Well, if you'll take this morning and turn with me to Second Timothy, chapter four. But I actually want to begin reading at the end of chapter three, because it ties together. It's a you know, in the in the original, it was a a single letter and it flowed quite reasonably and rationally. So I want to begin with verse 16 and then read through verse one of chapter four. So the apostle writes, all scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. So I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, And by his appearing and by his kingdom, let me go ahead and include verse two, preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with great patience and instruction. Well, at the end of chapter three, the apostle gives a very clear statement regarding the word of God. I often say that scripture is self-authenticating. It's a self-declaration. How do we know that this is the Word of God? Because God says so, and that is sufficient. It always grieves me to find Christians who are looking for all other reasons or all other testimonies or all other affirmations that this is the Word of God when it just simply says, either we trust God, And we trust his word, which is the essence of faith. How do we know any of this is true? Because God declares it to be. You find the statement, thus saith the Lord, continually in scripture. Either we receive it as indeed the word of God, or we don't. So God says here, of his own word, that he himself has inspired it. Literally it says that it is God breathed. It possesses all authority. It is infallible. It is beyond error. It is indeed the very word of God. And the text tells us that it is by the very word of God that we come to saving faith. And so in verse 15, we read that it's able to give the wisdom. That leads to salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. So it is essential unto salvation. No one can be saved apart from the word of God. In the vast regions of the earth, there are still individuals who have never heard the word of God. They desperately need it. because it is the way of salvation. Faith comes by hearing, and the word of God is essential. And then it also tells us that the word of God is essential for growth in the Christian life, in Christian maturity. It is essential in the work of sanctification. So again, we read verse 17 of chapter 3, so that the man of God may be adequate equipped for every good work. So this same word, the same word inspired by God, the same word that proceeds from the mouth of God is the same word by which we are saved. It is the same word by which we grow. And I'll add one more. It is the same word by which we will be judged. And so it's the word of God. So since it is so important, then we get to chapter four. And it's in essence, Paul in essence is saying, look, because this is the word of God, because it is infallible, because it is the means of salvation, because it is the means of sanctification, because of the importance of this book, I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing in his kingdom, that's a mouthful This is huge. And then he says, I solemnly charge you to preach the word. If this is the word of God, if this is the driving force of your ministry, Timothy, preach it. Be instant in season and out of season. Preach it when it's popular and when it's not. Preach it when it's received and when it's not. Preach the word. Well, that will be the beginning of the preaching for next week. Preach the word. Before we deal with verse two, which really is the primary work of the pastor, preach the word. Before we begin to work at this divine commission to preach, I want to pause for a moment longer. We paused last week in verse one. I want to pause a moment longer in verse one. Now, last week, we looked at the weightiness of Paul's charge. I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus. And I titled last week's sermon Corondeo. In other words, in the presence of God, I charge you, O Timothy, with God as witness, with God's presence, with God observing it. I charge you, Timothy, preach the word. But then Paul makes a statement here that should cause all of us to pause and take notice. He tells Timothy three important things here that's really meant to be the guiding force behind his ministry. And it should also be the guiding force behind our very life. This is very important. Verse 1 is huge. Verse 1 is essential. Verse 1 is very important to us. It should be the guiding force of our life. And it's simply this. First of all, Jesus Christ is taking notice of everything we do. Now, that's important. That should have a profound impact upon how you live. I solemnly charge you in the presence of God. Second of all, this Jesus, because he says, I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, this Jesus not only is present at all times, observing all things, but He's coming back. He's coming back bodily, personally. He's coming back. So since there is to judge the living and the dead by His appearing, that's simply stating that He is about to appear. He's about to come. It's speaking of the second coming of Christ. That should have a profound impact upon how you live. A sense of expectation, a sense of watching, a sense of observing, the sense that, how will I be found when he comes back? You know, Jesus says, when the Son of Man returns, will he find faith upon the earth? You know, we do know that there will be a final great apostasy, 2 Thessalonians 2. Many will fall away. When the Son of Man returns, will He find any who are faithful? And I can give you the answer. Well, of course, yes, He will. There's always been a remnant, though it may be very small at times. Live with an expectation of His return. And then thirdly, this Jesus, who observes all things, witnesses all things, is about to return. This same Jesus will judge every human being who has ever lived. Verse 1 again says, who is to judge the living and the dead at his appearing. By living and dead, we're simply speaking universally. Those that have died, those who are still alive when he returns. As the apostle declares to the Thessalonians, the Lord will descend with a shout. and the voice of the archangel, and the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first, then we which are alive and remain shall be called up to meet the Lord in the air. He will judge the living and the dead. Every human being will bow before the judgment seat of Christ. Well, last week, again, these are three principles, three guides that should impact every area of our life. He's here, he's present, he observes, he's about to come again, and he will judge the living and the dead. So, last week we looked at the first. That is, that he's taking notice of everything that we do. Coram Deo. Nothing passes by without his notice. Everything in the world is continually before him. He remembers the details of the fall of Satan and of the fall of Adam and Eve. Every detail, every thought that entered into their mind, He remembers. He remembers the flood and every individual that perished in the flood, several million people, their births, their names, their lives. In fact, he even knew their thoughts because chapter six, verse five says, then the Lord saw He's present. He knows. The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. He knows our thoughts. And then he and we could go on and on, but he remembers Sodom and Gomorrah. every detail of the lives of these individuals, an entire city of people who had universally become corrupt. He knew the things they did in an open and he knew the things that they did behind closed doors. He knew their lust and the desires of their heart. He knew. He observed. He paid attention. Well, again, that governs our lives greatly. It's not that we live in a sense of servile fear, fearing his hammer to come down upon us. We serve a loving Christ and we serve as his people and we behold him and love him. Well, we are always mindful of His presence. When we read the seven letters to the seven churches of Revelation, these churches are being observed by the Savior. He walks among them. He walks among His lampstands, the lampstands representing the churches. He's here. He's present. He observes. But then, He knows every detail of your life. He was there when you were born, there when you took your first step. He was there when you had your first day of school. He knows every sin. He knows every time you ever disobeyed your parents. He knows everything that's ever entered into your mind, every lustful thought, every covetous thought, envy, jealousy, hate, anger, thoughts of revenge, selfishness, racial thoughts, prideful thoughts. He knows it all. Every lie you've ever told, everything you've ever taken that did not belong to you, not only does he know, but he remembers. The reason I reiterate this is really last week's sermon. It is very, very important as we consider he will return and he will judge and he knows because he's there. He observes and he remembers. In the day of judgment, all will be brought to his remembrance. Well, this morning, I want to continue and look at the second two. He's coming and he will judge. Now, the first aspect, he is coming. That's a wonderful thought for the body of Christ. He's coming. In fact, we declare, even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus. It's a great step. In 2 Thessalonians, when Paul says, the Lord will descend with a shout, the voice of the archangel, the trumpet of God, then he closes that section by saying, therefore, comfort one another with these words. Oh, there are multitudes that would tremble at the thought of the living God coming in bodily form as the righteous King, bringing judgment upon the living and the dead. It's a terrifying thought. But for the people of God, do you remember when in Acts chapter one, this is before he left. He has already died. He's already paid the penalty for his people's sins as their substitute. And then he's about to rise again and he charges his disciples to go and make disciples. Disciples making disciples. Then he leaves and he leaves bodily. It's not like he just disappeared. He began to rise physically. Must have been a sight. And have you ever seen a child accidentally let go of a helium balloon? It begins to rise and rise and rise and after a while you're not able to see it anymore. It just disappears in the clouds. That's exactly what happened with Christ. Acts chapter 1, after he said these things, he was lifted up while they were looking on. And a cloud received him out of their sight. As they were gazing intently into the sky while he was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come. Two important words. Will come. in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven. We will see with our eyes the bodily return of Christ in the clouds of glory with His holy angels with Him. But not just His holy angels because we read the Lord will descend by the shout and the voice of the archangel and the trumpet of God and the dead all of the redeemed, all of the people of God, will rise up to meet the Lord in the air. And then those saints who happen to be alive when He returns, they will rise to meet Him also, so that the Lord will return with His holy angels, the mass army, if you will, and His people with Him. Wherefore, we will always be with him. Oh, and one more thing, as in the course of this rising, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, just that fast, at the trumpet of God, at the last day, we'll be changed. So in that moment when we rise to meet the Lord in the air, we will rise in glorified bodies, to ever be with the Lord. And then everyone else will rise to stand before the judgment seat of Christ. He's coming back. So we should be ready. We should be watchful. The Lord Jesus Christ says, Matthew 24, 42, Therefore, be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. But be sure of this. that if the head of the house had known what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would have not allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will." All these people that set dates, you know, it's happened continually. I've told you before of a book I've got in my office. I keep it just for humor's sake. 88 Reasons Why the Lord Will Return by 1988. And so he's giving all these reasons. And what that tells us is, of all the dates that the Lord Jesus Christ will come back, it wouldn't be 1988. Why? Because he comes back in an hour that we do not think. He will catch multitudes off guard, unaware. not watching. Even Christians, going about their lives, doing the things they do, and forgetting who they are, what they're doing, why they are here, not being the representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ, shining His glory as the light of the world. And never forget, you don't have any light. You just reflect the light of Christ. And we are the light of the world. We are those that shine forth the glories of our Savior. So he's coming back, and he's coming back soon. Grammatically, you know, you look here at verse 1, Paul says, I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead. Grammatically, it's who is about to judge. In other words, it could happen at any moment. He's about to come. He's about to judge. We use that expression when we're talking about the imminence of something. It's about to happen. It's about to be here. With each passing second, you're closer to the return of Christ than you were the moment before. Paul actually put it this way in Romans 13, 11, he says, and knowing the time, And that now it is high time to awake out of your sleep. In other words, no slumber, no sense of being slothful. It's time, it's more than time to awake out of sleep. And then he says, for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. In other words, we are moving towards something. And we are getting nearer and nearer to something. That is, the Lord Jesus Christ is about to return. And so we remain watchful. And every generation of Christians have remained watchful, for we do not know the hour in which he will return. But he will return, I can tell you this, he will return at a time most unexpected. Jesus told a little parable. He said, an illustration if you will, of the days of Noah. Now we know the days of Noah in Genesis chapter 6. And God looked upon the wickedness of men and he determined, the scripture says that He was sorry that he had ever created them. Now we know it's all according to God's definite decree and this is given to us as an anthropopathism. giving unto God the emotions of a human being so that we say he is sorry, he is grieved over the things that he saw, but he determined to destroy every man, woman, and child upon the face of the earth. Minus eight. And so we read in Matthew 24, because remember this, Noah spent 120 years building the ark. It didn't happen overnight. He didn't have power tools. He couldn't go to the hardware store and buy another box of nails. He didn't have all the supplies. He didn't have a lumber yard. He had to build this ark from scratch, he and his two sons. It took him 120 years. And for 120 years, Noah was a preacher of righteousness. Repent! Get in the ark! Turn from your wicked ways! Judgment is about to fall! You can imagine the scoffers as they walk by. Here's this old guy. Noah was an old guy. Here's an old guy building a big boat on dry land, saying that the rains are about to fall when they've never fallen before. Floodwaters are about to come upon the face of the earth. You are about to perish in your iniquity. And they must have scoffed and laughed. And he must have been the center of jokes. They probably had Noah jokes. They'd be drinking with their buds and telling Noah jokes. Because we're so clever, aren't we? We're just such clever people. The imaginations of their heart were only wicked continually. 120 years. And then God shut them up. The scripture says God shut them up. God closed the door, and the flood came. Well, here's what Jesus says. But at that day, he's talking about his return, of that day and hour, no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking and marrying and giving in marriage until the day that Noah entered the ark. They did not understand until the flood came. and took them all away. So will be the coming of the Son of Man." Or, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. Well, I've heard individuals say, they'll use this verse to point to the wickedness of our generation. I've heard people say, you see how wicked we are? We're just like the days of Noah. Jesus said we'll be just like the days of Noah. While this may be true, we are a wicked generation. We surely haven't gotten any better. God's promise not to destroy the earth again by flood was not because we began to become righteous, but because of his mercy and because of his covenant promise. But that's not what this is pointing to. It's not pointing to the wickedness. It's pointing to life was going on as usual. Noah was building the ark. everything was just like it had always been. So the text tells us of the days of Noah that they were eating and drinking, they were having harvest, they were harvesting grapes, they were stomping out the grapes to juice, they were fermenting it into wine, they were enjoying their rich feast, eating and drinking and being merry, and they were doing this all the time. Not only that, They were expecting life to go on. So the text says that they were marrying and giving in marriage. What that means is adults were getting married and dads were giving away their daughters. So they were getting married and dads were giving their daughters away in marriage. They were marrying and giving in marriage. And it continued like this until the day Noah entered the ark. You know, they're building homes, you know, you get married, you plan a life, you build a home, you have babies and life continues and they are expecting fully for life to go on as usual until the day, until the day that Noah entered into the ark and it was over. Well, that's the way it is now. And the way every generation is. There are not people out there trembling in their sin. They're not expecting the return of Christ. They're expecting today to be just like yesterday. In fact, they treat the Lord's Day just like yesterday. They rebelled against their Creator. They say, He will not rule over us. We will do our own thing. And they continue in their rebellious life, enjoying the riches of our culture. We're the most, I dare say, I haven't examined this thoroughly, but I can't think of very many cultures that are wealthier than we are. We have been blessed beyond measure. You just look back over the last 75, 80 years, Houses that were built in the 20s were largely two-bedroom homes. Maybe they had a single carport. Never would they have a double garage, and now people are building three-car garages. Got to have room for the boat, too. We are wealthy beyond measure, and people are comfortable with what they have. But understand this. The Lord Jesus Christ is about to return, and it could be at any moment. Then what? Well, we're not left in the dark. Verse one again. So Paul's point, he said, look, all scripture is given by inspiration of God. It's been entrusted to you, Timothy, and I charge you in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, this Christ, who is the king, who is seated to the right hand of majesty on high, who will return soon, imminently, And every knee shall bow before him. So what do you do, Timothy? You preach the word, because the souls of men are at stake. Preach the word, Timothy. So the third element, it's one thing simply to say that we live in the presence of Christ, and we do. It's another thing to say, and this Christ is the King, seated at the right hand of majesty. You say, how can he be seated to the right hand of God and here at the same time? Because he's God. Yes, he's the God-man. He has a fleshly body that he received at the incarnation and thus will always have a human body. And physically, in his human body, he's one place at one time on the throne because he is the king. But he's also God. second person of the Godhead, and in his deity, he is everywhere at one time. He is here right now. As we observed the Lord's table this morning, he is present with us right now. And this same King is about to return. Physically, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is now seated at the right hand of His Majesty as our mediator, as our prophet, priest, and King, He will come physically. But he will also come to judge the living and the dead, who will stand before his throne. And I have to presume it will be a physical throne as we stand before the physical Christ. How do I believe that? Can it be something spiritual? Can't it just refer to a spiritual throne and a spiritual judgment? No. Because we believe in a physical resurrection. We will rise physically. Every human being will spend eternity in physical bodies, forever and ever in physical bodies. We believe in a physical resurrection. We believe in the physical Christ who was glorified, seated at the right hand of majesty, and we will come before His throne. We will behold the King. and he will judge the living and the dead. Every man will stand before his throne of judgment. John 5.22 For not even the Father judges anyone. He has given all judgment to the Son, because the Son is the King. Romans 14.10 But you, why do you judge your brother? or you again? Why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God." And then it says, so then each of us will give account of himself to God. We'll give account. 2 Corinthians 5.10 We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. And notice the universal language. We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad. So it's a universal judgment. We will all stand before, but it is an individual judgment. So universally, one by one, every soul, every man, every woman, every child will stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Revelation 20 verses 11 and 12. And then I saw a great white throne and him who stand on it from his presence, earth and heaven fled away and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne. The books were opened. Another book was opened, which was the book of life. And the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books according to their deeds." Well, it's a universal judgment. All men will stand before God, stand before Christ, to give account. And I say most, it would seem almost all, close their eyes to this reality. They allow the numbing effect of this world to hide this fearful truth. They place greater emphasis upon living than upon dying. And, you know, that's an important statement that we've got to take in and process. They place greater emphasis upon living than upon dying. Most people do not ponder and contemplate their mortality. They place all value upon the now, upon what I'm doing now. When the truth is, pointing to eternity is an important aspect of our preaching. It simply is. That's why Paul is saying here, look, Jesus Christ is about to come who will judge the living and the dead. Preach the word. Does that not fit together? Does verse one have nothing to do with verse two? No, it does. It absolutely does. There is eternity before us and we are eternal beings and we survive beyond the grave. So what then? Well, the truth is, Death is only the beginning of an endless eternity. All human beings created with immortality. All of us will survive beyond the grave. All of us will exist for eternity. The question is, where will you spend eternity? And in what condition will you spend eternity? Eternity begins at the judgment seat of Christ. That's the beginning. Well, for some, eternity will be spent in the indescribable joys of the presence of Christ. I can't even describe it. I haven't seen it. And I cannot even imagine it. I cannot even contemplate what it means to be freed from our mortal flesh, flesh that drives us to this, this lust and that lust, impure thoughts, deeds of the flesh. And the inability to truly contemplate Christ as we desire, to love him as he deserves, and to stand before him for eternity, and to see him, and to glory in his presence, and the comfort of his infinite love for us, how can you even imagine that? It will be a place free from sin, free from trial, free from torment, free of suffering and sadness, free of disaster, free of destruction, free from loss. I mentioned in Sunday school this morning, we live in a world of loss. We're continually losing something. The very fact that we are creatures of time tells us that you pass from one moment to the next and you have lost the previous moment. So that you see children growing and they continue to grow and never Do you go back to what they were? It's the nature. My dear bride and I are about to, in about a year, celebrate our 50th anniversary. And it seems like we just got married. I've got a picture in my office of my wife in our backyard holding our little chihuahua dog. And she was just a little girl. I mean, really, we got married when she was 17. I was 19. We were just kids. But we grew up. And we grew up together. And I'll never ever be able to go back to that time. It's the nature of life and the progression of time in heaven. It's nothing but gain. Oh, there's gain now, too. For us to know Christ is gain. To see the pearl of great price, that's gain. But our vision is so clouded now, it's hard for us to always recognize the gain, so that we ponder so much the loss that we're unable to appreciate and glory in the gain. But Paul says, for me to live, well that's Christ. I'll live for Him. Glory in Him. For me to live is Christ. But to die, gain. gain forever gain. Well, that's heaven in the presence of Christ, beholding his infinite excellence and beauty to see him, to touch him, to hear him. That's heaven. Remember, we believe in a physical resurrection. The new earth will be a physical place. I can't even imagine what that's going to look like. Will there be trees and rivers? It will be something similar to that for which we were created, to enjoy and to savor in the presence of Christ. But for others, eternity will be filled with indescribable anguish. Where we will be on the new earth, a place of indescribable joy, they will be simply in a place that Jesus describes as a place prepared for the devil and his angels. Can you imagine a place that's prepared for Satan. That's not a place of beauty, not a place of excellence, not a place of joy, not a place of enjoyment, but a place of indescribable torment. Jesus says in Matthew 13, so it will be at the end of the age, the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous and will throw them into the furnace of fire. In that place, There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Hell is the ultimate expression of the wrath of God. A place where men will be eternally given over to their sin. A place of darkness, no beauty, no pleasures, only darkness. No mercy in hell. Mercy will not be found. No hope. There's no hope in hell. They will cry out in anguish, but their cries will go unheard. But for all of us, each and every one, eternity will begin at the judgment seat of Christ. For some, they will hear, Come ye, blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. And for others, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. That's the judgment seat of Christ. And we read that all, verse one, I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead and by his appearing and his kingdom. And every human being will stand before Christ, the judge, and they will come to stand before Him and they will be judged. Now listen, I want us to hear carefully. They will be judged according to what they have done. And I say that carefully because we're not saved by works. But the Scripture says, For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for the deeds in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad. The point is simply this. We always live and act according to our nature. We really do. When Jesus tells the parable of the sheep and the goats, and he looks to the goats and he says, I was hungry and you didn't feed me. Thirsty and you didn't give me something to drink. And I was naked and you didn't clothe me. I was in prison and you didn't visit me. And the wicked ones are going, when? We didn't know. When? If we would only know. And when? And then he looks to the sheep. He says the same thing, except, I was naked and you clothed me, and I was hungry and you fed me, and I was thirsty and you gave me drink. And they too go, when? Because they were simply living according to what they are. Some were serving, others were living for themselves. It just describes our nature. The redeemed seek to live for Christ, the wretched, lost, seek to live for themselves. And so we'll be judged according to what we have done. But what does that mean, what we have done? Well, everything we do is moral. Now, I'm going to give an oxymoron in a moment, a contradictory statement, if you will. So first of all, take this in. Everything we do is moral. But it is also true that not everything carries the same weightiness. And the Bible does not instruct us on every detail of life. Most of the Christian life is what we call adiaphorous. That's a fancy word, isn't it? Adiaphorous. What's that mean? Well, it's used in the medical field. Adiaphorous. It describes a placebo. A placebo is something the doctor can give that is neither detrimental to the individual, nor is it a benefit. It's all he offers. It doesn't have any effect one way or the other. Of course, the nature of a placebo is, take this and your headaches will be gone. And people take it and go, oh, my headache's gone. But the truth is, it was not caused by the placebo. In theology, All the offer simply means there are some things in life that are neither wicked, detrimental, or righteous of a benefit. Simply because the Bible does not address it one way or the other. It falls into the realm of liberty. And we have great liberty. The Bible, by design, gives us great liberty. Most of our life is lived without specifics. The New Testament does not give us a strict, detailed list of rules and regulations, though isn't it amazing how we as human beings invent the rules and the regulations. And we do, even among the body of Christ. You know, the Bible does not give us specifics on politics, does not give us specifics on homeschooling, family size, vaccinations, hairstyles, shall I go on. It just doesn't. You know, in the history of our church, I as pastor, I've had a battle from time to time, you know, the tendency to gravitate towards, you know, this practice or that practice. And those that are dogmatic on this practice, they want everyone else to come to their side and, and to always try to keep it in a biblical format, saying, the Bible doesn't speak to this. You've got liberty on this. You're not compelled to do this. But we naturally desire rules, specific do's and don'ts. And we tend to bind the consciences of others with our personal preferences. The truth is, we are given great liberty of action. Now, for the contradiction. On the other hand, everything has a moral dimension. Am I crazy? Have I lost my mind? I just got through saying that there are many things that are adiaphorous. They don't have a moral dimension. Before you go in the refrigerator and grab a banana or an apple, whichever, you want the apple, take the apple. You want the banana, take the banana. It's all he offers. On the other hand, everything has a moral dimension simply because of this. What is required of all? Well, our heart's desire must be to honor God with every detail of our life. It must be our motive in everything we do. And in this sense, nothing is all He offers. Nothing is indifferent. You have to ask yourself, why do you do the things that you do? Well, are you doing it for yourself, for your own self-pleasure, that you can get others to follow your way? Or do you do what you do with one goal and one purpose, the glory of God? And we do that in everything. As a church, you know, someone says, well, why don't we do this? Others say, well, why don't we do that? And the question is always, why? Why do we do the things that we do? What's the purpose? What is our intent? What is the driving force behind this action? That's why our very first descriptive of our church is Christ-centered. That means something. So we're not permitted to live without a keen sense of direction and purpose. In fact, God says that he's concerned about the details. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10.31, whether then you eat or drink or whatever things you do, Do all to the glory of God. Or, I tell you, Jesus says, Matthew 12, I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. He knows. He remembers. He knows your motives. And motives are important. Why do you do the things that you do? And the heart is so deceitful, it's very hard for us to examine ourselves. Why am I doing what I do? You're here this morning for worship. Examine your heart. Why am I here? Did I come with intention or did I come out of habit? Now, it's good to develop good habits. Don't get me wrong. It's good to develop the habit of reading your Bible, just like it's good to develop the habit of brushing your teeth. But it's not on the same level and reading the Bible has benefit to you spiritually. So it's good to develop the habit of reading your Bible daily on the matter of principle. Because you know it's good for you. And even in the times where physically or in your flesh you don't feel like it, you do it anyway because you know that it's beneficial to you. But how much better than simply doing it out of habit or doing it out of a driving principle to do it out of delight? You know, God says, if you call my Sabbath a delight, I mean, you can keep the Sabbath because it's the fourth commandment and you want to obey the fourth commandment. So you give yourself to obedience to the fourth commandment and you obey because you fear not to obey or You keep the fourth commandment out of delight as you do the other commandments. John says, this is the love of God. This is what it looks like. Let me tell you what the love of God looks like. That we keep his commandments and his commands are not burdensome. They're not grievous to us. They're not something that causes grief. They're not something we hate and despise. We look at them as David would. Oh, how I love, by law, it is my meditation all the day. So here's the question. If all of our life will be tried and tested, what are the things that are important? And that's a question. If everything in our lives are to be tried and tested, what are the things that are important? Well, first of all, and primary, what is your relationship with our Savior? Do you know Him? More importantly, does He know you? And ultimately, it's the only thing that matters. Do you have a relationship with Christ? Because at the end of the day, all of your good works without Christ mean nothing. They are nothing more than filthy rags, menstrual rags, if you will. They mean nothing. Filthiness before God, apart from Christ. He knows whether we love Him. He knows the things that capture our affections. What's the driving force in our life? He knows our true motives and our true desires. Paul says, therefore, if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things that are both where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. We're not justified by our works. But our works put God's grace within us on display. It validates our faith. So our works simply show what we are. And the things that we do simply show what we are. And the things that we do have certain motivations to them. And if our motivation is Christ, then that's good and pleasing in his sight. And if we're motivated on anything else, our confession says this for, I'm just going to have to paraphrase it, for a good work to be declared good. It must have a right focus, if you will, the glory of God, and a right guide, if you will, the word of God. So there has to be a right principle, a right guide, a right focus. And apart from these things, They're not accepted. They're not pleasing in the sight of God. So our service for Christ is our good works done for His glory. Only those things done for His glory will endure, and everything else will not. In fact, and I'll close with this, in 1 Corinthians 3, A very unusual chapter and hard to follow at times, but I think it simply means this. You know, we're going about doing the work of the kingdom winning souls, sharing the gospel of individuals, seeking to bring others into the kingdom. And I think chapter three is dealing, it's really a ministerial focus. It says, look, what is going to be, what's going to endure the fires of judgment? If you bring in individuals through Christ, through the preaching of the word, through the right means, that is the gospel of Christ, then your converts will bear the test of judgment. It will show the reality of what they are. But there will be many on the day of judgment, though brought in They will be shown to be false on the day of judgment and their good works, if you will, will be burned up. Though they themselves may be saved, they will lose the fruit of their ministry, the things that they've done. Well, these are the things we focus on. He's watching. He's here. He's present. He sees all and knows all. He's coming back. at an hour that you least expect. It could be right now. Can you imagine right now as in a moment we're going to sing a final hymn and we're going to partake of the Lord's Supper and He could return while we are partaking of the Lord's Supper. Would that not be glorious? For Him to return in the midst of us sharing in the celebration of our redemption through His death upon the cross. And we must never forget he's coming to judge the living and the dead. Are you prepared for this great day? Truly. Do you ponder it? Do you think about it? Does it drive you? Is it important to you? Is it the driving force in everything you do? And the closer you get, you know, we've got folks in our congregation that are getting old. And the older you get, does it become more focused in your life, more glorious? So let me close with a quote by Leonard Ravenhill. I don't agree with all the theology of Leonard Ravenhill, but this is a good quote. And I've given it to you before, but the nature of quotes, sometimes you remember them, sometimes you don't. Illustrations, sometimes you remember them, sometimes you don't. So we repeat them to help to drive them home. This is a good quote. Here's what it says. This is Leonard Ravenhill at the age of 83. At the age of 83, you're thinking, I'm getting closer. You know, 83, that's only 15 years from now for me. You know, it's not very long. I look back over the last 15 years and they were a flash. I realize that life is passing for all of us. Every single one of us are getting near. We just don't know when, but we're getting near. Leonard Ravenhill says, the more I read the word of God, the more it pierces my heart. It makes me stop and think and meditate. I meditate now more on eternity than I ever have in all my life. Our people are not eternally conscious. Do you think a person who is ready for eternity would miss a prayer meeting? Something to think about. What drives us? What is our focus? What is our interest? Why do we do what we do? And Ravenhill says, the closer I get to eternity, the more I consider it, and the more serious it becomes, and I give myself all the more to be found faithful. Well, let's pray. Father, indeed would you find us faithful. Help us to speak the words of the Apostle. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have kept the faith. Wherefore is laid up for me the crown of glory, not unto me only, but to all those who have loved his appearing. O God, how we love your first advent. And Father, we love your second Advent, though very sober, very serious, to actually stand before your all-knowing eyes. You know everything about us. It's a terrifying thought. until we remember, if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness, casting our sins as far as the east is from the west into the realm of forgetfulness. Though you never forget anything, you no longer hold them against us. Father, thank you for Christ. Thank you for the gospel. And thank you, Father, that for those that know Christ, eternity is a glorious thought. And we declare, Father, even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.