1 00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:09,160 Today we look at a portion of a of the word of the teachings of 2 00:00:09,160 --> 00:00:13,000 Jesus that always feel timely and I'll give it to you on the 3 00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:16,480 onset exactly what Jesus is going to encourage us with 4 00:00:16,480 --> 00:00:21,200 today. He's going to say don't give up 5 00:00:22,080 --> 00:00:24,640 and I know me just saying that to some of you. 6 00:00:24,640 --> 00:00:27,960 Maybe that is the sermon you needed to hear as you came 7 00:00:27,960 --> 00:00:32,280 because I just look around the sanctuary and without knowing 8 00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:34,440 every detail of every life in here. 9 00:00:34,440 --> 00:00:38,040 I know that hanging over every one of our heads either now or 10 00:00:38,040 --> 00:00:42,160 in the near future is great opportunity for discouragement. 11 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:46,400 There it just the times we live in and you you look at the word 12 00:00:46,400 --> 00:00:53,280 and one of the the constant themes is to not give up and no 13 00:00:53,280 --> 00:00:55,440 matter where you're at, you can relate to this, no doubt. 14 00:00:55,440 --> 00:00:58,880 I was just thinking through all the categories that maybe you're 15 00:00:58,880 --> 00:01:02,920 going through in life that you come to church and say Lord, OK, 16 00:01:03,120 --> 00:01:05,560 if I can just make it to church. I just need to get a little 17 00:01:05,560 --> 00:01:09,440 encouragement because I am almost off the edge. 18 00:01:09,480 --> 00:01:12,320 Anyone feel like they just that they've had one of those weeks, 19 00:01:12,320 --> 00:01:16,760 months, years already where they are almost ready to just throw 20 00:01:16,760 --> 00:01:19,440 in the towel? Well, you don't have to answer 21 00:01:19,440 --> 00:01:20,720 that. I'll give you, I'll share some 22 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:24,400 statistics with you. About half of our country right 23 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:29,720 now are thinking about changing jobs or turning in their letter 24 00:01:29,720 --> 00:01:31,360 of resignation. So I know I'm speaking to some 25 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:33,320 of you right now. Jobs are always hard. 26 00:01:33,320 --> 00:01:35,800 Sometimes you're going to work and you're thinking I'm going to 27 00:01:35,800 --> 00:01:39,280 give it one more week. So this message might be for you 28 00:01:39,480 --> 00:01:44,600 in that regard. Almost 40% of pastors in the 29 00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:47,000 last year. So this little role that I'm in 30 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:51,080 and across the country, 40% have thought about leaving the 31 00:01:51,080 --> 00:01:55,320 ministry to go to, you know, try to find a less burdensome job at 32 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:57,160 times. Although this is a great joy of 33 00:01:57,160 --> 00:02:02,120 life when done well, it's the numbers ring true before 34 00:02:02,120 --> 00:02:04,160 divorce. You've heard the stat, 50% of 35 00:02:04,160 --> 00:02:08,680 marriages end in divorce. Well, 50% of people within a 36 00:02:08,680 --> 00:02:11,280 committed relationship have thought about throwing in the 37 00:02:11,280 --> 00:02:13,120 towel. I know I'm speaking to some of 38 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:15,760 you. Every relationship is on the 39 00:02:15,760 --> 00:02:18,120 brink at times. You think, can I keep going? 40 00:02:19,040 --> 00:02:22,800 And we get this message? Not so that every category could 41 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:26,280 be spoken to because Jesus isn't speaking to every category 42 00:02:26,720 --> 00:02:27,840 there. There are times where you might 43 00:02:27,840 --> 00:02:30,080 change jobs or you might change churches and there's some 44 00:02:30,080 --> 00:02:31,960 relationships before marriage that might end. 45 00:02:32,880 --> 00:02:37,360 But we get this message because where you also feel this, no 46 00:02:37,360 --> 00:02:40,440 doubt everyone of you, you're alive in Christ. 47 00:02:40,440 --> 00:02:42,960 You've given your life to Jesus. You start to follow him. 48 00:02:43,200 --> 00:02:45,760 And this sermon series is called the Journey to the cross. 49 00:02:45,920 --> 00:02:48,280 As you journey with him, there's going to be times you're like, 50 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:52,560 this is getting so hard. I don't know if I can open the 51 00:02:52,560 --> 00:02:55,760 Bible this morning. This is getting so hard. 52 00:02:55,760 --> 00:03:00,560 I don't know if I've got what it takes to try to fulfill the will 53 00:03:00,560 --> 00:03:02,920 of God in my life today. Can anyone relate to that? 54 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:08,440 No show of hands, hands down if you can relate. 55 00:03:08,920 --> 00:03:13,800 OK, everyone relates. So Jesus now is going to give us 56 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:20,440 the joy of the encouragement, a, a story to help us see not only 57 00:03:20,440 --> 00:03:24,600 the encouragement as a command to not lose heart, but also a, a 58 00:03:24,600 --> 00:03:28,240 picture in story form of why we shouldn't lose heart. 59 00:03:28,440 --> 00:03:31,560 And he's also going to give us the most practical way to start 60 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:36,200 today to revive the heart that feels faint. 61 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:39,680 Now any category you're in, Jesus is going to tell you here 62 00:03:39,680 --> 00:03:42,520 is how you don't lose heart starting right now. 63 00:03:42,720 --> 00:03:46,560 So we'll just look at Luke chapter 18 and we'll just get 64 00:03:46,560 --> 00:03:51,920 through one of the parables that Jesus tells in this chapter and 65 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:54,960 it says right on the onset, I told you a very simple message, 66 00:03:54,960 --> 00:03:59,520 verse 1, He spoke a parable to them that men always ought to 67 00:03:59,520 --> 00:04:06,800 pray and not lose heart. Prayer is you want to find 68 00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:10,000 somebody who hasn't lost heart, somebody who still has, sees a 69 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:11,960 little flicker of hope on the horizon. 70 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:17,800 The people of prayer are people who still believe that it 71 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:20,680 answers on the way. That breakthrough could come, 72 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:23,120 that something could change, that discouragement could get 73 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:27,360 turned around into great joy. And if you want to see people 74 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:32,760 who have begun to lose heart, the first thing to go in your 75 00:04:32,760 --> 00:04:36,480 spiritual journey is not going to be church. 76 00:04:36,480 --> 00:04:38,680 You can actually hang on to church attendance for a long 77 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:40,560 time. Some people have gone through 78 00:04:40,560 --> 00:04:42,640 the motions with church and you're here and you stop 79 00:04:42,640 --> 00:04:46,600 believing a long time ago. The first thing to go will not 80 00:04:46,600 --> 00:04:49,280 be your Christian community. You can hang on to those things. 81 00:04:49,280 --> 00:04:51,440 People sometimes leave the church and keep keep the 82 00:04:51,440 --> 00:04:54,600 community. The first thing to go, as you 83 00:04:54,600 --> 00:04:57,800 begin to lose heart and the burden becomes so heavy, will 84 00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:01,400 actually be your communion with God in prayer. 85 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:06,760 That is the first. And so once again, Jesus finds 86 00:05:06,760 --> 00:05:11,000 us in a position in our journey and discipleship where we need a 87 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:14,160 story. So he's going to tell a very 88 00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:17,360 simple parable. And the parable is designed to 89 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:21,480 encourage us that not losing heart and prayer go hand in 90 00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:23,880 hand. And there is a way to find great 91 00:05:23,880 --> 00:05:26,440 confidence right now, today for both. 92 00:05:27,840 --> 00:05:33,640 So let's look at the parable. Verse 3, Sorry, verse 2, there 93 00:05:33,640 --> 00:05:37,680 was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard 94 00:05:37,680 --> 00:05:39,640 man. And now there was in that same 95 00:05:39,640 --> 00:05:43,200 city a widow. So once again, you've probably 96 00:05:43,200 --> 00:05:46,120 noticed in your own reading of the parables of Jesus, or in our 97 00:05:46,120 --> 00:05:48,880 journey through the gospel of Luke and studying the parables, 98 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:53,800 that Jesus uses extremes to paint a picture. 99 00:05:54,400 --> 00:06:00,040 This is a parable of extremes. We have extreme positions within 100 00:06:00,040 --> 00:06:02,280 this little city that Jesus is describing. 101 00:06:02,480 --> 00:06:07,320 The first position is one of extreme power, authority, a 102 00:06:07,320 --> 00:06:12,440 judge, an overseer of the, the, the land and all of the disputes 103 00:06:12,440 --> 00:06:15,200 would come to him and his rulings rule the day. 104 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:21,080 So you've got a, a, a great extreme person of position. 105 00:06:21,200 --> 00:06:23,000 And then he says in the same city was a widow. 106 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:26,560 And this is the other extreme. This is as low as you could go 107 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:31,000 in Jesus day where there it was a, a society where women already 108 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:33,920 were at a disadvantage. And then women who did not have 109 00:06:34,240 --> 00:06:37,160 a, a husband, they were connected to at another 110 00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:39,720 disadvantage. The the lowest of the low. 111 00:06:39,720 --> 00:06:43,040 That's why the the word says that part of the, the Christian 112 00:06:43,040 --> 00:06:47,280 virtue is to care for orphans and widows. 113 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,240 It's the category of the least. So in these extreme positions, 114 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:53,560 we also have extreme personalities. 115 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:57,960 It isn't just that this judge is extremely powerful overseeing 116 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:01,720 the affairs of the entire city. He it also comes with maybe the 117 00:07:01,720 --> 00:07:06,200 least favorable quality you could find having in a judge. 118 00:07:06,200 --> 00:07:11,360 It says he has No Fear of God and no regard for man. 119 00:07:11,360 --> 00:07:15,000 Now if you get assigned a judge, you're going to want a judge 120 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:17,840 that has both of those qualities, or at least one fear 121 00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:21,800 of God would be a judge that realizes that he is answering to 122 00:07:21,800 --> 00:07:25,800 the ultimate lawgiver that there is a judge above him, that he is 123 00:07:25,800 --> 00:07:28,040 serving and administering justice. 124 00:07:28,200 --> 00:07:31,360 But this man has No Fear of God, so he can take his authority and 125 00:07:31,360 --> 00:07:33,200 do whatever he wants with in his mind. 126 00:07:33,200 --> 00:07:36,960 He answers to no one and and that's not a good quality for a 127 00:07:36,960 --> 00:07:38,560 judge. Sadly, in our post Christian 128 00:07:38,560 --> 00:07:41,840 culture we'll probably have more judges that are positioned 129 00:07:41,840 --> 00:07:44,920 without any fear of God. So you better have the second 130 00:07:44,920 --> 00:07:47,280 quality, which is at least a regard for people. 131 00:07:48,000 --> 00:07:50,000 So if you don't honor God above you. 132 00:07:50,200 --> 00:07:53,080 The second quality is that a judge would care about the 133 00:07:53,080 --> 00:07:56,040 people who stand before him, that he wouldn't put his own 134 00:07:56,040 --> 00:07:59,560 interests above theirs, and he would actually think through no 135 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:01,720 matter where they fall in the social order. 136 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:04,880 He would think through what is right, fair, and just for the 137 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:06,880 person that brings the case to him. 138 00:08:07,160 --> 00:08:11,440 This judge has none of it. This would be a bad judge to be 139 00:08:11,440 --> 00:08:14,200 assigned to your case. So he's the highest authority 140 00:08:14,440 --> 00:08:17,240 and he's got a hard heart towards God and people. 141 00:08:17,360 --> 00:08:19,840 And now we have the extreme of the widow, the lowest of the 142 00:08:19,840 --> 00:08:22,440 low. And in verse 3 it says she came 143 00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:26,840 to him saying get justice from me, from my adversary. 144 00:08:27,640 --> 00:08:34,000 She's in a position of no social respect and she's also got some 145 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,400 form of injustice inflicting her life. 146 00:08:37,400 --> 00:08:40,200 And she comes so that the judge would hear her case. 147 00:08:41,039 --> 00:08:43,600 And because as we know, he's not a good judge. 148 00:08:43,799 --> 00:08:45,760 He doesn't care about her or God. 149 00:08:46,640 --> 00:08:48,760 It says in verse four, he would not for a while. 150 00:08:48,760 --> 00:08:52,120 He he doesn't give her justice. He doesn't care. 151 00:08:52,440 --> 00:08:55,640 It's not worth his time or his energy or his ruling. 152 00:08:55,840 --> 00:08:58,320 So he just ignore her for a while. 153 00:08:58,680 --> 00:09:02,840 But afterward he said with himself, though I don't fear God 154 00:09:04,120 --> 00:09:07,200 nor regard man, he has not had a personal revival. 155 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:11,400 He has not seen the fulfillment of the law in loving God and 156 00:09:11,400 --> 00:09:14,680 loving the neighbor. This is still in, in a total 157 00:09:14,680 --> 00:09:18,200 hardness of heart. He has a change of mind. 158 00:09:18,480 --> 00:09:23,520 Verse 5 Yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, 159 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:28,960 I will take care of her injustice, lest by her continual 160 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:34,600 coming she weary me. So another word for the woman 161 00:09:34,600 --> 00:09:37,640 that is troubling the judge. The word trouble there could be 162 00:09:37,640 --> 00:09:41,480 translated because she's driving me crazy. 163 00:09:42,560 --> 00:09:44,840 So we've got position and personality and extreme. 164 00:09:44,840 --> 00:09:50,200 She's got extreme perseverance. This parable can either be 165 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:53,880 called the unjust judge or the persistent widow and both work 166 00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:57,000 because these are the characters that Jesus want us to 167 00:09:57,000 --> 00:09:59,400 understand. She's a woman who should give 168 00:09:59,400 --> 00:10:02,240 up. She's a woman when you look at 169 00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:04,600 what she's got. She's got no social influence. 170 00:10:04,720 --> 00:10:08,640 She's got the worst judge she could get, and yet she has the 171 00:10:08,640 --> 00:10:14,280 power of persistence. She wore him down and it worked. 172 00:10:16,560 --> 00:10:22,040 This is the reminder as you relate to a message on 173 00:10:22,040 --> 00:10:24,400 encouragement and you've got just a glimmer of hope. 174 00:10:24,400 --> 00:10:26,800 You made it to church, so at least you're willing to listen. 175 00:10:28,520 --> 00:10:34,240 There is nothing that perseverance in faithfulness to 176 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:37,560 God cannot overcome. That's one of the messages that 177 00:10:37,600 --> 00:10:40,320 Jesus wants his disciples to hear. 178 00:10:40,400 --> 00:10:44,120 Don't lose heart because if you just keep persevering you will 179 00:10:44,120 --> 00:10:47,440 overcome and in this scenario you wear down a judge. 180 00:10:48,040 --> 00:10:50,680 Look what he says. I will avenge her, lest by her 181 00:10:50,680 --> 00:10:53,080 continual coming she wear me out. 182 00:10:53,080 --> 00:10:56,320 Now I was so grateful to see on our calendar this was not a 183 00:10:56,320 --> 00:10:58,800 family service with all kids joining this morning. 184 00:10:59,080 --> 00:11:02,800 Because kids in our households right now do not have the 185 00:11:02,800 --> 00:11:06,320 spiritual maturity to know this biblical truth that you can 186 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:08,880 actually wear people down with constant persistence. 187 00:11:08,880 --> 00:11:11,120 Because my kids, if I taught him this parable, they'd be like, 188 00:11:11,120 --> 00:11:13,480 I'm just being a persistent widow dad and I will never leave 189 00:11:13,480 --> 00:11:15,840 you alone until you give me exactly what I want. 190 00:11:15,840 --> 00:11:19,880 They already have that in them, let alone citing Bible verses at 191 00:11:19,880 --> 00:11:23,040 me. But the point is it works. 192 00:11:23,480 --> 00:11:28,120 You can do great things in your life whether you're a churchgoer 193 00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:30,880 or seeking God. You can do great things by not 194 00:11:30,880 --> 00:11:34,960 taking no for an answer. I was just this week if some of 195 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:38,120 you are on our prayer chain and we have a wonderful woman and 196 00:11:38,120 --> 00:11:41,080 husband of our church and and he just got some troubling news had 197 00:11:41,080 --> 00:11:44,840 to be rushed to the hospital. And when you get to the ER, you 198 00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:47,560 have a decision to make about how persistent you want to be, 199 00:11:48,080 --> 00:11:50,360 because if you're not careful, you might sit in the ER for a 200 00:11:50,360 --> 00:11:52,040 long time. And then when the ER doctor 201 00:11:52,040 --> 00:11:54,360 comes out of the room, he might give you the your next 202 00:11:54,360 --> 00:11:57,160 appointment in two weeks. But this woman of our church, 203 00:11:57,160 --> 00:12:00,760 the wife of a man who had a major medical emergency, she 204 00:12:00,760 --> 00:12:03,480 just kept saying, hey, we, we got to move this to the top. 205 00:12:03,720 --> 00:12:06,040 We got him to get him in now we got to get him to see the next 206 00:12:06,040 --> 00:12:07,440 hour. We got to get him to surgery. 207 00:12:07,600 --> 00:12:10,400 And through persistence, she got him all the way through the 208 00:12:10,400 --> 00:12:12,600 line. Persistence works. 209 00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:18,320 And in this scenario, Jesus is, is trying to help us understand 210 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:22,520 that you are going to come to a place in your life in all the 211 00:12:22,520 --> 00:12:25,920 categories that are going to require you persistence or 212 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:27,840 you're going to give up. And you're not going to you're 213 00:12:27,840 --> 00:12:30,560 not going to breakthrough to the actual success of life. 214 00:12:30,920 --> 00:12:35,320 And that is no more true than in your relationship with God. 215 00:12:36,120 --> 00:12:38,280 And this is what Jesus wants us to hear. 216 00:12:38,520 --> 00:12:43,080 This is a parable of extremes. You are going to get an extreme 217 00:12:43,080 --> 00:12:46,560 character that doesn't care, an extreme character that has no 218 00:12:46,560 --> 00:12:49,760 power, and yet there's still breakthrough that happens. 219 00:12:50,880 --> 00:12:53,920 And now the answer for us in verse 6. 220 00:12:54,080 --> 00:12:57,040 Then the Lord said, hear what the unjust judge said. 221 00:12:58,520 --> 00:13:03,000 The unjust judge was willing to move on behalf of someone he 222 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:05,720 owed nothing to, because she didn't give up. 223 00:13:07,080 --> 00:13:09,320 And what's the lesson now? The lesson, verse 7. 224 00:13:09,320 --> 00:13:15,400 And shall God not avenge his own elect, who cry out day and night 225 00:13:15,400 --> 00:13:19,080 to him? Though he bears long with them, 226 00:13:19,440 --> 00:13:23,720 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. 227 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:30,880 Again, a parable of extremes, and also a parable of contrast. 228 00:13:31,240 --> 00:13:36,280 This parable is not teaching us, and I'm going to belabor this 229 00:13:36,280 --> 00:13:40,880 for a moment. This is not teaching us that God 230 00:13:40,880 --> 00:13:48,360 is only willing if we weary him, That the unjust judge is like a 231 00:13:48,360 --> 00:13:51,920 picture of God and we must continually knock and seek 232 00:13:52,160 --> 00:13:56,160 because otherwise he would do nothing on behalf unless we're 233 00:13:56,160 --> 00:13:58,120 like children that annoy him to an answer. 234 00:13:59,680 --> 00:14:06,320 And the parable, by contrast, is also saying, how much more are 235 00:14:06,320 --> 00:14:08,960 you than a widow? You are not like a widow. 236 00:14:09,680 --> 00:14:13,400 And some people today need to hear both of those reminders 237 00:14:13,400 --> 00:14:15,480 that the parable is meant to say. 238 00:14:15,720 --> 00:14:19,520 If this could happen in the most unlikely circumstances, with the 239 00:14:19,520 --> 00:14:23,680 worst judge and the least of these, how much more will God 240 00:14:23,680 --> 00:14:30,040 move on behalf of his people? And this is the point that Jesus 241 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:33,040 is now going to make, the challenge that has been stirring 242 00:14:33,040 --> 00:14:37,160 in us this whole journey. In the Gospel of Luke, verse 8, 243 00:14:37,320 --> 00:14:41,120 the second-half, he says, nevertheless, when the Son of 244 00:14:41,120 --> 00:14:46,400 Man comes, will he really find faith on the earth? 245 00:14:48,080 --> 00:14:51,800 This is what Jesus is pointing his disciples towards. 246 00:14:52,120 --> 00:14:54,440 There's going to be a lot of religion on the earth. 247 00:14:55,520 --> 00:14:58,080 There's going to be a a lot of people who have studied the 248 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:02,320 scriptures and missed the point. There's going to be a a lot of 249 00:15:02,320 --> 00:15:05,600 people, as it says just a chapter previous that are living 250 00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:07,760 like in the days of Noah. They just ate and they were 251 00:15:07,760 --> 00:15:10,400 married and they just lived life and went through their routines 252 00:15:10,600 --> 00:15:14,280 and they they fit well within just what humans kind of tend to 253 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:17,280 default to everyday living. There's going to be all sorts of 254 00:15:17,280 --> 00:15:20,880 that. But will there be people that 255 00:15:20,880 --> 00:15:25,240 when they see the challenges of life, they look to God? 256 00:15:26,280 --> 00:15:29,320 Where there'll be people when they're like, if I would have 257 00:15:29,320 --> 00:15:33,640 lost heart unless I still believed in God, where there'll 258 00:15:33,640 --> 00:15:37,560 be a generation of people as the Lord returns that are operating 259 00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:41,280 by faith that is visible in communion with God. 260 00:15:42,480 --> 00:15:46,840 That is the challenge of most everything we've been looking at 261 00:15:47,120 --> 00:15:51,640 this entire series, because what Jesus is not describing is a 262 00:15:51,680 --> 00:15:55,360 faith that has to do with aligned doctrine, not at least 263 00:15:55,360 --> 00:15:58,320 in this moment. He's talking about faith that 264 00:15:58,320 --> 00:16:01,960 looks like a woman who continually bothers and doesn't 265 00:16:01,960 --> 00:16:04,720 give up and against all odds finds a breakthrough. 266 00:16:04,840 --> 00:16:07,600 He's talking about a faith that has movement to it. 267 00:16:09,400 --> 00:16:12,880 And you think about the faith that we've been challenged with 268 00:16:12,880 --> 00:16:17,680 as we've been studying the Gospel of Luke, mindful of the 269 00:16:18,280 --> 00:16:21,560 faith that would be required for some of you to not lose heart 270 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:23,880 for prodigal children. Luke chapter 15. 271 00:16:23,880 --> 00:16:28,040 Remember this story and so many as we went through the story of 272 00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:31,560 a, a child who was distant and long and and had had given up 273 00:16:31,560 --> 00:16:32,840 and hardened their heart towards God. 274 00:16:33,000 --> 00:16:37,280 So many of you were probably stirred once again, Lord, I 275 00:16:37,280 --> 00:16:38,960 don't want to lose heart for my kids. 276 00:16:40,920 --> 00:16:44,280 We would need faith. Remember, as we looked at the 277 00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:48,880 tower of Siloam and there was just tragedy upon tragedy that 278 00:16:48,880 --> 00:16:52,200 was presented to Jesus and he said, how do you respond to 279 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,560 tragedy? And he says unless you repent, 280 00:16:55,560 --> 00:16:57,960 you'll likewise perish. You're going to need faith. 281 00:16:58,200 --> 00:17:00,800 When you look at the tragedies of the world we live in, the 282 00:17:00,800 --> 00:17:03,760 culture that we live in, it just seems like 1 tragedy after the 283 00:17:03,760 --> 00:17:05,440 other. How many of you started to read 284 00:17:05,440 --> 00:17:08,599 the news this week or this month or this year and you think, I 285 00:17:08,599 --> 00:17:09,960 don't know if I can keep doing this? 286 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:15,839 This just feels like 1 hopeless headline after another. 287 00:17:17,520 --> 00:17:20,440 Well, when the Son of Man returns, will he find people who 288 00:17:20,440 --> 00:17:24,440 have faith that keeps trusting that God is good? 289 00:17:25,720 --> 00:17:31,800 Last week we looked at this good and and and challenging reminder 290 00:17:31,800 --> 00:17:36,840 from Jesus to his disciples that don't be surprised when 291 00:17:37,920 --> 00:17:40,840 temptations to sin come. There will be a fence. 292 00:17:42,040 --> 00:17:47,520 There will be scandals in the church and we are a generation 293 00:17:47,520 --> 00:17:50,360 who is being tested for the faith. 294 00:17:50,680 --> 00:17:54,360 When the Son of Man comes, will he find anyone who still trusts 295 00:17:54,360 --> 00:17:57,240 that God is good in spite of all of the scandal? 296 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:03,400 When he comes, what will he find you doing? 297 00:18:06,520 --> 00:18:11,000 Heard it said that prayer is the language of faith. 298 00:18:12,200 --> 00:18:17,840 Prayer is your commitment to continue to trust God that the 299 00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:22,680 story isn't over. That is troubling as all of 300 00:18:22,680 --> 00:18:25,240 these categories can sometimes look and feel. 301 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:27,280 Prayer is your way to say to God. 302 00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:32,800 Once again, I trust you. Still another quote says prayer 303 00:18:32,800 --> 00:18:34,840 keeps the candle of faith flickering. 304 00:18:36,240 --> 00:18:43,520 So prayer and faith are inseparable, and prayer and not 305 00:18:43,520 --> 00:18:47,520 losing heart are the only way it'll happen. 306 00:18:49,560 --> 00:18:53,000 So with the time that remains, we've looked at the parable. 307 00:18:53,920 --> 00:18:56,320 He says, how much more will God avenge you? 308 00:18:56,320 --> 00:19:04,400 Let me share with you three ways that your faith in God has to be 309 00:19:04,760 --> 00:19:06,920 restored by prayer and can start right now. 310 00:19:09,160 --> 00:19:11,720 The Son of Man comes. Will he find you as someone who 311 00:19:11,720 --> 00:19:15,960 has an active, trusting relationship with God in prayer 312 00:19:16,120 --> 00:19:20,680 no matter what comes your way. As we look at this parable, 313 00:19:20,680 --> 00:19:24,680 here's one that that I find so helpful as I want my own faith 314 00:19:24,680 --> 00:19:27,040 in prayer to be stirred. And you must have this faith, 315 00:19:27,040 --> 00:19:28,760 otherwise prayer will stop immediately. 316 00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:31,800 You must have faith that God hears. 317 00:19:34,400 --> 00:19:37,520 This is actually seen in the persistence of the widow. 318 00:19:37,680 --> 00:19:42,440 She came and he didn't move and she came back and she kept 319 00:19:42,800 --> 00:19:46,200 pestering and she kept bothering him and she kept showing up to 320 00:19:46,200 --> 00:19:51,200 her court appointed hearing over and over and over again. 321 00:19:51,360 --> 00:19:53,800 Give me justice against my adversary. 322 00:19:54,880 --> 00:19:57,440 There must have been something inside of her that believed that 323 00:19:57,440 --> 00:20:00,960 this man was listening to her and had the ability to help her. 324 00:20:04,680 --> 00:20:07,600 And yet, how many of you when you're close to losing heart? 325 00:20:07,920 --> 00:20:10,440 Sometimes doubt God. Are you still listening? 326 00:20:12,040 --> 00:20:18,480 God is my case still within your jurisdiction in the categories 327 00:20:18,480 --> 00:20:21,680 that the Holy Spirit moves in your heart to not give up on? 328 00:20:21,880 --> 00:20:25,680 Do you still have faith that if today you opened your mouth and 329 00:20:25,680 --> 00:20:29,160 made a request for this specific thing in your life that God has 330 00:20:29,160 --> 00:20:35,320 not grown weary of your prayer? Here's the confidence that you 331 00:20:35,320 --> 00:20:38,920 can have verse 7. And shall God not avenge his own 332 00:20:38,920 --> 00:20:44,600 elect who cry out day and night? Jesus is saying the widow had to 333 00:20:44,600 --> 00:20:47,280 come to a court case. I don't know how many of you've 334 00:20:47,280 --> 00:20:50,240 been in court recently. I was in traffic court recently 335 00:20:51,280 --> 00:20:56,080 and I won't say what happened. I still have my license, if 336 00:20:56,080 --> 00:20:59,680 you're wondering. And, and just the, it's, it's, 337 00:20:59,680 --> 00:21:02,280 it's, it's the, it's the schedule of the court. 338 00:21:02,280 --> 00:21:04,680 You get on the docket, you see the judge and you get your next 339 00:21:04,680 --> 00:21:07,800 court appearance and you go at the point in time, you show up, 340 00:21:07,800 --> 00:21:10,160 you wait in line, you have your moment with the judge and you're 341 00:21:10,160 --> 00:21:13,640 moved on across the line. That's how court works. 342 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:16,960 And sometimes people think that's how God works. 343 00:21:17,560 --> 00:21:20,640 OK, I got to come to a specific time and maybe you'll hear me 344 00:21:20,640 --> 00:21:23,160 for this moment and I'm going to show up and I'm going to make my 345 00:21:23,160 --> 00:21:24,640 case. And then it's closed and he's on 346 00:21:24,640 --> 00:21:26,880 to the next one. But Jesus says no, not so. 347 00:21:27,520 --> 00:21:31,080 The elect cry out day and night. It's 24/7. 348 00:21:32,760 --> 00:21:35,360 You can cry out to God as you leave this place. 349 00:21:35,480 --> 00:21:38,200 If God has put something on your heart, you could walk out into 350 00:21:38,200 --> 00:21:40,920 the lobby or around the church and you could start speaking to 351 00:21:40,920 --> 00:21:44,240 God about what has brought you trouble, and he will hear your 352 00:21:44,240 --> 00:21:47,360 case morning, afternoon, evening and night. 353 00:21:49,240 --> 00:21:52,280 And this is one of the ways that we get a small revival in our 354 00:21:52,280 --> 00:21:56,560 prayer life is to remember that the Word doesn't just want us to 355 00:21:56,560 --> 00:22:00,880 know that God hears our cry. It encourages us to talk about 356 00:22:00,880 --> 00:22:02,360 it. Everything to God. 357 00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:04,720 Look what it says in First Thessalonians. 358 00:22:04,720 --> 00:22:08,240 Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing in 359 00:22:08,240 --> 00:22:11,320 everything. Give thanks, for this is the 360 00:22:11,320 --> 00:22:14,560 will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 361 00:22:14,680 --> 00:22:16,680 You're not bothering him, you're delighting him. 362 00:22:22,200 --> 00:22:29,200 The the revival and the death of every relationship is 363 00:22:29,200 --> 00:22:35,520 conversation. You want to find a friendship, a 364 00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:39,400 marriage, parent to child. You want to find the sweet spot 365 00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:42,760 of where that is going well, talk to each other. 366 00:22:44,040 --> 00:22:45,920 And you want to find a relationship that is on the 367 00:22:45,920 --> 00:22:50,480 brink. The the, the, the, the most 368 00:22:50,480 --> 00:22:54,160 dangerous place a marriage can be is when husband and wife stop 369 00:22:54,720 --> 00:22:59,600 talking. And it is true of the ultimate 370 00:22:59,600 --> 00:23:01,680 relationship. The revival begins with 371 00:23:01,680 --> 00:23:05,600 communication, and the relationship ends with silence. 372 00:23:06,880 --> 00:23:11,960 To have faith as the Son of Man returns that pleases him, you 373 00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:14,800 must believe that he's listening to your prayers. 374 00:23:16,920 --> 00:23:19,400 Another word of encouragement. The righteous cry out, and the 375 00:23:19,400 --> 00:23:23,360 Lord hears and delivers them out of all of their troubles. 376 00:23:25,120 --> 00:23:29,960 God is not wearied. He delights in the prayer of His 377 00:23:29,960 --> 00:23:32,280 people. May you not lose heart today, in 378 00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:38,440 whatever category, simply by bringing once again your prayer 379 00:23:38,440 --> 00:23:42,360 requests to God. Second revival of faith. 380 00:23:45,080 --> 00:23:49,680 According to this story, we must have faith that God actually 381 00:23:49,920 --> 00:23:54,560 cares. This is again a a parable of 382 00:23:54,560 --> 00:23:58,080 contrast. The unjust judge didn't fear God 383 00:23:58,640 --> 00:24:01,800 and had no regard for man. The other translation of that is 384 00:24:02,040 --> 00:24:07,160 didn't care about people. We are, we are given a exact 385 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:12,160 opposite contrast from the unjust judge and the Father in 386 00:24:12,160 --> 00:24:15,280 heaven. And yet so many people still 387 00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:19,560 think of God as a judge. He is the ultimate judge. 388 00:24:19,560 --> 00:24:21,200 He is the ultimate source of justice. 389 00:24:21,360 --> 00:24:24,480 But when Jesus teaches people how to pray, he says pray to 390 00:24:24,480 --> 00:24:29,480 your Father. Judges can be very black and 391 00:24:29,480 --> 00:24:35,040 white and very arbitrary. And so often we come to God and 392 00:24:35,040 --> 00:24:37,280 we think, OK, you're you're judging my behavior. 393 00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:40,160 You're judging whether or not I've been a good Christian or an 394 00:24:40,160 --> 00:24:42,720 unfaithful one. And my prayer is completely 395 00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:45,520 dependent on me to honor the court. 396 00:24:48,360 --> 00:24:51,360 And yet look what Jesus says as an answer to this. 397 00:24:51,360 --> 00:24:54,960 That faith would be revived verse 7 again. 398 00:24:54,960 --> 00:25:00,760 And shall God not avenge his own elect, who cry out day and 399 00:25:00,760 --> 00:25:05,040 night? This is a parable of contrast, 400 00:25:05,040 --> 00:25:08,240 not only for the unjust judge and the Father in heaven, but 401 00:25:08,240 --> 00:25:14,400 also for a widow and the elect. It doesn't get more extreme. 402 00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:17,880 And our brother Alish already already preached this portion of 403 00:25:17,880 --> 00:25:20,040 the sermon. He said, you want to know what 404 00:25:20,040 --> 00:25:22,800 it means to be elect. It's like adoption. 405 00:25:23,920 --> 00:25:27,920 Being chosen by God is in Christ. 406 00:25:29,040 --> 00:25:32,480 We are the elect chosen by God from the foundation of the 407 00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:34,080 world. Anyone who's put their faith in 408 00:25:34,080 --> 00:25:38,360 Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit is made alive and adopted 409 00:25:38,360 --> 00:25:41,200 in. You are not a widow talking to 410 00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:43,840 an unjust judge, you are a child talking to a father. 411 00:25:46,960 --> 00:25:50,280 Says in second Timothy chapter one verse 9. 412 00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:55,920 Who Christ has saved us and called us with a holy calling, 413 00:25:55,920 --> 00:25:59,440 not according to works, but according to his own purpose and 414 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:03,560 grace with which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time 415 00:26:03,560 --> 00:26:06,600 began. Colossians therefore is the 416 00:26:06,600 --> 00:26:11,680 elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, 417 00:26:11,680 --> 00:26:14,160 humility, meekness and long-suffering. 418 00:26:14,160 --> 00:26:16,920 And then it says that he bears long with them. 419 00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:21,720 He's long-suffering and patient. God loves you. 420 00:26:23,040 --> 00:26:28,040 God cares about what is causing you to feel faint hearted and to 421 00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:30,880 lose heart, and what He wants is for you to come to Him. 422 00:26:31,160 --> 00:26:34,920 Anyone who is heavy laden and burdened, come to Jesus that He 423 00:26:34,920 --> 00:26:39,240 might give you rest. And if you have any doubt, why 424 00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:41,000 do you think Jesus is sharing the parable? 425 00:26:41,760 --> 00:26:43,800 It's because He loves his disciples. 426 00:26:44,280 --> 00:26:47,320 He loves them to the end. We're going to celebrate the 427 00:26:47,320 --> 00:26:50,920 demonstration of love on the cross of Christ for every single 428 00:26:50,920 --> 00:26:53,120 person who has put their faith in Christ. 429 00:26:53,160 --> 00:26:56,120 You are now the elect, and he loves you as a father loves 430 00:26:56,120 --> 00:27:00,960 child. And yet, what do we think? 431 00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:05,960 Who am I to pray? I don't know. 432 00:27:05,960 --> 00:27:07,840 It's been kind of a tough week. I'm not a pastor. 433 00:27:07,840 --> 00:27:09,440 I don't know a lot about the Bible yet. 434 00:27:10,440 --> 00:27:12,800 I haven't been, you know, doing the Scripture reading. 435 00:27:12,800 --> 00:27:22,960 Who am I to pray? You are chosen by God, adopted 436 00:27:23,040 --> 00:27:26,600 by the blood of Christ. Come boldly to the throne room 437 00:27:26,600 --> 00:27:30,360 of grace. There is not one point of 438 00:27:30,360 --> 00:27:33,560 discouragement in this sanctuary right now. 439 00:27:33,560 --> 00:27:35,760 I I preach this with such confidence. 440 00:27:36,120 --> 00:27:39,520 There is not one burden, not one trouble, not one challenge of 441 00:27:39,520 --> 00:27:45,120 your life that God does not intimately know about, care 442 00:27:45,120 --> 00:27:50,800 about, and have the ability to see you through, which will 443 00:27:50,800 --> 00:27:56,000 bring us to the final revival of faith as we see in this parable. 444 00:27:56,280 --> 00:27:59,200 You must have faith that God hears you, that God cares, and 445 00:27:59,200 --> 00:28:06,200 that God is in fact able. Verse 7 And shall God not avenge 446 00:28:06,200 --> 00:28:09,840 his own elect, who cry out day and night to him, though he 447 00:28:09,840 --> 00:28:14,080 bears long with them? I tell you that he will avenge 448 00:28:14,080 --> 00:28:26,200 them speedily. God is able and there are so 449 00:28:26,200 --> 00:28:30,520 many moments in our life, and these are the these are the 450 00:28:30,520 --> 00:28:33,120 loose heart moments. These are the burden of doubt 451 00:28:33,120 --> 00:28:37,920 moments where ultimately what you are actually questioning is 452 00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:42,400 your prayer life ceases and you stop talking to God and you 453 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:44,760 start trying to get more practical with your plans. 454 00:28:45,280 --> 00:28:48,840 You are actually wondering, is God actually able? 455 00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:51,640 And you've gone so far beyond does God care? 456 00:28:51,640 --> 00:28:54,720 And now it's you're, you're wondering, does God have what it 457 00:28:54,720 --> 00:28:57,320 takes to see me through this thing? 458 00:28:59,800 --> 00:29:03,320 And I was immediately drawn back to a previous moment in our 459 00:29:03,320 --> 00:29:06,000 series in the Gospel of Luke, Luke chapter 15. 460 00:29:06,000 --> 00:29:08,640 Once again, you'll remember the prodigal son. 461 00:29:09,080 --> 00:29:11,640 And you want to talk about a moment that is a loose heart 462 00:29:11,640 --> 00:29:13,520 moment. You remember he took all of his 463 00:29:13,520 --> 00:29:15,440 inheritance and he wasted it all. 464 00:29:15,520 --> 00:29:16,920 That's kind of a loose heart moment. 465 00:29:17,400 --> 00:29:21,240 He went from riches to rags. He moved to a foreign land and 466 00:29:21,240 --> 00:29:23,320 now there's a famine. That's kind of a loose heart 467 00:29:23,320 --> 00:29:25,200 moment. You know, you pick this spot 468 00:29:25,200 --> 00:29:27,680 that you you've got your dream destination and you get there 469 00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:32,120 and the economy just falls out. And then the only job he can get 470 00:29:32,120 --> 00:29:34,440 is to work with pigs. And he's so hungry that he would 471 00:29:34,440 --> 00:29:36,120 eat their food, but no one gave him any. 472 00:29:36,280 --> 00:29:38,280 This is what we would call rock bottom. 473 00:29:38,560 --> 00:29:42,760 And this is supposed to be relatable to every single one of 474 00:29:42,760 --> 00:29:44,400 us. At times he was on the sinner's 475 00:29:44,400 --> 00:29:48,400 journey. And the most beautiful turn of 476 00:29:48,400 --> 00:29:52,840 any story that you'll ever hear is as he's come to rock bottom. 477 00:29:52,840 --> 00:29:56,160 It says he came to his senses and he remembered his father 478 00:29:57,800 --> 00:30:00,800 said, what am I doing here? My father has everything I need. 479 00:30:01,680 --> 00:30:04,040 My father has servants and they eat food. 480 00:30:04,240 --> 00:30:06,080 And I'll just go to him and be with him. 481 00:30:06,320 --> 00:30:10,720 And of course, in that moment he gets more than he ever dreamed 482 00:30:11,960 --> 00:30:13,720 because he doesn't get treated as a servant. 483 00:30:13,720 --> 00:30:16,760 He gets treated as a son. And he gets a ring and a robe 484 00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:19,400 and sandals and a feast. And that is your turn. 485 00:30:21,080 --> 00:30:24,120 The turning point is to remember once again to come to your 486 00:30:24,120 --> 00:30:27,440 senses, that the God that created the heavens and the 487 00:30:27,440 --> 00:30:33,560 earth with a word, that the Savior who entered into humanity 488 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:38,320 and took all of our sin and defeated it, yes, all of it, and 489 00:30:38,320 --> 00:30:41,880 left it in the grave with newness of life, resurrected. 490 00:30:44,240 --> 00:30:50,120 He intercedes before you. If God can create the heavens 491 00:30:50,200 --> 00:30:56,360 and the earth, if God can defeat sin and overcome death, then why 492 00:30:56,360 --> 00:31:01,520 would you limit him and think that he couldn't care for your 493 00:31:01,520 --> 00:31:05,520 life? Why would you lose heart knowing 494 00:31:05,520 --> 00:31:10,280 the God who has the power to overcome the grave? 495 00:31:12,880 --> 00:31:17,200 Ephesians 3 says now to him who is able to do exceedingly and 496 00:31:17,200 --> 00:31:23,960 abundantly, above all that we think to ask to have a revival 497 00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:26,840 of faith that would honor the return of Christ. 498 00:31:27,800 --> 00:31:32,200 You have to believe that God is bigger than the wars and the 499 00:31:32,200 --> 00:31:35,000 rumors of wars and the challenges of church and the 500 00:31:35,000 --> 00:31:38,280 difficulties of your job and the bank account when it's low and 501 00:31:38,280 --> 00:31:41,720 the temptation when it's high. God is bigger than it all. 502 00:31:45,840 --> 00:31:48,600 So let me leave you with some encouragement from maybe one of 503 00:31:48,600 --> 00:31:50,600 the great masters on prayer, EM Bounds. 504 00:31:51,040 --> 00:31:53,400 He says this. If we do our part, God will do 505 00:31:53,400 --> 00:31:56,960 his. Around us is a world lost in 506 00:31:56,960 --> 00:31:59,600 sin. Above us is a God willing and 507 00:31:59,600 --> 00:32:03,680 able to save. It is ours to build the bridge 508 00:32:03,680 --> 00:32:06,400 that links heaven and earth. And prayer is the mighty 509 00:32:06,400 --> 00:32:10,200 instrument that does this work. The story of every great 510 00:32:10,240 --> 00:32:13,840 Christian achievement is the history of answered prayer. 511 00:32:16,280 --> 00:32:21,680 So we end with what we started. Don't give up. 512 00:32:23,920 --> 00:32:29,920 Or maybe to just use the words of Jesus, always pray and never 513 00:32:29,920 --> 00:32:34,840 give up. These three things you can start 514 00:32:34,840 --> 00:32:38,160 right now. Believe that God hears you. 515 00:32:39,160 --> 00:32:43,680 Believe that God cares about your requests, and believe that 516 00:32:43,680 --> 00:32:48,520 God is able in his perfect way and his perfect timing to avenge 517 00:32:48,520 --> 00:32:52,760 you on your behalf. And that revival can actually 518 00:32:52,760 --> 00:32:56,760 start in a way for all of us as we hold in our hands the 519 00:32:56,760 --> 00:33:01,560 confidence of this message. Jesus says to pray and not lose 520 00:33:01,560 --> 00:33:02,840 heart. And then he walks into the 521 00:33:02,840 --> 00:33:06,000 garden of the Gethsemane, and he prays and doesn't lose heart, 522 00:33:06,200 --> 00:33:12,280 and he picks up his cross. And on the cross of Christ we 523 00:33:12,280 --> 00:33:18,560 have the promise that God cares. God will avenge you of the 524 00:33:18,560 --> 00:33:21,000 ultimate enemy, which is sin that leads to death. 525 00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:22,640 You will be avenged in resurrection. 526 00:33:22,640 --> 00:33:28,720 God cares by paying the price. On the cross we have the 527 00:33:28,720 --> 00:33:31,480 ultimate reminder that God does in fact love you. 528 00:33:31,600 --> 00:33:36,120 Anyone who has the revelation of Christ on the cross for your 529 00:33:36,120 --> 00:33:38,160 sin, You have given your life to Jesus. 530 00:33:38,160 --> 00:33:41,080 You are his chosen and elect. He loves you demonstrated on the 531 00:33:41,080 --> 00:33:47,880 cross and on the cross we have the weekly celebration that the 532 00:33:48,040 --> 00:33:52,840 we are confounding the wise. We hold in our hands bread, a 533 00:33:52,840 --> 00:34:00,280 wafer and a cup to remember that God overcomes sin and death and 534 00:34:00,280 --> 00:34:03,240 the enemies against him. They are all overcome in the 535 00:34:03,240 --> 00:34:09,000 power of the cross. So may we be a people, may we be 536 00:34:09,000 --> 00:34:10,639 revived. Whatever you're going through 537 00:34:10,639 --> 00:34:14,120 right now, don't give up. Be revived and start today. 538 00:34:15,440 --> 00:34:18,480 Open your heart, say a word, pray without ceasing, talk to 539 00:34:18,480 --> 00:34:21,480 God. You can start with a small 540 00:34:21,480 --> 00:34:25,239 prayer. I challenge every single one of 541 00:34:25,239 --> 00:34:31,600 you to pray today, and whatever was challenging your mind and 542 00:34:31,600 --> 00:34:36,080 your heart in discouragement, renew the good fight of faith 543 00:34:36,520 --> 00:34:40,480 and give it to God. Thanks for joining us today. 544 00:34:40,760 --> 00:34:43,520 If you would like to watch the full service, check out the link 545 00:34:43,520 --> 00:34:46,360 in the description. For next steps and to learn 546 00:34:46,360 --> 00:34:48,600 more, visit calvaryboise.com.