Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Alex Hanold has done what some human beings have tried but failed, even failing to the point of meeting their own fatality.
[00:00:15] And Alex has also done what many others would never attempt to do even if you were offered a million dollars to try.
[00:00:25] And that is free soloing. Anyone know what free soloing is?
[00:00:31] Free soloing is a style of climbing involving no rope and no protection.
[00:00:37] In many ways, it's the purest form of climbing, says the experts.
[00:00:42] Just the climber, a chalk bag, climbing shoes, and the crag. No need for a partner. No hauling a rope to the base of the crag. No hanging around a ballet stance waiting for your second to come up.
[00:00:56] In 2017, Alex Hanold gained worldwide fame as the only human to free solo Yosemite's 3,000 foot rock monolith, El Capitan.
[00:01:09] No rope, no safety equipment, just climbing.
[00:01:14] In January of this year, Alex was featured on a live recording, which I believe you can still watch on Netflix.
[00:01:21] He climbed the Taipei 101 skyscraper in Taiwan. Standing at 1,667ft tall, the Taipei 101 towers over the capital of Taiwan. Its steel and glass structure have become synonymous with the city. It was the tallest building in the world from 2004 to 2010.
[00:01:43] It took Alex just over one and a half hours to complete his 101 story climb. And I watched every second of it. I think I did get up to eat after a while because I'm like, this is nauseating to watch.
[00:01:57] He reached the summit of the building and he was standing at the top.
[00:02:02] Once interviewed, he said, once I got to the top, it was not all that scary.
[00:02:07] He said it was a lot more scary on the side of the building as I was climbing it.
[00:02:14] When interviewed again after successfully accomplishing something no one's ever done, he says it felt infinite.
[00:02:23] When you look up, all you can see is a building as far as you can go. And so it just keeps on forever.
[00:02:31] After watching the documentary on him that came out several years ago, and after watching the live video feed earlier this year, it left me stuck, stunned.
[00:02:40] I was speechless. I mean, I get nervous climbing a tall ladder.
[00:02:46] This man is climbing skyscrapers with literally no harness and nothing else holding him.
[00:02:52] One journalist said this quote, more people will walk on the moon than they will do what Alex Hanold has done.
[00:03:01] His extremely rare skill and unmatched mental focus have helped make him climbing's transcendent breakout star, inspiring millions around the world.
[00:03:13] Well, I'm not one of them.
[00:03:17] Friends, I wonder tonight if you feel like you're free soloing in the Christian life.
[00:03:25] You feel like you're just hoping for the best, climbing the side of the building of some type of challenge and trial and season.
[00:03:34] And you are putting all your rocks, if you will, making progress in your faith and thinking it's totally up to you.
[00:03:47] Friends, are you here tonight wondering if your hand will slip from holding on to Jesus?
[00:03:54] If you have a copy of God's Word, please open your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke, the Gospel of Luke, and turn to Luke chapter 22. If you're using one of the pew Bibles provided, I think that's on page 1048. If I'm incorrect, I'm sorry. Luke chapter 22.
[00:04:18] You're going to need two things tonight, a Bible and your worship guide. Let's start with the Bible. Look at me in Luke, chapter 22, verses 31 to 34.
[00:04:31] This is Jesus speaking.
[00:04:33] Simon, Simon, Behold, Satan demanded to have you that he may sift you like wheat.
[00:04:41] But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.
[00:04:45] And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.
[00:04:48] Peter said to him, lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.
[00:04:53] Jesus said, I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day until you deny me three times.
[00:05:00] Yet you know me.
[00:05:01] This is God's word.
[00:05:03] If you're taking notes, here's my main idea of tonight's message.
[00:05:09] Those who are truly saved can never be finally lost.
[00:05:19] Those who are truly saved can never be finally lost.
[00:05:27] As you can see from the surrounding passages, we are in the Gospel account where Jesus is completely aware of what's going on around him. In fact, look down in verses three to six. Earlier on in the chapter, we see that ominous description that one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, will hourly do what his heart had been demonically influenced to do. Look at me. In Luke 22, verses 3 to 6, it says, Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the 12.
[00:05:59] He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them, and they were glad and agreed to give him money.
[00:06:07] So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them. In the absence of a crowd, this sermon is not going to be a character study per se, but it is important to understand two characters in Luke 22.
[00:06:21] That is Judas Iscariot and that is Simon Peter. Let's first look at Judas for a minute. First notice he was numbered as one of the 12.
[00:06:33] In other words, this is one of Jesus. Hand Picked inner circle. In contrast to the masses that would follow him, he had more access into the teaching and personal life of Jesus than we do on the Internet to find our favorite ministry.
[00:06:53] He had been exposed to more of Jesus in just three years than thousands upon thousands who flocked just to touch him would ever get close enough to do so.
[00:07:04] But friends, don't be mistaken.
[00:07:07] Proximity to Jesus is not the same thing as knowing Jesus.
[00:07:13] Jesus was physically close to Judas and Judas close physically to Jesus.
[00:07:20] But brothers and sisters, spiritually, Judas was a million miles away from Jesus.
[00:07:28] Hear this tonight.
[00:07:30] There has always been a Judas Iscariot in every church until Christ comes back.
[00:07:37] They can be a deacon, they could be a pastor, they could be the person on the same pew as you. It could be you. It could be me.
[00:07:46] Outwardly a disciple, inwardly a servant of Satan.
[00:07:52] Second observation about Judas.
[00:07:55] Notice it says that Satan entered into him his heart.
[00:08:01] Satan was after Jesus his entire life.
[00:08:07] Do you remember what happened when Jesus was born, when he was a helpless babe who wanted to kill him?
[00:08:14] Herod.
[00:08:15] Do you think Herod did that out of his own pure, sinful volition? Of course. That was one part of it.
[00:08:21] Satan was after Jesus even when he was a little boy, to kill him.
[00:08:26] Think about Jesus when he came out in his public ministry. What happened before he made himself known to the world? Basically, he was tempted in the wilderness by Satan for 40 days, right? But he resisted all the temptations. And it says in Luke's gospel that the devil left him until an opportune time.
[00:08:48] Throughout Jesus ministry, Satan and his minions, demons were always flocking towards Jesus. I mean, if you look in the Gospels, it's an explosion of demonic everywhere. Little kids, young adults, older folks, they're oppressed by demons. Some of them are possessed by demons and they're going to Jesus. And the demons inside them know exactly who Jesus is and. And they're afraid.
[00:09:15] But it wasn't just the sick and the oppressed.
[00:09:19] It was also the most religious people that Jesus went toe to toe with the Pharisees.
[00:09:25] When the Pharisees, who outwardly were very righteous, the apostle Paul would have been one of them, but inwardly looked more like a disciple of Satan.
[00:09:35] So much so that Jesus looked at the Pharisees and the Jews that followed them and said, your father is not Abraham.
[00:09:42] Your father is Satan, the father of lies. John, chapter eight.
[00:09:48] You see, throughout Jesus whole ministry, from the time he was a babe to the time he was an adult, Satan was constantly after Jesus to take him out, whether through temptation or murder.
[00:10:02] But After Satan failed again and again, he could never trip him up.
[00:10:08] Jesus was spotless. He was perfect. He was resilient.
[00:10:13] Satan had one more tactic.
[00:10:16] He would now attack Jesus inner circle.
[00:10:20] Judas begins the money bag, the treasurer of the ministry.
[00:10:27] He begins conferring with the enemy. We might say he began dancing with the devil.
[00:10:33] A business deal went down. 30 pieces of silver were offered to him and his greedy heart took it hook, line and sinker, all to have Jesus arrested and if you will, so Satan could snipe him.
[00:10:47] And guess what happened to Judas?
[00:10:50] Judas bought the lie, just like Adam and Eve did in the garden.
[00:10:56] And when Christ was crucified or shortly there before, he realized what he did was awful and he hung himself and he died by suicide.
[00:11:09] No sign of repentance, no sign of restoration, no sign of forgiveness and mercy.
[00:11:16] Now back to our text tonight.
[00:11:19] Judas now is kind of out of the picture until we'll see him actually betray Christ.
[00:11:25] Jesus here speaks to one of his closest disciples in the inner three of the 12, and his name is Simon.
[00:11:33] This is the one we are probably more familiar with in the New Testament, known as Peter. His name was Simon, his birth name. In the Gospel of John, Jesus renamed him Peter, which means rock. The Aramaic form is Cephas.
[00:11:46] And here Jesus double clicks on his name. Did you notice how he says it twice?
[00:11:50] Simon. Simon. It's another way of saying, simon, Simon, don't get caught off guard. I'm talking to you.
[00:11:57] Satan, our ancient foe that deceived Eve in the garden and brought Adam down as our representative. The same Satan that tempted Jesus in the wilderness had entered into the heart of Judas. And he says, simon, now he's coming after you.
[00:12:15] He's roaring around. He's prowling around like a roaring lion. And he's coming for you, Simon.
[00:12:23] He's hungry.
[00:12:25] He wants to take another one out.
[00:12:28] In fact, what's interesting there in verse 31, it wasn't just Peter that Satan wanted to take out in verse 31 in the original, probably your English Bible has a footnote and gives you this understanding. The word you there is plural.
[00:12:44] It's you all. It's you, Peter and all the disciples. He wants to eat the lunch.
[00:12:51] He wants to take out the disciples all in one swipe.
[00:12:56] Why is that significant?
[00:12:59] Jesus is speaking to Simon Peter, but he's also speaking to other disciples who were listening.
[00:13:04] Peter would be like a bowling ball pin, the first domino to drop, which in turn would lead to the rest of them imitating them like a sheep who goes astray would lead an entire flock astray.
[00:13:17] Interestingly, Jesus says that Satan demanded of Jesus. Did you know that? To allow him to have his way with Peter and the disciples. It's the idea of a strong desire. His hunger, his desire. Give me him. Give me him. Give me all of them.
[00:13:33] But notice that Satan had to go to Jesus first.
[00:13:37] Because Satan knows exactly who Jesus is.
[00:13:40] You remember what happened in the book of Job.
[00:13:43] Job was a righteous man who feared God and turned away from evil. And Satan wanted to wreak havoc on God's boy.
[00:13:51] But God put limits. He put a hedge around him and he couldn't do that unless he was given permission.
[00:14:01] That means that Satan was on Jesus leash, not the other way around.
[00:14:06] And in this moment, Jesus didn't stop Satan, he only gave him limits.
[00:14:11] Friends, why does Jesus use this imagery here of Simon being sifted like wheat by Satan?
[00:14:18] Sifting was a process of shaking grain through a strainer to remove dirt and small stones. It was a way to separate the grain from the chaff by winnowing to say it. Another way to be sifted by Satan was to be defeated by Satan.
[00:14:33] To be taken out, to be picked apart.
[00:14:35] In other words, Jesus is telling his disciples ahead of time, your faith is going to be severely tested. More than it ever has been up to this point in your life. Jesus not only predicts his death, he also predicts his own disciples severe testing.
[00:14:51] In essence, the Lord was giving Satan divine permission to wreak havoc in Simon Peter's listen, self confidence, Peter's self perceived strength.
[00:15:05] He was going to let Satan unleash his ferocious fangs on his autonomous free will, his personal resolve.
[00:15:17] In other words, Jesus was going to step back and say, Peter, fight Satan, but without me protecting you.
[00:15:28] You see, Peter had the mouth that would always speak too quickly, too hastily, too zealously. I've got it. I can do this.
[00:15:37] Let's do this.
[00:15:38] Peter's issue though is his confidence was where he was in himself, in himself.
[00:15:47] And the temptation would be a temptation to be ashamed of Jesus when it mattered the most.
[00:15:54] As the story unfolds, we discover it's when Peter supposed strong faith would never be assaulted like this ever again.
[00:16:01] But his faith would be sifted.
[00:16:03] He denied Christ multiple times, even in front of a little servant girl.
[00:16:08] And every bit of pride Peter had.
[00:16:11] Every bit of self sufficiency, Peter had, every bit of self trust Peter didn't even know was in there.
[00:16:19] Got brought to the service and he brought that self confident man, that proud man to his knees.
[00:16:32] So much so Peter said Jesus I would even die for you. I would go to prison for you.
[00:16:39] Matthew's gospel says, Peter said, though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.
[00:16:46] Sounds a lot like those 246 pastors I mentioned this morning.
[00:16:50] It could never happen to me.
[00:16:55] They all said what?
[00:16:57] They all joined Peter in saying, I would never deny you.
[00:17:01] Here in Luke 22, verse 32, notice again how Jesus tells Simon that this sifting will be for a temporary time.
[00:17:08] In other words, this is going to be fierce. It's going to be severe, it is going to bring you down, down. It is going to be ferocious. It's going to feel unrelenting. But this has an expiration date, Simon. It's a fiery furnace that the heat will get turned up, but it will not burn you totally up.
[00:17:27] In other words, what happened to Judas Iscariot who turned away from the Lord won't happen to you.
[00:17:37] Friends, how do we know this time of severe humbling for Simon, the disciples would be temporary and not be permanent.
[00:17:47] Listen to those words again. Jesus said these beautiful words, but I have prayed for you that your faith, your faith, Simon, would not fail.
[00:17:58] And what. What happens when. What glorious, hopeful words you have turned again.
[00:18:05] The word here implies repentance and restoration.
[00:18:09] Strengthen your brothers. In other words, build them up when they fall. Now you'll be able to pick them back up.
[00:18:16] In verse 32. The word fail in the Greek is eclipko, which literally is where we get our word eclipse. An eclipse of the light of the sun and the moon. It means to cease or to stop.
[00:18:27] In other words, Jesus says, I'm praying for you, Peter. I'm praying for you, Simon, so that your faith would not be totally eclipsed, that it wouldn't be totally blacked out, it wouldn't be totally swallowed up.
[00:18:41] Now, if you have your worship guides handy, turn to page four.
[00:18:45] Page four.
[00:18:47] With this vivid imagery but also contrast between Judas Iscariot and Simon Peter, we turn now to our theology and music series.
[00:18:55] Tonight our hymn focus will be very brief and compared to probably the other hymns, because this one is a very brief hymn and the words are very, very straightforward.
[00:19:05] The title of the hymn is repeated a ton.
[00:19:09] It is a hymn of a confession. It's confessing aloud together that through his unceasing and effectual prayers, Jesus will hold us fast.
[00:19:20] Now look down with me. In this short three stanza hymn, we hear the confident assertion again and again, Christ or he will hold us fast. It's mentioned around eight times and then in the chorus another three Times. Now, if you sing it all together, and if you sing the last verse twice, you could end up singing, he will hold me fast, or Christ will hold me fast, possibly up to 20 times in one song. Now, my math could be off. I was tired when I was doing this.
[00:19:50] But my point is, the hymn writer and the theology behind it trying to get this implanted in our thick skulls, in our forgetful hearts.
[00:20:01] If we can't hear it one time, we ought to hear it a dozen more times. Christ, Christ, Christ, Christ, Christ. Not you, not me, not Simon. Christ will hold us fast.
[00:20:14] The hymn also tells us why this is such an important theological experiential reality to grasp.
[00:20:21] He mentions fear multiple times. Fear.
[00:20:26] There in the first stanza, he says, right there in the first line, when I fear my faith will fail.
[00:20:33] And then again it shows up in the third line of the first stanza. I could never keep my hold through life's fearful path.
[00:20:42] Friends, what fears is Ada Haberson, the author of this hymn, talking about?
[00:20:47] Anything that makes you and I afraid.
[00:20:50] Anything that would stifle our confidence in the Lord.
[00:20:53] Anything that will rob us of our joy, dampening our love for the Lord.
[00:20:59] Anything that could quench the Spirit, corrupt our heart, soil our conscience, or obliterate our faith in unceasing doubt and despair.
[00:21:08] So what is your fearful path tonight?
[00:21:12] What is the fear that is literally robbing you for the joy that Jesus extends to his people?
[00:21:18] A fear you're going through right now, or a fear of what if and what could be down the road?
[00:21:23] That's what the hymn's talking about.
[00:21:27] Friends, do you recall the story of Jesus when he was asleep on the Sea of Galilee?
[00:21:35] How would Jesus minister to us when we're afraid?
[00:21:38] Matthew 8, starting in verse 23. And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves. But he was asleep, and they went and woke him, saying, save us, Lord, we are perishing. That sounds like fear.
[00:21:55] And he said, why are you afraid, oh, you of little faith?
[00:22:00] Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, what sort of man is this that even the winds and sea obey him?
[00:22:09] Friends, if you're taking notes tonight, how do we combat fear, whatever fearful path that we could be down on soon or even right now?
[00:22:21] Number one, Let Jesus speak to you more than you speak to you.
[00:22:30] Let Jesus speak to you more than you speak to you.
[00:22:37] Take your Fear tonight.
[00:22:40] And then I want you to challenge yourself with it.
[00:22:43] Answer Jesus question, why are you afraid? O you of little faith.
[00:22:59] Why are you afraid?
[00:23:03] Oh, you of little faith.
[00:23:08] That's not a coddling question.
[00:23:11] That's Jesus exposing a lack of trust in the one who rules the sea.
[00:23:23] Satan needed Jesus permission to obliterate any of the disciples.
[00:23:31] The wind and the seas need permission from Jesus to do anything at his command.
[00:23:40] Brothers and sisters, Satan listens to Jesus.
[00:23:44] Creation listens to Jesus.
[00:23:48] Do you and I listen to Jesus?
[00:23:53] When you're afraid and I'm afraid, here's the word from Jesus. Why are you afraid?
[00:23:59] Oh you a little faith.
[00:24:01] Let Jesus speak to you more than you speak to you.
[00:24:09] Number two. When you're afraid, what do you do?
[00:24:14] What do you do when your love feels cold?
[00:24:18] Receive the love of Jesus towards you.
[00:24:23] Receive the love of Jesus towards you.
[00:24:27] Receive the love of Jesus towards you. As the only cure for our cold love for him.
[00:24:34] Notice again in the hymn, the first line of the third block there. Just drop it down. First line of the third. For my love is often cold, he must hold me fast.
[00:24:45] This is where we return back again and again to the gospel, isn't it? When Peter totally flopped, his heart was far beyond cold. It was frozen. He denied his Lord. He lied about who he was. He lied about his relationship with Christ up to three times in a matter of a few hours.
[00:25:03] Luke tells us in his gospel that Jesus then looked back at Peter when that last rooster crowed and when he looked at Peter and Peter looked at him. Ask yourself the question, what countenance, what face do you think Jesus had towards Peter?
[00:25:17] Because it'll be a very good telling of how you think he views you when you fail.
[00:25:23] You think it was a scowl on our Lord's face.
[00:25:27] He literally told Peter what was going to happen.
[00:25:33] There was no scowl on our Lord's face.
[00:25:35] There was unrelenting love, compassion like you have never seen.
[00:25:43] He looked at that man and all his failures and said, you may have failed me, but I will never fail you. Peter. I'm not done with you yet.
[00:25:55] What did Peter need to hear in that time?
[00:26:00] That Peter's love for Christ would never be matched by Christ's love for him.
[00:26:07] Thomas Goodwin put it this way. In all our miseries and distresses, you may be sure to know where to have a friend to help and pity you even in heaven. Christ, one whose nature, office, interest, relation, all to engage him to your help. You will find men, even friends, to be oftentimes unto you, unreasonable and and their affections in many cases shut up towards you will say to them all, if you will not pity me, choose. I know one that will one in heaven whose heart is touched with the feeling of all my infirmities and I will go and bemoan myself to him. Come boldly, says Hebrews 4, even with open mouth to lay open your complaints, and you shall find grace and mercy to help in time of need. Men love to see themselves pitied by friends. The they cannot help them, Christ can and Christ will do both.
[00:26:57] Last night I was sitting on the couch and I sent the following text message to our elders.
[00:27:06] Gentlemen, just a heads up.
[00:27:08] I'm not feeling depressed or anything, but heading into tomorrow's morning sermon and evening sermon, definitely not feeling as great about them.
[00:27:19] It's been a while since I went into a Sunday like this, but it does keep me humble and that's a good thing.
[00:27:26] As it has been said, I'm not aiming for a home run. I just want to get on base.
[00:27:30] How can you pray for me that I would not forget whatever I feel? That I would forget whatever I feel about what I've prepared and enjoy the Lord as I preach him to our flock.
[00:27:43] Here's how the elders responded back.
[00:27:46] Allen said, you've been prayed for by faithful members throughout this week.
[00:27:50] Trust that the Lord has heard and answered. I'm praying for you to rest well tonight and be strengthened by the Spirit in your soul to preach him with his power to His Word and what the Spirit put on your mind in your preparation. Jackson said, I'm praying for you in light of what you are teaching tomorrow night right now that you would feel held praying that he would be your strength. I love you, man.
[00:28:13] Ian said, I'm praying for the Lord to sustain you, brother, and that he will work in and through you for his good pleasure. You have prepared. Now rest in the One who is able to do abundantly more than we ask or think.
[00:28:27] Al Mohler, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, he said, christ will hold us fast, but we need gospel friends to hold us close. Close.
[00:28:35] I praise God. I have those friends and I know more of you. Pray for me and God's using you to hold me fast.
[00:28:44] Friends, if you're struggling with loneliness tonight, pray for the Lord to give you those kind of gospel friends.
[00:28:50] And it might just start with humbling yourself and saying, I'm weak. I don't have it all figured out. I feel like Peter. I feel like another failure. I need you to pray for me.
[00:29:01] Never discount what the Lord can do just by modeling humility.
[00:29:05] Friends, that kind of love is only shown when people really love Jesus and it's formally given teeth through meaningful church membership.
[00:29:14] That's what we seek to cultivate here at ccbc. Pray that it continues.
[00:29:20] Now, why is this emphasis on he will hold me fast the dominant confession in this hymn? Let me give you a little background for all the hymn nerds in here.
[00:29:29] The original hymn writer was Ada Habersham, who was born in 1861. And Sheila. I'm not entirely sure how to pronounce this. Marlbone. Marylebone Marlebone.
[00:29:40] There's that Mary. Yeah. Anyway, in England, and she died in 1918.
[00:29:44] Through a collaboration effort to include new songs for the revival, Breaking out was invited to participate in the revival meetings that were being held by The American evangelist R.A. torrey and his music director, Charles Alexander, and their newly new convert, who was their pianist, who got converted, Robert Harkness. After their work in Australia, the team traveled to Tasmania, New Zealand and India before shifting their efforts to the British Isles. And it's in 1905 there in London where Ada, the author of this hymn, joined the team. Then in the early 1900s, the team was in Toronto, Canada. By one account, Harkness had met a young convert there who had expressed to the preacher and to the team, quote, the. The fear that Christ would not be able to hold on to me.
[00:30:26] So he wrote to Habersham, the author of this hymn. Habersham was in England, and then replied back. It was quote, 1906 during the mission in Philadelphia. I remember Dr. Torrey was preaching to about 4,000 people in the armory during a sermon. I took out some slips of paper with some words which Miss Habersham had sent over in response to a request for some verses about keeping the power of Christ. I read over the lines, he will hold me fast. The melody came to me and I worked it out there and then writing the music for the verses and the chorus. The following summer in 1907, the song was introduced at the Moody Bible Conference in Northfield, Massachusetts. One reporter described how this song, quote, captivated everybody and was sung and whistled all over the grounds. In the spring of 1908, Charles Alexander returned to Philadelphia with evangelist J. Wilbur Chapman and later relayed this testimony in relation to. To the impact of the song quote. During our mission in Philadelphia last spring, Dr. Charles W. Gordon called me across the waiting room of the hotel where we were staying and introduced me to a fine young looking man. And he told me the story that his face was shining as he told us how he had been in our meeting a few days before and had been converted. When I questioned him, I found that he had been in darkness and felt he was too weak to live a Christian life. He. He was in the meeting when I was leading the people in the song He Will Hold Me Fast. And he said that was the very message he needed. The thought that Christ would hold him fast and that he need not depend on his own will and power or his own strength was the means of his decision for Christ.
[00:31:58] Only a few weeks after the Philadelphia crusade, Chapman and Alexander and probably Harkness were leading a crusade in Kansas City. A reporter described quote, how he will hold me fast was a highlight.
[00:32:09] The experience, the climax of the service of song came when Mr. Alexander United Choir and Audience 6,000 people in singing Mr. Harkness new hymn He Will Hold Me Fast. The people were electrified by the vast volume of melody such as was probably never heard in that building and by the thought of Christ holding us fast amidst all of life's temptations and trials.
[00:32:35] The hymn lost popularity throughout the 20th century until about 100 years later in 2013, Capitol Hill Baptist Church got their hands on it and they sang it for the first time in spring of 2013.
[00:32:51] And it has become a very popular and beloved hymn by modern hearers.
[00:32:58] Friends tonight, do you fear your faith will fail?
[00:33:07] Do you fear there are certain paths the Lord's got you on or could be on coming down the pike that you feel you're just not going to have the strength to hold on? You're not going to be able to free solo this on your own.
[00:33:23] Then what do we do?
[00:33:26] Listen to Jesus more than listening to yourself.
[00:33:32] Is your love cold towards Christ tonight?
[00:33:36] Do you believe our Savior will turn his back on you?
[00:33:41] Receive the love of Jesus towards you?
[00:33:44] He loved us first.
[00:33:47] Maybe tonight by our church, singing this hymn with conviction, passion and faith, someone else's faith would not fail.
[00:34:01] Church family Satan made demand to sift you.
[00:34:06] Sift me?
[00:34:09] Sift this entire church like wheat.
[00:34:14] But take heart.
[00:34:16] Jesus says, I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.
[00:34:22] And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.
[00:34:27] Those who are truly saved can never be finally lost.
[00:34:33] How can we be assured of this?
[00:34:36] For my Savior loves me so he will hold me fast.
[00:34:42] Let's pray.
[00:34:45] Heavenly Father, we praise you that you have given us these examples in Luke's gospel of Judas, who listened to Satan more than you and turned away to never be recovered. And yet we are given great hope in the example of Peter's restoration.
[00:35:01] Father, we pray tonight, if anyone feels like their faith is going to fail, they're cold. Their hearts are too cold. They're going to just let go of you.
[00:35:09] Lord, there is no free soloing in the Christian life.
[00:35:13] You are the one who holds on to us. You are the one in your love that warms our heart to you. Lord, even. Use this last song as we sing together to that great end. Continue to hold us fast. It's in Jesus name we pray.
[00:35:27] Amen.
