If I should have the occasion to come back, I'm putting a railing up here. They tell me if I have one more joint replaced artificially that I'll be the bionic man. I don't think so. Anyway, good morning. What a thrill it is. to stand here. So many faces I know, and time's gone. And what a blessing it is to see new ones that I don't have a clue who you are. But I can tell you, you're in the right place. If you're saved or if you're lost, you're in the right place. We are thankful for the opportunity And we would that God have right away in the hearts of each and every individual that's here this morning, whatever it is. As I've said many, many times, if the spirit moves upon you to come to this altar, to stand and testify, to do whatever it is indicated for you to do, you're not going to bother me. I'll either be quiet and we'll listen or you just go ahead and do what you need to do and I'll keep preaching. Either way, it'll be fine. So I thank Brother Mike for the kind words and I remember quite well one time we met for breakfast at Brenda's one Saturday morning and he was burdened, his heart was burdened and He had the draw and the feeling and the necessity to go to Oregon and be the pastor of a little church there. And we talked about that. We talked about that. I remember quite well, and the old situation of Brendan, I don't know why I'm like this, because I can't remember things yesterday, but I remember where we sat. and the old Brenda's. I remember where we sat and almost how far back. I don't know why that's important, it isn't important. But it left a memory in my mind and in my heart that I treasure. So many wonderful memories that I've had here at Calvary. And God is truly blessed. Far beyond my expectation, and certainly far beyond what I'm worthy of. So I would, as we, looking to the Lord that we speak to you here for a few minutes, in the words of Brother Keith Freese, I'll try not to hold you longer than 73 minutes. This being Calvary's anniversary, and I consider that a special time, really, where we can reflect back on the memories that we have and situations that we've witnessed and maybe that we've been involved in even. Maybe some of you that have been saved here, I'm sure that your mind and your heart go back to that occasion. And what a wonderful, wonderful thing that is. In my mind's eye, I still see several of the people that found the Lord here in various places. And what a blessing that was for the church and for me. And I'm thankful, so thankful for that. But most of all, I'm thankful that you have carried on the truth for 79 years. You haven't wavered. Sometimes it's been difficult. It's been hard because we realize that Satan tries to throw things in our way and cause us to doubt and whatever that he would want to try to confuse us and occupy our minds. But you're still preaching the same truth that you were all these years ago. Now, I would say, has that just happened? Did that just happen? No, no. It happened because there was a people before the beginning and the starting of Calvary Missionary Baptist Church that had a vision and had it on their heart to create a church here. And you followed through with that guidance from the Lord and did what you were supposed to do, facing some difficult times in various kinds and ways, but you carried on. Now we say, well, That's just a matter of fact. Well, it is. But let me tell you, we have a choice as a child of God of how are we going to serve God? Or are we going to serve Him? What are we going to do? Certainly, I would encourage you just to keep serving Him. Calvary's had a wonderful past. If time goes on, My desire is, and I believe in my heart, that it will have a wonderful future. In the words of Brother Paul Cofer, he would say many times, what do we do while we're here? His words were, we preach Jesus Christ till he comes again. That's it. That's pretty simple. Because we realize there's a lot in that, a lot of responsibility in that. So what a blessing that is. I would that you can stop and consider your part, if you are part of this church, that you consider its history, that you consider the blessings that you've had, consider the souls that have been saved, consider all the people that throughout the years have been brought here as guests or friends of yours. I was always amazed when I was here that young people, not just young, but young people would bring friends and so on and to Calvary. And so many of them got saved, heard the gospel preached, and came to know the Lord. It doesn't get any better than that. That's why we're here. That's why we're here. I would assume this morning that probably, if not all, most looked in a mirror. Now I'm not going to look at you and decide did you or did you not. But I would say probably most of you did. But I would that we stop for a moment this morning and we think about looking into the spiritual mirror. That's what I want to call it, the spiritual mirror. And when we look into the spiritual mirror, Ask ourselves and realize, what do we see? What do we see? Well, one of my favorite stories that Paul tells us in Ephesians is that he told the people, he told the Christian people to put on the whole armor of God. Now when you look in the spiritual mirror, We need to take a good look at what that armor looks like. Well, first of all, we need to take a good look and see if we have it on. And then we need to consider, do we have it all on? Are we missing a few pieces? Have we left some behind? Have we laid some down? And we don't have those. The other thing, what I believe and what I see in my mind's eye, when many of you look into the spiritual mirror, you're gonna see that armor of God and it's gonna be dirty and dented and banged and all of those things, but it's still there. It's still there. If anything takes that away from us, for lack of obedience, lack of faith, whatever, whatever it is. Now in the 10th verse, in the sixth chapter of Ephesians, Paul said, he said, finally, my brethren, finally. That means from now on, from now on, Brothers and sisters in Christ and members of Calvary, from now on, continue to do what you've done throughout the years and continue to strive for the excellence, if you will, in serving God in spirit and in truth. Continue on. From now on. We really don't have any other choice. Oh, we do. But when it gets right down to it, we don't have any other choice. So what are we gonna do? I've always been convinced that we as God's people, we need to take a personal inventory of our spiritual being, if you will. And we can look in the mirror and we can see about this armor. We can look and see what we have on. We can look at the condition of it. We can look, have we just put it on? Is it shiny and bright? Maybe. If you've just recently been saved and united with the church, it may not have any stretches and dents and dirt on it. Might not. Might not. But if we're doing what we need to do and what Calvary has done throughout the years, It's going to get dirty. It's going to get scratched and banged and dented because it's being used. Being used. Paul said, I probably won't go through all these. You're familiar with them. But most of these things, the six things that Paul mentioned in regards to the armor, are defensive things. To protect yourself, defensive. but he didn't leave offensive out. Remember what that was? The sword of the spirit. The sword of the spirit. What a wonderful, wonderful picture that we see in these easy to understand verses that the Lord inspired Paul to write in regards to the whole armor of God. He didn't say part. He didn't say one piece or this one or that one. The whole armor of God. Now, that's significant. That is critical. It's always been critical that we put on the whole armor of God, but I actually, I believe that it surely must be as critical or more so today. We have challenges and Influences from evil things, as Paul mentioned. We are constantly in a battle. The scripture tells us that in various places. That we are in a constant battle. As we live in this life and as we are here, put here, for a purpose. And the purpose, if we are a part of His church, and that's what we're to do after we're saved, is to be ready for battle. Always, always, all the time, be ready to do that. Have you ever gone back and remember maybe an old Christian somewhere that had an influence on me. And we think about it in terms of the armor, and they had it on. They had it on. There were some of those old Christians when I was lost, and in an altar at Pleasant Hill, there's a Nevada church, There were some old saints of God that had it all on. And it was dented and it was dirty and scratched and all of that thing. But they had it on. And that was a benefit to me, was it not? It is a benefit to lost people. And that's why we're here. That's why we're here. The church that Jesus established when He was here on earth was to send the Gospel out, continue to preach the Word to the lost and dying world. To do those things. There's never a place to stop. What do we do, as I've said, in Brother Coker's words? We simply preach Jesus Christ until He comes again. We don't know when that's going to be. But we do it. As long as we're here. I've often thought so many times, I've studied these scriptures many, many times. And it seems like so many times I have gotten another thought or some significance out of it. And I'm thankful for that. It explains, Paul explained why we need to put on the whole armor of God. He did. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore, taken to you, the whole armor of God, wherefore, because of, Because of this, what I just read, what Paul said, because we are fighting against Satan and demons and all the things and the influence that he has in the world, because of, we are to take the whole arm of God. Yes, it's easy to leave some of it laying and not put it on. It is. And I'm convinced if we're a child of God and we're a part of His church that if we continue to come, we continue to hear the preaching of the Word, we continue to hear the testimonies of God's people, we continue to sing in the Spirit, we continue to do all of those things that would be led by the Holy Spirit. Continue. That, I'm convinced, that's why you're here. That's why the gospel's still going out. That's why people are still being saved. At some point in time in the 79 years, had you decided, well, this is so difficult. This is so seemingly impossible. We face all of these things and these troubles. And maybe, you know, maybe Is it worth it? I don't think probably for the most part we think in those terms, but maybe by our actions, that's what we do. Paul said we should have our loins girded about the truth. Several things were attached to that, kind of held things together, so to speak. And I remember one of the six pieces of armor that Paul mentioned was that, and above all, the shield of faith. And we think about that, if you carry and if you have it, in your hand. It's not going to do us any good if it's lying on the ground. We have to have it in our hand or hands. But take that shield of faith and we can quench the fiery darts of the devil for the wicked. We can move it up, down, sideways, every direction. That is the only piece of armor that Paul talks about that we can do that. So above all, we do that. Put on, Paul said, put on a sense of urgency. Do it now. That's what that meant. When he said, put on the whole armor of God, do it now. Do it now. I can tell you, I don't know that many of you that are here today, If you've been signed with the power of God and you're expected to unite with the Lord's church, you are. That's not a choice. It's command. And there's a reason for it. There's a reason for it. We need all the soldiers with the full armor of God on. that we that have been saved and unite with the body, we need all of them in order that we may be able to adequately fight the battles that lie before us. And not only for the benefit of the body, the church, if you will, but certainly for the benefit of those that are lost, that we might continue to move forward. that we might continue to see the need, that we might continue. If you remember several years ago when I was here, I said, I'm sure many times, don't lose your focus. Don't lose your focus. Why are we here? Why are we here? God will give us strength. God will give us courage. He'll give us knowledge and understanding. He'll do all of those things if we're obedient. And we come to Him, asking for guidance and asking for strength and faith and all of the things that we need as we live in this life. One of the last things, and as I said, I'm leaving out some of these pieces. They're there, you're familiar with them. One of the last things that Paul said in the 18th verse, sixth chapter of Ephesians, he said, praying always, in other words, praying on every occasion. Praying always, on every occasion. the leaving thing out. With all prayer and supplication in the Spirit and watching there unto the Spirit and watching there unto with all perseverance and supplication for all sins. What a beautiful thing it is. When you can see I'll say with our spiritual eye, when we can see a church comes together in oneness and unity and being totally and completely obedient to the will of God. And they have the whole armor of God on. And they're standing shoulder to shoulder. They're fighting the battles that need to be fought. And they're always going to be here as long as this world stands. What a beautiful thing that is. Think about that. What a beautiful thing that is. So many times I've been blessed by watching a church that's revived and that comes together and is working And they put your faith in the Lord. What a beautiful thing that is. And you say, well, I don't know that I've ever seen that. Open your spiritual eyes. Ask the Lord. Let me tell you when it's happened. What an experience. What an experience. Pray. The last thing that Paul mentions is linked to stand and always means on every occasion, remember that, always means on every occasion, nothing left out, nothing left out. Jesus is complete. He always has been. He always will be. And He's complete. So we as His children should strive to be also complete. Complete. In our lives. After we've been saved and united with his church, we should realize that we're complete, but we have to work, we have to fight, we have to do all of those things. And Calvary that again, bless your heart. That's why you're here, because you've done it. Because you've done it. I've said before, I could not say this about every place that I know, but you, and I don't think you do, you should never have a reservation about sending a child or a friend or whoever to church without you being present. It's okay. They'll take care of it. They'll pray for them. They won't deceive them. They'll let them seek the Lord until they know for themselves that they've found Him. What value is that? We can't place a value on that. We can't. What a wonderful thing. Just think about that. Think about that. I could come here and I'm going to hear a sermon that has been directed from God. And Brother Mike being the mouthpiece here, that's what you're going to hear. That's what you're going to hear. So, as I say, you know, really when it gets down to it, it's rocket science. Because one thing, if it were rocket science, I wouldn't be here. I want each and every one that are part of King to look in the spiritual mirror, to put on that whole armor of God, to pray, pray that God can guide you and you'll be, and that you give you, you can be obedient and give you the faith that you need and the strength that you need to do all the things that we need to do as a child of God and as a part of his church. It never grows old. Never. So let's look in the mirror. Aren't we bright and shiny? Armor. And we've been a child of God for many years, let's assume, and that we are a part of his church. And we look in the spiritual mirror, and our armor is, ooh, no dents, no dirt. It's fine. That should be a clue that maybe we haven't been in the battle. Maybe we're ready, but we haven't been in the battle. Let's go into battle. Let's put it all on and be ready to go into the battle, praying for guidance. Let's go into the battle. Because if we don't, If we don't, someone, something else, will deceive their souls. I'm convinced of that. That's what Satan's purpose is. His first objective is to keep someone from believing in the Lord Jesus Christ and the saving of their soul. That's his first objective. If he loses that, guess what? His next objective is to to control your life and so that you will not live a life that is pleasing to the Lord. That's how it works. So there's never a place that we should give up. There's never a place that we should say, And honestly, probably in many ways we don't get too old to function in the armor. But we have a lot of soldiers around us that are in our ranks. So I would that We from now on put our faith in the Lord. Follow Him. I don't know your heart. If you're here and you haven't had an experience of salvation, that has to be priority in your life. It does. Has to be. The Holy Spirit has to draw you. Draw you. How does that feel? Well, if you've experienced that, you know, maybe your heart's beating and manifest itself maybe in a lot of different ways and different people. But I'm thankful, Calgary, that you've withstood the battles throughout the years, that you've continued to fight when it was a necessity, and it always is. When you've continued to let the Gospel go out, and when you've continued to explain to those that are saved what this is all about. All of those things, and I'm convinced That you get that. And that you have that right now. Because He's going to do it. And you know what? If you think He needs to do it a little better, pray for Him. Maybe you don't. Boy, fine. Yeah. Pray for Him anyway. You know? Sometimes we can get kind of relaxed. And that's a wonderful thing. for a moment, for a moment. But we have to ever be ready. I remember one time years ago, at an altar service here at Calvary. Sister Pitts, there she is. I remember up here, she was up here praying in the altar, and it just, a quietness fell over the surface, on the altar surface. And pretty soon she said, isn't this a wonderful, safe feeling? And I thought, amen. Oh, yeah. A wonderful, safe feeling. Carry on, dear Calvary. Do the will of the Lord and continue to do what you're doing. Continue to do what you've been doing for 79 years. And you'll win the Bibles. Those people will be saved. And sometimes you may get tired and weary, but the Lord will replenish your strength and your faith if we depend on him. I wish Calvary well. I wish the continuation ongoing if time goes on another 79 years or whatever. Keep in mind those that bring you the word of God. Keep in mind You pray for a brother of mine. Pray for him. I'm convinced that I've known him long enough. He's going to do his part. You don't have to worry about that. But are we doing our part? Do we do our part? I love you. I feel like I don't know. I don't know how to adequately explain that to you, but I do. And I'm thankful there's a place in Bonneville, Missouri that there was a vision many years ago and a need to have a church here. and think about all that it's done throughout the years. And praise the Lord for all of those things. May God bless. Thanks, Brother Ron. I appreciate the reminder, the message today. We really are in a spiritual battle. We either know that we are and are fighting in it or we're losing. But all of us are in a spiritual battle. We all have a fight. Thankfully, the Lord has prepared us with armor and with the things that we need to be able to adequately stand for Him. All things are of grace, salvations of grace, and the means at which we try to serve the Lord of grace as well, but we can't be passive. And that's really what he was reminding us of, that we have to be aware and to put on that armor and to realize that spiritual things matter. I'm thankful for those that we fight with today. And it's very clear in what he read this morning, we're not supposed to be fighting among ourselves, but we all have a common enemy and a common Lord that we serve. And what we want to do as God's people is to uphold the gospel and to tell people about Jesus and to see people saved. And I just pray that we would have that upon our hearts. and that we would be burdened for that, that we would get burdened for that, that we would see how much the world needs the Lord, and how much we benefited from this salvation that we didn't deserve, and that we would get it on our heart, that we would desire that for everyone else in our life. I appreciate the reminder this morning and the sermon. Why don't we have a song, Sister Guyana, and as we all stand together and sing. I'd just like to invite everyone to follow the Lord and ask Sister Marinel to come up with Brother Ron and stand here in the front. We'll have a Christian handshake and let Brother Ron know that we appreciate the message that he brought today. And with this handshake, just letting him know that we're praying for him and we're praying for one another as we try to serve the Lord together. So let's all stand together.