Joy

Call to Worship

Hello, good morning. Good morning, First Baptist Church Aria. We're going to go ahead and get started with the singing. For the call to worship, I'm going to read it today. If you look in your bulletin, it's on the backside of the front page. The call to worship is Luke 2:8-14, and I'll just read that for us.

In the same region, shepherds were staying out in the fields and keeping watch at night over their flock. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today in the city of David a Savior was born for you, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be the sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped tightly in cloth and lying in a manger.” Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people he favors!

— Luke 2:8-14 (CSB)

Amen. We're going to sing today Hymn 145. So if you could turn and locate the hymnal in front of you, please turn to Hymn 145, "O Come, All Ye Faithful". Please stand and join us as we sing.

(Hymn: "O Come, All Ye Faithful")

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant, O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem! Come and behold Him, born the King of angels; O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!

Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation, O sing, all ye citizens of heaven above! Glory to God, all glory in the highest; O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!

Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, born this happy morning, Jesus, to Thee be all glory given; Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing; O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!

Next, we'll be singing "Jesus Paid It All", Hymn 210, if you want to turn there.

(Hymn: "Jesus Paid It All")

I hear the Savior say, "Thy strength indeed is small; Child of weakness, watch and pray, Find in Me thine all in all."

Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

Lord, now indeed I find Thy power, and Thine alone, Can change the leper's spots And melt the heart of stone.

Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

For nothing good have I Whereby Thy grace to claim; I'll wash my garments white In the blood of Calvary's Lamb.

Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

And when before the throne I stand in Him complete, "Jesus died my soul to save," My lips shall still repeat.

Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

Last, we'll sing Hymn 213, "Because He Lives".

(Hymn: "Because He Lives")

God sent His Son, they called Him Jesus; He came to love, heal, and forgive. He lived and died to buy my pardon; An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow; Because He lives, all fear is gone; Because I know He holds the future, And life is worth the living just because He lives.

How sweet to hold a newborn baby, And feel the pride and joy he gives; But greater still the calm assurance: This child can face uncertain days because He lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow; Because He lives, all fear is gone; Because I know He holds the future, And life is worth the living just because He lives.

And then one day I'll cross the river; I'll fight life's final war with pain. And then, as death gives way to victory, I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know He reigns.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow; Because He lives, all fear is gone; Because I know He holds the future, And life is worth the living just because He lives. And life is worth the living just because He lives.

Thank you, please be seated.

Lighting of the Advent Candle

Good morning. Our theme is Joy. You can find it in Luke 2:21-23. As you walk through life, there are those times that bring tears, but God's Christmas gift of Jesus turns tears into joy. Life should be one long experience of joy because the will of God is always being enjoyed. One not only feels good, but goes out from there to embrace all those around him in sharing our joy.

As we light our third Advent candle, may it illuminate our faces and joy in our hearts, in our churches, in our communities, and in our country, so that we may reflect the glow of joy which was made possible when the angels announced, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people." Amen. Someone praise the Lord.

God is good all the time! And all the time, God is good. Amen. Welcome again to Advent. Advent means arrival, coming. It is the Advent season where we dwell on and remember the coming of the Christ child. But those of us that are believers know that there will be another Advent, and that is the return of Jesus Christ. Amen.

I want to direct you to your bulletin this morning. On the front, it says:

But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today in the city of David a Savior was born for you, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

— Luke 2:10-11 (CSB)

Let us pray. Lord, we honor You this morning with our presence. We give You honor, we give You glory, we give You praise. Lord, I thank You for those that are here, those that are on their way, those that are traveling around, and those that are home recuperating. Lord, we thank You, Father, that You're with us no matter what our trial is, no matter where we're at, no matter where we're going to or what we're going through, for You are there. You are steadfast and You are true. Your promises are real. You are a promise maker, but You are also a promise keeper.

Lord, this morning, one more time, open our eyes to see, open our ears to hear, and our hearts to receive what it is that You have for us. Lord, use my mind, my will, and my emotions; infuse them into Your word this morning that You would be glorified. And so, Father, in all of this, we give You praise, we give You honor, and we certainly give You all the glory. In Jesus' name we pray, and the church said, "Amen."

The Presentation of Jesus

Turn with me, if you would, to Luke chapter 2, verses 21 through 32. When you get there, say, "Amen." Luke chapter 2, drop down to verse 21. I'll be reading verses 21 to 32.

When the eight days were completed for his circumcision, he was named Jesus—the name given by the angel before he was conceived. And when the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were finished, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (just as it is written in the law of the Lord, Every firstborn male will be dedicated to the Lord) and to offer a sacrifice (according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons). There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking forward to Israel’s consolation, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he saw the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, he entered the temple. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him up in his arms, praised God, and said, Now, Master, you can dismiss your servant in peace, as you promised. For my eyes have seen your salvation. You have prepared it in the presence of all peoples— a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory to your people Israel.

— Luke 2:21-32 (CSB)

May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His most precious and holy word.

Again, our title this morning is "Joy". It is the Advent season, and we are speaking of joy. You know, there is a joy that is present when the long-awaited arrives. When you've been waiting for something and it finally shows up, there's a different joy than when you know something is going to be there at a particular time. You know, you're happy about it, but when you've waited for so long—like the nation of Israel waiting hundreds or thousands of years for the Messiah—the joy that you feel when that time finally comes is immense.

It is almost like—and it should be like—when we all come and receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Our soul has been longing for the rejuvenation of the Holy Spirit, waiting for when we were going to make that confession of Christ as our Lord and Savior. There's a joy that overcomes us because this has been long-awaited. It renews us, and it prepares us for the future.

Born Under the Law

So in chapter 2, verses 21 to 24, it says again, "And when eight days had passed before His circumcision, His name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb." And when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord. Make no mistake: Jesus was born under the law. The law is the word of God. Sometimes we forget that. During Jesus' ministry when He was older, what is the Bible that He was reading from? What is the Bible He was quoting from? It was the Old Testament Scriptures. It was the Hebrew Bible. The New Testament had not been written yet.

So He was born under the law, and we must remember that. His parents observed the law. They brought Him into the temple according to the laws that were stated. For example, Jesus' circumcision, that's Leviticus 12:3. They present Jesus to almighty God, that's Exodus 13:2 and Exodus 13:17. And they give an offering for Mary's purification after her healing of childbirth, Leviticus 12:1-8.

Born under the law, He came not to do away with the law, but to fulfill the law. You see, everything that God has said and given to us from "Let there be light" forward is what we are to observe, follow, and live by. It's not just stories to make us feel good; it is the word of God that commands us and directs us to our future. And so here, the people were waiting for what God had promised, and it showed up.

It says His name was given as Jesus. "Jesus" actually means, as it's translated, "Yahweh is salvation". The Old Testament name for God, Yahweh—Yahweh is salvation. Salvation from almighty God, as we know, is a gift extended to us from God. God saw us in our condition and so loved us He gave His only begotten Son to pay the price on the cross for our sin. In the beginning here, I use these scriptures just to set the stage: without Christ, people are under the law. Without Christ, there is no grace, there is no fulfillment of the scriptures. When Jesus was on the cross and He said, "It is finished," that was the fulfillment. Everything was done; everything was complete. Now, we look forward to the church age.

Looking for the Consolation of Israel

Verses 25 and 26: "There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ."

Simeon was waiting—a devout, righteous man. Unlike Israel's leaders at the time, he was looking for the consolation of Israel. Consolation means comfort, encouragement—meaning the Messiah would come. So he was looking and waiting expectantly. You know, our joy has to be wrapped around what God is doing and what God has done. We express joy in almighty God for what God has done for us, but remember: we too are waiting for the return of Jesus Christ. Are we looking for the consolation, or are we just going about our daily lives like that's just something on the back burner? We do not know the day or the hour when He will return, but He will return. There is another Advent coming, and it will bring joy to those who are in the kingdom, to those who have received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Regarding Simeon, it says the Holy Spirit was upon him. Realize this: in the Old Testament time and before the cross, the Holy Spirit was only on particular people for specific tasks. In other words, Moses to do a task, Jonah to do a task, Isaiah to do a task—whoever it was. Once the task was completed, the Holy Spirit was not there anymore; He was not poured out on all believers like He is in the New Testament. That's Pentecost. That's the importance of Acts chapter 2. When Jesus completes the work on the cross, says "It is finished," is resurrected, is seen, and ascends, He says to wait for the gift, the promise of the Holy Spirit. In Acts chapter 2, the Holy Spirit now comes down and regenerates all believers. The Holy Spirit is now here, enabling all of us, as it says in Acts 1:8, to minister before God.

This is the gift of God. We live in an age and a time where the Holy Spirit indwells us, and we are able to do ministry because He lives, because God is now on the inside of us. Our spirit has been regenerated. We are now what the Bible calls "born again." We have received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. You see, it changes us, but it also enables us to minister. You know, you can give a good speech, but when the Holy Spirit is there, now it's life-changing. You didn't hear what I said! You see, you can say something really cool, really great, but if the Holy Spirit isn't there directing that unto the believers, it's just a nice speech. But when the Holy Spirit is there, now it imparts truth to every single believer and to those whom God is calling to Himself.

It's like when an unbeliever comes into church: they hear on a different level because they have not received that salvation yet, but they receive the conviction, the understanding that there is something greater than their problems and their circumstances. God is calling us. For those of us who believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, it is a fulfillment, an enabling factor that enables us to witness, to preach the gospel, to do ministry, and to do all the things that God is calling us to do.

So on Simeon, it says the Holy Spirit was upon him, and he was told that he would not die until he saw the Messiah. Now, he's an old man here, and he's waiting and waiting. You know, sometimes when you're waiting for something, you start to ask, "Are you really sure it's going to happen?" after waiting so long. But you see, he had the promise from God, and we need to realize this about God: He is not just a promise maker, He is a promise keeper. What God has said in His word, He will fulfill.

But you know, sometimes joy can be just a little bit bittersweet. Think about him for a second—Simeon—that his life is basically over, and God says, "You will not see death until you see the Christ child." But he will not participate in His public ministry. He will not go on and plant churches and do all these other things. His task was to just do this bit that we're talking about here: to celebrate and to put a meaning to the fulfillment of Jesus coming into the temple, and the joy that he feels in that.

I have a picture in my office—I used to have it in the church here, but it's in my office now—which is a representation of Simeon. Behind him, you see a map of the world in a watercolor style. You see him from the side, and he's holding the Christ child. You see a joy, but yet a tear. The joy is that the Messiah is here, but the sorrow is that this child will suffer one day. He will go on the cross one day; He will pay the penalty for all of us. But He came for the whole world. So the joy is that Christ is here, but the tear for us is that all have not received Him yet, and all have not understood why He has come.

Led by the Spirit

Verses 27 and 28 say, "And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to carry out for Him the custom of the law, then he took Him into his arms, blessed God, and said..."

This is the representation of that picture that I just told you about. But it says he came into the temple "in the Spirit". In other words, what it means is he felt an irresistible impulse from God to enter the temple. You see, Joseph and Mary did not make an appointment. They didn't get on their cell phone, they didn't make an appointment, and they didn't mail a letter saying, "We're going to be here at 2:30 in the afternoon." No, God summoned Simeon into the temple. He had this irresistible impulse: "I have to be there." Have you ever had that desire on the inside of you? "I know I'm supposed to be someplace," or "something's going to happen." You don't know what it is, but God is calling you to do something—or sometimes calling you not to do something. "Don't go forward; wait."

I heard a story one time of somebody in the church today—I'm not going to mention names—but they were talking about how they were at a stop sign, and the light changed and it was green. They could go, but something irresistible on the inside said, "No, wait." And they waited, and a car sped by through the red light. Do not ignore the irresistible impulses of the Holy Spirit, because God is guiding us and directing us.

So he's brought into the temple by the Holy Spirit, and as he's in the temple, in walks Mary and Joseph with Jesus. A divine appointment for all time. You see, fast forward to Jesus' ministry: we talk about the triumphant entry into Jerusalem where they took off their outer garments and laid them on the road with palm branches, crying, "Hosanna in the highest!" And what does Jesus do? He walks up into the temple, and scripture says the temple was empty. No one was there to hail Him as King. No one was there to give Him accolades. No one was there to proclaim, "This is King of kings, Lord of lords, this is the long-awaited Messiah," because the ruling leaders were not ready. They were not prepared for what God was doing.

But you see, now, as you go back to Simeon, you realize this divine appointment. The Christ child is brought into the temple, and Simeon knows: "This is King of kings, Lord of lords. This is a baby now, but this child will change the world forevermore." He is hailed as King of kings, Lord of lords—the Messiah coming into the temple.

So Simeon praises God. This is the joy of the promise fulfilled. There is no joy greater than the promise of God that you feel on the inside of you when you know God is at work and God has done something. It's like that moment when you first realize that you need salvation, and salvation is there for you, and you receive it. That joy—there is no greater joy than to know that you've been changed from death to life, that you are now in the kingdom of God, saved by the gracious gift of almighty God. You didn't earn it, you didn't deserve it; I didn't earn it, I didn't deserve it. God extended favor to us, and all we have to do is acknowledge that we're sinners, acknowledge that sin has separated us from God, and realize we cannot do good works to get back into right standing with God.

The only thing we can do is believe that God so loved us He sent His only begotten Son, and extend faith into what God has said, to the point that you're willing to confess that to someone else: "Yes, God loved me, He sent His Son for me, and I need to repent, turn away from my sins, and follow God." And so the Advent season should remind us of the joy of Emmanuel—God is with us. This is what Emmanuel means: God is with us. Salvation has come. You sing the song "Joy to the World," but what does that mean? Simeon understood that "Joy to the World" meant salvation had come. "Joy to the World" is a Messianic statement.

Hope, Love, Joy, and Peace

In verse 29 (with verse 28 for continuity): "Then he took Him into his arms, blessed God, and said: 'Now Lord, You are releasing Your bondservant to depart in peace according to Your word, for my eyes have seen Your salvation.'"

You see, what God has declared has arrived. We need to know what God has declared, because many times God is working in the midst of our lives and has declared something, and we miss it or we don't understand what God is doing. God gives gifts to us all the time. God takes us from one season to another season, He heals us, He strengthens us, He encourages us, He places us in ministry, He brings people to us that we can minister to—all these things. We have to understand that God is doing them. And so we take joy in understanding that God has arrived. Emmanuel, God is with us, and we are able to preach the gospel and do what we cannot do without the Holy Spirit, without salvation through Jesus Christ.

So the Advent season—it's hope, love, joy, and next week, peace. It's here through Christ. You see, true hope, love, joy, and peace are here because Jesus Christ came and paid the price. This is why this little story of Simeon is so important: because he embraces that, and we all must embrace that, because it's a gift that was given to us from almighty God. You see, we lost the garden because of sin, but because of Jesus Christ, we inherited the kingdom. We were in the garden where it was all good, but then we sinned, and we were cast out of the garden. We were out of God's presence.

We have to remember we live, work, and survive in a fallen world. We were booted out of the garden, but God so loved us and saw us in our condition and our state that He extended grace to us through Jesus Christ. When we confess those sins, repent of those sins, believe in our heart that God has done this, and confess it, now we inherit the kingdom. Now we are brought back into the presence of right standing with God. Once we were pushed out alone with no hope, but God gives us that hope. That's the hope of the Advent season, expressed in the love of God, and we receive that joy. The result is the peace of knowing we're in the kingdom, that God has prepared a place for us, that God cares about us, that God loves us, and all we have to do is acknowledge Him and follow what He has said.

Hope, love, joy, peace through Christ—simple words, but they convey so much. And again, this is what I love about the Advent season: it forces me to remember. You see, sometimes we forget why we do things, or we forget the importance. We always talk about, "Well, you know, Jesus is the reason for the season." What does that mean? What does that really mean? Do we know how to express that to an unbeliever in terms of hope, in terms of God's love, that joy that will overcome you, and then the peace that will reside within you? Saying "Jesus is the reason" is not quite enough. There has to be more of an expression there. We lost the garden but inherited the kingdom; what was meant for evil, God has turned to good. And this is the joy of the Lord.

The Eternal Plan of God

Verse 31 says, "...which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples." In other words, the salvation He has prepared is in the presence of all peoples—prepared for such a time as this. You see, when you read the scriptures, when you read the Old Testament, the Hebrew Bible, it's not just stories. Everything is pointing to the cross. "Let there be light"—Jesus was there in the beginning. The Spirit was hovering over the waters. God spoke ex nihilo into life where there was nothing, and now there was something.

This is our understanding of who God is. What the world wants to call the "Big Bang" is God saying, "Let there be light," and things now beginning to progress, pointing directly to the cross. Everything is going towards the cross so that when the time comes for the Messiah to be here, those who were looking, waiting, and understood scripture knew Messiah was coming. When He came, they were able to understand. But those who were looking inwardly, looking at what was around them, looking for position and status—they missed it because they were looking for personal fulfillment. They weren't looking for eternal fulfillment because they did not understand the difference between the temporal and the eternal.

He was prepared for such a time as this, for all to see. It amazes me when I think of evangelism. It amazes me when we evangelize or when you talk to somebody. Sometimes I ask people who deny God, "Why do you think Christmas is celebrated throughout the whole world?" Something happened almost 2,100 years ago—something happened that changed the world forever. You realize that wars have been stopped when people realized it was Christmas Day. Armies were opposing each other, and they realized it was Christmas and they called a truce. You see, God changed the world, and it's our responsibility to give that message out of what God has done.

Why do they still celebrate Easter all around the world? Why do they celebrate Christmas? Because something supernatural happened that changed everything, and our responsibility as the church is to put it into context: "This is why this is happening. This is why you're feeling what you're feeling."

I'll close with this, verse 32: "A light of revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel."

There was a transition coming here. You see, it was "the glory of Your people Israel"—God was working with a group of people, putting His word in them so the people around would know that there is a God as they saw God working in the midst of this small nation. And now, that is coming to a fulfillment with Messiah. Messiah now comes, and the continuation of it is "a light of revelation to the Gentiles". "Gentiles" means others—those who were not Hebrews, Israelis, or Jewish. He is saying now there is a light of revelation so that the two are made one. We all inherit the same promise. We are all now brought back together, and this is the ministry of the church.

That's why, going back to that painting that I have of Simeon, the world is in the background as he holds the Christ child and celebrates, yet it's bittersweet—for all the world to see. You see, all of this is played out for the world. Creation is not something that just happened out of nothing because nothing decided to make nothing. This is intelligent, created design. Just look at who tells the bears to go in the cave when it's time to go in the cave? Who tells the bees to pollinate? Who tells the beavers to build the dam? Who tells the whales to go north when they're supposed to go north, and then tells them to go south when it's time to go south? Who does that? Who tells the birds to fly to South America when it's time to fly to South America? Who tells the butterflies to come and do what they do? In a way, they're not just going from one place to another; they're part of the development and the strengthening of this thing we call our world.

Why do we have a moon that guides the tides? Why do we have a sun that's just the right distance? Why do we have a planet that just tilts so perfectly that we have four seasons to allow crops to be grown? You see, none of this can happen by chance. All of this is God's plan. We are part of God's plan. The Christ child was part of God's plan. The cross was part of God's plan. Our humility in the face of our pride was part of God's plan—that we need to look at ourselves in our wretched condition and our sin, and realize, "Yes, I am fallen, and I have sinned against almighty God." My joy in Christmas is that Emmanuel has come, bringing all that Simeon understood when he held that child and said, "This is the child that we've been waiting for. This is the one."

So what came forth out of Israel, out of the scriptures, out of the Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament, is a light of revelation that's now upon us. Now we become the church, and we can continue to carry out God's word into the world. We are a light of revelation. "Revelation" means to uncover, and so a lot of people do not understand who God is and what God is doing. God is, in a sense, veiled for them. It's our responsibility to remove that veil so that they can see, because they can't see clearly, they can't understand fully, and that's why we need the gift of the Holy Spirit to help us go out and minister and do things that we cannot do on our own. But you see, it's all according to God's plan, and this is what Simeon understood when he held the child who is a light of revelation. It means to uncover the joy that is in Christ. He came, He brought salvation, and one day He will return. Amen.

Let us pray. Father, with joy that surpasses truly our understanding of the word joy, we come before You, Lord, knowing that there is a God in heaven. There is a Creator, there is a Maker, a Sustainer. There is salvation, there is a way, there is truth, there is a meaning, there is a purpose, there is a plan. And because of Your love, You allow us to partake in Your plan if we're willing to acknowledge our sins, repent of those sins, and believe that God so loved us He sent His only begotten Son to pay a price that humans cannot pay—only God can pay—and went on the cross and paid the price for our sins.

And if we're willing to believe and confess, the result is we inherit the kingdom. The light of revelation is upon us; we're now turned from death to life, and in this, we take great joy in understanding that You are at work in our lives. We pray for those, Lord, that don't know You as Lord and Savior. We pray for those that we will witness to, Lord. We pray for those that will come into this church that have yet to receive You as Lord and Savior. We pray for their salvation. We pray that You strengthen all of us that have already come to You. Open our eyes to see, our ears to hear, and our hearts to receive what it is that You have for us to do. In all of this, we give You thanks, we give You praise, and with great joy we all rejoice. And in Jesus' name we say, "Amen." Somebody praise the Lord.

Offering and Announcements

Amen. If you turn to the back of your bulletin, you can see our church announcements. Firstly, giving. I want to read to you a passage from Mark 12, verse 41. This is Jesus sitting in the temple treasury, and sitting across from the temple treasury, He watched how the crowd dropped money into the treasury.

Sitting across from the temple treasury, he watched how the crowd dropped money into the treasury. Many rich people were putting in large sums. Then a poor widow came and dropped in two tiny coins worth very little. Summoning his disciples, he said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. For they all gave out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had —all she had to live on.”

— Mark 12:41-44 (CSB)

The Lord is not pleased with the number of zeros on our check that we submit, but rather our own hearts, our disposition before the Lord. So let's go ahead and pray and give thanks to the Lord for our offering.

Lord, we thank You for providing for all of our needs. I pray, Lord, that You'd be able to use our offering, that it would be a delight to You—not because of the monetary amount, but because of the quality of our hearts. Pray, Lord, that You'd be able to use our gifts to advance Your kingdom in this world. Pray this in Jesus' name, Amen.

Other announcements: we continue to meet every single Sunday morning at 10:00 a.m. Starting January 14th, we'll be having Sunday evening prayer services. That'll be at 5:00 p.m. in this room, starting January 14th. So I'd like to invite you to come and pray together as a church. We also have different Bible studies. Wednesday night Bible study is still on pause until January, as well as our Sunday morning Bible study on the Book of Mark at 8:40 a.m. in the library.

"Church Matters", however, is still going on. So if you'd like to hear more about our church and how it runs, next week we'll be talking about more of the nuts and bolts of our life together. That'll be at 9:00 a.m. in the room in the back.

And now, for a benediction from 2 Corinthians 13, as our music team comes up. 2 Corinthians chapter 13, I believe it's verse 14: "And now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen."

If you would stand and join us as we sing the last hymn, it'll be Hymn 493, "It Is Well With My Soul".

(Hymn: "It Is Well With My Soul")

When peace like a river attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, "It is well, it is well with my soul."

It is well with my soul, It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ has regarded my helpless estate, And has shed His own blood for my soul.

It is well with my soul, It is well, it is well with my soul.

My sin—oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!— My sin, not in part, but the whole, Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more, Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

It is well with my soul, It is well, it is well with my soul.

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, The clouds be rolled back as a scroll; The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, Even so, it is well with my soul.

It is well with my soul, It is well, it is well with my soul.

Amen. Amen.