Well, I invite you to turn tonight in your Bibles to 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. As I said this morning about a year ago, we looked at the first chapter here, actually the first, the second chapter, looking at the Antichrist, the man of lawlessness, and the apostasy. And now I thought I'd planned for this before I got sick with COVID. I'd planned to look at this particular passage as sort of an old year's, new year's theme and it still stands. We're early in the year. So tonight we're going to look at this particular passage from 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 beginning at verse 13 and we'll read to the end of chapter 3. Beginning at verse 13 tonight. This is the word of the Lord. But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word finally brothers pray for us that the word of the lord may speed ahead and be honored as happened among you and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men for not all have faith but the lord is faithful he will establish you and guard you against the evil one and we have confidence in the Lord about you that you are doing and will do the things that we command may the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ now we command you brothers in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you receive from us for you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us because we were not idle when we were with you nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it but with toil and labor we worked night and day that we might not be a burden to any of you it was not because we do not have that right but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate for even when we were with you we would give you this command if anyone is not willing to work let him not eat for we hear that some among you walk in idleness not busy at work but busy bodies now such persons we command and encourage in the lord jesus christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living as for you brothers do not grow weary in doing good if anyone does not obey what we say in this letter take note of that person have nothing to do with him that he may be ashamed do not regard him as an enemy but warn him as a brother now may the lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way the lord be with you all. I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. This is the sign of genuineness in every letter of mine. It is the way I write. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. Here's the reading of God's word. Well, about a year ago, I gave two sermons. If you remember, of course you remember, don't you? I gave two sermons titled, What to Expect before Jesus comes and I highlighted the certain problems that the church in Thessalonica was facing certain challenges this particular church was facing in light of false ideas that had creeped into the church that the second coming of Jesus had already come and they had missed it really a remarkable thing that had happened so early on in this church that there were people teaching such things, and it was causing great disruption and great concern among the members that they had missed the resurrection. Paul went after this, of course, and I wish I had kept going at that time because I think what we have in the latter section following the stuff that we like to consider about the Antichrist and the apostasy, I think we get to the heart tonight of what Paul is really all about in this epistle, the heart of what he was aiming for in how to help them through these times and these confusions and these difficulties to help a people to be ready for the second coming of the Lord. That really is his purpose here, especially as we see that develop in the end of the book. Everything in both books aims here at what he concludes with in the end of chapter 2 and chapter 3, what he is driving to help them with and how to think through the weight, the patient weight of Jesus' return. So I thought we'd spend a little bit tonight on this important section of how to be ready for Christ's return and second coming. I hope this is an encouragement to you of something that Paul said in the first chapter of this second epistle to the Thessalonians, that Jesus is coming soon and that you can look forward to that day because, as he says, Jesus is to be glorified in his saints and marveled at among those who have believed because our testimony to you was believed. That's an exciting future ahead of us. That's a really encouraging statement to say. You can look forward to this day. There's nothing to be fearful about for this day. For among those who have believed, this is the great day when you will see your Lord and you will be taken into glory. And the reality is, very soon, we have said this for, it seems like a long time now, very soon, this will all be over. There is an end to all of this. The earthly mission of the church, the earthly mission that Jesus gave in the Great Commission, will come to an end. And on that last day, he's going to wipe away every tear from your eyes. and there's going to be no more death. There's going to be no more sorrow. There's going to be no more sickness. There's going to be no more sin. All of these former things will have passed away, and we will enter into the glory that has been prepared for us from the foundation of the world. It's going to happen quickly. It's going to happen in a twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet. We shall all be changed, and we will be taken to the new heavens and the new earth where righteousness shall dwell. That's what is ahead of us. I was reading a devotional the other night to the elders and I thought something that J.C. Ryle said captured this. He said something powerful in the interim in light of our struggle in the present age that even though right now we are troubled by many hardships and even though right now we have many afflictions, they have a good purpose from God in making us share in Christ's holiness. We may not see that now, says Ryle, But we shall see it when we wake up in the other world. That's coming. That's coming. I want to encourage us in this as we look forward to that to help us with the instruction here that's given to keep our eyes fixed on that great hope that is ours in Christ. The way that we're looking at this section tonight is a very simple breakdown, a little bit different of a breakdown. I want to start with the way that Paul encourages the church in his application after he explained what to expect before jesus comes and then he calls them as i see it to three responsibilities in being prepared for the second coming so the encouragement and then the three responsibilities that he gives them and that's the breakdown as we're looking at this section tonight this larger section the context here is really important to understand again that some troublers in the church had said that jesus had already come that they had missed the resurrection and what a bizarre false teaching that had filled uh the church and the people in thessalonica it was troubling them greatly and paul essentially said that's impossible you guys know better than that i rehearsed all this when i was with you that's verse five that there are you no two coinciding events that have to happen before jesus's return first there's going to be a great apostasy and a great falling away and we'll see that of course in the church but i think also as we looked at it's a sort of worldwide phenomenon that is the work of the antichrist who is already present among us a worldwide phenomenon of his work the man of lawlessness who will oppose himself over all that's called God or that's worshiped so that he sits as God in the temple of God showing himself to be God. There will be that spirit that prevails in the earth of casting down the true God of heaven and earth, attempt to. And Paul says that when that great apostasy comes and the revelation of this, whatever that will look like, he says that what will happen is Jesus is going to come at the most unexpected of moments and utterly consume him. And he is going to make everything right. He explained as much as is possible in our current age what that's going to look like, what the lawlessness of our times, what that's going to look like before his coming. There's going to be, he says at the very end here, you'll notice before our section tonight in verse 12, he says in verse 11, Therefore God sends them a strong delusion so that they may believe what is false in order that they may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. Now that's quite a verse. I think that's what launches Paul into some of the most comforting words in all the Bible. That is quite a verse. Paul knew that that would be utterly scary to think about. God himself will send a delusion upon people because they don't believe the truth, but they have a pleasure and love for unrighteousness. And that delusion, I think, that Paul references here, Paul is really now answering and having God's people to think that that would be a scary proposition he knew for God's people. What will that look like? How do we live in the middle of all that? How do we understand all of that? How are we to exist in these perilous times? Think of all the apostasy that we see now. It's all validated by the word of God. Think of our godless, present, evil age as it's described that we're living. But understand this. This is in 2 Timothy. In the last days, there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with deceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness but denying its power. Anyone think we're not in that? We're living that. We're in the thick of that. And I think that's what leads Paul, knowing that these things are going to happen, the great apostasy, that leads Paul to give a great encouragement to the church. One of the greatest encouragements I find in the New Testament. I want you to notice verse 13 tonight. Notice carefully what he says there. But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's got to be one of the most remarkable encouragements in all the Bible. What a loaded statement. What a beautiful statement. What a remarkable encouragement as Paul begins to think about closing this little epistle to them. I want you to know something. I want you to know something, dear Christians in Thessalonica. This applies to you too. I pray and give thanks for you. Why? Because here's the truth that undergirds this all. God chose you as the first fruits to be saved. Let that set in for a minute. What a statement. It's a really powerful statement. Listen to how he spoke to these believers. I want you to know something. You're loved by God. You want to know how? Because your entire salvation rests on God's sovereign choice for you. In choosing you for salvation. In sovereignly electing you to salvation. And that firstfruits, you'll notice there, that word firstfruits means from the beginning. From the beginning he did that. I don't know of any stronger verse in the Bible to support the truth of sovereign election. I really don't. If you're ever going to go and try to prove sovereign election to somebody, this has got to be the number one verse. What is God saying to you? I love you. And I want you to know that you are predestined to obtain the glory to come in Jesus. That's the truth of the matter. That's the truth of the matter. To this he called you through our gospel so that you may obtain the glory. That's the purpose. You are called to this. Peter would get caught up in the same thing in 1 Peter when he said, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. To an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, listen to this, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Who's guarding you? Who's keeping you? Who chose you? He did. I want you to know that the basis upon which you're receiving all this is my sovereign choice. I'm a good pleasure of my goodwill. It wasn't based on your acceptance of me. I mean, why we still fight that is just unbelievable. Don't ever fight this. You want to stand in front of that truth and say, Whoa! No, no, it rests on me. I chose you. I appointed you. For glory. It's yours. heaven is certain heaven is prepared that's what Jesus said he went to do God never revealed the truths of sovereign grace and the truth of election to be a doctrine that would lead to doubt ever in the Bible if it ever became that we wrecked it he always revealed it to say before you were born before you never even made a choice before you had done any good or any evil, you need to know that your belief and your faith in Jesus Christ is evidence of my sovereign election to choose you to be with me in glory. That's how great the depths of the love of God is. Because I loved you. This is why Paul would even speak in a remarkable way talking about the grace that was given to him before time began. And it's as if in light of all this struggle and hardship, death and confusion and pain in this life this is what the authors in the midst of all of that held out to be the truth to comfort you this truth this sovereign truth think of the psalm tonight as we entered in blessed is the man you choose to enter your courts god chose you to be here tonight and i think the real power of this is what the apostle is encouraging them with here is that with the election of god the choice of god it has the real fruits in the life of a believer it's not that you can't see it it's not that you can just say well that was something he did and how can i really know that that's for me paul adds to this something i think was really remarkable choice of words to set this in stone for us when he says you see that in God's choice to save you because what he secured for you in the present is your sanctification in other words your sanctification and belief in the truth is the work of the spirit and even that's his I think sometimes we live thinking that the inheritance is dependent on some level of our performance or sanctification as i as i somewhat alluded to this morning that's not what he says here god did not do something at the beginning and then left us to figure it out or left it based on our performance or left it to be the degree to which we would obtain some kind of perfection in this life which nobody ever will but but that thinking so prevails no he gave us his spirit paul says who is absolutely sovereign and is committed to your sanctification and belief in the truth. And the greatest way you see it is that you believe the gospel. You believe the gospel. That's a remarkable thing. You don't know how hard that work is. Don't ever take for granted what your faith says today. You're loved by god now that's the encouragement he begins with and it leads him to break out into prayer for them you'll notice now may our lord jesus christ himself and god our father who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word he breaks out into prayer knowing that's the truth of the matter now embedded in this great truth he calls these saints now as he has laid that foundation and as he has cleared away all the fear mongering that has come by false teachers who have tried to wreck their comfort and wreck their hope and wreck their certainty and wreck the joy that is theirs in christ he's cleared all that away and now what he does is he begins to help them to be a people prepared for this glory how do we live prepared for this and that's what i want to um to think about with you now in these three applications that he gives you'll notice what he says there then as he moves on and you'll see it there in verse one of um of chapter three where he says finally brothers oh i'm sorry back up a little bit to this he called you so then brothers verse 15 stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us either by our spoken word or by our letter there's the first calling that he's given them here as an apostle you know that they um when they spoke they were speaking uh the word of the lord and apostolic truth you know was was something that was committed to them to pass on to the churches in the tradition that was handed to the to the churches whether it was by spoken word or by epistle it's essentially saying just what we believe about the word of god that's exactly what he's saying here stand firm in the word that's been entrusted to you hold on to the word is what he's saying is the first application your great responsibility in the interim period between the first and the second coming is a big responsibility one that we don't take as seriously as we should the great responsibility is hold fast stand firm in the word of god what does that tell you well if the great apostasy is to reject the word to turn away from the word to set aside the word the great responsibility paul is is laying upon us in sanctification is that god's people throughout this present age would simply hold on to that word remember he said this in the first epistle to them to encourage this church you received the word of God which you heard from us you accepted it not as the word of men what has always been attacked all throughout history about the word of God it's just the word of men it's just a bunch of guys who got together and gave you good ideas that's always been the perennial attack and Paul is saying that the evidence of true faith is that you did not accept that lie. That what you believed about the word, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it really is the word of God, which is at work in you believers. That's why Paul loved this church because they were so taken by the word. But as for you, Paul would say to Timothy, think of this, to continue to think about holding on to the word, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you have learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Paul would reference his grandmother and mother, Lois and Eunice, to Timothy, how that word had been implanted there and that word had always been taught to him. And he's saying the same thing to Timothy. You have this word and you have to continue and hold on to that word. That's the great responsibility in the time in which you live. I always like to think about all the blessings that the Lord put in place to make this so. In our technologically advanced age and we're told we can't listen to sermons and we have all this distraction with screens and media. Think about all this. Think about all the blessing God still has upheld us with to have and make this so in your lives. Catechism classes for our kids. Sunday school. Two services on Sunday. Opportunities to gather around your home with a freedom to open the Word of God and to study the Word and reflect on the Word and meditate on the Word in your homes. The privilege that you have as fathers to break that bread with your children. The privilege to have the Word of God handed to you. Inspired by God that makes you wise for salvation. It's absolutely true. That little accent that's been used throughout many years I've heard. The word, this word will either keep you from sin or sin will keep you from this word. Look at what God's done for you. And Paul is saying here's something important in the interim. Hold on to it. Fill your mind with it. Keep yourselves in it. It's God's power to hold you and to preserve you and to keep you. It's the first thing you'll see in people who are drifting. The word of God has no place. It's been set aside. So see that first responsibility here after he encouraged them, stand firm in the word. Then he moves into something second, I think that's vitally important to this. Finally, brothers. Now look at chapter three, verse one. Pray for us that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored as happened among you and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men for not all have faith, but the Lord is faithful. He will establish and guard you against the evil one. The second thing that he says tonight is what? Pray for the word's advancement. Pray for the word's advancement. He's actually appealing as an apostle to these very common Christians in the first century, begging them and asking them something very important that they can be doing. I need you, notice that, to please pray that the word may speed ahead and be honored. It's curious how he describes it. as I was reflecting on this, the verb that he chose here means to run. I want you to pray, says Paul, that the word of God would run swiftly in the earth. You know, I think he's thinking of a particular psalm here. I think he's thinking of Psalm 147, verse 15. He sends his command to the earth. His word runs swiftly. His word runs swiftly. There's a striking statement in Acts chapter 6. And the word of God continued to increase. And the number of disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem. It grew. It's an interesting way that he described the word of God. That the word of God increased. The word of God was running swiftly and it was increasing as it ran through the hearts of the people. That was the imagery of that. Paul is asking here something very important, I think, that's crucial for our priorities in the time in which we live. Absolutely crucial for our priorities. He's asking that believers would be committed to pray that the word of God would have free movement among the peoples. Do we do that? There are a lot of bad things happening right now. I asked my daughter as I'm trying to prepare for this RYS retreat. I don't do real well talking to young people. I don't know. It's just hard. But I said to my daughter, I said, okay, you've got to help me a little bit as we're going to do this RYS talk and I need your help on how you guys understand things. So how do you look at our generation? How do you look at me? I need to know. And she says, Dad, do you want me to be honest? Well, yes, I want you to be honest. Well, all you guys seem to do is complain about everything. Complain about the state of things. Homosexuality. They're all up in arms over it. How bad everything is. How bad governments are. Everything's a big complaint, isn't it? and I said, well, what do you do about that? We just shrug our shoulders. We tune it out. Well, part of that may be, I explained to her, that, you know, the times that we live, here we go, right? Times that we live is in the end of Christendom, as we've been hearing from Dr. Godfrey. It's really hard for us to go through this and to understand this and to try to process all this where now we're shoved to the side and we have no more social acceptability and our religion has been cast to the side and all we see is rampant evilness and wickedness. Hard to know what to do about all that. Hey, Paul, what do you think we should do about all that? What do you think Paul would say? I know what Paul would say. Change your thinking. You're living in the most exciting time ever to live. Oh, come on. Is power positive thinking? What do you mean about that? What do you mean by saying that? You don't know what you can do about that? Really? What are you praying for? Well, government, COVID, that God would bring back sanity to our dumb leaders. I often wonder if we're missing the most important request of God. Imagine a church praying in these times that God would give his word to run swiftly again through the earth and that it would have free reign in the hearts of the people. Imagine praying Psalm 147, 15. He sends a command throughout the earth. His word starts running. That might be the most important thing that's needed right now. I wonder if God looked at the congregation right now. How many young people are stuck in sin? How many of us? How many maybe who still haven't believed? The great apostasy in our age, the great problem of our age, don't miss it, is that so many have turned away from the word collectively. That's it. You know, I showed up to church early tonight and I walk out and there were all these skateboarders out there. And you stop and you say, well, I got to go clear them out now. They're probably damaging the sidewalk. right? I walked up to him. And I said, what are you guys doing? We're skateboarding. I said, that's great. I said, I'm a pastor here at this church. I said, have you guys ever been to church? Nope. One said, you know, I've been a long time ago, but I go, what do you think church is about? We have no idea. Do you know what the gospel is? Nope. First inclination, kick them off the ground, right? Why don't you come to church tonight? Well, what's church about? So I had this opportunity tonight to tell them about the word of the Lord, and I invited them. Maybe they'll come. I don't know. We are in an entire world right now that doesn't have a knowledge of the word. They don't know it. They don't understand it. They've never heard it. And this is post-Christian America. How many are drifting? Reverend Camming has one of his last sermons in this church. He preached out of Hebrews on drifters. Therefore, we must pay close attention to what we've heard lest we drift. How many are drifting? How many in this community have not heard? How many are dead in trespasses and sins? God describes his word like a hammer. is not my word like a fire declares the lord like a hammer that breaks the rocks and pieces the word is living and powerful sharper than any two-edged sword it's like arrows flying when that when god sends his word and his spirit takes that word and breaks into the heart and that word runs swiftly into hearts it shatters the darkness it shatters the unbelief and it discerns the intents and thoughts of the heart and it saves. Some, the word bears down on them, calls them to receive life. God is saying through his servant here, would you pray, why don't you pray that the word would have free movement and that God's people would be committed to asking him for that again. Wow. What a priority. Do we? There are concerns that should drive us. But the greatest concern, according to the apostle, was the free movement of the word and its success and running swiftly through the earth. Stand firm in the word yourselves, number one. Pray earnestly for the free movement and reign of the word. but there's one more last responsibility tonight that's vastly important that we'll end with. I want you to notice here as he continues to go on. Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who's walking in idleness, not in accord with the tradition that you've received from us, or we hear that some of you, among you, walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busy bodies. One of the more important responsibilities, thirdly, tonight, that we rarely address, it's the great threat to the word being upheld and the word running swiftly. What is it? Idleness. Idleness. The word he chose here is interesting. Idleness probably doesn't quite convey it. I think you'll recognize it has the connotation of something that's out of line, that's chaotic. In fact, one author observes in the LXX, which refers to it here as a disorderly mob, huh, there are many who are caught up in all kinds of disorderly conduct. There are many who are given in the present time between the second coming who will walk in a disorderly way, in an idle way. I think what Paul's saying here is that what will characterize the time before Jesus comes is that people will be doing nothing profitable with their time. Nothing profitable with their time. Remember before the Lord decided to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah? We typically hold out one sin for which he did that. It's not what Ezekiel said. Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom. she and her daughters had pride excess of food and prosperous ease but they did not aid the poor and the needy they were haughty and did abomination before me so I removed them when I saw fit Paul says one of the great responsibilities in the present age is to stay away from this kind of behavior. Think of how much idleness has led to all kinds of waste of life and things that are just unprofitable with time. Drug use, sexual immorality. Idleness is the pathway to the great apostasy. We know at this time there were wealthy patrons. Listen to the context of this just for a moment. Who would care for the poor in society. And what comes across here is that many began to live not working at all. Dependent on others to pay the way. The patronage system was creating this society in Rome. For some reason, people stopped working. Paul says here, For even when we were with you, we would give you this command, If anyone is not willing to work, let them not eat. For we hear that some among you are walking in idleness, not busy at work, but busy bodies. I can forget what the fruit of Harold Camping's teaching was when everyone stopped working. But this seems to be a society-at-large problem. I don't know if there's ever been in our society a time where we have seen more chaotic behavior and idleness running together. What are we dealing with now? We're dealing with government handouts. And just ask the employers, they can't find workers. And all that we see fill society is disorder right now. Chaotic disorder of all the wrong causes. People doing nothing and wasting life in all the wrong causes. Think of how much social media has promoted this. What does idleness do? Idleness is the gateway to all kinds of sin. It opens the door. In fact, if people find themselves stuck in sin, most likely what they'll find is that idleness has opened the door to the vice. The craziness of it all is that we complain about being so busy. I suggest that's not true. That is not true. Idleness and busyness are two sides of the same coin. We are busy in the most unprofitable of things. Paul is concerned about this in the time before the Lord's return. He expresses here, even in himself, he had a right to receive payment for his labors, but the problem was so bad in Thessalonica that he set that aside for a time to give an example. So what he says to them then is this, fulfill your callings. Fulfill your callings. God has given you purpose in life. God has given you work to do. Don't fall into idleness in the wake. And stay away from those who are bringing you into that. That's the positive dimension of this. As for you, brothers, don't grow weary in doing good. Be about, as we looked at this morning, the Lord's work. His service, His kingdom, thinking of others. You know, there's no gift that you have been given that is just for you. Whatever he gave you, whatever ability, whatever gift, whatever strength, beautiful mind, strength in the body, whatever it is, it's for somebody else. So in the times we live, don't grow weary in doing good. Stay at it. It's difficult, sure. But that's the calling that the Lord has upon you, as he would say at the end of 1 Corinthians. Therefore, my beloved brother, stand, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. That's the Lord's calling for us. So I think I put it together tonight. Put the great truth tonight together, the whole story of what he just said. There's all kinds of bad ideas out there. There's all kinds of terrible things happening out there. Keep this truth in front of you. I chose you for salvation. Heaven is prepared for you. Glory is certain. You will obtain the glory. So be about what's most important. What is that? Stay in that word. Hold on to that word with all you have. Fill your minds with it. Fill your homes with it. Fill your minds with the truth of it. Grow in it. Love it. And pray earnestly for its free movement again in the earth. And in the interim, don't fall into all the temptations of this age with all the chatter on the news and with all the stuff that's pulling you into idleness that's not profitable. God gave you assignments in life. God gave you work to do in life. God gave you a blessing in life to be a blessing to others. That's how we can be ready for the second coming. Remember when Jesus said in Matthew chapter 24, there are a lot of people who say oh the master's delaying is coming and they went out and did whatever they wanted to do and he came on a day when they did not they did not expect this is how we're to be a ready people he is committed to your sanctification by the spirit he's committed to fulfill his word in you he's committed to save you so care about his word that's why this ministry is going on and be confident that you belong to him. That's the encouragement tonight. May the Lord, as he says here, direct your hearts, listen to this, to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ. That's how we can be ready for the second coming. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for your word tonight that runs swiftly and we confess that we have not prayed enough for that. We're thankful that it ultimately doesn't rest on us. That you will, your word will never return void. But you have told us you use means. And what a great opportunity to come to you tonight as a people and ask that you would fill our hearts with your word, that we would stand firm in the word, and that the word would run swiftly again into the earth, into the hearts of people and grow. That's what's needed most. And keep us from being distracted with all this stuff, all the disorderly conduct of this present age of people who are wasting their lives. And let us remember what is most important, that the patience of the Lord means salvation. Thank you for giving us to walk in the light of your word today. May it fill us as we go into our weeks. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.