← ArchiveSunday, October 30, 2016DateOctober 30, 2016Speaker—Text—Passages in this sermonColossians 1:211:14TranscriptClick any line to jump there.0:00The image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, for by him all things were created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things were created through him and for him, and he is before all things, and in him all things hold together, and he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent, for in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.0:23He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent, for in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.0:52But truly, it is all about Jesus Christ, and we have been continuing our sermon series in the book of Colossians, so if you have your Bible with you today, please join me there. The book of Colossians in the New Testament, about halfway through Galatians, if you find Galatians, go to Ephesians next, and then Philippians, and then you will find Colossians. Colossians chapter 1, verse 21, Colossians chapter 1, verse 21, today the sermon is entitled this, The Great Transfer, The Great Transfer.1:14And so, Pastor, what is that? Well, we will look at what God's Word says on the great transfer in our life. What we see here in Colossians is something that Paul, the author, has already echoed for us, the church, specifically to the church at Colossae, but now to us, as we're reading God's Word together.1:37Paul echoes these words, the word faith, the word hope, and the word heard. What you have heard from the beginning, that you will have faith and hope in Jesus Christ. And what Paul does for us is he repeats the refrain of the theme of redemption. The idea that you and I are broken and that Jesus Christ is the one that can unbreak us.2:08You say, Pastor, how do you unbreak something? Well, you and I can't unbreak ourselves. That's where Jesus redeems us. He purchases us back by his precious shed blood. That's what the great transfer is. He takes someone who is a sinner and an enemy of the cross, and he makes them a friend of God. But more than a friend, he makes us sons and daughters of the King.2:34And Paul has repeated that for now three or four weeks in Colossians, over and over again, that we are hostile. And while we are still sinners, Christ Jesus died for us. Especially important for Paul is verse 13. In chapter 1, he says that Jesus has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of his love.2:57He has delivered us from darkness and he has transferred us to the kingdom of light. We're going to go in-depth today and look at that great transfer in our life. Read with me as we look at verse 19 now. The great transfer.3:28This is one ginormous long sentence in Greek. The bare bones of the sentence are you, he reconciled, to present if you continue. Verse 19 of chapter 1. It pleased the Father that in him all the fullness should dwell. Now, if you've been tracking with us since last week, how can in him, how can in a human, the fullness of God dwell?3:51Because in Jesus Christ, we see that he is what? He is the image of the Father, the invisible. He is the what over creation. He is not the first of things created. He is over all things that were created. So, God's word reminds us that Jesus is not just some other prophet. Jesus is truly God.4:19And if you make Jesus anything else but God, he is no longer Jesus Christ. He is an idol that we have created. Verse 20. In him all the fullness should dwell, and by him to reconcile all things. So, quickly, raise your hand if you're in all things. Anyone not in that category. That's comforting for me to know. That there is nothing outside of God's reconciliation by him, whether all things on earth or things in heaven,4:48having made peace through the blood of his cross. And you, who were once alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death to present you holy and blameless and above reproach in his sight.5:15If, indeed, you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which you have heard, which is preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister. Let's pray. Father, Lord, we have read your word. But, Lord, we don't desire to stand here and sit here and give you lip service.5:41Lord, we don't want to be readers of your word only. Lord, we don't want to be hearers of your word only. Lord, we want to be doers of it. Father, may we take a step back today and remember that there was a point in all of our lives where we were all enemies of the cross of Jesus Christ. Lord, we were not born into your grace. We were not born into the church. Father, we were not born into heaven. We were not born into eternal life in ourself.6:11We were born as aliens, as enemies. And, oh, thank God you sent your son. To take those who are living in darkness and transfer us to the kingdom of light if we believe. That we may have peace through the precious shed blood of Jesus Christ. Lord, may we live out that truth. May we be transformed by it. And, Lord, may we never be the same. And I pray this in Jesus' name.6:40Amen. And, amen. The great transfer. Let's look at verse 21. We're going to begin where God's word begins. And you who were once alienated. So, and you who were once alienated. We're going to come back to that word. You say, Pastor, I don't believe in aliens. We're going to come back to that. Some of you are thinking, yes, I knew it. I told you. Some of you spouses are getting in the elbow right now.7:10You were once alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works. Yet now he has reconciled. So, we begin here. This is a fundamental truth of Christianity. This is a fundamental truth of the gospel. And it is that you and I once were an enemy. So, we're going to look at three things this morning. You once were, now you are, continue in the faith. We once were enemies.7:38We once were enemies. The Holy Bible, more than any other book, describes the helpless state of our lives apart from Jesus Christ. Now, some of you are uncomfortable right now because you want to think that you're a good person. Because I can't believe Pastor said that. I'm helpless until we get to the point where we say, God, there is nothing good in me. We cannot find salvation in Jesus Christ.8:06And sometimes we forget that. We're going to look at that later. But that's where the Bible begins. That once we were an enemy. Once I was an enemy. Martin Luther says this about sin. And I love this concept. He said, man does not do evil against his will. Under pressure. As though he were taken by the scruff of the neck. And dragged into it like a thief. Being dragged off against his will to punishment. But he does it spontaneously and voluntarily.8:36Sometimes we act like when we sin that the devil grabbed us by the scruff of our neck, drug us into sin and made us do it. And we say, God, I didn't have a choice. God, that temptation just jumped out at me. That is not spiritual gospel-centered truth. The truth is that temptation comes when we are enticed by our own evil mind.9:05And when the enticement takes root, it gives birth to sin. May we not be people that stand up here and say, Lord, look how good we are. That we stand here and say, Lord, we are enemies. And we are saved by your grace. We must take responsibility for our sin. Once you were an enemy. And you say, well, pastor, then how much and how deep is my sin?9:35Look at verse 21. How much and how deep then is my sin? Once you were alienated. The Bible calls us aliens. Now, for some of you, you might think that's weird. But the word alien is a very powerful word. It means that you see a life of sin equals a life separated from God.10:00A life of sin is actually no life at all. Because we are aliens. Alienation means that you are isolated. You are depressed. You are lonely. And there is a deep sense of not belonging. An alien is someone who is wandering in a foreign land by themselves in difficult circumstances. And there is no hope to belong where they are.10:27And there is no hope to go where they are going. I felt like that as a child growing up. Some of you might know this by now. If you don't, I need to share this again. That I love. I am a Mississippi State alumnus, alumni. See how great my education was? But I grew up, not in Starkville, but I grew up in Oxford, Mississippi. An alien in a far off land.10:57It was so bad for me. I mean, I was a third generation bulldog. It was so bad. And God has such a great sense of humor that every time I would go to church, the quickest way to church, I had to cut through campus. Now, talk about patience and repentance. And I just felt like, and I told my parents, and I held true to my word. I was asked this week at a funeral. They said, where did you grow up? I said, well, I really don't want to tell you.11:25They said, I grew up in Mississippi. They said, that's an odd response. Why would you say that? Well, I said, I grew up in Oxford. But I told my parents, I said, as soon as I graduate high school, you will find me in Starkville. And I held true to my word. I even told my mom recently. She said, why don't you come visit me often? I said, I'm waiting for you to move. Right? Go to the promised land. I'll come back a lot, Mom. But I truly did grow up feeling like an alien. Feeling like, God, I just don't belong here.11:56And you say, well, why would your parents do that? Well, my dad had a job in Oxford. He was a forester, and he worked at a pulpwood plant. They made OSB. He was good at it, and God just called him there. And he loved that community. They served that community for the glory of God. But I felt like an alien. I felt like, God, I just don't belong. Now, that's a very trite example, because in the grand scheme of things, my allegiances to any school in the grand scheme of eternity is nothing.12:25Nothing. And yet God reminds us how greater still, that when we walk in this world with a sense of isolation, of disgust and no sense of belonging, that God is crying out that you are missing something in your life. And so, if you're here this morning, you say, Pastor, you have described me. I feel isolated. I feel lonely. And I have a deep sense of not belonging here. Maybe that is God's way of saying you have not received salvation yet.12:55That you are walking around as an enemy of the cross. That's what God's word says, that we were once enemies, alienated, and enemies in our mind. You see, sin doesn't just make us dysfunctional. Sin actually breaks our relationship with God. We need to understand that. Even if you put your faith in Jesus Christ, you need to understand,13:23and I need to understand how deep-rooted my sin is and what it does to my relationship with God. Verse 21, you were once alienated and enemies in your mind. The word alienation and hostility means a powerful, persistent, permanent condition. A powerful, persistent, permanent condition.13:50And the verbal tense here in the Greek of the hostility of our sin is an active sense. It's not as if God's word is saying you were once an enemy, but don't worry about it. No, God's word says that when you sin, you are an enemy. We are continually fighting God because of our sin. C.S. Lewis said it this way, that often we believe a lie about our sin. And here's the lie.14:21We believe that time heals all wounds. And so we believe then that time would heal our sinful condition. Actually, it's not biblical. It's ungodly. That's a lie straight from the pit of hell. Because what I found in my life, the more I live, the more my sin grows, not the more it heals. And oh, may we get this concept in our heart that we are enemies and aliens to Jesus Christ.14:45Because of what? Because of our wicked works in our minds. But you know, often God's purposes arise from the most difficult circumstances. There are often times that God's purposes in our life arise from mankind's miserable condition. You see, the Bible doesn't end here.15:15There's another verse. Look at verse 21 and 22. The Bible doesn't say once you were aliens and enemies in your mind by wicked works, the end. And I'm thankful that there's not an end here. Once I was an enemy, yet now he has reconciled. Now, what's strange about this verse is sometimes my Bible translation, the New King James, adds this to verse 21.15:39For some of you, that's in the next verse. It's one giant sentence, and translators are trying to figure out where does one verse end and where does the other begin. It doesn't really matter. It's one giant sentence. Because what Paul is saying is once you are an enemy, but secondly, you have been reconciled. You have been reconciled. I'm thankful for buts and yets in Scripture.16:09I'm thankful that God gave me a chance, that when I was an enemy, when I was fighting God, he said, but Josh, I'm going to give you a chance. And his name is Jesus Christ. You see, verse 20 reminds us that we have peace through the blood of the cross. There is no peace without Jesus. Once we are an enemy, now we have reconciliation. This word reconciliation means to establish proper relationship between friends.16:36Establish proper relationship between friends. And it's interesting because in some cultures, they have a difficult time translating this word reconciliation. For those of you who are in the banking industry or accountants, you know, usually we use reconciliation to talk about bringing back transactions that are out of whack. I know that's not an accounting term, out of whack, but for non-accountants, that's what they're doing.17:06We're reconciling statements that it's not where it should be, so we're making it correct. We're making it right. Some expressions said this way, to cause to become friends again. In parts of Africa, they have trouble at translating this word. And to be a friend means that you snap. And so the way that some translations in Africa have translated to make reconciliation is to snap fingers again.17:32I love that, that Jesus helps us snap fingers with our Lord and Savior to cause to be one again or to take away the separation. You see, my sin and your sin breaks our relationship with God. That once I was an enemy, but now I am reconciled. And Jesus Christ brings those pieces back together.18:02And I love what God's word says, that he restores my relationship, he mends it, he forgives me, and he brings me back as a child, a son, and a daughter, to my Father, Jesus Christ, to my Lord and Savior. Once I was an enemy, but now I have reconciliation. Well, where does this come from?18:32Verse 22, through the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and blameless and above reproach in his sight. You see, reconciliation only comes through the death of Jesus Christ. I don't understand it fully. I don't understand that when I sin, that someone should die for me, and that's okay. And I don't understand that when I sin, that it's okay for Jesus to die for me,18:59and God in his sovereign will accepts the sacrifice of Jesus over my sinful sacrifice. In my world, that's not fair. And in my world, if I'm God, and by the way, I am not, I don't understand letting my son die for someone who is an enemy of me, because I love that enemy. For those of you who have sons, let that sink in.19:30Sometimes we just gloss over the gospel. We say, well, Jesus, he's the only son of God, and God sent his only son to die for us. For those of you who have sons, let that sink in, that God would let his son die, not for those that he loved because they were good, but he loved them because they were enemies of the cross of Jesus Christ. And this is what Jesus does. Once I was an enemy, but now I have reconciliation.19:58Jesus presents us, the Bible says. Look what he does for us. He presents us as holy, as blameless, and as above reproach. He presents us as holy, as blameless, and above reproach. You see, this is sacrificial language. This is language of the Old Testament coming forth in verse 22.20:27To present something as holy and blameless and above reproach is this language of sacrifice. This is a language that God's people would have surely understood because of hundreds of years when they sinned, they had to bring an offering to the Lord. For some, it was a pigeon. For some who had larger means, it was a ram or a lamb or an ox. One time a year on the Day of Atonement,20:58they would sacrifice an ox on behalf of the priest and his family, and they would choose two goats. One to go free, and one to sacrifice for the sins of the people. But for the goat that would be set free, that the priest would lay his hands on the goat, and he would confess the sins of the country. Lord, we need to do that today, don't we? He would confess the sins of the country, and they would let that goat go in the wilderness as an alien,21:27as an enemy, as a sojourner. Perhaps to die in the wilderness in isolation by itself because of the sins of the people. And once a year, during the Passover, every Jewish person would take a lamb. And think about God's protection during the exodus, where God sent the angel of death to kill all the firstborn children.21:56And God said, but if you sacrifice a lamb, not any lamb, a lamb that you have brought into your household, a pet, but not any pets, a lamb without blemish or spots. And you take that lamb and you sacrifice it. And the blood of the lamb will cover you as protection. And you will put the blood of the lamb on the doorframe of your home.22:22And God's word says that I will send the angel of death, and the blood on your doorpost will be a sign for me. And I will cause the angel to pass over you. That's why it's called Passover. So you see, by putting your hands on the sacrifice, you are conferring sin and you're taking responsibility. So if we were living hundreds of years ago, thousands of years ago,22:51we would come here to the altar, take our sacrifice. You would lay your hands on your sacrifice. You say, God, I've sinned. So the animal dies. God, I take the blame. Kill that animal. And God, forgive me. And yet this is what Jesus Christ did. Jesus, while you were an enemy, said that I will die and sacrifice on your behalf. Think about that. He proved his love for us in this,23:22that while we were hostile to God, he proved his love that he sent his son, that while we were still sinful, sinning, God sent his son to die for us. It's almost as if when we were sinning, Jesus grabbed my hand, and drug me to the altar and said, Josh, I'm going to grab your hand and you can't find the sacrifice for yourself. I'm going to show you the true sacrifice. John the Baptist looked at Jesus and said,23:52behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. It is almost as if God grabbed our hands and said, I'm going to drag you to the altar. And I'm going to show you the sacrifice. His name is Jesus Christ. And he is going to die on the cross for your sins. Not to present himself as blameless and holy and above reproach,24:17but that if you would put your hands on him, if you would acknowledge your sins and give those to Jesus, then he will present you blameless and holy and above reproach in my sight. It's almost as if God grabs our hand and forces us to the altar, but he doesn't do this. He does not say, I'm going to force you to put your hand on my son. I'm going to force you to find eternal life. I'm going to force you enemy of me to be presented holy.24:46God says, I sent my son for you to present you holy. If you accept his sacrifice, I've done everything for your salvation, but will you take responsibility for your sins? Will you lay your sins at Jesus Christ who presents you as holy and pleasing and above reproach once we were enemies?25:15And we need to hear that because often the world looks at those who have faith in Jesus Christ and they say, oh, you goody two-shoes. Who do you think you are? And I think we've done a poor job of showing the world that we used to be enemies. We're really good at kind of showing them where we are now, but we've forgotten to tell them our testimony. Look, I was an enemy, and while I was an enemy, he saved me. He didn't save me because I was getting cleaned up.25:44He saved me because I needed to be cleaned up. And we have forgotten to tell the world that we were enemies like everyone else. And what scares me to death is that sometimes I look in the mirror and I forget that I can be an enemy of the cross because of my sin. I think, well, God, you just love me unconditionally. I'll just live like I want to. And God's word reminds us, pastor, don't you forget. To live in sin is to live in active rebellion against my son.26:12But, oh, I offer you forgiveness if you confess him as Lord and Savior. Have you put your hands on the sacrifice that is Jesus Christ? And to say, I need to be presented as holy and pleasing. Once we were enemies, now we have reconciliation. And then God's word says this, continue in the faith.26:41Once we were enemies, now we are reconciled. Continue in the faith. Faith, verse 23, if indeed. I don't know why Paul wrote it that way. I know God's word. God's Holy Spirit inspired him to write every word that he wrote. So I think this is God's way of asking us, do you really believe what you say you believe? I think God knew that the church needed to hear that27:11because many of us sit in church and we think we have faith, but we need to ask ourselves, do I really believe what I say I believe? Because many of us are living in a way that is counterintuitive to what we say. We say we have faith, but we're not living it. We say we are friends of God, but we're living as enemies. We say we have reconciliation, but we're living in sin. And you say, well, pastor, no one is perfect. I didn't say we were.27:41But for me to live in unrepentant sin and that not bother me tells me that I'm okay being an enemy of God. Tells me I have not received the gift of salvation. Because God's word says, if you confess your sins, he is faithful and just to forgive me of my sins. Show me a Christian that doesn't want to repent. I'll show you a Christian that does not seek Christ. Because I know this, every time I fall, God's spirit hits me.28:09Josh, repent quick now. And he will receive you. He will grab you. He will reconcile you. Continue in the faith. How can we continue in our faith? Because Christ accomplished it for us. Listen to this quote by Jerry Bridges. He said, though we continue, even as believers, to do those things that in themselves deserve God's displeasure.28:33Now listen to that. Even though we continue as believers to do things that deserve God's displeasure. That's a way of saying if you are popping your collar today and strutting down the aisle, don't think you're hot stuff. Because none of us have received perfection yet. And if we do, it is not by my design.29:00It is not by my good graces. It is only by the mercy of Jesus Christ. That we can never revert to a state of divine alienation. For the sake of Christ, God's will will always accept us. If I have tasted and seen that the Lord is good, I will never again walk in eternal alienation. That gives me comfort. Now I believe there are times in our life today that when we say, Lord, I'm going to sin, that God says, fine, I'm going to let you walk in a dry land.29:31And that hits home because we're living in a dry land right now. But there are times that God let his people, Israel, wander in the desert because of their sin. And maybe you're here right now and you say, well, I'm a follower of Christ, but I'm wandering in a dry, lonely place. I want you to know that even when God's people were scattered, he said, if you will repent of your evil ways, I will hear from heaven and I will heal your land.29:59That we can never go to an eternal state of divine alienation if we have faith in Jesus Christ. So how do we continue, pastor? I once was an enemy. Now I am reconciled. I want to continue in the faith. Look what the words used. Continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast and not moved away from the hope of the gospel.30:29These are construction terms. These are construction terms, not moved, grounded and steadfast. I think God is saying to us today, continue in your faith, build upon the foundation of Jesus Christ. Some of you are walking in difficult times and you say, pastor, I don't know what. I can build.30:59I don't know what I'm building and it's difficult. I think there are times in our life that God says, Josh, I didn't give you the blueprint. I just gave you the hammer and the nail and said, trust me. Sometimes we say, God, if you unfold your divine plan for me, I will believe. And there are times that God says, pastor, I told you to put that nail right there. I'm still waiting on you to nail that in the wall. I'm still waiting for you to measure that board correctly.31:24I'm still waiting for you to pray like you should. I'm still waiting for you to seek God's word. I'm still waiting for you to find repentance. Maybe God's waiting on you to get your finances in order and you're praying, God, rain down on me. And God is saying, you haven't been faithful with what you have. Why would I give you more? We say, God, just give me your plan and I will continue in the faith.31:55And God said, I did. It is my holy word. And he's saying, trust me. Build upon the rock that is Jesus Christ. Day by day, lay upon the foundation that is my son. Continue in the faith. And you say, it was hard to continue. And God says, trust me. Because we can trust God knowing this, that when I was an enemy, he sought me out.32:23When I hated God, he sought me and loved me enough to seek me out. That I had deserved nothing of my salvation. And God says, I give you my son in whom I am well pleased. That if you believe in him, that you who were once an enemy, now you will be called a son and a daughter of the king.32:45Christians, faithful, if that's what you call yourself, if that is who you are, continue in the faith. Rooted and built up knowing that he presents us as blameless, as holy, and above reproach. I love that. Because I stand before you right now as someone who's not blameless yet.33:13I stand before you as someone right now that's not holy. And knowing one day that I'm going to be holy and blameless, because my Savior will walk with me to the throne of God. And say, Father, I know he doesn't deserve this, but I died for him. I died to make Josh blameless. I died to make him holy and he believed. He put his sins upon me and I nailed them to the cross.33:42I wiped away the debt that he could not pay. And he continued in the faith. Oh, that we would be encouraged to continue in our faith today. I'm reminded of a story by the great preacher D.L. Moody. And he related this story about his nephew. And it rang true because we're dealing with a four-year-old and a two-year-old and things are not always obedient in our house.34:07And here's how the story goes. It said, one morning before Dad went off to work, young Sammy was his name. And I have to believe he was four because I have a four-year-old. Young Sammy was doing something that he should not have been. He was being naughty. He was being disobedient. So Dad put him back to bed. Which we've tried before, right? I don't care what time it is.34:37Son, you're going back to bed. I know you just woke up, but go to bed. And he said, you can come out when you ask forgiveness. So Dad went off to work and came back for lunchtime. And he was expecting to hear young Sammy's voice running down the hall, screaming, playing. And he went home and he heard nothing because Sammy was still in bed. And so he went to his wife and said, what's wrong with Sammy? She said, I've gone to him several times and he refuses to ask forgiveness.35:04Sound familiar, dear? So Dad goes back to work and he comes back for dinner at five o'clock and Sammy is still in bed. Sammy will not eat. He will not come. He refuses to ask forgiveness. And so they leave him in bed again. He has not come out of bed all day. And they go to bed thinking this, not having a very restful night because they know that at any moment,35:29Sammy is going to knock on the door and say, Mommy, Daddy, I'm sorry. But nothing happened that night. Sammy went to sleep and did not ask for forgiveness. That morning, Dad wakes up and Sammy's still not seeking forgiveness and he goes to work. And while Dad is at work, the second day, the mom goes and just pleads with Sammy.35:54She says, Sammy, ask forgiveness. That's all you have to do. And he says, I'm not going to do it. Sounds familiar for some of our parents. And she says, Sammy, just repeat after me. Mommy. He said, Mommy. For, for. Give, give. Me, me. And Sammy said, Mommy, I did it. And he ran downstairs.36:24Dad is already home. He said, Mommy, I have to tell Dad. And he ran down home and said, Daddy, I want you, I want to say this. Daddy, forgive me. And I'm reminded that oftentimes in our life, how powerful the words, Father, forgive me, can change our life. Because if we're honest, we are that enemy. We are that young kid sitting in bed saying, God, I know I deserve forgiveness, but I will not say it. God, I know you sent your son to die for me, but I'm not ready.36:56And I'm thankful and encouraged by Scripture that we, who were once aliens and enemies of the cross, in our wicked minds, the Bible says, oh, now we have redemption through his blood. He makes peace with our Heavenly Father. So, therefore, continue in your faith. Rooted and built up, he will present you as holy and blameless and above reproach.37:24Now, I'm going to ask you this. If you have never put your faith in Jesus Christ, what are you waiting for today? Maybe you need to come to the altar and where you sit and say, God, I don't know how, but all I know is these words. Father, forgive me. And the promise in Scripture is this. If you believe in his son with your heart, if you confess with your mouth that he is Lord, he will hear and you will be saved.37:48There are powerful words in saying, Father, forgive me. And if you are here today and you are in isolation, and you are journeying in a land that is dry and weary, and you feel by yourself, I believe God is screaming at you. You are empty for a reason because you will not have peace until you find Jesus Christ.38:14If that is you, where you sit today, will you not just seek forgiveness that is found in Jesus? There is no other place. There is only one name under heaven by which we can be saved, and his name is Jesus. Maybe you are here today and you are a follower of Christ and you are struggling. I want you to know that you continue the struggle. Paul says, continue in the faith.38:43If you do, you will be presented as not pretty good. You won't be presented as, you know what, he gets a pass. You will be presented as blameless, as holy and above reproach. And maybe you need to spend some time where you sit or come to the altar and say, God, I know I'm not where I need to be yet. But I know if I continue in the faith, you will bring me to where I need to be. And I know that one day before the throne of God, I will be presented face to face as blameless because of the spotless shed blood of Jesus Christ.39:11Let's pray together. Father.39:37Father.
