And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
And it had been revealed unto him by the Holy Spirit, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
And he came in the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, that they might do concerning Him after the custom of the law,
then he received Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said,
Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart, Lord,
According to Thy word, in peace;
For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation,
Which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples;
A light for revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Thy people Israel.
And His father and His mother were marvelling at the things which were spoken concerning Him;
and Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary His mother, Behold, this child is set for the falling and the rising of many in Israel; and for a sign which is spoken against;
yea and a sword shall pierce through thine own soul; that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.
We all know that, at the first coming of our Lord Jesus, there was a remnant among the Jewish people who were ready for Him. Generally speaking, the whole nation of Israel waited for the Messiah to come. It was their prayer; it was their aspiration. Outwardly, it seemed as if the whole nation—all the Jews—were looking forward to the coming of the Messiah.
But when the Messiah did come, it was evident that only a remnant was really prepared for Him.
Dear brothers and sisters, in a sense, all God’s people are waiting for the coming again of our Lord Jesus. Through the centuries, the aspiration of the church has been for Christ to return. Generally speaking, it looks as if this is true.
In the parable of the ten virgins—we are not going to enter into the parable, but we will use it as an illustration—you find five wise virgins and five foolish virgins. But whether they were wise or foolish, they all went out to meet the bridegroom.
Not just the wise ones went out to meet the bridegroom; the foolish ones did the same thing. They all went out to meet the bridegroom. But because the bridegroom delayed, they all went to sleep. At midnight, when the cry came that the bridegroom was coming, they all woke up.
They were all going to meet the bridegroom, but the five wise were ready. The five foolish were not ready.
So, in a sense, you can see that all God’s people seem to be looking forward to the coming again of our Lord Jesus. That is our prayer; that is our aspiration—the desire of the church.
But when it really comes down to reality, I wonder whether the same thing that happened at the first coming of our Lord Jesus will happen again. When the Lord returns, will He find on earth a prepared people?
Or, to put it another way, will there be a people prepared to bring Him to earth and prepared to welcome Him when He comes? Will there be such a people?
In one sense, we all know that God’s people everywhere are saying that the Lord is coming soon. Things seem to be moving very swiftly and unexpectedly. Things that you could never dream of are happening today. The Lord is coming. He is coming soon.
But will He find a prepared people? Will there be a people ready for Him, and thus enable Him to come? I think this is a very real question, one that we need to be exercised about before the Lord.
At the first coming of our Lord Jesus, you find on earth a remnant. Among the remnant were people such as Zacharias and Elizabeth—Zechariah the priest and Elizabeth his wife. They were waiting for the consolation of Israel, and God used them to bring in the forerunner of the Messiah, John the Baptist.
There were others too, like Mary and Joseph, no doubt. The Lord was able to use them to bring in the Messiah. There were also people like Simeon and Anna the prophetess. God was able to use them in relation to the good news.
There were also the shepherds watching the sheep in the field. We are told that these were not common shepherds. These were shepherds of sheep that had been designated to be offered as sacrifices. They kept the sheep that were to be offered, and the shepherds, simple as they were, were waiting for the Messiah.
Of course, there were others unnamed, as we find in the Gospel according to Luke. I think all these people ought to be our example.
The principle is the same, whether it is the first coming of the Lord or the second coming of the Lord. God must have on earth a remnant, not a whole. God must have on earth a prepared people to bring Him in and to welcome Him.
Do we want to be such people? If we want to be such people, then there are definite lessons that we have to learn. There must be certain qualities in our lives that will enable us to be that ready, prepared people for the Lord.
So this evening, I feel before the Lord that we should consider together just one person: Simeon.
The history of Simeon comes to us very suddenly. We hear nothing of Simeon before, and then suddenly the Bible says, “And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon.”
Whenever in the Bible you find the word behold, it is a call for attention. The Holy Spirit is trying to draw our attention because we are going to see something of tremendous value, something with spiritual significance—something that the Holy Spirit does not want us to miss.
Sometimes we may see something, but we do not really see because there is not that attentive looking, that consideration, that beholding. So the Holy Spirit is calling His people to behold, to look attentively, to see something very precious to the Lord that ought to be very valuable to us.
And what do you see? There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon.
We know nothing about the past of this man. He is simply a man. At the right moment, God brought forth His hidden one for the very hour.
Simeon was in the economy of God. He was hidden, but at the right moment God manifested him, and he was to do something that would contribute greatly to the coming of the Messiah.
Dear brothers and sisters, God has His hidden ones on earth. The world may not know them. They are hidden, as it were; but at the right moment, God will reveal them.
When they are revealed, you will find that they are closely related to Christ. There is something they are able to contribute to Christ. They are in the plan of God. They are not merely ones who have nothing to do with God’s plan; they are involved directly with Christ and are part of the plan of God.
I think this is the most valuable thing in life. What is life for if our life is in no way related to Christ?
Our life may be great in the eyes of the world, but if it does not contribute toward Christ, it is a waste. What will our life be? It is not in the plan of God. We live our days outside of God’s economy.
And if that is the case, it will not last. It will not be brought into eternity. It will just fade away. It is emptiness; it is vanity.
But to be God’s hidden ones—we are not trying to push ourselves forward. At the right moment, let God reveal us. When we are revealed, may it be found that we are intimately related to Christ.
You remember the story in the Old Testament, the story of Esther. It is a beautiful story. Even though the name of God is never mentioned in the whole book, yet God is everywhere.
Here you find a woman, Esther. God so ordered everything, even the heart and temper of a king, so that Esther was brought into the palace. God put her there for a particular moment.
When the enemy of the Jews, Haman, wanted to destroy all the Jews, Mordecai came to Esther and said, “Go to the king and plead for the lives of the Jews.”
But Esther said, “The king has not called me these days, and no one can go to the king. If you go to the king, unless the king stretch out his golden sceptre, he or she will be put to death.”
Mordecai said, “Have you considered that? Do you not know that it may be God who has put you in this position for this very moment? And if you do not do it, God will arrange for somebody else to do it.”
I think it is something for us to remember: we are put in this time, hidden, as it were, from the world; but God has put us in the right hour, and it is for a particular purpose.
If we do not serve that purpose, God will raise up somebody else to serve His purpose. But will we miss this opportunity? I do not think we will, if we want to be that vessel whom God can use at this particular moment in relation to the second coming of our Lord Jesus.
Then there must be certain qualities in us that God can really use.
There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. The name Simeon means “hearing.” We first meet this name in the book of Genesis. Leah said, “God hath heard,” and so she called the child Simeon.
The very name Simeon implies that he had something to do with prayer. He was a man of prayer. He was heard. Who was heard? What would be his prayer?
No doubt, his prayer was for the consolation of Israel. In other words, there was in this man a passion. He was a man with one passion, and that one passion was expressed in one manner: prayer.
Prayer is the best way to express what is dearest and central in your heart and in your thought. Whatever you really put your heart upon, that will be the subject of your prayer, because that is the one thing you really seek for.
Here you find that Simeon must have been a tremendous man of prayer. He was captured, as it were, with a passion. As he looked over the nation of Israel and considered the situation at that time, he knew that there was only one hope.
People might try politics; people might try other things. Even by force, there was a group of people called the Zealots at that time. They tried to use force, even assassination, to deliver the nation.
But Simeon, as he looked upon the condition of God’s people at that time, knew that there was only one hope for the people, and it was the Messiah. If the Messiah should come, then He would comfort His people. There was no other way.
So he was taken up with the Messiah, and he prayed for the Messiah. His prayer was answered in his lifetime.
Dear brothers and sisters, I feel that the most basic thing that must characterize God’s people today, who are really looking forward to the coming of the Lord, is that they must pray for it.
On the one hand, we may say, “Well, God has His plan. God has His time. When God’s time comes, then Christ will return.”
But God’s time is never mechanical. It is never technical. God’s time is living and spiritual. God’s time will only come when God’s people are praying for it.
We cannot just sit back and wait passively for the Lord to return. If all God’s people should do that, He will not return. He cannot.
He is waiting for His people to be so taken up with Himself that they literally cry to Him day and night for Him to come back. He is waiting for His people to realize that they have no other hope. There is no other way.
Christ is the only hope. He is the only consolation. Everything is in Him, and without Him nothing can be solved. When God’s people are driven into that corner and are really captured by such a conviction, then prayers will ascend to heaven.
And, as an answer to their prayer, God will send His Christ.
People are always asking, “Is this thing that is happening today showing that the Lord is coming soon? Is this event connected with the return of the Lord?” It seems as if, when these events and these things are gradually fulfilled, then the Lord will come.
That is looking at the outward.
It is true that things will happen and events will move forward, but these are not the essential matters. These are circumstantial. The essential is in the heart of God’s people.
It is not merely in the fulfilment of these events. They will come, but they are all circumstantial. The essential is in the heart of God’s people. Do God’s people really desire Him to come?
Do we really see that He is the only hope? Are we so cornered that we know this is the only way? Are we desperate for it? Do we give ourselves to prayer because of it?
When God’s people are really in deep waters, they know. Many who are behind the Iron Curtain and the Bamboo Curtain, and in places where they are persecuted—do you know what their prayer is? They pray for the consolation of the church.
They know that this is the only way. There is no other way. It is their cry; it is their breath. Throughout history, you find that this is always true.
The basic thing for that vessel, or that corporate vessel, which will really bring in the King and will really be prepared for the Lord’s coming, is that there must be a people of prayer.
It is not just praying for everything and anything. There must be concentrated, focused prayer. I do not mean to say that you cannot pray for other things. Of course we do, either personally or together. Of course we do.
But our prayer must be focused upon one subject: “Thy kingdom come. Come quickly, Lord Jesus.” That is the prayer of the church.
Simeon was a man of prayer, and the Bible says that he was a just and pious man—just in relation to people and pious in relation to God.
He was not merely a visionary, a dreamer, or an idealist living in another world. Well, we should live in another world, but at the same time you find that he was a very practical person.
When he was wholly involved with the Messiah and the coming of the Messiah, he lived accordingly. He lived a righteous life. No one can say that he waits for the coming of the Lord and does not live a right life.
If you do not live a right life, you will be like that wicked servant who says, “My Lord delayeth.” That is what you hope for. You know that if He should come, you cannot see His face. You do not want Him to come; you want Him to postpone His return.
But anyone who is really praying for the Lord’s return has to live a life agreeable to his prayer. The prayer of a righteous man has much power.
Simeon lived a just life, a life that was righteous and right. He was right with people, and then he was pious toward his God. In other words, he was God-fearing.
In the Old Testament, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. In Old Testament times, the fear of the Lord was the height of spirituality. If anyone was spiritual, he must fear the Lord and be pious.
Of course, in New Testament times it is the love of Christ. We are constrained by the love of Christ, knowing that One died for all; therefore all died. He was raised from the dead; therefore we do not live for ourselves, but we live unto Him who died and rose again for us.
Dear brothers and sisters, are we praying for the coming of the Lord? If we are, will we examine our lives before the Lord?
Are we hypocrites, praying for His coming and yet leading a life that is contrary to Him and to His nature? How we need to be made partakers of His holiness if we desire to see Him who is holy.
Simeon, because he so desired the coming of the Messiah, lived a life agreeable to his aspiration.
Look at the other people—the Pharisees, the scribes, and the priests at that time. They prayed the prayer of the nation, praying for the coming of the Messiah; but look at their lives.
Their lives were a contradiction to the Messiah. No wonder, when the Messiah came, they were afraid.
Simeon was a just and pious man, but the wonderful thing was that the Holy Spirit was upon him.
In Old Testament times, the Holy Spirit had not yet come in the New Testament sense. From time to time, the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of God—did come upon a select few.
The Holy Spirit might come upon a king, a priest, a prophet, or certain persons. Why? Because God set them aside to do a particular thing. In order that they might fulfil that mission, God empowered them. The Spirit of God came upon them and enabled them to fulfil their particular task.
But in Old Testament times, the Holy Spirit had not yet come to dwell in people. He came upon man for a time, and only upon a select few. Only for a time could the Holy Spirit lead them, because His coming upon them was not permanent. The Holy Spirit did not dwell in them and remain with them forever.
That was the experience of the Old Testament saints with the Spirit of God. Even though in the Old Testament you find a few who seem to have entered into what we would call New Testament experience of the Holy Spirit, that was very unusual—very unusual. David was one, and Simeon was another.
The Holy Spirit was upon him.
Because Simeon gave himself so completely to God, God, as it were, sealed him with the Holy Spirit. God anointed him with the Holy Spirit. He lived a life under the anointing of God. Most unusual.
His heart was so dedicated and given to God that God gave him the Holy Spirit to enable him to pray and to fulfil his work.
He was not only a person who lived under the anointing of God’s Spirit, but it says that it was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
In other words, he lived a life under the anointing of the Lord. If we translate this into New Testament experience, is it not true that we are Christians? By Christians, it means that we are the anointed ones.
Is it not true that we should be in a continuous, constant state of anointing? We should live our lives under the anointing of the Lord—that is to say, with the presence of the Lord.
That is under the anointing. Simeon lived a life in the presence of God. Do we live our lives constantly in His presence?
It was not merely a practical experience at a certain time, but it ought to be a state.
Therefore, you find in the New Testament that some were full of the Holy Spirit. It is not merely being filled with the Holy Spirit, but being full of the Holy Spirit. There is a difference.
Being filled with the Holy Spirit speaks of an experience of being filled and controlled by the Holy Spirit. Being full of the Holy Spirit speaks of a state—a state in which you are under the anointing of the Holy Spirit in your life.
This is essential: we need to be under the anointing of the Lord. Our lives are under His anointing—that is, with His presence with us. Whatever we do, we are activated and quickened by His power. We do not do it in our own strength, but everything is done as we are quickened and energized by the Holy Spirit.
Then you find that it was revealed to Simeon by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was able to communicate a message to him. He could receive revelation from God.
Should this not be true with us today? Should we not be a people to whom God is able to communicate by the Holy Spirit?
Paul prayed for the church in Ephesus that God would give them the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him. We ought to be a people to whom God is able to communicate what is in His heart.
Simeon could receive such communication. What was communicated to him was of tremendous importance: before he died, he would see the Lord’s Christ.
The Lord’s Christ—do you find this term anywhere else in the New Testament? So far as I know, I may be mistaken. If I am mistaken, please correct me; let me know. So far as I know, this is the only place you can find this term: “the Lord’s Christ.”
What does “the Lord’s Christ” mean? When you see such a term, it actually points to God’s eternal purpose.
In the eternal purpose of God, Christ is the centre. He is not only the centre of God’s eternal purpose; He is the One who will bring God’s purpose to fulfilment.
In other words, He is Christ, the Anointed One. He is given the task of realizing God’s purpose. God’s purpose is realized in Him, and He is the Realizer of God’s purpose too. He is not only the realization of God’s purpose; He realizes God’s purpose.
You see the position of Christ in God’s eternal purpose. This is the meaning of the term “the Lord’s Christ”—the Christ of the Lord.
God is the Lord of heaven and earth, of all things, and this Lord hath His Christ. Everything is centred upon Christ, and everything is to be fulfilled through Christ. In Him, through Him, and for Him are all things.
Brothers and sisters, a man in Old Testament times received such a revelation. How many of God’s people today, in the New Testament dispensation—in the dispensation of the Holy Spirit, when the Holy Spirit dwells in us—receive such a communication?
Most of God’s people know that Jesus is the Saviour. Thank God for that; He is the Saviour. But after you believe in Him as your Saviour, is that all?
Do you know the preeminence of Christ? Do you see the finality of Christ? Do you see the reality of Christ? Do you know the all-in-all of Christ?
In other words, the Christ that you see is so small, so fragmentary. You do not see the whole purpose of God in Christ.
Yet Simeon, a man who belonged to the Old Testament dispensation, was so open to the Lord that it was revealed to him that, before he died, he would see the Lord’s Christ. What a revelation!
A man of prayer is a man of revelation. Sometimes we wonder why we do not receive more communication. Maybe the reason is that we are not praying.
The best secret of receiving revelation is not merely studying. I confess that study is a channel; that is true. If we are really studying humbly, really gently, looking to the Lord, He will reveal.
But I think there is more revelation given to prayer than to study, because He reveals His secret to those who are near to Him.
Simeon was a man of revelation, and the revelation he received was of the full knowledge of God. Brothers and sisters, this is what we need. We need revelation. We need to see. We need divine communication.
Of course, today we cannot receive new revelation of things that are extra to the Bible. Of course not, because the revelation of God is complete in His Word.
Yet what is hidden in the Word has to be made real and quickened to us. That is revelation.
We need to come to a living knowledge of the Lord’s Christ. When we come to that knowledge of the Lord’s Christ, dear brothers and sisters, we cannot be petty or small anymore.
It is really beneath our dignity, if I may put it that way, to quarrel over small things. We have much bigger things to deal with.
Simeon’s revelation was of such a kind that it delivered him from himself as a Jew. As all Jews, he looked for the consolation of Israel. In other words, they looked for the Messiah, and the Messiah was to console Israel—and no one else.
“This Messiah is ours, not for the dogs, the Gentiles; just for us.” There was a national spirit among the Jews when they aspired for the Messiah.
But Simeon was delivered from that narrowness. Why? Because when he saw Christ, he said:
For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation,
Which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples;
A light for revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Thy people Israel.
He was delivered from Judaism. He was delivered from being merely a Jew. He said, “I have seen Thy salvation. It is prepared for all peoples.”
The consolation of Israel is not just for Israel. Yes, He is for Israel; He is the glory of Thy people Israel. But He is also a light for revelation to the Gentiles.
How it emancipated him! Simeon was free from that nationalistic, narrow concept of the Messiah because he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
What a tremendous revelation. Oh, brothers and sisters, I am afraid Simeon would put us to shame. We do not see Christ as great as Simeon saw Him.
Simeon was not only a person who was under the anointing, and not only a person who had received tremendous revelation from God, but you find that he was a man guided every step by the Holy Spirit.
At the time when Joseph and Mary came with the baby Jesus, according to the law, to present the firstborn to God and for the purification of the mother, it was exactly at that time that Simeon was led by the Holy Spirit to come to the temple.
The timing was just perfect. It was not by accident or by chance. He was led by the Holy Spirit.
He lived so close to the Holy Spirit that the Holy Spirit was able to lead him to come to the temple at the right time.
Every day in the temple, there were a number of babies to be consecrated. Certainly, Jesus was not the only baby born who was to be consecrated that day. Of the twelve tribes of Israel, every day babies were born and brought into the temple to be consecrated.
How would Simeon recognize this particular baby? Joseph and Mary were very poor. They could only offer a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. That was the sacrifice of the poor.
There was nothing outwardly that would distinguish this baby from all the other babies. Simeon did not go around trying to find a baby. He came at the right time, took the baby from Mary into his arms, and blessed God.
He knew it, not by outward signs. There were none.
Today, of course, when artists draw a picture of the baby Jesus, they give Him a halo. But it was not there at that time.
There was nothing outwardly by which you could distinguish this baby from the other babies. He was just a normal baby, just like every other baby. But because Simeon was led by the Holy Spirit, not only in praying but also to Christ, he recognized Him.
In Romans 8, we are told that as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.
In other words, we are God’s children, babies in Christ. But if we learn to be led by the Holy Spirit, then we are sons; we are grown up.
Oh, Simeon’s life walked in such intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit. We as Christians—ought not our lives to be so intimately related to the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of life to us. The law of the Spirit of life sets us free from the law of sin and death. They that are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
How our lives need to be in such a relationship with the Holy Spirit.
Here is something most beautiful. Simeon took the child in his arms, and then he blessed God and said:
Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart, Lord,
According to Thy word, in peace;
For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation,
Which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples;
A light for revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Thy people Israel.
He took the child, blessed God, and said, “Lord, let Thy servant go. This is what I was waiting for. Now I have seen it. I am ready to go. There is nothing else I want.”
His heart was completely involved with the salvation of the Lord, with the Lord’s Christ. There was nothing in him that he desired other than this. When he saw this, he said, “Now let me go. There is nothing that holds me here anymore.”
“I wanted to live because I wanted to see my salvation. Now I see it. Let me go. Let me go. I have no more desire.”
Can we say, as the psalmist in Psalm 73:25, “Whom have I in heaven but Thee? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides Thee”? Can we say that?
Are we so involved with Him that there is nothing on earth that we really desire? Are we so dried up, as it were, that a single touch can take us up?
What a man!
The word “Lord” there is a special word. It is used in the New Testament a few times. It is used here, in Acts 4, in Revelation 6, and in places in Titus and Timothy.
This word for Lord in Greek is despotēs. In English, it is “despot.” That sounds very bad, because it has a bad connotation today. But the word itself simply means sovereign Lord, Master, ruler of all.
“You are my Master. You have absolute power over me. I am Your slave.” That was Simeon’s relationship with God.
It draws you back to Deuteronomy 15. If a Hebrew sold himself to another Hebrew, he would serve his master for six years. In the seventh year, he should go out free, without payment, because he had served six years.
But if the slave loved his master and loved his master’s house, and did not want to go free, what should be done? He would be led to the door and have his ear pierced to the doorpost.
So a slave whose ear was pierced was a slave for life, with a love-life. He did not serve out of obligation; he served out of love.
Here you find a beautiful relationship between Simeon and God. To Simeon, God was his sovereign Lord, his Master. But his relationship with the Master was so loving.
There was such a loving relationship between them that there was a kind of agreement. The Master said, “You will not die until you see My salvation.” Now he saw the salvation, and he told the Master, “Let me go. Do not hold me on any longer. That is enough.”
What is life worth living for? Do you want to live a day longer after you have seen the Messiah, the salvation of the Lord? What else can you see? There is nothing. Nothing.
Is this our relationship with God? Are we so single-minded? Do we so desire the Lord—oh, the Lord—nothing else? Nothing on earth is worth waiting for, looking for. There is none.
How beautiful it is. I wonder—I personally believe He took him, because there was nothing left for him to live for.
But thank God, Simeon also spoke to Mary. His father and mother wondered, and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother:
Behold, this child is set for the falling and the rising of many in Israel;
And for a sign which is spoken against;
Yea and a sword shall pierce through thine own soul;
That thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.
Simeon saw not only God’s purpose centred in Christ; he also saw God’s way in Christ. The way of God in Christ is the way of the cross.
Christ will be the great divider. On the cross, He would divide the world into two. Some will fall because of Him; some will be raised up because of Him. What is hidden will be exposed and revealed.
This is the way of Christ, and the way of Christ is the way that all the followers of Christ must follow, must walk.
Therefore, he told Mary, “A sword shall enter into your soul.” This is not only referring to the day when Mary would see her Son crucified on the cross. No doubt, a sword entered into her soul.
But this is a principle—a principle applicable to all who see Christ and who are willing to follow Christ.
It is glorious to see the Lord’s Christ. He lifts you to the third heaven. But at the same time, the way to Him is the way of the cross.
Unless we are willing to let that sword pierce into our soul, dividing soul and spirit, there is no way to come to Christ.
Here you find Simeon as such a vessel—prepared, and a vessel that God could use at that particular moment to manifest and exalt His Christ.
So, dear brothers and sisters, if we want to be the vessel, the prepared people whom God can use to exalt His Son, our Christ, especially during this time, then Simeon is a man we should consider over and over again before the Lord.
May that which characterized him characterize us. Shall we pray?
Our heavenly Father, our hearts do rejoice. How wonderful that Thou wilt bring in Thy King to this earth.
But, our Father, our God, we do understand that unless Thou canst get a people who will prepare Thy way, Thy time will be delayed.
Our Father, our God, we do desire to be that people. For this reason, we ask that we may be a people of prayer, a people of revelation, a people who are so intimately related to Thy Spirit, a people who understand Thy plan, a people who know Thy way.
Oh, Lord, in ourselves it is impossible, but with Thee all things are possible. So we just give ourselves to Thee, O Lord, for Thy Christ. In the precious name of our Lord Jesus.