[0:00] My text is in the book of Revelation and the sixth chapter and verse 17.
[0:10] Revelation 6 verse 17. For the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?
[0:27] For the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand? I'm sure that you are all familiar with that verse and have heard it read many times.
[0:47] And yet every time we read it and we hear it read, I'm sure that it affects your heart. It is bound to do so. For the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand in such a day as that?
[1:06] We are so full of our own days that it is so easy for us to forget that great day which is referred to in Scripture here, the day of our God.
[1:18] And it seems a strange thing that we never seem to learn the lesson of the brevity of our lives, and the uncertainty of our lives as well, and the uncertainty of the affairs of men.
[1:34] The Bible often compares our lives to so many things in Psalm 103 and in other places too, that we are like the grass in a field.
[1:46] The wind passes over it, and the place thereof shall know it no more. In Psalm 90, if you remember, there's that very telling phrase that we spend our life like a tale that is told, like reading a story to a little child or telling a story to a group of young children.
[2:08] And then all too quickly the story comes to an end, and our life is like that. It seems to be as if we were going to live forever, and there our days seem to be rapidly coming to a close.
[2:22] One man expressed it like this. He was looking out at the receding tide at a place called Marazayan in Cornwall, and he said these words, Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day.
[2:42] He compared our life as the tide coming in, then going out. As we come in, the brief time that we seem to play on the high tide mark, that is our life, and then it recedes, and our life is gone.
[2:58] Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day. Earth's joys grow dim. Its glories pass away. Change and decay in all around I see.
[3:12] O thou who changes not, abide with me. And he at that time was captivated with something of the greatness of the immutability of God, of the unchanging character of God, of he who never changes, who ever remains the same.
[3:30] This immense God, and the creator of vast creations, and everything in the palm of his hand, and this little planet that we call Earth, in his little solar system, in his particular little order of things, and yet everything to God is known and upheld by his mercy and by his grace.
[3:53] This great and this unchanging God. So vast, so great, so big, so immense, and we, so very small, so very, very weak, so frail in our bodies, and so brief is our time on the platform of our age.
[4:13] In this vision, we are presented here with God. With this great God that we would worship here this day, and honor this day.
[4:24] This God who is perfect in all his attributes. This eternal and this glorious being, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This God.
[4:35] And then we are told this brief little statement that he has a day, a very special day, for the great day, for the great day of his wrath has come.
[4:49] And at such a time as that, who shall be able to stand? That's the question, and it is a question in the scripture here. A question to myself, a question to everyone here in this congregation here tonight, that when we consider that when God brings everything to a head, and the culmination of all things, when that takes place, how shall we fare?
[5:15] Will we be able to stand? Will we live and look on God? Will we be lost, or will we be found? Will we be those to whom he will say, depart from me, cursed, I never knew you.
[5:27] Or will we be those to whom he will say, to enter into the everlasting kingdom of his Son? Bound to be one of the two. There is no middle area at all, and every one of us here tonight, will either be in one position or the other, either lost or found, saved by the grace of God, or lost eternally from the sight of God.
[5:51] We are told here, or this day, that we see each day comes by, and we think tomorrow will come, if not for us, for somebody else. Then next week will come, then next month, and the following year.
[6:02] And so the centuries roll on. And yet the Bible tells us, that there will be a time, when there will be an end of things. It will not be ordained, by the Kremlin or the White House.
[6:15] It will be ordained of God. The great day of our God, when he will say stop, to every business transaction, to every pleasure, in the midst of it, to every sin, in the indulging of it, whatever we may be doing, there will be that time, when there will be a halt to all that.
[6:33] And it will have arrived, the great day, of the wrath of our God. Let me read you this sentence. Thus under symbolism, John sees the entire godless world, seized with sudden fear.
[6:51] He sees them terror stricken, and fleeing from something, far more terrible, than crumbling mountains, and falling rocks. They even seek safety, in death itself, if only death could come to them.
[7:04] John shrinks, John hears shrieks of agony, uttered by thousands of voices, kings and slaves, princes and servants. They are all caught, in the same self-inflicted agony of despair.
[7:18] The dreadful wail is heard, mountains and rocks fall on us, and hide us, from the face of the one, sitting on the throne, and from the wrath of the land. For it has come, the day, the great one, the great day of his wrath, who has come, and who is able to stand.
[7:37] The day of grace, is closed forever. I can remember, in my previous, not the church, where I am now, the congregation now, but in the, Welsh congregation, in West Wales, and the revival people, when they prayed, they had many, many telling phrases, scriptural phrases too, but phrases also, that have become part, of the prayer life, of the village, and of the land.
[8:07] And they would say, have mercy upon us, O God, while still, it is a season of grace, and a day, of repentance. Very much aware, that there is, an allotted span, of our life, yes, there is an allotted span, for this, aged, weary, tired, running out of resources, world, that we are living in.
[8:30] And today, we are even more aware, by things that we hear, that the Bible knew, in any case, that it seems, that this world, isn't able to cope anymore, or able to manage anymore, and many people, begin, to wonder.
[8:46] But the question here, mainly is this, you see, will I stand, will you stand, in that day, in the day, of God's wrath, and his righteous wrath, at such a world, as this, how will it be, as the mountains crumble, as the heavens, seem to collapse, as stars, and galaxies, seem to be lost, and fall, in a terrible calamity, where shall I stand, in the face, of that great God?
[9:14] That is what, has been brought to us here, in symbolism too, and yet, there is a reality, maybe the symbolism itself, falls far, far short, of the reality, of what it will be like.
[9:26] The first point, I'd like to bring to you, is one that I'm sure, that would not be popular, today, throughout our land, God, but I'm sure, that it would be acceptable, to us here tonight too, and that is, a simple statement, the fear, of God.
[9:46] Do you fear God? I know we can say, that God loves us, and we love God. What is your attitude, to God? Do you, do you fear God?
[9:57] Do you remember, do you remember, do you remember, the expression, of our fathers, used to use, about Christian people, they used to describe them, as God, fearing people, they had assurance, of salvation, their sins, were forgiven, they were, they were indeed, bound for heaven, the inheritance, incorruptible, was theirs, and yet, they were described, as a people, that were, a God, fearing people, a great awe, and a respect, for this God, who is the creator, of all things, this God, that they might say, that we dread, than eternal years, or everlasting Lord.
[10:34] In this vision, we are presented, with stars falling, the sky rolling up, as a scroll, and land masses, sliding down, and it seems, that any material stability, seems to be, quite impossible, and you can imagine, men and women, clinging to this, clinging to, if you like, actual rocks, and mountains, or clinging to, some little virtue, that they think they have, clinging to relatives, clinging to friends, clinging to anything, that they can lay hold of, but nothing, nothing can, hold them, everything steps out, of their grasp.
[11:10] May I illustrate this, in a little way, that seemed to be, very real, to me, and to our family, at the time. I come from a part, of North Wales, called Gwynedd, and it is a mountainous area, it's an old volcanic area, and ever since, the child, I can remember, that every now and again, we would have, earth tremors, I don't know, if you have them in Scotland, or not, I know, don't know, but I know that we have them there, but every now and again, we do have one, that classes itself, as an earthquake, and about a year or so ago, I don't live there now, but my daughter, husband, family live there, and they were telling, it did come in our news, and I don't know, if it reached as far as this, these earthquakes, are given numbers, and it was in number six, whatever that means, I don't know, but it meant, it was equal to one, in another land, where 10,000 people, or so have been killed, but this particular earthquake, its centre, was just half a mile, or a mile, offshore, and a difference, of course, in the solidarity, of the houses, and my daughter was saying, it was a strange experience, it was about one o'clock, in the morning, and it seemed, as if the whole house, and the village, lurched, and there was a terrible silence, and then there was a sound of voices, people running out of their houses, and running into the streets, and then, there was a kind of a tremor, and a strange thundering sound, as if it were in the bowels, of the earth, and then another tremendous lurch, and then chimney pots fell, and walls cracked, and a few walls, in her house as well, and she said, it was the most terrifying, it only lasted,
[12:53] I don't know how long, 10, 15, 20 seconds, I cannot say, maybe 30 seconds, but for however long it lasted, it seemed as if everything around, was giving way, and you could not, have your feet, on any solidarity, you could stand, on a rock, and that rock gave, you could stand on the street, and that lurch as well, there seemed to be nothing, that was safe, and that was not a great earthquake, it didn't make the headlines, can you imagine, in such a time as this, when God's day will come, when we think of wars, and rumors of wars, and holocausts, and diseases beyond the telling, and things that frighten, and alarm us this day, yes they are alarming things, and we do live in frightening days, that also is true, but more than that, I fear God, more than that, oh I know that can be, the most dreadful wars, I realize that, and I realize, there can be terrible catastrophes, and dreadful diseases,
[13:55] I know that can be so, but more than all that to me, is that everything, is a hand of our God, our great, and our only God, Jehovah, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, and when his day comes, there will not be a paper, capable to have headlines, there will not be an airline, able to maintain its news, there will not be a television line, able to bring a picture, for they will not have the ability, to do so, for everyone shall see, and know, the greatness of our God, and the wrath of our God, he has but to move his finger, that's all he has to do, the immense and a great God, that we worship, only has to move, a shade towards us, and we will tremble, and melt in fear, and find no hiding place, do you believe, that he who created, can bring it to an end, do you believe, in this chapter, it says in verse 15, and the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, hid themselves, in the dens, and in the rocks, of the mountains, and said to the mountains, and rocks, fall on us, and hide us, in the face of him, that sitteth on the throne, can you imagine, in reality now, whether we are, bringing symbolism here, with reality too as well, they both are there, that here is the day, of our God, here is the culmination, of all things, here is our blessed saviour, in the splendour, of his second coming, here is a night, of God appearing, and here, is all time, as is standing still, and we stand, before God, and we, there his gaze is upon us, and if we are not the Lord's, what a terrible thing, and if you now, are playing with God, and not realizing, such verses, in the Bible, that says, today is the day of salvation, why does he say that, because you do not know, if you have a model or not, but in that day, where shall I go, where shall I hide, what shall I do, how shall I cover myself, is there a mountain, is there a virtue, is there anything of mine, there is nothing, we cannot hide, cannot hide from him, but an atheist might say, that has got nothing, to do with me, it makes no difference, whether he believes, in God or no, he has to stand, before his maker, neither is there, any creature, that is not manifest, in his sight, but all things, are naked, and open, into the eyes of him, with whom, we have to do, that's the situation, naked and exposed, before him, with whom we have to do, there is God, perfect, absolute, immense, glorious, this God, here am I, with an immortal soul, the date of my death, as soon now, is have no particular relevance, but here, is my immortal soul, and there, is your immortal soul, hiding in this tabernacle, of flesh that I have, and you in yours, peering through our little eyes, listening through our little ears, and there, is our innermost being, unshable to God, how can we ignore our maker, our souls, are incapable, capable, of death, think, my friends, your body can die, but your soul, cannot die, let's come back, to the verse, for the great day, of his wrath is come, and who shall be able, to stand, the important thing, about this day, and all the great, and massive events, that will be taking place, described here, and I'm sure, much more, than the description itself, and if there's a symbolism, then greater than the symbolism, and more dramatic, and more powerful, and the voice of God, and the trumpet of God, and all these things, that shall take place, but the point is this, the second point,
[18:06] I have for you, the face of God, the God, with whom, we have to do, do you take him seriously, the God, with whom, we have to do, why is this issue, so terrible, well it is because, of the very character, of God, he is not an easy going, as if he were, a pleasant, and an easy going grandfather, who just, winks at the sins, of generations, and doesn't bother, the iniquity, or other people, he's not like that at all, there is no age, that belongs to him, he cannot be described, in that way, we dare to call him father, and we can call him father, so that our understanding, can be helped in that, but look at this great God, this unchanging God, he is not young, he is not old, he is not middle age, he is, do you remember, how our blessed savior, talked about himself, before Abraham, was,
[19:12] I am, there is your glimpse, of eternity, before Abraham was, I am, God the father, son, and holy spirit, dwelling in eternity, and in glorious splendor, and righteous, and pure, and clean, and constant, a holy God, the eyes of God, the eyes of God, as children, when we had done, something wrong, I could not bear, to catch my father's eye, and he would always, know I done something wrong, because I would avoid, looking at him, I couldn't, I felt he knew, he didn't know, but I felt he knew, but that is only on earth, this fear, but the eyes of God, what they, what must they be like, we are told here, in Habakkuk, thou, art of purer eyes, than to behold, evil, eyes, righteous, why has he eyes, like that, because of all, his attributes, of all, those that are communicable, those that are incommunicable, of all, his attributes, he chooses one, to wear as a crown, and that is his holiness, or his righteousness, it shines, and it sparkles, from Genesis, to Revelation, that he is pure, and that he is righteous, and that he is clean, and that he is always so,
[20:45] I have to face that God, with my little span of life, with your little span of life, I have to face, that God, he knows, he knows my thinking, he knows my mind, this moment, he knows yours, we know in Psalm 139, wherever I may try and hide, wherever I may try and go, behold, he is there, there is, an escaping of God, he knows my mind, you remember, when our Lord, our blessed Savior, in the gospel, was talking to people, that's something, that seems to have, a tremendous effect, upon people, especially, I was thinking now, of the woman of Samaria, that when she went, to the men, or men of the village, and told them, how she had met, what she believed, to be the son of God, the Messiah, this is what she said, I met a man, that told me, everything that I was, he knew everything, about me, and that, sent a shudder, through her being, he only has, to look upon us, and he hardly, needs to do that, and he knows, and he knows, my mind, and my motives, and my thinking, and my heart, and my emotions, and my aspirations, and my low motives, and my lust, and my devious nature, he knows everything, nothing is hid from him, from my mind, and my heart, and my will, he knows me all together, but this is the thing, at the end of the day, there can be nothing, more terrible, than to be rejected, rejected, on any level, in society, is a dreadful thing, it grieves us dreadfully, when we're rejected, but to be rejected, oh God, for eternity, forever, ever, ever, ever, no pardon, no reprieve, what must hell be like, must there not be, so much of this, in hell, besides the torment, that are there, and degrees of suffering, that are there as well, if only I had, if only I'd listened, if only I'd taken note, if only, if only, it must be a place, where the word, if, must be said, a million, million times, if only, but why is it, so terrible, to face God, he has, a law, the law,
[23:23] Jesus Christ, brought the ten commandments, together, in a lovely sentence, and I read to you, from Mark, the first, of all the commandments, is, hear, O Israel, the Lord, our God, is one Lord, and thou shalt love, the Lord thy God, with all thy hearts, what do you love, with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy mind, with all thy strength, this is the first commandment, and the second, is like namely this, thou shalt love, thy neighbor, how Lord, thou shalt love, thy neighbor, as thyself, and oh, how we love ourselves, thou shalt love, thy neighbor, as thyself, there is none other, greater commandments, than these, to love God, to love my neighbor, but oh Lord, I fail, we fall short, of the glory of God, because of that, we are rejected, but then we hunt, in our lives, and say, surely there is something, and how you hunt, you may have said it yourself, or you may be saying it tonight, even in your own heart,
[24:42] I'm not so bad, I come to church, on a Sabbath evening, I sometimes come in the morning, I occasionally, will even think, or consider, of a weakness, I may do that, if I feel, that I, I'd like to do that week, and I feel rather good, about things, but I'm as good, as anybody, who goes to every meeting, I have as high a standard, as anybody, and there we are, we say, I do this, I do that, I'm honest, I wouldn't do anybody, any harm, what are we doing, we're depending upon, what God describes, as filthy rags, he says, our righteousnesses, are as filthy rags, you know what that is, don't you, think of a filthy cloth, that has been in the dirt, and every kind of mire, that you can think of, and an animal, a dog or something, drags it into the house, the house is clean, and you get the, some pole, or handle of a brush, or something, and you hold it, as far as you can, because it stinks, it stenches, and it is full of disease, and horrible things, and so you hold it, yards away from you, and you get the door open, and you take it away, from the house, and you throw it away, and that is how God describes me, that's how God describes you, but God, we are my righteousnesses, this is the best,
[25:55] I have to offer, I've done my best, and he says to me, do you know what it's like to me, it's thinking in my nostrils, it is like filthy rugs, oh Lord, even my best, my best, and what about my worst, what about my mind, what about the indiscretions of my life, oh God, be merciful to me, a sinner, to face God, how can I, at that time, we are told in scripture, you were without Christ, listen to this, when we're in our situation, when we dare not face him, at that time, you are without Christ, without Christ, being aliens, from the commonwealth of Israel, we are foreigners, to the family of God, we're not family, and strangers, from the covenant of promise, there isn't a positive promise, in the scripture, that applies to us, having no hope, and without God, in this world, having no hope, and without God, in this world, there it is, without Christ, then this end, without God, and in the sense, of what do I find, aliens, strangers, and without hope, why, without Christ,
[27:30] I am without God, and without God, I am without hope, and I cannot face him, how can I play about, with such a God, as that, without Christ, without God, I used to be, a school master, I used to teach arts, and, some lessons, you, so how were they called, art appreciation, at that time, and you bring the great artist, and you'd have a print, a large print, and you'd show it to the children, and if there was, some story attached, to the painting, or the history of the artist, you would give them that, it's a great painting, the day of judgment, and they didn't take, a great deal of notice of it, but I was fascinated, I was not a Christian then, and I tell you, what's fascinated me, there was God, there was our saviour, the triune splendour, and there were a group of angels, with a huge, massive book, it represented, the book of death, and here, and here, was another group of angels, with a smaller book, and this was the, the book of life, and the ones, that I read to you, at the beginning, of the names, if you remember, and there shall in no wise, enter into it, anything that defileth, neither whatsoever, work it abomination, or make it a lie, but they which are written, in the Lamb's book of life, and so they who'd be in heaven, their names would be there, if you're saved here tonight, your name is there, if you're not saved, it is as if your name, is going to be in the other one, but if you're saved, your name, is in the Lamb's book of life, but there was one part, of the painting, although it's only a print,
[29:15] I saw, it was a man, upon whom, judgment had been pronounced, and the picture, needed no words, to say, that to him, had been issued the words, depart from me, he cursed, I never knew you, and this face, was kept, in his hands, just so, and his eyes, staring, what an artist, this person, must have been, to be able to convey, even as far as a print, because in those eyes, never before, had I seen despair, as a, desolation, for there would be, no hope of pardon, because God, is absolute wisdom, because God, has absolute knowledge, as God, is perfect, in his judgment, and so when his judgment, is in that way, it will be, utter desolation, and no hope, whatsoever, and I can remember, even then, before, long before,
[30:18] I became a Christian, the fear of God, trembling in my heart, at the thought, of the day of judgment, and where would I be, would I have eyes like that, would I have such despair, as there would be, in those eyes, would I be saying, if only I had found God, in some way, but at that time, I knew not how to find him, although I was immersed, in religion, but if you know, there shall in no wise, enter into it, anything that defileth, not any hope of that, neither whatsoever, worketh abominations, or makeeth a lie, but they which are written, in the Lamb's book, of life, then lastly, the favor of God, how does a man, how does a woman, find the favor, of God, are there any of you, here tonight, who as yet, are not in his favor, as yet, you are, potential candidates, for that book, of darkness, and death, or is your desire, that it might be, that your name, might be written, in the book of life, and that you might, give cause in heaven, tonight, for we are told, aren't we, that when one sinner, repented, do you know what happens, that the angels, cannot contain themselves, and heaven rejoices, give cause for heaven, to rejoice, that is the object, of the preaching, the gospel, to seek, and to save, that which was lost, how can I find favor, with God, a miserable creature, like myself, and my mind, and my heart, and my motives, and he who knows me, altogether, is there a possible way,
[32:05] God awakens you, we are running out of time, you are, I am, this world, is running out of time, and the day of his wrath, is rapidly coming, nearer and nearer, the question comes, how can I find favor, with God, let me take you, to another picture, here in the book, of Revelation, there again, in visionary form, but very telling, in chapter 7, and verses 13, and 14, what are these, which are arrayed, in white robes, and whence came they, and I said unto him, sir thou knowest, these are they, which came out, of great tribulation, and have washed, and washed their robes, in the blood, of the lamb, so we are given, as it were, a glimpse, who are those people there, who are they, or they were on earth, how have they got there, look at their robes, their whites, how can they be so pure, if they are human beings, like ourselves, and lived a life, of human beings, like ourselves, how is it, that they are there, who are they, how came they there, these are they, who have washed their robes, in the blood, of the lamb, then Lord, there must be a way, there is a way, there is a way, let me read to you, a very precious verse, a beautiful, beautiful verse, it's in the second epistle, to the Corinthians, chapter 5, verse 21, you know it well, for he, that's God, for he, hath made him, that's Jesus Christ, for he hath made him, to be sin, for us, who knew no sin, that we, might be made, the righteousness of God, in him, may I say that, just for a moment, and so that your soul, if your soul is seeking God, tonight, if you are on the brink of faith, then I would plead you, to by the strength, that is in the Holy Spirit, that you might, let your soul reach out, to the things of God, listen to this verse, it is the word of God, and may not be in word only, but in power, much assurance, and the Holy Ghost, he,
[34:33] God, hath made him, who knew no sin, who knew no sin, who knew no sin, we do, in our minds, and in our hearts, in our lives, we do, we are experienced, in these things, who knew, no sin, for he hath made him, to be, sin, for us, who knew no sin, what's he doing, he's making it so, that this sinless one, is counted, as a sinful one, he is not sinful, he never became a sinner, but our sin, and our iniquity, and our uncleanness, and our filth, and our cruelty, and our malice, all of it, and the dreadful abominations, that there are there, in scripture, some too dreadful, to relate, but there too, and potentially, and actually, in our lives, imputed to him, imputed to him, for he hath made him, to be sin, for us, who knew no sin, why God, why, that we, here we are, that we, might be made, the righteousness of God, in him, that we, sinful little creatures, might have a miracle of grace, take place, in our lives, what is all this, that is happening there, it is a description, of Calvary there, for there, the sin that is imputed, to him, the penalty, is paid, in full, in full, may I illustrate that, for it to be very, very clear,
[36:29] I can remember, six, nuns coming, to our congregation, to hear the gospel, one Sabbath night, and, my wife and I, were invited, to the place, that they lived, convent, that they lived, and, and we were invited, to coffee, we were there, about two and a half hours, I don't think, we got down to the coffee, because of the conversation, Mother Superior, was there, and it seemed, to us, you see, we talked together, and we agreed, so much, we agreed, in the being, of God, we agreed, that Jesus Christ, is the only begotten, son of God, believed, in all these, great doctrines, that you and I, believed, and I was wondering, well what is this, what is this, how can I, reach this field, and yet I know, what is it, because they are agreeing, too much with me, and then I, I made a little phrase, like this, after having made that phrase, both my wife, and myself, were outside the convent, in less than five minutes, and I meant it, most innocently, and I said, these words, isn't it wonderful,
[37:43] Mother Superior, I said to her, isn't it wonderful, to think, because of the penalty, paid for sin, on Calvary, and the righteousness, that we are dressed in, by faith in Jesus Christ, that we will go to heaven, and there was a silence, and this is what she said, excuse me, are you suggesting, that when we die, we are good enough, for glory, do you see, what she was doing, that we must be purred, we must be purified, after this life, but I said to her, all I can say to you, is this, we are complete, in him, the vilest offender, whoever we are, the sacrifice, on Calvary, covers all of it, not partially, but all of it, my sin, or the bliss, of his glorious thought, my sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to his cross, and I bear it no more,
[38:57] I got no further, I don't know, I made any impression, I don't know, but I know, I believe, what she failed to believe, that we are complete, in him, how can I, be a recipient, of that forgiveness, will it be, by efforts, and purifying, how can I, be a recipient, of a robe, of righteousness, the life of Christ, counted for me, through faith, faith, and repentance, faith, is a beautiful thing, without faith, we cannot see God, faith, if we have not faith, in one another, or partial faith, there is no relationship, even that makes sense to us, but this faith, listen to this faith, by grace,
[40:01] I saved, through faith, that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, it comes from the heart of God, it invades my crying, and my needy soul, and my awakened spirit, it invades my soul, it takes me to Christ, and ultimately, it takes me home to glory, that's the quality, of that faith, faith to believe, and to repent, and when that happens, we turn away, we repent, we turn away, from the ways we knew, and we turn our direction, Godward, we are children of God, there's been some writing, going on in heaven, heaven has been rejoicing, for every sinner, for every sinner, that has repented, it is the most wonderful thing, that can ever be, to come from darkness, and from the destiny, of eternal damnation, even though, the pleasures of sin, for a season, are pleasurable enough, and enough religion, to keep me happy, is comforting enough, partially anyway, but how can it help me, when it is a matter, of the day, the great day, of the wrath, of our God, nothing but a complete salvation, faith, in my Lord and Savior,
[41:21] Jesus Christ, will count in that day, and that we shall be able, to stand, have you got faith, like that, let me illustrate, to close, every minister, has many lovely illustrations, I never like to expose, anything with a soul, but I think, when it is made, far enough away, without any names, that that, is not in any way wrong, this person would give me, permission anyway, she's now in glory, there's a lady, in my congregation, I wouldn't say, that she would be, well known, in the congregation, she was in the prayer meeting, she was in all those things, that are right, she was a Christian, and she became ill, and really, there was no one, well I suppose there was, but there seemed, to be no one to care, sometimes to call, and how she managed, to make herself a cup of tea,
[42:21] I don't know, between all the aids, and assistances, and one thing or another, I don't know, but eventually, she was in hospital, and you know, it was a lovely time, to visit her, there was a psalm, she loved, Psalm 46, and if I go and see her, I can remember, the occasion like this, I went to see her, and I said, well what has the Lord, been telling you today, my dear, and she said, you know, you know the verse, be still and know, that I am God, you know what he's been, teaching me today, she said, he's been teaching me, I'm proud, she said, a proud little lady, he's been teaching me, to be still, in my circumstances, not to fret about the house, not to worry about, how it's getting, what's happening, but to, to be still, not to fear, for the future, but to be still, and then the next day, I go and see her, and I say, well what have you been, telling you today, and she said, say, well today, it's been rather different, she said, it's be still and know,
[43:24] I said, know what, oh just to know, that this is the right way, just to know, that I belong to God, just to know these things, then the next day, be still and know, that I am God, and she was triumphant, to that one, the thought, you know, she was saying, just to think, here I am, in this little wall, for elderly people, and here I am, so poorly, and I don't think, that I'm going to get better, she said, but you know, I'm still inside me, a lovely stillness, a lovely peace, be still, and I know, that he is God, well that's the kind, of fellowship I had, then one day, I was there, and she, she was in a coma, and, she came round, and she was so excited, there were some nurses, and a doctor, so near her, and she was so excited, because you see, they were all in white there, and the lights were bright, and she really believed, that she had arrived in heaven, and there was a radiance, in her face, and her eyes were shining, and she was delighted, and then suddenly, the smile faded, but she was a very manly lady, and she said, oh pastor, she said,
[44:45] I'm terribly sorry, I didn't mean to show, that I'm not glad to see you, I really didn't, she said, but you know, I thought I'd gone home, she really believed, didn't she, she really believed, God was merciful to her, because within the hour, he came to her, and gentle death at last, for heaven awaked her, and to me, it is always an inspiration, to think of that person, and I think of faith, faith is believing, it is a quality of faith, it is a divine, Peter calls it, we have obtained, life precious faith, it takes me to Christ, it brings me to the benefits, and the efficacy, of the blood of Jesus Christ, my sins are forgiven, because of the merits of Christ, it puts me right with God, heaven rejoices, but heaven is my home, and our name's written there, and in that great day, of the wrath of our God, yes, there will be stars tumbling, and galaxies falling, yes, there will be the rumbling, and the crumbling, and mountains, yes, all that will be true, and greater beyond, any descriptive words, that any language can borrow, but in the midst of all that, what shall the believer hear, a welcome voice, and a place prepared, an inheritance, incorruptible, undefiled, that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, belonging to a kingdom, that cannot be moved, belonging to a kingdom, that no earth can touch, belonging to a king, from whom no power, in hell or in earth, is able to separate us, because there was that moment, of faith,
[46:41] O God, O God, be merciful to me, a sinner, are you prepared, for that day, for the great day, of his wrath has come, and who shall be able, to stand, will you, and you, and you, and you, be able to stand, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God, and God shall wipe away, all tears from their eyes, and there shall be, no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be, any more pain, for the former things, are passed away, we stand, in him, let us pray,
[47:51] Almighty God, and our heavenly Father, we ask thee, to look upon us, in mercy, we come, to that throne of grace, a place, where we obtain mercy, and find grace, to help in time of need, we ask thee, O Lord, to look upon, our immortal souls, and grant, O Lord, that thy touch of grace, may be upon many, open the eyes, enlighten the eyes, of understanding, that men and women, might see, and in seeing, believing, and in believing, coming into that relationship, which is forever, O may the irresistible grace, of our God, reach out to many, for thy name's sake, Amen.