We're going to give you a minute to think about what you've done wrong. Good morning everyone Good morning and welcome to Old Providence Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. It's loud enough right there thumbs up on some people So hopefully this one will suffice for today. But it's so good to be back with you on this Lord's Day. After having been in Israel last week, I'm so grateful for the job that Will did in my absence in the procession, and the deacons, and Martha, and Stephanie, and everybody for holding down the fort while I was gone. It's so good to be back with y'all today. I've already been asked if this morning is gonna focus on Israel, and the answer is no, it will not. But this coming Wednesday night, and sharing some reflections, but preview of coming attractions, I think that this trip is, and I've been all over the world, y'all know that, but I think this is the most important place I've ever been in the Lord, but I've really used my time away to work at my heart in different ways and my mind, too. as I was challenged and enriched and so many other things. So be here this coming Wednesday. We start eating at six o'clock. Some of you can't make it at six, that's fine. But we're gonna eat from six until seven and then we'll come in here. But also we have youth group. And that really focuses on middle school, but we have youth group. And we also have our children's ministries meeting too. And they are practicing for the Christmas pageant. So we've got something for everybody. Again, we start eating at six and you don't have to bring a thing. Just bring yourself. Now, another big announcement is that it's hard to believe. But this coming Saturday, y'all, can you believe it? This coming Saturday, we are having our Thanksgiving community meal. It is the only fundraiser the youth group does all year long. There's a write-up in the bulletin about it, but we've changed our format, okay? We're trying to ensure quicker drive-thru times if you order your meals in advance. Also, we've got a separate time for you to come in and eat here, and for placing orders, there's none. So, I mean, don't call us Friday afternoon and say, yeah, I need 250. Don't do that, but nevertheless, call the office, put your order in so we'll have enough food for everybody. Now, also you'll notice there's a flyer in the vault about poinsettias. It's that time of year, Advent season. So go ahead and place your order for those. Also, start marking your calendars now for things like our Christmas dinner. which will be Wednesday, December 17th. Our choir cantata and Christmas pageant for the children will be December 21st. And there are more dates in your bulletin, too, that you need to be aware of. Like today is the last day for turning in your ARP Magazine subscriptions. Talk to Linda Liu if you have any questions about that. Now, when those announcements made it, as you pray this week, I've got some other things to tell you. Pray for Stephanie Ehrman. Her surgery was bumped up this past week. She had it Tuesday. She's at home now. She's doing well. Millard and Kenny are here, but pray for her recovery. It's four to six weeks for extensive surgery. She wrote me last night and she said, Please let the members know how thankful I am for their prayers, text messages, and visits during my recent hospital stay. And she covets your prayers now as she continues to recover. So pray for her. Also, be in prayer for Todd and Paula Smith. I don't know if Paula is here this morning. I don't think she is. But be in prayer for Todd Smith, who was moved just a couple of days ago to the memory care unit at the Legacy of North Augusta in Stanton. As many of you know, Todd has early onset Alzheimer's and vascular dementia. And his condition has really, really deteriorated as of late. And he's reached that point where for his safety and for Paul's, he really needs to be in that facility. But you all know, it's either in your direct family or somebody connected to your family. This is a horrible thing. It's a very difficult transition. So please be in prayer for the both of you. I miss this whole day. And again, I welcome you, whether you're a visitor or a long time member of life, it doesn't matter. God has called you here to worship. and and and and We're honored that we next week can come together and celebrate communion. So begin to prepare your hearts for that. He forgives all your iniquity. He heals all your diseases. He redeems your life from the pit. He crowns you with faithful love and compassion. He satisfies you with good things. so that your youth is renewed like the eagle. The Lord executes acts of righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. He revealed his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel. The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love. He will not always accuse us or be angry forever. He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His faithful love toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. As a Father has compassion on His children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. Then the psalmist goes on to talk about the attributes of God, the various things we learn about him and about us, but all of these point us to the goodness of God. How again, as we just read, he does not, verse 10, he does not deal with us as our sins deserve, but instead is compassionate and gracious. And y'all, we have so many reasons to be grateful, so many reasons to be thankful, but the forgiveness that we have through Jesus Christ our Lord, certainly, is amongst the top of these. So let's keep these things in mind now as we come together in worship. Let's go to him in prayer, remembering his faithful love and cherishing his goodness to us. Let's go to him now. Our God and our Father, we thank you so much that your word is true, that you are gracious, you are compassionate, you don't just forgive us, you understand us, you see us, you hear us. And Father, you remember how you made us. And yet, Father, though the nature of these bodies of ours is temporary, we are created in your image. We are souls, eternal souls, with eternal destinations, and because of Jesus Christ, we can be with you forever and ever. And Father, we don't deserve such love, but you give it to us all the same. So now, as we come into this time, help us to remember these things and so many more, so many more blessings that you give us. as we bring songs of praise to you, as we pray, and as we go to your word. We pray all of these things in Christ's name, and we also pray now, as he taught us to pray, by saying, our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Now, as we say to the apostles to read together, let me ask you, Christian, what is it that you believe? I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord. who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From this he will come to judge the living and the dead. The communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. Amen indeed. Now let's continue our worship by singing hymns that are really my favorites today. Let's stand and sing hymn number two with thanksgiving in our hearts as we sing for the beauty of the earth. Hymn number two. For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies, for the love which from thy birth to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise. Lord of wonder, proudly charmed of the day and of the night, hill and vale and tree and flower, ♪ And sparks of light ♪ ♪ For the vault to thee we raise ♪ ♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪ ♪ For the joy of year and night ♪ ♪ For the heart and mind's delight ♪ ♪ For the joy of humanity ♪ Sister, parent, child, Friends on earth and friends above, For all gentle, fast, and mild, Lord of all, to Thee we raise This our hymn of grateful praise. Lifted, holding hands above, Off'ring up on every shore, You may be seated, everyone. We'll ask the children to come down now, the children. Teamwork, good. Yes, teamwork is very important. Now, a long time ago, everyone spoke the same language. That's crazy to think about, right? Yeah. Now, doesn't that make teamwork very easy when we all speak the same language and understand the same things, right? So, the people of Babel came up with a plan. They were going to build this great tower, go up and up and into the clouds. bring glory to themselves and not to the Lord with this giant tower. And so, suddenly, they found themselves speaking very different languages. Because of this, they had to scatter and fill the earth, and most importantly, stop building this great tower. Now, let me ask you one more time. Is teamwork good? Yes. Teamwork is very good, and the Lord loves when we work together. but God only loves when we work together and bring honor and glory to Him, not to ourselves. Now, where do we get it today? Well, there are many languages in many places across the earth, but you guys know there are also many Christians in churches across the globe as well. There's a lot more than just us here in the United States, and that is a very important thing to remember, because there is one very important person who brings us Jesus brings us together as all different people, different languages, different cultures. One church that works together to bring glory to Him. You're going to want to build one on the tower of Bethlehem. Why? It's an important Bible story today in the Children's Church. But for now, we ask you to pray with me. Let's bow our heads. Dear Lord, I thank you for this day, this wonderful day that's been set aside to gather, not only here, but across the world for your people to worship you. We pray that as these children move forward in the Children's Church, they will hear made of those people who understand why it is important that this sort of cabinet were made. What we ask now is that the rest of us, we want to just spend the rest of the time and worship together. I believe we'll all hear the words that have been brought to us that are extended and we're going to take them with us throughout the rest of this week. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. You guys can use this new children's church. And as they're being dismissed, let's take this time now to go to our board of silent prayer efforts. Eternal God and Heavenly Father, we praise you and we thank you for all the ways that you are at work, for all the blessings that you have given, for all the sins that you have forgiven us for committing against you, whether it's sins that we've done that are actions or things that we have left undone that we should. We thank you that you understand us, that you are merciful, We thank you that you haven't left us alone to figure things out, but instead, you have given us your word. You have blessed us by dwelling within us by the power of your Holy Spirit, and you have given us one another. As well as you said with the children, it is your desire that we would be united together, not just for the sake of unity, but for the sake of your kingdom. For Father, as we survey the world around us, we see such a wonderful work at hand where your church is growing, where you are building your church. Your son is fulfilling that promise to build his church. And at the same time, we see so many who have not just turned away from you, but are in active rebellion against you. And what's worse perhaps is so many who believe that but they don't really know you at all. Father, the first, the act of rebellion, sometimes easier to spot, it's definitely easier to spot, and sometimes easier to deal with someone who admits that they hate you, but the one who is so close to knowing you but doesn't. Oh, Father, work in our hearts and in our minds, let this be a prompting to us to be about your business, to be ready to offer testimony to your greatness, to be quick to respond with the reason for the hope that we have in Jesus Christ, that indeed we are free in Christ. Not because of us, but because of you, Father. Because of His Word. Because of this life, this purpose, this meaning that you've given through Him and Him alone. Noel, Father, we know that this message resonates in a world around us that's groping in darkness. Here during this time where we're supposed to be turning our minds to Thanksgiving and the incarnation of your son where he took on flesh and made his dwelling among us, let us not forget that calling of your word to remember, to be thankful, to let our gratitude and our praises be known, both for our own sake and for the sake of those around us. Oh, Father, that the gospel of Jesus Christ would blaze forth, even from here, even from our hearts. And yet, Father, as we consider the life that we lead, we know that there are challenges to this. Sometimes they are a bit physical, right? We think of Stephanie here in this morning. We pray that you would be with her, that you would speed her recovery and speed it well, that there wouldn't be any complications, that she would gain strength, that the pain would lessen, and that she would be restored to full health soon. We think about Tom, who has served this church as a deacon. Father, such a sad set of circumstances that his condition has deteriorated as it has. But you know him, Father, and you're always at work, so please be merciful. Give him a real sense of your presence and do the same for Paul. And still for others that I have not mentioned, there's a lot of things, physically speaking, going on within our church and those that we know. So bring healing and mercy. And yet, Father, as we face difficulties of another variety, whether they be relational, maybe vocational, maybe emotional difficulties, you know us. You know us better than we know ourselves. And so, Father, if it's encouragement, please encourage us. If it's correction, please, in your mercy and in your loving kindness, correct us. If it's just spurring us on in the midst of the weariness of the world, then please, spur us on, because Father, we wanna do what you want us to do. That is our desire here at Old Providence, to serve you. So please, remove the barriers that exist in our lives to these things, and let us be a testimony to your greatness here in Spotswood, in Augusta County, Rockbridge County in Virginia, the United States, and the world around us. so that many would come to know you, so that they would see you and know you and enjoy the many benefits that we have through Jesus Christ alone. And we pray these things in his name, amen. Now let's continue our worship time by singing another really, really fabulous Thanksgiving hymn. In grateful eagerness shall our tributary pray. Betrayed before Thee, we kneel and adore Thee. We bless Thy holy name, that praises we sing. ♪ God of our fathers, we bless thee ♪ ♪ Through life's storm and tempest ♪ ♪ Our God has helped thee ♪ ♪ When perils overtake us ♪ ♪ We're saved, thou wilt wake us ♪ ♪ And with thy help, O Lord, we'll rise again ♪ our straddles begin. With voices united, our praises we offer, and gladly our song of true worship we raise. Our sins have confessed, Let's go to our Lord, our Father. with every blessing. So Father, help us to be mindful of these things as we consider what to return to you. So I pray now that you will bless these gifts, the givers of these gifts as well, that all of this will be used for the sake of your kingdom, for your glory. And we pray it in Christ's name. Amen. You may be seated. you 2A 3.30 x (-0.50') Aum So, I will give thanks to the Lord. I will be free to the Lord, the most high. In my whole heart, I will give thanks. I will give thanks to the Lord, my God. I will give thanks to the Lord. I will sing praise to the Lord my God, with my whole heart I will praise. In the seasons of my year, in the seasons of my year, Thy best days are here, O my dear, O my heart. With my lips, I'll sing his praise. With my heart, I'll sing his guidance. And I'll thank him all my days. praise you the lord ♪ I will give thanks to the Lord my God ♪ ♪ I will give thanks to the Lord ♪ ♪ I will sing praise to the Lord my God ♪ ♪ In my home, I will give thanks to the Lord my God ♪ ♪ I will give thanks to the Lord my God ♪ In my home, Lord, I will give thanks. In my home, Lord, I will give thanks. Thank you very much for such a fitting anthem, given what day it is, given the time of the year it is. Well, it's so good to be back with you all this week. I know that Will did a great job last week as he focused on the parable. He did preach on the parable of the prodigal son. That's what I thought, but the recording got a little messed up and I couldn't actually hear the rest of the outline of what we talked about. But nevertheless, I know he did a good job. Several of you told me that. You know, it's interesting, I don't know if he I actually call it the parable of the two lost sons, right? Because at the end, the great celebration that's going on, the first son, the prodigal, certainly is lost at the beginning of the tale, but he comes back, but that son that stayed on, you don't know if he's going yet or not. But again, what an amazing parable in which Jesus illustrates God's love for his children in the parable. I don't know what Will's sermon title is, but it really should be called the parable of the faithful father, right? Because it's not really about the son, the two lost sons, it's really about God's love that's on display. And it's the parable of the prodigal son. The reason I start with this is that it's just one of many parables and passages throughout God's Word that tells us about how much God loves us. And it's everywhere in God's Word. It's in the Old Testament, it's in the New Testament, the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. And it's the most widely known verse. The question is, how will you respond to God's love? I don't know if you've considered that or not. How do you respond to God's love? You know, the first and the most obvious answer has to do with John 3, 16. It's in Acts 16, 31, it's everywhere. Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. So go ahead, this is the first thing on your paper, okay, if you're filling in the little insert thing here. But our first response to God's love should be faith in Jesus Christ. Because realize that all the ways that God loves us, including the things that he provides, provision in Christ the fact that we are eternal souls with mortal bodies that will die the fact that we will have an eternal destination it is that provision through Christ that he sent his one and only son to die so that you can be with him forever What comes next? Again, after you come to know Jesus Christ, how are you to respond to God's love? My friends, it just so happens that I've alluded to it thus far, but it's a wonderful time of the year to consider this question. Why do I say that? Well, it just so happens that a day is coming where we as a nation are supposed to stop and do that second thing. that it ought to be what is produced in us as we respond to God's love. Our first response, without a doubt, should be faith in Jesus Christ, as I've just said. But this is the second thing on your paper. Our second response to God's love should be thanksgiving. Offering thanks. First, believe on the name of Jesus. But then out of that, should come Thanksgiving. And while I love Thanksgiving Day, the holiday, right, although I love all the trappings of it, I'm not just talking about Thanksgiving and the holiday singular day sense alone. But we gotta be careful. This subject is tricky. Perhaps you're here today, and it's halfway through November, and 2026 is almost here, and you're thinking that this year has been a doozy. Right, you might even be struggling. Asking the question right now, maybe it's something that you're facing, I don't know, emotionally speaking, maybe you have a health issue going on, maybe it's just been a long year. Maybe you're asking the question, why should I give thanks? Or what is there to be thankful about? Or even, what's the point of Thanksgiving? Now realize, when I ask these questions, I'm not talking about just the holiday, I'm talking as a response to God's love. And y'all, that's a subject so important that it warrants more than just one sermon on the Lord's day. It certainly warrants more than one day a year, though that one day is important. Realize what the point of Thanksgiving is as the day of the holiday, is for us to reflect as a nation on God's providence and on his blessings to us as a nation, that he brought our ancestors to this nation and has overseen our rise. that he sustains us and so on. And while that's a very good thing, and while we should glorify God for his hand at work in our nation in the past and in the day, instead we really need to be focused not just on that, but on thanksgiving as a practice. Thanksgiving as a practice for us as people. And so to that end, what I want us to do is focus on biblical thanksgiving, So go ahead and turn there with me and your Bibles and words will be on the screen. But if you have your Bibles, I hope you do, turn there with me. Y'all, thanksgiving as a word, as an idea, is really all over God's word. This shouldn't be a surprise. We've read about it from Psalm 103. But depending on the translation you use, that word, thanksgiving, the word for it, comes up in the Bible 174 times. Okay? It shows up 102 times in the Old Testament, 72 times in the for God's blessings. This is a way of life. You know, of all the things that God calls his people to do, amongst the height of these things that he calls us to do is remember. Some of you have asked me about my trip, and y'all, there's so many reflections. Again, Wednesday night, I'm gonna get into this much more heavily, but to be there in the land makes passages like Deuteronomy come to life. Moses is writing Deuteronomy. He knows he's not going into the promised land, okay? He knows. He struck the rock, he's misrepresented God, and he knows that it's Joshua's task to take the Israelites into the promised land. But especially early in Deuteronomy, he says, listen, when you get there, when you sit down in a house that you didn't build, when you enjoy the fruit from a vineyard that you didn't plant and take care of, when you enjoy the furnishings of that house that you didn't provide, when you sat down at the table and enjoyed the fruit of the land, and your son asks you, what's the meaning of the law? You are to tell him. that we are to remember that we were once slaves in Egypt, but the Lord our God delivered us. And being there in the land offered a special poignancy to this idea of remembering where you were, where you are apart from Jesus Christ, and yet where you are with Him. And it's in 2 Corinthians that we receive really a special perspective that's rather fitting for us right now as we consider these questions. What's the point of Thanksgiving? So 2 Corinthians chapter four is where we are. We're gonna start reading in verse seven, but before we read anything, let's stop and pray because we need that. Our God and our Father, would you be with us now and would you guide us as we come into this time? Give us wisdom, give us understanding, give us the perspective that we need as we reflect on this ever so important subject As the challenges of life mount up, as difficulties arise, we are tempted to forget You. And in the same way, Father, when life is abundantly good, when there are no challenges at all and everything is just salad days and great So instead, Father, by the power of your Holy Spirit, draw us back to yourself, that we would see exactly what you would have us do. And again, all by the power of your Holy Spirit. And we pray these things in Christ's name, amen. So 2 Corinthians chapter four, beginning in verse seven, hear now the word of the Lord. It says, now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed. We are perplexed, but not in despair. We are persecuted, but not abandoned. We are struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry the death of Jesus in our hearts. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that Jesus' life may also be displayed in our mortal flesh. So then, death is a perk in us, but life in you. And since we have the same spirit of faith and keeping what is written, I believe and therefore I speak, we also believe and therefore speak. For we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus Indeed, everything is for your benefit so that as grace extends through more and more people, it may cause thanksgiving to increase to the glory of God. And we'll stop reading right there. May God bless the reading of His holy and errant and infallible word. Amen and amen. the word thanksgiving as we read it was right there in verse 15 as we just read but what does our passage really say about thanksgiving? Well let's start at the start there in verse 7 it starts by saying now we have this treasure it claims This is God's word, Paul is the one that is writing this to the church in Corinth. It's a book in the Bible, originally a letter, but it's written, breathed out by God through the apostle Paul for his church, for you and me. But what is this treasure that this verse is talking about? And what are the clay jars that he's referencing? We're not gonna go back and read it, but if you were to read verses one through six, you'd find out what this treasure is that Paul is talking about. Oh, I saw it, 980 million, right, that the guy just won in Georgia for the lottery in Newton, Georgia, right? I mean, you know, when we think about treasure, we tend to think of monetary things or precious items, and we should think of precious items because, you know, the treasure that Paul is riding up here is something so much more valuable than money. And by the way, something so much more enduring than money. If you were to read verses one through six, you'd find that the real treasure is the gospel of Jesus Christ. In verses one through six, Paul talks about all that has been entrusted to him in the gospel of Jesus, how the light shines. He says, for God who said, let light shine out of darkness has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God's glory in the face of Jesus Christ. Paul talks about the gospel, knowing who Jesus is, as this glorious honor and privilege, and it's a task. Don't make any mistake about that. It's a task to share the truth of Jesus, but it's an honor. So that's the treasure that Paul is writing about here at the start of our passage in verse seven. The treasure is the gospel. Now, when you think about it, comparing Jesus and the gospel of Jesus to a treasure is an easy comparison. Yeah, we think about money, but we also think about precious things. A treasure, is that not something that is rare? Is a treasure not something of immense value? A treasure is that thing which should be guarded and protected. A treasure holds riches for whomever possesses it. And is this not the perfect description of the gospel of Jesus Christ? I ask you, what holds man well? than being an heir to the kingdom of God itself? What's more rare in this world of ours than freedom and newness of life and purpose? Isn't that what the world is trying to sell you all the time but can never deliver? What should be guarded and protected more than the truth that Jesus sets us free from sin and hell? So the treasure metaphor that Paul uses, it shouldn't be hard for us to understand. But what about the clay jars? Well y'all, if you take a look at verse five, in the midst of talking about the glory of Christ, Paul said, for we are not proclaiming ourselves, but Jesus Christ our Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. So if the treasure is Jesus, the gospel of Jesus, then the clay jars are none other than Paul and those who carry The gospel. Now, it's talking about Paul and his fellow apostles here, but that means all those that are in Christ. So if you're a believer, right, if you're trusting in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation, you are one of those clay jars that Paul is referencing here. But this ought to make us consider things, right? Getting back to the nature of treasure, why would you ever put a treasure in a clay jar. You ever thought about that? It's not to say that clay jars weren't useful. Clay was a very important material in New Testament times for sure. After having been there, you don't see a lot of lumber laying around. It's a very barren landscape, right? Clay was an important material for Old Testament times, for New Testament times for sure. But it wasn't exactly the most lasting, and certainly it wasn't the strongest material. Clay jars are liable to break. I'll say more about this Wednesday night. One of the neatest places that I went was Qumran, all right? This is in the wilderness of Israel. As you can see, it's not exactly a lush landscape, right? But this is in Qumran, which is where the Essene community was. Yom Kippur came out of this group. Around the third century B.C. is the height of the Essenes that lived in this place. They translated the Old Testament. You ever heard of the Dead Sea Scrolls? the Dead Sea Scrolls. But it's fascinating how they found them. Right? It was two Muslim shepherds. They were wandering around in these hills and they lost one of their sheep and realized that they've done a dig. There was a big dig and so you can see underneath that where they've been digging. That used to be a ground level. They thought that one of their sheep was lost in the cave. And so one of the Muslim little boy shepherds takes a rock and chucks it in there and thinks, okay, I'll scare the sheep back out because we don't have any lights. I don't want to get stuck in this cave, right? What's that? And so he decides to take another rock. And he throws another one in. And then he hears something shatter. And he thinks, oh, wait a second. Something's going on in here. And he goes in and he finds the Dead Sea Scrolls, right? They're translations of God's word. Interestingly enough, they had two real vessels that they held them in. They had stone jars for the ones that were really important. But when you were translating God's Word, if you had three mistakes, it was considered trash, right? But it was still considered sacred trash, and so you didn't just throw it away. You'd store them all in one spot, and eventually you would burn those scrolls because of the errors that they had. Fascinatingly enough, he ended up finding it was parchment in there, right? Not paper as we know it. And so the two little shepherd boys grabbed the parchment and they went to Bethlehem and they found a shoemaker and they said, hey, this is kind of like leather. Can you make sandals out of it for us? And the shoemaker, who was a Christian, was wise enough to say, you show me where you got this stuff and I'll just make you some real leather shoes instead, right? And so it's one of the most important discoveries of all time. It's fascinating and I promise I'll move on after this. We talk about things from ancient history as though they're just fact. I think we've got nine transcripts that even talk about Homer the poet's existence, but if you ask who wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey, everybody says, oh, Homer. around 500 years older, newer than he is, right? 500 years after he was born. We have 25,000 transcripts of God's Word from that period. There is no other document on planet Earth as credible as our Word of God, as the Bible. Okay, realize that. But again, the point is, clay jars, they're not lasting. Now they help the things go on, but they easily break. So I really racked my brain. If the treasure is the gospel of Jesus and the clay jars are supposed to be us, I rack my brain for an idea of what the modern day equivalent to this is. We don't really use clay jars anymore, but we do use a lot of cardboard boxes. Cardboard boxes are useful, you can do a lot of things with cardboard in general, but the idea of taking a treasure of immense value and just sticking it in the cardboard box, when just like clay, cardboard can become brittle, the bottom of a cardboard box fall out while you're trying to carry something in it? Wow. So using this modern day metaphor, if the treasure represents the gospel of Jesus Christ and the clay or the cardboard represents something, why would God put his treasure in something so weak as human beings? So flimsy as ice. Now I may say that and you may be offended by that, but you all, I don't know if you know this or not, but you and me, even the best of us, we're still flimsy. Don't we break down? If you put too much pressure on us, don't we fold? Can't we become brittle like jars of clay and from time to time, don't we shatter? So why would God in his infinite power and wisdom entrust us with the treasure of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now the answer to that question is revealed throughout the rest of the passage, but the short answer is there in verse seven. He says, now we have this treasure in the clay jars so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us. In other words, of Jesus Christ, the gospel of Jesus Christ, and placed it in jars of clay like us and cardboard boxes like us, is not to show our power, but to show His. The power is not ours, you see. The power is always God's by the power of His Holy Spirit. This is the next thing on your paper, but the only real power we have comes from God. I don't know if you realize that. There's a reason why Jesus spent so much time talking about this. You know, John 15, right? I'm the vine, you're the branches. What happens to the branches when cut off from the vine? They shrivel, they become brittle, they die. Then he said, apart from me you can do nothing. That's why the passage proceeds as it does from there. Paul shows our weakness, but he also shows the nature of this life that we lead. and the beauty and the wonder of God's power and strength. The reason I say he shows the nature of this life is consider what he says here in verses 8 and 9. All of these things, that we're afflicted, we're perplexed, we're persecuted, we're struck down, and aren't these true? I'm not going to read it again, we already read it. Doesn't that describe life sometimes? You ever felt afflicted? Maybe it's of a physical variety. Maybe it's of an emotional. It doesn't matter. Have you ever felt afflicted? Have you ever been perplexed? Have you ever woke up and just kind of looked around and said, I didn't know that life would be this way. I warn young people all the time that it's a trap to grow up. It's the greatest danger when you're a kid. You just want to grow up. You just want to be big. And then you are. Life can be perplexing. We can feel persecuted. And sometimes it's persecution, sometimes it's consequences for really, really dumb decisions on our part, but we can feel struck down. That's life. That is the human condition. But we won't stay there if we're in Jesus Christ, because he continues to say that, yeah, we're afflicted, but we're not crushed. We're perplexed. We're not in despair. God's Word's been so much time where they're talking about when you lose someone that you love, how we grieve, but we don't grieve like the rest of the world grieves and doesn't have hope. We have hope in Jesus Christ. We're perplexed, but we're not in despair. We're persecuted, but we are not abandoned. You are not alone. God has given you one another. And he has given you his Holy Spirit to dwell within you if you're trusting in Jesus Christ. You're never abandoned. You may be struck down, but you are not destroyed. And why? Because of you? Because of me? No. We're the clay jars. Remember, we're the cardboard boxes. None of these things come to pass who destroy us because of Jesus Christ. That's why Paul goes on to write about the fact that we care We're reminded that we have been crucified with Christ, we've been raised with Him, and that our power doesn't come from us. It comes from God, by the power of His Holy Spirit. And after saying this in general, Paul really gets personal in talking about the things that he's facing. And since we have the same spirit of faith, keeping that which is in me, I believe, therefore I spoke, we also believe, and therefore speak. He's talking about the call of the gospel. You wanna know how to be thankful? It's not just a frame of mind, it's not just a nice feeling. It's remembering what God is gonna act upon. And if you think that Jesus Christ is a treasure, you're gonna wanna share that treasure with others. Doesn't mean it's always gonna be easy, y'all. One of the biggest lies that is told is from prosperity gospel preachers on TV that talk about you living your best life now. Boney Baucum, who is in heaven now, he died just a few months ago. He was the one that said of Joel Osteen, if you're into that garbage, get out. He said, if you're living your best life now, then you're gonna go to hell when you die. Because your best life is not in this life. And it's with that in mind that we can continue as we are. Y'all, the idea that if you know Jesus, everything's just gonna be slick and fine and easy for you, that is such a lie. 2 Corinthians 11, Paul talks about the things that he went through. Received the 40 lashes minus one. He was beaten with rods. He received a stoning. He was shipwrecked. He spent a night in the open sea in a day. He faced dangers. He toiled and hurt. And I know this sounds like a wonderful advertisement for coming to know Jesus Christ, but y'all, the reality is, is that yes, there is difficulty that we face in Jesus Christ, all for the sake of knowing him, but the reward, the purpose, the meaning, I already made allusion to this in my sermon already, but y'all, don't you realize what the world is trying to do with you? The world is always The world is always trying to sell you something that will give you a sense of purpose, a sense of meaning, a sense of belonging. It's always another next big cause. I've joked about it, and I've said, I guess the whales were saved, because it's been a while since I've seen a bumper sticker about saving the whales. It's something different. It's always something different, and the world never, ever delivers it. Jesus Christ has set you free. Jesus Christ gives you purpose. And all these things that Paul lists, he doesn't do this to pin a star on something. He does this to show us the nature of following Christ. And he does this to point us to the difficulties that Christians have faced. Everything from being fed to wild animals, being in Caesarea Maritime, not Caesarea Philippi, Caesarea Maritime. I'll show you, Sunday night I've got pictures of the Colosseum where Christians were fed to wild animals. So, what's the point? All this pain, all this suffering, are you paying attention to what's going on in Nigeria? This isn't just about something that happened 2,000 years ago. Thousands of churches have burned. Tens of thousands of Christians have been murdered. People talk about the genocide of Israel and Palestine. find a genocide, go to Nigeria. Go to India, where Hindus and Muslims are trying to kill every single Christian they can find. This brings up so many questions, like why would God allow this to happen? How can Paul be so cheery about these things? But y'all, getting back to the start of the sermon, and why did he say, why offer thanks? What's the point of thanksgiving? The point. is what Paul ultimately builds. That despite the difficult, despite the nature of this life that we lead, despite what's going on in the world around you, and if you don't know about Christian persecution in the modern day, 2025, I'd encourage you to actually Google this and look it up. How do we offer thanks? Why should we offer thanks? In the midst of all the craziness of life, what is the point of thanksgiving? We find it in verse 15. He says, indeed, everything is for your benefit, so that as grace extends through more and more people, it may cause thanksgiving to increase to the glory of God. Paul got at this. Paul understood something that you and I, Something that we and everyone else needs to remember in years like 2025. I've said it so many times here, I'm gonna say it again now. This is the last thing on your paper. This life is not all there is. Not at all, this life is not all there is. And the glory of Jesus shines brighter and fairer than all the darkness of the world around you. Paul understood what we need to remember. all of the difficulties, all of the heartbreak, all of the disappointment, all of the suffering. Yes, God is working through these things to bring glory to himself and for your good. And the calling that we have is to trust and to keep on going, to give thanks. not because of our circumstances. We give thanks because of the hope that we have in Jesus Christ and the promise that God is always good no matter what. That God is always working. And if you will have that mindset no matter what you're facing, you can have a happy Thanksgiving. That's why Paul closes as he does, and I'll close this time as well with this. He says in verse 16, he says, We do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary light affliction, isn't that rich? Talking about being beaten with rods and stone and shipwrecked. Our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. Do you believe that? So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what's seen is different, but what is unseen is eternal. This is the calling of God for our lives. Make sure that your first response to God's love is faith in Jesus Christ, and if you are not trusting in him, come see me after, receive it today, but if you've done this, make sure that your second response is Thanksgiving, and not just on the day, but every day. Let's pray. Our God and our Father, we thank you again for your love, for your mercy. We thank you that you are always working. Sometimes we see your hand very clearly. and work in us all anew to give our focus on you, remembering your promises to us. We pray it all in Christ's name, amen. Now let's close by singing, it's not a hymn, but it's actually an insert. And people ask me all the time, that's your favorite hymn? This is my favorite hymn. Pay attention to the words as we sing it together. Let's stand and sing from the insert. ♪ Every day ♪ ♪ Earth can get imploded ♪ ♪ Leave the roads away ♪ ♪ Sail upon Jehovah ♪ ♪ Hearts are fully blessed ♪ ♪ Finding that same promise ♪ ♪ Earth can be generous ♪ Oh, say can you see, by the dawn's early light, We'll close right there. Receive the Lord's benediction. May the grace and the peace and the mercy and the love and the fellowship of God the Father, God the Son, and God the