Transcription downloaded from https://sermonarchive.gfcbremen.com/sermons/98904/our-need-for-our-great-prophet/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] The Gospel of John, chapter 1. I'll read the first 18 verses.

[0:10] In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

[0:22] He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made. Without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.

[0:38] The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. There came a man who was sent from God.

[0:50] His name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through Him all men might believe.

[1:02] He Himself was not the light. He came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.

[1:17] He was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognize Him. He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him.

[1:32] Yet, to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.

[1:44] Children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision, or a husband's will, but born of God.

[1:56] The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

[2:15] John testifies concerning Him. He cries out, saying, This was He of whom I said, He who comes after me has surpassed me, because He was before me.

[2:35] From the fullness of His grace, we have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses.

[2:46] Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God the only Son, who is at the Father's side, has made Him known.

[3:02] Well, we've been fixing our eyes on Jesus in His threefold office of mediator. And so, class, are you ready for your catechism pop quiz?

[3:16] Without looking down at your paper, maybe even, I ask the first question, What offices does Christ have? And let's say it together. Christ has the offices of Prophet, Christ, and King.

[3:31] Child of God, you know that all your needs are met by Jesus Christ as He fulfills those three offices. All your needs.

[3:44] Thomas Boston says, There's not a case a poor sinner can be in, but he will find the remedy of it in these offices of Christ. So look to Him and live.

[3:57] Last week, we began to look at Christ as our prophet. So, class, how is Christ a prophet? He teaches us the will of God.

[4:11] Once more, how is Christ a prophet? He teaches us the will of God. We saw last week that a prophet is a spokesman for God.

[4:22] He receives direct revelation from God, and then he proclaims it to the people to whom God sends him. He's a middleman then, isn't he?

[4:33] Between God and man. Bringing God's word to man. And we saw last week where this office of prophet began.

[4:43] It began at the billowing, fiery, shaking Mount Sinai, when God Himself met with His new nation Israel and proclaimed in His own voice the Ten Commandments.

[4:56] And the people of Israel were so shaken with fear that they went to Moses and pleaded with Him, Don't let us hear the voice of God again or we'll die. You go meet with God and you bring us God's word and we will do whatever He tells you.

[5:15] And God heard what the people said and He said to Moses, what the people have said is good. And so from then on, the words of the Almighty that shook the mountain and shook the hearts of the people were to be heard from the mouth of a brother.

[5:36] One just like them. Now, God's word lost none of its authority for having passed through the lips of a man.

[5:48] It was still the word of God. And so Moses was the first prophet in Israel who received revelation from God and passed it on to His people Israel.

[6:02] Then in Deuteronomy 18, we saw that God promised to raise up for His people a prophet like Moses, saying, I will put my words in His mouth and He will tell them to the people.

[6:15] He will tell everything I have commanded Him. And if anybody does not listen to His word, that the prophets, to my words, excuse me, if anyone does not listen to my words, that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account.

[6:33] There's the promise of this coming prophet. And so after a long line of prophets, this prophet like Moses appeared. He was none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, who is in Himself both God and man, and so is uniquely fitted to be the mediating prophet between God and man.

[6:55] And as soon as they heard Him, they at once sensed His uniqueness. No man ever spoke like this man speaks, with authority, with grace dripping from His lips.

[7:11] He claimed things for Himself that no mere man would ever claim. Could this be the prophet, the prophet, of Deuteronomy 18?

[7:22] And that expectation of a great and final prophet like Moses was found even among the Samaritans, those half-breed Jews that lived between Judea and Galilee.

[7:34] You remember when Jesus was making His way up to Galilee, He had to go through Samaria, and He met a Samaritan woman there by the well of Sychar. And they had a wonderful conversation, you'll remember. And at the end of that conversation, kind of like with a sigh of relief, she says, well, I know that Messiah is coming, and when He comes, He will explain everything to us.

[8:00] What's she expecting? She's expecting a Messiah who is a prophet who will explain everything. He'll make what is dark clear.

[8:14] And Jesus declared to her, I who am speaking to you am He. And she, for the joy of her heart, forgot her water pot, the reason she came out of the city to get water, and ran back into town saying, you'll never believe who I just talked to.

[8:33] Could this be the Messiah? This messianic prophet that we have been expecting? No wonder He knew her five past husbands and her present live-in.

[8:50] No wonder He knew how thirsty her soul was and that only He had the living water that could satisfy her thirst. He is this prophet from heaven, the Messiah.

[9:06] No wonder He could teach her about God and His worship, that God is spirit. and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. Here's the great prophet like Moses, and he's come to teach us the will of God.

[9:24] Now, he's uniquely qualified for this office because he is both God and man. And as God, he reveals God. No one knows the Father, he says, except the Son and those to whom the Son reveals Him.

[9:38] We read it in John 1.18. No one has ever seen God, but God, the one and only who is at the Father's side. He has made Him known.

[9:49] That phrase, made Him known, is a word that has as its root exegesis. And that's the role of the preacher is to exegete the Scriptures.

[10:01] It's to draw out of the passage its meaning and to make it clear. And Jesus is the exegesis of God, the Father. He's so uniquely qualified for this job because we just read in John 1.2 that He was with God in the beginning.

[10:21] He is God, this Word. And He has been in the bosom of God in that closest relationship with His Father who is more qualified to reveal the Father than the one who for all eternity has been in the bosom of the Father.

[10:42] Flavel says, What man can tell the bosom counsels of God but He that eternally lay in that bosom? So it's God who reveals God. For in Jesus, all the fullness of the deity lives in bodily form.

[10:55] So that if you've seen Him, He says, you've seen the Father. He's revealing to us as the great prophet who God is, what He is like. And so there, and yet though He is God, He is also man, like us in every way except for sin because we read that the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.

[11:23] He became flesh and blood just like us. And as the God-man, He is then the unique prophet. There was never a prophet like this who is at the same time God and man.

[11:36] He's the last prophet because He completes the whole office of prophet. He fulfills the very idea of prophet. He is God's final word to man.

[11:50] for in Him, man is now hearing God Himself, but He's also hearing it through the voice box of a man at the same time.

[12:04] It's God. It's man. And so there are no more prophets in the church, just the living Christ. For in the past, God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son.

[12:23] He's God's last word. Listen to Him, the Father says from Mount of Transfiguration. There is just one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.

[12:37] So He's this last prophet who mediates God's word to man. Now, if we're to appreciate this ministry of our Lord Jesus as being our prophet, we must appreciate our need of Him.

[12:54] That's true in any field, isn't it? You only really appreciate something if you understand something of your need of that thing. It's true of our Savior as a prophet. So I ask you, class, why do you need a prophet?

[13:08] Because of the time you believe in it. Once more? Because I am in ignorance. Oh, the ignorance of our world about God and spiritual things.

[13:26] Have you heard lately what men think about God? What they're saying about Jesus? What they believe about themselves, about sin, about the way of salvation, about the final judgment, about heaven, hell, eternity?

[13:44] It's frightening to hear what men believe about these things. How true it is, as Scripture says, that the world by its wisdom did not know God.

[13:55] With all their PhDs and scientific knowledge, they did not know God. There are children here who know God. And yet, there are wise men in the world that do not know Him.

[14:10] Men with the world's wisdom. Because even what they do know about God through creation and through conscience, they suppress. And they deny, as Romans chapter 1 says, they are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts, Ephesians 4.18.

[14:35] the ignorance that is in them. Lost people are in the dark about the very most important things of all.

[14:49] The God of this age has blinded their minds to the gospel, Paul says. I was reading this past week of Michael Bloomberg, an educated man, former mayor of New York City.

[15:02] He was interviewed by the New York Times and the paper says of Bloomberg that he has little doubt about what would await him at a judgment day. And then he points to all his accomplishments while in office and all the good that he brought to the people of New York City and said with a grin, quote, I'm telling you that if there is a God, when I get to heaven, I'm not stopping to be interviewed.

[15:25] I'm heading straight in. I have earned my place in heaven. It's not even close. Unquote. Unquote. And God would say, Mr. Bloomberg, your thoughts about me and eternity and reality are not even close.

[15:48] This poor, poor 72-year-old man with eternity staring in the face is clinging to the lie that has damned countless millions.

[15:58] that I, by my life, can do enough good to earn my way into heaven. And it's just not Mr. Bloomberg, is it?

[16:13] You've talked to many people like that all around you. Even people in church. Perhaps that's even why they're in church today.

[16:24] It's another point to earn their way into heaven. And into this darkness and gross ignorance has come God's final prophet, Jesus Christ, the light of the world.

[16:42] And he's come to enlighten our minds and to dispel our darkness and to reveal God as he really is and his will as it really is and to bless us by turning each one of us away from our wicked ways.

[16:57] He's come to reveal to us that the only way to God is through a crucified Savior. He's come to reveal that eternal life is his free gift to give and ours to receive by faith alone in what Jesus has done.

[17:13] He's here to teach us that God is so holy that only those with a perfect record will be allowed into heaven. but he goes on to tell us that God himself has provided such a record through the perfect obedience of his son who became man was born under the law that he might obey that law and set free every other lawbreaker who trusts in him and that the righteousness of Jesus the perfect obedience of Jesus is credited to the account of every sinner who trusts in Jesus alone.

[17:53] He came to bring that light into this gross ignorance of thinking that we can do something to open heaven's doors and to let us in.

[18:07] He's come as the great prophet you see to deal with this world's ignorance. But dear friends the ignorance is not all out there is it?

[18:22] I asked you class and I'll ask you once more why do you need a prophet? Because I am ignorant.

[18:34] Do you know any people who are too proud to learn anything? Maybe a child maybe a child a childish adult adult and you just open your mouth to start to speak and to teach them I know I know maybe you could do I know I know you can't teach them anything because they already know it's possible to be too smart to learn anything a smarty pants who can't be taught do you see a man wise in his own eyes?

[19:17] there's more hope for a fool than for him Proverbs 26 12 although they claimed to be wise they became fools and their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened we know we know we know all that we need to know and you see as long as you think you know you'll not come to the great prophet to have him teach you who will go to the great physician but those who know they're sick and dying and who will come to the great prophet except those who know they're ignorant and need to be taught so A.W.

[20:00] Pink says a large part of wisdom consists in the consciousness of ignorance what does it mean to be wise according to the scriptures well a large part of it Mr. Pink says is to be conscious of your ignorance how conscious are you of your own ignorance I just asked you said because I'm ignorant is that your real thought of yourself or is it just a catechism answer this is important because this is the first step to a teachable heart if God has sent his son into the world to be the prophet to teach us then it requires us to bring a teachable heart to this prophet and the first step toward a teachable heart is to recognize our ignorance I admit I don't know I admit I need to know so please

[21:02] Lord Jesus come and teach me that's a teachable spirit then I'm ready to soak up like a sponge everything that comes out of his mouth I need thee oh I need thee every hour I need thee oh great prophet come and teach me the will of God I find this world to be as full of voices and they're all saying this is the way walking it follow me no follow me and the devil is such a deceiver and he's ever whispering his lies into my ears lies that are dressed up like the truth calling evil good and good evil putting light for darkness and darkness for light and then there's my own flesh and it's so deceptive that I dare not trust myself I'm so easily deceived thank you Jesus for being my prophet my prophet teach me oh Lord to follow your decrees then I will keep them to the end give me understanding and I will keep your law and obey it with all my heart make me to go in the path of your commands for there

[22:20] I find delight turn my heart toward your statutes not toward selfish things turn my eyes away from worthless things renew my life according to your word thank you Jesus that you can not only bring your truth to my ears but you can put it on my inward parts and cause me to be careful to obey your commandments I'm ignorant oh come and teach me as only you can teach me oh light of the world come and enlighten me open my eyes that I might see wonderful things in your law where would we be without our prophet teaching us I'll tell you where we'd be we'd be like Mr.

[23:13] Bloomberg and thousands and millions of others who are following the way that seems right to a man but that ends in death there is such a way the way that seems right looks right but it's wrong looks like it leads to life and good and joy and happiness it leads to death and the second death of hell that's where we'd be blessed be Jesus he's come to expose the devil's lies he's come to expose the deceitfulness of my own heart with his truth and he says I am the way the truth and the life no one comes to the father but through me so he's come to speak words of eternal life and this so great salvation was first announced by the Lord Hebrews 2 3 says this great salvation was first announced by the

[24:16] Lord who brought life and immortality to light through the gospel who preached the kingdom of God his father and it was of him that John the Baptist father said the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death to guide our feet into the path of peace you know that path of peace with God is a narrow path Jesus says so few there be that find it and we've gone astray and we've lost our way and we're in the dark and we cannot find it and he's come with light to lead us home to God he's come with truth he is the truth he is the way I am the light of the world and whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life let us appreciate and thank

[25:24] God for this great prophet Jesus who is himself the truth and speaks nothing but the truth and to have truth in the midst of lies is to have light in the midst of darkness and light in the midst of gross ignorance about the most important things of all now you say well that's what he's done he's come he's taught he's lived and he's left behind that light no no he's still our great prophet Jesus Christ is the same yesterday today and forever and just as we still have a priest and still have a king we still have a prophet who is still teaching us the will of God he continues his work as prophet my friend Tom Lyon points out that he does this in two ways first by the production of the scriptures and then by the proclamation of God's word first our great prophet goes on teaching us by the production of the scriptures through his spirit bringing all of revealed truth that he has to write down for man into the completion of our

[26:40] Bibles and especially the New Testament his word is not only that which is revealed in the gospels but also in the rest of the New Testament it's all the word of our great prophet Jesus and so our great prophet returned to heaven but then he sent his spirit to do two things to remind and to reveal to remind the apostles of the words that he had preached with them while he was with them so that they might write them down without air he reminded them and so we have the four gospels but Christ the prophet sent his spirit to also reveal further truth to them which then became the epistles and the other books of the New Testament so Christ returned to heaven but as John Owen says what the Lord Christ revealed afterwards by his spirit to the apostles was no less immediately from himself than was the truth which he spoke to them with his own word it was

[27:44] Christ by his spirit putting his words into the mouths of the apostles into their minds onto the page as they wrote so that the epistles of Paul and Peter and James and John and Jude are no less Christ sermons!

[28:03] than is the sermon on the mount in other words the entire New Testament is his word now some of you may have red letter additions to the Bible in which the words of Jesus are in red and this simply means that there's one sense in which the whole New Testament should be in red ink it's all the words of our great prophet Jesus some of it mediated through his apostles but it's his inscripturated through his spirit of truth turn to John 16 and notice how he speaks of this in John 16 it's the night of his arrest before he's arrested he's in the upper room with his apostles and he's already taught them many things by the time we come to John 16 in these chapters from 13 on and so he says to them in verse 12 he's speaking to his apostles

[29:05] I have much more to say to you more than you can now bear but when he the spirit of truth comes he will guide you into all truth notice it's what I have to say to you but you're not ready so it's going to come to you later what I have to say to you and it will come through the spirit that I will send he will guide you into all truth he will not speak of his own he will speak only what he hears and he will tell you what is yet to come he will bring mine that's why I said the spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you all spirit revealed truth that the Holy Spirit brought to these writers of the New Testament it came from Jesus it was his word it's the word of our prophet to us notice in verse chapter 14 verses 25 and 26

[30:06] Jesus says to them all this I have spoken while still with you but the counselor the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name will teach you all things that's the epistles new information that God will give the epistles and he will remind you of everything I have said to you that's the four gospels and so the inscripturation of God's word through the apostles from Christ spirit is all the work of our great prophet and in one sense we could say the Old Testament is his word too because he is God he is the one that spoke on top of Mount Sinai he's the one who put his words into the mouth of Moses he is God and Jesus Christ is God's great prophet to this world and faith comes by hearing Romans 10 17 says in hearing by the word of

[31:08] Christ it's all his word your word oh Lord is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path this is the light that will lead us safely home to the father's house this is the light this is his word the faithful inerrant word of our great prophet Jesus so that's the way he continues his work as prophet having gone back into heaven but secondly he continues his work not only by producing the scriptures but by the proclamation of God's word through his ministers in other words Jesus is presently speaking on earth through the preaching of his word through gospel ministers he Jesus is the great sower who is scattering his word wherever it is sown he said to those 70 preachers that he sent out he who hears you hears me because when you preach my word they're listening to me and so

[32:21] Christ is preaching it's the voice of a prophet that's heard in the preaching of his word Charles Hod says since the ascension Jesus performs the same office of prophet not only in the full revelation of the gospel that we have in scriptures but also in the institution of the gospel ministry and constantly calling men to that office his ministers our ambassadors beseeching you in Christ's stead to be reconciled to God it's Christ who meets us in the preaching of the word and we need him if we are to profit from the word Thomas Watson says ministers may set the food of the word before you they may carve it out to you but it is only Christ that can cause you to taste it isn't that true so it's right for us to say speak oh Lord for we come to you to receive the food of your holy word your holy word that's what your prophet is doing for you right now he is speaking through the preaching of his word so here's the application of this truth this morning number one don't depersonalize the bible listen to your prophet don't depersonalize the bible whether you're reading it or hearing it read or hearing it preached it's our great prophet

[33:53] Jesus who is speaking to us and we must think of it that way we must as God said on the mount of transfiguration listen to him to him a person we're not just reading or listening to a book about him we are listening to him there's a difference it's not just playing games with words and that difference is to make a difference in the way that we come to this book called the bible we come to listen to him who is our prophet to teach us so every time we read it or hear it read or preached we come as Mary to sit at Jesus feet and to be taught by him every time we open our bibles we come as Peter to listen to him who alone has the words of everlasting life every time we hear it preached we come as Cornelius and his household in the presence of God to listen to everything that the

[35:04] Lord has commanded you to teach us we come as the two disciples on the road to Emmaus to have our hearts burn within us as he opens the scriptures to us and reveals himself in them we receive it not as the word of man but as it is in truth the word of God the word of our prophet who speaks to us from the scriptures so listen to him don't depersonalize the Bible secondly respond to him as he speaks to you he's not wasting his breath you know when he speaks he says let there be light and there's light light responds he says demon come out of him and the demon responds he says wind and waves quiet and they respond and he speaks from his word to you and he expects a response from you are you listening to him then respond to him as you read

[36:20] God's word or as you hear it read or preached now this is something that we don't see with our eyes and so we're talking about faith aren't we we've just come through that series on faith and faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see we don't see our great prophet do we but we believe that he is speaking through his word and so faith responds to him it's a response of faith faith has personal dealings with Christ in the hearing and reading of his word and that means that our response to him is different and depends upon the kinds of words that he's speaking to us so for instance some of the words he speaks to us are commands and when he speaks words of commands faith's response to our prophet is to obey you see come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and

[37:24] I will give you rest repent and be baptized seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness flee from sexual immorality his commands he's speaking to us faith's response is to obey you know we're going to see Christ as a priest and Christ as a king there's a lot of people that would like to take Christ as their priest and have him shed his blood and make a sacrifice that would atone for their sins so that they could appear before God in heaven but there is no priest who is not also the prophet and if you do not receive Christ as your prophet to teach you you cannot have him as your priest to forgive your sin you see he's one Christ with three offices and you can't pick

[38:25] I like this I don't like he comes as the prophet to teach us and some of his words are commands and if we receive him as our prophet faith's response to him is to obey him sometimes it's not commands that he brings to us but it's doctrines and faith responds to the great prophet by believing him believing him and we believe all that he says just because he says it so he's teaching on creation it's not what I'm hearing in school he said it I believe it about marriage about sexuality he says it it's not what the world say I believe!

[39:11] he's my prophet I believe whatever he says what he says about God about sin about self about the world what he says about the only way of salvation I believe it we take it on board as reality as truth Jesus said to Pilate everyone on the side of truth listens to me listens to me you see Jesus the prophet who speaks truth sometimes it's just doctrines and we respond by faith by believing sometimes it's warnings and threats and faith response is to take them seriously and to tremble at his word Isaiah 66 2 this is the one I esteem he who is humble and contrite in spirit and who trembles at my word when our great prophet speaks with warnings and threats face response is not to yawn and to say oh that's for the other guy no face response is to tremble at his word and so he says if you think you stand take heed lest you fall warning he says without holiness no man will see the

[40:30] Lord warning he says be afraid of him who can destroy both soul and body and hell warning he says if your eye causes you to sin pluck it out better to go to heaven with one than to go to hell with two warning we don't snicker ignore yawn we tremble at his that's faith's response when the prophet is threatening and warning you know he only comes to turn us away from our wicked ways that will damn us to lead us into the path that is life everlasting life so he comes speaking and we respond to his commands we give obedience to his doctrines we give belief to his warnings we tremble and sometimes he comes speaking promises and faith's response is to take him at his word to believe to trust in him to expect to see it happen just as he said it would to rest on his promise and then to pray with joyful expectation the very things that he has promised so you promised great prophet that you would meet all of my needs now just do what you have said you said you would give grace that's sufficient in every trial now do what you've promised you said if we would confess our sins that you are faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness keep your word to me your servant fulfill your promise that you may be feared so you see faith has personal dealings with the prophet when he speaks we respond and that's his ongoing ministry to us as our great prophet thirdly come to him in scripture to be saved from your own thoughts there's an interesting passage in

[42:45] Isaiah 55 6 and 7 seek the Lord while he may be found call on him while he is near let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man forsake his thoughts did you know that you need to be saved from your own thoughts because my thoughts are not your thoughts and my ways are not your ways God says and not just by a half step but as far as the heavens are above the earth so far are my thoughts above yours so you need to get rid of your thoughts and embrace mine so so if he's our great prophet then we need to come to him in scripture to be saved from our thoughts so I come to my Bible to have my mind renewed I come to my prophet to be taught how to think about everything for you must listen to everything he says he tells you Acts 3 22 what to think about

[43:47] God and sin and self and Christ and the way of salvation I come to have him teach me how to think about everything in life I put my mind under his mind and let him transform me by the renewing of my mind I come to him to be taught how to talk Lord I don't even know how to speak what should I say when should I say when should I not speak when I do say something what should I say and how should I say it teach me I come to be taught how to spend money how to make money how to give money how to tithe money I need you to teach me Lord for I am ignorant I come to you great prophet to be taught how to use my time how to work how to play how to enjoy God's gifts how to make decisions what priorities to pursue what values to hold so search me oh

[44:49] God and know my heart and try me and know my thoughts and see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting isn't it wonderful to have a prophet who can search the heart search the mind sort out it all renew restore and bring us to start thinking his thoughts and to save us from our own thoughts we bring our darkness to him and the entrance of his word gives light light there is a caution because it is the word of our prophet Jesus God says anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from his people Jesus says that word that I have spoken to you will judge you at the last day and so the question will be put to every one of us for we must all appear before the judgment seat of

[45:50] Christ and he will ask what have you done with my word because that's what you have done with me with me oh come to him that's the invitation come while he's near and he can he does have blood to cover all your disobedience of God's word he does have blood righteousness to credit to your account if you'll just come as a helpless sinner and throw yourself on Jesus and lastly treasure your prophet treasure him treasure Christ and his word John Wesley wrote I am a creature of a day that's what we are we're here today we're gone tomorrow right I'm a creature of a day passing through life as an arrow through the air that that fast and our life is gone I'm a spirit come from God and returning to

[46:51] God just hovering over the great gulf till a few moments hence I am I am seen no more and I drop into an unchangeable eternity I want to know one thing the way to heaven how to land safe on that happy shore God himself has condescended to teach the way that's our prophet Jesus for this very end he came from heaven he has written it down in a book oh give me that book at any price give me the book of God I have it here is knowledge enough for me let me be a man of one book treasure your prophet and his word here are the words of eternal life that have come down into our ignorance and darkness here's a light shining in darkness to lead us to

[48:01] God here's where we meet our Lord Jesus Christ face to face and have him renew our minds treasure him as he speaks to you through the scriptures he's spoken again this morning to us hasn't he from his word and so will you now respond to him many different responses are needed maybe you just need to respond for the first time in saving faith and say Lord Jesus I'm lost I'm confused I have not been able to find my way back to God I need you you are the way you are the truth you are the life have dealings with Jesus your prophet come to him cast your faith upon him who died for sinners and who comes bringing life and eternal life maybe you need to talk to him about some of his commands that you've been ignoring some of his threats that you've shrugged off some of his promises that aren't being trusted and aren't being prayed for however

[49:12] God has spoken through his word this morning let's have dealings with our great prophet a moment of silent prayer each one of us by faith looking to Jesus and then I'll close let's all pray our father in heaven you've given us eyes and we thank you that we can look out and see the things that you've made we thank you that we can read the scriptures we thank you that in a world of darkness and darkness that penetrated our minds and our hearts that you have sent your son as the light of the world to come and reveal you and the way to you even himself and so we don't have anywhere else to look!

[50:00] but to Jesus and we come Lord Jesus to you this morning forgive us for the way we've treated you and the things that you've said to us! teach us what a privilege to have the light in the midst of darkness to know that there are places in the world where people have never heard of Jesus the light of the world!

[50:24]  here we are sitting in a land full of light oh thank you Lord for coming to earth and for bringing the light of the gospel to us help us to treasure every word that comes from your mouth and help us to make a fitting response to your praise and to your glory seek out the lost draw them to the light of Jesus there's light for a look at the savior and life more abundant and free we thank you in your own name Lord Jesus Amen