Teach me O Lord, by Your tender mercies 

Noel Kingsley | Baruch Neriah 

God is Faithful 

1. The end of 2025.  

We have come to the final moments of 2025. This year was good for some and hard for others. Some of us lost loved ones; some welcomed new life. Like our lives, the year was a mixed bag.  

We all experienced highs and lows-mountaintops and valleys.  

But whatever we went through, here we are at the end of the year. And it is customary for us to look back and thank the Lord for the year that has passed, acknowledging that it is God who has added another year to our lives.   

That is why we have gathered here today. While the world gathers in revelry, without the hope of another day, we have gathered with purpose and with grateful hearts-to thank the good Lord for a year filled with His mercies. 

2. In the Old Testament.  

In the Old Testament, Moses and the Israelites did something very similar, and we want to look at that today from Deuteronomy 7. 

God had redeemed the Israelites from Egypt, and they had been wandering in the desert for nearly forty years. By the end of those forty years, most of the people who had begun the journey were no longer alive; many of them had perished in the wilderness. 

As Israel wandered through the desert, they went through much over those forty years-highs and lows, seasons of want, and seasons of miraculous provision. 

And so, when they came to the close of forty years, Moses gathered them all together to look back at the journey they had shared. And this is what he proclaimed.  

Deuteronomy 7:9 | Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God the faithful God, who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Moses proclaimed that although Israel was a rebellious group of people-constantly rebelling against God, grumbling against Him, complaining about His ways, and walking away from Him more than once-God had remained faithful. 

When you look back, Moses says, do not consider your own ways or how you think you survived the journey. Rather, look back and understand that though you rebelled, though you grumbled, and though you complained, God remained faithful. 

You changed according to your circumstances and situations, but God did not. He remained faithful.  

3. In the New Testament.  

This is what the New Testament calls out 

2 Timothy 2:11 | This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him.  

2 Timothy 2:12 | If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He will also deny us.  

2 Timothy 2:13 | If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.  

A very similar statement made by the Apostle Paul to Timothy just like Moses makes to the Israelites. Let us pause and look at this carefully.  

There are a several parallel statements given by the Apostle through the Holy Spirit.  

He presents a condition, a reward, a warning, and an encouragement. Let us review that. 

1. The Condition. 

If we died with Him, then we live with Him. Scripture here is referring to our new birth-our union with Christ in His death and resurrection. Because of this, the next two statements are pertaining to born-again believers. If a person is not born again, then the reward and the encouragement are not for them. The warning, however, still applies. 

2. The Reward.  

If we endure this life with Him in Faith. We will be with Him and reign with Him. This is a promise that God gives to His people. 

3. The Warning.  

And here is the warning, the Lord proclaims that if we reject Christ and deny who He is, then we will not be with Him.  

4. The encouragement.  

But here is the encouragement for us, those who have believed in Christ. That if we are faithless, if we are struggling in our faith, the Lord assures us that He is faithful and He will remain faithful, because He cannot deny Himself. 

4. Back to this present year.  

So, when we look back at this present year, we must understand that God has been faithful to us all through the year. Though we may have walked through valleys and mountaintops, and though our faith may have wavered, God’s faithfulness did not waver. He remains faithful. 

Scripture teaches us this very clearly in 1 Corinthians 10:13, where the Apostle Paul writes:  

1 Corinthians 10:13 | No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.  

This leads us to understand that every trial, every trouble, and even the earthly blessings that we walked through this year were allowed by God. And that naturally raises the question: Why would God allow us to walk through them? Why would our year be a mixed bag? 

To understand this, we must remember that the troubles Israel walked through in the wilderness were allowed by God. Yet at the same time, Scripture teaches us that God will never allow our faith to be tested beyond what we are able to bear.  

5. Why Does God Stretch Our faith? 

If God is faithful, then why would God allow us to go through all the challenges of the past year? Scripture teaches us that God allows both the blessings and the trials in our lives so that He may build and strengthen our life.  

1. Believers’ Trials and Blessings Have a Purpose 

Turn with me to 1 Peter 1:6-7. The Apostle Peter teaches us that there is not a single day, nor a single moment, in a believer’s life that is wasted by God.   

1 Peter 1:6 | In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trails. 

1 Peter 1:7 | that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.   

 Scripture teaches us that all the trials in our lives are allowed by God so that our faith may be perfected and shine forth more precious than gold. And let me add-this applies not only to trials, but even to blessings. Blessings, too, are allowed by God to test our hearts, because more than trials, blessings can remove our focus from Christ.  

2. Because God is Faithful, He is working in Us. 

Peter teaches us that the Lord is always working in us. Why is God working in our faith?  

• Because it is only through faith that we are perfected,  

• only through faith that we endure, 

• and only through faith that we will one day be with Him. 

And whatever we go through or receive in this life, understand that it is temporary. The blessings are temporary. The trials are temporary. But the rewards are eternal. 

The trials are for today and are temporary; the rewards are eternal and imperishable.  

3. Understanding the Eternal Reward.  

This was one of the reasons why Israel struggled. When they went through trials and troubles, they expected rewards here on earth. But God’s reward is eternal and not perishable. 

God’s desire was that through every blessing and every trial, Israel would turn their eyes toward Him so that their faith would be perfected. 

Instead, they began to beg and plead for the things of this world. And Scripture teaches us that many eventually denied God, lost faith, and fell in the wilderness, forfeiting eternal reward.  

4. What Have We Committed to God? 

This is God’s faithfulness-that He holds your faith today so that you may be with Him for eternity. Look at the words of the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 1:12.  

2 Timothy 1:12 | For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.  

What have we committed to Him? Do we even know what we have committed to Him? 

At times, we are taught that we must commit our finances to God so that He will bless us with more. But if that is who we believe Christ is, then our faith is not rooted in Christ-it is rooted in this world. And we are no different from Israel, who fell away. 

What we commit to Him is what we cannot hold-our salvation. You did not earn it, and you cannot preserve it. Therefore, you commit to Him, because He is the faithful One. 

5. Rejoice in Faith.  

And as you strive in this world through earthly trials, earthly troubles, and even earthly blessings, what shines forth is your faith. There is a joy in your life that cannot be quenched by circumstances. 

That joy comes from the knowledge that your salvation is secure in Christ, and nothing you go through today can take that away from you. And that joy becomes visible, because it is faith shining forth-faith that God continues to perfect, making it shine more and more.  

6. Closing the Year: A Confession of Faith.  

Let us not what God has taught us this past year be wasted in our life. Be thankful that God has not forsaken you, though struggled in faith.  

God is working in you, and He will continue His work in the coming year. 

As we close this year, let us stand together and confess this truth as I invite the worship team forward.  

Jude 1:24 | 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. 

Jude 1:25 | To God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen 

Mountain-Moving Faith.  

As we step into this new year, let us consider God’s expectation for how we are to exercise our faith.  

We have already seen that God is constantly working in us to perfect our faith. And as we now begin this new year, we want to understand how God desires us to walk in and exercise that faith.  

Therefore, the title of our study is Mountain-Moving Faith.  

6. The Common Understanding of Mountain-Moving Faith. 

Whenever we speak of mountain-moving faith, this is often the common understanding we are taught.  

We understand that faith comes from hearing the Word of God. However, this understanding is often incorrectly applied. When we encounter problems in our lives as we live in this world-earthly problems such as sickness, financial challenges, and other difficulties-we are taught to look at the problem and command it, in faith, to move. 

We are told that we should speak to the problem so that it moves away from us and is cast into the sea, and that is how we should exercise mountain-moving faith. 

Now, if the problem does not move, the explanation given is that we do not have enough faith. Therefore, we are told that we must grow in faith, and that the evidence of our faith is a good and prosperous life in this world. And by this point, it becomes clear that the theology has far drifted away from Christ and His faith. 

But this is not the understanding of faith that Scripture gives us. We have already seen that the problems we face in this world are allowed in our lives so that our faith may shine through. The purpose of faith is not to secure a successful life in this world, but to preserve us for the world to come. 

So then, what is mountain-moving faith.  

7. Christ Commanding Us to Exercise Mountain-Moving Faith.  

There are three places in the Scripture where the command to exercise this type of faith is given directly by the Lord Himself.   

These passages are found in  

Matthew 17:20,  

Mark 11:22-23,  

Luke 17:6. In the Gospel of Luke “Mountain” is not mentioned, but it is the same understanding which is called out.  

Let us now look at the three verses.  

1. Matthew 17:20 | Casting Demons.   

At this moment in the Gospel of Matthew, the Lord Jesus Christ is on the Mount of Transfiguration with three of His disciples. Meanwhile, this incident is taking place among the disciples who were left behind. 

A father had brought his demon-possessed son to the disciples and requested that they heal him, but they were unable to do so. 

Let us read what follows, beginning with Matthew 17:17. 

Matthew 17:17 | Then Jesus answered and said, “ O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” 

1. Unbelief and a Perverse Generation. 

Here is the first reason the Lord calls out. The word “Faithless” does not mean someone with less faith. Rather, it refers to someone who is without faith-someone who does not believe. 

When this same word is used in the Epistles, it is often translated as unbelievers. This is not a lack of faith, but unbelief-someone who does not believe in the work of Christ and who has rejected Christ. 

The second phrase the good Lord uses is “Perverse generation.” This refers to a generation that has turned away from Christ and has walked in the ways of the world. 

So there are two reasons why they were unable to cast out the demon: 

1. They were without faith. 
   They had walked away from Christ, or they did not have faith in Christ. 

Let us read further. 

2. Either Unbelief or Mountain-Moving Faith.  

Matthew 17:18 | And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour. 

Matthew 17:19 | Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” 

Here the disciples ask the Lord directly, “Why were we not able to cast him out?” And the Lord answers them. 

Matthew 17:20 | So Jesus said them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. 

The reason they could not cast out the demon was unbelief. It was not less belief; it was unbelief. This is exactly what the Lord had already called out in verse 17. It is not a matter of having little faith, but of having no faith.  

And then the Lord says that if you have any faith-faith even as small as a mustard seed-you could move mountains. 

So the question is not, “how much faith do you have?” 

The reason question is, “Do you have faith at all? Do you believe?”. 

This does not yet fully answer what mountain-moving faith is. But it clearly shows us what it is not. Christ is not asking us to work harder or somehow increase our faith through our own effort.  

He presents two conditions.  

Unbelief on one side and 

Faith on the other side with the one who has believed. 

But, as I said, this is not the only gospel which carries this message. So let us turn now to the Gospel of Mark.   

2. Mark 11:22-23 | Faith in God and the Fig Tree.   

1. The Context of the Passage.  

This passage of Scripture takes place during the final week of the Lord’s life on earth, just before His crucifixion. On the day after His triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the Lord passes by a fig tree. He is hungry, and when He sees that the tree has no fruit-only leaves-He curses the fig tree, declaring that it should never bear fruit again. 

The following day, as the Lord and the disciples are again walking toward Jerusalem, Peter notices that the fig tree has completely withered from the roots. Excited, he says to the Lord, “Master, behold, the fig tree which you cursed has withered away.”. 

2. Have faith in God.  

It is at this point that the Lord responses with these words.  

Mark 11:22 | So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 

Here is an important callout, Christ is saying that this is how faith is to be exercised. Faith is to be in God.  

Faith is not, “If I believe hard enough, I can do it.” Rather, Faith is your confidence placed in God Himself.  

Which means that faith is not measured by personal ability, but by trust in God’s ability. And this leads to the next statement which the good Lord makes.  

Mark 11:23 | For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 

Mark 11:24 | Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. 

3. Faith, Doubt, and Misunderstanding. 

At first reading, it appears that the Lord is saying that if we ask for anything in faith, without doubting, we should receive it. 

And so the conclusion often drawn is this: If I ask, without doubting, that my problem should be cast away, then it should be removed. And if it is not removed, then the problem must be that I am doubting within myself. 

But remember the first point Jesus Christ made- your faith is in God. 

Faith is not in yourself, but in God. 

So the misunderstanding shifts from doubting ourselves to doubting God’s ability. And then the logic progresses further: if we do not receive what we prayed for, then God must not be faithful, because He did not give what was asked. 

And if we truly believe God will give it, then that believe itself becomes faith, and we should receive it. 

In a nutshell, this is how the passage is often understood. But this is not the Scriptural understanding. 

Before we break it further, let us turn to the Gospel of Luke. 

3. Luke 17:5-10 | Faith as a Mustard Seed.    

The Lord gives this teaching in response to a question asked by the disciples. We will first read the disciples’ question, and then we will read the Lord’s answer. 

From there, we will do a few important things. 

1. We will seek to understand why the disciples ask this question and how the Lord answered it. This will help us understand what mountain-moving faith truly is. 

2. We will then take this understanding and apply it to the passages we have already examined in Matthew and Mark. If our understanding is correct, it should reveal the same principle in all three passages. Only then can we know that this understanding is of the Spirit and not of ourselves. 

3. Next, we will step back and apply this as an overarching principle of faith, and examine whether it aligns with the kind of faith Christ calls us to have. 

4. Finally, we will step even further back and look at the Old Testament references, so that we may be confident that we have received the right understanding and that we are being led by the Spirit of Christ, in order that we may truly know Christ.  

1. Lord, Increase our Faith.  

Luke 17:5| And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 

The disciples came to the Lord with a direct request:  

The disciples are asking the Lord to increase their faith. 

This is exactly where our study is focused. We often recognize that we lack mountain-moving faith. The disciples had just come to the same realization, and so they ask Christ, “Lord, increase our faith.” 

But what caused them to conclude that they did not have enough faith? 

To understand this, we must review the verses that come before.  

2. The Teaching That Prompted the Question.   

The Lord had been teaching a series of truths concerning the kingdom of God. He had just concluded His teaching about the rich man and Lazarus. Following that, the Lord makes a strong statement in Luke 17:1-4. 

The Lord teaches that offenses will come, and people will fall away from faith, and people will reject Christ. But He warns that such stumbling must not come because of our testimony. He says it would be better for a person to have a millstone tied around their neck and be cast into the sea than to cause one of His little ones to stumble. 

Then the Lord says that if someone sins against you, you must forgive them. And if they sin against you repeatedly, you must continue to forgive them repeatedly. Why? Because your Father in heaven is faithful, and He forgives your sins. 

The Lord teaches that if we desire forgiveness, we must forgive those who sin against us. It is at this point that the disciples respond, “Lord, increase our faith.” Why? Because they recognize that they do not have faith like God.  

For Scripture says God is faithful, though we are faithless. And here the good Lord says you need to have the same faith. God has freely forgiven us, and now God’s expectation is that we should do the same. And understanding the weight of that call, the disciples rightly ask the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 

3. This is how you have mountain-moving faith.  

Now the good Lord teaches us how we are to understanding mountain-moving faith. Let us review Luke 17:6-10. 

The Lord says that if you have faith even as a mustard seed, you could say to a tree, “be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,” And it would obey you. This shows us that God’s expectation is that we should live by faith. But the Lord does not stop there. He immediately continues and explains how this faith is to be understood and exercised. 

The Lord gives an illustration. He speaks of a servant who has spent the day working-plowing the field or tending the sheep. When that servant returns home after completing his work, will the master say, “Sit down and eat”? No. The servant has only done what was required of him. Instead, the master says, “Prepare my supper, and afterward you shall eat.” 

The Lord is teaching us something very foundational. We are unprofitable servants. We bring nothing to the Kingdom of God. The Lord does not need us to expand His kingdom. He is not dependent on our strength, our effort, or our faithfulness.  

What the Lord desires is a broken and contrite spirit. He is looking for the poor in spirit. He is looking for the weak and the needy-those who are thankful that they have been redeemed and are now allowed to stand in the Master’s presence. 

The servant is not working for money, for he is not a paid servant, he is a slave to the one who owns him.  

Consider this: your sin has already been forgiven. You have already received the reward. And because you have received forgiveness, you are now called to live a Christlike life.  

What is the reward? It is the forgiveness of your sins so that you may be with Christ. 

If you, who have been forgiven, refuse to forgive another, the Lord says that you do not have faith. Faith in what? Not faith in yourself, but faith in God. In that moment, you are not trusting that God’s work on the cross is sufficient. You believe that something more must be done-something you must add, something you must work out on your own. 

And because of that, forgiveness is withheld-not because Christ has not forgiven you, but because you are not living in faith in what He has already done. 

Let us go to the Gospel of Mark to get more understanding on sin-forgiveness of sin- which is equated to mountain-moving faith.  

4. Mark 11:25-26 | Faith in God, the Fig Tree, and Forgiveness.  

We have already examined Mark 11:22-24, where the Lord teaches that mountain-moving faith is faith in God, and that whatever is asked in faith, without doubt, will be received.  

Now let us read what immediately follows.  

Mark 11:25| And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 

Mark 11:26| But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.  

Here is the Lord’s clarification. This is the true understanding of asking and believing that you receive. In faith, you ask for forgiveness, knowing that God will forgive your sins. 

And just as in the Gospel of Luke, Christ adds that if we do not extend forgiveness to those who have wronged us, it reveals that we do not truly believe that God can forgive our sins. 

This is mountain-moving faith: believing that God will forgive your sins when you repent and ask for forgiveness. And God says that this faith will show itself. If you have truly repented, you will truly forgive. You will live as a Christlike witness.  

The reason we struggle to live Christlike lives is not because we lack effort, but because we struggle to believe that our sins are truly forgiven. We believe that we must still work, still prove ourselves, still make ourselves more righteous before God. 

So the Lord asks the question: Do you believe? Do you have faith? 

If you believe that Christ’s blood truly cleanses you from all sin, that is mountain-moving faith. 

8. Matthew 17 – the Right Understanding. 

In Matthew 17, Christ points out two reasons why the demon could not be cast out. The first is unbelief, and the second is wicked generation. 

What is the unbelief that Christ is speaking about? It is unbelief in Him as the Messiah. The Messiah had come to cleanse us from our sins. And if a person believes this, and if they have received His Spirit, then they possess the faith in God-the faith that leads to repentance and forgiveness. 

Understand this: the only way a person can become a righteous generation is by being cleansed by the blood of Christ. 

So what was standing between them and the casting out of the demon? It is unbelief. Their sin still rested with them, because they had not believed in Christ. For they were not there in the mount of transfiguration. 

This is why Christ asks the question-how long shall I be with You? For He has already proclaimed that He is the Messiah, the One who will be given for the forgiveness of sin of all. 

This is why Christ had to leave. Without His Spirit, we would continue to live in ignorance. But now, through the power of Christ and through His blood, our sins are forgiven, and by His Spirit we are enabled to live in repentance and faith. 

Mark 16:17| And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.  

If this is the understanding then there should not be any sick any death, and more importantly the disciples should not have died. But this is not our study, so let us come back to the mountain-moving faith and get the fullness of understanding.  

9. The Understanding the Mountain and the Tree.  

Now we must understand why the Lord chose the images of a mountain and a tree to explain the power of faith. 

The Lord says that if you speak to a mountain, it will move. He also says that if you speak to a tree, it will be uprooted and planted elsewhere. Why would Christ use these particular images? What was His expectation when He chose them? 

1. Trees and Sin.  

The good Lord’s expectation was that we would know our Old Testament. Throughout the Old Testament, Scripture repeatedly uses the image of a tree to speak of sin, pride, and something that has taken deep root. 

In Psalm 37:35-36, and again in Psalm 52 Scripture compares the wicked-those who live in sin-to a tree that has taken deep root. Yet the passage goes on to say that though it appears firmly established, it suddenly passes away and is no more.  

In Isaiah 2:13, and again in Ezekiel 31, the Lord uses tree imagery to describe human pride and sin that has grown tall and rooted. In the dream of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4, the Lord again uses a great tree to represent wickedness, evil, and pride that must be brought low. 

The same imagery is used by John the Baptist in Matthew 3:10, where he says that every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down. 

At the same time, Scripture also uses the imagery of tree positively. The righteous are compared to a tree planted by the rivers of water-rooted in God’s word and bearing fruit in season.  

When the Lord says that by faith a tree can be uprooted and planted elsewhere, we must understand this spiritually. The only way a person turns from sin to God is through repentance-a gift which God has already provided you. 

And you exercise it by faith.  

This tree may represent sin that has taken deep root-years of unbelief, pride, and rebellion. Yet the Lord says that all it takes is faith like a mustard seed for this tree to be uprooted.  

Through the blood of Christ, what has been deeply rooted in sin can be removed and planted by rivers of water, so that it may bear fruit in its season. 

2. Mountains as Sin and Separation.  

The Lord uses the same understanding when He speaks about mountains. Through the Old Testament, mountains and high places are repeatedly associated with rebellion and sin among the people of Israel. 

In Isaiah 40:4, Scripture declares that every mountain and hill that stands in the way will be made low. This is a Messianic promise- that every obstacle preventing righteousness will be removed at the coming of the Messiah. 

This is the promise Christ is reminding His disciples of. The mountain of sin can now be removed, because He has come. And He has given us faith in Christ-faith in God-to remove it. 

In the book of Zechariah, we read Satan standing before the Lord and pointing out the sin of the people, the Lord, the righteous Judge, He needs to judge His people.  

But the Lord says in Zechariah 4:6-7, that this mountain-this sin, this obstacle-will be removed, ‘not by might, not by power, by by My Spirit says the Lord.” 

This is what happened when Christ came. This is what the good Lord is teaching us as mountain-moving faith. The mountain has been removed. There is no longer an obstacle between you and God. 

If sin is your enemy, then let it be done according to your faith. Use your mountain-moving faith and approach the Lord, for He will forgive, and He will remove the temptation when you fall at His feet. 

You may gain many things in this world by your own hands. But, my dear brother and sister, to draw near to the Lord you need mountain-moving faith0because you cannot do this by your own strength. 

And now Christ has done this by His own blood. You have mountain-moving faith, because sin-the mountain that stained you- has been removed. You can now be white as snow by the power of Christ and by His faith working in you. 

Do not belittle the power of this faith by trying to speak to your earthly problems. The blood of Christ was poured out to cleanse you, so that you may stand before Him. 

Let the power of His blood lead you into this new year. Know that you have been washed by His blood.  

Nothing can separate you from the love of God-not angels, not any created thing, not even death itself. 

Let this year be a revelation of who Christ is in your life, as you live your faith testifying Christ seeking Him and Him alone. Let this mountain-moving faith draw you neared to God so that you may walk in His mercy, waiting for His glorious coming.  

10. Closing Prayer.  

Father, we come before You in the name of Your Son Jesus Christ.  

We thank You that You are Faithful-faithful yesterday, faithful today, and faithful forever. As we stand at the beginning of this new year. We do not place our confidence in what we can do, but in what you have already done. 

Lord, we confess that the greatest mountain You have removed is not found in our circumstances, but in our sin. We thank You that by the blood of Christ ever barrier that stood before us and You have been removed. 

We thank You Lord that we now have access. 

We place this year, our lives, and our faith into Your hands-knowing that You are able to keep us, to lead us, and to present us faultless before Your Prescence with exceeding joy. Amen. 

In Christ – Noel Kingsley 

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