For This Purpose

Amen.

Please take your Bibles and open them up to John chapter 12.

John 12 · chapter mention

Our text this morning is John chapter 12 verses 20 through 36.

John 12:20–36

And when you found that there in your Bibles, I do ask that if you're able, physically able to stand,

would you please stand as I read God's Word.

John 12 verses 20 through 36 this morning.

John 12:20–36

Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks.

So these came to Philip who was from Bethsaida in Galilee and asked him,

Sir, we wish to see Jesus.

Philip went and told Andrew.

Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.

And Jesus answered them,

The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

Truly, truly, I say to you,

unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies,

it remains alone.

But if it dies, it bears much fruit.

Whoever loves his life loses it.

And whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

If anyone serves me, he must follow me.

And where I am, there will my servant be also.

If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Now is my soul troubled.

And what shall I say?

Father, save me from this hour.

But for this purpose I have come to this hour.

Father, glorify your name.

Then a voice came from heaven.

I have glorified it.

And I will glorify it again.

The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered.

Others said, an angel has spoken to him.

Jesus answered, the voice has come for your sake, not mine.

Now is the judgment of this world.

Now will the ruler of this world be cast out.

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.

He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

So the crowd answered him,

We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever.

How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up?

Who is this Son of Man?

So Jesus answered them,

The light is among you for a little while longer.

Walk while you have the light,

lest darkness overtake you.

The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.

While you have the light,

believe in the light,

that you may become sons of light.

This is God's holy word.

If you would please be seated.

Let's pray together once more.

Lord, we pray that the light of your word and the light of your spirit would shine on us this morning.

That we would see the truth and not just see it,

but love it and believe it and become children of the light.

And walk as children of the light as we leave this place this morning.

We pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Today we celebrate communion.

It's the Lord's Supper.

Remember, we do this once a month,

but it's good for us as we prepare ourselves to come to the table to remember and to remind ourselves

what exactly we're doing when we come and we take this meal together.

For us, this isn't just tradition.

It's not just something to fill the time.

We believe that this is a meal with a message.

It's proclaiming something to us this morning as we prepare to take it.

This is the body of Jesus broken for you.

This is the blood of Jesus poured out for you.

But we need to understand this morning why.

What's the point?

And why do we as a church family,

why do we as Christians make such a big deal about the death of Jesus?

Our mission as a church family, I'll remind you,

is that we exist to magnify the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Why?

Well, it's because we believe that the gospel is the place where we see God's glory most clearly displayed.

So we want to make a really big deal about the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We believe that the best way to see a magnified, big vision of God's glory is to look through the telescopic lens of the gospel.

And so that's our aim this morning as we prepare to come to the table together.

And that's the aim of our passage this morning in John chapter 12.

John 12 · chapter mention

The focus is narrowing here in John's gospel.

We're getting closer to the death of Jesus and his resurrection.

We're getting closer to the moment of the cross.

And as we make our way there, Jesus wants us to understand why he came to die.

The short answer to that question is that Jesus died for the glory of God.

Jesus died to magnify God's glory.

But what I want us to see in our passage this morning is two specific ways this happens in the death of Jesus.

So the question we're asking is how does the death of Jesus magnify God's glory?

And the answer is two ways.

God is glorified in the death of Jesus as sinners are saved and as Satan is defeated.

God is glorified in the death of Jesus as sinners are saved and as Satan is defeated.

First, we see God is glorified in the salvation of sinners.

You remember our context here.

We're at the Passover feast in Jerusalem.

The crowds are gathering.

And last week, if you were here, you remember from last week,

Jesus entered into the city of Jerusalem to the cheers of the crowds.

They were celebrating his arrival.

And the Pharisees concluded in verse 19, if you look there with me,

he said, the whole world has gone after him.

They were wringing their hands at the attention that Jesus was getting.

The whole world has gone after this man, Jesus.

Well, ironically, here as we start our passage this morning in verse 20,

we see that they're not wrong.

Look there to verse 20 with me.

John tells us that among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks.

And these Greeks came to Philip and what did they say?

They asked him, sir, we wish to see Jesus.

Now think about what's happening here.

It's this Jewish festival, this Jewish Passover,

and this Jewish city with this Jewish Messiah coming in.

And here come these Greeks seeking the presence of Jesus.

What are they doing here?

Why is John drawing our attention to this?

Why is he telling us this?

Why is it that at this moment with the nation seeking Jesus,

that Jesus responds and says,

now my hour has come?

You know, up to this point in John's gospel,

that hour of his death,

that hour of his glorification,

every time it spoke of his hour,

it was future.

Not yet.

Not yet.

Not yet.

Now as the nations are seeking the presence of Christ,

Jesus responds and says,

now the hour has come.

Now is the time for the Son of Man to be glorified.

This has been the plan all along.

Now Jesus knows God's wise plan of salvation

was to glorify his name by sending his Son to live and to die

and to rise in place of sinners,

not just from the Jewish people,

but sinners from every tribe, tongue, and nation.

God is glorified in the death of Jesus

because his death on the cross opens up the door wide

for the nations to come to him,

for the nations to be forgiven of their sin,

for the nations to be transformed,

and then to praise the name of God

for his glorious grace to the rest of eternity.

That's the purpose.

And we see a hint of that purpose here, don't we?

See, ethnic Jews were God's chosen people

in the old covenant,

but here in the death of Christ,

as we come to the table,

we're reminded, Jesus says,

a new covenant is being inaugurated in my blood.

My blood is poured out for undeserving sinful Jews

and undeserving sinful Gentiles,

any who would come to me in faith.

This has been one of John's points of emphasis

throughout the book.

You remember, John 3.16, what does it say?

For God so loved, what?

The world that he gave his only Son

that whoever believes in him

may not perish but have eternal life.

Philip and Andrew, they came to Jesus,

they tell him, hey, the nations are here.

The Greeks, they're seeking you out.

They've come to see you.

And Jesus responds to them,

it's time.

I have come for this purpose.

I have come to die

in order to bear the fruit of salvation

and transformation,

not just for the Jews,

but for the nations.

Truly, truly, truly, I say to you,

unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth

and dies, it remains alone.

But if it dies,

if it dies,

it bears much fruit.

We see here the necessity

of the death of Jesus

for salvation of sinners like us,

don't we?

It is necessary that Jesus die

for sinners like us to live.

Unless he dies,

he remains alone.

But if he dies,

he bears much fruit.

You see, if all Jesus does

is come and live perfectly,

all we have is a good example.

If all Jesus does

is come and live perfectly,

all we have is maybe inspiration,

motivation,

a great example of how to live.

If he doesn't die in our place,

in the place of sinners,

all we have is inspiration.

But what good is that

for sinners who are dead

in the trespasses and sins

in which we walk?

Sinners need more than just inspiration.

Sinners like us,

we need salvation.

Sinners need more than just salvation.

As Jesus says,

that's exactly why I've come.

To die.

Jesus died to save us,

helpless sinners like us

who couldn't ever save themselves

for the glory of God

and then to transform us

into his image.

You have to get the order right,

don't we?

I grew up during the WWJD bracelet phase.

You remember seeing those,

what would Jesus do?

Most of you are probably familiar with that.

What would Jesus do

is a fantastic question to ask.

But only if it's the second question you ask.

The first question we have to ask

has to be,

what did Jesus do?

And when we come to this table

together this morning,

we're reminded of what Jesus did.

He came to do what we couldn't do.

He lived perfectly.

And then he died in our place

so that now,

now if you trust him

and you receive his finished work,

what he has done,

now,

now you look to him

for an example to follow.

And now you look to him

for inspiration

of how to live your life.

See, they go together.

Salvation and imitation,

salvation and transformation,

salvation and motivation,

salvation and replication.

Should I keep going?

The order is important.

Receive his work first

by faith

and then,

Jesus says,

then,

then you must

follow him.

You must

imitate him.

Look there again

to verse 25.

Jesus says,

whoever loves his life

loses it

and whoever hates his life

in this world

keeps it

for eternal life.

If anyone serves me,

he must

follow me.

And where I am,

there my servant

will be also.

If anyone serves me,

anyone Jew,

anyone Greek,

if anyone serves me,

the Father

will honor him.

I'm in over my head

with these agriculture,

I can't even pronounce it,

agriculture examples,

farming,

gardening,

I don't know much about that,

but I do know

that if you

sow a seed

into the ground

and that seed

takes and it

reproduces

and it bears fruit

and there's life

that comes from that seed,

whatever grows up

out of the ground

ought to look a lot like

what was planted

into the ground,

right?

So Jesus says

the same thing

is happening here

for those who

receive the life

that comes from

my death.

If you have received

what I've given you,

then you ought to

look like me.

You ought to

imitate me.

What does it look like

to follow Jesus?

The answer is

it looks a lot

like dying.

The call

to follow Christ

is a call

to die

with Christ.

He says

you must

hate

your life

here on earth

in order to keep it

for eternal life.

This is

a hard saying,

isn't it?

That word hate,

that's a strong word.

How do we make sense

of this?

There's a parallel passage

in the Gospel of Matthew

that I think helps us out

in Matthew chapter 10.

Matthew 10 · chapter mention

You can write that down

for later.

He says

whoever loves

father or mother

more than me

is not worthy of me.

Whoever loves

son or daughter

more than me

is not worthy

of me.

And whoever

does not take

his cross

and follow me

is not worthy

of me.

Whoever finds

his life

will lose it.

Whoever loses

his life

for my sake

will find it.

Now of course

we're not called

to actively

hate one another.

Right?

We understand this.

Husbands

love your wives

as Christ loved

the church.

Children

honor your father

and your mother.

Love one another.

It doesn't mean

we actively

hate one another

but what it does

mean is that

to follow Jesus

that we have

to radically

change how

we view

our priorities

and our

relationships

and our

very own

lives.

Following Christ

is not just

about receiving

salvation

it's about

transforming

affection.

If we want

to be

like

Jesus

the glory

of God

has to be

the greatest

affection.

of our heart.

If we want

to be like

Jesus

God's glory

must be

the greatest

treasure

of our heart.

Not your

spouse

whom you love.

Not your

children

whom you

love.

Not your

job

your career

your goals

your comfort

your safety

your money.

Jesus'

glory

must be

the greatest

love

of your

heart.

So now

Christian

the question

for us

becomes

every single

day

how do I

die to

myself

today?

How do I

die to

my self

seeking

desires

and live

for the

glory of

Christ

today?

How do I

love my

spouse

today as

one who is

seeking to

bring honor

and glory

to King

Jesus

today?

How do I

love and

serve my

children in

ways that

don't make

it all

about my

children?

That's

difficult

isn't it?

But I

seek to

bring glory

and honor

to King

Jesus

today.

How do I

reframe my

goals, my

desires, my

ambitions, my

career, my

priorities in

ways that

it's not just

climbing the

ladder of

success and

bringing honor

to self but

instead is

now transformed

by a new

heart affection

to bring

glory to

God.

God, the

glory of

Christ must

now be the

greatest love

of your heart,

Christian.

And if it

is, your

life will look

totally different.

And if we

live like this

for the glory

of God, guess

what?

Church, the

world takes

notice and

God is

glorified.

This is a

high call.

The following

Jesus is the

highest, costliest

call in all

the world.

Hate your

life.

Die to

yourself.

If you're

here and

you're not a

believer, if

you're here

just joining

us for the

meal this

morning, again

you're welcome.

We're glad

that you're

here.

Maybe you're

wondering right

now, why in

the world would

anybody live

like this?

This sounds

crazy.

And I want

to say, that's

a fair question

to ask.

I'm glad you

asked.

Maybe you

remember the

call of

Abram.

You remember

his call?

Go from your

country, from

your kindred, go

from your

father's house,

leave everything

you know, leave

your comfort, leave

your family, leave

your life, and go

to a land that I

will show you.

That's a high

call.

Costly call.

Difficult call.

Do you remember,

do you know what it

was that propelled

him forward and

caused him to go?

Go.

He had the

command of God

and he had the

promise of God.

That's it.

A difficult

command and a

simple promise.

Obeyed and

believed by faith.

Go.

That's the

command.

And I will

make of you a

great nation.

And I will

bless you.

And I will

make your name

great so that

you will be a

blessing.

And I will

bless those who

bless you.

And him who

dishonors you, I

will curse.

And in you all

the families of

the earth shall

be blessed.

A difficult

command with a

clear promise.

Don't we see the

same thing here

with Jesus?

Look there to

verse 27.

Verse 27.

We see the

humanity of

Jesus on

display here,

don't we?

He says,

now my soul

is troubled.

What shall I

say?

Father,

save me from

this hour.

He knows the

cost he's

about to

pay.

But what is

it that pushes

Jesus forward

towards the

cross?

For this

purpose I have

come to this

hour.

What purpose?

Why has Christ

come to die?

Father,

glorify your

name.

Jesus went

to the

cross because

he loved the

glory of God

more than

his own

life.

Do you see

that here?

A difficult

command, go to

the cross, lay

down your

life, die, but

a clear promise.

I have glorified

it, God said, and

I will glorify it

again.

What about us,

church?

What about us,

Christian?

We are called

like Abram

and like

Jesus to

die to

ourselves, to

lay down our

life, to leave

everything we

know and love

behind for the

glory of God.

But he has not

called us to go

anywhere where

he's not already

gone before us.

Christ has gone

before us.

And he's not

called us to go

anywhere without a

very clear

promise.

What's the promise

for us?

Look there again

to verse 25 and

26.

I see three

promises here.

Why would

anybody live like

this?

Consider these

promises, church.

First, the

promise of

eternal life.

Whoever hates

his life in this

world will keep

it for eternal

life.

Here's the

promise.

Forsake your

life now, die

to yourself now,

and live forever

with Christ.

That's a deal.

Promise number

two, the

presence.

presence of

Jesus.

Verse 26, if

anyone serves

me, he must

follow me.

And where I am,

there my servant

will be also.

Do you want the

presence of Jesus?

Follow him.

Follow him.

Serve him.

And Paul says

in Romans 6, if

we have died with

Christ, we believe

that we will also

live with him.

If we have been

united with him in

a death like his,

we shall certainly

be united with him

in a resurrection

like his.

Die with him

that you may

live with him.

Promise number

three.

The promise

of the honor

of the father.

Verse 26,

if anyone

serves me,

the father

will honor

him.

God

himself

will honor

you.

This is

the highest

aim of the

human life,

is it not?

God

himself

will honor

you.

God

himself

will bless

you.

God

himself

will be

with you.

Whatever

it costs

to get

this,

it's worth

it, is it

not?

Whatever

gain we

had, we

count as

loss for

the sake,

for the

surpassing

worth of

knowing Christ

Jesus our

Lord.

God is

glorified in

the salvation

of sinners,

but not only

this second,

we see God

is glorified

in the death

of Christ

because God

is glorified

in the

defeat

of Satan.

Look at

verses 31

and 32

with me.

Verses 31

and 32,

they show

us that

at the

cross,

at the

death

of Jesus,

something

of cosmic

significance

happened.

at the

death

of Jesus,

a decisive

victory

was won

that opened

up the

door for

salvation

to now

go out

to the

ends

of the

earth.

Look

there

to

verse

31.

Jesus

says,

now is

the judgment

of this

world.

Now

will the

ruler of

this world

be cast

out.

This is

very

interesting,

isn't it?

We know

that there

is a

future

judgment.

All the

earth,

every single

person to

ever live,

all of us,

we will all

give an

account of

ourselves to

God,

but Jesus

says,

it's here.

Now is

the judgment

of this

world.

Romans 2

Romans 2:16

verse 16,

it tells us

that God

judges the

secrets of

men by

Christ.

Christ

himself is

the dividing

line of

history.

You are

either

perfected in

him,

by trusting

in him,

by receiving

his perfect

work,

by faith

alone,

or you

are judged

outside of

him,

according to

the standard

of perfection

that he

alone

obeyed.

The cross

of Christ

is the

dividing

line,

separating

line of

judgment for

all the

world.

Now that

final day

of judgment

is yet

to come,

it's future,

but Jesus

speaks of

it as

absolutely

and as

certainly

as if

it is

already

here.

As if

to say,

you want

to know

how that

day plays

out?

Look to

the cross

now.

Those who

look to

the cross

in faith,

the verdict

is in,

they are

cleansed,

they are

forgiven,

they are

accepted,

the verdict

is in,

they are

innocent by

virtue of

what I

have done

and those

who reject

the cross

are guilty

lest they

turn and

repent.

The final

day of

judgment,

Jesus says,

now is

the judgment

of this

world,

but also

he says,

now will

the ruler

of this

world be

cast out.

What does

that mean?

What does

that mean?

Who is

the ruler

of this

world?

I think

it's clear

Jesus,

he's speaking

here about

Satan.

There's other

places of

scripture that

speak this

way,

2 Corinthians

4 says,

the God

of this

world has

blinded the

minds of

unbelievers

to keep

them from

seeing the

light of

the gospel

of the

glory of

Christ who

is the

image of

God.

Ephesians

calls Satan

the prince

of the power

of the air,

the spirit

that is now

at work

in the

sons of

disobedience.

It's clear

that in

the wisdom

and sovereignty

of God,

Satan has

been given

a sort

of measured,

delegated,

temporary

authority to

operate here

on earth,

to reign over

the domain

of darkness,

and to influence

the world,

to rage against

the Lord and

his anointed.

but Jesus

says,

here,

now,

at the

cross,

in my

death,

the ruler

of this

world is

cast

out.

And God

is glorified

in the

death of

Jesus because

it is here

at his

death that

Satan is

kicked out

of his

position of

authority

in the

world.

Jesus

says the

cross is

victory over

sin,

death,

and the

devil.

Now,

how can

this be

true?

How can

this be

true?

Because if

you're paying

attention and

you're seeing

the same

things that

I'm seeing

when I turn

on the

news and

I look

around and

I pull

up social

media or

I drive

down Highway

17,

it looks

like Satan

is alive

and well,

doesn't it?

Amen?

Now,

we look around

and we

see that

he's active,

he's at

work,

he's seeking

to devour

you,

believer.

He's seeking

to devour

the witness

of the

church,

he's influencing

people all

over the

world.

How do we

understand this?

Did Jesus

get it wrong

here?

Did he fail

in his

mission?

Because

everywhere I

look,

there's not a

place on

earth where

Satan isn't

at work

seeking to

rob God

of his

glory.

How is

this victory?

The truth

is,

there is

one place

in all

the earth

where we

can look

and see

the victory

Jesus won

on the

cross.

Do you know

where it is?

It's not a

place even,

church.

It's a

people.

It's the

church.

It's you.

Do you

want to

know why

I give

my life

to build

up the

church?

I feel

called that

the Lord

has led

me to

give my

life for

the good

of the

local

church.

It's

because this

is the

only entity

in the

world where

victory is

guaranteed

before the

return of

Christ.

We may

never win

countries,

cities,

policies,

politics,

but we

have the

church and

the gates

of hell

will not

prevail against

it.

because of

the cross

of Christ

there is

now a

people from

every tribe,

tongue,

and nation

where the

enemy has

no power

at all.

Because of

the cross

of Christ

there is

now a

people called

the church

who have

been delivered

from the

domain of

darkness

and now

transferred

into the

kingdom

of his

beloved

son.

what happened

on the

cross was

a devastating

decisive

fatal blow

to our

enemy

Satan.

This is

the head

of the

serpent

crushed.

He's a

roaring lion

lashing out

because he

knows he's

been beaten.

He's been

dealt a

fatal blow.

He's a

roaring lion

but he's

on a leash

that's being

pulled tighter

and tighter

and tighter

closer and

closer to

his end

as the

number of

the redeemed

bears fruit

and multiplies

over all

the earth

like grain.

This is

why Jesus

says now

he's cast

out.

Now when

I am

lifted up

I will

draw all

people to

myself

Jew and

Gentile

the gospel

will go

forth and

bear fruit

and Satan

can't do

anything to

stop it.

I will

build my

church.

So now

church the

good news

for us

we are

fighting a

defeated

enemy.

This is

a little bit

like the

difference

between

D-Day

and V-E-Day.

Okay historians

in the room

know what I'm

talking about.

Do you remember

on D-Day

allied forces

they stormed

the beaches

in Normandy

this was

the decisive

victory

the decisive

turning point

of World War

II

in essence

at this

point

the war

was over

the influence

of the

Axis powers

their effectiveness

began to

recede

and erode

but on

the ground

on the ground

the battle

continued

the war

continued

on the ground

the battle

raged on

until it was

about a year

later when

Germany

officially

surrendered

and there

was victory

in Europe

V-E-Day

Church

for those

who belong

to Christ

the battle

is over

it's won

the enemy

has been

defeated

at the cross

but he's

not yet

surrendered

when Christ

comes

our enemy

will finally

be defeated

and the war

will finally

be won

but for now

church

as we

as we wait

for that day

and long

for that day

this ought to

give us

great confidence

amen

Satan

has been

disarmed

at the cross

for all

who trust

in Christ

by faith

Satan

has no

new weapons

did you know

that

just the same

old tricks

recycled

for generation

after generation

after generation

I want to

focus on

just four

of his

greatest weapons

this morning

four of his

greatest weapons

that were disarmed

at the cross

for any

who trust

in Jesus

by faith

deception

temptation

accusation

and darkness

every single

one of them

was ripped

from the hands

of Satan

lost its power

and effectiveness

for the church

right now

because of the life

and the death

and the resurrection

of Christ

because of the gospel

all who are in him

truly by faith

are safe

from his schemes

of deception

temporarily

we may fall

but those

who are covered

by the blood

of Jesus

will not

ultimately

finally

be deceived

we are

safeguarded

by faith

in the truth

of the gospel

so we're called

now in Ephesians 4

to grow up

into mature manhood

to the measure

of the stature

of the fullness

of Christ

so that we may

no longer

be children

tossed to and fro

by the waves

and carried about

by every wind

of doctrine

by human cunning

by craftiness

in deceitful schemes

and now

because of the gospel

all who are

in Christ

are free

from the power

of sin

and the enticements

of temptation

do we struggle

with sin?

tell me I'm not

the only one

do we struggle?

absolutely

we struggle

with its presence

yes

but we are

now decisively

freed from

its power

when we realize

this it begins

to lose

its persuasiveness

and we can actually

say no

we're no longer

dead in the

trespasses and sins

in which we walk

we have

by the grace

of God

woken up

we have now

a new

God given

grace enabled

Christ

purchased

capacity

to say

no to sin

and yes

to God

that is a

powerful weapon

ripped from

the hands

of the enemy

and although

we may fall

although we

we still wrestle

with sin

right now

because of

the gospel

all who are

in Jesus

are totally

completely

safe

from the

accusations

of the enemy

now this is

his biggest

gun

and what

case

could we

make

before God

when we

are guilty

when we

are sinful

when Satan

points his

finger at us

and he says

look at them

look at their

sinfulness

look at how

they've earned

your judgment

we had no

case to make

because he

was right

but now

because Christ

has taken

away our

reproach

because Christ

has borne

our sin

because God

made him

who knew

no sin

to become

sin for us

so that in

him we

might become

the righteousness

of God

our enemy

has nothing

to say

we're free

holy

in the sight

of God

and now

because of

the death

of Jesus

Satan's

weapon

of blinding

darkness

has lost

its effectiveness

how

because the

light

of the gospel

shines forth

in the

darkness

for God

who said

let light

shine out

of darkness

has shown

in our

hearts

to give us

the light

of the

knowledge

of the

glory

of God

in the

face

of Jesus

Christ

do you see

the confidence

this gives

us church

I want us

to come to

the table

this morning

with confidence

confidence

to say

no

to sin

confidence

to know

that the

evil around

us

and within

us

will not

have the

last word

confidence

to share

the gospel

of Christ

knowing that

by the grace

of God

he will

call his

own

out of

darkness

and into

the light

that's the

invitation

that Jesus

makes here

as we close

isn't it

he says

the light

is among

you for

a little

while

longer

walk

while you

have the

light

lest the

darkness

overtake

you

the one

who walks

in the

darkness

does not

know

where he

is going

while you

have the

light

believe

in the

light

that you

may

become

sons

of light

did you

hear that

now we

live in

a dark

world

church

everywhere

around us

all around

us

we have

friends

and family

neighbors

co-workers

who are

walking

in darkness

they don't

know where

they're going

they don't

understand

that they're

in darkness

because the

dark is all

they know

but there's

still time

while the

light shines

isn't there

for God

through us

to extend

this

invitation

would you

would you

would you

believe in

the light

would you

would you

trust the

light

would you

would you

come out

of the

darkness

and let

that old

life

die

that you

may not

just see

the light

but belong

to it

believe in

the light

that you

may become

sons

of light

what an

offer

has extended

to you

right now

in Christ

do you

want to be

free

do you

want to

know

God

do you

want to

truly

have

life

do you

want to

escape

the

judgment

that you

earned

for your

own

sin

you

are

invited

now

this is

the

invitation

that goes

out to

all the

ends

of the

world

from

Jerusalem

to

Judea

to

Samaria

to

the

uttermost

ends

of the

earth

to

the

Jew

first

and

also

the

Greek

do

not

walk

in

darkness

Christ

came

he

lived

he

died

he

rose

to

glorify

God

in the

illumination

of the

hearts

of men

come to

Christ

and live

as we

come to

the table

in just

a moment

church

I want

to invite

you to

fix

your

minds

on the

death

of Christ

for your

salvation

set

your

hearts

to

value

him

to

love