All Saints Sunday

Human societies have never been a monolith in terms of ideas and religion.

There have always been multiple and often conflicting belief systems

that have been tolerated so long as they are subservient to the prevailing religion or philosophy.

So, example, in ancient Rome, there were many different religions,

but there was only one state religion that was connected to the gods and the cult of Caesar.

But the other religions, the other ones that were on the periphery,

were tolerated unless they messed with the temple economy or with peace or the sacredness of Caesar.

In many Muslim countries today and throughout history,

there have been Christians and Jews that have been tolerated so long as they pay a tax

and ensure that their churches or synagogues or places of worship are not higher than the local mosques,

and especially if proselytizing doesn't happen, evangelizing doesn't happen.

And here in the post-Christian West, we seem to tolerate all religions only if they are kept private.

They remain in a closeted state not to infringe upon our individualism and expressive personhood.

Or, to put it another way, as long as your religion doesn't interfere with me living my truth.

So the idea of living one's truth, by and large, has been seen as a positive idea in our day.

Folks who may have been excluded or marginalized or don't find themselves fitting

can find, in a sense, meaning and belonging that would be elusive otherwise.

But the problem with living your truth, as it often is expressed,

causes people to ignore the truth.

Truth becomes relativized.

This moral compromise due to moral relativism seeps in and allows this permissibility of all things

as long as it allows me to reach my goal.

As long as I have happiness or perceived happiness

or people look at me as a happy or fulfilled person.

In many ways, this is the folk religion of our day.

And the reason why all religions are tolerated as long as they don't infringe upon me living my truth

is because living my truth is, in fact, our state religion.

Peter and John will be arrested.

If you remember last week,

this man, he was a lame beggar from birth.

Acts chapter 3, he was at the beautiful gate begging for money.

Acts 3 · chapter mention

And Peter and John walk by him.

He's looking for coins.

Peter and John get his gaze, look at him,

and command him in the name of Jesus to rise up and walk.

And he certainly does.

Peter takes the opportunity to proclaim that it wasn't by his hand,

but Christ who healed the man.

In fact, Jesus, whom you crucified, he says to the people,

in ignorance along with your leaders,

he bids you to repent.

And by the way, if you repent and turn to him,

your sins will be blotted out.

You will have times of refreshing, it says,

and then there will be a promise of the return of Christ to right all wrongs.

This is what we learned about last week in Acts chapter 3.

Acts 3 · chapter mention

Well, Acts chapter 4 begins with them being arrested for this very act.

Acts 4 · chapter mention

They will be interrogated.

And yet in this interrogation,

they will be bold as well as they proclaim

that there is no other name by which salvation can come apart from Christ.

But they're not arrested by just any old group.

It is by the Sanhedrin,

the religious and civic leaders of their time.

In fact, it's going to be by the hand of the very people

that arrested and sought the crucifixion of Christ.

Peter's sermon that he will preach to these people

will obliterate the idea of living your truth.

Something that was incredibly provocative in his day,

but it also is incredibly provocative in our day as well.

But Peter doesn't simply tear down something

without offering a better option,

because he certainly does that.

In fact, he will proclaim the gospel of Christ

to the Sanhedrin,

and they will be left with a decision to make.

What Peter will do is he will proclaim the truth,

not a truth.

If Peter is correct,

then moral relativism is completely wrong.

And if Peter is correct,

then other religious traditions

that do not confess Christ as Savior and Lord are wrong.

And if Peter is correct,

then the ethos that informs much of our political

and cultural leaders in this post-Christian Canada,

they're wrong.

Not just wrong in the here and now,

but eternally wrong.

So this is a hot take.

This is a hot take.

But the scriptures tell us that it is true,

and that it is good news for us today.

So our commitment to the scriptures

is to always walk towards the difficult passages,

the uncomfortable passages.

And this morning,

we'll break our text into three sections,

asking the question,

how does the gospel of Christ

free us from living our truth?

So before we jump into it,

let me pray and ask the Lord's blessing.

Lord, we come to your word this morning,

and we ask that you help us to come to it humbly.

Lord, that we would be curious people,

the curiosity that leads to truth.

And by your Holy Spirit,

that you would open our eyes if they need opening.

Lord, help us to receive

if we are struggling to receive.

We pray this in Christ's name.

Amen.

So I alluded to the arrest.

Let's read it.

Acts chapter 4, verses 1 to 6.

Acts 4:1–6

And as they were speaking to the people,

that is the apostles, Peter and John,

the priests and the captain of the temple

and the Sadducees came upon them,

greatly annoyed

because they were teaching the people

and proclaiming in Jesus

the resurrection from the dead.

If you remember,

the Sadducees were this Jewish sect

that did not believe in the resurrection at all.

They had their power base in the temple.

They were a very powerful group.

In addition to the Sadducees,

there were priests as well and scribes,

people that would comprise this Sanhedrin,

this ruling body.

Let's continue reading.

Verse 3.

And they arrested them

and put them in custody until the next day,

for it was already evening.

But many of those who had heard the word believed

and the number of the men came to about 5,000.

So 3,000 from the Pentecost sermon.

Not sure how much time has elapsed

between then and Acts chapter 3,

Acts 3 · chapter mention

but another 2,000.

It says men.

Presumably there were more.

But here Luke tells us

that 5,000 people have come to faith,

if not more,

since the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost.

Verse 5 and 6.

On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes

gathered together in Jerusalem

with Annas, the high priest,

and Caiaphas, that's his son-in-law,

and John and Alexander,

and all who were of the high priestly family.

The religious and civic leaders and authorities,

they have heard this proclamation of Christ

rising from the grave,

and they are greatly annoyed.

They're greatly annoyed

because they are people that are in power

and this message threatens that.

So we'll pick up in verse 7

and we'll look first at our first point.

I didn't tell you guys my points.

That's a bit of a faux pas.

So we'll look at the first point

and the first point is the good news

of the name of Christ.

So we'll look at verse 7 to 12.

We'll start in verse 7 here.

And when they had set them,

that is Peter and John,

in their midst,

they inquired,

by what power or by what name

did you do this?

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit,

said to them,

rulers of the people and elders,

if we are being examined today

concerning a good deed done to a crippled man,

by what means this man has been healed,

let it be known to all of you

and to all the people of Israel

that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,

whom you crucified,

whom God raised from the dead,

by him this man is standing before you well.

This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you,

the builders,

which has become the cornerstone.

Much like in Mark chapter 2,

Mark 2 · chapter mention

if you remember the story of the paralytic

who was lowered through the roof,

who was healed by Jesus,

much like the paralytic

who was healed in a way

to proclaim the divinity of Jesus,

so too the healing of the lame beggar

in Acts 3 testifies to Jesus' power

and authority over all things

as the conqueror of death

and the redeemer of mankind.

I mean, wonderful that the man got healed.

We find out at the end of this section,

in verse 22,

it was 40 years,

good for that guy.

I'm not downplaying it.

But it was used, in a sense,

to proclaim that this Christ,

this Jesus,

has risen from the grave

and all authority is his.

So, in a sense,

the crippled man

is not a prop, so to speak,

but a means by which

Christ's power and authority

is testified.

In fact, Peter says that

Jesus is the chief cornerstone,

the very foundation

upon which all of salvation rests.

Christ is the only one

who could win salvation,

for he alone

could both atone for the sins

of the world

and offer new life.

He is fully man and fully God,

and in the incarnation,

he bridges the gap

between sinful humanity

and the perfect,

all-powerful God.

This is what Jesus does.

Verse 12 hammers this home

all the more.

This is what it says,

and there is salvation

in no one else,

for there is no other name

under heaven

given among men

by which we must be saved.

There's no other name.

That's what they say.

No other system of belief,

no amount of financial

or career success,

no amount of charitable giving,

no amount of good,

important self-help,

no other vision of utopia,

no other religion,

no other truth,

no other Savior,

nothing under the sun

apart from Christ

can win us salvation.

That's what Peter is saying.

Very provocative thing to say.

He's saying to the Sanhedrin,

all of the hard work,

in a sense,

that you have done

to secure your family

as a high priestly family

in the temple,

all of the hard work

you've done

to consolidate your power,

to know the Scriptures

inside and out,

to devote your life to it,

it's not going to save you.

Only the name of Christ

can bring salvation.

This is an uncomfortable truth

for a city like ours,

is it not?

Ours is a city

made up of multiple religions,

multiple spiritualities,

multiple belief systems.

So to say that it is only

Jesus' name and no other,

I mean,

that's a very uncomfortable

thing to say.

I maybe caution you

from going around

and just blurting it out

everywhere,

tact is an important aspect

of being a respectable

human being,

but nevertheless,

there is only one name

that brings salvation.

So to say that,

in a sense,

it's only Jesus' name

is to claim that

everything else

that claims salvation

or some kind of salvific

end or some kind of utopia

like heaven

is false.

but as uncomfortable

as this is,

it's still very good news.

How?

To say that there is no hope

of salvation

apart from Christ

is to recognize

that although humanity

is capable of great things,

it's this doctrine

of common grace,

it's very important.

Humanity's capable

of many great things.

The one thing

that we are incapable of

is solving the problem

of evil,

the prevalence

of disease and death

and the problem

of sin and shame.

We are incapable

of solving this problem.

We put balm on it.

We deal with the symptoms

and that's not a bad thing

necessarily,

but we can't deal

with the root issue.

We just can't get clear

of these things

no matter how hard we try,

no matter how ingenious

our innovations are,

we can't conquer

the unconquerable.

The idea isn't unique

to Christianity.

Other faiths

can recognize this,

that there's a big problem

in a sense.

Maybe they think

that they see it

as a glaring issue.

There's some similarities.

However,

only Christianity

contends that

the solution

for this

unconquerable issue

does not reside in us,

in our willpower,

our strength,

our ability

to pull up our bootstraps,

to manifest it

if we speak it

into the universe.

We cannot do it

and only Christianity

contends

that salvation

must be

from Christ alone.

And this salvation

in a sense

is this marriage

between justice

and mercy.

It's an expression

of God's divine love

and only something

that God himself

can do

so that God,

the Son of God,

he unites himself

to mankind

in the person of Jesus,

fully man

and fully God

so that in Christ

all the justice

is poured out

on mankind

as our representative,

fully man.

And all of the mercy

that ought to be

extended

in a sense

to us

is given.

That we get

the place of Christ

even though

we don't deserve it.

Friends,

this is called

the doctrine of grace.

This is what

Peter is referring to

when he calls Christ

the chief cornerstone.

And he's the chief

cornerstone

because he can withstand

the weight

of our sin

and our fear

and our self-righteousness

and the pride

that bubbles up

inside of us

every single day.

Imagine a home

whose foundation

is made

of reinforced concrete

with rebar,

the best materials,

for that foundation.

It's built strong

and to last.

In many ways

this building

is a testament

to a good foundation.

It has lasted.

The capstone

says 1888.

It's capable

of withstanding

many tons

of material,

many years

of wear.

And consider

a foundation

that's built of

and I'm trying

to think of something

that is brittle,

like the most brittle.

Imagine a foundation

that is made

of dried

angel hair pasta.

Is there something

more brittle?

One brick,

the thing,

crack,

crack,

crack,

crack,

crack,

it's done,

it's gone.

Our best efforts,

our best attempts

at perfect religion

and modern visions

of utopia

brought about

by our own hand

are as capable

of extending

eternal salvation

to us

as the angel hair

foundation

is capable

of supporting

brick and mortar.

Christ and Christ

alone is the

cornerstone.

He is the foundation.

He is the only one

that can withstand

life.

He is the only one

who can extend

salvation.

This is what Peter

is sharing

with the religious

establishment.

The very ones

who control

religious life

in Jerusalem

and all of Israel.

Peter isn't just

exposing them

in a sense

to how

misguided

they are.

He's not just

tearing down

their worldview

but he is inviting

them into the truth

to trust in Christ,

the hope of Israel,

the prophesied Messiah

that they would have

heard about

and read about

and in a sense

devoted their life

to seeing.

And if you remember

in Acts chapter 3

Acts 3 · chapter mention

Peter,

speaking to

the crowd,

said that

the crowd

crucified

Jesus

and their leaders

but it was done

in ignorance.

That's what he says.

I believe it's

verse 16

of Acts chapter 3.

Acts 3 · chapter mention

It was done

in ignorance.

Well now

they know

and now

they have proof

in a sense

because this man

is standing right there.

Who else

can heal

a man

that everybody

in the temple

precinct

would have known?

40 years crippled,

how long

he was begging,

now he's standing

there and he's

strong.

How can they

deny it?

And Peter and John

are attributing it

to Jesus

because he rose

from the dead

because he's

the creator

of life

because this man

is also God

and salvation

has come.

They're not

ignorant anymore,

are they?

They're not

ignorant anymore,

are they?

Verse 13 and 14

says this,

Now when they,

that is,

the members

of the council

or the Sanhedrin,

Now when they

saw the boldness

of Peter and John

and perceived

that they were

uneducated common men,

they were astonished

and they recognized

that they had been

with Jesus.

But seeing the man

who was healed

standing beside them,

they had nothing

to say in opposition.

What will they do?

This brings us

to the second point,

the problem of pride.

If the members

of the Sanhedrin

were to believe

in Christ,

it would undoubtedly

mean a loss

of their prestige.

It would mean

that they would

have to admit

that they were wrong

in putting Christ

to death

because you don't

crucify the Messiah.

They would have

to, in a sense,

lose their standing

in the community,

their perks,

their money,

everything,

in a sense,

that they held

dear,

not to mention

that their religious

and civic duties

would likely

cease to be.

It would cost them

a lot.

No more kickbacks,

no more honor.

Instead,

they would have

to follow the leadership

of these uneducated

commoners.

Whether or not

they could read,

I mean,

it's flip a coin,

maybe,

maybe not.

Unlikely

that these fishermen

could read.

They would likely

have heard

the Bible

read,

maybe they could.

The text doesn't say it,

it just says that

they are uneducated

commoners.

But Jesus chose

them,

he saved them,

he chose them,

and he chose them

also to lead

his church.

And in a sense,

worse than all

of the things

that they would

have to lose,

they would have

to follow

those guys.

These were the

religious

and civic elites,

these were the

educated folk,

and they would

have to follow

fishermen from

the Galilee.

If you remember

in Acts chapter 2,

Acts 2 · chapter mention

they were made

fun of because

they were Galileans,

they're low status,

and yet these

are the people

that we would

have to follow,

let alone

follow Christ

who we had

crucified.

So what

did they do?

Let's look at

verse 15 to 18.

But when they

had commanded

them to leave

the council,

they conferred

with one another,

saying,

What shall we

do with these

men?

For that a

notable sign

has been

performed through

them is evident

to all the

inhabitants of

Jerusalem,

and we cannot

deny it.

But in order

that it may

spread no further

among the

people,

let us warn

them to speak

no more to

anyone in

this name.

So they called

them and charged

them not to

speak or teach

at all in the

name of Jesus.

this little bit

from verse 15

to 18,

it helps us

to understand

a very important

truth.

Unbelief

is not

an issue

merely

of

considering

facts

and then

making

decisions,

weighing

truth

and lies

or

likelihoods

or

rationality.

Unbelief

isn't

an issue

of just

confronting,

in a sense,

our

presuppositions.

But rather,

unbelief

is the

decision

to forsake

Christ and

hold fast

to one's

belief and

way of life.

The evidence

is here.

These are

educated people.

Maybe they

would have

known the

scriptures

that would

have said,

in a sense,

when the

Messiah would

come,

that the

lame would

walk.

Or they

would know

that Jesus

would open

the eyes

of the blind

and remember

the scriptures

that prophesied

the blind

would see.

Or they

would have

in their

minds

the four

servant

songs of

Isaiah

culminating

in Isaiah

53,

that it

pleased God

to pour

out his

wrath on

his servant.

They have

the evidence

and yet

evidence is

not enough.

Evidence is

important.

It's very

important.

Many people

have come to

faith through

excellent

ministries of

apologetics,

looking at

the legitimacy

of the

Bible and

the facts

on the

ground of

the eyewitnesses

of the

resurrection of

the Christ.

But facts

clearly

aren't

enough.

unbelief

here

is the

decision to

forsake

Christ and

hold fast

to one's

beliefs,

one's

worldview

and way

of life,

to remain

on, in

a sense,

the throne

of our

own little

mini-kingdom,

to not let

Christ himself

take his

rightful spot.

Unbelief is

the result of

pride and

it's a

dangerous,

dangerous

thing.

If the

Sanhedrin,

like I

mentioned,

admitted that

Jesus was

truly the

Messiah,

they would

admit,

have to admit

to take

the blame

and put

Christ on

the cross.

But if

they did

that,

they would

have understood

that this

was God's

plan all

along and

that forgiveness

was offered to

them if they

would have only

repented.

But they

would have had

to eat crow.

They would

have had to

take a humble

position.

They would

lose the

things that

they held

on to.

You see,

unbelief is

a result of

pride,

primarily.

They do

not understand

the grandeur

and the

great benefit

of God

and especially

not in

Jesus Christ

for all

they see

is loss.

It's loss.

It costs

too much.

I will

not,

it might

even sound

good,

but I'm

not going

to go

for it

because I'm

going to

lose too

much.

I'm

going to

have to

confess

too much.

Do we

not struggle

with this

kind of

unbelief?

Do we

not,

as Christians,

in a sense,

want to

submit our

lives to

Christ and

to follow

him,

but there's

a pride

that wells

up in

us that

says,

surely he's

not good

enough.

Whatever I

will lose,

he will not

give me

more.

He will not

fulfill me in

the ways that I

need to be

fulfilled.

If I confess

my sins,

I will be

exposed as a

sinner.

Friends,

this is my

heart.

This is what's

going on inside

of your

pastor.

I'm sure it's

going on inside

of you.

There's a

pride that is

inherent in

humanity.

We struggle

with unbelief.

It's because

of pride.

We may think

Jesus is a

great leader

and a moral

authority,

but if he

isn't the

Christ,

then he is

nothing and

has no claim

on our lives.

But if he

is,

friends,

he requires

everything.

That is hard.

And it

is a

hard thing,

especially if

we are

enjoying the

bliss and

benefit of

false saviors.

Not bad

things,

but things

that are

improperly

ordered in

our lives,

that take

precedent,

that take

priority over

Christ.

But these

things are

momentary and

fleeting,

and I'll

tell you,

according to

the scriptures,

and I'm

sure if we

had a time

of testimony,

people could

stand up and

share.

Whatever you

have lost for

Christ,

where you

say in

humility,

by God's

strength,

I'm giving

this to

you,

has he

not given

you abundantly

more than

whatever you

have lost?

And once

again,

friends,

it is hard,

we understand

this,

but I

want to

share with

you another

religious leader

who,

unlike the

Sanhedrin,

encountered

Christ and

laid his

life down

for his

Savior.

And this

is the

Apostle Paul

in Philippians

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3,

4 to 11.

This is what

he says,

Though I

myself have

reason for

confidence in

the flesh,

if anyone

else thinks he

has reason for

confidence in

the flesh,

I have more.

Here's his

religious

credentials.

Circumcised on

the eighth day

of the people

of Israel,

the tribe of

Benjamin,

a Hebrew of

Hebrews,

as to the

law of

Pharisee,

as to

zeal,

a persecutor

of the

church,

as to

righteousness

under the

law,

blameless,

but whatever

gain I

had I

counted as

lost for

the sake

of Christ.

Verse 8,

Indeed I

count everything

as lost

because of

the surpassing

worth of

knowing Christ

Jesus my

Lord.

For his

sake I

have suffered

the loss

of all

things and

count them

as rubbish

in order

that I

may gain

Christ and

be found

in him.

not having

a righteousness

of my

own that

comes from

the law

but that

which comes

through faith

in Christ,

the righteous,

the righteousness

from God

that depends

on faith,

that I

may know

him and

the power

of his

resurrection

and may

share his

sufferings

becoming like

him in

his death,

that by any

means possible

I may attain

the resurrection

from the

dead.

Verse 8,

Indeed I

count everything

as lost

because of

the surpassing

worth of

knowing Christ

Jesus my

Lord.

Whatever you

lose,

you gain

in Christ

because you

are now

connected to

the very

one who

created

everything

and it

does not

have an

expiry date.

It doesn't

rust,

it doesn't

grow mold,

your relationship

with Christ

is eternal.

His grip

on you

is way

stronger than

your grip

on him

and he

will not

let you

go.

Pride

is a

killer

for it

ignores

the truth

but if

we receive

the message

with humility

ours is

the kingdom.

It really

truly is.

So how

then do

we overcome

our pride?

How does

Peter,

John,

and now

we see

the Apostle

Paul,

how do

they say

yes to

Christ

even though

it costs

them greatly

but the

members of

the Sanhedrin

they say

no at

their eternal

peril.

This is

the last

point.

This is

the spirit

of truth.

Look with

me.

At the

text once

more,

verse 18

and following.

So they

called them

and charged

them not

to speak

or teach

at all

in the

name of

Jesus.

But Peter

and John

answered them,

whether it

is right

in the sight

of God

to listen

to you

rather than

to God

you must

judge

for we

cannot

but speak

of what

we have

seen

and heard.

And when

they had

further

threatened

them

they let

them go

finding

no way

to punish

them

because of

the people

for all

were praising

God for

what had

happened.

Look at

that boldness.

You judge

whether it

is right

for us

to listen

to you

or God

Peter

says to

them.

That takes

some chutzpah

that takes

some real

boldness.

But we

must remember

this is the

same Peter

okay just

pause for a

second think

about this.

Peter and

John are

before the

entire

religious

establishment

and they

are saying

listen

if it's

between

you

or God

I'm

listening

to God.

This is

the same

Peter who

a few

weeks prior

couldn't

muster up

enough courage

to confront

and stand

for Christ

in the face

of a servant

girl in

the high

priest's

courtyard.

How on

earth is

this the

same person?

How does

Peter have

this kind

of boldness?

Remember

this isn't

just the

scary

Sanhedrin

who has

a lot

of power

this is

the scary

Sanhedrin

that crucified

Christ.

Would they

be crucified

as well?

I mean

we have

the second

part of

chapter 4

we know

that they

don't get

crucified

but what

would stop

the Sanhedrin

from stringing

these guys

up as well?

They had

no idea

what was

going to

happen

yet we

see this

incredible

boldness

confidence

so much

so that it

says that

the leaders

were astonished

what accounts

for this

change?

Verse 7

if you want

to turn

back

verses 7

and 8

it says

this

and when

they had

set them

in the

midst

they inquired

by what

power

or by

what

name

did you

do this?

Then Peter

filled with

the Holy

Spirit

said to

them

and then

he goes

on

the act

of coming

to faith

is a gift

of God

himself

and when

that happens

the Holy

Spirit

sets up

shop inside

of our

very soul

resides

inside of

us

enlivening

us to

grow

in our

love and

affection of

Christ

teaching us

truth

properly

ordering

the other

good things

in our

lives

in such

a way

that they

don't

impede

on the

throne

of

Christ

in our

lives

we

begin

to

live

rightly

ordered

lives

and it

means that

our lives

begin to

live

according

to truth

truthful

living

becomes a

thing

of the

Christian

not

perfectly

we grow

in this

but the

Holy

Spirit

given

to us

gives us

great

confidence

in the

truth

so that

we can

be bold

in the

face of

opposition

so that

we can

take hold

of

Christ

when the

other

things

in our

lives

that are

jockeying

for the

throne of

our

heart

seem

wonderful

and good

but we

know that

Christ

is better

Jesus

said

that the

Holy Spirit

actually is the

spirit of

truth

and he

says it

in

John 16

John 16:13

verse 13

and following

when the

spirit of

truth

comes

he will

guide you

into

all the

truth

why

how

for he

will

not

speak

on his

own

authority

but

whatever

he

hears

he

will

speak

and he

will

declare

to you

the

things

that

are

to

come

this

is

what

happened

to the

church

at

Pentecost

bearing

fruit

in

Peter

so that

this

coward

became

this

bold

proclaimer

of the

resurrection

friends

it's

it's

our

reality

as

well

we

will

fight

pride

if we

look

to

God

and

ask

him

for

strength

we

say

in a

sense

to

God's

word

I'm

choosing

to

believe

you

God

help

my

unbelief

and

we

will

see

growth

because

he

has

promised

as

much

that

we

walk

in

the

truth

he

is

going

to

help

us

to

walk

in

the

truth

Christ

says

in

John

John 8 · chapter mention

chapter

8

that

the

truth

will

set

you

free

that

there

is

freedom

awaiting

us

that

we

can

walk

in

so

to

wrap

things

up

to

live

according

to

the

truth

of

God

that

there

is

no

other

salvation

under

heaven

by

which

we

may

be

saved

is

good

news

and

it

is

a

life

of

freedom

and

it

is

a

life

of

truth

let

us

by

God's

spirit

see

our

pride

grow

smaller

and

smaller

and

let

us

trust

in

the

risen

Lord

Jesus

Christ

for

only

in

him

and

through

him

we

can

be

saved

let

us

pray

Lord

we

thank

you

for

the

boldness

of

your

saints

Peter

and

John

and

Lord

help

us

to

remember

that

that

same

Holy

Spirit

that

you

gave

them

at

Pentecost

is

residing

in

all

of

us

who

have

confessed

faith

and

trust

in

you

Lord

refresh

us

this

morning

give

us

great

confidence

in

your

word

this

morning

help

us

to

be

bold

and

to

trust

that

your

ways

are

always

the

right

ways

and

that

all

the

other

ways

do

not

lead

to

truth

but

they

lead

to

lies

and

confusion

and

ultimately

to

their

end

damnation

but

Lord

you

have

promised

to

hold

fast

to

your

people

and

Lord

we

cling

to

that

promise

this

morning

thank

you

for

your

blessed

son

thank

you

for