Wilson, T Ernest: The Death Of Christ

Det är mitt av i dag med dig. Min sötma till har mitt liv av mig. Det är mitt med ditt av och med dig. It is a song in my memory, bringing home with me who I share with me. Shall we read together, please, in Matthew's Gospel, chapter twenty seven. The Gospel by Matthew, chapter twenty seven. And we'll read from verse forty five. Matthew twenty seven verse forty five. Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani. That is to say, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, this man calleth for Elias. And straightway one of them ran and took a sponge and filled it with vinegar and put it on a reed and gave him to drink. The rest said, let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him. Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. And the earth did quake, and the rocks rent, and the graves were open, and many bodies of the saints who had slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now, when the centurion and they that were with him watching Jesus saw the earthquake and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, truly, this was the Son of God. May God add his blessing to the reading of his own precious word. I thought this morning I'd like to speak about the crucifixion, and particularly Matthew's account that we find of it. In the gospel, the great foundation truth is that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and the third day he rose again according to the scriptures. The atoning vicarious death of Christ upon the cross is the great central doctrine of Holy Scripture, and I think it would well merit our time to spend about half an hour in looking at the Word of God has to say about it. I should say that any man who preaches the gospel or who opens the Word of God, he has to be very careful to lay down the foundations of the atoning death of Christ, because all our hope, both for time and for eternity, things in this world and things that are to come, they depend entirely on this great transaction that took place at Calvary. The death of Christ is one of the great subjects of Holy Scripture. As a matter of fact, there are two outstanding themes in the Bible. The first is the person of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the second is his atoning death upon the cross. And if you look at the Bible as a whole, you'd find that every section of the Bible, they emphasize it. In the Pentateuch, that is the first five books of the Bible, we get the foreshadowings of Calvary in type and picture and illustration in the Old Testament times, when man brought a sacrifice to God and offered that sacrifice upon the altar, and when the blood was shed, it was a picture of one who would come to shed his blood for man. In the Pentateuch, it is the foreshadowings of Calvary. On each book in the Pentateuch, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, there's an outstanding chapter that speaks about the cross. But taking the overall picture in God's kindergarten, that is in the Pentateuch, we get the foreshadowings of Calvary. Now, when we come into the book of Psalms, there are four great psalms that speak of the death of Christ. There's the twenty second Psalm, there's the fortieth Psalm, there's the sixty ninth Psalm, and there's the one hundred and eighteenth Psalm. And these Psalms, they speak in a different way of the death of Christ. In the Book of Psalms, it is the feelings of Calvary. We're taken into the sanctuary, and we're shown the thoughts in the mind and heart of the Savior when he was dying upon the cross. We come into the four Gospels, and in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and John, we get the historical facts, each one looking at it in a different way. Matthew, he speaks about the supernatural. Mark, he speaks about the silent sufferer. In Luke's beautiful gospel, he speaks about the sympathetic son of man. And in the gospel according to John, John emphasizes the fact that Holy Scripture was fulfilled when Christ died upon the cross. It would be interesting, but it would occupy a lot of time to go into detail of the different things that we find in the Gospels concerning the death of Christ. But there we get the historical facts. Now, in the great epistles of the New Testament, we get the fragrance of Calvary. It is a sweet smelling odor that goes up to Almighty God. The fact that his beloved son offered himself voluntarily upon the cross. It is a fragrance, a perfume that goes up to God, the sweet smelling odor that goes up from the burnt offering to Almighty God. And then in the book of Revelation, we get the fruits of Calvary. Everything is brought to a head on a climax in the final book of the Bible, and we get that new song, unto him that loveth us and loosed us from our sins in his own precious blood. Now I want to speak about the crucifixion this morning, and particularly I want to emphasize what Matthew has to say about it. Matthew is very much interested in the supernatural, that is, in miracle, and right from the beginning of his gospel to the end, he is emphasizing this. At the beginning of his gospel, he speaks about a supernatural birth. By the way, the virgin birth of Christ is one of the great fundamental doctrines of Holy Scripture. Some people don't think that it's important. I've heard men say that it was an impossibility, and I've heard men say that any sensible person would not believe that it's possible for a person to be born without a human father and a human mother. Well, now the Word of God makes it perfectly plain that the Savior, when he was born in Bethlehem, was virgin born. And I do want to say here dogmatically, and I don't make any apologies for it, if I did not believe in the virgin birth of Christ, I would close my Bible and go home. And I'll tell you why. Each one of us here this morning in this little room was born by natural generation, and by virtue of that fact, we're linked to the federal head of the race. Adam and Eve, our first parents, sinned in the garden against Almighty God, and from that time on, every child that's born into this world is born with a sinful nature, and the Word of God makes it perfectly plain that all have sinned and all have come short of the glory of God. And the Bible tells me that a child, it goes astray from the womb, speaking lies. Now, anyone who's raised a family, as we have, and at the present time we're raising twelve grandchildren, and we've had a little bit of experience in family life, and I think that anyone who has had any experience with children know that they're not very old before they're able to do things that show that there's an old evil, wicked nature that has been inherited from our first parents, and it's not very long before it's manifested. We talk about an innocent child, but after all, every one of us here this morning has been born of natural parents, and we have inherited an evil, wicked nature, and the only way that that can be taken care of is by a new birth. We need a new nature. We need to be born again, and for that reason, it is necessary that the Savior, when he was brought into the world, that that tie, that link with the federal head was snapped. There was a man many years ago who was both a theologian and a lawyer. His name was Sir Robert Anderson. Sir Robert Anderson was the head of the Criminal Investigation Department in Scotland Yard in London. He wrote quite a number of books, not only along the line of criminal investigation, but also about the Bible. He was an outstanding theologian, and he said this. He said, the whole of Christianity that either stands or falls with the last verse in the first chapter of the Gospel according to Matthew. And if you read that verse, you'll see what he meant. It speaks there of a virgin birth, a supernatural birth. And I'm awfully thankful that when God sent his beloved Son, the Redeemer, the Savior, into this world, the tie with the federal head was snapped, and he was called that holy thing. He did no sin, he knew no sin, in him was no sin, and thank God his life here below had proved the fact that he was capable to be the Savior because he had no sin himself. But if he had been linked to the federal head, then there would have been that nature there that have meant that he needed a savior himself. Now, that is the reason why we believe in the virgin birth. You know, we think of that young woman that God graciously used as a vehicle for bringing his son into this world. We do thank God for that. But Matthew, at the commencement of his gospel, he gives a testimony to the fulfillment of a prophetic passage in Isaiah chapter seven: uh A virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and I shall call his name Emmanuel, which means God with us. So Matthew, right at the commencement of his gospel, after giving the genealogy of Christ, and by the way, that is important too. You know, it used to be when I was young, when I opened the New Testament, read the first page in the New Testament, that long list of names, I was so inclined just to skip it over, say that's not important. But, you know, I learned different when I went to Africa. When I was learning the Songo language, and we had to commit that language to writing, it never had been in writing before. I used to go to little villages and sit and listen in at a law court, that is, when they were judging a crime. The judge was there, the prosecutor, the witnesses, and all the rest. And before any man was able to open his mouth or say, say anything, he had to tell his genealogy. The judge himself, he would lift his hand, and he said, my father was so and so, and his father was so and so, his father was so and so, his father was so and so, his father was so and so. And then he went over to the other hand, and he went over the different members of his genealogy on his fingers, and then he would start on his toes, and sitting on his bare feet, and he would point with his chin, his father so and so, and up would come one toe, and he would go over his ten toes and his ten fingers and go right back to the progenitor of the tribe. The progenitor was always a woman. These African tribes are a matriarchy, and the head of the tribe is always a woman, and her name was Kafuti Kambumba, and he would clap his hands, and he said, there's my genealogy. I know where I'm coming, where I came from, there is my genealogy. And after he had told his genealogy, and by the way, the idiomatic term that they use for that is kuji chikamiya, to tie the belt. And if you're not able to tell your genealogy, you're a slave and you keep your mouth shut, not allowed to open your mouth. And after the judge, every man that took any part in the trial, he had to tell his genealogy. You know, there's a man in the glory, our Lord Jesus Christ, who has a genealogy, and it went right back to David, it went right back to Abraham. And we do thank God he came according to the genealogies of the Old Testament scriptures, and all was fulfilled. And Matthew, in his first chapter and in the fourth chapter of Luke, we get the gene- genealogy of Joseph, we get the genealogy of Mary, and the marriage between the two, it linked the two together. He's able to tell his genealogy. You know, one day he's going to sit upon a throne. One day he's going to be a king and a priest, and those who have that occupation, that responsibility, they have to be able to tell their genealogy. But in any case, that's only by the way. There are seven credentials of the Christ in the first four chapters of the Gospel according to Matthew, and among them is his virgin birth. He had a supernatural birth. Matthew also tells us that he had a supernatural life, and in two chapters he brings together ten miracles that he performed. Now, this again is something that is denied by certain people today, that the Lord worked miracles. They say that it was something that was introduced later on, nothing of the kind. Our Lord, he proved that he was the Son of God by his superiority over to every force here in this world. And Matthew, in chapter eight and nine, he tells us of ten miracles that he performed, five of them in chapter eight and five of them in chapter nine. And those miracles took place in four different spheres. First of all, in the sphere of the human body. Disease, sickness, our Lord was superior to that. You know, there's some people today who profess to be able to work miracles and healing. But if we compare some of the claims that's made today and compare them with the miracles of our Lord, they come very far short. There were at least three things that characterized the miracles that our Lord did in this sphere of the healing of the human body. First of all, the disease was organic. It just, just wasn't something of the mind, but it was organic disease like the leprosy, leprosy and palsy, paralysis, and so on. It was organic disease. Secondly, the cure or the healing was instantaneous. And thirdly, it was permanent. And another thing about it was that everyone who came, they were all healed. There was no failure there at all. And if you put those four tests alongside of some of the things and some of the claims that are made today, we see that they fall very, very short. But I do thank God that our blessed Lord was superior to disease in the human body, and every person that he laid his hands upon, it was organic, it was instantaneous, it was permanent, and they were all that came to him were healed, every one. That to me is remarkable. Now, the second sphere where he was superior was in the sphere of nature. We read about him walking on the water. Anyone who claims to have these miraculous gifts today, I would like to see them walk across the ocean outside here. They can demonstrate their power of the light. Our Lord did. He was able to walk on the water. He was able to feed five thousand with two small fishes and five loaves. Feed five thousand men as well as women and children. He was able to turn water into wine. These are things that are recorded in the Word of God. Superior, first of all, in disease in the human body, and secondly, in the sphere of nature, and thirdly, in satanic power. Do you believe in demon possession? You know, there are many, many people very, very much perturbed about this today. And you go into any bookstore, any secular bookstore today, and you'll see a large shelf of books on witchcraft, demon possession, and satanic power. I have lived in an environment in the middle of Africa where we saw this constantly, and we do believe that there's such a thing as satanic power and real demon possession. We've seen it again and again. I'm not going to talk about that this morning, but I'm awfully thankful that our blessed Lord was superior to Satan in all his works. Seven occasions we read in the New Testament in the Gospels where he cast out demons, and again, that was permanent, and it was absolutely divine. And then the fourth thing is, he was superior to death. And there are three occurrences in the New Testament where he raised the dead. A young man, a child, and a man who had been dead for four days and had lain in the tomb, superior to death. So Matthew is very much interested in this. In chapters eight and nine he tells us of ten miracles. They're concentrated into these two chapters, and right in the center of these two chapters, he tells us of another miracle. He said, do you want to see a miracle? Well, I want to tell you what happened to me. And Matthew, who was sitting at the receipt of custom, Jesus passed by, and he said, follow me. And Matthew, that was in the employ of the Roman Empire at the time as a publican, he rose up, and he left all, and he followed him, and his life was completely changed from that moment on. Do you want to see a miracle, he said? Well, here's one. Look what happened to me. And you know that some of our dear friends here this morning could get up and stand here and tell about a miracle in their life. I know it has happened to me. Regeneration, the new birth, is something that's absolutely divine. It is a miracle, and thank God it's happening all around us today, and we thank God for the power in our blessed Lord under the precious blood, the power of his name, to regenerate a precious soul. So Matthew, he speaks first of all of a miraculous birth, then a miraculous life. But in this passage that we have read here this morning, he speaks about a miraculous death, and it's this I want to concentrate on just for a few minutes at the present time. Matthew tells of four miracles that took place when Jesus died. Now, these are important. The first is he tells us about a miraculous darkness that lasted for one hundred and twenty minutes, for three hours, while our Lord was upon the cross. We read from the sixth hour to the ninth hour, there was darkness over all the land. So to speak, Almighty God, he pulled the blind. He turned out the light when his son, his beloved son, was suffering for sin upon Calvary's cross, the miraculous darkness. And then he tells us of something that happened inside the temple. The moment that Jesus died upon the cross, that beautiful piece of tapestry inside the temple, separating the holiest of all from the holy place, we read that the divine hand had reached up, and it was torn in two from the top to the bottom, not from the bottom to the top, but from the top to the bottom, it was torn in two. That again was a miracle. The third miracle that he speaks about here is a great earthquake. This is something that people are very much interested in at the present time, practically every month, sometimes every week, in the day in which we live, we hear about a tremendous disaster in different parts of the world, and I believe that that is one of the signs of the soon coming again of Christ, earthquakes in diverse places. But when Jesus died, there was the response of nature. We read about a great earthquake, and then we read of something mysterious. We read of the graves being opened, and the bodies of some of the saints which slept arose, and after his resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared unto many. These are four great miracles that Matthew tells us about when Jesus died upon the cross. And then at the end, we get another miracle. We read about the centurion that stood and watched what was happening, and personally, I believe that that man, the man that was responsible for hammering the nails into the feet and hands of our blessed Lord, and the man that was responsible for the soldier that pierced his side with a spear, as he looked at him, he said two things. Luke tells us of one. He said, certainly this was a righteous man. And the second thing he said was, truly this was the Son of God. I believe that faith entered that man's heart. The man that was responsible for the crucifixion, I believe he became a Christian as he stood that day underneath the cross. Now let's think just for a few minutes of these four miracles, and I want to ask a question or two in connection with that. We read from the sixth hour to the ninth hour, there was darkness over all the land. I don't think I need to tell you that the crucifixion took place at nine o'clock in the morning. It lasted for six hours, and in the first three hours of daylight, our Lord spoke four times, and every time he spoke, it was a message of compassion, a message of love, and a message of mercy. The very first thing he said when he was stripped, nailed to the cross, and that cross uplifted and dropped into its socket. The first thing he said was, Father, forgive them. They know not what to do. I want you to notice that word father, because it's important, and we try to point out later on. He said, Father, forgive them. You know, this is was a term that was used one hundred and eighty times by our Lord in the Gospels. It was this filial relationship with his Father, right down through his life, there was that communion, that harmony, that fellowship between the Father and the Son. It is a great characteristic word that our Lord uses concerning God, Father, Father, and it was a word that he taught the disciples to use for the very first time in the Bible, when he said, when you pray, say, Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. You'll never find any Old Testament patriarch in praying to God ever using this term. They use the term Elohim. That is the term of the Creator God, in the beginning God, Elohim. They use the term Shadiye. Beautiful, beautiful word. They also used the word Adonai. They also used the word El Olam. These are terms that the Old Testament patriarchs used in addressing God, but they never used the term Father. And our Lord, he taught his disciples, when you pray, say, Our Father, which art in heaven. Beautiful, beautiful filial term. And the first thing he said is, Father, he said, forgive them, they know not what they do. And then as time went on, the two thieves by his side, at the beginning, they commenced to mock him, and they say, if thou be the Christ, save thyself and us. But then as death got a grip off them, and as the pangs of death got a hold off them, and they realized they were going out into eternity, one of the thieves, he turned around to his, to, to his friend, the other malefactor, and he rebuked him. He said, we indeed justly, we received the due reward of our deeds, but this man has done nothing amiss. And then turning to the Lord, he said, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. Notice the two terms that he uses, Lord and king. He acknowledged his lordship, he acknowledged his royal dignity. The man that was by his side, he realized that this was no mere man. Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And the Lord spoke to him, and he said, today thou shalt be with me in paradise. Again, a word of mercy and forgiveness. And then seeing John and his mother, the Virgin, standing by the cross, and looking at John, he said, behold thy mother. And then looking at his mother, he said, woman, behold thy son. He introduced John the apostle to his mother, and read from that time on, she took her to his own home. He took her to his own home. In the daylight, our Lord had nothing but mercy and love and compassion for those around, but then the darkness came down. And at noon, at midday, from the sixth hour to the ninth hour, there was darkness over all the land. I would like to ask, just what was the meaning of that darkness? There has been a lot of sentimental things said about it, and I'm certainly not going to be sentimental here this morning, but I believe there was something very, very solemn about that darkness that shrouded the cross. You know, this is the moment when sin was being taken care of, your sin and mine. When the Savior entered into that darkness, it was a transaction that took place between him and God. He was abandoned by God. He took that cup, that cup in which atonement for your sin and mine was involved. Here is the divine sufferings of the cross, and it took place amid the darkness of Golgotha. You know, as we look at the word of God, we find different kinds of darkness. We read that God is light, and wherever God is mentioned, God is light, but wherever Satan is mentioned, we find the darkness. At the commencement, there was a primeval darkness at creation. There was a darkness of Egypt that might be felt in the book of Exodus, and then again in the Bible we read about an outer darkness. And let me say solemnly here this morning that a person that refuses to come into the light, that refuses to come to God and allows the light to shine into his heart and truly repents of his sin will go into that outer darkness. Do you believe in eternal punishment? Do you believe in hell? My Bible speaks of these things, and the person that refuses to come into the light will go out into the dark. But oh, think of those three hours of darkness upon the cross. I feel like what the Lord said to Moses, take the shoes off your feet, the place whereon you're standing is holy ground. There much about it I don't understand, but there's one thing I do understand, and it's this, that when Jesus was upon the cross, he was suffering for me, for my sin. It was a transaction, a very, very important transaction that took place between the different members of the Godhead, and it took place in the dark. And right in the midst of the darkness, Jesus cried, my God, my God. Notice here the term is not my Father. It's the only time in the life of our Lord when he used this actual term, my God. In every other time it was my Father, my Father. But here he says, my God, my God, why? Why hast thou forsaken me? Why did he do that? Beloved friends, it was on account of you, on account of me. You know, the great fundamental doctrine of Holy Scripture is the vicarious atonement of Christ, and this is where it took place, amid the darkness of Golgotha. Again, let me say that there's so much about it that our poor little mind is not able to grasp. I know that all three members of the Godhead were involved. There's a passage in the Epistle to the Hebrews, chapter nine and verse fourteen that says this: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience for dead works? Notice the three members of the Holy Trinity. All are involved in this great transaction that took place upon the cross, and it can be all headed up in four little words. I remember hearing about a preacher in England, his name was C. H. Spurgeon, a ma- a man who had preached the gospel for many, many years. He was dying, and a friend sitting by his side that said, Mr. Spurgeon, on what are you depending for your salvation now that you're going to meet God? He said, on the truth behind four little words. And the friend said, what are they? He said, the words are Jesus died for me. You know, that's very simple. And even a child in our meeting here this morning can understand that. Jesus died for me. That is vicarious atonement. He took my place as my substitute upon the cross, and therefore, when I put my faith and trust in him, I go free. And the precious blood that he shed, and the atoning death that he died amid the darkness there on Golgotha, it means that he bore my sins in his own body on the tree. Beloved friends, this is the heart and core of the gospel, and it's what we have to take in and understand and lay hold upon by simple faith. Jesus died for me. So here we get the darkness, the supernatural darkness, where Jesus took our sins upon him, upon the cross, vicariously, and thank God he was victorious. Then the darkness lifted, and he used that term, it is finished. And just before he bowed his head in death, he said this, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. Notice the word Father again. Here, communion is restored. At the commencement is, Father, forgive them, for they know not what to do. And at the end, just before he released his spirit, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. Communion at the beginning, communion at the end, but amid the darkness of Golgotha, it was my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Well, I do thank God for the record that Matthew gives us here of what took place at Golgotha. Now, the second thing that he mentions is the veil of the temple being torn in two. Again, to occupy time in speaking about the setup in the tabernacle and in the temple would take too long. But just in a nutshell, between the holiest of all, where the ark was and where the presence of God was manifested, and the holy place, there was a beautiful piece of tapestry. Now, the old Jewish rabbis, they said it was the thickness of a man's hand, and they said to tear that veil or to tear that piece of tapestry, you would need to take two oxen and tether them at either side of that veil, and exerting all their strength, they might be able to tear it. But as far as any human hand was concerned, that would be utterly impossible. Now, the veil, first of all, was a prohibition. The Old Testament, thou shalt not, thou shalt not, thou shalt not. No one was allowed to penetrate the veil into the presence of God, but the high priest himself, with the blood of a sin. It was a prohibition. And then it was a parable. We're told in the Epistle of the Hebrews that it was a type or picture of the body or the flesh of our Lord. It's a parable. But when Jesus died, a divine hand took that veil and tore it in two, and today it's a pathway right into the presence of God. It speaks of the passing away of an old dispensation, and today the invitation is to draw an eye and to come right to the throne of grace, right into the presence of God, that we might obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. So the second miracle was the torn veil. First of all, the prohibition, then a parable, and finally a pathway right into the presence of God himself. Now the third is the mir- is this great miracle of an earthquake. I suppose we have all been shocked what has been happening just this past year over in Albania, and then in Guatemala. I was talking to a friend last, just last week, who has just been down in Guatemala. And all the things that happened down there, people lost their lives, and the whole country devastated by a tremendous earthquake. Then in the interior of China, another one over in Russia, and practically every other day when we pick up the paper, we read about these tremendous catastrophes that are taking place. Our Lord said immediately prior to his coming, there would be earthquakes in diverse places. I believe that's the day that we're living in, and I believe that they will increase as time goes on. It's the response of nature here to what happened upon Calvary's cross, a great earthquake. And then we read about the graves being open, and we read that the bodies of certain of the saints who had slept arose, and after his resurrection, they appeared, they went into the holy city and appeared unto many. Now, this is a mysterious passage, and I don't profess at all to have all the answers, but what I believe about it is this. I believe that this is a mini resurrection. In the Old Testament, Leviticus chapter twenty three, we read about a wave sheaf, a first fruits of resurrection. It is a picture of the resurrection. Christ was the first fruits to rise from the dead. It was after his resurrection that they went into the holy city and appeared unto many, that they arose from the grave. And I believe that these say Old Testament saints, true believers in the Lord Jesus, when he rose, they arose too. And personally, although we can't substantiate this, it's always dangerous to speculate when the word of God is silent, but it could be that when Jesus went up, went up to the throne at his ascension, these Old Testament saints went up with him. We're not dogmatizing, but it would seem that this is what happened. But there's one thing I want to emphasize. It's a picture of what will happen in the coming day. Do you believe in a bodily resurrection? Every time we stand at an open grave, and some dear friend, and the body is lowered into the grave, and we use those words where Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life. Do you believe there's such a thing as a bodily resurrection? Well, the word of God makes it plain that there will be, not only a resurrection of the spirit, as a matter of fact, resurrection is always of the body, and the person that goes into the grave, we believe by God's almighty power, that person will rise in a coming day. Those that know Christ as Savior will rise to be with him. And then later, we read about a second resurrection. Those that have rejected Christ from the sea and from the earth and from Hades, from hell, they will be resurrected and appear before the great white throne. And we read that those whose names are not written in the Lamb's book of life will either cast into the lake of fire. Resurrection, I believe, is a scriptural doctrine, the resurrection of the body. Did Christ rise with his body? Of course he did. And he is a picture and a type of what will happen to every individual in the coming day. And I believe when I see those that we have loved long since and lost a while that have gone to be with the Lord, as soon as we see them, we recognize them right away. What a wonderful day lies ahead for the believer, those that know Christ as Savior. But oh, what a tremendous day lies ahead for those that have rejected Christ. And I'd like to appeal in closing, please do not reject the gospel. It's here, right on the pages of God's word. Christ has died, and all that we need to do is to come and put out our empty hand and by faith take the salvation that God offers to us without money and without price. May God bless his word. Shall we pray? Our God and Father, we do thank thee for thy word, and we thank thee that there ever was a time in our life when we heard this story of the crucifixion and how Christ died for our sin. And our Father, all our hopes, both here in this world and in the world to come, is firmly based on what he did for us. And our Father, we do pray that not one soul here this morning may reject that offer of mercy. Help, we pray, each one to come to the foot of the cross, get down before him in true confession and repentance, and accept him as Savior and Lord. We commend thy word to thee, asking thy blessing in the name of the Lord. Amen. Now, it's just twelve o'clock, and maybe we'll just sing two verses of a hymn in closing. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. We'll just sing the first and the last verse of this hymn, and then our service is over. Twelve nine two. Three nine two, the first and the last verse. If there's still some nothing left than Jesus' blood and righteousness, I turn and trust that the... on Jesus' name. Look, my son, all and all is sinking sand, all and all is sinking sand. When he shall come with trumpet call, oh, may I live In in the the honor order in in his Elijah, light. let the Lord who told let him come before the throne. Not like the storm. I would just like to say on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, we'll resume what we've been speaking about concerning the church and the different figures of the church. Quite a number have been coming these last few days. Be glad to see you if you come back on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday at half past seven. May God bless each one for his name.