The scripture reading is Luke chapter 2, and we will read verses 1-20. Luke 2, verses 1-20. In Luke chapter 1, it was announced to Mary by the angel. The angel told Mary that she would be the one who became pregnant, and she would bear the Son of God to come in the flesh. And Mary sang the song of rejoicing that we just sang a moment ago, a versification of that. That's Luke 1. And now in Luke 2, we read of the actual birth of the Son of God to come in the flesh. The text is verses 1-7. Because of the length, we won't re-read those verses, but they will be referred to throughout the sermon. Luke 2, 1-7. And it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David. to be taxed with Mary, his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night, And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you, Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace and goodwill toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen as it was told unto them." And so far do we read God's holy and inspired word. Again, the text is verses one through seven. We did not read Luke chapter 1 this morning, but Luke chapter 1 gives the reader the expectation that something great, amazing is about to happen. The birth of someone very special is about to take place. According to Luke 1 verse 32, the angel said to Mary, He shall be great and called the Son of the Highest. Verse 35 says that this one that Mary bears will be called the Son of God. Mary's cousin Elizabeth called the child even before he was born. She visited Mary, and Elizabeth called him her Lord. And Mary, in her song, rejoiced in God her Savior. And Zacharias in his song at the end of Luke 1, he sings about this one being the day spring from on high, and the horn of salvation. If you were reading Luke 1 for the first time, you would say, the birth of someone great is about to take place, and it will surely take place in greatness. that is in an important place and surrounded by important people. But Luke chapter 2 shows that the birth of this Great One did not take place in greatness. He was born in the small town of Bethlehem in a cattle stall. Instead of a crib, he was laid in a manger, a feeding trough, and had rags around him for clothing. One reading all that for the first time, Luke 2, verses 1-7, they might say, was that really the way the Son of God came into the world? It really was. And already here, Jesus was showing that He had come not to be an earthly king. He was showing that He had come to save us from all of our sins. through suffering. That's why it was this way. And we'll see that in the sermon this morning. As we see Christ's work of salvation this morning, His humility, as we see that, may we adore Him. Adore Him in our hearts. May we go forward loving Him, our great Savior. Let's consider the text this morning under the theme, The Savior's Lowly Birth. The Savior's lowly birth. First, the sovereign decree. Second, the humble birth. And third, the great salvation. The Savior's lowly birth. First, the sovereign decree. In the text, we don't read directly about God, but instead we read about Caesar Augustus and his decree. Luke 2 verse 1 says, it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. Caesar was the Roman emperor from 27 BC to 14 AD. This Caesar Augustus, his great-uncle was Julius Caesar, and Julius Caesar named this Caesar Augustus as his successor to the throne. And so Caesar Augustus ruled the world of that day. Rome was the world power. He ruled the inhabited world, including the Jews who were in Palestine. This great Caesar Augustus, he made a decree. He made a decree regarding taxation. He decided to tax the people in his kingdom. That he was going to tax them meant that the people in his kingdom had to give some of their income to the Roman government. And then Caesar Augustus was then going to use those funds really as he saw fit. That word tax or taxing in verses 1-3, That word taxing is literally registered. So, Caesar, in these verses, he decreed that the people in the kingdom must be registered or enrolled for the taxation. What we really read about is a census that's taking place. Everybody had to be registered, and then the taxing could take place. Now that wasn't easy for the Jews, this registering for the taxation. It wasn't easy for them to go through because many of these Jews were already poor, and now they were going to have to give much of their hard-earned money to a foreign power. It wasn't easy to do that, you can well imagine. But that's what was required of them. Now, Caesar himself was not in charge of this registering for the taxation. Overall, he was in charge, but he didn't organize it. Caesar gave this work of organizing the taxation to the local governors and kings, who then had to answer to him. And that's why we read in verse 2 about this Cyrenius, the governor of Syria. At this time in history, Cyrenius must have been in charge of the region in Palestine and in charge of getting the people enrolled for the tax, the taxing. According to verses three and four, the people of the empire, including Joseph and Mary, were required to go to their own city to register. One's own city that we read about there in the text, one's own city does not refer to the place where that person lived. One's own city referred to the place where their ancestors came from. It refers to the place where their family originally came from because that's where the family records were kept. Now Joseph had to report then to Bethlehem because he was of the house and lineage of David. He was from David's family. And King David was from Bethlehem. Now Mary was also from David's line. So Mary went there too to be registered with her husband. Joseph and Mary went to register for this taxation in Bethlehem. When Mary was great with child, that's according to verse four, or verse five. She was great with child, meaning she was pregnant. Joseph and Mary lived in Nazareth. That's where they regularly lived. Nazareth was in the northern part of Galilee. And Joseph and Mary had to go to Bethlehem, which was in the southern part of Judah, about 90 miles away, 90 miles south. And to get to Bethlehem, kids understand they couldn't quit getting a car. 90 miles in a car wouldn't take all that long today. They didn't have cars. So what they had to do is they had to go on that journey sitting on the back of a donkey. That's how they traveled. And it would take three to five days to go those 90 miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem. Three to five days sitting on the back of a donkey. And they had to do that while Mary was great with child. Because of the timing of the decree of Caesar, and maybe because too of Joseph's work that he was involved in, they couldn't leave to be registered earlier than they did, and couldn't leave later. But the timing of that trip must have seemed inconvenient to Joseph and Mary. And mothers, you can well imagine why that would seem inconvenient to ride on the back of a donkey 90 miles, three to five days in the last weeks of a pregnancy. But they went. They went to Bethlehem to register for this taxation according to the decree of Caesar. But understand, regarding this decree of Caesar, that Caesar's decree was just the means by which God executed His sovereign decree. Caesar's decree was only the means by which God executed His sovereign decree. God, Almighty Sovereign God, decreed, that means He ordered, that Christ would be born in Bethlehem. And He sovereignly brought that to pass. We know that God decreed in eternity that Christ would be born in Bethlehem because of what the Old Testament Scriptures tell us. God revealed that Christ would be born in Bethlehem to Micah the prophet 700 years before the events of Luke chapter 2. Micah 5 verse 2 says, But thou, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me, that is, to be ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." So that Christ to be born in Bethlehem was God's eternal decree. It was what God had ordered to happen in eternity. And we know that God always brings His decree to pass by His providential power. He's Almighty God. He controls and governs all things according to His eternal decree or plan. Caesar didn't know about God's decree. He didn't know about God's decree that Christ would be born in Bethlehem. But God made Caesar's decree to serve His decree. Think of this, Joseph and Mary, they lived far away from Bethlehem. And they would not ever have gone to Bethlehem, especially at this time in their lives. They would never have made a journey that distance, 90 miles, three to five days on the back of a donkey. They would never have done that in these last stages of Mary's pregnancy under normal circumstances. If Joseph and Mary had the choice, they would have stayed in Nazareth and God's decree would not have come to pass. But in eternity, God sovereignly decreed that Christ would be born in Bethlehem, and He caused it to happen using the decree of Caesar. God had determined in eternity, think of this, in eternity before the world began, He determined that Caesar would make this decree requiring people to go to their own city in his empire, go to their own city to be registered for the taxation. And God determined in eternity that Joseph and Mary then would go to Bethlehem, right at this time in history. And God, in His providence, so directed all things that His decree was brought to pass. And Caesar Augustus did make that decree, demanding that all go to their own city to register for the taxation. And Joseph and Mary, in compliance with that demand of Caesar, went. Right at that time in history. And that's where the child, Christ's child, was born. Amazing. God's sovereign control. And from this history we learn a couple things about God's decree and His sovereign rule over all things. A couple wonderful things. First, understand that what's difficult for us, God's people, God makes to serve to our good. What's difficult for us, God makes to serve to our good. Mothers, if you were in the last weeks of your pregnancy and Your husband told you that you were going to go 90 miles away and have to sit on the back of a donkey for three to five days. What would you say? What would you think? You'd think that would be difficult. I don't know about that. Well, Mary was put in a difficult situation, clearly. But God was causing this to happen to serve His purpose of bringing about the birth of the Savior. When we are tempted then to complain about the troubles we face, and there are troubles, when we're tempted to complain, we have to remember that God brings the difficulties that we face in this life to serve to our good, to serve to our salvation. Just remember what he was doing with Mary here in Luke 2. Second, about God's rule and decree. We see that God controls wicked governments too and causes them to serve to the salvation of his church. The good of his church. Caesar Augustus was a wicked tyrant. We know that the government today has many men in it that are liars, that promote terrible ungodly activity, even homosexuality. Yet God, as He did with Caesar Augustus, causes these leaders, unknowingly, to serve the good of His church. So even when they bring persecution someday, and that will come, even that, is for the good of His church, to serve to the purification of the church, to bring the church members to depend more and more upon Him, and even to fill up the cup of iniquity so that the coming of Jesus Christ occurs. God decreed where Christ would be born, and God also decreed the timing of Christ's birth, the exact timing. Mary did not have the baby a few miles short of Bethlehem, maybe in Jerusalem. She didn't have the baby then. No, God decreed that Mary would get to Bethlehem and have the child there. For we read in the Scriptures that while they were there, the days were accomplished, that she should be delivered. That word accomplished there in verse six, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. That word accomplished means filled up. And the idea is that God has a timetable. And as time continues, time is filled up. And eventually, the fullness is reached. Time is filled up and eventually the fullness is reached. Well, the fullness of days or time before Christ's birth, it was filled up according to verse 6. The days were accomplished. The days were filled up. God has determined the days and time before the birth and that time was filled. Galatians 4 verses 4 and 5 also teaches that God determined the exact timing of this birth. We read in Galatians 4, verses 4 and 5, when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his son made of a woman, made under the law to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. God decreed the timing of Christ's birth and sovereignly controlled everything so that he was born while Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem. So you think of that wisdom. God decreed that Caesar would make the decree exactly when he did. And God decreed the timing of that conception of Christ in the womb of the Virgin Mary. And God controlled it all so that they were in Bethlehem at exactly the time when Mary was great with child and exactly at the time that those contractions then would start and she would have the child. So Christ's birth, understand, was done in God's time. from the viewpoint of Mary, it wasn't her time, it wasn't the time that she would have chosen, the time he wasn't right, according to her, probably, because they were on a trip. But from God's perspective, it was the perfect time. And it was the time that was just right for his church. that Christ would be born right then in history, serve to the salvation of His church. There would be certain ones that Christ would even meet during His earthly ministry. Christ would work salvation in their hearts. Christ came at just the right time. God also sovereignly controls everything that happens in our lives so that it all happens exactly when He planned it to happen. which is just the right time. We might say sometimes, you can all understand this, we might say sometimes, that was bad timing. That was bad timing. But we have to remember that God decreed when everything would happen and causes everything to happen at that time. And it's always for the good of the church. Maybe this past week you got delayed in a snowstorm, and there was a blizzard, and maybe you thought, this was bad timing. Bad timing for me, because I have to get this and that done. But God sent that snowstorm, He decreed it would happen, and He sent that snowstorm at just the right time, for your good. That you would learn to depend upon Him to get for you what you needed. And that you would remember, recall that He's the sovereign God. He's sovereign over my life. He's to be served. I don't control things, He does. He's to be served. Maybe you got caught doing something in your life that you weren't supposed to do. Maybe that happened as a kid, and you thought that was bad timing. Right when I started doing that, my parents came in the room. It was bad timing. Well, that wasn't bad timing. That happened according to God's decree and He controlled it to happen just at that time so that you would be shown your sin and be pointed to Christ and turned from it. That's our wise God. You think about His wisdom today and praise Him. He sovereignly controls everything, including the birth of Jesus Christ, so that it happened exactly when it did, in the place it did. And He controls everything still today for our salvation. Praise Him. This great Savior was born, according to God's decree, in lowly circumstances. Lowly circumstances. Verse 7 gives us a few details of this birth. It says, Consider the lowly birthplace for a moment. When Joseph and Mary arrived in Bethlehem, you can imagine Joseph was searching for a safe, Dry, clean place for his pregnant wife. But there was no room. There was no room in Bethlehem for them. Luke speaks about the inn. Inn in verse 7. There was no room for him in the inn. When you think of an inn, don't think of the Holiday Inn or a hotel, a modern hotel today. An inn in those days was a simple shelter that was built on the side of someone's house. And that innkeeper, he wouldn't provide bedding, he wouldn't provide pillows or blankets. wouldn't provide food, you brought those things yourself. So it was quite different than a modern hotel. And likely outside that inn there was a place to tie up the donkey that you traveled on. But the problem for Joseph and Mary is that when they came to Bethlehem, the inn there was full. The town was full of Roman officials who were watching over the registration for the taxation. The town was full of other Jews who had traveled to Bethlehem, the city of their ancestors, to register for this taxing. There was no room at anybody's house. There was no room in the inn that some would stay at in the town. And therefore, Joseph and Mary's only option was that they stay in a place that animals stayed in. We know that from the word manger in verse 7, that they stayed in really a shelter for animals. Verse 7, we read that, Mary laid the baby in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn. A manger is a feeding trough for animals. It was a wooden box. It is a wooden box that animals get their food from. Because of the word manger, we know that Jesus was born then in a shelter for animals, likely a stable. And many believe that that stable, that shelter for animals, was on the outskirts of the town of Bethlehem. Because on the outskirts of that town, there were caves. Caves where travelers would put their animals. They had several animals with them. On their trip, they would put those animals in those caves or stables in the side of a hill on the outskirts of the city of Bethlehem. So many believe that is where Joseph and Mary stayed for the night to find some shelter. And we can imagine a bit what a place or the environment of that place must have been like. And it's clearly, as you think about the environment, it's clearly different than the place where you had children. The shelter must have been dirty and smelly. You can imagine Joseph probably sweeping away the dirt in a certain part of that shelter so that Mary had some clean place to sit. Somewhat clean. But this was a place where animals lived. And you could smell their waste for sure. You know what a barn smells like. So this was obviously much different than our sanitary hospital rooms today. And instead of having doctors and nurses around to help, Mary only had Joseph there, her husband, in that shelter. And there was no cradle, there were no warm blankets, no nice hat or a cozy nursery for that child. But there was an unheated shelter surrounded by animals. That was the environment. And in that environment, Mary brought forth her firstborn son in an ordinary way. Luke doesn't tell many details about the actual birth. Notice that. He simply says in verses 6 and 7, So it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son. She brought forth her firstborn son. That doesn't sound any different than than the way that we have our children. In that animal's shelter, Mary started to experience contractions. Those contractions got stronger, and eventually the child came forth. That child came forth covered in amniotic fluid and mucus and blood, and then Joseph cut the umbilical cord, washed the child as best he could, and then handed that child back to the mother. Mary wrapped that child in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger. Swaddling clothes there, that term in verse 7 refers to strips of cloth that would be wrapped around an infant to restrict its movements and probably to keep the infant somewhat warm too. She wrapped him up in those clothes and laid that baby in the manger. So kids, think of that. You know the crib at home, maybe that your little brother or sister had or has, that nice crib they have. Mary had that child and she took him and put him in a feeding trough for animals. Maybe they put some hay or straw in there first to make it a little more padded, comfortable. That's where they put the child. And throughout the night, contrary to what a popular hymn says, throughout that night, it's certain that the baby Jesus cried. Cried to make known that he was hungry. Cried to make known that he was cold. How else would he have made known his needs? Mary and Joseph did all they could to care for that helpless infant. What a lowly birth that was for the Son of God come in the flesh. That child that we just talked about, the one born in that ordinary way in this shelter for animals, that was the Son of God come in the flesh. Luke chapter 1 verse 35, the angel said to Mary, Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. The miracle of the incarnation had taken place about nine months before the events of Luke chapter 2. By the Spirit, the Son, the Son by the Spirit, so operated upon the flesh and blood of the Virgin Mary that she became pregnant. And the Son caused His own flesh and blood to develop from her. He developed in Mary in His human nature until about nine months later. He came forth. He was born. That's amazing. The one born from Mary was the Son of God come in the flesh. This was the Almighty and Eternal Son of God come in the flesh. This was the one who was perfectly honored in heaven, glorified there in great glory. He was born of Mary. The Son of God come in the flesh was born lowly. Very lowly. The very fact that the Son of God took on flesh and was born in our flesh, that very fact is astounding. The eternal Son of God bound Himself to time. The Almighty Son of God who was involved in the creation of the world as we've been seeing in Genesis in our series there. The Almighty Son of God who was involved in the creation became a baby who cried. He developed in Mary in His human nature. He was a real Real man. This one who was born, who lived in great glory in heaven. He came to this sin-cursed earth. The fact that the Son of God took upon Himself flesh and was born here is truly astounding. And then, think of the fact, too, that He was born in such lowly circumstances. He wasn't born in a palace in Jerusalem with nice cushions all around Him and a large group of people outside the door waiting to hear the news and spread that news abroad to everybody and talk about it and praise Him and honor Him. No, He was born in a dirty stable, wrapped in swaddling clothes, laid in a feeding trough for animals, with nobody there ready to proclaim His birth. No angels surrounding Him. Think of what that must have been like for Him. This One, the Almighty Son of God, who had been in Heaven, this Great One from Heaven, opened His eyes to a dirty shelter. Smells, foul smells filled His nose. Think of that. He experienced hunger, and he cried. And there was nothing about Christ as an infant that looked spectacular or made Him look any different than ordinary children of that day. As Isaiah 53, verse 2 prophesies, He hath no form nor comeliness, and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. So the very Son of God came in the flesh, and was born in lowly circumstances, and looked like an ordinary infant in that manger in a stable." Understand that Jesus was born in these lowly circumstances which have just been described. He was born in these lowly circumstances because He came to save us through suffering. May that hit our hearts this morning. He came to save us through suffering. Jesus was born to save his people from their sins. That's found in the context. Luke chapter 1 verse 31 says, Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. The angel told Mary, thou shalt call his name Jesus. Now that name Jesus is important. God says that's the name of this child. That's Jehovah Salvation. That's what the name Jesus means. The angel was telling Mary, you will have Jehovah come in the flesh who comes to save his people. Matthew 1 verse 21, the angel told Joseph before the Christ child was born. He told Joseph, thou shall call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. And so this story of Jesus' birth is not just this feel-good story, not just a sentimental story about the birth of this great one in poverty. No, the message in the story of Jesus' birth is this. The message in the story is that we, it's you and me, we are so sinful that it took God becoming man to save us. We could be saved in no other way. It took God becoming man to save us sinners. Jesus came to save us from sin through suffering and humiliation. So He was born in lowly circumstances. He came to save through suffering and humiliation, so He was born then in lowly circumstances. 2 Corinthians 8 verse 9, Paul says, For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich. So according to 2 Corinthians 8 verse 9, Christ became poor. Now he became poor in a sense physically. He became poor physically. He became poor physically already at his birth. He was born in poverty as we just heard. And Christ especially became poor, though, spiritually. He became poor spiritually as one who took upon Himself all the sins, all the debts of us, His people. And because He was poor spiritually in God's sight, having all those sins, all those debts of us on Himself, He suffered. He suffered physically and He experienced poverty and humiliation on this earth. According to 2 Corinthians chapter 8 verse 9, Christ became poor and went through this suffering. Christ became poor so that we might be rich. Rich in righteousness before God. Of ourselves, I am and you are poor spiritually in God's sight. guilty sinners. But Christ, He came and suffered from His birth to His death so that we might be rich in righteousness before God, saved from our sins, saved from hell. He came to this sin-cursed earth so that we might be rich in righteousness. Praise God this morning for that. And this great Savior, He's a Redeemer. He's also the one who makes room for Himself in the hearts of us, His people. He makes room for Himself in the hearts of us, His people. No man, including us, have room for Jesus in our hearts of ourselves. At Jesus' birth, there was no room for Him in the inn, which was a sign of what His life would be like on this earth. Men would not have room for Him in their hearts and in their lives. No room. Just think of His birth. There were not people flocking to see that child born. And even almost two years after Jesus was born, and those wise men came from the East, and they got to Jerusalem. They asked about the birth of the Savior, and nobody in Jerusalem even knew about it. Men left to themselves. They weren't looking for Him. There was no room for Jesus when He got older either. For a time, people were interested in him. They were interested in his miracles. But when they saw that he was not going to be the earthly king that they wanted, but he was going to be, and said he was a spiritual savior, they hated him. They wanted nothing to do with him. They rejected him. They killed him. That was all done according to God's sovereign decree. For Christ was to suffer and die to save his people from their sins. and how they deserve. Today also, there's no room in the hearts of men for Jesus. Left to themselves, men do not believe in Jesus for salvation. They hear about how this supposed Son of God come in the flesh was born of a virgin. They hear about that and they say, well, that's a nice story, a nice fairy tale. But man does not believe in Him for salvation from sin. The fact that there was no room for Jesus in the inn in Bethlehem, that is a sign or a picture of the truth that men have no room in their hearts for Jesus of themselves. And why is that? Well, because man by nature is totally depraved. Man by nature is totally depraved, meaning that he is full of unbelief and sin in every part by nature. Man wants nothing to do with the Savior from sin, but is only interested in one who will maybe bring some earthly comforts or riches. And it's not just men out there either that are like this. This is you and me. That's how I am by nature. That's how you are. We have no room for Christ of ourselves. And we will never make room for Him of ourselves. We won't do it. Left to ourselves. We will not believe in Him. We will not love Him. We would perish in hell if left to ourselves. So we need Jesus. to make room for Himself in our hearts and to live there. And that's what He does. That's what the great Redeemer does. He is the Redeemer. He's the one who paid the ransom price by His suffering and death. And now, He is the one who, as Redeemer, frees us from bondage to unbelief and sin. He opens the hearts of His people and lives there. It works in His people to believe in Him for all their salvation. That's the truth of His Word. Acts 16 verse 14 describes Lydia. Kids, you're familiar with Lydia, that seller of purple. And we read of Lydia in Acts 16 verse 14 that she was a believer whose heart the Lord opened. The Lord opened her heart, and now apply that to yourself. That's what Christ does with me. That's what He does with you. We are believers in Jesus' first salvation from sin. And we are believers only because Christ has opened our hearts. Christ lives there and has worked in us to believe. Praise God. Praise God. If you do not believe in Him today for all of your salvation, place all of your trust in Him alone. If you do believe, recognize it's only because Christ has opened your heart by His sovereign power, lives there, and is working in you. As you think upon the great Savior today, the great Redeemer, praise Him. Praise Him. Adore Him. He came in a lowly way to suffer and die to pay for all of our sins. for which we deserve hell. The great Son of God came in our flesh, lived in such lowliness, such suffering to save us, and He now opens our hearts and lives there so that we even believe in Him and love Him, adore Him today. Amen. Our Father which art in heaven, Lord, we come before Thee. adoring and praising Thee, the gracious God who sent Thy Son to suffer and to die to save us from all of our sins, and who now even opens our hearts so that we know Thee and believe and love Thee. Lord, we thank Thee. May we give Thee praise throughout this whole day, knowing that rich salvation of Thine. We pray all this to Thee, in Jesus' name, Amen.