Good morning, Maranatha Baptist Church.
Good morning.
It is a privilege to worship with you and to have been worshiping now for two months.
! If we haven't met yet, my name is Luke Fawcett.
My wife is Jana, and I guess it's your left back.
So talk to her and us after the service.
If we haven't met you guys, we'd love to do that.
I just graduated from Cedarville just literally three months ago
with my undergrad and my master's in Bible
and got the privilege to meet Andrew in October
and then come on as a pastoral intern just a couple months ago.
I've been serving in that capacity.
This morning we'll be continuing our study in Daniel chapter 3,
focusing on verses 19 to 30.
So if you have your Bibles, you can open to Daniel chapter 3, verses 19 to 30.
If you're using a Bible in the pew, that's page 740.
If you could have a superpower, what would it be?
Maybe you'd choose super strength or flying,
maybe invisibility or reading people's minds,
which is kind of weird.
I remember as a young boy being awed by Spider-Man.
I thought he was the coolest thing.
I had the Spider-Man sneakers that lit up,
and I wore the costume, his suit on Halloween.
When I put that suit on, I felt absolutely invincible,
like I could do anything.
Parents, you know what this is like
when your child has a little too much courage for their own good?
That was me.
We live in an age of superheroism.
Just consider the phenomenon of the Marvel Universe.
Many of you no doubt have watched these movies.
In fact, all three movies in the Avengers trilogy
are ranked in the top 10 highest grossing films in modern history.
They've made over $6 billion.
It's undeniable that we live in a culture that glorifies superheroes.
But what does a superhero do for us?
Why are we so fascinated by their powers and their mission?
I think we can't get enough of superheroes
because we know that we need saving.
We know deep down that there's something wrong in our lives.
The curse has had its way in different ways,
and we long for deliverance.
We want someone to take away the difficulties that we face,
the car needing constant repair,
the relational tensions that we feel,
the frustrations at our workplace,
the life-altering decisions,
the shape of our body,
the friendships that disappoint,
and on and on it goes.
Each of us longs for deliverance from something.
We long for deliverance from something.
So what is that for you?
What do you long for deliverance from?
See, the truth is that we will serve
whatever we believe will save us.
We will serve whatever we believe will save us,
whatever delivers us from the thing that we fear.
The message this morning is titled
that God alone can save.
God alone is our deliverer.
It functions something like a part two
to what Andrew preached last week as part one.
Part one focused on God's,
or God alone is worthy of worship.
The golden image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up
for all the peoples and nations and languages
to bow down to
set the stage for three Hebrew boys
who refuse him
and bring about a conflict.
And it's a conflict not primarily
between the three Hebrews and Nebuchadnezzar.
It's actually a conflict between Nebuchadnezzar
and the God of heaven.
This is a showdown of sovereigns.
Who is gonna come out on top?
Who is in power?
Who is in control?
And verse 15 sets the stage for our text.
Nebuchadnezzar asked in chapter three, verse 15,
who is the God who will deliver you out of my hands?
Who is the God who will deliver you out of my hands?
We'll see that the singular message of chapter three,
because it really is one message for one chapter,
is that God alone deserves worship
because God alone can save.
God alone deserves worship
because God alone is our deliverer.
So the main idea for this morning
is serve God who alone can save.
Serve God who alone can save.
Now it's important to note up front
before we get into our passage
that each point of this message
is marked in our text with the transition word then.
So you can see this in verse 19,
verse 24, and verse 26.
And Daniel writes this in a way
that sets up three scenes for us,
three things that make us ask the question,
what happens next?
As the narrative kind of twists and turns,
as Nebuchadnezzar rises and falls,
Shadrach are in and out of the fire,
we're asking the question,
what is going to happen?
So point number one,
Nebuchadnezzar commands the Hebrews' death.
Follow along with me in verse 19 to verse 23.
Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury,
and the expression of his face
was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
He ordered the furnace heated
seven times more than it was usually heated.
He ordered some of the mighty men of his army
to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
and to cast them into the burning, fiery furnace.
Then these men were bound in their cloaks,
their tunics, their hats, and their other garments,
and they were thrown into the burning, fiery furnace.
Because the king's order was urgent
and the furnace overheated,
the flame of the fire killed those men
who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
fell bound into the burning, fiery furnace.
After Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
are given a second chance to recant
and to worship this golden image,
the king's rage is fuming.
Notice the way it's described, though.
It says Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury,
and the expression of his face was changed.
We know from previous narratives
that this is the typical way that Nebuchadnezzar responds
when he doesn't get what he wants.
Look back to chapter two, verse 12.
Because of this,
that is the Chaldean's inability to tell him his dream,
the king was angry and very furious,
and he commanded that all the wise men of Babylon
be destroyed.
Or just a few verses ago in chapter three, verse 13,
that Nebuchadnezzar, in a furious rage,
commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought.
He's done trying to reason with these Hebrews.
Nebuchadnezzar will not tolerate rebellion,
and his face starts to show what's in his heart.
He embodies the kind of worldly anger
that James 4, 2 talks about,
that we desire and we do not have,
and so we murder.
Parents, maybe you've heard your child say
that you have the face,
or that glare.
It's the look that you give when your child rebels,
and they know that if they don't do something,
there's gonna be consequences.
Literally, the expression of your face changes.
The picture here actually reminds me
of something like the figure from,
or the figure anger from Inside Out.
Maybe some of you guys have watched this movie.
It's directed from a young girl's life,
and it's through her emotions
that we actually see the movie play out,
anger being one of them.
He's personified as this big, bright,
no-nonsense, stubby emotion
that always gets grumpy,
and he's just in for a fight.
And there's one scene where Riley, the girl,
comes home after a rough day of work
and starts to get into it with her dad,
and things start to heat up.
Anger, you can literally see him
clenching his fists,
and his teeth start to grit,
and his jaw gets harder,
and the other emotions are like
trying to calm him down
because he's gonna absolutely lose it.
But finally, he just explodes,
and fire comes out of his head,
and he takes control of the situation.
He's had it.
Like anger, Nebuchadnezzar in our story
is trying to take control of the situation
through his anger.
He's gonna show who's in charge.
He's gonna show whose will is final.
And first, we notice that he orders the furnace
to be heated seven times more than it was.
Now, at face value,
this just seems like Nebuchadnezzar
is just heating up the furnace, right?
He wants it to be hotter.
But in Scripture,
seven has a particular significance as a number.
It carries the idea of completion or fulfillment.
You might remember that God rested
on the seventh day of creation,
marking its completion.
Or Elisha telling Naaman
that he had to go wash in the Jordan
seven times in order to be completely healed.
Or Joshua and the Israelites
going around Jericho for seven days
and on the seventh time,
going around seven times,
marking the completion of its destruction.
This symbolic significance
is similar to how the number three
kind of functions in English.
Students, if you've taken speech or rhetoric,
you know that generally,
in a persuasive argument,
you have to have three points.
Why is that?
It's just because it's a number of completion.
It marks something that's memorable
and substantial.
So to heat up the furnace seven times hotter
is not just to make it hot,
but to make it as hot as possible.
It does not matter
whether or not it's seven times
or 70 times.
Nebuchadnezzar wants to incinerate these men.
But why does he increase the heat at all?
Think about this for a moment.
The furnace was literally built
to kill anyone
that didn't do what Nebuchadnezzar said.
He could have just thrown them into the furnace
and they would have died.
That's pretty simple.
But I think here's why.
Anger is power.
We know this is true in our own lives.
When we raise our voice.
When we speak brutal,
cutting, divisive words.
When we use our hands to hurt people.
When we turn away in our bodies.
It communicates that I'll show you
how much I can hurt,
manipulate, and control you.
That's the heart of sinful anger.
And Nebuchadnezzar's actions
are revealing his heart.
That he is completely opposed
not only to the Hebrews,
but also to their God.
And we know from previous chapters
that Nebuchadnezzar
is basically opposed to God.
It may not seem as messy right now,
but it's still there.
In chapter one,
he took the temple vessels
and defiled them
by taking them into
his own house of worship.
And as the story progresses,
he's happy if God helps him.
Right?
He's happy if God gives him
wise, capable counselors.
Or if God reveals his dreams
that are troubling him.
And we might even be fooled
into thinking that
Nebuchadnezzar at this point
believes based on his blessing
from chapter two.
But faith or acceptance
is easy
when God is working for me.
When God serves me.
What about when God
is opposed to what I'm doing?
What about when God's commands
oppose my self-centered desires
and demands?
You see, faith is not tested
through what God offers me.
Who wouldn't want eternal life?
Who would not want joy and peace?
Faith is not tested
through what God offers me,
but through what I am willing
to submit to him.
If God doesn't own
every area of my life,
then I have not surrendered to him
as Lord in that way.
And I am still in the center.
And anger is often the way
that reveals and exposes
who is at the center of our lives.
The second way that Nebuchadnezzar
tries to show his power
is by ordering his personal guards
to bind and cast Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego into the furnace.
He orders the men to be thrown in.
Even though the Hebrews
have been compliant
and peaceful up to this point,
Nebuchadnezzar will not stand it.
He's going to treat them as rebels.
They've been faithful wise men,
but he treats them as criminals.
And the word that's actually
translated here in verse 20,
for mighty men,
he ordered some of the mighty men
of his army to bind them.
This word is also translated elsewhere
as most mighty men
in the KJV
or strongest soldiers in the NIV.
And I actually think the NASB,
the New American Standard Version,
seems to render it best
as valiant warriors.
This is actually significant
because it's the same word
that is used to describe
David's best soldiers.
King David, if you remember,
had soldiers like Abishai,
who killed 300 men in a day.
Or Benaiah,
who went into a snowy pit
to kill a lion.
These, in other words,
are the best,
the SEAL Team 6
of Nebuchadnezzar's army.
So when Nebuchadnezzar
commands his valiant warriors
to bind and throw these men
into the fiery furnace,
he's making a statement.
He's saying that I am on top.
He's doing everything he can
to demonstrate to the officials
and the nations
that he is stronger
than them and their God.
In fact, he's so aggressive
and demanding
that the soldiers
who take them into the fire
die at the hands of the fire.
Notice also the way
that Daniel describes them
being thrown in here.
Here the verb tense shifts
in verse 21
from active to passive.
Then these men
were bound.
And later,
they were thrown in.
Or also in verse 23.
And these three men,
Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego,
fell bound
into the burning,
fiery furnace.
These two verses
communicate the same idea.
Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego
had no power
to save themselves.
They were at the hands,
they were at the mercy
of Nebuchadnezzar.
And they are ready
to die for their faith.
It's important to note
that though they are confident
that God can save them,
they don't know
if he will.
Look back at verse 17.
They say,
If this be so,
our God,
whom we serve,
is able to deliver us
from the burning,
fiery furnace,
and he will deliver us
out of your hand,
O King.
But if not.
This is their
but if not moment.
Can you think about
the gravity of this
in your own life?
Lord, I believe
that you can heal me
of this sickness,
but if not.
God, you can resolve
the financial crisis
I'm in right now,
but if not.
Father, you're able
to save my wandering child
from their sin,
but if not.
Jesus, you can save
my marriage
from the ruin
that I made it,
but if not.
Holy Spirit,
you can remove
the darkness
of my grief
and depression
and restore to me
the joy of salvation.
But if not.
What happens
if God chooses
not to save
Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego?
What happens
if God chooses
not to deliver you
in this moment?
For these men,
the point was not
their deliverance.
The point was
whether or not
their lives
demonstrated
that God alone
was worthy
of worship.
Listen to the rest
of their statement.
But if not,
verse 18,
be it known
to you,
O king,
that we will not
serve your gods
or worship
the golden image
that you have set up.
The point was
making known
to the world,
these nations
and officials
and this king,
that the God
in heaven
is deserving
of their worship
and their very
lives.
And there's a danger
in a sermon like this
on deliverance.
We can connect
faith and obedience
with God's deliverance
from the fire
in such a way
that salvation
becomes about prosperity
and longevity
and health
and not about
God's glory.
Let me say that again.
We can connect
faith and obedience
with God's deliverance
from the fire
in such a way
that we look
at salvation
as prosperity
and health
and deliverance
in that way
and not about
God's glory.
If you're faithful,
God will deliver you
from X.
That's the thing
that we could think about.
If we're not careful,
we can view Shadrach,
Meshach,
and Abednego
as a type for us
of what God will do
if his people
are faithful.
The philosophy
might go something
like this.
If you raise
your children right,
they'll always
follow after God.
But what if they aren't?
If you're giving faithfully,
you'll be good financially.
But what if you aren't?
If you work hard,
you'll accomplish
whatever you want.
But what if you don't?
You see,
my point here
is not to discourage
giving faithfully
or raising your children
in the Lord
or working hard.
I think that those
are good,
godly things
that God has called
all of us
as his people to.
And there are scriptures
that we could no doubt
point to
and demonstrate
that this is the way
that it normally works
in God's world.
that faithfulness
often produces
fruitfulness.
But underneath
our efforts
stands the sovereign
purposes of God
and his will
for his own glory.
It's actually
this truth
that is more
of a comfort to us
than setting our hope
on any kind of outcome
that we could achieve.
Because if our lives
are about his glory,
then deliverance
isn't our ultimate hope
in this world.
his glory is.
Because we have set
our hope
that he will deliver us
in the next.
So he may
or he may not save
our kids.
He may restore us
from this financial difficulty
or he may leave us
in the same condition.
either way,
God really is working
all things
for our good
and his glory.
That's where faith
comes in.
It gives us
sight
beyond what we can see
that God is doing
because we know
that he is up
to good for us.
In these moments
we learn to pray
like Jesus
who was tempted
and tried
in every respect
as we are.
Maybe you remember this,
how he was distressed
and he was troubled
in the garden
of Gethsemane.
He was abandoned
by all of his followers.
He was all alone,
betrayed
by one of his own.
In his hardest moment
he prayed like this.
Abba, Father,
all things are possible
for you.
Remove his cup
from me.
But if not,
or yet,
not what I will
but what you will.
Jesus said that prayer
over and over
and over
three separate times
until he was ready
to receive
God's will.
That is why
it's a good idea
I think for us
to pray habitually
how Jesus taught
his disciples to pray.
Our Father
who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
thy will be done
on earth
as it is in heaven.
In our story,
God in his mercy
does in fact
rescue the Hebrews.
And he demonstrates
his power
over Nebuchadnezzar.
His urgency
to destroy them
turns to urgency
to see them.
Follow along
in verses 24 to 25.
It says,
Then Nebuchadnezzar
was astonished
and rose up in haste.
He declared
to his counselors,
Did we not cast
three men
bound into the fire?
They answered
and said to the king,
True, O king.
He answered
and said,
But I see
four men
unbound
walking in the midst
of the fire
and they are not hurt
and the appearance
of the fourth
is like the son
of the gods.
So point number two,
Nebuchadnezzar
observes the Hebrews' life.
Nebuchadnezzar
observes
the Hebrews' life.
Nebuchadnezzar
cannot believe
his eyes.
His fuming rage
turns into surprise
as he observes
five things.
There are four men
instead of three.
They are unbound
instead of bound.
They're walking
instead of fallen.
They're unharmed
instead of incinerated.
And there is
the presence of God
instead of the absence
in the fire.
So he confirms
what he commanded
with his advisors.
We cast three in, right?
Interestingly,
the detail that stands out
to Nebuchadnezzar
is not the fact
that they're unharmed.
It's not the fact
that they're walking
in a burning flame.
The detail that stands out
to him
is that there are
four people
in the fire.
So who is this
fourth person?
Is it an angel?
Is it the angel
of the Lord?
Is it a pre-incarnate
appearance of the son?
And the simple answer
is that I don't know.
And I don't think
the Bible tells us.
What we hear
is actually from
Nebuchadnezzar's perspective.
It's what he sees,
not necessarily
what the author says.
And I think you'll agree
that we don't want
to get our theology
from a pagan king
who hasn't yet
submitted to God.
There are other texts
that we can use
that use the same phrase,
son of the gods,
like Genesis 6-2
or even Job 1-6,
2-1,
and 38-7.
And these all seem
to refer to angels.
Even further along
in the passage,
Nebuchadnezzar refers
to this saying
that God sent
his angel
and delivered him.
But it's still
Nebuchadnezzar's words,
so we can't necessarily
take it on face value.
Whoever this fourth figure is,
I think it's important
to see that he bears
God's special presence.
That's what the author
wants us to know.
He bears God's special presence
in order to keep
these men from death.
But there's a question
that still remains.
Why have a fourth person
at all?
It's the same kind of thing
that we ask with Nebuchadnezzar.
Why heat up the fire
seven times
if it's already as hot
to kill the Hebrews?
Why send the fourth person?
God didn't have to do this.
Right?
If he's the creator,
he could have just
allowed their bodies
not to be burned
by the fire.
And actually,
in Daniel 6,
when Daniel's thrown
into the lion's den,
he doesn't send
an angel in there.
He just shuts the mouths
of the lions.
The reason why I think
God does this
is that by sending
the fourth person
into the fire,
Nebuchadnezzar knows
without a shadow
of a doubt
that God is the one
who delivered them.
God is the one
who delivered them.
He cannot get around it.
It's kind of the difference
between a speed limit sign
and a police officer.
Right?
Both represent
the enforcement
of law and justice.
With a speed limit sign,
you can see it
and you know
that there's the presence
of a legal boundary.
But you slow down
for the police officer.
Similarly,
Nebuchadnezzar
could have realized
that the presence of God,
he could have recognized
the presence of God
by seeing Shadrach,
Meshach,
and Abednego
come out of the fire
unharmed.
There's a shadow
of a doubt
that he could have done that.
But what caught
his attention
was the fourth person.
God was in this place
and God delivered
his servants.
Verse 26 moves us
to our final point.
Point number three,
Nebuchadnezzar
confesses God's deliverance.
Nebuchadnezzar
confesses God's deliverance.
Follow along with me
in verse 26
as we read
the rest of the passage.
Then Nebuchadnezzar
came near to the door
of the burning fiery furnace
and he declared,
Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego,
servants of the most high God,
come out
and come here.
Then Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego
came out
from the fire.
And the satraps
and the prefects
and the governors
and the king's counselors
gathered together
and saw that the fire
had not had any power
over the bodies
of those men.
The hair of their heads
was not singed,
their cloaks
were not harmed,
and no smell of fire
had come upon them.
Nebuchadnezzar
answered and said,
Blessed be the God
of Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego
who has sent his angel
and delivered
his servants
who trusted in him
and set aside
the king's command
and yielded up
their bodies
rather than served
and worshipped
any other God
except their own.
Therefore,
I make a decree.
Any people,
nation,
or language
that speaks anything
against the God
of Shadrach,
Meshach,
and Abednego
shall be torn
limb from limb
and their houses
laid in ruins.
For there is no other God
who is able to rescue
in this way.
Then the king
promoted Shadrach,
Meshach,
and Abednego
in the province
of Babylon.
At this point,
Nebuchadnezzar
has a different attitude.
Notice the title
that he uses
for God.
He calls them
servants
of the Most High God.
He cannot deny
that there is
a God in heaven
who is promised
in chapter 2
to build a kingdom
that will outlast him
and he will
accomplish it.
But think about
this title
in the chapter's context.
Nebuchadnezzar
has set up
a golden image
that all are supposed
to bow down to
and yet he recognizes
that there is a God
who reigns
even over
the idol,
even over
the king
of the universe
or of the known world
at that time.
I wonder
if our lives
reflect this kind
of understanding
of God's character,
that he is
the Most High God.
Do you see yourself
today
as a servant
of the king
or as a king
to be served?
I would commend
to us
Paul's mindset
in 2 Corinthians 5
14-15.
He says
that the love
of Christ
controls us
because we have
concluded this,
that one has died
for all,
therefore all have died.
And he died
for all
that those
who live
might no longer
live for themselves,
but for him
who for their sake
died and was raised.
So let me ask,
what controls you?
Who are you serving?
What determines
how you order
your time?
How you spend
or save your money?
What retirement
looks like?
What kind of spouse
that you're pursuing?
How you treat
your husband
or your wife
or your siblings
or your parent?
And why should
the love of Christ
control us?
I think Paul
gives the why.
He says
that one,
that is Jesus Christ,
has died
for all.
Why did he have
to die for all?
Well,
this is the gospel.
That we all
have sinned
and fallen short
of the glory
of God.
Romans 3-23.
And that the wages
of sin
is death.
Romans 6-23.
In other words,
we all earn death
by setting ourselves
up as our own gods,
calling attention
to ourselves
and making ourselves
out to be
the center.
And someone
has to die
because that's
the penalty
for sin.
But instead
of us,
Jesus Christ
stood as a substitute
in our place.
Instead of us
bearing the fire
of God's wrath,
Jesus stood
on a cross
and bore it
for us.
And by repenting
of our sins
and turning
to the God
who is most high,
who is Lord
and Savior,
we are united
to him.
This is what we
sang about
in the third song.
We receive
his righteousness
and he takes
our sin.
Gone.
As far as the east
is from the west,
so far
has he removed
the sin
of those
who love him.
the question
is not
do we need
saving?
The question
is who
do we turn
to for
deliverance?
Is it Jesus
or is it
something else?
Jesus gives
a warning
to those
who have not
yet turned
from their sin
in Matthew 13,
41 to 42.
He says
that the Son
of Man
will send
his angels
and they
will gather
out of his
kingdom
all causes
of sin
and lawbreakers
and throw
them into
the fiery
furnace.
In that
place
there will
be weeping
and gnashing
of teeth.
You see
in the end
it's ultimately
the unfaithful
who are in danger
not the faithful.
Shadrach,
Meshach
and Abednego
were ready
to go in the fire
because they
had already
been delivered.
It had no
danger for them.
They knew
where they
were going
but there
is a danger
for those
who remain
in their sin
and yet
for us
who believe
Colossians 3,
1, 13
or sorry
Colossians 1, 13
reminds us
that he
has delivered
us from
the domain
of darkness
and transferred
us into
the kingdom
of his
Son
in whom
we have
redemption
the forgiveness
of our sins.
That
is good news.
That's good news
for us.
The physical testimony
of the witnesses
who see God's power
in verse 27
draw our attention
to the fullness
of God's salvation.
Look at what
the king's court
sees
in verse 27.
The fire
had no
had not
had any
power
over the
bodies
of those
men.
Isn't that
an amazing
verse?
No power
because God
was with them.
The thing
that threatened
death for them
God was able
to deliver them
from.
So Nebuchadnezzar
has nothing
left to do
but to bless
God
and his
blessing here
is actually
the interpretation
of the whole
of the events
that we just
heard.
He answers
the question
who is the
God of Shadrach
Meshach
and Abednego?
And he says
he's the kind
of God
that can
deliver.
No other
God
can deliver
in this way.
God alone
can save
those
who trust
in him
and put away
sin
and serve
him.
so serve
God
who alone
can save.
Serve God
who alone
can save.
He alone
is worthy
of it.
I realize
now looking
back at my
five-year-old
self
that
my ambition
to save
the world
wasn't about
the world.
It was really
about me.
I wanted
to be
my own
savior
and everyone
else's.
I wanted
to be
the one
who rose
above the
mundane
messy
realities
of life
as a
five-year-old.
Sibling
fights
and desert
restrictions
and other
things like
that.
And in
some ways
not much
has changed.
I still
struggle
with the
desire to
rise above
the mundane
things of
life.
The
marital
needs,
the financial
questions,
the relational
tensions,
the house
chores,
the traffic
issues,
the spiritual
conflict
and the
like.
I'm
tempted
to look
to myself
as my
own savior
or to
look to
another
comfort
to deliver
me from
what only
God is
able to
do.
But
praise God
that Jesus
rescued that
self-centered
five-year-old
year-old at
the age of
twelve.
Praise God
that he
still rescues
me through
his word
and through
the ministry
of others.
So let's
continue to
seek the
God who
alone is
able to
deliver.
Let's
pray.
Father,
thank you
that you
are a
God who
can
deliver
us.
Thank you
that you
have become
our Lord
and Savior
through the
death and
resurrection
of Jesus.
Lord,
we're still
tempted to
trust in
ourselves.
We're still
tempted to
turn to
other
things.
We still
struggle to
be our
own gods
and look to
ourselves as
the center.
But God,
you are able
to continue
to rescue
us and
keep us
and hold us
fast in
Christ.
And I
pray that as
we go from
here,
Lord,
you would
use your
word and
the ministry
of others
to continue
to do
that work.
Thank you
for your
word.
Thank you
for your
church.
In Jesus'
name,
Amen.