[0:00] If you haven't already noticed, I'm not Kenny. Kenny is out on vacation. He's in somewhere in between Washington state and Alaska. He's having a cruise of a lifetime out there for his anniversary. So while we're all here jealous, at least we get to praise the Lord.
[0:19] So now he's having a good time. He sent us some pictures.
[0:25] Tracy Ford like glaciers and eating. He sent a picture of a crab leg. That must have been this long. It is crazy. So he's having a good time.
[0:38] He'll be back next week. My name is Clint Davis. I want to welcome you to Bethel Baptist Church. If you don't already know me, I'm glad you're here. I don't have any announcements.
[0:48] I'm looking for, like, a piece of paper or something. The only announcement I will say is Wednesday night we're going to postpone because Kenny won't be back until, like, I want to say, Thursday or Friday. And so we're going to postpone Wednesday night service. We'll get picked back up, and once he's back, he can continue his study in Hebrews. So other than that, I don't have anything.
[1:13] Does anybody else have any announcements? You got two surgeries coming up. Two surgeries? Okay.
[1:23] Yeah. Shirley jack Murphy's got shoulder surgery coming up. Shirley Windham has a surgery coming. I just saw that. Donna McCoy that's right.
[1:33] That's right. So keep people in your prayers. We got a lot of needs going on. A lot of surgeries coming up. There's a lot going on.
[1:41] For those that are aware, my father is going through a very difficult time, and I appreciate your prayers on that. We're having to make some difficult decisions, but it is all the more comforted by your prayers and your thoughts and your calls and your text. I do appreciate that, but that situation is still going on and still needs prayer. I feel like I'm missing something, probably. I probably am, but I am just so excited to be here.
[2:10] It's a great day.
[2:14] I miss my in laws so much. Every time they're gone, I told them, I'll give you a ride to the airport, but you got to have a ride back one way. They don't really appreciate my humor, so I can't believe it. All right.
[2:49] Yes. Thank you. What a great homecoming we had last week. So I really enjoyed it personally, and I know a lot of other people did as well. Well, if there's nothing else, let's open up in a word of prayer.
[3:03] Father, I thank you for this opportunity to come together to worship you with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. I pray that you'll just open our hearts to the music and the message this morning to let us be inspired and in all of you and to just have that fire to reach other people, to show them your wonderful, merciful nature. Father, I thank you for all these things and be with us in this service. In Jesus name I pray amen. Thank you.
[3:38] All right, good morning. Let's take our hamdles and turn to page 571. And if you feel like standing, by all means do so.
[4:05] When we walk with the Lord and the light of His Word what a glory he shed on our way while we do his goodwill he applies with us still and with all her will trust I trust I know made for there's no other way to be happy Jesus but to trust and no way not a shadow can rise not a cloud in the sky but his milk wakeled right little way not a doubt nor a fear not a sight nor a tear can abide while we in Jesus but to trust and obey not a burden we bear not a sorrow share but our colin of richlay repay not a grain moral loss not a frown or across butters blessed be in Jesus but to trust and obey been in fellowship sweet we will sit at his feet what he says he will do where he sends we will go never fear only trust and obey trust and obey for there's no other way to be happy but to trust and over all right. Let's turn to page 353. This is one of my favorite old songs.
[7:31] How slavery came from glory how he gave it light on calvary to slave a wretch like me I heard about victory in Jesus my Savior forever he sought me and bought me with his redeeming blood he loved me and all my love is to Him he plunged me to victory beneath off again and caused the blind to see and then I cried there Jesus come and heal my broken spear forever he saw me and bought me with his redeeming blood he was to Him and beneath the cleaning blood I heard about the glory and I heard about the streets of gold beyond the crystal sleep all about the angels singing light the ornation story and somehow Jesus sing up there the song of victory oh. Victory jesus. My Savior forever he sought me and bought me with his redeeming blood he loved me and all my loving to Him He bunch me to victory father. We want to thank you for this opportunity that we have to be in your house to worship today. Father, most of all, we want to thank you for selfishly giving your Son to be the Savior for each and every one of us.
[11:06] Father, as Clint comes forward to bring the message today, we ask that your lead died direct into whatever message reaches out and touches the hearts of each and every one year. Father is going to the part of the service to take up this offering. We ask that you'll bless it and use it for the building of Thy kingdom. For senior Son's, Holy name we do pray. Amen.
[13:01] All right, let's turn to page 50.
[13:29] Slave in holy sea more of his love who died for me more about Jesus let me learn more of his holy will discern spirit of God my danger be owing the things of Christ to me more and more about Jesus more of his saving holy more is love who died for me more about Jesus on his throne riches and glory all his own more of his king I'm sure increase more of his coming prince of faith more about Jesus more more about Jesus more than saving bullet sea form in love who died for me. You may be seated.
[15:39] All right, as our children are going out with Miss Paula, they're going to have a good time.
[15:50] We're going to be in Luke chapter 15. Luke, chapter 15. That's page 1614 if you're using the Pew Bible.
[16:04] And we're going to be specifically talking about if you're looking for like, a title or something to kind of label your notes on being a better elder brother. Being a better Elder Brother. Luke, chapter 15. And before we get started, I wanted to tell you some of the thought process of how I got here. This has been a pretty emotional week for me.
[16:34] My father is not doing very well in the hospital. He's basically on his deathbed, and we've been having to make some decisions on that. And I knew that Kenny had asked me to preach, and he asked me, he said, Clinton, are you sure you want to do this? And I said, yeah, I do. I don't know why I said that.
[16:58] And I thought then I was like, well, maybe God will lead me to something about death or the beauty of life or the fragility of life. And actually, he led me to this being a better elder brother, the parable of the prodigal son, as you probably know it. And I don't know why. Maybe there's somebody here today that needs to hear this message. I know I didn't choose it because I am the elder brother.
[17:31] I'm the elder brother. My brother is younger than me. And so everything about this sermon is about me, and it talks about me, and it brings my faults into light. And that's how you know it wasn't me, because I would never choose this.
[17:50] But last week at homecoming, and I think this is where I was led to this, I had the unique opportunity to baptize my son Mitchell, and it's a memory that I'll keep forever. And in it, I realized that my son is now my brother.
[18:22] Didn't really click for me until then, until I baptized him. I baptize you, my brother.
[18:30] And so I started thinking, well, how could I be a better older brother to my son? And of course, I go through my life and I see the instances where I, as the other brother, the older brother, have failed and the challenges that I've faced. And I think that's why it led me here. So in Luke chapter 15 to kind of give some context, because context is so important. Jesus is talking in his ministry to the crowd.
[19:13] He's in the main process of talking to he's meandering through the Holy Land. He's got crowds following him. He's talking. And we're in this discussion in chapters 12, 13, 14, we can see that he's having dinner with not only the Pharisees, but also the Senate, the tax collectors, the Ruffians. He's having dinner with both.
[19:41] And the Pharisees are trying to fill him out, right? They're the leaders. The religious leaders are trying to who is this guy? Right? He's obviously got something, but we're not quite sure.
[19:53] And so at the beginning of chapter 15, we kind of start to get to the heart of the matter. Chapter 15, verse one, it says, now, the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus, but the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, this man welcomes sinners and eats with them. We're kind of getting to the heart of the matter here. The Pharisees at this point aren't really ready to kill Jesus, but they're already like, this guy. Why is he associating with them?
[20:30] We're starting to see, like, we're the religious leaders. Why are they with him? Why is he with them? And so as we go through, you'll see here we have the parable of this losing the sheep and the lost coin, which we'll read here in a second, because when we look at this parable of the lost Son, we can't just take it by itself because Jesus is setting up a scenario to try to identify these Pharisees. And so the first one, beginning at verse three, says, then Jesus told them this parable.
[21:07] Suppose one of you has 100 sheep and loses one of them. Doesn't he leave the 99 in open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, rejoice with me. I have found my law sheet.
[21:28] I tell you that in the same way, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who do not need to repent. And so in this first scenario, remember we got the Pharisees and we got the sinners. They're listening to Jesus, and they're probably listening to Him, and they're probably like, yeah, okay, we lose a sheep. One out of 10 that's say 1% of your total net wealth you've lost and now you've found. Okay, I'm a Pharisee.
[22:05] Makes sense, no problem. Jesus continues. Or suppose a woman this is verse eight. Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn't she light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?
[22:26] And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, rejoice with me. I have found my lost coin in the same way I tell you there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. But Jesus is up to andy now. Now we've lost 10% of our wealth. 1%.
[22:49] Okay, I'll give that to you. Maybe you lost it, you found it under a couch cushion or something. But imagine you lose 10% of your wealth and then you find it. Hallelujah. And I'm happy.
[23:05] And we see here not only has Jesus up the ante, but he's also telling what happens in heaven. Lost and found. Lost and found. There will be rejoicing in heaven over more than that, more than you're rejoicing. There will be more rejoicing in heaven because of this.
[23:24] And now we get to the heart of the matter. Keep those in mind. Verse eleven. Jesus continued there was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, father, give me my share of the estate.
[23:43] And so he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all that he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wildliving. After he had spent everything. There was a severe famine in that country and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country who sent him to the fields to feed pigs.
[24:14] He longed to feel his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. When he came to his senses, he said, how many of my father's hired servants have food to spare? And here I am starving to death. I will set out and go back to my father and say to him, father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.
[24:43] Make me like one of your hired servants. So he got up and he went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him. He ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
[25:06] I am no longer worthy to be called your son. But the Father said to his servants, quick, bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fatted calf and kill it. Let us have a feast and celebrate, for this son of mine was dead and is alive again.
[25:28] He was lost and is found. And so they begin to celebrate.
[25:35] Now Jesus is up the ante even more.
[25:41] He has two sons and one is lost. Now he's lost half of his family, his will.
[25:53] Now if you've been in church any amount of time, I'm sure you've heard this parable. It's one of the most famous that Jesus gave in his ministry, and we pick up on it because we can see ourselves in this picture, we can see ourselves being rebellious. And we could see ourselves telling the father that we don't want to live under his rules anymore. And we could see here this man in Jewish times and cultures, the estate, his inheritance would have been divvied up at the time of death. So really what he's saying here is, father, I can't wait anymore for you to die.
[26:44] I want my share and I want it now.
[26:50] And the father, being gracious as he is, doesn't start off with you miserable little he says, okay. And he divvies up his estate and he gives him his share. And his share in this culture would have been because he's the youngest son, would have been a third, because the eldest son gets a double portion of the estate. And so he divides it up, gives it to him. And the younger son got all together that he had and took off for a distant country.
[27:28] And I want you to really focus in on that distant country because he's talking to Jews, he's talking to Pharisees, he's talking to the people in Israel. What is a distant country from Israel? You're going to Egypt, where you were held in bondage and slavery. You're going to a Syria where you were exiled. You're going to Babylon.
[27:58] Outside of Israel is not the promised land, but the sun does. Here is he's abandoning all of God's provision, and he's going to do it his way. And he doesn't want to be around anybody that's going to judge him or look down their nose at him. He's going to leave all that he's been taught, all his heritage. He's going away to a distant land, a pagan land.
[28:27] And we see how it worked out for him, as it so often does. And he squandered his wealth in wildlife.
[28:36] There's not much commentary that needs to be happening about that, and maybe some of us are relating right now.
[28:46] And after he had spent everything, there was severe famine in the whole land. Shocker. I am shocked because guess what? God has a way of putting pressure on people.
[29:02] You're in need, and God makes it known. And it's an opportunity because there's two choices. You can either stay where you are and, as we read ahead, starve to death, or you can make another choice.
[29:23] So there was a famine in the country and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen, and the guy sent him out to the fields to feed the pigs. This is when you know you're in trouble, right? Because as a Jew, pigs are unclean, and you're out there feeding them and you're envying the pigs. You want what they have.
[29:48] This is the low point of this young man's life.
[29:54] And at this point, as so often as it happens, at our lowest point, we get clarity when he came to his senses. How many of my father's higher servants have food to spare? And here I am starving to death. I've got an idea. I will go back to my father.
[30:24] I'm not worthy. I realize I am not worthy to be part of him. But somewhere deep inside he knew that the loving nature of his father would accept him back, at least as a higher servant. And then my troubles are over. I realized that I made a mistake and I'll go back to my father and I will suck up my pride and it's going to stink, but at least I won't starve to death.
[30:53] Clarity. And so he got up and he went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him. The father was waiting and he was waiting to where he could see.
[31:20] Who knows how long he had waited. Can you imagine? Is this month, is this year? The father was still waiting and still saw him. It wasn't like, oh, well, the father just walked by the window and happened to notice this guy coming.
[31:40] No, he was waiting, he was watching and had compassion. And he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. Probably not the greeting that the son was expecting. Probably was expecting some kind of tense standoff, right, begging for mercy, father, please take me back. But that's not what the father says.
[32:07] The father says just runs up and kisses him. This running is actually important because the head of the household doesn't run. That's beneath them. That's what children do. In order to run, you would have to hike up your garments, because otherwise you would trip over them.
[32:34] And if you have to hike up your garments, you'd expose your legs, which was a no no in that culture. What it's saying here is the father humiliated himself to go see his son, ran towards him, brought himself down to go see his son, and had compassion, threw his arms around him and kissed him. And then we see the son. I can imagine with tears he's recalling his speech that he's prepared for this time, because there's a plan. I got to follow the plan.
[33:16] Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy. Be called your son. And in what seems to be the father cutting him off because you notice he doesn't finish his prepared speech, the father cuts him off. No more son, he says.
[33:34] But the father said to his servants, he's like, quick, bring out the best robe. Not just any robe, the best robe. Put a ring on his finger signifying belonging he's part of the family and sandals on his feet. Slaves went barefoot in this time, if you were a member of the household, you had footwear sandals, bring the fatted calf and kill it and let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and as alive again.
[34:10] He was lost and is found. And so they began to celebrate. And we know from the previous lost coin and the lost sheep that heaven celebrated even more than they did. Because what was lost, what is found dead and is now alive.
[34:32] And then we stop there. And if we stop there, if you today really feel like that you are this prodigal son, this frivolous, wasteful son who's been disrespectful of their father, and you're really feeling regret right now, all you need to do is come home. Come home to the father. Come to your senses.
[35:07] It says when he came to his senses, he realized that he had sinned against heaven and against you, no longer worthy to be called his son. That sounds an awful lot like repentance to me.
[35:22] All you have to do is come up. Maybe you're in a far off land now and I don't know what I'm going to do. I'm starving, there's a famine, maybe you lost your job, I don't know. But if that's you today, the only thing you have to do is come home. And you may be thinking, well, God can't take me back, god can't accept me, I've done too many bad things.
[35:49] Come home. Come home. That's it. That's all you need to do.
[35:58] Unfortunately, the parable doesn't stop there. I feel like in all the sermons that I've heard, we really focus on this first part. But there's another part.
[36:14] Continue with me. Verse 25. Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on.
[36:34] Your brother has come, he replied, and your father has killed the fetted calf because he has him back safe and sound. And see, o. The brother went inside and rejoiced with his father that his brother was back. Oh, wait, I got the wrong translation. That's not what it says.
[36:57] The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So the father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father look, all these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you have never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the faded cat for him.
[37:36] My son, the father said, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again. And he was lost and he is found.
[37:58] If your Bible is title for this, sometimes there's headings above it. Some of the Bibles are labeled the Parable of the Prodigal son. You can go ahead and mark that out. That is incorrect, because the point of this story is not the prodigal son. It's about the elder brother.
[38:21] This elder brother has a problem.
[38:30] What is going on here? You would think that the brother would be happy that his brother is back home. We can see here a few things.
[38:48] When the father pleads with him, and in verse 29, the elder brother begins his rant. He answers, look, all these years I've been slaving for you. That word slaving, I don't know if I didn't check all the translations, but that word slaving is the most accurate translation because the Greek actually means a slave's work. He doesn't look at it like normal work that would be valued by his father. No, this is slave's work that just has to be done.
[39:20] And it's thankless and it's hard.
[39:25] Nobody cares, right? Because they're a slave. He thinks of himself as a slave to his father.
[39:33] He's also selfrighteous. I've never disobeyed your orders. He's done everything right.
[39:43] I've done everything for you, father. And yet I can't even get a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends, not with you, right? What we're seeing here is the true nature of the elder brother. He hates his father. He's only in it for himself.
[40:09] You never gave me a young goat. And when this son of yours has squandered your property with prostitutes, you kill the fitted calf for him. I've done everything for you, father, but this knucklehead comes back and you're going to kill the fatted cat. He's upset. He's self righteous.
[40:28] And the father trying to reestablish the relationship here. My son, my son. You're still my son. You are always with me and everything that I have is yours. Which is literally true at this point because the father has already divided up the estate.
[40:53] Whatever is left is technically the son at this point. But we had to celebrate and be glad because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again. He was lost and he was found.
[41:12] And then the parable stops. You'll notice in the sheep and the lost coin. We stop when it's found. He's setting this pattern up. Lost, then found, celebration.
[41:25] Lost, then found, celebration. The son lost, then found, celebration. The elder son angry.
[41:37] Who's he talking to here? Remember the context. This is aimed squarely at the pharisees because they're the ones saying, oh, you're hanging out with them. You're hanging out with the wrong kind of people.
[41:55] Jesus is pointing out their selfrighteousness right back to them. He's making them aware of the problem in their own heart. The problem with the elder brother is that it's a silent killer.
[42:15] You can look around and I wonder today, I hope not. But I wonder how many people have been in church all their lives and they've done all the right things and they haven't gone off to a far country and they've done it all for the right reasons. They've kept their mama proud. They kept their daddy proud. They've done it all, they've kept all the rules.
[42:44] And yet when somebody comes into this church and gets saved that's had a wild past, they don't celebrate, but they're angry. God them really, I've done all the works.
[43:04] Or how does this show up? Sometimes you're looking for something big. I have a personal antidote. Me and TIFF got married and we knew we wanted to have children. And there was a time that we didn't think we would be able to.
[43:27] We had tried for many years and it wasn't happening. Went to the doctors, saw all that stuff. They said, no, probably not going to happen. I remember this conversation, god, why?
[43:45] I've done it all. We've done it all. We've gotten our education, we've visited people, we've served in the church, we've been good.
[43:59] These hoodlums out here can get knocked up all day long and we want a child.
[44:08] Why? Why? Then eventually God did bless us with children. You saw four of them walk out the door. Well, three of them, one still here.
[44:23] It wasn't until later that I saw myself in this parable. The self righteousness that creeps up in you, you don't even realize it. I didn't see myself as selfrighteous. I thought I was doing everything right, and yet it taken ahold of me. And God spent some time breaking me down and we can talk about that later years breaking me down.
[45:01] And I am so glad because at the end of this parable, mike Bible labels it the parable of the lost son, which is probably the most correct because there is a lost son here and it's not the prodigal son, it's the elder brother. We don't see the elder brother go into the house. He is separated from his father.
[45:33] And I thank God that God saved me from myself because I saw myself once as the prodigal son. And then I got busy with church life, studied, did all the right things. I'm not going out partying crazy, I'm doing all the godly things. And it crept up. And if that's you today repent, the answer for you is the same as the answer for the prodigal son.
[46:10] Come home, come home, swallow your pride, come home.
[46:21] Now earlier I had mentioned that the parable was about the lost son. In fact, I saw one Bible that labeled the parable of the two sons. Which is fine, but I told you that the title of my message was how to be a better Brother.
[46:49] And actually, if I may be so bold, when Jesus said verse eleven, when he's given this parable, there was a man who had two sons. But I may be so bold, this parable is about three sons because what should the elder brother have been doing?
[47:14] Why does an elder brother get double the inheritance? It seems kind of unfair, right, to get double the share of everything else. If you got two brothers. It's divided. Three ways.
[47:26] The eldest gets two. You have ten brothers, it gets divided eleven ways, right? The eldest gets two. That's how it works. But why do we even do that?
[47:37] The elder brother had extra expectations. The elder brother was supposed to keep the family going when the father was unable the elder brother was supposed to keep the family business moving when the father got too old or was unable to keep up.
[48:03] And if you're an elder brother like me, even today, there's extra expectations on you, leanna, you can say Amen. It's true. And it happens even today. The elder brother should have been pleading with his younger brother, don't do this, don't do this, don't do this. It's a bad idea.
[48:30] Please stay home. Reconsider. The elder brother should have left his house, tried to find his younger brother and plead with him to come home.
[48:47] This story is about three brothers, because the third brother is the one telling the story, our elder brother, Jesus Christ.
[49:02] Now, some of you may not have realized that Jesus Christ is our elder brother.
[49:10] Let's turn to to Mark, chapter three, verse and I am flipping the wrong way. Sad mark 332.
[49:37] In this section of Scripture, jesus is in a house and a crowd is gathered and he's talking. The teachers of the law came down and he's given some parables. And in verse 31 it says, then Jesus mother and brothers arrived standing outside. They sent someone to call on him. Hey, Jesus.
[50:00] Your family's here. A crowd was sitting around him and they told him, your mother and brothers are outside looking for you. And Jesus replies, who are my mother and my brothers? He asked. Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, here are my mother and my brothers.
[50:19] Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother.
[50:26] There's another verse in chapter two, which I'll flip there. I mean, you can flip there if you want. Hebrews, chapter two, hebrews two, verse twelve says, I'll start at verse ten. In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family.
[51:18] So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. He says, I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters. In the assembly, I will sing your praise. That's a quote from Psalms 22. Jesus is our elder brother, and the Bible talks about that.
[51:41] We've been adopted into the family of God.
[51:48] Now, Jesus has a special place. He is the firstborn. And sometimes people get a little mixed up with that because they say, well, Jesus wasn't created. And that's true. Jesus wasn't created.
[52:02] He's been there from the beginning along with God. Because firstborn isn't a description like the first to come out of a mother's womb. It's a title firstborn. The one with extra responsibilities, the one who's responsible for keeping the family together. Jesus is the older brother who humbled himself, who left his Father's house to come down on earth to a far country and find his brothers and his sisters.
[52:51] When I think about it, and when I ask myself, how can I be a better elder brother to my son?
[53:08] My model is Jesus.
[53:16] If you haven't been the best elder brother, and if you here somehow think that you're not an elder brother, if you've been saved for any amount of time, you're an elder brother. Your experience makes you an elder brother to those of younger faith and of those who have not faith. Because Jesus came to find his brothers who were sinning. That's what we should be doing.
[53:51] And when you consider the amount of people out there who don't know Christ, we've got to be doing a better job.
[54:04] I didn't realize I get so emotional.
[54:09] But the love of God is real. If you have it known, Christ, the answer is simple come on.
[54:25] And if you've been a bad elder brother, go and find your younger brother and plead with him. Come on.
[54:42] As they come up, they'll give a time of invitation.
[54:49] I don't know what's going on in your life.
[54:55] I don't know exactly why, because I told you I wouldn't have picked this for myself, because I can think of all the ways that I've failed. But God is merciful. It took me back, and it'll take you back, too. If you feel convicted, or if you want to just come to the altar. It's over, as they say.
[55:23] Page 553.
[55:54] Across that race with me still all my song shall be darkness me open for me.
[57:15] I hope as you go out this week, if you sense self righteousness building up in your life, consider the words of Jesus in this parable. Come home. I thank you all for coming. I'm sorry I got so emotional. I just should have known better.
[57:36] But it is so real. And if you haven't felt it, I pray that you do one day. I have nothing else. I have no announcements. I know that there are many that ever need a prayer.
[57:52] Keep them in your prayers. Give them a phone call. Call them. Pray for Kenny. Safer travels back.
[57:58] I know he really enjoyed his time in San Francisco. On his travel through, you get to ask him about that and how he had to figure out Uber at 03:00 A.m. In an international airport. I have nothing else. So David, will you close us up here?
[58:19] Our most gracious Heavenly Father, we thank you for this opportunity once again to gather together and to praise you, worship you. Father, we thank you for Clint and the message he's brought this morning. Father, we thank you for the heartfelt words that he has shared with us. Lord, we pray that this message has touched everyone here. Father, we lift up all those amongst us and our ones that can't be with us for whatever reason, for medical reasons or what have you.
[58:52] Lord, we pray that you keep your hand on them. Lord, we pray for all those in our community that they would come to know you most of all. Lord, be with us as we depart from this place and keep us forever in Your care. Jesus precious holy name, we'll you pray. Amen.