the death
that we deserve to die
because of our sin.
In other words,
the one who took hold
of us in and through
his incarnation
and death
and resurrection,
that one
has not
let us
go.
He will return
in the same body
in glory
to show us
that his love
for us
is still the same.
He hasn't left
our humanity behind
but he holds it still.
When God comes,
he comes in the person
of his son
and that means
there's hope
not just for the world
but also for sinners
like me
and like you.
You see,
at the end of the day,
when we meet God,
we can meet God
clothed in
our own works
or we can meet God
clothed
in the works
of his son.
And if we choose
to meet God
relying on our own works,
then like the stones
of the temple
long ago,
we will not stand.
But if we choose
to meet God
relying on his son
and depending solely
on him
and not ourselves,
trusting that
his death
paid the price
for my sins
and that his resurrection
means the renewing
of my life,
if we depend solely
on the son,
then that day
will be,
as verse 28 says,
a day of redemption.
That is a day
of liberation,
of freedom,
a day of release
and joy.
So where will you stand?
C.S. Lewis puts it this way
talking about the second coming.
He says,
when the author walks
onto the stage,
the play is over.
God is going to invade,
all right,
but what is the good
of saying you're on
his side then
when you see the whole
natural universe
melting away
like a dream
and something else,
something that never
entered your head
to conceive
comes crashing in.
Something so beautiful
to some of us
and so terrible
to others
that none of us
will have any choice left.
For this time,
it will be God
without disguise.
Something so overwhelming
that it will strike
either irresistible love
or irresistible horror
into every creature.
It will be too late then
to choose your side.
There is no use saying
you choose to lie down
when it has become impossible
to stand up.
That will not be the time
for choosing.
It will be the time
when we discover
which side we really
have chosen,
whether we realized
it before or not.
Now, today,
this moment
is our chance
to choose the right side.
God is holding back
to give us that chance.
It will not last forever.
We must take it
or leave it.
now,
today,
this moment.
All this talk
about the future
is meant to teach us
how to live now.
In great love,
God has provided
a way for us
to experience mercy
in the face
of His just judgment,
mercy in the person
of His Son,
freely offered
to all who believe.
You see,
even the fall
of Jerusalem
wasn't actually the end.
There was still mercy.
There was still time.
Did you notice
the end of verse 24?
Jerusalem will be trampled
underfoot by the Gentiles
until the times
of the Gentiles
are fulfilled.
The times
of the Gentiles.
That's the time
we live in now.
Between the fall
of Jerusalem
and the return
of Christ,
when all nations
are being invited
to enter into
Israel's salvation.
Israel's salvation
which was purchased
through Israel's Messiah,
Jesus,
the forgiveness of sins
and the newness
of eternal life
to enter into
God's covenant favor.
Now is the time
when the nations,
when the Gentiles
are being invited
to come in
to what God
has promised
His people.
You see,
God hasn't given up
on His people.
His promises
stand firm.
The nations
are streaming in
and we can take hold
of those promises
now and have assurance
of God's mercy
when God comes
in glory.
And in light
of that day,
Jesus gives His disciples
an encouragement
and a warning.
As we live now,
in light of His coming again,
Jesus wants to encourage us
and He wants to give us
a warning.
The encouragement
is found in verses
8 through 19.
And that encouragement
is,
don't be afraid.
When many people
come in my name,
Jesus says in verse 8,
saying that the end
is at hand,
don't be afraid.
And don't run after them.
Predictions about
the end times
are foolishness,
Jesus says.
In Mark 13,
He says,
listen,
only the Father
knows when I'm coming back,
not even me.
If Jesus doesn't know
when the Father
is going to send Him
to come back,
trust me,
nobody else knows.
That's how this works.
So don't be afraid.
Don't chase after.
Don't freak out.
When you hear about
wars and tumults,
political turmoil,
natural disasters,
even cosmological oddities,
which is what are described
in verses 9 through 11,
Jesus says,
don't be afraid.
These things are going
to happen between
His first and second coming.
Don't lose your mind.
They're not a sign
that the world is ending
all at once.
Don't be afraid.
Then in verses 12 through 15,
Jesus says that there will be
persecution that comes.
That as His followers,
we will be at times
handed over
both to religious
and political authorities
for Jesus' sake.
Jesus doesn't promise
His disciples
an easy road of discipleship.
And in the book of Acts,
we see that this was true
from the very beginning
of the church
being brought before
religious and political
authorities.
In Acts,
we see Peter and John
and Stephen
before the Sanhedrin.
We see James
before Herod Agrippa I.
We see Paul
before Galio and Felix
and Agrippa and Festus.
And this is true
not just in the generation
before the fall of Jerusalem,
but in every generation since.
And yet here too,
Jesus encourages us,
don't be afraid.
Don't anxiously meditate
on how you'll respond
if you find yourself
put on trial.
No, Jesus says,
in that moment,
I will give you words
and wisdom.
I'll give you a mouth
and a mind.
What a wonderful promise
that Jesus Himself
will be near to us
when we face persecution
or trial or questioning.
Now this isn't an excuse
to be totally unprepared.
Peter will write
in his first letter,
in your hearts,
honor Christ,
the Lord is holy,
always being prepared
to make a defense
to anyone who asks you
for a reason
for the hope that is in you.
So it's a good thing
to think about
every once in a while
how you might articulate
the hope that we have
in Christ.
But what Jesus is saying here
is that in the moment
of our defense,
when your co-worker
puts you on the spot,
when your neighbor
asks a question,
when your roommate
cracks a joke
about your faith,
or something more serious
happens,
in that moment,
don't be afraid
because Jesus is with you
through the presence
and power
of the Holy Spirit.
In fact,
Jesus says in verse 13
that this is your opportunity,
your opportunity
to bear witness,
your opportunity
to bear witness
to the gospel.
What is the gospel?
The good news
that there is a God
who made us
and who loves us
and who is holy,
just, and good.
But that rather than loving
and worshiping God,
we've put ourselves
in the center
and have done things
our own way
and we've made a mess
of the world
and we deserve God's judgment.
But God,
in great mercy,
sent his Son
in the flesh
to live and to die
in our place
so that we might be
reconciled to him.
God poured out
his immense love
for his Son
for all who believe
and now everyone
who calls upon
the name of the Lord Jesus
will be saved,
our sins forgiven,
our relationship
with God restored,
our lives empowered
through the Holy Spirit
for service and purpose
and mission and love.
Don't be afraid.
This is your opportunity.
In verses 16 through 18,
Jesus says,
concluding his encouragement,
he says that not just
will there be trial
and persecution
with authorities,
but even closer to home,
he says,
there'll be betrayal
and hatred
and even for some of you,
death.
And yet,
even in that most
painful situation,
we need not be afraid.
Not a hair of your head
will perish.
You see,
the one who knows
what it's like
to be betrayed
by a friend
and the one who knows
what it's like
to be hated
by his own people
and the one
who was put to death,
Jesus,
promises us
that because
he was betrayed
and because
he was hated,
and because
he was put to death.
Now,
none of those things
can destroy us.
Betrayal cannot
separate us
from the love of God,
can it?
Hatred cannot
separate us
from the love of God.
Not even death
can separate us
from the love of God
in Christ Jesus,
our Lord.
So hold on
and don't be afraid.
What awaits you
as you endure,
Jesus says
in verse 19,
is life.
Eternal,
abundant
life.
That is your end,
brother and sister.
Life.
So don't be afraid.
There's the encouragement.
But Jesus also
gives us a warning.
He ends in verses
34 through 36,
warning us
to stay awake.
Watch yourselves.
You see,
if there's a danger
that we will face
many fears,
there's the equal danger
that we will give in
to many distractions.
Watch yourselves,
Jesus says
in verse 34,
lest your hearts
be weighed down
with dissipation
and drunkenness
in the cares
of this life.
There are two kinds
of distractions
that Jesus points to.
Two distractions
that can weigh down
our hearts
and cause us
to be unprepared
for the king's return.
The first is
dissipation
and drunkenness.
Simply losing
ourselves
in the temporary
pleasures of the world.
Even abusing
the pleasures
of this world.
Taking good things
like sex and drink
and giving ourselves
over to them.
Wake up,
Jesus says.
Don't let the
temporary pleasures
of this life
capture your heart
and make you
unprepared
for what's to come.
After all,
what's to come
is more thrilling,
more enlivening,
more joy-giving
than any pleasure
this world holds.
The pleasures
of this life
are simply echoes,
simply signposts
to the joy
that awaits us
when God comes again
to make things right.
So stay awake.
But there's a less
obvious distraction.
There's sort of
a respectable distraction.
And that's what
Jesus calls
the cares of this life.
That is the everyday
responsibilities
like work
and family
and marriage
and running errands
and paying bills
and finishing reports.
We can get so caught up
in the flow
of responsibilities
that we forget
the larger story
that we're a part of.
your life is more
than the abundance
of your possessions,
Jesus once said.
Your life is more
than the sum
of daily activities.
Don't let
the grind of life
distract you
from the fact
that you are
a player
in the great drama
of God's redemption.
Stay awake.
the diapers
you change,
the projects
you manage,
the hours
you clock in
from nine to five,
these things,
if you are in Christ,
don't define you.
Don't let them
weigh you down
and distract you.
Stay awake.
You're a child
of the King
and the King
is coming
to make this world
His home again
and you will reign
with Him forever.
Don't let that day
come upon you
like a trap,
Jesus says.
But how do we do that?
How do we stay awake
amidst distractions
that weigh us down?
Did you see the answer
in verse 36?
Prayer.
Now you might be thinking,
I usually fall asleep
when I pray.
How is that the answer
to stay awake?
What a small view
of prayer we have
as a people of God.
Prayer is the gift
God gives us
to recenter
our hearts
and lives on Him
and on what really matters
and on who we really are
and on where this story
is really going.
Prayer is the future
come crashing
into the present
because prayer
is communion with God
in Christ
by the Holy Spirit.
That's where you're headed,
church.
communion with God
in Christ
by the Holy Spirit
and when you are in prayer
it comes crashing
into the now.
Prayer is pouring out
our hearts to God.
Prayer is asking God
for all we need.
Prayer is resting silently
in the presence of God.
Prayer is wrestling
with God through trial.
Prayer is staying awake
so that we might stand
before the Son of Man.
and then that day
won't come upon us
like a trap.
But as verse 29 says,
it will come upon us
like the turning
of the seasons,
the welcome
bursting forth
of summer
when the cold
of sin and death
are put away
and creation
is released
from its bondage
to decay
and God is all in all.
May we meet that day
like the dawning
of the summer.
Brothers and sisters,
stay awake
and don't be afraid.
Live now
in light of God's future
because the kingdom
is near
and the King
is coming.
Let's pray.
Lord Jesus,
thank you
for telling us
the truth
about where
history is headed.
Thank you
for telling us
about your own return.
God,
some of us here
may not feel like
we're ready
for that day.
I pray that even now
in the quiet
of these few moments
we would not
let distractions
point us away
from the ultimate truth
of where we stand
with you.
God,
and if we are
standing
in our own efforts
in our own works
even in our own
helplessness,
God,
I pray
that today
would be the day
when we move
our hearts
from relying
on ourselves
to relying
on Jesus
our loving
Savior
who says
come to me
all you
who are weary
and heavy laden
and I will give
you rest.
Jesus,
you're the good shepherd
and no one
can pluck us
out of your hand.
So would our hearts
be renewed
in faith
this morning
by your Spirit
to not be afraid
and to not fall asleep.
Keep us awake
to the mission
that you have
for us,
God.
Keep us alert
to the movements
of your Spirit
throughout this week.
Keep us attentive
to the way
in which you are
calling us
to be your ambassadors
and your people
in the world
to be salt
and light.
O God,
send us out
with a fresh filling
of your Spirit
we pray
in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Well, friends,
let's stand
and let's pray.
Let's pray.