In this sermon, the preacher talks about the slim chances and expectations placed on Jesus in his earthly life. Despite this, people in darkness saw hope and freedom in him. The preacher emphasizes that all the power of heaven and earth was invested in Jesus, who willingly died on the cross and descended to hell to take the keys from the devil. The sermon also mentions a moment in hell where Satan trembles upon hearing Jesus' voice and tries to prevent him from ascending to his throne. The preacher shares a personal experience of initially being hesitant about attending a sing-along about the Messiah but eventually being inspired by the Word of God. The sermon concludes with a call to arise and shine, as the glory of the Lord has come.

Hello, this is Brother Denny. Welcome to Charity Ministries. Our desire is that your life would be blessed and changed by this message. This message is not copyrighted and is not to be bought or sold. You are welcome to make copies for your friends and neighbors. If you would like additional messages, please go to our website for a complete listing at www.charityministries.org. If you would like a catalog of other sermons, please call 1-800-227-7902 or write to Charity Ministries, 400 West Main Street, Suite 1, EFRA PA 17522. These messages are offered to all without charge by the free will offerings of God's people. A special thank you to all who support this ministry. What a joy and a blessing to be in the midst of the house of God. It's been a joy just to sit and listen to the preaching and the testimonies and what God is saying to us. I want to just share a little bit about, maybe some background to this, the direction that I feel free to go in this morning. I have, several years ago, when, this may be ten years ago or so, when some of the church people were talking about going to listen to the sing-along about the Messiah. And I didn't know what that was and I didn't really want to go, but I went for the children's sake. And they told me it would be about three hours long. And as they got started singing about the Messiah, and it was the first time I heard them sing those songs, and the solo singing was just not to my taste and so forth. After the first half hour, I looked at my watch and saw that thirty minutes had passed by, and I imagined another two and a half hours of this, and I just kind of gritted my teeth, but for my children's sake I'll do it. Well, it wasn't too long before I began to really enjoy the singing, especially the Word of God as it was coming forth and being sung. And by the time that they finished with the last song, the last chorus that night, I was just leaping and jumping inside. I was so excited about the Lord, His kingdom, and His glory. And so, we've gone back several times since that, and I was there recently, and just as we went through the Word of God again, I was just inspired with the Word of God. And so, I would like to preach the Word of God this morning. The glory of the Lord. The story of His glory. Brother Daniel mentioned in his testimony about the glory of the Lord, and the verse on the board says it very clearly. Arise and shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. Are you aware of that? That the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. So, can we stand for prayer before we begin? Our great eternal Father, blessing, blessed be thy name. Great is thy faithfulness. Great is thy marvelous work to the children of men. And great is thy name. Great is thy redemption. Great is thy glory. Great is thy plan of salvation. And Father, I pray that you would anoint your Word this morning as it comes forth. Bless us, Lord, with anointing of the Word. Bless us with your Word, Father. We delight in it. Truly, it is truth. It is righteous. It is pure. It is holy. Oh, Father, let no man despise thy Word. Let no one think it's dry. But, Lord, let your Word come forth with anointing and blessing. Use this vessel, Father, and speak to us about your glory in Jesus' name. Amen. You may be seated. In the beginning, it says, the Word was the Word, and the Word was with God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shined in the darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. The Word of the Lord is right, and all His works are done in truth. He loveth righteousness and judgment. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. By the Word of the Lord, the heavens were made, and all the hosts of them by the breath of His mouth. He gathereth the waters of the sea together as in heat. He layeth up the depths and storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord. Let all the inhabitants of the earth stand in awe of Him. For He spake, and it was done. He commanded, and it stood fast. Every word of God is pure. Every word of God is pure. He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Brother John shared about the beginning out of Genesis. We could quote about the beginning of the world. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and He created all the things that they're in. Brother John shared about the fall of man, and how that affected the whole world. And we know that when God created heaven and earth, and everything was created, and it says everything was good, and God saw that it was good, and then He made man in His own image, and He made the woman. And the glory of God was there. God created those things. A demonstration of His glory. Man was a demonstration of the glory of God. The earth, all of the, every living thing demonstrated the glory of God. But man was the crowning thing there. And then the serpent came, and of course, we know how that he tempted the woman, and she sinned, and she took of the fruit and gave to Adam, and they fell into sin. And their eyes were opened, and they saw that they were naked. But God said to the serpent, I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed. It, that seed, shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. A prophecy concerning one to come. One to come that is going to deliver My people. One to come that is going to crush the head of Satan, in that his heel will be bruised. I want to go through a lot of prophecies, a lot of the Old Testament, and some of the New Testament, and wrap it up in Revelations. Praise the Lord. So, if you don't know these Old Testament prophecies, you might want to write them down, if I give the reference. Isaiah prophesies much of the Messiah to come. Genesis 49, This is Israel. Jacob prophesied about the coming Messiah, and said, Before he died, the scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, till Shaloah come. Unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Moses said, I will raise up to them a prophet among their brother, like unto thee, and will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command them. Even Balaam, the man who was not a godly man, a man who, I believe, was in witchcraft, God spoke through him also, saying that there is a shout of a king in Israel. And also, He said, I shall see him, but not now. I shall behold him, but not nigh. There shall come a star out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise up out of Israel. That's the prophecy of a man that God had control of. And He spoke those words, speaking about the king to come, and his scepter, and the star of Jacob there. David spoke much in the Psalms of the coming Messiah. But I want to look at Isaiah now. In Isaiah chapter 40, it says, Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem. Cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned. For she hath received in the Lord's hand double for all her sins. The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make straight the path of the Lord. Prepare ye the way of the Lord. Every valley shall be exalted. Every mountain shall be made low. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, it says. The glory of the Lord is going to be revealed. It's what the people were looking for. It's what I'm looking for. I want to see the glory of the Lord being revealed. And all flesh shall see it, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. Haggai said, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Yet once in a little while I will shake heaven and earth and the sea and the dry land. And he said, I will shake all nations, and the desire of nations shall come. And I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts. The desire of the nations shall come. What an encouraging word from the Lord for a missionary, going out to a tribe of people that may never have heard the gospel, knowing that the word of God says that the desire of nations shall come. In other words, every nation out there is desiring this person. Amen? Malachi says, Behold, I will send my messenger. He shall prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant. Whom ye delight in, behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? For he shall sit as a refiner. He's like a refiner's fire and a fuller's soap. And he shall sit as a refiner of silver and gold. He shall purify the sons of Levi and purge them as gold and as silver. Why? That they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. He shall purify them, that they may bring an offering, a righteous offering unto the Lord. Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and shall bear a son. They shall call his name Immanuel. That is interpreted God with us. Where is he going to come from? From Bethlehem, it says. Micaiah says, But thou Bethlehem Ephra, though thou be lit among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth. Listen carefully. That is, to be a ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been of old, from everlasting. His goings forth have been from everlasting. Now, it's not so hard and difficult for me to imagine of time and of life always existing from here on out. But I cannot comprehend how something could be from everlasting in the beginning. I can't go that far. Maybe you can. Oh, Zion, that bring us good tidings, get thee up into a high mountain. Oh, Jerusalem, that bring us good tidings. This is Isaiah 40. Lift up thy voice with strength. Lift it up and be not afraid. Say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God. Arise and shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen. Isaiah 60. Behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people. But the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, the kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about and see. All they gather themselves together. They come to thee. Thy sons shall come from afar. Thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then shalt thou see and float together. Thine heart shall fear and be enlarged, because the abundance of the sea shall be converted to thee. The forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. And the people that walked in darkness have seen a great light. And they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them has the light shined. The coming of the King. An angel was sent into the city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin called Mary, and said, Fear not, for thou hast found favor with God. Thou shalt conceive in thy womb and bring forth a son and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great and shall be called the son of the highest. And the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David. He shall reign over the house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Mary said, How shall I know that this could come to pass? See, I know no man. And the angel said, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore also that holy thing which is born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Mary, when she met Elizabeth, said, My soul doth magnify the Lord and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. Does your soul magnify the Lord and does your spirit rejoice in God your Savior? Zacharias, likewise, when John the Baptist was born, spake of him being filled with the Holy Ghost and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel for he hath visited and redeemed his people. He hath raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David. As he spake by the holy prophets which have been since the world began, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all that hate us to perform the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath which he swore to our father Abraham. And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the highest for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of sins through the tender mercies of God whereby the dayspring from on high has visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Isaiah says, For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder. His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. And of his increase of his government there shall be no end. Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end. The increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end. I used to think that we'd get to heaven and heaven was a finished product and that we would enjoy that forever but it says here that the increase of his government and the increase of his peace will continue to get bigger and increase forever and ever and ever. The glory of the Lord. Awesome verses. The Lord. And with justice from henceforth even forever the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. Mary, as she brought forth her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room in the inn. This is the Son of God. There were in the same country shepherds by night keeping watch over their flock and the angel of the Lord came upon them and the glory of the Lord shone round about them and they were sore afraid and the angel said, Fear not. Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger. I don't know how big Bethlehem was but they had this promise that they would find him. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hosts praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest then on earth. Peace, goodwill toward men. And it came to pass as the angels were going back to heaven the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go down to Bethlehem and see this thing which has come to pass which the Lord hath made known to us. And they came with haste and they found Mary and Joseph and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning the child. And the shepherds returned glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen as it was told unto them. And when eight days were accomplished they took him and they circumcised him and they named him Jesus. They called him Jesus. What a wonderful name. Mary pondered these things in her heart and she wondered what kind of a man this is going to be. Isaiah gives us some insight in chapter 35. Strengthen the weak hands. Confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of fearful heart, Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance. Even God with a recompense, He will come unto you. And when John the Baptist was in prison after having stood there and proclaimed Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. And he was put into prison. And he questioned him and he sent his disciples to Jesus. And they went to him and they asked him Art thou he that should come or do we look for another? John was expecting deliverance from the Romans. John was expecting an earthly kingdom. Or at least men were. Jesus answered and said to him Go show John again the things which ye do hear and see. And in Isaiah 35 it gives these words. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened. The ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as in heart. The tongue of the dumb shall sing. For in the wilderness shall waters break out and streams in the desert. And Jesus' words were to John's disciples Go and tell John. The blind receive their sight. The lame walk. The lepers are cleansed. The deaf hear. The dead are raised up. And the poor have the gospel preached to them. And I believe that is all that John needed to hear. Knowing the Old Testament description of what the Messiah is going to be like and what he is going to do. And highways shall be there. And a way. And it shall be called the way of holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it. If you're unclean today. If you've never been saved. You're not yet on the highway of the Lord. But it's for those. The wayfaring man. Those fools shall not err therein. No lion shall be there. Nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon. It shall not be found there. But the redeemed shall walk there. And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and with everlasting joy upon their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness and sorrow and sighing shall flee away on the road of holiness. On the way. On this highway. The king's highway. That's the way it's supposed to be. Isaiah 40 says He shall feed His flock like a shepherd. He shall gather the lambs with His arms and carry them in His bosom. He shall gently lead those that are with young. Isaiah 61 says The spirit of the Lord is upon me. Because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the meek. He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. Jesus, when He went to be baptized, came straightway out of the water and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove lighting upon Him. And, lo, a voice from heaven when Jesus the Son of God went in the water and was baptized and came up and was praying heaven opened up and a dove came down and lit down and sat upon Him and a voice from heaven came saying This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. The beginning of His ministry and the preaching of Jesus. Matthew 5 Blessed are they that mourn. Blessed are the meek. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness. Blessed are the merciful. Blessed are the pure in heart. Blessed, blessed, blessed are you and men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. This is what the kingdom is going to be like, my friends. Rejoice, be exceedingly glad when that happens for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted are the prophets before you. John says Jesus came preaching and He said except a man be born of spirit of water and of spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of flesh is flesh. That which is spirit is spirit. It is the spirit that quickeneth. It is the flesh, prophets, nothing. The words that I speak unto you they are spirit and they are life. Jesus also said I am the good shepherd, no man. And the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is in hireling and not the shepherd whose own the sheep are not seeth the wolf come and leaveth the sheep and fleeeth the wolf catcheth them and the sheep are scattered. The hireling flees because he is in hireling. He don't care for the sheep. But I am the good shepherd and know my sheep as a known of mine. As the father knoweth me even so know I the father and I lay down my life for the sheep. Other sheep I have which are not of this fold them also must I bring and they shall hear my voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. Therefore doth my father love me because I lay down my life that I may take it again. No man taketh it from me but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again. Come unto me he says all ye that labor and heavy laden I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart. And ye shall find rest unto your souls for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. The words of the Son of God. Zacharias says spoke of him entering into Jerusalem rejoiced greatly O daughter of Zion shout O daughter of Jerusalem behold thy king cometh unto thee and they did. They lauded him when he rode into Jerusalem. The triumphal entry into Jerusalem. They spread their garments out before him. They put him on an ass and he rode into Jerusalem and they waved palm branches and they shouted for the king of Israel. But Jesus riding in there looking down from the Mount of Olives down upon Jerusalem he wept and he said O Jerusalem, Jerusalem thou that killest the prophets and stonest them which are sent unto thee how often would I have gathered thy children together even as a hen gathered her chicks under her wings and ye would not. At the last supper Jesus took bread and blessed it and break and he said take ye this is my body. He took the cup and gave thanks and gave to them and said drink ye all of it for this is my blood of the new covenant new testament which is shed for many of the remission of sins. But I say I will not drink henceforth the wine the fruit of the vine till that day when I drink it with you in my father's kingdom. Isaiah spoke of his rejection of men. He is despised and rejected of men a man of sorrows acquainted with grief and we hid as it were our faces from him. He was despised and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yet we did esteem him stricken smitten of God and afflicted. Also Isaiah said I gave my back to the smiters and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair. I hid not my face from shame and spitting. They plucked his beard. They spit in his face. One of the most despised things is to spit in someone's face. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. Everyone has turned to his own way. All we like sheep have gone astray. Everyone has turned to his own way. Careless, but the Lord laid upon him the iniquity of us all. They took him out and they crucified him parting his garments casting lots upon them. Sitting down they watched him there and they set over his head the accusation which read This is Jesus King of the Jews. This is Jesus King of the Jews. If you were to read the history at the time of Passover in Jerusalem Jews have come from far and wide. The city is full with thousands of people. Thousands and thousands of people gathering together to worship the Lord and to keep the Passover. And the multitude streams past the cross as he hangs there. He was oppressed. He was afflicted. Yet he opened not his mouth. He is brought of the lamb that is slaughtered. As a sheep before her shears is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. The chief priests mocked him. The scribes and elders. He saved others himself he cannot save, they said. If he be the King of Israel let him come down from the cross and we'll believe him. He trusted in God. Let's see if God will deliver him. For he said, I am the Son of God. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin he shall see his seed. He shall prolong his days and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. Do you see the Gospel in the Old Testament? He shall see the travail of his soul. He shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many. For he shall bear their iniquities. Isaiah 52 As many as were astonished at thee. His visage was so marred, more than any man. His form more than the sons of men. So shall he sprinkle many nations. So shall he sprinkle his blood over many nations. You can read Psalms 22 of the prophecy of David speaking about Jesus on the cross. It seems like it's Jesus speaking. But I'm a worm and no man. A reproach of men. There Jesus hangs naked in front of the multitudes of people suffering. And the crowds just go swelling by. The swelling crowds just pass by. All that see me laugh me to scorn. They shoot out the lip. They shake the head. They say he trusted the Lord that he would deliver him. Let him deliver him. See he delighteth in him. But thou art he that took me out of the womb. Thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breast. I was cast upon thee from the womb. Thou art my God from my mother's belly. Be not far from me for trouble is near. There is none to help. Many bulls have come past me. Strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. They gaped upon me with their mouths as a ravening and a roaring lion. I am poured out like water. All my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax. It is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a putrid. My tongue cleaveth to my jaws. And thou hast brought me into the dust of death. Dogs have come past me. The assembly of the wicked have enclosed me. They pierce my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones. They look and stare at me. They part my garments and cast lots for my vesture. But be not thou far from me, O Lord of my strength. Haste to help me. In Psalm 69 he says, Reproach hath broken my heart. I am full of heaviness. I looked for some to take pity, but there was none. And I looked for comforters, but I found no one. Hanging on the cross, looking for people, is there no one who cares? But he died, and he died all alone. They gave me gall for my meat, thirst for my thirst, vinegar to drink. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And he bowed his head and cried, It is finished. And he gave up the ghost. And the Son of God died for you and me. But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and blood and water ran out of his side. But not one of his bones was broken according to Exodus and also Psalms. Lamentations 1, Jeremiah says, Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? Behold and see, if there be any sorrow, liken to my sorrow. Has ever there been a sorrow like this before? The sorrow of the Lord Jesus Christ dying on the cross. He was cut off out of the land of the living. For the transgression of my people was he stricken. He made his grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death. Because he had done no violence, neither was gall found in his mouth. And a man named Joseph went and begged his body as it was the sun was setting down and the Sabbath was nigh at hand. He took it, wrapped it quickly in linen, laid it in a sepulcher that was hewn in stone, the new sepulcher, new grave, where never man had laid. And there they put him, the Son of God. Some prophecies concerning his death and the prisoners and things behind the scenes. Isaiah 24 says, let me say this word first, Peter gives us some indication here. Says, for Christ has also suffered, once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit. Yes, his body died, but his spirit did not die. By which he went and preached unto the spirits in prison. I don't know all of what that means, but there's some verses in the Old Testament I'll read and we'll look at that. Maybe God will enlighten our eyes. Isaiah 24, 22 says, and they shall be gathered together. As prisoners are gathered in the pit, they shall be shut up in the prison. After many days shall they be visited. I think it speaks of the dead. After many days shall they be visited. Isaiah 42 says, for this is a people robbed and spoiled. They are all of them snared in holes. They are hid in prison houses. They are for a prey. None delivereth for a spoil. None sayeth restore. Who among you will give ear to this? Who will harken here for the time to come? Who gave Jacob for a spoil and Israel to the robbers? Did not the Lord, he against whom we have sinned? For they would not walk in his ways, neither were they obedient unto his law. It could be said the same for me, you and me. We did not walk in his ways. We sinned against him. We were disobedient to his law. Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger and the strength of battle. Psalms 14 says, O that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion. Such a longing. O that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion. When the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice and Israel shall be glad. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell. Neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt show me the path of life. In thy presence is fullness of joy. And at thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore. Isaiah 53 says he was taken from prison and from judgment. Who shall declare his generation? Isaiah 42, to open the blind eyes to bring out the prisoners from the prison and then that sit in darkness out of the prison house. Psalm 68 says, Thou hast ascended on high. Thou hast led captivity captive. Thou hast received gifts for men. Yea, for the rebellious also that the Lord God may dwell among them. Speaking of things that... Spiritual truths. The psalm that we've sang here in times past puts it very clear. Little boy in the carpenter's shop. Born in a stable. His mother a virgin. Raised in the carpenter's shop. His people were slaves. His parents were poor. His friends a lowly lot. His chances in life are very slim. He's expected to be a slave. But people in darkness saw light in him in hopes of the freedom he gave. All the power of heaven and earth God had invested in him. He should die on the cross. Descend into hell. Meet the devil and take the keys from him. He yielded himself to the death of the cross. Cried it's finished and he slumped to die. In the regions of hell the devil celebrated. We destroyed the king, he cried. In the midst of the celebrations footsteps were heard walking the corridors of hell. Then the shouting stopped and a voice rang out. A voice that rang like a bell. Satan trembled as he recognized him who had come to deliver his own. Shut, lock the gates, he cried. Don't let him ascend to his throne. Then the gates swung shut in the face of the king to prove God's salvation untrue. But he shook hell's gates. He cried Lift up your heads. The king is coming through. Then out of the prison house came a possession led by the king shouting Now, O grave, where is the victory and death? Where is thy sting? Who is the king of glory? The Lord mighty in battle is he. Who is this king of glory? Master and host of heaven supreme. Who is the king of glory? The one that not even death could stop. Lift up your gates, it says. All be you lift up ye everlasting doors and the king of glory shall come in. Who is the king of glory? The Lord of hosts is the king of glory. In the end of the Sabbath we come back to reality and to the earth again. As it began to dawn towards the first day of the week came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. And behold there was a great earthquake for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning. His raiment was white as snow. And for fear of him the keepers did shake and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said to the women, fear not, for I know that you seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here. He is risen as he said. Come see the place where he lay. Jesus, when he met his disciples he said all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo I am with you always even unto the end of the earth. The story of his glory. Hallelujah. Ye shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you. Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, in Judea and Samaria and the uttermost part of the earth. When he hath spoken these things, while they beheld he was taken up and a cloud received him out of sight and while they steadfastly looked toward heaven. Behold two men stood by them in white apparel which said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand you gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which is taken up from you taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as you've seen him go. This same Jesus he's going to come back. When? I'm sure they were missing him already. Maybe they thought he'd come back the next day. He kind of disappeared and appeared again and again for them. But now they saw him go up to heaven. When will he come back? This Jesus, Peter said in Acts 2, God has raised up whereof we are witnesses and therefore being by the right hand of God, exalted and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he has shed forth this which ye now see and hear. Psalm says David, Peter keeps on says, for David is not ascended to heaven but he said himself, the Lord said to my Lord, sit down on my right hand till I make thy foes thy footstools. Hebrew writer speaks of the brightness of his glory the express image of his person and upholding all things with the word of his power when he had by himself purged us from our sins sat down on the right hand of the majesty on high this is to his son thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee. I will be to him a father, he shall be to me a son and under the son he saith, thy throne of God is forever and ever. A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity, therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. That's a Hebrew writer a wonderful story of the glory of God the preaching of the gospel Isaiah again, 52 says, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of them that bring good tidings that publisheth or preacheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation that saith to Zion thy God reigneth break forth into joy, sing together ye waste places of Jerusalem, for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem, the Lord hath made holy, the Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all nations and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God. That's a promise the promise of the spirit from Zechariah I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and of supplication, they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son and shall be in bitterness for him as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn Joel says it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, young men shall see visions, and upon the servants and handmaidens in those days will I pour out my spirit Jesus said I will pray the Father, he shall give you another comforter that he may abide with you forever even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him but ye know him, for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you, and when the comforters come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the spirit of truth he shall testify of me then the day of Pentecost was fully come they were as one accord in one place and suddenly there was a sound from heaven as a rushing mighty wind and it filled all the house where they were sitting and there appeared to them cloven tongues like fire, and sat upon each of them and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance, Peter in his message then said repent, be baptized every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, for the promise is unto you, and unto your children, to all that are far off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call they believed they received the word, and believed and were baptized, three thousand of them the story of his glory his glory descended on that day upon the upper room if the spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his spirit that dwelleth in you the spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God the spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God so when we go to preach the nations are all willing and glad to hear is that right? not necessarily, not really Psalms 2 gives us what to expect why do the heathen rage and the people imagine a vain thing the kings of the earth set themselves together and the rulers take counsel against the Lord, against the anointed saying, let us break their bands of thunder cast away their cords he that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh and the Lord shall have them in derision then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sword his pleasure, yet have I set my king upon my holy heel of Zion I will declare the decree the Lord hath said to me, Thou art my son this day have I begotten thee ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession serve the Lord with fear, rejoice with trembling kiss the son lest he be angry and ye perish from the way blessed are all that have put their trust in him Isaiah says come now, let us reason together though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool and in that day shall a fountain be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and uncleanness yes, a fountain is opened for sin and uncleanness a fountain that washes away sin and uncleanness now is Christ risen from the dead and become the first fruits of them that slept for since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead, for as in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be made alive Job said, for I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God David said, blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven and whose sin is covered blessed is the man under whom the Lord imputes, if not iniquity and in whose spirit there is no guile we can say with Paul in Romans what shall we say then to these things if God be for us, who can be against us, he that spared not his own son but delivered him up for us all how shall he not with him freely give us all things who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect it is God that justifieth who is he that condemneth it is Christ that died, yea, rather than is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us, who shall separate us from the love of Christ shall tribulation, or distress or persecution, or famine or nakedness, or peril or sword, as it is written for thy sake we are killed all the day long we are counted as sheep for the slaughter this is the way of those who walk with Christ, nay, in all these things we're more than conquerors through him that loved us for I am persuaded that neither death, nor life nor angels, nor principality, nor powers nor things present, nor things to come nor height, nor depth nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord are you convinced of that this should cause us just to break forth in praise we should just open our lips and praise God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places, it just keeps getting better, according as he has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame, before him in love having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the pleasure of his good will adopted us into his family, to the praise of the glory of his grace wherein he has made us accepted into beloved brethren in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace in whom ye also trusted yes, I believe you have after that ye heard the word of truth the gospel of your salvation in whom also after that ye believed ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, and you hath be quickened, who were getting trespasses and sins wherein in times past ye walked according to the course of this world according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience, among whom also we all had our conversation in times past, in the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others, but God who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith he loved us even when we were dead in sins and he hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace ye are saved, and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus hallelujah, that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus for by grace are ye saved through faith, not of yourselves, it is a gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast, for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them, the story of his glory the end of the age John the Revelator visions revelations speaking, Jesus said, Grace be unto you in peace from him which is, which was which is to come, and from the seven spirits which are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness and the first begotten from the dead, the prince of the kings of the earth, unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever, amen behold he cometh with clouds and every eye shall see him and the ulcer which pierced him, all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him even so, amen I am alpha and omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord which is, which was, and which is to come, the almighty and in Revelations 5 they sung a new song, saying thou art worthy to take the book to open the seals for the Daniel for thou wast slain, and has redeemed us to God out of every kindred, tongue, people and nation, and has made us unto our God kings and priests, and we shall reign on the earth and I beheld and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders, and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands upon thousands saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing and every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea and all of them all that are in them, heard I saying, blessing and honor and glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne unto the Lamb forever and ever, he heard every creature in the sea every creature on the earth, every living thing proclaiming these words blessing and honor and glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne and unto the Lamb forever and ever what glory what glory and the four beasts said amen, amen amen amen, and the elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth forever and ever, and the seventh angel sounded and there were great voices in heaven saying the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our lord and of his Christ and he shall reign forever and ever he shall reign forever and ever after these things, Revelation 19 I heard a great voice of much people in heaven saying hallelujah, salvation and glory and honor and power unto the lord our God, for true and righteous are his judgments, for he hath judged the great whore which did corrupt the earth with her fornication and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand and again they said hallelujah and her smoke rose up forever and ever, and the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down, worshipped God that sat on the throne saying amen hallelujah, amen hallelujah, and a great voice came out of the throne saying praise our God, all ye his servants and ye that fear him small and great and I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and the voice he's trying to describe what he heard I heard the voice of a great multitude as the voice of many waters as the voice of mighty thundering saying hallelujah, for the lord God omnipotent reigneth can you just about hear it can you hear it in the spirit, can you imagine what that must have sounded like, the voice of many waters, he's trying to describe the great noise that he heard, and all of creation, and all of heaven, all of the angels must have all been saying hallelujah for the lord God omnipotent reigneth and he had on his vesture, on his thigh a name written, king of kings and lord of lords very final king of kings and lord of lords never again to be contested John another vision he had he saw a great white throne and him that sat on it from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away and there was found no place for them and I saw the dead small and great stand before God and the books were opened and another book was opened which is the book of life, the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works, the sea gave up the dead which were in it and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them and they were judged every man according to his works, and death and hell were cast into the lake of fire this is the second death, and whosoever whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire everyone whose name was not found everyone who was not written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire another vision was and I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and first earth were passed away, there was no more sea I John if I were to see something like that, you probably wouldn't believe it, I would have to say I Emmanuel saw it John is testifying I John saw this the holy city, new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven prepared the bride adorned for her husband, and I heard a great voice from heaven saying behold the tabernacle of God is with men and he will dwell with them, they shall be his people, God himself shall dwell shall be with them and be their God I had to think of the verse in Isaiah that says he dwells high in the heavens and with he that is of a lowly country heart and it seems maybe it's changing here, now he's dwelling with men from now on he's going to dwell with men maybe he won't be up high anymore, but he's come down and he's with men that's his dwelling place, God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, no more crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away, and the city has no need for the sun, neither the moon to shine in, for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamb is the light thereof, the glory of God is going to lighten that city there's no need for the sun anymore and the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it and the kings of the earth to bring their glory and honor into it the gates shall not be shut at all by day, there shall be no night there, they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it and there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a lie but they which are written in the last book of life, there shall no abomination nothing unclean, nothing that ever enter into this beautiful holy city and he showed me a pure river of water of life clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb in the midst of the street of it, either side of the river was a tree of life which bare twelve manner of fruits, yielding her fruit every month the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations and there shall be no more curse but the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it, his servants shall serve him and they shall see his face and they shall see his face and his name shall be in their foreheads there shall be no night there there shall be no need for a candle neither light of the sun for the Lord God giveth them light and they shall reign forever and ever and the finality of eternity he that is unjust let him be unjust still he which is filthy, let him be filthy still and he that is righteous let him be righteous still he that is holy, let him be holy still the finality it is unjust he will forever and ever and ever remain unjust he that is filthy will forever and ever be filthy and he that is righteous will forever and ever be righteous and he that is holy will forever and ever be holy and the spirit and the bride say come and let him that heareth say come let him that is a thirst come and whosoever will let him take the water of life freely surely I come quickly he says amen even so come Lord Jesus and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all amen let us fall on knees and worship the king of glory blessing and honor glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne and unto the lamb forever and ever yes father you will reign omnipotent forever and ever you are king of kings and lord of lords your kingdom and of your kingdom and of your peace the increase of that shall be no end so father we are here we're but small little boys but we worship you you are the king of kings and you're the lord of lords you're our creator our redeemer our savior you are Jesus the lamb of God and we worship you for thou hast redeemed us by thy mighty hand thy outstretched arm thou hast saved us thou hast rescued us when we were yet in sin and trespass and darkness and sitting in prison you came and saved us from our own selves from our own sin yes oh grave where is thy victory oh death where is thy sting but Christ has risen risen from the dead victor over death and so father we are grateful today we worship you thank you for your word let the word of God let it settle down into all of our hearts let us not be ashamed of thy word at any time let the word father we pray that the word would take root in the hearts of men and women and of children that they would be able to see someday see the glory of the lord I pray father they would desire to walk with God thank you father work in all of our hearts we pray in Jesus name amen behold the lamb of God how beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel that bring good tidings this morning as we were hearing the word of the lord oh I pray that it was mixed with faith in our hearts to those that heard it and hear it the gospel the gospel of the lord Jesus Christ it's the good news oh thank you lord for the gospel when they announced Jesus birth they cried out the gospel message peace tidings of good joy we heard the gospel today from Genesis to Revelation thank you brother Emmanuel for preaching the word of God the glorious gospel of our lord Jesus Christ just wanting to discern and mind the lord here this morning but I just thought you know is your name written there who has believed our report have you believed the report have you believed unto the saving of your soul are you saved today are you lost yet in your sins is your name written in the book of life in the book of life when the books are opened you know what it is not enough to just grow up in a Christian home God does not have grandchildren it's not enough that mom and dad are Christian and walking and believing in the lord Jesus Christ but salvation is a personal thing maybe you're here today and you are lost and you are yet abiding in darkness and the wrath of God abideth over you because you have not believed you have not repented and humbled yourself and believed on the lord Jesus I feel this morning to give an invitation to the gospel to the lord Jesus Christ to believe on him Philippians says concerning our lord Jesus it says that Jesus made of himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself and became obedient unto death even the death of the cross wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is lord to the glory of God wherefore my beloved as ye have always obeyed not as in my presence only but now much more in my absence work out your own salvation with fear and trembling for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure work out your own salvation with fear and trembling are you saved today is your name in the book of life are you righteous today are you holy today or are you unjust today and filthy today yet in your sins going to give an invitation this morning God says come oh sinner come home let's sing a verse of softly and tenderly and you come right away you know you're lost you know you're not saved come right away as we sing softly and tenderly Jesus is calling calling for you and for me see on the portals he's watching and waiting wanting for you and for me come home come home ye who are weary come home earnestly tenderly Jesus is calling calling oh sinner come home amen father we just do wait before you lord we thank you for the gospel we thank you for the love of God we thank you for the great proclamation that whosoever will come let him that is a thirst come father we thank you that there has been a fountain open for sin and uncleanness through our lord Jesus Christ father thank you for the gospel of our lord Jesus Christ father bless this congregation today oh lord make our feet beautiful that we would be those who declare and who preach the gospel of the lord Jesus Christ father thank you thank you that today you will hear his voice harden not your heart but come and be saved we just give you the service in Jesus name amen we just open it up at this time maybe someone has a word to share confession testimony a praise alright if there is anyone who would feel like to share this morning raise your hand ushers will get a microphone to you alright don't see any hands that's ok there is one in the back there in the brothers side really blessed with the service this morning glad that we can be part of a bible preaching and a bible believing church just really blessed with a clear teaching all the way from the start of the song service through the opening children's lesson and the main message and even your comments there just blessed with that just thought I should maybe share an update the Indian lady and her two children that were here was this um lady that that Tony's had met at the subway last week they had mentioned or I believe it was last week my wife and Rupa had went in to see her and then her and her two oldest children were in church here this morning and just felt that I should share that her husband is home from the hospital he had been dealing with suicidal depression and had actually attempted suicide he's home and she just mentioned this morning that still not doing very good at all he's going through therapy some but he's not real open to visit with anybody so may we continue to keep him in prayer and that he can be restored as well their marriage is very much on the rocks they're looking at divorce um so maybe we can be in a lightened testimony to him in some way would you lead us in prayer can we stand together and let us pray for this brother this situation amen yes God thank you Lord for your goodness thank you for your mercy Lord we know that you are the restorer of the discouraged Lord oh God we know that you are all powerful Lord this time we just lift up Bobby and surrender to you Lord and just pray for their salvation Lord and we just pray God especially for Bobby Lord that in some way that he could see clear who you are Lord and that he can find repentance in you Lord and restoration you can cleanse him and purify him Lord and give him a life Lord that is worth living oh God Lord that his life can bring glory and honor to you and not just his life Lord but his wife's life and our lives as well oh God show us Lord as a people how to get around people like this Lord and that you can just cleanse us and purify us Lord as a body as well Lord and thank you for the great things that you're doing just pray God that you anoint us as a church Lord and just pray God also for the children that are in that home God that somehow we lift them up to you and we just thank you that it is possible through you Lord we know that through Christ all things are possible and we believe you in that this morning oh God we just ask you to continue working there according to your plan and your purposes thank you Lord in Jesus name amen amen you may be seated yes Lord anyone else feel like to share this morning just obey the Lord sisters or brothers hand up front here on the brothers sign anyone else you can get your hand up so the ushers can bring you the microphone Emmanuel Emmanuel was going through the prophecies of Jesus Christ and one thing that one time when I was reading about John the Baptist it really spoke to me because he had heard the prophecies about Jesus Christ he had baptized him and then when he saw the spirit of God descending upon Jesus Christ and he said to when they were walking by behold the Lamb of God and it was very encouraging to me to see that even when John was sitting in prison and he it came to the point where he wondered is this really the son of God and it really spoke to me to see John was a man of God he went to look for the answer he sought for the answer he was sitting in prison even though he could not go so he sent others to go and he was on a pathway he was going somewhere and that really blessed me because he went to look for an answer he did not just stay and wonder so I was really blessed by that Amen Thank you brother Oh the gospel the power of the Lord Jesus Christ Paul said I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God and the salvation to everyone that believeth Lord give us a revelation of the power of the gospel to change men's lives Anyone else want to share here yet this morning? There's a hand in the back there and one also up front here I just want to thank God also like brother Claire shared to be part of a place where the Lord's priest and where God has an interest in his people and he's working and I just want to thank him this morning for answering prayers this last week and in various ways I've been crying out to God and saying God doesn't seem to me like there's a lot of glory coming to you out of my life oh maybe some small ways but I just want to lay down my life and yield to what it is that you want to do and it's one thing and it's a blessing when God comes to our hearts and speaks his words to us and that's beautiful and I'm thankful for that but I'm also thankful when he speaks to us through brothers and so this past week has just been without going into a lot of specifics of how it's all worked out there's just been brothers that have shared things and God working with that and speaking other things it's just been a real blessing to me showing me the way I must go in small ways not things I must do on my own but how I can yield to him and what his eternal plan and purpose is and how if I'll submit and humble myself I can be part of that and so I just want to this morning in the congregation thank God for his faithfulness and thank him for brothers God bless you Merle Amen a body that is vitally connected one joint bound together with bands and ligaments as the scripture say yes thank you brother Emmanuel for preaching the word of God God bless you brother so spoke to my heart alright anyone else would like to share here I don't see any other hands brother Tim if we could have a song there would be many songs to choose from from the beautiful word of the Lord that has come to us so brother if you come and lead us in a song then we'll have a few announcements before we dismiss here