as we continue through our study, our sermon series. We just finished up two weeks ago 1 Timothy, maybe it was three weeks ago, I can't remember now, they all kind of get jumbled as the weeks go by. But our sermon series is really kind of taken out of 1 Timothy 3, verse number 15 where Paul reminds Timothy that the church is the house of God, the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. And we've kind of taken our whole theme of 1 and 2 Timothy from that verse. The name of our series is Managing God's Household. Managing God's Household. We as believers have a responsibility to take the body of Christ, the pillar and the ground of the truth, and to manage that And so we've been looking through 1 and 2 Timothy as Paul gives to Timothy, a young pastor in the city of Ephesus, some guidelines on how to manage this house, this family, this church of the living God. Today we will begin going through the second book that Paul wrote to Timothy, 2 Timothy. We'll be in chapter 1 this morning. As we do, we are reminded Paul writes elsewhere in Scripture, Philippians chapter 3 verse 13, forget those things which are behind. Forget those things which are behind, how often we can get bogged down by things of the past that can destroy us, that can discourage us. Here though, we get to 2 Timothy chapter, I'll probably keep saying 1 Timothy just because I'm used to saying that. I do mean 2 Timothy. Here as we move into 2 Timothy, Paul uses the word remembrance. or a form of the word remembrance several times, I think four times in chapter one alone. It might bring us to ask the question, if Paul writes in Philippians to forget those things, now he writes us and encourages us to remember certain things, do we come to a point in Scripture where we might find a contradiction? And of course, we would suggest, no, there is no contradiction. It's an understanding, I think, the context in those different passages, what Paul is talking about or referring to. We realize that in remembering things, it's important for us to remember things. The purpose of remembrances is not to flounder in the past, but to arouse us to further action. So therefore, the key is to focus on what we are remembering. We often focus on things, don't we? Previous ministries, perhaps, previous blessings, previous people, previous buildings, Previous opportunities that we have had, previous victories, previous failures. Some of these are different previous things can be good. Some of them can be bad. But I was reminded one time from a Bible professor I had when I was in college that comparison kills contentment, doesn't it? This comparison with things can often make us discontent with the things that we have now. Our remembrances should not be on things but on a person and the person is Jesus Christ. When we keep our focus before us on the works that God has done both in us and through us, it should motivate us and be a powerful tool for us to continue in our service for the Lord. And I believe that that is what Paul is encouraging young Timothy. Yes, in Philippians, he writes that we are to forget those things in the past. We're not to dwell on the things of the past because so often they can become a hindrance to us. But yet we are to remember those things from the past that the Lord has done through us and for us that are going to help us to move forward as we seek to be faithful servants and managing God's household. So here as we get today, six ways or six things that remembering influences us to do as we seek to be faithful stewards in managing the household. We find these six things in chapter one. I know you're probably looking at the time and thinking six things. We're gonna move as quickly as we can here this morning through these six things. We do wanna make sure that we are in the right mind frame at the end of the service to take the Lord's Supper. So we will move through these six things fairly quickly. But nonetheless, there are six things that we find here that Paul reminds us that remembering does for us. The first thing that we find, we find the first four verses, remembering inspires us to prayer. Remembering inspires us to prayer. Notice what he says here in the first four verses of chapter one. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God, according to the promises of the life which is in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dearly beloved son, grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at verse number three here. He says, I thank God whom I serve for my forefathers with a pure conscience without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day. First time we see the word remembrance. Notice what it says here in verse number four. The first thing that Paul reminds us about remembering is that remembering inspires us to prayer. Paul was a man of prayer. We look through the different letters that he writes, and he wrote several of them in the New Testament. Almost every single one of them, as far as I can remember right now, begin, in some way, I remember you in my prayers, or I cease, I do not cease to remember you in my prayers. He says time and time and time again. And the object of these prayers are always individuals. Paul was a man of prayer. Remembering inspires us to prayer. Several ways, first of all, remembrance inspires thankful prayers. We see that in verse number three. I thank God whom I serve for my forefathers with a pure conscience that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee. The first thing that remembrance does is it inspires us to thankful prayers. Ten times in the New Testament, Paul states that he was thankful for individuals while remembering them in his prayers. In fact, as he is sitting down and as he is thinking about them, it drives him to pray for them. As he is praying, going through his daily prayer routine, people are being brought to his mind to pray for. Prayer inspires thankful prayers. I mean, sorry, remembrance inspires thankful prayers. Paul was thankful for young Timothy. So Paul was thankful for young Timothy and for his continual persistence in preaching God's Word, for his heritage. Not only does remembrance inspire thankful prayers, remembrance inspires continual prayers. Again, we see in verse number three, I pray for you continually. You ever find it difficult to sit down and continually find yourself in the state of the mindset of prayer? Does not Paul write in, what is it, 1 Thessalonians, pray without ceasing? Perhaps you're like me sometimes. You sit down, have a prayer list, and you're going through your prayer list, and you know it's important to pray and to spend much time in prayer. We sing the song, Sweet Hour of Prayer, and as we go through our prayer time, and then we look at our watch, and we're all done, and we realize it's only been about 10 or 15 minutes, and you think, boy, we're commanded to pray without ceasing. How do we do this? Well, maybe here are some steps that might help as we think about praying continually for others. First of all, begin with gratitude. with gratitude. Our prayers to the Lord should always begin with gratitude. Paul here specifically was thankful for the testimony of young Timothy as we remember in 1 Timothy the different trials that he had to endure, those who would stand against him because he was young, those false teachers that he had to teach against and to rebuke. And Paul states that he was thankful for Timothy's persistence here in ministering in Ephesus. We are reminded that we should be thankful to the Lord. And our prayer life and our continuance in prayer should be founded first of all in our gratitude to the Lord for the things that He has given. For the things that He has done for us. Begin with gratitude. Number two, be real. Be real in your prayers. So often I think we try to, we listen to other spiritual Christians pray and we think that they use these very spiritual words like thou and thee. And sometimes we think that if we are going to pray spiritually and continually, we have to be just like them. But you know, prayer is simply our talking to the Lord. In fact, I find it encouraging sometimes. The most encouraging prayer sometimes I hear come from my kids. Sometimes it's actually a rebuke. The honesty with which they go before the Lord. Be real in your prayer. You're just simply talking to God. Number three, incorporate your prayers into the menial tasks of life. What a great time it is to pray when you're sitting there doing dishes. Pastor, you do dishes? Sometimes I do dishes. Out on the lawnmower when you can't hear anything else anyways. Spend time in prayer. At your place at the shop or if you work at a machine shop or wherever you may be to spend time in prayer. Ladies, as you're doing the laundry, spend time in prayer. Incorporate prayer into the menial tasks of life. The tasks don't become so menial. Pray while you wait. Whether it's literally waiting in the doctor's office or simply while you're waiting for the Lord to move or to answer or to open a door. Pray while you wait. Pray while you praise in song. I'd rather have Jesus. You know, that's a prayer. That's not just a song that we sing. Is that the prayer of your heart? Lord, I'd rather have you. You know, sometimes we get in the habit of just singing songs or going through the words to focus and to think about the things that we sing about. Pray in repentance for our sin. Pray in the place of worry. How much time do we spend in life worrying about things that either have already happened and we have no control over, that are going to happen tomorrow or next week or that we have no control over, or that are happening right now that we have no control over? How often do we spend so much time worrying about things when instead we ought to be going to the Lord? pray by listening to the Lord, sitting and waiting, and waiting for the Lord to answer a prayer. Remembrance inspires continual prayer, we see in verse number three. But not only does it inspire thankful prayer and continual prayer, remembrance inspires effectual prayers. Look at verse number four, greatly desiring to see thee. being mindful of thy tears that I may be filled with joy. I can see for just a moment here a glimpse as to the relationship that Paul and Timothy had. Apparently, the last time they had met, there were tears between them as they were saying goodbye. What a great, what a touching friendship they must have had. Paul's desire was to see Timothy one last time. At this time in Paul's life, he is in a prison. He is getting ready to be executed. He knows the end of his life is drawing near. He knows that his ministry is drawing near. And his desire here is one last time to see Timothy. In fact, it's so much so that as we get to, I think it's chapter three in this book, he asks, Timothy, come to see me one last time. The only person that he asks to see, to come to him, is Timothy. It is Timothy that he calls for at the end of this letter. And so we ask ourselves the question today, how are your prayers? How are my prayers? Do you spend time in prayer for those who have been of great spiritual encouragement to you? We manage the house of God by remembering in prayer those whom we are called to serve with. spending time in prayer. Remembering inspires prayer. Number two this morning as we move along, remembering inspires appreciation. Remembering inspires appreciation. Look at verses 5-6, When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice, I am persuaded that in thee also. Wherefore I put thee in remembrance, that thou stir up the gift which is in thee by the putting on of hands. What is the purpose? We have coming up here in what just maybe a month, a couple weeks is Memorial Day. What's the purpose of Memorial Day? Well the purpose of Memorial Day comes about because we are prone to forget things. Our moral of the day is to appreciate the sacrifice of many who have died for our freedoms. That is the purpose of it. That we are called to remember the sacrifice that so many have laid down their lives and spilled their blood that we can have the freedoms that we have. And it is so important to remember what they have done for us. Remembering inspires appreciation. First of all, we see in verse number five, appreciation for his spiritual fidelity. He uses the word here, unfeigned faith, faith without hypocrisy. This was probably written somewhere between four to six years after Paul had written 1 Timothy, his first letter. In 1 Timothy, we find that Timothy had many obstacles in ministry to overcome. We look at some as we were studying through in the previous book, in the previous sermons. false teachers that resisted and stood against him. Those who thought that he was too young, remember, let no man despise thy youth. All this time he was still faithfully serving as the pastor in Ephesus. Paul appreciated his spiritual fidelity, his faithfulness to God's Word. When I call it remembrance, the unfeigned faith. how appreciative Paul was. But not just for his spiritual fidelity, he was appreciative of his spiritual heritage. We know little about Timothy's father. He was a Greek. No mention of him in Scripture probably draws us to the conclusion that he probably was not a believer because Paul specifically mentions his grandmother and his mother. What a great godly heritage they had. This they passed down to Timothy from a very young age. Paul was so appreciative of the godly heritage that Timothy had in his life. However, this appreciation did not keep Paul from encouraging Timothy to continue to use and develop the gifts that God had given him. Look at verse number 6. 6. Wherefore I put thee in remembrance, that thou stir up the gift of God which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. Timothy, continue to use that gift. I'm so appreciative of your faithfulness to God's Word. I'm so appreciative of the people who have invested in your life that you can become a minister, a faithful minister of Jesus Christ and the Church of Ephesus. Timothy, continue to stir up that gift. What is one of the purposes of Memorial Day? Appreciation, yes, but to remind us of the importance to continue to stand for our freedoms, amen? That's the same thing that Paul is saying to Timothy here. I'm so appreciative of your fidelity to God's Word, your faithfulness to God's Word. I'm so appreciative of those who have spent their lives to help you and to train you, Timothy. Be faithful to God and continue to use the gift that God has given to you. Remembering inspires appreciation. Number three, remembering inspires confidence. Look at verse number seven. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Paul reminds us of the power of the Holy Spirit inside of us by comparing two attitudes. Notice the two attitudes here that Paul looks at. First of all, he mentions the spirit of fear. Talk to the young Timothy. Go back to the first letter. I'm sure that young Timothy, as a very young pastor at the Church of Ephesus, has sometimes felt fearful because of those who sought to intimidate him because of his age. Those who, through tricky words and crafty worded arguments, sought to distort the gospel. Timothy, God did not give you a spirit of fear. Notice the first attitude here, the spirit of fear. In 1st Timothy, Paul spent much time encouraging Timothy to overcome this fear while serving the Lord. Paul reminds Timothy that this fear does not come from above. Notice what he says here again. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear. Don't we oftentimes face fear? Yes, in a secular way or in an area apart from ministering. But even in ministering, even in trying to serve the Lord, do we not sometimes come against that spirit of fear that works against us? Fear in sharing the gospel. We've been talking about that in our Sunday school classes the last two months or so. Fear in sharing the gospel, that's a real fear that we have sometimes, isn't it? How about fear sometimes in confronting sin? Does the body of Christ sometimes resist the confrontation of sin within its midst because of fear? Sometimes we just like to keep the status quo, right? Don't rock the boat. You know, if I go and talk to so-and-so, what they're doing is wrong, and if I talk to them, you know, it might cause some conflict, and so it's easier just to avoid the conflict than to stand up for God's Word, fear and confronting sin. Fear in pleasing men rather than pleasing God. That's a very strong fear today. more concerned about what somebody else might think about what we say or do than what God might think or say. How about the fear in appearing foolish? You know, I would teach a Sunday school class, but I'm afraid I would just embarrass myself. I would stand up, yes, I know I can sing, I enjoy music, I enjoy musical instruments, but I just have a hard time getting in front of people, and I'm afraid that if I get in front of people, I might make a mistake and I might embarrass myself. Fear of appearing foolish. I would share the gospel at work, but they might just laugh at me and make fun of me. How about fear of rejection? Lord, I would go talk to so-and-so, but what if they say no? What if I go and invite so-and-so to church and they say no? Fear of rejection. Fear of failure. That's a huge fear for us today. Fear of failure. I would be a deacon, but what if I just do a lousy job? I would teach a Sunday school class, or I would go hang up door hangers, but what if I put it on wrong? Fear of failure. You see, we also face fears, but we are reminded here in verse number 7 that this fear does not come from God. This fear is not from above. We are reminded, for God hath not given us that spirit. What is the antidote for fear? 1 John 4.18, there is no fear in love, but perfect love casteth out fear, because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. What is the antidote for our fear to serve the Lord? Well, it should be our love for the Lord. Paul says, the love of God constraineth me. It drives me. Yes, you know, fear of failure can be a very big thing, but how about fear of failure to our Lord Jesus Christ? How about standing before him someday and being ashamed that we know we could have done more and we should have done more? That ought to be what drives us. My love for the Lord is so much greater than my fear of failure or my fear of men or my fear of rejection. He does not give us the spirit of fear, but notice what He does give. He gives us a spirit of fearlessness. Look at verse number seven. For He hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Look at the spirit of fearlessness. It's wrapped up in three tools, or three weapons, or whatever you want to call them. The first one here is power. The word is dunamis. We get the word dynamite from it. When we are seeking to serve the Lord, He fills us with His power. You know, that's something that we can't explain to somebody who doesn't want to be obedient and experience it for themselves. That's something that you can only experience when you actually step out in faith and be obedient to the Lord. When we take that first step of faith and overcome our fear and the Holy Spirit begins to work and move within us, we understand the power of the Holy Spirit working in our lives. That's why it's called faith. He doesn't give us the spirit of fear, but of power. This is the same power that He gave to the disciples to exercise over the demonic control and sickness and disease that we find in Matthew 10, verse 1. It is the same power that He gives to His disciples to become the sons of God that we see in John 1, verse 12. It is the same power that He gave to the disciples to be His witnesses in Acts 1, verse 8. By the way, at this time in Acts 1, verse 8, the disciples were fearless individuals, weren't They were hiding. They were afraid because the Roman soldiers would come and take them next. I just flashed myself, excuse me. It is that same fear that he gave to them to be witnesses in Acts chapter 1 verse number 8. It was that same fearlessness, that same power to preach the resurrection of Jesus Christ in Acts chapter 4 verse number 33. It was that same power that He gives to us today to live godly in this life as we find in 2 Peter chapter 1 and verse number 3. He does not give us the spirit of fear. He gives us the spirit of power. But not just power. He gives us the spirit of love as well. The word here is agape. It means benevolence or affection. The power we receive from the Lord is linked to the love that He gives us as well. Many think that power is a term to describe how we can control people, but that's not what power is. Christ had been given all power from His Father, and yet, on the night before His crucifixion, we see Him take that power to do what? to wash his disciples' feet. What an act of humility and love for his disciples. Our power to serve is tempered by our love to serve others. He gives a spirit of power. He gives a spirit of love. He gives a spirit of sound mind. Calmness of mind. You get flustered and you're caught off guard. The Lord gives us a calmness. We get worked up when we think about sharing the gospel with somebody else. The Holy Spirit through His power and His love gives us calmness. You see, we can choose to walk in the fear that He has not given us or we can choose to walk in the confidence that He has given us. He has not given us a spirit of fear. Remembering inspires confidence. Fourthly today, remembering inspires a bold witness. Look at verses 8-11, Be not therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner. But be thou partaker of the afflictions in the gospel according to the power of God, who hath saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, who hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher, of the Gentiles. Remembering inspires bold witness. Paul has just told Timothy about the confidence that is given to us through the power of the Holy Spirit. Now he tells Timothy how to take that confidence and to guide him in his witness for Jesus Christ. He says here, be not ashamed. Two areas that Paul specifically points to. Two areas that we should not be ashamed in. First of all, he talks about the suffering of Jesus Christ. Be thou not therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, of His death on Calvary, Christ's life, His suffering, and His death. Remember the night before the Lord was to be crucified, after He had washed their feet? What did the disciples do when they came and arrested the Lord Jesus Christ? And they scattered and they ran. to follow Christ was not popular on that night, was it? Can I say to follow Christ today is not popular? At least not if you follow Jesus Christ according to the true gospel of Jesus Christ. There are those today who may acknowledge Jesus, may recognize His humanity, but to truly follow Jesus Christ according to God's word and recognizing and preaching a gospel that there is only one way to heaven and that is through the blood of Jesus Christ alone, you know that message is not popular. And it is not popular today for a believer to follow Jesus Christ. Be not ashamed. Be not ashamed of Jesus Christ. But not just that, he says, nor the suffering, as you go on to look at verse number 8, nor of me, his prisoner, but be thou a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel. the testimony and the suffering of other Christians. In fact, turn with me if you will over at this point in time in Paul's ministry and in his life. Look at just a chapter or two over. Chapter 4. Look at verse number 9 through 11. Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me. Again, where is Paul at this time? He is in prison. In a stinky, filthy, terrible Roman prison about to be executed. And notice what he says, Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me, for Demas hath what? Hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica, Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee, for he is profitable to me for the ministry. Look at verse number 16. At my first answer, no man stood with me. First time he was arrested, gave his answer as to the charges that were laid against him. No one stood with him. All men forsook me. I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge." Notice the compassion he has on those who turn their back on him. You see, it's easy to be shamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It's easy to be ashamed and embarrassed of other Christians around the world who are suffering for Jesus Christ. Paul says don't be ashamed, but rather be a partaker of the affliction of the gospel. Think about that for a moment. As we sit in our cushy, protective church services today, as you sit in that comfortable seat, partially comfortable seat, that you're sitting in right now, Relative security with the freedoms that we have here in America. Paul says, be a partaker of the affliction of the gospel. How has that been tested in our lives today? What was it, last week or was it two weeks ago we heard of churches in, where was it? Wherever it was that were bombed. They're partakers of the affliction. You know sometimes for us the affliction is, boy, Do I go out on the boat today and go fishing or do I go to church? Oh, what an affliction I have to bear. I might be embarrassed if I give a tract to somebody. What an affliction I have to bear. That's not the affliction that Paul is talking about. Christianity today seems too content to avoid the conflict and the inconvenience that the gospel brings. That's where we are today, at least here in America. too content to avoid the conflict and the inconvenience that the gospel brings. We have turned our eyes away from the sufferings of other believers around the world. We have turned our ears away from the calls of help of those dying in their sins. We have turned our hearts away from the gospel that demands that we give up the affections of this life for the rewards of the kingdom to come. Paul knew that to preach such a wonderful message would cost him dearly. Remembering inspires a bold witness for the Lord. Remembering inspires conviction. Look at verses 12-14. For the which cause I also suffer these things, nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus, that good thing which was committed unto thee, keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in thee. Remembering inspires a biblical conviction. Biblical convictions will put us at odds with this world, will they not? To know what we believe based upon a clear biblical teaching. Our convictions, if they are biblical, will set us at odds with the world around us. Biblical convictions that are founded in the person and in the work of Jesus Christ. We see that in the second part of verse number 12. More important than what you know is who you know. Our convictions are based upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Spurgeon says this, Biblical convictions that are founded upon God's Word. We see this in verses 13 and 14. He says, hold fast. Timothy, grasp God's Word. Grasp the Biblical convictions that come from God's Word. Hold fast to the form of sound words. The word here, the form of sound words, comes from the idea of a blueprint or an architect's sketch. that which was given to us. You know, God's Word is our blueprint for living. God's Word is our blueprint. It is our architecture's sketch from an all-knowing, all-powerful architect, and that is God. This is what we follow. And Paul says, Timothy, hold fast God's Word. Hold fast that conviction, that good thing which was committed unto thee in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Lastly here today, remembering inspires faithful service. This thou knowest, he says in verse number 15, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me, of whom are Philigias and Hermogenes. The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus, for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chains. But when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me. The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day, and how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus thou knowest very well. Lastly here today, remembering inspires faithful service. First Paul gives a picture of those who use difficult circumstances as an excuse to stop serving the Lord. Let's see that verse number 15. Two individuals here come into hard times, difficult times, maybe it was the fact that Paul was imprisoned, they saw that, they didn't want to take part in that, whatever the case may be, and they fled because things got a little bit difficult. But then he gives us the picture of a faithful servant, Onesephorus in verses 16 and 17. As we look at Onesephorus here, what do we see? Well, we see first of all in verse number 16, one who frequently encourages God's servants. I appreciated Brother Arcee today talking about the ministry of serving those missionaries. What a great testimony that is. Here is a man who saw Paul arrested and in chains, and when everybody else left, he took it upon himself to frequently encourage Paul. Verse number 16. He often times refreshed me. He was also one, in verse number 16, one who serves without shame of persecution. Paul's chains were not his shame. Others it was their shame, but not for him the sufferers. He frequently encouraged God's servants. He served without shame of persecution. He was one who diligently looked for opportunities to serve faithfully. He didn't wait until Paul came and said, hey, I have a problem here. I have a need. Can you help me out here? He didn't wait until somebody, an elder of the church came and say, we need somebody over here. Notice what he does in verse number 17. When he was in Rome, he did what? He sought me out. He looked for the opportunities and He continued until He found me. It says here at the end of verse number 17. He did not give up until He found the person with which He desired to be an encouragement to. Paul. We see here that he was a faithful servant. Finally, Paul concludes with the rewards of the faithful servant. Look at verse number 18. The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord. What a great testimony. A faithful servant that God looks down mercifully on because of his desire to serve others. A good testimony among the saints was the second thing. How many things he ministered thou knowest well. You all have heard of the testimony of Onesephorus, he says here. You know how well, how godly of a servant he was. A faithful servant. Remembering inspires faithful service. So yes, Paul reminds us in Philippians chapter 3 that we are not to dwell upon those things which are behind. We're not to focus on those things that might be a hindrance for us to serve in the future, whether they be good or whether they be bad. Yes, sometimes we can focus back on the despair or back on the failures and look at those things and they can discourage us, but you know sometimes if we're not careful we can look at the victories of the past and they can keep us from moving forward as well. Sometimes we can look at the good old days and we can forget and we can rest and dwell in apathy because we are so focused on the good old days. What do we remember? Well we remember those things which compel us to continue to serve the Lord. We remember what God has done for us and what God has done through us that it will encourage us as we continue to look forward to manage God's household to be faithful in managing God's household. So today, what types of things do you find yourself reflecting back on and remembering? Number two, those remembrances, what do they cause you to do? Do they cause you to sit back in apathy and just reflect on the good old days? Or does it inspire you to move forward fearlessly to continue to serve the Lord? Dear Lord, we thank you so much for the gospel and how it changes our lives. Lord, we're so thankful that you desire to use us. Lord, how often we can forget. We can forget how good you have been to us and the many blessings. Lord, how often that forgetfulness can lead to apathy in our service for you. Lord, true, we are to forget those things which would cause a hindrance in our lives to grow spiritually and to serve you. We are to forget those things, but Lord, we are to also keep in remembrance those things which should inspire us and cause within us a desire to continue to serve you more fearlessly and fervently than what we have. Maybe there's a Christian here today that would say, Pastor, I don't remember the last time I actually fearfully or fearlessly served the Lord. I don't remember the last time my remembrance has caused me to pray for those in ministry, my brothers and sisters in Christ, to show appreciation for their testimony, for their work and for their service. Perhaps there might be a Christian here today that would say that apathy has caused you, kept you, from serving the Lord more faithfully than what you are. Maybe there's someone here today that should take some time and say, Lord, forgive me. Lord, that apathy, or maybe it's fear, that fear is wrong, that fear does not come from you. Lord, that's a sin. That apathy in my heart, Lord, is a sin. Maybe there's someone here today that would say, Pastor, I need to get back on my knees. And ask the Lord to give me a spirit of power, a spirit of love, a spirit of a sound mind, to call and remember to what God has done that I can serve Him more faithfully. If that's you today, in a moment we're going to have just a verse of an invitation song. Don't you think it's time that you get on your knees and call that what it is? Whether it's apathy, whether it's fear, the Bible calls it sin. We can't effectively manage God's house if we allow these things to hinder us from serving the Lord. Maybe it's time today as we sing a song of invitation that you come before the Lord and say, Lord, forgive me. I'm missing so many opportunities, Lord, to serve you. Give me power. Give me love. Give me a sound mind to serve you fearlessly. Maybe there's someone here today that would say, I don't know Jesus Christ as my Savior. I don't even understand what that power is like. I don't understand what it's like to have the Holy Spirit living within me, because I have trusted in my own good works to save me. Maybe there's someone here today that would say, Pastor, I need to be saved. I don't know your heart. Only you do. If you're here today and you don't know Jesus as your Savior, when the piano plays here in just a moment, could I encourage you to just take a moment to muster up the courage and step out into that aisle and come forward? I will meet you at the front. and I will give you to somebody who can take God's Word today and open it up and tell you and show you how you can know for sure that you have Jesus Christ as your Savior. We're not going to sing this morning. I'm going to ask Andrew just to play through a verse of an invitation song, but I would ask you to stand. If the Lord's working in your heart today, don't put Him off. In a moment we're going to take a few minutes here to observe the Lord's Supper. It would not be right for us as Christians to go to the Lord's table knowing that there is something in my life that would separate me and my fellowship from Him. I would urge you to take this time and ask the Lord to search your heart and ask the Lord to show and to reveal if there's anything in your life today that needs to change before we come before the Lord's Supper. As our heads are bowed, as our eyes are closed, I'm gonna ask Andrew just to play a verse of an invitation song.