Author: drthomasclothier

“Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, for Jesus often met there with his disciples. So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. So he asked them again, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go.” This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken: “Of those whom you gave me I have lost not one.” (John 18:2-9)

God is in control. How many times have you heard that statement? How many times have you either heard, or read, me either saying or writing that statement as a phrase expressing a significant biblical truth?

God is in control is a true statement evidenced throughout the Scriptures. It summarizes the doctrine known as the sovereignty of God. The sovereignty of God not only teaches that God is the supreme authority but also that He is in complete control of all which occurs. Absolutely nothing happens beyond His authority and sovereign will.

Concurrent with God’s sovereignty are His incommunicable attributes. You know what a communicable disease is? It is an illness that may and can be passed or shared with another person. There are some attributes which God possesses that human beings share to a lesser degree. These so-called communicable attributes include love, joy, peace, and long-suffering, for example (Galatians 5:22-23).

However, incommunicable attributes are those qualities which God alone possesses. These include His all-powerfulness (omnipotence), all-knowingness (omniscience), all-presence (omnipresence) and that He never changes (immutability).

God’s omniscience is displayed in today’s text. Jesus evidences, and therefore is one who possesses, this attribute. He knows all that is going to happen to Him in the unfolding hours up to and including His crucifixion and resurrection. Since omniscience is an attribute only God can possess, and Jesus displays this attribute, we can correctly conclude that Jesus is God. In fact, if you recall this is the entire point of John’s gospel (John 20:30-31). Jesus is God. Jesus is the great I Am.

Dr. John MacArthur explains that, “This “band of soldiers” refers to a cohort of Roman troops. A full cohort could have as many as one thousand men. Normally, however, a cohort consisted of six hundred men, but could sometimes refer to as little as two hundred. Though they were regularly kept at Caesarea, Roman auxiliary troops were brought into Jerusalem (to the Antonia Fortress near the temple) during feast days for added security (in order to ensure against mob violence or rebellion because of the large population that filled Jerusalem). The second group designated as “officers” refers to temple police, who were the primary arresting officers since Jesus’ destination after the arrest was to be brought before the high priest (vv. 12–14). They came ready for resistance from Jesus and his followers (“weapons”).

When the confrontation occurred, Jesus said, “Whom do you seek?” Their answer was “Jesus of Nazareth.”  In other words, Jesus was forcing the group of soldiers, officers and religious leaders to publicly acknowledge they had come to arrest only Jesus and not the disciples who were with Him. In fulfillment of John 6:39, Jesus would lose none of His followers who the Father had given Him.

It is also interesting to note that when Jesus invoked the familiar “I Am” statement when He said “I Am He,” the soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees all drew back and fell to the ground. They were struck not only by the majesty of Jesus’ words but also His person (Isaiah 6:1-8; Luke 5:1-8; Revelation 1:12-20).

While the circumstances seem to indicate that Jesus is a victim of said circumstances, nothing is further from the truth. He is not only aware of the circumstances of what is happening and what will happen, but He is also sovereignly in control of all that would happen.

What was true then regarding His fulfillment of the Father’s will is also true regarding His will for our lives. He is not only aware of what is going to occur in our lives, but He is in sovereign control of all which occurs. This is a wonderful and comforting doctrine of biblical truth. It provides great confidence when we face circumstances beyond our immediate control. Those circumstances are never out of God’s control.

Take heart, take courage and take comfort in God’s sovereign control.

May God’s truth and grace reside here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

 

“When Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered.” (John 18:1)

In the summer of 2011 I traveled to the Holy Land and spent close to two weeks in Israel. It was a truly memorable trip of not only sightseeing but understanding the biblical significance of all the sights which were seen.

I was struck by the barren wilderness which is Judea in contrast with the lush, green and fertile area surrounding the Sea of Galilee. Our tour group spent several hours actually on the Sea of Galilee and I wondered aloud what it must have been like for Jesus and the disciples to be on the lake during the violent storm, which Jesus eventually stilled (Mark 4:35-41).

Our group visited the cities of Bethlehem, Nazareth and Jerusalem. One of the most interesting excursions was visiting Masada and the Dead Sea.

With respect to today’s text, our group also ventured into the Kidron Valley which descends to the Eastern Wall of the Old City of Jerusalem where the sealed Eastern Gate remains visible. The Kidron Valley consists of a deep, dark ravine, to the northeast of Jerusalem, through which flowed a small storm brook or winter torrent, and which in summer dries up. In my mind I could envision Jesus and the disciples leaving the upper room where they had observed the Passover Meal and then venturing to the Garden of Gethsemane.

The Garden of Gethsemane is the garden which John makes reference. The Tyndale Bible Dictionary describes Gethsemane as follows.

“Gethsemane is the place to which Jesus and his disciples walked after their Last Supper together in the upper room. In Gethsemane, Jesus underwent a great inner struggle, as he realized the hour of his betrayal was at hand (Mt 26:36–56; Mk 14:32–50; Lk 22:39–53).”

“The name Gethsemane, used only in the Gospels of Matthew (26:36) and Mark (14:32), means “oil press,” suggesting the presence of an olive grove. The use of the Greek word “place” in the Gospel accounts indicates that Gethsemane was an enclosed piece of ground. It may be that the grove was privately owned and that Jesus and his disciples had special permission to enter.”

“Though the Gospels of Luke and John do not mention the word Gethsemane, they both record Jesus’ agony before his betrayal. Luke says the location was on the “Mount of Olives” (Lk 22:39). John describes the area as “across the Kidron Valley” (John 18:1). John’s is the only Gospel to call the spot a garden.”

“From those accounts it is also evident that Jesus and his disciples gathered in Gethsemane often for fellowship and prayer (Lk 22:39; John 18:2). The Gospel narratives indicate that the garden was large enough for the group to separate into different parts of it.”

It is interesting to note that John’s Gospel makes no record of Jesus’ prayer to the Father concerning the “cup” of which Jesus would partake on behalf of sinners. The cup refers to the wrath of God towards sin and the sinner. Jesus’ verbal submission to the Father’s will while in the garden is not documented as it is in the other three gospels. Perhaps this is because John records Jesus’ resolute prayer of submission while He was still in the upper room (John 17).

As we will witness in John’s Gospel. Jesus’ actions display a willingness to do the Father’s will. Jesus not only prayed to do the Father’s will on behalf of sinners. Jesus fulfilled the Father’s will on behalf of sinners.

There is no way believers will, or could, ever be called by God the Father to accomplish what only God the Son could. However, God does call us to do His will even when it is difficult. It may concern a relationship, a job, a change in one’s life or even the death of a loved one.

One of Bill Gaither’s most poignant songs is entitled Have You Had a Gethsemane. Meditate upon the lyrics and then go to God with a resolute will to carry out His will.

In the garden He went to pray 
when it seemed hope was gone.
He prayed with a broken heart.
And he prayed all alone.

Have you had a Gethsemane?
Have you prayed in despair?
In the dark of those weary hours
did the Lord meet you there?

Have you had a Gethsemane?
Have you prayed the night through?
Have you shed tears in agony
when no hope was in you?

Have you prayed, “If it is thy will
may this cup pass from me?
But if it’s your will, dear Lord,
I will bear it for thee?”

May God’s truth and grace reside here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

“O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:25-26)

John the Apostle’s inspired account of Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer concludes in vs. 25-26 of John 17. In these two verses, we observe the words know and known are repeatedly used. Let’s take time today to understand what Jesus was praying by using these words.

The word “know” (γινώσκω; ginosko) is the first word I ever learned from the Greek language. It means not only to have knowledge or to possess information but also to understand the information one possesses.

Jesus addressed God the Father as righteous. The word righteous (δίκαιος; dikaios) means proper and just. Jesus said in His prayer that God the Father was just, proper and righteous: not only in what He does but also in who He is. In this context, Jesus said that He understood or knew that Father was righteous, just and proper.

However, this is not how the world understands God. The fallen and rebellious world hates God and His righteousness. The world wants to do what it wants to do regardless of how unrighteous its behavior is in relationship to God. I John 2:15-16 says, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.”

In fact, the world hates God so much that it does whatever it can to suppress the truth of God’s righteous existence. How foolish it is to try and suppress the existence of a righteous person who in large measure the world denies even exists. On the contrary, the passion for which the world hates God is an evidence of His existence. Why be opposed to someone who doesn’t exist? Unless, of course, He indeed does exist. Then the hatred makes sense.

Romans 1:18-21 says, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

When a person truly knows God, by grace alone, through faith alone in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone, that individual not only comes to a knowledge and understanding of God but also begins to love God. The believer’s love and understanding of God will evidence itself by an obedience to God’s commandments (John 14:15; I John 5:1-3). This love and affection for God is not just shown by them but it is also within them, by the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.

John Calvin writes, “It is an invaluable privilege of faith that we know that Christ was loved by the Father on our account, that we might be made partakers of the same love and might enjoy it forever.”

To know and love God is to understand that He first knew and loved us (I John 4:7-11). Therefore, our loving response to Him is because of His initiating love for us. Our love for the Righteous One is because of His love for a sinful one.

Romans 11:33 says, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!”

May God’s truth and grace reside here.

Soli de Gloria!

“Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.” (John 17:24)

As I am writing this devotional (December 18), I am coming down from the emotional and spiritual high from last evening’s memorial and celebration service in loving memory of my pastor and mentor Rev. William C. “Billy” Walker. What a praise gathering it truly was filled with touching and humorous testimonials, gospel music, spirit filled preaching and a church sanctuary filled with not only the wonderful presence of God’s people but also the holy presence God Himself. I, along with everyone else in attendance, did not want the evening to conclude.

Of the many memories I have of Billy was when he would lead in singing. It would either be as the pastor of Calvary Baptist Church of Southgate , MI or at Hiawatha Youth Camp where he served as camp director. One of the hymns I recall as being a favorite of his was Fanny Crosby’s Blessed Assurance. When we would begin singing the chorus, he would slow down the tempo so that we would sing each word measured and prolonged.

Today’s text from John 17:24 reminds me of the first stanza of that hymn. It reads:

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
O what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

Jesus prayed to God the Father that all those who the Father had given to Him (John 6:35-66) would not only be with Him but would also see His glory. This is the glory of the only begotten Son of God, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). This glory is not only the substantive and holy character of God but also the brightness of His holiness which Jesus possessed before the universe began.

The memorial service on Monday, December 17 was a foretaste of glory divine, as is our personal salvation from God the Father by grace alone, through faith alone in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone. The glory Jesus spoke of is the glory my pastor, mentor and friend is now in the presence of. It is also the blessed and assured promise that each believer possesses in Jesus Christ.

You may think of this hymn today as you go about your daily chores and responsibilities. You may even hum or sing it to yourself. Remember to hold out the words of the chorus.

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
O what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood

Perfect submission, all is at rest
I in my Savior am happy and blessed
Watching and waiting, looking above
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love

This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long

May God’s truth and grace reside here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, “I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.” (John 17:20-23).

John 17:20 marks a significant transition in the content and intent of Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer. While initially His prayer was specifically directed to His disciples who were present with Him in the upper room, and by implication to all future disciples, in John 17:20 Jesus specifically refers to all those who would believe in Him. This implicates all those converted by the Holy Spirit, through the preaching of the Gospel, since the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). It includes you and me.

Jesus’ request to God the Father, on behalf of all future disciples, was the same as it was for those present with Him on the night in which He prayed His prayer. That we would also be sanctified by the word unto personal holiness and a commitment to share the Gospel thus fulfilling the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20).

There has been some confusion over the meaning of the phrase “that they may be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you.” It is most frequently used as a plea for church unity in practice when it should be understood as a prayer for the historical unity we all share in the Holy Spirit in principle by virtue of the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2).

All true believers in Christ are in union with Christ. As such, they are not only in union with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, but also with every other true believer in Christ. This is one of the evidences for the truth of biblical Christianity that people from all walks of life, social-economic strata, or political persuasions, are one in Christ.

Dr. John Walvoord writes, “All believers belong to the one body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13) and their spiritual unity is to be manifest in the way they live. The unity Christ desires for His church is the same kind of unity the Son has with the Father: just as You are in Me and I am in You (cf. John 10:38; 17:11, 23). The Father did His works through the Son and the Son always did what pleased the Father (5:30; 8:29). This spiritual unity is to be patterned in the church.”

The glory which Christ gives all true believers is the substantive character of God now indwelt within them by the Holy Spirit and by a corresponding new nature in Christ.

2 Corinthians 3:18 says, “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

John Calvin writes, “Our happiness lies in having the image of God restored and formed anew in us, which was defaced by sin. Christ is not only the lively image of God, in so far as He is the eternal Word of God, but even on His human nature, which He has in common with us, the likeness of the glory of the Father has been engraved so as to form His members to the resemblance of it.”

May the glory of God, His substantive character, be seen in each of us who call Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

May God’s truth and grace reside here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

“Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.” (John 17:17-19)

God the Father’s will to send God the Son to the world mirrors God the Son’s, Jesus Christ, will to send His disciples into the same fallen and sinful world. The word “send” comes from the Greek word ἀπέστειλας (apesteilas). It is the word from which we derive our English word apostle. It means to send someone out with a message that must be communicated. The message that must be communicated is the Gospel.

Jesus also communicated that for the sake of His disciples, He consecrated Himself. To consecrate (ἁγιάζω; agiazo) means to dedicate oneself to a task which has been assigned. The task for which Jesus was consecrated to was His substitutionary death, burial and resurrection on behalf of all true believers.

Dr. John Walvoord writes, “For the benefit of the disciples, Jesus sanctified Himself. In what sense did Jesus need to sanctify Himself? Was He not already set apart to God and distinct from the world? Yes, but this sanctification refers to His being separated and dedicated to His death. And the purpose of His death was that they too may be truly sanctified. The words “truly sanctified” are literally “sanctified in truth.” This probably means that God’s truth is the means of sanctification (cf. comments on v. 17). The purpose of the death of Christ is to dedicate or separate believers to God and His program.”

Jesus’ consecration to the task God the Father gave Him is the same consecration that we are called to make. All true disciples of Jesus are called to consecrate, dedicate or sanctify, themselves to the task for which Jesus has given them. The task at hand is found in Matthew 18:19-20. It is known as the Great Commission.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

This is our mission: to our families, friends and those who God brings into our lives. The calling of Christ is the same calling given to each disciple. We are held to a commission and to God’s holy command.

John Calvin comments, “It is because He (Jesus) consecrated Himself to the Father that His holiness might come to us; for as the blessing of the first-fruits is spread over the whole harvest so the Spirit of God cleanses us by the holiness of Christ and makes us partakers of it.”

Are you daily consecrating yourself to personal holiness and faithful communication of the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Refresh your commitment to God’s call in your life each day.

May God’s truth and grace reside here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

“Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.” (John 17:17)

The Word of God is filled with significant words. Particularly important are those words which specifically direct us to the doctrine of salvation. These words include regeneration, justification, propitiation, redemption, reconciliation, and adoption. Also included in this list is the word sanctification.

Sanctification is the devoting or setting apart of anything to the worship or service of God. It may include the separation of utensils, buildings, or places from everyday secular uses for exclusive dedication to holy or sacred use. It also includes the separation of individuals to the worship or service of God.

Jesus specifically spoke of sanctification in His High Priestly Prayer. He prayed to God the Father that He would sanctify the disciples. The verb sanctify (ἁγίασον; hagiason) means to make holy and to dedicate.

As one Bible dictionary explains “sanctification involves more than a mere moral reformation of character, brought about by the power of the truth: it is the work of the Holy Spirit bringing the whole nature more and more under the influences of the new gracious principles implanted in the soul in regeneration. In other words, sanctification is the carrying on to perfection the work begun in regeneration, and it extends to the whole man (Rom. 6:13; 2 Cor. 4:6; Col. 3:10; 1 John 4:7; 1 Cor. 6:19).”

How are the disciples of Jesus to be sanctified? Jesus said “in the truth.” Truth (ἀληθείᾳ; aletheia) is that information which corresponds to reality. Notice that Jesus did not pray “in truth” but rather “in the truth.” Jesus had a particular source of truth in mind.

Jesus identifies the truth He had in mind in His next statement: “your word is truth.” The Word of God is the truth which sanctifies the believer resulting in increasing holiness. More than containing God’s truth, God’s Word “is” truth. It presently and actively exists as the truth of God.

Dr. John MacArthur writes, “Sanctification. This verb also occurs in John’s Gospel at v. 19 and 10:36. The idea of sanctification is the setting apart of something for a particular use. Accordingly, believers are set apart to serve the Lord exclusively so that the believer desires to obey God’s commands and walk in holiness (Lev. 11:44–45; 1 Pet. 1:16). Sanctification is accomplished by means of the truth, which is the revelation that the Son gave regarding all that the Father commanded him to communicate and is now contained in the Scriptures left by the apostles. Cf. Eph. 5:26; 2 Thess. 2:13; James 1:21; 1 Pet. 1:22–23.

I Peter 1:14-16 says, “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

As Bible teacher Robert Rothwell concludes, “We are to pray for ourselves and for others that God would sanctify us in the truth of His Word (v. 17). God sets us apart from the world by making us more like Him, and He makes us more like Him by transforming us according to the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:1–2). As we read Scripture, hear Scripture preached, study Scripture, and meditate on Scripture’s precepts, we learn to think God’s thoughts after Him. We begin to reflect His character more and more. We are equipped to go into the world as Jesus did, proclaiming the truth without compromise and calling people to repentance and faith.”

May each of us continue in this journey of sanctification, to the glory and praise of God (2 Peter 3:18).

May biblical truth and God’s grace reside here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

“I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” (John 17:14-16)

Jesus often spoke of the world’s hatred for His disciples (John 15:18-25) So does the New Testament (I John 3:13-15). The fallen and sinful world system of thought and behavior hates God and is in rebellion against Him. Consequently, the world hates Jesus’ disciples. The world hates us. Always has, always will.

Jesus then prayed something quite interesting. He prayed, “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.” When the Holy Spirit brings a sinner to faith in Christ resulting in conversion through the preaching of the gospel, the sinner does not immediately go to heaven. Rather, all true believers remain on earth to accomplish the mission and task God has given to each one to accomplish.

While on earth, believers become targets for the evil one: the devil (Job 1-2). Jesus prayed that God the Father would protect us from the devil. No that we would immediately be transferred to our heavenly home. What a precious prayer by our Lord.

Dr. John MacArthur explains, “The reference here refers to protection from Satan and all the wicked forces following him (Matt. 6:13; 1 John 2:13–14; 3:12; 5:18–19). Though Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was the defeat of Satan, he is still loose and orchestrating his evil system against believers. He seeks to destroy believers (1 Pet. 5:8), as with Job and Peter (Luke 22:31–32), and in general (Eph. 6:12), but God is their strong protector (John 12:31; 16:11; cf. Ps. 27:1–3; 2 Cor. 4:4; Jude 24–25).”

John Calvin writes, “He (Jesus) shows in what the safety of believers consists; not that they are free from every annoyance, and live in luxury and at their ease. But that, in the midst of dangers they continue to be safe through the assistance of God.”

Jesus also made a statement at this point in His prayer that we might overlook. I know I have until recently. The statement is “I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.”

The repeated phrase “I am not of the world” is similar in structure to Jesus’ previous I AM statements which the Apostle John records. The first was “I am the Bread of Life” (John 6:35). The second was “I am the Light of the World” (John 8:12). The third was “I am the door of the sheep” (John 10:7-9). The fourth was “I am the good Shepherd (John 10:11-16). The fifth was “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25-26. The sixth was “I am the way, the truth and the life (John 14:1-6). Again, Jesus used the significant phrase “I Am” (ἐγώ εἰμί; ego eimi) to indicate that He presently and actively exists as Yahweh Incarnate.

However, in John 17:14 the negative adverb “not” is conspicuously added to Jesus’ I AM statement. In the most emphatic of declarations, Jesus declared in His prayer that He in no way presently and actively exists as belonging to the fallen world system. Jesus did not belong, and never will, to any system of thought and behavior which is in rebellion to God the Father, God the Holy Spirit and/or Himself.

The implication of Jesus’ statement is huge. Believers in Christ must never presume to think, believe or behave in a way that is disobedient to the Word of God and justify such thinking, believing and behaving as in some way approved and sanctioned by Jesus. Jesus will never lead any of His disciples, or the unconverted for that matter, to disobey the revealed Word of God. This is because Jesus is not of the world. It is also because the written Word of God is the revelation of the person and work of not only God the Father and God the Holy Spirit, but also God the Son.

Take some time today while in the midst of your daily responsibilities to thank God that He is your strong protector. He always will be. Thank Him also that He is not of the world. He never will be.

May truth and grace reside here.

Soli deo Gloria!