Worship As We Witness (Revelation 7:9-17)

Children, you are dismissed for Children's Church at this time.

This morning, Ms. Rachel Sanders is leading Children's Church today, so you can head out that door and follow her.

! Savannah is on vacation this week, and Justin was really excited. He told Savannah,

! Look, we didn't actually listen to Evan preach, and Savannah said, that's why we're going on vacation.

Thanks, Savannah. Humble.

So, this morning, Pastor Brett asked me a few weeks ago to preach a missional message, which, that's my language.

That's what I love to preach about.

And so, for me, my initial thought was like, Acts.

But we've been in Acts for a few months now, I think.

And we've had a little bit of a break, and we're about to go back into it, I believe, next week, probably.

Next week.

So, I had to remind myself that, look, the entire Bible is a missional message, right?

From the first page to the last, every page and every word is bent on telling of God's pursuit of lost souls back to himself.

In the beginning, we were created to worship God.

From the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

All creation was designed to worship God.

We see this from passages like Psalm 19.1.

The heavens declare the glory of God.

The sky above proclaims his handiwork.

Let heaven and nature sing.

This is our king.

And all of heaven and all the skies, it's almost like they're saying,

You think I look great.

Well, look to the one who created me.

The heavens declare the glory of God.

The skies proclaim his handiwork.

We see that in passages like Colossians 1.16.

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible,

whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities.

All things were created through him and for him.

The purpose of all creation is to worship God.

But we see in the scripture something happened, right?

Mankind rebelled.

Stories like Adam and Eve.

Cain and Abel.

Sodom and Gomorrah.

All of Israel in the Old Testament.

We see, they were unable to live according to God's plan.

All throughout the scripture we see,

For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

I mean, they're created to worship God.

They were created to do something.

But they are completely incapable of doing that.

And everything they do, we are incapable of reflecting and worshiping God as we were created to.

We choose to worship other things.

And throughout the disobedience, we see throughout scripture that God still pursued his creation, right?

God never gave up.

God never crumbled up the paper and said,

Let's just start from scratch.

He chose to pursue those who had rebelled.

So God gifted his people with the law.

These instructions on how to navigate the brokenness of the world in which we were in.

He then made it possible for us to have atonement.

For things to cover our sins in sacrifice so that we might be reconciled to God.

God pursued creation throughout their rebellion.

Sin corrupts and distorts all things from their created purpose.

But all scripture culminates while we celebrated this past week, right?

And when we look forward to it, Easter.

God sent his son.

They called him Jesus.

He came to love, heal, and forgive.

He lived and died to buy my pardon.

And an empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

All the scripture culminates to this point where God made a way for rebels, for sinners, for those who have been corrupted and broken to find peace and life in him.

Which brings us to what we've been studying for months in the book of Acts.

God's mission through the church.

Through what?

We've seen in the book of Acts that God has made salvation possible through Jesus.

And now Jesus has commissioned his disciples to take the gospel to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

And through the power of the Holy Spirit, they've endured persecution.

They've faithfully proclaimed the gospel.

They've planted churches.

And the early church has begun to boom.

It's been incredibly encouraging for me personally to read through the book of Acts with each of you.

Because it is such an incredibly, incredibly encouraging story of God's mission through the church.

Yet after the events of Acts, God's word jumps a bit.

The next thing we see is John's revelation in the last things.

Which is where I want to spend our time this morning in the end of this missional message.

So if you have your Bible, turn me to Revelation chapter 7 where I believe we get a glimpse of the great commission fulfilled.

Revelation 7 · chapter mention

We get a glimpse of the mission accomplished.

And I pray that as we consider the picture in Revelation 7 this morning,

that it may prompt us to boldly take part in God's pursuit of reclaiming sinners through himself,

from every tribe, nation, and tongue, that we may worship as we witness.

So Revelation chapter 7, starting in verse 9.

Revelation 7 · chapter mention

And after this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number,

from every nation, from all tribes, from peoples and languages,

standing before the throne and before the Lamb,

clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,

and crying out with a loud voice,

salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb.

And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four leading creatures,

and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshipped God,

saying, Amen.

Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might

be to our God forever and ever. Amen.

Then one of the elders addressed me, saying,

Who are these clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?

I said, And sir, you know, and he answered me,

These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.

They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Therefore they are before the throne of God,

and serve him day and night in his temple.

And he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.

They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more.

The sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.

For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd.

He will guide them to springs of living water.

God will wipe away every tear from their eye.

Now, before we continue this morning,

I want to offer a little bit of a Bible reading tip,

since we're venturing into one of the most intimidating books of Scripture.

Thanks to Kirk Cameron and the Left Behind series.

This is a book most people are kind of scared of a little bit.

So I'm going to offer a little bit of a tip for how to read this.

And this is the tip, alright?

Let's keep the main things the plain things.

Let's keep the plain things the main things.

Rather than getting lost in some of the questions,

and some of the debates,

and some of the details that honestly matter but don't matter,

let's focus on what is very clear and true from God's Word.

And I believe that will help us as we navigate this.

So while there's a need to faithfully study and seek understanding of the whole counsel of God,

I don't want us to miss the beauty of what is present in this scene in Revelation 7,

by being distracted by other details.

So this morning, we're going to keep the main things the plain things, right?

And the first clear thing that we see from this text

is that God will receive praise from all people.

God will receive praise from all people.

John sees a multitude of people around the throne doing what?

Worshiping.

That's what he sees them doing, worshiping.

He writes that they were standing before the Lamb of God,

clothed in white robes with palm branches,

crying out with a loud voice,

salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb.

And then there's these pretty incredible creatures themselves,

the angels, the elders, and the four living creatures from chapter 4.

They all fall on their faces before the throne and worship God.

Now, this is a big deal, right?

This is a big deal to see this taking place.

Chapter 6, right before this, had actually ended with a question.

The question was, who can stand before the Creator God on the throne?

Who can stand before Him and not suffer His wrath?

That was a question that left chapter 6,

and then chapter 7, we get the answer.

Those who experience salvation by the blood of the Lamb.

Who can stand before this Creator, this Almighty, this Holy, this Perfect, this Awesome God,

who can stand before Him?

Well, only those who have been saved by Jesus Christ.

This is a big deal to see.

On our own, we are sinners unable to save ourselves.

We are destined for what we see in Revelation 20,

a lake of fire, eternal torment, and a place called hell.

But praise be to God that He gave His Son.

Praise be to God that He gave His Son, Jesus Christ, as a substitute,

as a perfect, sinless lamb,

so that through His death, burial, and resurrection,

we may have eternal life,

and be able to worship before His death.

I love verses 13 to 14.

John's observing all of this happen,

and I'm just imagining it's marvelous.

And while the elder that addresses him in this scene here,

while the elder knows the answer to this question,

I like to take a little bit of imaginative liberty, per se,

and just how we ask the question.

I think John's watching this worship take place.

His mouth is probably like to the floor,

just watching in all of what is happening.

And I can imagine this elder just kind of like creeps up beside him over his shoulder and whispers,

Who are all these people?

What's going on?

He actually asks this question.

He actually asks this question.

He says, Who are these clothed in white robes,

and from where have they come?

And we see the answer in verse 14.

These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.

They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Now, there's a little bit of debate.

I'll introduce this a little bit.

There's a little bit of debate on what the great tribulation exactly is referring to,

whether it's all of the suffering that God's people have experienced three times,

the great troubles and tribulation and persecution they've endured throughout the ages,

or whether it's an age right before Christ's coming that is just a great deal of persecution.

But let's take that debate aside.

What's the plain thing here?

God's people have experienced great suffering.

Yet, through that suffering, they have endured.

They've persevered.

They've remained faithful.

And now, they stand before the One who has made them clean,

who has given them life, who has forgiven their sins.

And notice this.

And they worshiped.

It's in this moment where we see mankind fulfilling their creative purpose, right?

We were created to worship God.

We were created way back in Genesis 1 and 2.

We see the creation of Adam and Eve, the first mankind.

And all the way throughout the story, we see them trying to worship other things

and trying to get to this point that's a fixed point in time,

where we will finally achieve our creative purpose.

They worship God.

Worship in the presence of God.

They worship, despite their suffering,

they worship before the Lamb who suffered death,

so that they may experience life.

They're free from the bodies of sin,

free from the brokenness of creation,

and they worship God, saying,

Amen, blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving,

and honor, and power, and might be to our God,

forever and ever.

Amen.

That's not such a cool story.

It's written in the book.

I mean, this isn't just something that's part of our imagination.

It's not some fairy tale that's just happened to make its way in.

This is a fixed point in time that will come to pass.

This is something we can look forward to.

People of every tribe, nation, and tongue

will stand together as the redeemed,

as the reconciled, as the restored,

worshiping the Creator God on their throne.

So this morning, no matter what difficulties you're facing,

no matter what loss you may have endured,

no matter the questions that you may ponder,

no matter what temporary treasures the enemy may use

to tempt you,

this much I know for certain,

God will receive praise from all people.

So what is He getting from you right now?

Who are you living for?

Encouraged by this thought of David Platt,

he writes,

the train of history is heading towards the enjoyment

and exaltation of God's glory among all nations.

So if you want your life to count,

you jump on that train.

Brothers and sisters,

quit living for temporary, fleeting pleasures.

Quit indulging in shameful and degrading sin.

Quit living for yourself

and start fulfilling your creative purpose today.

Worship God with your life.

And one of the primary ways that we worship God

is through our witness to the world.

Pastor John Piper puts it this way,

when you know the truth

about what happens to you after you die,

and you believe it,

and you are satisfied

with all that God will be for you in the ages to come,

that truth makes you free indeed.

Free from the short, shallow, suicidal pleasures of sin,

and free from the sacrifices of mission and ministry

that calls people to give glory to our Father in heaven.

So this morning,

we understand from this passage,

God will receive praise from all people,

every tribe, nation, and time.

Therefore, us as a church,

we must share the gospel with all people.

God will receive worship,

praise from all people.

Therefore, we as a church,

what's your mission?

To share the gospel with all people.

To share the gospel with all people.

We must share the gospel.

This is a great example of this

in what we've been studying for months.

I tried to stay out of Acts,

but here's a little bit of it for you.

Acts 1A,

did you see the example of the early church?

Jesus hands the gospel baton off the disciples.

Verse 8,

But you will receive power

when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,

and you will be my witnesses

in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria

and to the ends of the earth.

We see in the following chapters

what it looked like

for these followers of Christ

to bear witness of Christ

to the world around them.

In Acts 2,

they received the power of the Holy Spirit,

and they began to boldly proclaim Christ

to those around them.

In Acts 3,

they trusted God

to meet the physical needs of others.

And gave God all the honor and glory.

In Acts 4,

they committed themselves to prayer,

trusting God

to grant them boldness

in the face of opposition.

In Acts 5,

they trusted God

to purge hypocrisy from their midst,

stating the course of obedience

to God's mission.

In Acts 6,

they raised up even more leaders,

so the proclamation of the gospel

is not neglected

in the tyranny of the urgent.

In Acts 7,

Stephen displays radical obedience

to the cause of Christ,

proclaiming the gospel

to the point of his death.

In Acts 8,

they share the gospel

with those they used to hate.

In Acts 9,

they witness God

bring salvation

to their greatest enemy.

In Acts 10,

they spread the gospel

among those they used to deem unworthy.

In Acts 11,

their witness is so evident

to their neighbors around them

to where they were first called Christians

in Antioch.

And in Acts 12,

they faced increasing opposition

from worldly leaders,

but they remained faithful,

and the word of God increased

and was multiplied.

Now,

I'll read the rest of the chapters

for the coming weeks.

That's where we'll stop there.

But do you get the picture, right?

To worship God

doesn't mean we just sing songs

all the day long.

That's an incredibly important part of worship.

That's not all worship is.

We don't just remain in the sanctuary

to worship.

We worship through our witness.

We worship through lives

lived ultimately for God.

This means that we diligently live our lives

in obedience to God's missional purpose

so that others may come to stand next to us

on that day before God,

before the throne of Revelation 7.

We want to bring as many people as we can

to that scene that will come to pass.

So we want to live our lives in worship

and we worship as we witness.

And the only way that someone stands before God

on that day,

as we see in verses 13 and 14,

is they responded to the gospel

by faith in Jesus Christ

with their robes being made white

by the blood of the Lamb.

We see the great need around us, right?

I don't think we live in such a holy huddle,

such a bubble,

to where we're just blind to the needs around us.

I'm thankful for a church that reaches out so well

that gives us a glimpse into our community

that helps us see the real needs that are there.

I'm thankful for Hope for the Hungry,

where we,

most,

many of you who've served in that,

you've seen the real need around us.

There are people in our immediate community

who struggle to even put food on their table.

You've seen it,

if you served at the toy store a few weeks ago,

the association toy store we were able to host,

if you served at that,

you saw families that were experiencing difficulty

and just needed a little bit of assistance

to get through the holidays.

We see the great physical needs

in our community around us.

And depending on your profession,

your connections,

you may see even darker parts of our community.

You may see the prominent issues

that our community has with drugs,

poverty, abuse.

As a church,

we want to do everything we can do

to be a lighthouse, right?

We want to do everything we can

to be a place of hope,

a place of life

in the midst of all the darkness and brokenness.

We want to do everything we can

to help those that we can help.

After all,

faith without works is dead.

How dare we ever not meet the needs around us?

But I do want us to remember,

we must never lose sight

that the truth of God,

the truth of God,

the truth is that God only,

and only God can save and satisfy.

Humanitarianism is great,

but it's not the great condition.

Let's look back at the picture

in Revelation 7,

Revelation 7:15–17

verses 15 through 17,

right there at the end.

Therefore they are before the throne of God,

serving day and night in his temple.

And he who sits on the throne

will shelter them with his presence.

They shall hunger no more,

neither thirst anymore.

The sun shall not strike them,

nor any scorching heat.

For the Lamb in the midst of the throne

will be their shepherd,

he will guide them to springs of living water.

God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

There's the old proverb,

give a man a fish,

you'll feed him for a day.

But teach a man a fish,

you'll feed him for a lifetime.

I believe we can take that

and think about Revelation 7

and change it a little bit.

Give a man a fish,

you'll feed him for a day.

Give a man the gospel,

you'll feed him for eternity.

We must always remember the gospel

as what we must be about.

For those that place their faith in Christ,

when they're in God's presence,

there will be no more hunger,

no more thirst,

no more discomfort,

no more tears.

He has sealed you,

he has saved you,

and he will supply you

with all that you ever need.

God is a good shepherd

who leads his people well.

So again,

let's remember,

this is a fixed point in time

that will come to pass.

And while there may be brokenness

all around us,

I'm definitely not advocating

in any way

that we don't address

the desperate needs around us.

But I am saying

that as a church,

the gospel must be primary.

The gospel has to be number one.

We don't merely hand out

boxes of food once a month.

We have intentional gospel conversations

with each and every person

who will offer them eternal hope.

And this past year,

we celebrated 16 people

and made professions of faith

through over the 100 years past year.

We don't stop our free child here

for a week at Vacation Mile School,

although that's thank the grace

of God for that.

We proclaim the gospel

to each and every child

and through every station.

And this year,

we saw two children

give their lives to Christ at EBS,

and another dozen or so

that gave their lives to Christ

at Pineco City.

We don't just buy Christmas presents

for families in need.

We prayed with each and every family

that walked through it

on December 11th.

Not only one family,

not only left with gifts

for another tree,

they walked away with the gift

of eternal life.

We don't just take a team

to Boston to move furniture.

Right, Chad?

We don't just take a team

to Boston to move furniture.

We go to demonstrate

and declare the gospel

to students and families

that come from all over the globe

for one of the most

formative seasons of their lives.

We try to connect them

to a local church

where they can flourish

in their faith.

We don't just go build houses

in Ensenada, Mexico.

We labor to give families

the living hope of Jesus Christ

and all of heaven rejoice.

When we were there this past year

and Miss Mary in the sand

got to leave Miss Mary

going to Christ.

One of the homeowners,

one of these young mothers,

she gave her life to the Lord

thanks to the work

that was done there.

But we don't just do things

to meet the physical needs.

We do everything

that we do as a church

is in obedience

to the Great Commission

with the anticipation

of what we see

in Revelation 7.

Where people of every tribe,

nation, and tongue

will rejoice and worship

before the throne of God.

Look at the Great Commission,

Matthew 28 and 19.

Then go, therefore,

and make disciples

of all nations.

The picture of the throne room

is incredibly diverse.

People from every tribe,

nation, and tongue.

Which means that

this fixed point

in Revelation 7

that will come to pass

is a completion

of the Great Commission.

So brothers and sisters,

we don't labor and wane.

We don't just share the gospel

with hope and prayers.

We share the gospel

knowing that there's

a fixed point in time

where the work that we do

will come to completion.

Everything we do

is with anticipation

of this point

where the mission

will be accomplished.

So while we want

to be faithful

to bear witness of Christ

to our immediate community,

we are disobedient

to the Great Commission

if we don't look beyond

our community as well.

The International Mission

More Post a few weeks ago

until the gospel

is reached

every people

in every place

in every language

we have work to do.

We've got work to do.

This is a sharp reminder

of the mission

before the church today.

According to the Joshua Project,

one research agency,

there are approximately

3.43 billion people

in our world today

that are classified

as unreached.

That is a geographical

classification

for areas that have

little or no

Christian presence.

Meaning that likely

in many of those regions,

there are more Christians

sitting in this room today

than there are

in those entire cities,

some of those

entire nations.

Little to no

gospel presence there.

There are 3.43 billion

where it is incredibly

difficult to make

any missional progress

often due to hostility

to the gospel.

Further,

according to Whitecliffe

Bible Translators,

there are almost

780 million people,

three quarters of a billion,

780 million people

that have zero access

to scripture

in their own language.

Because there's not

a single portion

of scripture

that has been

translated into

their native tongue.

In many of these areas,

most of them will live

in earthly torment,

suffering through poverty,

disease, war, and famine,

only to die and spend

an eternity in hell,

a place of eternal torment,

never having even had

the chance to hear

the gospel.

There's work to be done.

In many of these areas,

it will take people

giving their lives

to gospel ministry,

moving their families

and giving their lives

to this gospel ministry,

dedicating their life

to Bible translation work.

It will take a lot

of work to get there.

I remember years ago,

David Plath,

when he was the president

of the IMB,

he said that the need

and urgency

of the gospel mission

for believers today

is so great

because all of the places

that are easy to reach

have been reached.

There's Christians there.

They speak English.

Some of you may be thinking,

well, there's a lot

of lost people here.

Yeah, but you're here.

You are the gospel mission.

You are the gospel presence.

There are places

where there is no gospel presence.

So if we are to look

toward Revelation 7,

knowing it's a fixed point

in time that there will be

people of every tribe,

nation, and tongue

that will be worshiping there,

we've got a lot of work

left before us, right?

We've got a lot of work

left to do.

In many of these areas,

it will require people

giving their lives

to gospel ministry

and Bible translation work

in order to build relationships

and see gospel fruit.

This is why we give

to the Lord

and the Christmas offering, right?

It's one of the reasons we give.

To fund the work

of missionaries

all over the globe

and making progress

towards Revelation 7.

And it encourages

my heart so much

to see not only our church

but many other churches

in our area

that I can see

that have met

and exceeded their goal.

Thank you so much

for being such a good church.

May we give even more

next year, right?

Well, there's a need

for us to finance

and help support

those who are giving

their lives to this mission.

It's why we go

to international cities

like Boston

and Clarkston, Georgia

where we meet people

of every tribe,

nation, and tongue.

It's why we send teams

to Mexico

and why we're working

on partnerships

in other places as well

so that we can get

our church

to the nations.

And while we work

as a church

to have this focus,

to have this goal,

this destination

of Revelation 7 in mind,

this morning,

I'm going to ask you

to consider a first one.

As a church,

we're working to be

intentional in establishing

partnerships locally

and globally

to give you a place

to worship as you witness.

Serve alongside others

to share the gospel

in whatever context

God places you.

And today,

as you leave,

there's a little wooden table

right out there

as you leave the bridge here.

There's two sets

of white papers

that I'll put together

of just mission partnerships

and opportunities.

So if you're trying

to figure out

what's my place in this,

what's my role in this,

I hope that's a good

starting point for you.

Look at it.

See some of the ministries

we partner with

in our local community.

Be praying for some

of the partnerships

we have around the world.

But I don't want you

just to finance.

I don't want you

just to pray.

Although those things

are important and necessary,

I want to encourage you

to go.

I want to encourage you

to go.

In 2025,

we'll take a team

back to Mexico

during that last week

of May.

Pastor Brad,

I believe that's

going to lead that team.

And I pray that so many

people sign up

to where it's a nightmare

for this man

to get you through security.

Right?

That's my personal goal

is that there's so many

people that go

to where it's just

a logistical nightmare

for him.

Since I'm not going,

I want that to fall

on the end of the year.

Right?

All right?

There's a group

of students

that Rachel Sanders

is going to lead

to Clarkston, Georgia.

Clarkston's one of the most

diverse square miles

in all of the United States.

It's a place

where you'll see refugees

from all over the country.

Students,

you have an opportunity

to be a part of that.

Some of you adults

may be needed

on that trip as well.

So Rachel Sanders

will be leading

that trip in July.

I'll be leading

the team to Boston.

I think he's tired

of moving furniture.

And I'll be leading

the team to Boston

later this August

where we're partnering

again with Kings Hill Church

for the big move

where countless students

from all over the world

will come in

to start their semesters

at the 64 colleges

and universities

in the metro Boston area.

This upcoming year,

I'm going to see

more and more people

leveraging their lives,

their careers,

and their relationships

for the gospel mission

of God.

The need for the gospel

is so great

in our world

and God has commissioned us,

the church,

to take it to the ends

of the earth.

People of every tribe,

nation,

and time.

I'm looking forward

to that day

where we can stand

before the throne of God

and worship Him.

But I've got two questions

to be posed this morning.

The first is this.

Will you be standing

next to me?

Again,

the only people

that will be standing there

are those who have given

their lives to Jesus.

So this morning,

I want you to strongly

consider this.

Are you confident

in your faith

in Jesus Christ?

Have you surrendered

your life to Jesus?

Acts 4.12,

there is salvation

in no one else.

For there is no other name

under heaven

given among men

by which we may be saved.

Only those

who surrender their life

to Jesus

and confess to Him

as Lord

will be able to stand

before Him

on that day.

So are you confident

in that?

Will you be standing

next to Him?

Secondly,

if you have,

if you are confident

of grace and the Lord

for that,

who are you bringing

with me?

It's often been said

you can't take

anything with you

beyond the grave.

And for material possessions

that's quite true.

But the one thing

we can take with us

are those

that have given

their lives to Jesus

because of the

goodness that He

made to them.

So,

who are you

taking me?

All of history

is rushing

towards Revelation 7

where God will

receive praise

from all people.

Therefore,

church,

this is our mission.

This is what

we've been called

to do,

to share the gospel

with all people.

So this morning

if you're sitting here

and you're like,

but that's not my mission,

I want to plead

with you to come

to the Lord today.

You're sitting here

and you're not confident

in your faith

in Jesus Christ.

I beg of you,

find someone

before you leave today

and say,

hey,

I want to give

my life to Jesus

and I don't know

how to do that.

Well,

the moment of invitation,

you're welcome

to come now

and you're welcome

to find one of us

afterwards,

but I beg of you,

I plead with you,

don't leave from here

today with that

not being true

for your life.

Give your life

to Jesus.

And if you have,

let's stop

living for ourselves

and let's give in

towards the moment

in history

where we will stand

before the throne of God

with the people

of every tribe,

nation,

and time.

Let's jump on that train

and give our lives

to worship

as we win this.

Let's pray.

Father,

I want to thank you

so much.

God,

I'm gratefully humbled

that you would love me

and not send

your son to die

for me.

Lord,

I stand here

personally unworthy,

having made many

mistakes in my life,

selfish,

prideful,

but Lord,

you love me not

that while I was

still a sinner,

you died for me.

Lord,

that's true

for everyone else

in this room as well

and for those

beyond this room.

So Lord,

may we not forget

the gospel.

May we not let

our lives be

about anything else

but God,

today,

right now,

may we choose

to worship you

and bear witness

of you

to the world

around us.

Father,

may we not be

standing around

the throne one day

wondering where

our families are,

where our friends are,

where our co-workers are,

where our neighbors are.

Lord,

may we do the work

now and see

that they're there,

that they're given

every opportunity

to know you

and to stand next

to us on that day.

Lord,

I want to swing

for the fences here

and say that there

may be a person

here today

that you are calling

and putting out

a clear desire

for the nations

for them

and that you're

calling them

to uproot

and move across

the world

to another contest.

Lord,

I pray that if there's

someone here today

that you're calling

to the mission field,

Lord,

I pray they may

respond to that call.

They may allow us

as a church

to equip them

in every way possible.

Lord,

during this invitation,

I pray that you may

do a great work.

And as we leave

from this church

this day,

as we enter

into 2025,

may our lives

be about you.

May we worship you.

May we know you.

And may others

come to know you

for our witness.

Lord,

so let me pray.

I ask you to stand

this time.

I ask you to listen

to the attention.

I ask you to Christ

to come here.

I'm here.

If you have any need

whatsoever,

I invite you to come

here this time.

for the cause

of Christ

the King

we give our lives

and offer

till all the earth

resounds

with ceaseless place

to the sun.

For the cause

of Christ

we go

with joy

to read

with faith

to show

as many

sing

and many

put their

trust

in the sun.

Christ

we proclaim

the name

above

every name

for all

creation

every nation

God's

salvation

through

the sun

God's

God's

God's

love

though the music

may end

the invitation

remains the same.

If you're here today

and you're not confident

that Jesus Christ

is your Lord and Savior

find someone

before you leave

for the rest of us

let's get to work.

There's so much

love to be done

in 2025

and I pray

that we may be

in church

on mission

in Bolden

then on

Revelation 7

knowing that

will come to pass

and we can be

encouraged

in the middle

of our suffering

in the middle

of our setbacks

that we be confident

that God's on the throne

and he's got a part

for us to play

in this story.

Let's go do it.

Let's pray.

Father we love you

Lord thank you so much

for this day.

Help us as we leave

from here today

to be on fire

and serve us

to your mission.

Lord help us

to worship

with every ounce

of our being

with every part

of our lives.

Help us to worship you

and place you

as number one.

Lord help us

to help us

to reach the world.

You could have

easily stayed on earth

and done this mission

yourself but God

you gave us a task

and that task

remains unfinished.

So Lord let us face

all that we have.

Let us continue

to pray for our missionaries

but God let us

let us play our part

as well

in taking the gospel

to every people

of every nation

and tribe and town.

Lord we love you.

Bless this church

bless this people

and help us

to serve you well today

in your name we pray.

Amen.

God bless.

God bless.