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Well, please turn with me back 
into the book of Acts. We're in Acts chapter 13, Paul's 
first missionary journey. He's with Barnabas. He's in Pisidian 
Antioch. He's in a synagogue of the Jews 
on the Sabbath day. And I want to read this entire 
sermon, this section, and our focus this morning will be on 
the practical application when Paul exhorts the hearers to believe 
on Israel's Messiah. So, beginning in chapter 13 at 
verse 13. Now, when Paul and his party 
set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John, 
departing from them, returned to Jerusalem. But when they departed 
from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the 
synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. And after the reading 
of the law and the prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent 
to them, saying, Men and brethren, if you have any word of exhortation, 
say on. Then Paul stood up, and motioning 
with his hand, said, Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen. 
The God of this people, Israel, chose our fathers and exalted 
the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, 
and with an uplifted army brought them out of it. Now for a time 
of about forty years he put up with their ways in the wilderness, 
and when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, 
he distributed their land to them by allotment. After that, 
he gave them judges for about 450 years, until Samuel the prophet. And afterward, they asked for 
a king. So God gave them Saul, the son of Kish, a man of the 
tribe of Benjamin, for 40 years. And when he had removed him, 
he raised up for them David as king, to whom also he gave testimony 
and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after 
my own heart, who will do all my will. From this man's seed, 
according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior, 
Jesus, after John had first preached, before his coming, the baptism 
of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing 
his course, he said, Who do you think I am? I am not he, but 
behold, there comes one after me, the sandals of whose feet 
I am not worthy to loose. men and brethren, sons of the 
family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to you 
the word of this salvation has been sent. For those who dwell 
in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not know him, 
nor even the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, 
have fulfilled them in condemning him. And though they found no 
cause for death in him, they asked Pilate that he should be 
put to death. Now when they had fulfilled all 
that was written concerning him, they took him down from the tree 
and laid him in a tomb. God raised him from the dead. 
He was seen for many days by those who came up with him from 
Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses to the people. 
And we declare to you glad tidings, that promise which was made to 
the fathers. God has fulfilled this for us, 
their children, in that he has raised up Jesus. As it is also 
written in the second Psalm, you are my son, today I have 
begotten you. And that he raised him from the 
dead, no more to return to corruption, he has spoken thus, I will give 
you the sure mercies of David. Therefore, he also says in another 
Psalm, you will not allow your Holy One to see corruption. For 
David, after he had served his own generation by the will of 
God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption. 
But he whom God raised up saw no corruption. Therefore let 
it be known to you, brethren, that through this man is preached 
to you the forgiveness of sins. And by him everyone who believes 
is justified from all things from which you could not be justified 
by the law of Moses. Beware, therefore, lest what 
has been spoken in the prophets come upon you. Behold, you despisers, 
marvel and perish. For I work a work in your days, 
a work which you will by no means believe, though one were to declare 
it to you." So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, the 
Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the 
next Sabbath. Now, when the congregation had broken up, many of the Jews 
and devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking 
to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. On the next 
Sabbath, almost the whole city came together to hear the word 
of God. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled 
with envy and contradicting and blaspheming. They opposed the 
things spoken by Paul. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold 
and said, it was necessary that the word of God should be spoken 
to you first. But since you reject it and judge 
yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the 
Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded 
us, I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should 
be for salvation to the ends of the earth. And when the Gentiles 
heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. 
And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. And 
the word of the Lord was being spread throughout all the region. 
But the Jews stirred up the devout and prominent women and the chief 
men of the city, raised up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and 
expelled them from their region. But they shook off the dust from 
their feet against them and came to Iconium. And the disciples 
were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. Amen. Well, 
let us pray. Father in heaven, we thank you 
again for the written Word of the living and true God. We know 
that Word is powerful to crush the cedars of Lebanon. And we 
trust that Word is powerful to crush hardened, rebellious hearts 
against you and against your truth. We pray that Your Holy 
Spirit would do that work, would bring that conviction for sin, 
and would set forth Jesus Christ, that one who's altogether lovely, 
that one who is chief among ten thousand, that one in whom there 
is forgiveness of sins and a righteousness that avails with God. Father, 
I pray that as Your Word goes forth here and elsewhere, it 
would run swiftly and be glorified, that it would go forth, conquering 
and to conquer. For certainly, as we look around 
the world and as we look around our own situation, man's chief 
problem is sin and rebellion against You. So God bless the 
gospel as it goes forth. We pray that many would come 
to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. And even now, forgive 
us and cleanse us in that precious blood and fill us with your Holy 
Spirit. And we pray these things in Jesus' 
name. Amen. Well, as I said, Paul and Barnabas 
are in this synagogue on the Sabbath day in Pisidian Antioch. He had been invited to preach 
the word of the living God, and he does that. He begins by first 
rehearsing their own history and their own scriptures and 
showing how it led to Jesus Christ, the Lord. And then he expounds 
on the person and the work of Christ. And then in verse 38, 
he gets practical with his hearers. He doesn't wanna just teach them 
data. He doesn't wanna just present 
material, but rather he wants them to be saved. He wants them 
to come out of darkness into marvelous light. He wants them 
to know the blessing of forgiveness of sins, that joyful transaction 
brought out by God through the blood of his son, wherein he 
forgives us, not just of some of our sins, but of all of our 
sins. The scripture declares the blood 
of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanses us from all sin, and what a blessed 
reality that is. So Paul wants them to be forgiven, 
and as well, he wants them to be justified. So in verses 38 
to 40, he highlights, or rather 41, He highlights the practical response 
to the Word of the Living God. And then secondly, this morning, 
we're going to take up the response to Paul's preaching in the synagogue 
in verses 42 and 43. But let's look at his exhortation 
to believe on Israel's Messiah in verses 38 to 41. Again, it's 
practical in terms of emphasis. Paul doesn't want to just show 
that his hermeneutic or his ability to interpret their history, their 
scripture, is superior to their, them, but rather he wants them 
to be saved. That's what the people of God 
want. Remember David in that great psalm of repentance in 
Psalm 51. After having been cleansed, after 
having that joy of his salvation restored to him, after having 
that blessed communion back in his own heart and life, he says, 
then I will teach transgressors your ways. That ought to be the 
heartbeat of each and every one of us here, is to see our fellow 
creatures saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. Paul the Apostle tells the Philippians 
that we're to shine as lights in this crooked and perverse 
generation, and we're supposed to hold forth the word of truth. 
Now, to various degrees, persons will differ. Not everybody's 
going to preach, not everybody's going to go to China, not everybody's 
going to be a missionary. But everyone conquered by sovereign 
grace is able to say, with that man that was blind, who was able 
to see again, I was blind, but now I see. I was dead in my trespasses 
and sins, and now I live. I was going to hell, and now 
I'm heavenward. This is the emphasis in scripture 
for the people of God. There's a lot of things we can 
certainly talk to sinners about, but we ought to include this 
as being top priority. And Paul is a great model here 
when he says, therefore, let it be known to you, brethren, 
that through this man is preached to you the forgiveness of sin. 
We saw last week the redemptive focus in his preaching. We only 
took up that first aspect in verse 38. We only looked at the 
forgiveness of sin, but this morning we're going to look at 
his preaching of justification by faith alone. So the redemptive 
focus in his preaching is twofold, forgiveness of sins and justification 
by faith alone. And we see that in verse 39. 
After having set forth the wonder of forgiveness through Christ, 
he then says in verse 39, and by him, everyone who believes 
is justified from all things from which you could not be justified 
by the law of Moses. So he preached justification. Again, this is an important emphasis 
in scripture, so I want to spend a little bit of time here. As 
Martin Luther said, I preach justification by faith every 
week because my people forget it every week. If you rightly 
understand this doctrine, if you rightly understand the gospel, 
if you rightly understand the forensic nature of it, it promotes 
peace in the hearts of God's people. This is why Paul in Romans 
5.1 can say, therefore, having been justified by faith, we have 
peace with God. If you have an absence of peace 
with God this morning, then I want to encourage you to pay close 
attention. I want you to understand the 
implications involved of forgiveness and justification by faith. So 
I wanna look at three things with reference to his preaching 
of justification by faith alone. First, the explanation of justification. Secondly, the instrumentality 
involved. And then thirdly, the necessity 
of it. But notice in the first place 
with reference to the explanation. The Bible tells us very clearly 
that God demands obedience. God demands us, as his creatures, 
to do what he says in his law. We saw that several weeks ago 
in Galatians chapter 3. The Apostle Paul cites Deuteronomy 
27. Cursed is everyone who does not 
do all things that are written in the law. You have that instance 
in 1 Samuel chapter 15. God, through Samuel the prophet, 
tells Saul to go and utterly destroy the Amalekites, to go 
and destroy Agag and all of the Amalekites. Saul says, for sure, 
I'll go do that. He goes and he doesn't do that. 
He comes back and Samuel rebukes him. Samuel reproves him. And 
then Samuel, by God, tells him this. has the Lord as great delight 
in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the 
Lord. Behold, to obey is better than 
sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is 
as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and 
idolatry. Because you have rejected the 
word of the Lord, God also has rejected you from being king. 
So the Lord demands obedience. He demands perfection on the 
part of his creatures. As well, the Bible declares that 
fallen man, those of us in Adam, cannot render that perfection. We do not obey all things that 
the law of God has commanded because in Adam all die. And 
as a result of that, we reject God, we rebel against God, we 
transgress God, and we don't do what his law demands. So you 
see the bad news involved in this particular situation. But 
the Bible goes on to declare God's provision of forgiveness, 
verse 38, and God's provision of justification in verse 39. It is a wonderful and blessed 
thing. Now the provision of forgiveness 
is connected to the death of Christ. When Christ dies on the 
cross, he's not there as an example. He's not there just to teach 
us what love looks like. He's there to bear the wrath 
and fury of God for us. He is there to suffer hell for 
us. He is there to make it such that 
our sins can be forgiven. He is a substitute on that cross. 
He is a wrath-bearing substitute for his people on the cross at 
Calvary. And so we get forgiveness as 
a result of that obedience of Christ. But as well, we need 
a righteousness. We need to be clothed in the 
wedding garment so that we can attend the feast. We need to 
be washed and purified. We need to be holy before God. 
This is why the prophet says that it's better to obey than 
to sacrifice. Well, how do imperfect sinners 
ever get such a spotlessness? How do imperfect sinners ever 
get to the place of a righteousness that avails with God? That's 
the doctrine of justification by faith alone. So when, by grace, 
we believe the truth as it is in Jesus, we are forgiven of 
our sins. But we also receive the righteousness 
of Christ. Because while we were born in 
Adam, while we were dead in our trespasses and sins, while we 
live our lives in abject rebellion against the living and true God, 
that wasn't the case for Jesus. In the fullness of the time, 
God sent forth his son, born of a woman, born under the law 
to redeem those under the law. How does he do that? By living 
for us and by dying for us and by being raised for us. Christ 
always obeyed the implication of the emphasis in Deuteronomy 
27. Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things of 
the law. Jesus did Obey. Jesus did continue. Jesus did persevere. Jesus, especially 
in John's gospel, you see this emphasis, my meat is to do the 
will of him who sent me. I always do that which is pleasing 
to my father. So with reference to the gospel, 
when Jesus dies, when Jesus is raised again, and when sinners 
believe in him, we are forgiven of our sins, and then we receive 
that righteousness of Jesus so that we may stand spotless before 
the throne of God. Paul says it well in 2 Corinthians 
5 21. God the Father made Christ the 
Son who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the 
righteousness of God in him. Do you see why this is gospel? 
Gospel isn't try harder, be better, and do more. That's not good 
news. That's good advice, but that 
will ultimately land sinners in hell. The good news is that 
Christ obeyed, Christ died, Christ was raised, and that for our 
justification. Justification is a most blessed 
truth that the Bible sets forth over and over and over again. 
Paul captures the significance in both Romans 1 and Philippians 
3. Romans 1 16 he says, I'm not ashamed of the gospel for it 
is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes to 
the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it, for in that 
gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to 
faith, that as it is written, the just shall live by faith. You see, that doesn't mean God's 
righteous perfection, though that's involved, but the righteousness 
of God in Romans 1, 16 and 17, and that developed by and expounded 
by Paul, is the righteousness that he demands and that he supplies. See, he not only demands this, 
but he also supplies it through the work of his son. And that 
comes out in Philippians 3, 9. Paul says concerning his position 
in Christ, and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, 
which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, 
the righteousness which is from God by faith." So righteousness 
from God received by faith alone. And that brings us to a wonderful 
confessional sort of statement concerning justification. The 
Westminster Shorter Catechism says, justification is an act 
of God's free grace wherein he pardons all our sins and accepts 
us as righteous in his sight only for the righteousness of 
Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. Again, that is 
something to hang your soul on as a believer, to be sure, because 
we need that constant encouragement, we need that constant refreshment 
that gospel grace brings and gives. But as unbelievers, you're 
not going to go to heaven because you respond favorably to preaching 
on the law. You're not going to go to heaven 
because you gave up a few bad habits or because you've decided 
to start going to church. The only way to heaven is through 
the Son of God, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the 
world. The one who said in John 14 6, I am the way, the truth, 
and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through 
me. The gospel is good news, justification is most excellent, 
and it is a most comforting and stabilizing truth for both God's 
people, and I hope and pray that it will serve as an enticement 
to those who are not God's people to come to Jesus. If you look 
around you this morning, if you're not a Christian here this morning, 
I never want you to conclude, this is a great group of people, 
they're gonna go to heaven because they're virtuous. Ask one of 
them, is that why you're going to go to heaven? Because that's 
not what they're going to say. They're never going to say, I'm 
going to go based on my virtue. They're going to go based on 
Christ's virtue. They're going to go based on 
the forgiveness of sins and the imputation of Christ's righteousness 
received by faith alone. So that's an explanation of justification. If you have questions about that, 
call, write, text, email, whatever it may be, carrier pigeon, because 
this is the most important thing that you need to know. How does 
one pass from death into life? How does one go from under the 
wrath and fury and condemnation of God to justified freely by 
his grace? What is involved in that is absolutely 
necessary for each and every one here to know. And then notice 
the instrumentality. It's everyone who believes It's 
by grace through faith. It is the instrumentality of 
faith. It's not faith plus works. It's 
not, you know, 90% faith, 10% works. It is faith alone, and 
Scripture is conspicuous at that particular point. In Romans 3.28, 
Paul the Apostle says, therefore we conclude that a man is justified 
by faith apart from the works of the law. Luther and his followers 
and the Reformed have been castigated for adding alone to the whole 
idea of justification. No, the castigation belongs to 
those who make it not alone, to those who add works to faith. 
Paul couldn't be any clearer here in Romans 3.28. We conclude 
that a man is justified by faith apart from alone, apart from 
the works of the law. You see the emphasis on the instrumentality 
of faith in our own book. Go back to Acts chapter 10. Peter's 
preaching to the household of Cornelius, and he summarizes 
in the same sort of way that the Apostle Paul does. He doesn't 
want to just teach them and have them learn and be cognitively 
strengthened in their understanding of Scripture. He wants them to 
come to Christ. He wants them to live. He wants 
them to be saved. He wants them to know the joy 
of the Lord is their strength. And that's why he says in 1043, 
to him, all the prophets witness that through his name, whoever 
believes in him will receive remission of sins. I've already 
cited Romans 1, 16 and 17. Faith is emphasized. Habakkuk 
2, 4 is invoked by Paul there and in Galatians 3. Another place 
in Galatians 2 with reference to an emphasis solely on faith 
alone is found in verse 16. Galatians 2, 16, knowing that 
a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith 
in Jesus Christ. Even we have believed in Christ 
Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by 
the works of the law. For by the works of the law, 
no flesh shall be justified. Now you need to understand with 
reference to the Galatians, and you need to understand with reference 
to Roman Catholics, they're not teaching works alone. They're 
not teaching only works. There are precious few that have 
actually adopted that futile road. But what the Galatians 
are suggesting, or the Judaizers affecting the Galatians are suggesting, 
or what Rome is touting, is faith plus works. No, no, no. It is 
grace through faith alone. That's the instrumentality. That's 
the empty hand that God gives us to receive the blessings that 
He gives us. It is all of grace. It is through 
faith. And the emphasis is always that 
way. Paul in Galatians 2.20, he says, 
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but 
Christ lives in me in the life which I now live in the flesh. 
I live by faith in the Son of God. And then notice the personalization, 
who loved me and gave himself for me. Always thought that's 
a beautiful description of our religion. It's about personal 
pronouns. Let everybody else out there 
talk about what kind of pronouns they want to be identified by. 
With reference to Christianity, he died, or he loved me, and 
he gave himself for me. That is most blessed, most excellent, 
and most wonderful. And it's at that point that Paul 
then says in verse 21, I do not set aside the grace of God, for 
if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in 
vain. I should tell you at this point 
that some say that justification only involves forgiveness. There's 
no imputation of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. That's absolutely 
contrary to what Paul says. We need righteousness. If righteousness 
comes through the law, then Christ died in vain. What's the implication? We need a righteousness. But 
it doesn't come through the law. Rather, it is by grace through 
faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. The Westminster Shorter Catechism 
again asks the question, what is faith in Jesus Christ? Faith 
in Jesus Christ is a saving grace whereby we receive and rest upon 
him alone for salvation as he is offered to us in the gospel. 
Isn't that blessedly simple? Isn't that beautifully metaphorically 
wonderful? This idea of resting and receiving 
are metaphors for the act of faith, belief in the Lord Jesus 
Christ. when Paul and Silas later in 
Acts chapter 16 meet that Philippian jailer, and he says, sirs, what 
must I do to be saved? They don't say, well, try harder, 
be better, be more lawful in your approach to life and society. No, it's believe in the Lord 
Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. It's not believe and, 
it's not believe and, but rather it is believe in him alone for 
salvation. Calvin, I referenced this last 
week, his comment on John 3.33. Now listen how simple this is. 
He says, to believe the gospel is nothing else than to assent 
to the truths which God has revealed. To believe the gospel is nothing 
else than to assent to the truths which God has revealed. And then one after Calvin, J. 
Gressom Machen said, faith is not a meritorious work. The New 
Testament never says that a man is saved on account of. This is why I keep speaking of 
the instrumentality. We're not saved because of faith, 
we're saved through faith. We're saved because of the active 
and the passive obedience of Jesus Christ. We're saved based 
on the reality that He is our sole righteousness. That's what 
Scripture emphasizes. Back to Machen. He says, the 
New Testament never says that a man is saved on account of 
his faith, but always that he is saved through his faith. Faith is the means which the 
Holy Spirit uses to apply to the individual soul the benefits 
of Christ's death. As I said, it's the hand that 
receives the blessings poured out and conveyed by God. Paul 
in Ephesians 1, 3 will say, Blessed be the God and Father of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing 
in the heavenly places in Christ. How do we receive those blessings? 
It's through faith. It's not a combination of our 
faith and works, because Romans and Galatians and the rest of 
the Bible tells us that could never be. It is faith alone in 
Christ alone, and in this, the believer rejoices. And then notice 
thirdly, in terms of Acts 13.39, the necessity. So we've seen 
an explanation of justification by faith, an emphasis on the 
instrumentality, everyone who believes, but then the necessity 
of this doctrine, When he says in verse 39, and by him, everyone 
who believes is justified from all things from which you could 
not be justified by the law of Moses. Now, for those of you 
who come on Sunday night, or those of you who come to the 
confession study, you'll know that there's certain ways that 
we can use the law of God in a righteous way. Paul says in 
1 Timothy 1.8, we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully. And there are three uses of the 
law identified by interpreters throughout the history of the 
church that the Bible definitely does manifest. There's what's 
called the civil use. God gives the law to restrain 
his creatures from being as bad as they can possibly be. Another 
use of the law is called the pedagogical. Pedagogue simply 
means child tutor. The law of God shows us how far 
short we fall and how desperately we stand in need of God's grace. And then the third use of the 
law is the normative, the normal way that believers in Christ 
use the law. Not as an attempt to gain justification, 
but rather as an expression of the fact that they have been 
justified freely by God's grace. Notice that none of those uses 
of the law, rightly identified by theologians as uses of the 
law, include trying to gain salvation from God. That is a misuse of 
the law of God. If you this morning say, I'm 
going to just do better and then God will accept me, that's never 
going to happen. You need to listen to what I'm 
telling you. You need to understand what Paul is saying here in Pisidian 
Antioch. There is a necessity for justification 
by faith because of our place in Adam, because of our rebellion 
against God, and because of our inability to render the perfect 
obedience to God's law that we see so clearly in scripture. So Paul says this. Now think 
about this. Paul is in a synagogue of the 
Jews. OK? Don't forget that. He's not 
a place where antinomianism prevails and flourishes. If you don't 
know what that means, that's OK. You can terrier pigeon me 
that question as well. He's in a synagogue of the Jews 
with persons who trust in Torah or law for their acceptance with 
God. And he tells them point-blank, 
candidly, clearly. He says, no, that could never 
happen. By him, Christ, everyone who believes, is justified from 
all things which you could not. He's not saying, well, there 
was a possibility if you tried really hard, if you pulled up 
your bootstraps and you just, you know, put your shoulder in 
the plow, you could. No, he says you could not be justified by 
the law of Moses. And again, I'm going to reference 
what we looked at in our Lord's Supper service this month, Galatians 
chapter three, specifically verses 10 to 14. The apostle Paul there 
tells us that there is no access to God by the works of the law. The apostle Paul declares that 
the works or those under the works of the law are under a 
curse. And there he cites Deuteronomy 
27, 26. Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things 
written in this law. The apostle then declares that 
the way of acceptance with God is by faith. And he appeals to 
Habakkuk 2, 4. The just shall live by faith. 
If that's the case, then your attempt at law keeping is futile. And then the third text, the 
third emphasis that Paul gives in that brief section is the 
declaration that the law is not of faith. And there he appeals 
to Leviticus chapter 18, 5. You see what he's doing. If faith 
is the instrument by which we enter into heaven based on Christ 
is active in his passive obedience, then that law is not of faith. 
These are two competing ways. These are two various ways to 
try and gain or garner acceptance with God. A right use of the 
law is never to try to gain acceptance with God by the law. That's what 
much of the New Testament is concerned to demolish and destroy. I think Fisher describes it excellently. He says, so that, if you desire 
to be justified before God, you must either bring to Him a perfect 
righteousness of your own and wholly renounce Christ. See, 
it's not a mingle-mangle. That's the problem in Galatia. 
And this is where Paul is in this section in Pisidian Antioch. This first missionary journey 
is about AD 47 and 48. After Paul concludes this, he 
writes the letter of Galatians to these churches in Southern 
Galatia. Why? Because after he went to these 
places and preached justification by free grace, these people called 
Judaizers came along and said everything Paul said is good 
up to a point. You need to believe plus you 
need to be circumcised. You need to obey the Jewish calendar. 
You need to do the various aspects that are unique to Judaism. And 
so the apostle Paul is writing to demolish that reality, that 
thought rather, that it's never to be the case. Fisher goes on 
to say, he says, if you desire to be justified before God, you 
must either bring to him a perfect righteousness of your own and 
wholly renounce Christ, or else you must bring the perfect righteousness 
of Christ and wholly renounce your own. May I exhort you today, 
that's the path to follow. That hymn we sang on Christ the 
Solid Rock, it's right after Top Lady's hymn, How Fast the 
Benefit's Divine. We just sang that recently, I 
didn't want to reduplicate that. But another hymn tells us, nothing 
in my hand I bring, simply to thy cross I cling. When we stand 
before God on that day of judgment, it's never going to be the case, 
oh, I believe Jesus, plus I was a great guy. I was a great girl. 
I read my Bible four times a week. I went to every meeting. That's 
not going to happen. We're going to say, foul I to 
the fountain fly, wash me, Savior, or I die. We're going to cite 
Romans 8.1. There is therefore now no condemnation 
for those who are in Christ Jesus. It is not a mixture of faith 
plus words. It is faith alone. And that's 
Paul's emphasis in the synagogue of the Jews. Fisher goes on, 
he says, Christ Jesus will either be a whole Savior or no Savior. He will either save you alone 
or not save you at all. So the necessity of justification 
by faith is seen in the fact that we cannot be justified by 
the law of Moses. And one more quote before we 
move on, this is John Gill explaining justification in a way that I 
hope will make your heart leap. Those of you who know me know 
that I really like John Gill. I mean, the guy could probably 
fix an automobile engine. As far as I'm concerned, there 
wasn't much he couldn't do. He was extremely broadly read. He 
was what's called an autodidact. He taught himself, basically, 
through reading and through searching and through all of that sort 
of thing. And, you know, he writes as an 18th century Puritan-ish 
divine. Puritanism was technically over 
by that time. He was a particular Baptist, 
sort of a patron saint for Reformed Baptists. And, you know, when 
he writes his theology and his commentary, it's not really, 
it's just steady, sturdy, 16 ounces to the pound, accurate 
exegesis on just about everything. I mean, he had some issues along 
the way, to be sure, because all of us do. But there are those 
seasons, there are those times, there are those clips in his 
comment where it hopefully makes the soul just sore. And I think 
this is one of them. Listen to what he says. He says, 
in justification by this Christ, I'm sorry, justification by this, 
Christ and His righteousness, is complete and perfect. It is 
from all sin, original and actual, secret and open, greater or lesser 
sins, sins of presumption and ignorance, of omission and commission, 
from all things the law can charge with as breaches of it, from 
all things which the justice of God can demand satisfaction 
for, and from all things that Satan or a man's own conscience 
can justly accuse him of. I think that's gorgeous, beautiful, 
wonderful, expounding on this theme. Now, if you say, well, 
if that's true, then we can go out and sin more and more. No, 
no, no, that's not gospel logic. Paul dealt with that in Romans 
chapter six. If somebody hears the reality, the justification, 
the forgiveness that God gives through the blood of Jesus, cleanses 
us from all sin, and then concludes, hey, that's a good setup. God 
loves to forgive sin, I love to sin, I'm gonna go out and 
do it. Paul says, what shall we say then? Shall we continue 
in sin that grace may abound? May it never be. You died with 
Christ, you were buried with Christ, and you've been raised 
with Christ. Therefore, no longer present 
your members as instruments of unrighteousness. Don't let sin 
reign in your mortal body. No, the gospel does not promote 
license. The gospel alone promotes holiness. It is the case that when we are 
justified freely by grace, sanctification always follows, because that 
faith alone that justifies never remains alone, but it's always 
accompanied by all other saving graces. the system of theology 
taught by the prophets, taught by the apostles, obviously taught 
by our Lord Jesus Christ. It is grace through faith in 
Jesus. And if you are not a believer 
today, I hope that everything in you wants Christ. I hope that 
everything in you says, give me Jesus or I die. Remember Rachel 
to Jacob, give me children or I die. That ought to be the heartbeat 
of everyone here that is still under the wrath and curse and 
fury of God Almighty. And that brings us to consider 
Paul's warning, a serious warning attached to his preaching in 
verses 40 to 41. Again, Paul isn't about, well, 
I want to teach you your history and show how it terminates in 
the Lord Jesus. Let's go now and eat lunch. No, 
he wants them to know that forgiveness and justification are to be had 
by faith in Jesus Christ the Lord. But then again, and continuing 
in that vein, he warns them. He warns this synagogue of the 
Jews concerning rejecting this message. So again, I want you 
to think through this and understand that what Paul is saying here 
is very, very serious and very, very important. Notice the caution 
given in verse 40. He says, Beware, therefore, lest 
what has been spoken in the prophets come upon you. Isn't that beautiful? The abiding validity of Old Testament 
prophets. the abiding validity of the Old 
Testament prophets. In a New Covenant setting, Paul 
doesn't say, well, you don't need that Old Testament, we just 
have the New Testament. No, Habakkuk is relative, or 
relevant, rather, in Pisidian Antioch in the first century. 
and it's relevant in Chilliwack, British Columbia, in the 21st 
century. He tells them, beware therefore, 
lest what has been spoken in the prophets come upon you. And then the particular text 
is verse 41. Behold, you despisers, marvel 
and perish, for I work a work in your days, a work which you 
will by no means believe, though one were to declare it to you. 
Now, this is God's response to the prophet Habakkuk. Habakkuk 
asked two questions of God. Sometimes we are told, never 
question God, and that's absolutely, positively accurate. You shouldn't 
say, why oh why are all these bad things happening to me? But 
there is a lament aspect in scripture. where lamenters like Jeremiah, 
like Habakkuk, like David the psalmist, where Asaph the psalmist, 
they look around, they see the destitution facing the people 
of God, they see the heartaches facing the people of God, and 
they, with reverence and trust, See, I think the way that persons 
will question God doesn't evidence trust. It's almost a questioning 
to abandon. But then you get to the prophets, 
and you get to the psalmists, and you'll see them say, how 
long, O Lord? But they're doing it in a posture 
of faith. They're doing it in a posture 
of trust. The Bible is candid. The Bible is clear. When you 
become a Christian, it doesn't mean that every earthly sorrow 
will just go away. There's heartache, there's affliction, 
there's trial, there's pain, there's difficulty, there's suffering 
associated with life in Christ in this current evil world. And 
so the psalmists and the prophets before them, or the prophets 
as well, would cry out to God. And so that's what Habakkuk does, 
and God gives the answer. God gives an answer in Habakkuk 
1, 5 to 11, and basically his answer is this. You're right, 
Habakkuk, things are messed up in Judah. And I'm going to work 
a work in your days that you would have never believed. And 
he is speaking specifically concerning the Babylonian captivity of Judah. He is speaking about raising 
up Nebuchadnezzar. Now, God calls Nebuchadnezzar 
and the prophet Jeremiah, my servant. He was God's servant, 
a means by which the Lord is going to bring to bear upon Judah 
the curses of the covenant that he promised to do so in Leviticus 
26 and Deuteronomy 28. So God says to Habakkuk, you're 
right, everything is wrong in Judah. So I'm gonna work a work 
in your day. I'm gonna raise up Babylon, a 
bitter and a hasty nation. A terrible people is essentially 
what he says, and I'm gonna send them into Judah and they're gonna 
decimate your land. Now, was that the answer that 
Habakkuk wanted? Probably not, but God nevertheless 
answered him. Then Habakkuk asks another question. 
You know what the Lord's answer to him is? Habakkuk 2.4, the 
just shall live by faith. In the midst of calamity, in 
the midst of trial, in the midst of affliction, in the midst of 
hardship, the people of God are never devoid of their God. When 
Babylon comes, when Babylon destroys the city, when they destroy the 
temple, it is not the case that they will destroy your communion 
with the true and living God. But back to the first question, 
this is the answer. And notice in verse 41, what 
Paul is doing is he's quoting from the Greek translation of 
the Hebrew Old Testament. Despisers is not in Habakkuk 
1.5 if you turn there to the New King James. Again, there's 
just different versions, there's different sort of semantic range 
that words have, and here he calls it despisers. What's he 
saying to the people in the synagogue, both Jew and Gentile? Be careful 
what you do with this message. Be careful what you do with the 
truth of justification by faith alone. Be careful what you do 
with the reality that through this man is preached to you the 
forgiveness of sins. Behold, you despisers, marvel 
and perish, for I work a work in your days, a work which you 
will by no means believe, the one work to declare it to you. One commentator, Bach, says with 
reference to this word despisers, he says this is the only occurrence 
of this term in the New Testament. It refers to someone who despises 
or has contempt for something. Rejecting God's work in Christ 
puts one in this category. Now, again, I want you to pay 
close attention, because this is momentous. This is important. This is everything. Notice that 
Paul doesn't say, I know some of you had a bad upbringing. 
I know you had Sunday school teaching that was bad. I know 
that your church has preached an imbalance. No, you've heard 
it. You've heard the truth preached 
that through this man is forgiveness of sins. You've heard the truth 
preached that through this man is justification from all things, 
which you could not get through the law of Moses. We're all on 
an equal footing right here and right now. Regardless of our 
upbringing, regardless of our theological education or our 
lack of it, here's the truth, here's the clarity of it. In 
verse 38, forgiveness through Christ. Verse 39, justification 
through faith in Christ. Behold, you despisers. You need 
to be very cautious and careful with how you proceed from here 
on out because you have received the truth. The Geneva Bible says 
the benefits of God turn to the utter undoing of them that contemn 
them. A modern commentator brings the 
thought this way. He says, the prophet Habakkuk 
on the eve of the Chaldean or Babylonian rise to world power 
called on the nations in the name of God to look with astonishment 
on the impending invasion. As these words were reminiscent 
of warnings uttered earlier by Isaiah in the days of the Assyrian 
peril, so Paul now takes them up and applied them to the new 
situation in which God is offering deliverance through the greatest 
of all his mighty works. Great as was the disaster that 
overtook those who ignored the prophetic warnings, an even greater 
disaster will befall those who refuse the gospel. Think about 
what he's saying here. If you know anything of your 
biblical history, you'll know that when Babylon came to Jerusalem, 
it was not a walk in the park. You will know that it was a time 
of great calamity, a time of the judgment and vengeance of 
God Almighty against His covenant-breaking people. And so what Bruce suggests 
here is that what happened then is outdone by what happens now, 
when persons hear the great message of redemption and forgiveness 
and justification by faith alone, and then they despise it, or 
they contend it, or they disregard it. Listen to Calvin. Calvin says, Habakkuk prophesies 
of the destruction brought upon them by the Chaldeans or Babylonians. 
But the punishment whereby God revenges the contempt of his 
gospel was more severe. Therefore, let us accustom ourselves 
to fear God and reverently embrace his word, lest some such thing 
befall us. See, for Paul, he doesn't just 
present data and then go. For Paul, he presents the data, 
impeccably so, and then he calls men to faith. He calls men to 
believe. He calls men to experience that 
forgiveness of sins, that justification by faith. And then he warns men 
that if they do despite to this, if they despise it and revile 
it and disregard it and reject it, then what happened in Babylon 
or Babylon happening to Judah is a walk in the park. We're 
not talking about a temporal earthly judgment, what they suffered 
in 586 BC. We're talking about eternal suffering, 
eternal punishment, eternal judgment. We're talking about God the Lord 
delivering men up to the very abode of the devil himself. That's 
what's in view and that's what Paul ends with in this section. I think you'd be thrown out of 
the church today. Oh, Paul, we can't end there. I mean, come 
on, you gotta, you know, there's more. You catch more flies with 
honey. Don't you know that, Paul? Didn't you understand? Have you 
never been taught that? What a negative nelly. You're gonna 
actually leave them on that downer note? You know what? There is a time in seasons of 
life where we need to abide James 4, lament and mourn and weep. Cleanse your hands, you sinners. 
We are far too peppy, far too joyous, far too frivolous in 
light of the great realities of a coming judgment on the last 
day. I'm not saying don't have fun, 
don't be joyful, don't watch your kid toddle. That's not my 
point. We are frivolous. We do not care. We do not think 
about the age to come. We are more concerned to prepare 
for school, to prepare for jobs, to prepare for retirement, than 
we ever consider the eschaton, the world without end, the age 
to come, where there will be no cessation ever. If you do 
not flee to Jesus Christ and believe in him, the very warning 
that the Apostle Paul issues in Pisidian Antioch will be on 
your head. And then let's look quickly at 
the response to Paul's preaching in the synagogue. Verses 42 and 
43. We'll pick up the next Sabbath. Verse 43 says, the next Sabbath. We'll pick that up the next time 
we get back to the book of Acts. But the response to Paul's preaching 
in the synagogue immediately. There was a desire for the gospel 
and a desire to follow Paul and Barnabas. Notice in verse 42. 
Now there's some difference in terms of the English versions. 
Your English version may not read the way that I'm about to 
read this. If you've got the ESV and I think the NIV and the 
NASB, it doesn't say that the Gentiles beg that these words 
might be preached to them the next Sabbath. That's what's called 
a variant reading in the manuscripts. I'm gonna preach it the way it's 
found here in verse 42. And I want to draw out a particular 
lesson Look at what he says. Luke, under the inspiration of 
the Spirit, close companion of the Apostle Paul, the author 
of Luke and Acts, verse 43. So when the Jews went out of 
the synagogue, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached 
to them the next Sabbath. The fact that these Gentiles 
begged indicates that the Gentiles understood. Right? Because I guarantee you, if you 
understand your plight, your problem, if you understand what 
you're facing as a unbeliever, then you too will want to beg 
for the gospel. See, these Gentiles heard of 
justification by faith alone, from everything, which you could 
not be justified by the law of Moses. As far as the Gentiles 
that were in the synagogue were concerned, faith in Jesus plus 
works. Well, not even faith in Jesus 
at this particular juncture for this original crowd of Gentiles 
in Acts 13. It was simply works. Do this, 
get circumcised, obey Torah, and then hopefully you'll make 
it at the end. You can see why the Gentiles 
now beg for this gospel of free grace. Why they beg that the 
Apostle Paul come back the next Sabbath. And interestingly enough, 
when we get there the next Sabbath, guess what happens? Almost the 
whole city is there. Why do you think that was? Because 
the persons that were there on that first Sabbath went and told 
friends. They said, you need to come back 
to the synagogue next Sabbath, because this man called Paul 
is preaching a way of acceptance with God through God's Son called 
Jesus Christ, and that by faith alone. So what happens? Almost 
the whole city shows up. See, religion mattered then. 
Nowadays, you could run down the street telling people, hey, 
I've got free gifts for you. It's in Jesus Christ. They think 
you're a nut. They don't want anything to do 
with you. They reject it wholly and completely. But in this instance, 
these persons valued this preaching. Why? Because they knew God was 
holy. They knew they were not. And they knew that through the 
works of the law, they would never achieve acceptance with 
God. Gentiles begging. I've never 
in my life experienced that in terms of preaching. And I'm not 
saying, you terrible people in Free Grace Baptist. I get lots 
of encouragement. I'm thankful to God for the encouragement 
that I get here. But in this sense, Gentiles were 
begging. And I think the idea is that 
they were begging as if their lives depended upon it. Because 
their lives did depend upon it. We undervalue religion, as I 
said today. We generally. I don't know if all of us do 
in this place, but if you do, you need to think through these 
implications. Gentiles begged that they could hear the Word 
of God. And then in verse 43, it tells us, Now when the congregation 
had broken up, many of the Jews and devout proselytes followed 
Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue 
in the grace of God. They followed Paul and Barnabas, 
not like Paul and Barnabas were cult leaders, but they followed 
Paul and Barnabas because they just preached forgiveness in 
Christ. They followed Paul and Barnabas 
because they just preached justification by faith in Christ. They followed 
Paul and Barnabas because these men had the word of eternal life. 
Remember that scene in John's Gospel, in John chapter 6, when 
Jesus feeds the multitude, and then Jesus starts to preach what 
we would later call Reformed Theology to them. He would tell 
them, no man can come to the Father, except all that the Father 
gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will 
certainly not cast out. He emphasizes sovereign grace 
and a lot of the people depart from him. They got the food, 
they got the doctrine, they didn't like the doctrine, so they left 
and departed. And then Jesus asks his immediate 
disciples, do you also want to leave? And what does Peter say 
in John 6, I think it's at 68, Lord, to whom shall we go? You 
have the words of eternal life. In other words, you're what we 
want. You're what satisfies. You're 
the one that brings forgiveness. Well, I think the scene is the 
same here. They followed Paul and Barnabas because these men 
spoke the truth as it is in Jesus Christ. And I love what Paul 
does. He persuades them to continue 
in the grace of God. You see, brothers and sisters, 
that's what we need. Yes, we need to put on or put 
off the deeds of the body. We need to take no prisoners. 
We need to chop off right arms. Metaphorically, please don't 
go do that. We need to gouge out right eyes. Again, metaphorically, 
don't go do that. Certainly, all those things are 
true, brethren, but it's in the context of the grace of God. If you are struggling with temptation, 
if you are struggling with sin, if you are struggling with remaining 
corruption, yes, duty, yes, alarm clocks, but always God's grace. How do we persevere? How do we 
go from the point of justification to our place in heaven? It's 
grace. Grace and more grace, and that's 
what they called them unto, persuaded them to continue in the grace 
of God. Well, brethren, in conclusion, 
we see first the content of the gospel. It's not us and our religiosity. The content of the gospel is 
not us and our warm feelings. The content of the gospel is 
the life, the death, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 
That's what Paul emphasizes in this synagogue in Pisidi and 
Antioch. It's all about Jesus. The good 
news is not that I have a time every day to read my Bible. No, 
the good news is that Christ came into this world to save 
guilty, vile, helpless, wretched sinners like you and I. Secondly, 
the response to the gospel is faith, believe, assent to the 
propositions concerning the life, the death, and the resurrection 
of Jesus Christ. To believe everything that the 
Bible says, to believe everything that scripture testifies, but 
the chief element, the most principal act of saving faith is to believe 
on the Lord Jesus Christ, to receive him and to rest upon 
him alone for salvation. Thirdly, the blessings associated 
with the gospel, forgiveness of sins, and a righteousness 
that avails with God. In other words, everything that 
we need. See, God doesn't look down on the mass of human depravity 
and say, you know, I'm gonna help them. I'm gonna give them 
a little bit, and then I'm gonna see if they can, you know, make 
up the rest. Sometimes we do that. Well, I'll 
give you a little bit of a sense that that's not what God does. 
When God comes to deal with His sinful creatures, He comes to 
deal with His sinful creatures. There's no salvation wrought 
out by us, but there is a salvation perfectly wrought out by God, 
and it includes the forgiveness of sins and a righteousness that 
is imputed to us and received by faith alone. Listen to Abrakel 
with reference to the importance of justification. He says, "...justification 
is the soul of Christianity and the fountainhead of all true 
comfort and sanctification. He who errs in this doctrine 
errs to his eternal destruction. The devil is therefore continually 
engaged in denying, perverting, and obscuring the truth expressed 
concerning justification." That's true. That's what happens. There's opposition to this. Perhaps 
why right now your mind's a million miles away? Because the devil 
doesn't want you to hear the truth that there is in this man 
forgiveness of sins and justification from all things which you could 
not be justified through the law of Moses. You need to be 
on guard. You need to resist that. You 
need to believe the truth as it is in Jesus. And having believed, 
my dear brothers and sisters, I cannot stress it enough. The 
thing that we need to continue in is grace. Grace, grace, grace. Now again, I don't, you know 
me, I don't mean lay on the couch at home and just say, you know, 
Lord, fill me with your grace. Obviously, you do need to discipline 
yourself for the purpose of godliness. You need to do that. Paul tells 
us to do that. We need to put on the Lord Jesus Christ and 
make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lusts. We need, 
in the language of the Apostle, the perfect holiness in the fear 
of God. We need to understand that reality. We need, by God's 
grace, to move, to persevere, and to endure all things for 
the glory of God and for our own well-being. But it's always 
in the context of grace. It's never the case that any 
of us will ever be done with grace. Amazing grace, how sweet 
the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but 
now I'm found, was blind, but now I see. What's the last stanza? When we've been there 10,000 
years bright, shining as the sun, we've no less days to sing 
God's praise than when we first begun. You see, we're always 
dependent upon grace, and that's why in this synagogue, in Pisidian 
Antioch, they persuaded them to continue, not in the works 
of God, not in their obedience to God. Again, works and obedience 
in the proper context is correct, but they needed to continue in 
the grace of God. Too many times, as God's people, 
we fall into temptation, we fall into sin, we do something that 
violates our own conscience before a holy God, and then we simply 
think in terms of no more doing that. Again, no more doing that, 
but in the context of God's great grace. Lord, grant me the grace 
so that I don't want to do that. Grant me the grace so that I 
won't do that. Grant me the grace so that I will honor and will 
glorify you. It's grace in which we stand. As well, the warning connected 
to the gospel. I want to encourage all of us 
to think through Paul's sort of emphasis practically in terms 
of this sermon. There is a warning attached. 
Great blessings promise. Belief, forgiveness, justification. but you reject, you despise, 
you contend, you don't want to have anything to do with it, 
then there's going to be this wrath, this judgment, this fury, 
this power of God coming down upon the heads of those who do 
not believe. And then the final thing I want 
to say is that the Old Testament teaches the exact same truth. Abraham believed God and it was 
accounted unto him for righteousness. It's not been the case that in 
the Old Testament, you know, they did make it by their works 
of the law. In the Old Testament, they did 
sort of knuckle under and grin and bear it and did the best 
they could and God sort of rewarded them with that. No, the Old Testament 
teaches the exact same doctrine of justification by faith alone. And there's a beautiful illustration 
of that doctrine in the prophet Zechariah, in Zechariah chapter 
three. There is this vision of Joshua, 
the high priest, not Joshua, the military commander that went 
into the land of Canaan and dispossessed the Canaanites. No, Joshua, the 
high priest, after the Babylonian captivity, after the exile, there 
is this vision of him standing before the Lord Most High. And 
he's standing there representing all of Judah. And the scripture 
tells us that he's filthy. And when it tells us he's filthy, 
it doesn't mean he spilled some milk on his shirt on the way 
to church. I mean, if you saw me with a 
blotch of cream cheese, you'd say, wow, that guy's filthy. 
He didn't make sure that his shirt was clean. That's not what's 
in view. The filth in Zechariah 3 is used elsewhere in the Old 
Testament for feces and for vomit. So he's not standing before the 
Lord with just a little glob of cream cheese. He is standing 
before the Lord completely ruined. He is standing before the Lord 
completely disgusting. He is standing before the Lord 
in such a mess of a way. And again, representing the entirety 
of Judah. The devil is right there, ready 
to accuse. But the Lord rebukes the devil 
before the devil even opens his mouth. Why? Because the Lord 
knows Judah's problem. The Lord doesn't need the big 
mouth devil saying, well, you know, the best and the brightest 
here are actually filthy and disgusting and vile. The Lord 
knows that and the Lord rebukes him. And then you know what the 
Lord does? He orders that those filthy garments be taken off 
of Joshua. And then he orders that pure, 
clean, beautiful garments be put on to Joshua. You want to 
know what justification by faith alone looks like? Read Zechariah 
chapter 3. God rebukes the devil, God orders 
the forgiveness of sins, and God orders the imputation of 
Christ's righteousness. That's us, brethren. That's us, 
according to Paul in Romans, according to Paul in Galatians, 
according to the entirety of both Old and New Testaments. 
We are filthy before a holy God. We are a mess. We have rebelled. We have transgressed. We have 
lacked conformity. God tells us, go. We stop. God 
tells us, stop. We go. Every single one of the 
Ten Commandments, we treat as if it is absolutely contemptuous 
to us. We step all over everything. We're standing before Yahweh 
in that condition, and God gives the order, forgiveness and the 
imputation of Christ's righteousness. It's a beautiful, wonderful, 
excellent illustration of what the New Testament explains to 
us is the doctrine of justification by faith alone. Let us close 
in a word of prayer. Father, we thank you for your 
word. We thank you for your grace. We thank you for your mercy. 
God, there is nothing in us that deserves this kind of treatment. 
There's nothing in us that deserves heaven, but there's everything 
in you to provide it to us, and we give you praise. For forgiveness, 
we give you praise for this righteousness that you have given to us. We 
give you praise for the faith that you have given to us that 
we might receive these blessings. And God, our hearts desire and 
earnest please that more and more people would know this, 
more and more people would be drawn to Christ by the power 
of the Holy Spirit. And God, we pray for our children, 
our young people. We pray that you would move them 
by grace to flee after Christ and to know the joy of being 
found in him, not having their own righteousness, which is from 
the law, but that righteousness, which is from you given by faith. And we ask this in the name of 
the Lord Jesus Christ, amen. We'll close our service by singing 
the doxology on page 568.