Like the Sand of the Sea

By Bobby Blakey on July 10, 2016

Hosea 1:8-11

AUDIO

Like the Sand of the Sea

By Bobby Blakey on July 10, 2016

Hosea 1:8-11

This is a rush transcript.

[00:00:02] I want you to imagine with me, if you will, that someone came up to you and asked you what the Bible was all about. And maybe they hadn't ever read the Bible, maybe they ever hadn't come to a Bible church like this one where we preach what the Bible says. If somebody came up to you and I could see this happening in our nation today and they said, hey, I see that CompassHB Bible Church bumper sticker on your car. Hey, I know you believe the Bible. What is the Bible all about?

[00:00:31] I want you to think about that for a second. How would you answer that question? Like if you had to summarize the entire Bible in one answer, one quick summary statement.

[00:00:43] What would you say, would you say it's all about God and how he saves people and judges people? Would you say it's all about a promised messiah who comes down from heaven to save mankind?

[00:00:55] How would you explain to somebody the overall big picture story of the Bible?

[00:01:03] Now, in theology, there's actually a term for this, it's called biblical theology, and what scholars do is they write works where they take one theme and they trace it all the way through the scripture and they kind of have a friendly debate about whose theme is is closest really to the heart of the Bible's message. And I think that we see one of the one of the themes that runs throughout all of the scripture in our texts today of Hosanna! Chapter one versus 8:00 and 11:00. So Amen ask you to grab the Bible, open it up towards the middle there to page seven hundred and fifty one, the book of Hosanna, the first of the minor prophets. And if you don't have an answer for that question, what is the Bible all about? You could use this sermon today, this text that we're gonna look at this morning as your answer. Well, I think it's that God wants to have a people where he's their God and they're his people. That would be a good way to summarize a major theme of the Bible. And that's where we get to hear and Hozier Chapter one. So it's been a few weeks, but we're working our way through Hosain, the first of the minor profits. Minor prophets are kind of book that's kind of overlooked these days. Not a lot of people talking about it. We want to get into them. We want to see what God has to say to us who are reading through Hozier, Chapter one. And now we come to verses eight to eleven to finish the chapter Amen or read this. This is our text for this morning. So please follow along. As I read, it's talking about Hosoya.

[00:02:28] And then he married this woman Gomer, and they're having a family.

[00:02:31] And when she had weaned no mercy, she conceived in Borra Son. And the Lord said, call his name, not my people, for you are not my people and I am not your God. Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like this sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And then the place where it was said to them, You are not my people. It shall be said to them. Children of the living God and the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head, and they shall go up from the land for great shall be the day of jazz real. Not just to catch you up in case you weren't here.

[00:03:15] You've kind of forgotten since it's been a few weeks, this prophet Hosanna was told to go and marry this woman, Gomer, and it was clear that this woman was going to play the adulteress on Hosoya. So whether she was already in that kind of a woman who was an adulterous or whether that that was just a prophecy of what was going to happen in their marriage, Hosanna is told to marry someone that he knows is going to cheat on him.

[00:03:40] What a brutal situation for this prophet to be in. And it's a picture that God's setting up because God and his people of Israel are supposed to have this relationship, this covenant with one another where God loves them, as he's proven time and time again. And they love God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength.

[00:04:00] But they're not loving God. They're worshiping idols. They're loving the other things of this world that they try to satisfy their life with. They're not loving God and obeying his command. And so God is not going to take it anymore. He's going to judge the people of Israel. And so he's setting up a picture here to show them this is what it's like. It's like I'm a husband and you're my wife and you're cheating on me. And then they begin to have kids, Hosain and Gomer. And the first child is named Jazz Real. And we had a whole sermon about the valley there and how that was a prophecy that the northern kingdom of Israel is going to be judged. Now, does everybody remember how we were talking about a northern and a southern kingdom? Did I say there was gonna be a quiz? Anybody want to take a pop quiz right now? No, you don't. But someday you will. Trust me, I'm crazy enough to do this. You're gonna show up at church. There's gonna be a quiz on the seats. So pay attention to this map right here. It's gonna be really awkward for the visitors that Sunday, but you're gonna know what's happening. All right. We have that. We have Israel becomes a divided kingdom and the northern kingdom is called. And the southern kingdom is called. So that was easy because you could read it right off the screen. OK, now someday I'm going to take that away and you're going to fill it in. OK. It's important for us to see that Hosanna is prophesied to the northern kingdom of Israel. And there's a prophecy now that they're going to be wiped out. And the second child is a daughter who is called no mercy or unloved. And we looked at that. That's like the worst thing we could think of, to not receive mercy, to get the judgment that we deserve for God not to withhold any of his judgment from us. But just to give it to us like he's holding us like a spider above the fire and just to let go of us and let us fall into our own judgment. That's worst case scenario. We can't think of anything worse than not getting mercy from God, just getting his judgment. And that's what he's saying here, is I'm going to withhold my mercy. Now, I think this third one for this third child, a son and and son is named. Not my people. And I think this is really the worst one. Can you imagine? I mean, maybe you've had a child. Maybe God's blessed you. And you thought so long and hard about what you were going to name your child. And everybody's coming over to see your new baby. They're so excited for you. And they're like, what's his name? His name is not my people. That's his name. Not a person. Not a boy. Oh, he's so cute. He's not a boy. That's his name. Right. I mean, it's just it's wrong. It's weird. And I'm sure it was causing people to talk. It was causing people to think that God is saying that this nation is now not my people.

[00:06:40] Now, no mercy sounds terrible to us. I think not my people. That's God expressing the worst case scenario from his perspective, that his people would not be his people. That's what he wants. God wants to have a people, but the Israelites are so worshiping idols and and sin that he says, you're not even my people.

[00:07:02] In fact, when God started this relationship with Israel, it was specifically with the nation in Exodus when he was talking to Moses and he sent Moses to go talk to the nation of Israel. And Moses said, Well, how shall I introduce you?

[00:07:15] What shall I say your name is? God said I am. That I am. That's how you that's how you should introduce me. I am that I am basically in the Hebrew here. What he's saying in an Hosoya one, verse nine is I am not. That's what he's saying. He's taking it back.

[00:07:32] He's saying I am not your God and you are not my people.

[00:07:38] So here's God with his heart broken, that his people whom he loved and cared for have gone and loved something else besides him. And he's now at the point where he's going to say, you will not be my people. Now, the passage, even though it says such a heart state, harsh statement. Look at verse ten. Look at it with me, verse 10. Even though it goes like you're not my people. People. Excuse me. Verse 10. If the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea. So even though it's saying Israel, the northern kingdom is not God's people, they're going to be judged the very next versus like.

[00:08:16] But there will be a people of God that are as many as the sands of the sea, as if you could count them in innumerable, vast and unmeasured people of God. So in the Hebrew Bible, it actually makes the chapter break between verse nine and verse 10 there. So I don't know if in your English translation you want to draw a little dash there after verse nine, before verse 10, because that's where logically the break is. It's like the pronouncement of judgment ends in verse nine. But then in verse ten, we want to encourage whoever's reading Hosanna that no God still has a people. He still has a long term plan. In fact, that's still his end game is to be God and to have his people. It's just right now, this northern kingdom of Israel, they're not his people. They're going to be judged. But eventually, this is where it God's going. Keep reading with me. It says, and in the place where it was said to them, you are not my people. It shall be said to them, children of the living God. So he still has a plan for a future for them, even after this judgment they're about to face from a Syria coming in and wipe in the mouth. And even verse eleven says that the children of Judah, the southern kingdom, the children of Israel, the northern kingdom, eventually they're going to be gathered together as one kingdom again, and they shall appoint for themselves one head and they shall go up from the land for great shall be the day of Jeff Israel. Anybody you have any idea, maybe a guess of who the one head is that's going to unite Israel and lead them forward in the future?

[00:09:46] Who do you think it might be? Jesus Christ. Right. Jesus Christ.

[00:09:50] So there's a prophecy here of how God still has a plan for his people. But that's what makes this statement so harsh and so intense for God to look at his chosen nation of Israel and say to them, You are not my people. I am not your. Got that had to break guards heart just to say that to the. Like a husband who would wish his wife wouldn't cheat on him. How that's how God feels about the nation of Israel until finally has to say to him, You're not even my people.

[00:10:21] And I'm not even your guy.

[00:10:24] But he also gives them the promise that there's going to be a future, in fact, he says, like the sand of the sea. Now, this is a reference back to Genesis Chapter twelve. So everybody grab your Bible. We're gonna be going from cover to cover because I want to suggest to you that go to Genesis twelve with me.

[00:10:41] I want to suggest to you that this theme that God wants to be God and he wants to have a people, that is a theme that goes from Genesis one when he says, let us make man in our image all the way to Revelation. Twenty one and twenty two at the end. And when finally God is with his people, this is a big theme that encompasses all of scripture and specifically for the nation of Israel. It starts here with God talking to Father Abraham. Father Abraham had many sons, many sons had Father Abraham. Anybody ever heard that before? Now the Lord said, Abraham, this is Genesis. Twelve one go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you and I will make of you a great nation. So I'm going to take you, Abraham, and I'm going to make of you a great nation, the nation of Israel. And I will bless you and make your name great so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and him who dishonors you. I will curse. And in you, all the families of the Earth shall be blessed. Wow. God's going to do something through this man, Abraham. Build up a nation through him that is literally going to affect all the other families that are on earth. So maybe you've heard of that before. That's the Abrahamic covenant, but it doesn't end there. Go to chapter 13, verse 14. Look at all these conversations that God has with his man, Abraham, here in chapter 13, verse 14, the Lord said to Abraham after Lott had separated from him, lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are northward and southward and eastward and westward. All the land that you see, I will give to you and to your offspring forever. I will make your offspring. Now, this isn't quite as nice of a picture as the sand of the sea, but it's the same idea. I will make your offspring as the dust of the Earth so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring can also be counted. Arise. Walk through the land the length and breadth of the land. Vrai will give it to you. So here he is making promises that he's going to have an offspring that no one could even number or count. And specifically, he's going to give them this land. Chapter 15, verse five. The Covenant continues that God's making with Abraham and chapter fifteen, verse five. And he brought him outside. He's gonna use these geological analogies here. He brought him outside and said, Look toward heaven.

[00:13:00] No, the stars, if you are able to number them, this is before city lights were out in the country here. There's so many beautiful stars. No, the stars, if you are able to number them. Then he said to them. So show your offspring B and Abraham believe the Lord and God counted it to him as righteousness.

[00:13:19] God's making promises that he's going to have so much offspring in this nation that he's gonna give him, that you won't be able to count all of the people in this nation.

[00:13:30] And Abraham Abrams believing God and God's looking at his faith and he's crediting it to him as righteousness like a Chapter 17, verse five, chapter 17, verse five. In fact, now the promise is going to expand. Take careful note of this. No longer shall your name be called Abraham, but your name shall be Abraham.

[00:13:51] That's how we know, for I have made you the father of a.. Look at this multitude of nations, not just the father of one nation. I'm not just gonna make of you one nation now. No. Now you're the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful and I will make you into nations. And kings shall come from you. And I will establish my covenant between mean you and your offspring. After you throughout their generations. This is an everlasting covenant to be God to you and to your offspring. After you and I will give to you and your offspring after you the land of your soul journeys, all the land of cane. And look at this for an everlasting possession. And I will be there. Who who does he say there? I will be there. What you see with Cesan, Abraham, you're gonna have all these descendants. I'm gonna be their God. They're going to be my people. Here's God's setting it up as he makes an everlasting covenant to Abraham. One more Genesis 22 versus 15 to 17. Finally, when Abram's Abraham is a hundred years old, he has his son, Isaac, the promised son, when he is a hundred years old. And then God says that he needs to go and be willing to kill his own son is one and only son whom he loves. And Abraham by faith passes the tests trust. The Lord says, if God tells me to do it, I'm gonna go do it. But it wasn't God's real intention for him to kill his son. He's stopped him. He showed. There was an animal there to sacrifice. But he wanted to see Abraham's faith. And it says in Genesis 22, verse 15. And the angel of the Lord called the Abraham a second time from heaven and said by myself, I have sworn to quote declares the Lord, because you have done this. And if not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you. Here's God making a promise to Abraham, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven. And as the sand that is on the sea shore and your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies. And in your offspring, shall all the nations of the Earth be blessed because you have obeyed my voice. So God has made promises to here to Abraham. That cannot be undone. These are an everlasting covenant between God and Abraham that Abraham is going to have a nation, in fact. It's going to become nations in the plural. And he's going to have so many descendants. You can't even count them all. So even though God is looking at Israel in Osier and he's saying, you're not my people, I'm in a judge, you ultimately long term in the scope of history. He has to have a plan for a people because he made these promises to Abraham. That's why right after it says, hey, you guys are going to be judge, you're not going to be my people anymore. Verse 10 after verse nine goes right to.

[00:16:48] But there will be a people like the sand of the sea because this is what God has said and what God has said is going to happen. God always keeps his promises to his people.

[00:16:59] So that's where this whole idea is coming from in Genesis, that God's gotta have a people where he's going to be their God. Now go to Romans Chapter nine. Turn to the New Testament, because now we're going to see this prophecy kind of fulfilled in the New Testament. We're looking at Hosain where he says, you're not my people, but there will be a people of Israel in the future where I will be their God and they will be my people. Well, he's judging the people of Israel there in the present time of Osier. But he has to still be their God and have them as his people because of his promises to Abraham that are still in effect today. Now, let's pick it up in Romans Chapter nine. Start with me in verse 22. Here's the apostle Paul writing here. Romans nine, verse 22 says, What if God desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, he wants to show us his power has endured with much patience, vessels of wrath prepared for destruction in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory.

[00:18:03] Even us, whom he has called not from the Jews only, but also from the.

[00:18:10] Who else does it say here? Oh, this is very interesting. So it's not just this promise to Abraham is not just to the Jewish people of Israel. Now, Paul seems to be applying it to the Jews and the Gentiles. Look what he quotes. Right? Right here. Verse twenty five liquidy quotes. Those who are not my people, I will call my people, he says, as indeed he says, in hopes that those who are not my people, I will call my people. And who was not my beloved, I will call my beloved. Now here's our quote of chapter one verse Tangibles. And in the very place where it was said to them, You are not my people. There they will be called Sons of the Living God. So here he is referring to this prophecy about the northern kingdom of Israel. But now he's expanding it even to the gentiles. So we might have some people who are Jews here this morning, but I would imagine that many of us are not Jewish by descent. Physically, we don't come down in the lineage of Abraham. But yet it seems to be saying here that because the people of God disobeyed him, because they rejected his son, Jesus Christ. Now, this promise of Abraham being a multitude of nations. Now this is spread to all peoples. In fact, go back to Chapter four of Romans. Look back at this where it kind of already set it up in the book. Romans Chapter four versus 16 and 17. Look at this.

[00:19:41] Romans Chapter four versus 16 and 17. Now it's going to emphasize here not the physical following of Abraham, but the spiritual following of Abraham and says that is why it depends on faith in order that the promise, the promise to Abraham may rest on grace and maybe guarantee to all his offspring, not only to the adherence of the law, which would have been given to the Old Testament Jew, but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all as it is written. I have made you the father of this is quoting Genesis seventeen. Well, we just looked at I have made you the father of many nations in the presence of the God and whom he believed who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

[00:20:31] So God makes promises to Abraham that he's going to have a people, he's going to be their God. And these descendants of Abraham, they're going to be his people. But then we see. Now, here's the kingdom of Israel, God saying you're not my people. Even the Jewish people are going to reject God's one and only son, Jesus Christ. And now Paul's saying, hey, anyone could be a descendant of Abraham by faith. And this promise that he will be our God and we will be his people is now open to all.

[00:21:02] Abraham is the father of faith for us all that anybody here this morning. Any one of us could be one of the people of God.

[00:21:12] No matter what family we were born into, we can be born again into God's family and you can be one of his people.

[00:21:20] Now, that would have been a mind shattering reality for the people of Israel, for God to say to them, you are not my people. And for them to think that gentiles would someday be seen as the people of God, that that would have been incomprehensible, inconceivable to them. But to us, maybe it's not even a big deal. Maybe we act like we take it for granted, like that's in the past. I don't really think about it that much, but I'm what I'm hoping you're seeing here is God's end game.

[00:21:46] God's end game from the beginning to the end of this book is he wants to have a people. He is saving souls by faith. Who will be his. Let's get that down for point number one. You need to see God's end game to save countless souls. This is the big picture. This is what God is doing. God is saving countless souls who are going to be his people. He's saving them as they put their faith in him. They become his people. He wants to be their God. They will be his people. And you got to realize that this is the story of world history. This is what's happening on an epic level. Look at this verse here. You can just write down the reference. This is revelation seven nine. Look at this up here on the screen, revelation seven nine. After this, I looked and behold a great multitude that no one could. No, they can't be counted like the stars in the sky, like the sand on the sea from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages. When you and I get to heaven, there is going to be such a vast multitude. Such a crowd of people, people from every different kind of ethnicity and background. And no one's gonna be able to count them. And we're going to be thinking, wow, look what God did. God got himself such a people to praise him. Such a vast. Countless people. This is amazing how many souls God saved and brought here to worship him for all of eternity.

[00:23:20] That's what you're gonna be thinking in heaven. I cannot believe how many people there are worshiping God right now as his people. You are gonna be blown away. So the problem is right now, with the way we view life is like how we go to the beach, we're very familiar with with going to the beach around here. It's that time of year. We love going to the beach.

[00:23:40] We get down there in the sand, but we don't really pay attention to the sand. What are we looking at? We're looking at the waves. In fact, we've probably already checked a mobile device or the computer to find out how the waves are. Before we even went down to the beach, some of us. And we hear the waves roar and we see them kind of crash on the shore and little kids run out and then they run back and then they run in like the waves are going to take them down. And all the focus is looking out. And we're looking for that shark that's just coming in. Is anybody else like that? Maybe I'm just bummer, Bobby, but I'm just like it's only a matter of time until somebody gets bit. Who's it going to be?

[00:24:15] Kids make sure there's always somebody further out than you. You know, we're all thinking it right?

[00:24:19] I mean, right.

[00:24:23] I mean, we're so focused on the on the water. That's how life is down here on the world. We see the waves. We hear the roar. We see the current events. We see the hostility in our own country. We see people that we know that we love in sin. We see everything that that's happening all the time. And we think, how could a God be good when there's so much evil in the world? How could this be a part of God's plan when it seems so out of control and so chaotic? And just like people aren't acknowledging God. How could this be what God wants?

[00:24:53] And someday we're going to look and instead of looking at the waves, we're gonna look at the shore and we're gonna be blown away with how many people God is saved. We're going to be so overwhelmed with the countless number of souls that God has saved that are praising him, that all of the things that happened in this life are gonna make sense or we're gonna be like, wow, that was all about God getting his people. And look, here they are. And it's amazing to see the people of God worshiping him.

[00:25:19] So we're gonna have a whole different perspective. We're gonna see the shore for what it is. Look at all these sands right here next to the sea. I couldn't even count how many people there are here giving God the glory. So we're so used to being the minority.

[00:25:32] We're so used to feeling like there's only a few who are getting saved and we're getting pushed out of the culture and we're getting left behind and the world's moving on without us. And then we're gonna realize that the whole purpose of this life was for God to get a people who would worship.

[00:25:47] And that's what he's going for.

[00:25:51] And I hope that you're not just focused on what's immediate, what's happening right now, what you can see with your eyes and you're not seeing what's most important, what's really mattering is that God is amassing a people to worship him. And you want to be one of those people.

[00:26:07] More than anything in this life, you want to be one of the people of God. That's what he wants. He wants to have his own people go back to Hozier. Chapter one, and I want you to the look at this. This terrible's statement that God makes that you are not my people. And I am not your God. There's nothing really worse I can think of that God could say to a group of people like that. In fact, this is the exact opposite.

[00:26:38] Look at it with me again. I just want you to see it here. It's on your hand out if you want to look at it there. And the Lord said call his name now before he kind of says to Hozier to call his name. But this time God just says it to Israel. It's like this one's a little more personal. He doesn't say to Hosoya to say what the name is. God just says what the name is this time. And the Lord said, call his name, not my people for you, because now he's talking to Israel. You are not my people and I am not your God.

[00:27:08] Now, it got started, his relationship with Israel, the nation in the Book of Exodus, Liquidy said in Exodus six seven. Look at this. I will take you to be my people and I will be your God. Everybody see how that that's the opposite. That's the positive way to say what verse nine is, the negative way to say he's taking back what he said when he started out with them.

[00:27:31] Here's the relationship I want to have. I'll be the God. You will be my people. Now he's saying we're done with that.

[00:27:37] I will not be the guy and you will not be my people.

[00:27:41] So this is a terrible thing to see. God moving away from his own people. And if you were to hear God say that you were not one of his people, if you were to hear Jesus Christ say to you. I never knew you. You're not one of mine. That is the worst case scenario that could happen in your life. So point number two, we're getting points quick here. Point number two, identify yourself as one of God's people. That's the primary way we want to think about ourselves is as God's people. I don't know how you think about yourself.

[00:28:15] How what how you would introduce yourself to somebody else if you had to write a biography of yourself. What would you say? Like a little bio to to be read if you if you wrote a book and they had to put your picture and a little description of you on the back. What would they say about you? What would you tell them to say about you?

[00:28:32] You know, a lot of us, we define ourselves by our human relationships. You might introduce ourselves as a husband or as a father or as a wife for a mother.

[00:28:42] Some people I think the weight main way they kind of think of themselves and they talk about themselves is to say, hey, I'm a salesman. I work for such a such a company. I'm a I'm a fireman. I'm a police officer. I'm a doctor. I'm a lawyer.

[00:28:55] I are important things. Your career is important. Your family is very important. But I'm here to tell you that none of these things are ultimately going to matter a hundred years from now.

[00:29:05] You will not be labeled as a husband or a father or whatever your career is here on planet Earth. You will not be labeled of that when you are in God's presence. You will be one of God's people. That is how you will be identified. And I think you would be helpful for us to think of ourselves that way. Right now, the most important thing about me is I'm one of God's people. He is my God and I'm his.

[00:29:30] That's how we need to think about ourselves, not with our earthly pursuits. You know, I was talking to a guy who's looking for a job and I'm like, what do you think about this job? And he's like, nah, that he said something that just made me think as I was thinking about this sermon, he said, not that job's too short term. I need something that's got a future. Everybody's job is short term. Maybe not short term enough for some of us, but they're all going to pass away. You will not be defined in eternity by the job you did on planet Earth. You will not be defined in eternity by the family you had on planet Earth.

[00:30:05] You will be defined in eternity by one relationship and whether you had it or not. God, you're one of his people. Most important thing that anybody could say about me, and especially that God would say it, is that I am one of his people.

[00:30:20] That's what I want to be known as. That's how I want to think of myself. That's what God's looking for. That's the purpose of it all, is that God would have a people. And this is a huge kind of theme throughout scripture.

[00:30:33] So we're going to start at the left of the book and we're going to go all the way through to the right. And we're gonna just see how God continues to say this. And we're gonna see five things about what it means to be one of the people of God. So start with me in Leviticus. Leviticus, chapter twenty six.

[00:30:48] Turn there with me.

[00:30:51] Leviticus, Chapter 26. Look at with me versus 11 and twelve. Now, this is kind of classic what God does here in the law. Like a parent, maybe with their child, as he says, hey, here's what I'm telling you to do. If you do this, you'll be blessed. I'm telling you, don't do this. If you do this, you'll be curse. It won't work out well for you. It'll be bad. So God's setting before them life. If they obey and death if they disobey. And he says things like this. Leviticus 26. Look with me in verse eleven. Here's the invitation of God to his people that he's delivered out of Egypt. He wants them to be his people. He says, I will make my dwelling among you. I want to live with who? Live right there with you guys. I want us to have a relationship. And my soul shall not abhor you. That would be nice. You do not want to be abhorred by the Lord, right? You do not want God to hate you. Did a test you? That's the idea there. No, I don't want that. And I will walk among you. And here it is. We're gonna see this over and over and we'll be your God. And you shall be my people. I am the Lord, your God who I brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. And I broken the bars of your yoke. I've made you walk erect. But if you will not listen to me and will not do all these commandments, if you spurn my statutes, if your soul abhors my rules so that you will not do all my commandments but break my covenant, then there's gonna be all these consequences and it goes on from there. So this is the peal of God to his people in the law. I'm telling you a way that I've designed you to live. I've designed you to live a certain way. And it's gonna be best if you live the way that I'm telling you to live the way that I've designed you. If you don't live the way that I've told you to live, there's gonna be consequences. And here's what that's gonna look like. Go to Deuteronomy 26, Deuteronomy 26, the second telling of the law before they went into the promised land. You see that same idea here in Deuteronomy.

[00:32:47] Twenty six. Start with me in verse sixteen, Deuteronomy 26, verse 16. Again, you're going to see these two options, obedience, which leads to blessing disobedience, which leads to bad things. Consequences. Deuteronomy 26, verse 16.

[00:33:02] This day, the Lord, your God commands you to do these statutes and rules. You shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and with all your soul. You have declared today that the Lord is your God. So here's the people saying that He is our God and that you will walk in his ways and keep his statutes and his commandments and his rules. He will obey his voice.

[00:33:25] And the Lord has declared today that you are a people, a people for his treasured possession, as he has promised you, and that you are to keep all his commandments and that he will set you in praise and fame and in honor, high above all nations that he has made, and that you shall be a people holy to the Lord, your God, as he has promised. So they've said some things. The people have said he's going to be our God. God has said you're going to be my people. And here's what that's gonna look like.

[00:33:54] The people of God do what God says. That's what it looks like. God's design things to work a certain way.

[00:34:01] God has said that the way this is going to work is I want one man to marry one woman. And that's the best possible way if they'll be true to each other for their entire lives. That's the best possible way for humans to have a relationship. That's where sex belongs is in that covenant of marriage. That's where we're going to lead to childbirth. That's going to be the family structure guy. I've designed it that a man shall leave his father and mother be joined to his wife and the two shall become one flesh. God didn't say that to be a cosmic killjoy. God said that because it's the best thing for humanity.

[00:34:32] That's why he said it, to bless us for human flourishing, because he wants to have a people.

[00:34:39] And here's how he designed his people to work. And he wants them to do what he says and obey him. We've just got to remember that the the law is there to show us what is going to be good and what is going to be not good. It's there for our benefit. And when we obey God, he promises his people will be blessed when they obey him. Let's get that down for our first dash. Here's something that goes along with being the people of God. You have promised blessings for obedience. Even Jesus in the New Testament says things like if you seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, all these other things, the things that you need of this life will be added to you that when you live life God's way, he will bless you. I'm not saying everything's going to be perfect. You're gonna be healthier, wealthy, necessary. But there is a blessing that comes along with living according to God's design and obeying his commands. And this is promised for all of his people. I mean, this is how the relationship works. He is the Lord. We do what he says. He is the boss. We say, yes, sir. I think some people that we've re defined our relationship with God, where it's going to be kind of this emotional relationship where I'm going to feel things and he's going to give me feelings. And that's not really how the Bible describes it. It says things like statutes, commands, rules, decrees. And if he's your God and you're one of his people, you want to do what your God tells you. That's the relationship you have with him. And he says these things. The reason the Bible says a lot of no's don't do this and a lot of dues go do this is for your good. Do you remember that? Do you know that even in America, as messed up as America is right now, the basic idea of the laws of the land are for the good of the citizens of our country.

[00:36:34] Do we still understand that, that speed limits are a good thing? Does anybody want to say amen to that right now? I know you don't feel it. I know nobody else is obeying these speed limits, right?

[00:36:44] But the basic idea is we can't have anarchy on the four or five. Now, that might be news to you depending on what time you drive there. But that's the idea as we're trying to bring law and order.

[00:36:55] We're trying to keep everybody going the same way so nobody hurts anybody else. And that's the basic idea of laws. That was until this week when this video game came out, Pokey Mongo, as anybody heard about this thing, I can tell that some of you have by your laughter and some of you have not by your silence, OK? This is basically this is where we're at.

[00:37:17] Guys, it's an alternative reality on your phone where you can go and capture animals that aren't real animals.

[00:37:25] And you have to catch all of these animals and you go around and our church is like a spot in this game where people are driving by now to get like more balls that they throw at animals to catch them that aren't really there. But I've seen, like grown men walking into things, playing this game.

[00:37:45] And yesterday I was driving in my car just on the mean streets of Huntington Beach when three kids saw like a Charizard in the middle of the road and ran out in the middle of the road. And it was a good thing I was watching because they had their heads in their phones.

[00:38:00] You know what I'm saying? And it was like, hey, guys, the reason there's the little walking man and then there's the hand that saves your life. That's the point of these laws to preserve your existence another day. Right. That's why we don't just walk across the street whenever we want. The reason is for your good. And I think we forget that God has said no to things and he has said yes to things for your ultimate flourishing and blessing as one of his people. If you do what God says, there is a promise to you that it will be good for you when you obey the Lord. That's a part of being his people. Now go to the prophets. Go to Zeke. Thirty six K.

[00:38:42] That's where we start with God's relationship with his people in the law. Now, unfortunately, the the people did not obey God's law. That's why he's saying to Israel, you are not my people. And really, the law reveals to us our sin. We can't fully keep the law in and of ourselves in our in our human nature. We don't do what God has told us to do in the law. And so that's why God establishes a new covenant here in a Ziko 36. Look at it with me, Ezekiel, 36. Let's start in verse 24. Very similar promise to the prophecy that we have in HOSOYA one, 10 and 11 that, yes, he's going to judge Israel now, but there's going to be a future hope for God to have his people. It says this is equal 36, verse 24, page seven hundred and twenty four.

[00:39:30] If you got one of our Bibles, I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. So he's going to scatter them and judgment and he's going to gather them back. And I will sprinkle clean water on you and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness and from all your idols. I will cleanse you and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove that heart of stone from your flesh. And I will give you a heart of flesh and I will put my spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers and you shall be my. What is it that should be familiar now? You shall be my what? And I will be your erwa. There it is. He's looking everywhere for this relationship. He started it in the law. That's not working out.

[00:40:23] Now we're establishing a new covenant here where we, as you are saved as your made new, you get a new heart and God puts his spirit within you. Now you have the power to actually obey the commands.

[00:40:41] Now the spirit will literally cause you to walk in God's ways. The spirit produces all kinds of things in your life love, joy, peace, patients, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. When you have the Holy Spirit, all of a sudden you can say no to things you weren't able to say no to before. All of a sudden, you can be patient with people when they're still working things out. You can bear with them. All of a sudden you can actually find yourself thinking about other people as more important than yourself. That's the spirit doing that in your life.

[00:41:13] That's what God promises to his people, he says that they're going to be powered by the spirit. Let's get that for our second dash. As we're developing our description of God and his people, he were powered by the spirit.

[00:41:27] See, Christianity is not supposed to be this burden, some task of obedience. We almost used the word obedience like it's a bad word. I've heard Christians kind of act like obedience, like that's a negative thing in the church these days, like, oh, it's so hard to obey and who can even do it?

[00:41:43] I met a guy when when we started the church, I met a guy and he said, I really want to be a Christian, but I just feel incapable and powerless to obey God's commands.

[00:41:54] And we as we talked, it was clear that he didn't have the spirit. He hadn't been made. New Christianity to him was a list of things to do, like you get baptized and then you go to church and then you read your Bible and then you act this way and then you go on a mission trip and it's all these Bourdin somethings that he's just trying to do when you have the spirit. He causes you to do those things. He makes those things something you're able to do, something you're empowered to do.

[00:42:20] That's what it's like to be one of God's people when you're one of God's people. His spirit is the spirit of the living. God is in you. And he brings life. He brings obedience. It's something that you have a power that you weren't born with an ability to obey God. That doesn't come naturally. That's the spirit. And that's what God says he's gonna give. Now, if you are one of God's people here in this room, you have this spirit of God himself inside of you, enabling you.

[00:42:52] To obey his commands and live for him, you have the power now to actually do it. Let's go to the New Testament Titus chapter to Titus, Chapter two. We've got some promised blessings if we obey. We've got the spirit to cause us to walk in these ways. Let's get into the New Testament now. Let's keep thinking about what it means for him to be our God and us to be his people. And there's a great description of it. Just jumped to this one verse here in Titus. Chapter two, verse 14. Look, it says it here, Titus, chapter two, verse 14.

[00:43:28] It says it referring to Jesus Christ right there at the end of verse 13 says, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us, died for us on the cross to redeem us from all lawlessness to to purchase us, to ransom us from all of our sin and to purify for himself, to cleanse us, to purify as a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. So now we see the way God thinks about this relationship is that we are a people that are his own possession, Deuteronomy 26 said a treasured possession like we have a value and a worth to God. The relationship that God has with us has value because here's what it cost God to have a relationship with you. It cost him his one and only son, Jesus Christ, that he offered up as a sacrifice. Jesus, it says, gave himself to redeem us. He had to die to shed his perfect blood to pay for our sin. He offered himself as a sacrifice for us. And now it cleanses us. It purifies us. It makes us a new kind of person. It's like we die with Christ to our old self and we rise up to a new creation in Christ. So we are a possession. God owns us. We are his. It's like he bought us and he bought us with the blood of his own son, Jesus Christ. That's how you became one of God's people. Jesus died for you so you could enter into a relationship with the Heavenly Father. What a cost. When you think about the cost of of Jesus becoming a man, when you think about him living the perfect life. But for all of the times that you failed, he obeyed the Lord. When you think about how he was beaten and how he suffered even before he got on the cross and then how he died in the most agonizing way ever devised by humans to execute, to really torture and execute someone. And Jesus does that for you. So you could be one of God's people. What a high price. Jesus paid so that you could have this free gift of a relationship with God where you are now known as he is. He owns you. You're his possession. And here's what God wants. Here's why he gave his son. Here's why Jesus gave his life is because ultimately they want a people that is theirs. And this people look what it says, a people for his own possession. God wants his own people who are zealous for good works.

[00:46:10] I mean, is that the word that you would use to describe Christian people who Jesus has died for in America right now, is Zellous the word that comes to your mind when you think about Krisha's? Now we've got some who are overzealous, who are giving us a bad name, but but zealous passion. I mean, our Christians known is like the most passionate people, the most on fire people. The people who love more fiercely than anybody else.

[00:46:34] Is that how we're known? Because that's the kind of love that made us the people of God. That's the kind of passion we call it The Passion Week. The week that Jesus died, all the brutal things, the betrayal, the beatings, all that happened to Jesus when he died for you on that cross for your sin. We call it The Passion of the Christ because he has poured himself out. He's given all that he's got to give for you. And then how are we responding as his people? If he would said, spend that much passion to die for us, should we not be spending our lives in passion for him, giving our lives away for him? Should we not respond in kind? Let's get this down for our third dash. We are possessed by God, possessed by and for passion. We are God's own people. He owns us. And he bought us with The Passion of Christ. And he expects from us now the passion to do good works. The passion basically to be his people, to do what he's commanded us to lift.

[00:47:37] Hi. His name to love Jesus. The only response that makes sense to the sacrifice of Christ for you. The only response to Jesus giving his life for you is for you to give your life to him in return.

[00:47:49] The only logical response, that's what he's expecting from his people. A passionate response. I just wonder, would would you just define Christians as a passionate kind of people, as are even here with this service we're doing right now? Would you describe this as as some kind of zealous gathering that we're having here this morning? Did you do I mean, do you have passion going on inside of you that you get to be one of God's people and you're so overwhelmed with the cost that Christ paid? I mean, what are your most valued possessions? We are God's treasured possession.

[00:48:24] The scripture says, what are your most valued possessions? Think about it for a minute. Like, if if things were burning down at your house or you are moving and you were downsizing and you had to throw a lot of your stuff away. But these are things you would hang on to. What comes to your mind is something that really means something to me that I wouldn't want to sell. I wouldn't want to throw away. I would never want to lose what matters to you and your possessions.

[00:48:48] I'm guessing it's going to be something not that came to you easily. I'm guessing it's going to be something that has a cost behind it. Maybe you had to work a long time to get the money to get that thing, or maybe even somebody else gave it to you. And, you know, it costs them and they put thought and time and effort and money into it and they gave it to you. And so now that's like a big deal that you have this thing, because it's represents that person and how they loved you and how they gave it to you. I've got something like that in my life. It might seem kind of trivial, but my grandpa, who taught me how to play golf and and many great memories of playing golf with my grandpa, one day he came to me and he said, had this club made for you? It's called the Heaven would it's it's two different clubs put together. And I as I watch you play and basically what he meant by that is as I'm hitting from all of these crazy places where you're not supposed to be hitting golf balls from. Right. Because I'm hitting all these terrible shots off the court. He made this this basically this fix it caught this fix it club for me that would help me get back on the right track. And this was like over a decade ago. He gave me this club. Since then, many better clubs have come out. The technology is always improving. And in golf, if you're as good as me, every bit of help you can get. You take it right. But I never trade a nightclub away. Never given anybody that club. Somebody offers me another club. Sorry, you're not my grandpa. I'm gonna stick with this one in Otomi because. Because he designed it for me. He gave it to me. I see the thought of his heart behind it and it means something to me. What does it mean to you that Jesus died for you? Whereas the zeal, where is the response?

[00:50:32] Where is the wow. The only reason I'm going to be one of God's people. The only reason I'm going to be one of the sands on the sea. One of the people worshiping God for all of eternity, the whole point of all of this is to be those people. And I get to be one of them because Jesus paid the price for me to be one of God's people.

[00:50:51] Because of his sacrifice. I get in for free. What does that mean to you? What is the value that you put on being one of God's people? He put a great value on it. Do you put that same value onto our passion? Should should reflect the passion of our Lord Christ for us.

[00:51:09] Does your life as one of God's people reflect that? Go to first, Peter, Chapter two versus nine and 10. This verse, all of these versus have the clear theme of him being our God and we being his people. And this is just a few. We could be here way past lunch, going through these verses. I just picked out a few in this one we're looking at because it's clearly referencing Hosanna in the way that it's written. This is Peter writing to Christians who are now being scattered by persecution all over the place. And he says to them. But you are this is sick. First, Peter, chapter two, verse nine and 10.

[00:51:47] You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. You are a people for his own possession. You are God's special people that you may proclaim the excellences of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you are not a people, but now your God's people. Once you had not received mercy. But now you have received mercy.

[00:52:15] So hopefully, you know, first Peter to 10 is a clear reference to the names of Hosea's kids in Ozio. Chapter one.

[00:52:23] And he's trying to help you think about it. You remember what it was like to not be one of God's people. Now you are. Do you can you consider the horrific reality of not getting mercy and getting judgment for your sin? Now you have mercy. I mean, who are you to be one of God's own special people? His peculiar special people?

[00:52:43] Who are you to be a holy nation? A royal priesthood? You can go straight to God with no priest. Who are you to be this this chosen race, as it says here?

[00:52:54] How did you get included in that group? Well, it says it's all based on the excellences of him who called you. This is how God called you. God chose you. God saved you. And he brought you out of the darkness. That's where you belonged. And the people of darkness. And he brought you to be one of his people of light. One of his sons and daughters of light. And it says what you do now as one of his people is you proclaim you praise. You sing and you talk and you shout and you boast and you brag about how awesome God is that you didn't deserve to be one of his people. But you are. You should be having judgment, but you have mercy and you proclaim it, it says it says, you proclaim the Excellencies, the marvelous works, the awesomeness. Of God, that you get to be one of his people, let's get that down for our fourth dash. We're supposed to be proclaimers of his praise. That's what it means to be one of his people that we are boasting, that we are bragging about how awesome our God is. And nobody would ever dare talk bad about our creator when we're around because we're one of his people. Nobody would ever make jokes or irreverent comments about our God when we're there because we're one of his people. We'd stand up for and we'd talk about it. We would proclaim how excellent God has been to us to make us one of his people.

[00:54:19] Now, we were having a lot of fun at the parade on Monday, a lot of people from the church were there and my son Jacki's four years old and he's got this new thing that he's doing where he's asking people, how old are you? He just says it to complete strangers. It's kind of interesting. You know, it makes for some interesting social encounters, even with people here at the church. And he was chillin with the with the Compass crew there. And. And he said this to a really nice lady here at our church, a friend of mine. He said, hey, how old are you? He's just asking ladies how old they are. Not the most polite thing to do. And she told him what her age was, which her age was older than my age. Right. And he looked at her and he kind of got this little tough boy face as much as a tough face that a cute four year old can make. Right. And he said, well, my dad's 13 years old and he's way older than you were.

[00:55:09] Right.

[00:55:13] Like, basically, you realize at that moment he just set you up with the first question to slam you down with the next, you know. But you think, oh, that's cute. You chuckle about it because who is he talking about? His dad? It's okay for kids to think their dad is awesome. It's OK for kids to grab their dad's hand not knowing where Dad's taking them because it's dad and. So, yeah, we expect kids to stand up for their dad, who's standing up for our heavenly father. Who's talking about how awesome our dad is all the time? The world is saying many derogatory things about our God on a regular basis in which one of his people or is going to stand up and say, you're not saying that about my God. Now, I'm here to tell you how marvelous he has been to me. How awesome, how excellent. So I don't even know how amazing is the grace. How marvelous is the work of salvation that Jesus did on the cross for you? Is it worth boasting and bragging about and standing up for when the world's trying to tear it down? Are we going to live? Hi. The name of Jesus. When the world wants to tell us to keep it quiet here at church.

[00:56:20] Says they're supposed to be a people out there. And one of the things these people are designed to do, one of the reasons God wants these people, is they will proclaim his praise for all of eternity. That's what we're there to do.

[00:56:34] And if we're gonna be doing it for all eternity, it would probably be good to start right now in our present day to day life. It's not good to boast about yourself. Not good to brag about your own accomplishments. But you can brag about your heavenly father anytime.

[00:56:49] And there's plenty to boast about the fact that Jesus Christ died to make you one of God's people. The fact that the father in heaven would call you one of his own. The fact that you have the spirit of the living God inside of you is of great things to say about God's marvelous things that he has done. If you're one of his people and we're supposed to be proclaiming his praise, his excellencies, this is what we're gonna do in eternity. Go to Revelation, Chapter 21. Let's get straight to the end. Let's get to the climax.

[00:57:21] Where is this all headed? Whereas there's a lot of people who are on the right side of history, but they're going to be on the wrong side of eternity when we get there. Because you want to be on God's side when we get to eternity. All that matters about this life is if you are one of God's people, that should be the number one thing that you identify with.

[00:57:40] So I'm one of God's people.

[00:57:43] Now, this is this is the eternal state, we get two chapters here at the end of Revelation about the life of the age to come at what we think of as heaven for all of eternity. And it starts here in Revelation, Chapter 21. Look with me at verse one says, Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. Wow. A recreation for the first heaven and the first earth has passed away. And the sea was no more. No sea. And the new heavens and new earth. Very interesting. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. Here comes a city down out of heaven that we're all going to live in called the New Jerusalem. It's an amazing city. It goes all the way from here to San Antonio, Texas. It's a city the size of half of America. It's an amazing thing coming down out of heaven, prepared. It's a beautiful thing. It's prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, like the lady when she's walking down the aisle dressed in white. Here comes this city now coming down out of heaven.

[00:58:43] What a powerful image.

[00:58:46] This is what it's all been building towards this new heavens. This newer, this new Jerusalem. Look what is said. Look, here's the triumphant statement with this magnificent vision of the future. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, from where God sits and rules.

[00:59:01] Behold. The dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them. They will be his you guys vildan. They will be his. And God himself will be with them as there. That's where it's all going.

[00:59:18] Here's the big announcement. Do you see the new heavens? Do you see the new earth? Do you see the new Jerusalem, the city we're all going to live in? What's the point of all of this? Why was there Adam and Eve in the garden so God could have this relationship with them so they could be his people? And then they fell into sin. And then there was a distance because of the knowledge of good and evil. And then ever since then, it's been about God having a relationship with people, which finally in Revelation 21 happens where God dwells with his people.

[00:59:49] And how awesome it's going to be, look at verse four, he will wipe away every tier from their eyes. No more crying. Death shall be no more, neither shall there be no more mourning nor crying nor pain anymore. All of those former things of this life have passed away. Our last dash. What we're getting for being one of God's people is pain free for eternity. That's what we get. I mean, all the physical aches and pains, all the emotional challenges that you've had in your life.

[01:00:19] The relationship tensions that we have, even with the people we love most dearly, all the spiritual temptations, the sins that we've given into all of that is gone away in a pain free, sin free environment where God finally has a people who worship him. And there's nothing in between God and his people.

[01:00:43] How amazing that is going to be, how marvelous it will be.

[01:00:47] And right now we're still we're so focused on the sea, my friends, we're so busy looking at that next big wave that we think is going to come and take us out. And we hear the roar of the wave and we're intimidated by and it seems powerful when you go to the ocean, naturally, your focal point is on these waves and the sound and the sight. And you think that's where the action is. You know, want to know what the real biblical way is to think about the beach. Write this down, Jeremiah. Five twenty two. This is the verse that explains how to think about the beach. And God, says Jeremiah 522, he says, Do you not fear me, declares the Lord. Do you not tremble before me? I have set the sand as a perpetual boundary for the sea. God saying, hey, you're focused on the waves. You're seeing their roar, though. They rise and fall. Though they make that loud sound, though, they seem so angry like they're going to get somewhere. Guess what? The shore is more powerful. Those waves aren't making any ground on that shore. God has setup a perpetual boundary. He has told the sea where to stop. And some day in eternity, when the sea is no more, all we're going to see is the sand on the shore. And we're gonna be looking this way. And we're not going to be thinking about current events. We're not going to be thinking about Merica and what's happening and all these sins that we've struggled with in all these relational challenges. You know what we're gonna be thinking about? We're gonna be looking this way and looking that way, and we're gonna be like, wow, look at how many people God saved.

[01:02:19] It's so much more than I ever thought. Look at all these people that Jesus shed his blood for. Look at all these people and how all they want to do is worship their God and obey their God and love their God. Look what God was doing the whole time. What a master plan. And I'm so glad that I get to be just one little sand on the shore of the sea in God's people. As what you're going to think for all of eternity. I was so focused on things that weren't going to last and didn't matter, and I missed the big picture of what God was doing from every nation, from every tribe, from every tongue. He was gathering together a people whose heart was his his own treasured possession. And now he has them for all of eternity, that relationship that he's always wanted with his people. The one thing that will define your life is not the waves that you rode. Not the roar of the rise and fall of what happened to you here on this planet. It will be whether you are one of the stars that can't be counted. And one of the little sands that could never be numbered up, whether you are one of God's people that will define you for all of eternity. And I hope it defines you now. Gotta come to you. We are just so thankful that we have the privilege, that we have the offer on the table of being one of your people because of Jesus Christ, because he gave his life, because he shed his blood.

[01:03:50] He paid the price that we could now be yours. Just we could follow in Father Abraham's footsteps. When we believe your promises by faith, we are entering in as one of your people.

[01:04:02] And got what an amazing thing it is to know that as your people, we will not be cast out, we will be welcomed into your presence to enjoy you for all of eternity, to worship you with the great multitude that will be there.

[01:04:18] I'm confident on that day when we stand there hearing the multitude roar, looking out over the waves of people who are singing your praise with the utmost passion, with the US most zeal, with out of pure love in their hearts for you.

[01:04:35] And I think we will see your master plan was even more marvelous than what we said here today, more awesome than what we could even imagine right now. And we will see that you knew what you were doing the entire time you were assembling a people, a treasured possession for yourself and God. Thank you. That I get to be one of those people. Thank you, God. That we can gather together as your people here at this church and we can worship you and we can learn how you want us to live and we can have a relationship with you even now. God help us to never get over the privilege. It is just to be one of your people, just one of the sand. On the shore, one of the stars in the sky that so many that they can't be counted. But what a privilege it is to be counted among them. God, I pray that we would never take it for granted. To be one of your people and God, I just pray my heart goes out to maybe somebody who's here in this message. They know they don't have a relationship with you. They know they don't have the power of the spirit to to cause them to walk in obedience to your commands. To live your ways. God, they know they don't have the zeal of good works because they're so in love with Jesus and what he did for them, that they just want to give their life back to Jesus. They don't have the hope of going to heaven for this pain free enjoyment of worshiping you in your presence. God, I pray that today would be the day they realized that because of what Jesus has done, they could be one of your people even now. We just believe that Jesus has paid the way they would trust in his death. And look to his resurrection, they would follow Father Abraham and believe in your promises by faith. It would be credited to them as righteousness. The blood of Jesus Christ righteousness given to them. The blood that makes us one of yours. Got to thinking that we can be blood brothers and sisters and that you can be our heavenly father and that we can have this relationship with you and God help us to be your people. God, I pray that you would never want to look at me and think that I'm not one of your people or anybody here, that we're not living like your people. God. Help us think it's our greatest privilege and our highest responsibility to walk is your people, and I pray that you would be pleased with us and that you would get the glory and the praise for the marvelous work you have done to save us and call us your own. Thank you, God. We pray in Jesus name. A man.

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