The Best Things In Life Are Free

Enter into His gates of thanksgiving,

Enter into His courts with praise,

Enter into His gates of thanksgiving,

Enter into His courts with praise.

Be thankful unto Him, O bless the name of the Lord.

Bless His name.

Enter into His gates of thanksgiving,

Enter into His courts with praise.

Enter into His gates of thanksgiving,

Enter into His courts with praise.

For the Lord our God is good,

His mercy is everlasting,

And His truth is direct to all,

For generations.

Enter into His courts with praise.

Enter into His gates of thanksgiving,

Enter into His courts with praise.

Enter into His gates of thanksgiving,

Enter into His courts with praise.

Lord with praise.

Lord with praise.

Lord with praise.

Amen.

rather have jesus than silver or gold i'd rather be his than have riches untold

i'd rather have jesus than houses or lands i'd rather be led by his nail pierced hand

than to be the king of a vast domain and be held in sin's dread sway

i'd rather have jesus than anything this world affords today

i'd rather have jesus than man's applause

i'd rather be faithful to his dear cause i'd rather have jesus than worldwide fame

i'd rather be true to his holy name

than to be the king of a vast domain and be held in sin's dread sway

i'd rather have jesus than anything this world affords today

i'd rather have jesus than anything this world affords today

thank you nancy so privilege to have brother dave warm back with us

Professor Bible in Cedarville.

Hello, Dave.

Hooray!

All right, all right.

Oh, well.

Please open, David Warren.

I didn't realize it was Christmas yet.

Tell you what, I'd better put this on while I'm thinking about it.

Keep you in suspense a little longer here.

Hang on.

There we are.

Thank you for this. I appreciate it.

This on.

Yeah.

Nervous.

Somebody help me. Come here. Who's going to help me?

Come here, Larry.

Come on.

You bought it. You're going to put it on.

I don't know whether I can do it.

I don't know if I can.

My wife usually does this for me.

Get it straight now.

Oh, you got it.

Kidding.

Uh-oh.

Oh, no.

This is not the normal Sunday morning introduction to the sandwich.

That's good.

That'll do.

Okay.

Very good.

Now I'm ready.

I had wondered what I was going to do and say this morning.

As I reflected on the event of yesterday,

I thought how biblical, really, that is.

Very appropriate scripture here.

Let's see.

I had it all nailed down before this gift came my way.

I've got to find it.

Here we go.

And David lamented with this lamentation.

The beauty of Israel is slain upon the high places.

How are the mighty fallen?

Tell it not in gas.

Publish it not in the streets of Columbus.

Lest the daughters of the Buckeyes rejoice.

Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

So it is an appropriate thing.

The scriptures do fit, whatever the particular situation.

That would be called taking it out of context and also the Warrenian perverse version.

But at any rate, it's good to be back with you in Columbus.

Thank you very much.

It's almost kind of funny.

I've been chasing Charles Reed around the state now for a number of Sundays.

I was in Marion last Sunday and took care of him up that way.

And he's kind of been chasing me.

We've been chasing each other around the state about the last month or so.

So I'm glad to be back with you for today.

Regardless of how you feel about Ohio State and the University of Michigan football game,

I think you will agree with me that most of us are concerned about the high cost of living.

That does seem to be a national concern and a very personal concern for each one of us.

As a matter of fact, just at the breakfast table this morning, we had a package of donuts,

just powdered sugar-covered donuts.

And I looked at the price on the package, and it was 69 cents for the dozen.

It was a special sale.

And I made a remark to my wife.

I said, hey, that is a good price.

You know, I'm thinking 99 cents or $1.29, or just a little old regular donut.

Probably has a bigger hole than normal, too.

And she reminded me that just a few years ago, we could get for 69 cents a dozen cream-filled donuts.

You know, and I said, don't remind me.

It's okay.

We'll just enjoy these that we do have.

The high cost of living is a very real thing, isn't it?

I will date myself when I tell you this, but that's okay.

I can remember the day in our country when we had gasoline wars.

We have them now.

They're just going the other direction.

That's all.

But I can remember one night driving home from work in Dallas, Texas,

going by the Shell gas station, and they had a gas war going on, Shell regular, for $21.9.

Not a dollar, $21.9.

$21.9.

And even a poor seminary student wheeled in there and whipped out his card and said,

we've got to have that gasoline for $21.9.

That's really something.

I can also remember the day when you could go into a grocery store

and get one of these old packages, you know, of Hostess cream-filled cupcakes.

Ooh, those are good.

For a dime.

And that day is long gone.

And I can also remember, even before that, as a child,

when Gene Autry and his horse, Champion,

used to chew healthful, refreshing, delicious, double mint chewing gum

for a nickel.

A nickel.

I think you'll agree with me that we'll never bring those days back

and that we are living in a very inflationary time.

But it's in a time like that that we remember that there are lots of good things in life

that money cannot buy.

It matters not how much money or how little money you have.

There are certain things that money cannot buy.

I was thinking of this Friday night.

I was laying in a tent.

We had taken our Awana pioneers on a camp out

in a borrowed tent,

perhaps better called

a borrowed sieve.

As we lay there,

just shortly after midnight,

perhaps one in the morning,

literally there was a hole in the roof of that tent

that big on one end of it.

And so being a wise professor,

I said, I'll go to the other end,

which I did.

Dutifully laid out my nylon

sleeping bag and went soundly asleep,

only to wake up in perhaps an hour

with the feel and the sound of rain hitting me in the chest.

Boom, boom, boom, boom.

I was wet,

cold,

and weary.

And I got myself up

with the sleeping bag still kind of wrapped around me,

picked up what I could,

and tried to find myself

my way through the dark of that tent.

I felt like Christopher Columbus

looking for dry ground

somewhere out there.

As I stepped on wet canvas

and warm bodies,

I finally found a spot

and laid down

convulsing in laughter.

What is a nice guy like me

doing in a mess like this?

And then I thought of you,

and I thought of this service,

and I thought,

now here is something

that money cannot buy.

A good night's sleep.

Sleep.

can hardly be bought

with money.

There are some other things

that money cannot buy.

You tell me.

What are some other things

that no amount of money

can buy for you?

Come on.

I heard salvation over here.

Health is another.

I heard love, I think.

The sharing of love.

Friendship.

Peace of mind.

The conception of children.

I guess that's why we have

this little motto,

and I'm preaching on that motto

this morning.

The best things in life

are free.

Now I'm tampering with the motto.

I'm going to change it

from plural to singular

and make it simply this.

The best thing in life

is free.

And I don't have to convince you

that the very best thing

in life

is

salvation.

To be saved.

To be born again.

To know that your sins

are gone.

That you are a child of God.

That your future is secure.

That is what salvation

is all about.

And that salvation

is a free

gift.

Now I want to be sure

that we all understand

what I'm talking about.

There is the tendency

to assume

too much

on the part of the preacher.

So that when I talk about

this matter of

salvation,

salvation,

I want you to know

that that term

means

deliverance.

To be delivered

is to be

saved.

To be delivered

from sin.

To be delivered

from the clutches

of Satan.

To be delivered

from the judgment

of hell

is to be saved.

That is salvation.

salvation.

Only, of course,

the Lord Jesus Christ

can provide

that deliverance,

that rescue,

that snatchiness

away

from those

spiritual realities.

And that salvation,

that deliverance

that we enjoy

in Christ

is a free

gift.

one of the deacons

in my former

congregation

mentioned to me

almost casually

one day

that one of the

hardest things

for people

to come to

understand

and to

accept

is the

freeness

of salvation.

people think

that's too

simple.

That's too

easy.

There certainly

has to be

something more

to it

than the fact

that it is a

gift to be

received.

And before we

are too hard

on people like

that or people

who have a

question like

that,

let me remind

you something.

As a general

principle,

we do teach

our kids

that if

something is

really worthwhile

in life,

you're going to

have to work

to get it.

It's going to

cost you some

money,

it's going to

cost you some

effort.

If it's really

worth it,

it's going to

take work.

Do you not

teach your

children that?

I'm sure you

do or will.

You drive down

the road,

I drive down

the road coming

here to Columbus

on Sunday

mornings,

and I see a

house here,

a yard over

there,

and you say,

boy, what a

beautiful house.

And the yard

is beautifully

manicured,

and the bushes

are cut,

and the trees

are just so.

And I think

in my mind,

how do you

get a house

like that?

How do you

have a yard

like that?

And to ask

the question

is almost

to answer it.

You get it

by working

for it.

A lot

of hard

work to

have a

beautiful

home and

keep it

up,

isn't it?

Or,

you see a

young person

go off to

college,

and you are

there at the

day of their

graduation after

four years,

and you see

them walk

across the

stage,

you know,

with that

black gown,

you know,

and the thing

hanging down

the back,

and they

flip that

tassel and

get that

sheepskin,

and you say

in your mind,

boy, I'd

like to have

something like

that, I

wonder what

they did

to get it.

Just ask

them.

Blood,

sweat,

and tears.

And we on

the faculty

make sure

it's that

way.

Work.

Or you see

a family come

in the door

of your church

and say,

boy, there

is a Christian

family.

There is a

family that's

got it all

together.

And incidentally,

we'll be

talking about

the family

the next

three Sundays,

the Lord

willing.

Might slip

that in

right there.

But you

see that

family come

in and you

say, boy,

I'd like to

have a

family like

that.

How do

you get a

good,

solid Christian

family?

You work

at it.

So that it

is true that

as a general

principle,

if you're

going to

receive anything

in this

life that

is of

worth or

value,

you're

going to

have to

work to

get it.

But I

preached to

you this

morning the

one happy

exception to

that general

principle,

salvation.

The best

thing in

life,

worth having,

and it

is a

freebie.

Now, I

really do

not want you

to take my

word for it

because my

word doesn't

count.

but I do

invite you to

take God's

word for it.

Let's go on a

little scripture

chase for a

few moments.

We're going to

run through some

very, I hope,

familiar verses.

Romans chapter

four and

verse five is

the first one.

As we run

through these

verses, I

assure you that

I have not

dragged them out

of their

context.

text, I have

not twisted

them to

mean something

they do not

actually say

in their

primary

interpretation,

but they

are very

clear,

straightforward

verses.

Romans chapter

four and

verse five.

Speaking of

salvation,

Paul says

to us

this,

verse five and

verse five and

to him that

believeeth on him

that justifieth the

ungodly, his

faith is counted

for righteousness.

righteousness.

Please note the

words, it is to him

that worketh not

that righteousness

is accounted.

If you will link

that verse with

chapter six and

verse twenty

three, another

familiar passage,

I'm quite certain.

Romans six,

twenty three.

for the wages

of sin

is death,

but the

gift of God

is eternal

life through

Jesus Christ

our Lord.

Please notice

the sharp

contrast

between the

terms wages

on the one

hand

and gift

on the other.

The wages

of sin,

that which I

earn,

that for which

I work,

that in which

I expend

my effort,

the wages

that I get

back for sin

is death.

But the

gift of God,

a gift of

something for

which you do

not work.

I don't try

to be a good

boy all year

so my wife

will give me

a birthday

present.

And my

children don't

try to be

good children

so that all

year long,

so that on

Christmas we

will somehow

think they

have earned

the right

to receive

a Christmas

gift under

that tree.

A gift is

something you

receive undeservedly

because of the

graciousness and

the generosity

of the giver.

The gift of

God is

eternal life.

What a gift.

That will beat

any Christmas

present you get

in December.

Couple that

verse with

Ephesians 2,

8,

and 9.

Ephesians 2.

I have a

notion that

these verses

are so familiar

to you that

you can quote

this one.

So let's try

it.

I'll not check

up on you

now.

The first

word is

for.

Let's see

how far

we can get.

For by

grace are

ye saved

through faith,

and that

not of

yourselves.

It is

the gift

of God,

not of

works,

lest any

man should

boast.

Not of

works.

Grace,

faith,

both of

which are

given to

us,

not of

works,

lest any

of us

walk around

strutting,

thinking,

look at all

I've done,

I'm really

worthy of

this salvation.

No

boasting.

Let's take

my favorite,

okay?

Titus 3,

Titus 3:5

verse 5.

We're

working our

way toward

the back

of the New

Testament,

perhaps you

noticed.

Titus 3,

5.

Again,

Paul,

and he

says this,

not by

works of

righteousness,

which we

have done,

but according

to his

mercy,

he saved

us.

Not even

by righteous

deeds,

religious

deeds,

good things,

oh,

I paid

my taxes

and I

helped my

neighbor

change her

flat tire,

and I do

this other

thing,

and I was

baptized,

and I was

catechized,

and a few

other things,

all of those

are good

things,

they were

nice things,

they were

socially

acceptable

things,

not by

works of

righteousness,

which we

have done,

but in

accord with

his mercy,

he saved

us.

I like

that little

song that

says,

I

goes to

church,

and I

gives my

money,

and I

does the

best I

can,

and then

somebody

comes up

and says,

you must

be born

again,

not by

works of

righteousness.

Well,

you say,

that's the

New Testament.

Let's look

at one

in the

Old.

Isaiah

Isaiah 55:1

55,

verse

1.

Isaiah

Isaiah 55:1

55,

verse

1.

This is

the end

of our

scripture

chase,

and this

is our

text for

the morning.

The Old

Testament

says precisely

the same

thing as

does the

New.

I read

for you

Isaiah

55,

1.

Whole

every one

that thirsteth

come

ye to

the waters,

and he

that hath

no money,

come

ye

buy

and eat.

Yea,

come

buy

wine

and milk

without

money

and

without

price.

That

verse

does not

seem to

make any

sense at

first.

How can

you come

and buy

something

when you

have no

money?

But that

is precisely

what Isaiah

commands,

is it

not?

The reason

you can

come and

get it

without

cost

is because

it is

free.

And so I

have entitled

this verse

in my

Bible

free

food.

Free

food.

Will you

look with

me a

little more

closely at

this verse?

I want to

just tear it

apart before

you and

kind of

dangle the

various parts

in front of

our attentions.

When I

look at this

verse,

frankly,

the first

thing I

notice are

the

comes.

Notice

this.

Ho,

everyone

that thirsteth,

come ye

to the

waters.

He that

has no

money,

come ye

buy and

eat.

Ye come

buy wine

and milk

without money

and without

price.

Somebody

comes.

Come,

come,

come.

That's a

word of

invitation,

isn't it?

When you

come to my

house at

Cedarville and

you ring the

doorbell or

you knock at

the door,

somebody's

going to

come to

that door

sooner or

later,

open it

and say,

as you

would say,

come on

in.

That's a

word of

invitation.

Come on,

you're

welcome here.

God through

Isaiah and

through the

pages of

the New

Testament,

as it

were,

opens his

loving arms

to lost

humanity and

he says to

us,

come on,

I'm

waiting,

I'm

anxious,

I've got

the table

all set,

as we'll

see in a

few moments.

A word

of invitation.

Come on.

Now,

sometimes at

our house,

when the

meal is

all ready

and it's

on the

table,

my wife

will say

to me,

call the

children,

and I

will dutifully

go to the

hallway and

yell down

that hallway

something you're

never supposed

to do or

say,

come and

get it

before we

throw it

out.

Now,

that has

nothing to

do with the

quality of

my wife's

cooking.

It's just a

way of saying,

dinner's ready,

let's eat.

God says

to you

and to

me,

come and

get it.

And he

says it

three times

for emphasis.

Come on.

Why wait?

Why delay?

Why straight

arm the

Holy Spirit?

Why say

later?

Until I'm

hungry or

ready or

some other

such foolish

excuse.

I do not

normally eat

until they

first begin

to sense,

hey,

I am

hungry.

I'm getting

weak,

my stomach

is starting

to growl,

etc.

I'm hungry.

In the same

way,

people will

not come

to the

food of

salvation

until

first

they say,

you know,

I'm hungry.

as long

as you

think,

I can

make it

on my

own,

I really

don't need

any help,

I am

self-sufficient,

you will

never be

saved.

You will

never

be saved.

It's not

until you

come to

that point

of which

the Savior

spoke,

blessed

are those

who hunger

and thirst

after

righteousness.

they are

the ones

who will

be filled.

My

beloved

friends,

the greatest

need in

America

is for

lost

people

to

recognize

I'm

lost.

I'm

a sinner.

I have

a terrible

need for

righteousness.

Or,

as Isaiah

puts it

here,

you've

got to

be

thirsty.

You've

got to

have a

driving

desire

for this

salvation.

Would you

like to

be saved?

Can you

say in

your heart

of hearts,

boy,

I really

am a

sinner.

I've

done a

lot of

things,

and I

really,

I have

a tremendous

need.

need.

If that's

how you

feel,

you are

a perfect

candidate

for

salvation.

Everyone

who's

thirsty.

He

mentions

another

condition,

similar but

different,

later on

in the

verse.

ho,

everyone

that

thirsteth,

come ye

to the

waters,

and he

that

hath

no

money.

He's a

person who

not only

senses a

tremendous

need,

but a

person who

says,

I'm

broke.

I don't

have two

nickels to

rub

together.

I have

no way

of meeting

that

need.

In

other

words,

here is

a person

who

feels

his or

her

hopelessness.

Not

only do

I have

a great

need,

but I

am

hopeless

to

meet

it.

I

am

totally

unworthy.

I'm

not good

enough for

this

thing.

Spiritually

bankrupt.

Like

our song

says,

nothing

in my

hand I

bring

simply

to thy

cross

I

cling.

That's

the kind

of people

who can

come,

the kind

of people

who say

I'm a

sinner,

and beyond

that,

I deserve

hell.

I have

nothing to

offer

to God

but my

need.

That's

quite a

condition.

I hope

I am

speaking to

someone here

this morning

who says

in the

honesty and

the depth

of your

heart,

boy,

I need

to be

saved,

and I'm

not worthy

to be

saved.

God

if that's

how you

feel,

you're a

perfect

candidate

for salvation.

I also

notice in this

verse the

cost.

Isaiah is very

clear.

Notice the cost

that he lists

for us.

Ho,

everyone

that thirsteth,

come ye

to the

waters.

He that

hath no

money,

come ye

buy and

eat,

yea,

come buy

wine and

milk without

money and

without

price.

Without

money and

without

price.

A

symbolic way

again of

saying it's

free.

free food.

He calls

it wine,

he calls

it water,

he calls

it milk,

we'll talk

about those

in a moment,

and he

says it's

free.

Now you

have some

imagination,

I know you

do.

Pretend

with me for

a moment that

we were going

shopping here

in Columbus

to the

local

Kroger

store.

You have

Kroger

stores here,

I presume.

You go in

there with

that proverbial

envelope filled

with all the

coupons and

the list

written on

the back.

And you go

up and down

the various

aisles and

you got your

basket thinking

maybe I ought

to have two

baskets,

et cetera.

And you're

going like

crazy and

the thing

is going

up,

you know.

And you

finally come

to that

zero hour,

the checkout

place.

and you

whip in

that thing

and you're

kind of

calculating

in your

mind how

much all

of this is

going to

cost and

holding on

to your

wallet with

one hand.

And as you

go through

and she says

hello and she

starts checking

it and ringing

the thing up and

the ticket comes

out and then

goes down,

you know,

all of that.

Finally they

get it all

done and it's

in the bags

and so on and

she says to

you,

take it

and go.

It's free.

Now that

takes some

imagination.

And some

of you are

wondering where

that Kroger

store is.

I know you

are.

But my

beloved friends,

that is

precisely what

Isaiah is

saying.

He says,

come on,

and the

only thing

you have to

be in order

to come is

to sense that

you have a

need and you

can't meet

that need in

any way.

It's here.

It is

available.

Come and

get it.

The best

thing in

life,

salvation,

is free.

Now we

better explain

that symbolism

for just a few

moments because

it is in

the verse.

I referred to

it a moment

ago.

Ho,

everyone that

thirsteth,

come ye to

the waters,

and then wine,

and then milk.

Why does he

call it by

these various

terms?

Water.

Obviously,

water,

because water

is that which

quenches your

thirst,

does it not?

Water

totally

assuages

that burning

feeling and

that sense

the need for

liquid.

It is water.

Now, I know

that the real

thing is supposed

to do that.

And the one

that beats the

others cold,

and the one

you drink at

ten and two

and four,

those are

supposed to do

that.

But they know

that if you drink

one and you go to

one another,

etc., and it

really is not

going to quench

your thirst.

If you really

want to quench

thirst, what you

do is you do

what we did.

You want to go

on a honeymoon,

you take a little

collapsible cup,

and that's what

we did.

Got to those

smoky mountains

down there in

Tennessee.

We stopped

along the road

and here's this

beautiful mountain

stream, and we

just reached down

and drank that

beautiful, fresh,

pure mountain

water.

There's nothing

that quenches

thirst like

water.

water.

Similarly, when

you get saved, not

only are you

delivered from sin

and hell, as I

referred to earlier,

but along with that

deliverance comes a

deep satisfaction.

Your spiritual thirst

is quenched once and

for all by Christ.

as he said to the

woman at the

well, you come to

this well, you'll

thirst again, but

whoever drinks of

the water that I

shall give him

shall never thirst

again.

Very emphatically

stated, no way will

you thirst again.

And she says, hey,

I'll take some of

that water.

I offer to you a

salvation that brings

along with it a

deep,

inner satisfaction.

The quenching of

your spiritual needs.

The Lord Jesus

satisfies us.

I've never met a

Christian in his or

her right mind who

did not believe that

Jesus had met all

of their needs.

Wine?

wine?

Why would he call it

wine?

Wine in the

scriptures is a

symbol of many

things, but among

them it is a

symbol of joy.

A deep sense of

joy.

When a person gets

saved and is

delivered from sin

and delivered from

hell and they know

it in their heart,

I cannot describe to

you the tremendous

joy that comes into

our heart.

I'm reminded of my

second daughter who

when she was quite a

little bit younger and

got the news that we

were going somewhere

that she wanted to go

like to grandma's house

or something, she would

get so filled with joy

and excitement.

She just couldn't say

it and so she'd just

stand there and she'd

go, ooh, just

jumping joy we would

call it.

It's kind of like what

Peter said, though

we've never seen him,

yet we rejoice with a

joy that is

unspeakable.

You cannot express it,

but it's very real.

Milk?

Why in the world would

he refer to this as

milk?

Again, this is

symbolic language,

and milk in the

scriptures does speak

of wealth,

spiritual wealth.

Even the Sunday

school kids know

that because when the

children of Israel

were called to leave

Egypt and go out to

Canaan, that land of

Canaan was described

as a land that

flowed with milk and

honey.

In the literalness of

my mind as a kid, I

used to envision the

land of Canaan with

puddles of milk, here

and there, and I

think, who want to

step in puddles of

milk?

Who?

I didn't understand

that was symbolic.

The land flowed with

milk, that is, it was

rich.

There was wealth

there.

I'm not talking about

material wealth now, but

my beloved friend, when

you come to Christ, you

inherit the wealth of

heaven.

It is at your disposal.

The New Testament calls

it the riches of his

grace and the riches of

glory.

They're ours.

You see, I proclaim to

you in the name of

Christ this morning a

salvation that is a

free gift.

It not only delivers you

from sin and from

Satan and from hell, but

it brings along with it

a deep sense of

satisfaction and joy and

spiritual well-being.

It's the best thing in

life, and it's free.

I would not tell you the

whole story, though, if I

didn't remind you of one

thing.

Though salvation is a

free gift to you and to

me, it was not free to

God.

In order to provide this

salvation for us, God

the Father paid the price

by giving his Son.

And his Son, the Lord

Jesus Christ, paid the

price by giving his life.

And it's so easy for us to

sit here on a 1982 Sunday

morning and not feel

something of the price, of

the cost.

I realize I was here in

October and mentioned the

high cost of Calvary.

And I'll certainly not

repeat that sermon, I

promise.

But you will remember that

there was a tremendous

physical cost.

The battering and the

brutalities with which he

was treated.

There was indeed an

emotional cost to that

experience, being abandoned

by all, being hated.

As I was noting just in my

devotions this morning, the

one whom the builders set

aside, the builders rejected,

they said, oh, he isn't

worth anything.

He's the one that turned

around and became the head

of the corner.

What an emotional price tag of

Calvary.

The social cost I alluded to

before, dying in shame as a

common criminal.

And the spiritual cost of being

separated from his father.

My God, why hast thou forsaken

me?

And the whole matter of

becoming sin wrapped up in a

body?

I guess that's why I like that

song.

It reminds me in a vivid way the

high cost of Calvary.

Man of sorrows.

What a name.

For the Son of God who came

ruined sinners to reclaim.

Hallelujah.

What a Savior.

Bearing shame and scoffing rude,

in my place condemned he stood,

sealed my pardon with his blood.

Hallelujah.

What a Savior.

Jesus paid it all.

All to him I owe.

Sin had left a crimson stain.

He washed it.

White as snow.

Can you not see him hanging on

that cross before your eyes?

With a mocking crowd around him,

with his disciples removed at a

distance, fearful for their own

lives, the sun darkened.

And can you not hear him cry out in

triumph and in victory?

It is finished!

Beloved friends, when he shouted out

those words, he was saying,

the meal is ready.

The table is set.

Come and get it.

And that is the invitation to you

this morning.

Oh, everyone that thirsteth,

come ye

to the waters.

He that hath no money,

come ye

buy,

eat.

And it is of great interest to me

that the New Testament closes on the same note.

We'll not turn to it.

But it says something like this.

The Spirit and the Bride say,

come.

And let him that heareth say,

come.

And let him that is of thirst,

come.

And let him take

the water of life

freely.

Because it really is true.

The best thing in life

is freedom.

Father,

you have told us

that

your thoughts

are not our thoughts.

And that your ways

are far beyond

us.

Had it been up to us

to come up with a plan

and a way of salvation,

we would have made it

so difficult,

we would have had

so many steps

and requirements

that nobody would have made it.

that we're glad

that

Jesus paid it all.

And that as hopeless sinners,

we can but come

and receive

and be saved.

Move upon hearts today

that we might have the joy

of seeing some do that very thing

even right now.

We ask it in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Hymn number 562

will be our hymn of invitation.

562.

As you find this hymn,

you will say,

oh yes,

we know that.

It's a very familiar hymn.

And that is true.

But that's not the reason

I've selected it.

I've selected it

because it reminds us

that this is the only way

we can come

just as we are

in our sin,

with our need,

with our lostness.

And the only reason

we do come

is because

he bid us to come.

We sing this verse

just as I am

and we invite you

publicly to step out

and say,

yes,

I need it,

I want it,

and I'm coming to Christ

for that salvation

of which you spoke

this morning.

Let's stand, please,

as we sing.

Singing together

on the first verse,

I'll meet you right down,

friends.

We'll show you

from the word of God

how you can know

you are genuinely

a child of God.