Micah 3

Okay, do sit down and turn to Micah chapter 3.

Micah 3 · chapter mention

Micah chapter 3.

Micah 3 · chapter mention

And I want to preach it in a slightly different way than I'd normally preach it.

! I think you read chapter 3, it's pretty depressing.

Pretty discouraging.

Very often it's preached, this is what the leaders were like in Micah's day,

this is what the leaders are like today, this is where the state we're in.

But I don't think you need that tonight, I certainly don't.

And so I'm going to start with a quote from the Westminster Confession of Faith.

You should have had this little sheet, which has the same thing on both sides.

Yeah, you'll see that, alright, just to help you.

Alright, here we go.

So, Westminster Confession of Faith, which is a summary of what we believe it's our doctrinal basis,

let me read it to you.

In his eternal purpose, it pleased God to choose and ordain the Lord Jesus Christ.

His only begotten Son, to be the mediator between God and man.

Jesus is the prophet, priest and king, the head and saviour of his church,

the heir of all things and the judge of the world.

Judge of the world.

From all eternity, God gave him, that's the Lord Jesus, a people to be his seed and to be in time redeemed,

called, justified, sanctified and glorified by him.

So, in eternity, God the Father appointed God the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to this threefold office.

And then as we read the Old Testament, we'll see that that threefold office, prophet, priest and king,

unfolded and revealed.

So, Adam, do you remember him?

He was the first man, wasn't he?

He is prophet, priest and king.

He's the only person in history to hold all three offices.

But we know, don't we, Adam failed.

He failed in the garden.

And Adam lost his God-given role and lost his calling.

And so, after the fall, as you go through the Old Testament,

no one person held all three offices.

There was a number of faithful saints that held some of them.

So, Moses, he's a king of sorts, isn't he?

As you read the story of Exodus, which you know,

Moses did lots of kingly things.

Lots of things a king would perform.

But he functioned more as a prophet.

He spoke God's words to Pharaoh.

He was a mouthpiece for the people.

Aaron, Moses' brother-in-law, well, he was a priest, wasn't he?

He was a priest for the people of God.

He was the people's representative with God.

He spoke to God on behalf of the people.

And so he held the office of priests.

King David.

He was chiefly a king, wasn't he?

He ruled over Israel.

But we also know David was a bit of a prophet, wasn't he?

The Psalms.

He spoke God's word, proclaimed it.

But there was no one person that was prophet, priest, and king until the Lord Jesus Christ.

In Israel's history, you can see some faithful sketches of what this prophet and priest and king was to be like.

But in Micah chapter 3, as we read it, did you notice?

Micah 3 · chapter mention

The leaders, the family, the leaders of the families, the rulers, the elders who exercised God's rule,

that kingly function,

instead of pointing forward to the Lord Jesus Christ,

these rulers, these kings,

were engrossed in the worst kind of selfishness.

The rulers in Micah chapter 3,

Micah 3 · chapter mention

they engaged in

the kind of

abusing and feeding off

the people.

Instead of

sacrificially loving the people,

they abused them to serve their own wicked

ends and schemes.

And so, what I want us to look at

is really

the prophet, priest, and kingly

aspects of Micah chapter 3.

Micah 3 · chapter mention

And so, I'm starting to think of an illustration.

And the only illustration I can come up with,

you can come up with a better one,

is a photo negative.

Do you remember photo negatives?

You young people and you kids,

you'll have to Google it.

Maybe they can explain it.

But it used to be,

you'd take a photo,

and

you'd have to wind it on,

and then you would take the film out,

and you would go to the chemist,

and you would hand it over to the chemist,

and about a week later,

you would go back to the chemist,

and they would hand you

a packet of photos.

And in the,

and that little packet,

there would be all your photographs,

but they'd also be negatives.

And the negatives were like the opposite,

weren't they?

So you'd hold them up to the light,

and you could see your photo,

but everything was the wrong way around.

It was like inverse.

And so,

if you had somebody with black hair,

in the negative,

it was white hair.

And all the time,

it's kind of the wrong way around.

And there was negatives.

You'd get your pictures,

but you'd get the inverse of the pictures.

Light was dark,

and dark was light.

Light.

And so when they developed those photographs

from that little bit of film,

you would get the positive of the negative.

Okay.

If you're under 30,

you don't understand that illustration,

that's all right, okay?

And if you're under 30,

you're probably bored by it.

Over 30.

But what Micah 3 is,

is it's the negative image

of the person and work of Christ.

I don't know whether you picked it up,

but when you read Micah 3,

everything is evil.

Everything you see is sinful.

But what wonderfully happens

is when you come to the Lord Jesus Christ,

you see the opposite.

You see their sin,

but you see his holiness.

You see their lack of judgment,

but you see his righteousness.

You see their pride,

but you see his humble submission.

So first of all, kings.

The kings.

Remember last week,

we saw the prophet's words of judgment.

He spoke judgment, didn't he, Micah,

so harshly to those who stole

the possession of the land from his people.

They were greedy.

They idolatrously pursued wealth at any cost.

And Micah continues,

but in verse 1 of chapter 3,

can you see it?

He speaks to the heads of Jacob,

to the rulers of the house of Israel.

And he's got them in his sights,

in his crosshairs.

He's dealing with Israel's leaders,

Israel's kingly figures.

And so what were Israel's leaders to be like?

Leaders in the people of God

were to judge with equity.

They were to be righteous and upright.

They were to be fair.

And so in Exodus 18,

you read about Moses' instruction to the people

about how rulers were to conduct themselves.

You are a chosen race,

one Peter tells us.

A royal priesthood.

Holy nation.

A people for his possession.

That's the fulfillment of what Israel's leaders were to be.

They were meant to be upright.

They were supposed to fear God

and hate corruption

and look negatively upon bribes.

But Micah condemned Israel's rulers

because, verse 2,

ultimately they abused their authority.

Look at verse 2.

You who hate the good

and love the evil.

Can you see it?

The rulers were acting, weren't they?

In exactly the opposite way

they were supposed to act.

And the prophet describes them.

I don't know whether he picked it up

in the most gruesome of terms.

He essentially likens them to cannibals.

Look at the second half of verse 2.

You tear the skin from off my people.

It's a horrible image, isn't it?

And their flesh from off their bones.

You eat the flesh of my people

and you flay the skin from them.

That's metaphoric language, I think.

But it's written in such a way

that you notice the brutality

and the wickedness of these rulers.

In other words,

what you have in chapter 2

is wicked developers

stealing the land of the inheritance.

Stealing their possessions.

And so in chapter 2

the people are being badly treated.

They're being ripped off.

And so I suspect what you have is

these people would go to their leaders.

They'd go to court.

And they would say,

this man has wickedly stolen

my inheritance in the land.

And rather than ruling

in accordance with justice

and fairness and truth,

the wicked rulers

would consume the people.

And they would find that

when they went to court,

they would find that the judges

were in cahoots

with the wicked land thieves.

And they would take bribes.

The kind of language,

you give me a cut of the land

and I will rule in your favor.

And so the leaders,

rather than showing love

and care for the people,

instead of presenting them

with a living reflection

of the upright God,

they became essentially

the incarnation of evil.

So think for example

about King Ahab and Jezebel.

Do you remember them?

And when Ahab wanted to buy

Amnaboth's vineyard,

Amnaboth wouldn't sell it.

Do you remember King Ahab?

He sulked.

He became depressed and mourned.

And Jezebel, his wife,

comes to him and says,

well, why is your face downcast?

He tells her.

She says, well,

just leave it to me.

She takes things

into her own hands.

She has two wicked men

accuse Naboth

of blaspheming God.

And because of this,

Naboth is stoned to death

because of these false allegations.

The narrative says

in 1 Kings 2,

1 Kings 2:11

verse 11,

No, that's not the right verse.

That tells you,

if you want to know

what that is,

that's about the death of David.

That's not right.

But what we find is that

Jezebel,

she contacted the leaders

and she says,

I want you to set up Naboth.

I want you to get the men to lie

so that he can be stoned to death

and can be executed.

I think that's exactly

what's happening

in Micah chapter 3.

Micah 3 · chapter mention

It's the exact kind of conduct

that Micah is condemning.

They conspired together,

didn't they,

Jezebel and the leaders

to consume Naboth

so they could steal his land.

And so Israel's leaders

would face God's judgment

for their sin

as Micah prophesies

in verse 4.

God will carry them away

into exile.

He will not let them

get away with it.

He says,

I mean,

you will cry out to God

but God will not hear you.

But of course,

this judgment

against Israel's leaders

and Israel's kings

must ultimately

cause us to look forward

to the Lord Jesus Christ

who is the Lord of Lords

and the King of Kings.

Because as you think about it,

rather than inflicting

suffering on others,

it was the Lord Jesus

who was afflicted

and suffered.

so that we don't have to

face God's judgment.

Think of this,

it's a world of irony,

isn't it,

that Christ,

the Lord of Lords

and King of Kings

suffered for us

so that we

do not have to suffer

the curses of the law.

When God has got

every right to judge us

alongside Israel's leaders,

instead,

he sends his only begotten son,

Jesus,

to suffer for us.

And here,

these wicked leaders,

do you see what it says?

They were flaying

the skin

of the people of Israel.

Perhaps,

in some cases,

literally so.

People were unjustly

suffering under the rule

of these wicked leaders.

But we know,

don't we,

it was the Lord Jesus

who was flayed

when the Roman authorities

whipped him.

He was brutally beaten.

A crown of thorns

was thrust upon his head

and they mocked him.

Compare him

with these wicked leaders.

One 19th century preacher

said,

Christ took your cup

of grief.

Christ took your cup

of grief,

your cup of curse,

and pressed it

to his lips

and drank it

to its drags.

And then he filled it

with his sweet

pardoning.

Sympathizing love.

And he gives it

back to you

so that you might

drink it forever.

Christ drank

the cup

of the curse

of God's wrath

to its very dregs.

That even though

he was the King of Kings

and Lord of Lords.

What a world

of difference.

And I think what's important

to know here

is that Micah's judgment

against the rulers,

against the kings,

if you will,

ends with Christ.

And we could stop that.

And if we did stop there,

we would see

a beautiful scene

of Christ's suffering

on your behalf.

And yet one of the

great truths

of the Bible

that has been recovered

is this priesthood

of all believers.

So stick with me here.

The fact that

we are united

to Christ,

we share

in everything

that Christ has.

And so,

thus,

as Christ is

prophet,

priest,

and king,

so we who have been

united to Christ

by faith

and have his

indwelling presence

within us,

we too,

as his people,

we share

in that

threefold office.

That threefold office

of prophet,

priest,

and king.

And so that means

all of us have,

as Christians,

have that responsibility

to exercise

that role,

that office.

And so in the light

of this wicked

use of authority

and Christ's

wonderful use

and loving use

of his kingly authority,

we have been

united with Christ.

We're joined to him.

We share

in his kingly office.

We are kings

in Christ.

We're the royal family

tonight.

And so do you see

the authority

that God has

given us

in our lives?

In our positions

of authority

at work

or the home

or in church

or within school?

And so do we

take advantage

of others?

Do we turn

a blind eye

to sin?

Or do we

seek

to show

the curse-bearing

love of Christ

to others?

when the Lord

Jesus tells us

that when we're

struck on the

cheek,

we're not to

retaliate,

but we're to

turn the other

cheek.

And that is

ultimately,

isn't it,

embodying the

loving

but also the

suffering

of Christ.

The love

that Christ

gives to others.

And rather than

seeking justice

and wanting

to strike

that person

and exact

justice

or maybe

even vengeance,

Christ's point

is that we are

willing to turn

the other

cheek

and bear the

penalty

as he bore

the penalty.

I'm not saying

we bear the

penalty in exactly

the same way

Christ did.

Christ bears

the penalty of

a broken law

on our behalf

as an atonement

for sin.

But in our

case,

we turn the

other cheek.

And when we

bear the

penalty,

it's an

expression of

love as

Christ our

King has

condescended

to love us.

And so we

absorb that

pain.

We absorb

the penalty

when we

rightly bring

it to bear

against someone

else when we

turn the

other cheek.

When we

show love

to those who

deserve to be

punished.

When we

show others

the forgiveness

that we

ourselves have

received from

Christ.

That is the

loving nature

of our

King.

That is the

nature of our

King's love

for us.

And so

should we not

extend the

same love

to others

that we've

received from

Christ?

Or will we

look like

Israel's leaders

who flayed

the people,

chopped them

into bits,

threw them

into the pot

so that they

could take

advantage of

them?

That brings

us to our

second point.

prophets.

In Israel,

part of the

duty of the

prophets was

to hold the

kings in

check.

As I think,

for example,

of the

prophet Elijah,

the prophet

Elijah again

and again,

he goes to

Ahab and

Jezebel,

he holds

them accountable

for their

sin.

So much so

that Ahab

and Jezebel,

they hated

him because

he was

continually

calling them

to account

for their

wickedness.

And the

prophets

should have

held the

kings to

account.

They should

have held

the kings

in check.

But can you

see what the

prophets of

Micah's day,

instead of

holding them

in check,

instead of

bringing them

to account,

instead of

bringing the

law of God

to bear on

their ruling,

do you see

what they did?

They joined

in the

feeding frenzy.

The prophets

preach a false

message and

they say,

there's peace

so long as

their mouths

were filled.

Do you see

that in verse

five?

But if their

mouths weren't

filled,

they would

complain.

they would

use their

office against

those who

they were

supposed to

protect and

love.

And so for

this, God

will judge

them.

Look at

verse six.

Therefore

it should be

night to

you without

vision and

darkness to

you without

divination.

The sun

shall go down

on the

prophets and

the day

shall be

black over

them.

The seers

shall be

disgraced and

the diviners

put to

shame.

And they

shall all

cover their

lips.

The tool

of their

trades for

there is

no answer

from God.

God

essentially

says,

you want

lies?

You want

to claim

to speak

in my

name?

Well, I've

not given

you this

message, the

message of

falsehood.

And so I'll

cover you in

darkness.

I won't give

you any

revelations.

I'm not

going to give

you any

messages.

You'll cry

out to me, but

I will not

respond.

And I will

put you into

darkness.

And once

again, I

think we can

see, can't

we, that the

negative in

the false

prophets, in

the Lord

Jesus, we

see the

positive.

The exact

opposite.

What was the

Lord Jesus

Christ?

He was the

truth incarnate.

He always

spoke the

truth, no

matter what

the cost.

Christ.

And I

think we

can see a

positive

picture of

the Lord

Jesus

Christ.

Look at

verse 8.

I love

verse 8.

But as

for me, I

am filled

with power,

with the

Spirit of

the Lord,

and with

justice and

might, to

declare to

Jacob his

transgression,

and to

Israel his

sin.

God's

sin.

I cannot

imagine the

courage that

it would have

taken for

Micah to

speak against

the status

quo.

To level his

words of God's

truth against

the power.

To speak truth to

power is very,

very, to speak

truth to your

friend is not

enough, but to

speak truth to

power like

this.

To level his

words of God's

truth against the

power that they

held.

They held all of

this power, and

yet he speaks

boldly to them.

And I think we

see, don't we,

here, just a

faint positive

picture of the

Lord Jesus

Christ, who was

himself willing

to stand up to

authority of his

day, to speak the

truth to them

regardless of the

consequences, even

when it led him to

death, to the

crucifixion.

Do you see, the

Father poured out

his Spirit on

Christ, for him

to be able to

carry out his

prophetic ministry?

And so, join

with me in

question 31.

Can you see the

Heidelberg Catechism?

It's another one of

the summaries of

our faith.

And let me ask

you the question,

verse 31, you'll

respond with the

answer, why is he

called Christ that

is anointed?

So why is he

called Christ that

is anointed?

Let's say it

together.

because he has

been ordained by

God the Father

and anointed with

the Holy Spirit

to be our chief

prophet and

teacher, who has

fully revealed to

us the secret

counsel and will

of God concerning

our redemption,

our only high

priest, who by the

one sacrifice of

his body has

redeemed us and

who continually

intercedes for us

before the Father

and our eternal

King, who governs

us by his word

and spirit and

who defends and

preserves us in

the redemption

obtained for us.

And so far from

kind of aiding and

abetting the

cannibalistic

frenzy of

Israel's rulers,

Jesus speaks and

he continues to

speak to us,

truth as he

feeds us from

heaven.

In fact, the

Bible says Jesus

is the manna from

heaven.

The Bible tells us

that he feeds

us.

That's what Jesus

meant in the

Sermon on the

Mount.

Blessed are those

who hunger and

thirst for

righteousness, for

they shall be

satisfied.

And so here, in

Micah's day, the

prophets are aiding

and abetting the

feeding upon the

people.

And in the Lord

Jesus, he says,

I will not feed

upon you, I

will feed you.

My word will be

food to you and

you will be

satisfied.

But remember,

that is fulfilled

in Christ.

But as we

looked at with

the kingly

office of

Christ, how

does this

apply to us?

Given our

union with

Christ, how do

we exercise our

part in this

prophetic office?

Well, do we

speak truth to

those around us

in love?

If you're

anything like

me, you

often cower

from speaking

the truth.

Whether that's

being too

afraid of

speaking the

truth of the

gospel to an

unbeliever.

Perhaps when we

hear things being

said that ought

not to be said,

it's really easy,

isn't it, to

speak with a

child and say,

don't say that.

But when it's a

friend, when it's

a peer,

we can often

be terrified of

speaking the

truth.

It's one of the

things we need to

drum into our

children, isn't

it?

So children,

teenagers, just

listen for a

minute.

Do not, do

not, do not be a

people pleaser.

That's one of the

things the Bible

drums into you.

All of us want to

be liked, don't we?

Desperate to be

liked.

None of us wants

to be a pariah to

stick out.

And yet, for

every one of us,

for your parents,

for each one of

us, it requires

us to speak the

truth.

To earn some of

the disrespect of

the people around

us.

Even if it means

we lose a friend,

to be willing to

speak the truth.

It's my great

prayer for you as

children, I mean

young people, that

you'll be willing to

speak the truth.

To earn that

disrespect.

Because that is

part of the

prophetic office

we've been given.

That we're willing

to speak the

truth to power.

Willing to

suffer for the

sake of the

truth, for the

sake of the

gospel.

You might say

to me, those

adults who are

here, well I

wouldn't want to

risk losing my

job, losing my

income.

So we're quiet.

And we're

silent.

Or we shade and

darken the truth

just like the

devil in the

garden of Eden.

He shaded the

truth to me.

And Satan did

that in tempting

Christ.

Shaded the

truth.

And this

office of being

a prophet, do

we speak words of

truth and life to

our spouses, to

our friends?

When I get to

heaven, I want to

ask the apostle

Paul about when

he speaks in

Galatians, about

the church in

Galatia biting

one another so

that they devour

one another.

I think he's

got Micah 3 in

his mind.

I think he's

pulling that

language from

Micah 3.

And so it's

terribly sad,

isn't it?

In church life,

we can devour

one another.

And it

shouldn't be so.

We speak the

truth, but we

do so in

love and

kindness and

humility.

And as we

do that, we

share in

Christ's prophetic

office.

Lastly, the

priests.

Micah returns

and he brings

more words of

judgment against

Israel's leader.

Look at

verse 11.

He rebukes

them for their

willingness to

have bloodshed

and to take

bribes.

Verse 11.

Its heads

give judgment

for a bribe.

Its priests

teach for a

price.

Its prophets

practice divination

for money.

Yet they

lean on the

Lord and

say, it's

not the

Lord in

the midst

of us.

No disaster

shall come

upon us.

They're hired

guns.

They're

mercenaries.

Conference

speakers.

What do you

need me to

prophesy to you

about?

And I'll do

so for a

price.

What do you

need me to

preach on?

And I'll

preach on it.

You want to

hear a comforting

message of

salvation even

though you're

wicked, even

though you're

crooked?

Well, for

the right

place, I

can do

it.

I'll

preach to

you the

message that

you want

me to

hear.

And rather

than relying on

the sacrifices

for their

income in

accordance with

the God's

law, they

were essentially

saying, I'm

going to take

everything from

you.

Think of

Eli's sons

regularly ripping

off the people,

so much so that

they become obese.

Instead of

serving as the

representatives of

the people to

bring sacrifice to

God for their

sins,

they milk the

people for

profit.

And what is

terribly sad is

I think ultimately

these people

thought that their

actions, it would

only affect

themselves.

I'm just

getting some

money for

myself, I'm

just looking out

for me, but

what happened in

Old Testament

Israel is when

the priests

stop serving

their God-given

function, it

means that the

sacrifices aren't

offered, which

means that the

sins of the

people pile up,

which means that

God will

eventually have

to kick

them out of

the land

into exile.

Their

wickedness would

boil over into

the land and

essentially be one

of the chief

reasons for their

exile from the

land.

And once again,

we see again,

don't we, Jesus is

the exact opposite.

Look at that

question 31 that

you read out for

me, just look how

brilliant it is.

Look what it says.

He's been anointed

with the Holy Spirit

to be our chief

prophet and

teacher who has

fully revealed to

us the secret

counsel and will

of God concerning

our redemption and

our only high

priest who by the

one sacrifice of

his body has

redeemed us and

continually intercedes

for us before the

Father.

He who was rich

became poor for

our sake.

He stepped away

from his throne and

entered into this

veil of tears and

was obedient even

to the point of

death.

And so far from

trying to milk you

for financial gain,

he laid aside

everything that was

rightly his so that

you might rightly

have everything that

was his.

And so who

delivered up Judas

to die, Spurgeon

asks.

Not Judas for money,

not Pilate for fear,

not Jews for envy,

but the triune God

for love.

And Christ laid

down his life as

priest out of love

for you.

What manner of love

is this, that we

should be called

children of God?

When we were by

nature children of

wrath, Christ

loved us.

When we were his

enemies, Christ

died for us.

So how do we,

as those who are

united to Christ

in him, how do we

exercise our

priestly duties?

Do we rest in the

power of the

gospel which enables

us to pray and

intercede for others

as Christ intercedes

for us?

I think all too

often if I look at

myself, I'm so

concerned with my

own needs, instead

of looking to the

needs of others.

And we need to

recognize, don't we,

our priestly office

gives us the

privilege of

interceding for

others, and it's

not a part-time

job, it's not

something that we're

called to do from

time to time.

No, Christ's

priestly office is

meant to characterize

all our lives.

It's not a part-time

job to be a

priest, it's a

full-time calling.

So Romans 12

Romans 12:1

verse 1,

I appeal to you

brothers by the

mercies of God,

here's the priestly

language, to present

your bodies as a

living sacrifice,

holy and acceptable

to God, which is

your spiritual

worship.

Our priestly

identity in

Christ, our

union with him

should mark the

entirety of our

lives.

Jesus describes

your life as

what?

Take up your

cross and follow

me.

And our lives

throughout every

element should be

marked by a

sacrificial love for

others.

Christ.

And so as I

understand how the

priests in

Micah failed and

how Christ

wonderfully is the

perfect priest and

how I am a

priest in Christ,

I need to pray that

the triune God

would break the

fortress of my

heart.

And that I would

lay down my

selfishness.

and I'd be willing

to even lay down

those things which I

have a legitimate

right.

And that I and

we as a church

family would be

enabled to pour out

our lives as a

drink offering,

all for his glory

and the benefit and

love of our

neighbours and our

families.

For the benefit and

blessing of our

church members.

I hope that as you

read Micah chapter

three, maybe before

you go to bed or

maybe as you get up

tomorrow morning,

and as you reflect on

Micah's harsh words of

judgment, I hope that

you will be able to

see against the

wicked backdrop of

sin and darkness how

brilliant and how

beautifully the

person and work of

Christ shine.

And that this week

you would meditate on

Christ's faithful work as

your true prophet and

your true priest and

your true king and

you would give thanks

for his work on your

behalf.

That you'd give thanks

for him as a faithful

prophet who has always

spoken the truth to us.

That truth which has

brought us salvation and

you'd give thanks to him

as a loving priest that he

has laid down his life as

a sacrifice so that you

would not have to suffer

the curse of God's law.

And that you would give

thanks to him as a king

who laid down his rule

to rule in humility.

To give us a rule that

we don't deserve.

But I also hope that you

will pray this week that

Christ's threefold work

would sink deep down into

the depths of your heart.

That God would rain his

spirit down upon this

truth and it would produce

great fruit in your lives.

And so I want to close

with the words of

Heidelberg Catechism

chapter 30, question 32.

It's a beautiful question

on, that follows Christ's

threefold work.

And it asks this question,

it asks the question,

why are you called a

Christian?

And you need to understand

that the word Christian

doesn't just mean a

follower of Christ.

That's how we often say,

isn't it?

What is a Christian?

It's somebody who

follows Christ.

But what does Christ mean?

It means anointed one.

And so would you respond

with the answer,

why are you called a

Christian?

Because I am a member

of Christ by faith

and thus share in his

anointing so that I may

as a prophet confess his

name, as a priest present

myself, a living sacrifice

of thankfulness to him

and as king fight with a

free and good conscience

against sin and the devil

in this life.

And hereafter reign with him

eternally of all creatures.

Let's pray.

Amen.

Amen.