The psalmist expressed his confidence that God was indeed going to deliver him from death when he said, you won't let my body see decay in the tomb. But then in the New Testament, the apostles interpret that in Psalm 16 to say that was indeed also a reflection of prophecy concerning Christ, that he was raised and in his resurrection we see our future. Now we'll tie into what we consider this morning. I invite you, if you haven't done so, to turn to 1 Kings 19. Turn to 1 Kings chapter 19, as we continue our series looking at core doctrines of the Christian faith. Last week, we considered a portion of what is summarized in Belgian Confession article 27, where we confess that we believe that the church is essentially one, spiritually one and united. This week, we turn to the doctrine of the preservation of the church, that God will preserve A people as a witness on earth until the second coming of Christ. And I am aware of the fact that it doesn't always feel like that to us. Sometimes you might feel that more than at other times. You feel a sense of fear about the way things seem to be headed. And you need to remember that it isn't new. In fact, our confession in Article 27 mentions another time in the history of redemption when the church looked like it was about to vanish. It's talking about the period about 125 years after King David, the time of another king named Ahab, who wanted to show a kind of favor to his wife. He had taken a wife from a people who did not serve the Lord, did not believe on Yahweh. And at her will, he began to persecute all of the priests and then anyone else who was faithful to the God of the Bible. As a consequence, nearly all of the Israelites in the northern ten tribes forsook loyalty to the Lord. And one of them who was faithful, a prophet Elijah, feels alone and he goes out into the wilderness. He flees on foot to Mount Sinai about 250 miles from Jerusalem. And it's at that point in the story that we pick up in verse 19 of First Kings chapter 19. Hear the word of the Lord. There he that is Elijah came to a cave and lodged in it and behold the word of the Lord came to him and said to him, What are you doing here, Elijah? He said, I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. And I, even only I, am left. And they seek my life to take it away. And he said, go out and stand on the mount before the Lord. And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broken pieces the rocks before the Lord. But the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind, an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, a fire. But the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, the sound of a low whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, What are you doing here, Elijah? He said, I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars and killed your prophets with the sword. And I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life to take it away. And the Lord said to him, go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus. And when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael to be king over Syria. And Jehu, the son of Nimshi, you shall anoint to be king over Israel. And Elisha, the son of Shaphat, and Abelamahola, you shall anoint to be prophet in your place. And the one who escapes from the sword of Hazael shall Jehu put to death. and the one who escapes from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha put to death. Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him. Thus ends the reading of the scripture. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. Amen. Pray with me. Father, your word declares that We are dust and you know it. We wither like flowers in the noonday heat. But you are God of strength and your strength is magnified through our weakness. We ask that you would renew us by your word, not that you would make us strong in the way that the world regards strength, but that you would give us an unyielding commitment and faith in your promises. and that we would have such a vision of you as worthy of worship that we would, if need be, forsake all to be loyal to you. For you have shown all of that loyalty and far more in Christ that we did not deserve it, yet he was willing to be our friend and our deliverer. Help us then in light of your word to be worthy representatives, ambassadors of the gospel in the world. Hear us and work this morning for we pray it in Jesus' name. Amen. I would imagine that almost everyone here has at some point played on a team sport, whether you did that in an actual official team or just in grade school or with friends. And I would also imagine that none of us has ever enjoyed the feeling of being on the losing side. Probably we've all been there. And you may have even felt that you were not the cause of why your side was losing. You felt that you were doing your part. And what a sinking feeling that is to recognize that the possibility of victory, of the joy with that, the acclaim, all of that seems to be slipping away. Imagine for a moment, maybe some of you kids, little ones here, playing baseball or kickball out with your friends, and again, two teams. and you're at the end of the game, you're at the last inning, and the score does not look good. It's 20 to maybe three. And you realize you're probably almost certainly going to lose this game. How do you feel? But now imagine the other team gave you an opportunity. Maybe you in particular, they reach out to you. If you want, we'll let you switch to our side right now. And when the game ends, you'll get all the credit as though you were with us the whole time. You can share in all the benefits. Can you imagine that in major leagues? How crazy that would be? Of course, it'll never happen. But they say, oh, all the benefits that come with the World Series, yours just changed sides. there's an even more dramatic temptation that's experienced regularly, daily throughout the world by believers who are impressed by the enemy with this sense that we are on the losing side. You may feel that the number of Christians is dwindling. It looks like this is not going to work. If it was true, why aren't there more people that are respectable and honored in the world who believe it? And the world tells you Come to our side and you can have all the benefits. Celebrate with us. We're going to win. That is a tremendously potent temptation. And I am certain many of you have felt it. Maybe some of you are feeling it. You've been wrestling with it this month, maybe this very day. In light of God's promise to preserve the church, he calls you to persevere. He calls you to persevere knowing he will not fail to do what he set out to do, to gather a remnant chosen according to grace. He will not fail such that any one of them will be lacking. And to everyone who trusts in Jesus Christ, you don't have to fear that you will not be preserved. He is in the preserving business. The Lord is calling you then not to be shaken, not to be shaken by appearances. As we consider this doctrine, this doctrine of the preservation of the church, we're going to look at it under three main divisions. I'll state each of them as we come to them. In the first place, I'll invite you to look with me in the Thin Forms and Prayers book at page 184. 184. Belgian Confession, Article 27, at the top of the page, this is midway into the Confessions article, and see these words. This is written at a time when those who held fast to the doctrine of salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, and Christ alone, according to the word alone, when they were under fierce persecution, the man, I remind you, who penned these words had his tongue removed and was burned at the stake, Guido de Bray. And he says this, this church has existed from the beginning of the world and will last until the end as appears from the fact that Christ is eternal king who cannot be without subjects. And this holy church is preserved by God against the rage of the whole world even though for a time it may appear very small in the eyes of men as though it were snuffed out. We confess that as a truth, that there are times when the church appears very small. And this is our first idea that you have to reconcile yourself to. Sometimes the church does appear very small in the eyes of the world and perhaps in your eyes as well. But then you would not be alone, you have excellent company. Elijah, Elijah felt that way. He looks around and as far as he knows, he is the last man who is serving the Lord. Where in verse 10 he says, I, even I only am left. And they seek my life to take it away. Now, in fact, as we read in this passage of scripture, There were at least 7,000 men who were faithful, but Elijah wasn't aware of that, and it probably doesn't intend to exclude women and children. It's simply stating the number of potential servants in that prophetic ministry. And so there may have been, for all we know, a great deal more, something like 10% of the population of the northern kingdoms at that time. Presently, it might appear to you that the church is on a vanishing trajectory. It looks like, given enough time, maybe not a century, maybe not two centuries, but surely, whatever is orthodox historic Christianity, that's going away, to be replaced by a different form of Christianity or no Christianity at all once people wise up. You would not be alone in that sentiment if you feel that way. However, I don't think that you would be walking in accord with reality. Right now, the best estimates say that about 30% of the global population professes some form of Christianity. 30%. And somebody might object that certainly not all of those people are genuine Christians, not all of them are faithful, so the number is much smaller. If even a tenth of that number If even a tenth of that number is faithful, then that means that there are at least 240 million other believers walking the earth right now. Or to put it a different way, there are more professing Christians alive in the 21st century than at any other period in all of history. And yet you may feel like there are very few Christians or that that's the direction of things. On the other hand, I do have to set before you a reality. There have been times when the branch withered so much that it looked like there was just a little stump left. And so you cannot have a faith that's based on how many other people share it with you. That's a comfort, it's a blessing. But what if it was just 10% of the world? Or what if it was 5%? Or what if it was 1%? When we go into scripture, we find that the Lord at times has purposed to let it come down to as small as one family. That's part of the purpose of the story of the flood in Genesis 8 and 9. The whole church fits on a boat. Psalm 12, verse 1, King David, says, help Lord for the godly are no more, the faithful have vanished from among men. Of course, there were lots of people around David singing songs that he was writing, the original psalmist. But when push comes to shove, he looks around and he says, I don't really have confidence that there are many of us believing. And that's among the covenant people in the world that he said that. After Israel's conquest by Babylon and after the exile, They come to be just a tiny, tiny group relative to the population of the world. Isaiah described it this way as a prophecy, Isaiah 1 verse 9. If the Lord of hosts had not left us a few survivors, then we should have been like Sodom. We would have become like Gomorrah. If you aren't familiar, of course, those were the cities destroyed in wrath, an example of fierce judgment. Those are historical instances where the church grew small. And the Lord will allow this, even in Christ's own lifetime. Think of immediately following his crucifixion. Where is everybody? They're all hiding. If you looked around for them that Sunday, you would not have found a service on the day of his resurrection. Nobody expected it. They're not ready for it. Sometimes the church is small. What effect does that have on us as believers? I want you to wrestle with that. What effect does it have upon you when you look around and you see yourself increasingly isolated? Maybe in your family, maybe in your workplace, maybe in your school situation. You feel yourself isolated when you watch TV. And maybe you're aware of increasing persecution in the world, but also here. And you're aware that people are turning away. They're apostatizing. That's what that word literally means, to fall away from. They're leaving Christ for something else. What effect does that have on you? And I don't mean that hypothetically. I'm asking you to be honest with yourself. What effect is that having on you? Are you feeling shaken? Are you questioning whether it's worth it? Look at Elijah here in verse nine. Picture first where he's at. He is reduced to homelessness, hiding out in a cave. And Hebrews 11 speaks of that, that there were times, have been times throughout history where God's people were so oppressed that to save their lives, they literally hide in holes. And then twice, God repeats the same question to Elijah. Verse nine, the word of the Lord came to Elijah and he said to him, What are you doing here, Elijah? And again, that's repeated in verse 13. Twice he asked the question, twice Elijah answers. It's the same thing both times. What's the purpose? I think there are several possibilities and they can overlap. Multiple things can be true. One is that in speaking this way twice, the Lord is demonstrating his compassion, his patience, He's drawing an answer out of Elijah. He doesn't just show up and tell him everything about the circumstances. But in a fatherly way, the Lord often does patiently come to us and come to us again and come to us again and work in our spirits and wrestle in our spirits with the word. And then also this way of asking twice is emphasizing the limits of our understanding. Elijah gives an answer, but notice it's not at all an answer to the question. What are you doing here? In a sense, Elijah says, everybody's been killed and I'm the only one left. He doesn't just come out and say, I'm here because you're not protecting anyone. He doesn't know what the answer is. He doesn't know why God has drawn him out. And we may not know why in our purpose and time we are the only ones among all of our relatives. I know that's true for some of you. And it's such a clipping of the wings of your life experience, the one you thought you were going to have. Maybe it's that you were professing Christians and several of them have already turned away. Forbid it may be that in our own country, in our own lifetime, but it could come to be that Fewer and fewer would profess the name. And you will not necessarily have a clear answer for why in God's purpose he's allowed it. And perhaps this helps Elijah to examine his motives. What are you doing here, Elijah? What are you doing here? Are you really here at this cave because I called you out? Or are you, at least in part, grateful to be somewhere that they don't know you're hiding. I do believe that the Lord uses times of isolation and increasing apostasy and persecution to force each one of us to wrestle with our motives. Whether we are Christians or became Christians because it was convenient, because it was comfortable, because it came with options of some kind, because at that period in our life it made us feel secure. What is our motive for being in the Lord. There was a period, and you younger ones here, you children, you didn't live in that time when it cost comparatively less to be a Christian. In fact, it actually came with a number of benefits for at least saying that you were a believer. It cost so little, in fact, that I believe people started to treat it cheaply and to take it for granted. and not to defend it, not to live it, not to make disciples the primary aspect of our life in this world. And we reap the whirlwind when we don't sow the seed of the word, not just in the pulpit. That's so easy to do. You literally pay me to do it. The hardest thing as a church is to go into the world and actually share the word and make disciples to teach people who don't know him, who haven't heard about him. And you say, well, the people I associate with, they don't listen. Find worse people. I mean the people that the world doesn't countenance, that the world doesn't care about. As it says in 1 Corinthians, few among the wise has God called, few among the great. He glorifies the nature of grace by choosing for himself many who are poor, many who are outside, many who are afflicted, who have very little to add to the social environment, very little to add to the capital of the church. The cost is going up. Some of you have already felt it, others of you surely will. The cost of remaining faithful in Jesus Christ has already begun to include whether or not you can even get certain jobs, whether or not you can keep certain jobs, if you don't kiss the idols of our day. In the context of our passage, the evil king Ahab was requiring literally, and Elijah mentions this, that people would kiss the idol. Pay lip service, if you will. There may not be a physical idol erected today. In some sense, we're even worse for not needing to acknowledge the divine as a people. But there are very real idols. If you do not acknowledge certain things as a given, if you don't acknowledge that every form of sexual appetite, provided that it's not breaking a law, and the laws will change until practically everything is acceptable, If you don't acknowledge that that is acceptable and even begin to celebrate that, because there was a time when it was enough to just quietly tolerate, that's fine, we have our differences of opinion. Recognize the people who are moving in the direction of sexual aberrance as we measure it by scripture. They're not going to be content with simply acknowledging. They won't. The time will come, some of you have already experienced it, where you are expected to acknowledge outwardly, to wear buttons or fly flags that say you do affirm as equal aberrant forms of sexuality that are contrary to what God intended. And we as Christians, we know they don't understand all the things that we believe. We can be compassionate with their misunderstandings to a point. But we believe that man was made as we are, male and female, as a picture of Christ and the church. And that can't be erased in society without grave consequence in time. Many will want you to turn a blind eye to the reality that drives certain sins in our society. Take, for instance, abortion. And abortion is symptomatic of other sins. It doesn't exist on its own. It's symptomatic of all kinds of unfaithfulness, of negligence. Have you really thought about the number every year? I know that I'm not trying to beat you up, but I am trying to beat out of us a kind of complacency to think that the tide has not already shifted. In the name of rights and equality and loving women, something has been approved that is the opposite of that, which is to make permissible the killing of unborn people. Something like 97 to 99% of all abortions. This is the World Health Organization saying this and I don't think that they're a particularly friendly group to Christianity as such. 97 to 99% of all of abortions are committed for reasons other than the health of the mother. Other than things like rape or incest. Which means 97 or more percent of 73 million abortions each year are related primarily to convenience and shoring up sexual liberty to do whatever you want without economic consequences, without the consequences of responsibility. That's on women, but it's especially upon men because there would not be a single pregnancy without some man involved. 73 million, that's more people each year with souls. We're Christians. It's not just a fetus like it's just some material. We're Christians. We believe in the soul. We believe that God has purpose, spiritual purpose. As he says to Jeremiah, I knew you when you were in the womb. I had a plan for you. 73 million each year is more than the total number of casualties in World War II. And if you think that you will be permitted to just go on forward, unless there's a sea change, unless everyone begins voting against certain things, and even voting is just like a dam holding back the water, what's putting the water there? A lack of conversion and discipleship. Why did our society disapprove of so many things in the past? Because at one point, a great many people were Christians. That's why. The world is simply reverting to its pre-Christian state. If we will not make disciples, there will not be a society that will accept or permit Christians to live in safety. The cost is going up and I want to ask you how you're going to bear up under the temptation if it should worsen. And that brings us to our third main division. What does perseverance require? It requires many things, but in this passage, what I want to lay before you is that perseverance requires realignment. Fundamentally, foundationally, at least once in your life, but really continually. It's like a car. You have to keep getting it realigned, and this road is bumpy, and you're going to need realignment often. Alignment to God's purposes and his promises. Understand God's purpose. God's purpose sometimes includes winnowing chaff. God's purpose sometimes includes sifting the visible church. In Elijah's day, it was reduced to 7,000 men. We've been hearing with Reverend Smith, the letters of Jesus Christ to the churches in the first century, where he tells them repeatedly, if you do not repent, I will come and I will remove your lampstand. That's true in all times. The lights have begun to turn off for a century, really, in this land. Congregations that strayed away from the truth, from accountability, from true discipleship. Amos chapter 8 speaks about this, where it says, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord God, when I will send a famine on the land. Note, the Lord takes a share of responsibility. This has to do with his decree. He's not the causer of sin, but he has decreed the circumstances wherein he allows certain things to run their course. Amos 8, 11 and 12, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. One of the deepest judgments that the Lord can send on any society that has ever been blessed with the presence of many Christians is to diminish that number. It's worse than lacking bread or water. It's to take away those people who faithfully preach the word, but sometimes this is the Lord's purpose. Many different passages in scripture lead many different commentators. to believe that just prior to Christ's return, there will be something described as a great apostasy, a great falling away. Matthew 24, 2 Thessalonians 2, 2 Timothy 3, all of those could be studied with respect to that time. But recognize, you have to be aligned to this fact, there was never a guarantee that you would be on the team that looks like it's winning. That was not guaranteed. And then you must be realigned to God's promise. And that's often what we stray from. The promise that he is going to preserve a remnant chosen according to grace. Verse 18, look again. The Lord assures Elijah, yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him. And focus on the verb leave. Yet I will leave. Often when we say leave, we think of it in a fairly passive sense. Leftovers were the things that nobody took. But in this passage, the Hebrew term is in a certain form. You don't need the details, but if you want to talk to me about it, I'd be happy to speak with you about the grammatical form of this verb, because there are different stems in Hebrew that indicate different aspects of action. And here, it's in a form that is causative. The Lord, in this way, has caused to be left. That's maybe a more literalistic rendering. The Lord has caused to be left this remnant. And Paul picks this up in Romans 11. He quotes this passage and he explains what's going on. And there he says, this is what the Lord is doing in every period of redemption. He's causing there to be left a remnant. sometimes more, sometimes less. Romans 11 verse two and following. The apostle is wrestling over the doctrine or the issue that most of the Jews alive in the time of the apostles did not embrace Christianity. So does that mean God was not faithful? And here, see what he says in Romans 11 verse two. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? Lord, they've killed your prophets, they've demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life. But what has God replied to him? I have kept for myself 7,000 men who have not bowed the knee to Baal. And then the apostle applies it, he says, so too, at the present time, there is a remnant chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it's no longer on the basis of works. Otherwise, grace would no longer be grace. What determines the relative size of the church in any one place and overall? Grace. Nobody would have come to faith in Christ if the Lord had not purposed to work a miracle in some to produce what the Bible describes as new birth and who had anything to do with their own conception and birth. That's the whole point, again, of the promise of grace. We didn't cause it. And that means when we look at the total number, humanly speaking, we're called out of loyalty to the Lord to obey his command to make disciples, but the effect is his. We will not be judged by the outcome. Just this week, somebody mentioned at the MN study that we are not in the results business. We are in the faithfulness business, and that's true. The Lord will preserve his people. None will be found lacking at the roll call. Second Thessalonians 1 describes the end, the last seconds before Christ appears in glory, even as he's appearing. And it pictures the church as surrounded, as it were, by the world, hunted down. And it says, and Christ shall come to be admired by them in his glory. And it makes clear there are going to be believers all the way to the very last moment. So I want, by way of conclusion, to urge you to do a few things. I want you to ask yourself several questions. On what conditions are you willing to follow Christ? Any favorable answer, that's the grace of God at work. Any shortcoming, ask for grace. On what conditions are you willing to follow him? On what conditions are you willing to believe that he's working? Because again, especially, and I want to appeal to some of you who are younger, it may look worse before it looks better. And so you need to ask yourself, how much do you have to see the outward fruit in order to be faithful? If in your lifetime you don't see it, does that mean that it wasn't true? Look with me at verse 11 of our passage, 1 Kings 19.11. And the Lord said, go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord. And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains in broken pieces, the rocks before the Lord. Whoa, that was God. But the Lord was not in the wind. Then we read it say, and great strong winds tore the mountains in broken pieces. But the Lord was not in the wind, and after the wind an earthquake But the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, a fire. But the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, the sound of a low whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. What is that leading us to? Recognize what comes immediately after this. The Lord gives Elijah marching orders that, humanly speaking, sound incredible, sound insane. Leave this place where you're protected. Walk right back into the position of danger. Approach the two most, one of the most powerful figures at a time, Hazael, who's going to become king of Syria. Go find this man Jehu. Tell him he's going to be king, even though Ahab's king, so this seems like sedition right there. Who even is Jehu? It doesn't seem reasonable, it doesn't seem effective. And then go take your prophetic mantle, place it on a man who's just pushing oxen in a field, and that's who I've chosen to put my spirit in. And what happens? Hazael rises up in power and he brings destruction. Jehu becomes king and he leads such a purging, such a toppling, such an earthquake and a fire within that northern kingdom that practically everyone who worshipped the false god Baal is liquidated. So that there's only 7,000 men left. Jehu was like an earthquake and a fire. But you read the text, become familiar with the story, Jehu never converted. It was politically opportune to serve the Lord, but the Lord was not in him. Meanwhile, you have a man like Elisha, whom church history, tradition, tells us died San in two. In him was the spirit of God. You must become aligned to the truth that God's spirit is often inaudible, imperceptible by worldly standards. But his word is being spoken and people are hearing it. And that word may come through your mouth. You may not receive recognition in the world. You may not see outward transformation in the way that you hope to expect it. There are people who pour their life into different things. I think lately about some of these billionaires who have made their money off of tech. And many of them have a kind of God complex. They literally feel like they are bringing in a new world and age. They are transforming industries. They are manipulating politics. It remains to be seen whether a single one of them will be able to lay credit, humanly speaking, to having been used by God to bring a person to faith. Whether their words, their actions, their prayers contributed to the salvation of one of God's elect. And yet throughout history, even this very day, there are multitudes who are going to stand up at the resurrection and thank God they had a mother or a father or an aunt or an uncle or a friend or a sibling who nurtured them in the faith. Daniel tells us on that day, those people who spoke the word will shine like the stars in the heavens. Do not be discouraged. that the Lord has chosen you like a jewel to be set in his crown. Do not be discouraged if you are a remnant of a total. No one of us can boast in ourselves, but don't feel like you're on the losing team. Rejoice at the honor of being conformed to the crucifix of Jesus Christ, that you've been counted worthy to suffer anything at all for him. That is the kind of church which, if we live it, and I'm scarcely living this, but I'm appealing to you that we would be a community who encourages one another not to be lost in the momentary, to put our heads back in the moment. If you haven't noticed, this moment that we're in, historically and culturally, is headed bad places. We can talk about voting, and I believe in voting, I believe even more in discipleship and the fact is many people in this room have never made a concerted effort to make a disciple. Many people in this room in the past year cannot say that even once they have opened their mouth to share the word with someone who was not a believer. If that's you, repent or get off the seat of Christianity. Because it's living in sin, but it's one of those sins that the church never confronts. And you say, I'm scared, I don't know how to do that. I'm scared too. But the Lord is worthy and the Holy Spirit is real. And others in this church can bear witness to you that he changes us. And when we throw ourselves into the arms of the Spirit, when we take steps by faith and believe that the ground will appear as our foot lands, he works. Receive that call. May we not be like the generation that led to Elijah's, that turned away and was silent. Let's close in prayer. Heavenly Father, we earnestly appeal to you this day before the angels, realizing that we are weak and distracted, that you are worthy of service, worthy of acknowledgement. We ask, Father, that you would please mercifully lift up your people, not just this congregation, but especially throughout this land. In your providence, here we are. And you ask us, what are we doing here? What are we doing here? We don't look for the glory, God help us not to look for the glory of seeing our works affirmed outwardly. If you should call us to walk and never see what the fruit was, yet we trust you that it will be there on that final day. For your word does not return void. We ask that you would give us courage to speak to our relatives, our neighbors, whoever you bring in our path in the appropriate way. Give us that, Lord, may you be honored. And if you should call us, any one of us individually or all of us together, to go through a time of increasing struggle, as there are many who would love to see the church's beliefs eradicated from practice, if not also from confession among us. Lord, please bear us up for your pleasure and give us great hope, great hope, that your church will not fail. For in Jesus' name we pray, Amen.