Our Horn of Salvation

Alright, well we are continuing on with the Gospel of Luke this morning.

You're welcome to turn there in your Bibles if you have them with you.

We are still in Chapter 1. It's a long chapter.

Last Sunday we heard about how Mary made the journey from Nazareth down to Judea

to visit her relative Elizabeth.

And we saw that sweet exchange between the two women.

Before Mary could even share the news of what was happening with her,

Elizabeth declared that she was pregnant, she was filled with the Holy Spirit,

and she spoke about the blessed child in Mary's womb.

And then we looked at Mary's psalm of praise to God.

She was just so joyfully and deeply touched by what God was doing with her,

giving this amazing gift to her, a young girl from Nazareth.

And as we heard last Sunday,

Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months,

and then returned home.

And if we do our pregnancy math,

we see that Mary came during the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy

to visit Elizabeth,

and then stayed about three months,

and then returned home.

So we don't know this for sure,

but it's quite likely that she stayed with Elizabeth

until just after what we're about to read today took place.

So let's continue the story in Luke 1, verse 57.

Luke 1:57

When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby,

she gave birth to a son.

Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy,

and they shared her joy.

On the eighth day,

when they came to circumcise the child,

and they were going to name him after his father, Zechariah.

But his mother spoke up and said,

No, he is to be called John.

They said to her,

There's no one among your relatives who has that name.

Then they made signs to his father

to find out what he would like to name the child.

He asked for a writing tablet,

and to everyone's astonishment,

he wrote,

His name is John.

Immediately, his mouth was opened,

and his tongue set free,

and he began to speak,

praising God.

So just as the angel Gabriel had said to Zechariah in the temple,

Elizabeth gave birth to their baby in her old age.

And just as the angel said,

it was a boy,

a son.

And Luke describes for us the impact that this had

in Elizabeth's family and in her community.

Verse 58,

Her neighbors and relatives heard

that the Lord had shown her great mercy,

and they shared her joy.

Virtually all of our English translations of this

are a little flat.

Quite literally, it says,

Her neighbors and relatives heard

that the Lord was magnifying his mercy with her,

and they rejoiced with her.

That original word order puts emphasis on that word magnify.

Luke's point here is that Elizabeth's neighbors and relatives

recognized that this birth of Elizabeth

was a huge act of the Lord's mercy to her,

of the Lord's kindness to Elizabeth.

And they understood this

because this child was a miracle baby.

A child born to an elderly woman,

as we talked about a few weeks ago.

This pregnancy was a supernatural miracle of God's power.

And everybody knew it.

It was a very happy occasion.

They rejoiced with her.

We don't know exactly how old Elizabeth was at this time,

but, you know,

can you imagine going to the baby shower

of a 70-year-old woman?

Not only that,

but a woman who had cried

and prayed

and tried

again and again

for decades

only to be disappointed.

And now,

here she is

with her son in her arms.

This was a very joyful occasion.

Eight days later,

it was time to circumcise the child.

This was something that they did

to honor the covenant

that God made with Abraham long ago.

And by this time,

it was customary,

according to Jewish tradition,

to name a son

at the same time.

Not only that,

but it was actually tradition

to have guests attend

the circumcision

as witnesses

and to celebrate

the birth of the son

at that time.

It's a little different

from how we do things today,

many people,

but that's what's happening here.

So it's kind of like

a birthday party,

kind of like

a circumcision party.

And you get the sense

that the family is here

and they're just sort of assuming

already at this point

that the name of this child

is going to be

Zachariah

after his father.

Luke says,

yeah,

they were going to name him

after his father.

You know,

there's sometimes these moments

that happen within

the extended family.

We see things like this

at weddings

where sometimes

family members

are so eager

and ready to make decisions

about how the wedding

should go

without even asking

the couple themselves,

what do you guys want?

How do you want it to go?

Tradition can be

a really powerful thing.

And it was tradition

to name a child

after some relative.

We don't know exactly

what they were thinking,

but maybe they were thinking,

you know,

who better than Zachariah?

I mean,

he has fathered

this miracle baby.

The child ought to be

named after him.

Whatever the case,

you can almost imagine

the awkwardness

of that moment

when Elizabeth

finally pipes up

and says,

no,

he's to be called

John.

Can you imagine

the look on their faces?

John.

There's nobody

among your relatives

that has that name.

And you know,

being Canadians

and being polite,

that's our reputation.

We kind of expect

that that's going to be

the end of the discussion.

After all,

Elizabeth is the boy's mother.

If she says John,

then I guess it's going

to be John, right?

But it almost seems

as if the extended family

wasn't willing

to give up

so easily yet.

Let's ask his dad.

And surely Zachariah

will be pleased

to have the boy

named after him.

So they started

making signs

to his father,

to Zachariah,

to find out

what he would like

to name the child.

If you remember

from earlier on

in Luke's account,

nine months earlier,

Zachariah was told

by Gabriel

at the temple

that he would father

a son with his wife,

Elizabeth.

And because Zachariah

did not believe

the angel's words,

God gave him

this disciplinary consequence

of not being able

to speak

until the day

this happens.

And so that's why

they're making signs

to Zachariah

to communicate with him

because he's been mute

for the past nine months

and unable to speak.

Zachariah asks

for a writing tablet

and writes on it,

his name is John.

And they,

the guests and family,

are all astonished.

Evidently,

it was quite the tradition

to name the child

after some relative

in the family

or maybe up to this point

the family had just

hyped it up so much

that this is,

we gotta call him Zachariah.

But this had them

all surprised

and shocked.

Now again,

if we think back

to what Gabriel said

to Zachariah

nine months before this,

back in Luke chapter one,

verse 13,

your wife Elizabeth

will bear you a son

and you are to call him

John,

said the angel.

So this is

the name that God himself

picked out for this child.

And this is Zachariah's moment

to express obedient faith

after his initial disbelief.

Naming this child, John,

against tradition,

against the consensus

of the family

is a very clear

and obvious way

for Zachariah

to say with his actions,

I believe,

I now believe

what the Lord said

to me nine months ago

about who this child

will be.

His name

is John.

Immediately,

his mouth was opened

and his tongue set free

and he began to speak

praising God.

Again,

what the angel said

would happen

nine months earlier

just happened.

He was unable to speak

until it happened,

until all this happened,

which seems included

naming John

and then all of a sudden

God miraculously

in that moment

just restores

Zachariah's voice

and the first thing

Zachariah does with it

is he begins to speak

praising God,

blessing God.

At this point,

Luke zooms out

a little bit

and tells us

about the reaction,

not only of those

at the party

but also of those

in the community.

Verse 65,

all the neighbors

were filled with awe

and throughout

the hill country

of Judea,

people were talking

about all these things.

Everyone who heard this

wondered about it,

asking,

what then

is this child

going to be?

For the Lord's hand

was with him.

So the happenings

of this little party

caused quite the stir

in the neighboring towns

and hill country.

Luke says that people

were talking about

all these things

and that word for talking

is the kind of talking

that often includes

a back and forth

like discussion

and dialogue,

exchanging their opinions

and viewpoints

as one commentary

puts it.

Everyone who heard

about this

wondered about it,

says Luke.

Quite literally,

they laid it upon

their hearts

saying,

what then

is this child

going to be?

for the Lord's hand

was with him.

There was a question

forming deep down

inside of people

after hearing this.

What then

is this child

going to be?

For the Lord's hand

was with him.

Most scholars

attribute this

to Luke himself,

the author,

stating this.

seems to be

the answer

that people

were coming to

as they were

asking this question.

Those who heard

the news

of baby John's birth,

they were concluding

that the Lord's hand

was with this child.

They thought

God must be doing

something special

with him.

How else

could Elizabeth

have a baby

in her old age?

I mean,

they knew about

menopause back then.

It's a miracle baby.

And then they heard

about this strange sign

with Zachariah,

how he lost his speech

for nine months

and then just the other day

he got his speech back

and he was praising God.

God must be at work

and it seems here

Luke is saying,

yes,

the Lord's hand

was indeed

with John,

just as they were

suspecting.

Well,

Luke now

goes on

to share with us

what Zachariah said

in verses

67 to 69.

We read in verse 67,

his father Zachariah

was filled

with the Holy Spirit

and prophesied.

Similar to Mary's

psalm

that we looked at

last Sunday,

Zachariah now

utters

a poetic

prophecy.

And just like

with Mary's utterance

which we looked at

last week,

tradition has it

that this was

kind of like a hymn

or a song

and again,

same as we looked at

last Sunday

with Mary's,

there's nothing here

in the text

that indicated

that Zachariah

sang this.

In fact,

the word for speaking

or saying

is present.

But Luke

does make it clear,

explicitly clear

that Zachariah

spoke these words

under the influence

of God's Spirit.

He was filled

with the Holy Spirit

and then prophesied.

He spoke these words.

Again,

just as with Mary's utterance,

there could be

this question of,

you know,

did Zachariah say this

like right there

at the party

or was it

sometime after?

And personally,

I've always tended

to see this

as what Zachariah

spoke in that moment

as his tongue

was set free

and his lips

were opened

right there

at the party

but that maybe

Luke decided

to just,

you know,

it's a long thing.

Let's not break up

the flow of the narrative.

Let's just put it after

rather than break up

the story.

One more interesting

observation

to just notice

about Zachariah's words

here at the outset.

Even though Zachariah

says this

under the influence

of God's Spirit,

that doesn't mean

that these words

are not

Zachariah's words.

It's not as if

God's Spirit

just kind of

takes over

Zachariah's body

and mouth

such that it's

no longer

Zachariah

thinking

and speaking

out of his own heart

in these moments.

Look at verse 76.

Zachariah says there,

and you,

my child,

will be called

a prophet

of the Most High.

This is very

personal language.

I mean,

he's addressing

his son John here.

I always imagine

him actually

holding the baby

in his arm

as he says it.

I don't know

if that's

what happened

or not.

So we notice

here that

prophetic words,

words uttered

by the Spirit,

need not override

the mind and heart

of the prophets

speaking them.

Let's look now

at what Zachariah

said.

starting in verse 68.

Praise be to the Lord,

the God of Israel,

because he has come

to his people

and redeemed them.

He has raised up

a horn of salvation

for us

in the house

of his servant,

David,

as he said

through his holy prophets

of long ago.

Salvation

from our enemies

and from the hand

of all who hate us

to show mercy

to our ancestors

and to remember

his holy covenant,

the oath he swore

to our father,

Abraham,

to rescue us

from the hand

of our enemies

and to enable us

to serve him

without fear

in holiness

and righteousness

before him

all our days.

and you,

my child,

will be called

a prophet

of the Most High

for you will go on

before the Lord

to prepare the way

for him

to give his people

the knowledge

of salvation

through the forgiveness

of their sins

because of the tender

mercy

of our God

by which the rising

sun

will come to us

from heaven

to shine

on those living

in darkness

and in the shadow

of death

to guide our feet

into the path

of peace.

Zachariah's

outburst of praise

begins with

the word

praise.

Praise be

or blessed be

the Lord,

the God of Israel.

And then the whole

rest of this

is just

one continuous flow

of reason

after reason

after reason

why the Lord

is worthy

of praise

and blessing

and honor.

Reason number one

praise be

to the Lord

the God of Israel.

Why?

Because he has

come

to his people.

Now it's unclear

at this point

just how much

Zachariah understood

as he said this.

I mean is he thinking

you know

God is drawing near

he's coming

he's visiting us

with his aid

his help

in these

tumultuous days.

I think that

by the spirit

though he spoke

better than he knew

for in fact

as the story

goes on

we're soon

going to discover

that the Lord

God of Israel

himself

is in

the womb

of Mary.

He has taken

on human flesh

and has come

to dwell

among us.

The God of Israel

has come

to his people.

reason number

two

to praise

blessed be

the Lord

God of Israel

because he has

come to his people

and redeemed

them.

He's come

to set us

free.

He's come

to buy us

back to himself

and again

did Zachariah

have any idea

of just what

this would entail?

What the price

of redemption

would be?

what kind

of setting

free

is Zachariah

thinking about

here?

We might get

a sense

in a moment.

Reason number

three

praise be

to the Lord

the God

of Israel

because

he has

raised up

a horn

of salvation

for us

in the house

of his servant

David.

The horn

of an animal

symbolized

the strength

or power

of an animal.

And this

language of horn

was used

in the Old

Testament

often metaphorically

to refer to

the powerful

king

of a kingdom.

And so

what is

Zachariah

saying here?

He's saying

that God

has raised

up a strong

king

for us

in the house

of his servant

David.

and the

lineage

of David

is significant

because of

the promises

that were

made to

David

a thousand

years earlier

that a

son of his

would reign

on his

throne.

Zachariah is

referring to

the Messiah.

God has

raised up

for us

that great

son of David

whom we've

been waiting

for.

The Messiah

to be

our king.

reason number

four.

Praise be

to the

Lord God

of Israel

because he

has done

all this

as he

said

through his

holy prophets

of long

ago.

He is a

God who

keeps his

word.

The

fulfillment

was a long

time in the

coming,

a long

time in the

waiting,

but what he

said he

would do

he has

now done.

He is a

faithful God

and so

praise be

to his

name.

Reason

number

five.

Praise be

to the

Lord,

the God

of Israel

because he

has raised

up a

horn of

salvation

for us.

So he

will be a

powerful king

who will

bring about

our salvation

and what's

perhaps a

little surprising

and unexpected

to us

here is what

kind of

salvation

Zachariah

has in

mind.

We

expect

verse 71

to

explain

this

salvation

first and

foremost

as salvation

from our

sins,

salvation

from our

guilt,

but

Zachariah is

not thinking

about that.

Not yet,

anyway.

salvation

verse 71

from our

enemies

and

from the

hand

of all

who hate

us.

Salvation

from our

enemies

and from

the hand

of all

who hate

us.

Whenever

God says

something other

than what we

might expect,

we ought to

slow down.

we ought to

really think

about why.

As I said

last week,

we need to

remember that

the idea of

God as our

Savior is

much bigger

than just

salvation from

sins.

I mean,

salvation from

sins is

amazing,

it's huge,

it's wonderful,

it's true,

but God as

our Savior is

even more than

that.

there's a

whole history

of the

people of

God over

millennia leading

up to this

where God's

people,

Abraham,

Isaac,

Israel,

the children

of Israel

learned that

God was

their

deliverer,

God was

their Savior

in countless

different ways

and salvation

or deliverance

from enemies

was a big

way,

one of the

biggest ways.

think about

what God

did through

the great

king David

for his

people.

He raised

David up

and through

David gave

his people

victory over

all their

enemies,

all around

them,

and they

were bitter

and ruthless

enemies with

whom there

was generations

of conflict

and war.

those were

tough years.

It was

under David

that for the

first time

in centuries

Israel was

saved from

all her

enemies.

And now

the greater

son of

David,

the Messiah,

is here.

And so

what are the

expectations of

the faithful?

No less.

And make

no mistake

here,

we might be

tempted to

think that

Zechariah is

mistaking the

kind of salvation

that the

Messiah has

come to

bring.

We might be

tempted to

think that

Zechariah is

just expecting

this child of

Mary's to be

the one who

liberates them

from Roman

rule.

Because that's

what a lot of

people in

Israel at

that time

were longing

for and

hoping for.

But I would

suggest to you

that Zechariah

is not mistaken

or short-sighted

here.

I would suggest

to you that

Zechariah's

understanding of

what the

Messiah will

do for his

people,

bringing salvation

from our

enemies,

is precisely

what God

declared through

the prophets

centuries earlier.

We might be

tempted 2,000

years later to

look back on

this and say,

well, these

enemies must be

spiritual enemies.

like the

enemy of

sin or

the devil.

And certainly

Jesus is the

one who saves

us from both.

But I don't

think that's

what Zechariah

was meaning

as he said

this.

God himself,

through the

prophets of

old, taught

his people to

expect a

savior who

would deliver

them from

their enemies,

their flesh

and blood

enemies.

And there

are many

passages that

we could look

back to in

the Old

Testament.

For time's

sake this

morning, we're

just going to

look at one,

a familiar

one.

Micah 5,

Micah 5:2

verse 2.

This is God

speaking through

Micah 700

years before

Jesus was

born.

But you,

Bethlehem

Ephrathah,

though you are

small among the

clans of Judah,

out of you will

come for me one

who will be ruler

over Israel,

whose origins are

from of old,

from ancient

times.

Therefore,

Israel will be

abandoned until

the time when

she who is in

labor bears a

son, and the

rest of his

brothers return

to join the

Israelites.

He will stand

and shepherd his

flock in the

strength of the

Lord, in the

majesty of the

name of the

Lord, his God.

God, and

they will live

securely, for

then his

greatness will

reach to the

ends of the

earth.

It goes on.

And he will

be our peace

when the

Assyrians invade

our land and

march through our

fortresses.

We will raise

against them

seven shepherds,

even eight

commanders, who

will rule the

land of Assyria

with the sword,

the land of

Nimrod with

drawn sword.

He will

deliver us from

the Assyrians

when they invade

our land and

march across our

borders.

This is one of

those interesting

passages in the

Old Testament

where we're left

wondering, is he

talking about the

near future, or

is he talking about

the distant future?

I mean, the

Assyrian Empire,

that's way before

Jesus came.

it reached its

pinnacle around

the time of the

prophet Micah.

The Assyrians

came and they

conquered the

northern kingdom

of Israel.

They invaded the

land.

They marched

through their

fortresses way

back then in the

days of Micah

and King

Hezekiah.

Israel.

But this prophecy

speaks of one

who will be

born in

Bethlehem, a

ruler whose

greatness will

reach to the

ends of the

earth.

death.

That wasn't back

then.

One who will

cause his

people to live

securely.

This prophecy

speaks of how

this ruler will

come later,

after the

abandonment of

Israel, not

immediately.

this prophecy

speaks of how

this ruler will

deliver his

people from

the Assyrian

who invades

so successfully

that the

shepherds and

commanders of

Israel will

rule or will

crush the land

of Assyria with

the sword.

Well, that

certainly didn't

happen back in

those days of

Hezekiah.

It seems to

point to a

distant future

ruler or

king who will

save and

deliver the

people of

Israel from

those who

invade and

bring lasting

security and

peace and

even dominion

over the

Assyrians.

Do you see

how God was

calling his

people to

hope in the

ruler who

would later be

born in

Bethlehem,

700 years

later,

he was

calling his

people to

hope in

him for

deliverance

from their

flesh and

blood enemies.

People,

men like

the Assyrians.

And then

after the

Assyrians

came the

Babylonians.

And then

after them

came the

Medes and

the Persians.

And then

came the

Greek kings

and centuries

of bloodshed

and battle

fought between

the fractured

provinces of

the Greek

empire with

Israel caught

right in the

middle.

And then

came the

Romans.

And though

we may not

understand just

how everything

will conclude at

the end of our

world story,

it would seem

that the word

of God points

to future

times of

trouble for

the people

of God

and to a

physical

earthly reign

of Jesus

when he

returns.

an

establishment

of the

kingdom

of God,

the kingdom

of Israel

on the

earth.

And it

seems to

point even

to great

victories,

won in

battle against

all the

enemy opposing

nations

at that

time.

It would

seem to

point to a

Messiah who

will be the

great savior

and deliverer

of his

people in

that day

at the

end,

both Jew

and Gentile.

My purpose

here is not

to suggest a

fully fleshed

out timeline

or order of

events at the

end, but to

establish that

Zechariah was

right to

praise God

for a son

of David who

would bring

salvation from

our enemies,

who would

bring salvation

from the

hand of all

who hate

us.

This is a

part of the

story of

Jesus that's

still coming

for all who

belong to

him.

Listen to

this expressed

in the New

Testament by

the Apostle

Paul in

his letter to

the Thessalonian

church,

2 Thessalonians

2 Thessalonians 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1.

Therefore

among God's

churches we

boast about

your perseverance

and faith in

all the

persecutions and

trials you are

enduring.

there's the

enemies, there's

those who hate

us.

All this is

evidence that

God's judgment

is right and

as a result you

will be counted

worthy of the

kingdom of God

for which you

are suffering.

God is just.

He will pay

back trouble to

those who

trouble you and

give relief to

you who are

troubled.

There's the

rescuing, there's

salvation.

This will

happen when

the Lord Jesus

is revealed

from heaven

in blazing

fire with

his powerful

angels.

Salvation from

all our

enemies and

all who hate

us.

This is so much

in the mind and

heart of

Zachariah.

He says it

twice again in

verse 74,

to rescue us

from the hand

of our enemies

and to enable

us to serve

him without

fear in

holiness and

righteousness

before him

all our days.

What does

Zachariah long

for?

The freedom

to worship

God and

live before

him and serve

him totally

unhindered.

Praise be to

God.

He's going to

bring that about

through this

horn of

salvation that

he is now

raising up in

these days.

He's referring

of course to

the child in

Mary's womb.

There's so much

in this Psalm of

Zachariah.

I'm not going to

get to all of

it.

I'm almost out of

time here.

But we notice

some of the

things that are

repeated, the

things that are

emphasized.

Verse 72,

to remember

his holy

covenant,

the oath he

swore to

our father

Abraham.

Praise be to

the Lord God

of Israel for

he is faithful.

He promised

long ago and

now he's

keeping his

promises through

this Savior that

he is raising

up.

And just like

with Mary in

her psalm, we

see it here in

Zachariah's too.

Zachariah recognizes

that this child,

this king, will be

the one through

whom the promises

made to Abraham

long ago, will

be fulfilled.

That covenant

that God made

with Abraham

long ago wasn't

just an Old

Testament thing.

It wasn't just

part of a bygone

dispensation.

This is something

that God is making

good on right

now with the

birth of this

son, this horn

of salvation that

he is now raising

up, Jesus.

Zachariah goes

on in verse 76

to talk about

how his son,

John, the role

that he will

play in all

this.

He will prepare

the people as

a prophet.

In verse 77,

he will be the

one, John will,

to give the

Lord's people the

knowledge of

salvation.

salvation through

the forgiveness

of their sins

because of the

tender mercy of

our God.

John's role will

be to give the

Lord's people the

knowledge of

salvation through

the forgiveness of

their sins.

So there's two

salvations spoken

of by Zachariah.

There's from

enemies and now

we hear from

sins.

the one that

we're most

familiar with.

Salvation from

the punishment

that we deserve

from God

because of our

sins.

John will get

to declare this

wonderful news

that God

is ready

and eager

to forgive.

To forgive

even sinners,

those who have

done wrong

done wrong

by him.

And why?

Because of

his tender

mercy.

He is a

merciful God.

Beneath those

words

is the idea

that God has

a merciful

heart.

That down

in the very

depths of who

he is,

the very heart

of his being,

he is

merciful.

And so

John,

he is raising

up as a

prophet to

tell us how

we might find

that forgiveness

for our sins

and how we

might be

delivered,

saved from

what we truly

deserve from

God.

Zachariah

ends this

psalm of praise

with this very

poetic statement

moment of

how God's

mercy is

coming to

us in

this moment

in human

history.

He says

it's like

the sun

in all

its goodness

and brilliance

and warmth.

It's like

the sun

is rising

and beginning

to shine

into the

darkness

and shadow

of our

existence

here in

this world.

And the

light of

his mercy

as it's

rising over

our world

is now

illuminating

something that

we could

scarcely see

before.

The path

of peace

by his

mercy

we can

now see

it.

We can

now walk

in it.

The path

of true

everlasting

peace

with God.

These are

amazing words.

Luke closes

this section

with a brief

statement of

how it went

with little

baby John

in verse

80.

And the

child grew

and became

strong

in spirit

or in

the spirit

and he

lived in

the wilderness

until he

appeared

publicly

to Israel.

That would

be 30

years

later.

So

Elizabeth

recognized

it.

Mary

recognized

it.

Zechariah

recognized

it.

he

recognizes

what God

is doing

through this

child of

Mary's

to be

born.

And

it's

amazing.

He says

the Lord

has come

to us

to redeem

us,

to save

us,

to forgive

us,

to deliver

us one

day from

all our

enemies,

to make

good on

that ancient

promise he

made to

Abraham,

to bring

us closely

back into

relationship

with him

so that we

can serve

him and live

before him

without fear.

And he's

doing all

this because

he is a

faithful God

and because

he is truly

to the core

of his

being

merciful.

Do you

recognize

it?

Do your

eyes see

this great

dawn of

salvation?

Can you

see the

path to

peace?

Can you

see the

path to

peace?

It all

centers around

this child,

this son

of David,

Jesus.

Let's

pray.

Father in

heaven, I

pray that you

would grip

our hearts

so deeply

with your

goodness and

kindness to

us.

We do

not deserve

this.

We do

not deserve

this.

We have

all blown

it in

so many

ways we

can't even

keep track.

And yet you

have loved

us

by sending

your son,

by coming

to redeem

us.

Thank you.

Touch our

hearts deeply

with this,

Lord,

and I pray

that if there's

anyone in

this room

who has

not seen

and felt

your mercy

and your

love for

them

personally,

that they

would know

it today.

We ask

this in

your name.

Amen.

Amen.