[0:00] Good morning and welcome to our service this morning. It's good for us to be able to join together and I do indeed pray that this will be a time of blessing for you as you join whether watching on the television or listening on the telephone that you'll know God's presence with you as we come for this act of worship. Service this morning will be taken by Mr Roddy McKenzie from Scalpy and the service this evening which will be online just at the back of six o'clock will be taken by Mr Hamish Taylor and the service this evening will be in Gaelic. We're thankful to Roddy and to Hamish for helping the congregation at this time as our minister and family are enjoying their holiday. A reminder that today has been allocated as a day of prayer and at the end of the service there'll be a reminder of the prayer points that have been given and I would ask that you just hesitate for a moment before switching off your televisions and take note of the prayer points and meditate and pray into these as the day goes on today. We're going to begin our worship this morning singing to God's praise in Psalm 95. Psalm 95 singing from verse 1 down to the end of the verse marked 7. O come let us sing to the Lord. Come let us everyone a joyful noise make to the rock of our salvation. Let us before his presence come with praise and thankful voice. Let us sing psalms to hymn with grace and make a joyful noise. O come let us sing to the Lord. Come let us everyone a joyful noise make to the rock of our salvation.
[2:15] let us before his presence come with praise and thankful voice. Let us sing psalms to him with grace and make a joyful noise.
[2:43] for God a great God and great King above all gods he is. Depths of the earth are in his hand. The strength of hills is his.
[3:10] to him the spacious sea belongs for he the same did make. The dry land also from his hands its form at first did take.
[3:38] O come and let us worship him. Let us bow down with all. And on our knees before the Lord. Our maker let us fall.
[4:06] For he's our God the people we of his own pasture are. And of his hand the sheep today if he his voice will hear.
[4:34] Let us pray. Our gracious and ever blessed Lord. We do indeed thank you at the beginning of this a new day.
[4:45] that we can come before you this morning. That we can come before you this morning. And we can indeed sing unto you. That we can know what it is to make a joyful noise unto the rock of our salvation.
[4:58] That each one of us heavenly father would indeed be able to sing these words. knowing that you are the rock in which we stand. The solid rock. The rock in which we can stand and sing that new song that has been put in our mouths.
[5:13] Our God to magnify. So as we gather this morning. As we still our hearts before you. We pray indeed that we would indeed be blessed to be here. And as we rise heavenly father that we may indeed go out this day.
[5:28] And be a blessing to others. We focus today heavenly father on your word. What your word has to teach us. What we can learn heavenly father. About our own walk with you.
[5:40] And if we do not know you heavenly father. As our Lord and as Saviour. We pray that each one of us. Would listen to the word. That we would recognise that. In listening to your word.
[5:52] In listening to the call upon our lives. That each one of us has a decision to make. Whether we are going to accept you as Lord and as Saviour. Or are we going to walk away from you.
[6:03] So we pray heavenly father as we gather this morning. That we would indeed listen to your word. That we would apply it to our own lives. And that we would see our need of you. We are indeed a nation heavenly father that is in need at this time.
[6:18] And we know that with this coronavirus that is upon the nation and upon the world. And heavenly father that we must acknowledge. That you have a good and a perfect plan.
[6:29] And that you are working your purposes out. As year succeeds to year. That heavenly father while we do not know what is before us. We thank you that you know the end from the beginning.
[6:42] And as we gather here this morning. As we bow in prayer. And heavenly father as we commit to you. Whatever we may be anxious about. Whatever heavenly father that is upon our hearts that troubles us.
[6:56] That we would indeed come to you as a God that hears and answers prayer. Your word teaches us to be anxious for nothing. But to come before you and commit all our prayers and our petitions to you.
[7:08] And be thankful to you that you are a God that hears and answers prayer. Father. So help us to be patient as we come before you with our prayers. Help us to trust in you. And heavenly father not to lose heart.
[7:21] That sometimes you say to us to wait. And that we would know heavenly father in waiting. That our strength is renewed. So as we come this morning. We pray indeed to heavenly father that as our almighty God.
[7:35] That you would indeed intervene within this coronavirus. That heavenly father that you would indeed stem the tide that is indeed against us once again. As we see numbers increasing both of those heavenly father affected by the virus.
[7:49] And those that have succumbed to it. We pray for healing for those heavenly father that are under the virus at this time. We pray for comfort for those that have lost loved ones during this time.
[8:02] And we pray heavenly father that as a nation. That we would indeed come before you. That we would acknowledge that you are our Lord. That you are our God. And we must come and repent of our sins before you.
[8:15] So guide us this morning as we come. And heavenly father as your word goes forth. As it goes forth this morning. As it goes forth across the nation. That your spirit would indeed be blessed.
[8:26] As it goes forth through the word. And that heavenly father that the preaching of your word would indeed. As you have promised in your word. Not return unto you void. But it will indeed achieve all that you have established for it to accomplish.
[8:41] Oh heavenly father we are indeed a nation that is in need. At this time and we would pray that. You would revive our hearts. That we would come before you and bend a knee in this day.
[8:53] Committing all that we should to you. Acknowledging that you are Lord. That you are God. That you created the world. As we have studied in these past days. Heavenly father.
[9:03] Father you have created all that is before us. And we should be thankful for it. And that we must remember that your mercies are indeed new to us each morning. That while we may indeed face hardship.
[9:15] While we may face trial. That heavenly father you have promised that you will never leave us. That you will never forsake us. That you are indeed by our side. And we thank you heavenly father for your son Jesus.
[9:28] For the sacrifice that he paid for us. And now sits at your right hand interceding for each one of us. So heavenly father as he taught us to pray. Acknowledging that you are our father in heaven.
[9:42] That we would indeed come before you. And that we would pour out our hearts heavenly father to you. And that we would come. And ask for your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.
[9:53] That we would come. And that we would ask forgiveness of our sins. We would come. And we would thank you for all that you have provided for us. All heavenly father that you have given to us.
[10:04] That a hand is created for our pleasure. That we would be grateful for it. That we would not take any of these things for granted. But heavenly father that we would return unto you all the thanks.
[10:16] All the glory and honour that you are due. Guide us as we come for this time of worship. Continue with us on this day. And forgive us for our many sins. For our many shortcomings.
[10:28] In Jesus precious name. Amen. Good morning boys and girls. Son of you. Just all gather around your screens.
[10:39] You can see maybe a bit clearly what's happening. It's good to be in your midst again. And it's good to welcome not only yourselves. But mums and dads and everyone else who's here today.
[10:50] I know the circumstances are different. I know the circumstances are different. And we're living in sort of changed days. But God himself never changes. And my prayer is that as we worship him this morning.
[11:01] We would know God's blessing. We would hear his voice. And we would seek his face. And know his blessing. Now I've got something here. Which is very very very well known to you all.
[11:13] It's just simply an iPhone. It's not a modern one. It's not one that like your minister would have. That would be bang up to date. And because I don't really do anything with this one.
[11:24] Apart from phoning. And to tell you the truth. I don't even text. I don't even do that. People text me. And I just phone them back. Because I don't do anything with it.
[11:37] Now I'm not really that old. Well maybe I am. But I can remember when communication was totally different. Now we live in a world where instantly we can give messages.
[11:49] But I remember myself when I first went away from home to Aberdeen. Going along to these red boxes. You'll see one in Scaladel. You'll see one in Kailas. And I would go there and put endless ten pences in to phone my mum home.
[12:03] And I even remember when down in Scalby. Just quite close to my uncle's house. Donald MacLeod the local butcher. He used to go out to Shant Isles.
[12:13] And when he went out. He would take lots of pigeons with him. And as wee boy. We'd go up and look at the pigeons. He would send messages home every night. To tell how he was getting on.
[12:25] And this was the method of communication. But nowadays. Everyone knows everything right away. I try and tell my daughter in Inverness. Or my son in the boat.
[12:36] About news. And they know it right away. They've got the news. A lot of the news we get today. Maybe isn't very good. But. Where you get good news.
[12:48] All the time. Is in the Bible. And it's even called the good news. We read there. About things which have happened. We read there. About the little boy.
[12:59] With the loaves and the fishes. Feeding thousands of people. We read about. Jesus being born. In the stable. We read about. Jesus healing those.
[13:10] Who were sick. Raising the dead. And then we read about. Jesus rising. From the dead. He arose. From the dead. Good news. So that if we put our trust in him.
[13:23] He will be our saviour. Not the saviour. Of your Sunday school teacher. Or of those in the church. But your own personal saviour. And you know. When I come here.
[13:35] And I speak to you. And normally. I can see you gathering around. You're very good at answering questions. But my prayer is. That you would come to know the Lord Jesus. As your own personal saviour.
[13:46] And now. When you hear. Of any news. When you hear news. Which maybe isn't so good. You think of the greatest news of all. The best news of all.
[13:57] That the Lord Jesus. Came into the world. To be the saviour. Of men and women. And boys and girls. And we'll say a wee word of prayer now. O Lord our God.
[14:07] As we bow in thy presence. We thank thee. For all the young people. Who gather round. Who are so interested. Who come in this way. To Sunday school.
[14:18] We pray for the teachers. For the worksheets. And the work they give out to them. And although we cannot meet in person. We thank thee. That we can meet.
[14:28] Round that banner. All one in Christ Jesus. We pray. That thou wouldst bless. The teachers. And the young people. We thank thee. For the special promise. Thou dost give.
[14:39] To the young. That those who seek thee early. Will find thee. And our prayer is. That thou wouldst come. Into the lives. Of all our young people. That they would know thee.
[14:51] As their own personal saviour. For when we look back. And reflect on our own lives. So many of us. One of the regrets we have. Is how long we took.
[15:02] Before we came to know. The Lord Jesus. We pray that thou wouldst bless. All our young people here today. Keep us looking unto thee. And partner sins for Jesus sake.
[15:13] Amen. Our reading this morning. Is taken from Numbers chapter 10. And we're reading. From verse 29 to 36.
[15:24] And our reading. Is from the authorised King James Version. Verse 29. And Moses said unto Hobab. The son of Raguel the Midianite. Moses' father-in-law.
[15:36] We are journeying unto the place. Of which the Lord said. I will give it you. Come thou with us. And we will do thee good. For the Lord has spoken good.
[15:46] Concerning Israel. And he said unto him. I will not go. But I will depart to mine own land. And to my kindred. And he said.
[15:57] Leave us not. I pray thee. For as much as thou knowest. How we are to encamp in the wilderness. And thou mayest be to us. Instead of eyes. And it shall be.
[16:08] If thou go with us. Yea it shall be. That what goodness the Lord shall do unto us. The same will he do unto thee. And they departed from the mount of the Lord.
[16:19] Three days journey. And the ark of the covenant of the Lord. Went before them. In the three days journey. To search out a resting place for them. And the cloud of the Lord was upon them.
[16:31] By day. When they went out of the camp. And it came to pass. When the ark set forward. That Moses said. Rise up Lord. And let thine enemies be scattered.
[16:43] And let them that love hate thee. Flee before thee. And when it rested he said. Return O Lord. And to the many thousands of Israel.
[16:54] Amen. And may God bless. That reading of his own holy and inerrant word. And to his name. Be all the praise and the glory. We'll engage in prayer.
[17:06] O Lord our God. As we turn to thy word. And seek to meditate on it. We pray O Lord. That thou wouldst bless. Each and every person. Who is tuned in in any way here today.
[17:20] We thank thee for this opportunity. To speak a few words in season for thee. Thou knowest when we bow here. We are conscious of how. Little we have to say.
[17:32] How the best of men are men at best. But we thank thee that it is thy word. And thou hast given the great promise. That it will not return unto thee void. But accomplish that where unto it pleaseth thee.
[17:45] We pray O Lord. That thou wouldst be with each and every one of us. Gathered here today. As thou knowest our several needs before thee. And at this time O Lord of restrictions.
[17:57] When we are conscious that we live. In a somewhat unnatural state. We pray Lord that thou wouldst be with. Each and every one of us gathered here. And all who listen.
[18:09] In any way shape or form. We thank thee that thou art God. The one who has promised thine own. Thou wilt never leave us nor forsake us. And may we be conscious today.
[18:21] Of thy blessing on us. We pray Lord that thou wouldst remember. Those less fortunate than ourselves. Those laid aside through sickness. And those who may be sorrowing and sad.
[18:33] That thou wouldst uphold them. That they would all know. The nearer presence. Of the God who sticketh closer than any brother. We pray Lord now. That thou wouldst bless.
[18:44] All that we seek to do. And say in thy name. That thou wouldst follow. With thy blessing. Our words and our efforts. And go before us now. And be with us and pardon our sins.
[18:56] For Jesus' sake. Amen. Amen. Now I want us to look just for a few moments this morning. To the words we find in this chapter. In the part of the chapter we were reading.
[19:08] Numbers chapter 10. And at verse 29. Where it says. And Moses said unto Hobab. The son of Raguel the Midianite. Moses' father-in-law.
[19:19] We are journeying unto the place. Of which the Lord said I will give it you. Come thou with us. And we will do thee good. For the Lord hath spoken good.
[19:30] Concerning Israel. Now in the lives of men and women. There are times when they are presented. With solemn issues. Which may affect their lives.
[19:42] If not their destiny. Now. I want to look at this text today. As I believe it has a message. To each and every one of us.
[19:53] A wrong decision. Or no decision at all. May involve us. In regret. In remorse. And in everlasting sorrow. And on the other hand.
[20:04] A right response. To the overtures of God. In the gospel. Will bring us peace. And eternal happiness. Now in this chapter here. We read of a man.
[20:16] Who at the crossroads of destiny. Was asked by Moses. To throw in his lot. With the people of God. And he was also given.
[20:26] The promise. That if he did so. He would. Truly share in their blessings. And their inheritance.
[20:37] Because it says to us. In this verse. We will do the good. Not we might do the good. We will do the good. And we have reason to believe.
[20:48] That although Hobab at first. Hesitated in obeying the voice. Which God through Moses addressed to him. He did join himself. To the Israel of God.
[21:00] And he's in heaven today. Now I want to give. These solemn words. A personal application. With the hope and prayer. That all who hear.
[21:12] And are as yet strangers. To grace unto God. May obey this appeal. Now there's three points. I want to bring up. The first point is.
[21:23] That here we have. An urgent appeal. And a loving invitation. We see secondly here. We have. A sure hope.
[21:34] And a great promise. And we see finally. Hobab's hesitation. And his decision. Now first of all. There's an urgent appeal.
[21:45] And a loving invitation. Come thou with us. Now Hobab. As we have seen here. Was related to Moses.
[21:56] By natural bonds. But it's not in this way. The words are spoken. It's true. That God's people. We have a great concern. For our families.
[22:08] And our relations. But you know. Our love goes beyond that. We want all to come. To know the Lord Jesus. The great example. Of our Lord himself.
[22:20] We see him. How he wept. Over Jerusalem. There were many souls there. And he wept. Over the whole city. Wanting.
[22:32] Them to come to him. And remember. It says in scripture. There's rejoicing. In the kingdom of heaven. Over one sinner. That's repentance.
[22:43] The importance. Of. A human soul. In January 1963. A Milford Haven. Trawler. The Boston Heron. Went aground. In Stillamer.
[22:54] One of the islands. Of Scalpy. One night. January night. And when it. The boat. Hit the rocks there. And of the crew. Six were saved.
[23:05] And eight. Sadly lost their lives. And one of the Scalpy boats. The Scalpy Isle. Went out. To effect a rescue. The crew were actually. Given awards. For it later.
[23:16] And finally. One of the crew. The skipper later on. Is actually. Still alive. And he's still in Harris House. And the media. Gathered round later. One of the questions. They asked was.
[23:27] What prompted the boys. To go out. So willingly. And so quickly. On a night like that. In a 411. Southerly gale. And the words. Spoken by one of the older.
[23:38] Gentlemen. On the island. Was. If you knew. The importance. Of a human soul. You wouldn't ask. That question. The importance. Of one's soul. The great preacher.
[23:48] Samuel Rutherford. He was a minister. In the north of England. In a place called. Answorth. And my late father. Often used to quote this. He said. If one saved soul.
[23:59] From Answorth. Meet me in God's right hand. My heaven. Will be two heavens. In Emmanuel's land. The importance. Of. A human soul. The importance.
[24:10] And Moses here. In the midst. Of all. His. Afflictions. He was a happy man. Because he was offered. This world. The best this world.
[24:21] Could give. Remember. He refused to be called. The son of Pharaoh's daughter. But he knew. There was nothing. He could carry to eternity. But sin.
[24:32] Or God. He knew the alternative. To following the Lord. Would be God's displeasure. And he saw that. So graphically. Illustrated. With the plagues.
[24:44] And with the Red Sea. Now the blessed implication. Of this invitation. Of these words. Is that the free offer. Of salvation. And the invitation.
[24:55] Of the gospel. Of the sanctions. Of God's word. The Lord says. Come unto me. All ye that labor. And are heavy laden. And I will give you rest.
[25:06] And one of the last words. We see in the Bible. Is the word. Come. Now that doesn't mean. We can save ourselves. But there are three solemn.
[25:17] Facts. Which confront us. In relation to the gospel. First of all. We are accountable. To God. He's knocking.
[25:28] On our door. And he knocks. In many different ways. We see. With illness. We see. With death. We see so many changes.
[25:38] In our communities. And every time. We do. The Lord is knocking. He is reminding us. That mortality. Is written all over us. And especially.
[25:49] In these days. We are maybe more conscious. Than at any other time. And there is something. We can do. We can pray to God. We can cry. For mercy.
[26:00] Now the cry. Of a drowning man. Will not. Rest you. But he might. Bring something. Someone. To his aid. And God's people. Say amen.
[26:11] To that. And also. When we read. In the Bible. It says. The wind bloweth. Where it lister. We hear the sound. Thereof. But cannot tell. Where it comes.
[26:22] Or whither it goes. So is everyone. That is born. Of the spirit. And when Moses said. To hope. Up to come. The Holy Spirit.
[26:33] Accompanied that word. To Hobob's heart. And he came. And when we come. Say come. To those who are outside. Of the fold. To those who are on the highways.
[26:44] And byways. We do so in the hope. That the spirit of God. Who also says come. Would work. In hearer's hearts. Sometimes.
[26:55] When. Times like this. We hear people saying. That they're not good enough. But you know. As another said. God didn't come. To save little sinners. Or good sinners.
[27:06] But great sinners. And bad sinners. Christ saved. In the book. We read this in scripture. The poor publicum. While he left. The Pharisee alone.
[27:18] And how solemn. And terrible it is. Divine. Is divine contempt. In relation. To people. To those. Who put their own righteousness. Before God's.
[27:30] Our best. Before God. Is often. Our worst. As we substitute. Our own imperfect. And soil righteousness. For the spotless. One of Christ's.
[27:41] Many of us thought. We had sins. That could not. Be forgiven. But he said. To us. Come. Remember. On that dusty road. To Galilee. When Matthew sat.
[27:52] At the receipt. Of custom. A man. Who was despised. By his fellow people. And yet. The Lord stopped. And he said to Matthew. Come. He didn't say.
[28:03] Come next week. Come next month. Come next year. Come now. And Matthew. Left all. And he followed the Lord. There is an urgency. About it.
[28:14] We are told. Today. If you hear his voice. Don't harden your heart. Come to him. So there is this. Loving invitation. Given here.
[28:24] By Moses. And there is also. A sure hope. And a great promise. Moses. Assured hope up. We are journeying.
[28:35] To the place. The Lord will give us. And he will do us good. The Lord had promised them. A land flowing with milk and honey. Remember.
[28:45] Because of their disobedience. Only Joshua. And Caleb saw it. Moses saw it. From the top of Pisgah. He was already in heaven.
[28:56] When he appeared. In another mount. The mount of transfiguration. And it's good to know. This Canaan. The promised land. Was but a type. Of another country.
[29:07] A country. Heaven. When Moses mentioned. The lower Canaan. To Hobab. His eyes were fixed. On the Lord. The one who is invisible.
[29:18] Where he dwells. We are told. In Hebrews. How Moses. Sought. A heavenly country. There was a pilgrim. Stranger. In this earth.
[29:29] And this is what Moses meant. When he said. He was journeying. You know. When we go home. After a service. We have to follow. A certain way. Or a certain road.
[29:39] Or we will never get home. And you know. It's the same way. With heaven. There's not. So. A lot of. Times. We hear nowadays. That there's lots. And lots.
[29:50] Of ways to heaven. It's a bit like going into. One of our big cities. You can go in. By a dozen different ways. And you'll get there. In the end. But the Lord. Makes it quite clear. The Bible.
[30:00] Makes it quite clear. There's only one way. To heaven. And that's through. The blood of Jesus. Shed on Calvary's cross. We must know Jesus. As our own saviour.
[30:12] Not the saviour. Of others around us. But our own personal saviour. And here we see. Moses. He knew the only way.
[30:22] To come to Jesus. Was through that shed blood. And another. Evidence of God's goodness to them. Was his great provision. In the wilderness.
[30:33] Hobab must have. And might have wondered. How so many people. Had survived. But Hobab came to know. That manna from heaven. The stream from the rock.
[30:45] The same today. Christ is. The bread of life. And we drink. From the river of life. And when. Until people join with us. They never know.
[30:56] Of this spiritual fear. There's an old Scott saying. It's better. Felt. Than tent. And how true that is. Of coming to know the Lord. Now to enjoy the rest.
[31:07] And the happiness. Which the children of Israel knew. Hobab would also have to share. In their affliction. Israel was surrounded by their enemies.
[31:20] They were discouraged by many things. Which had gone wrong. But afflictions. And things like that. Are not hostile. To our happiness. Or our holiness. Very often the greatest blessings.
[31:33] Come through the greatest trials. The greatest privilege. Here. Is partakers of Christ's sufferings. Moses didn't conceal this.
[31:44] When he spoke to Hobab. Moses and the people. Knew the presence of the Lord. And we can say this. We know too.
[31:54] How good the Lord has been to us. When Moses said to Hobab. He will do thee good. He knew how good the Lord had been to him.
[32:06] And God's people can look back. And reflect on their lives. And say as another said. Hitherto hath the Lord helped us. And we see in scripture. People like David.
[32:17] People like Ruth. Who chose the Lord. Over anything. Which this world could give. And we are the same. We don't claim any of us.
[32:28] To be perfect. If you go about. With a magnifying glass. You'll find flaws in us all. Paul himself said. He was the chief of sinners.
[32:39] But. Those who love the Lord. Have something you'll never find. Anywhere else. And that's a desire. For the salvation. Of all we meet around us.
[32:50] So we see here. The great promise that was given. And we see here. Hobab's hesitation and decision. Because Hobab said here.
[33:01] In verse 30. I will not go. I'm going to my own kindred. His immediate reaction was unfavorable. He was good. He didn't want to go into the wilderness.
[33:12] He had everything he wanted here. He had his temporal. Temporal comforts. Comforts. The past afflictions were many. He didn't know what the future would hold.
[33:25] In a barren. And in a dreary land. But Hobab. Here had lacked nothing. But something happened. The second appeal. Moved him.
[33:36] Because we read in Joshua. The name of Hobab. And his descendants. So he did come. Now we notice. How Moses detected in Hobab. Gifts.
[33:47] And talents. Because it says here. We need thee to come with us. Because you know the wilderness. And you may speak to us. Instead of eyes.
[33:59] How sad it is to see people with talents. Talents that could be used in the Lord's service. And they don't use them. We all have something to give.
[34:10] Paul speaks in the New Testament. The analogy he uses of the body. And he says. All parts work together. Now we also notice.
[34:23] How Moses detected in Hobab. Gifts. And talents. Says there. When he's speaking to him. He says. You know the wilderness. And you can be to us.
[34:34] As eyes. And it's very sad sometimes. When you see gifts and talents. Which people have. And yet they're not used in God's service.
[34:45] We all have something we can do. We see there. Paul's analogy of the body. Where he talks about the various parts. And how each part. Has its bit to play.
[34:57] Over 50 years ago. I lost the use of this thumb. I had an accident. And people said to me afterwards. It's only your thumb. This one moves. This one doesn't.
[35:08] But you know. It caused me. So many difficulties. And yes. It was a very small thing. And yet. The working of the thumb properly. Was so very useful.
[35:21] So there are talents. People have. And we all have something. We can do. In God's service. As the hymn says. There is a work for Jesus. That only you can do.
[35:33] So we see there. Hobab's decision. Hobab did come. Now in conclusion. There's three points. I want to make.
[35:45] First of all. It wasn't enough. For Hobab. To be related to. And to know Moses. He had to know. The Lord Jesus.
[35:57] As his own. Personal saviour. I remember. When I was young. There was an old lady. In the village. That I used to do. Chores for. And she asked me.
[36:09] One day. If I minded. Writing down. The service. In the morning. And bringing it to her. And that meant. I had to listen. And I had to write it down.
[36:21] But I did it. And I did it. For a year or two. Until I left home. And then after I left home. Some time later. The old lady died.
[36:32] And I remember. Going to her grave. And one of the things. Which I thought of. Was who will pray. For my lost soul now.
[36:43] I didn't know the Lord Jesus. And maybe I should have said earlier. That one of the times. I went into the house. The old lady was getting a bit deaf. And she was praying for me.
[36:54] And I never forgot that. Although it was years and years later. Before the Lord Jesus came into my life. But there. Was the blessings. Of somebody.
[37:04] Who was praying for you. Somebody thinking of you. So it's not enough. To be related. We need to know them. For ourselves. And the other thing is.
[37:17] About the children of Israel here. We're moving on. And we're moving on. The same way. Our own minister was talking. Last Sunday. About the one way system.
[37:29] That we have in churches now. And it's the same in life. We move on. And experiences and things. That happened in the past. We can't go back to them. We keep moving on.
[37:42] And things change. And the third thing is. That hope up here. We are told. He got a second chance. He did come. Although he didn't come at first.
[37:54] But we might not. We don't know. What's ahead of us. When this. Pandemic first came in. When we shut the door. Of the churches. Some months ago.
[38:06] There were those. Who went out. And they will never. Come in. Ever again. We don't know. Any of us. What's ahead of us. There's a gravestone.
[38:17] A very solemn one. In the north of England. Where the inscription says. Pause my friend. As you pass by. As you are now. So once was I. As I am now.
[38:29] So you will be. Prepare my friend. To follow me. Solemn words. But underneath it. Somebody inscribed. Even more solemn. To follow you.
[38:41] Is not my intent. Till I find out. Which way you went. We are all. Traveling on. Like Hobab was. Like Moses was.
[38:52] Mortality. Is written. All over us. Jesus. Is today. Knocking. At the door. Of our heart. Remember. Holman Hunt's. Famous. Portrait.
[39:03] The light of the world. It shows. Knocking. But the handle. Is on the inside. We must open the door. To let Jesus in. He's asking us.
[39:13] Today. To come. With him. And may we. All of us. If we don't know him. At this time. Bring him into our lives.
[39:24] Ask him to come into our lives. Young or old. Say Lord. I believe. Help thou. My unbelief. And may we. Like Hobab. Hear this voice.
[39:35] Say. Come thou with us. May we go with him. May we follow him. May he be. Our God. For if we follow him. He is the friend.
[39:45] Who will never leave us. Nor forsake us. He will be with us. In the storms of life. In the life. At this time. There are difficulties. But he will never leave us.
[39:56] And he promises. To be with us. And to take us. To our desired haven. You know. On a bad night. In the mince. There's nothing better. Than coming in. Through the lights.
[40:06] Of storm. And with us. Whatever storms. Assail us. When we come into. Our heavenly haven. The Lord will be there. And the Lord will take us.
[40:17] Safely home. And may that be the portion. Of each and every one of us. As we hear the word today. And if we hear the Lord. Speaking to us.
[40:28] May he bless these few thoughts. On his word. Let us pray. O Lord our God. As we think of Hobab. And as we think of his decision. May we O Lord.
[40:40] Hear that word. Speaking to us. Hear the Lord. Saying to us. Come unto me. All ye that labour. And are heavy laden. And I will give you rest.
[40:51] May we know that rest. In our lives. We pray that thou wouldst bless. All who are listening. All who are watching. Here today. We pray for this congregation.
[41:02] We thank thee for them. We thank thee for the minister. Father. We pray Lord. That thou wouldst bless. Reverend MacLeod. And wife and family. At this time. That they would be both physically.
[41:14] And spiritually. Refreshed. In this great work. To which thou was called. In this corner of the vineyard. Remember all. Who uphold his hands here. The elders.
[41:24] The deacons. The members. We thank thee for them all. We thank thee for the witness. They have in this community. And our prayer is. That thou wouldst continue to add to their number.
[41:36] Remember all congregations. All who meet in thy name today. We thank thee for the spread of the gospel. We thank thee for the various mediums. By which we can reach into people's homes.
[41:50] And we pray oh Lord. That thou wouldst bless. All who hear the word today. Be with us we pray thee. Part us with thy blessing. And as we meet and as we part.
[42:02] Our prayer is. That we would all meet one day. In that place where there be no need to see. Arise. Let us go hence. Go before us and be with us. Lead us and guide us.
[42:14] Pardon our sins for Jesus' sake. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound.
[42:25] Time shall be no more. And the morning breaks eternal bright and fair. When the saved of us shall gather over on the other shore.
[42:36] And the rule is called up yonder I'll be there. When the rule is called up yonder. When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder I'll be there On that bright and cloudless morning When the dead in Christ shall rise And the glory of his resurrection share When his chosen ones shall gather To their home beyond the skies When the rule is called up yonder I'll be there When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder I'll be there
[43:37] Let us labor for the Master From the dawn till rising sun Let us talk of all his wondrous love and care Then when all of life is over And our work on earth is done And the rule is called up yonder I'll be there When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder I'll be there When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder When the rule is called up yonder I'll be there When the rule is called up yonder
[44:38] I'll be there And now, to him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to God our Saviour, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and evermore.
[44:58] Amen.