If you have your Bibles, if you will please turn with me to the minor prophet Zechariah. Zechariah chapter 4 is our Old Testament scripture reading and Revelation chapter 11 is our New Testament scripture reading. Hear now the word of our God. waked me as a man that is awakened out of his sleep, and said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold, a candlestick, all of gold, with bowls upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps which are upon the top thereof. and two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl and the other upon the left side thereof. So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord? Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might nor by power, but my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain, and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof, with the shoutings, crying, Grace, grace, unto it. Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house. His hands shall also furnish it, and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts has sent me unto you. For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice and see the pullment in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven. They are the eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro throughout the whole earth. Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick, and upon the left side thereof? And I answered again and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves? And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. Then said he, These are the two anointed ones that stand by the Lord of the whole earth. And then Revelation chapter 11. And there was given me a reed likened to a rod, and the angel stood saying, rise and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court, which is without the temple, leave out, and the measure it not. For it is given unto the Gentiles, and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth and devoureth their enemies. And if any man will hurt them, he may in this manner be killed. These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy, and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues as often as they will. And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. And they of the people and kindred and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and a half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them. and make merry, and shall send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented them that dwell on the earth. And after three days and a half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet, and great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies beheld them. And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand, and the remnant were afright, and gave glory to God of heaven. The second woe was passed, and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly. And the seventh angel sounded, and there was great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdom of this world are becoming the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders which sat before God on their seats fell upon their faces and worshipped God, saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art and wast and art to come, because thou hast taken to thee thy great power and hath reigned. And the nations were angry, and their wrath is come, and the time of the dead, and they should be judged. that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants, the prophets, and to the saints, and to them that fear thy name, small and great, and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. And a temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament. And there was lightnings, and voices, and thunders, and an earthquake, and the great hail. The grass weathers, the flower falls, but God's word abides forever. Amen. Please be seated. There's a long couple passages to stand. Thank you for your patience. Challenging passage. Both of them, Zechariah and also in Revelation, chapter 11. Let's ask the Lord to bless our time as we consider the revelation of Jesus Christ here found in chapter 11. Father in heaven, we do come before you and we do thank you, O Lord, that you have placed in our possession, you have granted to us the ability to own, to possess, and to hear read as well as to read your holy word. that you have given to us your objective standard and a revelation of your will for our lives. In it is found great blessing, challenges, encouragements. Help us, Lord, to approach your Word in faith and in obedience, to trust and obey. We do pray that you would truly impart the blessing that you promise in the very first verses of this book. Blessed are they that hear and that read and hear and do of this prophecy. And so Lord, we pray that you would bless us with your grace that we may hear, believe and do what you have revealed. We ask this for your glory sake in Christ's name, amen. Beloved in the Lord Jesus Christ. One of my favorite movies. I don't know if it is yours. One of my favorite movies that has recently been produced. Unfortunately, the problem with the movie is if you watch it from beginning to end, it takes about nine or 10 hours. Anybody guess which movie I'm talking about? Lord of the Rings. Have you ever sat and watched the whole, I never could justify using up a day watching a movie. Just haven't gone there yet. It's tempting, maybe on vacation. Well, in the movie, The Lord of the Rings, there's many interesting things that are, statements that are made, different things that are taught. One of those thoughts, one of those conversations that rung in my head as I was reading Revelation chapter 11 was a conversation that King Theoden of the riders of Rohan was having with a number of individuals including an elf, a man, and a dwarf. And the discussion had to do with a threat of attack by the enemy and the need to go to a protective location that was owned by Theodone. And that was what they called Helm's Deep. It was basically a huge fortress that was built into the side of a mountain. And so during this conversation, the dwarf, Gimli, tried to educate Theoden concerning the threat that they faced. And he went on to describe the great power and tenacity of the evil ones that they were facing. And the response of King Theoden to this threat was, quote, I know how to defend my own keep, dwarf. I know how to defend my own keep. In many ways, what we find here in Revelation chapter 11 is God saying, I know how to defend my own special possession, my own people. I know how to protect and take care of, to defend the apple of my eye. So we see in Revelation chapter 11 a description using apocalyptic language of that great statement of God. Proposition is there in the outline. Our Lord has equipped us through His revelation to fulfill our callings as witness. He has also placed His mark of ownership upon those whom He purchased with His own blood to be His own. Though we pass through many trials and temptations, He is ever with us and will protect us from His wrath and curse upon the world. There's actually three elements in that proposition statement and they all work out in the three points of the sermon. And we'll consider that as we work through. Context, we're considering the revelation of Jesus Christ As you recall, the first earlier chapters was a revelation of Christ himself in chapter 1 and his seven letters to the seven churches of Asia. Again, we see an exposition or revelation of Jesus as the Lion and the Lamb and as the one who is worthy to take of the scroll and to open the seals thereof. How many seals? seven seals. And on the opening of the seventh seal there was silence. And then after the silence there was the blowing of the seven trumpets. And we are in the midst of the seven trumpet warning judgments of God. As a matter of fact, we are at this present time in chapter 11 in the sixth trumpet. And we heard, as Elder Lehenfelter read, the seventh trumpet warning blast occurs here in our text. And so we are coming to the conclusion of this section, of this aspect, the revelation of God, the warning judgments of God. So, let us consider our text and in particular, let us look at verses 1 and 2 and consider the statement that I put in for the first point. You, God says, you are my earthly dwelling place, the apple of my eye, or the pupil of my eye. Verse 1, And there was given me a reed, like unto a rod, And the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court, which is without the temple, leave out, and measure it not. For it is given unto the Gentiles, and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. Notice that it is John that is given this responsibility as he is given this measuring reed or measuring rod and is given a commandment. He's been called and equipped to do something. And in the context, it's been a few weeks now, but in chapter 10, that which just precedes our text, we see that God had just given to him a little book, and he had taken of it as commanded, and he ate it, and he said that it caused his belly to be bitter, but it caused his mouth, it was sweet in his mouth like honey, but bitter in his belly. And he was commanded to prophesy again before many peoples and nations and tongues and kings. And now we see that he's also equipped with a measuring reed. So he's been given a word to speak and he's been given something to measure, to evaluate with. We see his calling and his equipping. but also a measuring rod was given to him and instructions on what to do with it. Now, notice what the instructions included. That he was to arise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and them that worship therein. Doesn't that sound kind of strange? If you know the reference, if you have read the book of Ezekiel, where the angel is given the responsibility to measure the temple. It seems rather odd in this passage that not the whole temple is to be measured. The court is excluded. The court of the Gentiles is excluded. But the other thing that's odd is what is added to the measurement. What's that? That people are being measured. that not just simply the building and the altar, but the people themselves are being measured in this calling, in this responsibility. There is an evaluation, there is a measuring that John is given responsibility for. It was both of the place and of the people. And on the same point, there is certain things that are left out. It should be surprising to us in one sense that part of the temple area is left out and the worshippers are left in. Hendricks on this point states the following, just as in the vision the heathen trample upon Jerusalem and even upon the outside court of the temple, so the world tramples upon the outside court of merely nominal Christendom. The world invades this false church and takes possession of it. Worldly church members welcome the ideas of the world. They themselves feel perfectly at home with the world. They have a good time in worldly company. In voting for political offices, they are prompted by worldly considerations. In brief, they love the world. This condition lasts throughout the 42 months that is through the gospel age. So his argument is the separation here between that which was measured and that which was not the temple, the altar and the worshipers are the church ultimately. And the court is those that are, although identified with the church are really outside of it and are more connected or more to be identified with the world. outside of the people of God. So, notice two things about this particular picture that we receive, that John paints. The first is that our Lord Jesus Christ knows, cares for, and prepares His own for His own purposes. Notice that He prepares them by distinguishing them, by evaluating and distinguishing. When John measures them, he measures them only certain aspects, only certain aspects of the temple and he measures them, he evaluates or places an evaluation on them. He sets them apart. What we hear here is an echo of what happened earlier in chapter 7 of the book of Revelation where an angel was given the responsibility to place a mark upon the believer and to distinguish them from the unbeliever. And that mark would basically be the mark that would turn away the wrath of God from them. If you had not the mark, then the wrath of God fell on you. just like in Egypt. If you had not the mark of the blood over the lintel and the doorposts, then the angel of death killed you. If you had the mark, then the angel of death passed over. So, in Revelation chapter 7, there's the mark or the name of God placed upon the believers. And now here in chapter 11, the believers are measured, are separated. Notice also that Christ distinguishes between the wheat and the tares here. There is that distinguishing. Jesus himself taught this principle when he was on this earth in parabolic form. in the parable of the wheat and the tares found in Matthew chapter 13. Verse 24 we read, The kingdom of heaven is likened to a man which sowed good seed in his field. And while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. And when the blade was sprung up and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? From whence then hath it tares? And he said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay, lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat from them, let both grow together until the harvest. And in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barns." And so Christ teaches of the kingdom of God as having both in them. in the Kingdom. And that in the end, there will be that distinguishing, there will be that separation, there will be that judgment. Some will be prepared for burning and some for glorious fruit for the Kingdom of God. My question to you this morning concerning these two verses is, have you been measured by God? Has God evaluated your life? Has God evaluated your faith? Where do you stand in the temple of God? Are you in the holy place? The holy of holies? where the altar is, or are you outside in the court of the Gentiles? In this passage it says, where you stand is life or death, judgment or blessing. Have you been measured by God, and I'd like to say it this way, for glorious clothing? Have you the righteousness of Jesus Christ as the clothing upon which will fit your person? Have you been measured by God? Have you allowed yourself to be evaluated, to be examined by the Gospel, by the Holy Spirit? Are you identified as those that worship in the temple of God and at the altar? Have you gone to Jesus Christ, the sacrifice, the only sufficient sacrifice, the altar upon which we can find forgiveness and redemption? Are you the apple of Christ's eye? Where he would say, if they touch you, they touch my eye. Notice that the rest of the passage has to do with, well, at least from verses 3 on through to verse, actually to the 7th trumpet sound, verse 15. We have now also the vision, the revelation of two witnesses. Verse 3. My second point there is, you are my suffering and yet victorious witnesses. God not only prepares and protects His own, but He also has a purpose for us, and part of the purpose that He has for us is suffering, for His name. is suffering for his glory. The Apostle Paul, in his first missionary journey with Barnabas, went about the area which is now called Turkey, which at that time was called Asia Minor, and specifically in the area called Galatia. And as Paul and Barnabas traveled about this area, they found receptivity and rejection. Great joy in reception of the gospel, but also great persecution and threat. And as Paul and Barnabas were completing the work of that first missionary journey, Here are new baby Christians, new people that are believing in Jesus Christ. They have a very small amount of knowledge that they have received, but they have embraced what they know with great joy. And so Paul and Barnabas, knowing that it's time for them to leave, go from city to city and try to confirm and strengthen the believers. It's recorded in Acts 14. Confirming the souls of the disciples and exhorting them to continue in the faith. So here are these baby Christians. They've just come to know Jesus. And they're walking and they're experiencing difficulties and trials. And so Paul and Barnabas come through the town and encourage them. And do you know what their word of encouragement is? Their word is, Through much tribulation do we enter into the Kingdom of God. That we must, through much tribulation, enter into the Kingdom of God. What an encouraging word, right? It's going to be hard. Life's tough. Live with it. I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound too comforting. It sounds pretty discouraging. What do you mean? I remember one preacher said, I didn't sign up for this. I signed up to be blessed. I signed up to go to heaven. I signed up for eternal life. What do you mean, go to war? I didn't sign up for a war. I didn't sign up for suffering, for persecution. How come the man never told me these things? Well, Paul and Barnabas, they told him. Warning, to follow Christ, you've got to take up your cross daily, deny yourself and follow Him. That's what it is to be a disciple. That's what it is to be a Christian. Well, here in our text this morning in Revelation chapter 11, we see two witnesses who have taken up that cross. They have taken on the calling that God has placed on them, knowing that they would suffer. And so we read, 3 And I will give authority and power unto my two witnesses, that they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred threescore days clothed in sackcloth. Notice, as we hear of these two witnesses, as a description, as John is describing them to us in verses 5 and 6, if you know your Bible, you know who these two sound like. Who in the Bible, in particular, was described as someone who who if any man tried to hurt them, fire proceeded out of their mouths and devoured their enemies. If any man will hurt them, he must be in this manner killed. Who was it who had power to shut heaven that it rain not in the days of their prophecy? Who was it that had power over water to turn it to blood and who smote the earth with all the plagues as often as they will? If you know your Bibles, who are those two people? Well, the first one is Elijah, and the second one is Moses, right? These two witnesses are likened unto Moses and Elijah. Who is Moses to the Old Testament Jew? He was the number one primary hero of the Old Testament. It is through him that we have the first Bible, the Law, the Torah. And who was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets after Moses? It was Elijah. Moses and Elijah were the two that Moses had said that God buried him and Elijah was taken up into heaven by a fiery chariot. It was understood that Elijah would come before Jesus Christ would come. It was understood And as we actually see in the accounts in the Gospels, it is Moses and Elijah that is on the Mount of Transfiguration when Jesus Christ is glorified, is transfigured before the disciples. Here we have the picture of the premier prophets of the Old Testament, the two witnesses of God. Witnesses that are given the power. And notice that not only that, but notice that there is a connection between Moses and Elijah with that of Joshua and Zerubbabel in the book of Zechariah, which we read. Notice that we also see a description of them as being two olive trees and two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. Now, the olive trees were those that supplied the oil. If you remember, if you listened in the book of Zechariah, it was the olive trees on the right hand and on the left hand of the candlesticks or of the candelabras, maybe, that supplied the oil for those candles to burn. And now, we see both of those being brought together, those images brought together in the persons of these two witnesses. They are the ones that provide the oil, and they are also the ones that hold forth the light. They are unique in some ways with the powers that they have, and yet, in some ways, they are you and I. Have you ever thought of yourself as a prophet? We jokingly say, I'm not a prophet or the son of a prophet. But in a sense, every believer is called to be a prophet. Jesus said it this way, you are my witnesses. The prophet was called of God, among other things, to stand in the court of law and to give testimony concerning God. You and I have been called to stand and to give testimony before the world. Our lives, as well as our words, are a witness unto the world. A witness of the grace of God or a witness of the judgment and wrath of God. God supplies, provides, gives us that which is necessary to fulfill our task as witnesses, as pictured in the olive trees. But he also calls us to stand and to be lights. And Paul picks this image up in Ephesians, saying to us, you are the light of the world. Notice one thing, and in particular, I think one of the main points of this text concerning these two witnesses. Notice this. These two witnesses are absolutely safe. Do you see that? They are absolutely safe. If anybody tries to harm them, they could speak the word and fire would burn them up, just like Elijah. If anyone tried to harm them, the plagues of Egypt would fall upon them, including death. They were safe. absolutely safe until their task as witness had been completed. And when their calling, when their testimony was finished, verse 7, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, shall overcome them and kill them. In other words, while we are about God's calling, nothing can stop us, nothing can hurt us. As we are fulfilling the particular calling, as you are fulfilling your witness before the world, nothing can stop that until you are done. And then when you are done, it's time to go home. Have you ever prayed, Lord, I'm ready to go home? I've been praying that more often than I used to. Lord, I'm ready to go home. And God says, no, you're not. You still have something to do. You're still here for my purposes. I still have a calling for you. But notice that In giving testimony, adversity comes. Trial and testing appear. It is not simple or easy. We are stretched. Boring in his commentary on this passage says concerning the suffering of the two martyrs of these two witnesses, the suffering of the oppressed Christian community is not here understood as merely passivity, a doing nothing until the end comes. The prophetic ministry of the church, that is, its testimony by its own suffering, is, like their prayers, chapters 5 and 8, interpreted as an active agent in bringing about the eschaton and final victory of God. These prophetic witnesses are thus powerful, operating with the power of God, namely their word of testimony, their willingness to give their lives. Their power over their enemies is thus not arrogance, nor is it vindictive. Notice in verse 3, their ministry is conducted in sackcloth. The repentance proclaimed by the church is not only for others, but is the foundation of their word. Notice in verse 3 that these two witnesses are clothed in sackcloth. They themselves are repentant sinners who are employed and sent to do God's bidding. Notice, God's protection was not from temporary or temporal suffering, suffering in this life, but His protection is a protection from eternal suffering in the lake of fire. And so again, my question to you is from this portion of God's word, what is your purpose for existing? Why are you here? Are you here just by chance? Are you here because you somehow made it possible for you to be here? You determined your own existence? No, none of us can say that. Your existence is a fact. But what is its purpose? Why does God place you here on the earth? Why are you here? Are you to be a witness or are you one who will reject the witness of God to your own destruction? Thirdly, we see this third aspect of this text, the sounding fourth of the seventh trumpet recorded there in verse 15. And the seventh angel sounded, and there were great voices in heaven saying, and we'll look at that in a minute. Notice, and again, one of the things that I have forgotten to remind us, sometimes I remember, but I realize I haven't, is one of the best understandings of the book of Revelation is to keep in mind where things are happening. focusing on where are these events happening. We have been on earth in Jerusalem, in particular, just now, where the two witnesses were killed. And it describes in detail that it tells us, John tells us, that this is the great city Jerusalem, which is called Sodom and Egypt, where our Lord was crucified. So it makes it very clear he's talking about something that's happening on the earth, doesn't he? But the book of Revelation is not primarily about the earth, but about what's happening in heaven. The things that happen on earth are only the result of something that happens in heaven. The primary focus of the book of Revelation, and in many sense, I think the message of the book of Revelation is things, the reality is heaven, is God's rule in heaven and its effects in our lives. And so we have again the shift now with the seventh trumpet back into heaven and the focus stays there primarily. The focus is in heaven and not on earth. In other words, the focus primarily is on God. Now, on the seventh seal, when the seventh seal was opened, it was kind of an interesting, odd kind of thing. As the seals were being opened earlier, great things occurred on the earth, remember? But when the seventh seal was opened, when the book was finally opened with the seventh seal, what occurred? Silence in heaven for a half an hour. Now, we come to the seventh trumpet. And as the seventh trumpet sounds, what do we hear? Noise. Voices. And there were great voices in heaven. The seventh trumpet. Now, we have been watching the effects of these trumpet judgments on the earth, and now the seventh trumpet blows, and the focus is not on earth at all. It's on heaven. and on God, and the great voices begin to praise God. The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Messiah, His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever. And not only that, but the four and twenty elders, they fall upon their faces, they worship God, and they say, we give thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which was and are to come, because Thou hast taken to Thee Thy great power and hast reigned. And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come in the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, to the saints, to them that fear thy name, small and great, and should destroy them which destroy the earth." Here we hear this great cry. Worship in heaven. Celebration. The seventh trumpet sounds and what do we see? Worship, praise, thanksgiving. All heaven breaks loose. Then this is called the third woe. That's what I find amazing. This is the third woe. I don't think I would call this a woe, would you? I would call this a praise. But yet, the Bible says this is the third woe that comes quickly, verse 14. The praise to God that He has taken power and reigns over all creation is described as a woe. Why would it be described as a woe? Wouldn't you say that that's praise? It's finally happened. God reigns. And yet, for the rebel, it is woe. I can no longer fight against the king. I must submit or perish. So the point, I think, the point of this chapter in particular is what is important? Well, the celebration of the final victory of God in heaven is important. Now the question to you and to me is, is it important to us? Is it really important? I don't know about you, but there are many, many people in this country that in the last Sunday in January, it's very important who wins the Super Bowl. Right? Is it the last Sunday in January? Or sometimes it's the first Sunday in February, right? But that Sunday, it is important to be watching the television to scream your head off at one team or the other. Many times it's not the team that you've been rooting for all year long because they didn't make it. So it's usually, well, I hate them less than I hate them and so I'm for them because I hate them. At least that's the way when I used to watch football. So I would pick the lesser of two evils. But have you ever been to a football game? Have you ever, a baseball game, whatever, have you ever gotten into it and started jumping and screaming and yelling and getting excited? I remember the thrill it was when the Detroit Red Wings, I'm from Detroit originally, won the Stanley Cup two years in a row. And that was exciting. Was it three years in a row? Sorry, my son had to correct me. Three years in a row. That was phenomenal. That was exciting for a Red Wings fan. But that pales in comparison to what we have here in Revelation chapter 11. Pales. That is foolishness in comparison to the reality of the victory of God over His enemies as described here in Revelation chapter 11. My question to you, is that important to you? Or is it just a nice story? To conclude, I wanted to sing earlier as our closing hymn, hymn number 489. But I thought maybe it'd be best if I read it to you. Stop and think. Sometimes we sing these hymns and yet we don't engage the mind. So let's this time engage the mind. The Son of God goes forth to war, a kingly crown to gain. His blood-red banner streams afar. Who follows in His train? Who best can drink His cup of woe, triumphant over pain? Who patient bears His cross below? He follows in His train. The martyr first, whose eagle eye could pierce beyond the grave, who saw His Master in the sky and called on Him to save. Like Him with pardon on His tongue, in midst of mortal pain, He prayed for them that did the wrong, who follows in His train. A glorious band, the chosen few on whom the Spirit came. Twelve valiant saints, their hope they knew, and mocked the cross and flame. They met the tyrant's brandished steel, the lion's gory mane. They bowed their necks, the death to feel who follows in their train. A noble army, men and boys, the matron and the maid, around the Savior's throne rejoice in robes of light arrayed. They climbed the steep ascent of heaven through peril, toil, and pain. O God, to us may grace be given to follow in their train. Let us pray. Father in heaven, we pray for that grace, that we may be able to follow in the train of these two witnesses. And to those in heaven that are worshipping before you even now, that we may truly, by your grace and the work of your Holy Spirit, be found faithful. in the calling to be your witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the world. Help us, O Lord. Grant unto us that we may be truly found among those that are measured by you. Examine us. Test us, we pray. We also pray that you would equip us and prepare us, give us boldness, give us the ability to know and to do our calling as witness. And we look forward, Lord, to the completing of history, which is your story, the revelation of your sovereign purposes, the secret things that belong to you are being revealed in time and in history. We pray, Lord, that you continue to do your work in and through us, that truly we would glorify you, and that the kingdoms of this earth would become, and I have become, and would be declared the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ, and you shall reign forever and ever. We pray that you would also cause us to reign with you, be seated in Christ and reign with you in heavenly places. We look forward to that time. We pray that you'd have your way with us in Jesus name. Amen.