if you would, to Nehemiah chapters 2 and 3. Nehemiah chapter 2, we're going to look at one verse and we're going to read a couple verses out of chapter 3. When you come to Nehemiah chapter 3, it's almost as if you're reading a journal, a divinely inspired page out of Nehemiah's journal. It's there that he chronicles the different people and places as they began and they rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. And we're going to pick up in chapter 2 verse 18 and I'm going to read just a few verses out of chapter 3 and then for the next little while we're going to be preaching out of chapter number 3. We'll not finish it tonight. And so look if you would, Nehemiah chapter 2 verse number 18. Then I told them, here Nehemiah is casting the vision before the remnant of Jews there in Jerusalem about the destruction of the walls, the ruins, about what needs to be done, about what it will be like when they rebuild it. Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me, as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us. Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work. Now drop down to chapter 3 verse number 1 if you would please. Then Elisheb the high priest. rose up with his brethren the priests, and they builded the sheep gate. They sanctified it, and set up the doors of it, even unto the tower of Maah, and sanctified it unto the tower of Hananiel. Look at verse 2, And next unto him builded the men of Jericho, and next to them builded Zachar the son of Emory. But the fish gate did the sons of Hassanabil, who also laid the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, and the locks thereof, and the bars thereof. And next unto them repaired Merimoth, the son of Uriah, the son of Chaz. And next unto them repaired Meshulam, the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshazabil. And next unto them repaired Zadok, the son of Behanot. And next to them, the Techoites. But their nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord. Now I want to draw your attention back to chapter 2, verse number 18. I'm going to share with you a few words that I believe will title the message for the next few times that we come together in the book of Nehemiah. Look in the middle part of the verse. I underlined it. So they strengthened their hands. So they strengthened their hands. What a verse! What a statement! They strengthened their hands. There was something before them. There was a work that needed to be done. So they strengthened their hands for this good work. Let's pray and then we're going to preach for the next little while on, so they strengthened their hands. Lord, we love you tonight. We thank You for the truth of Your Word, the joy of being able to preach the inspired, inerrant, preserved Word of God. Lord, speak to us tonight. I pray You'll challenge us as the people of God. Thank You, Lord, for the two precious students that were saved in chapel this week. at Calvary Christian School. Lord, the many decisions that were made, numbers of students surrendering their lives to full-time service. Lord, I just rejoice what You're doing there, what You're doing in our church, Lord, as You're adding to the family of God on a regular basis here at Calvary. And Lord, I stand amazed. And Father, I pray that Your hand would be good upon us We need You, Lord. It's not anything that we can do, but what You do. And Lord, that we would strengthen our hands as the people of God in our day for this good work. And Lord, we're going to thank You for it. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Well, teamwork makes the dream work. Would you say that with me again? One, two, three. Teamwork makes the dream work. You see, nobody climbs Mount Everest alone. It takes a team to get there. Nehemiah could not build the walls of Jerusalem by himself. It was going to take a team of people to make that work, that dream, come true for the people of God in that day. That little phrase, teamwork makes the dream work, that was true in Nehemiah's day and rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, that good work in his day. And can I tell you, it's true tonight. If we're going to do a good work, a great work for our God, then it's going to take teamwork to make the dream work. They strengthened their hands. for this good work. Seventy years they had been in Babylon. They've now come back. This remnant of Israelites returned from the land. Under Zerubbabel and Ezra, the temple has been rebuilt. The worship of Jehovah has somewhat been restored, but yet the city of Jerusalem is still in disrepair. The walls are still in ruins. The gates are burned with fire. The people of God in great distress. The name of God being reproached adversaries around them. Word comes to Nehemiah, he's in Shushan the palace, through his brother Hanani, his Jewish companions, they freshly returned from Israel. They share with Nehemiah as he asks them, how is it there with the people and the city of Jerusalem? And the news wasn't good. They shared with them the plight of the city and the struggles of the people. It impacted Nehemiah's heart. We remember that. He wept, he fasted, he mourned, he prayed before the God of heaven. Four months go by and God touched his heart. Remember, look at verse number 12 again, chapter 2. And he said, I rose in the night, I and some few men with me, neither told I any man, watch this, what God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem. During those four months, God touched Nehemiah's heart. He put something in his heart. It began to crystallize. A dream, a vision began to form in his heart. Nehemiah began to see things different from what they were. He began to see what could be the people of God, in the name of God. If the walls were rebuilt, the gates had been repaired. And so God touched his heart, and he sets out, he begins to leave, and he asks the king, send me, and he leaves Shushan the palace. We come to chapter 2 verse 11 and Nehemiah has made the thousand mile journey, the perilous journey to Israel. Look at verse 11. He said, So I came to Jerusalem. Listen, he didn't just say his dream, he seized it. He reached out to do what God put in his heart. You know what Nehemiah reminds me, church? Nehemiah reminds me that one man, one woman, one young person can make a difference in their world. Nehemiah understood he could make, you can make a difference on your job. You can make a difference in your school. You can make a difference in your neighborhood. You can make a difference in your community. You can make a difference on the athletic team that you're a part of. You can make a difference in your classroom. You see, wherever God places you, it doesn't take a crowd to make a difference. It only takes one person to make a difference because God, listen, one person with God is always a majority. You can make a difference. Nehemiah saw that he could make a difference. Boy, if one person could make a difference, imagine what an entire nation can do, what an entire church can do when we pull together to do what God calls us to do. And so he makes an investigation. We saw that in verse 12, he secretly in the night, examines and does a survey, a reconnaissance mission, so to speak, gathering information. He wanted to see the ruins for himself, the size of the task, the scope of the task. No doubt at times it maybe was worse than what he ever even dreamed it was. He had to get off of his animal that he was riding because the ruins were so great that his animal couldn't pass. He had to trek on foot to view the walls and examine that. Instead of diminishing his faith, it enhanced it. You see, he didn't see obstacles, he saw opportunity. How important that is. And then he's going to cast the vision to the people. He begins to share with them. what God had put in his heart. We saw that in verse number 17. He said, Then I said unto them. He's gathered the people. He's sharing with them the situation. You know what's interesting? They've been living this way for 70 years. It's probably 140 years by now, somewhere around in there, 120, 140 years since the walls have been destroyed by the Babylonians. See, so 70 years captivity, they came back, temple restored, somewhat the worship of Jehovah restored, they settle into the land, they start to repair, the work stops, and the people get complacent. They just get used to living in distress. They get used to the ruins. They get used to the rubble. They just get used to the way things are. You would think, with all of the distress, all of the reproach, all of the plundering, all of the misery that they were experiencing from the people around them in that land, that somebody there in Jerusalem said, hey, we need to do something about this. We need to fix this. We need to get these walls built. That's not what happened. They just got used to it. And they got complacent. And you know what? They said, well, that's just the way things are. Let me tell you something, Christian. You know why America is where it's at tonight? Do you know why our churches are the way they are in America tonight? Because we've just got used to it. We've gotten complacent. We don't think anything can be done about it. Well, you know, what can I do? I'm not wealthy. I'm not famous. I'm not powerful. I don't have a whole lot of influence. Can I tell you, dear friend, change always doesn't start at the top. It starts at the bottom. It's when people decide that they're going to make a difference. And that's what's going to happen right here. But they've gotten used to it. And so you'd think somebody there, in the midst of all the misery, would figure things out. But it's not the way it is. God had to send a voice to them. God had to send somebody who wasn't part of that, that wasn't complacent, to help them see where they are. By the way, do you know that's why God gave you preachers? Do you know that's why God gave us evangelists? You know what Bible preaching does? You know what Nehemiah is doing? He's waking them up. You know what Bible preaching does? It wakes us up to what we get used to in our lives, in our land, in our churches, so that we rise up to make a difference, to bring change to the world around us. And you know what? They catch the vision. Look at verse 18. I love this. So you're going to find cooperation. And they said, I told them of the hand of my God good upon me, the king's words. And they said, you know what? He didn't say, hey, why don't we rebuild these walls? No, they hear it. They see it. They catch it. And they said, let us. Hey, let us rise up. and build. Boy, there's cooperation. Did you see that? Hey, it's going to take some teamwork, right, to make the dream work. And then we know that from last message that opposition, opposition comes in verses 19 through 20. There's some determination there. It didn't matter the opposition. They're going to forge ahead. Friend, listen, can I tell you any time, church, that we step out to do something great for God, Satan is going to oppose it. Young person, you decide tonight that you're going to live differently when you go to school tomorrow. That you're going to have a different attitude, a different spirit. You're going to be a witness for Jesus. You're going to stand for Him. You're going to make a difference in wherever you work. Can I tell you? Satan is going to immediately resist you. You have to have some determination. Amen? But then you come to chapter number three, and we have participation. Verse 18 says, they strengthened their hands. And then you come to chapter 3 where you see that in action. That word strengthened in verse number 18, it has the idea of setting to or putting their hands to the task. They didn't just talk about it, they did it. Do you know that so often we just talk about it. We talk about what we want to do. We talk about making a difference. We talk about winning somebody to Jesus. We talk about handing out a tract. We talk about reading our Bible. We talk about having a better devotional life or prayer life. We talk about beginning to tithe or give to missions or increasing our offerings or whatever it is. Listen, can I tell you, it's wonderful to say it, but you know what we need to do? We need to take it one step further and strengthen our hands and do it. We talk about getting involved. We talk about making a difference. Hey, you know what? They didn't just talk about it at this point. They said, let us! And then they strengthened their hands. They got involved. I just believe they were all in. Can I just stop and let us celebrate for a minute? January of this year, I challenged you as a church to be all in. I shared with you what God put in my heart. God, last year about this time, touched my heart. Maybe it was a little earlier than November because it took us about three or four months to put it all together. But I remember walking into a staff meeting, calling everybody together and beginning to lay before them what God had put in my heart and what God touched my heart and then He touched their hearts. And then on Vision Sunday of 2024, God allowed me to share it with you and then He touched your heart. And I challenge you to be all in for Christ. To be a church that's all in for Jesus Christ. Can I tell you, I've never seen anything like it. How you rose up and served and worked and made a difference. Can I tell you, every metric in our church that we measure the health of our church has improved and increased. Attendance, giving, serving. Every metric that you would look at. Our Sunday night, Wednesday night attendances. All of those metrics. Our life groups. I told Brother Delp, he said, I've got a goal for life groups. I said, you better ratchet that one up. I said, you better ratchet that one up. I said, it's going to blow it out. He came back later. He said, you know what? You were right. He said, I raised my goal. And he said, we've already blown it out of the water. See, just a church that decides that we're going to be different. We're going to take a step forward. We're going to be all in. And here's what I said to our staff. I said, I want to see 100 brand new serving members. You know why God put that in my heart? Because here's what I understood. God has called me to equip you. for the work of the ministry, for the edification of the body of Christ. Till we all, I'm going to talk about this verse a little bit later, come to the fullness of the stature of the body of Christ. You see, what Jesus is wanting to do, what God's will for our lives is to conform every believer to the image of His Son. Here's what Jesus said, I came not to be served, but to serve. Do you know you can't be like Jesus if you're not serving? Because Jesus was a servant. And if I'm going to be like Him, then I'm going to have to serve. And I said, I want a hundred brand new servants this year. And then I want to set it in place so that as God increases our church, we even add to it. And church, you rose up like a mighty army. You strengthened your hands for this good work. This past week while I was at Pensacola Christian College at a guest pastor's event, Ms. Megan Cooper, who's the administrative assistant for our church, sent me an email. She said, Pastor, I knew you would want to know this. She said, I just logged the hundredth serving member at Calvary Baptist Church this year. I say to God be the glory. Hundredth, brand new. That's on top of the hundreds that were already serving. I just want to say praise God. They strengthened their hands for this good work. Church, we need to strengthen our hands. We come to chapter 3 and we see them setting to the task. And we're going to look at it in three different increments and I'm just going to share one of them with you tonight. Number one, I want you to see the purpose involved in the work. The purpose involved in the work. Notice, then Elishab, the high priest, rose up with his brethren, the priests, and they built it. They got involved. There was a purpose involved. It's interesting that the very first person that rises up, the very first person that sets himself to the task, the very first person the Holy Spirit records as setting his hand to build and rebuild the walls of Jerusalem was the high priest. One of the most important figures in the nation of Israel. This was no ordinary guy. He's probably the second most powerful individual next to the governor in the nation. And he begins to set the example. He could have easily been like another group we're going to talk about that thought the work was beneath him because of his stature and because of his status. And here the high priest of Israel goes down there and begins to get his hands dirty and begins to become a servant and begin to remove the rubble and the rubbish and to repair and lead in the work of God. And notice here this Bible said, they built the sheep gate, they sanctified it. Do you understand something? That all work for God is sacred spiritual work. See, we get the idea that if I'm just putting candy in a bag, or if I'm just maybe setting up some chairs, or if I'm cleaning a room, or if I'm setting up some tables, that somehow that's not spiritual. Let me just help you understand something. Everything we do for God is sacred, and everything we do for God is spiritual, and everything that we do for God is important in this matter of serving Jesus Christ. There's no small task for God. Notice the purpose of the work. Number one, it's for the Lord. It's for the Lord. Remember back in chapter 2 verse 18, Nehemiah called it this good work. This good work. Look over at chapter 6 and verse number 3. Would you turn there? Here some people are trying to distract Him. They're trying to distract him. And they're trying to get him to leave the work. I believe they're conspiring to either capture him or even kill him to stop the work. And notice he says, verse 3, And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work. Would you say that with me, church? A great work. Can I tell you, it was a good work and it was a great work because it's God's work. Never minimize what you do for Jesus Christ. Never minimize that. Anytime you do anything for God, it is a good, great work. Nehemiah, I believe, was concerned with only one thing. You say, preacher, what's that? The glory of God. You realize the glory of God's tied to the city of God and the people of God. So he said in chapter 2 verse 17, he said, let us build up the wall of Jerusalem that we be no more a reproach. The Gentile peoples around Jerusalem had been mocking them, had been mocking the Jews, had been mocking Jerusalem, had been mocking their God. You see, when you mock God's people, you mock God. You remember when Jesus arrested Paul on the road to Damascus? And he said, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? He didn't say, why are you persecuting them? He didn't say, why are you persecuting my people? He said, why are you persecuting me? Because, see, we're one with Him, and to persecute God's people is to persecute Him. To mock them is to mock Him. Isn't that interesting? And so when the adversaries were mocking the people of God, guess what? They were reproaching them. They were reproaching God. By the way, the Jews, Psalm 48 verse 2, you know I have turned there? They claimed that their capital city, the psalmist said it was beautiful, that Jerusalem was beautiful for situation. It was the joy of the whole earth. Did you know that? One day it will be the joy of the whole earth. Right now, we know the Middle East is a war zone. We know that. It is. Friend, can I tell you, there may be periods of peace, but there'll be no true peace till Jesus comes. No pre-priest till Jesus comes. And here's what you're going to find. That one day it is going to be the joy of the whole earth, but there are times in Israel's history when it is, when the worship of Jehovah is taking place and the sounds are going out to the ends of the earth. It was the joy of the whole earth, but there wasn't any joy right then. Psalm 87 verse 2, the Bible says that God loved the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob, and here they are burned with fire. And you say, Preacher, if God loves Jerusalem so much, why were the walls in ruins and the gates burned? I mean, if it was their holy city, why was it in reproach? Why didn't the Jews do something? You see, here's the reality of it is, The name and the glory of God was at stake and Nehemiah understood that and rebuilding the walls and restoring the city of Jerusalem and restoring the worship of Jehovah would lift up the name of God and would exalt their God and it would exalt the God of heaven to the people around them. Hey, can I tell you we've seen victory in Jesus but yet we feel like and we live like we're defeated in Jesus. Listen, nobody gets excited about Christians that are all the time bemoaning life. Friend, listen, there's joy in serving Jesus Christ. And the name of God's at stake tonight. Can I tell you what was true in Israel of all that's true in America tonight? The walls are broken down in our land. We're seeing things go on in our land that was unthinkable just 25 years ago. What our young people are growing up, it's going to be commonplace. What shocks us is going to be commonplace for them. If we don't do something, if we don't take a stand for God, we're witnessing the de-churching of America. Do you know there's less Americans attending church on Sunday in America than ever before in the history of our nation? There's more lost people in our nation than ever before. We're a reproach and a laughing stock to the world. Can I tell you, friend, listen, they mock the people of God, and they laugh at the people of God, and so often we're anemic and powerless. Can I remind us the name and glory of God is at stake tonight. Hey, is there not a cause to stand for Jesus Christ? You know they built, there was a purpose, it was for the Lord. Can I tell you, whatever you do, you're not doing it for the preacher. You're not serving me, you're serving Him. You're not doing it for the church. Friend, when you serve Jesus Christ, you do it for the Lord. Number two, it was for their brethren. Look at chapter 4 verse 14. Would you turn over there with me please? Chapter 4 verse 14. There's a purpose involved. Why should we strengthen our hands? They strengthened their hands. They set their hands to the task. Why did they do that? Number one, for the Lord. Listen, we all at church, we need to strengthen our hands. We need to set our hands to this good work. Hey, now's not the time to back up. It's not the time to let up. It's not to say, well, we've reached our goal, let's stop. Hey, I would like to say in January when we talk about Vision Sunday that there's 102 people, 115 people, 120. Hey, we want to keep going for the Lord. And it's for our brethren. Look at chapter 4 verse 4. And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them. Remember the Lord, which is great and terrible. That means awesome, young people. And fight for your brethren. Did you see those two words? Fight for your brethren. You know what? Nehemiah was saying, listen, it's not just about you, it's about them. If we're not careful, we get self-absorbed. We think it's about us. We think it's about us. Do you know every Christian is gifted by God? God has gifted you to serve Him with your life. You have a spiritual gift. We all are to bear the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. But here's what it is. God did not gift us for ourselves and we don't bear fruit. Listen, when you go to an apple orchard, you don't see the tree eating the apples. They don't bear the fruit for themselves. They bear it for you. You eat the apples. God doesn't give us fruit in our lives for ourselves, for our glory. Do we benefit? Yes. But that's not the primary purpose. We bear fruit for others. We serve for others. It's not just about us. It's about them. Listen, can I tell you? We serve the Lord for our brethren, for one another. You ever noticed all the one another's in the Bible? Love one another, pray for one another, bear one another's burdens, forgive one another, we're to be kind to one another, we're to provoke or stir up one another to good works. That means I'm to encourage you and you're to encourage me to stay at the task. We're to stir up one another to serve the Lord with our lives. You know what? It's about one another. God has described the church as a body. And Jesus said, I am among you as one who serves. And the very idea of a servant involves others. We look away from ourselves. Listen to Romans 12 verse 5. So we being many are one body in Christ, and everyone members one of another. And a local church is pictured as a body with many body parts. See, my body's got all kinds of... I've got fingers and toes and arms and legs and eyes and mouth and ears and all that. And guess what? All of these different parts of my body benefits my entire body. So this arm benefits that arm. This thumb helps all... Have you ever been without a... Could you imagine being without your thumb? My thumb helps my other four fingers work really well. It benefits them. Your big toe gives you balance. Isn't that amazing? I'm just a toe. Well, boy, I'm thankful for my big toe. It gives me some balance. You know? You ever had a sore toe? My wife's smiling because she's struggling with one right now. She's been to the doctor already. She said, oh, my poor little toe. It's affecting everything about her. You know what? You ever stubbed your toe? You know at night you forget that the bedpost is there and your toe hits it and it reminds you? Does just your toe hurt? No, your whole body hurts. All the body affects the rest of the body. And listen to me, church. Why is it so important? 100 new serving members. Why was that so important? And by the way, we have more than that because we have guests in our church because guests serve. We're way over that of people new in our church that are serving. We're way over that number. But we were just talking about serving members as the goal, but we added others to that. Praise the Lord for it. But can I tell you, it wasn't just so we could reach a goal and then in January when we had Vision Sunday, I can say, oh, look what we've done. No, that's not what it's about. It's so that we benefit one another, we serve one another. And listen, we grow together and we serve together and God grows us. Listen again to Ephesians chapter 4. You see, because when we work together it benefits the entire body. Listen to Ephesians 4 again. And He gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints. That's the equipping of God's saints for the work of the ministry. You see, you know why some churches are failing? Because the only person serving in the church is the pastor and maybe a handful of people. Vance Havner said this. He said the average church is like an ailing lung with only a few members doing the breathing. I'm glad that's not true of Calvary Baptist Church. We're healthy. We're growing. We're vibrant because there's more than just a few members doing something. It's an entire church that strengthened their hands for this good work. And he goes on to say, for the edifying, the building up the body of Christ, that's what it's for, till we all come in the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God and to a perfect, a mature man under the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Church, we will never be what we should be as a church unless we're serving together. It's for the Lord. It's for our brethren. We are members one of another. We encourage one another. We help one another. We bless one another. We serve one another. Friend, can I tell you all of that together edifies and grows and strengthens and blesses and brings health to the family of God. And it's vital to the life of a church. Number three, or the next one, let me give you this. It's for our families. Why are we doing this? Why are we doing it? Why strengthen our hands for this good work? Hey, there's purpose. It's for the Lord. It's for the brethren. And it's for our families. Look again at verse 14. He said, middle part, remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren. Now watch this. Your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses. You know what he's saying? It's for our family. Can we go back to chapter 3 for just a moment? I've read chapter 3 a lot. preparing for these messages. It's interesting, when I was studying, many commentators, they leave Chapter 3 plum out of the commentary. They just talk about Chapter 2 and skip all the way to Chapter 4. Because it seems like it's just a redundancy of names and places, and they build it, they build the walls, and they set up the gates, and they repair them. And it gives you name after name, and I'm going to talk more about that in a moment. And they just skip right over it. But here's what I found as I was reading Nehemiah Chapter 3. You're going to find that the individuals and groups working on the wall did so near their homes. I want you to look at it with me. You're going to find the phrase, he repaired over against his house, used four times. Look at chapter 3 verse 10. And next unto him repaired Jedi the son of... however. What a name. I'm going to listen to Alexander Scorby again and I'll have it ready next time. Even over against his house. Did you catch that? Even over against his house. You know what that over against his house means? It was near his home. That means he walked out the door and he started to work near his house. Look at chapter 23. Would you do that? I understand now why these commentators skipped it, especially preachers. Verse 23, And after him repaired Benjamin and Hashub over against their house. Did you see that? Look down at verse number 28. From above the horse gate repaired the priest everyone over against his house. There it is. Look at verse 29. After them repaired Zadok the son of Emmer over against his house. Did you see that? Against his house. It was near their home. Can I tell you that's where every real work for God's got to start. It's got to start at home. Mom and Dad, the church youth group is no substitute for your spiritual investment in the lives of your children. It starts at home. Mom and Dad, the children's ministry, the Christian school, is not a substitute for your spiritual investment in the lives of your children. The work begins at home. We're asking God to bring revival to our nation and our churches, but maybe what we need to start with is bringing revival to our homes. What benefit is it to win the world and lose your children? I don't know of a parent here, I don't know of a parent here that if I ask for a show of hands for your child to perish, for eternity in hell that you would lift your hand and say, sign me up for that. But yet I find that many times parents lack urgency in the spiritual welfare of their children. Now you're here tonight and I'm not trying to beat you up, but yet We hit and miss in church. We hit and miss in our devotional life. We hit and miss in our Bible reading with our family. We hit and miss. And then there's times that we're one thing at church and then we're something else at home. There are families, no doubt, on a given Sunday, they argue. Mom and Dad argues all the way to church with the kids in the back. They're yelling at one another and they stop to come into church and then they pick it right back up when they get ready to leave church. I'm just asking you, if we're one thing here and we're something else there, what kind of message are we sending? The work has to start at home. Our church is only as healthy spiritually as the families that make up our church. I believe that we need to build up the walls in our lives, our homes, our churches, and our nations. It's for your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses. Dads, can I just say something to us tonight? We need to strengthen our hands for this good work of being a godly Christian father. Not perfect, because there's no such thing as a perfect dad, but the best I know how to be a godly Christian dad who's influencing my family for God. That leads my family in prayer. That reads the Bible to their children. that speaks King James English to our children. Do you know one of the best ways to correct your children is to give them the Bible? I'm not saying preach at them, but just, honey, what does the Bible say about lying? What does the Bible say about anger? What does God say? Honey, I'm having to discipline you because God tells me to do that because I love you. God says if I don't discipline you, I don't love you. Look at this verse right here. But you can't share the Bible if you don't know it. And many times we don't share it because we're not living it. I'm not trying to be unkind. I'm just saying we need to strengthen our hands for this good work. And can I tell you it starts at home. And dads if I could just challenge us to ratchet up our spiritual lives and ratchet up who we are that we might be an example and lead our it's for your sons and your daughters and your wives and your houses. Can I say moms to strengthen your hands for this good work. of being a godly Christian mom and wife and mother in your home. To make that your business, to make that your commitment, your purpose. There's nothing greater than being a godly influence in your home. of your children seeing you and hearing you pray for them, for you loving them in a godly way, of setting a godly example before them. Can I tell you something? If you beat down and disrespect their dad in front of them, why should they respect him? If you fellas mistreat your wife in front of your children, why should they not mistreat their mom? They're just following our examples. I'm not trying to be unkind. I'm just saying some walls are broken down and we need to rebuild them and we need to strengthen our hands for this good work. We need to rise up and build in our lives. Children and teenagers, you need to strengthen your hands for this good work. Do you know you live in your home too? It's one thing to go to school and gripe about the home you live in when you're part of the problem. Not part of the solution. Because of disrespecting your parents? Mistreating them? Yelling back at them and slamming doors? Is that respect? Is that what God desires from you? You know, you honor the Lord by obeying and honoring your parents. Teenager, don't expect peace in your home when all you want to do is scream and yell at mom and dad because they don't understand. They understand more than you think they do. They love you. They're trying best they know how to give you a godly Christian home, bring you to a good church, give you an opportunity to make it in life so that your life doesn't wind up a disaster like so many kids around us. When was the last time you put your arms around your mom and you loved her and thanked her for what she does for you? Washes and folds your clothes, prepares your food, cleans up your food, makes sure you're ready, dressed and ready to go out the next day. I'm gonna tell you something, there's no harder working person than a wife and a mom. I'm not saying that in a negative way for those that are not in that realm. Don't take everything personal. I know everybody works hard, but when you work full-time and then you go home and work full-time, or maybe you're a stay-at-home mom, I'm gonna tell you what. Somebody says, well, I'll tell you what, those moms stay home. They don't work like a, let me just tell you something, try it. homeschool moms. I'm just telling you, teenager, you ought to wrap your arms around your mama's neck and you ought to love her. I know this ain't a Mother's Day message. I get it. But you know what? We don't have to have Mother's Day to preach on these kind of things. I think it's just Bible. We need to strengthen the walls. You want peace in your home, love your parents. Honor your parents. Obey your parents. You honor God. Can I tell you, you're not a godly Christian teenager if you're all the time throwing tantrums in your home. Grandparents, let's strengthen our hands for this good work. Let's realize it's not all about having cookie cabinets. Thank God for grandmas with cookie cabinets. that the grandchildren can get into and parents can say nothing about it? Thankful for a grandma like that? How many would agree with that? Say amen. Always had chocolate, that's why I'm addicted to it, my grandma. What do you want for Christmas, grandma? Chocolate. What do you want for Valentine's, grandma? Chocolate. What do you want for... Shade her chocolate first. By the way, she hid it. We found chocolate after she died. I went to heaven. But I wouldn't be where I am today. And I know I say it a lot, but I can't help it. Because I wouldn't be where I am today if I didn't have the influence. I only had one set. My others were already gone. I never knew them. I only had one set of grandparents. But they made it their business to invest in my life spiritually. They made it their business to set a godly example. My grandparents, every night, At 7 o'clock, you could go to their home. And they would be reading their Bible. My granddaddy would be reading the Bible. And then she would kneel at her chair. My granddaddy would kneel at his chair. And they would pray for their family. And they would pray out loud and call their names out in prayer. I'm just saying, we need to strengthen our hands. Young adults in our church, thank God for you. You're not the church of tomorrow. You're the church of today. I'm going to tell you, church, you can't imagine all the work and service that our young adults do in our church. They give of themselves sacrificially. They go on visitation. They serve in different ministries. They are so involved. Our church wouldn't be the same without our young adults that are serving in our church. But can I tell you, strengthen your hands. God wants to use you in even greater ways. God wants to use you to change your world. Church, could we strengthen our hands for this good work? We only have a couple of months left in this year. We had a family here today because of what took place on a Saturday night. Just some people decided, I'm going to get involved in this. I'm going to be all in. And an impact was made that this family showed up on a Sunday morning here at Calvary. There were probably more. We just didn't know. I'm just saying, let's finish strong. that we might start the next year right. Let's just strengthen our hands for this good work. I'm not going to try to play the Holy Spirit tonight, but here's what I am going to do. If somewhere along the way a category that I talk to, God pricked your heart, that means God's talking to you. Maybe an area of your life. Maybe husbands and wives ratcheting up your relationship and the harmony in that relationship, fixing some things in that marriage. Just committing together that we're going to be all in. And maybe some young families, you're just starting out and you're saying, you know what... By the way, I just want to say something to our young families. Thank God for you being in church on Sunday night. Thank God for you doing that. You're starting right. What I want to encourage you to do is just make a commitment tonight that we're going to lead our family the way God wants it to go, and we're going to be whatever God wants us to be, and we're going to be committed and faithful to Him. And I'm going to tell you something, church, God's going to bless that. God's going to bless it. Let's strengthen our hands for this good work. Let's do it for the Lord, let's do it for our brethren, and let's do it for our families. And I'm going to invite you to come forward and make your commitment and strengthen your hands for this good work. Let's bow our heads in prayer. Father.