Are scripture reading is from Exodus, chapter 40, verse 33, excuse me through 38. It's the last section, I must apologize.
I just came back from the youth conference that was held by our presbytery. And second day we were all screaming and yelling, I lost my voice then. So I'm actually recovered now. And you're on the, I think end of it. But here it is. Exodus chapter 40, verse 33, through 38, let us rise as we receive the Word of the Lord. And then I'll pray for us Exodus, chapter 40, verse 33, through 38, this is the word of the Lord. And he Moses erected the cord around the tabernacle, and the altar and set up the screen of gait of the court. So Moses finished the work, then the, then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the Tent of Meeting, because the clouds settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from the tablet over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that he was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was on their tabernacle by day and Fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the hearts of Israel throughout all their journeys. This is the word of the Lord, praise be to God.
Let us go to the Lord in prayer, that he would bless the reading the preaching and hearing of the Word. Oh, Heavenly Father, you are worthy of all praise and glory and honor and we come before you to receive from you your truth from you, from your lips, to hear what you have to speak to us. And Lord, we ask that you would be present here that your spirit would work in our hearts, when you empower me that I may rightly divide the Word and proclaim Your truth that your church should be edified that Christ would be glorified, that we will live for your glory. May His name exalted this morning, we pray this in Jesus name, Amen. Please be seated. journeys. Do you love taking journeys? I'm sure it kind of changes once you have kids, doesn't it? That things kind of change. And when you go on a journey, oftentimes it's for a reason. Now, as Americans, oftentimes our journeys are often tied to vacations, but journeys in ancient times was not really journey for fun. It's more like Oregon Trail. Right?
Have you ever played those little games, I used to play those games on the computer. And I tell you what, I die so many times, I don't think I ever reached Oregon. And that's how the ancient journeys really are to us, we can just fly there, we can ride a cruise there, we can get transported there. But that's not how ancient people traveled, or their concept of journey. I know a lot of people these days say, oh, life is a journey. I don't think life is a journey, because journey is pretty deadly. And here, the ancient Israelites were delivered from the land of Egypt, and they're set on a course. And before God is God, God is now taking them into a journey. They stationed here for 40 chapters of Exodus, actually about a year they've stayed here on Mount Sinai. And the third year of the first year is when they arrived in Mount Sinai. And the second month of the second year is when they're heading out. So about a year has been spent here on Mount Sinai. And the reality is that God is really taking them on a journey to the promised land, the land of Canaan, the land that which was promised to them. And if you were to see the Old Testament, not only as what has happened in history, and what God has done in the redemptive history, but also if you look at First Peter, he reminds us that all the things that happened to them all the things that was revealed to them, and all the things that how they lived and moved and had there being in the Old Testament recorded for us is really for you. For me that these things are not written down for them. I mean, they don't need to be written down. They don't need to go. Well, yeah, that's what happened. That's right. No, it's written down for us. And God has preserved it throughout the generations so that you and I can look at the text and realize and learn from it, and they will make grow in it. If we were to say, the text here really giving us a journey, a journey to heaven, if I may use that word to the promised land, where your king is preparing a home for you, then I think is fitting for us to recognize, though, that life is I'm hesitant to say life is journey, because life is only a journey, a true journey, when we are in Christ. You see, the life outside of Christ is not a journey. There is no destination, a journey has a destination. And he's only true of the church, to have a journey. And because we have a true destination, the goal that which we are going to everyone else, apart from the very presence of God in the end in their relationship with the Lord. They're not on the journey. They don't have a destination, they're just trying to make sense of their lives in the wilderness. But for the people of God, please hear this, you are on a journey. Now, it's not an easy journey. It's not a simple journey. But it is a journey with a destination. And also this journey is to be walked in a very particular way, as we see our text this morning.
Please understand the way the Genesis way the Exodus, excuse me, be gone. The way Exodus be gone earlier in the chapter one and following is this interesting narrative of Israelites now being in Egypt for 4400 years, the fourth generation has passed. And they're now in Egypt as enslaved people, their slaves, making bricks, bricks in the morning, breaks in the evening, and the lunch between bricks, when they wake up and breaks, before they go to sleep. There are brick making people, all they knew how to do for four generations, probably a little bit less than that. But it's bricks. I never made bricks in my life. But I've seen bricks being baked in parts of the world, in Africa, they just get mud and pile it up, put some straw in it, they make a template, they let it bake in the sun, bricks, it's very mindless task. And that's all they did. That's how they spent for generations, after generations, after generations.
And what you see is, as soon as they were out of the land of Egypt, it takes them about a two months worth of journey to get to a place called Mount Sinai.
And that's really where they end up. And the exodus is most of the story of Exodus is really in Mount Sinai. And what are they doing Mount Sinai, they make a tent, and they chill there. For the young people language, they just stay there for next 1011 months, just staying in their tents. And they're just waiting for this man named Moses who delivered them who brought them out of the land of Egypt by mighty power by 10 plagues, and they deliver them through the Red Seas. And they brought them finally here. And they initially he told them, the reason why I'm taking you is so that we may worship God. That's what God Moses has said to Pharaoh, let my people go, that they may serve Me that they may worship Me. And finally, they come to Mount Sinai. And as they arrive there for next time, until end of Exodus 40 is really they're sitting there and they're waiting to do one thing to build the tabernacle. The mission of Exodus is the creation of the tent of meeting and the tabernacle, and all the materials that's needed, how it's to be built, and whom it who is to work at it, and how it's to be patterned. And all of that is given through Moses, and God pours even hood spirit upon two men who now are powered and powered by the Spirit and receive a skill sets to build a tabernacle and all the intricacies and all the things that's necessary to build a temple. And really Exodus is about the temple and establishment of the worship of the Lord. So when you come to the end of chapter 40, which is end of Exodus, verse 33, here we go, the Moses actually 31 If we start with 32, excuse me, and they went into the tent of meeting, and when they approach the altar, they washed as the Lord commanded Moses, and he talking about Moses erected the court around the tabernacle and the altar and set up the screen of the gates of the court. So Moses finished the work Here's my first point. The Tabernacle is now finished, tabernacle accomplished. That's a weird thing for us to consider, because you think Exodus event is really about deliverance. Right? We often think of Exodus as deliverance out of bondage of slavery. But the real goal of deliverance of Exodus event is not freedom. But it's worship. In one sense, the reason why Israelites were taken out of the land of Egypt, it's not for their freedom. But for the worship of God, to serve God, if I may put it another way to saying it is this, they were delivered from the bondage of Egypt, to be now bound to the Lord. They're not there to just be freely live as how they ever they please, but they're called to serve the Lord. So the the chapters of Exodus really is Israelites being delivered from one bondage, from one place of service of making bricks, and building the temples of Egyptians. Now coming into now into different kinds of bondage, if I may use that word different kinds of service, to build the tabernacle, which at this point is transient. You don't build a building, yet, which comes much later, when Solomon built the temple. Here is an establishment of the Lord's temple in a tent form. It's more important for us to recognize that this example is really true of Christianity, true of you and I, if you have put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you've delivered from the bondage of sin the world and Satan into temptation thereof, and you've delivered from him, the evil one, and you're brought into the kingdom of God, please understand, now you have another king, another one whom you are to serve another one whom you are to worship. Christianity begins here, recognizing that you are saved on to the Lord. Because this is a difficult concept, I think, for so many of us, because we live as Americans.
freedom, liberty, is the mantra of our generation. Certainly, it's, it's a wonderful thing to have. It's wonderful right to have. When we have freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom, is a good thing. Because so much of the world has not been free. But what we don't realize, when you make freedom, the ultimate divine ultimate god, what happened to us? Well, we begin to have freedom of our bodies, freedom of our genders, freedom to decide how what gender you will be, it really creates a chaos at the end, doesn't it?
Somebody sent to me a United Methodist, their form of general assembly meeting and all the people come up and they tell their where their name where they're from, they talk about their genders and their pronouns. And, and one of the lady, I think it was a lady. And I do not say that to be mean.
have said something. And I think the moderator spoke referring to the individual. And then the individual corrected them. I'm sorry for the confusion. I'm a them. And the face in front of the moderator was just confusion. How do you even have a meeting when everybody's correcting each other on genders and how you're to call them hard to refer to them? I mean, in the name of freedom, right? However you want to express your gender freedom, in reality creates nothing but confusion. And it's so lost. You see, the fact of the matter is, freedom by itself has no purpose has no real sense of value or worth. Freedom is meant to be bound within certain set it is to be regulated, isn't it? And it is on to something.
The Freedom The Lord has granted to you is freedom from sin. so that you may now be bound to righteousness not to be no longer to be servants of sin, but the servants of God. And here, when Moses has finished his work that's assigned to him, that ultimate freedom is really designated by this image of the tent of the meeting. So tend to the meeting or the tabernacle is, is a structure that the Lord tells Israelites to build. It's It's interesting structure. And it's really a temple is a replica of the Tent of Meeting, it has what we call the holy of the holies, or the inner part.
It's a room, it's an area where they put the tabernacle where they put the Ark of the Covenant in it. And this area is a place where only the high priests can enter into it once a year. It's a very peculiar location. And the idea is where the tent where the Ark resides, is this is the where the whole the Spirit of God and the holiness of God, the very presence of God resides.
And then there is an area called the holies, which is actually on the front side, while it's supposed to face east. So maybe I should do it this way for you.
Here's the whole lease holy of the holies. And then here is the holy, which is in the front and the outer layer of the Holy of Holies. And the AI and there is certain set of articles in here.
And the idea is the priests would enter in here and have burned incense, and they will have a communion with the Lord representing the people. So not anyone can enter it, only the priests can enter this particular location. So please recognize holy of the holies, only the high priests can enter once a year for a special occasion. And the Holy of Holies glory. holies excuse me, is where the priests and certain set of priests can enter in after a certain set of rituals a couple times a year, really a couple times a week to enter in to their duties, and then they're to exit. And then there's this outer court where most of the Israelites can enter in. And this is where the sacrifices occur. This is where people come and they offer and burn sacrifices and poor drink offerings and, and wave offerings and such. And so that's the outer court say the structure of inner the the Holy of Holies, and the holies. And the outer court. And what happens here is finally Moses finishes building the outer court and all of this structure because it's meant to be a tent, because they're moving around in the wilderness is made out of fabrics, and and, and leather and such things that they can be moved with, so that you can pitch the tent, and you can put it away, and the Levites are to carry them upon their shoulders as they carry them. Right. So this is a monumental work. And when God has rescued the motherland of Egypt, this is the project this is the mission of Israelites. And there are certain patterns that's supposed to be come upon them and, and certain certain things are supposed to it's very intricate details that's given here of how to create this. And this is the later in times of Solomon, he is the one who built similar structures, but out of stones.
But what is all of these structures pointing toward to actually points toward the temple structure that was in the Garden of Eden, the Garden of Eden, is a sense of the outer court of the temple of the Lord, before sin. So temples structure, the Garden of Eden is a temporal structure where they have a gate toward the east, you see, and they were caught out and they were sent out toward the through the gate of the east side. And God has placed the cherub beams to guard the gate, just like how God has told priests and Levites to guard the gate of tabernacle and later the temple. So there is a sense of the Garden of Eden which is a temple structure, which actually is also a replica of the cosmic reality. Put it this way, the heavens is the throne of the Lord, where the Mercy seed is replicated in the Holy of Holies. And the earth is his footstool, and such so the temple structure actually reflects the cosmos in its tiny, minut form. Let me put it this way, the entire creation was created merely for glory of the Lord.
The whole universe was created to worship God and this whole universe was designed and created as a temple of the Lord, and it is to glorify Him. So big, very beginning create the beginning, the alpha point of creation, the beginning point of creation when God created the heavens and the earth is a temple structure where God is to be glorified and worshipped.
When God rescues Israelites out of the land of Egypt and brings forth them into Mount Sinai, God is really doing something, what we call a new creation. And the mission of Israelites was to establish, or should I say, reestablish the creation work, which is worship of God. So here Moses completes and finishes the work, is the beginning point of that new worship, breaking off that Egyptian worship of idolatry which the 10 plagues were judgment against the gods of Egypt, Egypt, and Egyptians ultimately accumulating, pointing toward the death of the son of Pharaoh, which should have been the next divine. So judgment of Gods is at the battle in the Exodus event in Egypt. And God rescues the people for himself. And here God is finally has accomplished his true worship in this tabernacle.
But that's not all. The Tabernacle is finally built. And after the tabernacle is built, now the worship of the Lord now has to be fully realized, and established, verse 34, when the tabernacle is built, now the real deal occurs, verse 34, the cloud cover all the Tent of Meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. It's just as when God has created the heavens and the earth and place Adam in the Garden of Eden to keep it to guard it as how he has told Aaron and his children to keep and guard the tabernacle. And after that you hear this text where when Adam and Eve have sinned and fallen, they've in their hidden away says, the voice of the Lord or the sound of the Lord, they heard it is in one sense, or it's the spirit of the Lord that has worked and walked in midst of God's people in his temple ground. The idea is after the creation, that it is the spirit now resides with his people. And here in this tabernacle event, is not only is tabernacle built and finished, but now the reality now settles in, that the Spirit of God falls in his temple, in His tabernacle. And the glory of the Lord is now filling this place. Think about it for a moment. Glory of the Lord. I don't know what that looks like. I don't even know what how visually speaking what they've seen. But it was so real. It was so tangible. It was more real than this desk, or this pulpit. It was more real than the pews there you're sitting on is more real than the person you're sitting next to the glory of the Lord was so real, that he says in next verse, Moses, verse 35, was not able to enter the Tent of Meeting, because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord fill the Tabernacle.
The somehow God has manifest himself upon the tabernacle in such a way they did was more real than they have ever seen.
And they could not enter it. You see, the tabernacle is now build, but the reality of the tabernacle, that was it was symbolizing and pointing toward is now God is demonstrating what he is doing, he has poured, if I may use this word, His Spirit in the tabernacle, we looked at earlier in the text, as we looked at in Corinthians, that we are the jars of clay. It is, in one sense, we as the body of Christ, you are that very tabernacle, the very temple of the living God. And then we when we looked at it is in that Jars of Clay, as we looked at in a second Corinthians chapter four, what is there in the jar, the glory of God is present. You see this event right here after the resurrection of Christ, establishing of the Body of Christ as Christ is the now the head of the church. If I may use a template that this figures for, to really those glory falling down, I can use this word I think confidently, is Pentecost is the pouring of His Spirit upon the tabernacle of God. In the new covenant in the New Testament realization is that the Spirit of God fall that fell on the tabernacle is the reality of the Spirit of God that falls upon the believers who are now the members and also the body of Christ. Christ, you are the temple of the living God, aren't you? Any new is the full glory, more glorious than the glory that has fell upon this tabernacle that even Moses cannot enter in. Every believer, everyone who has confessed the Lord Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and who has put their trust in Him and to live by His power, the power of the Holy Spirit, to wage war against our flesh and the world and the devil, every one who has bade him your king and your Savior, you have received the Holy Spirit, as in this Taberna. Let me put it this way. I wish I could be there to see it. Right.
I think it's the other way around. I think Moses would love to be here and see, all of this was pointing forward to is you who has received the Spirit of the reason God risen Christ in you. Because that's the most glorious event, that the glory of God is contained in this jars of clay. Church, here's a reminder to you, of all the things of the old covenant is nothing but shadows and types.
And for those of us who are now on this side of the cross of Calvary, waiting for that great consummation of the return of the risen Christ, you have greater revelation, and greater fulfillment and greater enjoyment of all that was promised in the Old Covenant, the Pentecost here, do you know this, then when you and I gather together, every day on the Lord's day, the Lord's presence is here, truly, power powerfully and more real, than this glory that Moses cannot enter in, that we have a veil that's been torn apart, no longer the holy of the holies, having a wall or having a curtain that blocks it. But remember, when Christ risen from the dead, there was a sundered apart from above, and the Holy Spirit in the presence of God has fell upon all of his people.
Not only is the holy of the holy is only a place, a High Priest can enter in once a year. But now, the holy of the holies is in you. You are the Holy of the holies. And Spirit of God resides in you. And you are indeed royal priesthood. Do you affirm that? Do you believe this truth? I mean, we want all these action, don't we? We want to see like, Well, I wonder what that looks like I do. I think about it, I visualize it. And if I have probably better than what I can imagine, right? But hold that. Hold that thing that you hear imagine in your brain, in your mind, is nothing compared to what you already have now. I mean, that's exciting, isn't it?
of the temple when Moses said when when Solomon built the temple, and the Spirit of God fell in the temple, and they couldn't enter in the glorious sight that much later, in period when they when the exiles return from Babylon, and they tried to rebuild the temple, and they wept because the temple was, was so tiny, and glory did not fall on it, even though they reestablished the temple. And they were weeping over it. And how small that was. In the latter days, when, in the days of Jesus, when they went to their temples, the the the disciples of Christ was marveling and look what big stones they use. Look, what an awesome thing this is that we're here to see the temple. All of that glory and all of the pomp and all of the Majesty what it seemed to be, church, you have 1000 fold, and more. You may not feel that way. Because things that's given and granted to us are much simpler in form, and yet much more rich, in fulfillment.
Because the spirit that fell here on this tabernacle really was pointing forward to you, in our days, the Spirit of God, falling upon us. So the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, on this glorious journey that Lord has set apart and called us to establish His Kingdom and established the tabernacle, he's done it. He has finished the work and he's the one who has poured His Spirit upon us and empower us. And then now finally, he's the one who now sets us forth. Verse 36. It now describes the way in which the Israelites journey through the wilderness, verse 36, throughout all their journeys, the mighty Israelites, whenever the cloud was set up from over the tabernacle, and the people of Israel would set out, if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day they was taken for the cloud of the Lord wasn't tabernacle by day, and the fire was only by night, the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys. Church, we are in the wilderness. We're waiting to enter into the land of Canaan or we were waiting to pass the Jordan River to enter in or the return of Christ, that we can enter into the promised land where true rest is where we finally see the Lord face to face. Where we can now rest from our toil. The final destination but till then turd you are in the wilderness is dry here isn't it? is tiring here isn't ours in the camp for five days and I lost voice the first day. Hot, humid rain the whole week. I mean, ants were biting me my clothes are filthy, my shoes are filthy. I stink and everyone else think terrible things are clogging the bathroom and shower and is dirty and and on top of it. They made us play messy games, throwing bird feeds at one another and slime at people.
It was an I was with middle school boys guys. Yes, that's a tough journey to wilderness. And now I'm finally here showered with this nice clean suit on a journey. And the Christian journey in the wilderness is a journey in the wilderness.
You're meant to be hungry.
You're meant to suffer. You're meant to cry. You're meant to shed some blood. You're meant to have difficulties in life. We're meant to suffer. We're meant to sin against and even sin against others. The journey you're in church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a journey in the wilderness.
Not not on a cruise ship. To go see Aurora or something? No, you're walking. You're panting you're thirsty. times you cannot sleep for days. times. Your tent has a rock underneath and it hurts your back when you lay on it. Things break. Kids run away.
They don't listen, they yell they scream. your in laws are not not having it. It's a mess, isn't it? That's That's what life is right. Even as Christians, you think Christian life will be perfect and beautiful. There'll be flowers all over and everything would smell great and love great. And husbands and wives love one another forever and ever. Just imagine the first day together as a husband and wife. And that's no longer true, right?
Christian life is meant to be a journey church. But it's a different kind of journey, isn't it as I have made an introduction, the unbelievers they don't even know the destiny. But we know our destiny. We know the end is not on wilderness. But it's the promised land. It's a place of rest. So now is a time to set forth and to to march forward.
But as we are to march forward, know this, that you're never to March alone. You're too You're never to march by You, yourself.
Here there to march the people of Israel would set out the entire people the body would work together and walk together.
They'll cooperate. Of course there are problems when you walk with one another. You have disagreements difficulties. And that's also true of church, isn't it? I'm sure Bay Haven is perfect church and everybody loves one another and you kumbaya every night circling around the fire bonfire and just loved his juicing out right?
Hope that's true. But there are times I cannot stand this person. I wish he would speak less. I wish she would do this and do that. That's a stroll.
And yet. It's a beautiful thing because the Lord has brought you together to get on this journey together. Behave and I've seen the birth of your church. And I had a privilege of serving you in their very glorious days, out in the sun worshiping together, sweating together. But now we have AC, Governor AC building and you hear kids in the back.
It's a beautiful thing. The Lord has brought us thus far. And we were here, you're here together because you have one another.
And every time I hear I receive the news and newsletters and memberships growing and the more people are gathering, it's a beautiful thing. And prayer for you is that you will continue to grow. And you continue to recognize you need one another.
There are times I don't think I need my little toe, but I do need my little toe with a nail on it. We all need one another.
The church needs you. So my encouragement to you church is you need one another. And others also need you be faithful to this body. I encourage you to be faithful to become a member to serve to love this is it. This is what God has given to you on this journey. serve faithfully figure out how can I serve whereas the Lord's call for me to serve his body? I encourage you to consider how can I serve this church? Are you gifted with music? Please serve with music?
Are you gifted children, please serve in children's ministry.
Maybe the Lord is calling you to the offices, holy sacred offices of deacon or elders. Please be eager to serve in those offices.
It's a calling. But also it's a need of the church, serve the Lord and serve the body because you're on this journey together.
And you're members of this body, we're all different. But Lord uses that to establish His Kingdom and encouragement to you church is recognize this is the body of Christ. And on this journey, you need one another.
You need one another. And second point on this journey that's been set forth is this verse 36.
Throughout all their journey, whenever the cloud was taken over the tabernacle, the people of Israel will set out the one that leads and guides and directs them is the Lord Himself. The Lord is on the day and on the night is always visible. I mean, just imagine I always think about this right?
Because the tabernacle is right in the center. And they are in the four corners, the Israelites would encamped around it, circle around it, and the camping is in the right in the middle, right.
And in the night time, there is a pillar of fire. You understand that pillar of fire. I don't know how big it is. But I'm sure it's bright. Very, very bright.
And here's the thing, I cannot sleep at night if there's a light in my eyes. So I imagine Israelites in there 10, then their their light is coming through their tent fabric and they can see the light. Light is good if you're awake. If you're going trying to go to sleep, it's a little bit hard, isn't it? What am I trying to say? I imagine that they're sitting there, and they're looking at the light. And they're looking at it and saying the Lord is with me. Even at nighttime.
Because daytime, you have a pillar of cloud and you see it and you're like yeah, but in nighttime, the Lord has made it in such a way. It's not a cloud.
Because in the nighttime, it's really hard to see. But he made it so that you can see the light, you can see that fire that if you go close, you can even feel the heat, that from the edge of the camp. No one would miss the fact that the Lord is with them. The Lord has made an imprint in the Israelites throughout the day and throughout the night. That he is with them. There are times times where they may not feel that way. If you look at their journey, if you read numbers, especially in and when he recapitulates that in Deuteronomy, you read it and these guys were dumb.
They complain, right? They complain about man, they complain about not having food.
They complain about a B and C and D they complain. But tell you what, in the morning, there was a pillar of cloud in the night there was a pillar of fire is the Lord with us or not. They would ask that question over and over in the wilderness. And yet it's right there. If you just turn your eyes and just look at the center of their camp. They will see us it is important for us the church of the Lord Jesus Christ is that the Lord is with you in this wilderness. He never leaves you he never forsakes you, there's a pillar of cloud and pillar of fire that's present among you. Sometimes you take your eyes off of it. And you mope over the sufferings and the conditions of wilderness.
But the Lord is always with you in this journey. In his glory, He is present with you. You see, though, please understand how this works. The Lord does not take away wilderness, he did not turn the wilderness into paradise. But he promises to be with them. And indeed, he is with them. And it is also so true for you, the risen Christ, as he has gone to heavens, what did he say to the church, there will be helpers that will come, and He will be with you the Spirit of Christ. And indeed, the body of the Lord Jesus Christ. No, this the spirit is, is with you in this journey. Are you weary this morning? Are you afraid? are you weak, there are there things that you cannot speak and you fear for? I don't know where you are on your journey toward the promised land. But know this, the Lord is present. That's our only comfort in life and death, that I belong body and soul to this Christ, and He will never, ever forsake you. For Church, the Lord sent you forth in this glorious journey throughout the wilderness. Let us stand firm in the Lord Jesus Christ. And for those of you who have not known this Lord, and you're wandering in the wilderness, not on the journey, the invitation this morning is just clear, come, come to the Lord come to his tabernacle come to Christ, who has laid down his life, in because he himself entered into the wilderness. He is the one who battled Satan, in the wilderness. And finally upon the cross of Calvary, he is the one who died, the ultimate and he tasted the ultimate dryness, and the brokenness and sin in that wilderness, when he was crucified on the cross. And He was forsaken, so that we may never be forsaken. So come to the Lord, who is a true Israel who has tasted all the blunt billows of the wilderness, and yet who endured and who has made his church's own and empowering you by His Spirit. So invitation to you is to come. Come to the Lord, let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you that we are set on a glorious journey through the wilderness, we thank you that you do not leave us as orphans, but you can you have come and made us as your own and you have set us apart for your glory. And what a joy it is that we come to worship you. What a joy it is that we no longer have to worship the things of this world but to be able to worship the train living God, we thank you that you're the one who is now with us, guiding us protecting us. Lord, comfort your flock, comfort to this church and strengthen them and empower them We pray this in Jesus name. Amen.