Luke's Gospel

We're going to have 2 Bible readings now, and, the first is going to be from Luke chapter 4, verse 14 to 21. And then after that, we will be turning to the the reading on the screen in Luke 13. Jesus returned to Galile Lee in the power of the Spirit and news about him spread through the whole countryside. He was teaching in their synagogues and everyone praised him. He went to Nazareth where he had been brought up.

And on the Sabbath day, he went into the synagogue as was his custom. He stood up to read and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written. The spirit of the lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind to set the oppressed free to proclaim the year of the lord's favor.

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them today, This scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. And then, Luke 13, On a sabbath, Jesus was teaching in 1 of the synagogues, and the woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for 18 years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all.

When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, woman, you are set free from your infirmity. Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised god. Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. The synagogue leader said to the people There are 6 days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the The lord answered him, you hypocrites.

Doesn't each of you on the Sabbath on tie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water. Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years. Be set free on the Sabbath Day from what bound her. When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted. With all the wonderful things he was doing.

Then Jesus asked, what is the kingdom of god like What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree and the bird perched in its branches. Again, he asked, what shall I compare the kingdom of god to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about 30 kilograms of flour until it worked all through the dough.

Well, good evening from me. I'm Rory. It's nice to see you all out tonight. And if you could leave, that passage out in front of you, especially chapter 13. We will briefly mention chapter 4, but we'll be referring to, chapter 13 throughout this 7.

I'm gonna pray and then we're gonna get stuck into this as salmon. Father, we we thank you so much that we're able to come. And that we're able to listen to you speak. And so we pray father that as we look at your word now, that you will help us to understand it, that you'll help us to listen to it, and that you will transform us as a result of what we hear. Father do help us now in Jesus' name, our men.

So I think I think, obviously, we've all seen it before when when, new powers come into play when a new government comes in or a new ruler or a new president or a new prime minister or or a new kingdom comes about, they like to promise a lot about their reign. They wanna promise a lot of things, throughout their campaigns. They say, we we can change things. It's always about change. We're gonna we're gonna make things better.

If we're in charge, it's gonna be a lot different. And as we begin our our reign, as we begin our powerful reign, things are gonna be different this time. It's gonna be And you have various slogans. The the ones in in the the labor 1, last, election was for the many, not the few, and who can forget Theresa May's strong and stable. In America, you have, a Barack Obama was probably the most famous 1.

It was all stuff like, forward. And, yes, we can. And everyone was Yes, we can. And change we can believe in. Hope.

The another 1 that I read was, the the George Bush 1 was a a safer world and a more hopeful America. I mean, we're safer. Well, no. Let's not go into that. Okay.

But they they promise a lot of things. Their campaign slogans campaign promise a lot of things, but the only way we know if they're good to their words is as if they, match up to it as if the country that they rule matches up, and if their rule and the things that they do reflect what they've said. And often, we know that governments always fail to deliver on their promises. You always have those uncomfortable interviews. Where you have a sort of that Scottish bloke.

Forget his name now, and he's there going, you promised this, didn't you? And then they have to answer a completely different question. And they say the same thing over and over again is like, just answer the question. You didn't deliver again. So I get very worked up about these things.

Now, the reason we read chapter 4 and verse 18, well, the those verses in chapter 4 was because This essentially was Jesus' manifesto. It was his, like, we could say it was his campaign slogan, although it's much more than a slogan when we when we think about it. In verse 18 to 19, he said in chapter 4, the spirit of the lord is on me. Because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind to set the oppressed free to proclaim the year of the lord's favor.

So as he begins his ministry, he's saying, that's what I'm all about. I'm here to bring good news to the poor. I'm here to make things better. I'm here to give change. I'm here to set people free.

That's what I'm all about. That's what my kingdom is. And the question is though, does his kingdom live up to his words? What is Jesus' kingdom really like? And I actually think that the answer comes in this chapter 13 of Luke.

Now before we we we get into this, often, we have this phrase, the kingdom of god. Now, the kingdom of god, when the Bible uses it, It's not about a physical kingdom. It's not like the United Kingdom, right, of of place. But actually, when we're thinking about the kingdom of god, In a wide sense, it means god's dynamic rule over the whole of the universe. For the good of his created people.

So it's for the good of his created people. But in a in a narrower sense, when we're thinking about the kingdom of god, we're thinking about people who are saved from sin, from death, from darkness, and they're saved into a life of purity of life. And of light. So what is Jesus' kingdom like then? Well, firstly, notice with me that Jesus' kingdom is a kingdom of rest.

It's a kingdom of rest. And so we begin this scene in verse 10. And we have Jesus there, and it's a Sabbath day. It's a new day. It's a Sabbath day, an important day in the Jewish calendar.

And as always, when Jesus is when Jesus comes to a Sabbath day, he goes to a synagogue. And when Jesus goes to a synagogue, what usually ends up happening is Jesus teaches. And that's exactly what's going on in verse 10. Now, just picture the scene because when Jesus goes places, there's usually a massive crowd that goes with him. When he goes speak.

I mean, this room would be bursting full of people. And, and when they're there, they're not like bored people like when I teach a a history lesson, they're not bored like that. But when they're in when they're in his presence and they're listening to his teaching, They're attentive. They hang on to every single word that Jesus has to say. And that's, I imagine, what's going on right now.

There he is teaching. He's got these attentive listeners and then we're introduced to our next character. Look at verse 11. And a woman was there who has been crippled by a spirit for 18 years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all.

So here, we now have a woman and this woman clearly has a problem. There she is. She cannot stand straight She's bent double. She's been inflicted by a spirit, it says there. In fact, if you go on in verse 16, it said that she'd been bound by Satan.

She hears a woman. She there's a woman across the road from my house. I sometimes look out my window and stare at people. Can't see because I'm quite far back, which is quite good. But there's this old lady, and she's lit she literally is stooped over like this.

And walking, undignified, sad, painful. And so here we have this woman. She can't stand straight. She's probably just shuffled into synagogue in in a very slow and a very painful manner. She's unable to lift her head for a long period of time to converse.

You can't look up And if when she does try to look up, she's gotta contort her whole body so that she can just have a glimpse of what she's looking at. Here we have a woman who lives a life of frustration. She can't do the things she used to do 18 years ago. She can't enjoy the things she used to enjoy. She's bound.

It's it's probably a bit like, you know, I don't think many of us probably experienced this yet, but if you've been injured in any way, you can't do the things you want to do. I suppose when you get older, I'm not yet of that age, but things get harder to enjoy. Things get harder to do that you used to do But here is a woman who can't do hardly a thing. She can't exactly go for a jog, can she? So here we have a woman who has a life of deep unrest.

Her posture. Look at it. It makes her appear like she's bowing down in slavery to her disability. In fact, spurgeon said it looks like she's searching for a grave, and she is walking along looking for a grave. That's all she's doing.

And the result probably would have been alienation. I mean, she probably would have been socially ostracized by those around her. She would have been shunned. She would have been unnoticed. No 1 would have paid any attention to her.

No 1 would give her the slightest look. No 1 would pay attention, but Jesus does. Jesus does. Look at verse 12, when Jesus saw her. When Jesus saw her.

So you can imagine the scene. Picture it. There he is. He's in full flow. He's teaching great things about god.

He's treating amazing truths. There he goes. He's going, god is god is light. God is good. He repent, know him.

And then suddenly, he stops. And he stop stops talking for a moment, and he looks out. And his eyes are fixed on 1 person. And then people are going, why has he stopped talking? Why has he stopped talking?

Did he what what happened? And then we look what what's he looking at? And they probably did they probably did that thing, you know, when a teacher told you off in school, and you weren't sure if they were looking at you, me, me, me. Oh, no. No.

It's her. And then suddenly, they all pave way and they see that Jesus is looking at this this woman. This woman doesn't know that he's looking at her because she's only looking at the floor. And then he says, that woman there tell her to come forward. Listen, Jesus, Jesus is calling you for, go.

You need to go forward. Jesus is calling you. Now, again, If you ever got in trouble or if you ever you're in in a crowd and someone calls you forward, that is not usually a happy thing. Usually your heart drops. You're like, oh, no.

I'm gonna go up the front. People are gonna be looking at me. She probably is feeling something similar, but probably 10 times worse. Oh, no. How embarrassed and how shameful.

Usually, I just go about my business. No 1 sees me, but now I've got a shuffle in my ungainly manner, and everyone's gonna be looking at me. But Jesus has called it, called it a comma, she must go. And so there she goes, she shuffles forwards And everyone's gaze rests on this woman and Jesus as she takes center stage. And then you get these tender words.

Verse 12, she gets to him. Woman. You are set free from your infirmity. She can't see him. She can't see his hands, she can't see his face, she can't see as he smiling as he frowning, but then she feels.

His hands on her. And those hands come upon her. And what happens? First 13. Immediately, she straightened up, and praise god.

Immediately. Suddenly, and immediately, she is now straightened up and she is praising god. Spurgence says this about her. In those moments, She was the most eloquent woman in the universe. Can you imagine the release?

I mean, sometimes we we some of us might have felt pain and when the pain goes, it feels great. Some of us might have been working and working and working and working and working And then you have that nice long sleep as you get on holiday, and that's lovely. But this woman has been bound for 18 years. Her bones have fused. She's developed this lean.

She's not looked up. And now she can. She said 18 years have been bent over. There's been 18 years of frustrations. There's been 18 years of staring at the floor in slavery to this disability.

And then in 1 moment, in an instant, She's set free. She's released from her bondage. She's at rest. CRIs are no longer. Looking down, searching for a grave.

Where are our eyes now? They're up. They're praising god. She's thanking him for the rest that he has given for freeing her. See, the the the lord Jesus has brought her out of slavery.

Out of darkness, out of chains, and into a kingdom. His kingdom. Both physically and spiritually, she has been freed. What did Jesus say in his manifesto and his campaign slogan as we said? I've come to free free prisoners to set the oppressed free, and he does.

He's not like the politicians who don't back their promises up. He fulfills it. And in a moment, in an instant, this is what Jesus does. He frees people from chains, and he brings them into his kingdom. His kingdom of rest, his kingdom of of freedom.

Now, I think if if you were at this scene, you saw Jesus do this miraculous their this miraculous thing, then I I think our natural real reaction would be to join in and be like, wow. Amazing. Thank you, Lord. But it's not the case for all here. You'll see with me in verse 14, we're introduced to her next character.

Look with me at 14. Indignant. Well, there's a good response to seeing someone healed. Indignant. Wow.

Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue leader said to the people There are 6 days for work, so come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath. Impignant, like angry, incensed. They've he this man has just seen this woman healed She's just been brought into rest. And he's furious. Why?

Because Jesus healed her on a Sabbath. See, as far as he's concerned, Jesus has worked by healing this woman. He's worked by healing this woman. It's bad that he's healed this woman. It's bad that he set her free.

It's bad that she's at rest because it's on the Sabbath. Can you see how twisted that is? Because you see how distorted that is? Can you see how crippled that view is? See, this man and those like him are spiritually disabled.

They may not have a lean. They may not have an arc back, but spiritually, they are certainly not in a good way. See, this day, this Sabbath day was set aside by god for people to rest. In other words, so that they may enjoy god. They may enjoy his goodness that they may enjoy his refreshing.

That is why it's in place. It's to it's for people to stop working. As a enjoy rest. And then the nations around Israel, because people at the time would look at that and go wow. How good it is to be part of god's people.

He gives them rest. But the religious have distorted that this man has distorted the Sabbath. And he's made himself, and they've made themselves lord of the Sabbath and they've made the Sabbath a work ironically. You know, the religious establishment of this day had made 150 extra rules about the Sabbath. Hundred and 50 It's probably a few too many just to make sure they kept it correctly.

But that defeats the object of the Sabbath, right? The sabbath. But you're not you're not creating rest by making more laws. Not going. Oh, I know what make what will make people feel a bit more restful.

Let's make them do more laws. No, you create unrest as people strive to keep them. And I'm at the end of the day, All you get is another form of slavery. As people are bound to trying to keep rules that they can't keep. And so people are enslaved by religion.

So what does Jesus do he supposes their hypocrisy verse 15. You, Hippocrits. And what it does is he uses an argument, a lesser to greater illustration. So he argues from the lesser to the greater. So look with me at verse 15 to 17.

The Lord answered him. You Hippocrits. Doesn't each of you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water. Then should not, this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years. Beet free on the Sabbath Day from what bound her.

When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing. So this is this is the point of what he's saying. Back in the law when god gave the law about the Sabbath day, even part of that law was to give your animals a day off. And so the the rabbis of the day put inside their law and and they said that you need to set your animals free off their work chains, off their saddles, off the various things that they use for work. Let them go.

Give them food. Give them water. Look at them. Let them enjoy the sabbath. So even animals are catered for in god's law.

Even animals get to enjoy god's rest. In his day of rest. And this is the point that Jesus is making. If you're doing that for your animals, if that's what we do for our animals, How much more for a human being made in the likeness of god? How much more?

For a daughter of Abraham, 1 of god's chosen people. Surely is right to release her. From her bondage. Surely it's right that she's brought into Sabbath rest too. And so the result of Jesus's rebuke on this man is deep humiliation.

He's ashamed that word there. He's embarrassed. He's red faced. It's so embarrassing. And off he goes.

See, I think what we've got going on here is we've got 2 contrasting sabbaths. We've got 1 real sabbath and 1 false. The full Sabbath is the religious 1. The full Sabbath piles on more and more and more work. And all you get is a bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger burden on the back.

1 that you're not able to carry. A heavy load. And all that does is it enslaves people. It doesn't bring them rest. It doesn't bring them peace.

It brings them toil and labor and sweat and worry. That's the false Sabbath, but then there's the true Sabbath. The true Sabbath that the lord Jesus brings that you get if you come into his kingdom. 1 of real, deep rest. See this woman, She's freed.

She has rest from her pain. She has rest from her bondage to Satan. She's saved. She's brought into the kingdom of Sabbath rest. And Jesus is saying, that is what I've come for.

That is what I offer. That is what he offers to each and every 1 of us in this room. Rest. That is what you were created for. Did you know that?

You were created for rest. The the theologian Augustin says this to about god. You have made us for yourself and we are restless until we find our rest in you. We are restless until we find our in you. If you're just walking around trying to find rest, trying to find satisfaction, trying to find contentment in all the things of this world, you'll never find it.

But when you come to the lord Jesus, there's true The thing is we're all enslaved to something. We all have our backs bent as we try and serve things. We're always trying to prove ourselves. We're always trying to work harder. I think about young people, and they've gotta try so hard just to earn approval from the people around them.

I look at people that work, and they they work, and they work, and they work, and they slug the guts out so that they won, they can get approved by the boss, 1 they might get a pay rise, 1 they may get a promotion, and the cycle goes on and on and on and they can't sleep, and they can't sleep because they've got to think about those things And it's totally exhausting. Those people with addictions. As they live for those things, they live, and they live, and they live, and they can't get and they can't get enough, and they can't get enough. And they're tired, and they're weary. And Jesus is saying stop.

And come and know me. Matthew chapter 11 verse 28 to 29 says this. Come to me or you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

We sing a song, echoes that that that, those verses. I heard the voice of Jesus say Come unto me and rest. Lay down, a weary 1 laid down your head upon my breast. I came to Jesus as I was weary and worn and sad. I found in him a resting place and he has made me glad.

John Bonyon. When the pilgr wrote wrote the book, the pilgrims progress, a brilliant book. And, it's be made a film. So if you wanna go to a film, in October, go and watch Pilden's progress because it's a fantastic story. The main character Christian He, he's on a on the road to find salvation.

And on his back, it's this great burden. A burden of sin. A burden of trying to work hard. A verden, that he can't get rid of until where does he come? He comes to the cross of Christ.

And there, when he stands at that cross, what happens to his birds and off his back, it falls and it rolls away. And gone is his burden. And so he says, Christian, now glad and lights on. That's what the book says, glad, and lights him. I'm free.

He says, he has given me rest by his sorrow. And life by his death. He goes on to say I have peace and I have my sins forgiven. And then as he leaves that place, this is what he says. It's old language, but try and stick with it.

Thus far, did I come laden with my sin? I was I was burdened by my sin, nor could ought ease the grief that I was in till I came hither. What a place is this? Must hear be the beginning of my bliss? Must hear the birds in full from off my back.

Must hear the strings that bound it to me crack. Bless cross. Bless, sepulture. Bless rather be. The man that there was put to shame for me.

The lord Jesus Christ goes to a cross and dies to give us rest. 1 of those 3 words he shouts when the judgment is done, it is finished. I don't have to prove myself. I don't have to do works. It's done.

And I can rest in Jesus. So will you come today? Will you come? Will you know his rest? Will you come into his kingdom and know the deep sabbath rest that he has to offer.

If you've never done that, this is this is now the time to do it. Come and know. Come and no. In Christian, if you've gone away from this, come back to it. If you're starting to go to other things and trying to prove yourself again, come back.

I know the deep rest that the lord Jesus has and live in that See, Christian goes on, and he walks on, he walks on into the final day when he comes into the eternal rest. Where there is no more trying to prove myself, where there is no more battle with sin. That day, we will be ultimately free. We'll be ultimately in rest both physically and spiritually. Now, maybe you're thinking now, well, so what?

Yes, Jesus is kind. He sets people free, but that's quite good. But it seems pretty insignificant. We don't know this woman's name. We don't know the synagogue where it was.

In fact, We don't really know much about this story apart from the fact that he heals that person. And every time he seems to heal someone, he seems to be opposed. People always seem to meet with opposition. That mean this man here with his 6 days don't heal today. So it's great that it gives rest to these people, but is that it?

Is that really a successful kingdom? Is that really a fulfillment of his promises? Is that what we could mark as a successful reign? Or is it a failure? Is it Ophelia?

Well, no. Because it's not only a a kingdom of rest, but secondly, It's a kingdom of growth. It's a kingdom of growth verse 18 to 21. Let's read these verses together. Verse 18, Then Jesus asked, what is the kingdom of god like?

What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and it became a tree and the birds perched in its branches. Again, he asked, what shall I compare the kingdom of god to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about 30 kilograms of flour.

Until it worked all through the dome. So he's given 2 illustrations about his kingdom here. He's gonna show us that the kingdom of god is not a failure, but is 1 of a resounding success. But notice with me, with both of these illustrations, we have small beginnings, don't we? Quite quite tiny, quite a a minuscule thing.

We've got the the mustard seed, and we've got yeast. They're not exactly huge things, aren't they? They're tiny. They look weak. They look insignificant.

The healing of 1 or 2 individuals looks pearly pretty insignificant when you think about it, millions of means people have lived and only 1 or 2 healed. What's the big deal? And actually what Jesus is going on to do, if you look at verse 22, it says he's on his way to Jerusalem, in other words, he's going to the cross. So what he's going to do on a cross looks pretty weak, looks pretty insignificant, doesn't it? I mean, if if you're gonna do something If you're gonna start a kingdom, I imagine you wanna do something pretty spectacular, not hang on a cross.

But I actually just like the mustard seeds. What happens to the mustard seeds? It grows into a huge tree. That birds can come and shelter and perch in its branches. Just like that mustard seed grows into a huge mustard tree.

So also Jesus's death and resurrection to say sinner grows. It seemed weak. It seemed pathetic. It seemed insignificant. But ever since that moment on a cross, That glorious moment, sinners have been freed, sinners have been given rest.

And it still continues to grow. It hasn't stopped. It's gone out and out and out and out and out and out and out and out. And it's still growing today. There are still people coming to know the lord jesus.

There are still people being added to the kingdom of god. Now, yes, we may feel humble and weak. We may feel insignificant. We may feel like this message is pretty insignificant at times. It doesn't look spectacular, right?

But it will continue to grow. God will continue to grow, but he will continue to add to his number. And so I want you to be encouraged dear brothers and sisters. Be encouraged that god will grow. We're in King that we feel like we're a small group of people.

We can't do anything, but god will use people. I was looking at a few examples of this. There was a bloke called Edward Kimball. Anyone heard of Edward Kimball? Hansel, we've listed heard about Edward Kimball.

No 1. Maybe 1 or 2. Right. Edward Kimball, just a just a bloke in America. Okay?

He was a son school teacher to a bloke called D. L. Moody, now you might have heard of D. L. Moody, because D.

L. Moody was converted because of what Edward Kimball said. Edward Kimball after trying to say, you should be converted, thought he botched the whole job up. In significant week, what have I done? DR Moody becomes a Christian.

DR Moody goes on to see loads of people converted. He goes to to England, and he sees many converted. He meets a bloke called FB Mayor. FB Mayor is invited back to America. He then preaches the gospel in America.

And then a bloke called J. B. Wilber Chapman. Here's his word, and he goes on and inspired to preach the word a little bit more. Then after him, Jay, Jay Wilber Chapman, there is Billy Sunday, who's a very charismatic preacher, converted as a bait, converted through this ministry.

Then, and then he influences a bloke called Mordecai Ham. What a name? Mordecai Ham. Okay. Mordecai Ham feels pretty downcast.

Feels pretty insignificant. Feels week because he's not seen many people converted. He prays that someone will be converted. Do you know who's converted? Billy Graham.

And Billy Graham preaches the gospel to thousands millions of people. It looks humble. It looks insignificant. It looks weak. But my gosh it will grow.

It will grow and it will grow and it will grow and it will go out and it will go out and it will go out and it will go out and it will go to the nations. Until a day when a people from every tar tribe and tongue and nation will come together and they will confess that Jesus is lord. They will confess that Jesus is the 1 who gives rest that gives liberation. He is the lord. But not only does it grow numerically, but it also transforms internally.

See that that illustration of the yeast. Now when you put yeast in the dough, you don't put loads in tiny little bit. But when you put it in the dough, it works its way throughout the yeast just like this woman in this illustration. It pervades every single part of the dough. And this is what the gospel message does.

The good news of the kingdom of god has an internal transformative power. It transforms the life of the believer. It transforms the life of the church. So that every part of life is touched. That that all my being is brought onto the rule of god that all of my life is live for the king that is live for the for the king that is Jesus.

So whether it's work, whether it's my marriage, whether it's my family, whether my leisure time, whatever it is, comes onto god's rule, and it's for him. It's interesting. This world always wants to preach you need to change. In fact, all those messages, right? Change for the better.

We can change. Yes, we can. And it's all we can change. And then, and there's always always, you know, if you become a vegan, you'll be better. And, I used to get messages from people who did like fitness stuff.

It's like be the best version of you you can be. What a load of rubbish? All this changed off. Do you know the only thing that changes people? It's the kingdom of god.

It's the gospel message. It's the only thing that transforms truly. You have people trying to move away. I'm gonna get a fresh start in, I don't know, Asia and Thailand. I find myself.

It's the same person in Thailand as they are in London. But you wanna feel real change, you come to the gospel and you let that do its work in you. I'll tell you 1 person that really has a I find it very interesting, so my brother comes to this church. And he's an elder now, and it's very, very good. And I tell people he's never I know.

Sorry, Steven. He's over there in the in the Gilay. And, I they they I say to them Stephen was a horror, growing up. I really person. And, was violent and vile and angry and aggressive and got up to all sorts of, you know, mischief, you know, burning bins, and that's just, that's quite nice compared to some of the stuff he did.

And they're like, woah! No! Stephen. Steven. Steven.

Steve. Steve. He's such a nice bloke though. He's a nurse. That is proof of the transformative power of the gospel.

Now we laugh, but it is. An angry boy, a very angry boy, hated his younger brother. Don't know why, probably because he was so good. But god worked into his life, and he's changed him. He's not an angry boy now.

He's a kind, loving, gentle father. A man who cherishes god's word and teaches those around him. That's great. That's what a gospel does. It takes angry people that makes them kind.

It it takes lustful people that makes them lovers. It takes selfish people that makes them givers. There's nothing like this message. Nothing can transform at the gospel. So let me ask you, are you in this kingdom?

If you're not, will you come in? Will you come in and will you know his rest. Will you come in and know his power to save sinners from from all walks of life? Will you come in and what you know is transformative power. Can I ask you to be be about his kingdom?

Live for his king them, share his kingdom. Let me pray. Father, we we thank you so much for your kingdom. We thank you that you're not like the powers of this world who promise so much, but deliver nothing. But when you promise something, you fulfill it, When you say I'm here to set the oppressed free, you set the oppressed free.

And when you say I'm the lord of the Sabbath, you are the lord of the Sabbath and you give rest to people. Father, we pray that we will come back to you for our rest. If we've got away. We pray father for anyone in this room who knows that doesn't know that rest. We pray that you're working their lives and that they will turn to you, and they will know that deep rest, that deep satisfaction, that deep contentment.

Father, we pray for ourselves. We pray that we will be about your kingdom. We pray father that you will continue to grow your kingdom, both numerically but also spiritually in our lives. We pray father that we will be people who are about your kingdom and want to see your kingdom grow. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen.