It is finished

Randy Meyer
​December 24, 2023

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Grace Bible Church. Merry Christmas to all of you as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  I'm gonna start just by reading the verse  for today, it's in Isaiah, Chapter nine, verse six.  If I don't put some glasses on, I won't be able to see. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given. The government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Let's open in prayer.  Heavenly Father, as we celebrate Christmas, let us remember that the birth of our Savior is the reason for the celebration. And may we bring honor and glory to your name as we study your word. Iit's amazing that Thursday we celebrated the first day of winter.  And today, three days later, we're celebrating the first day of spring.  And I'm sure those words will come back to bite me eventually.  And somebody here will certainly let me know. Okay, how should we celebrate the birth of Christ?  And I think it was more than just his birth. What we should be celebrating also is who he became, who he was. He was our Lord and Savior, Savior. He died our death and we could spend eternity with him. Let's start with First Corinthians Chapter 15.  This is this is a salvation message in a nutshell. Okay, and I think it needs to be preached this morning.  Says, Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also you have received and wherein you stand.  By which you were saved.

If you keep in memory what I have preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain.  For I delivered unto you, first of all, that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,  and that he was seen of Peter, then of the twelve. After that, he was seen above five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. Amen. After that, he was seen of James, then of the Apostles, and last of all, he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.  Now the interesting thing that I always took out of this is not only is it the salvation message,  but keep in mind, after three years of the Lord's ministry on this earth,  they were told to meet in a house and wait for the Holy Spirit. Three year ministry. At one point, he had gathered 4, 000 people together. Another point, he had 5, 000 people together. How many people were in that house after the Lord's Ascension?  120. And the important part of this verse is he was seen of 500 brethren at once. The problem is these things need to be passed down through generations.  We, if we don't,  if we don't give out the message to our children,  then how does anybody else in that family get it? We as, we as grandparents try to pick up that second generation.

Okay, maybe, maybe we feel we haven't done our job with our children. So we pick up with the grandkids. And that's our job. We keep this going because if we skip one generation, Lord knows where that ends up. We need to keep that message going. Okay,  I dug out a few things here which  maybe don't fit this day,  but I just want to use this for a purpose. Okay, everybody celebrates Christmas in one form or another.  But, you know, I'm, I'm like anybody else, okay, we give gifts, I'm sure you all do, okay, little kids still hear of Santa, alright, but as they grow older, that needs to change.  But, we're at a point where we celebrate the most ridiculous things you can think of. 

Here's a few of them. Pick out your favorite.  January 1st, January 1st, Polar Bear Plunge Day.  January 2nd. Now some of you may like this and I would be guilty to Buffet Day. Okay? That one I might be able to get into.  January 3rd. Fruitcake Toss Day.  That one I can get into also.  January 4th is Trivia Day. January 5th is Bird Day.  January 6th is Bean Day.  January 7th is Old Rock Day.  January 8th, Earth's Rotation Day.  January 9th, there's, this must be a special day because there's a couple of them celebrated, Static Electricity Day,  and also Clean Off Your Desk Day.  And here's, here's a really good one, okay. January 11th, we celebrate Hear Your Name in Morse Code Day.  So I mean, this is, this is how ridiculous things have gotten.  And according to what I found on the internet, and you know, we always believe what we find on the internet, these are a few interesting tidbits of Christmas also.  The birth of our Lord and Savior was so very important to all the people in the world. That the first celebration of his birth, according to the internet now, okay, there may be some other, some other places where you find something different, but the very first celebration of his birth was in the year 336  A. D., obviously, in Rome.  300 years after his birth, they finally acknowledge  and have a celebration of his birth? How sad is that?  And it did not become a major festival in Rome until the 9th century, which is about 500 years after his birth.  The second one, Christ's baptism received more attention than his birthday, celebrated January 6th.  I believe that's the day of Epiphany, and also that's when the, supposedly the three kings visited Christ. 

Cultures around the Mediterranean and across Europe observed feasts on or around December 25th, marking winter solstice. The Jews had a festival of lights. Celtic legends connected solstice with Baldr, maybe some of you have heard of him before, Baldr, the Scandinavian sun god, who was struck down by a mistletoe arrow. Pagan festival of Rome called Saturday Saturnalia. I'm sure it has something to do with the planet. They feasted and gave gifts to the poor. Drinking was closely connected with the pagan festivals.  The 13th century  so called Christians added Christmas carols.  No one is sure when the Christmas tree came into the picture, only that it originated in Germany. Eighth century English missionary, St. Boniface, who was an apostle to Germany, is said to have held up the evergreen as a symbol of everlasting Christ.  Puritans  were forbidden to celebrate Christmas.  In 1620, the Plymouth Colony Governor Bradford threatened New Englanders  with work, jail, or fines if they were caught celebrating Christmas. And in our country, it took almost a hundred years.  June 26th, 1870,  Christmas was finally declared a holiday in the United States. So according to history, Christmas is pretty much just another day. Okay, getting back to  our verse for today,  For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, To us  And the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 

Christ was born to sit upon the throne of David.  And in this verse, for us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government, which means kingdom or empire, shall be upon his shoulder. Amen. Amen.  Let's flip,  I'm not supposed to say that word today. Isaiah chapter 61. Before we got started this morning, I was talking to,  um,  I'll draw a blank, he'll be mad at me now.  I was talking to Carl out in the room here,  and I told him, I said, the first time I spoke, I said the word okay at least 15 times, because I replayed it, looked at how can I improve, okay?  So I made a point of not saying that. Well, the second time, I said it over 20 times.  So that didn't do much good. So I asked him today, I says, Now, can you do something about that? I said, you know, can you hook something up, or if I say okay, you can zap me, and I know what's going on. And he thought for a minute, he says, Well, we could probably come up with something. So  Always, always there to help, you know.  Okay, let's go to Isaiah 61, and  we'll read the first two verses.  Isaiah 61, verse 1.  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.

To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God  to comfort all that mourn.  You don't have to turn there, but  if you are able, keep your, keep your place in Isaiah.  Luke chapter 4, 

Luke chapter 4 and verse, start in verse 16. 

Luke chapter 4 verse 16. 

And he, Jesus, came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and stood up for to read.  And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet, the prophet Isaiah.  And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor and the needy. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those that are bruised,  to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.  And he closed the book, and gave it again to the minister, and sat down. All the eyes of them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled. Why did he stop?  He stopped because that scripture was not going to be entirely fulfilled.  To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,  and then the day of vengeance. The day of vengeance did not come.  Okay? The day of vengeance did not come. That's the kingdom, that's the tribulation leading up to the kingdom of David. Same thing is true  if you read our verse again. For unto us a child is born, to unto us a son is given. Okay, that son has been given to us, and the government. What's he talking about now? He's talking about the coming kingdom. That kingdom didn't come. So you have a division in scripture here as well. Okay?

There we go, okay. 

We have a first and a second advent of Christ.  And between those two, between the first and second advent of Christ, this is overlooked, I'm sure, by a number of people.  This, this church, I don't believe overlooks any of that, but let's turn there. First Thessalonians, if you would, please.  Chapter four. 

First Thessalonians chapter four. 

And we'll read, start at verse 13. First Thessalonians chapter four, verse 13.  But I would not have you to be ignorant brethren concerning those which are asleep or who have passed away. That they, that you sorrow not even have as others, which have no hope for. If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also would sleep in Jesus, will God bring with him  for this, we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them, which are asleep or dead. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout and with the voice of the archangel and with the Trump of God.  And the dead in Christ shall rise first, and we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore, comfort one another with these words.  So what he's telling you is that Christ is going to return for us believers, and he will return before the wrath of God is poured out on this world. All the believers will be taken out before the tribulation. Amen. The reason I say that, there's a lot of people today that believe we are going through the Tribulation right now. I got news for you. Read the book of Revelation. You'll find out what Tribulation is. And if people think we're going through the Tribulation now, that's, that's a good book to read and see a lot of those things are not happening today.  Okay, back to our verse. In the context here, the verse is proclaiming the redemption of Israel. The activities, titles, and blessings of the Messiah who is to rule the earth and usher in a reign of blessing.  And keep in mind, you probably know this, the word Messiah is the Hebrew, the Greek word is Christ.  Usher in a reign of blessing and peace. And one of his titles is the Everlasting Father.  The Hebrew phrase  that's translated Everlasting Father could be translated literally Father of Eternity. 

And the title means that this coming Messiah is also the creator of everything. He is the father of time and eternity, the architect of the ages.  And we know this to be true  by the New Testament. If you turn to the book of Colossians,  Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, you have to remember that P comes before C in scripture. 

Ephesians, Galatians, Philippians,  Colossians. 

So this means that the Messiah is the creator of everything.  And we'll start in  verse 13.  The who of verse 13 means Jesus Christ, who has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us, pardon me,  let's go to verse 14. In whom, in Christ, we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins. Who, meaning Christ, is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature.  For by him were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created by him and for him. And he is before all things, by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have the preeminence.  So there they're talking about Jesus Christ as the creator of the world. He is God the Father as well.  Now the Hebrew word translated everlasting  obviously means without end. The next verse if you went in 9 verse 7, chapter 9 verse 7 of Isaiah. The next verse says of the Messiah, of the greatness of his government and peace, there will be no end. The emphasis there is, is forward looking. Um, so everlasting,  it means everlasting, but maybe a better translation would be that it indicates not only there's no beginning, but there is no end. So as the everlasting father, the Messiah will be a father and his fatherhood  will be without end.  In ancient times, uh, the father of a nation was viewed as much the same way as a father of a family.  He was the father who was to protect and provide for his children,  in the same way this child to be born will become a king who will be a father to the children of Israel. He will protect and provide for them,  and as his role as protector and provider, he will not be limited by age or death.  His role will continue forever.  And the full identity of the Messiah, that he is God in the flesh, the second person of the Trinity,  would protect and provide for his people by death and resurrection on their behalf, and that the Gentiles also would be grafted into the family of Israel. 

But God's people would have to wait almost 700 years to see the Messiah revealed in the fullness of time. Amen.  Galatians chapter 4 verse 4, just a few pages  before Colossians, tells us what the fullness of time,  talks about the fullness of time. Galatians 4:4. I'll start in verse 3.  Even so we when we were children were in bondage under the elements of the world. But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his son, made of a woman, made under the law. So this was God's perfect moment for the birth of Christ. 

Okay, we'll go back to Exodus chapter 3, please. 

Exodus chapter 3. 

Yeah, Exodus chapter 3, okay. 

Sometimes I don't believe what I wrote down. 

Okay, Exodus chapter 3 talks about the burning bush and talks about Moses. 

We're gonna, we're gonna skip around here a little bit, but chapter 3 of Exodus, we'll start in, I'll just read verse 2 here quickly. The angel of the Lord appeared unto Moses in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked and behold the bush burned with fire and the bush was not consumed.  Go down to verse 7. And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt.  And they have heard their cry  by reason of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large land, unto a land flowing with milk and honey. And drop down to verse 10.  Come now, therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.  And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?  And he said, Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent you. When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this mountain. Amen.  Verse 13,  Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel and say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you, they shall say to me, What is his name? What shall I say to them? And God said unto Moses, I am that I am. And he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I am hath sent me.  And I am obviously  was one of the names of God  You can keep your finger in Exodus. We'll be back  I'm gonna go to John chapter 8 

John chapter 8 

And we'll drop down to verse 50 56  He's talking to the Pharisees and the Jews in this passage  He says, Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad.  Then said the Jews unto him, You are not yet fifty years old, and you have seen Abraham?  Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. Then they took up stones to cast at him, but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.  Now, why did they  pick up stones to cast at him?  A couple pages, go to John chapter 10. John chapter 10,  and we'll just, we'll just pick up here in verse 30.  Chapter 10, verse 30.  And he says, I and the Father are one.  Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I showed you from my Father. For which of these works do you stone me?  The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy, and because thou, thou being a man, makest thyself God.

So he's telling them he is God in the flesh.  That's why they cast up stones to kill him. 

Okay, we'll go back to Exodus chapter 6. 

Hopefully you kept your finger there. I didn't. 

Exodus chapter 6, 

and we'll start in verse 2.  Once again, here is Moses. God spoke unto Moses and said to him, I am the Lord.  And he said, and I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty. But my name Jehovah  was I not known to them. Amen. Let's go down to verse 6  Wherefore say unto the children of Israel I am the Lord and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians and I will rid you out of their Bondage I will redeem you with a stretched out arm and with great judgments. I will take you to me for a people I will be to you a God and you shall know that I am the Lord your God Which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians I will bring you into the land concerning which I did swear to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give it to you for an heritage. I am the Lord.  Basically, what we're showing you here is Jesus Christ in the Old Testament was Jehovah God. Okay? The I am is Jehovah.  Jehovah means self existent one. I am Jehovah.  And Jesus Christ says, I am. 

Genesis chapter 22. The reason for this is simply to show you that that child that was born  was more than just a child in the manger.  He's no longer in the manger. He's no longer on the cross. He's no longer buried. He has risen.  The power of resurrection is in you. And the whole point of this is to show you who He was. We, we look forward to the birth of Christ. But He was more than that. He was our Lord and Savior. And I don't think that, that's said enough. 

Genesis chapter 22. 

This is interesting for a number of reasons. First off,  you know we always talk about Christ is love.  In the whole of scripture, the first verse you'll find any reference to the word love. Is here in Genesis 22.  Start in verse 1.  And it came to pass after these things that God did tempt or test Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham, and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take thou thy son, thine only son, Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering.  I know the people in children's church hate to hear that. Teaching this to the little kids because of what happens here. Just, just the fact that here's, here's Isaac being put on a,  basically being the  burnt offering. And what's interesting is  you, if you scroll down, let's go down to verse 6.  Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, laid it upon Isaac his son. He took the fire in his hand and a knife and they went both of them together.  And Isaac spoke to Abraham, his father, and said, My father.  And he said, Here I am, my son. And he said, Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?  And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering. So they kept going.  So Isaac was  laid on the altar,  upon the wood,  and Abraham took out his knife, and the Lord stopped him.  This reminds me of them crossing the Red Sea, where the Lord told them, Stand still and watch the power of God. Here's the same thing. Stop, Abraham. Okay, you've proven that you trust me. You've proven me with your belief.  But people wonder, why did Abraham take his only son there? Obviously he believed God, but what else did Abraham know?  You can keep your hand here because we'll be coming right back.  I'm going to flip forward to Hebrews  chapter 11.

It's got to be  Hebrews chapter 11.  If you want to turn there, I'll wait.  Hebrews chapter 11. 

Hebrews chapter 11, we'll go to verse 17. 

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he that had received the promises,  offered up  his only begotten Son,  of whom it was said that in Isaac shall thy seed be called.  Accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead, from whence also he received him in a figure. Isaac. was taken there by Abraham because Abraham knew even if he went through with this, God could raise him from the dead.  So Abraham believed everything God had told him.  And the promises, obviously, that they talk about were given to Abraham, that he would be  in a land of his own and a people of his own. 

Go back to just a couple of quick notes here. In Genesis 22, the section we just read.  It says, Take thou thy son, thy only son Isaac, into the, into the  land of Moriah.  Just a side note, Mount Moriah, where they went, was the future site of Solomon's temple,  which I thought was interesting. Okay, the last section here, go to verse, 22 again, now that I've got you all messed up. Go to verse 14. 2214, And Abraham called the name of the place Jehovah Jireh, as it is said of this day, in the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. Now remember, Jehovah means I am, and Jireh, J I R E H, means your provider.  So what did God do  for Abraham? He provided the sacrifice. He provided a lamb  that they could sacrifice instead of his son.

So the son, according to  Isaiah, was to be the everlasting father. And who is the everlasting father? He's a creator. He's a source. He's a sustainer.  Sovereign of all creation. He is just. He is holy. He is merciful. He is gracious. Slow to anger. Abounding in love. In steadfast love, abounding in faithfulness, even unto the cross. 

Turn to Psalms  chapter 41. 

And be right after the book of Job. 

Psalms chapter 41. 

Psalms 41 verse 13.  It says, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting.  These are all going to be similar verses. Stay in the book of Psalms. Go to chapter 83.  Psalms 83. 

And go down to verse 18. 

That men may know that thou whose name alone is Jehovah art the most high over all the earth. 

Another page over. Chapter 90. 

Chapter 90, verse 2. 

It says, Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.  All of these verses basically tell you that God is from the beginning and to the end. He is Alpha and Omega. No beginning, no end.  Psalm 93, verse 2. Thy throne is established of old. Thou art from everlasting.  A couple more here in Psalms 103, Psalm 103,  verse 17, 103,  17,  that the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him and his righteousness unto children's children.  And one more here in Psalms, you go to the longest chapter in Scripture.  Chapter 119 and verse 142. 

119  and 142.  Once again it talks of righteousness. Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth. 

If you flip forward a few pages,  touch on a few verses in Isaiah,  Isaiah chapter 26, Isaiah 

26  and verse 4, 

trust ye in the Lord forever, for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength.  Turn over to chapter 40, 

chapter 40 and verse 28. 

As thou not known as thou not heard that the everlasting God the Lord the creator of the ends of the earth Fainteth not neither is weary. There is no searching of his understanding  Isaiah 45 Isaiah 

45  verse 17  But Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation He shall not be ashamed, nor confounded, world without end. 

Just a couple more here. Chapter 51. 

Chapter 51, and down to verse 11. It  says, Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion, or Jerusalem. And everlasting joy shall be upon their head. They shall obtain gladness, and joy, and sorrow, and morning shall flee away.  And one page over.  Isaiah 54. Isaiah 54 verse 8. 

In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment, but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee. Sayeth the Lord thy Redeemer. Now that I bored you with all of those verses to prove a point, what was that point, right? Okay.  Christmas celebration,  people do different things. Okay, we read about the birth of Christ, the God man,  um, Herod's attempt to kill him.  We sing in choirs, we sing the praises of God.  We enjoy Christmas concerts, celebrate what's in our hearts, the real reason for Christmas. We enjoy friends and family and time together. You don't have to turn there, but in Genesis chapter 12,  God chose Abraham and his seed to be his own people.  They became the nation Israel, the Jews.  At that time, all other people were alienated from God.  When Israel crucified Christ and stoned Stephen in Acts chapter 7, The nation Israel was temporarily set aside. 

At this point, the entire world is alienated from God. But God was in Christ, reconciling the world, bringing us back together  with God. You cannot be reconciled until you've been alienated. And everybody was at that point. Turn, if you would, to 2 Corinthians chapter 5. The 2nd Corinthians chapter 5. I've said this before, I think these verses that we're going to read  are not read enough. They're not understood. And if people understood this, they'd understand why everything in the scripture is not for us for today.  2nd Corinthians chapter 5, we start at verse 14. For the love of Christ Constrains us, excuse me, constraineth us, because we thus judge that if one died for all, then all were dead. And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them and rose again.  This is the big verse to me. Verse 16. Wherefore, henceforth, from now on, knowing no man after the flesh, Yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. He is a risen Lord and Savior. We're to know him from heaven.  Therefore, if a new man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. To it that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed to us the word of reconciliation.  Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us, we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. 

If there was, if there was anything.  that we ourselves could do to be saved and spend eternity with Christ,  then the child would never have been born.  There is nothing that we can do in and of ourselves for our salvation. Christ did it all. He would, He would never have suffered and died the death He did for our sins. We can only believe in the finished work of the cross, His burial and resurrection.  And the power of his resurrection for our salvation. He did it all. And as he said on the cross, it is finished. Today,  I don't know if these are the proper words, but we're living in the climax of what Christmas started, the birth of Christ and what that birth began.  At this point, I'm going to steal six things from J. C. O'Hare. I don't think he'll mind as long as I give him credit.  At birth of Christ and what it began. Number one, the incarnation of God in Christ for the specific purpose of dying for sinners.  Number two, the sinless, perfect life of the God man Christ.  Number three, supernatural miracles to prove his eternal deity, unity, and equality with God the Father.  Number four, his once all sacrifice in fulfillment of prophecy and God's foreordained redemption for sinners. Number five, his bodily resurrection and ascension into the highest heavens.  And number six, promise that he will come for his redeemed believers and take them in glorified bodies to see and share in his glory forever as the everlasting father. 

Let’s close in prayer.  Heavenly Father, we just thank you for your presence during our periods of sorrow and joy. Help us not to be anxious for anything and through your prayer and thanksgiving. We have the peace of God.  May your mercy and grace shine through each of us as we witness to others. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

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