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you you you good evening everyone welcome to evening worship at free grace baptist couple of announcements anyone that wasn't here this morning or anyone tuning in online uh pastor butler is away as we know on vacation pastor ryan malgears will be preaching this evening morning and evening until pastor butler returns there will be no bible study on wednesday evening and no saturday morning theology class as well for the next coming few weeks next sunday we have the privilege of having rick postma here from word indeed he's going to be giving a presentation in the morning hour 9 30 to 10 30. if you're not familiar with word indeed there are a missions organization that we support and many other reformed churches across north america support so he will be giving us a report on the work of of uh word indeed across the world and then we will also be having a fellowship meal i believe that's the 26th of june but further details will come out in an email so for a call to worship this evening turn to psalm 135 turn in your bibles to psalm 135 psalm 135 praise the lord praise the name of the lord praise him o you servants of the lord you who stand in the house of the lord in the courts of the house of our god praise the lord for the lord is good sing praises to his name for it is pleasant for the lord has chosen jacob for himself israel for his special treasure for i know that the lord is great and our lord is above all gods whatever the lord pleases he does in heaven and in earth in the seas and in all deep places he causes vapor vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth he makes lightning for the rain he brings the wind out of his treasuries he destroyed the firstborn of egypt both of man and beast he sent signs and wonders into the midst of you o egypt upon pharaoh and all his servants he defeated many nations and slew mighty kings sihon king of the amorites og king of basian and all the kingdoms of canaan and gave their land as a heritage a heritage to israel his people your name o lord endures forever your fame o lord throughout all generations for the lord will judge his people and he will have compassion on his servants the idols of the nations are silver and gold the work of men's hands they have mouths but they do not speak eyes they have but they do not see they have ears but they do not hear nor is there any breath in their mouths those who make them are like them so is everyone who trusts in them bless the lord o house of israel bless the lord o house of aaron bless the lord o house of levi you who fear the lord bless the lord blessed be the lord out of zion who dwells in jerusalem praise the lord amen for our first hymn tonight let's turn to number 429 come thou fount of every blessing 429 please stand with me as we sing [Music] my grace [Music] [Music] jesus [Music] is [Music] party [Music] oh [Music] let's turn to the lord in prayer our gracious heavenly father we come before you this evening with grateful hearts grateful that we can be in your presence as a people grateful that we have this privilege to serve the true and the living god we know that you are the creator of the earth the universe all things in it and we are grateful that you have caused your light to shine upon us that you have brought us the message of the gospel that you've given us the scriptures and that you've planted us in this church lord these are mercies that we do not want to take for granted knowing that many others have not been so privileged we think of many of our fellow believers in other places that are suffering for the word of christ for the testimony of christ we pray that you'd have mercy upon your church we pray law that even the most difficult of lands the church would continue to grow and continue to go forward we know that the church grows in many places through the blood of the martyrs and we pray oh god that you would bless the efforts of your people in places where it is difficult to serve and to to preach the gospel we thank you for the privilege we have of meeting openly in this place we pray god that you would help us to improve upon these privileges we pray oh god that you help us to be attentive to the word we pray that you would work in our hearts even this evening we pray that the holy spirit would be present bless ryan as he preaches bless the hearers as we listen i pray god this would be a day where you bring sinners out of darkness into marvelous light lord i pray that you would continue to cause the word to go forth across this country we think of the churches that we are in close fellowship with we pray that you will bless the work in south surrey we pray that you bless the work in vernon and the workout in ontario dryden i pray god that you would cause these congregations to be firm to be well rooted and grounded to mature in their understanding of the truth and i pray god that you would add daily such as should be saved lord i pray that you'd be merciful to this nation we know there is much wickedness in our country we know lord that you direct all things and that you have even the heart of the king the the prime minister in your hand we pray oh god that you would restrain men in authority in this land from doing evil and that you would cause them to do what is good for your church for your people and for for your own namesake lord we pray that you would be with us as we continue in worship this evening pray that you would encourage our hearts pray that you would challenge us chastise us with where necessary i pray lord that you would do us good we ask this in jesus name amen for our next team we're going to sing number 340 there is a fountain filled with blood 340. please stand with me [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] is [Music] in [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] jesus [Music] for our scripture reading this evening we're turning to the book of numbers we've completed leviticus now we're starting in numbers chapter 1 the fourth book of moses it's a long chapter we'll read the first half from verse 1 to verse 27. so the children of israel have come out of the land of egypt we've read the exodus and how that all happened we're now starting in the book of numbers it begins about a year a little over a year after they've left egypt so they're in the wilderness this is about 1400 bc they're in the wilderness and this the book of numbers is essentially a record of their wanderings in the wilderness it's called numbers because in chapter 1 god tells moses to number the children of israel and he will do that again in chapter 26 there's two numberings of the children of israel we'll read the first one here numbers chapter 1 beginning in verse 1. now the lord spoke to moses in the wilderness of sinai in the tabernacle of meeting on the first day of the second month in the second year after they had come out of the land of egypt saying take a census of all the congregation of the children of israel by their families by their father's houses according to the number of names every male individually from 20 years old and above all who are able to go to war in israel you and aaron shall number them by their armies and with you there shall be a man from every tribe each one the head of his father's house these are the names of the men who shall stand with you from reuben elizar the son of sheddier from simeon shalumiel the son of judah jeremiah the son of a minidab from issachar nathanael the son of zuar from zebulun eliab the son of helon from the sons of joseph from ephraim elishima the son of amayhood from manessa gamiel the son of pedusar from benjamin abaddan the son of gideon from dan ahizer the son of shaddai from asher pedro the son of okran from gad eliasath the son of duel from naphtali ahirah the son of enan these were chosen from the congregation leaders of their father's tribes heads of the divisions in israel then moses and aaron took these men who had been mentioned by name and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month and they recited their ancestry by families by their father's houses according to the number of names from 20 years old and above each one individually as the lord commanded moses so he numbered them in the wilderness of sinai now the children of reuben israel's oldest son their genealogies by their families by their father's house according to the number of names every male individually from 20 years old and above all who were able to go to war those were who were numbered of the tribe of reuben were forty six thousand five hundred from the children of simeon their genealogies by their families by their father's house of those who were numbered according to the number of names every male individually from 20 years old and above all who were able to go to war those who were numbered of the tribe of simeon were 59 300. from the children of gad their genealogies by their families by their father's house according to the number of names from 20 years old and above all who were able to go to war those who were numbered of the tribe of gad were forty five thousand hundred 650 from the children of judah their genealogies by their families by their father's house according to the number of names from 20 years old and above all who were able to go to war those who were numbered of the tribe of judah were seventy four thousand six hundred amen let us pray father in heaven we thank you for your word we thank you for the record of the account of the wanderings of the children of israel we thank you for the types and shadows that point forward to what christ would do in the new testament as the lamb of god who takes away the sins of the world we pray that you would continue with us in worship this evening and we ask this in jesus name amen stan once again to sing our last hymn which will be number 213 213 in your trinity hymnal foreign [Music] is [Music] is [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] is [Music] good evening everyone you can turn with me in your bibles to psalm 29. psalm 29 i'll read the uh the entire psalm and uh and then we'll pray so psalm 29 a psalm of david give unto the lord o you mighty ones give unto the lord glory and strength give unto the lord the glory due to his name worship the lord in the beauty of holiness the voice of the lord is over the waters the god of glory thunders the lord is over many waters the voice of the lord is powerful the voice of the lord is full of majesty the voice of the lord breaks the cedars yes the lord splinters the cedars of lebanon he makes them also skip like a calf lebanon and syrion like a young wild ox the voice of the lord divides the flames of fire the voice of the lord shakes the wilderness the lord shakes the wilderness of kadesh the voice of the lord makes the deer give birth and strips the forest bear and in his temple everyone says glory the lord sat and throned at the flood and the lord sits as king forever the lord will give strength to his people and the lord will bless his people with peace amen well let's pray our father in heaven when we read a psalm like this we are immediately struck with the with the wonder and the and the power of the great yahweh of israel so lord i pray this evening as we as we look at this passage lord i pray that you would be pleased to bless us and and impress upon us the the power and sovereignty that that you that you have as king of kings and and lord of lords as we have just sung lord i pray that you would would encourage our hearts by this this psalm that uh that that it would be a means for our for edification of your people here and that it would be a means that to strengthen us and in uh as we face a world of chaos and confusion to know that our god is in the heavens and he and he does whatever he pleases that he is sovereign over all things so lord we pray your blessing upon us now and we pray this in the name of our savior the your son the lord jesus amen well as i as i just said when we read when we read through this psalm it's very uh it's very obvious and very very apparent here we see the the the power and the majesty of of of of god of of yahweh the the lord here his his power it's very clear we have this uh the the voice of yahweh the voice of the lord repeated seven times here in this psalm islam has often been called the this um this the psalm of the seventh thunders and when we read this psalm we see that's actually what it actually is is a is it's a there's a storm is happening uh a storm in in nature david is observing this the the power of god in a storm so this storm originates off the off the coastland of in the in the mediterranean sea it originates there it comes into in in the north north of israel the land of of uh of lebanon and then it uh and then it heads south through the land of israel and into the wilderness in in kadesh which is in which is the in the to the south of the land of israel so so we see this this storm going through there and david here david here is as he is he hears the the thunder um you know peeling off the off the mountains and stuff we can we can just imagine him in this and every time you know another line the voice of the lord this this this power that he's observing here and he and and he's he's attributing it all to to yahweh of israel to the to the lord and and it's always that that that god is over this this storm here so so the psalm is about a storm that's happening in in nature but it's not limited to the the outward natural uh phenomenon of this of this storm that's happening here but rather david is doing something a whole lot more in this in this psalm here and what he's doing it's is it's uh he's writing a a polemic a polemic is a is a is an attack um against the the canaanite god baal so as we go through this we'll see how he's he's he's attacking bales um and and and uh because it for so for us to understand that what's what's going on we need to kind of understand a little bit of the of the of bale and who he was said to be so bale was the canaanite the canaanite god now there were many bales in um we find that through the old testament um you know there was there's a lot of bales but there was one supreme bail that they uh that they worshipped and uh that the canaanites worship the the one supreme bail and this is attack on that on that supreme um the the god baal here and he and baal was the the was the canaanite weather god so so he's uh there's pictures of him that they've uncovered of him with a lightning bolt in his hand um he was known to be the god of of uh of he controlled the rain and he was also the god the storm god as well so he was uh he was you know he was he was responsible for the rain so when it when it rained that was bale was happy when it was when it was stormy you know that meant bale was angry and he would cause this the storm thunder and the lightning that was that was going on there so so that was who who baal was now according to to the canaanites there was a there was a a dualism between yahweh of israel and baal they were you know they were um they were they were equals we could say and they were they were jockeying for position they were trying to to see who you know who who was gonna who's gonna gain the upper hand in here so according to their to their um you know their uh uh what's the word um you know understanding mythology if you want to use that word baal had overthrown the the the l the supreme god baal had overthrown that god now he was he was strongest god of all and yahweh was was of israel was was beneath him and again so this jockeying for position here so um you know so so and and we see that in the old testament we see that come to a head in in the in in kings with ahab ahab married jezebel jezebel was from uh phoenicia or tyre and that's the that was sort of the hub of bail worship where um in in phoenicia so ahab brings jezebel and with and with jezebel comes bail worship so she brings it in she had she had you know hundreds 450 plus uh priests for for bail that she she personally they said they ate at her table so she she was responsible for them bail worship was was um was brought into israel in that way and then you so so we see this come to a head this um this uh well we understand baal is is there's there is no equals that's what the point of the psalm is there's not yahweh and baal but we see this this very evidence very clearly in the book of kings with the elijah on mount carmel so elijah brings all the all the priests of baal he says okay we're going to solve this once and for all you you if you think that baal and yahweh are equal that's you know let's let's come together here and let's let's end this once and for all elijah says how long will you falter between two opinions if yahweh is god follow him but if baal follow him so then we you know we know the story we know how it ends they build the altar they each build an altar um the priests of baal build an altar elijah builds an altar to yahweh you know the priests of baal they spend all day dancing on the altar cutting themselves doing these things nothing happens the goal was you know who which god was going to consume the sacrifice and accept the sacrifice we understand then or we see remember the story elijah dumps water on this altar you know tons of water and then yahweh sends fire from heaven consumes the altar very very clear that yahweh is is god and baal is not yahweh is is uh is the true and living god baal is not so david is doing the same thing in this psalm here he's saying you know you canaanites you think that you know you think that uh that yahweh and baal are equal but but he's saying no no not no not at all and how we know that is and he's going to is going to show here that yahweh is is sovereign and he's going to explain that and by pointing out that yahweh is the creator and that's the difference yahweh is creator and there's none like him at all there is there is no other there could only be one creator there can only be one infinite self-existent being and that is that is yahweh of israel so so um you know the bail bail if we want to ascribe you know if we want to say he's a he's a a being he's a he's a created being um whether you know who who bale is that's that's not for the uh you know the the current uh sermon who who he actually is but either way bale if if bale is a is a spiritual being that the nations are worshiping he's a created being yahweh is the creator so that's how so having that that background in our mind then let's come to the psalms so first we see it breaks down here we have the the call to acknowledge the sovereignty of yahweh in verses one to one and two and then we have the demonstration of that sovereignty in verses three through nine and then the blessings of belonging to the people of yahweh or of or the blessing of belonging to yahweh so in verses in verses 10 to 11. so then first the call to acknowledge the sovereignty of yahweh so he he begins out and so then who so who who he's is he addressing here so we look in verse one he says give unto the lord oh you mighty ones now now uh perhaps in your margin it will have it will give you uh a different note there but literally it's it says give unto the lord oh you sons of the gods and again that's that uh that's a reference to to heavenly beings some some translations will try i think nfv translated as as heavenly beings or or spiritual beings these are heavenly beings he's calling on them to um you know that they inhabit the the spiritual realm and he's so he's calling on them to to acknowledge the sovereign sovereignty of yahweh so these are these are angelic beings they're they're um and not only not only good angelic beings you know the the the angels as we refer to them as angels and all that fall within that uh that category but there's but also the evil ones and and we see that um in in the scriptures very very often that the the sons of god are evil spiritual beings and and these beings have a lot of control over the nations the the bible is very clear on that as well that satan and and his his uh his hierarchy of demons have a lot of control over the nations and over the over the kings of uh of of the nations so um you know so he's he's referring then to these to these um you know the gods of the nations the small g gods of the nations that he's that that he's referring to here then so and he's calling on them to to you know the this call is going out to this angelic host here to to ascribe to god glory and we could see we could say that you know that the call is going out to baal himself you know to you know baal you ascribe the glory to god don't take don't take credit for these things that um that you know you god is creator god is doing these things god is over the storm you're not you're you're not baal that's uh you know that you're you're you need to ascribe the the the glory to god the god god who's the creator god gives the reign god god reigns on the just and the unjust we you know the bible the bible tells us that so it is uh it's it's yahweh of israel here so so um you know he says he says uh or but then again this is this is of course obviously not just going to go out then to you know the the the heavenly beings the the angelic realm but those who would worship the those those uh those gods as well then and um you know the gods of the nations i think if we can if we understand that in our minds some often we think of the the people worshiping just you know figments of their imagination but i i think the bible is very clear that that they're worshiping spiritual beings whether how much interaction they have with them or is is is uh is outside you know again outside the limits of this but to understand that that the devil is behind all of this this idol worship that uh that that um that we have there so when we realize this then we have we have um we have then then it's calling on not only not only the the gods but the people as well you know give the glory to god describe god with this glory yahweh is the he's the creator there's there's none like him we're gonna he's gonna make that very clear in the in this psalm here there's there's no other there's no other god like yahweh he's he is he's far above all these things yahweh is the creator all of these gods are created beings they are they are they're they're spiritual beings that are created they depend on yahweh for their very existence they are far inferior to yahweh they have more in common with us than they do with uh with yahweh because yahweh is is self-existent infinite and eternal so so so so the call goes out to them and then it says give the glory and strength to him so so you know the the glory and the strength that only yahweh has the the power to do such things so the this this raging storm that's happening so so so acknowledge the his power acknowledge his might over the created order again such a clear theme throughout all of the scriptures the the israelites under taking such comfort in the fact that we read that in psalm 35 135 as well there that uh at the outset that that yahweh is yahweh is is there he's he's above all the gods he says psalm 135 for i know that the lord is great our lord is above so our lord is above all gods the lord whatever the lord pleases he does in heaven and in earth in the seas and in all the deep places and then it goes on he talks about the lightning and the rain and and um etc there so so the israelites it was such a comfort for them the faithful israelites then and the prophets then moses and the ones that wrote here it was such a comfort for them to understand that their god yahweh was creator the other gods of the nations were creatures so so what what a what a blessing it was to be the the people of yahweh the people of the creator himself the one who has absolute sovereignty so so give the lord glory and strength due to him that he is he is over creation give the glory do his name so so so what does that mean the lord as he has revealed himself i call him yah or i call him yahweh some people say jehovah i think we're all familiar with that um you know but but yahweh or how he revealed himself to moses as i am you know so so so so so so god calls himself i am now if i if i said to you i am you you would look at me and you would you would wonder what you're what because we can't because we're finite creatures and we have to always qualify our our existence somehow because it's it's finite it's always it's always changing so i have to say i am hungry or i am tired or whatever it may be but yahweh just says i am and he and he and he and he leaves it there i am because the lord we we say the lord is pure being he's just he's just he's infinite he's there's no there's no there's no way to qualify god he just simply he is and that's the glory that that uh that that that we need to give to god for his this is this it's his name is a tells us a lot about who he is as god that he is he's infinite he's eternal and he's and he's self-existent there's he does he he is uncreated he is he is there there was no there was never a time when god wasn't there god always just he just is and and um so so that so though so yahweh is creator we we glorify him because of who he is for his give glory due to his name creator none like him in uh in the book of isaiah we we often find the he calls god calls himself the the the the yahweh the the holy one of israel or i am i am i am the lord your your holy one the creator of israel your king so what a comfort that was to the to the israelites this was now again in in the book of isaiah this is you know he's the israelites are being chastised for rejecting god rejecting the creator of the universe who had chosen them to be his own special people and they had rejected him and chose to go on to go after other other gods other created beings rather than the rather than the creator himself there so and then and so this this holy one that's that's the that's what what we have to understand when when god tells us that he is i am his name is i am and that he's infinite he's eternal he's self-existent we call it that the the holiness of god that he is he is he is other he is completely other there is no there is no one like him like our god there is he is on he is in his own um category can i use that that that word um okay but there's there's no there's no other there's no other god it's not i i often use the you know the analogy of a of a ladder the ladder of being we think you know rocks are down at the bottom and then we have plants and animals and then we're we're somewhere on there and then maybe of angels and god's at the top well it's not like that the the the the latter goes up to whatever you want to put at the top but whatever's at the top is still a created being god is not on that ladder of being he is because because he is completely other so so that is that and that's what david goes on to say here in the psalm then so so so give the lord the glory due to his name then he says worship the lord in the beauty of holiness there so so so beauty now worship the lord in the beauty of holiness this is not a state that we need to be in we need to be in a state of of of the beauty of holiness as we worship god that's not what he's saying rather that's this is this is um attributed to god the beauty of holiness so beauty here means not so much as we think of of of beauty um in our in our language but more of a of a splendor or majesty so so worship the lord in the in the majesty of his holiness this this this unsurpassable um uh dignity maybe we could say this and and the and the the the beauty of this of being set apart of being completely holy completely other you know so this is this is again as i said this is such a comforting reminder it was a reminder a comforting reminder to the israelites they always reminded themselves of that that our god is holy he is he is other there is none like him moses says who is like you o lord among the gods who is like you glorious in holiness fearful and praises doing wonders now this comes right after the red sea passage where they've they've just come through the red sea israel the god had part of the waters israel went through on dry ground and egypt went in god closed up the waters and and destroyed them an incredible feat of of you know of showing god's sovereignty over over nature showing that he is in fact a creator so then moses breaks out in this song and says that who is like you lord among the gods who is like you glorious in holiness and then and then moses reminder uh to the people again in in um in deuteronomy chapter 3 verse 24 what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do anything like your works and your mighty deeds so so what a what a blessing that was for the people of israel that their god was created deuteronomy 33 29 happy are you o israel moses speaking again happy are you o israel who who is like you a people saved by the lord the shield of your help and the sword of your majesty your enemies shall submit to you and you shall tread down their high places so what what uh what a comfort what a comfort that was to the to the people of israel and and and of course us as the new covenant believers in in the book of first peter chapter two the next passages that we that i hope to preach through uh we saw that we read it this morning i didn't preach on it but just that how how peter clearly clearly ascribes to to the new covenant believers the church um that that we are this holy this holy nation this special people uses all this old covenant language to describe the church here in in second peter chapter two uh verse well verse five he calls them a holy priesthood so we see that that's a very very clear reference to the old testament and then in in verse in verse 9 again you are a chosen generation explicit old testament language a chosen nation we see that very clearly um how god chose israel for his own special people a royal priesthood a holy nation his own special people so so it's a comfort that we can have as the people of as the people of god to to know that our god the god that we worship the god who has rescued us from darkness into marvelous light is is the creator he is there is he's unrivaled in his majesty and in his sovereignty so so now david david david's observing the storm again remember that this the storm is going through david is observing the storm as as as it's passing through the country the the the power that it's uh that it's uh showing and and uh and here and then he calls out to men and angels to acknowledge the sovereignty of god and and to worship him spurgeon says it says the best here spurgeon says the call to worship in these two verses chimes in with a loud peeling thunder which is the church bell of the universe ringing kings and angels and all the sons of earth to their devotions so only only a spurgeon can say in so so such a beautiful way but the the church bell this thunder the church bell of the universe ringing kings and angels and all the sons of the earth to their devotions so that is the that's the the the call to acknowledge the sovereignty of god and now we come to then the demonstration of this sovereignty so we we see here that this is where we have all these the voice of the lord the voice of the lord uh seven times repeated here and again so so so as i said at the beginning we can kind of imagine that that you know as the thunder each boom of thunder again you know david writes a writes another line it's you know sort of coinciding with it with another thunder clap from this storm as it as it passes through now the interesting thing is the hebrew word for thunder and the hebrew word for voice is the is the exactly the same word there so it's um it's it's interesting but uh but so we see this here then that the the you know the voice of the lord is over the waters the god of glory thunders here so it's you know so david's saying this is this is not this thundering this is not baal you're hearing this is this is yahweh of israel this is our god he is he's he's the one thundering in this uh in this storm so he says here that the voice of the lord in verse three the voice of the lord is over the waters so you know of course you know the storm originated over the waters of the of the mediterranean sea and as the as the thunder you know boomed over the sea we saw that was that's yahweh displaying his power there but there's there's so much there's there's more um going on here in the in the in the bible the old testament the the new testament as well very clear the the this is a reference to god as creator again um that that the the god being over the waters referencing him and and showing his that he is in fact creator you can turn to genesis 1 verse 1 for a minute to see that to see that where where where we get that from and why and and how that theme is played out through the through the rest of scripture so genesis 1 verse 1 in the beginning god created the heavens and the earth the earth was without form and void and darkness was on the face of the deep and the spirit of god was hovering over the face of the waters then god said let there be light and there was light and god saw the light that it was good and god divided the light from the darkness god called the light day and the darkness he called night so the evening and morning were the first day then god said let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters and let it divide the waters from the waters thus god made the firmament and divided the waters which were under the firmament firmament from the waters which were above the firmament and it was so so so very so so that's where we get this the concept god over the waters is a reference back to the creation account where we have this chaotic watery abyss prior to creation what did that look like exactly we don't know but but the bible describes it in these terms a chaotic watery abyss and and god the spirit of god hovering over these things ready to ready to create ready to bring order um from this from this watery chaos there so it's a very clear reference to his to his um to his his his sovereignty and his in his control is that he is creator the lord is over many waters and then look at look at verse four the lord the voice of the lord is powerful and the voice of the lord is full of majesty so again going back to to creation there you know it was the voice of the lord that brought creation into existence you know god said god said that let there be light and there and there was light you know god said you know let there be let there be a firmament and there and there was all these things it was the voice of the lord the the that was full of of power and full of majesty that that brought creation into into existence so um so now but the but the the voice of the lord being so powerful and being so full of of of majesty i think we have a very a very um tangible um experience of this that we can read of in the in um with the old uh or the the israelites in the old testament in exodus chapter 19 and 20 at the at mount sinai and how the the voice of the lord there that the the power and the majesty that was that was in the voice of the lord so if you turn exodus 19 in verse 16 then it came to pass on the third day in the morning that there were thunderings and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and the sound of the trumpet was very loud so that all the people who were in the camp trembled and moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with god and they stood at the foot of the mountains now mount sinai was completely in smoke because the lord descended upon it in in a fire its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace and the whole mountain quaked quaked greatly and when the blast of the trumpet sounded long it became louder and louder moses spoke and god answered him by voice then the lord came down upon mount sinai on the top of the mountain and the lord called moses up to the top of the mountain and moses went up now flip to to chapter 20 exodus 20 verse 18. now all the people witnessed the thunderings the lightning flashes the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking and and when the people saw it they trembled and stood afar off then they said to moses you speak with us and we will hear but let not god speak with us lest we die so so we see just such a a it was really uh that that in close encounter with the voice of the lord it was it was a terrifying experience for the people of israel as the lord came down on mount sinai in in all his glory and they saw the they saw the lightnings and they heard the the thunderings they heard that you know the voice of the lord there in this in this theophany and it was the the majesty there that the people trembled and they were they were they were terrified of it you know so they they learned full well that day the israelites did that the voice of the lord is majestic so then let's let's move on then in the psalm now two to verse five the voice of the lord breaks the cedars yes the lord splinters the cedars of lebanon so now so now david tracks the storm as it moves from over the over the mediterranean into the land of of lebanon which was north of um of the land of israel so this is lebanon is is um is synonymous with tyre phoenicia it's all that same in that same area they're lebanon so lebanon was the land of the great cedar trees you know we david and solomon they both brought cedars from this area um to build their their houses and and solomon obviously to build the temple so um so we remember david david called for um or or david and worked with hiram the king of tyre the king of phoenicia to bring these uh to bring these cedars over so this terror this this was but this was bale's territory this is um you know this is where this was was the the the hub of of baal worship bale was said to live on mount on mount hermon um you know he was uh and again now mount hermon another name that we find for mount hermon in the in the bible is is syrion and that's what we have in verse six here so he says so in verse six we is a reference to syrion syrian is a is um me is mount is mount hermann and herman was bale's bale's uh house he or bale lived he was he was said to live on mount on mount hermon and um and in in judges three it's actually called mount baal hermann so they it's a very clear reference to that so baal baal was ubail was said to live there so now the storm of yahweh and his his display of his power it moves into bale's territory you know the power of yahweh the creator comes in there and and then the lord demonstrates his his power and his sovereignty over this over this um this area that was supposedly bale's territory you know by by splintering these cedars and and and um you know just just destroying them breaking the cedar splintering the cedars of of lebanon so it's you know it's god coming very very clearly you know the and showing bail i you know you you have no authority here you have no power i i created these cedars and and i can destroy them if uh if i if i if i want to you know there's there's again in the in the canaanite um mythology bale was bale wanted to have a house built out of these cedars that's the you know and among the the gods they were they were talking and bale wanted someone to go get cedars to build himself a house which is which is interesting the the parallels that we have here to uh to this the use of the cedars and god making himself a house out of these cedars but um but again so that's what that's what the canaanites taught and they believed so well well here comes yahweh and yahweh destroys these cedars splinters the cedars our bible says here and then we then we see what happens to to baal as as baal as this as a storm moves in this power of of yahweh comes uh comes into his land what does it say here so so the it's uh in verse six then he makes them to skip like a calf lebanon and syrian like a young wild ox so so the the cedars you know they're sent skipping off like a calf as they're as they're splintered as the wind blows them and tears them apart they're splintered and they and their and their branches are are thrown you know thrown about by the wind of this of this storm you know they're it's like they're they're skipping like a like a calf now the skipping like a calf is not it's not a you know a calf skipping through a meadow having having fun this is a this is a terrified calf is it as it as it flees when it's scared you know so even so the so it's the the cedars are are are are breaking apart and fleeing like they're scared and then even even the very mountains are are trembling and shaking at the you know at the at this as the thunder um you know peels peels off the mountains it sounds you know it's as if they're david personifies them they're you know they're they're shaking they're fleeing they're they're running they're running scared like a a wild ox here you know again like i said they're they're not you know they're not having fun skipping you know that's that's not what he's he's referencing here they're running in terror from the from the power of of the lord when the lord displays his glory you can turn to psalm 114 for a minute we see that uh we see the same thing in psalm 114. start in verse 1 when israel went out of egypt in the house of jacob from a people of strange language judah became his sanctuary and israel his dominion this sea saw and fled jordan turned back the mountains skipped like rams the little hills like lambs what ails you oc that you fled oh jordan that you turn back o mountains that you skipped like rams oh little hills like lambs tremble o earth at the presence of the lord at the presence of the god of jacob who turned the rock into a pool of water and the flint into a fountain of waters so again we're seeing the the mountains the the creation they're being personified as as fleeing back as and and trembling as yahweh displays his power over over the created order as as as as the creator you know so these mountains are these mountains here you know are they're skipping off in in terror they're shaking in terror as as this uh as yahweh comes in and again remember this is you know this as a this polemic against against baal you know what you know what's what's david trying to show here you know he's showing very clearly baal is no match for for the lord um you know that that you know even when he's in his own in his own abode on mount hermon on his own turf you know he can't he can't defend himself against the power of of the lord you know when when yahweh moves into bale's territory bale is sent running in in fear and again this is a you know this is a uh a warning to to those who are who worship baal as well you know that the the this thundering and that that that's happening here this is not the voice of an angry bail you know this is the voice of almighty god of yahweh of israel and has and this voice has sent has sent baal running for the hills in in in terror you know because this this god is no ordinary god he's not he's not like he's not like one of the gods of the nations but he rather he's he is creator so so worship him ascribe glory to him he's he's the creator and then and then he goes on in this last little uh couplet here uh the the voice of the lord divides the flames of fire in verse seven so um again a an interesting word to translate the word divides there you might see in your margin it says stirs up or literally hues out um so it's the idea of cutting um is is the verb there so so you know this is probably a a reference to to the the lightning sort of you know cutting through the dark clouds um in this in this storm again it's all part of this you know this this storm that's that's that's raging over the over the so-called home of of bale mountain in in lebanon and on the mount hermann you know and and the fires of yahweh is cutting through over this over this false god baal this this this god who claims to have power over the weather you know but in reality he sent running when god shows up to demonstrate his power so so that uh and then and then uh that concludes that little section then we then we move on to as the void as the as the storm moves south passes through israel moves south and it goes into the wilderness of of kadesh in verses eight so the voice of the lord shakes the wilderness the lord shakes the wilderness of kadesh so um so again we have the we have the same the same effect here when the power of god moves in you know nature itself the wilderness itself you know it shakes it it trembles at the at the voice of the lord here that um that that nature nature david personifies nature as as trembling and shaking when when yahweh displays the majesty of his voice and and the power of his voice now there's and again in this section there's a lot more parallels but i didn't i didn't bring them them all out but to ancient uh ugaritic texts that that talk about and discuss bail there's a lot more parallels in here that david is using but this is one that's uh that's quite striking the uh the the eugeritic texts uh ascribe to baal praising baal and they say ad bail baal at his holy voice the whole earthquake so david david again is saying here no not not you know not not so fast this this the same storm that just sent bale running in in in terror when he you know in in in lebanon it this is the same storm that is causing the the wilderness to shake here in the in the south you know it's it is it's it's it's yahweh who's all-powerful and to whom all the earth should quake in fear of his great power and and his great holiness and then uh and then verse nine the voice of the lord makes the deer give birth and strips the forest bare now this is a very a very difficult um verse again to translate um you know depending what what version your bible might say the voice of the lord twists the oaks and strips the forest bear so you might think how in the world do you go from from making the deer give birth to twisting the oaks so there's um there's uh the the word for oaks and the words for for female deer those we use them they translate as deer here are very similar they're um they're in in the hebrew there you have uh vowel pointing underneath the consonants so the the difference is is is pretty much uh restricted to the vowel pointing which was not in the original so that was up to two masoretic scribes you know after christ came um to to who added these vowel pointing so we would know how to pronounce words and what they were what they were mean so there's there's there's a very close similarity there so so that um you know so so so oaks or female deer could be could be uh one or the other but then we have the the verve of of translated in the king james as giving birth in order to cause to to give birth um or in the niv you know rendered as twist when it comes to um you know in regards to the oaks so the word the the verb means to to writhe to twist to arrive and often it's associated with labor pains in uh in the bible when a woman is you know is in travail um you know she and she's writhing in in labor pains it's writhing is that's the verb used there so that is um so that's why you know a lot of a lot of our you know translations will will translate it as it causes the the the voice of the lord makes the deer give birth or causes them to to to give birth um because of that that verb is attributed to to labor pains um but but again the the the verb has it really has anything to do with it with with whirling twisting writhing sort of sort of motion there so so it could be as we find in in the king james that the voice of the lord makes the deer give birth that the the voice of the lord you know it's terrifying and the deer you know they go into premature labor and and uh and drop their young you know prematurely because because they are they're just you know they're so scared that it could it could very well um could very well be that but i think the the way the niv and some other translations um have it is uh is better that the voice of the lord um you know twists the oaks and i think the um you know obviously that goes with the with the context uh well it goes just as well um as the deer giving birth but when you see the next line there that the and it it strips the forest bare so it's kind of it would make sense it would go with that that the the you know the the oaks are are twisting up and they're and they're falling in the and the forests are being stripped bare um so i think it fits that but there's uh there's something else that uh that i think is is is is a more powerful argument for this this translation that the way the niv renders it is twisting the oaks and that is um you know that the word that the word that's translated as as um as oak is also referred to as a terebinth tree in other places in the bible so the same very same word um masculine and plural differences all the differences but uh but it translated as as terabytes trees so terabytes trees where they're referenced often in the old testament there these were these were very they were tall trees they grew very broad as well very big trees but they um and they lived very long um they're they they grew to be very old trees but they they were um they all they just they grew just as a single tree so so you if you ever if you look at pictures of them it's a it's bare and then there's just one massive tree there so these trees were used as landmarks we see that the old testament we see how abraham journeyed as far as the as the terabith tree at mora that's what that was as far as he went um you know so the turbine tree was the was the landmark there the turbine the the turbine at zeon am marked the boundary of the tribe of asher when they were allotting out the land the asher gets you know this this section of the land from the jordan up to the terrible tree at the zayam so they were they were landmarks but there's there's uh there's there's something a lot more um here and that is that they were places where the canaanites worshiped worshipped baal under the terabith tree we see um we see that very clearly they they became um shrine maybe that's not the right word but they they became places where baal was worshipped under these under these terebinth trees we actually see we see abraham offering a sacrifice to yahweh when he just enters into the land of canaan that he he went to the terebinth tree to offer a sacrifice to yahweh because that was what he would have known prior to prior to him you know being called out of ur the counties by by the lord that that you know a terabit tree was a place where you offered a sacrifice to your god so um and and we see that actually very clearly you can turn it to hosea chapter 4 where we see that mentioned explicitly hosea 4 verse 13. well we can go we can start in uh in verse in verse 12. my people have asked council from their wooden idols and their staff informs them for the spirit of harlotry has caused them to stray and they have played the harlot against their god they offer sacrifices on the mountaintops and burn incense on the hills under oaks poplars and terrapins because their shade is good therefore your daughters commit harlotry and your brides commit adultery so very very clear there that the that they have they have offered you know they use this this terebinth tree as a place to offer um sacrifices and to worship baal so so that's why you know i i believe that this is the you know that's the the the correct translation what the niv has that that causing the oaks to twist and to to to be ripped apart you know so so this um you know this this this storm as it as it moves through israel and comes into the wilderness it's it you know it's taking these these turbine trees these old trees that have been there for you know hundreds of years they've been growing there and and twisting them up and and in you know and stripping them bare there but you know but it's not again it's not just dave is not just standing in awe at the storm as it as it rips trees out and twists these trees up there but rather again he's he's he's showing you know this he's showing god's sovereignty over over baal you know and the the places where baal you know where baal was worshipped from his people they're they're ripped apart and they're they're stripped bare again a clear declaration of the sovereignty of of yahweh of israel our lord and then this and then the last line in verse in verse nine and in his temple everyone says glory i i i love this line in this uh in this psalm here i think i just in my mind i picture you know as as the as the storm runs runs through israel you know i see a picture you know everyone in in jerusalem the the temple mount to the temple of god there and they're they're in there in jerusalem they've observed this this storm as it as it's come as it's wreaked havoc in in bales territory it's passed through through them into the into the the the wilderness here the you know the the so so first it's the abode of baal has been has has been shaken you know but then now it comes into the wilderness and these places of worship of baal worship they're they're you know they're they're twisted apart they're ripped from their moorings and stripped bare you know and and so they're the people are standing in in awe of this and and all they all they have is this collective glory for for for their god it's a it's a it's it's amazing as they you know they witness the the power of of their god the god who has chosen them to be their their special people and everyone in the temple says says glory sometimes i wonder was it a was it a shout of of glory or was it just a an awe struck whisper of glory this uh i don't know but it's just it's it's amazing that as their god their cree their god is the creator the the the the true the true and living god so so then we come now then to the to the blessings of belonging to the people of god in verse 10. the lord sat and throned at the flood and the lord sits as king forever so again we have a we have a very clear reminder of the of the sovereignty of of god you know so as the you know obviously as this storm passed through the land of israel you know they the the same power would have been would have been felt there you know they they would have they would have they would have trembled at the at the the power of yahweh as he as he as in this storm as it comes by you know but again this this reminder here that you even at the time even at the flood the great flood i think this is a reference in in verse 10 a reference to the to to noah's flood you know that that the lord sat and thrown at the flood so you know when when when the most disastrous thing in terms of of of natural disasters the the great flood you know the the you know disaster ensued and the world is is being dramatically destroyed in in re and returning to this watery abyss that it was at creation you know god was in complete control of the whole thing and and god was sitting enthroned at the flood you know and that that is a this is a such a good reminder for for us as uh as the people of god we you know this is this is our god this god that is powerful this god that sends you know the the sends bail and you know running in fear this is our god and and in a time of of disaster like this that reminder that our god sat enthroned at the flood that god is in is in control and god never never relinquishes that control i mean we can obviously we can we can ascribe this to natural disasters that you know they seem to happen uh more and more often these days um these these natural disasters flooding fires whatever it may be but this reminder yes god is in control god god never relinquishes that control god the lord the lord sits um sits as king forever so you know he's king of the universe he's king over all creation so so yes that you know we can take comfort for the for the you know the the natural disasters in in that turn but how much more how much more than you know of a of a reminder and a comfort is this for us when you know as we weather the the the storms of life not the physical thunder and and the and the the lightnings but the but the trials and the the difficulties that you know that we all endure those storms as they come our way what a what uh what a blessing it is to know that our god is sovereign over all things the lord is sitting sad and thrown at the flood calmly in control of all things as the world was was completely turned upside down and chaotic and and and and and decreated we could almost say there yahweh was in control over at all he had not lost control in any way so so and and so what what a blessing for that now you know we can see in in verse 11 here then the lord will give strength to his people and the lord will bless his people with peace so so now notice notice in the in the in the psalm here you know the the the damage that the storm does then that uh and that david david lists here is it's in the north in lebanon and then it's in it's in kadesh in the south but the storm obviously passed through the land of israel you know and um you know but he doesn't mention these these these um these you know the the damage that's done to these things so uh or done to the land of israel and to the people in there so that you know that now that doesn't mean that that you know bad things i would say quote quote-unquote bad things because we may interpret them to be bad that that that they don't happen to the people of god and then that we won't suffer i'm not i'm not saying that at all and we can't take that away from this psalm in any way but but you know the storm obviously would have buffeted the land of israel as it as it went through the the land as well you know there would have been damage you know but but david here he doesn't give any any negative effects concerning the land of israel as it as it went through and and and and why is that and i think i think the the the clearest answer to that is is that we know that all things work together for good to those who love god and to those who are the called according to his purpose so so you know even as this storm has come through and and displayed yahweh is always power yet as it's you know as we we for david he does not interpret bad effects happening to the land of israel because because again these things are working out for for good for god's people so um you know again that's a that's important to under to understand this uh this reality here that you know when god is in control that all things work out together for us these storms that that come we can have that peace that surpasses all understanding we can be like those you know in the temple saying same glory as as all this uh as all this this this happens and we witness these things in our in our lives so the lord will give strength to his people and the lord will bless his people with peace so there's this is this is something that is that is unique to the people of god this um you know the the people in lebanon the people in in in the wilderness and kadesh they would have been trembling in in in terror you know with with no peace as they witnessed this storm come through you know they they they describe this this all happening to baal they're you know they're and they're they're terrified of this they're terrified of this uh you know there's no peace there bale demanded bale demanded that they that they give their their children as sacrifices that they sacrificed their children on his altars to appease his wrath you know there was there was no peace to be found in in baal worship and and there's no peace to be found for for those who are not the people of god but for the the people of god we have that that that strength and that that peace to be had when we when we understand we know and we we trust in the the the fact that our god is creator our god is sovereign over all things he's rival to none and and and that he has created all things and and is remains always in control over all those things so we can we can take that comfort from this in in terms of the storms of life that that uh that that come our way you know the lord sat enthroned over the flood the lord sits as king forever but you know that's um but but but the point of the psalm being being this polemic against david you know what is that what does that have to do with with with the hearing uh sorry did i say plum against david plemic against baal what does that have to do with uh with the the here and now you know we we can say well well um uh you know i i get it you know god is sovereign god is creator and and yeah we can take we can take you know comfort in that but you know there's there's no there's no bail worship today what does that have to what does it have to do with uh with anything well i think i think we need to understand what the bible teaches us very clearly that we are in a battle right now and this battle is not a battle of flesh and blood but it's a it's a spiritual battle against the forces of darkness which is which is the the devil so whether baal whether baal worship was ultimately devil were either at the end of the day it was ultimately devil worship whether baal is a spiritual creature or or not for us today we know that we are in a battle against uh against these these forces of darkness principalities powers and rulers of the darkness of this age and spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places that's how paul describes it in in ephesians chapter six so we are we are at at war with this kingdom of darkness and i think sometimes in our our post-enlightenment world in the um we we forget these things we we might say oh yeah we're in a battle with the with the with the devil the devil's real and and you know we're in a battle because he wants me to sin and that's kind of the battle that i'm in but i think we we need to we need to realize that um you know there's there's there's so much there's a lot more going on as i said in our post-enlightenment world and the enlightenment tried to try to remove all of the supernatural um you know take it completely out and that there's if you know unless you could touch it and feel it and and and grasp it it wasn't real well the church you know obviously retained god but i think we lost a lot of the of the um the the spiritual aspects of the bible and the and the the reality of the power of satan and his power over over um over this this world you know that it um when we understand that i think it explains a lot when it comes to to the state of the world that we find ourselves in especially now in the last uh several years you know we find ourselves in in much like uh like the psalmist says in in psalm 2 a situation like that that the nations are raging and people are plotting a vain thing the kings of the earth set themselves together or the set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the lord and against his anointed saying let us break their bonds in pieces and cast away their accords from us so so we see that now collect it seems collectively the word the nations of the world have have come together and they're against they're against the lord they're against his christ you know and and to to understand how the bible teaches us and shows us how how that that satan is behind these these rebellions like this because he satan uses the kingdoms of the earth which are the which are in his power which the bible says very clearly and and satan says to to the lord jesus at the temptation that all these nations are are in his in his power and his control so um you know so so satan uses that he uses that too to try and hinder the church of christ in the advance of the church to try to attack the people of god and and um and and kill the people of god or or or you know hinder them persecute them in any way and then ultimately it's to hinder the advancement of the of the gospel or of the the advancement of the kingdom of christ that christ is building in this world you know which comes through the proclamation of the gospel through his people so so this um you know the persecution and when we see it coming together on on on such a um i think as brother john prayed this morning it's it's you know it's the governments of the world that are that are the at this point are the problem and and the cause of so much of this persecution and this explains you know so understanding understanding the the demonic aspect and satan's control behind this um helps us to understand the state of the world but then we have a psalm like this that helps us to that that you know it greatly encourages us you know that our god is sovereign he sits in the heavens and he and he laughs at this the psalmist in psalm 2 tells us he laughs and and holds them in derision as they as they come together and and and they're you know they're they're against the lord they're against his christ god is in heaven and he laughs at it he holds them in derision so you know we we we need to understand this demonic influence over the world which is you know which is the goal is to hinder the gospel um proclamation in the spread of the church uh the the advance of the kingdom of christ but this should not lead us to despair in any way i think you know oftentimes when we we start to to question these things we start to look into these things and we see what's all going on we can we can very quickly be led into into a despair that like how can this be happening you know but we we really should not um we should we should not be we should not despair but we should be greatly encouraged that our god is above all all powers he's you know he's victorious um you know we we don't need to we don't need to panic or be anxious over the state of this of this world now now that doesn't mean fatalism um you know where we where where we just you know we don't care whatever it's okay if you know if you feel you know it's your your calling to stand up against these things and take action against these evils whatever it may be that's that's that's fine that's okay but we don't we don't want to to panic and i think um let's uh let's turn to isaiah chapter 8 for a minute where isaiah or the lord says to isaiah the same thing in isaiah 8 verse 11 for the lord spoke thus to me with a strong hand and instructed me that i should not walk in the way of this people saying do not say a conspiracy concerning all that this people call a conspiracy nor be afraid of their threats nor be troubled now he's speaking of the the assyrian armies you know about to invade the land so he's he's saying don't don't be a conspiracy and and panic and and be afraid of their threats or be troubled the lord of hosts him you shall hallow let him be your fear and let him be your dread so when we fear yahweh when we when when we when we fear him in the right way then we understand you know his sovereignty that you know that he is in control of all of this of of you know of all over all over all things all the the the the gods of the nations the you know the the all the powers that that um that that be that paul lists in ephesians six there you know so we we understand that and then when we when we set our minds on these things then we have as as as the psalmist says in psalm 29 the lord gives strength to his people the lord blesses his people with peace so what a what a joy what a comfort we can have knowing that our god is is sovereign our god is is in control of these things and we have that that peace that surpasses all understanding we've seen it how he's how he's over he's over baal and and sent bail running in fear so he is over over whatever is is is going on in this world today god is in control of that now one one uh one warning that i would like to give as i was thinking about this um you know i was thinking there's there's another there's another storm an impending storm from god coming and that's the the storm of the of the wrath of god this time it's not it's not a weather storm but it is god coming in in in reality coming to take vengeance on those who do not know god and then those who do not obey the gospel of our lord jesus christ to quote paul in second thessalonians one so so that that storm coming of the wrath of god in that storm there's safety and peace given to the people of god and that safety and peace of course comes from the righteousness of the lord jesus christ whereby that storm will pass them by and they will be safe and secure you know so so if you're if you're not a believer you know we we you find yourselves now in in an evil an anti-god world the nations you know the kings of the earth you know collectively coming together plotting against our god against his people against his christ you know and we and maybe you even realize how evil that is and you're you're you know you're bothered by the by the evil that's there but if you haven't if you have not repented and you have not come to christ you are you are on the same side as them you need to understand that you're either for christ or you're against him so you know you're under this you know you're under the same judgment that you know of god as as the as the as god you know we saw in in baal there god sent him running and in this power the sovereignty and this and now the judgment that that will come upon upon all those at the end of the age you're on the same side if you have not come to christ so you know the again then the call is to repent to believe and to come to christ for your salvation for this this peace this this uh this strength and this peace that the lord gives to his people the one that you can have that you can uh that you can have now in the here and now knowing that our god is in control these things are you don't need to worry you don't need to panic you don't need to fret about about all that's going on in the world now but also this peace that that we know that our future our our inheritance is secure because of this this peace that the lord blesses his people with so so let us uh let us now close then in a word of prayer our father in heaven how we rejoice in the fact that you are sovereign that you are holy and that you are there is none like you oh lord what a what a a comfort that is to to know that that not you are not one among among many in a jockeying for position of who will be who will be the the king eternal but you lord are king eternal from you you always were and you always will be you are the alpha and the omega the beginning and the end and lord you have called us your people and we can call you our father and our god lord what a what a blessing that is what a what a a joy that is to know that and lord i pray that that this psalm would have been a means of great encouragement for your people here to know that that you that you are in control of all things and that you are over all the the powers of darkness that that there may be lord that you that you are you are god of all things and that you are king of kings lord of lords and lord we thank you that your word tells us so clearly in the book of revelations that you win this battle that we are in now lord that you are that you are victorious that that the the the devil and his and all his host is cast into that lake of fire for all of eternity and your people are gathered with you in the new heaven a new earth to be in the presence of the lamb for all of eternity lord how we rejoice in that and how that keeps us going in the midst of a of a dangerous and crooked and perverse and evil world that we live in lord so i thank you for these this passage of scripture i pray that it would be a means of encouragement for your people here and i pray lord that it would be a means to for any any here who are who are not who have not uh come to the savior that it would be a means that they would come running to the savior to find that peace and that safety that only you can afford for the storm of the wrath of god that is coming against the devil and against all all those who are who are part of the kingdom of darkness so lord i pray now that you would be with us in the rest of this in in this upcoming week and all that you have called us to do that that that we would be lights in the midst of this crooked and perverse generation i pray that that we would seek to bring glory to your name in all that we do and and that we would seek to advance the kingdom of christ in in on this earth here so lord we pray your blessing now on us as we go we pray this in christ's name amen well you can uh stand and we'll sing in closing number uh 564 564. you can stand and we'll sing that together please yes [Music] is is [Music] is the lord bless you and keep you the lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you the lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace amen you can be seated for a time of meditation you