Rejoice In The Glory Of God

Well, if you would, please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to the book of 1 Peter.

And this is a little bit out of the ordinary for what we normally do.

Typically, we preach straight through books of the Bible.

But leading up to the evening of January 29th, when we will covenant together as a church,

and then February 5th, when we'll have our first public service together as Seaweed Bay Baptist Church,

we are walking through our mission and vision together.

As a church.

So last week, if you were here, you heard our mission statement is to magnify the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

That's the mission of your life, the purpose of your life.

That's the purpose of the church, not just this church, but the church.

That's God's mission in the gospel is to magnify the glory of his name.

And so now, for the next three weeks, Lord willing, we're going to talk about each part of the how, of how we go about that mission.

How do we magnify the glory of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ?

And the first way how, that we'll see this morning from 1 Peter 1, verses 3 through 9,

1 Peter 1:3–9

is that we magnify the glory of God when we enjoy him.

We magnify him by enjoying him.

And we asked last week, what is the chief end of man?

It's to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.

You may be familiar with John Piper's popular twist on that answer.

He says it's to glorify God by enjoying him forever.

So if you would, Bible's open.

Follow along with me as I read.

We're going to be in 1 Peter 1, verses 3 through 9.

1 Peter 1:3–9

And what we'll see is that we have so much to rejoice in as believers in Christ.

Amen?

So follow with me, 1 Peter 1, verses 3 through 9.

1 Peter 1:3–9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead

to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading,

kept in heaven for you,

who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation

ready to be revealed in the last time.

In this you rejoice,

though now for a little while, if necessary,

you have been grieved by various trials,

so that the tested genuineness of your faith,

more precious than gold that perishes,

though it is tested by fire,

may be found to result in praise and glory and honor

at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Though you have not seen him, you love him.

Though you do not now see him,

you believe in him,

and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible

and filled with glory,

obtaining the outcome of your faith,

the salvation of your souls.

This is the word of God.

Would you please bow and pray with me?

Lord,

truly we have much to rejoice in.

And we thank you for the good news of the gospel.

We thank you for your work in Christ.

And we pray, I pray now,

that you would speak powerfully

through the preaching of your word,

for the joy of your people,

and the glory of your name.

We pray this in Christ's name.

Amen.

Well, I try as hard as I can

to keep it from happening,

but from time to time,

every now and then,

a Hallmark movie will appear

on my television screen.

It tends to happen more during the Christmas season,

and if you're familiar with these films,

each one of them tends to follow

one of no more than three rotating plot lines.

One of the most popular variations

includes introducing us to a woman

who is engaged to be married.

She's busy planning the wedding,

thinking through the details,

going through the processes,

but as you watch her go through this,

you can tell something is just clearly off.

Everyone around her,

her mom,

and usually a quirky best friend,

can tell that despite what she says,

she does not truly,

truly, really love the man

that she is getting ready to marry.

She's committed to him.

She made a commitment a long time ago,

but it's clear she does not really,

truly enjoy him.

But in her mind,

she's made a commitment.

She's gotten this far down the road.

Now she's just going to grit her teeth

and bear it and go through with it

until an unexpected better option

happens to show up.

And although she is reluctant at first,

spoiler alert,

she winds up getting together with him

in the end.

And although I'm sure that this is,

can you hear me now?

Although I'm sure that this is not

what Hallmark had in mind,

sadly,

sadly,

this resembles how many self-professing Christians

go about their relationship with Christ.

They have made some sort of verbal commitment years ago

and they know in their minds at least

that following Christ,

being with him is a good option,

at least better than what they know of the alternative.

And so they simply go through the motions.

They practice the routines.

They walk through the practices.

They come to church.

They say their prayers.

But if you take a closer look,

something is clearly off.

They do not truly love the man,

Jesus Christ.

They draw near with their mouth

and honor him with their lips,

but their hearts are far from him.

They do not truly delight in the glory of God

in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And the reason I share this

is because as we move together

towards covenanting

in this new chapter of this church family,

I want to make sure

that this is not true of us.

We don't want to be a group of people

who simply claim Christ,

come here, do church,

walk through the routines,

practice the habits,

and don't truly enjoy the Lord.

Amen?

We want to be a people

who truly from the bottom of our heart

love and enjoy the glory of God.

Don't you want that?

Our relationship with Christ,

as we'll see here in 1 Peter,

is not meant to be a joyless marriage.

Far from it.

And we of all people

have reason to rejoice.

And so this morning,

as we see in 1 Peter chapter 1,

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

we're going to see

four reasons to rejoice this morning.

Four reasons to rejoice.

And this will be our outline this morning

from 1 Peter chapter 1.

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

If you're taking notes,

this will help you to follow along.

Four reasons to rejoice.

And as we rejoice in Him,

church, we magnify His glory.

We make much of Him.

First reason.

Reason number one

is we are to rejoice

in our new life in Christ.

Rejoice in your new life in Christ.

Peter here in the book of 1 Peter,

he's addressing those who,

by the grace of God,

are united to Christ by faith.

He's addressing Christians.

And so he calls them,

in verse 1,

elect exiles.

Meaning they are those

who no longer belong

to this present world.

They no longer belong

to this present passing world.

In this present evil age,

they've been plucked out.

And they now belong to God.

And so their identity

is not here in this present world.

Their hope is not here

in this present world.

And their joy is not rooted

here in this present world.

They are, as he says in verse 13,

they are to set their hope fully

on the grace that will be brought to you

at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

It's future-oriented joy.

But even so,

our lives here and now

in this present age

as exiles

are meant to be marked

by rejoicing,

marked by delighting

and enjoying the glory

of God.

So here in verse 3,

Peter gives us the first reason why.

Look there to verse 3 with me.

Blessed be the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ.

That's this worship,

this magnification

of the glory of God.

Blessed be the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Why?

Because we have been given

new life in Christ.

He says,

according to his great mercy,

he, God,

he has caused us

to be born again

to a living hope

through the resurrection

of Jesus Christ

from the dead.

That is reason to rejoice

if you have it.

This new spiritual life

is the basis,

this is the root

of Christian joy.

To know true and lasting joy,

you must be born again.

You know,

that's not just a Baptist term.

I know it's been popularized

over the past several decades,

but this is a thoroughly

biblical requirement

for true and lasting joy

is that you be born again.

I'm sure that you've heard me say before

that born again Christian

is a redundancy.

There is no other type of Christian

but a born again Christian.

It's redundant.

There's no other type.

It's like when we say

pin number, right?

Personal identification,

number, number.

Or the Los Angeles angels.

If you know Spanish,

you know that means literally

the, the, angels, angels.

Right?

Well, it's the same

with born again Christian.

Every genuine Christian

has truly been born again.

And there are plenty of individuals

who call themselves Christian,

who attend church,

who read their Bibles,

who say their prayers,

who go through the routines

and the rituals

and the habits,

but have never actually experienced

being born again.

But to truly be a Christian

and to know the joy

that Peter is talking about here,

it requires,

it means that you have,

by the mercy of God,

been genuinely born again.

You have been regenerated.

This is beyond our natural capacity

to understand, isn't it?

You might remember

when Nicodemus came to Jesus

in John chapter 3.

John 3 · chapter mention

He came in the middle of the night

to speak with Jesus.

And Jesus said to him,

truly, truly,

I say to you,

unless one is,

what?

What did he say?

Unless one is born again,

he cannot see

the kingdom of God.

And Nicodemus,

like us,

he thought naturally.

His mind immediately

went to the physical

and the natural,

and so he answered

with natural thinking.

And he said,

well, how can a man

be born again

when he's old?

Can he enter a second time

into his mother's womb

and be born?

And you can almost see

the wheels turning,

and I don't know

how Jesus kept a straight face,

but he did,

and responded and said,

no,

that which is born of flesh

is flesh,

and that which is born of spirit

is spirit.

The first birth

is into sin.

It's into flesh.

The second birth

is entirely of a different kind.

It's spiritual.

See,

our first birth,

we inherited sin.

We entered physically

into this physical,

sinful world.

We're born as enemies

of God,

born as rebels

of God,

born as His enemies.

But the second birth,

the second birth

makes us a new creation.

And with that new life

comes new capacities,

and that heart of stone

is turned into a heart

of flesh.

What was dead to sin,

excuse me,

what was dead to God

and alive to sin

is now dead to sin

and alive to God.

And so when you're born again,

all of a sudden,

you have these new desires

to live a life

that's pleasing to God.

Where did that come from?

You desire new capacity,

new desire to say no to sin,

to run from sin,

to turn from sin,

and to pursue righteousness.

New capacities to see

and to be aware

that all of your life

is a gift from God.

It's meant to be

directed towards Him

and praise for His glory.

You have new capacities

to trust Him

and to thank Him

and to love Him

and to enjoy Him.

See, the Christian life,

which begins at the new birth,

is one of constant growth

and progression

and praising

and enjoying

the glory of God.

So how do we do this?

Well, Peter tells us,

you don't.

It's a work of God.

Peter says,

it is by His mercy,

of His doing,

for our good

and for our joy,

and ultimately

for His glory.

But He does give us

another piece

of crucial information here,

which is that

it is only through

the resurrection

of Jesus Christ

from the dead.

If we are to be born again,

it is only possible

through the good news

of the gospel,

through the resurrection

of Christ.

The Bible teaches us

that Jesus,

the eternal Son of God,

became man.

The eternal Son of God

was born according

to the flesh,

yet without sin.

So He could live

in our place,

He could die

in our place,

and then He could get up

from the grave

and rise up

from the grave

in our place.

So He purchases

new spiritual life

for His people,

for sinners,

through His life,

death,

and resurrection.

So now in Him,

through His resurrection

from the dead,

sinners like me

and like you

who were once dead

in our trespasses

and sins

can be forgiven

of our sins,

can be given

new spiritual life.

that is reason

to rejoice

this morning

if you have it.

Have you been born again?

Have you been born again?

Is your life marked

by bitterness

or anger

or constant complaining

and negativity

and just joylessness?

Or does your heart

genuinely rejoice

in the glory of God?

Is your life marked

by delight

in Him

and His glory?

See, we need to

constantly remember

this gift

that we've been given

in the new birth

and rejoice first

in our new life

in Christ.

But not only that,

second,

second,

Peter says

we rejoice

in our future hope

in Christ.

We rejoice

in our future hope

in Christ.

This is the substance

of our joy.

Something that I think

we need to be reminded of

is not only

what we're saved from

but also

what we're saved to.

Okay?

We need to remember

for the sake of our joy

not only what we're saved from

but also

especially

what we are saved to.

If we are

in Christ

we are saved

from

the wrath of God

against our sin.

And we said

in our first birth

we're born

as sinners.

We're natural born sinners.

And there are two options

and only two options

for sinners like us.

Either God's wrath

is poured out

against us

in our sin

and we bear

the judgment

that we deserve

and we bear

the wrath of God

against our sin.

We bear it

in eternity

in hell.

Or,

option number two,

a substitute

bears the wrath

of God

in our place.

A substitute

provided by God

himself,

Jesus Christ,

who bore the wrath

of God

on the cross

for every

single one

of his people.

See,

we need to remember

and rejoice

in what we've been saved

from.

That's reason to rejoice

but even more so,

even more so,

I would argue.

We need to rejoice

in what we've been saved to.

Our future hope

is this inexhaustible

fountain

of everlasting joy

for the Christian

that we draw from

and drink from

and rejoice in

now in the present

and into eternity

for the rest of eternity

in the presence of God.

You might imagine,

just to illustrate this,

a poor child

who was born

into an orphanage.

It's understaffed,

it's underfunded,

it's overwhelmed,

it's overlooked,

it's broken down.

He was born into it

so he doesn't really know

anything different.

He has no idea

what life would be like

in a family.

He gets a call

up to the office

and is told

to gather up his things

because he has been

adopted.

He knows what that word

means,

but he can't even

wrap his mind

around all that

that entails.

He knows what he's

being taken out of,

what he's being taken

from,

but his understanding

of what he's going to

is partial

at best,

limited

at best.

The words to describe it

are insufficient

at best,

but this child,

he's not just being adopted,

he's being adopted

by the king.

He's not just being brought

out of the orphanage,

he's being brought

into a castle,

and not just as an outsider,

but as a son.

Not just as a visitor,

but as one who will

one day inherit

the entire kingdom.

How could he possibly

begin to imagine

what that would be like?

You know,

sometimes that's how

it might be with us.

We know what we've

been taken out of,

we know our sin,

we know the judgment

that is deserved

for our sin,

we know we're taken out

of something terrible

and brought into

something unspeakably marvelous,

but it's so far beyond

our capacity

to understand

and describe

that words

are just insufficient.

There's no language

to help us understand

our hope,

and even what we know

to be true

sometimes just seems

too good

to be true.

Peter here,

in this chapter,

he tries as hard

as he can

to put into words

the glory

of what we have

to look forward to

in Christ.

He says there

in verse 3,

look there again,

he says,

we are born

to

a living

hope.

Because Christ,

Jesus,

is alive,

our hope

is alive.

Verse 4,

he says,

we are born

again

to

an inheritance.

As sons

and daughters

of the king

of all the universe,

as sons

and daughters

of God himself,

we now have

the hope,

the certain hope

of a future

inheritance.

And unlike

every treasure

in this present age,

this inheritance,

he says,

is imperishable,

undefiled,

and unfading.

What can you

describe

in this world

with those three words?

What treasure

can you imagine

that exists

here and now

that you've enjoyed,

that you hope

to enjoy one day

in your life,

that you can describe

with these three words?

Imperishable,

undefiled,

and unfading.

You can't do it.

If you won

the lottery tomorrow,

$300 billion

dropped in your

bank account,

guess what?

At some point,

either the money

would run out,

the money would perish,

or at some point,

guess what?

You'll perish,

and you won't be able

to spend it.

It'll be gone.

Its worth will be lost.

If someone far off

in your family

were to write you

into their will,

and you inherited

acres upon acres

upon acres

of land,

guess what?

It would grow weeds,

thorns,

and thistles.

It would be

an incredible blessing,

but imperfect.

It would be defiled

by sin.

If you were able

to purchase

whatever earthly treasure

you could set

your mind on,

that new vehicle,

that truck,

that boat,

that house,

whatever it might be,

your joy in it

would fade eventually,

wouldn't it?

And that item,

whatever it is,

would decay.

It would lose

its luster.

If you place

your pride

and your joy

in your own

physical beauty

or in the strength

of your physical body,

guess what?

One day,

it will fade.

Your body will break down

and your strength

will grow weak.

It will degenerate.

Every earthly treasure

is perishable.

It is defiled

and it fades.

And if our joy

is rooted here

in the present,

in these things

of this present age,

then our joy

will likewise perish.

Our joy

will fade.

Our joy

will be defiled.

We have a diminishing

rate of return

on the investment

of our joy

in things

of this present age.

But for the Christian,

for the Christian,

Peter says,

we rejoice

because our future

inheritance

is perfect.

It's perfect.

It cannot perish.

It cannot be defiled.

It cannot fade.

And so,

if our joy

is rooted there,

then our joy,

likewise,

cannot perish.

Cannot be defiled.

Cannot fade.

Fade.

All we have

to look forward

to is ever-increasing joy

every moment

of the rest

of eternity

if we are

in Christ.

I wonder how often

you meditate

on the glory

of your future hope.

How often

do you

let your future

hope in Christ

shape your daily

decisions

here and now?

How often

do you

let it

shape your thoughts

and shape

your emotions?

You know,

the constant refrain

of the New Testament

for believers

is over and over

and over again,

set your hope

there.

Set your joy

there.

Set your eyes

there.

Long for that

future inheritance.

We are waiting

for our future

hope to be

realized.

Christ.

Well,

you might ask,

what is our

future inheritance?

I don't think

it helps anybody

to speak of it

in general terms.

And again,

it's beyond our

mind's capacity

to fully grasp,

but we are given

some information

here on what

we're waiting for.

That's a big question,

but in short,

we are waiting

for God

to fulfill

all of His promises

to His people

in Christ.

What are we waiting

for?

We are waiting

for the fulfillment

of the promises

of God

towards us

in Christ.

So,

we are waiting

to inherit

the promised land.

We are waiting

to inherit

the promised land.

Not a patch of dirt

on the earth,

but the new heavens

and the new earth.

As Peter says

in 2 Peter 3,

according to His promises,

we are waiting

for a new heaven

and a new earth

where righteousness

dwells.

Imperishable,

undefiled,

unfading,

a land without

thorns and thistles,

a land without

the presence of death,

a land without

the curse of sin.

To enjoy

this perfect paradise,

however,

we need

to inherit

resurrected bodies.

We are waiting

for our future

glorified bodies.

This is another part

of our hope.

Bodies that are fit

for eternity

with God.

So,

we believe that

at the return

of Christ,

the bodies

of believers

will be remade

and glorified

and made fit

for eternity

in the presence

of God.

God.

As 1 Corinthians 15

tells us,

what is sown

is perishable,

what is raised

is imperishable.

It is sown

in dishonor,

it is raised

in glory,

it is sown

in weakness,

it is raised

in power,

it is sown

a natural body,

it is raised

a spiritual

body.

body.

These bodies

that we have

here and now

are marked

by sin

and death

and decay.

They break

down,

amen?

Amen?

But when Christ

returns,

we will be more

alive than we

have ever been.

John says

in 1 John

1 John 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3,

he says,

we are God's

children now

and what we

will be

has not yet

appeared,

but we know

that when

he appears

we shall be

like him

because we

will see him

as he is.

Another

part of our

hope,

we are waiting

to inherit

final salvation.

This is what

Peter says

in verse 5,

the salvation

that is ready

to be revealed

in the last

time.

Final salvation

from the presence

and the power

of sin.

Final deliverance,

final salvation

from every enemy.

Final salvation

from the worries

and the stress

of this life

and the final

realization

of our salvation

in Christ.

He will wipe

away every tear

from their eyes.

death shall

be no more.

Neither shall

there be mourning

nor crying

nor pain

anymore for the

former things

have passed

away.

Our final

salvation

is realized.

But church,

as wonderful,

as glorious,

as all of

these things

are,

they are

absolutely

worthless

apart from

the greatest

treasure

of our

inheritance,

which is God

himself.

God himself

is the hope

of every

Christian's heart

to be

fully

restored,

restored,

to right

relationship

with God

our

Father,

to be

welcomed

in to the

kingdom

as his

beloved

son,

his

beloved

daughter,

to be

welcomed in

to enjoy

the glory

of his

presence

for the

rest of

eternity,

to be shown

the immeasurable

riches of his

grace and

kindness toward

us in Christ

Jesus,

to spend

eternity

day after

day after

day,

plunging the

depths of

the wonders

of the

glory of

God,

marveling in

his presence.

That's the

hope of the

Christian.

Everything else

is just icing

on the cake.

That is the

hope that fuels

present joy.

As he says

in verse 8,

though you

have not

seen him,

you love him,

though you do

not now see

him,

you believe in

him and

rejoice,

with joy

that is

inexpressible

and filled

with glory.

Do you

love him

like this?

Do you

genuinely

know that

inexpressible

rejoicing

in your soul

at the thought

of the presence

of the glory

of God?

Peter reminds

us of this

future hope

because he

knows that

future hope

breeds present

joy.

joy.

But that

rejoicing

requires

something of

us,

doesn't it?

Present joy

requires

persevering

faith.

This is the

third and

final reason

to rejoice

this morning.

Third,

rejoice in

the gift

of faith

in Christ.

Ephesians 2.8

tells us

by grace

you are

saved

through

faith

and this

is not

your own

doing,

it is a

gift of

God.

You know,

this is what

the unbelieving

world finds

so hard to

understand

about us.

They just

can't wrap

their minds

around how

could we

possibly

have and

believe in

this unseen

future hope

with so much

confidence that

we're willing

to stake

our lives

on this

hope.

How could

we possibly

believe that

someone 2,000

years ago

got up from

the dead

and because

he rose from

the dead

we have this

new life,

new inheritance,

new joy,

new purpose,

everything is

based on that

and how could

we believe

that because

he lives

he offers

forgiveness

and salvation

and reconciliation

with God

that we have

this glorious

future to look

forward to

to?

The answer

is faith

and not

the empty

objectless

faith of

the world

but the

rock solid

faith,

the gift

of faith

in the

promises

of God

fulfilled

in Jesus

Christ.

How is it

that sinners

are brought

from spiritual

death to

spiritual life

born again

from hopelessness

to a living

hope?

The answer

is this

gift of

faith

in Christ.

How is it

that millions

of individuals

throughout the

world believe

in this

unseen

invisible

hope?

The answer

is this

gift

of faith.

Faith

is as

Hebrews

tells us

it's the

assurance

of things

hoped for

and the

conviction

of things

not seen.

You see

faith is

the anchor

of our

joy.

It doesn't

let us

get swept

away by

trials

or distractions

or lesser

joys.

It anchors

us to the

source of

everlasting

joy.

Faith is

the adhesive

that sticks

us so

closely to

Christ

and all

that he

shares with

his own

that as

hard as

the devil

might try

nothing

can separate

us from

the love

of God

in Christ

Jesus

our Lord.

Faith is

the rope

that comes

down out

of heaven

to wrap

us up

as we

cling to

it tightly

and are

brought

safely home

at last.

See the

link between

future hope

and present

joy is

trust.

It is

faith in

the promises

of God.

God has

a promise

here for

you to

be believed

for your

joy.

This promise

of a glorious

future

inheritance

unseen by

the human

eye but

kept in

heaven for

you.

How can

we be

certain that

it is

actually

there?

We trust

the word

of God

by faith.

And how

can we be

certain that

a ragtag

group of

sinners like

us will

make it

there to

enjoy that

future promised

inheritance?

Maybe this

is real,

maybe that

hope is

there,

but how

can sinners

like us

possibly have

any confidence

that we

will reach

it in the

end?

Verse 5

tells us,

look there,

that you

Christian by

God's power

are being

guarded

through

faith.

when I

go somewhere

out with

my boys

and we

get ready

to walk

in the

parking lot,

nobody knows

how to

drive,

y'all know

that,

dangers are

everywhere.

And they

see some

of the dangers,

but I see

all of them,

okay?

I'm aware

of much

more than

they are,

and so I

tell them,

boys,

grab my

hand,

grab my

hand,

and they

do,

and they

exercise

trust in

me by

grabbing

my hand,

and they

hold it

willingly,

they grip

it,

their hand

grips around

mine,

but their

safety

ultimately

is not

in their

gripping

me.

Their

safety

is in

me

gripping

them.

And even

if they

were to

loosen

their grip

for a

moment,

guess what?

Mine only

gets tighter.

I hold

it firm,

even if

they yank

and try

to get

away,

my

children

make it

safely

into that

grocery

store,

I make

sure of

it,

even if

I have

to pull

them with

all my

might.

Isn't

this how

God

carries

us

through

trials,

temptations,

sufferings,

demands,

worries,

anxieties

of this

life?

He

guards

us

through

His

gift

to us

of faith

as we

exercise

trust in

Him.

He's

guarding

and

clinging

to us

through

faith.

We

believe,

but the

believing

is from

Him.

We

trust,

but the

trusting

is from

Him.

We cling

to Him,

but our

confidence

that we

will make

it to

the end

is that

by His

mercy,

He clings

to us

and will

carry us

safely

home.

Church,

this is

unshakable

power.

This is

the

stabilizing

force for

Christian

joy in

any

circumstance.

You look

here to

verse 6,

it says,

in this

hope,

you rejoice

though now

for a little

while,

if necessary,

you have

been grieved

by various

trials,

so that,

here's the

point,

the tested

genuineness

of your

faith,

more precious

than gold

that perishes

though it is

tested by

fire,

may be

found to

result in

praise and

glory and

honor at

the revelation

of Jesus

Christ.

Do not

listen to

anyone who

would tell

you,

if you just

have enough

faith,

nothing bad

will ever

happen to

you.

If you

just had

enough

faith,

if your

faith were

strong enough,

you would

not get

sick,

you would

not be

poor,

you would

not suffer,

you would

not be

tempted,

you would

not be

tried,

but listen

to God's

word here

in 1 Peter

that says,

if you

have the

gift of

genuine

faith,

nothing

bad can

ever conquer

you.

Nothing

bad can

ever,

even in

grief,

rob you

of your

eternal

joy in

Christ

Jesus.

All it

can do

is prove

the power

of God's

work in

you.

All it

can do

is lead

to the

praise and

glory and

honor of

Christ our

King as

you obtain

the outcome

of your

faith,

tested the

salvation of

your soul.

God's

love.

There's a

song that I

love by the

Gettys,

it's called

When Trials

Come.

When trials

come, no

longer fear,

for in our

pain God

draws near.

To fire a

faith worth

more than

gold, and

there his

faithfulness is

told, and

there his

faithfulness is

told.

When I am

weary with the

cost, I see the

triumph of the

cross, so in

its shadow I

shall run till

you complete the

work begun.

Till you

complete the

work begun.

One day all

things will be

made new.

I'll see the

hope you've

called me to,

and in your

kingdom paved

with gold, I'll

praise your

faithfulness of

old.

I'll praise your

faithfulness of

old.

Is this your

hope?

Is this the

hope that you

have?

Is this the

source of your

joy?

I know that

there may be

some in here

who are

hearing this

and are saying

inside your

own mind, I

just don't have

that sort of

joy.

I just don't

enjoy God

like that, and

if that's you,

you might need

to be born

again.

And it may

be that God

is even now

in hearing this

message, convicting

you of your

need for him,

convicting you of

your lack of

joy in him,

and if that's

you, I'd

invite you to

simply pray

where you are

that the Lord

would give you

the gift of

faith in

Christ Jesus,

that he would

give you the

assurance of

things hoped

for.

And it may be

that you do

know the Lord,

but just want

to grow in

enjoying him

more.

That should,

church, that

should be all

of our desire.

would you

pray that the

Lord would

remind you of

the hope he's

given you in

Christ?

Not just now as

we gather, but

Monday morning.

Would he remind

you of the hope

that you have,

remind you of

the new life that

you've been given,

remind you,

strengthen this

gift of faith

in Christ?

One day all

things will be

made new.

We'll see the

hope he's

called us to.

Church, we have

so much to

look forward

to, so much

to rejoice in.

That joy doesn't

have to be

entirely future.

We can live

in rejoicing

in the glory

of God

right now.

And as we

do so, we

will magnify

the glory

of God.

Would you

pray with me?

Lord, we

thank you

and we praise

you.

Blessed be

your name

for the hope

that you've

given us

in Christ,

for the new

life that you've

given us in

Christ, for the

gift of faith

that you've

given us, that

carries us

through.

And Lord, we

pray that you

would increase

our joy and

in doing so

that you would

increase glory

to your name.

We pray this

in Christ's name.

Amen.

Amen.