Ancient Cities - Sunday, January 15, 2023

Amen. Amen.

Okay, good morning. Good morning. We're going to get started today. We're going to begin by reading out of Psalm 71. Let me make sure that's right. I haven't had my call yet, Dave. So if we want to go ahead and stand. And if you would like to have, there is an order of service on the back table there with the communion and handouts, if you would like that to kind of help on what we're doing during our service, we do have that. And then it also has some announcements on the back as well, just some important ones on there. And so our service is going to go a little bit different today. We're going to be reading our Psalms together, and then we're going to be singing two songs. And after the second Song, we're going to have our prayer and share time. And there'll be information up for those who are watching online for phone numbers to text. If you have something you'd like to send us, please do that. And so let's go ahead and get started. Psalm 71, one through three.

In your righteousness, deliver me and rescue me. Incline your ear to me and save me. Be to me a rock of refuge to which I may continually come. You have given the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. This is the word of the Lord. Let's pray. for those that are watching online, and we thank you just for the encouragement that can fill this place, just being together and worshiping you. We thank you for your words in the psalm that remind us that you are always our rock and our refuge, and that you have saved us. A simple thing, but a great thing for our life. And we thank you so much for Jesus and for your grace and your mercy. Be with our service today and allow it to glorify you. In Jesus' name, amen.

Christ our hope in life and death. "Who holds our days within His hand, what comes upon from His command, and what will keep us to the end, the love of Christ in which we stand. He reigns eternal, all say, hallelujah. Now and ever we confess, Christ our hope in life and death. Where is His grace and goodness known? In our grave, Redeemer's blood. Who holds our faith when fears arise? Who stands above the stormy trial? Who sends the waves that bring us nigh unto the shore, the rock of Christ? Oh, sing hallelujah. Our hope springs eternal. Oh, sing hallelujah. Now and ever we confess Christ our hope in life and death. Pray, what will we sing? Christ, He lives. Christ, He lives. And what reward will heaven bring? Everlasting life with Him. There we will rise to meet the Lord. Then sin and death will be destroyed.

When Christ is ours forevermore. Oh, sing hallelujah. Our hope springs eternal. Oh, sing hallelujah. Now whenever we confess, Christ our hope in life and life. And death. Oh, sing hallelujah. Our hope springs eternal. Oh, sing hallelujah. Now whenever we confess, Christ our hope in life and death. Now whenever we confess, Christ our hope in life and death. Let's pray. There's a place where streams of grace flow deep and wide. Where all the love I've ever felt comes like a flood, comes flowing down. At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life. I'm in awe of You. I'm in awe of You. Where Your love remembered my sin washed white. I owe all to You. I owe all to You, Jesus. There's a place where sin and shame are powerless. Where my heart has peace with God and forgiveness.

Where all the love I've ever found. Comes like a flood. Comes flowing down. At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life. I'm in all of you. I'm in all of you. Where your love ran red and my sin washed white. I owe all to you. I owe all to you. Here, my hope is found. Here, on holy ground. Here, I bow down. Here, I bow down. Here, arms open wide. You saved my life. Here, I bow down. Here, I bow. At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life. I'm in awe of you. I'm in awe of you. Where your love ran red and my sin washed white. I owe all to you. All right. You may be seated. You may be seated. Amen. Amen. Amen.

Maybe pray for Luke. Okay. We're going to continue on to our time of communion, and we're going to be singing Man of Sorrows. Man of sorrows, Lamb of God, By his own betrayed. The sin of man and wrath of God, Has been on Jesus. In Jesus' name. Silent as the accused, Featen mocked and scorned. Bowing to the Father's will, He took the crown of thorns. Oh, that rugged cross, my salvation, where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out, "Alleluia!" Praise and honor unto me. Sent up heaven, God's own Son, to purchase and redeem. And reconcile the very ones held into that dream. Hold on a rugged cross with our salvation, where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out, "Hallelujah!" Praise and honor unto Thee. Now my debt is paid. It is paid in full by the precious blood that my Jesus spilled.

Now the curse of sin has no hold on me. Who the Son says for me, O is free indeed. Now my debt is paid. It is paid in full by the precious blood that my Jesus spilled. Now the curse of sin has no hold on me. When the sun sets free, O is free indeed. O that rugged cross, my salvation, where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out, "Alleluia!" Praise and honor unto me. See the stone is rolled away. Behold the empty tomb. Hallelujah, God be praised. He's risen from the grave. Oh, that rugged rose, my salvation. Where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out. Hallelujah. Praise and honor unto me. To me. Praise and honor unto me.

So even when Greg is here, I still forget. Usually I can blame that on Greg not being here. March the 1st, 1873, Charles Spurgeon, as he prepares his church for communion to celebrate the Lord's Supper together, he preaches from the 53rd chapter of Isaiah. And I'll just read the first three verses. And it begins like this: "Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, as one from whom men hide their faces. He was despised, and we esteemed him not."

And the rest of the 53rd chapter of Isaiah goes on to explain more of the suffering of Christ and why it was that he was a man of sorrows. From the accusations to the crucifixion, we see and feel the grief that Jesus felt at the cross. Now, Spurgeon will say this: "Few of us can bear pain, and perhaps fewer still can bear misrepresentation, slander, and ingratitude. These are horrible hornets that sting us with fire. Men have been driven to madness by cruel scandals, which have been distilled from venomous tongues." Christ, throughout His life, bore these and other sufferings. Let us love Him as we think of how much He has loved us. Will you try, before you come to the communion table, to get your soul saturated in the love of Christ? Let your soul soak in His love, till like a sponge you drink into your own self the love of Jesus,

and that that love, as it fills you, pour out, He will say, into the lives of others. So when you sit at this table, and you partake of the emblems of His death and of His love, admire the power of His love, and pray that you may have a love like it in the same kind of power. That we would know the love of Christ, and that that love would flow out of us into a world that is broken, and is hurting. Let's pray. Father in Heaven, thank You for Jesus and for grace. We thank You that He endured in our place, that He suffered for us, and that He rose again in victory. And so as we come to this table, may You fill our hearts with Your love. You will help us to see the price that was paid in full for our salvation.

That Jesus took our sorrows and our sins and our hurts. Help this not to be just something that we consider, but let it be something that changes and transforms us, and flows out of us, that we show the love of Christ to a world desperately in need of good news. I ask that You bless this bread and this cup. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Would you take the bread with me, as Jesus did with His disciples, and said, "Do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, let's remember the love of Christ as He gave His blood for us, and as Jesus said, "Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me." "For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes."

Before we move into our message, our Scripture reading and our message this morning, we're going to just take a few moments and do something a little bit different. We want to, as we move into this new year, learn maybe some new music and some new songs to sing together as a church. One of the ones we're going to start with is from Psalm 8. You can look this up in whatever streaming service you use. It's by Shane and Shane. If you use Apple Music or Spotify or some of you still use Pandora, I guess. I'm sorry. Go ahead and give this a listen. We're going to play a lyric video for you to get a feel for it. You're welcome to listen. If you know it and you want to sing along, the chorus is really easy to pick up. It's taken from Psalm 8, so we're going to go ahead and play this.

If you want to read the words a little more clearly, they're in the little order of worship handout that we gave you on the back. So we're going to go ahead and do that.

And I look at your heads, the moon and stars. You set in motion, oh God. I sing all glory and honor. What is meant that you are mindful? The Son of Man that you would care for. We sing all glory and honor. Oh, Lord, our Lord. Oh, how awesome are your words. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord, our Lord. May we see your kingdom come. Father, may your will be. Father, may your will be done in all the earth. In all the earth, you gave dominion to your children, and you crown them, oh, God, with glory and honor. So the seed of your name divides for your greatness, oh, God. And your glory and honor. Oh, Lord, our Lord. Oh, how awesome of your ways. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord, our Lord. May we see your kingdom come. Father, may we see your kingdom come.

Father, may your will be done in all the earth. The earth is full of the glory of God. Come, make my child the name above all names. Creation cries out and every need buys. Jesus, we crown you, O Lord our Lord. We crown this for love, the glory of God. Come, make my child the name above all names. Creation cries out and every need. Jesus, we crown you, O Lord our Lord. O Lord our Lord. O Lord our Lord. O Lord our Lord. How awesome are your names. How majestic is your name in all the earth. Oh, Lord, oh, Lord You see I can't look out And you will be dying on the earth Oh, Lord, oh, Lord, oh, so my life How majestic is your name In all the earth Oh, Lord, oh, Lord

May we see I can't look out For all the real will be done In all the earth Oh, Lord, oh, Lord Oh, how awesome are your ways How majestic is your name In all the earth Oh, Lord, oh, Lord May we see your kingdom come Father, may your will be done In all the earth In all the earth Thank you. This morning's reading is from Joshua 21. The cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the people of Israel were in all 48 cities with their pasture lands. These cities each had its pasture lands around it, so it was with all these cities. Thus the Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers, and they settled there, and the Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to

to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands. Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed. All came to pass. This is the word of the Lord. Father in heaven, thank you for your word. We thank you for how you have declared your glory in the world in which we live, how you declare your glory through your church. And may we be a people who declare your glory to the world around us. Help us this morning as we look at these 48 cities that may seem on the surface to us distant and far away. Help us to see your goodness. Help us to see that you are our refuge, that you give us purpose and direction, and that you give us the strength to follow you. Be with us this morning. Lead us to you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Alright, so as we begin, we begin with 48 cities spread out over 12 territories, the 12 tribes of Israel, and they're divided into two regions. You have a region east of the Jordan and west of the Jordan, and they all sort of spread out from the house of God, the tabernacle, which is at Shiloh. And so as we maybe look at these two chapters, chapter 20 and chapter 21, as they sort of lay out all of these different cities, it may be very easy for us to look at this. And I know it's easy for me to look at this and say, "Well, why does this matter?" Right? Is this just trivia about the history of Israel and how God gave an inheritance to the Levites in these cities spreading out from Shiloh across the territory of Israel? Or maybe this is just simply a legal

record so that later on when somebody wants to contest property with somebody else, they can go and do that and pull up the legal record of Joshua chapter 21 and say, "See, God has deeded this city to us." You can find it in the record of Joshua. I think in this text, these two chapters, there is something much more helpful, much more wonderful than simply some interesting trivia or history about the nation of Israel. What you find is God is not just simply dividing out land, passing out blessings, or putting forth a record sort of legal ownership, but he's showing us something about how he works in the midst of his people. And as a church who are his people, how God works in the midst of his people should be something that makes us sit up and notice, especially when we see the blessings of how God works in the midst of his people. And what you find is Joshua chapter

20 begins with this message to weary, fearful, struggling, and sinful people is that God gives us hope. He gives us a safe place to run to. In Joshua chapter 20, verses 1 through 6, we come to this idea of the cities of refuge. And in these 48 cities, six of them were cities of refuge running north to south, and then one set of three on one side of the Jordan, one set of three on the other side of the Jordan, and their purpose was this, here from Joshua chapter 20. And the Lord, this is God's idea, says to Joshua, "Say to the people of Israel, appoint cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, that the manslayer who strikes any person without intent or unknowingly may flee there, and they shall be for you a refuge from the avenger of blood."

Moses, you can read more about Deuteronomy 4, Deuteronomy 19. The picture of these cities is simply a provision that if you accidentally kill somebody in the course of your day-to-day, it is a place for you to go of safety, because under the Mosaic law, remember, it's an eye for an eye, an ear for an ear, a tooth for a tooth, and a life for life. Whether this was intentional killing, or whether this was some sort of accident where somebody dies as a result, not out of malice, but as a result of something you're doing, the penalty is still a life for life. And in those cases where there was no ill motive, these cities were provided as a refuge. And you could run to this city, and there the leaders of this city would examine you and talk to you and find out what was truly in your heart, and then provide you a

safe place to live, safe from the avenger of blood, which would be the next of kin of the man that was slain, coming to bring forth justice into your life. They would provide to you a refuge until the death of the high priest, and then you were free to go. In fact, the example that's used in the law of Moses in the book of Deuteronomy is this: that you're out with your neighbor, and you're chopping wood, maybe for a fire, maybe to build a house, maybe to put a fence around your field, and you're out there chopping wood, and you're chopping with an axe, and the head of the axe goes flying off. It's worn out, maybe it isn't attached well, and that piece of axe, that piece of metal, hits your neighbor in the head, and he dies, right? It wasn't intentional, but that doesn't change the fact that a man is still dead. And so the cities of refuge were provided for these kinds of scenarios. Now, we hear that, and we think,

maybe intellectually that's interesting to know that God provided a place for those who had accidentally committed murder, accidentally killed somebody, manslaughter is how it's worded in the text, to run to and find safety. But there's a difference, I think, between an intellectual understanding and an emotional understanding of the importance of these cities. And as I was reading about them, I came across a little pamphlet. It was written in 1865, and it's called "The Cities of Refuge" by a guy by the name of John Macduff. And I didn't read the entire thing, I just read through the introduction. But his introduction grabbed me as to the emotion of what is happening. Listen to what he would say: "If he wished," this is the man who has accidentally killed his neighbor, "If he wished to escape with his life, his only chance of safety was to flee to these refuge cities. It mattered not what his

name was or his age or his station in life. He might be young or old, a prince, a noble, a priest, or a prophet. He was exposed every moment to death unless he availed himself of the offered shelter. There was no time for delay because he knew full well the avenger is in close pursuit." And he will go on to explain and to talk about how it didn't matter what you're doing, you're pruning in your vineyard. You drop your pruning hook and let it rust. You're plowing with your oxen. You drop the reins and you run and you leave for someone else to take care of them. You're paying your workers. You drop it and you run. It doesn't matter if your child is sick. It doesn't matter if your wife is expecting. You run to the city of refuge. He says this, "The avenger of blood may be in the adjoining street or in the dwelling hard by. Another hour

if you wait may be fatal." And so this man, he'll say, "Off he speeds in breathless haste. Now along the level road and now along the steep ascent, with his chest heaving, drops of perspiration standing on his brow. Friends may meet him, but with a wave of his hand and shouting, 'Avenger! Avenger!' He rushes on with fleet footsteps. Parched with thirst in the hot noonday, he turns a longing eye to the ripe grapes that are hanging in purple clusters on the wayside. Or under the water trickling down the narrow ravine, but he dare not pause, knowing full well the Avenger is in close pursuit. Happy sight it is when he sees at last. On some mountain slope that long shelter. Happy when weary and foot sore covered with dust, the portals of the city close in on him. A few minutes before he might have been overtaken on the

mountain top by his pursuer. He might have been heard to cry out in the bitterness of despair, "Hast thou found me, O my enemy?" Now safe within secure shelter, he can rejoice and exclaim, "Even with the Avenger standing by, O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end." And there is this picture that might grab us. This man, hot, dusty, and tired, seeing the gates of the city, and rushing into his refuge and his salvation. You might say, "Well, what does all of this have to do with hope?" You might ask that to the man who has just rushed to this city, dropping everything, leaving behind everything, running for his life with the Avenger on his heels. Ask him if this city provides him home. You see, God had made a provision for those who were in desperate need of mercy.

You can use it in the beginning of Joshua chapter 20, that God has also made a provision for them to return home. And he shall remain in that city until he has stood before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the high priest at the time. Then the manslayer may return to his own town and from his own home from which he had fled to. You see what it says? He's safe in the city until the high priest dies and he can return home. The implication in these words is that the death of the high priest, it's not just a time limit. The implication from this rule is that when the high priest dies, it in some way satisfies what this man is in need of. That it somehow is his debt. It's paying the price that he deserved to pay. Now, we don't have cities of refuge, and you might say, "Well, that might be good for the

man in Joshua's day running for his life." Listen to these words from Hebrews. So that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, those two unchangeable things are the promise and the vow of God. Listen to this. We who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope that is set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, becoming a high priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek. Jesus goes with his blood into that Holy of Holies to pay the price that we deserve to pay. And it may feel like in this moment that you are tired and that you are running and you're out of breath and you're thirsty and you're struggling.

and all of those things that are seeking justice and vengeance are chasing you and they're at your heels. And maybe you have spent your entire life trying to run and to hide from the consequences of the wrongs that you have committed. The message here for us is we come to God who is a refuge and a strong encouragement. And he calls us to hold fast the hope that is set before us. Our High Priest has stood, not just as our High Priest, but as the substitute, paying the price for the wrong that we have done. Come and hear what God has done for you. Not what you need to do, but what God has done on your behalf. The second thing we see is this foundation of faithfulness that leads us to hope. Do you hear the words that Brent just read?

Not one word of the good promises that the Lord has made to the house of Israel had failed, but all came to pass, right? And the message of these last words of this chapter is that God keeps His promises all the way from Abraham, where He calls them and says, "This land will belong to your descendants." Through those years of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, into Egypt, out of Egypt, into the wilderness, you see that God is a God who keeps His promises. And Scripture is very clear here that God doesn't partially keep His promises or He doesn't sort of technically fulfill it. like meeting a contractual obligation, but not one word of what God says failed to come to pass. And the ultimate result of that is just like the city of refuge provides rest for those fleeing,

God's promise provides rest for His people. Look at verse 44. "The Lord gave them rest on every side, just as He had sworn to their fathers, not one of their enemies had withstood them, not because they were strong, but because of this: for the Lord had given their enemies into their hands." You see, God gives hope. There's refuge and a rest for the people of God. And we might say, "Okay, there's refuge and rest, but now what?" God then, in these chapters, is additionally not just calling us to hope, but He's calling us as well to a purpose, right? One of the things we learn about this life is that anything of any value can and will be counterfeited, right? You can find, you know, counterfeit just about everything, right? From purses, to shoes, to art, to money.

If there is value and people want to buy it, it doesn't matter how big or how small, somebody will take it and counterfeit. The same is true, not just physically, but spiritually. You and I exist, and we live to glorify God. But in a world broken by sin, there are constant counterfeits. You see, we're called to know God, to glorify Him, to enjoy Him, to find our joy and our hope and our rest in Him. Paul will say, "Whether you eat or drink, do all for the glory of God." Revelation chapter 4 will say, "Worthy are you to receive glory and honor." The psalmist will say, "Who have I in heaven but you, and on earth nothing but you? My flesh and my heart may fail, but you are the strength of my soul and my portion forever."

You and I exist to glorify God, not because God selfishly demands it, but because He is the one thing that will fill our soul. He is the one thing that is solid in the midst of a world that is shifting and changing. And He calls us in everything we do, from mundane things like eating or drinking, to our jobs, to our families, to our friends, to seek to glorify Him, because it's only in the glory of God that our souls will be satisfied. And then here we come with the counterfeit. The counterfeit of stuff. If we seek that, we find ourselves empty. The counterfeit of power and pleasure, relationships, experiences, and at the heart of all of these things is that we seek to glorify ourselves rather than God. And it's been that way since the beginning. The very first temptation to Adam and Eve by the serpent was what? Glorify yourself by grabbing a hold of this knowledge.

Yes, the glory of God has sustained you and filled you and brought you to this wonderful garden. He has created you. He has placed you here with everything you could ever want, but there is something more, and that something more is you. And every single one of us have exchanged the glory of God to glorify something else in our life. We have to see that the glory of God is the only thing that satisfies our soul. If we try to satisfy our own soul, we'll find ourselves in the midst of the wilderness, seeking refuge as enemies pursue us. God calls us to him, says, "Come to my refuge, come to my safety, and glorify me." And through these first five books of the Old Testament, we've seen God glorified in his promises to Abraham, his salvation of Joseph, in the ten plagues as God triumphs over the false worship of Egypt,

as he parts the Red Sea, as he cares for his people both protecting and providing in the wilderness, as they've brought the conquest into Canaan. God has been glorified. But now the question is, in the day-to-day, normal, everyday lives of people who have just been brought into their inheritance, their house and their farms and their family, their friends, their occupations, how do they now glorify God? Or another way, how do we, in what would seem to be these normal moments, glorify God? One of the things we see in Deuteronomy, the fourth chapter, we find Moses saying this. Listen to his words. He will say about the commandments of God, "Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of all the people, who, for when they hear these statutes, will say, "Surely this is a wise and understanding people, for what a great nation is there

that has a God so near to it as the Lord our God is to us whenever we call upon Him. And what great nation is there that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law I set before you today, only..." Here it is. "Take care and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children's children." By obeying, by remembering, by sharing that good news with the generations that follow, God's people were called to glorify God. You and I in the church are called in the same manner. That God has saved us. He has brought us into His refuge. He has saved us from those things that we have glorified and have left us empty. And He calls us to glorify Him. In fact, in the Sermon on the Mount, remember the picture Jesus uses?

Right? You're a city on the hill. Let your good works shine before men. Not that they will praise you, but so they will see what you have done and glorify your Father in heaven. The same thing is happening in Deuteronomy 4. Not that people are praising Israel's wisdom, but they're praising the God who gives Israel wisdom and who gives them the law and who dwells between them. Israel's purpose, now they have been brought into the hope, is now to glorify God through both remembering and hiding that in their heart and clinging to it and focusing on it and teaching it to the generation that comes. And so we've been saved and brought into the refuge, and we're called to glorify God. And the thing I love about this is God's not teaching us to ride a bike.

He doesn't come up and say, "This is the bike, two wheels, some pedals. All right, good luck. Go do it." Right? That's not what God does to His people. He doesn't just simply tell you, save you, tell you what you need to do, and then leave you stranded to figure it out on your own. God will then equip His people for glory and obedience and remembrance, and He will help them to do that through His strength and His power, ultimately leading to peace. Listen to Joshua chapter 21:1-3. "The heads of the Father's house, the Levites came to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the Father's houses, and they said, the Lord commanded through Moses that we be given cities to dwell in, along with pasture lands for our livestock."

So by the command of the Lord, remember this is God's idea, what's about to happen. The people of Israel gave the Levites the following cities, pasture lands out of the inheritance, and the rest of the chapter goes on to list 48 cities. And so what you will find in this chapter is the cities for God's people, the Levites. There's three divisions: the Kohathites, the Gershonites, and the Merorites. They all have different functions in the temple. The first group deals with the furniture, the altars and the candlesticks. The second group deals with the fabrics and the curtains. The third group deals with the structure, the footers and the posts, and all the beams and the supports. And their cities will be divided by their role within the tabernacle. And what's interesting is they are distributed in the same way the people served in the temple.

Those who deal with the inner furnishings, who are closest, their cities will be circulated closest to Shiloh. Those who deal with the fabrics, who are a little bit further away, their cities will be a little further away. Those who deal with the structure, they're even a little bit further away in their service, but in the city, in the land of God, they're a little bit further away. God is literally, as He orders these cities, given by the rest of the tribes, the Levites, He's ordering them in the same way He has ordered His worship in the tabernacle. It's sort of an echo of how God has ordered His worship. And so you have in the middle, isn't it remarkable how God works, you now have these 48 cities. And you have a people who have a hope and a promise of God, and they're called to hear God's commands,

to keep God's commands, to remember God's commands, to teach God's commands, and in doing so, bring glory to God. And how do they do it? Are they on their own? Throughout their land is a city here, and a city here, and a city here, with God's ministers, or maybe the pastors who teach and encourage and correct the Word of God. See, God doesn't just throw them out and say, "Do this." In the midst of all the people He places, those whose job it is to encourage, to teach, and to help His people remember Him, and to bring glory to God. God does not leave His people alone. In the same manner, today, in the church, we're not just looking at a place where we come and we meet with God, but through the Holy Spirit,

God is at work within us, but He's also called us, like the Levites, dispersed among the land, to live as a people who encourage one another, to teach, and to help, and to strengthen one another in the Word of God. God has not left us alone, just as He did not leave His people without guidance or without spiritual help when they needed it, but rather, He scattered His ministers throughout the land for the good of His people. So listen to these last words. The Lord gave Israel all the land that He swore to give their fathers. They took possession of it, and they settled there, and the Lord gave them rest on every side, just as He had sworn to their fathers. Not one of their enemies withstood them, for the Lord had given their enemies into their hand.

Not one word of the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed, but all had come to pass. The God who gives refuge, and who gives hope, is the God who defeats enemies, the God who brings us into rest, and the God who makes promises that are never changed. And so in this, we're not just called to see the hope and the wonder. We're called to follow God. We're called to glorify God. To look at our lives and say, "Is my life, and in the decisions that I make, and the things that I lift up, is it glorifying to God, or am I lifting myself up?" And the good news is that God has given us a refuge. He has given us the strength. He has defeated our enemies, and He's put us within a body of believers who can help us and strengthen us in those moments.

Let's pray. Father, thank You for Your Word and for Your church. We thank You for the good things that You have done for us. I ask this morning that maybe there are some who will have been running, running for their life, running from fear or worry or hurt, that You would take their burdens, that You would be their refuge, that You would help them to see Your glory and lift them up. Help us to see Your glory. Lift us up. Bring us to peace. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. We're going to go ahead to stand, and we're going to sing about our hope. How great the chasm that laid us, How high the mountain I could not climb, In desperation, I turned heaven, And spoke your name into the night. Then through the darkness, your loving kindness Tore through the shadows of my soul.

The work is finished. The end is written. Jesus Christ, my living hope. Who could imagine so great a mercy? What heart could fathom such boundless grace? The God of ages stepped down from glory to wear my sin and bear my shame. The cross has spoken. I am forgiven. The King of kings calls me his own. Beautiful Savior, I'm yours forever. Jesus Christ, my living home. Hallelujah! Praise the One who set me free. Hallelujah! Death has lost its grip on me. You have broken every chain. There's salvation in your name. Jesus Christ, my living home. Then came the morning that sealed the promise. Your buried body began to breathe out of the silence. The roaring lion declared the grave has no claim on me. Then came the morning that sealed the promise. Your buried body began to breathe out of the silence.

The roaring lion declared the grave has no claim on me. Jesus, yours is the victory. Hallelujah. Praise the one who set me free. Hallelujah. Death has lost its grip on me. You have broken every chain. There's salvation in your name. Jesus Christ, my living hope. Hallelujah. Praise the one who set me free. Hallelujah. Death has lost its grip on me. You have broken every chain. There's salvation in your name. Jesus Christ, my living hope. Jesus Christ, my living hope. Oh God, you are my living hope. All right, we're going to struggle through some announcements. Wednesday night at 7:00 here in the church, we're studying James. We'll be going through it. It's a small book, but it takes a good while to get through it because there's a lot of good information. There's a lot of good information in there, so please always welcome at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday nights. If you cannot make it, there are also videos available, I believe, on the church website that you can go through on your own.

Men's breakfast, January the 28th. I have to admit, I took that day off from my duties on Saturdays to make it because I want to taste what Stu is fixing. So there's a breakfast, and he will have a devotional while we're here. There will be eggs, meat, it's always good, hopefully bacon, and coffee. The ladies, sorry, maybe not. You've mandated at least some sort of fruit, so there'll be at least one apple somewhere. So that may be all she wrote for you. Are there any other announcements this morning? Sausage gravy? Sausage gravy? I suggested a sausage gravy on the hill. What do you want to know? We will, there's a couple of weeks maybe that we can go through and see. Sausage gravy is always a good idea. Sausage gravy on the hill. Well, anybody who knows anybody at Skanks, they sell it in the big containers, and it's very good. We've had it before.

Any other announcements? If not, then we'll have a word of prayer. I'll read a verse, and then we'll sing the doxology. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the opportunity that you've given us to be here this morning. We thank you that we are so close while we're in this building to you. The problems come in when we leave this building, and the world encroaches on us. But, Father, we know through you we can have the strength if we only ask for it. That we can withstand anything that comes our way from the world. That, Father, you are always with us, and you have never, ever failed from what you've promised. And you have promised us that you're always with us. Guide us here and release us this morning from this building into the world that we have to struggle through.

That, Father, we would have your blessing, and we would have all the many precious gifts that you've given us. Guide us in everything we think, do, and say. Father, it is in Jesus' holy and precious name that we do ask these many things. Amen. The verse is out of Romans chapter 15, verse 13. It reads, "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound in hope." Holy Ghost. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen. Amen. Amen.