Helpless But Hopeful

Please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to Psalm chapter 38.

Psalms 38 · chapter mention

! Psalm chapter 38.

Psalms 38 · chapter mention

This is another Psalm of David, and you may have noticed a theme of this morning of lots of talking

! singing about sin and confessing sin. There's a reason for that. It's because our Psalm this morning

is a penitential Psalm. It's hard to pronounce, but it's a penitential Psalm, one of seven,

where David is praying for forgiveness for his sins. The title of the sermon is Helpless but

Hopeful, and the idea is all of us in our sin, we are helpless to deal with this problem of our sin,

but the gospel of Jesus Christ makes us hopeful that there is someone who can bear this burden

for us. So if you found it, Psalm chapter 38, when you found it, let's stand together in honor of the

Psalms 38 · chapter mention

reading of God's Word as I read this Psalm for us this morning. Psalm chapter 38.

Psalms 38 · chapter mention

He says,

There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation. There is no health in my bones because of my sin.

For my iniquities have gone over my head. Like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness.

I am utterly bowed down and prostrate. All the day I go about mourning, for my sides are filled with burning. There is no soundness in my flesh.

I am feeble and crushed. I groan because of the tumult of my heart.

O Lord, all my longing is before you. My sighing is not hidden from you. My heart throbs.

My strength fails me. In the light of my eyes, it is also gone from me.

My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off.

Those who seek my life lay their snares. Those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long.

But I am like a deaf man. I do not hear. Like a mute man who does not open his mouth.

I have become like a man who does not hear and in whose mouth are no rebukes.

But for you, O Lord, do I wait. It is you, O Lord, my God, who will answer.

For I said, only let them not rejoice over me who boast against me when my foot slips.

For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever before me.

I confess my iniquity. I am sorry for my sin.

But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty, and many are those who hate me wrongfully.

Those who render me evil for good accuse me because I follow after good.

Do not forsake me, O Lord. O my God, be not far from me.

Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation.

The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures forever.

Father God, we pray once more as we open up your word and sit under the preaching of your word.

Lord God, would you speak powerfully through this psalm to convict us of sin

and to show us the depth of our sin, the ugliness of our sin,

so that we might call out in desperation to Christ, who has borne our sin for us

and his life and his death and his resurrection as our only hope.

We pray this all in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen.

You may be seated.

Well, several years ago, our family had left town for a week or so to go on a trip, a family vacation.

We lived at the beach at this time, and so while we were gone,

we allowed some friends to stay at our house,

and we gave just a few simple ground rules for them while they were there.

Lock the doors on your way out.

Eat whatever you want.

Make yourself at home.

Our home is your home.

And, oh, by the way, please take out the trash when you leave.

When we got back home, our friends were gone.

Some of the food had been eaten, but pretty quickly we realized the trash was still there.

For several days, up to a week, the trash sat there unattended to.

Naturally, whatever was there in the trash had grown ripe.

It stunk worse than anything you could possibly imagine.

And worse than that, when we flipped on the lights, we realized it had attracted all sorts of bugs and roaches into our kitchen.

We were horrified when we came back into our house and saw roaches everywhere.

And so we did what we had to do.

We got to work killing the bugs.

We got to work freshening the air.

We got to work cleaning the kitchen as best as we could.

But the most important thing that we could do in that moment was get rid of the trash.

And take it outside.

Because the worst thing we could have done is to let that sit there and ignore it and let it continue to sit.

Because the longer it sits, the worse the problem gets.

And church, the truth is the same is true for our sin.

Our sin, if ignored or unattended to, if left unconfessed like trash that is left out in the heat,

it will not just go away on its own.

Sin that is not brought to the Lord and repented of.

It sits, it festers, it stinks, and eventually it welcomes all sorts of unwelcome consequences into our lives.

Here in Psalm 38 this morning, King David is dealing with the stench of his own sin.

He's dealing with the painful consequences of sin in his own life.

He bears it.

He sees it for as ugly and as foul as it is.

And so he cries out for help to the only one who is able to remove it from him.

But he cries out in confidence to his covenant God to bear his sin for him.

This is the main idea for us this morning.

It's this.

If our sin is unbearable, we must bring it to the one who is able to bear it for us.

If our sin is unbearable, we must bring it to the one who is able to bear it for us.

We'll walk through the psalm in four parts together this morning.

This will be our outline if you're taking notes.

First, we will see the pain of bearing sin.

Second, we will see the personal effect of bearing sin.

Third, we will see the picture of the sin bearer.

And fourth, finally, we'll see the posture of the sinner.

First, we see the pain of bearing sin.

We see this in verses 1 through 8.

If you look there with me, starting in verse 1.

Here in verse 1, David is pleading with God to withhold his discipline from him.

David is dealing here with the wrath of God.

He says, O Lord, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath.

He says the Lord's discipline is like arrows that have gone into him.

He says his hand is heavy upon him.

His whole flesh is unsound, is unhealthy,

because of the indignation and the anger of his God.

He says there's no health in his bones.

And some see this as a literal sickness that David's dealing with here.

And it could be, or it could just be a poetic way of describing this top to bottom,

inside and out, entire agony that David is in.

Either way, it's clear to me, David is totally undone because of his son.

And so he prays, God, would you give me some relief from your wrath against me?

Can you just give me a break?

Can you let up a little bit?

And if you stopped reading here, you might think,

man, well this God is just a little bit mean, isn't he?

Why would this God do this to poor David?

And sometimes that's how people think and talk about God.

Why would a loving God pour out his wrath against his own creation?

Why would God be indignant and angry and full of wrath towards his own creation?

Why would he be wrathful?

And I can't worship a God like that.

I want to worship a God of love and kindness and mercy

who just loves us as we are, right?

The modern idea of God does not like psalms like this.

God is just presented as harsh.

We have to recognize two truths for this to make any sense to us here.

Two truths that the non-believer just completely ignores.

One, we have to remember the holiness of our God.

And two, we have to remember the horror of our sin.

The God of the Bible, yes, he is love.

Yes, he is gracious.

Yes, he is merciful.

Yes, he is kind.

And yes, he is just.

Yes, he is holy, holy, holy.

Yes, he is righteous.

A righteous God can no more overlook rebellion and wickedness

than a righteous judge could let the guilty go free.

And a holy God can no more wink his eye at sin

than a good parent can let his children go and run in the street.

Our God is holy, holy, holy.

And he is right to judge sin.

And he is right to discipline his children

when they want to drink poison or play with knives.

God is holy.

And the second truth is that we are not.

Not in and of ourselves, at least.

David understands that God is disciplining him for sin in his life.

This is not an act of hatred towards David.

He is not being harsh towards David.

This discipline is an act of love and kindness towards David.

David is a part of the sin that still remains in his heart.

David sees he needs God's help to cleanse him inside and out

from this weight of sin that he cannot lift.

He says, my iniquities have gone up over my head.

Like a heavy burden, they're too heavy for me.

He is sinking.

He's drowning in this recognition of his sin.

And several years ago, I went to dig up some hydrangeas

that had been there for who knows how long.

I mean, years and years and years.

They were just beautiful.

They were flourishing.

The owners were going to just get rid of them.

And Amanda would not let that stand.

And so we went with just a couple of shovels

and said, we're just going to dig these things up.

And I had completely underestimated.

The longer that bush sits there,

the deeper and the wider and the stronger

that network of roots goes,

you can't just spend an hour digging that thing up.

You got to, it took all day to get that thing unrooted from the ground.

The same is true with our sin.

David sees and he recognizes these foul words at the surface.

They find deep roots in the heart.

These impure thoughts on the surface,

they find deep roots down in the very soul.

Our sin is not just things that we do on the outside.

There are roots in our inner being.

It is by nature who we are,

apart from the grace of God and Christ.

It goes far deeper into the heart

and far deeper into the soul

than we can possibly begin to imagine.

David is beginning to see this

and you see how he's affected by it?

He is undone by this recognition of his sin.

He describes it as stinking and festering wounds,

like garbage that's been sitting out in the heat.

And so he says, verse 8,

I am utterly bowed down and prostrate.

All the day I go about mourning,

for my sides are filled with burning.

There is no soundness in my flesh.

I am feeble.

I am crushed.

I groan because of the tumult of my heart.

And I wonder, friend,

have you ever experienced this

as you think about your own sin?

Have you ever been this affected,

the same way David is,

in recognition of the horrors of your sin?

Have you been undone

at the recognition of your sin against a holy God?

What I'm not asking you is,

have you ever not liked the consequences of your sin?

That's common to everybody.

Nobody wants to deal with the consequences of our sin.

That's not what I'm asking.

Now, R.C. Sproul, in his book,

The Holiness of God,

he says,

we all want to be saved from our misery,

but not from our sin.

We want to sin without misery.

The foremost spiritual law of the physical universe

is that this hope can never be realized.

Sin always accompanies misery.

My question for you, church,

is have you ever tugged at the visible,

external wrongdoing,

the fruit that's visible on the surface,

and pulled it all the way down

to the roots in your heart,

and been affected and undone

by the horror of your sin against a holy God?

David has.

But his misery doesn't stop there, does it?

Sin not only impacts us individually,

what we see in our second point

is that it also impacts all of our relationships.

Sin separates.

And so second,

we see the personal impact of bearing sin.

We see this in verses 9 through 14.

With the anguish and this pain

is enough in and of itself,

but here we see that David is experiencing

these consequences of sin

in his personal life as well.

These are the roaches and the flies

and the lingering stench

that comes from not taking out the trash.

In verse 9,

we see his relationship with the Lord

is impacted.

His relationship with God

is now one of longing

and deep sighing.

His prayers are marked

by this need for relief.

I mean, these are prayers

of confidence, by the way.

These are the prayers of someone

who is in covenant relationship

with the Lord.

Notice how he calls God

by his covenant name.

Oh Lord,

oh Lord my God.

This is a prayer to Yahweh.

This is the covenant name of the Lord.

David knows that this God

is a God who is the Lord.

The Lord slow to anger

and abounding in steadfast love

and faithfulness.

He is a covenant-keeping God

who will not abandon his people.

And it's this special covenant relationship

that bids David come

in confidence to the Lord.

And church, of course,

we are also invited to come

and bring our burdens on him.

But don't you wish

that we didn't have to pray this way?

Listen to how David speaks with God.

He says,

Oh Lord,

all my longing is before you.

My sighing is not hidden from you.

My heart throbs.

My strength fails.

The light of my eyes has gone out.

Church, of course,

it is good and right

for us to call out

to the Lord in our misery.

But how much better would it be

to not have to do that at all?

Now don't you long for a time

when your relationship with God

wouldn't be marked by these pleas

for deliverance

and for this sighing over evil

and this groaning

over all the effects of sin

in your life?

Don't you long for a time

when you can be driven

to your knees

to pray in adoration of God

and not just quickly coming to him

for help because of sin

and all its effects?

So often our prayers

are clouded by our struggles

with sin.

And again, this is the impact

of living in a fallen world.

Romans 8 tells us this,

that our experience here

in a fallen world

is marked by groaning.

Indeed, it says,

the whole creation

has been groaning together

in the pains of childbirth

until now.

And not only the creation,

but we ourselves,

who have the first fruits

of the Spirit,

groan inwardly

as we wait eagerly

for adoption as sons,

the redemption of our bodies.

Have you ever wished

that your conversations

with God in prayer

were less about the mess

of sin in your life

and in this world

and in your relationships?

Do you ever wish

that your mind went quickly

to praise and to adoration

and less quickly

to sighing and longing

and groaning over sin

in your life?

The good news is,

one day,

we will not groan anymore.

The Gospel tells us this,

but here and now,

our conversations with the Lord

are often marked

by this groaning

because of our sins.

Not only this,

but David's relationships

with his friends

are also impacted by sin.

Verse 11, it says,

My friends and my companions,

they stand aloof

from my plague.

My nearest kin,

his family,

stands far off.

David is experiencing

abandonment

and isolation

and separation

from loved ones.

He's experiencing loneliness.

His closest companions

have left him.

His own family

stands far off.

It's hard not to think

of the rebellion

of David's own son,

Absalom.

And church,

I know that some of you

can relate.

Have you ever seen sin

wreak havoc on the relationships

in your life?

Have you ever seen sin

wreak havoc on the relationships

with your closest family members

and your loved ones?

Have you ever seen it

separate you

from those who you thought

nothing could ever come

in between us?

David experiences this tension

in his personal relationships.

He is abandoned.

His own kin stands far off,

but he's not completely alone.

His companions abandon him

and at the same time,

guess what happens?

His enemies draw near.

Those who seek my life

lay their snares,

he says in verse 12.

Those who seek my hurt

speak of ruin

and meditate treachery

all day long.

He says in verse 19

that his foes are vigorous

and mighty and many.

It says in verse 20

that they stand to accuse him.

Now this is interesting.

That same root word

where we get accused

is the same root word

where we get the name

for Satan.

The accuser.

The adversary

who loves to stand

and accuse God's people

day and night.

All of this again

is the impact

of living in a fallen world.

Have you ever experienced

the distance of friends

and the nearness of enemies?

Have you ever experienced

the isolation

and the loneliness

of living in a fallen world

and experienced

the nearness

of hateful people

who want to tear you down?

Or the nearness

of your own sinful flesh

and sinful desires?

Or the nearness

of the enemy himself,

Satan,

and all who belong

to his kingdom

who want to tear you

away from the truth

and rip you away

from enjoying

the joy of walking

with the Lord?

If you are in Christ,

I can assure you,

you will experience

all of this.

You will experience

the painful agony

of seeing your own sin

for what it is.

If you are in Christ,

you will experience

the pain of isolation

and loneliness

and betrayal.

You will experience

the dangers

and the trials

and the temptations

of the enemy

against you in this life

if you are in Christ.

The question then,

church,

is where can we go

with our sin?

Where can we turn

with our sin?

We must bring our sin

to the only one

who is able

to bear it for us.

So third,

I want you to see

the picture here

in this psalm,

and it's this.

Christ Jesus

is the sin bearer.

Christ Jesus

is the sin bearer.

David,

in his suffering,

and even in the way

that he handles

his suffering here

by silently enduring,

by acting like

a mute man

who gives no answer

back for the accusations

against him,

by entrusting himself

to God,

he is pointing us

forward to the

great son of David,

Jesus Christ,

who suffered for us.

And we've seen,

haven't we,

time and time again

how these psalms

in many ways

are the prayers

of Christ Jesus himself.

But I want to ask you

this morning,

how can Jesus pray

this prayer?

How can Jesus Christ

pray like this?

How can the sinless,

perfect son of God

speak as a sinner

under the wrath of God

enduring the agony

of the full weight

of bearing sin?

How can he pray

as a sinner

experiencing loneliness

and abandonment

and the closeness

of his enemies?

Church,

he can pray like this

because this is exactly

what Christ has endured

for us.

Jesus Christ

suffered for sin,

not his own,

the sins of

all his people.

As Jesus prayed

in the garden

of Gethsemane,

we're told that he was

in so much anguish

that he sweat blood

as he prayed

to the Lord

and asked if it were

at all possible,

would you remove

this cup from me?

And yet,

what did he say?

Yet not as I will,

but your will be done.

He prayed that if at all

possible,

God would relieve him

from this discipline,

from the sharp arrows

of his wrath

and relieve him,

remove this indignation

from him.

But even so,

Jesus knew

that this was

the eternal plan

of God

for the salvation

of sinners like us.

And so he set

his face like flint

to go to the cross.

Jesus took upon himself

the full weight

of all the ugliness,

of all the sin,

of all of his people.

There is,

here's a theological term

for you,

there is what we call

a double imputation

that happens

at the cross of Christ

for all of God's people.

Through faith in Jesus,

when you put your faith

in Christ,

all of his perfect

righteousness

and all of his

sinlessness,

all of the blessings

that he has earned

by his perfect obedience,

all of that

comes to us

by faith.

It is credited to us

into our account.

And,

at the same time,

all of our sin,

all of our mess,

all of our weakness,

all of our stench,

all of our iniquity,

all of that

comes to him.

He bears it for us

and takes it away.

He made him

who knew no sin

to become sin

for us

so that in him

we might become

the righteousness

of God.

There is a

two-way becoming

in the gospel of Christ.

This is what makes

it such good news.

We no longer

bear our sin.

He does.

And we're not

left in neutral.

We are made

perfect in the sight

of God

by faith in Christ.

And so,

Jesus,

he prays this prayer

not because of his own sin

but as the sin bearer.

He prays this prayer

as the one

who has endured

the wrath of God

for sin,

not his own.

But in our place,

he prays as the one

who endured

the betrayal

and the abandonment

of his closest companions

as Peter denies him

three times

as his disciples

flee at his arrest.

He prays this prayer

as the one

who allowed his enemies

to overtake him

and nail him

to the cross.

He prays as the one

who, like David,

did not open his mouth

to defend himself

but rather silently

endured suffering

as he waited faithfully

on the vindication

of God.

I always marvel,

church,

at how Isaiah

talked about this

700 years

before it happened.

You see this glorious truth

so clearly

in Isaiah 53.

I want to read

this long passage to you

but listen,

listen for those

common themes here

in Isaiah 53.

700 years

before Jesus

went to the cross,

here's what he says.

He was despised

and rejected by men.

A man of sorrows.

Acquainted with grief

as one from whom

men hide their faces.

He was despised

and we esteemed him not.

Surely he has borne

our griefs.

He has carried

our sorrows.

Yet we esteemed him

stricken,

smitten by God

and afflicted.

But he was pierced

for our transgressions.

He was crushed

for our iniquities.

Upon him

was the chastisement

that brought us peace

and with his wounds

we are healed.

All we like sheep

have gone astray.

We have turned

everyone

to his own way.

And the Lord

has laid on him

the iniquity

of us all.

He was oppressed

and he was afflicted.

Yet he opened

not his mouth

like a lamb

that is led

to the slaughter

and like a sheep

that before its shears

is silent.

So he opened

not his mouth.

By oppression

and judgment

he was taken away

and as for his generation

who considered

that he was cut off

out of the land

of the living

stricken

for the transgression

of my people.

And they made his grave

with the wicked

and with a rich man

in his death

although he had done

no violence

and there was no deceit

in his mouth

yet

it was the will

of the Lord

to crush him.

He

has put him

to grief.

When his soul

makes an offering

for guilt

he shall see

his offspring

he shall prolong

his days

the will of the Lord

shall prosper

in his hand.

Out of the anguish

of his soul

he shall see

and be satisfied

by his knowledge

shall the righteous one

my servant

make many

to be accounted

righteous

and he shall bear

their iniquities.

Do you hear

the gospel church?

He

becomes

sin.

we

become

righteousness.

He

takes

God's

wrath

so that we

receive

God's

pleasure.

He

becomes

like us

so that we

might become

like

him.

This is

the gospel.

If you

have ever

felt the

agony

of your

sin

take heart

and know

that

Jesus

has felt

it.

If you

have placed

your faith

in him

you need

not fear

the wrath

of God

against your

sin because

he has

born it

for us.

And if we

suffer in a

fallen world

as we all

do and we

all will

the Christian

can do so

in hope

and confidence

that we are

following our

Savior through

suffering and

into glory.

So fourth

and finally

let's consider

then in him

the posture

of the

secure

center

the posture

of the

secure

center

we'll see

this in

the rest

of the

passage.

I see

four postures

here in

David's

heart as

we close

that we

in Christ

can imitate

and look

there with

me

verses 15

through 22

the first

posture of

the heart

is a

posture of

hope.

Verse 15

David says

but for you

oh Lord

do I wait

it is you

oh Lord

my God

who will

answer

for I said

only let

them not

rejoice

over me

who boast

against me

when my

foot slips.

In this

moment of

pain and

anguish

what does

David do?

He calls

out to

the Lord.

He puts

his hope

entirely

in the

Lord

just as

Christ

on the

cross

entrusted

himself

entirely

to the

Father

and waited

patiently

for this

moment of

vindication

so now

all of

Christ's

people

in our

suffering

and in

our

pain

we can

also

endure

and hope

that if

we're

in

Christ

we

too

will

one

day

be

vindicated

raised

up with

him

the enemy

will not

rejoice

over us

because God

has already

triumphed

over him

at the

cross

of Christ

posture

number

two

the second

is a

posture

of

desperation

desperation

he says

in verse

17

I am

ready

to fall

my

pain

is

ever

before

me

and

this

is

again

a

complete

recognition

of his

inability

and his

misery

and again

this is

absolutely

crucial

church

I got

to ask

you

if you've

ever

gotten

to this

point

of

helplessness

before

the

Lord

do you

realize

God

does

not

help

those

who

help

themselves

that is

not

true

you will

not find

that in

your

Bible

God

does

not

help

those

he

is

not

favoring

those

who

are

capable

and

and

strong

and

those

who

just

need

a little

bit

of

dusting

off

and

then

they'll

be

good

no

our

God

raises

the

dead

to

newness

of

life

you

must

recognize

that

you

are

dead

in

your

trespasses

and

sins

have

you

recognized

your

complete

inability

to

climb

your

way

out

of

your

sin

and

to work

your

way

to

God

into

his

pleasure

out

of

his

wrath

that

you're

completely

unable

to do

anything

at all

apart from

his grace

at work

in you

third

posture

it's a

posture

of

repentance

posture

of

repentance

you know

some

of the

ways

that

people

tend

to

deal

with

their

sin

is

either

just

to

ignore

it

pretend

like

it

doesn't

exist

don't

tell

me

about

that

I'm

fine

the

way

I

am

or

maybe

they

minimize

it

it's

not

that

bad

I'm

not

as

bad

as

the

next

guy

at

least

my

neighbor

is

way

worse

off

than

I

am

logs

and

specks

or

to

blame

someone

else

for

their

sin

it's

a

victim

mentality

well I

did

that

because

you

did

this

I

am

who

I

am

because

this

system

is

rigged

against

me

I

hit

you

because

you

bothered

me

it's

not

my

fault

it's

your

fault

at

the

end

of

the

day

let

me

just

give

you

another

option

here

I

know

that

this

is

radical

and

crazy

but

let's

just

try

something

here

it

is

full

confession

and

admission

and

repentance

look

what

David

says

in

verse

18

he

sees

the

weight

of

his

sin

he

sees

his

total

helplessness

and

he

says

I

confess

my

iniquity

he

owns

!

it!

And

he

says

I'm

sorry

for

my

sin

this

is

his

full

commitment

just

to

bring

it

all

to

the

feet

of

Jesus

and

openly

confess

I

can't

do

anything

about

this

would

you

please

doesn't

John

tell us

didn't we

read this

morning

if we

confess

our

sin

he

is

faithful

and

just

to

forgive

us

our

sin

and

to

cleanse

us

from

all

unrighteousness

the

Lord

is

far

more

willing

to

forgive

than

we

are

to

confess

!

Martin

Luther

says

that

the

whole

Christian

life

is

one

of

continual

repentance

Cornelius

Plantinga

Jr.

he

says

recalling

and

confessing

our

sin

is

a

little

bit

like

taking

out

the

garbage

once

is

not

enough

do

you

have

something

to

take

to

him

this

morning

David

confesses

and

repents

and

then

lastly

fourth

David

responds

with a

posture

of

faith

this

is

trust

church

and

dependence

and

this

is

what

it

means

this

is

what

it

looks

like

to

be

a

Christian

to

be

a

Christian

is

to

recognize

the

depths

of

your

sin

to

bring

it

fully

to

the

Lord

to

say

I

can't

do

anything

about

this

and

then

in

full

trust

and

faith

to

hand

it

him

and

say

you

got

to

deal

with

it

and

to

know

in

faith

that

Christ

has

dealt

with

it

at

the

cross

so

that

now

in

him

you

can

call

upon

the

Lord

with

confidence

in

any

and

every

trial

just

as

David

does

to

know

that

nothing

can

separate

you

from

the

love

of

God

in

Christ

Jesus

your

Lord

look how

he

prays

!

He

says

do

not

forsake

me

O

Lord

my

salvation

that's

a prayer

of

faith

from

someone

who

is

desperate

for

the

help

of

his

God

church

we

have

the

privilege

this

morning

of

seeing

this

type

of

recognition

of

sin

and

repentance

and

faith

this

morning

in

the

waters

of

baptism

we

get

to

see

the

stench

of

the

old

and

dead

man

buried

with

him

in

baptism

washed

clean

and

raised

to

walk

in

newness

of

life

and

in

just

a

moment

we're

going to

get to

hear

James

and

Alyssa's

testimonies

I want

you to

listen

as they

share

for those

same

common

themes

of

hope

and

desperation

and

confession

and

repentance

and

faith

in

Christ

and

then

we're

going

to

go

out

and

see

that

new

life

and

that

new

joy

and

that

new

freedom

from

the

faith

as

they

prepare

to

come

forward

I

want

to

ask

you

again

is

there

any

sin

in

your

life

that

needs

to

be

brought

to

the

Lord

this

morning

is

there

any

trash

that

needs

to

be

taken

out

Jesus

Christ

our

sin

bearer

has

come

to

take

it

away

and

we

rejoice

to

know

our

sins

they

are

many

but

praise

God

his

mercy

is

more

let's

pray

together

Father

we

thank

you

for

the

good

news

of

the

gospel

that

starts

with

the

bad

news

that

all

of

us

have

sinned

against

you

and

the

bad

news

that

our

sin

is

more

than

we

can

bear

but

Father

the

good

news

is

that

Christ

has

come

to

bear

it

for

us

and

so

we

pray

Lord

would

you

work

in

us

a

heart

of

repentance

and

faith

in

Christ

Jesus

the

only

hope

for

sinners

like

us

and

we

pray

we

would

live

in

the

joy

and

the

freedom

of

being

made

new

in

him

we

pray

this

in

Jesus

name

amen