The New Covenant, Plain and Simple: Part 2

Praise God. Bless the Lord. Thank you, you may be seated. How many were here this morning? Can I see your hands? All right, that's most of you. If you weren't, you won't fully understand this when I'm about to speak this afternoon because you'll have to go, when you go home, you'll have to go back online and listen to the morning service as well. I don't have time to repeat it all. There's too much information. But essentially speaking, Satan sowed into the human race the thought that without God, you can be godly. And God spoke to him and said, there's going to be a seed, there's going to be a woman, a savior, and a seed, which is the church of Jesus Christ, that are going to tread underfoot your reasonings. Now, the Messiah that's coming, which is preached in Genesis 3, you're going to wound his feet. In other words, you're going to impede his journey. You're going to think you've stopped him in his tracks, per se, as the devil planted that nail in the feet of Jesus Christ. But he is going to bruise your head. In other words, you're going to wound his feet, but his feet are going to stamp upon your head. And he and the seed that's going to come through him

are going to tread upon your reasonings that have tried to convince the human race that you can be godly without God. That was the seed of deception sown in the Garden of Eden. You can be as God is, and in yourself, you can know the difference between good and evil, and basically said you can be as God. And so, all the way through the Old Testament, you'll find the two threads I talked about this morning. You'll find this thread of promise and grace, which was God said, I'm going to do something. I'm going to bring redemption into the world. I'm going to have a seed. There's going to be a lineage. And you'll see that through Abraham, where God calls Abraham and takes him outside and shows him the stars of heaven, and said your descendants are going to be as numerous as the stars, and through you the whole world is going to be blessed. Well, that is not just the nation of Israel. It's what came through the nation of Israel is the Redeemer, and subsequently the church of Jesus Christ. We are the stars, in a sense, that God showed to Abraham. Jesus himself said you are the light of the world, and the city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Now, because the seed had been sown in humanity that you can be godly without God, God, to the descendants of Abraham now,

because that seed was still there, said if you think you can be godly without God, I'm going to give you 600 and something laws to fulfill. And if you can be godly without God, then you'll be able to fulfill them. But if you break one, you've broken them all. And when you break one, there has to be a blood sacrifice for you to go back to go again, as it didn't start all over again. And so it produced a literal river of blood flowing out of the temple in the Old Testament. Historians talk about that. It's just a literal flow of blood coming out of the temple of people trying to be godly through human strength. And then eventually, it led to the baptism of John, because Paul said the law was a schoolmaster to bring us to the understanding that we need a savior. You know, in other words, we can't do it. That's what it was. Peter said it was a yoke that neither we nor our fathers could bear, and Paul said it was an instructor. It was a schoolmaster to get us to the point where we finished this morning, where John, the forerunner, the voice that announced the coming of the promise of God through a savior, announced he had a baptism, and people were coming out of Jerusalem and the surrounding area, and I call it a baptism of hopelessness, because realistically, John's baptism

didn't offer a solution. It was for people who just couldn't do it. People who just said, I'm done. I'm finished. I can't do this. I can't be holy. I can't be a person of truth. I can't escape addiction. I can't get out of immorality. Whatever they were going through, they went down into this water, the baptism of John, and realistically, it was just an admission. I'm done. I'm finished. I can't do this, and we finished this morning by saying, when people came out to be baptized by John the Baptist, it was then that he said, behold, the Lamb of God. That's when Jesus, Jesus doesn't become visible until you and I get to the point of realizing we can't do this in our own strength. Once we realize that, then suddenly the redemption, the mercy, the grace of God comes into view, and life comes where there was just human effort and death before. It's absolutely amazing. So Father, I just ask God, in Jesus' name, Lord. that you would grant to me again the ability

to convey this incredible truth in a manner that it can be understood. Father, help me, Lord, not to get stuck in minutia, not to go down rivulets that don't matter. I pray, Lord God, that I could speak it in a way that everyone here could understand that I need you, Holy Spirit. I need you to take over my mind. I need you to quicken my body. I need you, Lord, because this is about you, and this is your people. And you said, and you promised in the last days there was gonna be a fresh endowment of power from on high. Lord, we're not destined to go out as a defeated, whimpering church. We are more than conquerors through Christ who loved us, and I thank you, God, that you're gonna bring people, even this day, into this incredible victory of God through Jesus Christ. Thank you, God, thank you, God, thank you, God, for bringing all of us, when we came to that place, of understanding I can't do this, I can't do this. Lord, I've always believed that the end of me is the beginning of God. And so I thank you, and I praise you for what you're going to do this afternoon in Jesus' name. Amen. Now, in John's baptism, the people are coming out, they're lining up, they're going into this waters of futility, and this pool would be filled,

in a sense, with failure. It's moral failure, it's mental failure, it's failure on every conceivable level is in this water, the DNA of failure is in this pool. And then suddenly, in Luke chapter three, verse 21, it says, when all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized. He shows up, and I thank God that he doesn't look for, well, this water's dirty, can you get me another pool, you know, somewhere, like, I mean, I don't wanna go down in this thing, I mean, there's morality in there, there's immorality, there's failure, there's depression, there's addiction, no, no. The one thing I love about God, the Son of God, is he identifies with our failure. He doesn't, he's not aloof from our struggles. Thank you, Jesus. That's why the scripture says in Hebrews that he's familiar with our struggles, he's tasted of it, and invites us to come boldly to the throne of grace to find help in our time of need. Jesus Christ goes down into the waters of our failure. And when he rose up out of the water, it says, while he prayed, heaven was open. The Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven which said, you are my beloved Son, and you I am well pleased. Now, do you remember, Abraham in Genesis 15 said to God, how is this going to happen?

You're making this promise that you're going to give me increase that only could come from heaven, that through my lineage, the whole world is going to be blessed. How is this going to happen? And you remember in the Old Testament, he told him to take his sacrifice, divide it into two parts, and at midnight, in the evening, it says, a burning furnace, a burning oven, and an igniting lamp came down, walked through the midst of that sacrifice. So it was God, in the Old Testament, making a covenant with himself to do this. The covenant was not with Abraham. The covenant was God making a covenant with him, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Now we see it again in the baptism of Jesus. He goes down into the water. He's the sacrifice. He is the one who's going to go to a cross. He's going to be the one who pays the price for the sins of humanity, for that sin that was infused in humanity that without God, we could be as God is, which became the root, in a sense, of every conceivable failure in humanity. The voice of the God the Father is there. He says, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And the Holy Spirit comes down in bodily form like a dove. So this is God, Father, Son, Holy Spirit,

making a covenant, not with us, but with himself, to do what we cannot do for ourselves. This new covenant would take the Son of God to a cross. Remember, the old covenant, under the law, was God saying to humanity, okay, if you think you can be godly without me, here's laws to obey. And if you do this, I'll be god to you. And you do this, and I'll do this. You do this, and I'll do this. And all it did was lead to futility and failure, and ultimately, the baptism of John. But under the new covenant, God says, no, I'm not asking you. I'm not asking you to make any promises to me anymore. You're not gonna be able to do it. You can't fulfill it. I'm going to do this for you. I'm gonna do for you what you cannot do for yourself. God, through Jesus Christ, would destroy forever the power of the poison that Satan had infused into the minds of Adam and his descendants. That poison that was infused, that you don't need God to be godly. You don't need God to guide your life. You don't need the restrictions or the word or the boundaries of God to live in a godly way in this world. You can do it all by yourself. You don't need God.

That's what Satan said, and Adam and Eve bit into that theology. But finally, through Jesus Christ, we would be free from trying to be godly and holy in our own strength. I don't know about you, but I thank God for that with all my heart that it's not on me. It's not by might. It's not by power. It's by the spirit of Almighty God. There's no other way this can be done. Oh, thank God. Thank God for the Holy Spirit. First Peter chapter one, verses 18 to 20. Peter says, knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Now here's verse 20. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you. Before the world was formed, God made a covenant with himself. God foreknew that if he created mankind in his image, we would rebel against him and knew we would need to be redeemed. So before even forming the world,

God made a covenant with himself. Yes, we're going to create humankind in our image. Yes, they're going to fall short and fail. They will need to be redeemed. And once they are redeemed, we're gonna bring them back home to be with us where they will rule and reign forever. Praise be to God. The prophet Isaiah speaks of this. It's considered a messianic, one of the messianic portions of scripture and it's Isaiah chapter 42. And I'm gonna try to explain what this covenant looked like between the father and the son. Isaiah chapter 42, verse one. Behold my servant, now this is speaking of the Messiah, whom I uphold, my elect one in whom my soul delights. I've put my spirit upon him. He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles. He will not cry out nor raise his voice nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed he will not break and a smoking flax he will not quench. He will bring forth justice for truth. He will not fail nor be discouraged till he's established justice in the earth and the coastline shall wait for his law. Thus says God the Lord who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it,

who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk on it. I the Lord have called you in righteousness. Now this is the father speaking to his son and will hold your hand. I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison and those who sit in darkness from the prison house. Now we know this is Christ. Remember when he stood in the synagogue, the spirit of the Lord is upon me for these reasons and this is what he talked about, to give sight to those that are blind, to open prison doors to those who are in prison, to heal the wounded and bruised in heart, to give hope to those who are in such poverty they know that they can never find a way out of their situation and to where they need to be and to set free those who are in darkness from the prison house. So here's the way, I'm gonna try to say this very, very simply. Before the foundation of the earth, the father said, son, we're going to create humankind in our image and they're gonna sin against us. Now, I can't explain to you why God would continue. If I was God, I'd say, okay, let's go to plan B. This is not, which would be bad for you. There'd be no hope today.

But God, like I said this morning, if you were married and you wanted to have a child and the doctor said, well, the good news is you can have a child. You're gonna have a child. The bad news is that child's gonna grow up and kill you, brutally murder you, falsely accuse you, put you on trial, declare you guilty, mock you, spit on you, whip you. Would you have that child? I don't think so. But God did. God did. And the only, I can't explain it. When I get to heaven, I'll go to that section and find out, but until then, the only thing that comes to mind is God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. And he gave his only begotten son before he created the world. He so loved us before he created us. I guess he saw you here today, he saw me, he saw all of us, he saw us for eternity, he saw us ruling and reigning with Christ, he just saw us in fellowship. I don't fully understand it, but I receive it, by faith I receive that God so loved this world that he gave his only begotten son. So the father said, son, we're gonna create humankind in our image, and they're gonna rebel

against us, and they will need to be redeemed. So I'm gonna send you down, you're gonna have to go down to the world we create, you're gonna walk among them for 33 years, and three of those years you're going to be in public ministry. At the end of the three years, you're going to be betrayed, and you're going to be crucified. I'm gonna hold your hand, you're not gonna have to walk alone, that's what he said to Isaiah, I'm gonna hold your hand, we're gonna do this together, and when you're on the cross, you're gonna have to cry out to me, father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. And you're gonna have to trust me, son, that you're going to die in their place, so that they can be forgiven. And you're gonna have to trust, you'll be three days in the grave, but on the third day, I'm going to raise you up from the dead. And I'm gonna bring you back where I am, and you're gonna sit on my right hand, and you're going to rule and reign for eternity. Every name that is named is going to be under your authority. Everything that exists in heaven on earth, you're gonna be in charge of. You're gonna be fully restored, and we're gonna be together again, and you'll be sitting at my right hand

as the forever and eternal ruler. And the son, Jesus, said to the father, father, I agree, I will do this thing. This is before the world was created. I will do this thing, but one thing that I ask of you, and the father said to the son, okay, tell me, what do you want? And he said, when you raise me from the dead, and you bring me back to sit at your right hand, in all power, in all authority, fully restored, fully loved, fully God, everything I get, the people who believe in me, they get it too. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow.

Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. I pray, father, that they may be with me where I am. God, you're gonna take me, you're gonna bring me back, and I'm asking, and I'm believing, that everyone who trusts in me, I get to sit at your right hand, and they get to sit there with me where I am, in heaven, more than conquerors, because we love them, and have redeemed them. John chapter 19, verse 30. On the cross, when Jesus cried out at the end, he said, it is finished. The covenant that we made with one another, the covenant to redeem this fallen humanity around this massive human failure, it is finished. Thank God, they can come home. The redemption is purchased, it is complete. In Matthew chapter 27, verse 50, it says, Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up his spirit. Oh, what a moment that must have been. It is finished, father. The arrangement, the covenant we made to redeem those created in our image from before the foundation of the world.

I have come, you've held my hand, I've walked among them. It happened just as you said. But oh, father, it is finished. Anyone who wants to come home can come home now. Amen. Anyone who needs forgiveness can be forgiven. The weak can become strong. The confused can be given the wisdom of God. Those who have no power in themselves are going to be raised out of that powerlessness and brought into this power of an endless life. He cried with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit, Matthew 27, 50, and then behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom. God tore that veil. If we tore it, it'd be from the bottom to the top. He tore it from the top to the bottom. It wasn't so we could get in, folks. It was so he could get out. Do you understand? He couldn't come to us before that because to be in the presence of God without redemption would be certain death. No one could exist in the presence of a holy God, but because of Jesus Christ, now the heart of God, the heart of God to love us, to forgive us, to call us his bride, his beloved for eternity, was now satisfied and he could come out from the holy place. Scripture says elsewhere, he said,

and the earth. and the rocks were split. He didn't even go around the rocks, he went through them to get to you and I. Oh, hallelujah. The whole ground shook, everything shook because the passion of God was being satisfied. God so loved this world. God so loved this world. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Glory to the name of Jesus. And graves were opened as if he couldn't wait. Pastor Tim, as he went by the cemetery, just people started popping up and back to life. A foreshadowing of what's coming one day, for the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with a shout, with a shout. Hallelujah, hallelujah. And the dead in Christ shall rise first and we who are alive and remain shall be gathered together with them and so shall we ever be with the Lord. He said, I'm just gonna give you a glimpse of this, a glimpse of what's in my heart. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. Now Ephesians chapter one tells us exactly what happened. Where did he go and how does that affect my life and your life? Ephesians chapter one verse 17, Paul says these words,

that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. The eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of his calling and what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints. And what is the exceeding greatness of his power towards us who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead, seated him at his right hand in heavenly places, far above all principality, power, might and dominion, every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And he has put all things under his feet and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. He is the head, we are the body. You can't separate the head from the body. He sits at the right hand of God, we are seated there in him, in Christ Jesus, we are already seated at the right hand of God. We are more than conquerors through him that loved us. I like to use the illustration, have you ever seen an Olympic runner and they run to the finish line and when they get to the finish line they do this

and the moment the head crosses the line, the body's still on the other side but the body wins because the head's already gone over the line into victory. We are more than conquerors through Christ who loves us. Ephesians chapter two, verses four to six, but God who is rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved and raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. I'm already at the right hand of God. I'm already in victory. Now I look, that's the way I see life now Pastor Tim, I look back at Carter Conlon and say come on man, you can do this, you can do this. You're already here. You're already at the right hand of God. You're already fully received, fully loved, fully received as a son. Just as Jesus Christ is, you're in him and because of him, you're fully received with God. As a matter of fact, the scripture says we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. If that wasn't in the Bible, that would seem to be blasphemous. It says I'm as clean as God is because of Christ Jesus and also Paul says in Romans in chapter eight, verse 11, says we are quickened, let me just find that.

Says but if the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who dwells in you. Colossians 2.10, Paul says and you are complete in him which is the head of all principality and power. I am, you are. If this was a football game, I'd tell you this way. We're already in the end zone, time to spike the ball. We've already won, we're already more than conquerors. We know the score, we've already read the book. We know where we sit in Christ. It's almost too good to be true but it is true. But you say, well, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. What about my struggles? Like, if I sit there in Christ and I'm fully received as a son or daughter of God, I'm the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, but I also live down on planet Earth at the same time. And I fight with discouragement, depression, and I've got a temper issue, and all the stuff that I fight with. So, how does this apply to me? Like, because there's gotta be a balance in this. The Puritan writers understood this, and one of the Puritan writers, his name was Macintosh, he wrote it this way. He said, my standing is in Christ at the right hand of God. That's my standing, that's who I am, that's where I am.

It's not a license to sin, by the way, as Paul the Apostle said. You know, some said in Paul's day, well, if it's that good, let's go out and sin that grace may abound. And Paul says, God forbid, how can you even think like that? This truth is for the honest believer. This truth is for the persons like you and I who want to walk with God. We're not interested in seeing how close we can get to hell without getting burned, do you understand? We're trying to get close to heaven. We're not playing games with God. This is for the honest, sincere believer that says, God, show me who I am, show me where I am. And God says, I will reveal it to you, I'll show it to you if it's truth that you want. Now, John chapter 16 and verse 13, Jesus said, when he, the spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears, he will speak, and he will tell you things to come. That's not just prophecy for, you know, like, say, some country's gonna go into war. No, he'll tell you things to come in your life. He'll tell you what God has won for you. He will glorify me, verse 14, for he will take of what is mine and declare it to you.

Remember that? I'm coming back, I'm gonna be sitting in all power and authority. Everything is restored. And everything that I've won for you, the Holy Spirit now is going to show it to you. He will take what is mine and declare it to you. For all things that the Father has are mine, therefore I said that he will take of mine and declare it to you. Isn't that what happened on the day of Pentecost? On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came, and the people stepped out of that upper room, and they were speaking of the things God had done, is doing, and is going to do. They were speaking in the Spirit. They were walking in. The Holy Spirit was now showing them who Christ is, what Christ had done for them, and what Christ is going to do in the future. We are, and I say it often, a supernatural people. We're not called to be natural. We're called to be supernatural. We're called to say, Holy Spirit, when we read the Bible, show me now what you're gonna do in my life. And Jesus said he will take what is mine, the Holy Spirit, and he will show it to you. So all your life, all your life, here's how it works. My standing is at the right hand of God in Christ Jesus.

My state is on planet Earth, but all my life, all my life, the Spirit of God will be lifting me up closer and closer and closer and closer to what I actually am and where I am in Christ. I'll be, he'll be changing me image to image and glory to glory. Now this is for the sincere believer. As I behold him, he will change me. Yeah, Paul says, no, I've not attained the fullness of what God has for my life, but I know this. I'm leaving behind what needs to be left behind, and I'm pressing towards the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. You can't get into this rest of God until we know who we are in Christ and where we are in Christ. Then we don't get discouraged. The devil comes and says, ah, ha, ha, look at you, and you say, ah, ha, ha, look at you. I want to remind you, Satan, that I am at the right hand of God. I want to remind you that I'm as clean as God is. I want to remind you that I have a future in Christ. I want to remind you it's not by might, it's not by power. It's by the Spirit of God within me that I will become what God's calling me to be. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. No, I'm not everything that I'm called to be, but I'm not what I used to be,

and I'll be different tomorrow. The good news of the cross is that you and I no longer have to make promises to God, but we're saved, and we live by God's promises to us. Second Peter chapter one, verse four, Peter says, whereby are given to us exceeding great and precious promises that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature. Not by me trying to be godly in my own strength. By the promises of God. God says, maybe you are this right now, but this is what I'm going to do in your life. And the Holy Spirit is gonna take this truth and make it a reality inside of you. And when you know that you're already received by God, you're already fully a son or daughter of God, you can't add to that. You can't add to it. Imagine if you had a child and your child came to you and said, what can I do to make myself more of a child to you, of your child? You say, well, don't be stupid, you're my son. You can't be, if I take out the garbage, will I be more of your son? No, no. When you were born again, you were born again into my family. You're, the same blood flows through you. Now Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter three, this is the state of those who are trying

to be holy still in your own strength. Haven't fully understood that the victory has been won, and I sit now and you do in Christ at the right hand of God, fully received. You read the Bible till your face turns blue, it doesn't give you more favor in the sight of God. Do you understand? It's a good thing to read the Bible, but it doesn't give you more favor. Help 100 little old ladies across the road with their groceries, you don't gain any favor. You're fully received through Jesus Christ. Do you understand? You can't add to that. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. The only thing we can do now is out of gratitude, which is the way I live, out of gratitude, say, Lord, change me. Out of gratitude, God, use me. Out of gratitude, just say, God, send me out to tell others what you've done in my life. God Almighty, just like the prodigal son, what could he do? He'd been in a pigsty. He came home, he let his father cover him, empower him, put shoes on his feet, throw a party for him, and as I love to say, when he went out, what do you think his message was? You seven steps to this, 14 steps to that. No, you gotta meet my dad.

You gotta know my dad. That man is amazing. I was living in a pigsty, and he embraced me and took my uncleanness upon himself and covered my shame and empowered me to make a difference and put shoes on my feet and said, son, go and talk about my house and about my kingdom. Those who are still trying to be godly through human strength fall under the law. It's such a sad thing because there's a lot of it still in the Christian church of people who think like, and they're always condemned because when you're under the law, you're wide open to condemnation because if I'm trying to gain favor with God by what I do, the devil is right there to show me what I'm not doing. Verse 14 of 2 Corinthians 3, their minds were blinded, people under the law, for until this day, the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament or the Old Covenant because the veil is taken away in Christ. In other words, we can't see the Lamb of God until we give up trying to live a godly life in human strength. But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless, when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now, the Lord is the spirit, and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Generosity is another word. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in the mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the spirit of the Lord. Oh, hallelujah, oh, hallelujah, oh, hallelujah to the Lamb of God. I open this book, and I say, God, just show me what you're gonna do in my life today. And it's assumed that we're honest believers doing this. It's assumed that we want to walk with God and we want to live for God. And our message then becomes the same as the angel in Luke chapter two, where we started this morning. Remember, the angel appears and he tells, in Luke chapter two, don't be afraid. I behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy to all people. Remember that this morning? Good news, great joy, not mediocre joy, not joy on Sunday, just alone, or Tuesday. Good news, great joy, all people. All people means the weak, the strong, the rich, the poor, the people who've got it all together, people who've got nothing together. It's good news, it's great joy, all people. That means everybody here, everybody in the annex, everybody listening online. Good news of great joy, all people. If what you have is not good news of great joy,

you don't really have hold of the true gospel of Jesus Christ. But once you get a hold of this redemption in Christ, I tell you, something happens. There's an explosion in your heart. Glory to God, glory to God, glory to God. We begin to worship with the angels. Remember the angels. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, glory to God in the highest. Glory to God, glory to God. Everything I have has come from your hand, oh Lord. Everything I am, everything I will be. My position in Christ, my salvation, everything has come from you. And on earth, peace and goodwill towards men. This is the song they were singing. Glory to God in the highest. On earth, peace and goodwill towards men. I love it, it says, and suddenly there was with the angel a multitude. Suddenly, suddenly, suddenly. I just, I said it this morning, but I see the angels leading on the canopy that separates time and eternity from this world. And they just, there were so many of them pressing in, they burst through. And they couldn't do anything but worship. There's probably thousands and thousands in the heavens

singing glory to God in the highest. Glory to God, glory to God. And on the earth, peace and goodwill. God's hand stretched out towards men. Another word for the angel, the word angel is pastor. And suddenly there was with the pastor a multitude. I see that here at Times Square Church. I want to finish with this thought today. And suddenly, from all these countries we see on the screen every service, you know. Suddenly from Argentina, suddenly from Brazil, suddenly from Canada, suddenly from all these other places, there was with Pastor Tim a multitude coming in with one song, glory to God in the highest. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. And on earth, peace and goodwill towards men. And I'll finish with this thought. For there's born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign to you. You will find a babe or baby wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger. Why a baby? I mean, isn't this God?

This is God. I mean, realistically, a baby? What's the point of this? Here's how I see it, anyway. God was saying to us, I'm coming down as the weakest form of humanity to show you that I am not offended by your struggles. I'm not offended by the places where you can't walk yet. I'm not offended by those who just don't know how to feed yourself from the scripture yet. I'm not offended. I mean, think of it, God, and somebody had to change his diapers. It's God, the Son of God. He could've come 25 foot tall. It was his prerogative, any way he wanted, but he chose to come in the weakest form of humanity. This will be a sign, not by might, not by power. The same Christ who went down into the dirty waters of John's baptism came and was born in the most lowly of places. And God was saying, no matter where you are, no matter where you live, no matter what struggle in you, I'm going to get you. I'm going to find you. I'm coming to where you are. I'm coming to you. Because I have covenanted to redeem you. I've made a promise with myself, says God, because I can swear with no greater.

There is no wall that I won't climb. There is no valley I won't go through. There is no place I won't go to to find you, to get you, to redeem you, to bring you home, because I have loved you with an everlasting love. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Behold the Lamb of God. Behold the Lamb of God. Behold the heart of God, the goodness of God, the power of God, the greatness of God, the mercy of God. No wonder when we get to his throne, if we have such a thing as a crown, we will throw it at his feet. We'll start singing with the angels, glory to God in the highest. And on earth, peace and goodwill towards men. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. We are going to rediscover our redemption in these last hours of time, and we are going to have a song of glory that this world knows nothing about, a song of. Victory a song of praise a song of glory that nobody in this world can't sing it because only God can give it to us Hallelujah to the Lamb of God Glory glory glory glory glory glory to the name of Jesus Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah Hallelujah, hallelujah Thank you Lord. Thank you Lord. Thank you Lord. Thank you Lord Don't be left on the outside of this great redemption Don't be left trying to scratch out a living or whatever it is that you're doing Maybe

Maybe this whole day or the service this afternoon. You're just down the outside looking in Say God, I I never knew this. I never knew you loved me like this. I I never understood that That you you came to get me not because you you felt like I'm such a failure It's because you loved me And you died so that I can live and you came to take me home with you I Don't get it, but I'm gonna rule and reign with you for all of eternity Scripture says elsewhere. This is a mystery in this the angels desire to understand Why? With all of the created heavenly beings that just don't need redemption. They worship him day and night Why is this focus on you and me? We're the only thing that's a mess in the universe Yet he loves us. Oh how he loves us as we sing he just loves us I can't fully explain it, but I I can receive it by faith in my heart If you're here today and you just say pastor If this is true if if I can actually be at the right hand of God today in Christ Jesus If my life can take on a greater meaning and purpose Not just eternal life, but a greater meaning and purpose Not just eternally but here while I live on the earth and God can do something in me that only God can do Then I want to be part of this I Don't want it just to be somebody else's salvation and just so it'd be on the outside looking in I Want your presence in my life? I want to know that I'm forgiven if that's you Could you just raise your hand with me right now all over the plate all over the sanctuary. Thank you. Thank you I can't see them all I can just say there's lots of hands We're gonna pray a simple prayer and I'm gonna ask you to pray it right now with me Let's all pray it together for those who need to pray this Lord Jesus Christ Thank you for loving me Thank you for giving your life for me Paying the price for my wrong So that I could be forgiven Paying the price for my wrong

So that I could be forgiven today Because you opened your heart to me. I Opened my heart to you and I invite you to come into my life And be my Lord my Savior Thank you for loving me Lead me now Teach me Help me to understand these things From this day forward You are my God. I am your child and I believe heaven is my home Help me to honor you While I live on this earth Jesus Christ, I give you my life. Amen and amen. Praise God I Hallelujah, let's all stand together And I think we need to rejoice don't you I Do I think we need to rejoice do you think we need to rejoice I Think we need to give God a shout of glory at this house Hallelujah Hallelujah, hallelujah, I said I think we need to give God a shout of glory Hallelujah Glory to God glory to God glory to God in the earth. Glory to God in the heavens Thank you Lord. Thank you Jesus for all that you've done for us Glory to God glory to God glory to God One more time, right from way down, give God a shout of glory for what He has done!