JEREMIAH 352009 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Jeremiah 35

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2009.

Well, this evening we're in Jeremiah chapter 35, and as we continue on in the book of Jeremiah, we have the prophet Jeremiah ministering to the nation of Judah in their final years before they're completely conquered and taken captive into the nation of Babylon.

At this particular time in chapter 35, it's a few years earlier than what we've been studying in the previous chapters. It's during the reign of Jehoiakim. And Jehoiakim was not a good king. He did not follow after God. And so once again here in chapter 35, we have God's exhortation to the nation to turn back to Him and the warning that judgment will come if they do not obey God and follow Him alone.

Let's pick it up in verse 1 and 2 of chapter 35. It says this,

So here God is speaking to Jeremiah once again as we have seen over and over again. God has been giving Jeremiah instruction and he often uses very practical and visible illustrations to teach his people a lesson.

And this evening is one of those times again where God gives Jeremiah the instruction to go to a particular family that is living there in Jerusalem and to bring them into one of the chambers of the temple and to present to them wine to drink.

Now the family that Jeremiah is to go and to get, God refers to them as the Rechabites. And the Rechabites are a particular family that are actually not a part of the nation of Israel in the sense that they're not descended from Abraham. They're not Jewish by nationality, but they've been a part of the Jewish nation and they came into the Promised Land along with the

The Key Knights

went along with the nation of Israel as they went into the Promised Land. And so the Kenites went in with Israel. The Rechabites are a particular family within the Kenite nation, or those who went in with Israel into the Promised Land. And so there's this particular family, these descendants of a guy named Rechab, R-E-C-H-A-B, that we'll see a few more verses down.

And these descendants, God says, I want you to go and call them and bring them to one of the chambers of the temple.

The way the temple was built, you had, of course, the places that we're familiar with, the holy place and then the holy of holies or the most holy place. And that was where the ministry took place and the presence of God dwelt. But on the outside of the temple, when Solomon was building it, you can read about this in 1 Kings 6.

He built chambers, in fact, several stories of rooms that could be used for storage, that could be used for meetings, that could be used for discussion and conversation or to enjoy some of the meat from the sacrifice that you just offered. And so there would be these chambers around the temple.

And God told Jeremiah to go get this family, to bring them into one of the chambers there around the temple, there in the house of the Lord, and to offer to them wine to drink. Kind of a curious assignment that God has given to Jeremiah, but God makes it pretty clear why he gives this command as we go on. So let's check out verse 3.

It says, Then I took Jaazaniah, the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habezaniah, his brothers and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites.

And I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanun, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, above the chamber of Messiah, the son of Shalom, the keeper of the door. Then I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites bowls full of wine and cups, and I said to them, Drink wine.

But they said, We will drink no wine. For Jonadab, the son of Rechab, our father, commanded us, saying, You shall drink no wine, you nor your sons, forever. Verse 7. You shall not build a house, sow seed, plant a vineyard, nor have any of these, but all your days you shall dwell in tents, that you may live many days in the land where you are sojourners.

So these Rechabites are this group of people, this particular family. Again, their descendants came into the nation along with the Jews as they came into the Promised Land. But their father, the father of this particular family, gave the Rechabites a command.

And it's because of this command that God is actually calling them and using them as an example and an illustration to the nation of Judah. Because the nation of Judah is in rebellion against God and refuses to turn and to listen to God.

God calls out the Rechabites through Jeremiah and it gives the specific place. And so if you were able to chart out, which we don't have that information, but you could find the exact spot that Jeremiah brought them, exactly which chamber he went. It was obviously above another chamber, so it wasn't on the first level, it was on the second level. Perhaps it was visible for all to see. It

We don't know all those details, but they're brought up into this particular chamber. Jeremiah gives them wine, bowls full of wine and cups of wine, just like God commanded him to do. And the Rechabites who were brought up there refuse to drink the wine. This is really the point of what God has asked Jeremiah to do. One of their fathers, Jonadab, the son of Rechab,

had great influence upon the family and he gave a command. This was several generations previous. Jonadab gives the command, drink no wine, build no house, don't farm, don't plant a vineyard, live in tents as sojourners. They were to not establish themselves within a city, but they were to live in tents as wanderers, as Bedouins or as nomads. They were to...

continue to wander around the nation of Israel and not to be established in a city. That was the command that this guy, Jonadab, gave to the family. Why did he give this command? We don't know. Did God tell him to give this command to the family? We don't know. Here's what we do know. This guy, Jonadab, gave the command. And because he gave the command, even though it was several generations previous,

Because he gave the command, at this moment, as Jeremiah brings them into the chamber, they say, "We will not drink any wine." Did your great-grandfather issue a command that you still adhere to today? Is there something that was commanded of your family that grandpa said, "This is how we're going to live. We're going to stay in this location. We're going to behave in this fashion."

it's not really very common for that to take place. But here in this family, this command was given, and several generations later, we find them holding steadfast to this command. And God is using this as an example to the nation of faithfulness and obedience, really as a contrast to the disobedience of the nation of Judah. Going on to verse 8.

I'm on the wrong page. All right, verse 8. Thus we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab, the son of Rechab, our father, in all that he charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, or our daughters, nor to build ourselves houses to dwell in, nor do we have vineyard field or seed. But we have dwelt in tents and have obeyed and done according to all that Jonadab, our father, commanded us.

But it came to pass, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, that we said, Come, let us go to Jerusalem, for fear of the army of the Chaldeans, and for fear of the army of the Syrians. So we dwell at Jerusalem. So the Rechabites, they go on explaining, No, we're not going to drink the wine. Why? Oh, well, because our father, Jonadab, he's several generations ago, but he gave this command, and

So in obedience to that command, we've been living in this fashion. We don't have any vineyards, and we don't have any fields, and we haven't built any houses, we don't drink wine. This Jonadab had some real powerful influence and authority within the family. And the family was obedient to this command that he gave.

They are expressing here, we've been faithful to that. We've been dwelling in tents, just as he said. Now, they're in Jerusalem at the moment.

Why are they in Jerusalem at the moment? Not because they're establishing themselves in the city, but they explain there in verse 11, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has come into the neighborhood and he's wrecking havoc. He's conquering cities. And so, in order to protect ourselves, we've come into the city for this time as King Nebuchadnezzar is coming and advancing against the nation of Judah. But,

Other than that, we don't dwell in cities. We just kind of go about wherever we need to go. We dwell in tents. We move around as the land supplies our needs. We move along according to that. And so they were probably shepherds and move their flocks from place to place as shepherds do. But they were faithful to the command of their father.

They refused to drink. They obeyed His command. Verse 12, Then came the word of the Lord to Jeremiah, saying, Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you not receive instruction to obey My words, says the Lord? Verse 13,

The words of Jonadab, the son of Rechah, which he commanded his sons, do not drink wine, are performed. For to this day they drink none and obey their father's commandment. But although I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking, you did not obey me."

Here's the point. Here's where God takes this visible illustration for them and drives the point home. Here's where he makes it clear what exactly he is trying to say. He says, look at these guys. Their father issued a command. We've called them out. We've set wine before them. And they insist on being obedient to that command.

But God, in contrast, is showing that the nation of Judah refuses to obey His words. And so God tells Jeremiah, "Go and tell the nation. Go and tell the city of Jerusalem. Look at these guys who obey their father's commandment. How is it that you do not obey My words?" God says. Look at these guys and their faithfulness to a command that was given several generations prior.

God says, look, I've been rising up early and speaking to you. I've been bringing forth my word to you. I've been speaking to you, not generations ago, but I've been speaking to you in the present. And I've been speaking to you repeatedly. I've been sending messengers to you, but you refuse to obey my words. You see the contrast? The command of man versus the command of God. This family...

is obeying the command of man. But the command of man is far lesser than the command of God. And the nation of Judah refuses to obey the command of God. The command of this man was given many years before. The command of God, what God is saying, is being given to them at that moment, right then, and they're refusing to listen.

God's making it clear. It's not that just, you know, oh, well, we forgot. Or, you know, I don't remember what my grandpa said. How am I supposed to remember that far back? And he's removing those types of excuses. He says, look, these guys remember. They're faithful to this command. You guys, speaking to the nation of Judah, have my word right before you. And you're refusing to obey. You're saying, no, we will not obey you.

Even though these guys obey their earthly father, they say, we will not obey our heavenly father. God has been speaking, but they are not obeying. I think this is a really interesting point to consider. As God uses this example, this has...

Really not a spiritual implication in the sense of, you know, they're more spiritual because they don't drink wine. What God is saying is that, look at them, they obey this command of an earthly guy, while my people refuse to obey the command of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I wonder as I consider this, if there's...

groups that God could call up and use as a current illustration for us today, as an example for us as the body of Christ, as an example for us as believers, perhaps as a contrast, similar to the contrast that is being painted for the nation of Judah. Is there those that God could call up and highlight and illustrate and say,

Look at these guys who follow these lesser commands for less valuable gain. How is it that you, my children, refuse to obey my word? Refuse to listen to what I have to say? Could God call up a particular group and demonstrate and say, look how faithfully they follow every instruction that is given. And use that as a contrast to you or to me and say,

My instruction is far more important and I'm speaking to you right now at this moment. How is it that you choose not to receive that instruction and put it into practice in your life? Are there groups today that follow man's rules more faithfully than we follow God's word? I think this is a good and challenging question for us.

Something that we would do well to consider. So we'll come back to it in a little bit. But let's go on to verse 15. God continues to speak through Jeremiah. He says, I have also sent to you all my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, Turn now everyone from his evil way. Amend your doings and do not go after other gods to serve them. Then you will dwell in the land which I have given you and your fathers.

God continues to go on and say, not only have I been speaking to you, but I've sent the prophets.

What are these prophets saying? What is the message?

He says there in verse 15, Turn now everyone from his evil way, amend your doings, and do not go after other gods to serve them. Here was the message of the prophets. This is why God sent the prophets. Because the people were in rebellion. So God says, repent. Turn from your wickedness. Stop living in sin. And stop chasing after other gods.

What is God really asking here? What is the point of the message that God has been sending through the prophets? It's the same point that we emphasize over and over again. It's the same point that is the point of our existence and the work of Jesus Christ upon the cross. What God really seeks is relationship with us. What He's asking His people to do is to stop running away from Him and to stop chasing after those other gods, but to turn...

And to walk with Him. Even as Daniel was encouraging us to take His yoke upon them, to come to Him. That's what God wanted then. That's why He sent the prophets to the nation. It's still what God wants today. That's what God desires. That's the point of our existence. To walk in relationship with God. That's why He created us. To have relationship with Him. To walk with Him. And so God's message is for His people to turn back to Him.

And he says, look, if you did that, then I would give you the land that you dwell in. He's saying, look, because he's been promising this judgment that is coming, Babylon is going to conquer them. But God says, look, if you turn back to me, if you walk in relationship with me, I'll let you stay in the land. You don't have to be taken away captive by Babylon. You don't have to experience rock bottom. If you'll just turn to me.

If you'll just turn away from sin. If you'll just walk with me. God says, I'll let you dwell in the land. I'll bless you. That was the message of the prophets. But God says, you have not inclined your ear. You haven't paid attention. You've turned a deaf ear. And you've not obeyed me. Again, but he contrasts. The sons of Jonadab, the son of Rechab. They've performed the commandment of their father. These guys obey this earthly command. And the earthly command is not

something necessarily that is going to be desirable. It's not like he commanded them, drink all the wine that you can. Okay, drink no wine. Don't establish yourself. Daniel and I were able to...

do a missionary podcast before the service this evening. And one of the things he's sharing in the podcast is about how difficult it is living out of a suitcase, always moving around. Because he's here three months, he's somewhere else three months, he's over there six months. And there's never that longevity in a place to be able to call home. It's a difficult position to be in. That's the position of this family. They were just moving from place to place to place.

It was a difficult command that they were given and yet they were faithful to do it. Now, here we have God giving a command. What is His command? Well, His command, first of all, is for their good. He wants to bless them. He wants to save them from the trouble and the difficulty that is being brought upon them by themselves because of their rebellion against God. He's calling them into relationship with Him where there's fullness of joy and peace and forgiveness. I mean, God is offering them the best.

So it's not like they're following this command, the command of some man, and they're getting all kinds of great joy out of it. No, it's a difficult command. But God's command is, listen, I want to bless you and be with you and dwell with you and forgive you and give you this land and keep you from losing it because of your sin. I want to help protect you.

There's nothing but gain for them if they turn to the Lord. But they refuse to hear. They refuse to listen. In the same way that many times, even to this day, we refuse to listen. And God says, I want nothing but the best for you. But we would rather follow the commands of man than the command of God. God's main command to us is to walk in relationship with Him. But here we have demonstrated the corruption and rebellion of man.

where the destruction of Judah was imminent, it was going to happen. Babylon was in the land. Nebuchadnezzar was there. That's why the Rechabites moved into the city. They were going to see the fulfillment of God's promise that they would conquer the city because of their rebellion against God. But even then, they refused to listen. Even as it's being fulfilled right before their eyes, they're saying, no, we want to stick to our ways. We're going to worship those other gods. We're not going to turn from our sin.

Earlier in Jeremiah, the people said, no, it's too hard to follow the Lord. But you're asking for us to turn from sin and to walk with God. That's too difficult. It's the corruption of men. It's our corruption without Christ. This evening, as we're looking at this contrast, I want to encourage you and challenge you to consider your own self. Are you walking in relationship with God? That's God's primary command. That's what He desires. Are you being faithful in your relationship with God?

Are you being faithful to turn away from sin? As we've been studying on Sundays in 2 Peter, are you giving all diligence to your relationship with God? To growing with Him? Are you pursuing Him? Do you have that love relationship with the Lord? The nation of Judah had turned from God. But God still loved them. He was still reaching out to them. He was still speaking to them. He was still sending His messengers, His prophets. And so as the people refused...

they're now going to experience the consequences of disobedience. Look at verse 17. He says, God says, Therefore,

Because they've refused to hear. Because I've called to them and they have not answered. Because I've sent them messengers and they refuse to listen. Because they insist on rebelling against me. God says, I'm going to bring on them the doom that I have pronounced. God says, all those promises and prophecies about the judgment that was coming, I'm going to bring it upon them. Now we've looked at and seen before that every time that God makes a pronouncement of judgment, it's also an invitation to repentance.

But we know the end of the story here. The nation of Judah continues to insist. God continues to call out to them. Jeremiah ministers to the nation and gives opportunity for many years or several more years after this event takes place. But they refuse. You see the great danger of having a hardened heart. The great danger of allowing our eyes to be darkened by sin. There's a need for us.

to have a soft heart that responds when God speaks to us. There's those who have the attitude that, well, I'm just going to live my own life right now. I believe in God and I know He loves me and I know Jesus died for me and I know all that's right, but really right now I'm just going to do this and then I'm going to come back to Him.

Thinking that it'll be just like an easy choice. It'll be like an easy decision. Counting on, well, there's going to be another opportunity. But what they don't take into consideration is the hardness of heart. We always think, well, if I'm presented with this kind of ultimatum, well, of course, I'm going to turn and follow God. But here we have as an example before us, the example and the evidence of the hardness of heart. Where God is speaking plainly and clearly, repeatedly to them.

And they refuse. They will not turn. In contrast to this particular family, who the grandpa gave a command several generations prior, and this family still obeys that command, here we have right now in the present the hardness of heart of the nation of Judah. Their stubbornness and rebellion because they've practiced ignoring God. They've practiced rebelling against God. They've practiced

refusing to hear Him. It's their lifestyle. It's what they know. And so here they are, God reaching out to them, but they refuse. And so God says, you're going to reap what you've sown. And you're going to experience the consequences for that disobedience. Verse 18, And Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel,

So God says to the nation...

You guys are going to experience the consequences of your rebellion against me. And he says to this particular family, you guys have been faithful to your father's command, so you will never lack someone to stand before me. You've been faithful and obedient to this command that was given to you by your ancestor, by your forefather. And so God says, I'm going to bless you. And I'm going to take care of you. And you're always going to have descendants to stand before me.

God says, I'm going to bless you. You'll be rewarded for your faithfulness. And that's the reality. We come back to this idea so often. You reap what you sow. You are rewarded for your faithfulness. If you sow to the flesh, you reap from the flesh. Corruption. You don't sow to the flesh and then reap from the Spirit. And you don't sow to the Spirit and then reap from the flesh.

No, you sow to the flesh and you reap from the flesh. You sow to the Spirit and you reap from the Spirit. Galatians 6, verse 7 and 8. If you sow to the flesh, you will love the flesh, reap corruption, destruction. That's the state of the nation of Judah at this point. They're reaping the consequences. They're about to. And so God gives them this contrast, this clear picture. Look at this and then look at you.

Look at this family and look at the state of the nation. And again, it brings me to the question, are there groups today that we could consider that follow man's rules more faithfully than we follow God's word? Would you turn with me please to 1 Corinthians chapter 9? 1 Corinthians chapter 9. Now this is not about rules and regulations so much as it is about relationships.

But God's command is for us to walk in relationship with Him. God's command is for us to know Him and to spend time with Him, to enter into the Holy of Holies. He commands us to have intimacy with Him. That's God's command, to walk with Him.

And so it's not about rules and regulations about drinking wine or not drinking wine. That's not really the point of what God is saying here. But the point is, look at how these other people follow these other rules that are not as beneficial as what God has commanded. And look how faithful they are, but look how unfaithful we are when it comes to this main primary command. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.

1 Corinthians 9, verse 24. Paul says this, Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.

Here is the same type of picture with different terminology. Paul says, consider an athlete. Consider those who run in a race. In a race, everybody runs, but only one person.

receives the prize. Then he tells us, run in such a way that you may obtain it. Is he talking about a physical foot race? No. What is he talking about? He's talking about a pursuit of God. He's talking about a relationship with God. He's talking about our spiritual walk. And consider your spiritual walk versus those who run in a race. Now the person who obtains the prize is not the one who just says, well, I'm just going to do as little as I can.

The person who wins the prize is the one who says, I don't care what it costs me or how much it hurts or how difficult it is, I'm going to make it to the finish line in front of everybody else. It's an all-out, it's an all-out endeavor. Paul says, is your walk like that? Run in such a way that you would obtain the prize. Make it an all-out endeavor that you're full-on running towards, running into, running

Running with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He goes on in verse 25. He says, look, everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. An athlete, he says, is temperate in all things. Temperate, it's the idea of self-control. It's the idea of discipline. What does an athlete do? An athlete, well, they have to have a proper diet. If they're serious about winning, everything in their life is going to be centered around winning.

this competition and so what they eat when they eat how they eat how much they eat is all governed by how much they want to win how serious they are about this competition they're temperate in all things an athlete who's preparing is disciplined in regards to their sleep habits because they need time to train they need time to prepare so the amount of sleep that they get is governed by

their drive, their desire, their seriousness in the competition that they're entering into. The amount of time that an athlete spends practicing and training for that competition

is another area that they're temperate. They're disciplined. They make sure that they have an allotted amount of time, that they give a certain amount of time, that even if they're tired, or even if it's difficult, or even if it's raining, or even if it's inconvenient, that they give themselves to make sure they're temperate in all things, to make sure that they take that time and give that energy and practice and train. He says they're temperate in all things. Their whole life is governed by this competition.

because they're an athlete. He goes on to say, now they do it to obtain a perishable crown. In the Olympics in those days, the crown was even more perishable than in the Olympics in our day. It was a wreath. It wouldn't last very long. It was perishable, Paul says. Even the crowns that Olympians and athletes obtain today are perishable because they're not of this world. They're not going to last forever.

So they do all this work, they govern their whole life this way, they're tempered in all things in order to obtain something that's not going to last. But what does he say? "But we, for an imperishable ground." You see the contrast? Jonadab gives a command, it's a... some guy, his family follows the command. It was a long time ago. Here's God speaking to the nation, right now in the present, rising early and speaking to them over and over again, repeatedly.

of obeying the command of God versus the command of Jonadab is far greater. These athletes compete and they work so hard and they live their lives in order to obtain something that's not going to last. But we, if we would train in the same way, if we would prepare ourselves, if we would govern our lives in the same way, not to win some competition, but to pursue a relationship with God, the crown that is the reward of that competition

that heart, that attitude, that life is not perishable. It's far more valuable. There's an eternal reward to that. And so Paul says, therefore I run thus, not with uncertainty. I run without uncertainty. I don't run wandering around, wondering where I should go, how long I should run, how many miles I should go before I head back. I'm running not with, well, what's the point of this?

Why am I doing this anyways? He says, no, I fight, but not as one who beats the air. I'm not just flailing my arms around for nothing. What does he say? He says, I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. The nation of Judah was disqualifying themselves by refusing to hear, by refusing to heed the voice of the Lord. What was God's command?

God's command was for them to turn from sin and to walk in relationship with Him. To turn from those other gods and to love the Lord their God with all their heart, their soul, their mind, and their strength. It's the same command today. Jesus told us it was the most important command. To love God first, foremost, with all of you. The reward is far greater. We have these athletes who...

will govern their lives in this way, to receive something that is not that valuable. The real question is, do you govern your life in order to have this relationship with God? If you do, you receive a crown that's imperishable. Now there's lots of examples we could look at. You could look at the Mormon church. Very high morals, good people, nice people, following the commands that are not from God.

There's many Mormons who are more faithful to their doctrine, their false religion, than some are Christians. They're not nearly as faithful to the Lord and to His Word as Mormons are to their doctrine. You could look at any of the cults, any of the false religions, and have that similar example. But just for the sake of sticking to the athletic picture here, athletes govern their lives in light of the competition that they're in.

in light of the event that they're training for. God's command to us, love the Lord your God. Consider for just a moment, does that govern your life? Consider for a moment the amount of time that you devote to sleep every day. Is that governed by the command? Love the Lord your God. Walk in relationship with Him. The time that you spend with the Lord and His Word, is that governed by the command, love the Lord your God?

Are you temperate in all things? Do you govern your life? Do you base your life? Is your life centered around loving God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, with all your strength? We have examples like the Retrovites, like athletes, false religions, even...

like actors or actresses who devote themselves just completely, they sacrifice greatly to obtain things that are not going to last. We have been given this command that if we are obedient to it, the reward is beyond our imagination. It's really beyond what we can begin to even know or describe. What we do know is it's imperishable. Are you going all out for it? Are you giving yourself completely to knowing God?

to walking with Him, to following Him? Are you tempered in all things? I want to encourage you this evening to consider the Rechabites. So faithful to this command given generations prior. But here today, right now, God is speaking to you and He says, Love Me. Walk with Me. Know Me. Are you being faithful to that command? Let's pray. Heavenly Father, as we consider this picture, this contrast, Lord, I pray that You would help us

Not to have a heart like the nation of Judah at that time. Lord, we just ignore your word. We ignore what you want to say and we just turn a deaf ear and we continue on. I pray, Lord, that you would help us. Lord, if we're involved in sin, help us, God, to turn from it. To be temperate. Not in our strength, of course, but Lord, in the strength that you provide. Help us, Lord, to turn from sin. To repent from it. To run from it. God, if there's other things

things that we worship, if there's other things that take your rightful place in our lives, or things that we try to share between you and these other things, God, I pray that you would help us to turn from those things. Lord, that you would be our primary passion. Lord, that you would be our heart's desire. That you would be the one who captivates us. Help us, God, to love you with all of our heart. Help us, Lord, to

Even as Paul shared that he disciplines himself to make sure that he's walking with you. To make sure that his life is lived in pursuit of you. God, I pray that you would help us to do the same. May this contrast speak to our hearts clearly. God, that we would turn. That we wouldn't have one eye on you and one eye on the world. One foot in, one foot out. But that we would be wholly devoted to you. And thank you, God, that as we do...

You're right there with us. You're helping us. You're strengthening us. And Lord, you've promised for us eternity with you. Great reward for simply being obedient to what you've commanded us to do. Thank you, God, for your goodness towards us. Thank you for your grace and your mercy extending to us this opportunity once again to follow you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

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