 Last week, we were looking at the option of salivation, so we will continue that. We looked at salivation and justification. So today we will also touch on redemptive and the other one which would be salivation. So last time we had talked about justification and we saw that the one offering which Jesus Christ offered, that one sacrifice which he made was sufficient to forgive the sins of all the people who were in the past and also all the sins of the people who would come in the future. So therefore we can say with confidence that when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, our past sins, our present sins and even our future sins are all automatically forgiven. They're all washed away. So that is justification that one sacrifice of Jesus was enough to forgive the sins of all the people who would come later in the future. People who are not even born yet. So even our sins, all the sins which we would commit in our lifetimes, all of those sins were covered by Jesus at the cross. So having understood this, we'll ask the question, does this mean that because all my sins are forgiven, shall I continue to live in sin? Shall I take advantage of what God has done for me? And the answer to that was no, where Paul says, because we have now died to sin, why on earth would we even want to continue in sin? So that's the argument which Paul raises. So then we went on to look at the example of Deemus who is generally presented as a person who might have lost his salvation. But then we do not have enough proof because in 2 Timothy 4-10, it simply says that Deemus loved the world. He deserted Paul and stopped doing ministry work and he went to Thessalonica. So we don't really know whether he repented after that, whether he came back to the Lord Jesus. So it may have been a simple case of backsliding. However, we do find three passages in scripture which issue a warning, a very clear warning that a believer may end up not entering the kingdom of God. So we will look at just those three passages. They are kept over there as a warning to us. So we cannot just ignore these passages. So the chances are that the Holy will not allow anyone to progress to that stage where they would actually go back into the world. Maybe the Lord would not allow that to happen. We do not know but we have to accept the clear fact that these three passages talk about the danger of a believer not really making it into heaven. So the first passage would be in 2 Peter chapter 2 verses 17-22. 2 Peter 2, 17-22. Yeah, I think maybe it would be good if we could read all of those verses. So yes, it's a slightly longer passage. But if we could have someone read out for us, 2 Peter 2, 17-22. These are wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest for whom is deserved the blackness of darkness forever. For when they speak great swelling, words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption for by whom a person is overcome. By him also he is brought into bondage. For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome. The later end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than having known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb, a dog returns to its own vomit and a soul having washed her, wallowing in the mire. Yes, so if you notice here, it's talking about people who have chosen to turn their back on the Gospel which was taught to them. It says here in 2 Peter chapter 2 verse 17, blackest darkness is reserved for them. So this looks as though these people will not be enjoying God's presence in heaven. If you look further in verse 19, it says they promise freedom to people through their false teachings. But it says they themselves are slaves of depravity. So they have chosen to place themselves under the master sin. They are no longer under their master Jesus rather now they have gone back to their old master sin. It goes on to say in verse 20, if they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome. They are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. So these are people who have known the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in a personal capacity. But after having known this, after having escaped the corruption of the world, these people chose to return back and become entangled in the world. And so now they will be overcome by the world. And it goes on to say in verse 21, it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness. So they knew the way of righteousness. These are believers who actually were in the faith. And now because they have gone away, deliberately it's a choice which they have made and God will never overrule anyone's free will. Therefore it says that now blackest darkness is reserved for them. So this passage is a warning to people who may choose to turn their back on the way of righteousness and go back into the world. So we cannot just take this warning lightly. We should keep it in mind that there are people for whom blackest darkness is reserved even though they once knew the way of righteousness. Even though it says in verse 20 that they knew the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and in fact they had in fact escaped the corruption of the world. But now they have gone back to it. So yeah, go ahead. On verse 21, it says having turned from the Holy Commandment delivered to them. So what does that in reference to? The Holy Command would be to hold on to the Lord and walk in his steps because it says only those who will take up their cross and follow me daily, they are the ones who are my disciples. So there is a command that we should take up our cross and follow the Lord daily. And if we choose not to do that, then a person may actually end up going back into the world and become entangled it and be overcome by it. So the command would be that yes, a true disciple is only that person who has made a commitment to take up their cross and follow the Lord daily. So there would be instances where they may sin, there would be instances where they may even backslide but they are still responding to the convicting of the Holy Spirit. And so there's a chance that they will come back to the Lord because they are still open in their heart to the convicting work of the Holy Spirit. So the hope is that one day they will return back to him. So anyone who has completely hardened their heart to the convicting work of the Holy Spirit and have chosen to go back into the world and become entangled by it, they will finally be overcome by it. So that is one passage which kind of issues a warning. Let's look at the other two Hebrew passages. Hebrews chapter 6 verses 4 to 8, if someone could read out Hebrews 6, 4 to 8. Since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God and put him to an open shame. For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God. But if it bears thorns and priors, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned. So here in this passage, the writer refers to creation itself as an example. He says, what do you do with a crop which refuses to bear any fruit? No, ultimately you would wait a number of years and that crop is still not yielding any kind of fruit. Then you would obviously burn it because it is worthless. It says in verse 8, but land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. So this land is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned. So this imagery, this example is applied to believers and it says in verse 4, it is impossible for those who have once been enlightened. They have been enlightened by the Gospel. They heard it, they understood it, they received it and they were enlightened. So they tasted the heavenly gift of salvation, of being redeemed from their sins, of being declared justified. So this is a heavenly gift which they actually tasted. They even shared in the Holy Spirit because we are told that the Holy Spirit Himself is given to us as a guarantee of the heavenly things which will come in the future. So they have even shared in the Holy Spirit and they have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age. So seated in the heavenly place with Christ, they have enjoyed the power that comes with being in union with Christ. They have enjoyed the goodness of the word of God. And after having known Him in this personal way, they made a conscious choice to fall away. So it says that such people cannot be brought back to repentance. So here we have a passage which is again issuing a warning saying that a believer who has experienced all of this, tasted the heavenly gift, shared in the Holy Spirit and then deliberately makes a choice to say, no, I do not want Jesus to be my master. I think I will go and submit myself to my old master's sin. So if they take that decision, there is no repentance left for them because it's a choice which they made after having enjoyed Jesus, after having enjoyed the fellowship and then they consciously decided, no, I think I enjoy sin more. I enjoy wealth more and so they chose to go back into the world. The third passage which we generally refer to would be Hebrews chapter 10 verses 26 and 27. Hebrews 10, 26 and 27 please. Hebrews chapter 10 verse 26, for if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins. Verse 27, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment and theory and Ignatian which will deliver the adversaries. Yeah, so in the NIV they've tried to bring out the continuous tense. It's a present continuous tense where it doesn't just say if we sin, it says if we deliberately keep on sinning. So it's like a continuous present tense. So if we have this attitude of habitually continuing to live in sin, even though we have been brought into the knowledge of the truth, if we are in that state, then it says no sacrifice for sins is left in the sense that atoning work of Jesus Christ, that atoning sacrifice no longer will apply to that person. So even though Jesus made that propitiatory sacrifice as a result of which God's anger was turned away and all that person's past, present and future sins were forgiven. Now, because this person has not taken advantage of this new life which has been given to him because he has made a choice and said, no, I don't really want to live in this new living way. I would rather continue to live the way I lived earlier. So because they have made that conscious choice, this propitiatory sacrifice of Jesus will no longer apply to them. So even though they were given this free offer of having their past, present and future sins being completely wiped out, they have chosen to reject that. So now this sacrifice of Jesus will no longer apply to them. What will apply to them? Verse 27 says, only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire is now left to such people. So we would not just disregard these three Bible passages. We would admit that these passages exist in the Bible. They are there and they have been placed over there as a warning to us. So if there was no real danger of people risking losing their salvation, these passages would not even have been mentioned. They have been mentioned here as a warning to us believers to stay on guard, to not take advantage, negative advantage of the justification which has been given to us, but to be grateful for this privilege of having even our future sins wiped away. So now we can just stay in God's presence and work towards pleasing Him more and more, work towards sanctifying ourselves more and more. God is never going to be angry with us. He is never going to hate us. We are in that blessed position. An amazing privilege has been given to us. So those who at least catch a glimpse of that, understand that and feel grateful. And even though they may backslide again and again, they have the desire in their heart to do better, to somehow show their appreciation to the Lord and live a better life. All such people, the Lord would never reject them. He would give them a thousand and one opportunities. So we can have the assurance that Jesus will help us to change, to become what He has planned for us to be. So we have that assurance, but if someone completely hardens their heart and says, No, I do not even want this new life, then yes, they still would have the free will to go back into the world. So let's look at these passages which talk about how Jesus makes sure that we have the ability to stay in Him. Unless we really exercise our free will and say, No, I do not want to have the Lord Jesus as my master anymore. If we still have the desire to continue being under Him, and it's only because of our lack of renewing of the mind, because of which we are going on falling into sin, but that desire to follow Him is still there. Then these are the promises which God makes to us. John chapter 10 verses 27 and 28. If someone could read out John 10, 27 and 28. John chapter 10 verse 27. My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me. Verse 28. And I give them eternal life and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. And then verse 29. Verse 29. My father who has given them to me is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them out of my father's hand. Okay, so sheep have the ability to hear the voice of the master. So every believer, however immature they may be in faith, they will feel the convicting of the Holy Spirit within. So the sheep have the ability to hear the master's voice and they make a choice to follow Him. So all such people who continue to respond to His voice, all such people are safe in His hands because Jesus says over here, no one will snatch them out of my hand. In fact, He goes on to say, my father who has given them to me is greater than all. So He is greater than He who is in the world. So even though Satan may try to keep that believer in defeat, in failure, the father who is greater than the one who is in the world, He will continue His divine work in that person. So it is not easy for the evil one to snatch believers out of Jesus' hand and out of the father's hand. So this is an assurance that we have. But from our side as His sheep, we are required to start responding to His voice at some point of time. So the Lord is very patient. He will wait. He will give us a billion opportunities. So He does not write us off very easily. That is not what the Lord does. So Philippians 1.6 is also very encouraging. This is what we see in Philippians 1.6, if someone could read out. Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. So this is an assurance that we can hold on to, that He who began a good work in us will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. So God has this purpose for each one of us, that He wants to finish the work which He has started. So if we can cooperate from our sides, then I know the Lord will complete this work before the second coming takes place. And then of course we also have 1 Thessalonians 5, 23 to 24, which is more like a wish which Paul is praying over the Thessalonian believers. But if we could read out that 1 Thessalonians 5, 23 to 24. 1 Thessalonians 5, 23. Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely. And may your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 24, He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. So it says here, the one who calls you is faithful. He will do it. He will sanctify you through and through. So these are all promises and there are many, many more. All of these promises indicate that yes, the Lord wants to complete the work which He has started in us. He has called us, we responded to His invitation. Now we are under His covering and yes, He wants to keep doing that work of sanctification in us so that we become more and more holy, more and more set apart and He's able to make us more into the image of Jesus Christ. So we have this privilege, which is why we can say that the three warnings which were given in the New Testament, most probably those three passages will probably not happen to any believer because most of us came to Jesus with a desire to be saved, to be changed. So we will respond to His voice at one point or the other, but if someone completely hardens their heart and says, no, I do not want this Jesus to be my master anymore, simply because I enjoy sin and I want sin to be my master, then yes, those three passages could apply to such a person. So we cannot say with 100% surety that salvation will not be lost because who knows, there may be one person in a billion who will say, no, I want to turn my back on this Jesus Christ. Maybe they were very upset because someone very close to them died or maybe they felt that the Lord is not giving them what they had hoped for, they may grow bitter against Him. I mean, who knows? There may be some people who make the choice and say, I do not want this Jesus. I thought He was this way, but now it looks like He's in another way and I'm not interested in being under Him. So there's a chance that that could happen. So which is why we have those three passages giving us a warning. However, we have many other Bible passages which comfort and assure us that the Lord really genuinely wants to complete the work which He has started in us and He will sanctify us if we will hold on to Him. So should we live in fear, wondering whether we are going to be that very small percentage who may lose our salvation? No, because what all the scripture, most of the non-New Testament scriptures, what they teach us is don't live in fear, live in repentance. If you are in such a condition that you are actually feeling scared about your salvation, then maybe it would be good for you to just simply come to the Lord and repent and ask Him for His strength in changing your ways because the Lord is always open to a cry of help. If you come to Him very frankly and you say to Him, Lord, I'm unable to live in holiness the way you have asked, but Lord, I want that, then if you fast and pray and ask the Lord to enable you through His Holy Spirit, He will strengthen you. He will cause you to live a victorious life. I mean, there are thousands of testimonies of Christians, right? who went deeply into sin and then they speak with such gratitude in the say, there's no way I could have come out of this on my own. It happened through the Holy Spirit. So they were desperate because they were on the verge of, you know, losing their eternity. They were desperate and so they fasted and prayed and humbled themselves and sought God and God obviously He answered to them. So we don't have to live in fear. We can instead choose to reach out to Him and cry out for help until we, you know, receive the help which we wanted. So 2 Corinthians 7, 10 to 11, throw some light on godly repentance. 2 Corinthians 7 versus 10 to 11, if someone could read out. 2 Corinthians 7 verse 10, for godly sorrow produced repentance, leading to salvation not to be recruited. But the sorrow of the world produces death. Verse 11, for observe this very thing that you, that you sorrowed in a godly manner, what diligent it produced in you, what clearing of yourself, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication in all things. You proved yourself to be clear in this manner. So here, I mean, you know, if we are not already familiar with this, this particular passage here is talking about the kind of repentance that was expressed by some people who were living in outrageous sinfulness. So when Paul writes his first letter to the Corinthians, he says, you know, these people who are living in this open outright immorality, please remove them from the church, ask them to leave. If they choose to, you know, think about their ways and repent and come back to the Lord, let them come back. Otherwise, they are excommunicated from the church. So these people who are living in outright immorality were actually excommunicated from the church. They were told not to come back to the church services anymore and then once, you know, the protection of God, the protection and prayers of the church, when all that was gone, Satan must have really taken advantage of them. They would have gone through some very, very painful times. And so maybe because of that, you know, they finally came back to the Lord. It talks about what attitude they came back to the Lord. The reason that we are dwelling on this passage is that if anyone at all is feeling so afraid that their sinfulness is so great that maybe, you know, they would actually go back into the world and be overcome by it, completely entangled by it, if someone is living in that kind of a fear. These are points which they can fast and pray over themselves because you see there's a list of things which Paul mentions here which showed that they were, that these people were genuinely repentant. First of all, there was a godly sorrow. They felt ashamed of what they had been doing and they genuinely no longer wanted to live in that kind of sinfulness. So there was a godly sorrow, not just an emotional outburst of tears but a godly sorrow where they really genuinely were so sad that they had betrayed the Lord in this manner. So they were genuinely sorrowful about it and then this sorrow didn't just evaporate in the morning. It led to a series of steps. So it led to earnestness. They began to try really hard to come back to the Lord. It led to an eagerness to clear themselves. You know, God had pointed at them and said, you are living in this sin. Are you willing to come out of it? They were eager to come out of it and clear their name. There was an eagerness to do that. It says what indignation. They were angry with themselves that they had allowed themselves to go to that stage. So they said, no, you know, they said to themselves, no, I will not allow myself to live like this any longer. How dare I live in this manner, you know, and they were indignant on behalf of the Lord that they had, they had, they had disgraced the Lord's name in that way. So they were indignant about it and they wanted to clear themselves of it. It says what alarm. They were genuinely alarmed about the anger and the judgment of God. You know, some people are so hardened. They think that God's anger cannot even touch them. But these people were genuinely alarmed that they were in danger. It says what longing. They longed and they ached to have their lives changed once again. So they had that longing and it says what concern and what readiness to see justice done. So these people who had been indulging in the sin and also the rest of the church community, which had, you know, happily been ignoring their sinful lifestyle. They all together as a community went through these different steps of godly repentance. So a person who's really living in fear that because of their very, very un-victorious lifestyle, they are scared that, you know, they would actually be overcome by the world. Such people can pray these points over themselves with deep fasting and prayer and say, Lord, please let me have the same kind of earnestness. Let me have this same eagerness to clear myself. Let me genuinely be alarmed about the danger that I am in. Put in me a deep longing or Lord to follow you. When someone genuinely fasts and prays and draws near to God, the Lord will draw near to them. So we don't have to live in fear. No believer has to live in fear that they will lose their salvation. Rather, they can choose to live in repentance where they come to God, try out to him, cling on to him and not let go till they see that answer being fulfilled. Okay. So this is the assurance that we have in the Lord Jesus. Now, moving on from there into another concept, you know, related to salvation, the adoption that has been given to us. Now, this is a term that is used in Ephesians chapter one verse five. So if we could have someone read out for us, Ephesians chapter one verse five. Having predestined us to adoptions as sons by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his will. So it gave God good pleasure. It made him happy to adopt us as his children. So this is what we were predestined for. So everyone Jesus could look into the future and know exactly who are the people who will, you know, place their trust in him and make a commitment to him. So all such people, he declared them as predestined for adoption. So we have been adopted into the family of God. So there are a few advantages and a few things to keep in mind, you know, regarding our adoption. So all of us sitting over here, all of us attending the class, you know, we all have been legally adopted. So, you know, if any legal documentation which is required for adoption that has been signed by the blood of Jesus. And now we are legally adopted children. So which means we have the same full rights as the other children who were, you know, already part of the family. I mean, if you were to use a human example, let us say that a couple has got three children who are who have been biologically born to them. Now when they adopt a fourth child, this fourth child has the same rights and privileges as the other three biological children. So it's a legal adoption. Now the status is equal. So in a way what we are saying is that now we actually have the same rights and privileges that Jesus Christ does. The same privileges which our brother Jesus Christ has. Now we the adopted children also have the same rights and privileges. So that is the status that has been given to us, which is why in Romans 8 14 to 16, this is what we are told. So if someone could read out for us Romans 8 14 to 16. For as many as are led by the spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received a spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, Abba Father. Yeah, and then now verse 16. The spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. Yes, the Holy Spirit himself testifies to us that you are now God's child. So we have the Holy Spirit telling us this, reminding us of this on a daily basis. So therefore we don't have to live in fear. Those who are slaves don't have anyone to go to when they need help. I mean, whom do they go to? Shall they go to their slave master? The slave master is only interested in destroying them. There's no way he's going to do anything for them. So a slave generally lives in fear. Don't know what to do with the circumstances which come up. Don't know where to turn for help. Don't know what action to take. A slave is so helpless. A slave has nobody. We should not be living like that. Let God should never catch us living with that kind of a fearful attitude. No wondering who am I going to turn to? Who's going to help me? What's going to happen? How will this issue work out? That is a condition of fearfulness that slaves should be living in, not us. We should be boldly going to our father using that very informal, intimate word abba. Like a little child can directly go up to his father and call him abba in front of everyone. This is an example that we had used earlier. Maybe a modern terminology. If you have a very important person, let us say CEO of a company and he's standing over there with all his board members and everyone is speaking respectfully to him. If the child walks in, the child in front of everyone will just simply say dada, papa, whatever. It's quite alright for this child to be addressing such a great man in such an informal manner because that child is literally the child, the flesh and blood of that father. So we have now been given that kind of a status. So we can go to the Lord using that very informal, intimate word abba. Father would be a more formal word but abba is literally a word which maybe little children would use. Not even caring what anyone thinks. Very boldly they would just use that term. So now that kind of a privilege has been given to us and the Holy Spirit is testifying within our spirit and saying, regard God in this manner. So don't be scared when things go wrong. Don't be like those slaves who have nobody to turn to. Go to your abba. The Lord will take care. So we have that assurance. So this is one privilege which we have from being adopted. We don't have to be scared in any situation. However, you know, terrible and impossible that situation may seem. We don't have to be like slaves who are helpless. We can go because we have an abba. We can actually go to him. A second thing that a second implication of being adopted. Yeah, let's look at the verses first and then look at what the implication is. Romans 8 verse 17 in the very next verse, after the verse which talks about how we can call out to the Lord and, you know, call him abba father. This is what the next verse says. Romans 8 17 if someone could read out. And if children then as as of God and joint as with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him that we may also be glorified. Okay, so a lot of people focus on verses 14 to 16, but they tend to ignore verse 17. Verse 17 is as real as the previous verses. It says now, you know, because we are people who can actually literally go up to God himself and call him abba. We are children. We are heirs, heirs of God and co heirs with our brother Jesus Christ. The same privileges that he has, we now have. So that is our status. If that is our status, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. So when you are a co heir with Christ, yes, you share in the inheritance, but you also share in his sufferings. So someone who says, I do not want to have anything to do with Christ on this earth. I want to live in my own way. But once he comes in his glory, yes, I want to share in his glory. It doesn't work that way. So it says here very plainly, if we are children, then we are heirs. If indeed we share in his sufferings. So in what way do we share in the sufferings of Christ? All that Christ went through for us, you know, when he was on this earth. Now we go through for him. He, you know, gave up his high status of divinity and chose to live without all the limitations of a human. So now we use our limitations to honor him rather than dishonor him. We don't make excuses and say, Oh Lord, you don't know how difficult it is to be a human. You know, we undergo so much temptation. There's so much struggle. There's so much opposition. The Lord knows exactly how tough it is because he too went through that when he was on this earth. So in the same way, he chose to learn obedience through suffering. You know, learn to honor the Father through his painful, difficult experiences of obedience. We to share in his suffering and through hardship. We also learn to stay obedient to the Lord. And when we share in his sufferings, yes, we will share in his glory as well. But if a person has made some kind of superficial commitment, you know, where they wanted the ticket. To heaven, but they have not really made a commitment where they are where they have said, yes, I will also share in the sufferings of Christ. I will take up my cross daily and follow. If they have not made that commitment, then maybe they're not even a co-air. Okay, so the true co-airs will also share in his sufferings in order that they may also share in his glory. Let's look at Philippians chapter 3 verses 10 to 11 in this context. Philippians 3, 10 to 11. Philippians chapter 3 verse 10, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering being confirmed to his death was 11. If by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. If you look at the context in which Paul is saying these words, he says, as a Pharisee, I had a lot of privileges. As a Pharisee, I also had a lot of status because he was not an ordinary Pharisee. He was a Pharisee who really kept the Pharisee laws most sincerely. He is a man who from his side tried to be as righteous outwardly as it is possible. So from his side is someone who had been highly sincere. But he says, all the status, all these privileges, I count them as dung compared to knowing Jesus Christ. So for him, knowing Jesus Christ was that important. And he decides that he wants to know Jesus Christ in two ways. He says to know the power of his resurrection, but it also says and participation in his sufferings. So knowing Christ is not just simply knowing the power and the glory and the status and the privileges. Knowing Christ is also participating in his sufferings. So you cannot have one without the other. So either you have become a co-heir of both, you know, the suffering and the glory or you have not even become a co-heir. So this is important to remember. So Paul was willing to consider all his past status as dung, you know, as something impure and unwanted in comparison to knowing Christ, both in his power and also in his suffering. So we need to know Christ in this manner. You know, in our Christian walk, we sometimes think the way the world thinks. You know, the whole world is trying to climb up the corporate ladder and get as high as possible. And so we think, oh, there's also this spiritual ladder now as a Christian, I need to start climbing up this higher, higher, higher. The higher I can get up this ladder, the better, the greater will be my reward. So we tend to think the same way the world thinks, but the basic Christian walk, if you see, is just about not, you know, chasing after goals or achievements or rewards. It's just walking with him on a daily basis. It's knowing him more and more intimately. This is what Jesus says, you know, in that passage where the disciples were so thrilled that the demons were, you know, responding to them, and they were able to, you know, deliver people from their demonic oppression. They were so excited and they said, Lord, in your name, even the demons are submitting to us. Jesus immediately says, you know, be more happy that your names are there in the book of life. So it's our relationship with him, our walk with him, knowing him on a daily basis, just living to please him. That's far more valuable to the Lord than any great achievements that you may accomplish. Though, of course, you do that as an outcome of your relationship with him. So the main thing is having that intimate relationship with him, where you're by his side, not just during the good times, but you choose to be by his side, even in the sufferings. So in that way, you really get to know Christ. You get to know what he went through when he was down here and you're sharing in that same experiences. And the Lord will speak to you in your heart and say, I was able to overcome it when I was on this earth. I will help you now to overcome it in the same way. So you start getting to know him so intimately. This is no longer a relationship that just, you know, at head level, head knowledge level. This is a knowledge which you have gained experientially, even as you're walking with him daily. You're beginning to experience the suffering which he experienced and you know what it takes to stay loyal to the Lord, to obey him. And even as you're learning that, without you realizing it, you're becoming more like him. You're literally becoming like him. You will not even realize it. But when people are looking at you, they'll think, oh, what a Christ-like person, but you will not probably not even be aware of it. You know, you're just enjoying your walk with him on a daily basis. So, you know, let us not worry too much. The Christian walk is not a rat race. It's not a struggle to somehow get to the top. No, this is our Abba father. And he's saying, you know, just get to know me more and more child. Just walk with me. If you do that, I will help you to live victoriously. I will help you to minister to whomever I'll bring to you. I will help you with all the other details. You just walk with me, get to know me and be by my side, not just during the positive times, but even during the times of suffering. So, if we can just watch over our walk with God on a daily basis and make that the most important thing, then we will automatically be co-heirs, you know, and we will definitely enjoy the glory, which will come later. So, this is the second implication of being an adopted child, where you're not only sharing in the privileges of the other child, you're also sharing in the sufferings of the other child. So, in that sense, a third implication is that if you are an adopted child and God now considers you his very own, there will be disciplining involved. So, Hebrews chapter 12, verses 5 to 6. If someone could read out for us, Hebrews 12, 5 to 6. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as sons. My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him, for whom the Lord loves, he chastens and scourges every son whom he receives. So, it's a word of encouragement that God is addressing us as his children. So, because God regards us as his own children, therefore he rebukes us. You know, when we do something that is against his will, we can literally feel the displeasure of God. You know, we can feel that, you know, God saying, I'm totally not pleased with what you did. The way you responded was totally ungodly. So, you know, we can feel his displeasure. It says here, don't get discouraged when you feel that displeasure of God. It's God rebuking you because he cares very deeply about you. If you were just somebody in the world, you would not even have felt anything. You know, he would not even have come to you and convicted you. But because you are so precious to him, he rebukes you to correct you. So, the disciplining is something that we will experience if we are true adopted children of God. So, we'll continue after the break. Thank you.