The Greatest Sermons In the World... Ever!

And if you'd like to take up your bibles, we're going to have our bible reading now which is going to be from act chapter 20 and verse 13. We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Asos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. When he met us at Asos, we took him aboard and went on to Italy. The next day, we set sail from there and arrived off kiosk.

The day after that, we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at miletus. Paul had decided to sail past deficits to avoid spending time in the province of Asia for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem if possible the day of Pentecost. From my latest, Paul sent to ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to them, you know how I lived the whole time I was with you. From the first day, I came into the province of Asia.

I served the lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you, but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to god in repentance and have faith in our lord Jesus. And now compelled by the spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city, the holy spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me My only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the lord Jesus has given me the task of testifying to the good news of god's grace. Now I know that none of you, among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom, will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of god. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.

Be shepherds of the church of god, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number, men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard, Remember that for 3 years, I never stopped warning each of you, night and day with tears. Now I commit you to god and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

I have not coveted any 1 silver or gold or clothing, You know yourselves that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work, we must help the weak remembering the words the lord Jesus himself said, it is more blessed to give than to receive. When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What grieved the most was his statement that they would never see his face again.

Then they accompanied him to the ship. Thank you very much, Daryl. And, as always, if you could keep that passage open in front of you, that would be very helpful. As Daryl said in his, in his introduction, this is a series that we've been doing in the greatest, the greatest sermons in the world ever. These great sermons, that were preached at different points in history and the Holy Spirit has recorded for us to learn from, in his word.

And we're looking at this sermon today, given by Paul, to these Ephesian elders who were about to carry on with gospel ministry, after he'd left them. So let's bow our heads and begin with prayer. Father, we want to thank you for this morning and we thank you for bringing us together in the name of our great lord Jesus. And we pray now that you would help us by the Holy Spirit to understand this word to us this morning. We pray that the Holy Spirit would be pleased to shine a light on the lord Jesus that we might see him in his resurrection glory, that we might repent and turn towards you and put our faith again in the lord Jesus.

We pray for our brothers and sisters meeting all over the land at this moment. We pray for all the other churches here in London, and up and down this country who are preaching your word faithfully. And we pray that you would bless our brothers and sisters as they gather. We pray that as they listen to your word, hundreds, thousands, of our brothers and sisters listening to your word this morning. We pray that you would encourage their hearts.

And we pray that on this day, people might be drawn from darkness into the light of Christ in this land. We pray father for salvation. Here this morning, here in London, up and down this country. Please, bless all the faithful works, and bless us this morning as we open your word now. In Jesus' name.

Oh, man. Oh, man. Now we were on a holiday for a couple of weeks recently, and, 1 of the things that we we did was we went to a RNLLI lifeboat station, Royal National Lifeboat institution, in a place called Temby in Pembrokure. And, this is an amazing station. It was, built in 18 52.

It's been there since then in 1 form or another. And, it's built up into the cliffs, and, it's what's called an explore station, which means it's possible for members of the general public to go in and have a look around. And, you can read about the history of the place, and, they've got a notice board detailing, the latest rescue that they've been a part of, which is quite interesting. And, on certain evenings, you can actually go back to the station and watch the lifeboat launching, which is incredible. You've got this boats, hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of technology, very impressive piece of kit, and it goes hurtling off down this ramp and out into the bay.

And you can gather round as the general public and and and watch it's quite quite a spectacle. And as you go around the station and read all of the different bits of information that are there, you come away in no doubt as to why the RNNI actually exist. Their mission is super clear for everybody. They exist to save lives. Since it was, founded its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have apparently, saved over a hundred and 42000 people at danger in the sea.

They have 238 stations in the UK, 240 lifeguard units on the beaches, and they operate and provide a 24 hour search and rescue service in the in the seas of this of this country. And 1 of the most amazing things I think about this organization is that most of, or if not all of the people involved, all of the lifesavers are trained volunteers. They are members of the general public who have been trained in order to be about this life saving work. In that station, they've got lots of engravings on the glass as well as written notice boards. And 1 of the engravings says this.

Train 1 Save many. On average, a trained lifeboat crew member will save 21 lives during his or her service. With the RNLLI. Train 1, save many. It's incredible statistic, isn't it?

Every single member of the crew is a trained volunteer, a member of the public, people like people like you and I, and on average, each 1 of them is gonna be involved in the saving of 21 lives over the course of their service. Train 1, save many. The more we can train the more we can save. That that's that's the mission. And as I read that with this sermon coming up in my mind, I couldn't help but think about some of the things we find here in act 20.

This sermon that Paul gives to these elders is a training sermon for volunteer lifesavers. It's a training sermon for volunteer lifesavers. In 1 sense, they're not the lifesavers. Jesus is the lifesaver, but they're being trained to be involved in this life saving mission. Paul has gathered these elders together They are never gonna see his face again.

They are about to sail out into the bay without him for the first time. And this is their training sermon. Train 1, save many. That's the RNNI motto, but train a group of elders Well, then they can go on with god's great rescue mission. So what do they need to know That's the key thing, isn't it?

Their apostle is about to leave. What do they need to know? What do they need to be trained in so they can carry on this effective Gospel ministry. Well, 3 things I want to show you from this passage this morning. The first is this.

First point in their training, they need to follow Paul's example. They need to follow Paul's example. Now in verse 16 towards the beginning of the passage, We're told by Luke who wrote this book that Paul is on his way to Jerusalem and he's in a rush. Why? Well, because he wants to make it there in time for this important festival of pentecost.

But while he's got some time, time in this little town called miletus, he decides to summon these Ephesian elders to come and meet him. So he doesn't particularly want to go to them because who knows what he might be involved in? Maybe he'll be distracted, maybe he'd be arrested, maybe he'd have to spend more time than he would like there. Maybe they'd just be too hospitable to him. He hasn't got time to go there but he summons them because he's got an important message for them.

And what is clear from the passage is that there's an extra sense of urgency because Paul realizes this might be his final opportunity. To provide this training for them. Have a look at verse, 23 with me. Paul says I only know that in every city, The Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me My only aim is to finish the race, complete the task that the lord Jesus has given me, the task of testifying to the good news of god's grace.

So he doesn't know exactly what is gonna happen, but the Holy Spirit has impressed it upon him in some way that wherever he goes and therefore in Jerusalem, there will be suffering, there will be hardships, there may be imprisonment, and he seems to think that there might even be death waiting for him. And so what he does, while he's got the chance is he gets these elders together and he wants to make sure they're equipped to serve the church after he has gone and in the event of his death. And the point that he emphasizes more than anything else, this is the key point in their training. If they just take away 1 thing, let it be this, key point remember my example. Remember my example.

That's critical for your life after me in ephesus. Have a look at how he begins in verse 18. Verse 17 from my latest Paul sent to ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to them, You know how I lived the whole time I was with you from the first day that I came into the province of Asia. It is amazing how many times in this passage, if you go through and count them, and not only in this passage, but in the letters that Paul writes, how many times he refers to himself.

You know how we lived among you. You know in what way we behaved. We were like this with you. We were like a father or a mother with you. Remember what it was like when I was among you.

So Paul was very, very aware that by god's grace, he was setting the pattern for gospel ministry. So verse 18 is not him sort of bragging and saying, yeah, look, guys. Do you remember how awesome I was? Didn't put a foot wrong for 3 years. He's not self inflating his ego, he's he knows, look, elders in the church of Christ.

By god's grace, I'm setting the pattern for ministry. You must follow in my footsteps after I've gone. The things that I have done by god's grace, you need to do. Embrace, embrace the pattern of ministry that I have left for you and that the lord Jesus left for me. But here's the question in order to understand exactly what he's talking about.

What does he expect them to learn from his example? Follow my example. Okay, Paul. What do you mean? In what way?

Should we dress like you? Should we, adopt the same phrases that you use and are famous for? Should we you know, walk in the same style, wear the same sandals, make the same tints as you. What how in what way should we follow you, Paul? Well, have a look at what he says in verse 20.

You know that I have not hesitated to preach Anything that would be helpful to you, but have taught you publicly from house to house. First 21, I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to god in repentance and have faith in our lord Jesus. Verse 24, I consider my life not worth living to me My only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the lord Jesus has given me, which is the task of testifying to the good news of god's grace. Verse 25. Now I know that none of you, among whom I have gone about, what?

Preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Verse 26. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you verse 27 for I have not hesitated to what proclaim to you the whole will of god. Verse 31, be on your guard. Remember that for 3 years, I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

It's interesting when you go around 10 B Harbor, for the day. You you notice that lifeboats aren't the only boats around. Use all kinds of boat services. You can pray, you can, pay for a, cruise to cool the island, where there's a a a famous monastery. You can take an adventure boat out into the bay in order to look for seals and other other bits of wildlife out there.

There's a fishing boat that you can join. You can go hunting for mackerel. You can even rent your own boats and do whatever you like in the bay. Okay? There's all kinds of boats but the RNLLI offers none of those services.

They know what they're about. They know why they're in the harbor life saving. That's the distinctive. Yes, they educate the public. Yes, they open up their station.

Yes, they run charity events. They do other things, but that's why they're in the harbor. That's what makes them distinctive. And the same is true of the apostle Paul. There are all kinds of things that he did.

He faced hardships. He wanted to pass to the flock. He served the lord with humility. He worked with his hands. To avoid being a burden to the churches.

He makes that point very strongly. But what is his distinctive? What is the thing that he repeats over and over again. What is he known for? He proclaimed the life saving gospel of Jesus Christ, and he taught the whole will of god.

Whatever else he was, and whatever else he did, the task the lord Jesus had given him, was to testify to the good news of god's grace, to to expound or to make known the whole will of god. To call Jews and Greeks, everyone, to repentance, toward god, and faith in the lord Jesus. He gave himself to that mission. That's his distinctive. That's his example.

And so, therefore, the question is, what is ministry gonna look like in ephesus after he's gone? What must these elders give themselves to the ministry of the word of god, the proclamation of the gospel of god. They will follow Paul's example faithfully if they continue to preach and teach as he did. And because you and I here today, Many thousands of years later live after the age of the apostles as well. This this this training point is for us, for our elders, and it's for us as a church.

There are all kinds of things that churches like ours should and could do good things. But let's underline this together, that the reason that we exist as a church is not to entertain people with good events. It is not to save the planet, and it is not mainly to fix each other's problems. Now it's good to do that, and we love each other, and we want to do that. But we do not mainly exist in order to fix each other's problems and fix each other's situations.

That is not mainly what we're about. The reason that we exist is to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, to teach the whole will of god to announce that there is a day coming when god is going to come in judgment upon the world. There is a day coming when the lord Jesus will return in wrath, a day of darkness and judgment, and for people to be saved from everlasting ruin They need to believe and cherish and love Jesus as their savior. That is why we exist as a church to preach up a big Christ to a dying world and to announce that repentance and faith is the road to salvation. If we lose that distinctive or if we water it down, we abandon the example that has been set for us here.

It'd be like the RNLLI saying, Joe, we search and rescue is great, but we're gonna start offering pleasure cruises around the bay every now and then. And, on Saturdays, we're gonna run a bird charter, out to neighboring islands. So life saving's still important, but we we want to we want to just broaden out a little in what we're about. No, their trustees would say. I hope.

That's not your distinctive. You are the royal national life boat institution. Don't change your name. You are the life boat institution. And look, there is a temptation, isn't there as we grow by god's grace to just keep the show on the road.

And to keep things comfortable and to focus mainly on church life and what we would like to see improved. Within these 4 walls. But again, you can imagine if the RNLLI spent most of their time fixing up the lifeboat. Adding new features, cleaning it, but never sending it out. It abandons its entire purpose.

Paul did all kinds of things, but just read his life. From acts 9 through to the end of 2 Timothy, what is Christian ministry after Jesus? Testifying to the good news of god's grace. So training 0.1 for these elders and for the church as a whole is to follow the example of Paul. In what way, Paul, preach and teach the word of god, like I did when I was with you.

The second point in their training sermon after following Paul's example is to keep watch over the flock. 1 of the reasons that this, particular station in Tembe is, is famous. It is because it was 1 of the first lifeboat stations in the country to be given a new class of boat. And, this boat is called the Hayden Miller, and, it is an amazingly sophisticated bit of It is quick, it is agile, it can write itself when it's been capsized, which seems to be an amazing thing. No matter what conditions it in, it always finds its way back.

It is it is finely tuned to save lives. But of course as you look at it, you realize that the Hayden Miller isn't just designed to reach people quickly and pluck them out of danger. It's great at that, but it's not the only reason it's there. It's also designed to keep them alive after they've been saved. Which is perfectly obvious, isn't it?

It would be no good if you could get the drowning person on boards But you had no oxygen, no life support machine, no medication, nothing to keep them warm, no stretches, no pain relief, no shelter from the elements. Nothing. Once people have been saved, they need that stuff to keep them safe. And I think, again, that is helpful for understanding this this particular sermon. What must these elders do?

Well, yes, they must preach a life saving gospel, but they must also protect those who have been rescued. Or in his words here, they must keep watch over the flock. Have a look at verse 25 with me. Now I know that none of you, among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom, will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you, for I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of god.

Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of god, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave savage wolves, will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number, men will arise and distort the truth. In order to draw away disciples after them.

So be on your guard. Remember that for 3 years, I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. And as you can see, just from that last verse, Paul has been going on about this for a long time, and he will continue to go on about it. It's not something he particularly relishes, because he gives the warning with tears, but it needs to be said over and over and over again. The church might be on the lifeboat.

Praise God, but the danger is not over until we're all back at base. Keep. Watch. And it seems there are 2 threats he has in mind. 1 from the outside.

1 from the inside. 1 from the outside. Savage wolves will come in. 1 from the inside. And even from your own number.

Men will arise and distort the truth. 2 groups, 1 mission to savage the flock of god. And what kind of people are they? Well, in verse 30, we're told it's those who distort the truth in order to gather their own disciples. So these are not atheists.

Okay. They are not people who belong to other religions. They are people who talk a good Christianity. They teach a gospel, but they have changed the apostle's gospel. In order to make a name for themselves.

And sadly, when you read 1 and 2 Timothy, which are written to Timothy as he's pastoring this church in ephesus, you see this was not just a theory. When you read those letters, you see that that exact thing happened in ephesus. False teachers did come in, even those who were known to Paul. Hymenaeus and Filitis, He says they swerved from the truth. They swerved from the truth.

And they started upsetting the faith of some. 2 Timothy 2 17. They swerved from the truth. And you see for Paul, this is very bad. He doesn't live in a post truth world, where it actually doesn't really matter what you believe about god and who's teaching what in the church.

He doesn't live in a kind of place, which says, well, the truth about god is relative. And as long as all your preachers are sincere, and as long as they're sort of respectful in the way they go about their teaching, well, that's great. They can believe whatever truth they like. Now he lives in a world where truth matters where the truth about Jesus Christ brings life and salvation and when lies about Jesus Christ ripped the guts out of the sheep and savage them to death. That's the kind of world he lives in where the truth about Jesus matters.

And that is why he slows down and he looks them in the eye and he says elders keep watch. Be shepherds of the church of god which he bought with his own blood. I mean, how's that for a motivation to watch over the flock? The people of god redeemed by the blood of Christ, who is the fullness of god. The people of god have been bought at the highest price with the precious blood of a lamb without blemish.

There is no greater price that could have been paid for our redemption. And therefore, he says shepherding these people. Watching over these people guarding these people is the highest priority because the highest price was paid for them. They are precious to Christ. Keeping watch is literally essential.

It is the essence of the job. Of an overseer. But you can see alongside that wonderful motivation comes a more sober word in verse 26 to 27. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of god, keep watch over yourselves, and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.

Now at first glance, you might think, oh, he's talking about non Christians. Anyone in Asia who heard the gospel and rejected Jesus, well, that's their fault. I'm innocent. I'm not accountable. I made it plain to them.

If they say no, their blood is on their own head, and that is absolutely true, but remember he's talking to elders. And so he seems to be saying, look, elders I have set everything before you. I have taught you the whole will of god. I am leaving you with everything you need to know, and therefore if you elders depart from the truth, or if you let somebody in and start preaching a foreign gospel, it is not my fault. I am not accountable for that.

I am leaving with a clear conscience, you know? I'm not sailing away thinking, oh gosh, I forgot to tell the elders about the savage wolves. What are what are they gonna do? You know, he's he's taught them all that they need to know. They have everything that they need.

They are now accountable. They are responsible for the flock of god. They have all that they need to defend the church from her enemies. And so 0.2 of this training sermon, in 1 sense, We are all responsible to be vigilant here over the teaching of the word of god. It's why we always encourage open bibles in bible studies and sermons, a closed bible means you either trust yourself too much or you trust us too much It's good to have an open Bible to see what the word of God is saying, but there is a special charge to elders here.

In ephesus and in this church, follow Paul's example, keep watch over the flock. But here's the thing. That's not all that he actually says, is it? And it's easy to miss in this paragraph. Look right at the beginning of verse 28.

What does he say before that? Keep watch over yourselves. See, in order to be part of the RNNI team, you have to have serious training. And not just once, you you have to constantly renew your skills. You have to redo your lifeguards certificate.

You have to redo your first aid certificate. You need to retrain as new equipment comes out. Without without this constant vigilance over yourself, you become dead weight in the boat. And the same is true for elders in ephesus and now. 1 commentator says this, and I'll repeat it because I think it's so helpful.

Unceasing vigilance, is the essential requirement in shepherds. And first, vigilance over themselves. A shepherd who grows careless over his own spiritual life, moral behavior, study of scripture, progress in the knowledge of god, thereby unfits himself for shepherding others. A shepherd who grows careless over his own spiritual life, moral behavior, study of scripture, progress in the knowledge of god, thereby, unfits himself. For shepherding others.

See, it is very possible for all all of us, actually, not just elders for all of us. To lose our first love, isn't it? To occupy a role, to serve in a team, To attend a meeting, but actually to have lost our affection and our thirst for Christ. To have lost a first to grow in our knowledge of god and to deepen our understanding of grace. And that is why god says to these elders, keep watch.

If we don't love the truth, what energy will we have to proclaim it? If we aren't deepening our knowledge of god, What use will we be in protecting others from error? Keep watch over yourselves. And over the flock. So 2 questions by way of application, to all of us in general, but elders in this context.

Am I? Are you keeping watch over yourself? And secondly, will you pray for elders? That by god's grace, they would grow in their spiritual life, grow in their study of the scripture, grow in their love for the lord, so that they can be useful in this task. What use is an RNI volunteer who abandons his needs for training and growth.

No use. Prey, please. For elders to be vigilant over themselves so they can do the best job possible by god's grace in caring for the church. Secondly, they needed to keep watch. Thirdly, they needed to depend on god's grace.

Thirdly, and lastly, they needed to depend on god's grace. Now I imagine never done it, of course, but I imagine that that moment, when you go out on your first life boat mission must be extremely nerve wracking. It's like driving, if you can drive here, and you can remember learning to drive. When you're with your instructor and they happen to have a break, there's a limited amount of things that can go wrong. And that fills you with a bit of confidence, doesn't it?

You don't want to go with your spouse because that will end in disaster. You don't wanna go with your parents equally so. But when you're with a a a sort of trained independent non related to you person who has also got control over the car. You feel slightly more at ease. But if you remember passing your test, perhaps you can remember that moment when you set out for your first independent drive.

Or that first time you went on the motorway by yourself or worse the a 3 by yourself. Perhaps you can remember that. It is a daunting moment to be left without your instructor. And I wonder whether these elders were thinking something similar. We are never going to see his face again.

That's it. In the past, at least we were comforted by the fact that he was kind of alive and and around, and we might have been able to send a messenger to get a message, or we could have wrote to him to get his wisdom on a particular issue, but how can we carry on now without our apostle? How can we carry on? Well, verse 31 to 32, he seems to preempt it. So be on your guard, remember that for 3 years, I never stop warning each of you night and day with tears, and now I commit you to god and to the word of his grace.

Which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. The message version, which is a version rather than a translation, says this. I just think it I just really like it as a paraphrase of this. It says, now I am turning you over to god, our marvelous god whose gracious word can make you into what he wants you to be. In other words, Paul is saying, you're not gonna see me again, but you're not alone.

The marvelous god, and the word of his grace will be with you. And that, quite frankly, is all that you need. To keep proclaiming Jesus Christ as I have done, what do you need? You just need the marvelous god and the word of his grace. To keep watch over the flock and to defend her from savage wolves, what do you need?

But you just need the marvelous god, and you need the word of his grace. So in 1 sense, it's not a direct command that he's giving them, but it is essential for their training. There is a great mission ahead of us. Isn't there? A great mission.

To proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, to see the lost saved and brought into the family of god to be vigilant over 1 another and to take care over 1 another. This is a great mission. The age of the apostles has closed but the baton has been passed to us through the word of god and we run the same race that they did. We prioritize the same things that they prioritized. And how do we do it So disconnected from these first apostles?

Well, we remember that we have the marvelous god and the word of his grace. You can imagine them, can't you? How can we do this, Paul? If you go What do we have left? Well, he looks at them and he says, you have everything left.

God, and the word of his grace. And in verse 36, you can see that for Paul, that wasn't just a theory either. He really believed that that was true. When he had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them, and he prayed. He committed them to god in his sermon, and then he really did it by praying for them No doubt that the marvelous god and that the word of his grace would equip them with everything they need to apply what they've just heard.

And then verse 37 hardly needs expanding on. They all wept as they embraced him and they kissed him. What grieved them the most was his statement, that they would never see his face again. And then they accompanied him to the ship. You can imagine them, can't you kneeling down on the beach or on the on the harbor, maybe weeping, embracing 1 another, praying.

And here's the question, what were they most grieved about? About the savage wolves coming in? Of course, they would have been grieved to have heard that. But what does Luke say most of all, because this side of heaven, they wouldn't see his face again. And that's why in some ways thinking about this as a training sermon is only helpful in a limited way.

Because often when you go to a training event, if you've ever been, you don't know the person. They're professionals. They come in and they deliver their training, then they leave and expect you to get on with it. But that is not the case here. There's training involved, but also great, great affection for 1 another because they had joined arms.

In the gospel mission. Just think of what they had been through, ups, downs, values of pain, great triumphs, sinners coming to Christ, sinners turning in hatred from Christ. And in verse 20 37, we can see just how deeply they had bonded. And it just reminds us, doesn't it? That the the best friendships are formed in the service of Christ.

The best friendships are formed in the service of Christ. If you've ever gone away to a Christian camp or a weekend away with church or you've been on a short term mission trip. There's a Christian phrase called the Post Camp Blues. And you come back and you feel a bit gutted and a bit sort of hollow, and you long to be back, happy to be home, but wanting to be back. Why is that?

Because the best of friendships are formed in the service of Christ. You miss that time of ministry. And the same is true here in this scene, and the same is true for our church. We cannot, and we should not and we must not, and we are not called to go about this mission alone. It's why we believe that more than 1 elder is a very healthy model.

It's why we encourage small groups and serving teams. Because alongside the word of grace, god has given us each other. And these relationships are so vital if we're gonna keep going with this ministry pattern that has been set for us. So if you ever get the chance, go go to 1 of those lifeboat stations. See how committed these volunteers are to saving lives and to protecting those who have been rescued.

And if you do, just remember it is a little taste of what we see here. Volunteers being trained to preach Christ, to keep watch, to depend on the grace of god, and to work as a team. Let's pray that god would help us to share these priorities. Let's pray. Father, we want to ask that by the help of your Holy Spirit, you would enable our church Not just today or for this week or for this month, but for as long as that we are here, you would enable us to share these convictions and priorities.

We pray that you would help us to keep proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ, to say very simply that all must turn in repentance towards god and faith in our lord Jesus. That we would please not be diluted or distracted from this great gospel mission that you have entrusted to us. Please preserve us. Keep us preaching a faithful gospel to 1 another and to this dying world. We pray that you would help the elders particularly in this church and all of us to be vigilant.

To care about what is being taught and how it is being taught. We pray that you would preserve us from false teaching that you would protect us because surely lord, if we think that it could never happen to us, that's the first step to disaster. Please protect us. Help us to remain faithful to you. We pray again for the elders, but for all of us that you would help us to keep watch over ourselves.

That we would not lose our first love for Christ. And we pray that as we go about this gospel mission, you would help us to depend upon you. You truly are a marvelous god. You have promised to be with us by your spirit, and you have given us the words of your grace. Help us to depend upon these things we pray in Jesus' name.