Good morning to everyone. Thank you again for leading us. Having some back spasms this morning, so if I get a little jerky or holler, don't be alarmed. But I think we're going to be fine.

We're continuing our study in the book of Philippians. This is the first Sunday of February. We've got January behind us. So spring is on the way, three, four more months. This is really an encouraging, instructive passage before us this morning. 

A couple of weeks ago, we approached it from the perspective of the promise of the peace, the peace of God, and how it is that we can experience that peace consistently in our lives. And this morning, I want to just go back to these nine verses and look at them from a slightly different angle and really focus in on how it is that God intends for us to experience his peace in the body of Christ and fruitful living for his glory, standing steadfast, immovable, and focused on our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Psalm 1 tells us that the one who trusts in the word of the Lord is like a tree planted by the waters. He shall not be moved. Psalm 16:8 says, "I have set the Lord always before me because he is at my right hand. I shall not be moved." And Psalm 62:1, "My soul waits silently for God alone, for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation. He is my defense. I shall not be moved. And God is my salvation and my glory. The rock of my strength and my refuge is in God." Trust in him at all times, you people. Pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us.

We see this very common theme in the New Testament as well to the church. And this theme speaks of stability. It speaks of steadfastness, a steadiness in the storms of life because of the firm foundation that we have in Christ. And much of this steadfastness comes by a right kind of thinking, a proper mindset, focus, and attitude. 

Paul has been talking about this and instructing us throughout this epistle to have the same mind, to be of one mind, to have the mind of Christ. He's been highlighting the importance of unity in the body, unity of purpose, passion, and pursuit. And this coming from setting our minds on things above, on eternal things, on Christ and his promises and his purpose for us as his body.

We're going to look at several scriptures this morning in the admonition to stand, to be steadfast, immovable. And this set in contrast to being tossed to and fro, deceived, anxious, doubting, and fearful. We will see that the key to this kind of life, this kind of mind that God intends for us, comes from having our full attention, our mind fixed on the truth of God's word, his promises, and his person in full dependence on him, set on his desires, having his mind and thinking his thoughts. 

And my brothers and sisters, this is an exercise of the mind, thinking, ruminating, mauling over continually the truth, that which is good and noble, his character and nature, his concerns and desires for us. This must be based on truth, on doctrine, on teaching of the word of God. Our faith is not a faith primarily of emotion and experience. These things are wonderful when they're based in truth. But our faith is first and foremost an exercise of the mind, teaching, studying, thinking, seeking to know and understand our God, our salvation in Christ, who he is, and what we have in him. 

And this is why we see a constant emphasis in the scriptures on truth, on doctrine, and an appeal to every believer to think, to renew our minds, to study, to grow in our understanding, and to reckon what God says to be true. In a world of error, confusion, and doubt, tremendous uncertainty, where we don't even know what is true and what is false, where men lie and deceive constantly to their own ends, even in the modern evangelical church, where the wisdom of men has crept in and everything is based on pragmatism and experience, where believers in Christ go to the world to find comfort and encouragement, remedy for their anxiety and fear, we must ask, what is truth? What is right? What is good and profitable? Who can we trust? Where should we look?

We must know the truth from the only infallible source of truth that we have, the word of God. And we must fill our minds with these things, think on these things, believe, and trust, and hold fast to these things in order that we might stand, that we might have confidence, and peace, and security in the God of our salvation and Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. 

Let's look at our text, Philippians 4:1. "Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, beloved. I implore Yodi and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord, and I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the book of life. Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue, and if there's anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things, the things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you."

I've given you five points on your outline. First, stand fast in the Lord. Second, peace in the body. Third, gentleness. Fourth, prayer with thanksgiving, and fifth, think on these things. 

Well, Paul's been exhorting us to have the same mind, to be unified in mind and purpose in the church, and in the section before us this morning, he's explaining how it is that we may have the same mind, that we may stand on the same firm foundation and experience peace and unity in the body so that we might be fruitful for God's glory, his purposes, and our good. 

In verse one, he writes, "Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord." I'd like to begin this morning with a little theology. We are to stand fast in the Lord, it says. Notice also in verse two, he says, "be of the same mind in the Lord." Verse four, "rejoice in the Lord always." Verse five, "the Lord is at hand." Verse six, "be anxious for nothing, but by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." 

In the Lord, to God, through Christ Jesus. The emphasis throughout these admonitions is on the Lord, on God, on Jesus. If we're going to be steadfast and immovable, then our theology must be biblical and true and be focused on the Lord and his strength, the power of his might. Turn over to Ephesians 6 with me, please, a familiar passage on the armor of the Lord, Ephesians 6:10. 

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all to stand, look at verse 14, stand therefore." 

If we are to have a right theology, a biblical understanding of God and man and salvation and eternity, we must start with the word of God and our focus must be on the God of his word. I was thinking on this as I was studying these verses and how each verse, each admonition points us to the Lord, to the power of his might, to stand fast in him. And I thought, how could this ever work if I do not have a proper understanding of salvation and what the Bible teaches about who I am in Christ, about God's word and his promises and trials and tribulations and all the things that come against me in this world.

The main instruction in our texts that we are working toward is verse eight, think on these things, meditate, ponder, work them over in your mind. Like Chia, my old Jersey cow, every day after I milk her, she goes out and I see her chewing her cud, right? Rolling it over, bringing it up. This is what we're to be doing in our mind. What things are we to think on? The good things, those things worthy of praise, the truth, the word of God. 

In verses five and six, we are instructed to be anxious for nothing. Why? Because the Lord is near. We are to take all of our cares and concerns to God in thankful prayer. I was thinking about this in the way of salvation, of soteriology and sanctification and glorification. For example, what comfort, what solace would it be to me that the Lord is near, in fact, living in me, if my salvation was not dependent on the Lord? 

I've met many Christians in my life who believe that you can lose your salvation, that in fact, salvation is dependent on you and your works and your continuance and faith and obedience. The scriptures are abundantly clear in explicit way in passages like John 10, where he says, "My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give them eternal life and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand." 

Philippians 1:6, "being confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work and you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." First Peter, turn over to first Peter 1, such a tremendous passage about our salvation. First Peter 1, beginning in verse 3. 

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again." That's speaking of the new birth of regeneration. "According to what? My works? My goodness? How nice I am?" No, "According to his abundant mercy, he has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. He has given us the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith being much more precious than gold that perishes, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen, you love. Though now you do not see him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

Well, these are pretty clear statements, but there's so much more in the scriptures, perhaps on a deeper level that teaches us about the salvation that God provides in Christ. I think of Romans chapter 6, turn to Romans 6, we'll look at first 11 verses there. This whole section in Romans 6 to 8 teaches us about what God has done in us in salvation. 

In verse 1 he says, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not. How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized were placed into Christ Jesus, were placed into his death? Therefore we were buried with him through baptism into death that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we've been united together in the likeness of his death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of his resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin, for he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him, knowing that Christ having been raised from the dead dies no more, look at this, death no longer has dominion over him. For the death that he died, he died to sin once for all, but the life that he lives, he lives to God. Likewise, you also reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

Not only did God justify us when we believed, but he also crucified our old man. He buried us with Christ and he raised us to newness of life. Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation. We have a new heart and a new spirit and the Holy Spirit of God living in us as a down payment and earnest of our full salvation yet to come. Let's look at Romans 8, just over a couple pages. Romans 8:28, and this is such a tremendous encouraging passage for us.

We know. We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the first born among many brethren. Moreover, whom he predestined, these he also called, whom he called, these he also justified, and whom he justified, these he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, for your sake we are killed all day long and are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing. Are you a created thing? You cannot separate yourself from the love of God because of what God has done in you in salvation, making you a new person. Nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

These are glorious truths and promises, divine reasoning from the pen of Paul. And did you notice that we find a theology of suffering as well? Verse 28 is the conclusion of the first part of Romans 8 where he says the sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us. He says we are saved by hope, saved from fear and doubt because we have confident assurance in God. 

So here we see the promise that God works all things together for the good of those who love him. Who? God. God works all things together. Even trial and tribulation, God is working to produce Christ-likeness in and through us. We find a solid theology of the purpose of suffering and God's sovereignty in the scriptures in passages like James 1 and Romans 5 and here in Romans 8. You see, God saved me, is what we just read in Romans 8, God saved me and you for the express purpose of making me like Christ, of bringing my salvation to consummation and glorification and eternity in heaven with him. When I believe Jesus, I receive eternal life. My sheep hear my voice, they follow me, I give them eternal life. I always said in arguments with people who told me you could lose your salvation, that's a funny kind of eternal life, right? He gives me a five-year life or he gives me a ten-year life, but he doesn't give me eternal life and then I can lose it. When I believe Jesus, I receive eternal life and all the glorious truths and promises that go with it. I am recreated and now it is by grace through faith that I live and God is working in me his will and purpose to make me like Jesus. 

Circumstances, my friends, are not the issue. God's Word, his promises, his power and grace in my life are sure and true. He who is faithful will do it. He is able to make you stand. Jude said, "Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy." 

So I first must understand who God is, who I am, the salvation that Christ provided, the purpose of God in this life, the power of God that works in me and the sure promises of glorification and sustaining grace. If I'm going to understand Paul's admonition in our text, "be anxious for nothing." Why? Because the Lord is near, the Lord is in you, the Lord is with you. I don't need to be anxious for anything and I'm anxious for so many things I can't do anything about anyway. I'm anxious for so many things that will never happen. I don't need to be anxious for anything because the Lord is here, the Lord is in control. 

If I believe that my salvation was dependent on me, on my accomplishments, on my continuing faithfulness and performance, then the fact that the Lord is at hand would be of little comfort to me. I would have to say be anxious in everything because it's all up to me. What a way to think, to live, stand fast in your ability, be strong in your might, grind it out, keep the law, stay faithful lest you perish. It would be like being back in the Catholic Church when I was a kid and that priest used to shake my hand and grind his thumb into the back of my hand until I'd go to my knees. Authority, power, that's not good news. 

Do you see how our theology can affect our thinking and therefore our peace and our security and our anxiety? Our tendency is to focus on ourselves, our wants, our desires, our problems, and we often look to God to meet our needs, to fix our difficulties, to keep us from suffering, to give us a carefree, easy life. You see how wrongheaded this all is, how worldly, and unfortunately the church has fallen into a pragmatic feelings and experience, man-centered thinking, just like the world. 

As I was studying this passage again over the last couple weeks, I was thinking about a fairly common occurrence in the ministry that people come to me often and in the course of discussing, not real often, but it's happened a few times, in the course of discussing an issue that they're struggling with, they make this all too familiar statement, "doesn't God want me to be happy?" And you know of all the times that someone has asked me this question in the context of trouble or trial or contemplating what they're going to do, it's never in considering something that is clear and consistent with God's Word. 

In other words, no believers ever come to me in a struggle, for example in their marriage relationship, and said to me, "I'm considering loving my wife, focusing on her needs, doing what God says, I mean, doesn't God want me to be happy? I'm seriously considering esteeming her needs above my own and washing her in the Word as we study together and pray together daily." No, the way it goes is this, they're considering themselves, they're focusing on themselves, they're contemplating doing something that they know deep in their heart is contrary to the Word of God, and it's in this context that they say, "well, doesn't God want me to be happy?" 

So my friends, I share this deep grieving I have in my heart and the conviction that came to me as I pondered these things, and here's the question that came to my mind, this question, not does God want me to be happy, but rather do I want God to be happy? My theology must be focused on God, founded on His Word, trusting in His truth, His goodness, His grace, His purpose for me. My standing fast must be in the Lord. So I should never ask, "doesn't God want me to be happy?" His Word is clear that His desire and purpose for me is my good, is my sanctification, is my spiritual stability, the edification of others in the body, the salvation of the lost, and first and foremost, His glory. 

I should always ask, "do I want God to be happy?" And my friends, what we are really seeking, what we really desire, is peace and joy, not happiness, because happiness is based on happenstance, circumstances that come and go, change like the wind, toss about our emotions. This is why we should not live on the basis of pragmatism and feelings, because there's no way that our emotions and carnal desires are going to form a foundation on which to stand. If we live this way, like the world, if we think on these things, we shall be moved up and down like a yo-yo, tossed like a leaf in the wind. We must stand fast in the Lord. 

We must know the truths of the Word of God concerning who He is, concerning our salvation, concerning the sufficient grace of God, the promises that we have in Him. We must know that we have eternal life, that we are more than conquerors, that we are here to serve and to be thankful, that we should be setting our hope fully on the grace that is to be revealed that is coming, and we should eagerly anticipate the glory that will be revealed in us when we are glorified together with Him. 

If we are to have peace in the body, if we are to experience the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, even in the worst of circumstances in this life, if we are to be thankful in all things, praying with thanksgiving, then our standing fast, our immovable confidence and assurance, our steadfast hope must be in the Lord, and our theology must be in accordance with the truth of His Word, and our joy must come in doing what is right, in pleasing God. 

And this is so practically true as well, my friends. The world thinks that they will find happiness in pleasing themselves and seeking their own desire and fulfillment, and so the focus is always on themselves and selfish gratification, carnal desires. But the truth is that true fulfillment and satisfaction, abiding joy, comes in doing what is right. 

The drunkard and sexually immoral, or the money and power-hungry, or the self-centered narcissist, these people are not happy. They're not satisfied. They are miserable. The one who follows after the fleshly desires of this world does not find fulfillment, but only emptiness. And the Christian who all too often falls into this kind of thinking is the most miserable of all, who buys the lies of the world, and Satan seeks the wisdom of men for the cure of his ills. Adrian Rogers said, "the most miserable man in this world is not the lost man, but the saved man who's living like the lost man." 

Satisfaction, fulfillment, peace, joy come through an abiding relationship with Jesus, in service to others, and confidence and trust in God, committing yourself to the one who judges righteously. And my friends, this is why thinking is so integral to the Christian faith and to the Christian life. 

Have you ever pondered the fact that God chose to reveal himself through words, through a collection of books, the Logos, the Word? He didn't give us pictures and movies and drama because these things seize primarily the emotions. He gave us words to study, to ponder, to contemplate, to come back to again and again, to stimulate the mind, engage the intellect, to reveal the depth of his character and nature, his person, and to teach us the truths of our lives and eternity. 

Turn with me to Galatians 5, we're gonna look at verse 19, and here we see a stark contrast between the works of the flesh, worldly thinking, the wisdom of men, a mindset on the carnal, on self, resulting in a manifestation of these works, and the contrast being with the fruits of the Spirit, a mindset on God and his Word, his truth. 

Look at verse 19, the works of the flesh are evident, which are adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like, of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, and against such there is no law. And those who are Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit, let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. 

Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. These are the very things that we see in our text. In verse 4 of our text, "rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say rejoice, let your gentleness, your graciousness be known to all men, the Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication and thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." 

Peace, joy, rejoicing in the Lord, gentleness, this is humility. Thanksgiving, thankful for God's grace, for salvation, a thankful heart and life because of God's grace, always thankful in all circumstances. 

And what we see in verse 8 is that if we are going to experience peace and joy and gentleness and spirit toward all men, if we're going to have the peace of God rule in our hearts and we're not going to be anxious, worried, tossed to and fro by all the events of our world, if we're going to stand fast and be immovable and have a firm foundation upon which to stand, then we are going to have to think. 

And our thinking is going to have to be on the Word of God, on Jesus, on salvation, on that which is good and pure and noble. We're going to have to immerse our minds in the truth, renew our minds to God's Word continually. We're going to have to think, think, not feel, not experience. These things come as a result, but think. Come, let us reason together, says the Lord. Make every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Sanctify them by your truth. Your Word is truth. 

Our faith is one of reason based on truth, and this produces a firm conviction that results in a life of fruit and obedience. I love the passage in Hebrews 11 that teaches this so well. The command of Christ, the law of Christ and the new covenant we see in 1 John 3 is to believe Jesus and love one another. Have you ever thought about how you get to love? To the point of loving God and loving others. We could talk about the doctrine, the why we can now love in Romans 6-8. 

First we must know the truth. Do you know how many times Paul says, "do you not know?" Or how many times Jesus says, "have you not read?" We must know the Word, the truth, and we must believe, we must choose to believe Jesus to reckon. What is interesting to me is that the prerequisite to love, to loving God and loving men is faith. And faith in the Word of God. 

The revelation of God through words to us results in a firm conviction. That word is hope. Hebrews 11:1 says, "Now faith is a substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The word translated substance is hupostasis, made of stasis, to stand and hupo, under. That which stands under, a foundation. It speaks of the ground on which one builds a hope. 

The word translated evidence is elechos, meaning a means by which something is proven. Thayer, in commenting on its use here, defines it as follows, he says, that by which invisible things are proved, and we are convinced of their reality, his second definition is the word conviction. Vincent says that hupostasis and elechos are not two distinct, independent conceptions, but they stand in apposition, really together, and it adds this simple idea, listen, of assurance, it adds to the idea of assurance, a suggestion of influences operating to produce conviction, which carry the force of demonstration. 

You know what that means? It means we have a revelation from God, and we so believe that truth that He reveals to us that it forms a conviction, and that conviction determines how we live, how we act. Romans 10:17 says, "faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God." 

So we see here that we must first have the revelation, the word of God, from God. Then we must believe, and this faith produces a firm conviction so that then we live by this conviction, this belief in the word of God. And the examples of this are the whole chapter 11 of Hebrews, by faith, right? By faith, by faith, they all acted, lived by faith. 

Now turn to Romans 13, I'm bringing this back around to love. Romans 13 at verse 8, "Oh, no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness, you shall not covet, and if there's any other commandment are all summed up in this saying, namely, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no harm to a neighbor, therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." 

So we see that love is the commandment of the new covenant in Christ, love is the fulfillment of the law, love is the action that comes from conviction that is built on the foundation of faith in the word of God. You cannot have love without the word of God revealed. The belief that that revelation and the conviction and the hope that comes from it, faith, hope, and love.

My brothers and sisters, our faith is built on the word. It's built on truth, and we must think, we must meditate on the word to see faith increase in our lives and hope be built on a firm conviction that results in love. Trust in peace, joy, thankfulness, spiritual stability in all circumstances. That's why Paul's admonition to us in verse 8 is this, "think on these things." 

"Finally brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there's any virtue, if there's anything praiseworthy, think on these things." Where do we find what is true? How do you know what is true? There's only one way, in the word of God. I can think a lot of things are true. You know, I think a lot of things are true and sometimes I open my mouth and you know the problem today? We have Google. There's always some smart aleck kid Googling and telling me that I'm wrong. 

So I can think something's true, but how do I know what is true? I only know what is true by God's word, the only book he ever wrote. Paul says, "the things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you." The word translated think or meditate is a familiar word to us, it's logizomai. Your logic in there, right? Logizomai, the same word translated reckon in 611. It's an accounting term, meaning to count up, to balance the sheet, consider the facts, make an estimation. 

My brothers and sisters in Christ, if we are to stand, if we are to be spiritually stable, if we're going to experience the peace of God and joy and thankfulness and be anxious for nothing, then it must start with the word of God, the facts. And we must know them and we must count them up, think on them, reckon them to be so, continually thinking on these things, the good things, that which is true, and be convinced of them and therefore live in light of them, doing what is good, what is righteous, what is praiseworthy. 

And that's what we see in verse 9, "these things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do." And the God of peace will guard your hearts. The things we learned from the word of God that we received when we heard Him preached to us, that we believed and reckoned to be true, the things that we have seen godly men and women manifest in their lives as an example to us, Paul says these do. 

Do you want to experience the peace of God? Do you want to be anxious for nothing in this world? You want to have continual joy and thankfulness? Do you want God to be happy, pleased, glorified by your life? Paul says think on these things, on the word of God, on truth. This is the key, my brothers and sisters. Think on these things.

Let's close in prayer. Father, we're so thankful for your word, your truth, thankful for your grace. Lord, thank you for sustaining us, for working in us and through us, for using us. Thank you for the privilege to serve you, to serve others, to bring the gospel to the lost in this world. Thank you that you save men who believe. And thank you that we're saved forever. We can depend on you, trust in you, believe you, commit ourselves to you regardless of what's going on in our lives, and know that you will fulfill your promises. We trust you. We believe you. We worship you. In Jesus' name, amen.