Introduction – Responding to the covenant as David did

Two weeks ago we looked at the covenant that God made with David in the first half of 2 Samuel 7. And then last week we looked at David's response of worship, praise, adoration, and thankfulness to God for that covenant. But on this last Sunday dealing with the Davidic covenant I have two goals. The first is to pick up some loose ends and to use Luke's interpretation of 2 Samuel chapter 7 to fill out the three central themes. The second goal is to give ourselves some time after each of the three points to express our adoration of God just as David did. It is sad when we lose our wonder and awe at the incarnation – when we become so accustomed to the infinitely exalted God becoming one with us that our hearts no longer well up like David's heart did. When you read Luke 1 and Hebrews 1, it is obvious that those authors wanted to restore a sense of wonder and awe to God's people over who Jesus is and over what God has done in the salvation story. We have not adequately dealt with the Davidic covenant if it does not make our hearts want to say about Jesus, "O Come Let Us Adore Him." So may God by His grace restore to us a sense of wonder this morning.

The unique Sonship of Jesus (Luke 1:31-32 with Heb. 1:5)

Divine - Son of God (2 Sam. 7:14 with Heb. 1:5) with no beginning (Micah 5:2)

One of the first things that you notice as you read Luke chapters 1 and 2 is the amazement and wonder that is expressed by Zacharias, the angel Gabriel, Mary, Elizabeth, the choirs of angels who announce Christ's birth, Simeon, and Anna. I get choked up every time I see a baby born, even in a film, but Luke wants to make it unmistakably clear that the birth of this baby was even more amazing. It had no human father. We saw two weeks ago that the virgin birth is logically necessitated by the facts given in 2 Samuel 7. You don't at first see it, but when you dig into the details, it is logically necessitated. Of course, it is much more explicit here. Mary is said to be a virgin. And though this child was a son of Mary, and a son of David, Jesus had no immediate human father. Verses 34-35:

Luke 1:34 Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"

Luke 1:35 And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.

This speaks of the unique Sonship of Jesus. He is not a son like us. He is not adopted. He is the only begotten of the Father, and incarnated here. That's why Hebrews 1:5 says,

Hebrews 1:5 For to which of the angels did He ever say: "You are My Son, today I have begotten You"? And again: "I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son"?

He is quoting 2 Samuel 7:14 and saying that this verse was not describing Solomon but was describing Jesus as the unique Son of God. Micah 5:2 gives the mystery that the coming Messiah would both descend from the Davidic house in Bethlehem (and thus He would be a man) and yet would at the same time have existed from eternity past. It says,

Micah 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting."

He is divine. In fact, he never stopped being divine when he was conceived in the womb of Mary. He never gave up any of His divine attributes. In John 3:13 Jesus said that while He came down from heaven to be incarnate, He was still in heaven – He was still omnipresent. The Gospel of John repeatedly said that Jesus knew all things while on earth - at least as to His divine nature. Hebrews 1:6 says that all the angels of heaven worshipped Jesus when He was born. Hebrews 1:3 speaks of Christ's omnipotence prior to His death. It says,

Hebrews 1:3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

The grammar is clear that while he was on earth prior to His death, He was upholding all things by the word of His power as to His divinity, and yet mysteriously He was at the same time weak and frail and able to die as to His humanity. This means that while Mary was holding this tiny baby and feeding this tiny baby, God the Son was holding Mary in His arms and giving her strength and holding together ever atom of her body together by the word of His power. If that does not blow your mind, I don't know what will. This is the mystery of our salvation – that God the Son who had no beginning took to Himself human nature in the womb of Mary. And therefore when the creeds say that Mary was Theotokos or the God Bearer or mother of God, they are absolutely right. The creeds were not intending to start Mary worship. That perversion started much later. They were trying to communicate the amazing fact that even in the womb Jesus was a person who was fully divine. And by the way, the Council of Chalcedon is so clear in their creed that Mary was not the mother of God as to His divinity. It say, "... born of Mary the Virgin mother of God according to the Manhood..." But the point is that He never ceased to be divine. And that divinity was prophesied in 2 Samuel 7.

Human – seed of the woman (Gen. 3:15), seed of Abraham (Gen. 22:18), seed of Jacob (Gen. 28:14; Numb. 24:17), and seed of David (2 Sam. 7:12)

But Jesus did not have two personalities – He was one Person with two natures. And one of those two natures was a human nature. And His humanity was not an illusion. I am sure that as a baby he messed His diaper and had to be cleaned and taken care of. He was fully human. Genesis 3:15 says that the coming Messiah would be the seed of the woman, Eve. He would be connected to humanity. Genesis 22:18 says that He would be the seed of Abraham. Genesis 28:14 says that He would be the seed of Jacob. 2 Samuel 7:12 says that He would be the seed of David. That means that He had inherited genetic code from Adam and Eve, from Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, and David.

And if you emphasize Christ's deity so much that you don't think of Him as a human (and continuing to be a human), you ruin the story of salvation. For Him to be a Mediator who could represent both God and man He had to be fully God and fully Man. And so the Gospels record that Jesus hungered (Matt. 4:2), thirsted (John 19:28) became so bone weary from His ministry that He slept soundly in the pro of the boat even though the waves were washing over them (Luke 8:23-24). He was tempted in all points just like we are, yet without sin. It is no surprise that this mystery of divine and human wrapped up in a baby brought wonder and awe to so many actors in Luke 1-2. And it should bring wonder to you.

With virgin birth (see sermon on 2 Sam 7 with Luke 1:27-35)

I won't repeat what I said two weeks ago on the virgin birth, but it is nothing short of astounding that the legal right to the throne would be inherited by Messiah through Solomon, yet the biological right to the throne had to come through Nathan, Solomon's brother. And people in the Old Testament were probably puzzled by that. How do both of those things work? Though it is only hinted at in 2 Samuel 7, by the time of Jeremiah they knew that the coming Messiah couldn't be a biological son of Solomon or Jeconiah, yet he would inherit the throne of Solomon. And of course, we saw that Mary traced her genealogy through Nathan to David. He is the seed of David through Nathan, not the seed of Solomon. He is nowhere called the seed of Solomon. But Joseph traced his genealogy through Solomon to David. Joseph adopted Jesus legally as a son, and therefore gave the legal right to the throne since Joseph was a descendant of Solomon. But Mary's line gave Jesus the biological right to the throne. So this too points to the amazing fact that Jesus had to be born of a virgin and have no biological father.

Our sonship is only by way of adoption and by virtue of our union with Jesus (2 Cor. 6:14-18 with 2 Sam. 7:14)

But there is one more facet of Christ's Sonship that we did not address adequately two weeks ago, other than a brief mention – that 2 Corinthians quotes from 2 Samuel 7 in a way that we would not expect. It says that because of our union with Jesus in salvation, the church is His body and can be treated as Him, and therefore 2 Samuel 7 can apply to us and Paul uses it to prove that we are sons and daughters of the Lord God Almighty. By our union with the Only Begotten Son of God, we can be adopted sons and daughters. Thus, in a secondary way, there was a partial fulfillment (not a double fulfillment, but a partial fulfillment) of 2 Samuel 7 in Solomon. Why? Because Solomon was a believer united to Jesus.

Think of it this way. Galatians says that when God made a promise to the seed of Abraham, he was making it to the seed singular, that is to Jesus. And it is only as we are in Jesus that we can inherit any promise and that we become the seed of Abraham. Except for Mary Anne, most of us are not biologically the seed of Abraham. But we are the seed of Abraham by our union with Jesus. 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, "For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us." That means that even Mary Anne can only inherit the promises through Jesus. This is remarkable. If every promise made in Scripture was a promise to Jesus, we can enter into God's promises only by being forever united to Jesus, our Mediator. When we became believers, our old identity died and we were given a new identity in Christ. And by being bound to Christ we are bound forever in fellowship with God, since Christ is bound in fellowship forever to the Godhead. If you meditate upon the unique Sonship of Jesus, as promised in 2 Samuel 7, it should cause your hearts to well up in praise and awe and adoration. And I want us to spend a moment responding to God's promises just as David did. Let's pray.

Dear heavenly Father. With David we stand in awe that any of us can call you Father. We stand in awe at the Incarnation – that the infinitely exalted Son would humble Himself to become a baby and inhabit a womb. We stand in awe that the One who was upholding all things by the Word of His power would allow Mary to hold Him and nurse Him. Oh, the wonder of our adoption as sons and daughters. We are amazed that you would so unite us to Your Son that You could promise that we would forever be Your children. Help us to never lose the wonder of the incarnation and of Christ's unique Sonship. We worship You and ask that you would fulfill the Davidic covenant in our lives by being our Father forever and helping us to experience the reality of Your Holy Spirit crying out Abba, Father, from within us. You have commanded us to taste and see that You are good, and we have gotten a tiny taste of Your goodness this morning. And we bless You and praise You in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

The unique deliverance/saving that Jesus performs (Luke 1:31; 51ff)

So the first central theme of the Davidic covenant is sonship. The second central theme of 2 Samuel 7 is deliverance or salvation from enemies. It would be easy to think of this as David and kings after him saving Israel from the attacks of surrounding nations. And some of that was involved in a secondary way. But the Old Testament Prophets and the New Testament say that this deliverance or this salvation that was promised was uniquely provided by Jesus, the son of David.

His name = "Yahweh Saves" (Luke 1:31; Matt. 1:21)

The name "Jesus" in Luke 1:31 means, "Yahweh saves." He identifies Himself (His very being and name) with this central theme of salvation. That's who He is – "Yahweh Saves." And when Hebrews 1 quotes 2 Samuel 7, it is clear that Jesus Himself is Yahweh. Though there are three Persons in the Godhead, there are not three Gods. Nor are there three Lords. Nor are there three Saviors. Ephesians 4:5 says there is "one Lord." Acts 4:12 says that there is only one Savior. 1 Timothy 2:5 says that there is only one God. And this one God so identifies Himself with you and me in our salvation that He is willing to give Himself the name, "Yahweh Saves."

Salvation from sins (Matt 1:21; Luke 2:77)

And what does He save us from? Matthew 1:21 says, "And she shall bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." Every time you pray in the name of Jesus, you are able to pray because the Son of the Father was willing to take our sins upon Himself, suffer the wrath of a Father that He had only known love from, and do it so that we could be saved from our sins. When we cling to sin as a prized ribbon that we have pulled from the sewer, we do insult to the name of Jesus. That precious name is precious precisely because God's purpose is to save us from the tyranny of sin, the power of sin, the dominion of sin, the curse of sin, and eventually from the presence of sin. He did not die to make us comfortable in our sins, but to save us from our sins. May we never forget that.

A "forever" salvation (2 Sam. 7)

And this salvation was promised to be a "forever" salvation. The word "forever" occurs eight times in 2 Samuel 7. It speaks of security. We won't have to worry about whether 10,000 years from now we might fall from grace and end up in hell. No, it is a forever salvation that makes all the typological salvations of the Old Testament pale into insignificance and seem like nothing. They are just shadows of the real thing.

Salvation from all enemies (Luke 2:51-53; 69,71-74)

But that does not mean that the Incarnation of Jesus only dealt with salvation from sin. It also dealt with the curse of sin upon every facet of creation. I love the hymn, Joy To The World. It has a refrain in it that speaks of Christ's salvation extending "far as the curse is found." That's pretty far. That includes salvation from illness, salvation from demonic oppression, salvation from thorns and thistles, and even salvation from human enemies. Let me read some of the Scriptures that I have listed for you from Luke 2. And as I read this, look at all the kinds of enemies that are listed. Beginning at verse 51:

Luke 1:51 He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

Luke 1:52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly.

Luke 1:53 He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty.

Verse 69

Luke 1:69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David,

And you will see in all these speeches the tight connection between the Abrahamic, the Mosaic, and the Davidic covenants.

Luke 1:70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, who have been since the world began,

Luke 1:71 That we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us,

Luke 1:72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant,

Luke 1:73 The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:

Luke 1:74 To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear,

I love the take that Randy Alcorn had on the martyrs in China in his book, Safely Home. In fact, I love the title, Safely Home. We tend to think of salvation from enemies only in terms of historical deliverance, and if somebody gets martyred we wonder why God did not save them. But He did! When enemies kill you, they usher you into the comforting hands of God and the wonders and glories of heaven. The enemies can't get at you there. You are saved forever from their hands. There isn't any aspect of the Davidic covenant that we do not taste. When we are healed from disease, the New Testament uses the noun soteria, or salvation or it uses the verb sozo, which means to save. When he delivers us from hunger, the same word is used. When He delivers us from persecution, the same word is used. When Paul was delivered from the storm in Acts and brought safely to the shore, he uses the same word for save or salvation. Romans 8 says that eventually the very physical creation, which groans and travails in birth pangs, will eventually be saved, and there will be a universe in which only good dwells. The salvation promised is salvation from sin and from every negative effect of sin. We experience some of that here on earth and we will experience all of it in heaven.

And it was meditating on all that salvation meant that caused one old Puritan to clap his hands and feel like he was going to burst with joy. Gypsie Smith said, "I have never lost the wonder." But some of us have. Familiarity can breed contempt. We get so used to the glories of salvation that we don't give them a second thought. And so, like David, I want us to express our adoration to God for the wonders of His salvation. Let's pray:

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we worship You. We worship and praise you that you have saved us. Oh the wonder of our salvation! Father, You planned it from eternity past, and we bless You. Lord Jesus, You purchased it in your perfect life, Your painful death, and your victorious resurrection, and we bless you. Holy Spirit you persevere in applying all of redemption to all that it was purchased for. And we bless and adore You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We stand in awe of the sure mercies of David that you promised would never depart from Your Son or from those united to Your Son. We stand in awe that though we are all deserving of hell fire, yet by your grace you have drawn us into a relationship of sons and daughters. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. We bless You in the name of Jesus. We are grateful that You have delivered us from the hand of Satan and you can deliver us from all other enemies. Thank you, in Jesus name. Amen.

The unique throne and kingdom of Jesus (Luke 1:32-33)

God will give Him the throne of David (Luke 1:32-33 with Acts 2)

So the first central theme of the Davidic covenant is sonship. The second central theme of the Davidic covenant is deliverance or salvation from enemies. And the third central theme is an eternal throne and an eternal kingdom which will not pass away.

Some of the verses that we have already read dealt with that throne of David and that eternal kingdom of David. But Luke 1:32-33 puts it rather simply,

Luke 1:32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.

Luke 1:33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."

And two weeks ago I gave a detailed exposition of Acts 2, showing that Peter clearly said that Jesus ascended to David's throne when He ascended to sit at the right hand of the Father. How could that be? Well, we saw that in the Old Testament, David's throne was called the throne of Yahweh, as was Solomon's. They were signs or symbols of the heavenly throne. And in the New Testament, Yahweh's heavenly throne is called David's throne. The sign and the thing signified are given the same names. This means that the kingdom of Jesus has begun in the first century, and 1 Corinthians 15 says that Jesus must continue to reign at the right hand of the Father until all enemies are put under His feet, the last enemy being death, which is conquered just before Christ arrives on the earth at the Second Coming. It is a reign that begins with enemies and it is a reign that eventually puts down all enemies.

His reign or kingdom will never end (Luke 1:33; 2 Sam. 7:10,13,15-16)

And it is a reign that will continue even after heaven and earth are dissolved and a New Heavens and a New Earth are created. 2 Samuel 7:10 has its most complete fulfillment after the Second Coming. It says,

2Samuel 7:10 Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more; nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously,

Christ went to prepare a place for us, and it will be a place where there will be no wicked. It is important to realize that though Christ's kingdom began at His ascension, it is gradually being fulfilled as more and more elect are delivered from the hands of enemies in heaven, and it will be in eternity that all enemies and all wickedness will be cut off. Eight times in 2 Samuel 7 it is said to be a kingdom that will be forever.

It will be a reign of righteousness (Luke 1:35,75; 2 Sam. 7:10,14; Rom. 5:17,21; 6:12)

And the character of this reign will be righteousness and holiness. Some people treat grace as if it is a license to sin. But grace produces the righteousness that was promised to David. Verse 35 of Luke 1 calls this King the Holy One. Verses 74-75 say,

Luke 1:74 To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear,

Luke 1:75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.

That's the kind of kingdom we have been ushered into. Let me read you of the central character of Christ's reign of grace from Romans 5:17 and 21.

Romans 5:17 For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.)

Romans 5:21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

He has called us to a kingdom of righteousness, which is why Paul says in Romans 6:12, "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts." We have been translated into a kingdom of light and righteousness.

But by our union with Jesus, we too reign (2 Sam. 7:16; Rev. 2:27; 5:10)

But what blows me away on this point of the kingdom is that 2 Samuel 7 gives the hint that by our union with Jesus, we too have been given authority to reign. I want you to turn to Revelation 2:26-27, and we will end with these two verses. Revelation 2:26-27. This is Jesus speaking.

Revelation 2:26 And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations—

Revelation 2:27 "He shall rule them with a rod of iron; they shall be dashed to pieces like the potter's vessels'—as I also have received from My Father;

So Jesus is saying that just as the Father gave Him a rod of iron with which to rule and judge the nations, Jesus will give to Christians who are willing to be overcomers the same right to bless nations and to smash the nations with that rod of iron. And how do we wield what Jesus wields? It's by our union with Him and through prayer. Ephesians 2 says that we are presently seated with Christ in the heavenlies. That means we are presently reigning. And the implications for our prayer life are huge. Let me read a short section from the introduction to the first edition of Operation World. And that is the prayer manual for all the nations of the world that was written by Patrick Johnson. He said,

In Revelation 5:1-8:5 there is the magnificent mystery of the opening of the seven seals. Whether their primary application is future, past or present, is not relevant here, but certain principles are of abiding significance and can be applied today.

1. Only the Lamb could open the seals. All the earth-shaking, awesome forces unleashed on the world are released by the Lord Jesus Christ. He reigns today. He is in the control room of the universe. He is the only Ultimate Cause; all the sins of man and machinations of Satan ultimately have to enhance the glory and kingdom of our Saviour. This is true of our world today - in wars, famines, earthquakes, or the evil that apparently has the ascendancy. All God's actions are just and loving. We have become too enemy-conscious, and can over-do the spiritual warfare aspect of intercession. We need to be more God-conscious, so that we can laugh the laugh of faith knowing that we have power over all the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19). He has already lost control because of Calvary where the Lamb was slain. What confidence and rest of heart this gives us as we face a world in turmoil and in such spiritual need.

And I might pause for a moment and bring up an observation that Kathy made last week, and that is that God used the unbiblical tyrannical taxation of Rome that relocated people and created havoc as a means to ensure that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem, not Nazareth. Without that tyranny, they might have stayed in Nazareth. The worst empire-wide things of that day were tools for advancing God's purposes. And in the same way, God is using all the things we get so frustrated with today – including taxation and the fiscal cliff, to advance His purposes. Anyway, Patrick Johnson continues:

2. Only through the prayers of the saints will God's purposes be carried out (Rev. 5:8 and 8:1-5). The seventh seal, the final one, is unusual! Why was there silence in heaven for half-an-hour? It was not just for dramatic effect, or the silence before the storm. It was because God would not act until His people prayed. Once their prayers had risen to the throne, God poured out the fire from the altar upon the earth. The fire of the Spirit comes in answer to prayer (Acts 1:4,14; Acts 2:1-8), but so does the fire of judgment! James and John wanted to call down fire from heaven on the Samaritans (Luke 9:54), but in rebuking them Jesus did not deny they could! How the Saviour longed to kindle that fire (Luke 12:49). We now have that awesome authority as we pray in the Spirit! Let us use it.

The implications are immense. Do you realize that prayer may have brought about the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan? This was judgment on a nation that had resisted Christianity and killed those who responded to the gospel message; and it was also redemptive, for never before have Afghans been so exposed and open to the gospel as today. Is it possible that mighty intercessions for China stirred up Communism and the Cultural Revolution to turn an unresponsive nation into one of the most astonishing areas of Christian expansion the world has ever seen? Can it be that the Sahelian famines and Latin American revolutions may be the means of gospel breakthroughs long prayed for? It is a solemn thing to intercede for the nations of the world!

Let us mobilize prayer! We can tip the scales of history. Christians can be the controlling factor in the unfolding drama of today's world - let us not allow ourselves to be chased around by the enemy, but let us go up at once and take the kingdoms of this world for Jesus (Num. 13:30; Dan. 7:18) - He is delighted to give them to us (Dan. 7:22 and 27; Luke 12:32).

I read that because I wanted to give you a tiny impression of the way that Jesus is reigning even now, and how we, as those seated with Christ, can reign with Him. So let's end the sermon by praising and adoring the Holy Trinity for putting Jesus on the throne of David and for beginning the fulfillment of the marvelous promises made to David. Let's pray.

Father, we thank you that though the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing against You, that it is vain, and we know it is vain because You have established Your Son on Your holy hill of Zion. You have told Jesus, "Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession." And we come into agreement with Jesus in asking for the nations for the Gospel. We ask that You would cause them to kiss the Son. We stand in awe that you subdued our stubborn, rebellious hearts under the feet of King Jesus, and it is our desire to see others coming under His glorious reign as well. Help us to be effective in evangelism so that more could become members of Your kingdom. Oh, the wonder of having been translated out of the kingdom of darkness and into the kingdom of your dear Son. Oh the wonder of how You cause all things to work together for Your glory. We stand in awe that You even cause the wrath of man to praise You. And we look forward with great anticipation to worshipping and serving You in Your kingdom through all eternity. In Jesus name. Amen.

Conclusion

Well, there is a sense in which we have already concluded the sermon. But I want to read a poem written by Charles Spurgeon which captures a little of the wonder that David experienced and that the actors in Luke 1-2 experienced. And the beauty of this poem is that it ties these three points of this sermon together. So this will be our true conclusion. And this is the third time I have read this poem to our congregation, but it bears reading again. The poem says,

Forth to the battle rides our King; He climbs the conquering car;
He fits His arrows to the string, and hurls His bolts afar.
Convictions pierce the stoutest hearts, they smart, they bleed, they die,
Slain by Immanuel's well-aimed darts, in helpless heaps they lie.

 Behold, He bares His two-edged sword, and deals almighty blows;
His all-revealing, killing Word 'twixt joints and marrow goes.
Who can resist Him in the fight? He cuts through coats of mail.
Before the terror of His might the hearts of rebels fail. 

Anon, arrayed in robes of grace, he rides the trampled plain,
With pity beaming in His face, and mercy in His train.
Mighty to save He now appears, mighty to raise the dead,
Mighty to staunch the bleeding wound, and lift the fallen head. 

Victor alike in love and arms, myriads around Him bend;
Each captive owns His matchless charms, each foe becomes His friend.
They crown Him on the battle-field, they press to kiss His feet;
Their hands, their hearts, their all they yield: His conquest is complete.

None love Him more than those He slew; His love their hate has slain;
Henceforth their souls are all on fire to spread His gentle reign.

Words: Charles H. Spurgeon, Music: Henry Cutler, 1872 Public Domain.

Isn't that good? Well, let's go ahead and stand and call each other to adore our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Charge: Children of God, I charge you to keep alive in your heart the wonder of the Incarnation, of your salvation, and of Christ's eternal kingdom.