Let Your Heart Rejoice at Christ’s Promises

John chapter 16.

John 16 · chapter mention

Last week we did about the first half, so 1 through 15.

Today's sermon text begins with verse 16.

Okay, I think all of our kids are assigned in, so I'll pray for you,

and then we'll send you on.

Thank you for the reminder.

All right, let's pray.

Father, thank you for these dear children.

We pray that you please go with them today.

I thank you for James and Michelle and their preparation, Lord.

We pray that you will speak to our children through the power of your word

by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Lord, we pray that you will give them hearts to love you.

We pray that you will give them minds to understand you,

and that with their eyes of faith they can see Jesus Christ in his glory.

Please go with these dear children today, Lord. Amen.

All right.

So we're in John chapter 16, and we'll begin reading today at verse 16

John 16 · chapter mention

until the end of the chapter.

As I read this, remember, this is God's inspired, inerrant, infallible,

clear, and sufficient word.

It's God's very own word for you, his people.

If you receive it that way, then after I'm done reading,

I'll say this is the word of the Lord, and we'll respond.

Thanks be to God.

John chapter 16, beginning at verse 16.

John 16 · chapter mention

Jesus says to his disciples,

A little while, and you will see me no longer.

And again a little while, and you will see me.

So some of his disciples said to one another,

What is this that he says to us?

A little while, and you will not see me.

And again a little while, and you will see me.

And because I am going to the Father.

And so they were saying, What does he mean by a little while?

We do not know what he is talking about.

Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them,

Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant?

And by saying a little while, and you will not see me.

And again a little while, you will see me.

Truly, truly, I say to you,

You will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.

You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.

When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come.

But when she has delivered the baby,

she no longer remembers the anguish for joy

that a human being has been born into the world.

So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again.

And your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

In that day you will ask nothing of me.

Truly, truly, I say to you,

Whatever you ask of the Father in my name,

he will give it to you.

Until now you have asked nothing in my name.

Ask, and you will receive,

that your joy may be full.

I have said these things to you in figures of speech.

The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech,

but will tell you plainly about the Father.

In that day you will ask in my name,

and I will say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf,

for the Father himself loves you,

because you have loved me,

and have believed that I came from the Father.

I came from the Father,

and I have come into the world,

and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.

His disciples said,

Ah, now you are speaking plainly to us,

not using figurative speech.

Now we know that you know all things,

and do not need anyone to question you.

This is why we believe that you came from God.

Jesus answered them,

Do you now believe?

Behold, the hour is coming.

Indeed, it has come,

when you will be scattered,

each to his own home,

and will leave me alone.

Yet I am not alone,

for the Father is with me.

I have said these things to you,

that in me you may have peace.

In the world you will have tribulation,

but take heart,

I have overcome the world.

And this is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Thanks be to God indeed.

You may be seated.

The Bible tells us that

the grass withers and the flower fades,

but the word of the Lord endures forever.

Let's pray.

Father, your word is waiting,

because your word carries your glory.

We need your Holy Spirit

to minister your word to us, Lord.

On our own, we don't understand.

We don't understand your glory.

We're like the disciples, Lord.

Left to ourselves, we would be scattered.

Apart from you, we could do nothing.

But we praise you, Lord,

that you have revealed yourself to us

through all of Scripture,

through Jesus Christ,

and you've opened our eyes of faith

by the power of the Holy Spirit

to behold God.

We pray that you will do just that this morning, Lord,

in a powerful way.

We pray, Lord, that your word

will minister to each soul

that you brought here this morning

by your providence,

that you will have your way in our lives,

we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

my prayer for you this week

has simply been that

you would let your heart

truly rejoice

in the promises of Jesus Christ.

Let your heart rejoice

at the promises of Christ.

In this passage,

we have the final words of Jesus

before he marches to the cross.

John 17,

he's not addressing his disciples any longer,

he's praying.

He's praying that the Father will help him.

And so these are the final words.

And before he finishes his work on the cross,

before he takes on the glorified,

resurrected body,

this is his last goodbye.

A final goodbye

keeps a room in the heart forever,

doesn't it?

You have detailed memories

of a last goodbye you've had to say.

And in his last words to his disciples,

what's on the heart of Jesus is the Father.

He knows they will be scattered.

And yet,

he gives them these glorious promises

because he knows

the love of the Father.

This theme reminds me of

a missionary I read about

in the 1800s

named John Payton.

He was born in Scotland,

and he heard of Scottish explorers

discovering these islands

off the coast of New Zealand

and Australia.

Stories came back

of extreme violence and danger,

men who had been cannibalized

and offered as sacrifices.

And the Lord stirred in the heart

of this young man

to go as a missionary

for 40 years

to this pagan people group.

He wrote years later

as an old man

in his autobiography

of that last goodbye

he had to say

to his Christian father.

His father in Scotland

loved the Lord,

and he's sending off

his young son now to college.

They had to walk

for about 40 miles together

to the train stop.

Hear these words

from his autobiography.

For the last half mile

we walked on together

in almost unbroken silence.

His tears,

that's John referring

to his dad,

his tears fell fast

when our eyes met.

His lips kept moving

in silent prayers for me,

my father,

as was often his custom,

hat in hand.

See, he would take

his hat off to pray.

We halted on reaching

the appointed parting place,

and he grasped my hand

firmly for a moment

in silence.

And then he said solemnly,

God bless you,

my son.

Why are goodbyes so hard?

Especially if you know

it's your final goodbye.

The senses are heightened.

You want to capture

every detail of that moment.

A final goodbye

keeps a room

in the heart forever.

And so here we have

in our epistle

this letter from John

retelling these moments

as an old man now

writing this

to comfort the churches.

Think of the love of Christ

in these final words

to his disciples.

In verse 22,

Jesus says,

Disciples,

you have sorrow now,

but your hearts

will rejoice.

rejoice.

Jesus says,

Disciples,

I'm going away,

but I will see you again,

and no one

will take your joy

from you.

Just as you would

hold on to the memories

of a final goodbye

and find comfort

in visiting those memories,

my encouragement

to you today

is to hold on

to these promises,

these final words

of Jesus Christ.

Hear the love

from the Father

flowing through him

to you today.

Let your heart

rejoice

at Christ's promises.

The first one is this.

Christ promises

that his disciples

will see him.

Christ promises

that you,

his disciple,

will see Jesus.

Let your heart

rejoice at that.

Look at verse 16.

Jesus tells his disciples,

a little while,

and you will see me

no longer,

and again a little while,

and you will see me.

It's not the first time

Jesus gave this message.

Earlier in John chapter 7,

John 7:20

verse 20,

do you remember that scene

where it's the treasury,

where those horn shapes,

where people put money in,

and right across that hallway,

the Pharisees could hear him

preaching and teaching,

and what was it

that Jesus said?

He said,

I am going away.

Where I am going,

you cannot come.

You will seek me,

but will not find me.

And then Jesus proclaimed,

so all in the temple

would hear,

unless you believe

that I am he,

you will die

in your sins.

That's what he proclaimed

in the temple

for all the world

to hear.

Unless you believe,

you will die

in your sins.

But now to his disciples,

even though they will

be scattered,

and without the Holy Spirit,

they would never

follow Christ loyally.

Jesus says,

you will see me.

Pastor John Gill commented,

nothing touches believers

to the quick

and gives them

more uneasiness

than when Christ

is out of sight.

There is none like him

in their esteem

in heaven and on earth.

Oh, disciples

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

we sing this,

turn your eyes

upon Jesus.

Turn your eyes

to the morning

and see Christ

the lion awake.

What a glorious dawn.

Fear of death

is gone.

Oh, Jesus,

we turn our eyes

to you

because there's not

a more terrible thought

than to never

see Jesus again.

And now we see him

with eyes of faith.

One day he promises,

my disciples,

you will see me.

Let that stir

your heart with joy.

See, this is the promise

of God to everyone

who has ever believed

through all of human history.

One of the most ancient books

of the whole Bible

is Job.

And this was the promise

God gave Job.

In Job 19.25,

he could pray,

I know that my Redeemer lives

and at the last

he will stand

upon the earth.

And after my skin

has been thus destroyed,

yet in my flesh

I will see God.

That was the hope

that moved Job

to rejoicing

when everything around him

was perishing away.

Let your heart rejoice

at Christ's promises today.

And Christ promises,

believer,

that his disciples

will see him.

Christ also promises

that he will turn

your sorrow

into joy.

Jesus Christ will turn

your sorrow

into joy.

That's what he promises

in verse 20.

Look at that.

In verse 20,

Jesus says,

Amen,

Amen,

or truly,

truly,

I say to you,

you will weep

and lament

while the world rejoices.

You will be sorrowful,

but listen to this promise.

Your sorrow

will turn

into joy.

See,

the disciples,

they're confused

and they do feel

this deep sorrow.

They feel the weightiness

of this moment

and their deep sorrow

gets deeper.

We're reminded again

of that scene

in Narnia

when those wicked beasts

are mocking

and jeering

and cheering

as Aslan,

the great mighty lion,

marches to the stone table

of his death.

The disciples

are going to see

that happen

to their Lord.

They will see Jesus

be bound up,

falsely accused,

mocked,

scourged.

They will see

the innocent,

righteous man

bleeding for them,

then being spat upon

and publicly humiliated.

the Lord Jesus Christ,

as someone put it,

the one on whom

their souls hope,

the one who their hearts

love,

the one who is

the very life

of their souls.

His gracious presence

is the only source

of life to disciples.

What this means is

as they watch Jesus

be carried away

to his death,

it means death

for them.

all of their hopes,

all of their peace

is being crushed.

And now Jesus promises

and the Spirit

reminds them

the very thing

that caused you

the deepest sorrow,

the deepest anguish

you will feel,

that very thing

will become

the source

and the foundation

of your joy.

joy.

Jesus says,

your sorrow

will turn

into joy.

What is it

that becomes joy?

It's that very thing,

it's the sorrow.

And the word there,

the verb,

to turn into,

it means to generate,

to give birth,

to be made into.

And the tense

is passive.

Like a mother

giving birth,

the labor pains,

your anguish

is intense,

but Jesus says

that same sorrow,

that same source

of pain,

it will pass quickly.

Your very suffering

will give birth

to rejoicing.

You don't need

to go out

and work for this,

disciples,

this will happen

to you.

I will work this out

in your life.

Think of that mother.

Many here

have gone through this.

There's the pain

in the back,

the changes to the body,

the weight

in the stomach

carrying a child,

the fear,

the uncertainty.

The Lord Jesus

was carrying

a weight here.

He was carrying

a spiritual heaviness.

He was marching

to suffer.

But He did it

for the joy

set before Him.

Just like a mother

joyfully endures

all of that

in her own body.

That's what Jesus

was enduring spiritually.

He was looking forward

to that joy

this would produce

in His disciples.

There's no other way

for them to have joy

than for Christ

to carry that load

for them.

The disciples

could see this

happen before their eyes

and the Spirit

teaching them

what this means.

And for us,

looking back

on that work

of Christ

on our behalf,

we can sing

like the hymn

says so well.

When Satan

tempts me

to despair

and tells me

of the guilt

within,

upward I look

and see Him

there

who made an end

to all

my sin.

It's because

the sinless Savior

died.

My sinful soul

is counted free

for God

the just

has satisfied

to look on

Him

and pardon me.

Praise God

for His work.

I don't know

the details

of what each one

of you is carrying

this morning,

but if you picture

your sorrow

like heavy clay

packed inside

of a big backpack

you're carrying

the sorrow around.

The promise

that Jesus gives here

is that He will

turn that sorrow

on your back,

on your shoulders.

He will turn that

into joy.

It's like

that heaviness

on your load,

He's going to make

that very thing

become feathery wings.

You're going to

soar with Him.

He doesn't waste

your pain,

He transforms it.

That's what He's

telling them.

How does He do this?

How do I get that?

How do I get out

of this slump

and this anguish

and sorrow

and experience that?

It's on our knees

with our Bible open.

The Holy Spirit

ministers the Word

of God to us.

The thing is,

our flesh,

our remaining sin in us,

we don't want to get

on our knees

with our Bible open.

We usually don't

choose that,

do we?

That's why our very sorrow,

the very thing

that we hate,

that feels like

this heavy anguish,

that is what puts us

on our knees

before the Lord.

That's why J.C. Ryle

could say,

no commentary

opens up the Bible

so much as sickness

and sorrow.

Praise God

for the sorrow

if it drives you down

before the cross

of Jesus

to receive

from Him again.

Let your heart rejoice

at this promise.

He will turn

your sorrow

into joy.

Christ also promises

that He will return

to reveal

the Father.

He promises

that He will return

to reveal

the Father

to you.

He promises this

in verses 22

and 25.

Look at 22.

Jesus says

to the disciples,

so also,

you have sorrow now,

but I will see you again.

And your hearts

will rejoice

and no one

can take your joy

from you.

He says,

when you see me,

your hearts

will rejoice.

Why is it that

no one can take

your joy from you?

It's because

the source of your joy

is Jesus Christ.

And no one can take

you from Jesus Christ.

Look at what He says

in verse 25.

He says,

the hour is coming

when I will tell you

plainly

about the Father.

Disciple,

you're going to see

Jesus

and you will rejoice.

And Jesus says,

it doesn't stop

with me.

Look at my Father.

I reveal

the love of God

Himself

to you,

disciple.

We sing,

come behold

this wondrous mystery.

It was a mystery

to the disciples.

They don't understand

and Christ sees them

trying to figure it out

and even when

He tells them this,

they think they get it,

they act like they do,

and He says,

you're going to be scattered.

It's a wondrous mystery.

And if God has opened

your eyes to behold

the gospel,

let that be assurance

for you.

You would not be able

to believe the gospel

unless the Holy Spirit

had regenerated you.

That's the source

of your assurance.

I see this wondrous

mystery of Christ.

I can sing like the hymn,

come behold

the wondrous mystery.

See the price

of our redemption.

See the Father's plan

unfold,

bringing many sons

to glory,

grace unmeasured,

love untold.

Jesus says,

your hearts

will rejoice

in verse 22.

Your hearts

will rejoice.

The word rejoice

is used,

it's to hail

someone in greeting.

It's at the sight

of me,

Jesus says.

Your heart

will signal to you

to be glad

and to delight in me.

This promise

is not just

for the disciples

referring to

his resurrection

along with 500

other witnesses.

They see

the risen Christ.

They see him

in his glorified body.

But it doesn't

stop with them.

You will see

Jesus.

You will see

Jesus.

He is coming again.

And he will show you

the Father.

Thomas Aquinas,

a great synthesizer

of the early church

all the way up

right before the Reformation.

He said,

there is a desire

in the human soul

to know God.

And that desire

to know God

can only be satisfied

by the fullness

of the beatific vision.

The beatific vision,

it's a theological term

for what mere mortals

like us

will get to experience

one day

in glory.

Not by faith,

but by sight

to behold God

and to see

his glory.

That's what Jesus

is so excited

for his disciples

to behold

and to know.

He knows the glory

of his Father.

They're going to scatter,

but his Father

is with him.

The Father loves him.

The Father loves

those he has given

to him.

And he can't wait

for them

to behold

the glory

of his Father.

That's why

he took on flesh.

This is his mission.

One day,

don't you look forward

to seeing the face

of Christ?

To seeing God

in all of his glory?

He promises

this will happen.

In 1 Corinthians 13,

he says,

you will see God

face to face.

Not just now

like through a dim glass.

You will see God

face to face.

face.

Psalm 17,

Psalms 17:15

verse 15,

looks forward

to that promise.

I shall be satisfied

when I awaken

thy likeness.

See, I go to bed,

but when I awake,

I die,

my body is buried,

but my soul

is alive.

And I will see

thy likeness.

I shall behold

thy face

in righteousness.

Let your heart

rejoice

rejoice

at the promises

of Christ.

Psalm 147

was put to music,

to lyric,

and it goes like this.

Millions of years

my wondering eyes

shall o'er

thy beauties rove

in endless ages

I'll adore

the glories

of thy love.

Oh, we long

for that day.

Christ promises

he will return

to reveal

the Father

to you,

disciple.

Christ promises

that the Father

himself

loves you.

The Father

himself

loves you.

That's what

Christ promises

to you.

Maybe there are

some here today

that simple truth,

you need to not

just hear it

and understand

in your mind

for someone else.

You need to let

your heart rejoice

at those words

from Jesus.

Jesus.

In verse 26,

look at what

he says.

In that day

you will ask

in my name

and I do not

say that you

will ask

the Father,

that I will ask

a Father

on your behalf.

Look at what

he says

in verse 27.

The Father

himself

loves

you.

The Father

himself

loves

you

because

you have

loved me

and believe

that I

came from

God.

Jesus says,

I will return

for you.

I will see

you again,

disciples.

I am the

source of

your joy

and none

can take

me away

from you.

From that

day on,

I will be

with you,

my people,

by the power

of the Holy

Spirit.

You will

abide in me

and you

will be

able to

approach

the Father

directly

in my

name.

No one

had ever

prayed in

Jesus'

name,

amen,

before.

But he

teaches us

to pray

directly to

his Father.

Why?

Because the

Father himself

loves you.

Now you

don't do it

by your own

merits.

You pray

in the

name of

Jesus Christ.

But he

wants you

to have

full access

to the

Father

for yourself.

he wants

you to

see the

Father's

love for

you.

He wants

you to

experience

the

Father's

true love

for you.

The

Father

himself

loves

you.

If you

love me

and receive

me as

a gift

from the

Father

to save

you,

you can

know with

assurance

that you

belong to

my Father.

You can

pray our

Father with

me.

See how

patient the

Father is?

We sing

of his

patience.

What patience

would wait

as we

constantly

roam.

What

Father so

tender is

calling us

home.

He welcomes

the weakest,

the vilest,

the poor.

Our sins,

they are

many.

His mercy

is more.

more.

That's

what Christ

wants you

to know

and to

trust.

It's that

same love

in which the

Father has

sent his

Son to

save you.

That's the

love of the

Father through

Jesus Christ

for you who

believe today.

God

will

take you

back to

that scene

of the

Father walking

with his

son in

Scotland,

sending him

off to

go to

mission

school.

He wrote

in his

autobiography,

unable to

say more,

my father

kept praying

for me as

I walked.

For one

final time,

we embraced

and then I

parted.

I ran

off as fast

as I could

and went

about to

turn a

corner in

the road

where we

would lose

sight of

each other.

I looked

back one

last time

and saw

him standing

there with

his head

still uncovered

where I

had left

him,

gazing

after me.

But my

heart was

too full

and sore

to carry

me further

so I

darted

into the

side of

the road

and wept

for a

time.

I caught

a glimpse

of my

father

climbing the

dike

and looking

out for

me.

He did

not see

me and

after he

gazed

eagerly in

my direction

for a

while he

got down

and he

set his

face toward

home and

began to

return,

his head

still uncovered

and his

heart I

felt for

sure still

rising in

prayers for

me.

I'm so

moved by

that because

I believe

that's a

picture of

the loving

father and

his son

Jesus Christ

and where

is this

young man

on a

mission going?

he's going

to the

most dangerous

people he

had ever

heard of.

Why?

Because of

the love

of God

through his

father,

through him

for the

world.

The father

himself loves

you.

Let your

heart rejoice

at Christ's

promises.

Christ promises

that he

has overcome

the world.

Christ promises

that he

has overcome

the world.

Look at

verse 33,

the last

verse of

our sermon

text.

Jesus tells

the disciples,

I have said

these things

to you that

in me you

may have

peace.

In this

world you

will have

tribulation.

Take

heart.

I have

overcome

the world.

I have

overcome the

world.

Christ

overcame

the world

through his

submission.

Christ

conquered

through

sacrifice.

John

Calvin's

commentary

was helpful.

He said,

you will

soon see

me,

disciples,

for my

death is

not a

destruction

to separate

me from

you.

My death

and resurrection

are the

necessary

passage

into the

heavenly

glory

from which

my divine

power

will diffuse

itself

to you.

This

is why

you can

have peace

in this

world.

Jesus

says,

now you

have

tribulation.

Do you

have

tribulation

now?

It's

okay to

say amen

to that.

Soon

you will

have peace.

Jesus

promises.

Now

you have

a godly

grief.

Do you

feel that?

soon

you have

relief.

If the

Lord causes

you to

repent

today,

it's

because

soon

your

full

salvation

will be

made

real.

2 Corinthians

7.10

says,

godly grief

produces a

repentance

that leads

to salvation.

And blessed

are those

who mourn,

Jesus preached,

for they

shall be

comforted.

that's

how Christ

conquered

the world.

He has

overcome

the world.

The hymn

says it

so well.

He the

champion

in the

battle.

He can

say,

where,

oh death,

is now

thy sting?

In

our place

he bled

and conquered.

Crown

him Lord

of majesty.

His

shall be

the throne

forever

and we

shall

heir his

people be.

Isaiah

33.17

promises,

your eyes

will behold

the king

in his

beauty

and his

people will

see a

land that

stretches

afar.

Christ

promises that

he has

overcome

the world.

He is

that stone

cut

not by

human hands

that has

established

the kingdom

that the

mountain

rises up

and it

fills

the earth

and his

kingdom

has

dominion

already

from heaven.

One day

his

dominion,

the true

kingdom

of heaven

will

descend

and will

have

the new

heavens

and the

new

earth.

Keep

your eyes

set

on that

glorious

day.

Love

for Christ

is the

fuel

of global

missions.

That's my

purpose in

bringing in

John

Payton.

I want

to make

sure that

we understand

why we're

having a

focus next

week from

one of

our

missionaries

on every

tribe,

people,

and tongue.

It's because

it's this

love for

Christ that

is the

only fuel

for global

missions.

If you

see Christ

in his

glory,

you believe

his spiritual

kingdom is

real now,

then you

join him

in praying

for his

love and

his kingdom

to go

as far

as the

eye can

imagine.

In his

autobiography,

John

Payton

reflects on

times where

their dad

would gather

the family

around by

the fire

and they

would get

down and

pray.

He described

his father's

discipling him

as a young

boy that way.

He says,

how much my

father's prayers

impressed on

me as a

child,

I can never

explain,

nor could any

stranger

understand.

When on

his knees

and all of

us kneeling

around him

in family

worship,

he poured

out his

soul,

his whole

soul with

tears for

the conversion

of the lost

nations of

the world

to serve

Jesus.

And we

all felt

as if in

the presence

of the

living Savior

and learned

to know

and love

Jesus Christ

as our

divine

friend.

When we

pray for

God's kingdom

to come

and his

will to be

done,

the father

is so

pleased by

that,

that his

spirit draws

you into

the very

presence

of Jesus

from his

throne

and praying

that his

kingdom will

go forth

till every

nation

hears.

This is only

possible because

of this

promise.

Jesus says,

I have

overcome

the world.

Because Jesus

overcame the

world,

his disciples

do have

peace

inside of

that tribulation.

salvation.

Well,

once John

Payton

got to

those

islands,

it was

described as

a pagan

worship

enslaved to

really

worshiping

demons.

The locals

worshipped and

were knowingly

enslaved to

a, quote,

spirit of

evil on

these islands.

They were

trapped as a

society in a

cycle of

sacrifice to

an invisible

world channeled

through idols

made of

stone.

The culture

had valued

deception and

taboos and

practiced arson,

that's setting

things on fire

on purpose,

witchcraft,

tribal wars,

which perpetuate

the cycle of

revenge.

And when they

would capture

their enemies,

they would

practice ritual

human sacrifice

followed by

cannibalism.

When he got

to this

island, the

Lord's gospel

went forth

and many

believed a

church was

eventually planted

on a

neighboring

island and

that they

came back as

missionaries to

this most

violent island.

And as the

Lord brought

sons and

daughters into

the kingdom,

the persecution

against the

church got

even stronger.

John Payton

had to say

goodbye to

one of his

early converts.

words, a

final goodbye

keeps a room

in your heart

forever.

And he would

never forget

that final

goodbye to

this first

Christian

convert who

had to give

up their

life.

He wrote in

his autobiography

that the first

martyr was a

native who

with his dying

breath at the

hands of these

persecutors echoed

the words of

Jesus Christ

himself.

For the sake

of Jesus,

forgive them

for they know

not what they

are doing.

Take not away

Lord, thy

worship from

this dark

island.

Because Christ

overcame the

world, his

disciples have

peace in the

midst of

tribulation.

Christ promises

to you,

disciple, he

has overcome

the world.

Let your

heart rejoice

at Christ's

promises today.

Let's pray.

From Romans

8.

Oh Lord, we

know that 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,

we groan

inwardly as

we wait eagerly

for adoption

as sons,

the redemption

of our bodies.

2 Corinthians 5.

So we are

always of good

courage.

We know that

while we are

at home in the

body, we are

away from the

Lord.

For we walk

by faith,

not by sight.

Yes, we are

of good courage

and we would

rather be away

from the body.

And at home

with you,

Lord.

Yet as long

as you have

us here,

Father,

to live as

Christ,

please come

quickly,

Lord Jesus,

and help us

to trust in

you,

stir our hearts

up with hope

and a deep

rejoicing in

the midst of

tribulation.

We pray for

your glory in

our lives,

in the life of

this church.

We pray this

in Jesus'

name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.