Disclaimer: This transcription is provided for informational purposes, reference, and convenience. Please note that it may contain errors, omissions, or spelling mistakes due to the nature of live audio transcriptions. While we strive for accuracy, this document should not be considered a fully authoritative record of the sermon. For clarification, we recommend referring to the original source. Thank you for your understanding and patience. 

If you'll take your Bibles and turn there, we're going to examine Hebrews chapter 13, verses 17 through 19, and I will be discussing this under the heading of "Two Congregational Duties." It's been a fascinating journey; we're getting close to the end of our study of this - actually a sermon that was written - and I hope that you have enjoyed the journey. I hope it's been edifying and encouraging. And may I remind you that if you look at the postscript of Hebrews, which is verse 22 of chapter 13, the writer says, "But I urge you, brethren, bear with this word of exhortation..." A term that was used in Acts chapter 13 and verse 15 to describe a sermon, he says, "...for I have written to you briefly." And I think I told you before, it takes about an hour to read through this. So that's about what it is; it's about an hour-long sermon. You think my sermons are complicated at times. I think you will agree that this was far more complicated. But he's asking us and his readers of that day to bear with these exhortations, receive them with an open heart and an open mind. And we're going to examine the final two exhortations here in verses 17 through 19.

And may I remind you now that literally this has been a flow of exhortations all through the epistle; a flow that has been given to Jewish people that have come to a saving knowledge of Christ. They're in a church, and they are sorely tempted to fall back into Judaism, to reject the new covenant of grace that is causing so much problem in their life, because they've been kind of removed from the family, their families and the social life, and they're being persecuted, and so they would prefer to go back to that which is comfortable, namely the old covenant of works.

And may I remind you once again of just kind of the flow of exhortations as you go through this sermon, and this will lead us to where we are this morning. He tells them early on in the epistle, pay closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away. Draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, draw near to God with a sincere heart and full assurance of faith. Consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, but encouraging one another. Do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. Lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance, the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus. Let love of the brethren continue. Show hospitality to strangers, remember the prisoners and those who are ill-treated. Let marriage be held in honor among all. Let your character be free from the love of money. Remember those who led you and imitate their faith. Do not be carried away by varied and strange teachings. Go out to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach, continually offer up sacrifices of praise to God that is the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name and do not neglect doing good and sharing for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

And this brings us now to the final two exhortations, two that are absolutely crucial for the stability and for the success of any church. In fact, as we read this, we see that the writer here was one of the leaders in this church, and he is about to leave, perhaps thinking that he's not going to see them again, at least anytime soon. So it's important for him to now shift the congregation's loyalty and submission to the leaders that have been set in place. So he's leaving the church in the able hands of those who have been appointed as elders. And he says this to the congregation, and here we are in verse 17,

"Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.

"Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a good conscience, desiring to conduct ourselves honorably in all things.

"And I urge you all the more to do this, so that I may be restored to you the sooner."

So here we see two very important congregational duties, if you will. He's asking that the people in a church, number one, submit to their leaders; and then secondly, pray for their leaders. So let's look at this more closely. First of all, this idea of submission to leaders. Notice, in verse 17, "Obey your leaders and submit to them." Now the term "leader" is designated in the New Testament, in the original language, with four specific terms. First of all, you have what's called - it's translated - an elder; "presbuteros" in the original language. It underscores the concept of being spiritually mature and able to exercise spiritual oversight and authority. Also, at times it's translated "overseer" from the word "episkopos," which emphasizes the role of one who manages, one who has spiritual oversight and authority. And then there is the pastor, the "poimēn," sometimes translated even "shepherd." It's the idea of a shepherd who is responsible to protect, to feed, to care for a specific flock. And then you have leader or ruler, "hégemón," that we have here in verse 17, which emphasizes his responsibility to both guide and rule.

And as you look through the New Testament, you will see that leaders are always to be a plurality - a plurality of elders - never one man alone and never a democracy, never a congregational rule. You don't see that in the New Testament. And Paul outlines the qualifications for an elder - for a leader in the church - in First Timothy three, as well as in Titus one. And I might also add that New Testament leaders and pastors were always designated to be male, never female. Females are not to function in roles of pastoral leadership or teaching roles. For example, in First Timothy two and verse 12, Paul tells us, "But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet." And of course, women play a huge role in the church and in our families, but in matters of rule, in the family and in the church, God has established the headship of the male.

Now, there are numerous passages that describe the character and responsibilities of a leader in the church. Let me take you through a few of them so you get a sense of this. The first one is in First Thessalonians 5 verses, 12 through 13, and there, Paul gives exhortations concerning life and the fellowship and how a Christian family should obey God as it relates to the leadership structure that he has put in place. And by the way, it was customary for the apostles to exercise their gift of discernment and appoint leaders in churches. In fact, he instructed Titus in Titus one five, to "appoint elders in every city as I directed you." And we know that in the New Testament, Paul appointed certain men, and Timothy continued to disciple them by the power of the Spirit. And so there are a variety of passages that speak about these things and give us a clear picture of their responsibility. But I want you to notice First Thessalonians five and verse 12 there, he says, "But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you." The term "labor" stresses the idea of strenuous, continuous effort to the point of exhaustion. It carries the idea of a great struggle. And he's saying that I want you to appreciate those who diligently labor among you. If we were to look, for example, at just Paul's two epistles to the Thessalonians, we would see 17 activities of a faithful pastor. They would include praying, evangelizing, equipping, defending, loving, laboring, modeling, leading, feeding, watching, warning, teaching, exhorting, encouraging, correcting, confronting and rescuing. You get all those down?

And he goes on in even greater detail in First and Second Timothy. In summary, Paul commanded Timothy to be faithful in his preaching of biblical truth, to be bold in exposing and refuting error, to be an example of godliness to the flock, to be diligent and work hard in the ministry, and to be willing to suffer hardship and persecution in his service for the Lord. So folks, this is what it means to labor diligently among you.

Back to First Thessalonians 5:12, he goes on to say, "...and have charge over you." I want you to appreciate those who have charge over you in the Lord. That carries the idea of those who direct you, who lead, who guide, who govern, who protect; those who stand before you as protectors in the Lord. And he says, and they, "...give you instruction." That term "instruction" - "noutheteō" - some of you are familiar with that. It carries the idea of admonishing. The verb is often translated "admonish." So it's the idea of counseling and advising and teaching and correcting; warning, as the Lord would do. And then in verse 13, he says, "...and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work." Then he says, "Live in peace with one another."

Also in First Peter, chapter five, (noise interruption during service). That's the opposite of living in peace with one another, right now. So we had a little example there. Thank you, Lord for that contrast. That's helpful. In First Peter, chapter five, beginning in verse one, we read,

"I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,

"shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness;

"nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock."

And so this is what it means to have charge; to care for a church in the Lord. Now back to our text again, "Obey your leaders and submit to them." Now we all understand that we are to submit to God, but what we must also understand is that God mediates his rule on earth and in his Church through various leaders. Now, not all of the leaders on Earth are going to be godly leaders, but he asks us to submit to them. And the same is true in the church; but specifically in his church, he mediates his rule through Spirit-controlled men who are submissive to him. So the congregation is not to rule itself, nor is it to rule the leaders, but rather to submit to the leaders that God has placed over them. That is the model in the New Testament.

Now, perhaps you've been in churches, as I have, where that's been violated, and you can see absolute chaos break out. I have counseled for many, many churches over the past 30 plus years of ministry. Many times I've been brought into the church in the midst of great crisis, and I've counseled hundreds of pastors. I'm mentoring five right now, and you would not believe the stories that I could tell you. Maybe some of you could, maybe you've been around these types of things, but you will see everything from yelling matches to fist fights that can break out. One dear pastor, just a few years ago called and he said, "Help. I need help." And he was in what I call a family-owned and operated church, okay? And there was an older matriarch that really ran the church, along with her family, and she was notorious for just going into a hysterical rage and throwing hymn books at her opponents, alright? We've never had that happen. I hope we never will. But the other thing she would do is roll up papers and even her umbrella and chase people around the church. And so this was a young pastor. This was his first church, and he said, "What do I do?" And I said, "Well, you have to confront her. You have to shepherd her." So he did that, and that week, they fired him, and he called me back, and he said, "Now, what should I do?" And I said, you need to sing "'Praise God from whom all blessings flow" because that's not a church, and God is rescuing you from some wicked people." So sad. But folks, church problems are always either the result of unqualified or ungodly leaders or an ungodly congregation, and many times both. And by far, the worst situations occur in churches where there is a congregational rule, where everybody kind of has a voice and a vote, so to speak. In those types of situations often business meetings turn into war zones, and pastors need combat pay to survive that.

 In fact, frankly, the reason why you have over 700 churches in Nashville is because of church splits. In fact, there are over 1000 churches just in Davidson County. The great English preacher, Charles Spurgeon, once told a group of theological students that after they entered the ministry, they should not be surprised to find that quote, "People who prayed like angels in a church prayer meeting could act like devils in a church business meeting." So true.

Well, every church is going to have difficult people. You're always going to have that, and sometimes you're going to have difficult leaders. I recall in First Corinthians 11, as you probably will as well, that they were having problems with divisiveness in the church. Remember, over the Lord's Supper, there were selfish, divisive people there causing trouble. And in First Corinthians, 11, verse 18, he says, "...when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you." And then he says this, "...and in part, I believe it." And here's why, verse 19, "For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you." In other words, the Lord literally allows bickering and divisiveness in his church in order to prove the value of those who are humble, those who are faithful, and spiritually discerning, and so forth.

So back to what the Holy Spirit is saying here through his inspired writer; it's simply this: folks, a church simply cannot function in a way that is pleasing to God and beneficial to the people, apart from two things - godly shepherds and a submissive flock, and frankly, to joyfully submit to the authority that the chief Shepherd has placed over you is to joyfully submit to the chief Shepherd. But what if you don't trust your elders? I have people ask me that from time to time, and the answer is, make sure that you have irrefutable evidence that those elders are living in unrepentant sin, and that the pattern of their life demonstrates that they are disqualified from pastoral ministry according to First Timothy three and Titus one, and then lovingly, but boldly, confront them with that evidence. And by the way, that will require two to three witnesses. Otherwise, the elders are commanded to not even receive an accusation apart from that according to First Timothy five and verse 17. And then if those elders or that pastor or whatever, if they refuse to repent, then according to First Timothy 5:20, "Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also may be fearful of sinning."

Now some will say, "Well, what if that process can't occur due to the dynamics of the church. What if the leaders demonstrate a well-documented pattern of ungodliness, but there just seems to be no recourse? What do I do?" Leave the church as fast as you can. Paul says this in Second Corinthians six and verse 14, "Do not be bound together with unbelievers, for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?"

So again, verse 17, "Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account." You know it is such a joy to co-labor with the elders that we have here at Calvary Bible Church; and I see their passionate care for each of you, and I share that, of course, and we know that one day we will have to give an account for the way that we care for your souls. And we take that very, very seriously. In fact, as teachers of the word, we know that we have a stricter judgment, according to James three and verse one. And I think you know this, but we labor hard among you because we love you, we care for you. That's why we understand what Paul said in Galatians four and verse 19. There he called the saints, "My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you." And as a pastor, I know exactly what that feels like to feel almost like a woman trying to give birth - the birth of Christ likeness in each one of you - and every faithful shepherd understands this.

Paul also expressed this in Second Corinthians 12, in verse 15, he said, "I will most gladly spend and be expended for your souls." And similarly, John said, in Third John four, "I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth."

But back to verse 17, notice what the writer goes on to say, "Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you." In the original language, grief carries the idea of an inward groaning. It was used, for example, in the Septuagint to describe Job's suffering, an inward groaning. And every faithful pastor, every shepherd, understands what that feels like; and every congregation, therefore, should do all that it can to make sure that their leaders can lead with joy, without that inward groaning. And you know, the constant whining and backbiting that you can have from time to time in any church will disrupt and distract and discourage leaders and bring them up to a place of exhaustion. I know what that feels like. Every pastor I've ever worked with knows what that feels like, and Satan loves that kind of thing. This is what literally kills most pastors. And I might also add, this is what causes many men - and I've heard this before on many occasions, men who have been elders - to say, "I will never do that again. I will never put myself or my family through that again." And that's heartbreaking. That's why I always tell prospective pastors that, please understand that if you're going to be a shepherd, you must see that you're going to war, it's going to be difficult. And if you go to war, there will be injuries, there will be casualties. That's part of it. And the reason why most pastors and most elders burn out is because of unrealistic expectations. Plus, church leaders, especially pastors, are Satan's special targets. Folks, we will be tempted far greater and attacked far more often and more severely than any of you, and there's no way I can explain that to you, other than to just say it. And think about it, if he can bring me down, or the elders of this church down, then he brings down many others with us. Jay Oswald Sanders said this, "No one need aspire to leadership in the work of God who is not prepared to pay a price greater than his contemporaries and colleagues are willing to pay. True leadership always exacts a heavy toll on the whole man, and the more effective the leadership is, the higher the price to be paid." And Charles Spurgeon gives a reason pastors may expect suffering. He says, quote, "It is of need be that we are sometimes in heaviness. Good men are promised tribulation in this world, and ministers may expect a larger share than others; that they may learn sympathy with the Lord's suffering people, and so may be fitting shepherds of an ailing flock." So any pastor that's listening to me today, bear this in mind; you leaders in the church, bear this in mind: this is part of the task of shepherding.

But oh, the joy of shepherding people like you. It has been such a joy. I've been here almost 22 years. What an incredible joy it has been. Now there's been times where I've wanted to shoot myself, I'll admit that. There's been a few times I wanted to shoot a few of you. I mean, that's just kind of how it works. But what a joy to see God's people joyfully submit to leaders so that we can lead with joy, so we don't have that inward groaning. And frankly, when shepherds have to spend a disproportionate amount of time with just a few unruly sheep, or they're trying to protect the flock from maybe a wolf that somehow came in the door - and we've had a few of those before - the whole flock suffers. I remember talking to my brother-in-law, who is a retired public-school teacher. Say no more, right? You know where this is going. I think he was a junior high teacher for like 10 years, and then he was a high school biology teacher for like 20 years before he retired, and I remember him lamenting on numerous occasions that it only takes one or two, as he would put it, "undisciplined, spoiled brats, to absolutely ruin my day and prevent the rest of the class from learning anything." Well, a church is no different. Just a few unruly sheep, or just one wolf, can ruin a church and exhaust a pastor and the elders. It robs them of joy, which will rob you of joy, and then when you put all of this in motion, it's just an avalanche of of sorrow and misery that's all too common in the Christian community. So beloved, let's do all we can to maintain joy in the Lord.

I think of something that I read not too long ago, thinking about joy, which, by the way, comes from abiding in the vine, right? That we read earlier. Jesus says, I want you to abide in me. I want my word to abide in you. I want you to be obedient to my Father's commandment so that that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be made full. I was reading about Robert Robinson. He was the author of the hymn, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" that we sing quite often. And he lost his happy communion with the Savior that he had once enjoyed; and in his declining years, he wandered away into different areas of sin, and as a result, he became deeply troubled in his spirit. And that's what's going to happen with a true believer. The Spirit of God is going to make you miserable. Non-believers, no big deal. Believers - big deal - big problems. And so he decided to travel. And over the course of his journeys, he eventually became acquainted with a young woman who had some spiritual concerns, and she was talking with him and asked if he knew about a certain hymn that she had been reading, and to his astonishment, the hymn that had touched her heart was the hymn that he had written. And the story goes that he began to weep, and with tears streaming down his cheeks, he said, "I am the man who wrote that hymn many years ago, and I'd give anything to experience again, the joy I knew back then." And although the young lady was greatly surprised, she reassured him that the quote, "Streams of mercy,” - remember the streams of mercy in those lyrics - that the streams of mercy mentioned in his song still flowed. Isn't that precious? They still flowed. And the story goes that he was deeply touched and he turned his wandering heart, remember those that phrase? He turned his wandering heart back to the Lord and was restored to fellowship. An amazing testimony.  But beloved, my point with all of this is, let's don't lose our joy. Let's be obedient to the Lord in all things, and certainly that would include being submissive to the leaders that God has placed in authority over you.

And the second thing that he's asking here is, pray for your leaders. Notice verse 18, he says, "Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a good conscience, desiring to conduct ourselves honorably in all things." Now once again, obviously, this writer was a leader in the church. We're not sure who it was. As you may recall, when we first started our study, after weighing all of the evidence, I'm inclined to believe that this was either Barnabas -  who was a Levite and therefore was an Old Testament scholar, and he would, he would have been able to write in the highest form of Greek, which is consistent with the Greek here in Hebrews - or it could have been Apollos, who was also a Jew. Luke described him in Acts 18, verse 24 as, quote, "an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the ways of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus." So we don't know. It may have been somebody else. We just don't know, that's just who I think it perhaps could be. But whoever it was, this man knew the power of prayer, and he longed for the people to pray for him and for the rest of the leaders; and obviously his conscience was clear with respect to his faithfulness in serving Christ and ministering to that particular flock on Christ's behalf.

And I know what that's like. Any of you that have been in leadership in a church understand it, none of us serve perfectly. We all make mistakes. But I can honestly say before the Lord, and I know I speak on behalf of my fellow elders, that we serve faithfully and with utmost love and care for this flock. And with conviction, we can echo Paul's declaration in Second Corinthians one and verse 12, "For our proud confidence is this: the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you." And so folks like this ancient shepherd, whoever he was, I can say to you from the bottom of my heart, pray for me. Pray for the other elders. Pray for the deacons. You know, we're men, just like any of you. We have weaknesses, we struggle with temptation, with sin, we have our blind spots. Just get with Nancy sometimes, she'll tell you, right? We're subject to discouragement, we're prone to fear, to pride, sometimes to stupidity, right guys? And I also know that just speaking for myself, my face is on the most wanted list that's posted in every demonic stronghold in Satan's kingdom of darkness. If you don't believe it, just read some of my emails. Just read some of the death threats. So folks, pray for us as we pray for you.

And may I remind you that we not only live in the realm of Satan - in this world system in opposition to God - but folks, we are actively and aggressively and boldly fighting him and everyone that belongs to him. We are doing all that we can to rescue men and women and boys and girls from his control. Satan knows exactly the best ways to stop us. He knows how to lay his traps of temptation in the well-worn paths of weakness and habitual sin in my life and in your life. And he has hell bent on destroying our testimony, our marriage, our family, our career, our church. Because of this, we must pray.

Remember, Jesus said of Satan that he is a liar. He was a murderer from the beginning. He's the father of lies. He disguises himself as an angel of light. In other words, when you look at him, he is going to be a godly looking man or woman, winsome, charismatic, benevolent and folks, he is absolutely brilliant in his strategies to destroy us and to somehow impose his nefarious plan in such a way as to bring us, literally, to a place of death.

And make no mistake, he's able to use you and me to accomplish his purposes. You think, well, wait a minute, I'm a Christian. How can Satan use me? Do you forget about Peter, who tried to prevent the crucifixion of Christ and Jesus said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan." We can unwittingly become pawns of the very enemy of our souls. Folks, when you combine our innate sinfulness with Satan's power to deceive, I'll tell you, we are, to put it in our vernacular, we're toast, right? We're toast. We have nothing. Our only hope is in Christ. Jesus said, "Apart from Me, you can do nothing." So folks, we're at war. And I want you to remember that every time you walk into this worship center, every time you come onto this campus, know that there's a war going on. The enemy is at work to steal away the seeds of truth. He's doing everything he can, even through some of us, to distract us, to discourage us, to deceive us, to divide us, to conquer us. We know biblically that wherever God has planted wheat, Satan is going to come back and double so, the tares. So folks, we're at war. Remember, he wants to confuse us on two primary issues - and this is the theme in Hebrews - on the issue of revelation and redemption; to get us all confused about those things. He wants to tempt us to begin to think and act like him. And you must remember this when you get in your vehicle to go home today. He wants to destroy your life, your family, your church. You remember this when you go home and you turn on your television or your internet. Know that he is going to use that to accomplish his wicked purposes in your life. Know this when you go to work, when you go to your Wi Fi group, when you go to school. We are at war against the enemy of God and the enemy of our souls and folks, if you don't live in light of this reality, if you somehow just pretend that this is not true, you are making yourself vulnerable to an enemy that is far more wicked and ingenious than you can ever imagine, and you do that to your own peril.

The writer of Hebrews understood this, especially as it related to the leadership of the church. The Apostle Paul understood this as well. This is why he warns us, in Ephesians six, beginning in verse 11, that we are to

"Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places."

And you may recall in Second Corinthians, chapter 10, beginning in verse three, Paul says, "For though we walk in the flesh..." In other words, although we have human limitations, right, "...we do not war according to the flesh..." which, by the way, presupposes the fact that we're at war. But he's saying, "...we don't war according to the flesh for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses." And folks, what are the weapons that God has given us to do battle against the enemy of our souls? The Word and prayer. Remember Ephesians six and verse 17, "...the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God," that's what we use to parry the blows of the enemy. He went on to say and prayer, "With all prayer and petition." Paul says, "Pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf," he says,

"...that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,

"for which I am an ambassador in chains, that in proclaiming it, I may speak boldly as I ought to speak."

There is an apostle who is in a Roman dungeon, filth beyond imagination, and he needs prayer. Paul asked for prayer from the saints in Rome as well, Romans 15, verse 30. He says, "Now I urge you brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me." Striving together carries the idea of a Roman phalanx. Remember when they would lock their shields together? It's the idea of us locking arms together. Let's lock arms together. "Strive with me in your prayers to God for me," he says, "that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the saints."

So folks, this is the great passion here of the writer to the Hebrews. Pray for us, he says. And he says, "And I urge you," verse 19, "all the more to do this, so that I may be restored to you the sooner." Again, apparently, he's about to leave them. We don't know the circumstances. He must have had some type of special needs that required divine intervention; and certainly, he was concerned about the needs for the church, so he's pleading with them to pray for him. So he says, "I urge you all the more to do this."

Five young college students were spending a Sunday in London, and they thought that they would go to hear the famous Charles Spurgeon preach. So they went to the tabernacle where he was, and while they were waiting, suddenly the doors opened and the students were greeted by a man who asked, "Gentlemen, let me show you around." And they thought, "oh, how kind." And he said, "Would you like to see the heating plant of this church?" Well, they weren't particularly interested in seeing the heating plant of the church because it was a hot July day. But they didn't want to offend the stranger, so they consented, and the young men were taken down a stairway and their guide, very quietly, opened a door into a large room, and the guide whispered to them, "This is our heating plant." To their astonishment, there were about 700 people bowed in prayer seeking blessing for the morning service that would soon begin in the auditorium up above. And after softly closing the door, the guide introduced himself, and it was Charles Spurgeon.

Folks, I believe what we need here at Calvary Bible Church is a heating plant. You know, this church has astounding potential - not because of me, not because of you - but because of Christ. And we preach Christ. We're one of the rare churches anywhere around that has such a high view of Scripture and a passion for the Gospel. But I believe what is missing in our church is a dedicated, passionate heating plant. I know many of you pray. I know that I pray, but as I thought about this, I would like for you to consider becoming part of a new heating plant, perhaps here at Calvary Bible Church. I haven't talked to the elders about this. I'm throwing this on them. I'm sure I'm going to hear about this later on. But you know, when you get old, you can do those types of things, right guys? We would need to work out the logistics, but what I would like to see happen here at Calvary Bible Church is for those of you that would like to come here, I don't know, maybe 8:15, or so, we've got rooms here. And I would be willing to give you things to pray for, but just to come together and pray for our church, for not only what happens here on a Sunday morning that goes out all over the world, but everything that goes on during the week. Oh, dear friends, don't underestimate the power of prayer.

You know, we're very serious about the Word - the sword - but we have another weapon at our disposal that I fear we're not using to its full advantage, and that's the weapon of prayer, and we cannot wage effective warfare without both of them. What a testimony that would be to our children. You may not could come every Sunday, maybe just occasionally, but folks, if you're interested in that, please let me know. I'm burdened for this. I'd love to see this type of thing happen. I would love for us to have a heating plant here at Calvary Bible Church.

So let's be faithful in these two congregational duties, okay? What a wonderful exhortation. Let's joyfully submit to the leaders that God has placed in authority over us and then watch them do their service with joy. And then finally, pray for them, knowing that when we do these things, it is pleasing to God and it is profitable to you, amen. Amen. Let's pray together,

Father, thank you for these truths and for the power of your Spirit to bring them to bear upon our hearts. I pray that we will take them very seriously. Thank you for this precious flock. Oh, what a wonderful group of people. Lord, how I love them, and the shepherds love them, and what a joy it is to co-labor for the sake of the kingdom. How exciting it is to see what you've done in the past, what you're doing now, what you're going to do in the future. So Lord, we commit all of these things to you, praying that by the power of your Spirit, we will respond in faith and in obedience that in all things Christ might have the preeminence. For it's in his name that I pray, Amen.