I want to bring you greetings from the Lakeworth Baptist Church. I'll tell you we are co-laborers with you and we are kindreds. with you, fellow servants of the Lord Jesus Christ among you, amen. And I just want to tell you what a great pleasure it is to be here this evening. I count it as an honor to be here. You know, I know that many of you may not know me, but I do have very strong ties to this church in one way or the other. There are members of this church who have known me literally all of my life. I see Brother John back there with his headset. Yeah, I see you brother. I'll come give you a big hug later. and Brother Mark and Sister Sherry, Sister Renee, and with great ties to the membership of this church and at least part of who I am is because there were people in this church who loved me and cared for me and invested in me. And I want to thank you for your faithfulness and your many, many years of service. It sure is a blessing. You joy my heart. I love churches. I love God's people. Love the Bible, and I love people who love the Bible. So, yeah, I'm the pastor of the Lakeworth Baptist Church, and I did a transition with Brother Jerry Locke, many of you know him. We did that, I guess, in 2014. We officially launched a co-pastorship, and we're co-pastors, but he would always tell you, I'm the lead co-pastor. And then he would preach the majority of the time, and then I preached a little bit, and then it was about even, and then I preached the majority of the time, and then he preached the minority of the time, and we just kind of apexed past each other. And then he left in 2016, and by God's grace I've been the pastor of that church since July 2016. I've just completed my ninth year as the senior pastor of the Lake Worth Baptist Church. Before I, well thank you so much, you guys are so kind. We're going to have a good time today. I love easy preaching churches, too. Yes. I was not always in ministry. In fact, if you asked me, my daddy was a Baptist preacher, and they said, you know, you're going to be a pastor just like your dad. And I said, ha-ha, no, you are crazy. I started my law enforcement career when I was 21, and I'm still in law enforcement. I work significantly less now because I'm at the church full-time. But I work for a state agency, and November will be 20 years I've been a commissioned law enforcement officer. Thank you for that as well. I work for a state agency, and I just do like little investigation work for them, just from my time when I was in full-time. But I love preaching now. So that's a little bit about me. But you weren't here to learn about me, you were here to learn a little bit about the Bible, weren't you? Let's look at 2 Corinthians chapter 8 this evening. You know, your pastor told me that, and I just heard a moment ago, you guys were doing a missions emphasis, and I was so thrilled to hear him say that. I believe that every Gospel-spreading, Bible-believing Baptist church should have a heart for missions. I believe that. And the reason why we should have a heart for missions is because God has a heart for missions. How many of you know that God has His eye on the world? The Bible says that, for God so loved the world. He wants the whole world to be saved, amen? The Bible says that the Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness but as longsuffering to us. We're not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Somebody said, why is the Lord waiting so long? Well the reason He's tarrying, my friend, is because there could be somebody that God is waiting on to be saved. But He's not willing that any should perish. Just one more, just one more. And aren't you glad that you were part of that one more? And so our hearts must burn for missions because God's heart burns for missions. And we're going to come back to that truth over and over again in our time together. We're just sewing in our hearts a biblical logic. And here's what that means. When we're talking about missions, it means that God wants you and I to help participate in the process of getting the gospel to the world. And this evening we're going to learn that part of the way, and really the most basic way that is accomplished, is through our giving. The most basic way that you're involved in that process is through our giving. Let's do some reading. Would you follow along with me? We're going to start in verse 1 and we're going to end in verse 9 of 2 Corinthians chapter 8. Hear the reading of God's Word. The Bible says, moreover, brethren, we do you to wit or we want you to know of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia. How that in great trial of affliction, the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves, praying us with much entreaty that we would receive the gift and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord and unto us by the will of God, insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also. Therefore, as ye abound in everything in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also. I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love. Oh, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich." And God's people said? In this passage we have laid out for us, in thoughtful, Pauline fashion, the biblical logic of missions given. But before we go too far down that road, let's take some time and break down the term of missions given, because often I think that we use it, but we may not have ever thought about the logic of it. First, let's take that word, missions. How many of you know that God has a mission for us? That word, mission, is a key indicator of what we're trying to accomplish in this life. You see, as God's people who belong to God's churches, we all need to realize that we are all on a mission from God. And what's the mission? Well, here it is. Are you ready? You know it well. And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given to me in heaven and earth. And go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe All things whatsoever I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen." That's the mission of every New Testament church, just like this one. Jesus, our Lord, gave us a mission to get the Gospel to everyone in the world. All nations, Jesus said. We call that mission the Great Commission. That's the mission, get people the gospel, baptize them, make them church members, then teach them everything that we know about Jesus, and make this information go worldwide. That's missions. Okay, here's the second word, giving, missions, giving. That's when God's people through God's churches give specifically to the cause of God's mission. You see, it goes like this. I want you to think about giving in church in spheres. And I know that you know this. I'm going to be like Peter. He said, I'm not going to try to tell you anything that you don't already know. I'm here to stir you up and remind you of what you already do know. That's all I want to do. I just want to remind you what you do know. First, sphere, the tithe. The tithe literally means a tenth. This is a tenth of all your increase, and this is how God tests our obedience, and then how He finances His work directly in our lives. That's what keeps the lights on, that's what pays the water bill, that's what does church repairs, that's what buys your sound equipment, that's what repairs your A.C. Oh, mercy, living in Texas, give me a break. I'm ashamed to tell you how much our church has spent on A.C.s. But that's what tithes take care of. And then after the tithe, there's the offering, that's the second sphere. This is anything above the tithe. You see a tithe is a great place to start, but it's a bad place to stop. A tithe is just the bottom tier requirement by God, but here's what I think. I think as you become a better steward, I think as God begins to bless your faithfulness, and as God, through His Word, teaches you principles of how to change the way you think about money, and how do you use money, and how you spend money, as God grows your heart to be more like His heart, I think you'll mature to want to give more. I think it's only natural that as you walk through this life with your Heavenly Father, that you become a good giver like God is a good giver. And so naturally you'll move past a tithe and you'll start giving offerings where you just say, God, God you've given me more in my life, and so God here's what I want to do. I want to give you more. God I want to be just like you. I want to be a good giver. First sphere, the tithe. Second sphere, the offering. The third sphere, missions giving or grace giving or what you're doing here, faith, promise, missions, giving. And that's exactly what it sounds like. There's faith, there's promise, there's missions, there's giving. It's where by faith you promise an amount of money and above the tithe And above the offering, you give to the cause of God's mission to help other churches and people outside of ourselves. And that teaching comes from this passage right here. You see it goes like this, a troubled and needy world often creates a troubled and needy people. A troubled and needy world often creates a troubled and needy people. That's what sparked this subject from Paul to the church at Corinth. The church in Jerusalem was in serious trouble. They were barely hanging on. They were barely managing. They didn't know if they could survive much longer as a church. there was a real threat that soon they would have to close their doors. By the time we're reading this letter in 2 Corinthians, the church that Jesus started had just passed its 20th birthday. But during those two decades, the people who made up the membership of this church started being increasingly troubled. The members, you see, had been ostracized. They had been persecuted. They had been then arrested, and then tried, and then put into prison. Some had even been exiled. Others were executed. These were Jewish Christians, and some of their own family members and countrymen and friends had turned against them, all for following the Lord Jesus Christ. It was just as Jesus said would happen in Matthew chapter 10. He said, think not that I am come to send peace on earth. He said, I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and a man's foes shall be they of his own household. That's what was happening to the people who made up the church at Jerusalem. Many of the same leaders who sent Jesus to the cross were still in power, and they hated Christians. That said, being a Christian in Jerusalem and in Judea went from being uncomfortable to excruciating. As a result, no one would hire a Christian, and no one would buy from a Christian, and no one would sell to a Christian. Many Christians were experiencing collapse and ruin in this area, and when Paul came to visit, boy, it broke his heart. It broke his heart to see, it broke his heart to think that the church where it all began, the church that God used to start many other churches in two decades could be facing its end. And so what did we say? That a needy and troubled world often creates needy and troubled people. That was true for the Christians in Jerusalem, so here's what needed to happen. Troubled and needy people often require loving and gracious support. Did you catch that? Troubled and needy people often require loving and gracious support. Since the church in Jerusalem was hurting, God gave Paul a thought. While Paul was traveling around in certain areas, he could take up a collection from other churches to help meet the needs of God's people in Jerusalem. You see, we all have to live in this troubled and needy world, and it creates degrees of problems for all of us, but because of where some of God's people are located, sometimes the suffering and need is nearly unbearable. So Paul decided to present all kinds of churches with the need in Jerusalem. And God's people started signing up, man, it was incredible. Churches started pledging money all over the place so they could help God's people who were in harder places and needed financial relief. And one of those places that signed up to help the church at Jerusalem was the church at Corinth. They signed up to help. They pledged evidently a large sum of money to help God's people in Jerusalem. And you can read about that in 1 Corinthians chapter 16 and verse 1, where Paul told them how to collect the money and how he would get the money to Jerusalem. But what happened is that down the line they got crossways with Paul. They got in a fight with the preacher. and they didn't like the correction He had given them. You know it's a sad day when you get crossways with people who are just trying to love you and try to help you with some correction. Sad day. And so evidently after the Corinthians pledged the money, after a year had passed, they still had not given anything. Isn't that terrible? The Jerusalem people needed a little extra grace and a little extra love by way of some financial relief, but because they were mad at Paul, the Corinthians just let God's people suffer for a year. For a year. That's where 2 Corinthians 8 comes in. Paul tells them, hey, this isn't right. And your heart is not right. He said, you promised to help these people, and that was the right thing to do, but now you need to be the people of your word and actually give it. You need to give what you pledged. Paul said, I want you to commit yourself to faith, promise, missions, giving for the cause of Christ in Jerusalem. He said, that's what I want you to do. And to help mature their thought process on the matter, Paul lays out three reasons why they should make good on their promise to give. And what I want to do is use Paul's reasoning to help us this evening. So let's learn about what the Bible says about faith promise missions giving. Number one, if you're taking notes, faith promise missions is a matter of churches partnering with other churches. Faith Promise Missions is a matter of churches partnering with other churches. You see, it goes like this. As God's people, we all experience the same salvation. That's what binds us together as brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world. We all experience the same salvation, but we don't always experience the same set of circumstances. Did you catch that? As God's people, we all experience the same salvation, but because we live in a sin-cursed world, and because we live in a troubled and needy world, we don't always experience the same set of circumstances. In some parts of the world, there's more freedom, and that's a blessing. In some parts of the world, there's more financial opportunity, and that's a blessing. in some parts of the world, people are more receptive to the Gospel, and that's a blessing. And by themselves, any one of those things can be great, but having all three, oh, now you're talking. Now you can really make some progress. If you have all three, that can lead to the financial and spiritual flourishing of God's people. That's wonderful. But how many of you know this? that there are parts of the world that have corrupt governments that do their best to stomp out the gospel. And how many of you know that there are parts of the world in tough economic climates? And how many of you know that there are parts of the world when the people there, their hearts are hard and cold when it comes to the gospel? And by themselves, any one of those things can be hard. But if you add them all together, It makes for an excruciating situation, and instead of financial and spiritual flourishing of God's people, it can lead to the financial and spiritual floundering of God's people. And that was like Jerusalem and Corinth. Corinth was experiencing quite a bit of religious freedom, and they were a prosperity, they were a city of prosperity, excuse me. And they were open to the Gospel, and it led to financial and spiritual flourishing of God's people when it came to the church at Corinth. On the other hand, there was the church at Jerusalem. Jerusalem was experiencing quite a bit of hardship, and it was leading to the financial ruin and spiritual floundering of God's people in their church. So you see, same salvation, different circumstances. And so, do you know what God did? He led His churches to start partnering with other churches. The churches with greater ability were to partner with those churches who needed a helping hand. God's design to help churches did not involve the government. God's design to help churches didn't involve unbelievers. We were not looking for community handouts. God's design is that churches would partner with other churches, local churches with local churches, to give to the mission of the Great Commission. Again, isn't God's eye on the world? Again, doesn't God want everybody to be saved? Again, isn't God's desire that we reach every nation with the Gospel? So wouldn't it make sense that if Corinth had money that they would give some of it to help keep a Gospel witness alive in Jerusalem? Wouldn't that make sense? Absolutely. Well that's part of the logic of Faith Promise Mission's giving. It's churches partnering with other churches so we can all stay on mission for the cause of the Great Commission. And as we move our eyes from the church at Corinth to the Metropolitan Baptist Church, can I say, I know that your church is like my church. And I know this, I know that God has blessed your church. I know that. I know you're pastor. I know several of your members. This church has given to support missionaries all over the world, and still does, right now, as I'm speaking to you. And this church, God has used it to help build church buildings for missionary works. And this church has helped to lay foundations for new church buildings. And this church was used to provide new roofs for church buildings. You've bought Bibles and materials for new churches. You've bought vehicles for missionaries. And it's so wonderful. God has blessed your church to be able to do that. You have given, since your beginnings, you have partnered with other churches in need all over the world. By God's grace and God's merciful hand, He has given both of our churches circumstances that are incredible. You see, by God's grace, we have freedom in this country. And by God's grace, we have financial flourishing in this country. Oh, there's a little bit of shaky ground these days, I'm sure you know, but there are still people responding to the gospel in this country. And so we're just able to grow faster than other places. Hey, that's a blessing. It's led to some good circumstances for us. We're financially strong and we've been able to partner with and give to other churches. But here's what I know about circumstances. Boy, they can change in an instant, can't they? Oh, they sure can. And do you know what we would want if our circumstances changed and we were the ones who needed help? We would want other churches to partner with us. and lend us a helping hand. That's what we would want. But right now, God is using us to help others, and so let's keep blessing them. Let's keep blessing them. I think it's only right to keep partnering with other churches for the mission of the Gospel. I think it's only right. Missions giving is a matter of churches partnering with other churches. Second, missions giving is a matter of God's people growing in compassion. It's a matter of God's people growing in compassion. That's where the Macedonians came in. Paul told the Corinthians a story about the churches in Macedonia. Now, the Macedonians didn't have money, really, but I'll tell you what they did have. They had a heart. Oh, they had a heart. And that was Paul's point. Giving really isn't a money issue. Did you know that? Giving really isn't a money issue. Ultimately, giving is a heart issue. You see, because some might say, well, I don't give because I don't have a lot of money. But giving isn't about having a lot of money. Giving is about willingness. Look, God isn't concerned with your paycheck. He's not. God is not interested in your paycheck. He is concerned about your participation. Doesn't care how much you make, He just wants you involved in the process, amen? That's why Paul used the Macedonian church as an example. They were dirt poor compared to the Corinthians. But as soon as they heard about the needs of the church in Jerusalem, once they heard about their dire situation, boy, they were moved with compassion. And look again how Paul described it in verses 1 and 2, he says, "'Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia, how that in great trial of affliction, the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.'" Now that is an equation only God can work out. Great trial of affliction plus abundance of joy equals liberal giving. That's what God had done in this congregation. Paul said they didn't just give, but they gave beyond their ability to give, and they were happy to give it. Paul said they were begging Him to take money. Now how many times do you know of something like that happening in church? Where the congregation goes to the preacher and says, hey, take my money. Usually it's the preacher who comes to the congregation and pleads with them to give. In this case, it was a church going to the preacher and forcing him to take a gift. By the way, can you imagine talking to the apostle Paul like this? I shudder to think. Like, Paul, here's some money, you're going to take it and you're going to like it. What it sounds like in the passage is that Paul wasn't even going to ask them because they knew this group of churches in Macedonia didn't really have anything to give. But somehow they heard of Paul's collection, and they said, we want in. We want to help these people. We want to get in on this missions project. We want to give to missions. How did they develop that? Well that's easy. They had just grown in compassion for other people. They grew their compassion for other people. And I'll tell you, it's easy to grow your compassion if you think about it. It's easy. Because again, what do we know? Well, we know that God has a heart for the world. And we know that since God has a heart for the world, I guess that should mean that we should have a heart for the world too. But second, here's something else that I know, that God always uses people to help other people. He uses us. You see, the Macedonians knew that it was God's people from foreign lands that were compassionate toward them to get them the gospel. Other churches gave to foreign missions to get the gospel to them, and so now, as far as the Macedonians were concerned, it was their turn to give. They got to show the compassion this time. And that's what missions giving takes, it takes us realizing that somebody had compassion on us to get us the Gospel. Somewhere along the way, someone gave to keep a work alive, and eventually it led to us hearing the Gospel. People that you've never met, and people that you've never seen, gave financially to this work because they believed in the mission to advance the cause of the Great Commission. You realize that that's why you're here today, don't you? To start this work and be in this very place, people gave so that you could have this location. And people gave so that you can meet in this building, and with these surroundings. And now from this one church, scores of people have heard the Gospel, and are still hearing the gospel from this ministry to this very day. The compassion of others giving to this work is what got you here now. People before you had compassion on those who would come after them. And they believed God could give the increase. Oh, and so they gave, and they gave, and they gave, and they were faithful to give. Listen, we are all debtors to what has been done for us by people of the past. We are. There were people that were sold out to this deal to get you the gospel. And that's what we need to do for people now. And for the people, God will call beyond us. But it takes growth and compassion to get us there. And look, the reason it takes growth in this area is because missions giving requires a special kind of faith. That's why we call it faith promise missions giving. Because when we give to missions, we're largely giving to people that we'll probably never see. And we're giving to people that you'll probably never meet. There's a lot of unknowns in missions giving. That's why it's hard for people, because it doesn't directly affect us. It doesn't help you get new stuff for your church. That's why we need to grow in compassion, because compassion says, you know, I can't see what God is doing exactly with what I give, but I believe people are worth it. And missions giving says, I can't see what God is doing with what I give, but God loves people, so I'm going to love people. Missions giving says, I can't get on the mission field. I can't get to that work myself, but I can use the money that God gave me to help them out. And missions giving says, and I believe by faith. and by God's promise that He will use this money to help more people come to Christ. Faith, promise, missions, giving. Missions giving is natural as you learn to grow in compassion for the people around you and the world. Remember, God's eye is on the world, and so our eye needs to be on the world. All right, let's go over it again. Missions giving is a matter of churches partnering with other churches. That's the right way to do local independent Baptist missions. We partner with other local churches. Missions giving is a matter of God's people growing in compassion. And here's a final argument that Paul makes. Missions giving is a matter of becoming more like Jesus. You know, I think it's interesting that Paul acknowledged all of the good things that were going on at the church at Corinth. He tells them in the passage that we read, he said, you're growing in faith and that's good. And he said, hey, you're growing in utterance or preaching. You're getting better at preaching. He said, praise God, that's good. And he said, you're growing in knowledge, and that's good. It's good to know the Bible better. And he says, you're growing in love toward us, and that's good. Boy, Christian fellowship, there's nothing like it. Paul said, all of those things are good. He said, but I want you to grow in this area too. He said, I want you to grow to be givers. I want you to grow to be givers. I want you to grow that you just don't give to benefit yourself and grow your church and grow your ministry. I want you to grow so that others can benefit from it as well. Paul said, I want you to give so that you can make other people better, not just yourself better. And did you see the example that Paul used to make his point? Well, he went straight to the tippy-top. He used the example of Jesus Christ. He said, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be You know, the grace of Jesus Christ is powerful, isn't it? The grace of Jesus Christ has the power to free us from our sins. When you come to Jesus for salvation, by His grace, He takes all of your sin. Oh, and He takes all of your guilt, and He takes all of your failure, and He trades it for all of His righteousness. He can make you clean, and He can make you justified before God. For free, for free He does this. You give Him your sin, He gives you His righteousness. You're not going to find a deal like that on the planet. God is good to us. and He does it for free. That's grace. Jesus' grace has the power to free us from our sin. We say, praise God. But what Paul is saying here is that the grace of Jesus also has the power to free us from ourselves. Though He was rich, He became poor for our sakes so that we could become rich. Jesus said, I'm going to lower myself, and I'm going to take a loss so that you can be rich. I'm putting myself, Jesus said, in a lower position so that you can be placed in a heavenly position. That's grace. And Paul said, when you learn to live like that, When you learn to become more like Jesus, Jesus' example of grace frees us from ourselves. What do I mean by that? Well, we stop living like this, and you start living like this. This is all yours, God, and I am yours, God. It frees us from ourselves. We learn to lower ourselves so that we can lift others up. That's missions giving. It's extra. It's above the tithes. It's above the offerings. It's about being like Jesus. That's why some people call it grace giving, because that's how Jesus gives. That's the only way He gives. He deals in grace. And grace for grace, the Bible says. It's more of a sacrifice. But sacrifices have to be voluntary. You can't force people to sacrifice. Sacrifice has to have a willingness attached to it. That's why Paul said, I'm not commanding you to do this. He said, it's a test of your love. It's a test to see if you are becoming more like Jesus. Jesus gave sacrificially for the benefit of others. And that's where we all need to be. As I understand it at the end of this month, as a church, you are going to commit together some amount of money. And my prayer is that you blow the doors off some ministries out there. My prayer is you just blow people away with your generosity. And to do that, boy, I want you to think Boy, I want you to think about all of the churches that you partner with. And I want you to think about all of the missionaries that you partner with. Before you give, I want you to think about all of that. Before you give, I want you to think about the great need around you and around the world. Boy, and ask God to give you a heart of compassion. Before you give, I want you to think about Jesus Christ. and how much He gave you freely. I want you to think about that. And as you think on these things and pray on these things as a church, I want you to give bigger and bolder than you have ever given before, and let the gospel be sounded out to all the earth by the Metropolitan Baptist Church. Pastor Bujak told me to tell you that. I'm kidding. Why don't you stand with me? And why don't we pray? I'm gonna pray with you, and I'm gonna hand the services over to Brother Daniel. But let me give you a special prayer of blessing before I leave. You've listened so well. Oh, now we need God to seal this message to our heart, our Father in heaven. God, you're so, so good to us. You're so merciful to us. You're so gracious to us. God, I pray for this precious congregation, these precious saints. God, would you help them? God, would you increase them? God, would you richly bless them for your gospel's sake and for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ? And it is in his name that we ask it. And God's people said, Amen. Oh, to Jesus I surrender. Oh, to him I I surrender all. I surrender all. Loving Thee, my blessed Savior, I surrender all. Oh, to Jesus I surrender, only at His feet I bow. Take me Jesus, take me now. I surrender all. I surrender all. All to Thee, my blessed Savior. I surrender all. you Oh, to Jesus I surrender. Make me Savior, Holy God. Let me feel the Holy Spirit. Truly know that Thou art mine. I surrender all. Thank you, Pastor Zach. That was such a blessing. I know I was challenged tonight. Were you challenged tonight, church? This is what missions giving is about. One of the thoughts that I had as Pastor Zach was preaching was, just the thought of all those that have been here before us. You know, all these, I mean, I see Brother CR and Miss Sandra and so many, Brother Ronnie back there, and just so many that have been here for many years serving and giving. And now we, now it's our turn. Now it's our turn to do our part. to see Metropolitan Baptist Church continue to be that light here in this community. Right here on this old hill, like Brother CR says. And it takes all of us. And we're all responsible for the gospel message. Thank you, Pastor Zach, for such a great message. You challenged me tonight and so many here as well. Church, just, you know, that's what faith promise giving is. I don't know if any of you have seen these before, but you can start, if you can grab one at the foyer, at the front foyer there, at the front desk, and start praying about what you're gonna give this year. Start praying now, because it's important. There's so many missionaries that are coming off the field because they lack support. Let us be that church to help them get the gospel message out to wherever God has sent them. So just please remember to pray for our pastor, pray for one another. Be sure to tell Pastor Zach, thank you for being here, and maybe get to know him a little bit. And I just thank you all, Metropolitan Baptist Church, for being here this morning. Continue to pray for our pastor and his wife, and may God bless each and every one of you. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your amazing love, for your grace. Lord, we've been challenged tonight. Lord, I pray that as we Think about what we heard tonight, Lord, that you can begin to deal with our hearts. Lord, the example that you set for us, and that you loved us without us giving you anything in return, because you're merciful, because you're gracious, because you're loving. Help us to be a compassionate people. Help us to be a giving people, Lord. that we may honor you and glorify you in everything we do. We give you the praise and the glory in Jesus' name, amen.