So I don't have a text. I have more than one, but that's my theme. And so let's look to the Lord once again and ask his blessing on the ministry of his holy word. Father, we humble ourselves before you this morning. We acknowledge we are completely and totally dependent upon you. We need your grace. We need the Holy Spirit. We thank you for your great goodness. We thank you, Lord, that you never, ever, ever will forsake us, just like we sang. Thank you for that wonderful hope that we have, that no matter what we face in this life, your grace is sufficient for anything. Blessed be your name. And now we pray, as we turn to your holy word, that you would be pleased to draw near to us and to bless and encourage and strengthen the faith of your people. And if there's anyone here this morning who doesn't know Jesus Christ, Father, we plead with you. You've had great mercy on us. Please, dear God, have mercy on them too. We ask it in Jesus' name, amen. Now, I don't think that anyone would argue with me when I say that we live in troubled and changing times, and that our society as we have known it may possibly be on the verge of radical change due to the influence of evolution, secular humanism, Marxism, socialism, communism. Maybe somebody could explain to me sometime the difference between Marxism, socialism, and communism. I'm a simple fellow. I don't see much difference. So what I want to focus on is truth that is timeless in order to give to God's people encouragement and peace even in troubleless and potentially changing times. Now, here's the first thing I want to say. God is in control. God rules. He is running the world. He is in control. And he means it for good. Now, I have two texts, the first text. to put it in perspective, is Ephesians 1.11, in whom we also have obtained an inheritance being predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things after the counsel, the plan of action of his own will. God is in control. He is sovereign. He works all things after the counsel, the plan of action of his own will, which he determined before the foundation of the world. There's a second text. 1 Thessalonians 4.3. And it says, for this is the will of God, even your sanctification. that you should abstain from fornication. This is the will of God that you should live a holy life. God's will is what is right. But if you go back to Ephesians chapter one, verse 11, he works all things after the plan of his own will. The will of God is what is. The will of God is what is, in Ephesians 1. The will of God is what's right, in 1 Thessalonians 4. And you feeling any tension? The will of God is what is. The will of God is what's right. So which is it? It's both. And here's the mystery. Sometimes what is, is not right. The will of God is what is. The will of God is what's right. And the mystery, sometimes what is, is not right. Now, how do you put all that together? Does anybody here have a dog? You have a dog? Does the dog have a name? What was that? LT. That's the dog's name, LT. Now, I'm sure that LT is a very, very nice dog. Right? You like LT? LT's a very nice dog, very loyal dog, very friendly dog. Doesn't go around biting people, right? Nice dog, right? But let's suppose that I decided that I want to teach LT algebra. Boy, what are you laughing? Don't you think I could teach LT algebra? Suppose I brought LT up here. LT, LT, explain to me LT. Solve this equation, LT. 2x plus 4 equals 10. How much is it? Now suppose he goes, woof, woof, woof. I said, oh, man. All right, you want me to solve the equation for you? Could you children do it? 2x plus 4 equals 10. So you subtract 4 from both sides, 2x equals 6, x equals 3. Now, you children can do that, but LT can't do that. LT could never do that. I could spend all afternoon trying to teach LT algebra. I'm not going to get very far. What's the problem? There's nothing wrong with LT. And I'm not a bad teacher, that's not the problem. What's the problem? The problem is algebra is above LT's pay grade. LT, sweet as he is, loyal as he is or she is, wonderful dog, but it's not gonna be standing up at a blackboard teaching algebra to you kids. Not gonna happen. because LD doesn't get algebra, right? It's above LT's pay grade. I said, well, why are you telling the story? Well, here's the point. The will of God is what is. The will of God is what's right. We tend to think that we're the smartest creatures in the universe. We're wrong. When it comes to understanding the mind and plan of God, we're less capable of that than LT is of getting algebra. It's above our pay grade. God is in control of the world. God is in control of sin. And yet God hates sin. And God is not the author of sin. And God does not approve of sin. So why does he still find fault for who withstands his will? I don't know. It's above my pay grade. I can't explain it to you. Nobody can explain it to you. And if anybody says they can explain it to you, they don't know what they're talking about. There are mysteries. The will of God is what is. The will of God is what's right. And sometimes what is, is not right. And God is in control of what's not right. But that doesn't make God evil. or powerless to change it. Joseph wrestles with this mystery. He gets it. In Genesis 50, verse 20, he says, as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good. When they betrayed him and sold him into slavery, they intended, planned, purposed, and did evil. And God, through that very evil, intended, planned, and purposed good. And after 20 years or so, Joseph finally came to get a glimmer of light when God pulled back the veil and showed him God meant it for good to save many people alive as it is this day. But for many, many years, He didn't know when he was in that caravan going down to Egypt to be a slave, when he was in Potiphar's house, when he was falsely accused of criminal sexual conduct, when he was wrongly imprisoned, when he was forgotten in prison. During all those years, he didn't know. He had to trust God. that God meant it for good and all the sin and all the wrong that he suffered that was done to him, the harm, the evil that people did to him, God meant it for good. God's not guilty of their sin. Well, why does he still find fault? Does that mean that his brothers were just puppets? No, they meant it. They did what they wanted to do. They acted of their own free choice in their wicked and enslaved to sin hearts. They're not puppets. They meant it for evil. God's not wicked. God meant it for good. How can you explain that to me? I can't explain it to you. You have to trust God. Dear people, it may be that terrible things happen to you or to people that you love. It may be that in our society, awful, horrible evils and wrongs are done. God's in control of all of it, but God's not evil. God means it for good. And every evil thing that people do to you, God is working it all together for good. Your pastor's preaching through Romans right now. I don't know if he got, did you get to Romans 8 28 yet? Well, what do you know? What do you know? There it is. There's the text. He works all things together unto good for those that are the called according to his purpose. We don't necessarily see his design. Sometimes it takes years and years, like in the case of Joseph. That's why we have to trust him. And because God is in control, that's why we need to pray. Because God's running the world. Therefore, pray. God has a good purpose in all the sufferings and afflictions of his people. So, dear people, don't turn against God. Trust God. Don't become bitter. Return good for all the evil that people do to you and the things they say about you. Trust the Lord and pray. Don't charge God foolishly. Don't say with the wicked, I'll never believe a God who brings something like that to pass. I'll never serve a God like that. Those are the wicked. That's what the wicked say. Dear people, don't blame God for the sins of men. We can't understand an incomprehensible God, but remember, he's infinite. And he is far, far greater above us, transcendent above us, than we are above the mind of a dog. We're a lot closer to the dog than we are to God. You say, what? That's insulting. Not really, when you stop and think about God's infinite and omniscient. What are we closer to? or omniscience. What do you think? That's what humility says. Not gonna call God to judgment, attack God, because we can't understand his ways. So that's the first thing. There's a lot of stuff going on right now that's not good. There's a lot of stuff going on in our society that's terrible. You know that, right? God's in control of all of it. And God means it for good for his people. I don't know how, but I know he does. That's my first point. God's in control. God means it for good. Secondly, and I gotta go back to Romans again, there is a power to transform our society. There's a power to transform the world. And the apostle Paul describes it in Romans 1, 15 to 17. And maybe you heard this a long time ago. Do you remember when you preached through this part of Romans, chapter one? You don't, or you do? You don't remember, do you? Year and a half or two years ago. So it's all right if I say it again, isn't it? Yeah. All right, Romans 1, 15 to 17. Listen to what Paul says to them. So as much as in me is, I'm ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome. Why, Paul? Why are you zealous? What is the root, the explanation of your zeal to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to these Christians in Rome? This is it. Why, Paul? For, verse 16, I am not ashamed of the gospel. His zeal to bring the gospel to that society was rooted in his confidence in the gospel. My zeal is explained this way, because I am not ashamed of the gospel. I'm eager to tell you the story of Jesus because I'm not ashamed of it. Paul, why are you not ashamed of the gospel? For it. Well, it's not about you. No, it's not about me. It's about the gospel. For it is God's power to salvation to everyone that believes, to the Jew and also to the Greek. It's because of the power of the gospel, the effectiveness of the gospel, the ability of the gospel, blessed by the spirit of God, to transform the world. It is power, it is omnipotence, God's power in action to save sinners from every branch of the human race, Jew and Gentile alike. Here's the power to transform any society under the sun, including ours, the gospel. And why is the gospel omnipotence in action to save? Verse 17, for in it is revealed God's righteousness from faith to faith, as it's written, the righteous shall live by faith. And then he expounds the gospel, why people need Christ, how they get Christ, what's the blessing of having Christ. The gospel does what it does, transforms society for good, saves and rescues sinners from sin and wrath. The gospel does what it does because the gospel is what it is. Because the gospel is the story of Jesus, the story of God's righteousness. received by faith, the righteousness bound up in the person and work of Jesus Christ, all the righteousness that any sinner needs to be accepted and pardoned by God. It's all in Jesus and Jesus received by faith. So it's telling the story of Jesus and knowing that that story is true and receiving and resting on Jesus and his righteousness. This is what changes the world. This is the only hope of our society, to transform it for good and for the glory of God. What our society desperately needs is a powerful revival of true religion, needs the gospel of Jesus Christ to come in power to every branch of our land, to bring sinners to Jesus Christ for salvation. That's the power that changes the world. There's our hope. We want to see good, radical, transforming, spiritual good. The answer is not. in education or politics or riots. The power to change the world morally for good is in the good news about Jesus Christ. Paul said, I am not ashamed of the gospel. And because I'm not ashamed of it, because I have confidence in the gospel, I'm ready to tell you the gospel. because the gospel is God's power to transform, because in it is the story of Jesus and his righteousness, Jesus and his love, everything that sinners need to be right with God, received by faith. So folks, would you like to see our society and the whole world change for good? What's the answer? The answer is the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is gospel truth that transforms the world. It's gospel truth. So know the gospel and tell the gospel. Have confidence in the gospel because it's the truth of the gospel that changes the world. So the first thing, God rules the world. Second thing, the gospel changes the world. Third truth I want to set out to you today is that the church is going to survive. Jesus said in Matthew 16, 18, the first mention of church explicitly in the New Testament He says, and I say to you, speaking to Peter, that you are Peter, and on this rock the apostolic confession of Christ Who do you say that I am? You're the Christ, the son of the living God. Apostolic confession, telling the world the story of Jesus, confessing to the world that Jesus is the Christ. That truth coming in power, that apostolic testimony, blessed by the Holy Spirit, sent around the world, that's the foundation on which he builds his church. On this rock, I'll build my church and The gates of hell will not prevail against it. He sees his redeemed assembly as an army besieging the gates of hell. And hell will not prevail, the church will prevail. The church will not end in failure. The church will end in victory, resounding success. At the second coming of Christ, he will receive the church to himself in glory. This is what Paul says in Ephesians chapter three, verses 20 and 21. Now unto him. that is able to do exceeding, abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, To him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. The church will be here as long as this age endures, as long as Christ waits to return. In every generation, it will glorify him. And then when he comes, he will glorify the church. Paul says in Ephesians 5, 25 to 27, that husbands are to love their wives like Christ loved the church. And Christ loved the church in order to sanctify it. In verse 27, with this design, in order to present it to himself, a glorious church. not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish. Today, the church struggles with remaining sin, with hypocrisy and heresy and apostasy, remaining corruption and true believers. all the spots and wrinkles, but when Jesus comes back, he will present the church to himself a glorious church. No more spot, no more wrinkles, no such thing. The church will survive. Now, the genius with which Christ founded and built his church, is that he doesn't promise one particular local church that it will survive all the thousands of years from his first coming to his second coming. But he proliferates local churches, particular churches, throughout the whole world. And though one or another of those particular churches does not last, The church will last. There will always be the gospel of God coming in power. He will save people in every generation. And Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more. Death has no power over Him. And He will preserve the Scripture. It will abide forever. People can burn the Bible if they want. They can't destroy it. He will preserve scripture. Christ cannot die. He will fulfill his promise and save sinners somewhere on earth in every generation. And those sinners will be gathered together into churches. And that will not stop until Jesus comes back. No government on earth will destroy the Church of Jesus Christ. No totalitarian power will ever destroy the Church of Jesus Christ. It cannot be destroyed. No matter what government exists, or how totalitarian is its oppression, no matter what communists do, or try to do, or want to do, The church of local churches somewhere on earth will remain until Jesus comes. He will save some. And even if we have to meet in secret or meet in the woods or meet in catacombs, the church will survive. The devil cannot destroy it. No power on earth can end it because God will keep it. He will present the church to himself, a glorious church. It will glorify him in every generation. That's the truth. Timeless truth for troubled times. First, God's in control. He's running the world. Second, You want to see the world change for good? Gospels, the power of God to save. Third, no matter what happens, the church will survive. No virus can kill it. No government can kill it. The devil can't kill it. It will survive. Take it to heart. Fourthly, Did you get to this yet, Romans 8, 29 to 39? Oh, you did? All right. I'm going to read the whole thing then. God cares about you. Dear Christian, it isn't just that God cares about the church. Oh, he does. And he's going to protect the church and keep the church in every generation. That's true. but he also cares about you specifically and personally. If I may dare to use this phrase, and I dare, dear Christian, and I speak to you, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. Christian, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. And here it is, here's this wonderful plan. Verse 29 of Romans 8, for whom he did foreknow, he did also predestine To be conformed to the image of his son, there's his plan. He's going to make you like Jesus. He's going to remove all sin from your soul. And someday your sin is going to be gone and your soul will never sin again. And. to be conformed to the image of his son. Not only is he gonna remove all sin from your soul so you can never sin again, either when you die or at the second coming, he also is gonna conform your body to the glorious body of Jesus so that you can never die again. Either by resurrection from the dead or by a momentary glorification and transformation at the second coming of Christ. That's God's plan for your life. to conform you to the image of his son. That's God's wonderful plan for you. And here's how he's working it out. Whom he did predestine, then he also called. Whom he called, then he also justified. Whom he justified, then he also glorified. What shall we say then to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also with him freely give us all things? Who will lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It's God that justifies. Who is he that condemns? It's Christ Jesus that died. Yes, rather, that's risen from the dead. Verse 35, who will separate us from the love of Christ? Tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, sword. Verse 37, no, in all these things, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Christ is God's provision, the provision of his love. Christ is God's protection. And through love and power, we experience God's preservation. Nothing will destroy you, dear Christian. The love of God orders everything that happens in your life. Nothing will ever sever you from Jesus' love or from the spiritual blessings of the gospel. Nothing will ever derail your arrival in glory. And very soon, so soon, we'll be either in heaven or in the new heavens and earth. Therefore, love him, trust him, thank him, praise him, serve him, walk with him, hope in him, because he'll never fail you. The love of God, dear Christian, has preserved you and will preserve you. until you reach the goal and the plan is fulfilled that he has for your life and no development on the face of the earth will ever change it. Nothing's gonna change your destiny. Nobody's gonna change your destiny. This is God's plan for your life and it's a wonderful plan. Now, I have to pause and say, You know, God had mercy on us and we're hell deserving sinners. He delivered us from his wrath. We deserve to go to hell. He will also deliver you. And when you turn away from your sin and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, then I'll be able to say with good conscience about you that this is God's plan for you. Why would you want to fight against a God so full of love and grace? I entreat you in the meekness and gentleness of Christ, turn away from your sins. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you'll be saved. And then you'll be able to say, this is God's plan for me, yes. That God is going to make me like Jesus, yes. That God is gonna remove all the sin from my soul, and he's gonna give me a glorified body like the body of Jesus that can never die. And for all eternity, I'll be with Christ, never sin again, never die again, that's right. That's exactly right. So I entreat you, turn away from your sin and believe in the Lord Jesus. And then I have one final thing to say to you this morning. And that is, you wanna know who's gonna win? You wanna know who's gonna win? My answer is this, Jesus Christ is gonna win. Now today, we witness hostility. Hostility like, I mean, I'm only 72, but I've never seen anything like the hostility that is in our society today. Not in my lifetime. Philosophical battles, competing world and life views, so much hostility. But underlying all of that hostility, folks, is a far more fundamental fight And it's started according to God's resolution in Genesis 315. He says, I will put enmity between you, the devil and the woman Eve, and between your seed, the wicked and her seed, the righteous. And he, Christ, will crush your head, devil, and you will bruise his heel. That's why Paul says in Ephesians 6, 11, people put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, because we're not wrestling ultimately against flesh and blood. Ultimately, we're fighting against evil and against the powers of darkness, against hate and lies and the devil and the demons and his influence on the world. For this cause was the Son of God manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil. I've heard people say the 2020 election is the decisive battle. Your whole future depends on who wins this election. Well, I'm not gonna say that politically speaking it's not important, that's not my point. My point is, folks, Let me just say it bluntly. I'm not trying to minimize civic responsibility or anything like that. Qualify, qualify, qualify. Here's the point. That's not the decisive battle. Jesus Christ is gonna win the decisive battle. The real war is not a political war. It's a spiritual war. And who's gonna win it? Jesus Christ wins. He wins. He wins. It's possible to lose an election and to refuse to accept the results. It's possible to lose a war and to continue to resist and fight an underground battle of sabotage and resistance and guerrilla warfare and make no truce, no peace treaty. Well, here's the thing, folks. Christ is not going to win the war and lose the peace. When Christ wins, it's going to be final and ultimate. Matthew 25, 46 says, speaking of the wicked, and these shall go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. And Revelation 20, verse 10 says, and the devil that deceived them was cast to the lake of fire and brimstone. and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. And Revelation 20, 13 to 15 says, and the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and they were judged every man according to his works, and death and Hades were cast to the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire and If any was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire. They will never willingly surrender. They will hate God forever, but they will be subdued forever. They will be subjugated. The devil, the demons and the wicked will be subjugated, condemned, judged, convicted, sentenced and punished in the lake of fire forever. The enemies of God will not only be defeated, they will be permanently powerless to hurt They will be disabled from doing any further harm to God's children forever. They will be permanently punished forever. By unending imprisonment in the lake of fire, they will be fighting a guerrilla warfare against God. and tempting and troubling and persecuting and hurting God's people in the new heavens and earth. When he comes and when he wins, it's over. They're done, they're through. They're not gonna be carrying on guerrilla campaigns. All over, done through, Christ wins. And when he wins, he wins. Not just gonna win the war, he's gonna win the peace. And they're gonna be subjugated and punished forever and ever. Now God says, I said it firmly, but that doesn't mean that I say it compassionlessly. Doesn't mean that I say it harshly or even sadistically. God doesn't have that kind of a heart or spirit. This is what he says. He says, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that he turn and live. So yes, we talk about eternal punishment. We talk about Christ's victory because the Bible says it and says it plainly. It says that ultimately our hope is not in who wins an election in the United States in 2020. Our hope is that Jesus is coming back and he wins big time. When he wins, it's over. But that doesn't mean that we have hatred in our heart, or malice in our souls toward people that are gonna spend eternity in the lake of fire. We don't want that. Look, we deserve to go to hell as much as anyone else. And we're not going there, and you don't have to go there either, and we don't want you to go there, and God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. I'm not saying this because I wanna see people damned, or gloat over the fact that people are going to lose their battle against God? No, that's not my heart. That's not where I'm coming from. That's not the spirit of the Lord. He says, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that he turn and live. I'm not saying that out of malice to the unrighteous. I'm saying it folks in order to encourage the righteous. First of all, get the right utopia in your head. The right utopia is after the second coming of Christ, the new heavens and earth. Look, I'm not saying you shouldn't care about civic things. I'm not saying it doesn't matter. I didn't say any such thing. I'm simply saying, ultimately, victory is about the second coming of Christ. Ultimately, the battle that we're fighting is a spiritual war. And ultimately, Jesus Christ wins that war. And when he does, it is going to be over. And those that hate God are not gonna have any more opportunity to do any more evil to God's people forever. I say that in order to give you hope. I say that in order to focus your hope upon the second coming of Christ. Because everyone that has this hope set on him is purifying himself. even as he is pure. So let me sum up. God's in control. Gospel changes the world. The church survives. God cares about you, dear Christian, and has a wonderful plan for your life. And in his love, he will never forsake you. And he'll bring you to glory. And Jesus Christ wins. Do you find those things encouraging? Do you find it encouraging? Do you find it helps you to face the troubled times and put in perspective all the talking heads that you hear? So when you hear all the talking heads, put it in perspective, dear people. Put it in perspective. God's in control. The gospel's the power of God to change the world for good. Nothing's gonna destroy the church. It's gonna survive. Nothing is going to derail God's wonderful plan for your life or separate you from His love in Jesus Christ, and Jesus will win. May God be pleased to write His wonderful word upon our hearts. Let's pray. Father, thank you for these truths that we didn't make up. Thank you that you are running this world, though at times the wrong seems so strong. You are the ruler yet. Blessed be your name. Help us to trust you, even when we can't figure you out. Grant, oh God, that we would focus on bringing truth that transforms to our society. Grant, Lord, that we would not give up on the church. Grant, dear God, that we would not think that you would ever turn away from us. but that we would know that whatever happens in our lives, nothing can sever us from your love. Finally, Father, grant that our hope would be firmly fixed on the victory of Jesus, and we would live in the light of it. And Lord, we plead for those that are living in sin, those that are fighting against you, Lord, you know that's what we once were. You know that we once lived like that. And we're ashamed of the things we once did and said and the way we used to live. And yet you had pity on us. Dear God, in the abundance of your mercy, have pity on them too. Save them, Lord. Don't let any of them come to that awful place of torment. Deliver them from your wrath. You've said you have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that he turn and live. Send forth your spirit in great measure, work repentance and faith, widespread, true, genuine gospel revival. Rescue the wicked of our society. Deliver them from the wrath to come. Have mercy on them like you had mercy on us. We ask it in Jesus' name, amen.