Latest / HBCWestminster / 1.5.20 Luke 2:21-38 Pastor Danny Gardner

Transcript

1.5.20 Luke 2:21-38 Pastor Danny Gardner · HBCWestminster

• 0:00
  I don't often get Sundays off, right? That makes sense. Pastors don't get Sundays off. But I got last Sunday off, and it was an unusual Sunday for us because not only did I have the day off, but we didn't go out of town. Normally, if I'm going to be away from the church, it's because we're gone. We actually stayed in town, but I just had a few days off. We enjoyed that time together as a family, and I did something that we never get to do. Our family last Sunday went and visited another church. We went incognito.
• 0:29
  We were there as visitors, right? We visited. And you guys, this is unusual for us because we also got to sit next to each other in church. And you guys, that never happens. Last Sunday, there was another church here in town that had five consecutive seats filled with gardeners. That never happens. I'm always sitting down here. Hallie's over there. Pearson and Zach are usually over here with their friends. I never know where Chase is.
• 0:57
  Like Chase, you guys, he's somewhere on campus. I don't even know where he is now. He's somewhere, right? But he's in a class or he's doing something. We just never get, because we're here to minister to the body. We're not here to be ministered to. And so we just scatter, you know, let's see how many people we can pray with and talk to and shake hands with and try to encourage. And so we got to do that this last Sunday. And a couple of things I took away from that. First, if you guys are visitors with the church, good for you. Good for you for taking that step. Being a visitor is awkward.
• 1:27
  It is awkward. And you guys, I'm a pro, okay? I'm a professional churchgoer. Like, literally, I get paid to go to church. You guys, it's awkward. I walked in there. I'm like, I don't know where anything is. I don't know where I'm supposed to sit. I don't know where the bathrooms are. Dad, where's the drinking fountain? No idea. And we have a little bit of an advantage because we're a smaller church. You know, this place was sprawling. We went to one of the big ones, you know? And so we're there. I mean, there were so many things impressive. There were so many impressive things about it. It turns out that,
• 1:57
  tens of millions of dollars can do a lot. You guys, their kick drum was unbelievable. Boom, boom, boom. I mean, you felt it. It was awesome. Their lighting was awesome. Their decorations were awesome. I mean, it was incredible. But if I'm honest, they had this, I mean, probably 200 seat breakfast cafe out in their lobby. It was so cool. You know, Chase is walking out there. He's like, dad.
• 2:26
  They're giving away breakfast sandwiches. Like, I know. Like, this is the coolest thing. You know, he thought it was awesome. We laughed. Honestly, there were so many things that were so impressive about it. We laughed. Honestly, I just felt like I just want to be here. I like Highland. You know, to echo Dorothy's sentiment, there's no place like home, you know? I mean, I'm clicking my heels together. It was cool. It was really cool. But man, got an awesome kick drum, but...
• 2:59
  They don't have the Olartes. Honestly, I wouldn't trade, right? They don't have, I mean, honestly, the Howe family. They don't have the Shearers. They don't have the Christmases. They don't have the Lawrences. They don't. They don't have them. They don't have Jonathan Booker. Can I get an amen? And they can't have them, you know?
• 3:19
  Jordan and Claudia, maybe, but we're keeping Jonathan, you know, like he's ours. I just couldn't wait to get back here. It was so cool. Thanks for letting me go and do that. It was neat. It was a good reminder of what it feels like to be a visitor because I haven't been a visitor in a long, long, long time. And so I want to encourage you guys who are new with us, don't be afraid to jump in. We want you here. We're so glad you're here. If we can help you to ease into that transition, we will. So it was cool to go and experience, but honestly, I'm glad to be back here.
• 3:47
  I love this church. I love this church family. I do. I love it. I'm so thankful that the Lord has called our family here. Well, we're going to get into our text this morning in Luke 2, verses 21 to 28. If you're able to stand in honor of God's Word, I'm going to read it, and then we'll pray and begin. Beginning in verse 21, it says, And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
• 4:18
  And when the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of the Lord, every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
• 4:45
  And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him according to the custom of the law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word. For my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples.
• 5:12
  A light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel. And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel and for a sign that is opposed. And a sword will pierce through your own soul also, so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed. And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel.
• 5:38
  of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin and then as a widow until she was 84. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour, she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. And Lord God, we thank you for humbling yourself to share in our humanity.
• 6:07
  We thank you for making yourself like us, for suffering, for being tempted in every way that we are and yet achieving the victory. We ask now that you bless the preaching of your word. Speak to us through it. Lord, be blessed by it and bless us as we commit our lives to it. And it's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Thank you. You can be seated. Well, as you may expect, I have not often found myself in court.
• 6:43
  I did one time have a bench warrant out for my arrest. That's a different story for a different sermon. In the few times I've been in a courtroom, I have been surprised to find out how much authority a judge really has. Within that courtroom, the judge has all authority, is all powerful. Even police with their badges and guns do as the judge says inside of that courtroom.
• 7:16
  Several years ago, Pastor Bob Jones and I accompanied a young lady here from our church who had requested a restraining order against another young man who did not go to our church, but who had been harassing her. The harassment had been such, so severe and so frequent that she...
• 7:34
  requested a restraining order and was going to appear before a judge. And so we went with her to help her, to support her, just to sit right behind her as she was presenting her case to the judge. And so Bob and I were sitting there, this young lady who was representing herself at the table. And then this young man who was the defendant who had hired a very expensive lawyer. And so she begins presenting her case to the judge. And the judge was an older man, I'm going to say late 70s, maybe even 80s.
• 8:01
  He was sitting there at his bench. There was no jury. He was just going to hear it, make a judgment, and then they were going to move on. She presented her case, and then when she was done, the young man's lawyer stood up, and he very eloquently and clearly professionally presented his case, denying everything that she had said. At the end of it, when all was heard, the judge very calmly and quietly leaned forward. He looked at the young lady who we were there to support and help, and he said to her, I believe everything you're saying.
• 8:32
  Everything that you want, I will give you. And then he looked at the young man. And as for you, and I'm not kidding, he kind of got up. He was getting higher and higher and higher out of his chair. He's looking down at this kid. If I ever hear that you call her, that you drive by, if she even says a car looks like yours near her apartment, I will make your life miserable.
• 9:00
  Do we have an understanding? At which point his lawyer jumped out of his seat. Wait a minute, judge. He looked at him and said, sit down. And the guy did. He looked at Bob and I and he said, are you two accompanying her? We said, yes, yes. And he said, you guys can go escort her if you would. I'm giving you a head start. He looked back at him and he said, don't you move.
• 9:27
  It was incredible. It's one of my favorite things that's ever happened in a courtroom. It was so awesome. I mean, next to, just behind the day that I was in the courtroom when Michael Allison was adopted and officially given over to the Allison family. That was awesome. Second only, right? Second to that was this. I mean, getting to see this judge flex his authority inside of his own courtroom. In our passage this morning, we have a startling and unexpected turn of events.
• 9:56
  Luke has in the first two chapters of his gospel presented his case. It's like a courtroom. He argues for the coming of God to earth in the form of a baby. He argues that this baby is the fullness of God, the exact imprint of his nature, that he was sent from heaven to accomplish many things, but first and foremost to seek and to save that which was lost. As Luke presents his case and witnesses begin to be called forward, the Lord steps down from the judge's seat.
• 10:27
  and places humanity there. He allows every individual to judge the veracity of Luke's claims for themselves. In essence, what the Lord is saying is you be the judge. To all who have been taught but are yet to be convinced, he would say, consider the testimonies given about Christ's birth and judge for yourselves whether it's true. You've heard from Zechariah and Elizabeth. You've heard from angels and shepherds.
• 10:58
  Matthew's gospel says you've heard from wise men, even King Herod himself, testifying to the truth. He says, you be the judge. Did God become a man? Is the story true? Well, as with any legal proceeding, a person's testimony must be confirmed by the corroboration of witnesses. In fact, the law of Moses even forbid one witness to accuse another person.
• 11:25
  There had to be two witnesses. Third is even better. If you've got three witnesses, it casts no doubt. And so what the gospel of Luke does is begins to call forward eyewitnesses.
• 11:37
  And these people's testimonies agree. The Lord would be saying even that their testimony, because they agree, it is true. And as is the case today, the Lord knew that the credibility of those witnesses would be called into question. And so he begins his argument with each one of these by establishing their personal holiness. Zechariah and Elizabeth, the angels, the shepherds. Now Joseph and Mary, Simeon and Anna.
• 12:01
  At the time of Christ's birth, and I'm going to give him some historic detail here. Stay with me. Zone in just for a couple of minutes while I set kind of the scene. The time of Christ's birth, the nation of Israel was divided into four major religious groups, what are often called sects, whose teachings were not only contrary to each other, but often contrary to the Word of God. The first century Judea that Jesus was born into was ravaged by false doctrine and by disagreement, disunity.
• 12:32
  These four religious sects, a couple of whom you've heard of. One, the most famous is probably the Pharisees, right? The Pharisees were a large and influential group. They were self-righteous legalists. They had devised their own religious system and thought that by following their own system, they could win their way, earn their way into God's favor. God, Jesus, did not have nice things to say about them. The second, what was a smaller group, but actually probably more powerful, were the Sadducees.
• 13:00
  The Sadducees would be like today's theological liberals. They didn't believe most of the Bible. They rejected most things that were supernatural, including resurrection from the dead. That's a problem when it comes to the gospel, right? Resurrection from the dead. They denied the existence of angels, denied almost the entire Old Testament to be the case. Now, they were smaller, but they were actually probably more powerful. They controlled the high priesthood.
• 13:29
  The high priest was always a Sadducee, and they controlled the temple. Now there was, at the time of Jesus, a religious ruling council that was comprised of these two groups. Pharisees and Sadducees made up a group called the Sanhedrin. And you know who they are, even if you haven't heard this word before. The Sanhedrin was the religious court in Israel. This was the group of men that Jesus stood in front of and was accused.
• 13:53
  In Mark chapter 14, when Jesus went on trial, it was before the Sanhedrin, a group of Pharisees and Sadducees who decided to condemn him to death, right? At the same time that that was going on, Peter, his foremost apostle, was outside in the courtyard being accused by a young lady and failing miserably, okay? Peter runs away and hides in a hole. Jesus stands his ground, stands toe-to-toe with the Sanhedrin and is condemned for his victory. The Sanhedrin.
• 14:23
  Those are the foremost two. The second, third, and fourth of the four groups are lesser known, but nevertheless, they were there. The Zealots were a group of revolutionaries. They wanted to topple the Roman government, even by violence. And there was a famous Zealot because he was actually chosen by Jesus as one of his apostles, Simon the Zealot. These guys were known for kind of insurrection. I mean, that's what they were known for, trying to topple.
• 14:52
  governments. They were a very small group. And honestly, nothing's really even known about Simon the Zealot other than he's listed among the apostles. So there were zealots. Then there was another fourth group that we'll talk more about in the coming weeks called the Essenes. The Essenes lived out in the desert. They practiced extreme asceticism, which means self-denial. They lived with very little. Imagine monks.
• 15:17
  Okay, living up on the top of some hill somewhere. Those were the Essenes. And so those were the four major groups. As you read through the New Testament, it's hard to find normal people, right? Like you hear about all these, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, they're always there. Every time Jesus opens his mouth, there's some Pharisee there to challenge him, to try to condemn him, to try to trap him. Do you ever wonder as you read your New Testament, where were all the normal people?
• 15:47
  Were there normal people? And the answer is yes. The New Testament describes a faithful remnant of people even scattered among those sects. There was a man named Nicodemus who in John chapter 3 came to Jesus by night because he was a Pharisee and he didn't want anybody else to know that he was talking to Jesus. And he had questions about how to be born again. Do you remember that? Nick at night. A few chapters later, you have a guy named Joseph of Arimathea. Joseph of Arimathea was...
• 16:18
  A Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin. He was a member and he gave Jesus his family tomb for Jesus to be buried in. He was sympathetic to Jesus' cause and even a believer in Jesus. Although he was a Pharisee, God always reserves a faithful remnant. It included Zechariah and Elizabeth. It included a group of Bethlehem shepherds. In our text this morning, Luke identifies additional members of this.
• 16:45
  faithful remnant. And he begins to call them to the witness stand to testify to the truth of the incarnation. So imagine Luke standing there saying, your honor, I would like to call Joseph and Mary to the stand. And that's what he does in verse 21. It says, at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. So first you'll notice Jesus was circumcised. It was a choice of his parents. Circumcision eventually became a stumbling block for the early church.
• 17:15
  Some in the early church actually claimed that a converted man must be circumcised before he could come to Christ. In other words, you had to become Jewish before you could become a Christian. In fact, most of the Apostle Paul's ministry was in defense against this heresy. But the Bible does not say that we are separated from the nations by circumcision. Instead, it says that we are separated from the nations. The church is separate and distinct from the nations by our worship.
• 17:44
  Philippians 3, the apostle Paul says, we are the circumcision, not of the body, but of the heart. We are the circumcision who worship God. That's how we are divided now. It's not circumcision. It's not even baptism that separates us from the nations, but instead worship of the one true God. That's first. Jesus was circumcised. Notice second, verses 22 and 23, Jesus was redeemed.
• 18:14
  Verse 22 says, And when the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. And now here's the key, verse 23. As it is written in the law of the Lord, every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. Now you guys will recall that when God was saving his people out of Egypt, out of slavery, right? He did so by levying 10 plagues on the Egyptians. Do you remember this?
• 18:44
  The tenth and final plague, the plague that broke the camel's back, was which one? Death of the firstborn son. Even animals died in the death of the firstborn son. God laid claim to the firstborn son. Now, if you put the blood on the threshold and all of that, the Lord would pass over. But what he did from that day forward is said, every firstborn male belongs to me. I didn't kill them.
• 19:14
  And so they're mine. Does that make sense? Every firstborn male from that day belongs to me. And so I am the firstborn male from my home. My life would have been dedicated to the Lord. My son, Pearson, firstborn son, his life would have been dedicated to God. All of the other ones belong to me, but that one belongs to God. Everybody following? What you could do if you were a faithful Jewish.
• 19:40
  family, faithful Jewish parents, is you could bring your firstborn son to the temple and redeem him by making an offering. It was often a five shekel tax, okay? So you could go to the temple, you could present the offering, and in essence, what you're doing is buying your son back, okay? He was yours. I'm going to buy him back. I'm redeeming him. I'm purchasing him back. Now, there is a very famous Old Testament example of a woman who did not redeem her son.
• 20:10
  who didn't purchase him back. Do you guys remember who it was? It was Hannah and her son Samuel. Hannah's praying for a son. She conceives, right? She was barren and old. She conceives. She's given a son. God hears her prayer and she does not redeem. She does not purchase back Samuel. What does she do with him? She gives him over in service of the temple, right? He becomes one of the most powerful and famous prophets of the Old Testament. Really a cool story. She didn't redeem him back.
• 20:40
  So Mary and Joseph go to redeem back their son. We will raise our son. We're not going to give him over in service to the temple. Now this brings up an interesting parenting thought. Do we ever consider the fact that our kids do not belong to us? Do we parent this way? That they're only given to us for a time?
• 21:07
  That our kids, although they are ours and they live in our home and we provide for them and they even share our last name, but that they don't actually belong to us. They don't belong to us. They belong to the Lord. They have been entrusted to us for a time. We are but stewards of our children, right? It's our job to teach them, to train them in righteousness and in worship. This reality has confronted Hallie and I recently as we consider sending our firstborn son to college.
• 21:39
  He's coming up on that. Within six, seven months, he'll go someplace. We haven't decided yet. We're prepared to send him away. And Hallie, jokingly, but maybe only half jokingly, begs him to stay, begs him not to grow up. Don't leave mommy, right? How could you abandon me? But in reality, is that what we want? Do we want our son never to grow up? Do we want our son never to leave home?
• 22:08
  Do we want our son to be a 30 year old, 40 year old, 50 year old boy? Listen, I've met some of those. I don't want them. There are 50 year old boys that never grew up, that never reached adulthood, that never matured. That's not what we want. We've been entrusted with our sons. There will be a day when we say, go.
• 22:31
  Go and be trained. Go and be educated. Go and experience things. Expand your worldview. Expand and see what God is doing, not only here in our home, but around the world. Go and see all of that and become effective for the sake of the gospel. Go become more effective. We don't want to smother you here. You've been entrusted to us, but you don't belong to us. Second, Jesus was redeemed. Third, Joseph and Mary sacrificed. Look at verse 24.
• 22:58
  It says, and they went to the temple and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. What a way for Joseph's parents to begin their son's story. Their own testimony includes the offering of a blood sacrifice for the purification of their own sin. And this is exactly what their baby would accomplish on the cross. Their testimony, testimony number one was this baby will fulfill the law.
• 23:25
  He will be able to satisfy the wrath and justice of His heavenly Father by becoming a blood sacrifice for sin. That's first. Your Honor, I'd like to call Simeon to the stand. Simeon, look at verse 25. Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel. And the Holy Spirit was upon him. It says that he was righteous and devout. Another one of this faithful remnant was a very old man who waited faithfully for the coming.
• 23:55
  of the Messiah. And notice it says he was righteous, reverent toward the Lord, God-fearing. He was a pious man and devout. Now, the word devout could also be translated careful. It's an interesting word. Devout, it means careful, careful with religious things, careful with his own soul. Simon was a man who was careful with his soul. I wonder if we are as careful with ours.
• 24:26
  We are careful when it comes to a great many things. Some men are meticulous when it comes to car maintenance. Chefs are vigilant with their recipes. Our houses, our yards are kept up, but we are very careful when it comes to filing our taxes. We're careful, right? Not a number out of place. We don't want to get in trouble. We're careful. We're careful when it comes to caring for our bodies, our culture. Have you guys noticed this? Our culture, North Denver, is crazy.
• 24:57
  about our bodies. It's January 5th. We're coming up on the time when all of us break our New Year's resolutions. Tell me if any of these New Year's resolutions ring a bell. The Atkins diet, the Daniel diet, intermittent fasting, South Beach diet, Whole30, keto, Weight Watchers, paleo, zone diet, Mediterranean diet, raw food diet, Nutrisystem, SlimFast. Those are the ones I could come up with. There's probably more.
• 25:32
  We've got vegetarians, vegans, lacto-vegetarians, avo-lacto-vegetarians, pescatarians, fruitarians. I'm sorry if I left you out. Like, yeah, you left out the guy who eats everything. What's that? Yeah, an omnivore. We've got, you guys, these are just local. We've got Choose Fitness, 24-Hour Fitness, Nine Round Fitness, Vasa, Planet Fitness, CrossFit, Curves, TrueFit, Bar Forte Fitness, Eat the Frog Fitness, Anytime Fitness, Orange Theory, Fitness 19, Core Power Yoga, Prism Yoga, and YogaPod.
• 26:04
  All here, that's Westminster. We're gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, preservative-free, dye-free, additive-free, taste-free. I would bet that almost every person in our city, tell me if you think I'm wrong. I would bet that almost every person in our city has made a resolution in the last week that had something to do with at least one or more of these things. Maybe everybody in the room. Something to do with a diet, with what you eat, with what your exercise. This is the year, this is the year, this is the year. How many of 2020's goals?
• 26:38
  involve caring for your soul. Are we as careful to nurture and feed and exercise our souls as we are our bodies? And Simeon was careful with his soul, and so should we be. It's good to be careful what you allow yourself to eat. There's nothing wrong with that. But also be careful what you allow your soul to eat. Be careful to exercise your body. You know, the Bible actually says that exercise is of some benefit. It actually says that. But also be careful to exercise your spiritual gifts regularly.
• 27:10
  Don't become an out-of-shape lazy believer. J.C. Ryle says, you know, nobody ever says at the end of his life, I read my Bible too much. Nobody does. Nobody ever says, I've thought about God too much, I've prayed too much, or I've been too careful with my soul. Nobody ever says that. Proverbs 19 verse 16 says this, whoever keeps the commandments keeps his life. He who despises his ways shall die. Another translation of the same verse says, he who is careless in his ways.
• 27:41
  shall die careless with his soul. Don't be more careful with your body, with your car, with filing your taxes, all of which will one day burn than you are with your soul, which will last for eternity. That's first. Simeon was righteous and careful, but notice also he was spirit-led. The end of verse 25 says, the Holy Spirit was upon him.
• 28:05
  and it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ, and he came in the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him according to the law, the custom of the law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God. Simeon's reaction upon meeting Jesus here is unmistakable. What we have in now his verses 29 to 32 is the fifth and final of the incarnation hymns
• 28:35
  that Luke records. And notice as we read it, what the theme of the hymn is. It is the inclusivity of the gospel message. All peoples, Gentiles and Jews. Pick up in verse 29. And he begins to praise God saying, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace. You imagine this old man holding this baby. Finally, I can die according to your word. For my eyes have seen your salvation.
• 29:04
  that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel. All peoples, Gentiles and Jews, will be saved by this baby. Notice then he turns and gives his father and mother, Joseph and Mary, kind of a dose of reality.
• 29:26
  In verse 33, his father and his mother marveled at what was said. So you can imagine this young couple just in awe, just glowing. This is our son. He's famous, right? People know who he is. They're marveling and Simeon blessed them, but then said to his mother, and you notice he directs this straight at her, straight at her. I think it is probably inferring and we can make some assumptions here that Joseph probably died.
• 29:52
  passed away that his mother Mary by the time Jesus is crucified as a widow because he's not there at the foot of the cross Joseph is not there he's markedly absent but then also Simeon's pointing that and addressing this to Mary says behold this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel and for a sign that is opposed and now imagine this verse 35 and a sword will pierce through your own soul also I think he's probably there making reference to Mary standing at the foot of the cross don't forget
• 30:21
  He is going to be salvation for all people, but don't forget what has to happen in order for that to be accomplished. Your heart will be broken. You will have to see your very son crucified so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed. Simeon's testimony is this. This baby will accomplish the salvation of all people, both Jew and Gentile, but this salvation will come through substitutionary atonement. The Savior will die in our place. Your honor.
• 30:51
  I'd like to call Anna to the stand and look at verse 36. There was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel of the tribe of Asher. Anna is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Hannah, just means grace. And this says she was advanced in years. Dating her and how old she would have been when this happened is difficult. The language is a little bit ambiguous. It says she lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin. And then...
• 31:21
  as a widow until she was 84. Now that either means that she was 84 years old, she'd been a widow from whatever time she got married plus seven years, now she's 84. So let's assume she'd been widowed for 60 years. Or the language could mean that she had been a widow for 84 years, that she'd lived, gotten married, was married for seven years, then widowed for an additional 84, could put her well over 100 years old. Says she did not depart from the temple.
• 31:50
  worshiping with fasting and praying night and day. And coming at that very hour, she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. I think several things can be deduced about this woman. She loved the house of God. She was always there. Can you imagine? She was always there. She was always in the temple. Where else would she be? She was a woman of prayer and fasting.
• 32:18
  which means she was dedicated to what she believed in. She didn't just pay lip service to her faith. She believed it. She practiced self-denial and self-control. She was a woman of worship, which means she understood who God was and who she was, and she unabashedly gave thanks to God when she saw him at work. Anna, you can imagine testifying and saying, this baby is God himself. He's worthy not only to be followed,
• 32:48
  but to be praised. Two things I want us to take away this morning. First, you may, as I often do, feel overwhelmed at times with the tidal wave of unbelief in our culture. You may feel hopelessly outnumbered. You may feel like a very small speck of light in a great sea of darkness. You may feel frustrated by television shows, commercials, and movies, pushing an anti-biblical lifestyle as if it should be applauded.
• 33:24
  J.C. Ryle says this, it is a cheering thought that God never leaves himself without a witness. Small as his believing church may sometimes be, the gates of hell shall never completely prevail against it. The true church may be driven into the wilderness and be scattered, but it never dies. There was a lot in Sodom.
• 33:46
  There was an Obadiah in Ahab's household. There was a Daniel in Babylon. There was a Jeremiah in Zedekiah's court. In the last days of the Jewish nation, there was a Simeon in Jerusalem. And if I may be so bold as to add, today, today, there is a faithful remnant. There are the members of Highland Baptist Church in North Denver. We are the faithful remnant. Take heart, church.
• 34:12
  You may feel like that flickering speck of light in a great sea of darkness, but God has always had a faithful remnant and he has one now. It's us. So don't be afraid to testify. Acts 1, verse 8, you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and to the furthest ends of the earth. Now consider where that was written from. It was written from Jerusalem. Here we are 2,000 years later from where he wrote, we are at the ends of the earth, witnessing, testifying.
• 34:43
  to the incarnation and grace of God in Jesus Christ. That's first. Don't be afraid to testify. Second, if you are yet to be convinced of the truth of the gospel, if you're sitting here this morning, maybe you've grown up in the church, you left and you're not coming back. Maybe you didn't grow up in the church and this message is new to you. If you've been taught about the gospel, but you're not convinced, you're not yet sure, then let me encourage you to judge for yourself. Consider the case being presented. Consider the testimonies and see the truth.
• 35:15
  I asked my family what things, I even took a picture last week. Here's a picture of us sitting in church together. It's awkward to take a selfie in the middle of church. It's weird. There's no good way to do it. So you'll just have to trust that that's my right knee. But it just happens so infrequently. We would all sit together in church and I took a picture of us sitting there. There we are sitting together in church. I asked my family what things they liked and what things they didn't like about the church that we visited last Sunday. My sons, because they love me and are also,
• 35:45
  obligated to say something, said, well, dad, he doesn't teach as well as you do. I said, that's very nice. Thank you. I'll buy you lunch. You guys, the building, the music, the decorations, the seats, the cafe, all of those things, they struck us. But one thing that struck Chase, my nine-year-old son, he said, dad, I really liked that at the end of the pastor's message, he invited people to believe in Jesus. The guy gave an altar call and he looked at me and he said, you should do that.
• 36:20
  Yeah, you know what? You're right. I should do that. And so here you go. Scripture says, and I believe that Jesus was the son of God, that Jesus was born of a virgin. Having lived a sinless life, he was crucified in order to pay the penalty for my sin. He died and he was buried. But on the third day, he rose from the dead. Having satisfied the wrath of his father, he is right now, that same Jesus is right now in heaven praying for us.
• 36:53
  and preparing a place for his people to be gathered together with him for eternity. Scripture says that I believe that by believing this message in your heart, by confessing your sin and asking for forgiveness, and by professing Jesus as Lord, you can be saved. And if you don't know the Lord, if you want to become a part of his family, or maybe you are saved, maybe you've given your life to Christ, but then over the course of years, you started taking aspects of your life back. Maybe you're not walking with the Lord and you just need to get right.
• 37:24
  with him, then can I encourage you to be made right with him today? Make that your New Year's resolution. Lord, I'm going to begin to be careful with my soul. We're going to move into a time of communion together, and there is no better gospel message than this. The bread that we eat is the body life of Christ given for us.
• 37:47
  The juice that we'll drink is his blood shed on the cross. It is a declaration of the gospel message. And so here's what I want you guys to do. If you guys don't know the Lord and you're like, you know what? Today's the day. I'm gonna make that decision today. Then we're gonna give you an opportunity to respond. We're gonna take communion together. I'm gonna pray. We're gonna take communion together. Then we're gonna sing. We're gonna close our service. I'm gonna dismiss.
• 38:11
  At the end of that, though, I'm going to ask if the elders and pastors and their wives would come up at the end of that song. We're going to kind of stand along the front of the stage. And if you want, as other people are leaving, if you want prayer, if you want to talk about the gospel, if you have questions, like, I don't know the Lord, but I want to know him. Today's the day. Danny, I've waited long enough. I've pushed it off long enough. Then you can come forward and get prayer and counsel.
• 38:33
  If you're not right with the Lord, if you've been living in sin, you know it was sin, I've been backsliding, I want to be made right with the Lord, then you come forward, talk to one of them, receive counsel and prayer. It would be our joy to do that with you. Let me pray. We'll take communion together. Lord, thank you for what communion means. It means that we are saved. God, taking these little things doesn't save us. Your blood saves us. The life of Jesus saves us. But God, we recognize his sacrifice made. We remember it today.
• 39:03
  We rejoice over it today. God, if there are some in here that your Holy Spirit is prompting to give their lives to Christ, Lord, then may they take that step of faith. Give them courage, God, to take that step of faith and enjoy the salvation that you offer. God, if there are others who have walked away from you, who know the gospel, but just need to be made right with you, God, then minister to their spirit even now. They would confess their sin, be made right.
• 39:36
  And if you are one of those people who wants to give your life to Christ, then I'm just going to pray. And you can just echo this prayer in your head. Just silently speak it to the Lord. But it sounds like this. Lord Jesus, I recognize my own sin. I have not done it right. I need your forgiveness. God, I pray that you would give me the courage to give my life to you as you have given your life to me. That I would walk in your ways.
• 40:07
  and experience the joy of salvation. And it's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.