Good morning. Would you pray with me? Lord, we're here this morning because almost everyone here knows how worthy you are of being praised and adored and worshiped. And we know, Lord, that part of your worship, part and parcel of it, is the opening up of your word. And so we pray that you would give help to the one who speaks and to those who hear. And Lord, we're quickly reminded from this passage that your word instructs us not only from good and godly examples, but it instructs our hearts from the worst of examples as well. And so we ask that whether it be for good or ill, Lord, that you would come and instruct our hearts this morning. We ask this in Christ's name, amen. Would you please turn with me in your Bibles to Proverbs 7. Proverbs 7. Proverbs 7, verse 1. Keep my words and treasure my commandments within you. Keep my commandments and live, and my teaching as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers, write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, you are my sister, and call understanding your intimate friend, so that they may keep you from an adulteress, from the foreigner who flatters with her words. For at the window of my house, I looked out through my lattice, and I saw among the naive and discerned among the youths, a young man lacking sense, passing through the street near her corner, and he takes the way to her house in the twilight, in the evening, in the middle of the night, and in the darkness. And behold, a woman comes to meet him. Dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart, she is boisterous and rebellious. Her feet do not remain at home. She is now in the streets, now in the squares, and lurks by every corner. So she seizes him and kisses him. And with a brazen face, she says to him, I was due to offer peace offerings. Today, I've paid my vows. Therefore, I have come out to meet you, to seek your presence diligently. And I have found you. I have spread my couch with coverings, with colored linens of Egypt. I've sprinkled my bed with myrrh and aloes and cinnamon. Come. Let's drink our fill of love until morning. Let's delight ourselves with caresses, for my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey. He has taken a bag of money with him. At the full moon, he will come home. With her many persuasions, she entices him. With her flattering lips, she seduces him. Suddenly, he follows her. As an ox goes to the slaughter, or as one in fetters to the discipline of a fool, until an arrow pierces through his liver, as a bird hastens to the snare, so he does not know that it will cost him his life. Now therefore, my sons, listen to me, and pay attention to the words of my mouth. Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways. Do not stray into her paths, for many are the victims she has cast down, and numerous are all her slain. Her house is the way to Sheol, descending to the chambers of death. Well, there's a sad irony to this chapter when you consider its author. Solomon was a man who was given great wisdom by God. And he says here in this chapter, he says, wisdom and understanding will keep you from an adulteress, from the foreigner who flatters with her lips. But if you know anything about Solomon and the sin that could have been this man's ruin, then obviously you know that wisdom alone, wisdom in and of itself, is not a preventative from falling into grievous sin. Wisdom will certainly enable the application of knowledge, and wisdom will hopefully keep the conscience informed, but wisdom alone is not the panacea, it's not the cure for avoiding transgression. I mean, how many men who have possessed wisdom have fallen prey to the power that this particular sin yields, including Solomon. It would be pure foolishness for any man to say, oh, I'm much too wise, I'm way too sanctified to ever fall in this direction. Let him who thinks he stands take heed. Apart from a careful, prayerful watch over the soul in close communion with Christ and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, a man, even with much wisdom, can fall, and even appear to fall away from the living God if he's trusting only in that wisdom to keep him. In verses one to five of Proverbs 7, an introductory warning is sounded. Solomon's continuing to expound on a topic that he actually began back in chapter five. Go back with me to chapter five. The topic, the death trap of sexual immorality. In chapter five, verse three, Solomon introduced his sons to the adulteress, the promiscuous woman, the harlot. See, he wants them to be educated in her ways so that they'll recognize her when they find themselves in her presence. Men, do you recognize her? As I read chapter seven, did you recognize her? You see, there's a good chance that you've met her before. If not in person, then quite possibly you've met her on your TV screen, or on your laptop, or on your phone, or perhaps in the pages of a magazine at some point in your life. When I was very young, my dad, who was a New Jersey State police officer, brought home a little bit of marijuana. And he gathered his kids, his four kids around him, and he burned some of it in a bowl. And the reason for him doing this was that he wanted his children to know, if you ever smell this in the future, you're going to know exactly what it is, and then you have the chance to get away from it. You run away from it. That's kind of what Solomon is doing here. Solomon wants his sons to smell temptation when it comes. And the adulteress is his go-to to inform and remind his sons that sexual impurity is not just a sin against the holy God, but it's a sin against your own body. Something that will break a young man down morally, spiritually, even physically. In verse three, he says, beware. Her speech is as sweet as honey and smooth as oil, but in the end, bitter as wormwood." Verse 6, he says, she doesn't ponder the path of life, the path I'm seeking to instruct you on right now. Her ways are unstable. Note verse 8, keep your way far from her and do not go near the door of her house. An ironic twist when you compare verse 8 of this chapter to verse 8 of chapter 7, which we just read. And then in chapter 6, he continues to warn about the allurements of her physical beauty. Verse 25, do not desire her beauty in your heart, nor let her capture you with her eyelids. For, he says, verse 26, on account of a harlot, one is reduced to a loaf of bread. Now that's a picture of utter poverty. No doubt, material, emotional, moral, physical, and spiritual poverty. And then verse 32 warns very specifically, the one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense. This leads us now to chapter seven, where here out of a very personal love for his sons, in verses six to 23, Solomon paints a picture. Solomon is going to give a very vivid illustration. And though it may or may not be a fictional account, it is by no means an unrealistic account. I mean, this is a situation that's probably been played out in history many times over in many ways by many a young man. Let's look at the account, verse six, where Solomon puts the brush to the canvas. The father who mourns his son says, I looked out my window and saw among the naive, literally the simple ones, and discerned among the youth, or sons, a young man. Note here how the narrative points to a very specific demographic. It's not an old man. It's not a middle-aged man. It's not a woman, a young woman, an old woman. It's a young man. But what exactly is a young man? What do you think of when you hear the term young man? Well, the Hebrew word here is Nahar, which seems like it's way more flexible in Hebrew than it is in the English language. In scripture, it would seem that the use of this word can fall almost anywhere between childhood and somewhere right on up into the 20s, which can leave you to wonder if sometimes it can imply a level of maturity rather than an actual chronological age. So how old is this young man in Proverbs 7? The text doesn't tell us. But if we want to try to pinpoint a very specific age, we could think of this word in the context of Joseph back in Genesis 37, where we're told these words, Joseph, when 17 years of age, was pasturing the flock with his brothers while he was a youth. Nahar, there's our word. So if we take this verse in Genesis 37 in the context that we see in Proverbs 7, an educated guess might have this young man perhaps somewhere between 17 and his 20s, but it's hard to know for sure. And Solomon says, as he looked out his window among the naive and saw among the sons, one of them in particular caught his eye. This one, he says, was lacking sense, or literally lacking heart. A repeat of the description we just saw back in Proverbs 6.32. The King James renders it void of understanding. This young man was lacking heart and void of understanding. Solomon actually introduced the Proverbs in chapter one as that which would give prudence to the naive and knowledge and discretion to the youth. The very thing that this young man lacks. And maybe he was denied the very instruction that Solomon is seeking to be giving right now. Maybe his upbringing did not include good teaching. Maybe he stubbornly refused instruction and guidance and wisdom. Maybe this young man has not written upon his heart the value of God's commandments and good teaching. It could be that he walked away from the sound wisdom that was imparted to him in his childhood. Whatever the case may be, this young man lacks sense. He lacks heart. He is void of understanding. And we can certainly see that in the next verse, verse eight. And you know what, it's important to see how pivotal this verse is. This is a very pivotal verse because everything we're gonna see from here on in actually hinges upon this verse, verse eight. The fall of this poor young man into the depths of misery hang upon what we read right here. Passing through the street near her corner, he takes the way to her house. Now, didn't chapter five and verse eight warn of this very thing? Keep far from her, do not go near the door of her house. You see, this is where the shipwreck begins, right here. This is where it all starts, by the choices that this young man makes. Now, it's obviously the end of the day, it's nighttime. And whether this young man is simply frittering away to idle time, or whether he has an actual place to go, he consciously goes in a particular direction. His lack of good sense does not sound an alarm. There are no pangs of conscience. There's no little voice inside of his head saying, make no provision for the flesh in regards to its lusts. If there is, it's being ignored. It's being sidelined and put off. He knows the direction he's taking, and whether it's because he knows what he'll get there, or perhaps just wishful thinking, this young man gets exactly what his heart was craving. And maybe it's possible he thought to himself, ah, what harm could there be in possibly just walking past her house? Maybe catch a glimpse. What harm could there possibly be? But verse 10 answers that. Because in verse 10, the woman is already out in the street. And whether he's expecting this or not, we can't know for sure, but there's no doubt as to this woman's intentions. Whether this woman is an actual prostitute or not, we don't really know, but she has dressed herself like one. No doubt, very immodestly. And we don't need any details here, right? Every woman knows the kind of clothes or lack thereof that will attract and draw a man's eye. And every man here knows what that looks like, right? Let's just stop here for a moment. It's June. The warm weather months are upon us. Summertime is here. This is a very particular time of year for testing, what we are going to allow to enter through the eye gate, isn't it? I recently learned from a single young man who's seeking to keep a good conscience before God the concept of what he calls bouncing. You see something that attracts the eye. And you know, you could be driving down the road and something grabs your attention on the side of the road. Something grabs your eye, right? And so you can't help what's in your immediate range of vision, right? But then you purposefully, conscientiously bounce your eyes. You bounce it away from what attracted your eyes and you bounce them in a different direction and that's where you keep your eyes. Bouncing. It's a good concept, isn't it? Worth remembering, men, the concept of bouncing, it's good for the soul. And young ladies, may I say, be sure, as best you can, never to dress in a way that will require a man to have to bounce his eyes, a man who's trying to keep a good conscience. Certainly no sin to be pretty, right? But it can be sin when you dress only to be noticed for your outward beauty. It can be. God makes it no secret as to what's truly beautiful in his eyes. And it has so much more to do with character than dress. This is serious stuff. So often the way a woman dresses will be an accurate reflection of her character, you see. Proverbs 11 actually compares an outwardly beautiful woman who lacks discretion with a gold ring in the snout of a pig. It's kind of a humorous description, but it really drives the point home regarding character, doesn't it? And a few things back in our text are said about this woman's character. Verse 10 says, she is cunning of heart. In other words, she has carefully planned and measured out every word, every movement, and every attitude she portrays. You see, this woman will get what she wants, even if by stealth. She's boisterous, it says. That's the opposite, the antithesis of a gentle and quiet spirit. She has a rebellious heart. When most people are settling in for the night, her night is just beginning. Her feet do not remain at home, verse 11. She comes out when the sun goes down, which could intimate that she is a prostitute, or it could just as easily indicate that she's a nightlifer, a partier. just like some of us used to be, right? When does that kind of activity most take place? At nighttime, when it's dark. Because men love the darkness when their deeds are evil, right? So there she is, she's out there in the night, lurking, waiting. What's she waiting for? She's waiting for a naive young man. And now this young, naive man is about to get way more than he bargained for. The text says, she seizes him. She seizes him. Three key words. Men, remember these three words. She seizes him. See, all you have to do is linger around certain sins and they will seize you. They will grab a hold of you. If you think that you can flirt safely with a little bit of pornography, if you think that one little click on your phone, on your laptop is next to harmless and fully reversible, you need to think again. You have to think again. The Greek word for fornication is pornea. What does that sound like? That's where we get the word pornography. 1 Corinthians 6, 9 tells us plainly that fornicators, the word there is pornos. Pornos will not inherit the kingdom of God. And listen, you can ask any man, any man at all that's ever been in the grip of porn addiction, You ask him if he seized upon it or if it seized him. You see, it often just begins by curiously flirting with it. It often begins by just toying with the idea and then it seizes you. It grabs you. This is no exaggeration. This sin has ruined souls. This sin has destroyed lives and families and homes and relationships and ministries and churches. And it often begins by just dallying with it, just loitering around it, just a little bit of flirting with it. If this young man had any sense at all that he was going to be in complete control of his fate, That's out the window now. That's gone because she seizes him, and note what it says, and kisses him. No doubt another pivotal moment here. Young person, don't ever be surprised where one stolen kiss can take you. Don't be surprised. The advertisement says every kiss begins with K, and for this young man it ended with Y. Why? Why did I let this happen? Why did I allow this to happen to me? Note the kiss comes first, before the dialogue even begins. And her speech matches her demeanor. Her speech is bold and brazen. She even takes a moment to cover up her sin with a paper-thin veneer of religion. Verse 14, she says, I was due to offer peace offerings. Today I've paid my vows. Literally, she says, I've gone and I've tipped my hat to God today. The slate's been wiped clean. So I'm at peace with my actions, I'm at peace with my conscience, and young man, I wanna be with you. And you know what? Our being together might even be God-sanctioned. It might be the reward of my religious service today. Now that sounds crazy, doesn't it? And yet as ludicrous as that sounds, it often happens. People try to use God to rationalize immorality. How many times have you heard things like, well, no, she's not my wife. But we're in love, and so God understands. God understands our physical relationship. God understands why we're shacking up together, because we love each other. Young lady, this guy that you're interested in, is he a professing Christian like you are? Well, no, but he believes in God. And besides, God brought him into my life for a reason, right? God doesn't make mistakes. I mean, I didn't have to meet this guy and God must have purposed this, right? What is this when you hear these things? It's an attempt to cover up sin with a veneer of piety, a veneer of religiosity. And it isn't much different from what this woman is doing. And then, of course, you have the come on, the big come on, verses 16 to 18. These are just the kind of words that are meant to weaken any man's resolve to uphold the standard of morality. These are words that you even have to kind of read with a sense of a controlled, sanctified mind, right? Men, married men, if your wife sent you a text With the words of verses 16 to 18, in the middle of the day to you, would you not drive home from work a little bit faster at the end of the day? Wouldn't you? No, some of you are saying, no, I'd call the police because someone stole my wife's cell phone. But you see, what makes this such an ugly picture is that this woman is speaking these words to this young man, not to her husband, who is alluded to in verse 19. Now, the original language doesn't say husband. The original language says the man. The man is not at home. Husband is rightly, I believe, assumed by the translators, but she refers to him not as her husband, but as the man. And who knows, maybe this is another subtle way of dismissing the sinfulness of her actions. She says, the man is not home. He's gone on a long journey. He's taken a bag of money with him. He's out of town on a business trip. She says, at the full moon, he'll come home. In other words, she's saying, you see, We have nothing to worry about. We'll be all alone and no one will ever know. In Proverbs 9, the woman of folly says, stolen water is sweet and bread eaten in secret is pleasant. Enticing words that inevitably lead one to destruction. How many business trips in the history of the world have resulted in heartache and sorrow and broken marriages and broken homes and broken lives? What a blessed marriage it is when spouses can part for a time and have complete and total trust in each other, right? That's what a Christian marriage should look like. And I think we take these things for granted sometimes, don't we? Verse 21 tells us that besides all of this woman's enticements and persuasions, she uses flattering lips to get what she wants. Flattering lips, why is flattery so powerful? Did you ever have someone of the opposite sex flirt with you? Especially someone you might find somewhat attractive. That's a form of flattery, isn't it? So if even on the surface you might say, ah, I'm kind of repelled by that, sometimes on the inside you feel flattered. Why is that? Because flattery strokes the ego. Flattery strokes that natural tendency that we all have to love ourselves too much. Have you ever noticed Jesus never accepted flattery? You ever notice how Jesus never listened to the flattery that came from men's mouths? He never entrusted himself to men because he knew what was in the heart of every man, right? We, on the other hand, we need to learn this lesson over and over again, and men especially, and men especially when in the presence of a flirty woman. Whether she's physically present or whether she's on a screen, or whether she's on paper. Proverbs 6.25, do not desire her beauty in your heart, nor let her capture you with her eyelids or any other part for that matter. One man has said, beneath the appealing surface, there's an appalling substance. Now, note the harsh transition in verse 22. A harsh transition with the word suddenly. The new King James uses the word immediately, the ESV says, all at once. Everything this woman has set out to do has been very quickly accomplished. It has taken no time at all. The cunning heart, the boisterous demeanor, the rebellious intentions, the flattery, the persuasion, the kiss, it has all done its work on this young man very quickly and very easily. James 1.15, when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. And if it weren't so sad, the description of this young man might almost be humorous. Like an ox, like a big, fat, dumb ox, he goes to the slaughter. He fully allows himself to be led. He puts up no resistance whatsoever. There's no fear of what lies ahead. There doesn't seem to be any thinking at all. like a bird that hastens, like a bird that flies directly into the trap, seeing only the bait with a tunnel vision for pleasure. What began in verse eight as an evening stroll has cost the price of this man's soul. It cost this young man everything. Everything. We don't get the rest of the story, but we really don't need it, do we? Solomon concludes in verses 24 to 27 with a fatherly appeal for his sons to guard their hearts. To guard their hearts, to be aware of the dangers of being ensnared by the adulterous woman. He says, now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Pay attention, hold onto your heart. Watch carefully the path of your feet, otherwise you could be her next victim. And of course, there's an immediate application for us here, right? Just as Solomon warns his sons, this is a warning to all men, both young and old. It doesn't really matter how old you are. It's a warning to guard your heart against the sin of what the Bible calls immorality, fornication, and adultery. See, the sad reality is that we now live in a culture that is obsessed and saturated with it. It's everywhere. It's on billboards as you're driving down the road. It's in the mall. It's on TV. It's everywhere. Listen to this quote from the book, a book called At the Altar of Sexual Idolatry by a man named Steve Gallagher. Listen to this quote. Unless you are at least 50 years old, you probably don't know what it's like to live in a culture that isn't obsessed with sex. Prior to the late 60s, illicit sex was mostly confined to the seedy underworld or simply non-existent. It was rare for a man watching TV to come across anything racier than a couple kissing or a vague, suggestive comment. Pornography addiction usually amounted to nothing more than a Playboy magazine hidden under the bed. Promiscuity was rare, and suburban America knew nothing of homosexuality. Immorality was considered, by and large, unacceptable behavior in the United States. Does that sound like a foreign place to you? This is not where we are today. This is not how it is. Young people are literally being bombarded with sex and sexual temptation in all places today. It's everywhere. It's even now a trend in our culture to identify yourself solely according to your sexual preference. And for Christians, especially young Christian men, especially young single Christian men, it's a battlefield. It is quite literally, right now, a battle for the heart for young single Christian men. Watch over your heart with all diligence, Proverbs 4 says, right? Because from it flow all of these issues, the issues of life. Every young Christian man lives today with two strikes against him. Number one, living in an environment of pervasive sensuality. And number two, a fallen nature that's powerfully drawn to it. Young man, young person, Determine right now that this world will not have your heart. Determine it. Determine that you will take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. You have to. Because he's your only refuge. Christ is your only defense. He's your only place of safety as a defense against sexual sin. Pornography, fornication, and immorality, they wield incredibly great power. They really do. And can often begin as nothing more than a little spark in your thoughts, a little tug on your heart, a little tug on the inner man, a little something that you allow to let through the eye gate. And then before you know it, it's become a raging, uncontrollable, Canadian wildfire. Proverbs 627 asks a rhetorical question. Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned? That's a rhetorical question. Young person, how do you avoid the fire? How do you avoid it? One way is by replacing your thoughts, right? Remember, you're not just to put off sin. but you're to put on something else. When you put off sin, you can't leave it there. You must always put on something else. How can a young man keep his way pure? The psalmist asked a few thousand years ago. Isn't it comforting to know that this question had to be asked a few thousand years ago, and yet the answer remains the same today? What's the answer? By keeping it according to your word, exactly. Ephesians 4 and other passages point to the very simple concept of replacement. Anytime you put off what is evil, you've got to put on what is good. If something pops up on your computer screen, or on your phone screen, or on your television, and that thing seeks to take control of your thoughts or your eyes, you shut it down and you replace it. You've got to replace it. Ideally, replace it with God's Word. Isn't that how Jesus battled Satan in the wilderness? Right? I mean, you think about it, Jesus could have simply said, no, Satan, I'm not gonna turn these stones into bread, go away, shoo. But he didn't do that. He countered, he immediately countered wicked, deceitful suggestions with truth, with the word of God. You know, Joseph answered Potiphar's wife's come-ons by immediately bringing God into it, right? At her very first wicked suggestion, he said, how could I do this great evil and sin against, not Potiphar, but God? As soon as evil thoughts molest, as the old hymn goes, replace what is evil with what is good. Bring God into the mix. Just bring God into the mix immediately. And sometimes, young person, it may be necessary to physically remove yourself. It might be necessary to run away. Run away from any temptation, any thought, and every desire, and every occasion for you to be led like a big fat dumb ox to the slaughter. Joseph ran away from Potiphar's wife, right? It went beyond suggestive, right? The heat got turned up and Joseph didn't dally. He didn't stick around to argue with her. He didn't deceive himself into thinking that he could somehow remain in complete control of his faculties. He took off. He ran away. Young man, a day might come where you have to run away. Again, James 1, verses 14 and 15. Look at the progression. Each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then, when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. You see the deadly progression there? Like an ox led to the slaughter so he doesn't know it'll cost him his life. Well, at first glance, the applications of this passage might seem to be somewhat limited, right? It may seem like only young men or men in general can profit from this. And if you don't fit either of these categories, you might be sitting there saying to yourself, well, what good do I get out of this? I'm a young woman. I'm a woman, right? What can I take from this? When you look at the similarities between the sin that ruins this young man and any sin that seeks to entangle us, you're quickly reminded of sin's universal appeal. Sin still has a draw, doesn't it? It might not be a reigning factor, but it is a remaining factor. Sin is like a harlot that tugs on your heart. Reading Proverbs 7 only reminds us of the way that all sin tends to operate in our lives. Not only in our lusts, but in our greed, in our pride, our covetousness, our gossip, our gluttony, our laziness, our idolatry, our self-love, our vanity. Sin doesn't always present itself as a flashing neon sign saying sin to our consciousness, does it? It's been said that Satan presents the bait But he hides that hook. You know, if we dally and if we flirt with any sin, like that woman in Proverbs 7, it can seize us. It can hook us. Dally with anger and it can overcome you. Loiter around jealousy and covetousness and envy and it will want to take charge. Indulge any kind of idolatry, putting anything before or above God, indulge any kind of idolatry, it will want to rule over you. Allow any sin to get its foot into the door of your heart, and it's gonna wanna stay. Sin always advertises what's good for you, doesn't it? It always advertises what's good for your pleasure and what will satisfy. Sin seductively says, hey, You're just a click away from everything you want. Whether that's internet porn or just poor stewardship over your credit card on Amazon. All right, sin will say, indulge yourself. Because after all, you deserve it. You deserve better. You deserve more. Sin will say, you deserve honor. You deserve, don't they know who you are? You deserve respect. Sin invites you to the buffet table. Sin invites you to the dessert table and says, eat to your heart's content. No need to put a knife to your throat. Indulge yourself, enjoy. Sin says, come into my house because you're always welcome here. Ah, but what does the scripture say? What does the Bible say? Scripture says, don't take the way to that house. Don't do it. Watch the path of your feet and all your ways will be established. Be on the alert, Peter said, because your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a carnivorous creature, like a lion, wanting to eat you up, wanting to devour you. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Well, unfortunately, sin is always going to be on the continuum in our lives, isn't it? There's a sense where we're never gonna be completely free from it while we're still in these bodies. But praise the God of heaven and earth, we have an advocate. Praise God that we have an advocate. If we sin, says 1 John 2, we have an advocate with the Father, and that is Jesus Christ, the righteous. And here's what that means. The God-man Jesus Christ came to this earth to live in human flesh a sinless, perfect life, something that we are unable to do, something we can't do. And then he took that perfect, sinless life and he laid it down as a substitute, as a sacrifice for sinners. You see, he was tempted in all things just like we are, but he never sinned. He remained sinless. He never allowed himself to be led like an ox to the slaughter. But you know what he did? He allowed himself to be led like a lamb to the slaughter. Jesus was a lamb willingly led to the slaughter, a perfect, unblemished, sinless lamb who takes our place. Atonement for sin, that's what it's called, atonement for sin, and it's freely offered to all who would turn from their sin and put their trust in this lamb of God who takes away the penalty of sin, who willingly died as a sacrificial lamb in their place. Well, let me finish here. Let me finish our time by asking you, are you trusting in Jesus Christ to save you from your sin? Are you trusting Christ? Are you trusting Jesus to save you from sin's claim on you? Because sin has a claim on you. Are you trusting Him to save you from sin's rule over you? Because apart from Christ, sin is your master. Are you trusting Him to save you from its guilt, from its power? Are you trusting Christ to save you from sin's wages? What are sin's wages? That's what sin is going to cost you in the end. Our sins will cost us dearly in the end. The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ. The apostle said, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ, none, because the law of the spirit of life in Christ actually sets you free from that law of sin and death. Well, may everyone who hears these words come to know this freedom, the freedom that can only be found through the redemption, the redeeming blood, and the love of Christ. Dave, would you close us in prayer, please? Father, we thank you for the richness of your word, the contents of it, and the assistance of your spirit to have it opened up to our hearts and our hearts to be afforded. And we pray, God, that 2A 3.30 x (-0.50')