1 00:00:09,340 --> 00:00:11,050 Again, good Morning Post sating lahat. 2 00:00:11,060 --> 00:00:14,610 Happy New Year. Welcome to our first Lord's Day 3 00:00:14,620 --> 00:00:23,430 service in 2026 at New Advent season series, a book of 4 00:00:23,520 --> 00:00:27,870 Ecclesiastes atang tidal pona acting, preaching this morning 5 00:00:28,010 --> 00:00:32,830 is served God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear. 6 00:00:32,900 --> 00:00:37,070 And this ceremony still written by Reverend Mark Chen. 7 00:00:39,370 --> 00:00:43,430 Beloved, life under the sun is hard. 8 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:48,610 God does cruise the earth, a tapping apple doing suckers the 9 00:00:48,620 --> 00:00:51,310 Garden of Eden by the sweat of your brow. 10 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:54,500 You shall eat of all of your labours until you die. 11 00:00:55,800 --> 00:01:00,070 Work will be hard, relationship will be hard, life will be 12 00:01:00,080 --> 00:01:04,040 frustrating, and that is the theme of the Book of 13 00:01:04,050 --> 00:01:07,290 Ecclesiastes. And we have seen the effects of 14 00:01:07,300 --> 00:01:12,440 sin under the sun because there is oppression, there is hard 15 00:01:12,450 --> 00:01:16,460 work, there is loneliness, and there is change or fickleness. 16 00:01:17,530 --> 00:01:21,120 We sin against others and others sin against us. 17 00:01:21,830 --> 00:01:25,970 There is deep disappointment in our lives and we don't need to 18 00:01:25,980 --> 00:01:29,770 be convinced that life is broken because all we need to do is to 19 00:01:29,780 --> 00:01:34,470 look around and we will know that life indeed is broken. 20 00:01:36,210 --> 00:01:41,750 However, Mahapatra, the problem with us is this that when we go 21 00:01:41,760 --> 00:01:46,460 through lives, trials, we behave and react in a sinful way. 22 00:01:48,270 --> 00:01:51,780 When there is oppression, our reaction is we retaliate 23 00:01:51,790 --> 00:01:55,050 sinfully. When there is exhausting work, 24 00:01:55,100 --> 00:01:59,710 we despair and when there are relationship problems, what we 25 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:06,180 do is we gossip and we slander and we justify our misbehaviors. 26 00:02:06,630 --> 00:02:11,960 We tell ourselves in my I'm so lonely, so I I deserve this 27 00:02:11,970 --> 00:02:17,950 things, or I'm so angry I have to exact my vengeance to my 28 00:02:17,960 --> 00:02:24,430 enemies and I'm so disadvantaged so they owe me and why can't I 29 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:28,590 misbehave? That's why this is the problem 30 00:02:28,730 --> 00:02:31,690 of Solomon in this part of the book of Ecclesiastes. 31 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:36,350 He was bothered by how people have failed to honour and 32 00:02:36,360 --> 00:02:40,210 reverence God as they go through lives brokenness. 33 00:02:41,450 --> 00:02:46,510 He was concerned that believers make promises to follow God, but 34 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:49,540 anyhow they sin when the going gets tough. 35 00:02:50,830 --> 00:02:54,180 He was also concerned that we promised to God to do something 36 00:02:54,190 --> 00:02:58,110 in exchange of help, but the moment we receive that help from 37 00:02:58,120 --> 00:03:06,970 God, we forget our promises. 7 Talk is cheap, and that's the 38 00:03:06,980 --> 00:03:10,310 vanity under the sun that bothered King Solomon. 39 00:03:11,490 --> 00:03:15,930 And isn't it ironic, Mahapatra, that we are so concerned about 40 00:03:16,020 --> 00:03:20,990 how unjust life is to us, how unjust life is under the sun, 41 00:03:22,030 --> 00:03:25,680 but we are not bother how unjust we are towards God? 42 00:03:26,340 --> 00:03:30,260 And that in itself is a greater vanity. 43 00:03:31,960 --> 00:03:35,600 Beloved, we are all weak. God saved us. 44 00:03:35,610 --> 00:03:39,300 He gave us manna on earth. He gave us water from the rock. 45 00:03:39,350 --> 00:03:41,340 He gave us quail from the heavens. 46 00:03:41,670 --> 00:03:47,640 He led us with His word, but we still don't trust Him in Israel. 47 00:03:47,650 --> 00:03:52,180 Even wanted to return to Egypt and not 40 days after they 48 00:03:52,190 --> 00:03:55,240 received the law, they have committed adultery by 49 00:03:55,250 --> 00:04:01,890 worshipping the golden calf. Chapati That when we face 50 00:04:01,900 --> 00:04:06,130 trials, we forget God. We complain of injustice, but we 51 00:04:06,140 --> 00:04:11,500 commit them against God. We don't honour him or serve him 52 00:04:11,550 --> 00:04:14,700 acceptably. And so in this part of 53 00:04:14,710 --> 00:04:19,300 Ecclesiastes, King Solomon reminds us with two rebukes. 54 00:04:19,730 --> 00:04:24,920 The first rebuke is we have this honoured A fearsome God, and the 55 00:04:24,930 --> 00:04:30,770 second rebuke is let us serve God with reverence and fear, but 56 00:04:30,780 --> 00:04:33,290 before that let us go to the Lord in prayer. 57 00:04:35,520 --> 00:04:39,710 Blessed Lord, who has caused the Holy Scripture to be written for 58 00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:44,970 our learning, please grant us. Please grant that we may hear, 59 00:04:45,140 --> 00:04:50,010 read, learn and inwardly digest them, that through the comfort 60 00:04:50,020 --> 00:04:54,430 of Your Holy Word we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed 61 00:04:54,440 --> 00:04:59,010 hope of everlasting life which You have given us in our Saviour 62 00:04:59,020 --> 00:05:00,950 Jesus Christ. Amen. 63 00:05:02,090 --> 00:05:06,140 So now let's go to the Let's go to the first heading or the 64 00:05:06,150 --> 00:05:09,680 first rebuke. The first rebuke of King Solomon 65 00:05:09,750 --> 00:05:13,960 is that we have dishonoured A fearsome God. 66 00:05:14,550 --> 00:05:19,100 And it all starts in verse one, when King Solomon considered the 67 00:05:19,110 --> 00:05:25,240 worship of God. We'll look at the achievements 68 00:05:25,250 --> 00:05:30,000 of men, the seasons of life, the injustices, and the dark clouds 69 00:05:30,390 --> 00:05:34,050 under heaven. But now we are looking at the 70 00:05:34,060 --> 00:05:39,160 religious life of people, and in Ecclesiastes King Solomon says, 71 00:05:39,450 --> 00:05:42,490 guard your steps. When you go to the House of God, 72 00:05:43,370 --> 00:05:48,000 go near to listen, rather than to offer the sacrifices of fools 73 00:05:48,090 --> 00:05:51,270 who do not know that they root that they do wrong. 74 00:05:52,170 --> 00:05:56,180 So when Solomon saw what's happening in his Kingdom, he was 75 00:05:56,190 --> 00:05:59,540 deeply troubled. There was a vein and a vexing 76 00:05:59,550 --> 00:06:03,910 thing that is happening. The people had dishonoured God 77 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:08,890 by treating him with contempt. He described the situation where 78 00:06:08,900 --> 00:06:12,490 they were going to the temple to worship, but instead of 79 00:06:12,500 --> 00:06:16,950 listening to God and giving him what he wanted, they offered the 80 00:06:16,960 --> 00:06:21,410 sacrifice of fools. In other words, the religious 81 00:06:21,420 --> 00:06:25,970 life of the people in the time of King Solomon is dishonorable 82 00:06:26,020 --> 00:06:31,090 to God and we can even call it as evil or wicked. 83 00:06:31,820 --> 00:06:35,140 And they didn't even consider that God was displeased and 84 00:06:35,150 --> 00:06:39,830 dishonoured by it. And this is a dangerous thing. 85 00:06:41,170 --> 00:06:45,090 Solomon told them to guard their steps when they went to the 86 00:06:45,100 --> 00:06:49,230 Temple, and we know by reading the Old Testament that the 87 00:06:49,240 --> 00:06:53,850 Temple is the focal point of the worship of the Israelites. 88 00:06:54,630 --> 00:06:58,580 But the question mark Kapatid is bakit K Lang Sabihin, King 89 00:06:58,590 --> 00:07:03,000 Solomon to guard your steps when you go to the temple. 90 00:07:04,250 --> 00:07:09,840 The temple is not dangerous. Isn't it was in the pub and 91 00:07:09,850 --> 00:07:12,300 temple? Is it a place of worship? 92 00:07:12,370 --> 00:07:18,530 It is a place of refuge or a place of peace, and you should 93 00:07:18,540 --> 00:07:21,850 guard your steps. It means that there is danger 94 00:07:21,900 --> 00:07:27,060 lurking in that place. Or was it Mark apartheid that 95 00:07:27,510 --> 00:07:31,460 King Solomon said that we should guard our steps when we go to 96 00:07:31,470 --> 00:07:35,850 the temple because God is a dangerous God? 97 00:07:36,920 --> 00:07:39,890 Well, actually that is the answer to the question. 98 00:07:40,080 --> 00:07:43,470 The reason we should guard our steps when we go to the temple 99 00:07:43,480 --> 00:07:49,160 of God is because we are worshipping A fearsome God and 100 00:07:49,170 --> 00:07:52,190 that is something that we have already forget in our 101 00:07:52,200 --> 00:07:56,810 generation. You see, worship is only safe 102 00:07:56,860 --> 00:08:03,320 when we worship a domesticated God, a God only of love, mercy, 103 00:08:03,470 --> 00:08:09,540 pardon is and forgiveness. A God that is made by our own 104 00:08:09,610 --> 00:08:12,840 imagination. It is a God that does not punish 105 00:08:12,850 --> 00:08:15,540 sin. It is a God who is like a 106 00:08:15,550 --> 00:08:20,320 grandfather managing chilla, nagging mabitleng, lagging Hindi 107 00:08:20,630 --> 00:08:24,310 Nagagalit. But, brothers and sisters, that 108 00:08:24,320 --> 00:08:29,090 is not the God of Ecclesiastes, and surely that is not the God 109 00:08:29,180 --> 00:08:34,500 of the Scriptures, because God is not domesticated. 110 00:08:35,169 --> 00:08:38,390 The God that we serve is a dangerous God. 111 00:08:39,230 --> 00:08:43,559 Palangpol inverse 6. It even says there that God can 112 00:08:43,570 --> 00:08:47,660 get angry with what you say. I'm some people don't Why should 113 00:08:47,670 --> 00:08:51,640 God be angry at what you say? So he said and God is a God that 114 00:08:51,650 --> 00:08:56,400 is capable of being angry. And in verse 7 it says that we 115 00:08:56,410 --> 00:09:01,770 are to fear God, and we see this throughout the Bible. 116 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:06,890 So let's have a tour. In the Old Testament Nathan's 117 00:09:06,900 --> 00:09:12,270 Exodus, when Moses saw the burning Bush in Mount Sinai, he 118 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:16,950 was told by God to remove his sandals because he is standing 119 00:09:17,200 --> 00:09:22,670 on holy ground. And then Nancy Moses guard para 120 00:09:23,240 --> 00:09:26,070 Israelites Pinakawalan among Egyptians. 121 00:09:26,460 --> 00:09:31,410 They met God in Mount Sinai as well, but they have to prepare 122 00:09:31,460 --> 00:09:36,400 for three days and they were not supposed to touch the foot of 123 00:09:36,410 --> 00:09:39,100 the mountain. A barrier was even placed 124 00:09:39,110 --> 00:09:41,900 between them and the mountain to protect them. 125 00:09:43,230 --> 00:09:48,150 And when it's already the turn of God to speak, lightning and 126 00:09:48,160 --> 00:09:52,700 fire blackened the mountain, and the people trembled. 127 00:09:54,080 --> 00:09:57,410 And when Moses asked to see God's face, Anupam Sabini got 128 00:09:57,420 --> 00:10:00,550 Sanya. Sanya is that you cannot see the 129 00:10:00,560 --> 00:10:05,840 face of God and live. And then we also have the 130 00:10:05,850 --> 00:10:08,400 prophet Isaiah. The prophet Isaiah had the 131 00:10:08,410 --> 00:10:13,110 vision of Christ in the temple, but when he saw Christ on the 132 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:16,880 throne, he also saw angels surrounding Christ. 133 00:10:17,010 --> 00:10:21,300 And these angels look different because they have three sets of 134 00:10:21,310 --> 00:10:24,200 wings. With one pair they cover their 135 00:10:24,210 --> 00:10:28,800 eyes, with another pair they fly, and with another pair they 136 00:10:28,810 --> 00:10:32,840 cover their body. And these angels, even though 137 00:10:32,850 --> 00:10:37,250 they are glorious beings, they have to close their eyes, they 138 00:10:37,260 --> 00:10:41,310 have to cover their faces because they could not look at 139 00:10:41,320 --> 00:10:46,090 Christ, because Christ is a fearsome God. 140 00:10:47,820 --> 00:10:52,530 Now we can understand in the Old Testament that God is a fearsome 141 00:10:52,540 --> 00:10:56,140 God. But brothers and sisters, the 142 00:10:56,150 --> 00:10:59,970 God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob does not change. 143 00:11:00,220 --> 00:11:03,000 So the God that we have seen in the Old Testament is the same 144 00:11:03,010 --> 00:11:05,550 God that we will see in the New Testament. 145 00:11:05,960 --> 00:11:09,350 That's why when Christ was on the Mount of Transfiguration, 146 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:13,690 Nahita Pusha Nakayama disciples, when his face and his clothes 147 00:11:13,760 --> 00:11:19,300 gleamed with an unapproachable light, Manila is that they are 148 00:11:19,310 --> 00:11:24,290 covered with fear. They trembled at the sight of 149 00:11:24,300 --> 00:11:28,650 the glorified Christ. And when Christ comes at his 150 00:11:28,660 --> 00:11:32,320 second coming and description puts Kanyasa revelation this, 151 00:11:32,330 --> 00:11:36,450 that he will be riding a White Horse with all of his armies 152 00:11:36,460 --> 00:11:40,050 behind him, and in his mouth will be a sword. 153 00:11:40,900 --> 00:11:44,400 And with that sword he will destroy his enemies and rule 154 00:11:44,410 --> 00:11:48,120 with an iron sceptre. And the revelation says that he 155 00:11:48,130 --> 00:11:54,200 will conquer them in his wrath, because Christ is a fearsome 156 00:11:54,310 --> 00:11:58,290 God. And as Hebrews 12 says, we must 157 00:11:58,300 --> 00:12:02,240 serve him acceptably in reverence and godly fear, 158 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:06,770 because our God is a consuming fire. 159 00:12:08,520 --> 00:12:12,320 That's why the people in the time of Solomon has to guard 160 00:12:12,330 --> 00:12:16,570 themselves or to guard their steps as they approach the 161 00:12:16,580 --> 00:12:18,870 Kingdom of God or the temple of God. 162 00:12:18,920 --> 00:12:23,420 Because the kind of God that we worship is not a domesticated 163 00:12:23,430 --> 00:12:28,750 God, that it's not the kind of God that we worship in the 164 00:12:28,760 --> 00:12:33,910 pigment of our imagination At backing up Uba, when we say that 165 00:12:33,920 --> 00:12:38,110 our God is a holy God, then he is also a dangerous God. 166 00:12:39,090 --> 00:12:42,580 Mahabadi. The reason why God is dangerous 167 00:12:42,590 --> 00:12:48,400 to us is because the people of God has dishonoured Him by the 168 00:12:48,410 --> 00:12:53,560 way they serve Him, by offering what Solomon called the 169 00:12:53,570 --> 00:12:58,880 sacrifices of fools. Yes, this can be done by the way 170 00:12:58,890 --> 00:13:02,780 we worship. We know the story of Nada in a 171 00:13:02,790 --> 00:13:07,910 bahu Nalaiku Banat Ancilla, who they were the sons of Iran. 172 00:13:08,360 --> 00:13:14,420 They were the first priest in the line of priests in the in 173 00:13:14,430 --> 00:13:20,980 the race of Levi and Makita. Punati accounts a Bible that 174 00:13:20,990 --> 00:13:25,090 they have worshipped God incorrectly in a way that they 175 00:13:25,100 --> 00:13:28,910 were never commanded. Specifically what they did is 176 00:13:28,980 --> 00:13:33,630 they offered an authorised fire in the temple of God, or they 177 00:13:33,640 --> 00:13:39,160 offered what we call a strange fire and this thing displeased 178 00:13:39,170 --> 00:13:42,010 God. And what God did is that he 179 00:13:42,020 --> 00:13:48,020 struck them inside the tent and they died there at backing up 180 00:13:48,030 --> 00:13:51,370 Benyon. It is because the God that they 181 00:13:51,380 --> 00:13:54,810 are worshipping is not a team God. 182 00:13:55,380 --> 00:14:00,050 He is a fearsome God, especially to those people who dishonour 183 00:14:00,060 --> 00:14:03,400 him. And us Reform Christians, when 184 00:14:03,410 --> 00:14:06,700 we think about this honourable worship, we immediately think 185 00:14:06,710 --> 00:14:09,800 about the form of worship or the liturgy. 186 00:14:10,090 --> 00:14:13,260 And at the back of our mind we have this boasting in ourselves 187 00:14:13,490 --> 00:14:17,060 that we say, well, we are not guilty of that because we as 188 00:14:17,070 --> 00:14:19,720 Reformed Christians, we follow the regulative principles of 189 00:14:19,730 --> 00:14:25,070 worship. Diploma in the Evangelical this 190 00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:32,010 Nung Gitara secular music, but we only sing hymns and psalms. 191 00:14:32,090 --> 00:14:35,030 You know, we are very good when it comes to worship. 192 00:14:37,040 --> 00:14:40,490 But, brothers and sisters, the kind of dishonorable service 193 00:14:40,500 --> 00:14:44,510 that Solomon was concerned about in his day was not about the 194 00:14:44,520 --> 00:14:47,950 form. It's not about the outward 195 00:14:48,590 --> 00:14:53,800 expression of worship, but it is something altogether common. 196 00:14:54,850 --> 00:14:59,870 In fact, it is much worse common because what we are talking 197 00:14:59,880 --> 00:15:05,450 about here is the attitude of the heart that even though we 198 00:15:05,460 --> 00:15:10,410 are correct in how we worship God in form, we can still make a 199 00:15:10,420 --> 00:15:14,090 mistake when we take God lightly. 200 00:15:14,600 --> 00:15:18,730 That is our problem that even though we follow the regulated 201 00:15:18,740 --> 00:15:23,670 principle of worship that we do all things in a proper way, If 202 00:15:23,680 --> 00:15:28,620 our heart is not right with God and we don't think, we don't 203 00:15:28,630 --> 00:15:34,500 take seriously the fearsome God in heaven, then we are nothing 204 00:15:34,510 --> 00:15:39,510 different with the people. In the time of King Solomon in 205 00:15:39,520 --> 00:15:44,480 Act 5, we will remember the story of Ananias in Safira 206 00:15:45,510 --> 00:15:47,700 Analysis of the era. They brought money to the 207 00:15:47,710 --> 00:15:52,260 apostles on your mark. Christians been in bed. 208 00:15:54,370 --> 00:15:57,570 Maluba in action proceed sport napping bentahan. 209 00:15:57,580 --> 00:16:03,050 I denied the apostle to be used for helping the poor or 210 00:16:03,060 --> 00:16:09,610 paramount operate on church. Ananias and Sapphira are right 211 00:16:09,900 --> 00:16:15,030 when they offered their money to the church, so their form is 212 00:16:15,040 --> 00:16:17,970 right. However, the problem is that 213 00:16:18,260 --> 00:16:22,140 they took God lightly by lying to his face. 214 00:16:23,050 --> 00:16:25,960 Because I'm Sabanilla and analysing Safira, I've been an 215 00:16:25,970 --> 00:16:31,060 amino Amari Arianne at and he became nominated dial. 216 00:16:31,070 --> 00:16:36,440 We are such generous Christians, but the truth is Hindi kahaniya 217 00:16:36,450 --> 00:16:43,820 ibinigay nila apostles and they lied to God and as a consequence 218 00:16:44,090 --> 00:16:49,780 God struck them dead. In verse 6, we are told that God 219 00:16:49,790 --> 00:16:52,150 can destroy all that we have achieved. 220 00:16:52,890 --> 00:16:56,880 And in the example of Ananias and Sapphira, it's not only that 221 00:16:56,890 --> 00:17:01,280 God took from them all that they have achieved, but God also took 222 00:17:01,290 --> 00:17:05,220 their lives. It's because they took Him 223 00:17:05,230 --> 00:17:08,690 lightly. They did not fear him, They 224 00:17:08,700 --> 00:17:12,109 thought that he was a domesticated God, but they knew 225 00:17:12,160 --> 00:17:15,060 in a hard way that they are wrong. 226 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:20,369 And in Solomon's day, he saw how the people were taking God 227 00:17:20,380 --> 00:17:24,690 lightly by making promises but not keeping them. 228 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:27,790 That's why Inverse 2 Asabi pudo on. 229 00:17:27,800 --> 00:17:32,850 Do not be quick with your mouth. Do not be hasty in your heart to 230 00:17:32,860 --> 00:17:37,860 utter anything before God because God is in heaven and you 231 00:17:37,870 --> 00:17:42,460 are on earth, so let your words be few. 232 00:17:43,250 --> 00:17:46,620 Now according to the context, Solomon has spoken about the 233 00:17:46,630 --> 00:17:52,690 frustrations of life. So Nathan Baguntaya nag Advent 234 00:17:52,700 --> 00:17:57,830 season series unless I see Elder Charlie at young preaching poor 235 00:17:57,930 --> 00:18:01,040 no time. Lyon is about the injustices of 236 00:18:01,050 --> 00:18:06,340 life, like oppression, hard work, loneliness and difficult 237 00:18:06,350 --> 00:18:11,310 seasons of life. We know that these things can do 238 00:18:11,360 --> 00:18:17,180 drive us over the edge. It can make us desperate and 239 00:18:17,190 --> 00:18:21,590 when we cannot accept the messiness of life, we make 240 00:18:21,600 --> 00:18:25,150 desperate promise to God so that God would help us. 241 00:18:27,570 --> 00:18:33,750 Well, we are serious when we make these promises, usually God 242 00:18:33,760 --> 00:18:39,500 you, we already forget the promises that we made. 243 00:18:40,370 --> 00:18:44,900 Like, for example, we will make hasty promises such as Lord 244 00:18:44,910 --> 00:18:49,420 Pagaling Mulanya Anako McCormack served Telugu Sayo. 245 00:18:49,500 --> 00:18:55,920 Ohh yeah. Lord Chabal Benjamin and 246 00:18:55,930 --> 00:19:02,360 Dadagdagan kayaking offerings or sometimes Hindi promise gay God, 247 00:19:02,410 --> 00:19:06,420 but we negotiate with him as if we are on the same level with 248 00:19:06,430 --> 00:19:09,570 God. You ever pulsating starting 249 00:19:10,390 --> 00:19:17,350 young adults, we ask God to send us a spouse perhaps in different 250 00:19:19,350 --> 00:19:24,070 we bargain with God and we say God banana wedding cake 251 00:19:24,080 --> 00:19:28,330 unbeliever. Now the classical Okaya, young 252 00:19:29,040 --> 00:19:35,180 Hindu, Christian, and in all this rush and hasty vows, it 253 00:19:35,190 --> 00:19:39,490 shows how weak we are and how faithless we are. 254 00:19:40,880 --> 00:19:46,170 The Hebrew word for the word rash, RASH, Hindi po rash, 255 00:19:46,180 --> 00:19:50,590 narashima Katya. But rash can be translated to 256 00:19:50,600 --> 00:19:54,470 the word anxious. So when we say that we make vows 257 00:19:54,580 --> 00:19:59,350 rashly, we are also saying that we are making vows anxiously. 258 00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:05,070 We are making promises to God out of worry and out of 259 00:20:05,300 --> 00:20:09,060 desperation. So we ask God to help us, to 260 00:20:09,070 --> 00:20:13,860 deliver us, and while asking God's help, we promise God that 261 00:20:13,870 --> 00:20:16,760 we will do these things, and we will do those things. 262 00:20:16,810 --> 00:20:21,190 But the moment we are delivered from our problems, we forget 263 00:20:21,200 --> 00:20:26,520 about our promises to God and not apathy. 264 00:20:26,530 --> 00:20:30,920 We we don't only make rash promises to God, but we also 265 00:20:30,930 --> 00:20:36,540 make hasty promises to God. And the Hebrew word translated 266 00:20:36,550 --> 00:20:42,820 as hasty also means impetuous or impatient union attitude, that 267 00:20:42,830 --> 00:20:46,570 we want things our way right here, right now. 268 00:20:47,720 --> 00:20:53,260 But Solomon reminds us in the book of Ecclesiastes that God is 269 00:20:53,270 --> 00:20:58,860 in heaven and we are here on earth, that we are small and he 270 00:20:58,870 --> 00:21:03,370 is great, that the earth is limited and heaven is infinite 271 00:21:04,320 --> 00:21:07,190 and God has a purpose in everything that we do. 272 00:21:07,870 --> 00:21:12,680 But we people are just like Job. We are anxious and we are 273 00:21:12,690 --> 00:21:18,560 impatient and we want things to happen our own way, right here, 274 00:21:18,630 --> 00:21:22,340 right now. That's why we make those hasty 275 00:21:22,410 --> 00:21:27,770 and rash vows before God. So Solomon rebuked them for 276 00:21:27,780 --> 00:21:32,070 this, honouring God by taking a fearsome God lightly. 277 00:21:33,610 --> 00:21:37,080 But Solomon does not stop there. Now we will go to the second 278 00:21:37,090 --> 00:21:39,570 rebuke. And the second rebuke is about 279 00:21:40,260 --> 00:21:44,200 us serving God with reverence and godly fear. 280 00:21:45,060 --> 00:21:49,690 In verse 4 it says that God has no pleasure with fools. 281 00:21:50,620 --> 00:21:54,310 Any fools do not fear God, as Proverbs says. 282 00:21:54,400 --> 00:21:59,990 Then therefore us Christians must Revere God and serve him, 283 00:22:00,180 --> 00:22:04,130 not like the fools. But the question is how? 284 00:22:05,050 --> 00:22:07,860 How are we going to do that? How are we going to prevent 285 00:22:07,870 --> 00:22:10,990 ourselves from this honouring God? 286 00:22:12,010 --> 00:22:14,520 And the answer to that, magkapatid, is that we should 287 00:22:14,530 --> 00:22:18,730 not break our vows. That is how we Revere and how we 288 00:22:18,740 --> 00:22:22,010 serve God. When we make promises to God, 289 00:22:22,080 --> 00:22:26,690 let's keep those promises. Let us not break our vows to 290 00:22:26,700 --> 00:22:30,090 God. Well, yes, there are some bows 291 00:22:30,100 --> 00:22:34,350 which are so rash and so foolish that if we kept them, the 292 00:22:34,360 --> 00:22:39,130 consequences are horrifying. Take, for example, the story of 293 00:22:39,140 --> 00:22:41,480 Jetta. So see Jepta. 294 00:22:41,840 --> 00:22:44,830 He was helped by God to win a battle. 295 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:49,170 And because Jetta is overjoyed by the deliverance of God, if 296 00:22:49,180 --> 00:22:57,350 unhappiness ajos Sabina God you own them Lalabas sapping to 297 00:22:57,360 --> 00:23:00,210 Anakin Bahai, you offer Kayo as a sacrifice. 298 00:23:01,330 --> 00:23:05,100 And we know how tragic this story is because when Jetta went 299 00:23:05,110 --> 00:23:09,640 home, the first being that came out of the door of his house is 300 00:23:09,650 --> 00:23:15,280 his own daughter, Akkineni Langan, Young Ally and Kanyang 301 00:23:15,290 --> 00:23:21,140 Sariling Anna. Okay, God, well, God, God's 302 00:23:21,150 --> 00:23:25,440 people can sometimes make very rash vows and even sinful vows. 303 00:23:25,650 --> 00:23:28,540 And I will tell you, brothers and sisters, that we are not 304 00:23:28,550 --> 00:23:37,180 bound by those vows right now. Ali Kayaking, Anak, Alan Among 305 00:23:37,370 --> 00:23:43,280 obliged. Why not inside kindness and 306 00:23:43,290 --> 00:23:45,980 being penaten that you took eval? 307 00:23:46,310 --> 00:23:53,020 So there are rush and sinful vows, but if the vow or the 308 00:23:53,030 --> 00:23:58,320 promise that we made is not a sin, then that vow is legitimate 309 00:23:59,340 --> 00:24:01,610 at the party rabbinate. In that the vow is legitimate, 310 00:24:01,620 --> 00:24:06,230 then we are bound to keep them even though they are made out of 311 00:24:06,240 --> 00:24:11,090 desperation. So there are times that people 312 00:24:11,100 --> 00:24:14,430 come to regret certain promises that they make to God. 313 00:24:15,050 --> 00:24:19,360 And so how do we react? Sometimes we react as Lord. 314 00:24:19,370 --> 00:24:22,820 Sorry, indignant talaga gusto. I promise you I don't really 315 00:24:22,830 --> 00:24:26,460 mean it or I know I made a vow to serve God, but the 316 00:24:26,470 --> 00:24:30,640 circumstances are different now at Indiana Shayang is served. 317 00:24:31,590 --> 00:24:37,420 But verse 6 says suffer not thy mouth to cause the flesh to sin. 318 00:24:37,870 --> 00:24:42,120 Neither say thou before the Angel that it was an error. 319 00:24:42,750 --> 00:24:46,960 Solomon rebuked us by saying do not break your vows. 320 00:24:47,610 --> 00:24:51,620 Do not sin by excusing yourself, telling the Angel that the 321 00:24:51,630 --> 00:24:53,710 promises that you made was a mistake. 322 00:24:54,830 --> 00:25:01,470 The word Angel here This is a King James Version SB. 323 00:25:01,740 --> 00:25:06,370 The word Angel refers to the temple messenger, that is the 324 00:25:06,380 --> 00:25:10,730 one who communicate with God. In other words, it pertains to 325 00:25:10,740 --> 00:25:15,820 the priest because the Old Testament Israel, if someone 326 00:25:15,830 --> 00:25:19,720 wants to make a vow, they go to the temple and they tell their 327 00:25:19,730 --> 00:25:27,970 vow to the priest. Like for example priest Priest. 328 00:25:27,980 --> 00:25:29,710 I would like to make a vow to God. 329 00:25:29,780 --> 00:25:35,910 Nah cum papagali in London, 30% now honey nothing harvest this 330 00:25:35,920 --> 00:25:42,640 year instead of the usual 10% at the young priest. 331 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:48,450 But there are instances where after the deliverance or after 332 00:25:48,460 --> 00:25:53,510 the healing was made by God, the person will tell the prisoner no 333 00:25:53,520 --> 00:26:00,040 sorry higher than 30% but happening 10% per annum. 334 00:26:00,050 --> 00:26:03,150 It became way God in the Cosina China estimate. 335 00:26:05,050 --> 00:26:08,210 And this mistake is not only made by Old Testament people, 336 00:26:08,880 --> 00:26:12,900 this also committed by us Christians today. 337 00:26:13,520 --> 00:26:18,690 For many of us, we think that Christianity is not what we have 338 00:26:18,700 --> 00:26:24,180 signed for. When you took your vow, when we 339 00:26:24,190 --> 00:26:28,800 made our profession of faith, some of us after taking that vow 340 00:26:28,810 --> 00:26:32,400 will say, sorry, I did not know that being Christian would be 341 00:26:32,410 --> 00:26:36,880 this hard, or I did not know that as a member of the church I 342 00:26:36,890 --> 00:26:40,420 have responsibility. Hello considerate pointing at an 343 00:26:40,430 --> 00:26:49,370 attendance or painting. Or that I'd be called to do my 344 00:26:49,380 --> 00:26:51,530 part. I did not know that when I 345 00:26:51,540 --> 00:26:54,850 became a Christian. I have to foresake all of my sin 346 00:26:55,100 --> 00:26:58,740 and therefore we say I think I made a mistake. 347 00:27:00,210 --> 00:27:04,620 But Solomon said do not pursue sake your promise. 348 00:27:04,970 --> 00:27:08,400 And why? Because in verse 6, if you say 349 00:27:08,410 --> 00:27:11,850 you won't keep your vow, then God will be angry. 350 00:27:13,010 --> 00:27:18,520 Because even though you do not take your words seriously, God 351 00:27:18,570 --> 00:27:23,950 takes our promises seriously because He is in heaven. 352 00:27:24,120 --> 00:27:27,790 He is the fearsome God. He is the all consuming fire. 353 00:27:28,060 --> 00:27:31,380 And when we break our promises, it shows that we do not fear 354 00:27:31,390 --> 00:27:34,060 Him, that we are dishonoring Him. 355 00:27:35,450 --> 00:27:38,940 It only shows that we have domesticated God in our minds, 356 00:27:39,430 --> 00:27:42,600 that we have forgotten the accounts like Ananias and 357 00:27:42,610 --> 00:27:47,060 Sapphira made-up and by who we think that these things do not 358 00:27:47,070 --> 00:27:50,480 happen anymore. But verse 6 also says that in 359 00:27:50,490 --> 00:27:55,210 his anger, out of our excuse and justifications, God may remove 360 00:27:55,220 --> 00:28:01,910 the works of our hands. Dearly beloved, while the 361 00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:06,250 accounts of Nedap and Abyu and an IAS and Safira seems 362 00:28:06,580 --> 00:28:10,310 incredulous to us today and we think that they will not happen, 363 00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:16,800 many of us have experienced another kind of chastisement and 364 00:28:16,810 --> 00:28:19,860 that is what we call the leanness of the soul. 365 00:28:20,830 --> 00:28:29,290 Hindi. Finding a boy or Hindi, but 366 00:28:29,350 --> 00:28:33,630 because we have forgotten our promises to God after we made 367 00:28:33,640 --> 00:28:37,420 our vow in this church. Add me. 368 00:28:37,430 --> 00:28:41,640 Allow us to have the things that we want, but after that, what 369 00:28:41,650 --> 00:28:44,920 will come to us is the leanness of the soul. 370 00:28:45,950 --> 00:28:48,140 It's that sense of dissatisfaction. 371 00:28:48,550 --> 00:28:51,550 It's that sense of spiritual dryness. 372 00:28:52,530 --> 00:28:57,000 Take for example the story of Elimelech and Naomi from the 373 00:28:57,010 --> 00:29:00,090 Book of Ruth. See Elimelech, Shyong, Asawa, 374 00:29:00,100 --> 00:29:06,220 Niru, Sinayo, Minneman, Shapu, young mother-in-law, Nakuru, 375 00:29:06,230 --> 00:29:07,770 Opponent. Famines are Bethlehem, 376 00:29:07,780 --> 00:29:10,880 consensual and Natera because they are being chastised by God, 377 00:29:11,750 --> 00:29:14,980 and Elimelech and Naomi, they don't want to bear the 378 00:29:14,990 --> 00:29:18,150 chastisement of God. So what they did is they lived 379 00:29:18,210 --> 00:29:22,160 in the land of Moab. The land of Moab is a Pagan 380 00:29:22,170 --> 00:29:25,710 land. It is a curse land and that is 381 00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:29,150 wrong that when you are being disciplined by God indicate 382 00:29:29,160 --> 00:29:39,350 dappa Thomas paranoid Hindi that's more. 383 00:29:39,360 --> 00:29:41,270 But after that, what happened next? 384 00:29:42,370 --> 00:29:48,360 Elimelech died and all of his sons died, and Naomi together 385 00:29:48,370 --> 00:29:52,400 with Ruth. They became destitute in the 386 00:29:52,410 --> 00:29:55,750 experience. The leanness of the soul. 387 00:29:56,900 --> 00:30:01,850 So we see God may give us what we want, but after that we'll 388 00:30:01,860 --> 00:30:06,280 come the dryness, the discontentment, the the 389 00:30:06,290 --> 00:30:09,890 dissatisfaction, the leanness of the soul. 390 00:30:10,340 --> 00:30:14,770 So let us not pretend that we know that God requires us to 391 00:30:14,780 --> 00:30:18,800 keep our promises. However magkapatid the good news 392 00:30:18,810 --> 00:30:22,000 is, even though God is a dangerous God. 393 00:30:22,070 --> 00:30:25,180 Now height Nayang going more with Mongolian and then 394 00:30:25,190 --> 00:30:28,010 afterwards he will give you the leanness of the soul. 395 00:30:29,110 --> 00:30:33,160 We know that if you are a true son of the OR daughter of God, 396 00:30:33,610 --> 00:30:37,890 he will give you the leanness for your own good because he 397 00:30:37,900 --> 00:30:41,910 sends it to us that we should return to him. 398 00:30:42,300 --> 00:30:48,330 Kayang apple Ki Naomi Naomi in in her destitution and guanya 399 00:30:48,820 --> 00:30:52,830 bumalik pusha Judah. And then another example is the 400 00:30:52,840 --> 00:30:56,750 story of the prodigal son. So in prodigal son dundin so 401 00:30:56,760 --> 00:31:02,770 wildin Kenya lahat nang mananya umalis nagpasa he, he had 402 00:31:02,780 --> 00:31:05,130 whatever he wants with his own hands. 403 00:31:05,140 --> 00:31:11,230 And then after that God gave him the leanness of the soul only to 404 00:31:11,240 --> 00:31:14,500 make him come back to his own father. 405 00:31:15,080 --> 00:31:19,920 So we see that God is still gracious even in these times of 406 00:31:19,930 --> 00:31:24,420 chastisement. But what is clear is that in 407 00:31:24,430 --> 00:31:28,480 each of these cases, these people experience the leanness 408 00:31:28,490 --> 00:31:32,020 of the soul because God is not attained God. 409 00:31:33,740 --> 00:31:38,480 So therefore let us keep our vows, because in verse 4, when 410 00:31:38,490 --> 00:31:42,530 you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it because He 411 00:31:42,540 --> 00:31:45,870 has no pleasure in fools. So fulfill your vow. 412 00:31:46,660 --> 00:31:51,010 So my rapid asked ourselves, what are the promises that we 413 00:31:51,020 --> 00:31:55,050 made to God so far? Because if we made a promise to 414 00:31:55,060 --> 00:32:00,500 God, we must keep them. Now we have another example, but 415 00:32:00,510 --> 00:32:02,880 this time this is a positive example. 416 00:32:02,960 --> 00:32:07,510 This is the example of Hannah so see Hannah Maharanis dinchang 417 00:32:07,520 --> 00:32:13,290 desperation dahil Hindi kana. So Hannah made a desperate but a 418 00:32:13,300 --> 00:32:20,310 calculated and serious foul at And God is that Combigan Shannon 419 00:32:20,320 --> 00:32:27,250 Josanna Ibibigay is to serve in the temple of his God all the 420 00:32:27,260 --> 00:32:31,420 days of his life. And when Hannah made his 421 00:32:31,430 --> 00:32:36,030 promise, he knew and he understand the holiness of God. 422 00:32:36,940 --> 00:32:42,740 And when she had bare a child, Pagkatapus Batana Lyon, she gave 423 00:32:42,750 --> 00:32:46,790 that child to the service of God, and that is the prophet 424 00:32:46,800 --> 00:32:50,500 Samuel. We can see here that her vow was 425 00:32:50,510 --> 00:32:53,770 accompanied by faith and reverence. 426 00:32:54,100 --> 00:33:00,230 And we should follow the example of Hannah so dearly beloved, the 427 00:33:00,240 --> 00:33:04,520 promises that you have made to God, the fair not to pay them. 428 00:33:04,750 --> 00:33:08,280 Let us not delay to fulfill them a stretch. 429 00:33:08,290 --> 00:33:11,700 Members. What did you promise at your 430 00:33:11,710 --> 00:33:14,300 baptism? And I been optimised as an 431 00:33:14,310 --> 00:33:16,780 adult. Surely there is a vow there. 432 00:33:17,290 --> 00:33:24,300 Or if you had your profession of faith in this church, well, 433 00:33:24,310 --> 00:33:28,280 nothing go anima promises Naginawa Nathan in the presence 434 00:33:28,290 --> 00:33:31,960 of God. Or if you are someone here, a 435 00:33:31,970 --> 00:33:36,380 guest who is contemplating to become a member of this church, 436 00:33:37,690 --> 00:33:41,330 undergoing inquiries class and soon enough you will have your 437 00:33:41,340 --> 00:33:44,310 professional fee. What is the promise that you 438 00:33:44,320 --> 00:33:48,860 will make in the presence of God marrying Kalimutan and Nathan 439 00:33:51,840 --> 00:33:54,430 Sabina? I do, but it's in the form of 440 00:33:54,440 --> 00:33:58,010 question and answer time, Abuba And the question goes something 441 00:33:58,020 --> 00:34:01,430 like this. Have you taken a firm resolution 442 00:34:01,440 --> 00:34:05,460 always to lead a Christian life, to for sake the world and its 443 00:34:05,470 --> 00:34:10,230 evil lost as is becoming a member of Christ and His Church, 444 00:34:10,340 --> 00:34:13,960 and to submit yourself to all Christian admonitions? 445 00:34:15,000 --> 00:34:18,730 That is the question that we answered during our professional 446 00:34:18,739 --> 00:34:24,900 free As you know, I'm so good. Nothing had I yes. 447 00:34:25,570 --> 00:34:29,370 And if our answer is yes, then we should keep our vowel. 448 00:34:31,130 --> 00:34:35,380 So when temptations come, let us not give in to that temptation 449 00:34:35,449 --> 00:34:39,159 so easily. When discouragement come, let us 450 00:34:39,170 --> 00:34:41,800 not let those discouragement overwhelm us. 451 00:34:42,710 --> 00:34:45,199 What problem? Igo goes. 452 00:34:45,210 --> 00:34:53,000 The national church ego goes. 19 Elders ego goes CRC and if you 453 00:34:53,010 --> 00:34:56,600 are at odds with one another Gunna Brahmi scared that we will 454 00:34:56,610 --> 00:35:00,490 love each other here. Parramatta away which? 455 00:35:00,500 --> 00:35:04,130 What should we do? We must forebear with each 456 00:35:04,140 --> 00:35:05,910 other. We must forgive. 457 00:35:05,960 --> 00:35:08,970 We must seek forgiveness container Camille, and we must 458 00:35:08,980 --> 00:35:11,730 do good to our fellow Christians. 459 00:35:13,030 --> 00:35:16,730 So let's ask ourselves, how are we serving one another in this 460 00:35:16,740 --> 00:35:19,510 church? Or how are we involved in the 461 00:35:19,520 --> 00:35:25,360 extension of the Kingdom of God? So let us not make our vows 462 00:35:25,630 --> 00:35:29,550 become in vain. Solomon concludes this section 463 00:35:29,560 --> 00:35:34,190 in verse 7, which says much dreaming and many words are 464 00:35:34,200 --> 00:35:42,360 meaningless, therefore fear God evident Mark Chin Neto Father, 465 00:35:43,270 --> 00:35:46,940 much stock is cheap. It is just like daydreaming. 466 00:35:47,370 --> 00:35:52,170 So fear God instead. So what are some applications 467 00:35:52,180 --> 00:35:57,450 for us in this preaching Canina an application, But let me 468 00:35:57,460 --> 00:36:01,750 consolidate them to you. Firstly, we need a mindset 469 00:36:01,760 --> 00:36:05,190 reset. In our reformed tradition, we 470 00:36:05,200 --> 00:36:07,870 have reverence for God, especially in our form of 471 00:36:07,880 --> 00:36:10,590 worship. Napa Chandana adding form of 472 00:36:10,600 --> 00:36:14,630 worship, not adding liturgy. We desire to exalt Him and not 473 00:36:14,640 --> 00:36:17,930 ourselves. We worship him rightly with our 474 00:36:17,940 --> 00:36:20,350 sons and our biblical hymns. Hymns. 475 00:36:20,760 --> 00:36:24,830 When we see an error in the way we do worship, we act 476 00:36:24,840 --> 00:36:28,830 fastidiously to get things right and we want to correct our 477 00:36:28,840 --> 00:36:32,280 doctrines. But if we do not have the right 478 00:36:32,290 --> 00:36:36,020 attitude in our hearts, then we are missing the point. 479 00:36:37,170 --> 00:36:42,140 The question that we should ask ourselves is that do we fear 480 00:36:42,150 --> 00:36:47,040 God? Do we fear God now? 481 00:36:47,090 --> 00:36:51,220 I said that we should reset our mind instead and not change our 482 00:36:51,230 --> 00:36:53,710 mind because we already have the mindset. 483 00:36:54,410 --> 00:36:57,800 Apple, we are following the right forms of worship. 484 00:36:57,910 --> 00:37:00,660 Okay? Nothing away is that our form of 485 00:37:00,670 --> 00:37:05,380 worship must be aligned with our hearts so that it's not only the 486 00:37:05,390 --> 00:37:14,150 form but also the the substance. So This is why while our worship 487 00:37:14,160 --> 00:37:17,490 may reflect the form of evidence, we may not have the 488 00:37:17,500 --> 00:37:20,730 expressed desire to leave carefully for him to live in 489 00:37:20,740 --> 00:37:24,190 awe, that is, He is a consuming fire that He is not 490 00:37:24,200 --> 00:37:27,390 domesticated. So may our form of worship in 491 00:37:27,400 --> 00:37:32,190 our hearts be right. Secondly, Magkapatid, we must 492 00:37:32,200 --> 00:37:36,350 humble ourselves because we are selfish. 493 00:37:36,520 --> 00:37:39,890 We are more concerned with the injustices that is done by this 494 00:37:39,900 --> 00:37:44,430 life to us, our oppression, our seasons of life, our 495 00:37:44,440 --> 00:37:47,350 disappointments in work and in our relationships. 496 00:37:48,910 --> 00:37:53,480 But how about the injustices that we have committed against 497 00:37:53,490 --> 00:37:58,830 God in the past, preaching that we had in the book of 498 00:37:58,840 --> 00:38:02,290 Ecclesiastes? What resonated in us is that 499 00:38:02,300 --> 00:38:08,190 life is unjust, but this preaching must resonate with us 500 00:38:08,200 --> 00:38:12,190 as well. And what he says is that we have 501 00:38:12,200 --> 00:38:16,900 become unjust to God as well because we have domesticated 502 00:38:16,910 --> 00:38:20,030 him. And so do we acknowledge that we 503 00:38:20,040 --> 00:38:22,710 do not fear God in the way that we should fear him. 504 00:38:22,800 --> 00:38:25,690 Because communal Ginagawa Nathan all along. 505 00:38:25,700 --> 00:38:31,070 That is a very big vanity that we are more concerned about 506 00:38:31,080 --> 00:38:35,570 ourselves than our God. And perhaps we feel the 507 00:38:35,580 --> 00:38:39,380 displeasure of God today, and perhaps we are experiencing the 508 00:38:39,390 --> 00:38:43,240 leanness of the soul. And if that is the case in us, 509 00:38:43,490 --> 00:38:48,920 then Matt, then what must we do? Thirdly, we need a greater 510 00:38:48,930 --> 00:38:51,880 resolve. Verse one said that people did 511 00:38:51,890 --> 00:38:55,440 not even consider it evil that they have dishonoured God. 512 00:38:55,770 --> 00:38:58,860 So now apartheid. If you know in yourself that you 513 00:38:58,870 --> 00:39:02,260 have this honoured God, then get right with Him. 514 00:39:02,430 --> 00:39:05,390 If you have vowed to live righteously, then pursue 515 00:39:05,400 --> 00:39:09,030 righteousness. Some of us may be in the deep 516 00:39:09,040 --> 00:39:12,930 sin right now, but let's remember that we can never get 517 00:39:12,940 --> 00:39:17,130 too far in sin. Kait Nagano Bakalim, you seen 518 00:39:17,140 --> 00:39:22,330 attacking Assad Lakhan, we can still turn to God and repent and 519 00:39:22,340 --> 00:39:27,350 he will still forgive us. Or perhaps we are at odds with 520 00:39:27,360 --> 00:39:31,540 each other, Meron dito Papansinan or makaway. 521 00:39:31,810 --> 00:39:34,380 Then what we should do? We should reconcile with each 522 00:39:34,390 --> 00:39:37,130 other. We must forgive a container 523 00:39:37,140 --> 00:39:39,940 company. We should ask for forgiveness 524 00:39:40,330 --> 00:39:45,840 because after all, we are all part of the body of Christ and 525 00:39:45,850 --> 00:39:49,480 perhaps we are experiencing the leanness of the soul because we 526 00:39:49,490 --> 00:39:51,920 have been this honouring God all along. 527 00:39:53,400 --> 00:39:56,770 But God is gracious even now to call us to repentance. 528 00:39:57,200 --> 00:39:59,650 So the question is, why should we not repent? 529 00:40:00,510 --> 00:40:04,420 If God is calling us to repent, then we should repent. 530 00:40:05,730 --> 00:40:09,140 And 4th. And lastly, let us never forget 531 00:40:09,210 --> 00:40:14,100 what Christ has done. Dearly beloved, God is not a 532 00:40:14,110 --> 00:40:16,980 domesticated God. I think I've already stressed 533 00:40:16,990 --> 00:40:19,620 that sufficiently in this preaching. 534 00:40:19,660 --> 00:40:23,500 He is a fearsome God, and that's why we serve Him acceptably with 535 00:40:23,510 --> 00:40:27,180 reverence and a godly fear, because He is a consuming fire. 536 00:40:28,410 --> 00:40:32,450 But even though God is consuming fire, that fire does not come 537 00:40:32,460 --> 00:40:37,040 upon us to destroy us today. And that is because Christ has 538 00:40:37,050 --> 00:40:41,570 already faced that fire for us. He has gone before us with His 539 00:40:41,580 --> 00:40:46,010 blood into the temple of God, holy and just to represent us. 540 00:40:46,600 --> 00:40:51,540 He has fulfilled all of His vows before God and that's why we do 541 00:40:51,550 --> 00:40:56,410 not come to the mountain of God that is darkened with fire and 542 00:40:56,420 --> 00:41:02,840 loud thunderings, but Christ has harsh those thunderings for us. 543 00:41:03,450 --> 00:41:08,860 Instead, we have come to Mount Zion, We have come to the city 544 00:41:08,870 --> 00:41:12,320 of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem where Christ 545 00:41:12,330 --> 00:41:16,140 and all of his angels are, where the souls of men have been made 546 00:41:16,150 --> 00:41:20,060 perfect. So brothers and sisters, we are 547 00:41:20,070 --> 00:41:23,810 privileged. We are privileged to be loved by 548 00:41:23,820 --> 00:41:26,570 God. And while He does not destroy us 549 00:41:26,580 --> 00:41:30,600 with His fire, He may be purging you right now to purify you. 550 00:41:31,500 --> 00:41:35,800 And why indiscipline at Manchester Wiseman? 551 00:41:36,740 --> 00:41:41,290 It is so that we can live as one of those whose souls have been 552 00:41:41,300 --> 00:41:44,520 cleansed. So if you are weary and tired 553 00:41:44,530 --> 00:41:47,910 because life is messy on earth and you have been cumbered with 554 00:41:47,920 --> 00:41:52,070 much sin, and you think to yourself, how can I? 555 00:41:52,080 --> 00:41:56,330 How can God upset me? If you think that I've broken so 556 00:41:56,340 --> 00:41:59,260 many laws, I've broken so many promises of God that I've made 557 00:41:59,270 --> 00:42:01,210 to Him. If you think that you are so 558 00:42:01,220 --> 00:42:04,950 dirty and so weak and unfaithful to God, if you think that you 559 00:42:04,960 --> 00:42:08,130 have focused so much on the injustices done to you rather 560 00:42:08,140 --> 00:42:12,290 than how you have committed injustice to God, then remember 561 00:42:12,300 --> 00:42:16,830 this. In Hebrews 12/3 it is said, 562 00:42:17,600 --> 00:42:22,230 Consider Him that endured such opposition from sinners against 563 00:42:22,240 --> 00:42:26,460 himself, so that you won't be wearied and faint in your 564 00:42:26,470 --> 00:42:32,280 hearts, because Christ was faithful for us, so that we may 565 00:42:32,290 --> 00:42:37,230 not be wary, that we may not be rash, hasty, or fame. 566 00:42:38,360 --> 00:42:43,360 So let us all be faithful. Let's all go to the Lord in 567 00:42:43,370 --> 00:42:49,230 prayer, our merciful God, who is pleased to condescend to speak 568 00:42:49,240 --> 00:42:53,380 to us through Your Word. Grant us all Your grace, that we 569 00:42:53,390 --> 00:42:57,170 may not be mere hearers of Your Word only, but doors as well. 570 00:42:58,080 --> 00:42:59,810 Peace. Give us the grace of your Holy 571 00:42:59,820 --> 00:43:03,790 Spirit that we may believe what we have been proclaimed, what 572 00:43:03,800 --> 00:43:07,990 has been proclaimed to us. May we bring glory and honour to 573 00:43:08,000 --> 00:43:11,670 Your name in all that we do as you conform us to the image of 574 00:43:11,680 --> 00:43:16,330 Your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. All of this gracious Father, we 575 00:43:16,340 --> 00:43:18,950 ask in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.