Turn your Bibles, please, to Romans 12. We come this week to verse 12, and God willing, we'll come to verse 13a this evening. Just by way of reminder, we've established the fact that the twelfth chapter of Romans begins a new section in the epistle to the Romans a section wherein the practical aspects of the Christian faith are underscored. We've asserted that in the first 11 chapters we largely find the doctrinal aspects to the Christian faith and then beginning at verse 1 in chapter 12 to the end of the letter, the practical. And we've also asserted that that's a very helpful distinction to divide the epistle between these two halves. Chapters 1 to 11, largely doctrinal. 12 to 16, largely practical, providing that we do not deny that the first half is practical and the second half is doctrinal. Furthermore, as long as we do not fail, or as long as we keep in mind that we can never divorce the second part of the letter from the first and that is ever underscored by the apostles' words in verse 1 of chapter 12, I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God. That is, everything we're to do in this second half of the letter, beginning with verse 1 and the twelfth chapter, everything we do in the practical section of the letter is to be done in light of and by the power of the mercies of God in Jesus Christ our Lord. And so I've asserted that many times, haven't I, brethren, that everything we're to do throughout this chapter is to be done in light of that one wondrous word, therefore, in light of all that God has done and is doing in us and for us for Jesus' sake. So we read our text, beginning at verse 12. Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer. Let us pray. Our Father, we do give thanks for your word. We give thanks for the doctrinal, more densely doctrinal section and the more densely practical. We pray that you would wed these two together in our hearts in our lives for the glory of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. I've asserted that we can divide up this chapter into three loose parts or sections. The first one is the first two verses where we find a summation of sanctification. And then beginning at verse three all the way to verse eight, he opens up various spiritual gifts that we as the body are to exercise for the good of the body. And then beginning at verse 9 to verse 21, we have about 25 short, some a little longer, directives or commandments or duties for the Christian. And I've asserted that in verse 9a, you find something of a text which is then expanded or expounded in verse 9b to the end of the chapter. That is, let love be without hypocrisy. And then he opens up how that love has relation to our fellow Christian, that is the brethren, to God, and also our enemies. How does unfeigned love look in relation to our brethren, to God, and to our neighbor, and in particular, to our enemies? Well, this is how unfeigned love looks. And we come this morning to verse 12, where we find three short directives joined together. Now, you can imagine that I've struggled with whether or not I should preach upon each of these individual directives. And I've opted to do as I did last week, and that is to preach the whole verse. And the reason largely is because, as we'll see throughout the message this morning, these three short directives are intimately and intentionally related. In fact, the close relationship that exists between these three phrases is brought out by some of the commentators. And let me just give you a sampling of two of them. Mr. Lenski said, joyful hope lifts us over present affliction and patient endurance is maintained by steadfastness in prayer. In other words, there's an intimate connection between these three duties. Joy, patience, and prayer. Or else, Geoffrey Wilson said, the summons to be patient in tribulation is significantly sandwiched between the call to rejoice in hope and to continue instant in prayer. He then says, the Christian does not sink under present trials because he is sustained by the hope of future glory and the divine strength which is imparted to him through prayer. And so these three short directives, brethren, are intimately and intentionally related. And I want to cover them together in one sermon this morning. We'll come to our text then under the two headings, the text examined by way of three considerations. And here we'll just look at each of the three directives individually. And then thirdly, the text expanded. And here I want to bring all of these three phrases together and show the connection between them by way of three observations. So first of all, notice the text examined by way of three considerations, and our three subheads will be simply rejoicing in hope, patience in tribulation, and steadfast in prayer. Notice first rejoicing in hope. And here I hope to answer and desire and intend to answer two questions. First, what is meant by hope? And secondly, what is meant by rejoicing in hope? Notice, first of all, what is meant by hope? Now, most of you, brethren, know that when the scriptures use the term hope, they use the term hope in a very different way than we usually use the word hope. For example, you might hear someone say, I hope it doesn't rain today. Or, I hope it does rain today. Or, I hope my car doesn't break down. You probably never hear anybody say, I hope it does break down. But the scriptures never use hope in that flippant, weak way. In fact, as many of you know, the scriptures use the term and the concept of hope to reflect a confident expectation in God fulfilling His promises to His people. A confident expectation that God will fulfill His promises to His people. Confident expectation that we will be saved from our sins and that we will live with God in Christ on a renovated earth forever and ever and ever. In short, the hope of the Christian is the hope of future salvation and all that that salvation entails. Now that this hope entails or consists of confident expectation is evident from various texts. For example, Job 8 verse 13 and 14, the hope of the hypocrite shall perish, whose confidence shall be cut off and whose trust is a spider's web. Here you see that the writer speaks of hope synonymous with confidence and trust. In other words, there's a sense in which the scriptures often use the word hope to describe our trust. In fact, sometimes the very same words in the Old and New Testaments are translated hope or trust. Because they're very closely related, if not synonymous. So there's confidence, or confident, but it's also true that this hope entails expectation. For example, Proverbs 10 and verse 28, the hope of the righteous will be gladness, but in contrast, the expectation of the wicked will perish. And so sometimes the scriptures use the term hope to underscore confidence, sometimes expectation, but it's best to web these two together to get this definition of biblical or Christian hope. Scriptural hope is the confident expectation that God will fulfill His promises to His covenant people. Now I want to show it to you from one text in haste. Back up to Romans 8. And let us begin reading at verse 22. Romans 8, verse 22. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pains to gather until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves, groan within ourselves eagerly waiting. Now, that phrase, eagerly waiting, that's a phrase that describes the activity of hope. eagerly, believingly waiting, confidently expecting. Eagerly waiting. Now notice what we're waiting for. The adoption, the redemption of our body. That is, future salvation. Verse 24, for we were saved in this hope, that is, unto this hope, But hope that is seen is not hope. For why does one hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with endurance or patience. It's actually the same Greek word that's in our text, as we'll see in a minute. In other words, we're patiently enduring all the things that we're forced to endure now as we eagerly wait for future salvation. And so, what does the Scripture mean? What does the Apostle Paul mean when he speaks of hope? He speaks, he means by hope, confident expectation that God will fulfill His promises in His Word with regards to His beloved covenant people. Alright? Secondly, what is meant by rejoicing in hope? Well, to rejoice in hope is to rejoice in the prospect of what we hope for. That is, is to allow what we're waiting for to have a present impact upon the way we think and feel. We are to presently rejoice in the happy prospect of what we're waiting for. Thus the Apostle commands us, to rejoice in the hope, that is, in the prospect of what we hope for, and we're to be presently filled with joy. Now here, let me digress for a second to address a common error, which concerns the nature of true joy. First of all, let me state the obvious, that we are here commanded to be filled with joy. We're commanded to rejoice. And we're commanded to rejoice as we reflect upon, as we ponder, and as we think about what we're waiting for. Thus, joy, dear brethren, is not based, Christian joy is not true joy, is not based upon our circumstances. Because if our joy is based upon our present circumstances, our joy can be taken away. Because our present circumstances can change, right? But who can take away from us our inheritance? Our inheritance is what we're waiting for as Christians. Nobody can take that away. That's been bought by Jesus' blood and it's as good as God's promise. That's waiting for us. And because that can never be taken away, that can never change, this joy can and should be experienced even in the midst of the greatest tribulations. And we're going to see that in a minute. One old Baptist preacher said, true joy is not a matter of temperament so much as a matter of faith. It is not a matter of circumstances. Somebody says, why does the Lord have the temperament to be joyful? Well, it's not about temperament. It's about believing what God has promised He will give you for the sake of His beloved Son. And thus I suggest that if we're to rejoice in hope, these things are necessary. Confidence and expectation. How is it that you and I are to rejoice in hope? Well, first, we're to have confidence. That is, we will never rejoice presently in the prospect of future salvation if we're not confident that we have future salvation awaiting us. In other words, brethren, if we're going to increase our present joy, if we're going to rejoice in the hope of future salvation, then we have to be more confident that we're promised future salvation. Now, why is it that God has given to us this future salvation? Has he given us this future salvation, this present and future salvation because of anything that we've done? No, it's all because of Christ. And so if we're going to increase our present joy and confidence that we have salvation awaiting us, then brethren, we have to be more certain that we look to the source of our hope, the basis and the foundation of our hope, which is the blood and the righteousness of Jesus Christ. My hope is built on nothing less. It's not built on what I do. It's not built on what I say. And it's not built on what I feel. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. Do you want to have more present joy? Do you want to be able to rejoice in the hope of future salvation? Then, dear friend, look away from yourself and look to Christ. Look to the sure promises of God in Jesus Christ our Lord. Look to His blood. Look to His righteousness. Look to His perfect obedience to His Father. Look to Christ as the basis and the foundation of your hope. Another Baptist commentator, this one. is Scottish, or was Scottish in the 18th century. He said this, This hope is founded on the unchangeable promise of God, on His promise accompanied by His oath, on the blood of Christ with which He has sealed His promise, on Him who is not only dead, but is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for His people. This hope then is both sure and steadfast, and enters into that within the veil, whither the forerunner, even Jesus, is for us entered. And so this hope rests upon Christ. And if we're going to have joy concerning it, we have to have confidence which is derived from looking to Christ. But there also needs to be expectation. That is, we must anticipate future salvation. We must, to put it simple, set our affections on things above. And friend, these are the reasons why so few Christians, or perhaps I can put it this way, why Christians so little rejoice in the hope of future salvation. Because they lack confidence, because they're looking everywhere else but Christ, and they lack expectation. That is, they're not looking for the things that they're hoping for. In other words, we have to get our eyes and our focus off this temporal world and fix our eyes upon things to come. Put another way, we're so earthly-minded that it's nearly impossible to rejoice in future salvation. But Christian friends, think with me for a few minutes about what awaits us as Christians. salvation from remaining sin, a perfected soul, a glorified body, to live with my Savior and see Him face to face on a world wherein righteousness dwells. That, dear friend, is what the Christian waits for. That is the hope of salvation. And as we reflect upon it, as we contemplate it, it ought to bring within our hearts a present rejoicing. But secondly, notice, having seen that we're to rejoice in hope, the apostle then adds, be patient in tribulation. And here I want to do the same thing that I did in the first point. Look first of all at what is meant by tribulation, and then secondly, what is meant by being patient in it. Notice, first of all, what is meant by tribulation. Well, this Greek word literally means to press together, to squeeze, or to apply pressure. Fundamentally, it refers to various hardships that press against the soul, that lay pressure upon one's soul. Thus it simply refers to affliction, hardship, and persecution that results from living a godly life in a godless age. Now I don't discount that this term sometimes includes the generic hardships that we all experience, Christian or non, in a fallen world. But usually the word is restricted to the hardships, to the persecutions, to the tribulations that we experience because we're Christian. These are unique tribulations. These are the tribulations or the afflictions of the righteous. These are the tribulations and the afflictions and the persecutions that we endure because we're living different from the world and we if you will, are going upstream. We're going against the grain. And there's this opposition. There's this tribulation. There's these troubles that result because of it. But also, this word doesn't only refer to those external trials or tribulations that press upon us because of our religion, because we're Christian, because we live differently and think differently from the world, but also to those inward troubles that are often self-imposed as we encounter various external trials and tribulations due to our Christian faith. For example, the Apostle Paul put it like this concerning himself in 2 Corinthians 7.5. For indeed, when we came to Macedonia, our bodies had no rest, but we were troubled on every side. That is, they had trouble from wicked people on every side because of their faith. But then he says this, outside were conflicts, troubles because of these people, inside were fears. In other words, He endured trouble from without, but also trouble from within. In other words, his tribulations, his afflictions, his troubles were both external and internal. He felt external opposition to the things of God, but he also felt inward opposition to the things of God, insofar as the flesh remains. In other words, We, as Christians, not only have enemies without us, but also enemies within us. And both of them are the cause of these tribulations. So, what are tribulations? In the most narrow sense, they are the external and internal troubles and sufferings that result because we live as Christians in a godless, wicked age. Secondly, what is meant by patience in tribulation? Well, the word here translated patient literally means to stay behind, to wait, or endure. It fundamentally means to endure through something without fleeing or quitting. to remain within a certain or specific condition regardless. Here, of course, it refers to remaining, enduring, bearing, or persevering within a state or condition of tribulation without quitting. That is, it necessarily implies opposition and resistance. to endure through tribulation, suffering, and hardship. We're to have patience in the midst of tribulation. For example, Jesus said in Matthew 10 and 22, you will be hated by all for my name's sake. There's the source of tribulation. The world is going to hate you, and here's why, because of me. Because you talk about me, you love me, you obey me, and you live like me. And to the degree that you do those things, the world will hate you. Right? There's going to be opposition. There's going to be tribulation. And then he says this. But he who endures, there's our same word, He who endures to the end will be saved. So, patience, according to the Scriptures, and the way that the Apostle here is using it, isn't merely passive. We think of patience as being passive. It's passive, but it's also active. We're enduring. We're persevering. We're enduring through great tribulation. Thus, to patiently endure or persevere in tribulation entails that you continue through the tribulation trusting and loving God. It's not just that you grin up and you bear it. But you endure it, you persevere through it, all the while trusting God, and all the while loving God. You're trusting God. That is, trusting that God is good. And that He's using these tribulations as a fire to purge away remaining draws. You understand, yes, these tribulations are coming at the hands of wicked and godless people. But God ultimately is the one who stands behind the fire, and He's turning it up as hot as He sees fit, and He's using these tribulations, even these wicked people. to further his purposes within you. So you're trusting God in the midst of the tribulation, but also you're loving God in the midst of the tribulation. That is, we refuse to grow bitter against God and entertain hard thoughts about and against God. This is what it means to be patient in tribulation, to endure or persevere through tribulation, loving and trusting God. Now, if I were to ask you children, name one person in the Bible that is known for his patience you could answer, and rightly so, if you did answer this way, that Job is identified in the New Testament as one who's known or renowned for his patience. For example, James 5.11. You have heard of the patience of Job. Same word as in our text. That is, the patience or the endurance or the perseverance of Job. Now, did Job undergo A variety of struggles and sufferings and persecutions and mistreatments. Yes, at the hands of Satan, he had hard providences also, but he also was maligned by his friends. He endured great tribulation. But he endured the tribulation, believing that God was good and that he was using all of his tribulations as a means to further his kingdom within his heart. And he loved God even in the midst of these fierce storms. And thus he said, Job did it in Job 13, 15. Though he slay me, yet I will trust him. That is, I will trust his purposes, and I will love his person. Now that doesn't mean that Job was perfect, because no one's patience is, save one. But nevertheless, he endured through his troubles. He endured, he persevered through his tribulations, trusting God and loving God all the way to the end. And this is what the Apostle Paul exhorts us to do. We are to be patient, we are to endure, we are to persevere in tribulation, we are to continue trusting and loving God even in the midst of the storm. Alright, so you have rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation. Thirdly, continue in prayer. And here I want to again answer two questions. What is meant by prayer? And secondly, what is meant by continue steadfastly? First of all, what is meant by prayer? Well, simply put, prayer is speaking to God. It entails adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. We adore God in prayer. We extol God in prayer. We glorify God in prayer. We also confess our sins in prayer. We acknowledge our needs in prayer. We ask for forgiveness in prayer. We also thank God for all of his tender mercies toward us in prayer. But we also ask God for certain things in prayer. We supplicate. We petition God. And here it seems evident that it's this latter aspect of prayer that is supplicating or petitioning God that's primarily intended. John Murray said, prayer is the means ordained of God for the supply of grace sufficient for every need and particularly against the faintheartedness to which affliction tempts us. And so what we find here in this third directive is the source by which we get the grace and the strength to endure in tribulation and to rejoice in hope. Secondly, what is meant by continue steadfastly? Well, the new King James here uses two English words to translate one single Greek word. Fundamentally, the word means to be devoted constant, diligent, consistent, or continual in something. We find a very similar phrase, for example, in 1 Thessalonians 5 and 17. Pray without ceasing. That is, pray regularly, continually, constantly. Pray without stopping. Pray regularly. Pray consistently, pray without ceasing. Again, there's the implication of opposition. Oppositions that might arise from within or without. Pray through the oppositions is the implication. Pray constantly and consistently even though there's opposition. Paul said something similar in Colossians 4.2. Continue earnestly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. Be watchful, be vigilant, be alert in prayer. Why? Because there's all of the oppositions that would seek to hinder you, both without and within. There's difficulties within and without. There's enemies within and without that seek to hinder you. Thus we learn. We can only rejoice in hope and endure through tribulations insofar as we continue steadfastly in prayer. Now what I want to do then is to take a few minutes and come secondly to the text expanded and suggest three sweeping observations in light of the relationship that exists between these three directives. Notice first of all, Christians enter the kingdom of God through great tribulations. That is, We as Christians all enter the kingdom walking on the same narrow path. And brethren, that narrow path is marked by varying degrees of tribulations. Now it's a tragedy in one sense, isn't it? Or a difficulty at least to speak to Western Christians about tribulations. And there's a few reasons. One being, is that we've developed a system of theology that actually makes Christians escape tribulation. We've developed a system of theology that actually teaches that Christians will escape tribulation. But furthermore, we as Christians live in a land where there isn't a lot, at least presently, persecution and tribulation. And brethren, that's not a bad thing, is it? It's a good thing. We live in a land, presently, that affords us to worship God according to the Scriptures. And that's a good thing. And thus, this is another reason why there's, relatively speaking, little tribulation experienced by us Western Christians. But there's another reason why I think we fail to experience the tribulation that this text speaks about, at least to the degree that other Christians have. And that is that we tend to live so much like the world. And because we live so much like the world, we feel or we experience so little friction from the world. But those who would seek to live godly in this age, my brethren, will experience persecution. The more we live like Christ, the more we'll be treated like Christ. It's not like we're trying to endure tribulation or experience tribulation. We're thankful for this season of our lives as Christians in America where we can worship God freely. But brethren, the more we live like Christ, it's certain the more friction and tribulation we experience from the world. All Christians have experienced tribulation. For example, Jesus said in John 14, 33, in the world you will have tribulation. To some degree, in varying durations, But nevertheless, you will. Acts 14.22, the apostles say, we must, through many tribulations, enter the kingdom of God. It's not perhaps, or it's a slim chance, or it's a possibility, but Jesus said, you will endure tribulations in this world. And we enter the kingdom of God, not around, not over, not under, but through great tribulation, said the Apostle Paul. In other words, dear brethren, no one goes to heaven but through tribulation. Now that will vary, won't it? It will vary in degree and duration. But nevertheless, Jesus said, because the world hated me, it will hate you also. Christians enter the kingdom of God through great tribulation. Our text teaches us that, doesn't it? Secondly, Christians have reason to rejoice in the midst of great tribulation. That is, although the world is filled with diverse troubles, the hope of glory, the hope of future salvation, the inheritance of the Christian is a cause for present rejoicing. Now, let me illustrate it. Let's say that I had my children on a Saturday, or for us it would be a Monday. I would say to the children in the morning, OK, look, this is what we're going to do today. We're going to spend the first part of the day cleaning the house. And we're going to spend the second part of the day raking the leaves. And it's going to take a lot of work. You might get a blister or two. We're going to have to go out, and we're going to rake all the leaves into one big pile. And then we're going to begin to bag them. And we're going to have probably about 25 or 30 big bags of leaves when we're done with it. And we're going to spend the day working hard. But at the end of the day, we're all going to taggers. Now Taggart's is our local ice cream shop. Best ice cream you've ever had. Made from scratch every Thursday morning. And we're gonna get banana splits. And you can imagine that the children, as they're laboring in the house, and as they're laboring in the yard, and as they're breaking a sweat, and as they're piling all of those dirty and dusty leaves together, and they're stuffing them down in the black garbage bags. You can imagine the thought that soon we're going to have ice cream. We'd put a little wind in their sails. My brother, what is that in comparison to what we have waiting for us? Yeah, we weren't now. And we endure great tribulation and great affliction and great hardship and great opposition. But brethren, we have something waiting for us that makes all of this worthy to endure, easy to endure as we anticipate what awaits for us. when Jesus comes back. Now, the scriptures often use this concept or this idea of setting before us the hope of salvation as incentive to joyfully endure present tribulation. And I want to illustrate it very quickly from a text or two. Let's start first of all with Romans 8 and look at verse 18. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. In other words, let me put it like this. What is a little bit of work in one afternoon in the yard in comparison to what awaits? Now is the day when we work hard. We're laboring. We're enduring great affliction and difficulty and hardship. But there's a glory that's going to be revealed in us. That is, we're going to have a new body. And we're going to have a glorified spirit. And we as glorified people are going to reflect the glory of Christ. That's the glory that awaits us. And we're going to live in a place that the Bible calls glory, that is heaven. And we're going to live in that glorious place with glorified bodies for all eternity. That's what's awaiting us. Yes, now you have to endure hardship. Now you have to endure affliction. Now there's time for tribulation. You're gonna get a callous or two now. But what is that in comparison to the glories that await? This is what the Apostle Paul is saying. Or else, very quickly, look to another text that you're familiar with. 2 Corinthians 4. And notice verse 16. Therefore, we do not lose heart, even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, and here affliction is used in the most broad sense, yes to include that religious persecution, but the sufferings that we all experience in a fallen world. Verse 14, for our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen, for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. What are these light and rather short afflictions and sufferings in comparison to the eternal weight and duration of heaven. And thus I submit to you, brethren, that Christians not only enter the kingdom of God through great jubilation, but they have great reason to rejoice presently in the midst of great jubilation. Thirdly, and finally, Christians have a provision of grace to assist them in tribulation. Now here I just want to underscore something that I've underscored and emphasized many times before. In fact, I think it was Saturday as we were driving off to the Reformation conference in the morning. And as I was explaining to one of my daughters what I was planning to preach to you this morning, when I came to this part of my sermon, as I was reviewing it to her, and as I spoke about how I'm going to tell the people that we are to rejoice in hope and be patient in tribulation only insofar As we find grace provided for us in Christ through the means of prayer, only to that degree will we be enabled to rejoice in hope and be patient in tribulation. She said to me, Father, didn't you say something very similar to that recently? And I said, I probably did. And likely I'll say something very similar to it tonight. Probably I'll say something very similar to it next week and the next week and the next week. And it is just this, that you and I do not have the grace and the strength natively in us to comply with God's directives or commands. But we find grace and strength solely and only and abundantly and fully and freely in Christ. And that's why the Apostle Paul tells us to be constant and consistent in prayer. Why do we have to be constant and consistent in prayer? But because we remain constant and consistently in need of grace. How often do you need grace? How often do you need strength? Then, brethren, that's how often you need to be consistent in prayer. Now to be a little bit more specific, How do we get the grace given to us in Christ? But by continuing in prayer, and specifically, we must ask God, first, feelingly for grace, and then secondly, believingly for grace. And then we'll be done. Alright? Notice first, we must ask feelingly. That is, painfully and utterly aware of our own native weakness and neediness. We have to feel our need. We have to know our need. And we have to lay our needs before God. We have to ask Him feelingly, but secondly, believingly. That is, we equally pray conscious of God's provision for us in Christ. We have to pray, brethren, conscious of our need and conscious of God's provision for us in Christ. Now, let me show you this in closing from a few texts. Let's look at one from the old, two very well-known texts from the new, and then we'll be finished. All right? Very quickly, let's back up to Psalm 28. This is just a sampling of many psalms where we find these two concepts wed together. They were to ask feelingly and believingly. Psalm 28, and let me read a few verses, beginning at verse 2, and then we'll jump ahead to verse 6. Psalm 28, to hear the voice of my supplications when I cry to you. when I lift up my hands toward your holy sanctuary. Now keep in mind, as I read these verses, the concepts or the ideas of praying conscious of our need and conscious of God's provision. Verse 6. By the way, from verse 3, 4, and 5, we find out, at least in part, the cause of his struggle, and that is wicked people who were oppressing him. His tribulations were directly connected to the wicked people who opposed Him. So he cries out to God, verse 2. And then he says in verse 6, Blessed be the Lord, because He has heard the voice of my supplications. The Lord is my strength and my shield, my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped. Therefore, my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him. I cry out to Him with a sense of my neediness, conscious of my needs and my weakness, but also conscious of the fact that for the sake of His Son, He will hear me, and He will be unto me my strength and shield, and His grace will enable me to rejoice in the hope of salvation, even in the midst of great tribulation. Alright? Let's illustrate it again from two very familiar texts in the New Testament. How about Luke 11? As I was thinking about which text to look at, I almost felt embarrassed because I turn to these two texts so often. But I just want to underscore, brethren, these two great principles from these two wonderful texts that we're to pray both feelingly and believingly. We're to feel our own needs. and to believe that God has made provision for us in Christ. Luke 11, look at verse 9. So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you. You know that the verbs are all present tense active. Keep on asking. Keep on seeking. Keep on knocking. Be persistent. desperate in your prayers. Verse 10, for everyone who asks receives and he who seeks knocks or finds and to him who knocks it will be opened. And then notice this incentive he gives in verse 11. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? Verse 13. If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more? Brethren, just ponder that phrase. How much more? How much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? That is, how much more will your Father give to you the grace you ask? And then finally, one last text. Look at Hebrews 4. And let's begin reading at verse 14. Hebrews 4.14, seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore Come boldly to the throne of grace that we might obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Brethren, why is it that we need mercy, but because we're guilty? Why is it that we need grace, but because we're weak? We need mercy. We need grace. And we have to come to the throne of grace feelingly. That is, feeling our need for mercy and grace. But also, we're to come believingly. And why are we to come believingly? Well, look at the last three words of verse 15. Yet without sin. In other words, my friend, we're to come to God through Christ. Not only feeling our needs, but also believing for Jesus' sake that He will hear our humble petitions and He will give us the Holy Spirit. Rejoice in hope. Be patient in tribulation. And here's how. Be constant in prayer. May God help us to this end. Amen. Our Father, we do ask that You would help us to feelingly, believingly, and constantly come to the throne of grace for Jesus' sake and find mercy and grace in our time of need. Oh, make it so, our Father, we pray for Jesus' sake. Amen.