Compel Them!

[0:00] Well, if we could, this evening, with the Lord's help and the Lord's enabling, if we could turn back to that portion of Scripture that we read, the Gospel according to Luke and chapter 14.

[0:23] The Gospel according to Luke and chapter 14, and if we read again at verse 21. Luke 14 and verse 21. So the servant came and reported these things to his master.

[0:38] Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.

[0:50] And the servant said, Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room. And the master said to the servant, Go out to the highways and hedges, and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.

[1:05] For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet. But of course, particularly the words, compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

[1:22] Compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. The parable of the great banquet is one of many parables which Jesus told.

[1:37] And there are so many of these illustrative sermons that appear throughout the Gospels. And these illustrative sermons, these parables, they all address our heart, our mind, and our soul.

[1:49] And we know many of them. We've grown up with them. There's the parable of the sower, the parable of the rich fool, the good Samaritan, the lost sheep, the lost coin, the rich man and Lazarus, the prodigal son, the wise and the foolish builder.

[2:05] Jesus told many parables. And with each illustrative sermon he presents, he leaves us with this lasting impression upon our heart, mind, and soul.

[2:17] And you know, the parable of the great banquet is no different. Because this parable, it's there to remind us of God's gracious provision of salvation as it's presented to us in the Gospel.

[2:32] And that God, he has graciously prepared and he has prepared this great banquet in which we can have our sins forgiven and our hearts cleansed and our lives transformed.

[2:43] And the wonder of God's great provision is that we are invited to come. To come to the Gospel table and taste and see for ourselves that God is good.

[2:58] In fact, the parable of the great banquet, and it's actually my favourite parable, because it reminds me, it reminds me that my responsibility, not only as a minister, but my responsibility first and foremost as a Christian, my responsibility is to tell people about God's gracious provision of salvation in Jesus Christ.

[3:20] My responsibility is to compel them to come and respond to God's invitation. My responsibility is to compel them to come to this great banquet.

[3:33] And you know, my Christian friend, that's our responsibility. That's the responsibility of every Christian. We are to lovingly invite the people we come into contact with to come to the Gospel table and see this wonderful salvation that's on offer to them.

[3:51] We're to compel them to come in. Because this parable is reminding us that there is yet room. There is yet room. And you know, my friend, if you're here tonight and you're still unconverted, still out of Christ, still a stranger to grace and to God, still not committed, still not a committed Christian, then the promise for you tonight is there is yet room.

[4:20] There is yet room. This is your promise. There is yet room in the kingdom of God for you. You haven't been shut out. You haven't been told you can't get in.

[4:32] You haven't been told to stay away. You haven't been told that you're too old or too late. You haven't been told that you're not good enough. You haven't been told that God's kingdom is full.

[4:44] No, my friend, there's room for you. And as the hymn writer says, there's room for millions more. Because this provision, this provision and this promised invitation, it's for you.

[4:57] In fact, it's for every home. It's for every family. It's for every individual in this community and beyond. But my Christian friend, it's our responsibility to compel them to come in.

[5:13] That the master's house may be filled. It's for every individual in this kingdom. It's our responsibility to remind them that there is yet room. There is yet room.

[5:24] And I want us to consider this parable this evening. And I want us to look at it under three headings. I want us to see, first of all, a perfect preparation. And then a poor pardon.

[5:37] And lastly, a powerful plea. A perfect preparation. A poor pardon. Or a pathetic pardon. And a powerful plea.

[5:49] So first of all, a perfect preparation. A perfect preparation. We were told in verse 15. When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to Jesus, Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God.

[6:05] But Jesus said to him, A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, Come, for everything is now ready.

[6:20] Now Jesus, he told the parable of the great banquet while sitting around the dinner table. He was sitting around the dinner table in the house of one of the chief Pharisees.

[6:32] We're told at the beginning of the chapter that it was the Sabbath. So it was the Sabbath, and after Sabbath worship in the local synagogue, Jesus had been invited for dinner.

[6:43] He had been invited to sit with all the Pharisees of the day. But you know, the agenda of the Pharisees, it wasn't to listen to Jesus or take in anything that he had to say.

[6:54] The agenda of the Pharisees was to find a reason to accuse Jesus for claiming that he was God. And you know, from the outset of the chapter, it's obvious that Jesus' invitation to this Pharisee's house, it was all a setup.

[7:09] Because we're told in verse 1 that they were watching him carefully. They were watching him carefully. They watched Jesus' every move, wondering what Jesus would do or what he would say next.

[7:24] But you know, while the Pharisees were spending their time watching Jesus, Jesus was watching them. Jesus was watching them, and he was not only watching them, but reading them.

[7:34] He was reading their hearts and reading their minds. And Jesus knew, he knew straight away that this invitation to dinner, it wasn't out of a genuine desire to get to know him or even the message that he preached.

[7:48] The Pharisees, they were far too self-righteous for any of that. They were far too proud for dealing with Jesus or thinking that they wanted to listen to Jesus.

[7:59] Which is why Jesus goes on to ask them, is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not? A very thought-provoking question to Pharisees.

[8:11] And of course the Pharisees, they would have said no straight away. But they remained silent just to see what Jesus would do. Because we're told that there was this man who had dropsy there. And it was when Jesus had healed this disabled man, Jesus goes on to ask the Pharisees, Now which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on the Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?

[8:37] And again we're told they didn't reply. They stayed silent. But as an invited guest into the home of the chief Pharisees, you see Jesus, he fearlessly tells this parable to all these invited guests.

[8:51] And astonishingly, the parable is all about humbling yourself rather than exalting yourself. It's quite a parable to tell Pharisees.

[9:02] And you know Jesus, he applies the parable, the parable that he tells, the parable of the wedding feast in verses 7 to 11. He applies it in verse 11. He says, Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled.

[9:14] And he who humbles himself will be exalted. And so Jesus is telling the Pharisees this parable about humility.

[9:25] But he not only tells the Pharisees, he then turns to the chief Pharisee, the host, who's hosting him for dinner. And Jesus says to him, he says to the man who had invited him, When you give a dinner or a banquet, imagine saying this to the host, when you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your rich neighbours lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid.

[9:53] But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed because they cannot repay you for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.

[10:05] Now the point that Jesus was trying to get across to these self-righteous Pharisees was that their religious gatherings in which only the church elite of the day could attend. Jesus says, These religious gatherings, they're of no benefit.

[10:19] They're of no benefit to your soul or to the souls of others. Because as Jesus says in verse 14, Blessing comes when you reach out to those in need.

[10:31] Blessing comes when you invite those to sit at your table who are less fortunate than you. Blessing comes when you share food and fellowship with those who don't have what you have.

[10:43] Blessing comes when you humble yourself and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame, and you get to know them. Now Jesus, he wasn't talking literally.

[10:56] When Jesus says invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind, he's talking spiritually. He says, invite the spiritually poor. Invite those who are in poverty and bankrupt because of their sin.

[11:11] Invite the spiritually crippled, those whose lives are broken and crippled because of the effects of their sinful nature. Invite the spiritually lame, he says.

[11:21] Those who don't even have a leg to stand on before a holy God and need to walk in the paths of righteousness. Invite the spiritually blind, says Jesus. Those who are still in darkness, still blinded by the God of this world, still blinded by all the desires of their heart.

[11:40] And Jesus says, invite them. Invite them. Because blessing comes when you reach out to those in need. Blessing comes when you humbly invite those who are spiritually poor, crippled, blind, and lame to come and sit at your dinner table.

[12:00] Blessing comes, says Jesus, when you actively share food and fellowship with those who don't have what you have. And you know, with this Jesus, he's actually teaching us the greatest form of evangelism.

[12:18] You want to know how to reach out to your friends, your neighbours, your family. Jesus is telling you how. Because, do you know, the greatest form of evangelism, as Jesus reminds us here, it's based around the dinner table.

[12:35] Whereas Christians, Jesus says, we're to be sociable and we're to reach out to those who are spiritually poor, crippled, lame, and blind, and we're to invite them to our dinner table.

[12:49] Whether it's dinner in our own home, or it's to a congregational dinner, or even a curry night, or whatever it may be, we're to invite them. And I know it's not easy.

[13:00] It's far easier to invite other Christians to sit around the dinner table and talk about the church. It's far easier to invite Christians just at the communion time. But what about in between all that?

[13:13] What about the unconverted friends that surround us? What about inviting them to our dinner table? But you know, Jesus says, it doesn't do our soul any good if we're just surrounding ourselves with people who are of a like mind as us.

[13:29] We need to get to those who are spiritually poor, crippled, blind, and lame, and sit with them around the dinner table to get to know them and build a relationship with them and let them see through your life and my life what it is to be a Christian and what you have and what I have in Christ and what they desperately need.

[13:52] You know, it's the greatest form of evangelism. And it's so simple. Spend time with people and invest time in people.

[14:03] it's so simple and Jesus does it so wonderfully here. It's the greatest form of evangelism and Jesus says it's humility.

[14:15] It's when you humble yourself and open your home up to others. That's when you seek to reach out to those in need. And Jesus, he's speaking directly against any self-righteous pharisaic nonsense that makes you disconnected from those around you.

[14:35] Because that, as Jesus is saying here, it's completely unhelpful. That's not where blessing is. That's not where blessing is to be found. No, Jesus says that blessing comes when you invite sinners to your banquet.

[14:50] And it's with that that Jesus sitting around this dinner table, must have been some meal, he reminds the Pharisees that when it comes to the gospel banquet, he has made a perfect preparation.

[15:05] Jesus says that in verse 16, a man once gave a great banquet and invited many. And of course Jesus, he's alluding to himself and he's presenting this to the Pharisees and he's saying that he has provided a perfect preparation of salvation in the gospel.

[15:24] And he says the gospel table is set. Everything is prepared. There's nothing else that needs to be done. The gospel banquet, he says, is a perfect provision with every spiritual blessing there for the taking.

[15:39] And this gospel table, he says, what it has on it is the offer of eternal life. The gospel table has the promise of everlasting hope, forgiveness of sins, reconciliation with God, comfort for the broken, help for the weak, strength for the downthroden, peace for the restless, grace for the needy.

[15:58] My friend, it's a perfect preparation. This gospel table that Jesus has prepared, it's a full redemption. And you know, our host, Jesus, he has made this perfect preparation.

[16:11] How? By humbling himself. That's the whole point of this passage. Jesus did it all by humbling himself.

[16:22] We're told in the gospels, he came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. So the attitude that we're to have is an attitude of service.

[16:35] Jesus was the suffering servant. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. He received the chastisement and punishment that was due to us in order to bring us peace.

[16:49] He endured it all. He despised its shame. He endured the cross. He humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. And Jesus did it all.

[17:01] Why? So that poor, crippled, lame, and blind sinners could be invited to this gospel banquet and taste and see that God is good. My friend, it's a perfect preparation.

[17:16] The gospel table is set. It's all prepared for us. there's nothing more that needs to be done. There's nothing that needs to be added to it.

[17:27] You can't add anything to it. Your good works are of no use. Your efforts to keep a spotless life, they're hopeless. Your attempts to be a good person and live a good upright life, they're worthless at this gospel table.

[17:42] Because in order to come to this gospel table, Jesus says, you must come humbly. You must come humbly, admitting your need of this full and free redemption.

[17:57] And my unconverted friend, you're being invited to come. Because Jesus is saying to you tonight, come, for all things are now ready.

[18:08] Come, for all things are now ready. me. But you know, as Jesus sat around the dinner table, he knew that the Pharisees weren't interested.

[18:23] He knew that they would come up with all these excuses as to why they can't come to the gospel banquet. They were too self-righteous to accept such a full and free invitation.

[18:36] Which is why Jesus went on to say that a perfect preparation was met with a pathetic pardon. A perfect preparation was met with a pathetic pardon.

[18:47] And that's what we see secondly. A pathetic pardon. All these excuses were told in verse 17. And at the time for the banquet, he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, come, for everything is now ready.

[19:01] But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it, please excuse me. Another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I'm going to examine them.

[19:13] Please excuse me. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. I cannot come. You know, it was J.C.

[19:25] Ryle, my favorite. He said, forgiveness of sin, peace with God, grace by the way, and glory in the end. They are the gracious provision which God has prepared for the needs of souls.

[19:38] There is nothing, he says, that sin laid in hearts can wish, or weary consciences require, which is not spread before us in rich abundance in Christ. Christ, in one word, says Ryle, is the sum and substance of this great banquet.

[19:54] banquet. But as Jesus sits around the dinner table with these Pharisees, he knew that they were too self-righteous to come to this great banquet. They were too proud to humble themselves and come and receive this full and free offer of salvation.

[20:11] Because, well, they thought that they were saved already. They thought that they were going to heaven already. That's why one of the Pharisees interrupts Jesus in verse 15. And he praises God.

[20:23] He thought, like all of the Pharisees, that he was already saved. He thought that he would be part of the kingdom of God. Which is why he says in verse 15, blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God.

[20:37] The Pharisee thought he was saved. He thought that his upbringing and his outward appearance of religion was enough to make him acceptable before God. I mean, well, why not?

[20:51] He was a good person. He was a churchgoer. He attended all the Sabbath services. He was at the synagogue that morning. He knew the scriptures. He was a good neighbor. He was an upstanding member of the community.

[21:03] He wasn't like other people. Therefore, he's in a good position as anyone to get into heaven. So why does he need Jesus? Why does he need to come to this great banquet at all?

[21:16] Why does he need God's provision if he can be a good person and save self? Do you know my unconverted friend, even my Christian friend, we ought to be aware of self-righteousness in our heart.

[21:36] Very, very dangerous. A self-righteousness that will tell us that we don't need Jesus. It's very, very dangerous. Beware of pride in your own heart that will convince you that you don't need to commit your life to Jesus and that you don't need to live your life every day for Jesus.

[21:57] Beware of pride because pride makes us comfortable and it makes us come up with empty excuses, pathetic excuses of pardon.

[22:09] And that's what Jesus describes in this parable. He describes pathetic excuses as to why those who were invited to the great banquet couldn't come. And you know the excuses Jesus describes, they aren't too dissimilar from the excuses that people use nowadays.

[22:28] Because people are either too busy, too broke or too bound. People are either too busy, too broke or too bound. Like the man who bought a field and had to go and see it, he was too busy.

[22:44] Too busy to come to the banquet. Too busy for Jesus. Too busy for church. Too busy for the gospel. Too busy. Don't want to come?

[22:56] Too busy. How many use that excuse? I've heard that one many a time. Too busy. There are others like the man who bought oxen. They're too broke. And they're broke because they're trying to keep up with all the trades and trends of the day.

[23:10] They're trying to follow all the fashions and fads of the season. And they're broke trying to do it. And to prevent bankruptcy, they work endless hours and tireless days and do as much overtime as they can just to keep up with it all.

[23:26] And their excuse is that when it comes to Jesus or salvation or church or the gospel, too tired. Oh, too tired. Too tired for Jesus. Too tired for salvation.

[23:37] Too tired for church. Too tired for the gospel. So there's those who are too busy, those who are too broke, but then there's also those who are too bound.

[23:48] They say that family gets in the way of Jesus. Family gets in the way of coming to salvation. They're too bound. My wife isn't a Christian.

[23:59] My husband doesn't go to church. My children, they have no interest in the gospel. And like this person here, I'm married, now I can't come. But Jesus says they are pathetic excuses.

[24:14] Pathetic excuses. Too busy, too broken, too bound. But you know, as Jesus tells this parable, he explains that being invited to the banquet is not the same as coming to the banquet.

[24:28] Being invited is not the same as coming. Being in a place of privilege where you receive the invitation is not the same as being in the place of promise.

[24:38] promise. In other words, being close to the kingdom is not close enough. You have to come into the kingdom. You have to come to the banquet. And you know, my unconverted friend, there's one thing you are.

[24:54] You are privileged. There is no doubt about it. You are privileged. You've been privileged to hear the gospel all your life.

[25:05] And I've said this to you many times. But I'll say it again tonight. You've heard the gospel all your life. You've heard it in your home, your family.

[25:16] You've had it at school. They don't get it like you used to. You've had it in Sabbath school. You've heard it in the community. The gospel and the presence of the gospel has been around you all your life.

[25:28] And yet even though you're in such a privileged position, you still reject Jesus. you still put off coming to this glorious gospel table. You still keep giving excuses as to why you will not come.

[25:42] You're either too busy, too broke, or too bound. But you know the thing is, it's not that you don't like the gospel, is it?

[25:54] That's why you're here. And it's not that you don't like hearing the gospel, or even coming to church. it just seems to be the fact that becoming a Christian, it would be this inconvenience in your life, that you don't want it right now.

[26:11] And so you remain just where you are, you're there every week, and it's great you're here, but you know my friend, it's about time you made a move. And, I don't know, sometimes you're probably saying to yourself, well I have other things to do, I have other things to attend to.

[26:30] And when it comes to the topic of salvation, or eternity, or the gospel, and when it's brought up with you, when I speak to you, you want to change the subject as quickly as possible.

[26:44] But this is what you need. This is what you need, this is why we keep coming back to this topic, because it's what you need. It's what you need.

[26:56] Nothing else will save you. And you can give every excuse possible in order to avoid what is of eternal importance, but the truth is there's no excuse good enough to refuse the full and free offer of the gospel.

[27:10] There's no excuse good enough. So my friend, I want you to make a pledge with yourself tonight. Maybe you can ignore me if you want, but no more excuses.

[27:23] No more excuses. Please, no more excuses. excuses. That's what Jesus is saying in this parable. He's saying, I have made a perfect preparation in the gospel table, so don't come to me with a pathetic excuse of pardon.

[27:42] Just listen and respond to the powerful plea. The powerful plea, that's what I want us to consider lastly. A perfect preparation, a pathetic pardon, and a powerful plea.

[27:55] We're told in verse 21, so the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.

[28:11] And the servant said, sir, what you have commanded has been done and still there is room. And the master said to the servant, go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in that my house may be filled.

[28:23] As Jesus is sitting at the dinner table with these Pharisees, he brings the parable of the great banquet to its climax. And you can see the reason why the master of the house became angry because the guests, well, they're just rejecting their invitation.

[28:39] They're giving all these pathetic excuses as to why they can't come to the banquet. And of course, Jesus, he's straight away, he's highlighting the attitude of the Pharisees and their pathetic excuses.

[28:51] And he's saying that their self-righteous attitude, it's not pleasing to God. And it's actually making him angry because they're rejecting the message of his servant Jesus.

[29:03] They're rejecting the full and free offer of salvation. And they're coming up with all these proud and self-righteous excuses as to why they don't need the gospel.

[29:14] But what Jesus explains to these Pharisees is that because they have rejected the invitation to come to the banquet, he says others will be invited in their place.

[29:29] And those who will be invited, he says, are those who have no privileges and those who have no pride. The master of the house said to the servant, go out quickly into the streets and the lanes of the city and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.

[29:47] And this is just what Jesus said to the Pharisees about inviting those who are outcasts to their banquets. Jesus said that those who are invited to the great banquet of the gospel are not those with an ego or obsessed with good works or pride or self-righteousness.

[30:05] Jesus says the gospel banquet is for those in need and those who see their need. The gospel banquet is a perfect preparation for those who are spiritually poor, crippled, blind and lame.

[30:22] The banquet is for those in poverty because of their sin. It's for those whose lives are broken and crippled because of the effects of their sinful nature.

[30:34] The banquet is for those who don't have a leg to stand on and the banquet is for those who are still sitting in darkness blinded by the God of this world. And Jesus is saying to us invite them.

[30:46] Go after them. Compel them. Invite those whose lives are humble and broken.

[30:57] Invite those in need and those who see their need. Invite them to come to the great gospel banquet. But we're told here, sir, what you have done has been commanded and yet there is room.

[31:14] We've already invited them. So the master says to the servant, go out beyond them to the highways and to the hedges and compel them all to come in that my house may be filled.

[31:32] You know, my friend, in the words of Jesus, the invitation to come to the gospel banquet, it's extended to whosoever. The invitation to come, it includes everyone, it excludes no one.

[31:44] The invitation is to whosoever. The gospel banquet is to be offered to everyone without exception. But you know, I love what Jesus says that the servant was to do.

[31:57] And it's the reason it's my favorite parable. The servant was commanded to go to the highways and hedges and compel them. Compel them to come in that the master's house may be filled.

[32:09] He was to compel them. And that word, compel, means to lovingly invite. To lovingly invite them.

[32:20] Compel them to come in, he says. And my Christian friend, our responsibility is to obey the master's command. The commander and chief of our salvation is commanding us, compel them to come in.

[32:36] We can't even give an excuse as to not obeying that command. Our responsibility is to go and compel those in our homes, our families, our neighbors, our friends, our work colleagues, we're to compel them to come in.

[32:51] We're to compel them to come to this gospel banquet. We're to remind them that they're lovingly invited. They're not shut out, but they're to come.

[33:04] And you know, he says, go out quickly. Go out quickly. Why? Time is short. Do you know if we realized it, time is short, we would live life with an urgency.

[33:22] We would live with a real urgency. We would live, as one said, there's only one life. Soon it will be past. Only what's done for Christ will last.

[33:34] Time is short. And I need not remind you that there are many in our community and they're going to a lost eternity in hell and we need to invite them to come to the gospel banquet.

[33:48] We need to make opportunities, pray for opportunities and take opportunities. You know, we need to look for these opportunities and just invite people.

[34:00] That's why the faith mission is coming. To star us up, to spur us on, to excite us in many ways, to take up the opportunities that we have to obey the master's command and compel people to come in.

[34:15] It's an opportunity for us to lovingly invite spiritually poor, crippled, blind and lame sinners to come to this wonderful gospel table.

[34:26] My Christian friend, we're to go out to the highways and to the hedges and compel them to come in. We're to lovingly invite them, we're to ask them and encourage them and even plead with them, bring them.

[34:41] Take them with you, give them a lift, encourage them to come and taste and see that God is good. And yes, they might say no, they might say no, I don't want to go to that.

[34:53] They might have all their empty excuses, they're too busy, they're too bound, all their excuses, they might tell you just go away, I don't want that just now. But you know that should never stop the invitation going out.

[35:07] As I was saying this morning, I know it's difficult, I know it's hard, I know it's challenging, but the master has commanded us.

[35:19] It's his command, he's the commander-in-chief, he's issued the command that we must go out, and the invitation must go out, and we must compel them to come in, that the master's house may be filled.

[35:33] God, is it not your longing that more will come and see how good this God is, that he has provided a gospel table for sinners, and he bids them to come to it.

[35:49] And you, my unconverted friend, sitting here tonight, you are lovingly invited, and that's one thing I want you to know, and that you would know it, and that you would understand it, that you are lovingly invited to embrace the gospel as it's freely offered to you.

[36:11] You're not being told stay away, you're not being told you're not worthy enough or good enough, you're just being told come, just come, no more excuses, just come, because the master is saying to you tonight, come, for all things are now ready.

[36:37] May the Lord bless these thoughts to us. Let us pray. O Lord, our gracious God, we thank thee for the gospel table.

[36:49] It is a wonderful table with so much on it, beyond our asking and even beyond our thinking, God, we thank thee that the Lord a God who bids sinners to come, who not only bids us but lovingly invites us.

[37:07] And Lord, we pray that each and every one of us would respond for those who have come to this table, or that we would encourage others to come and sit around the table of the Lord.

[37:19] Lord, remember those who have not yet come. We pray that they would hear this invitation and respond in faith and obedience. Lord, that we would not come with our excuses, but come knowing that this Jesus, he saves to the uttermost, and that whosoever comes to him, he will in no wise cast out.

[37:41] Lord, bless us then we pray. Bless us in the week that lies ahead and all there is before us. Guard our hearts and our minds, keep the evil one from us, and help us ever to look to Jesus, the author and the finisher of our faith.

[37:56] Cleanse us, we ask, for we ask it in Jesus' name, and for his sake. Amen. We're going to bring our service to a conclusion by singing the words of Psalm 34.

[38:13] Psalm 34, at verse 8, down to the verse marked 11. Psalm 34, page 247 in the Scottish Psalter, and we're singing at verse 8.

[38:32] Oh, taste and see that God is good, who trusts in him is blessed. Fear God, his saints, none that in fear, shall be with want oppressed. The lions young may hungry be, and they may lack their food, but they that truly seek the Lord shall not lack any good.

[38:49] Oh, children, hither do ye come, and unto me give ear, I shall you teach to understand how ye the Lord should fear. So these verses of Psalm 34, to God's praise.

[39:02] O faith and see that God is good, who trusts in him with rest.

[39:22] Fear God, is safe, none that him here shall be with want oppressed.

[39:40] The lions young may hungry be, and they may like their food, but they that truly seek the Lord shall not like any good.

[40:14] children hither to ye come, and unto me give ear, I shall you teach to understand how ye the Lord should fear.

[40:52] The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all, now and forevermore. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[41:02] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.