like this, which we call our sixth anniversary.
It's proper for us to have these kinds of annual
events. In the Old Testament, you see, God established
certain days on the calendar each year for his
people to remember his work in their midst, to
rejoice in his blessing, and to remind them of
his faithfulness. We are in that sense no better
than they in that we also need to have regular
reminders of what God has done in the past because
we easily forget. What God has done previously
can soon become ancient history to us even though
it's only a few years away and we lose a grasp
on it. So I think it's good for us to remind
ourselves every year what God has done in this
brief period of time. I suppose that many of
us go back and isolate certain incidents or events
over these six years which have proven to us
personally and to us as a church God's blessing,
God's faithfulness in providing, God's leading.
It would be good if we had time this morning
to select a few of those and have you share them,
but we can't do that. Just to illustrate what
I'm talking about, how important it is for us
to keep these kinds of things before us, I wonder
how many of you did not ever worship with us
in the original building on this site. In other
words, you came either during our year at Northwestern
College when we met there, or you've come since
we've been back here in this facility. So you
did not worship with us in the original building
that was here at Hamlin and County Road B -2.
Would you lift your hand? That's probably half
of the congregation this morning. One of the
things about an annual day like this is that
it allows the newer people to Grace Church Roseville
to understand a little bit of our history. And
in that way, God is honored because God has done
an amazing thing for us folks in these six years.
Grace Church Roseville, I think, can be summarized
in a phrase that We have used some. We haven't
used a great deal yet. But it's the phrase that
says, teaching the word, reaching the world.
It seems to me that that's a good summation of
what we're all about. We are in the first place
a Bible -teaching church. That is an emphasis
throughout our ministry. We are a church that
is as committed to the inerrancy of Scripture
as a church can be. We believe that because the
Bible is inerrant, it therefore is authoritative
in our lives. It is God's good news to us. It
is God's communication to us, God's will for
us, and therefore we emphasize the teaching of
the Word of God. And then reaching the world.
We as a church are committed to outreach. That
is going to be... stepped up a little bit this
year in 1987 as we planned some specific events
that are going to allow all of you who will to
get involved in helping us to reach out to our
community in an organized way. But of course
we emphasize the fact that all of us all the
time are reaching out to people, building bridges
into lives for the sake of the gospel, that we
might share with people the good news of the
Lord Jesus Christ. We are a church strongly committed
to missions. Frankly, there are not many churches
that have grown as quickly as we have and have
had the financial pressures that come with that,
as we have, that have also given to missions
as we have. It may not be as much as some of
us would like to see, but it's well above the
average for a church that has our kind of a history
to it. We're committed to missions. We believe
the gospel needs to get to every creature, that
every person needs to hear the good news of Jesus
Christ. and have the opportunity to believe on
the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. So I think
that that phrase is a good summation of what
we're all about as a church, teaching the word
and reaching the world. A local church will rise
no higher than its weakest member. That's why
it's so important for all of us to be faithful
to the Lord Jesus Christ and to this work that
he has established. Where we will be a year from
now or six years from now, Where we will be in
the year 2000, as we're thinking in this Project
2000, depends upon our response to God. It depends
upon our faithfulness. They say it depends upon
God's faithfulness. Yes, of course it does, ultimately.
But God uses people in his purposes. He uses
us. And so it is our commitment and faithfulness
to this work of God that determines the measure
of blessing that God will bestow upon us. in
the years ahead. So may we be a faithful people,
and a people who are faithful channels of the
blessing that God desires to give. Let's turn
together into the Word of God, to the third chapter
of Ephesians, to the text that we've already
read in our responsive reading. Most important,
most loving act which you can do for another
person, for your spouse, for family, for your
church, is to pray for them. Because you see,
prayer is not the last resort. It's the first
resource. Through prayer, you cooperate with
God in realizing his purpose in your life and
in the lives of others as you pray for them.
Here in Ephesians chapter 3, at the end of the
chapter, we have recorded for us a second prayer
of the Apostle Paul for the Ephesian church.
he paused to pray for the readers of his letter.
One might ask, why did Paul, as he was dictating
this, take up precious space on a limited scroll
to record a prayer? Well, in the first place,
I think he did it because he wanted the Ephesians
to know his heart for them. If you want to know
the heart of another person, spend some time
with that person in prayer. Because in prayer,
the heart becomes transparent. Paul wanted the
Ephesian people to know his heart. Thus he recorded
for them his prayer. Secondly, I believe he recorded
it because he wanted them to follow his example.
He wanted them to know how to pray for themselves
and for the other churches. Thirdly, and overarching
the other two reasons, Paul recorded this prayer
because he was led of the Spirit of God to do
so. He was inspired of the Spirit of the Lord
to write these words, and the Spirit of God laid
it upon his heart to pray as he prayed. It is
interesting that because his prayer is a part
of the eternal word of God, Paul prayed not only
for the Ephesians, but he prays for us today
in this generation 1 ,900 years later. So we
have the blessing of having an apostolic prayer
for us recorded in these verses. Paul teaches
us to pray intelligently and spiritually. In
other words, to pray with the mind of God himself.
He knew what you and I must realize, and that
is that studying doctrine, understanding the
mysteries of the Bible, outlining its chapters,
memorizing passages or even books, that these
things are not in themselves sufficient to make
us men and women of God. They are good things,
and we ought to be doing them, but by themselves
they do not make us spiritual people, mature
people, or people of God. It goes beyond those
mechanics. to the point of applying those things
in our lives. Our need, and Paul knew this, that's
why he prayed the way he did, our need is to
realize in our daily living what we know in our
minds. The difference between these two is the
difference between knowing the mechanics of an
automobile and driving an automobile. They're
entirely two different things. There are many
people who are caught up in the mechanics. of
studying the Bible, learning doctrine, memorizing
scripture. And those things are fine, but it
must go beyond that to knowing how to drive the
thing. There has to be an application of those
things to the life that makes a difference in
the way that we live. And that is what Paul prays
about. This is the doctrinal half of the book
of Ephesians that we've been studying in chapters
1 through 3. Back in chapter 1, Paul begins by
telling us that we have been blessed with every
spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. And
then he begins to enumerate those blessings.
And now he concludes this doctrinal portion by
praying once more. And his prayer is that we
might experience all of the fullness that God
has for us. He begins by telling us what God
has. And now he prays that we might experience
that fullness. And so after laying out what is
true about us in these verses, the apostle asks
God to make these things real in our lives, to
enable us to enter into these blessings that
are ours in Christ. Studying Paul's prayer will
enlighten us how to pray better. to pray more
effectively, pray more in the will of God. But
it will also enable us to take another step toward
becoming what God has called us to be in Jesus
Christ. I want you to notice with me the elements
of prayer in Paul's words as he begins to explain
and to pray in verse 14. Notice with me first
this element, the prompting which Paul answers.
He says, for this reason, I bow my knees before
the Father. For this reason, there was a prompting
in the heart of Paul to pray at this point. Now
all of us initiate prayer, hopefully frequently.
But I wonder if we are as skilled at responding
to prayer when God prompts us to pray. We pray
when we're ready to pray, but are we ready to
pray when God wants us to pray? That's my point
here. Is there a spontaneity in our praying,
or to say it a different way, is there an availability
in our praying? What is it that motivates us
to pray? Is it that it's that set time of the
day? when we have scheduled ourselves to pray?
Nothing wrong with that. Or is it that an arranged
prayer meeting is about to begin, therefore we
pray? Nothing wrong with that either. But it
seems to me that Paul goes a bit beyond that
as he is writing in the flow of this epistle,
because his heart is so in sync with God's mind
and heart. that he responded spontaneously to
the burden that was there. He was available to
pray right then when this burden came on him.
And the burden was the burden of spiritual truth.
That was his motive for praying, it seems to
me, because he has just explained to us the great
mystery, the mystery of Christ. That is that
the Jew and Gentile are one through faith in
Christ, one body which has equal access to God.
And it is as his heart is filled with this truth
that he is burdened to pray and he immediately
begins to pray. He says, for this reason I bow
my knees. The lesson here is this. You and I
should not just pray for the things which are,
but also for the things that could be. Because
Paul is burdened that the people in Ephesus and
you and me today enter into the potential of
the spiritual truth that he has just explained
to us. Often our prayers focus on the things
that are. God, we pray for Aunt Susie's liver
to be made well. There's nothing wrong with praying
for Aunt Susie's liver, I suppose. Lord, I pray
for a safe trip for so -and -so to that destination.
Nothing wrong with praying for that. That's good
to pray for that. But we pray so much for those
things that are instead of praying for the things
that might be entering into potential praying.
Paul said, folks, here is the truth about you.
And now I bow my knees to the Father, and for
this reason I pray that you might enter into
this thing and experience in your lives what
God has given you in Christ. Pray for the things
that could be. Pray potential prayers. Notice
with me, secondly, not only the prompting which
Paul answers, but the posture that he assumes.
He says, for this reason I bow my knees. There
is no single command in Scripture that I know
of that gives a correct posture for prayer. In
fact, the Bible records a number of different
postures in praying. For example, Solomon stood
to pray, 1 Kings chapter 8. He is recorded there
standing up and praying to God. Our Lord Jesus
went into the garden of Gethsemane, and there
he fell on his face. He laid prostrate upon the
ground. It's proper to pray that way. Daniel
kneeled, as Paul suggests he was doing here.
He knelt and prayed to God. In the scriptures
we see that there are times when eyes are lifted
up in prayer. There are times when hands are
raised in prayer. No, that is not a charismatic
phenomenon. That is a biblical posture in praying,
and there is nothing wrong with that, although
it's often associated with that particular movement
today. There is no command in Scripture that
says that prayer should be done this way. There
are many examples to us. But how do we know how
we should pray? Well, I think there are a couple
of guidelines that can show us. First of all,
what's pragmatic? If one is driving a car and
wants to pray, that's not the time to kneel.
We have to look at what's pragmatic. It may be
that we're in a public meeting. That may not
be the time to stand up and pray. And then I
think a second question is, what expresses the
spirit of the prayer? What is the sentiment of
the heart as one prays? It may be that one is
so desperately burdened about a situation. that
all he can do is fall on his face before God
as Jesus did in Gethsemane. There may be other
times when one wants to enter into a reverent
time of worship and he kneels in prayer to show
that submission to God. I think the sentiment
of the heart, the spirit of the prayer can be
involved in guiding us as to how to pray. On
Wednesday night in our prayer meetings, we have
some who kneel. We have others who sit. And by
the way, In 1 Chronicles chapter 17, David is
recorded as having sat down to pray. So even
a sitting position is recorded in the Bible as
appropriate for prayer. The important thing about
it is that the heart must be in communion with
God, and the will of the person praying must
be surrendered to the will of God. And sometimes
that can be... evidenced in the posture that
one assumes. In Paul's case, it was true. He
says, I bow my knees. Thirdly, notice with me
this element, the person whom Paul addresses.
He says, I bow my knees before the Father. Please
note that in Scripture, prayer, generally speaking,
is addressed to God the Father through God the
Son. in God the Holy Spirit. I'm not saying that
prayer to the Lord Jesus or prayer to the Holy
Spirit are wrong in themselves. There are some
who are very strict on that point, and I think
they go to the extreme on it. But generally speaking,
that is the order of our praying. It is to be
addressed to God the Father. The Lord Jesus gives
us that example. In John chapter 17, as he prays
his high priestly prayer, six times he addresses
God as Father. He speaks to the Father. In his
example, he tells us to pray that way. Secondly,
in his command, he tells us to pray that way.
Luke chapter 11, verse 2. When you pray, say,
Our Father, who art in heaven. And thirdly, the
Lord Jesus in his promise tells us to address
the Father. For in John 16, 23, he says, if you
ask the Father anything, he will give it to you
in my name. A broad promise. But Jesus says there,
don't ask me, ask the Father in my name. And
so in his example, in his command, and in his
promise, our Lord gives us. That's instruction,
to pray to the Father. Notice that he says, I
bow my knees before the Father from whom every
family in heaven and on earth derives its name.
Verse 15 has been interpreted about as many ways
as any verse in the book of Ephesians. What does
he mean by every family in heaven and earth?
Well, it seems to me that a better rendering
of this at least from the context, would be what
I think the King James Version has, and that
is from whom the whole family in heaven and on
earth derives its name. Because Paul has been
talking here about unity, not individual families,
as every family might connote, but he's been
talking about the unity of Jew and Gentile, the
oneness of the body. And so it seems to me that
this word, which can go either direction, should
probably be translated the whole family. That
is, those who are in heaven and on earth. And
let's face it, today the family, the family of
God in this age, the church, is divided. There
are those saints who are in heaven, in glory,
and there are those of us who yet remain on the
earth. But whether we be in heaven or on the
earth, he tells us that we derive our name from
the Father. What does that mean, that we derive
our name from him? Well, it seems to me that
the word name or the idea, the concept in name
is identity. You and I are called by a name,
and that name gives us a personal identity. So
what he's saying here is that we derive our identity,
our character, maybe we can say even our existence
as a family from the Father. For he is the one
who is calling us out to the fellowship of his
Son. He is the one who by his Spirit is causing
us to be born again to a living hope so that
we are a part of his living family. family. And
so it is from him that we derive our identity,
our existence. Paul addresses the Father, as
all of us should, generally speaking, in our
praying. A fourth element needs to come to our
attention, and that is the petitions which Paul
advances. Verses 15 through 19. This is the real
heart now of Paul's prayer. Notice that he relates
in his praying to each person of the Trinity.
In verse 16, he speaks about the power of the
Spirit. In verse 19, he speaks about the love
of Christ the Son. And in verse 19, he speaks
about the fullness of God the Father. And so
once again we see a Trinitarian formula used
in the book of Ephesians, and that has happened
several times, and we have noted some of those.
Notice the petitions that Paul asks. These can
be divided two, maybe three different ways, but
it seems to me that they fall out very naturally
in three petitions. The first one is found beginning
in verse 16, where he petitions that we might
be strengthened with the Spirit's power. The
second one is found in verse 18 especially, where
he says he prays that we might comprehend Christ's
love. And then the third one is found in verse
19, where he prays that we might be filled up
with the Father's love. fullness. Let's take
a look at those three requests that Paul advances
to God, these petitions. To be strengthened with
the Spirit's power, literally says in the original
language, by power to become mighty through the
Spirit. That's what Paul prays. Do you want to
pray for another person in a Bible way? Do you
want to pray a Bible prayer for yourself? Then
here is an excellent place to start. Pray that
you might be strengthened, made mighty with the
Spirit's power. That power, of course, resides
within us already. But what Paul is pointing
out here is that that power needs to be appropriated.
It needs to be accessed. for application to our
lives. Now he has spoken about power before this,
especially in chapter 1 at the end of his prayer.
But now he introduces a particular application
of it, and that is the power that we can have
in our own walk with God. This is his first mention
of that specific theme, although he would mention
it again in this epistle. He prays that we might
be made mighty, by power through the Spirit.
He says that that is something that occurs in
the, notice this, the inner man. What is that
inner man? Obviously, he is contrasting it to
the outer man. In 2 Corinthians chapter 4, he
says, though the outward man perishes, that's
our body. Our bodies are on the downhill slide.
We don't have to think a lot about that to find
that true, do we? Though the outward man is decaying,
yet he says the inward man is renewed day by
day. The inner man is the real us. It's the you
that lives in that body that's sitting there
before me. It is the you that is described as
the Spirit. Paul is focusing particularly on
that part of you that is regenerated by the act
of the Holy Spirit. It is that part of you that
is eternal. It is that part of you that is not
dependent upon the decaying outward body. It
is that part that can be renewed day by day.
Now in that part of you, says Paul, I pray that
ye may be made mighty by the Spirit's power.
You need that, and so do I. Even our Savior needed
this. It says in Luke chapter 4, verse 1, as
he faced his temptation, That he was filled with
the Holy Spirit. And a very similar phrase is
used later on in the same chapter in verse 14,
when he began his public ministry. Our Lord Jesus,
here upon the earth, ministered in the power
of the Holy Spirit and not his own strength.
If our Savior needed the power of the Holy Spirit,
to live and to serve God in this world. How much
more do you and I need that same power? And notice
that there is no lack of that supply. He says,
I pray that he would grant you according to the
riches of his glory to know that mighty power.
I care not what the challenge may be in your
life. Perhaps it is a personal struggle you have
or a public ministry that you're facing. Whatever
that need is, there is power in the Holy Spirit
to enable you. That need can be met. You can
be made mighty through the Holy Spirit's power
in the inner man to accomplish God's will. Now
it's interesting to notice what he says will
be the result of this. That's the first part
of verse 17. He says, I pray that you may be
made mighty through his spirit in the inner man,
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through
faith. You say, well, I thought Christ already
dwelt in my heart. Well, of course he does, in
one sense. Colossians 1 .27 says, Christ in you,
the hope of glory. That's part of the mystery.
That Paul unfolded in the New Testament. The
personal indwelling of Jesus Christ in every
believer. And he said in Galatians 2 .20, that
verse that many of us can quote, Christ lives
in me. And so yes, Jesus Christ in that sense
does indeed indwell the believer. But the word
that Paul uses here for dwell means to settle
down. to make it a permanent habitation, or the
idea is that Christ may be at home in your life.
The suggestion is that the Lord Jesus, while
he may indwell us, may also, in fact, be made
restless, be made to feel uncomfortable in our
lives. Warren Worsby calls this an ever -deepening
fellowship, this indwelling. Ironside called
it enthronement. He says what Paul is praying
is that the Lord Jesus Christ may settle down
on the throne of your heart and be in control
of your life. I rather like that particular emphasis.
I want to ask you, As each of us must ask ourselves,
is the Lord Jesus Christ at home in you? Surely
he dwells there. If you are a believer in the
Lord Jesus, if you're a child of God, but the
point is, does he live there in comfort? It is
only as he is placed in that position of control,
authority, and enthronement that he's made to
feel at home. Paul says, I pray that you may
know the mighty power of the Holy Spirit so that
Christ will be at home in your life. You know
what a suggestion is? That if I do not walk in
the mighty power of the Holy Spirit, if I do
not enter into that truth, Jesus Christ cannot
feel at home in my life. It is only as I enter
into the truth that he prays for here, as I begin
to experience the mighty strength and might that
comes through the Holy Spirit empowering me,
it is only then that the Lord Jesus is able to
relax, as it were, and be at home. in this vessel
where he lives, which he purchased with his own
precious blood. And notice that this is something
that happens through faith. He says that Christ
may settle down and be at home in your hearts
through faith. This is an act of obedience, an
act of dependence. And we say, Lord Jesus, be
at home. And we say, Holy Spirit, fill me. Empower
me. Make me to know your mighty power so that
the Lord Jesus will be at home in me. Paul prays
to the Father that we might know that truth.
The summary of it is this, that the believer
might be made mighty in his inner man by the
Spirit's working so that faith's active obedience
will make Christ be completely at home in him.
The second petition that he offers up is found
beginning in the last part of verse 17 where
he says that you, being rooted and grounded in
love, may be able to comprehend. Now skip down
to verse 19. And to know. The love of Christ.
That is his second request. It focuses on the
Lord Jesus, and it has to do with his love. He
prays that we might know and comprehend that
love which is incomprehensible and unlimited.
That seems paradoxical, doesn't it? And indeed
it is to our human thinking. But Paul prays that
we might enter into and appropriate the love
of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no geometric
measurement that can measure or define or set
the boundaries of the love of Christ. Yet he
speaks here about the breadth and length and
height and depth. The love of the Lord Jesus
Christ has such breadth that it embraces all
peoples of the world. There is no race, there
is no language group, there is no nationality
that is outside the embrace of his arms and his
love. The love of Christ has such length that
it reaches from eternity past in the act of election
unto the ages to come and eternity future in
glory. The love of Christ has such height that
it brings the sinner who believes up to the very
throne of God and seats him with Christ. The
love of Christ has such depth that it stoops
to the lowest place to reach the most unlovely
amongst mankind. It is said that Napoleon's soldiers,
entered a castle in Spain and went down into
the dungeon. And there they went into a room
that had not been entered for many years. They
found there what had been a prisoner. The flesh,
the clothing, long before had left, gone, decayed.
But there were his bones, what was left of them.
And there was... A chain around the ankle. On
the stone wall above the head of the prisoner
was scratched out with a piece of sharp metal
that was there, a cross. And there were four
Spanish words around the cross. Height, depth,
length, and breadth. Whether Paul had the shape
of the cross in mind as he talked about these
four dimensions. That man who had died in the
Spanish Inquisition for his faith in Jesus Christ
certainly applied that truth to the cross. The
apostle says that we have been rooted in that
love as living organisms. We have already been
grounded in it. We are a living temple. It provides,
Christ's love provides the stability of a foundation
for us. But he prays that we go beyond that,
that we go into the depths of Christ's love,
that we be made able to comprehend. That is,
that God make us strong enough to grasp the extent
of Christ's loving purpose in saving us. Beloved,
if only we could understand the love of Jesus
Christ for us, it would humble us and break our
hearts. It would cure those struggles with his
lordship that we have. It would bring under his
control those areas of life where we rebel. If
only we could enter in to this love, Paul prays
we might know. The summary of this prayer is
that the believer might, by the Holy Spirit's
work, be made capable of discerning and assimilating
the magnitude of Christ's love for him. Then
the third request is found in verse 19. We praise
that you may be filled up to all the fullness
of God. Notice that he is not praying here that
we might be filled with deity as God is. He is
not praying that we may become gods. But he is
praying, as one commentator, I think, accurately
put it, that we might be filled to the fullness
God requires. In other words, what he is praying
for in these words in verse 19 is that we might
be brought to spiritual maturity. in the Father,
that we might be completed, that we might grow
unto perfection. In Colossians 2 and verse 10,
it says that we are right now positionally complete
in Jesus Christ. There is nothing that we lack.
We do not need a second work of grace. We do
not need a second blessing. We do not need a
so -called baptism of the Holy Spirit. Everything
that we shall ever need is already ours in Jesus
Christ. He says, and you have been made complete
in him. But now Paul uses a very similar word.
He prays that you might be filled up to this
completion. You see his point? It is that we
might be brought into the experience. of our
completion in Christ. That we might grow, that
we might mature. It is unfortunate when we measure
our spiritual growth and maturity against others.
Because, you know, we can always find somebody
else who's a little lower than us. And that makes
us feel pretty good. What the Apostle is telling
us here is that our real measurement is Christ
-likeness. He says, I pray that you may mature
to the point of being just like the Lord Jesus
Christ, the fullness of God. As you measure yourself
against that standard, how mature are you? The
summary of this prayer is that the believer might
experience nothing less than the fullness of
maturity and the completion that God has created
him to know. Folks, do you see that petitions
like these teach us how better to pray? And they
also challenge us toward knowing in our own lives
the fullness of blessing that God has called
us to experience as his children. For it is possible
for us to be children of the King and yet to
live as beggars. It is possible for you and for
me to possess in Jesus Christ the very riches
of God, and we do, but to live in this world
defeated, impoverished, and foolishly. That is
a great tragedy. There's a tragedy that is nearly
as great as the loss of one's eternal soul. I
would hasten to say that there is nothing so
great a tragedy as that. To go into eternity
without Jesus Christ and to spend that eternity
separated from God in the suffering of hell,
there is no greater tragedy in the universe than
for that to befall a human soul. But I tell you
this, close behind it is the tragedy I'm talking
about here. It is the tragedy of knowing Christ
and to live out one's days on earth beneath his
potential blessing. That is a catastrophic loss
that can never be reclaimed because we have only
one shot at life. We only pass through this day
one time and then forever it becomes history
to us. To know the Lord Jesus Christ and to possess
all that we do in him and to spend our days wastefully,
unyielded to his lordship. To fail to come into
the fullness of purpose and blessing that God
has for us in this life, in this world, not to
speak of heaven. That is a great catastrophe.
I want to encourage you today to let God answer
this prayer of Paul for you. Let God answer that
prayer in your life. To do it, God will not overrule
your will. He will not. But he will work in your
will. He will work to bring you to a place of
surrender and obedience. Are you at that place
today? Is Jesus Christ the Lord of your life?
Do you know the love that Christ has for you?
Do you know spiritual maturity, the power of
the Holy Spirit? Would you bow with me? My friend,
those are what God has provided. Christ's love,
the power of the Spirit, Spiritual maturity and
completion in the fullness of God. Are you moving
that way? Or is your life stuck? Have you tripped
over some rut? Are you stuck in a crevice of
sin? If you don't feel that you're moving in
that direction of experiencing more of what God
has provided for you in Christ, will you make
this day? March 1, 1987, a day of new beginning
for you. Will you tell the Lord right now to
fulfill this prayer in your life, whatever the
cost? Our Heavenly Father, in our hearts, we
lift up this petition of Paul, and we pray that
you will find it being fulfilled in our lives
by your gracious work. And to the extent that
we have checked you here and stopped you there,
bring us to awareness of that and conviction,
so that we may confess it and walk in obedience.
I pray for every brother, every sister in this
room, as I pray for myself, that we might know
the strength of the Holy Spirit's power, that
we might know the love of the Lord Jesus Christ
for us, and that we might be filled up to the
fullness of God. In Jesus' name, amen. Would
you stand together with me, please? There's a
chorus that we often sing, but it's a chorus
that has great meaning. Think of the words as
we sing and declare the lordship of our Savior.
He is Lord.