Rev 11:5-7                Life and Death of the Two Witnesses               11/13/2005    ßà   

  • The Witnessing Church (Rev 11:1-8, Ex 7:1)

 

 

 

 

 

#1.       The Fire of the Two Witnesses (Rev 11:5, Mat 10:28)

 

 

 

 

 

  • Killing Their Adversaries (Jer 5:14-17, 2King 1, Rev 22:18, 14:11, 1Cor 14:21)

 

 

 

 

 

#2.       The Power of the Two Witnesses (Rev 11:6, Gen 3:17)

 

 

 

 

 

  • Prayers of the Saints (Rev 8:3-5)

 

 

 

 

 

#3.       The Death of the Two Witnesses (Rev 11:7, Dan 7:25, 8:24, 1John 4:3, 2Thes 2)

 

 

 

Please open your Bibles to the Revelation of Jesus Christ, Rev 11:1 (2X). If you include the two sermons of Dan 9:24-27, we have spent already 4 sermons on Rev 11, and we are not even half way. What makes this chapter so difficult is that it is a mix of symbols and real literal stuff. And yet it is very important that we understand this chapter very well. Two weeks ago, when we considered the first two verses in this chapter, we came to the conclusion that Jerusalem and the temple and worshippers must not be taken literally, but must be understood in the symbolic sense of the word. In the NT Jerusalem is not the “holy city”. In this chapter Jerusalem is the symbol for all of Christendom worldwide. The city outside the temple and outside the court of the temple is used as typifying the false church, which is representing the masses of Christianity who are led astray by their church leaders, but who consider it a shame if they were not baptized in water. But they have rejected the Biblical meaning of Christ Crucified by rejecting the essential doctrines of the blood of atonement. The court outside the temple symbolizes the show-church, which is the group of people outwardly belonging to the true worshippers of God, but who never became saved. They go to church together with the saints, but they never were saved. And finally, the temple building proper is symbolic of the real, spiritual body of Christ, the holy city, the elect of God, who certainly shall be saved or who have already been saved. Last week we have come to the conclusion that the two witnesses represented the NT church. More specifically, the two candlesticks represent that part of the NT congregation that is truly saved, and the two olive trees represent the Pastors and Elders and Teachers who are feeding the NT congregation with spiritual food, so that the congregation can let their light shine with more knowledge and understanding. Near the end of time the show-church and the false church shall join hands, and together they shall trample under foot the holy city and all those who worship therein. This interpretation is supported by the remainder of this chapter. The two witnesses cannot represent two persons, two individuals, for the simple reason that the bodies of the two witnesses are observed by all the people and kindreds and tongues and nations of the world. It is not possible that two individuals will affect the whole world that intensely in their life and in their death. In their life they were the objects of universal hatred and contempt, and their death appears also as an object of universal joy. It is not conceivable that two religious people in a single city would cause so much commotion throughout the whole world. Only when we conceive the two witnesses to represent the church in the world, according to Scripture, shall we be able to understand their influence throughout the entire world, and shall we understand the full impact of all that is declared here in this chapter. And thus we see the two witnesses as representing the body of believers, the body of truly saved individuals, the Bride of Christ, spreading the Gospel throughout the world until the end comes. Today we will take an intense look at Rev 11:5-7, where we shall see the life and death of the two witnesses. And thus the title of this sermon is The Life and Death of the Two Witnesses (2X). And thus the present sermon concerns the Life and Death of:

  • The Witnessing Church (Rev 11:1-8, Ex 7:1)

Let us pick up the context, beginning at verse 1 of this chapter,

Re 11:1 ¶  And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.

Re 11:2  But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

Re 11:3 ¶  And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

Re 11:4  These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

Re 11:5  And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

Re 11:6  These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

Re 11:7  And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

Re 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

As their name already indicates, the two witnesses must bear testimony of the truth and of the name of Jesus Christ. The church with its ministry is placed as a testimony in the world, to declare to the world that all are in need of salvation from their slippery slide into Hell, and that there is salvation only by grace through faith in the saving work of Christ crucified. That is the sole calling of the church.  Some people believe that they can witness just by their actions, or by their lifestyle. Well, first of all our actions are not so perfect all the time. And the unsaved world watches every move we make. And they are quick to catch us in our not so good works every time. Secondly if Mary thinks that she can witness to her neighbor just by her actions, then on the Last Day when the angels pick up that neighbor and cast him into Hell, he wonders “Why was Mary such a good person?” No, it is certain that witnesses must speak. A silent witness is impossible. Moreover, the witnesses are called to prophesy. And thus they are called prophets. What must they prophesy? Must they prophesy the future? Certainly the church must bear testimony in the world of the future Judgment that is coming on all the unsaved, and of the future glory that is coming on all those who have become saved, and that they will be elevated to the status of children of God. But that is not the only thing prophets must do. A prophet must also speak the words God has given him or her. Just like Aaron was the prophet of Moses in Ex 7:1, so the church is called to be the prophet of Christ, and the prophet of Christ speaks for Christ, on His authority and in His name. And this is also indicated by the symbolism of the candlesticks and of the olive trees. The purpose of a candlestick is that it may give light; and the two olive trees supply the oil that is necessary to keep the candlestick burning. They both must be witnesses in the world and mouthpieces of Christ. But at the same time they must witness in the church, before the people of God, so that the people of God may receive more light to shine for the Lord of the whole earth. This is the task of the two witnesses, who are also called “the witnessing church”. We are members of “the witnessing church”. And what will be the content of our message? We find our commission in the Bible, the Word of our God. We stand before the Lord of the whole earth. We are servants of the Lord of the whole earth. And thus we will speak of nothing else than that which our Lord has commissioned us to speak. We speak of Christ and His atoning blood. We speak of Christ crucified as the only way to redemption from the state of sin and the only way to receive the righteousness that God requires for entrance into His holy heaven. That blood is the witness to the glory of God in the midst of a world of sin. And thus, there is no hope in man, but only in the blood of the Redeemer. Therefore we openly condemn all efforts to seek salvation outside of that atoning blood, and we openly condemn the preaching that man can save himself by making a decision to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. We bear the name of Christ in two ways. In the first place, we bear that name to fields where it never was mentioned before, over all the world. In our missionary efforts we carry the sound of that name before all people and nations and kindreds and tongues. But secondly, we also bear that name into our immediate surroundings. We bear that name in the midst of Jerusalem, in the midst of the false church as well as in the midst of the show-church. When the false church attacks the truth and tramples under foot the blood of Christ, we the church and the servants of God in the church shall stand upon the basis of God’s infallible Word, and defend it over against the enemy. Thirdly, when the world indulges in sin and selfishness more and more, we speak of Judgment and wrath to come, and we warn them that they may enter into a state of no return. They may arrive at a state where God gives them up to a world of uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, or where God gives them over to a reprobate mind. And thus we display the glory of God’s name in Jesus Christ our Lord in the midst of a world that does not want to hear of this glorious God in the first place. What will be the response of Satan and this world with a reprobate mind? We read here in Rev 11 that they will try to hurt us. But what will be God’s provision for us in our defense? We read here about:

#1.       The Fire of the Two Witnesses (Rev 11:5, Mat 10:28)

Re 11:5  And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

Wow! Could this mean that we will be literally fire-breathing witnesses? Would we be so powerful that we can kill our enemies at will? And you can see that this is altogether anathema to the concept of followers of Christ. The followers of Jesus Christ are not going around zapping people with fire so that they will immediately be condemned to Hell. Instead we want them to live, so that they eventually may come to repentance, if God wills. And secondly, if we would indeed be able to zap all our enemies, then no one would be able to touch us and kill us, like we read in verse 7. And so we realize that these two witnesses do not literally kill those who come against them. This fire must have a spiritual meaning But then the killing must also have a spiritual meaning, and this spiritual meaning of killing must be carried through consistently in verse 7, where the two witnesses are killed. Let us then consider that the two witnesses kill with the fire that proceedeth out of their mouth. God emphasized it here by saying it twice in verse 5. It is as if the Lord were afraid that it should be misunderstood, so does He emphasize it. Not by the sword, nor by the strength of their arm, but by the fire that comes out of their mouths are their enemies, who try to hurt them, killed. What does it mean to hurt these two witnesses? How can the church possibly be hurt? Do you hurt the church by persecution and tribulation? If that were the case, then this verse must be understood in the literal sense of the word. And if this verse is to be understood literally, then these witnesses literally kill their enemies, and take their lives away. But that would be altogether contrary to Christ’s command to His disciples. Besides, you do not hurt the church by persecution. You do not hurt the people of God by doing them physical harm. You cannot even hurt them by taking their lives away. As a matter of fact, these witnesses are willing to lose their lives for Christ’s sake. They have learned of the Lord Jesus in Mat 10:28, “Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul”. Therefore these two witnesses can never be hurt in the physical sense. But you CAN hurt these two witnesses if you touch them in their spiritual existence. If you make them waver in their testimony, or if you lead them to deny Christ, or if you make them renounce the truth, or if you make them to be silent in regard to the Word of truth, then indeed you have hurt them. And so, what does it mean that the two witnesses are:

  • Killing Their Adversaries? (Jer 5:14-17, 2King 1, Rev 22:18, 14:11, 1Cor 14:21)

If anyone tries to silence the Word of truth, fire proceedeth out of the mouth of the two witnesses, and in this manner the opponents are killed. No, not killed in the literal sense, but their arguments are silenced. That is what the killing really means: They are silenced by the words that come out of their mouths. Please turn to the prophecy of Jeremiah, Jer 5:14 (2X). You find Jeremiah right after Isaiah. We must not think of the fire that Elijah called for in 2King 1, when Elijah called for fire upon the captain and his fifties, for that fire came down from heaven; it did not come out of his mouth. Where in the Word of God do we read that fire came out of the mouth of a prophet? We find it in Jer 5:14. In this chapter of Jeremiah God is very angry at the people of Jerusalem for speaking so many lies in His name. Because the prophets cry “peace, peace”, when there is no peace, and the prophets speak words that are not from God, therefore God comes with this judgment upon them. He says in Jer 5:14,

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

The context of Jer 5:14 is that of the lies proclaimed in the name of the Lord. We should be careful to note that “you” and “ye” always refers to a plural number of people, whereas “thou” and “thee” refers to a singular person. And thus God says in verse 14, “Because ye, the people of Jerusalem, speak this word, or claim to speak these messages in my name, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, words in thy mouth Jeremiah becomes like fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.” This people shall be the wood that the fire out of your mouth shall burn. The words out of Jeremiah’s mouth shall proclaim the wrath of God upon them, and God’s wrath shall devour them. Can we see a similar situation today? Do we recognize churches today where the pastors bring messages that are not from the Word of God? They claim that God spoke to them last night in a dream, or in a vision, or in an angel visitation, or in a tongue, and this and that is what God told them. But they are violating the Word of God in Rev 22:18, where God states that He will no longer bring any divine revelation from God. God finished speaking on the last page of the Bible, and God promises that if anyone claims to have received additional revelation from God, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this Book. What are those plagues? Rev 14:11 states it very well, “The smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever”. Churches where people speak in tongues believe that God is not finished speaking, but that God is still bringing divine revelations today, especially in dreams and visions and angel visitations and in a message spoken in a strange tongue. But in this message of Jer 5:14, as well as in 1Cor 14:21, God promises that the nation of tongue speakers will be like an army whose tongue they do not understand, and they will overrun the church and destroy the church. We read in Jer 5:15-17,

Jer 5:15-16  Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith the LORD: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say.      Their quiver is as an open sepulchre, they are all mighty men.

Jer 5:17  And they shall eat up thine harvest, and thy bread, which thy sons and thy daughters should eat: they shall eat up thy flocks and thine herds: they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig trees: they shall impoverish thy fenced cities, wherein thou trustedst, with the sword.

Historically God refers to the nation of Babylon that will come upon Judah and Jerusalem. It was a nation whose language they do not understand, and they will totally destroy the nation of Judah. Why? Because they were worshipping gods of their own making and not the God of the Bible. They falsely claimed to have received messages from God. They wished to do harm to Jeremiah by opposing him with other messages supposedly from God, trying to make the words of Jeremiah of none effect. But God’s message to Jeremiah was that his words shall be like fire and the people as wood. Their opposition shall not stand. It shall not hurt the prophet, but it shall hurt his opponents a great deal more by condemning them to Hell. The same situation applies in Rev 11:5. Please turn again to Rev 11:5 (2X). The two witnesses shall meet with opposition. The enemy from the false church shall try to hurt them, because the false church believes that God is still speaking today. They shall try to make the two witnesses renounce the truth. They shall accuse the two witnesses of worshipping a God who is cruel, predestinating people to Hell, and that He is not a God of love, and that He is not a God who rewards people with salvation even though they have diligently been seeking Him. They shall claim that the two witnesses have sinned against the Holy Spirit by condemning the Charismatic Movement. And they shall claim a great deal more against the two witnesses. But all the time these opponents meet with the fire that proceedeth out of the mouth of the two witnesses. It is not their own words, but the Word of God is in their mouths. And before that Word the enemy shall not be able to stand, but be completely defeated. It is in this manner that the two witnesses shall fight their spiritual battles, in harmony with their character as witnesses, and in harmony with the Word of God as their weapon. And in this they are invulnerable. This is how their adversaries are killed: they are being silenced. Let us now look at:

#2.       The Power of the Two Witnesses (Rev 11:6, Gen 3:17)

Re 11:6  These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

We have here a plain reference to Elijah and Moses, and what they did. But we have already concluded that Elijah and Moses would not be reincarnated. What did these two prophets do that was so remarkable? When the glory of God was at stake, the prophet turned water into blood in order that the people of God might be delivered out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Again, when the glory of Jehovah was trampled under foot by the northern kingdom of Israel, the prophet kneeled down in the countryside of Gilead and prayed that it might not rain; and it rained not for 3½ years. For the sake of the true people of God, and for the sake of the glory of Jehovah were these plagues brought upon the land. And the plain meaning is that even as these OT prophets had this power to shut the heavens and to turn waters into blood, so also these two witnesses in the NT time period have this same power to strike the earth with every plague whenever they so desire. It will not do to change the meaning of the words by trying to spiritualize them, even though we are tempted to believe that Christ was here speaking of the church holding the Keys of the Kingdom. But this is not the sense of this verse. The text speaks of a literal heaven and a literal rain of literal waters and of literal plagues upon the earth. And there is nothing here that indicates that we must be looking for a spiritual meaning. Therefore we must accept these words as they stand. We must not hesitate to believe that these powers are really given to the church, and especially to the God ordained ministry of the church. Moses and Elijah had this power. The early church had this power. We read of many wonderful things that were done by the early church. Did not Jesus tell His people that they would do greater things than He if they believed in Him? Of course WE do not have this power of ourselves. In ourselves we have nothing. But we have it all in Christ. Christ is our Head, and we are in Him. But we are organically connected with Christ, and Christ has all authority in heaven and on earth. Christ is certainly able to shut the heavens, and He will. He has the power to turn waters into blood and He has the power to strike the earth with every plague that is conceivable. And therefore there is nothing strange in believing that His people have that same power. The people of God always have had this power. It only is a matter of understanding HOW we exercise that power. We do not have this power for sinful purposes. We do not exercise this power if it is not according to God’s will. Do we walk as children of the King of Kings? Do we believe that He is willing to move heaven and earth to bring us into His Kingdom? And what is Christ doing today to bring His Kingdom to completion? Did we not read in Rev 6 that Christ opened the Book that symbolized the decree of God for all of creation? Christ initiated the plagues that are written herein. And did we not read there that three of the four horsemen brought disasters and calamities into the world, and Christ did this for the purpose of bringing His Kingdom to completion? Yes, all the terrible plagues of war and famine and pestilence, and all the terrible things which must still take place are there for the completion of His Kingdom, and for the salvation of His people, and these terrible things are done for their sake. It is for Adam’s sake that the earth was cursed as we read in Gen 3:17. It is for the sake of the elect of God that the earth is visited with all kinds of plagues. And why? May I bring back to your memory that the same effects do not produce the same results? Within the elect of God these plagues kindle a desire to repent and to turn to faith in Christ, whereas within the non-elect these plagues generate a rebellion against God and a continual hardening of their hearts. Moreover, it is not only for their sake, but it is also upon their prayers that these plagues come. The people of God may not always be conscious of this, but the fact is that these calamities come on the earth as an answer to their prayers.

  • Prayers of the Saints (Rev 8:3-5)

Please turn in your Bibles to Rev 8:3 (2X). Let us look again at the prayers of the saints. According to Rev 8, what is God’s answer to the prayers of the saints? When the prayers of the saints are offered upon the altar in heaven, how does God answer these prayers? We read in Rev 8:3-5,

Re 8:3-4  And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.                        And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.

Re 8:5  And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.

The result is: voices, and thunders, and an earthquake, caused by the fire taken from this altar of incense in heaven. This means nothing else than that the prayers of the saints are answered by judgments from heaven. Just as heaven was shut because of the prayer of Elijah, so the judgments on the earth in the NT time come in answer to the prayers of the saints. They pray, “May Thy Kingdom come”. That Kingdom must come through tribulation and through all kinds of plagues and calamities. And the saints know it. And the more they become conscious of this, the more they also pray for the coming of the Kingdom, even though they know that their prayers will cause more calamities to come. The world certainly is not conscious of that fact. But when the world increases in wickedness, when the blood of Christ is trampled under foot more and more, when the people of God shall be subjected to greater tribulation, and when the people of God shall have gained a clearer insight into the Word of prophecy, and when they understand that it is through judgments and plagues that the Kingdom must come and be completed, then they shall also more deliberately pray for these plagues to come on the wicked world. Do not think that this is strange. It shall become very plain to all the people of God that the world has departed from God and from His precepts. The world does not want to know what God says in the Bible. The world does not care, for they believe that all things go on as usual indefinitely. It shall become very plain that the blood of Christ and the name of the Most High are trampled under foot. And the time will come when the people of God shall consciously and deliberately employ the power which they have in Christ Jesus. Just like Elijah prayed that God might withhold His blessings from the apostate people of Israel, so the people of God shall know when to pray that God may withhold His blessings on this wicked world. They shall beseech the Lord of hosts for plagues and judgments, in order that His Kingdom may come. And it shall become plain to all the world that it is the saints who have prayed for these plagues. And thus the stage is set for the two witnesses to be killed.

#3.       The Death of the Two Witnesses (Rev 11:7, Dan 7:25, 8:24, 1John 4:3, 2Thes 2)

Re 11:7  And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

This is the first time that this beast is mentioned here in this prophecy of Revelation. And yet it seems that this beast was well known by the church. He is called The Beast, and he is known to the church from primarily two sources. The first source is from the Epistles of 1John 2 and 4, and 2John 7, and the second source is from the prophecy of Daniel 7 where this beast is pictured, having ten horns. And from among the ten horns arises another horn, a little horn, who destroys three of the horns and who becomes more terrible than all the rest of the creatures, speaking blasphemous things against the Most High, and warring against the saints of God, and prevailing against the saints of God. And the saints are given into his hand until time and times and the dividing of time has passed. This little horn is mentioned again in Dan 8 where God says of him that “he shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. From this we learn the following: In the first place, the beast in Rev 11 is not the same as the dragon that is mentioned in Rev 12. He is closely connected with that dragon, but he is not to be identified with him. Nor is the beast in Rev 11 the same as the king of the locusts of Rev 9:11, also called the angel of the Bottomless pit, for in Rev 11 it is a beast with an earthly form, whereas in Rev 9:11 it was a spirit. Secondly, here we have the first mention of the Antichrist, who is identical with the little horn from Dan 7 and 8. Thirdly, this Antichrist rises up out of the Bottomless Pit, meaning that he finds his spiritual origin there, although he will appear in human form. Just as we may say that the saints are hid with Christ in God, and that their walk is in heaven, so also Antichrist is hid with Satan in Hell and has his origin in the Bottomless Pit. Fourthly, it is to be understood that the power of Antichrist exists all through the NT dispensation. We read in 1John 4:3, “Every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” Antichrist does not just rise out of the Bottomless Pit at the moment when the two witnesses have finished their testimony, but he was already in the world at the time that John wrote his 1st Epistle. Similarly, in Dan 7 the fourth beast already exists before the little horn arises. But just like the power of the fourth beast in Dan 7 culminated in the little horn, so also the power of Antichrist shall culminate and finally rise against the people of the Kingdom of God. Therefore it is in this connection that we now understand that the Antichrist, although existing throughout the entire NT period of time, shall toward the end be allowed to gain strength and make war against the saints of the Most High, and be allowed to overcome them.

Now we need to address the statement that this beast shall rise against the two witnesses after they have finished their testimony. God tells us in the 2nd Epistle to the church at Thessalonica, in chapter 2, that there is a power that holds back the Antichrist so that he cannot appear before the God ordained time. He cannot manifest himself yet in his full power. The power which holds him back is undoubtedly the Spirit of God working out the decree of God. The power of Antichrist may not come to its full manifestation until the prophesying of the church shall have been completed. This implies two things: In the first place, it implies that the Gospel must have been preached to all nations. It does not mean that the Gospel must have come to every individual still living on this earth, but that it has spread over all the earth and come within reach of all nations. For example, the Gospel may not have reached each individual on the island of New Guinea, which is the 2nd largest island in the world, mostly jungle, and inhabited by many tribes speaking hundreds of different languages. But since Western New Guinea belongs to Indonesia, it is sufficient that the Gospel must have spread to the nation of Indonesia. In the second place, it also means that the testimony against the wicked world and against the false church must have been finished. The measure of iniquity must be full. The world and the false church must hear the testimony of the true church, must hear it repeatedly, must become conscious of its sin, must know it and reject the Christ of the Bible willingly and deliberately. God has given them up to vile affections, and God has given them over to a reprobate mind, and then the testimony of the two witnesses shall have been finished. And then they may be silenced, and they shall be silenced by the Antichrist, the beast that comes up out of the Bottomless Pit. For we read here in verse 7 that Antichrist shall rise against the witnesses and overcome them and kill them. This is a very brief statement of the last end of the FTP that shall come over the church of God. Antichrist shall prevail at last. He shall overcome the saints of the Most High. It does not mean that he shall kill all of them. If the killing in verse 5 implies silencing, then the killing in verse 7 also implies silencing. We do not know how the Antichrist is going to silence our church. But we do know how he has silenced other churches. He silenced the preaching of the true Gospel in other churches by leading them into a false gospel, a gospel where they feature signs and wonders and tongues. This is how the two witnesses are killed. And on that sad note we have to conclude this sermon.     AMEN.     Let us turn to the Lord in prayer.