The firstborn from the dead. that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. and through him to reconcile to himself All things. whether on earth or in heaven.
Peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death. in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him. if indeed you continue in the faith. stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard.
which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Now, I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's affliction. For the sake of his body, that is the church, of which I became a minister, according to the stewardship from God, it was given to me for you to make the word of God fully known. The mystery hidden for ages and generations, but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of his mystery. which is Christ in you.
The hope of glory. Him we proclaim. warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom. that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil.
struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works. within me. The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Let's stand again as we sing together a psalm, Psalm 34.
It's a psalm of trust. A psalm that speaks of the great delight of being in Christ and belonging to God our Father. Let's sing. Uh I will at all times bless the Lord His praise, my mouth will always voice, and in the Lord my soul shall boast. The more will hear it and rejoice.
Come let us magnify the Lord and praise His name in unit here. I sought the Lord and in reply from all my fears, He blessed me. How great are those who look to Him their face as free from shame shall be the Lord would when His born and bright and from a drum set him free and certainly go to fear the Lord His angel camps and rescues them taste and see how Lord is good, how blessed our Lord. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this day you've given us. We thank you for this opportunity to come to your house to worship you, dear Lord.
Dear Lord, we thank you most of all for what you did on the cross for us, that you died for all ours. Thank you, dear Lord, that you rose after three days in our now our living Savior. Lord, I just pray for her. pastor this morning as he delivers your word. I just uh Thank you, Lord, for all that you do Lord, we know that everything comes from you, dear Lord.
And we just ask now that you use these tithes and offerings to further your kingdom. And we ask it in your name, dear Lord Jesus. Amen. Oh holy Jesus on you, Jesus here I am by your own retreat. Who was the guilty who brought this upon you?
It is my treason, Lord that has undone you. It was denied you. I crucified you. For me, kind Jesus was your inconvenience, your war soul sorrow, and your life soul, your talent, and your bitter passion, Lord my salvation. Therefore, dear Jesus, I cannot pay you.
I do adore you and forever praise you. Feeling of your grace and your love was perfect. God is perfect. Jesus stand with us as we sing. Come, we sinners, poor and needy, we can move that sick and soar.
Jesus ready stands to save you, full of pity, love, and power. I will arise and go to Jesus, he will embrace me in his arms, in the arms of my dear Savior. Oh, there are ten thousand charms. Come in, thirsty, come and welcome God's free bounty glory, true belief and true repentance, every grace that came to mine. I will arise and go to Jesus, He will embrace me in His arms.
In the arms of my dear Savior, oh, there are ten thousand charms. Come ye, Mary, very laden, lost and wounded by the fall. If you tarry till your better, you will never come back on. I will arise and go to Jesus, he will embrace me in his arms, in the arms of my dear Savior. Oh, there are ten thousand charms.
Let not conscience make you lean for fitness on each meet. All the fitness he required is to feel the need of him. I will arise and hold to Jesus. He will embrace me in his arms, in the arms of my dear Savior. Oh, there are ten thousand charms.
Well, it's been several weeks now that we began a journey through the book of Proverbs. And I mentioned at the beginning Of this series of sermons, that the book of Proverbs is comprised of seven. Distinct culture. collections of Proverbs. The first collection gives us sort of the foundational principles of wisdom.
The second collection, the one that we just finished. Uh and the one which comprises most of the book, it runs from chapter twenty uh 10 to 22. is made up of very witty brief uh sentences of instruction on on an assortment of different types. topics.
Well, in practice. In Proverbs 22, 17, we come to now the third collection. collection of Proverbs that are a little less direct than the Second collection, a little more nuanced than the previous collection. This third collection is a very short collection. Proverbs 22:20 tells us that it contains only 30 wise sayings.
So we're going to spend our morning today looking at some of these. As I read Collection 3 this past week and outlined the various topics that it touches on, I noticed one very prominent theme that comes up repeatedly in these verses. Over and over, these 30 sayings make reference to the importance of not associating with the wrong kind of person. Not associating with the wrong kind of person. It's an admonition to keep a safe distance from foolish company and foolish situations.
In fact, I think that's a good idea. I've compiled the verses from collection three that speak to the company we keep. And these verses will serve as our sermon text this morning. It's 18 verses, and these 18 verses make up eight of the 30 sayings found here in collection three.
So let's begin with Proverbs 23, and the first saying is verses 1 through 3. When you sit down to eat with a ruler, Observe carefully what is before you. and put a knife to your throat if you are given to appetite. Do not desire his delicacies, for they are deceptive food. Chapter 23, verses 6 through 8.
Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy. Do not desire his delicacies, for he is like one who is inwardly calculating. Eat and drink, he says to you. But his heart is not with you. you will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten.
and waste your pleasant words. Proverbs 23, 9. Do not speak in the hearing of a fool. for he will despise the good sense of your words. Proverbs 23, 17 and 18.
Let not your heart envy sinners, but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day. Surely there is a future. And your hope will not be cut off. Proverbs 23, 20 and 21. Be not among drunkards or among gluttonous eaters of meat.
for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty. And slumber will clothe them with rags. Proverbs 23. 26 through 28, my son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways. For a prostitute is a deep pit.
An adulteress is a narrow well. She lies in wait like a robber and increases the traitors among mankind. Proverbs 24 verses 1 and 2. Be not envious of evil men. nor desire to be with them.
For their hearts devise violence, and their lips talk of trouble. And then finally, Proverbs 24, verses 21 and 22. My son, fear the Lord and the King. and do not join with those who do otherwise. For disaster will arise suddenly from them, and who knows the ruin that will come from them both.
Let's pray. Father, you have given us your word, a word that is true and complete. and is therefore authoritative and sufficient. Lord, if this is what we have before us today. An authoritative and sufficient word from the very God who created and redeemed us.
What fools we would be to sit here and read this word and think about it for half an hour, only to leave and forget what you've said.
So God Giver of every good and perfect gift, would you give us today first the ability to understand correctly? What these words mean. Secondly, give us the ability to believe. That They are good and right and true. And then finally, give us the desire and ability to obey what they require of us.
what you require of us. Thank you that our obedience to your word is not the reason you love us. But rather your love for us is the reason we even have any desire or ability to obey.
So, Holy Spirit, sanctify us now by your truth. Your word, Lord, is truth. I pray in the name of the One who is the living Word incarnate, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Well the unifying theme, the big idea of the Proverbs we're considering today is the idea that a little leaven leavens the whole lump.
Certain things spread through contact and proximity. In baking, leaven is introduced into a batch of dough and it begins to quickly spread. By the end of the baking process, the leaven has changed the constitution of the whole loaf of bread. It's kind of like the summer humidity in the south. You just can't get away from it, it's everywhere.
Well, what yeast is to dough and what humidity is to the southern climate, sin is to the soul. It spreads, it contaminates, it takes over whatever it inhabits. Bad company, Paul tells us. corrupts good morals. What we're going to discover in today's Proverbs is that wise people who habitually associate with foolishness become foolish.
Bad company corrupts good morals. We're also going to discover that foolish people who habitually associate with foolishness become more foolish. Bad company amplifies bad morals. We'll also discover that wise people who habitually associate with foolishness often have their virtue maligned and ridiculed. Bad company mocks.
good morals.
So when it comes to the leaven of foolishness, there are different sorts of dangers to be aware of. Each saying we will consider this morning will highlight a particular kind of fool or a particular kind of foolish situation that ought to be avoided. It'll highlight a particular character trait in us that makes us vulnerable to certain kinds of foolishness. And then finally, it will highlight a particular consequence or end result that comes about if we don't heed the warning of the proverb. And here's the point.
As goes the fool, so goes the friend of the fool. Therefore, avoid the company of fools. First, we encounter a warning for the gluttonous addict. a warning for the gluttonous addict. It's in Proverbs 23 verses 1 through 3.
If you are Given to appetite, Solomon says, there are a couple of situations you need to avoid because they might take advantage of your lack of self-control. The first compromising situation has to do with being around lavish abundance, the company of opulence. Proverbs 23, 1. When you sit down to eat with a ruler, Observe carefully what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to appetite.
So the problem here, the danger in this case is not the ruler who has a lot of rich food to offer. The problem in this case is the character of the person who is given to appetite. It's dangerous company for a glutton to be with those who have the means to accommodate his gluttony. And this is true of any excess that you might be. Prone to indulge in, right?
Not just food. Alcoholics ought to not go where there is an abundance of alcohol. Compulsive gamblers ought to avoid the casino, the poker game. Gluttons ought to be aware enough of their tendency to give themselves over to too much food that they are prepared to hyperbolically, verse 2, put a knife to their throat rather than imbibe in their vice.
Now, what does this scenario presented here in this proverb have to do with a ruler, a king?
Well, a king is rich, and if he's rich, he has the means of providing an abundance. Which is the very thing that a glutton Uh an addict. A person lacking in self-control stumbles over. He cannot handle abundance. The warning continues in verse 3: Do not desire his delicacies, for they are deceptive food.
So, what is it about this scenario that is deceptive?
Some have suggested that kings often test the character of their subjects by observing how they handle excess. The trustworthy servant will be able to control his appetites even when there's an abundance of provision, while the glutton cannot. Perhaps then the deception lies in the fact that what the glutton thinks is. Just an innocent feast is really a test of character that will end up disqualifying him from service to the king. Maybe the deception simply lies in the fact that a person given to excess tends to justify the excess on grounds that it's just fun, it's delightful, it's satisfying.
But the truth of the matter is, the very thing that is bringing the immediate gratification to this person, these excessive delicacies, is actually harmful. as it brings with it a whole host of physical and social maladies. It's deceptive, then, in that it presents itself as something that's delightful when really it's destructive. If you're given to excessive appetite, For food, for material things, for pleasure of any sort, avoid the company of abundance. But there's a second sort of company that the gluttonous addict ought to avoid, and it's the company of fellow addicts.
We see it down in verses 20 and 21 of chapter 23. It says, Be not among drunkards or among gluttonous eaters of meat. For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty. and slumber will clothe them with rags.
So not only is it dangerous for the glutton to be with those who accommodate his gluttony, like the ruler of verse 1, it's also dangerous for the glutton to be with those who justify his gluttony. That is with fellow gluttons and drunkards. When we saturate our lives with people who share the same vices as us. The same besetting sins, the same fleshly tendencies, we're setting ourselves up to stumble and fall. If your tendency is to lack self-control, you ought to avoid situations that accommodate your lack of self-control, and you ought to avoid close friendships with those who will overlook and maybe even defend your lack of self-control.
It's bad company that will ruin you.
Now, before we look at the next saying, I want to just stop and reference a passage in the Gospels in which Jesus is accused of gluttony and drunkenness. In Luke 7, Jesus condemns the Pharisees who on the one hand, condemned John the Baptist for his virtuous abstinence from food and drink, while simultaneously accusing Jesus of being a glutton and a drunk for his virtuous enjoyment of food and drink. You see, there's a right way and a wrong way to enjoy pleasurable things. like food and drink. I've heard it said that Jesus knew when the next bite would be gluttony and when the next drink would be drunkenness.
He never crossed the line into sin. Nevertheless, Christ was no ascetic. Who would not allow himself the legitimate enjoyment of God's good blessings, always in the proper context and proportion? But we can also see from this story in Luke that even though Proverbs warns us against unwise fellowship with gluttons and drunkards, Jesus went to the glutton, the drunkard, the tax collector, the sinner. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost.
So Jesus Took on flesh and became sin in order to save sinners, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Now, hold that thought in your head as we make our way through these remaining Proverbs. We'll come back to it. This thought that while we are weak in our flesh, we must avoid certain foolish people and situations. Jesus became sin in order to save us. We'll come back to that in a moment.
The next saying warns us of what we might call a warning for the greedy socialite. the greedy socialite. Proverbs 23, 6 through 8. Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy. Do not desire his delicacies.
Verses 1 through 3 warn us of eating the abundant food of a rich ruler. Verses 6 through 8 warn us of eating the food of a stingy miser. In the first instance, eating with a generous giver is dangerous for the glutton. In the second instance, eating with a stingy hoarder is dangerous for the person who greedily wants what others are not wanting to give.
Now, it may not be readily apparent, but both the stingy host in this saying and the demanding guest are doing wrong. Stinginess is. Obviously, wrong, it's inhospitable, it's selfish, and so the host is not behaving virtuously. But the guest in the proverb knows that the host is stingy. He knows that the host's heart is not in it.
This is a warning, after all, to avoid stingy, hypocritical hosts, because it will lead to conflict.
So if the guest didn't know that the host's heart was not in his hospitality, the proverb really wouldn't work. The guest in this scenario then is aware of the host's disinterest and participates anyway. This guest is in some way demanding hospitality from an ingracious host. He's being. Inconsiderate or greedy or intentionally naive, but whatever the motive is, this guest is unwelcome.
and yet insists that he be invited in.
Some modern day sayings that convey a similar sentiment might be: high fences make good neighbors, or maybe don't overstay your welcome. One scholar paraphrased Proverbs 23, 6 like this, don't insist on eating the food of a begrudging host. Verse 8 describes the outcome of this cringy get-together. Verse 8, you will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten and waste your pleasant words. When I'm greedy, for other people's attention.
or friendship or hospitality or time. Especially when those things are not willingly offered. I'm setting myself up for conflict and misery.
Now, this is an easy foolishness to fall into, I suppose, because it sort of seems like the vice of being too friendly, right? which doesn't really feel like a vice. It's the foolishness of treating fellow sinners as if they don't sin. It's the foolishness of insisting on playing the part of the naive, innocent person in a world that has lost its innocence. It's the foolishness of choosing to ignore sin rather than deal with it.
We are called to be innocent as doves, yes, but we're also called to be shrewd as serpents, lest we be consumed by the wolves. Matthew Henry makes an insightful point about this proverb. He points out that when I take the generosity of the miser, I'm participating in his hypocrisy. I'm allowing him to have a reputation that he doesn't deserve of being hospitable. thus giving the impression to the miser and to anyone watching that his character flaw is justified.
It's the danger of uninvited obligatory friendship. It's the danger of greedily wanting the time and attention of others, but naively ignoring the sins of others in order to get it. And Solomon says it's a fool's errand. It will only end. in conflict.
Next, we come to a proverb that contains a warning for the wise. Counselor, the wise counselor. And in this situation, the one being warned does not have a specific vice per se. He's wise, he wants to speak well and give good counsel. But the warning has to do with the fact that there is a time to speak and there's a time to keep even your good words to yourself.
Proverbs 23, 9: Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, for he will despise the good sense of your words. What's being cautioned against here is not the content of the wise counselor's speech, but rather the timing of his speech, or perhaps the audience to whom he is speaking. When I read this Proverb, I can't help but think about Jesus' now famous words from his Sermon on the Mount. Where he said, Do not throw your pearls before swine. It's a prohibition against allowing sacred things, valuable things, holy things, things that ought to be esteemed highly, to be made a mockery of, to be profaned, to be belittled or disdained or ignored.
If I want to honor my wife, for example, I'm going to talk about her virtues and beauty and intelligence and so on so that others will come to appreciate her like I do.
However, If I'm in a group of people that despises the very virtues that make my wife so wonderful, my heralding of those virtues won't make this group appreciate and honor her. It will actually have the opposite effect, right? They'll despise her all the more for the very virtues that she possesses. And so there is a time to speak of true things, virtuous things, beautiful things, but there is also a time to refrain from speaking even of true, virtuous, beautiful things.
Now, there are times when we ought to speak the truth even to fools. Proverbs 26, 5 makes that point. It says, answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. But this proverb makes the point that there's also a time when we should refrain from speaking the truth to fools. And it will require wisdom to know when to address the fool, and when to ignore the fool.
One of the criteria to consider is the effect that the fool's response will have on the wisdom being given. If a fool's disdain for wisdom will cause wise counsel to be ignored and disdained by others, well then silence is best. If a fool's disdain for wise counsel will result in his foolishness being exposed and the wisdom of wise words being heeded, well then speaking is best. You see, not throwing our pearls before swine is not about helping the pigs, it's about preserving the honor and value of the pearls. Fourthly, we discover A warning for the envious materialist.
A warning for the envious materialist. A materialist is someone who thinks this visible temporal world is all there is, and so their values and perceptions are grounded only in what they can see and what they can experience, and they reject any notion that there is something more, something higher, something above and beyond this material world.
Now, Christians cannot hold to this materialistic worldview and still call themselves Christians. In any biblical sense of the word, and yet many professing Christians think and behave as if this material world is all that there is. Whenever I live as if God is not watching, or that I can sin with impunity, or act like wealth and notoriety are the chief marks of a successful person, I'm acting like a practical materialist, regardless of what I say I believe. There's a warning for this kind of person. the envious materialist.
to stay away from another certain kind of person. the materially successful evil man. First we see The problem of envying the materially successful. It's there in Proverbs 24. Versus one and two.
It says, Be not envious of evil men. nor desire to be with them. For their hearts devise violence, and their lips talk of trouble. If my measure of success is limited to what I can see, I'm going to be often misguided into thinking that evil people are actually good people who are worthy of imitation. I'm going to want what they have because they They seem to just have so much.
Psalm 73 expresses this tendency so well. Psalm 73, Asaph, the psalm writer, he admits that he was envious of the wicked when he saw how much they prosper. They're well-fed, they're healthy, they have no trouble in their lives. They laugh, they have fun, they're always at ease, always increasing in riches. And Asaph says to himself, I've spent my whole life trying to keep a clean heart before the Lord, and what has it gotten me?
He's on the verge of walking away from the faith when suddenly he says he went to the sanctuary of God and saw how the lives of wicked people end. As it turns out, there is a God who sees everything. that we do in public and in secret. There is a God who is absolutely, uncompromisingly just. And he will judge all by the standard of his perfect law.
Asaph realized how, in a moment, the wicked are suddenly swept away and destroyed. You saw how the righteous, on the other hand, are upheld by the mighty and gracious arms of God. If you envy the wicked, and begin pursuing their way of life, you will be destroyed with the wicked.
So don't even keep company with them. or desire to be with them. And how does one do that? How do we look past the temporal success of evil men and fix our eyes on the glorious riches of heaven?
Well, Proverbs 23, 17 gives us the solution. It answers that question. Proverbs 23, 17, let not your heart Envy sinners. but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day. Surely there is a future.
and your hope will not be cut off. The solution to a materialist worldview is to first. Look up. Look up, and know there is a God watching. Fear him every day.
And how do we fear God? If I could paraphrase an old Puritan pastor, we fear God by adoring Him. By subjecting ourselves to his precepts and providences. By nurturing a constant care to please him. By learning to take pleasure in contemplating who He is.
By keeping up all the days of our lives an awe of God that dreads His wrath and defers to His authority. We look up. But in addition to looking up and fearing God, we must also look ahead and realize, verse 18, that there is a future. There is a great day of judgment and reward coming. Let that day, rather than the temporary, material success of evil people, be your driving motive and goal in life.
Look up and look ahead. In Proverbs 23, 26 through 28, we discover. A warning for the youthful hedonist. Proverbs 23, 26, my son, give me your heart. Let your eyes observe my ways.
For a prostitute is a deep pit. An adulteress is a narrow well. She lies in wait like a robber and increases the traitors among mankind. Is the son going to delight in his parents' ways or in his own desire for passing pleasure? If he chooses the wrong company, Prostitutes over parents, he will find himself in a deep pit and a narrow well.
In other words, Delighting in the wrong thing takes you further than you want to go. Down a deep pit, and it entraps you for longer than you want to stay, a narrow well. Keep company then, young person, with wise Parents. Not with fools who will entrap you in misery.
Well, the last saying in this collection that addresses the company we keep is in Proverbs 24, verses 21 and 22. And it's a warning for the peer-pressured anarchist. A warning for the peer-pressured anarchist. Proverbs 24:21. My son, fear the Lord and the King.
and do not join with those who do otherwise. For disaster will arise suddenly from them, And who knows the ruin that will come from them both. The temptation to rebel against authority is often a strong temptation in the heart of a youth. And it is particularly tempting when one's friends are throwing off restraint and respect. for authority, it's tempting not to join them in it.
Well, we've already Seen the importance of fearing the Lord. He is a judge who sees all and will judge all. But not only should we fear God, this proverb says, we should Fear resisting and bucking the human authorities that God has put in place to govern things. parents in the home, kings in the civil sphere. Proverbs 21.1 says that the king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord.
If God controls the king... I ought to think twice about rejecting the king. I had better be sure that my reasons for disobeying a God-given authority are grounded in facts and sound judgment of how things actually are. Part of fearing God includes fearing those whom God has established as authorities over me. I ought then to be very guarded against joining with those who just.
haphazardly disdain authority. They are foolish. Foolish company. You know, each of these sayings implies something about us, about our nature. These sayings, these cautions against associating with the wrong kinds of people imply that we are easily influenced by the wrong kinds of people.
And if we blindly enter into unguarded relationships with fools, it won't be long before we are the fool. As we bring this to a close and think about how to apply these proverbs to our lives, I think we need to keep a couple of things in mind. First of all, we need to take these warnings seriously. By acknowledging that we are far more influenced by the company we keep. And perhaps we realize.
Think about your closest relationships. Think about the people with whom you associate the most. Think about The people whose influence over you is the greatest.
Now, run those relationships through the grid of these eight wise sayings and ask yourselves: are there any relationships in my life that ought to be re-evaluated? in light of these proverbs. If your friends are pulling you into sin, you need new friends. Another thing to keep in mind At the other end of the spectrum is this.
Solomon's warnings against Ungodly associations is not an excuse to cut off. Legitimate disciple-making relationships with others. There are lost people in the world that need to hear the gospel. There are unconverted elect yet to be evangelized. There are baby Christians who still need to grow up.
And God's appointed means for bringing these things about is the proclamation of the gospel from mature believers like you and me. We've mentioned before that The proverbs are not intended to be absolute rules. They're generalized principles, and so it requires discernment to know how and when a given proverb is applicable. This means there will be times when we need to run from the fool and keep a safe distance, lest we be destroyed by them. But it also means that there will be times when we need to engage the fool with God's truth, trusting that God will save many through our witness.
Jesus associated with gluttons and drunkards, with Tax collectors and adulteresses, Jesus associated with criminals and heretics. Jesus associates with you and with me. In fact, Jesus does not merely associate with sinners, he became sin. That we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Without that association, we're all doomed to eternal despair.
Now, we have a sin nature to contend with. We're called to be the voice, the hands, the feet of Christ to a lost and dying world. But we have to be cautious and wise in how we go about it. That's the purpose of these Proverbs. Jude describes the nature of this task as a snatching of people out of a fire.
It's dangerous work. And we need to be careful lest we enter into the very same sins of the people we would convert. And so, with this caution in mind, and yet with the selfless example. of our Savior Jesus Christ as our model, we go forward. Armed with wisdom and caution.
but also armed with hope and the gospel. To pursue both personal holiness. and to pursue soul for Christ. and all for the glory of God. Let's pray.
Lord, who is worthy or fit? For your kingdom. Only those whose sins are covered By the precious blood of Jesus Christ.
So to him. We commit our success and growth. In the faith to which you have called us, make us then wise unto salvation. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
Would you stand with me as we close our time of worship together and sing of. Christ's deep, deep love. for his people. Oh, deep, deep love of Jesus, past unmeasured, boundless, free, rolling as I might the ocean in its fullness over me. Underneath me, all around me, is the current of your love, leading onward, leading homeward to your glorious breast above.
Oh, the deep, deep love, all I. Is the deep love of Jesus? Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus. Spread his praise from shore to shore. How he came to pay our ransom through the saving cross before he watches o'er his loved ones, as he died to make his own.
How for them he's interceding, beating now before the throne. Oh, the deep, deep love. All I need and trust is the deep, deep love of Jesus. Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus far surpassing all the rest. It's an ocean full of mercy in the gifts of every test.
Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus, might he save your precious friend. You will bring us home to glory where your love will never end. Oh, the deep. Deep, deep love. All I need and trust is the deep, deep love of Jesus.
Amen. Thank you for being here with us this morning. I encourage you to come back tonight at 6 o'clock for our... evening. worship.
Also don't forget immediately following this service there's some food prepared up in the phone So we'll just make our way up the covered walkway to the fellowship hall. and enjoy some. uh some fellowship and food this afternoon. As we conclude, would you receive the Lord's benediction? The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God.
And the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all forever. And all God's people said.
