In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the need for people to give up their sins and choose Christ. He uses the analogy of chains of sin that bind individuals and urges them to experience the freedom of being children of God. The preacher also highlights the importance of repentance before forgiveness, stating that it is not righteous to forgive without genuine repentance. He concludes by inviting listeners to open their hearts to Jesus, who died for their sins and offers eternal life.

And you can be turning in your Bibles to Genesis 42. Genesis 42. I'll begin reading in verse 1 of Genesis chapter 42. When Jacob saw that there was grain in Egypt, Jacob said to his sons, Why do you look at one another? Savage amusement, just sitting around looking at one another. And he said, Indeed I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down to that place and buy for us there that we may live and not die. So Joseph's ten brothers went down to buy grain in Egypt. But Jacob did not send Joseph's brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he said, Lest some calamity befall him. The sons of Israel went to buy grain among those who journeyed, for the famine was in the land of Canaan. Now Joseph was governor over the land, and it was he who sold to all the people of the land. Joseph's brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth. Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he acted as a stranger to them and spoke roughly to them. And he said to them, Where do you come from? They said, From the land of Canaan, to buy food. So Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. Then Joseph remembered the dreams which he had dreamed about them, and said to them, You are spies. You have come to see the nakedness of the land. They said to him, No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food. We are all one man's sons. We are honest men. Your servants are not spies. But he said to them, No, but you have come to see the nakedness of the land. They said to him, Your servants are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and in fact the youngest is with our father today, and one is no more. But Joseph said to them, It is as I spoke to you, saying, You are spies. In this manner you shall be tested by the life of Pharaoh. You shall not leave this place until your youngest brother comes here. Send one of you, and let him bring your brother, and you shall be kept in prison, that your words may be tested to see whether there is any truth in you, or else by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies. So he put them all together in prison three days. Then Joseph said to them the third day, Do this and live, for I fear God. If you are honest men, let one of your brothers be confined to your prison house, but you go and carry grain for the famine of your houses, and bring your youngest brother to me, so your words will be verified, and you shall not die. And they did so. Then they said to one another, We are truly guilty concerning our brother. For we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us, and we would not hear. Therefore this distress has come upon us. And Reuben answered them, saying, Did I not speak to you, saying, Do not sin against the boy? And you would not listen. Therefore, behold, his blood is now required of us. But they did not know that Joseph understood them, for he spoke to them through an interpreter. And he turned himself away from them and wept. Then he returned to them again and talked with them, and he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. He was going to keep Simeon there while the others went back with food to the land of Canaan. Now, we've been mentioning how very much Joseph was like the Lord Jesus. He was a type of the Lord Jesus. And over a hundred things in the life of Joseph found reflections in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why we say Joseph makes me think of Jesus. Some or other part of this has escaped. But if you can just imagine the cross over here at the very beginning, when the Jewish people, the twelve tribes of Israel, rejected the Lord Jesus Christ and nailed him to a cross of wood. Of course, the whole world did it, but we're thinking of Israel primarily in these studies. And he was cast into the garden tomb. But he rose again from the dead and he ascended back to heaven. And now Israel has been set aside during this present church age. Israel has been set aside nationally. And the Gentiles have been brought into a place of blessing. But God isn't through with Israel. And in a coming day, after the rapture of the church, which is indicated by those first vertical lines, there's going to be a period known as the Tribulation Period on earth, when the Lord Jesus is going to test his Jewish brethren. Put them through trials until finally they look upon him and recognize him and accept him as their Messiah. Well, this is really what happened in the life of Joseph. He was rejected by his brothers, thrown into a pit, taken out of the pit, and then he was unseen by his brothers for 25 years. They didn't see him again. About 25 years. Just as Jesus has been unseen by Israel, their eyes are closed, they might not see him. But now in these chapters that are ahead of us, we're going to watch Joseph as he puts his brothers through testings and trials, corresponding to the Tribulation Period. And then finally at the end of that time, he reveals himself to them. He says, I am Joseph. And they look upon their brother, whom they thought was dead, and they're reunited with him. So we'll just go on with our little studies here. Beginning here in chapter 42. First of all, Joseph required his brothers to go through a time of tribulation to bring them to repentance. That's the first thing that we're going to see here. Required his brothers to go through a time of tribulation to bring them to repentance. In Jeremiah 30, verse 7, it speaks of this time as the time of Jacob's trouble. That's interesting, because Jacob was the father of these 12 boys. And in Matthew chapter 24, verses 3 through 31, you have a description of the Tribulation Period that the Jewish people and the unbelieving world will go through in a time not too far away. The next thing we see is that the tribes of Israel were uprooted. See, they were there in the land of Canaan. The famine came to the land of Canaan. And all of a sudden, they are uprooted. And this has been the history of the nation of Israel. God originally planted Israel there in Canaan. And he told them if they obeyed him, that they would enjoy his blessings there. But they didn't, and they became an idolatrous people. And some of them were carried into captivity by the Assyrians. And some of them were taken into captivity by the Babylonians. And then, of course, after the rejection of Christ and after Calvary, the tribes of Israel were scattered. And they're scattered throughout the world today. Nobody knows exactly where they all are. In other words, you can't trace the 12 tribes of Israel today in the world. But they're there, and God knows that they're there. And that's what we have next. They didn't recognize him, but he knew them. I think this is very, very significant. His brothers didn't recognize him when they came down there to Egypt, but he knew them. He knew them right away. And that's true of the Lord Jesus too. The Lord Jesus knows his own. It says in John 10, 27, 28, 29, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, that they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, that they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. And in John 14, 9, the Lord Jesus says to Thomas, If you had known me, you would have known the Father. In other words, to know the Lord Jesus Christ is the same as knowing God, but they hadn't recognized him. You might turn to Acts chapter 28, 27, and it shows how the eyes of the nation of Israel have been closed, judicially blinded by God to see the glories of the Lord Jesus. Acts chapter 28, 27. It says in verse 27, For the heart of this people has grown dull, their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears. What does that mean? Well, it means that because of the rejection of the Lord Jesus Christ, a veil has come over the eyes of the nation of Israel, that they might not see. It's a principle in God's dealings that light rejected is light denied. The more a person hears the gospel and rejects the gospel, the harder it is for him to receive the gospel. People think, oh well, I'll just go on till my deathbed and then I'll trust Christ. Don't be too sure. Don't be too sure about that. First of all, you don't know the children. There aren't many deathbeds today. Most people die under dope today anyway. You know, robbed of their senses if they're in a hospital bed. But every time you hear the gospel and reject the gospel, it becomes harder. The same sun that melts wax hardens clay. The same sun that bleaches linen tans the skin. Opposite effect. And that's the truth with the gospel. Some people hear it and they receive it. And they're saved. And other people reject it. Sometimes they hear it for the last time. They pass redemption point and they never hear it again. Rather solemn, isn't it? They didn't recognize him, but he knew them. And that's a passage in 2 Corinthians that I have here. It's an interesting passage. It says that even today, when Jewish people read the Old Testament Scriptures, there's kind of a veil over their eyes. But when they accept the Lord Jesus as Messiah, that veil is removed and they look in the Old Testament and say, Wow! I never realized. In other words, after they're saved, they can go to the story of Joseph and see Jesus. You know, in type there. And I think one of the thrilling things is to see a Jewish person when he gets saved, when she gets saved, how the Old Testament just springs to life for that person. Of course, it does for all of us, too. But I think in a special way for the Jewish people. His brothers were troubled when they met him. They didn't recognize him, but they were troubled when they met him. And this was part of Joseph's strategy, that they might be troubled. Did you notice those words when I read it? They said, Look, we were twelve brothers. One is at home with our father and one is no more. That was Joseph. They didn't say, We had a brother named Joseph, but he's no longer alive. They didn't say that. They said, One is no more. The pangs of conscience are beginning to work in their lives. Joseph isn't going to let them off the hook until he's finished with them. What did he do first of all? He accused them of spying. That should have rung bells in their mind, because you know, when a father sent Joseph out to seek the welfare of his brothers, they said, Oh, he's just come to spy on us. He's just a tattletale. He's just going to go back to dad and tell him all about it. Here, Joseph accuses them of spying. And secondly, he wouldn't let them go unless Benjamin came. Benjamin was Joseph's full brother. The others were only half brothers. Benjamin was Joseph's full brother. They were both sons of the beloved Rachel. And there was a lot about Benjamin that would make them think of Joseph. I don't doubt that they looked somewhat alike. People could look at them and say, Oh yeah, you fellows are brothers. So he said, Look, you're going to go to jail. Benjamin has to come. Your youngest brother has to come. And then he put them in prison for three days. They had thrown him in a pit, hadn't they? And now he puts them in a pit. And then finally, he said nine of them were allowed to go home and take food with them to their father and bring Benjamin back, but he held Simeon as hostage. I wonder why he held Simeon as hostage. Well, Simeon and Levi, of those two brothers, were noted for their cruelty. And I have no doubt that Simeon was the brother who plotted most against Joseph. I have no doubt about it. It doesn't say it clearly in the Bible. But Simeon was noted for his cruelty to the men of Shechem, among other things. And now he says Simeon will have to stay here, kind of a hostage. We hear about a lot of hostages these days. Well, Simeon was kept as a hostage. Okay, Joseph put that little package together and then the pangs of conscience began to work in their lives. Look at verse 21. Just notice how it begins to work in them. Verse 21. They said to one another, We are truly guilty concerning our brother. For we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us, and we would not hear. Therefore, this distress has come upon us. It's working, isn't it? Pangs of conscience. Memory. Therefore, this distress has come upon us. Reason. What do we learn from this? Well, you learn the way of the transgressor is hard. You learn you can't sin and get away with it. Sin has its consequences. And the Scripture says, Be sure your sin will find you out. There's a verse in Romans chapter 11 that I think of when I come to this passage of Scripture. It says, Behold, therefore, the goodness and the severity of God. And you see that here in the life of Joseph. You see his goodness. Look, he sent them back all kinds of food for the family back there in Canaan. But you see his severity, too. Simeon, you stay here in prison until they come back with Benjamin. And so, the brothers go back to Canaan. They're on their way back. And one of them, when they came to the encampment, one of them opens his baggage. Money. The money is in there. And it threw them absolutely into panic. Verse 27. As one of them opened his sack to give his donkey feed at the encampment, he saw his money, and there it was, in the mouth of the sack. So he said to his brothers, My money has been restored, and there it is in my sack. Their hearts failed them, and they were afraid, saying to one another, What is this that God has done to us? It didn't make any difference which direction they turned. They met trouble. They met trial. They met tribulation everywhere. Well, they went on home, and they presented all the food to the father, and then as they opened their sacks, they had the money in all of their sacks. Adding insult to injury as it was. Verse 35. It happened as they emptied their sacks that surprisingly each man's bundle of money was in his sack, and when both they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid. This is Joseph. This is Joseph's strategy to bring them to the place of repentance. You might be tempted to ask, Why? Why didn't Joseph just forgive them and be done with it? And I'll tell you the reason is it isn't righteous to forgive when there isn't repentance. Supposing I should commit some very serious wrong against you. I mean, really, really serious. And you come to me and say, Look, I forgive you. Do you know what you're doing? You're encouraging me in my sin. That's what you're doing. It's not righteous to forgive an unrepentant person. What should happen is this. When somebody wrongs me in my heart, I should forgive him right away. In my heart. Not outwardly. I haven't administered forgiveness yet. In my heart, I should forgive him. That takes the load off my shoulders and leaves it between him and God. Then I am permitted to go to him and speak to him, to take witnesses with me, or to bring it to the church. But it isn't until he repents that I tell him that he's forgiven. Otherwise, I say you're really just encouraging people in their sin. Well, we see Joseph here showing remarkable grace to his brothers. I mean, he sends them back. They're in famine. They're in famine conditions. They're in Canaan. And now he sends them back with all kinds of food for the family. Makes us think of 2 Corinthians, doesn't it? 2 Corinthians 8-9. You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor that ye through his poverty might be rich. Wonderful to see God's dealings with his people here. Then in verse 36, when they break the news to Jacob that Benjamin has to go, he's absolutely heartbroken. Verse 36. Jacob their father said to them, you have bereaved me of my children. Joseph is no more. Simeon is no more. And you want to take Benjamin away. All these things are against me. Oftentimes in life we think that. We think all these things are against us and yet God is still on the throne. And the best is yet ahead for Jacob when he's going to see Joseph his son alive again. But you see in all of this how God allows sin to work itself out. And you see something else very beautiful here. Whenever Joseph is given his right place, there's prosperity. It's when he isn't given his right place that there's trouble and difficulty. That's true of the Lord Jesus, isn't it? Whenever the Lord Jesus is given his right place, there is blessing and there is prosperity, but it's when he isn't given his right place that there's trouble. Well, the brothers go back and they take Benjamin with them. At first, of course, Jacob was terribly reluctant. Chapter 43, verse 6, says Israel said, Why did you deal so wrongfully with me as to tell the man whether you had still another brother? Israel is another name for Jacob, you know. Why did you tell that man down in Egypt he had another brother? Now you're taking Benjamin away from me. But you know, there's something very beautiful here, and that is in verse 9, or verse 8, I should say, verse 8. Judas said to Israel his father, Send the lad with me and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, both we and you, and also our little ones. I myself will be surety for him. Notice that word, surety. I myself will be surety for him. From my hand you shall require him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame. I'd like to think about that word, surety, because the Lord Jesus became surety for us on the cross of Calvary. He died there for your sins and for my sins. He became our surety and is now our advocate at the right hand of God. It's a wonderful thing, a wonderful thing to think about. Surety means guarantee. When the Lord went to the cross, he said, I'll take their sins upon me and bear them in my body on the cross. And if they will come and believe in me, then they will have everlasting life. And so the brothers come down to, we're now in chapter 43, they come down to Egypt with Benjamin and they bring gifts to Joseph, Joseph not knowing that he is Joseph. And I'd like to emphasize here that in the world at that time, a world that was stricken with famine, there was only one hope. In the whole world, there was only one hope, there was only one way of deliverance, there was only one way, Joseph. That's exactly the way it is today. Dear friends, we live in a sin-cursed world. There's only one way, Jesus said, I am the way, the truth of the life, no man cometh unto the Father but by me. No other name given among men whereby we must be saved than the name of Jesus. It was Joseph then, it's Jesus now. In verse 16, you see Joseph, very moving when you start to think about it, Joseph receiving his brothers. They didn't know who he was, he knew who they were. He had been absent from them for many, many years, but now he's soon going to reveal himself to them. Notice what he says in verse 16 of chapter 43. When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, take these men to my home, slaughter an animal and make ready that these men will dine with me at noon. Everything that happened made them fear. The men did as Joseph ordered and the men brought the men into Joseph's house. And then they made explanation of finding all of that money. They were worried about the money that they had found in their bags and they made a complete explanation to the stewards and he said, not to worry, everything is all right. Verse 23, peace be with you, do not be afraid, your God and the God of your father has given you treasure in your sacks. I had your money. Then he brought Simeon out to them. Simeon is released from jail and they bring the men into their brother Joseph. And you know what they did? They bowed down to the earth before him. Verse 26, this was an exact fulfillment of Joseph's dream at the very outset. Remember Joseph had those dreams that his brothers would bow down to him and his mother and father would bow down to him. Here you have it, friends. Verse 26, when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hands into the house and bowed down before him to the earth. God is still on the throne. He's working out his purposes. They will come to pass, although it might take time. Then we see Joseph weeping over his brothers. He wept over his brothers. Very moving, you know. He hadn't seen them for over 25 years and they hadn't treated him very royally, but he still loved them. And now we find him weeping over them. Makes you think of the Lord Jesus, doesn't it? Before his crucifixion, when he wept over Jerusalem, he said, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that stonest the prophets, those that have sinned unto you, how often would I have gathered you as a hen gathers her chickens, but you would not. He wept alone and men passed by. The men whose sins he bore. They saw the man of sorrows weep. They'd seen him weep before. They asked not who those tears were for. They flowed. Those tears were for rebellious men. Their source, the heart of God. The eye of God is downward, bent still ranging to and fro, where'er in this wide wilderness there roams a child of woe. And if the rebel chooses wrath, God mourns his hapless lot. Deep breathings from the heart of God. I would, but you would not. That's God's lament over people who won't come to his son for salvation. I would, but you would not. He wept over his brother. Joseph was overcome with emotion. I believe the Lord Jesus is overcome with emotion whenever a sinner comes and accepts him as Savior. There's this joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents. More than over 99 just persons who need no repentance. Tremendous, isn't it? Some say the angels rejoice. It says in the presence of the angels. Who's rejoicing? Jesus is rejoicing. I think he's overcome with emotion. And, you know, this is a very interesting thing. Joseph made a banquet for them and he seated them according to their ages. This would have stunned them. How did this stranger know which ones were the older? But he did. He seated them according to their ages. Verse 33 of chapter 43. They sat before him, the firstborn, according to his birthright. That was Reuben. And the youngest according to his youth. And the men looked in astonishment at one another. This is tribulation. This is trial they're going through. Very difficult at the time, but it's all going to work out well. But, you know, I said before that the Jewish people are scattered today throughout the world. They are. And nobody can trace the tribes of Israel today, and yet God knows them. God knows them. If you ask the average Jew today, which of the 12 tribes of Israel are you from? They couldn't be sure. But, you know, God knows. Just within the last few years we read about some Falasha Jews from Ethiopia returning to Israel. Did you read about them? Falasha Jews. They're dark-skinned. They're Ethiopians, and yet they're Jews. And they've been hidden there in Ethiopia all those years. And all of a sudden they feel the migratory instinct to go back to Israel. There are Koshan Jews in India. They're Indians. They're Jews. They've been hidden away in India all those years. C-O-C-H-I-N. Koshan Jews. There are Jews in China. Kaifeng Fu Jews in China. They're part of the 12 tribes of Israel. And there are Jews all over the world like that. I believe there are Jews in Japan just like that. And God's going to sort them all out. And He's going to bring them back to the land in unbelief. We've seen some of this taking place, but what we've seen is only a trickle. At the end of the tribulation period, God's going to bring them back from all over the world to the land of Israel. And then the Lord Jesus will come and they will look upon him whom they fear and mourn for him as one mourns for an only son. If you notice in verse 34, Benjamin's serving was five times as much as any of the others. What's that all about? Interesting thing. Here's a perfect stranger. He makes a banquet for them. He seats them according to their ages. And then he gives the youngest five times what any of the others have. Well, I'll tell you what I think. They were jealous of Joseph because of the favor the father showed to him. He gave Joseph a coat of many colors. They were jealous of that. Okay, here's something else to be jealous about that might ring some bells in your mind. Benjamin gets five times what the others had. This would awaken the past in their minds, I'm sure. In fact, everything that's happening is calculated to awaken the past in their minds. Then we see next in chapter 44 the final trial. They're sent back home but Joseph's men flip Joseph's silver cup in Benjamin's sack as they go back home. You get that in verses 1 through 13 of chapter 44. Benjamin, of course, is the joy and delight of his father. The most important thing in the world is for Benjamin to come back alive to his father. The worst thing that could happen would be for anything to happen to Benjamin. And now the Egyptian servants of Joseph slip that silver cup into Benjamin's sack. There's an interesting verse in Amos chapter 5 verse 19. It says, It will be as though a man fled from a lion and a bear met him. And as though he went into the house, leaned his hand on the wall and a serpent bit him. That's what's happening to them. That's what's happening to the brothers now. They escape from a lion and they meet a bear, as it were. They get delivered from one calamity and they face another calamity. It's all intended to break them down. Break them down. Break them down to the place of repentance. The Spirit of God is seeking to bring them to repentance. And then one of them makes a complete clean breast of the whole situation. I'd like you to turn to verse 18. Because when the silver cup is found in Joseph's sack, all is lost, they feel. And Judah steps forward and he begins to intercede for Benjamin. One of them makes a complete breast, a clean breast of the whole story. I think we should read part of this. Judah came near to him and said, O my Lord, please let your servant speak a word in my Lord's hearing. Do not let your anger burn against your servant, for you are even like Pharaoh. My Lord asked his servant, saying, Have you a father or brother? He rehearses the whole thing and how they told about the younger brother and how the father was reluctant to let the younger brother go. Verse 27. Then your servant my father said to us, You know that my wife bore me two sons. The one went out from me and I said, Surely he is torn in pieces and I have not seen him since. But if you take this one also from me and calamity befalls me, you shall bring down my gray hair with sorrow to the grave. Now therefore, when I come to your servant my father, and the lad is not with us, since his life is bound up in the lad's life, it will happen when he sees that the lad is not with us that he will die. And so Judah is there interceding for his brother Benjamin. And this cannot help but make us think of the intercessory work of the Lord Jesus for his people. When a person is saved, the Lord Jesus becomes his intercessor and advocate. It's like a courtroom scene in heaven. Whenever I sin, the devil goes to God the Father and says, See? He sinned. As the law says, he's got to die. The devil is the accuser. It says he's the accuser of the brethren. Day and night he accuses them. As the Lord Jesus steps forward, do you know what he does? He steps forward and shows the nail print in his hands and in his feet. He says, I paid for his sin. The cross of Calvary, I paid for his sin. The debt is gone. That's why we sometimes sing, What though the accuser roar of ills that I have done, I know them well, and thousands more, Jehovah findeth none. Wonderful, isn't it? What though the accuser roar of ills that I have done, I know them well, and thousands more, Jehovah findeth none. Here's another verse. It says, Though the restless foe accuses, sins recounting like a flood, every charge our God refuses, Christ has answered with his blood. Wonderful to have an intercessor, isn't it? The courtroom of heaven. You hear the verdict acquitted each time. Wonderful that our advocate, our lawyer, does something that no lawyer ever does. He pays for the client's wrong. Another wonderful thing about him is that his father is the judge. It's great when you have an advocate whose father is the judge. Martha Snell Nicholson put it well in a poem that she wrote. I'd like to just read it to you. I sinned, and straightway, post haste, Satan flew before the presence of the Most High God and made a railing accusation there. He said, This soul, this thing of clay and sod has sinned. It is true that he has named thy name, but I demand his death. For thou hast said, The soul that sins shall surely die. Shall not the sentence be fulfilled? Is justice dead? Send now this wretched sinner to his doom. What other thing can righteous ruler do? And thus he did accuse me day and night, and every word he spoke, O God, was true. Then quickly one rose up from God's right hand before whose glory angels veiled their eyes. He spoke, Each jot and tittle of the law must be fulfilled. The guilty sinner dies. But wait. Suppose his guilt were all transferred to me, and that I paid the penalty. Behold my hand, my side, my feet. One day I was made sin for him and died that he might be presented faultless at thy throne. Satan fled away. Full well he knew that he could not prevail against such love. For every word my dear Lord spoke. Erdman says, The brothers had been cruel, heartless, jealous, violent. Now they were willing to die for one another. They had once broken their father's heart with a blood-stained robe. Now they had come to have a real love and tender sympathy for the aged patriarch. So Joseph's strategy is working just as God's strategy works in our lives as well. Now what I said about Christ our advocate only applies if a person is a believer. And I'm thinking today there might be somebody here in the audience who's never really become a consistent Christian. You've never made the decision for Christ. But there are some in the audience who have done that recently. They're wearing their shoes out on their tiptoes now rather than on their heels. Their lives have been changed. Maybe you're here today and you've never been saved. I'd like to ask you a question. Why not? Why is it that people don't trust the Savior? One of the great reasons is fear. Afraid of what? Afraid of what people will say. I look back to myself in my high school days and I heard the gospel and I knew the Spirit of God was speaking to me and wanting me to be saved. And I go back to high school and tell my friends at high school that I'm saved. The fear of man kept me from trusting Christ. The interesting thing is I don't know any of those people today. They've all passed out of my life. But God is still there. It's what God thinks about you that's important, not what your friends think about you. And another fear is the fear of what you might have to give up. People are clinging so closely to their faith, they'd rather have their sins in Christ. Yes, you have to give up something. You have to give up some chains. That's what you have to give up. You have to give up the chains of sin that bind you. And enjoy the glorious liberty of the children of God. But you can't have your sins in Christ at the same time. You have to make a choice. And God is knocking at your heart's door today by the Holy Spirit of God. He's saying, why don't you let Him come in? Years ago a group of people were sitting in a living room and talking away a mile a minute and all of a sudden a knock came at the door. Somebody just said, someone's at the door. One of the persons in the household went up and went to the door and opened it and another person called out, who is it? He called back who it was and then he got the word, tell him to come in. That's it. Someone's at the door. Who is it? Tell him to come in. Someone's knocking at your door today. I know he is. Who is it? It's the Son of God with nail prints in His hands, feet and a spear wound in His side. He died for your sins. He wants to give you eternal life when you trust in Him. Who is it? The Lord Jesus. Tell him to come in. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice and open the door I will come in to him and up with him and he with me. And he will too. Did you let him in today? I trust you will. If we can be of help to you, feel free to come up afterwards. We'd love to talk to you and show you perhaps more clearly how you can know when you go out the door today that you have eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Shall we pray? And then we're going to have a closing hymn. John is going to lead us in a closing hymn. Father, we thank you today for the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ that though He was rich, yet for our sake He became poor that we through His poverty might be rich. Thank you for these wonderful pictures of the Savior in the Old Testament how true it all is. We thank you for His present work for His people as advocate on high answering Satan's charges showing the wounds of His passion for us. We think today of any who are not saved who do not have the joy of the Lord in their hearts we're still clinging to their chains and to the slimy, evil protrusion of sin that has entered the human race. Father, we pray that any such might say yes to the Savior today and pass from death to life and exchange the chains for a crown. We pray in the Savior's name. Amen.