Please turn with me in your Bible to the book of Exodus, Exodus chapter one. Sometimes God has ordained that we as his people will go through major trials. This is seen in a good number of passages in the Bible, including this one, where the Israelites went through a major, major trial. Lately, I've been thinking of the trials suffered by our brethren currently in China, as our family has been reading a very good Christian fiction book titled Safely Home, written by Randy Alcorn. And it takes place in communist China in the last decade or two. And so what you read of in the book that Christians going through in the storyline does reflect what our brothers and sisters today go through in China. Now, there are some things that I don't care for the book. I really have some issues with the way that Randy Alcorn depicts God. But still, it is a very good book and has been making me think. about what our brothers and sisters in China go through for Christ's sake. As many are imprisoned, many are tortured. Some even die under that torture. And they are called upon to recant their faith in Christ, but they are faithful by God's grace unto death, even in the most severe of trials. Our brothers and sisters are an example for us in China. We think we have trials. We don't know. trials until you learn of what our brothers go through in some other countries. In the Bible, we find that God's people suffer trials, and sometimes major trials. We also find good news in the Bible for God's people when they are in trials. And we will see this in our study tonight. There is good news in the Bible for God's people as they go through trials. I'm gonna read to us Exodus chapter one, verses one through 14. Please stand in honor of the word of God. Verse one. These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. All the descendants of Jacob were 70 persons. Joseph was already in Egypt. Then Joseph died, and all his brothers, and all that generation. But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly. They multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them. Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land. Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Python and Ramses. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied, and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves, and made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work, they ruthlessly made them work as slaves." This is God's holy word. Please be seated. I want to remind you of the big picture in the book of Exodus, as we should always, when we study a portion of a book, keep in mind how it is connected to the whole. Last time that we were in Exodus, we looked at introductory matters, including an outline of the book. And the outline that I'm using of the book, I have put in the notes for review the three main sections of the outline. In the first third of the book, there's the departure from Egypt. In the middle of the book, the Israelites are at Mount Sinai, and God gives them His law, His covenant. And then in the third section of the book, they're still at Mount Sinai, and God gives them the instructions for constructing the tabernacle, and then they obey those instructions in constructing that tabernacle. And let's just review, what is the significance of the tabernacle? What is a tabernacle? Mom? Right, so it's a meeting place between Israel and who? And God. So the tabernacle was where God would dwell, in the holy of holies. In the tabernacle he would dwell in the midst of his people. So that's where we're moving towards in the book of Exodus. In the first section, God redeems His people out of slavery in Egypt. He brings them to Himself. He establishes His covenant with them. And all of this is so that He might dwell in their midst, which is how the book ends. So, big picture. Now let's zero in on our passage for tonight. chapter 1 verses 1 through 14. Which has two sections to it. In the first half we see the Israelites multiplication. The Israelites multiplication. Look in Exodus chapter 1 closely at verses 1 through 4. These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob. So there's someone here who has two names. What are those two names? Jacob and Israel. Why does he have two names? Yes, so as God was working by his grace in Jacob's life, God changed Jacob's name to Israel. It was a very significant moment in Jacob's life. Both names are used here. These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. Now, these verses remind us of Genesis, and last time we saw how it's almost a word-for-word quotation from the book of Genesis. Now it is important to keep in mind what the Lord said to Jacob, or we could say to Israel, at the time of this event that we are reminded of. The event is when the sons of Israel came to Egypt with their father Jacob, each with his household. It's important to keep in mind what the Lord said to Jacob at the time of their coming to Egypt. So turn back to Genesis 46. Genesis 46. We're going to read the first four verses in Genesis 46. So Israel took his journey with all that he had and came to Beersheba and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. So he's on his way to Egypt. He has just learned from his sons that Jacob, I'm sorry, his son Joseph is not only alive, but in fact he's second in command in Egypt. And Joseph is calling for his father and all of his family to come and live in Egypt. And so here in verse 1, Israel is taking his family down to Egypt and they stop at Beersheba and offer sacrifices to the God of Jacob's father Isaac. Verse two, and God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, here am I. Then he said, I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt. For there I will make you into a great nation. I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again, and Joseph's hand shall close your eyes." So there's some significant promises here. What is one of the promises that God makes here? The Lord will go with them to Egypt. They're leaving the land that's been promised to them and their descendants, and God will be with them as they go to Egypt. What else? Make them into a great nation. Where do we see that? In verse 3, right? which is a repetition of a promise that was given to Abraham and to Isaac. It had been made previously to Jacob, reminding him of this promise. Caleb? He will also bring him out of Egypt again. He will bring him out of Egypt. So he's not going to stay, or he and his descendants are not going to stay in Egypt. Is there anything else in there that we missed? Joseph will close his eyes. So when Jacob dies, his son Joseph will be with him. I think that's everything, right? All right. Liz? When it says, and I will also bring you up again, is that plural? It's singular. So it makes us wonder, is he just talking about Jacob's body coming back? I don't think so. I think he's talking about the whole family that's represented by Jacob. Jacob's going to die down there. But this will be fulfilled when the Lord brings his family back to the land of Canaan. Miguel? Would this be referencing the Exodus itself, that it would bring you up again? I think so. OK. I think so. Dorian, you're an expert on that, you've taught this, what do you think? I agree with that, but also remember that he was buried in Canaan. So he wasn't alive, but he was brought back to Canaan and buried there before the Exodus as well. So we need to keep this promise in mind as we study the book of Exodus, because the As Moses is writing the very first verses of Exodus, he's taking us back to Genesis. He's connecting us to Genesis. Genesis is the important background of all that's about to take place. And so it's important that we keep those promises that God made to Israel on their way to Egypt, that we keep those in mind. Now, the Lord foretold that Jacob and his family would go to Egypt. This was foretold to Abraham, who was Jacob's what? Grandfather, right? Because Isaac was his father, so Abraham's his grandfather. I want you to go back to Genesis 15 to see what God foretold to Abraham. about his descendants going to Egypt. Genesis 15, we'll start at verse 13. Verse 13. Then the Lord said to Abram, so that was before he changed his name to Abraham, know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs, and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for 400 years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve. and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. As for yourself, you shall go to your fathers in peace, you shall be buried in a good old age, and they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete." God did not name the nation where Abraham's descendants would go and where they would become slaves, but it obviously turns out to be Egypt. So God foretold the events that we're about to study in the book of Exodus, foretold them all the way back to Abraham, and Abraham certainly would have told his son Isaac what the Lord had told him, and Isaac would have passed that down to Jacob, and we would trust that Jacob would have passed that down to his sons. So you can come back to Exodus 1. Here in Exodus 1, God is unfolding his plan for his people whom he had chosen by grace. In Genesis it's very clear that God chose this people by grace. There was nothing special about Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob that drew God's favor. Now he freely gave his favor to them and to their descendants. They were chosen by grace and now God is unfolding his plan for his people whom he has chosen by grace. We see an exodus is not an accident. It's not something that surprised God. God can't be surprised. This is the very plan of God that God foretold to the Israelites for fathers. Exodus continues the narrative that began in Genesis. The book of Exodus would have been written when the Israelites were in the wilderness, after they had been redeemed out of slavery in Egypt, before they would have entered the promised land in the second generation. Now, when the Israelites were in the wilderness, preparing to enter the promised land, and they received the Torah, the Torah is the first five books of what we call the Old Testament, it was vital that they understood the background given in Genesis. Only then could they properly understand who they were and their situation in life. So the story doesn't begin with Exodus 1-1. The story begins all the way back in Genesis. And what we have is a continuation of that story. They need this whole history in order to understand who they are and in order to understand their circumstances, their situation in life. Let's go on to verse 5. All the descendants of Jacob were 70 persons. Joseph was already in Egypt. You remember from Genesis that this is how the Lord preserved Jacob's family when they suffered famine. In God's providence, Joseph had been sold as a slave in Egypt, and he was in the depths when he was falsely accused, and he was thrown into a dungeon, a prison. But in God's plan, the Lord had him to interpret dreams of officials in Pharaoh's household, And through these circumstances that the Lord was orchestrating, Joseph, by God's enablement, he was able to interpret the dream that God had given to Pharaoh. In God's time, Joseph was lifted up by Pharaoh and made second in command. Joseph interpreted that dream that God had given to Joseph. that there were going to be seven years of plenty in Egypt, during which time Pharaoh was to gather into storehouses the abundance, and that would be followed by seven years of famine. And so, not only would Egypt be fed by the abundance that was collected in the first seven years, but through Joseph, as he would, under Pharaoh's direction, distribute these, a blessing would actually come to all the known world. and that would include Jacob's family, as the famine would be severe in Canaan, and through Joseph, the Lord provides for Jacob's family in the famine, and actually brings them to Egypt and so forth. So, we read here, all the descendants of Jacob were 70 persons, Joseph was already in Egypt, that was in God's providence, Joseph was there in God's providence to be used of the Lord to provide for and deliver many people, including his own family. Verse six. Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly. They multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them. Here, the word the land could refer to the land of Goshen within Egypt. Doesn't necessarily mean that all of Egypt, that the descendants of Jacob filled all of Egypt, but they filled the land, could be the land of Goshen, which was in Egypt. Now, how much did the Israelites multiply? Well, after the Exodus, the number of their fighting men was 603,550, according to Numbers chapter 1, verses 45 and 46. On this basis, it is estimated that Israel had a population of close to 2 million people at the time of the Exodus. So they go from 70, who go down to Egypt to two million at the time of the accidents while they're living in Egypt. The way we read about it here is, but the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly. They multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so the land was filled with them. Israel's great multiplication was a sign of God's blessing, His presence, and His faithfulness. Again and again, God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would give them innumerable descendants. Which, when God started making these promises to Abraham, really were understood, you know, this would take a miracle. Why? Why would it take a miracle? Abraham and his wife had no children. And even when they get old, they still have no children between the two of them. Which is what God promised. But look at these promises repeatedly in Genesis. I put it in the New York Notes. Genesis 13, 16. I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted. Chapter 15, verse 3, And Abram said, Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, This man shall not be your heir, your very own son shall be your heir. His very own son who has not been conceived yet. This man shall not be your heir, your very own son shall be your heir. And he brought him outside and said, Look toward heaven and number the stars if you are able to number them. Then he said to him, so shall your offspring be. And he believed the Lord and he counted to him as righteousness. Now, their night sky was not like our night sky. We don't see many stars. Their night sky was glorious. Innumerable stars could be seen. The Milky Way could be seen. What a promise. Chapter 17, verse 1. When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, I am God Almighty. Walk before me and be blameless, that I may make my covenant between me and you and may multiply you greatly. Verse 6, I will make you exceedingly fruitful and I will make you into nations and kings shall come from you. Chapter 22, verse 17, I will surely bless you and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. All those promises were given to Abraham. How about to his son Isaac? Verse 26, verse 4, the Lord said to Isaac, I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven. I will give to your offspring all these lands. What about Jacob, Isaac's son? Chapter 28, verse 14, the Lord said to Jacob, Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth and shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south. And in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And we see in our text, in verse seven, God fulfilling that. So as we read verse seven, but the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly, they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so the land was filled with them. We shouldn't just keep that thought by itself. Moses intends that we will connect that back with all those promises that we just read. This is God fulfilling his promise of blessing. So, that's the Israelites' multiplication. In the second half of the text, we have the Israelites' affliction. Their affliction. Look with me at verse 8. Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. So this new king did not know how Joseph had greatly blessed Egypt. We've just studied that in the last two months or so, how Joseph had greatly blessed Egypt. But a new king comes to the throne who does not know how Joseph had greatly blessed Egypt. Verse 9, and he said to his people, behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply. And if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land." Understand here that the king of Egypt set himself against the purpose of God unawares. We've seen that the purpose of God is to multiply. the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And notice how the king of Egypt, unaware, sets himself against God's purpose. Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply. And if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land. The king fears that the Israelites will help one of Egypt's enemies when an enemy attacks Egypt. There's so many of Israelites, if they were to join one of Egypt's enemies when they would attack Egypt, that really would give a great advantage to Egypt's enemies. So the king is afraid of this. And also notice that the king fears the Israelites escaping. Notice that there in verse 10. Come let us deal surely with them lest they multiply and if war breaks out they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land. Now, being that the king of Egypt is afraid of them escaping, would suggest that they had continued to be a blessing to Egypt. Remember the promise all the way back in Genesis 12, verse 3, that God made to Abraham, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. That was seen with Joseph. The implication here is the Israelites continue to be a blessing to Egypt and so the Pharaoh doesn't want them to escape. Verse 11. Therefore, they set taskmasters over them, to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Python and Ramses." So, Pharaoh sets taskmasters over the Israelites, to afflict the Israelites with heavy burdens. And the Israelites, in that bondage, they build for Pharaoh store cities called Pytham and Ramses. Now, archaeologists have found ancient Egyptian wall paintings that show taskmasters. They show taskmasters with whip in hand. That's the kind of slavery that they were put under. The Israelites, as they do the forced labor, they build for Pharaoh store cities called Pytham and Ramses, possibly to store grain and other provisions and maybe even armaments. Now understand that work like this was dangerous. The pharaoh did not put together the same safety standards that we have in this nation at this point in our history. It's interesting just looking at American history in the last, say, 60, 70 years. When we had the race to the moon, with the Mercury and the Gemini and the Apollo space program, there was not nearly the safety standards that we have today in space flight. It was understood that if you were an astronaut, you may very well die. Today, we have many more safety standards and it makes it much more expensive, but there weren't safety standards in Egypt. Pharaoh made them slaves. He didn't care if they died. In fact, he wants to keep them from multiplying. He may even want to reduce their size. It was dangerous work that the Israelites were forced to do as they built these store cities and did other construction projects for the king of Egypt. Now we read here in verse 12 that the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. The dread that the people of Egypt had regarding the Israelites may have resulted from the combination of Pharaoh's propaganda against the Israelites and the failure of his policy to deal with the danger he perceived them to be. Look at verse 12, but the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied, and the more they spread abroad, and the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. I put a question in the bulletin that asks, what is the significance of verse 12? Debbie. No one is going to thwart God's plan. Lillian. How much is it they multiplied in verse 12, so it's fulfilling the promise that God gave to Abraham? Yes, you see in verse 12, the continuing fulfillment of the promise that God had made to multiply their descendants. Anything more about the significance of verse 12? Enoch. And because normally when you're like slaves, you would become small, but they would become big. So you would expect that they, as a people group, they would get smaller. That's the intention of the pharaoh, but just the opposite happens. Andre. Old people are doing exactly what God said they were doing. The Egyptians are expelling the people of Israel, as he said. The people of Israel are multiplying, as he said. Thinking about those passages in Genesis that we read earlier. Notice Pharaoh's foolishness. The more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied, and the more they spread abroad. Pharaoh, though not thinking in these terms, had set himself against the purpose of God, God's purpose to multiply the people. He tries to keep them from multiplying, but who's he fighting against? He's fighting against God. How foolish it is to fight against God. You can never succeed when you fight against God's purpose. The more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied. Now, the Israelite population had doubled about 14 times in about 400 years. We're told later on in Exodus, in chapter 12, how long they were in Egypt. And we saw in Genesis 15 that it was foretold they would be in Egypt 400 years. They doubled in size about 14 times during those 400 years. Let's continue in verse 13. So they, that's the Egyptians, including the taskmasters. So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves and made their lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work, they ruthlessly made them work as slaves. I have a question that I put in the bulletin that asks, when the Israelites were oppressed in Egypt, what was important for them to remain mindful of? We just had the oppression described to us, and we're not told exactly how long that period of time was that they were under that kind of oppression. It could have been a significant period of time. When they were oppressed like this, what was important for them to remain mindful of? God's promise. God's promise. That he was going to bring them out. That he would bring them out. He wasn't going to leave them there. Enoch. Well, God's promise to Abraham that they would multiply. God is always faithful. He wouldn't abandon them. God had demonstrated that faithfulness. Think of how He demonstrated His faithfulness to Abraham. Promised him descendants. And it was, naturally speaking, impossible. The Bible says that his body and Sarah's bodies were as good as dead. God was faithful. That is important for them to keep in mind. Daniel? Oh, the same. Priya? Not always in our timing, but in his perfect timing. He never fails. Titus? Did God is sovereign? God is sovereign. That's clearly seen back in the book of Genesis. God is sovereign. Robert? I mean, it's pretty much everybody's saying that Genesis 15, 34, for Joseph 7, 4, he passed, assuming that All right. So Joseph had said that God would bring them back to the land of promise. Yes, Ross? Yes. We saw that in Genesis 46. It's a repetition of the promise he made before, I will be with you. So it may not have felt like God was with them as they were oppressed. It's very important that they would be mindful that God, who is faithful, has promised to be with us so we can believe that he is with us. Not only did they know God's faithfulness to Abraham, they were witnessing God's faithfulness to his promise that they would multiply. And so that gave them reason to... They've experienced how the Pharaoh has tried to stop God's plan from being fulfilled of their multiplication and how that effort has been of no avail. God has continued to multiply them just as he promised he would. Very good. Now, what happened frequently in the Genesis narratives about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that does not occur in Exodus chapter 1 and Exodus chapter 2? Think about the Abraham narrative, the Isaac narrative, the Jacob narrative. What happened frequently? I'm sorry, just ask. Right. In those narratives, he spoke frequently to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But he does not speak in Exodus chapter 1 or Exodus chapter 2. You apparently have 400 years of silence, just as there would be between the end of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New Testament. 400 years in which God did not speak. Now, for the Israelites to view their lives and circumstances rightly, as they are suffering oppression, they had to hold on to the promises God gave to their forefathers. They had to renew their minds with those promises that God had given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They had to hold on to them. They had to believe them. They had to trust the promises. If they did not, they would not view their lives and circumstances rightly. If the Israelites knew and believed what God had spoken to their forefathers, then they would understand that their oppression was as much part of God's plan as their growth in numbers was part of God's plan. And they would believe God was with them, and they would trust Him to deliver them. Consider the difference that such faith would have made in their hearts and lives. As we will continue in Exodus, we will see that they weren't keeping in mind what God had said to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They weren't trusting in what God had said. They lost sight of it. And we see what that looks like. in the book of Exodus, when Moses comes to them and says that God is going to free them, and then he goes to Pharaoh and things just get worse. Later on, after God brings them out of Egypt into a wilderness that is not a hospitable place to live, and they get hungry and they get thirsty, and we see their unbelieving hearts come out, and so forth. Consider the difference such faith would have made in their hearts and lives if they kept in mind the promises that God had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the things that God had revealed to them. If they had treasured those things, they had trusted in God's word, oh, how different their perspective would have been. Viewing our lives and circumstances through the lens of God's word is just as important as it was for the Israelites. We go through trials, we go through difficulties, and we will have a very skewed view of ourselves and of God, of our circumstances, of our life, if we are not holding on to what God has spoken. Now, while many of the prominent characters in the Bible received new revelation, think of Moses. God spoke to Moses at the burning bush. Moses spoke with God face to face. Think of how God spoke to Abraham Isaac to Jacob. Think of how God spoke to Israel through the Old Testament prophets. He gave revelation to Daniel. Think of how the apostles every day were hearing the Son of God incarnate speaking the Word of God. Think of how the churches in the early history of the church, how they received inspired letters from the apostles. Many of the prominent characters in the Bible received new revelation from God. But while many did, during most of history, God's people have not received new revelation. For 400 years, the Israelites did not receive new revelation. During most of history, God's people have not received new revelation, but have been required to walk by faith in the revelation God previously gave. God's not giving you revelation today. He's completed the scriptures, and the scriptures are sufficient for us. Our experience is not like Moses, receiving more revelation from God, hearing God speak to us. No. God has given us all the revelation that we need. And we're required to walk by faith in the revelation God has given. So I hope you see the significance of what was going on here. And I hope that you see that this is not just something out there, but it very much relates to our lives. If you have any questions or comments on anything that we've seen tonight, No questions. The Lord uses trials to strengthen us. God will see, He will hear, and He will respond to the affliction of His people and the cries of His people. Miguel. Just holding on to his promises. I think this passage teaches that very well. 400 years of silence. But to have those promises that God has spoken and having faith, I think that's in some way practical and applicable to our lives today. Just holding on to the sovereignty that whoever began that good work in us will finish it. And to the end. And we look back at how, you know, the Exodus event has been fulfilled in Christ. So we have so much more, you know, to look back to than the Israelites had. Yes, Ross? I was thinking about how the promises from Abraham to Jacob were passed on from seven people to seven people. It wasn't until, as far as we know, it wasn't until Moses wrote that a full written record was put onto paper, but things were passed down, certainly would have been passed down orally. Robert? When you said oral and passed down, this is a common omen, not a question, but how the new pharaoh wasn't aware of Joseph and the family. I'm assuming this is the pharaoh that followed the pharaoh that was with Joseph or it's not clear. Well, we have a period of 400 years. So there was a good number of pharaohs during that 400 years. And we're not told exactly where the one that is referred to here as the one who did not know Joseph, we're not told exactly where he fits in that 400 years. I'll take that back. It's not a comment. Any other questions or comments? All right, let's pray. Heavenly Father, we do thank you that you have sent Jesus, who was foreshadowed in the Exodus event, was foreshadowed in Moses, the mediator whom you sent to your people. Lord, we thank you that in Christ, we have deliverance from bondage to sin. We were slaves to sin, but in Christ, we have been set free from that bondage. And we thank you that in Christ, we are citizens of a heavenly kingdom. that we are on our way to the promised land. Lord, we thank you that you have always been faithful to your people, you have always been faithful to your promise, always faithful to your word. And Lord, we see in this passage that sometimes you ordain very, very difficult trials for your people. Lord, we thank you that in whatever trials we go through, no matter how large or how small, we can know that you are in sovereign control, that you are fulfilling your plan, you are fulfilling your purpose. Thank you that as believers, we can know that you are with us in our trial. Lord, we pray that you would enable us to trust in you completely, to trust in your word completely. And for this, we need to be regularly renewing our minds, so we pray, Father, that you would give us your grace to be diligent in the daily renewal of our minds with the scriptures, going through the whole counsel of God, all of the scriptures that you have given to us over time. Lord, we pray that you would be glorified in our hearts and lives as we respond to what we have seen in your word tonight. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.