Did that bless your heart? Tremendous. Tremendous. Well, are you excited to dig into the Word of God today? I know you are. The reason I ask that, It's not because I'm curious as to whether or not you are. We've been upgrading our audio recordings, and I'm going to tell them myself now. But I was listening to one this past week to see, just to check quality and things like that, and in my first comments getting up here with you and you may not be able to appreciate this or you may recognize it immediately. But when you're unattached and you're listening to this on sermon audio and the other means that these messages get out, my first comments, you would have thought, well, gee, did somebody die? He sounds so downcast. I didn't know that about myself, so I don't want to be downcast. Because I am excited about peering into the Word of God. I've studied this passage this week, and it's not the first time I've seen it. I've studied it in the past. We actually looked at it last year, about this time. And boy, the Lord really... Are you familiar with the term, boxing you about the ears? Does that speak to you? Box you about the ears? That's what he did to me. With this passage. This week, as we look at this passage in First Timothy 2, one to seven, the connection between prayer and salvation. It's a connection we know about in our minds. But Joshua mentioned it a while ago, you know, just I'm sure as he was reading over this material, preparing to to put together the. Songs we would sing. It really challenges us. I know it. But Lord, do I believe it? If somebody followed me around? Would they know that I believe this? So turning your Bibles to First Timothy Chapter two verses one to seven. If you don't have a Bible. We'll have the text on the screen for you, but we really want you to have your own copy of the scripture. If you don't have a copy of the scripture, see me after church and we'll do what we can to secure one to get one in your hands. And if you stand with me. Because. Not because I'm reading this, but certainly because of what I'm reading, when we when we read this passage or read any passage from the word of God, what do we what are we wrestling with? What are we reading? What are we hearing from? It's what it's the inerrant, infallible, all sufficient word of God. So at some point, we ought to pray and desire that this will go beyond Bill Askell talking to you and some and we'll go kind of get lost in the Holy Spirit speaking to all of us through the word. That's my desire. So let's look at first Timothy 2, one to seven. Therefore. I exhort, first of all, that supplications, prayers and intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority. that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle. I'm speaking the truth in Christ and not lying, a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. As I prayed this week, preparing this message, pray for myself and as I pray for you, I pray that God will help us to make at a very deep part of our beings, make the connection between prayer and salvation. Thank you. Be seated. Now, God's sovereignty and man's responsibility must always be believed and held together, held in that tension in every aspect of the Christian life. And then if we kept in balance, you'll be familiar, probably, that someone asked the preacher, Charles Spurgeon, British preacher, one time, said, would you reconcile for us the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man? And the answer he gave was, of course not. I never reconcile friends. In the Scripture, they are friends. In our minds, we wrestle with that. They're sort of inscrutable. And so we tend to let ourselves get pushed in one ditch or another. And I've said to you in different venues, looking at different studies, that we can mock and mask nearly every aspect of the Christian life. In fact, I was sharing the gospel as a teenager before I was truly converted. We can do that with everything except. Real repentance, real saving faith and prayer as a practice, as a spiritual discipline, when we earnestly, sincerely engage God in prayer. And the Scripture teaches prayer on different levels, a private level, a personal devotion, family levels, and a congregational level. When you read the New Testament Church, Acts chapter 2, verses 42 and following, you're struck with what they all, these thousands of people who had no place to gather under one roof, continued steadfastly. That is, they were faithful. My friend David Miller from Arkansas says they continued steadfastly. That means they didn't backslide right off. I continue steadfastly. In the teaching of the apostles, the content of the doctrine, the gospel that they taught. In the times of fellowship, the koinonia, the shared life they had. In the breaking of bread, which could mean that they shared together, it could be a reference to what we know as the Lord's Supper. And in the prayers, the definite article, the prayers, they continue steadfastly, gathering together as a congregation or as, in their case, as many life groups, if you please, to pray, earnest, concerted prayer. Jose Zayas has said that action without prayer is arrogance. Prayer without action is hypocrisy. He's connected something there that's connected in our text. We told you that Paul's writing to Timothy at Ephesus because error has crept in both in his teaching and in some practical expressions. And Paul is desperate, in the best sense of the term desperate, to get these brothers under Timothy's leadership back to the main thing. And the main thing is praying for the advance of the gospel and then personally engaging in the advance of the gospel. It's amazing how the enemy of our souls loves to keep churches stirred up over something. Because if he can keep us spending energies over something, then we will somehow not have the energy to do the main thing. But I told you when we first started this study that 1 Timothy 3, verses 15 and 16 sort of form the peak of it. Paul says in that passage, if I'm delayed, I write so that you, that is Timothy, may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar in the ground of the truth, so that you may teach these people how to do this. Without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness. And Paul talks, this mystery of godliness is a synonym for the gospel. That the good news, no man would have ever conceived God's plan to save sinners. God was manifest in the flesh. Nobody anticipated that. Jesus coming, God coming as a human being. Justified in the Spirit. They were taught that you're justified by keeping the law. You're justified by being obedient to the law. The idea of being justified by the Spirit's work in your life. No man conceived that, seen by angels, taken in by the heavenly host because it's a spiritual issue. The angels, by the way, the angels saw what was happening on Calvary that day on the cross, which human eyes would not have seen. Human eyes would have seen a bloody, beaten, battered, unrecognizable rabbi who had claimed and had people make the claim for him that he was the Messiah, crucified in an unimaginable agony. That's what the human eye saw that day, but the angels saw what was going on. They saw from heaven's vantage point that God was pouring out his wrath upon his darling son. Preached among the Gentiles. Another thing that the Jewish mindset would never have imagined. The only thing a Gentile could do in the mind of a Jew to be right with God was to become a Jew. And for good news to be proclaimed to non-Jews was inconceivable to the orthodox mind of Judaism. Believed on in the world. Again, the broader population believed Jesus to be the Christ. When the Jews who were the guardians of the message, the covenants, all the privileges they had when they rejected Him, and then received up into glory. Who ever heard of a man dying, rising, ascending in the presence of 500 people? The mystery of godliness. Paul is concerned that that message, that the Ephesian church stay on message, stay on point, and not be distracted. So what I want us to see, If I can do this in the time we have, the five headings of these seven verses is prayer as a first priority, prayer and a heart for all men, prayer and the pleasure of God. Prayer and the mediating role of Jesus Christ. And then prayer and the proclamation of the gospel. So let's let's try to unpack these verses under those five headings. First, prayer as a first priority. If I were to ask you just reading Paul's letters, typically what. What concerns Paul most, you would say, well, the gospel, the advance of the gospel, and you would be right. To a point. You see, it's in the light of. Leaders. An emphasis. Who were hijacking the ministry, taking it off point off mission, off task and Paul's challenge to Timothy to fight the fight of faith to the finish, as we looked at last week. It's in the light of that that Paul says, therefore, I exhort. First of all. First, my first exhortation. Why does he say that? That prayer is the first exhortation. Why is prayer the priority? Well, here's why. Because when we devalue prayer, we will necessarily function just in our mindset. Our minds will tell us What is right? What is wrong? And we may have a pretty good catalog and a pretty accurate retelling of that, but that doesn't mean that we are being led by the Spirit. Prayer is the one activity. That shows that a church is convinced it needs God. We don't we don't show a need of God necessarily in anything else we do. But in prayer we do. So Paul says, first of all, I exhort that and he gives these four terms, three of them. Would be would have to do with life on this planet or the fourth one does, too, but the fourth one is something that will carry over into eternity. Let's look at these real quickly, these these terms. I exhort, first of all, the supplications, prayers, intercessions and then giving a thanks be made for all men. A.J. Gordon said this about prayer. You can do more than pray after you have prayed. But you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed, did you get that? You can do more than pray. After you've prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you pray. So Paul says supplications. It's from a from a word in the Greek which means to lack. to be deprived, to be without something. In fact, you hear in the word supplication, supply. We supplicate our God. God, we are lacking. Now, essentially, we do engage in supplications. Lord, give us this day our daily bread. Lord, I need money for this. I'm really tight financially, Lord. But he's talking here specifically about the salvation of the lost. Do we pray with supplication, with a painful awareness that we do not have what. It's going to take for sinners to be saved. We have a saving message that we must communicate, but you and I cannot change one sinner's heart. My dear mentor, friend RF Gates. preached on Ezekiel's dry bones, one of the best expressions of that passage I've ever heard preached. And he said, we learn from that passage where God takes Ezekiel to the precipice, to the edge, and says, son of man, can these bones live? Ezekiel says, Lord, only you know that. He said, son of man, speak to the bones. Call for the wind. R.F. said, we learn from that. for our journey, that we must do all that can be done to reach sinners with salvation. Speak to them. Share the gospel with them. Call for the wind, pray and ask God to attend the preaching, our sharing the various means we have to put the gospel in people's hands, get it before their eyes. We must do all that can be done. This is we finally cannot do what must be done for sinners. Only God changes sinners hearts. Supplications to plead with God. Richard Baxter, the English Puritan in the 17th century said, Oh, if you have the hearts of Christians or of men and you let them yearn toward your poor, ignorant, ungodly neighbors. Alas, there's but a step between between them and death and hell. Many hundreds diseases are waiting, ready to seize on them. If they die unregenerate, they're lost forever. Have you hearts of rock that you cannot pity men in such a case as this? If you believe not the word of God and the danger of sinners, why are you Christians yourselves? If you do believe it, why do you not disturb yourself to the helping of others? Do you not care who is damned? So just so long as you're saved. If so, you have sufficient cause to pity yourselves, for it is a frame of spirit utterly inconsistent with grace. Do you live close by them, meet them in the streets, labor with them, travel with them, sit and talk with them and say nothing to them of their souls or the life to come? If their houses were on fire, thou wouldst run and help them. Wilt thou not help them when their souls are almost at the fire of hell? Lord, we we we need you, we supplicate you for our family, our friends, our loved ones, our enemies. In prayers, the word prayer is a more general term. And it teaches us that we are to Come to God that that praying for the lost is an act of worship. Praying for the lost. As an act of worship, praying for all kinds of people. To be saved is an act of worship. We see this in 2nd Corinthians 415 when Paul says for all things are for your sakes that grace having spread through the many in other words of the gospel advance may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. There's more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than 99 sinners who don't need to repent. Jesus taught. And the word intercessions. That's an interesting word, the word intercession literally means to fall in with someone. To fall in with them, to join in with them. And so Paul teaches in Romans 8, 26, likewise, the spirit also helps in our weaknesses, but we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the spirit himself makes intercession for us. With groanings which cannot be uttered, the Spirit falls in with us in our weakness. Isn't that encouraging to hear? Hebrews 7.25. Jesus does too. Therefore, he that is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. He falls in with us. But now, can the Spirit fall in with us in our prayers for the lost if we're not praying for the lost? Can Jesus Christ fall in with us in our prayers for the lost if we're not praying for the lost? No, it assumes, it presumes, it necessitates our earnest prayer for the lost. It's a word that not only speaks of advocacy and empathy and sympathy and compassion and involvement, but it means Identifying with us. In our desire to see the lost converted, see evangelistic prayers, not cold one. One writer said this. It's not impersonal like a public defender assigned to represent defendant. You get that image, you don't you? You've drawn if you're a public defender, you've drawn the lot and you've got to go represent this fellow before the court. It's just something you've got to do. It's a part and parcel of your. Being a lawyer. You have no heart for it. You have no passion about it. It's just something you've got to do. That's not that's not what praying evangelistic prayer is. Evangelistic prayer flows out of our understanding the depths of misery and pain and coming doom. Of sinners, then the word giving thanks that the term here is the fourth element. It calls for us to pray with a spirit of gratitude to God. Listen to this now. What are you grateful to God for gratitude to God? That the gospel offer has been extended. Do you realize if it had not been extended to you, you would not be saved? Gratitude to God. Thank you, God, that that I was born into a home or if not born into a home, born into circumstances that in your province, I met a friend or a family took me in. Someone befriended me. And the gospel offer was extended and it was attended by the spirit to. The salvation of my soul. Thanksgiving to God, not only that you responded in repentance and faith, but that you've seen others respond in repentance and faith. Well, those are the four, the priority of prayer, you know, let me just say this parenthetically. I don't know that I don't know an ideal time for prayer meeting. You know, midweek prayer service, that's kind of been the traditional thing. If somebody could come and tell me, Pastor, if this was the time marked out, you would have this congregation, the buy-in of this congregation, lock, stock and barrel, then we would do it at that time. But the question, the bigger question is, why are we not moved at that level? Why are we content to get involved in life so much so that we don't seek to find a time? I pray for the day, by the way, when our life groups, as they're growing and developing, when they become prayer chambers, earnest times of prayer for the lost. Pockets. You know, we used to talk about cottage prayer meetings when we would be leading up to days of revival emphasis. I would pray for the day when our life groups would manifest an ongoing climate of cottage prayer meetings. But the congregation has got to pray together. And if we don't put a priority on prayer, then we've not put the first priority that Paul said that the church of Ephesus had to be there to check us from controversy, to check us from going adrift, to check us from becoming typical church people who have boundless energy for some things and no energy for prayer and sharing the gospel. Prayer, congregational prayer, is the fuel for an evangelistic church or a church who would become evangelistic. So that's my challenge to you. Second, prayer and a heart for all men. Verse one, the last part of verse one ends, be made for all men. And then it describes some for kings and all those who are in authority. that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life in godliness and reverence for all men." These were Gentile believers. So the emphasis here is not what it would be if Paul was writing to a church or to a group of people, a church in Jerusalem, who were primarily Jews. That would be Jews and Gentiles, all men. This is all kinds of men. And it'd be interesting if we if we could do this, take the time and say, let me see, let me see who is on your prayer list. For people that you would like to see say that you had it all written down and we could turn them in, it would be interesting to see. Do you pray earnestly for the salvation of our president? I know that gets you in trouble some places. How dare you? Who are you to say he's not converted up? It's just a just a holy hunch. But do you pray for his salvation? You see, when Paul wrote this to Timothy, Nero was the emperor. Timothy, lead the people in Ephesus who have become Christians. And now that they've become Christians, they're now outcasts of their pagan society. They have a bullseye painted on them by the Roman government. Nero, who used Christians in Rome, if he wasn't feeding them to the lions for sport, he would take them and have them soaked in an oil and a pitch and a tar substance, have them strapped to poles in his gardens and set on fire. And they would provide the light for Nero's orgies. Pray for kings and authority. Jesus, in Mark 11, 17, cited Isaiah 56, 7. Even them I will bring to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer. Talking about the Gentiles. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar for, and this is the portion Jesus quoted, my house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations. For the nations. Do we pray for people that we're aligned against politically? Do we pray for their salvation? Paul says, all kinds of men. All kinds of men. We should pray for them. Tertullian, who was a second and third century, he lived late second, early third century, theologian of the Christian church said this, Without ceasing for all our emperors, we offer prayer. We pray for life prolonged, for security to the empire, for protection to the imperial house, for brave armies, a faithful Senate, a virtuous people, the world at rest, whatever as man or Caesar, an emperor would wish. These things I cannot ask from any but the God from whom I know I shall obtain them. Both because. He alone bestows them and because I have claims upon him for their gift as being a servant of his. Rendering homage to him alone. And he closes a section by saying. Even in terms and most clearly, the scripture says, pray for kings and rulers and powers that all may be with the peace with you. Tertullian. Another fellow in the second century, Theophilus of Antioch, said, I will rather honor the king. Not indeed worshiping him, but praying for him. But God, the living, true God, I worship, knowing that the king is made by him. Honor the king. Be subject to him, pray for him with loyal mind. Do you see this? The people who suffered intentionally under Rome prayed for their leaders. So should we. And the purpose is that we should live a quiet and peaceable life. And this idea of a quiet and peaceable life. People who pray for their leaders are not inclined to revolt against them. In the early days, the Romans said the Christians are insurrectionists. They worship somebody that they put above Caesar. The Christians never denied, they seldom ever denied faith in Christ and His supremacy, but they always tried to live as citizens of peace. And when the church is known for its praying, for the salvation of its leaders, The church takes on a virtuous, peace-loving, compassionate, transcendent appearance to the world. One of the worst things that's happened to churches, evangelical churches, is that they have developed a political party favorite. We cannot afford that. That diminishes our mission. The church that is obedient to this charge will have a tranquil and quiet life. The word tranquil, by the way, refers to the absence of outside disturbances. The word quiet refers to the absence of internal disturbances. Controversies. Remember, the devil wants us to be in a controversy. He wants us to be upset with one another, cross with one another. What's the antidote to that? Just not changing the antidote is praying together earnestly. You've heard the old saying the family that prays together, stays together, the church that prays together, stays together. Binds hearts together. Well, let me move on. Simply say that. When we pray for those who are in the world system who seem opposed to us, we need to remember that they are not our enemies. They are our mission field. They're our mission field. We're to do this with reverence to God. Godliness and reverence. Let me hasten on here. Got some ground to cover. Third, prayer and the pleasure of God. God delights in saving and he delights in his people crying out to him for salvation. Paul says to Timothy in verses three and four, this is good and acceptable in the sight of God, our Savior, and this idea of God, our Savior comes up a few times in the pastoral epistles, First Timothy, Titus and Second Timothy. God, our Savior. God is many things. He is the Creator. He's the Lawgiver. He's the Judge. He's the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. But here Paul uses this description, God our Savior. This is good. This praying for all kinds of people, kings and those in authority to be saved. Praying for your enemies. It's good. It's intrinsically, morally, Good. God says that prayer for the lost is noble. And the spiritually prosper thing did a proper thing to do. And so. It's not only good, it's acceptable. God receives it. In fact, the word means he receives it gladly, he accepts it with satisfaction. If we say to you this pleases God, this pleases the heart of God, it's something that ought to move every Christian to action. And what is it that pleases the heart of God and touches the heart of God? It is that a people are known, a congregation is known as a praying congregation. I would love for people to speak about us this way. Yes, they have a tremendous Awana ministry midweek. And yes, they have these life groups that are vital communities that are developing. They have preaching that's true to the Word of God. They have worship that's God-centered. They're friendly people when you meet them. But man, you ought to go to their prayer meetings. Any church that understands the heart of God The desire of God would want that commendation. God is Savior. And as such, He wants us to recognize that one of the means He uses to save the lost is not only the presentation of the Gospel, but the prayer for the effectiveness of the Gospel. And when prayer is missing from that, I'm talking about corporate congregational prayer now, because Paul has written this to a church. When corporate congregational prayer does not attend the fervent declaration of an intentional evangelistic ministry, then from heaven's viewpoint, it looks like we have got this, God. We've got this. We know the gospel. Don't worry about it. This God, we're told, desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. I just want to ask you this. Does that unnerve your theology? God desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. You feel the need to do a workaround, to do a disclaimer? The Apostle Paul wrote more about God's electing love than anybody did. He understood the balance. He understood that God's desires at times express something that might be different from His decrees. And you see, I think sometimes we get caught up In fact, I think sometimes, very honestly, the tendency is to hide behind the decrees of God. Folks, Deuteronomy 29, 29 said, The secret things belong to the Lord our God. The things revealed belong to us and to our children, that we may do all the words of this law. Let the secret things stay with God. Let's stop thinking we can fathom them. We can uncover them if he hadn't uncovered them for us. Let's focus on the revealed things. Our God. Our God and Savior, our God who delights that His people pray for the lost, desires the salvation, desires all men to be saved. And what is salvation? It is coming to a knowledge of the truth. Truth has got to be declared. The truth of Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, has got to be declared. And our God desires And as far as you and I are concerned, we should never act as if we've come across anyone that God doesn't intend to say. Let's go a little deeper than that. Do you know anyone that you hope God doesn't say? Because if you do. That's harsh. And your heart is not aligned with God's heart and we sing, change my heart, oh God. Make me more like you. Paul says the things that happen to us in life happen so that we might be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. And rather than trying to As one preacher said, unscrew the inscrutable. Rather than trying to do that, we ought to fall on a passage like this and say, Lord, make this my heart. And when I read that my God, my Savior, who has decreed all things whatsoever come to pass, has already said it's hard upon a people to save them in eternity past. When I read that you want to be declared by the Apostle Paul through the power of the Spirit, that you desire all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth, make that my heart. Forgive me when I act as if I don't care whether men are saved or not. Forgive me when I act like there may be people that are not like me and so I'm not concerned about them. When I act as if there's some people that are that are not worthy of being saved, because the truth is none of us are worthy of being saved. Our God. Desires of salvation. of all kinds of people. And when people are saved, really saved, there's a knowledge, there's a personal knowledge of the truth. Truth sets us free. Truth drives our agenda. Well, fourth, prayer in the mediating role of Jesus Christ. He declares, he says, this is good and acceptable in the sight of God, who desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth, for there is one God. There's only one way to be saved. And one mediator between God and man. You see, we can get mad when a leader says, well, there's several paths to God. And we can spend our energies being angry. How dare he say that? That's so wrong. And it is wrong. But the point here is not. To debate those who think otherwise, the point here is folks is only one way to be saved. And why spend time railing at those who disagree with that one way when our responsibility is to be sure that we get the message to sinners that there is only one way to be saved? There is one God. There is one mediator between God and men. The man Christ Jesus he. He was eternal. the eternal Son of God. In the fullness of time, He took upon Himself flesh and was conceived in the womb of Mary and born in Bethlehem and grew up in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. At just the right time, He surrendered Himself perfectly, having obeyed the law of God and was slaughtered on the cross and endured God's divine wrath on the cross and rose from the grave and ascended on high But you know something? He didn't toss aside His human garment in eternity in heaven. He is the man, Christ Jesus. That's how He identifies with us. That's how He loves us. He didn't just take on our flesh for a season to do something. He became one of us and He continues in heaven to be the glorified Son of God, fully God, fully man in heaven. Paul says he gave himself a ransom for all. And that will be testified in due time, that will be obvious in due time. The ransom. You don't get bogged down in who did the kidnapping and who sent the ransom note and who was he paying this to? Because Jesus was not paying the ransom to the devil. But Jesus pays what is required to have the kidnapped released. That's the point. He pays what is required to have the kidnapped release. Acts 17, 24 to 27, Paul preaching on Mars Hill to the Areopagus gathering there says, God who made the world and everything in it. Since he's Lord of heaven and earth does not dwell in temples made with hands. He's the creator. From one blood. Let's move finally. Fifth, prayer and the proclamation of the gospel. Paul says all of this. Praying first to get us back on track. To get us back on point on the task, sharing the gospel with power. Telling sinners they need to be saved. Trusting God to take our feeble, frail, fumbling words and save sinners. He says that's what I was appointed as a preacher. Now the word there is proclaimer. Don't hang the title of preacher on him here. He's not saying, that's why God called me to the ministry. He's not saying that here. I was appointed a proclaimer and an apostle, a sent one, a missionary. We've said before, we're all, we're saved, we're all missionaries. You say you were saved and appointed a proclaimer So pastor, if you knew how I struggle with that, well, I tell you, I think I think I know. I think I know a lab. You can become a part of. And that's corporate prayer. Time set aside to come and pray where you could say to your brothers and sisters, pray for me, I've got their lost people, I work all around my family is not converted and my my mouth goes dry. My lips won't open. I know I ought to share the gospel. And people would gather around you and pray for you and pray that God would loose your tongue and give you a word in the opening of your mouth that you might boldly proclaim the mysteries of the gospel like you ought to. And you would be stunned at how God would hear and answer that prayer. That laboratory of corporate prayer would become the place where you would be freed and loosed and the devil would no longer be able to bind you because he will accuse you and say, here you are talking to this person about it. You don't even pray about their salvation. He accuses the brothers. Don't you see? Paul says, Timothy, the remedy at Ephesus for the mischief that's been done by Hymenaeus and Alexander and others, taking you off point, taking you off mission. The remedy is to gather and pray for the lost. If I thought passing out five dollar bills would provoke an interest in corporate prayer. I guess I'd try to find them and do that. But you know, that would be short lived. But I wonder when we gaze into this clear, this clear challenge. Don't misunderstand me, there's nothing sacred about Wednesday night at seven o'clock. If we could appoint a task force that says we have found we have found the ideal time. And God being my helper, I'd be on my face there with you. Praying for the unconverted. Praying for my unconverted family members. I have grandchildren who need Christ. Neighbors who need Christ. We have leaders in our country who need Christ. And truth of matter is, if we gather together to talk to God about them as much as we gripe about them to one another, they might well be saved. So it stares us in the face. Is this word Inerrant. It's true. Is it infallible? Is it incapable of being wrong on this matter because it was given to us by God? True. Is it sufficient that we find something lacking and it's something that something that our lives and our circumstances trump? Or is it sufficient? To say to us. You want to see salvation come to this house? Then make this house a house of prayer for all nations. And see what God will do. I'm not chatting you. I'm chatting myself. For some reason, my leadership as pastor has not been compelling enough that exhortations and encouragements provoke an interest and a response. I simply plead with you one more time, appeal to you one more time, if you want this place to become a house where salvation comes to this house, then it must become a house of prayer. Let's pray.