In his sermon, Scott Brown emphasizes the importance of gatherings like the upcoming Making Disciples Conference, reflecting on his experiences in the 1980s with the Congress on Biblical Exposition (Cove). Key figures such as R.C. Sproul, John MacArthur, and Ray Stedman played pivotal roles in inspiring a new generation of expository preachers. Brown highlights the critical need to raise a new generation of preachers who hold fast to biblical doctrine amidst a modern church that often prioritizes cultural relevance over scriptural truth. He compares doctrinalists, who adhere strictly to doctrine, with culturalists, who adapt to societal trends. The sermon underscores the importance of the authoritative preaching of God's Word as the foundation for the Church's distinctiveness and safety. Brown also stresses the need for young men to step up and carry the torch of expository preaching, ensuring the continuity of sound doctrine for future generations.

So it's really important that we have gatherings like this. It's exceedingly important. And that idea really takes me back to my youth when I was in my 20s, late 20s as a young pastor. There were particular men who were inspiring a new generation to do expository preaching and They organized a conference series called Cove C-o-b-e the Congress on biblical exposition. Do you remember that Steve?

You missed it this yes exactly, that's right. This is very... Part of that with you. We'll cut your time short. We control the microphones, brother.

So it was R.C. Sproul and John MacArthur and Ray Stedman and a few others were conducting these conferences on expository preaching. If I remember correctly, they were quite large, and there was a whole new generation of young guys like me. Now I went to Talbot Seminary, I'd just gotten out of Talbot Seminary there and John MacArthur was there just you know 15 years before that or 10 years or something like that and their objective at that seminary was to train Bible expositors with a pastor's heart that's what they wanted to do and so in that whole environment was right it was right at the end of the Jesus movement We were there we saw that you should listen to Steve's interview that we did with him on his life story and we're bantering back and forth about About what happened during those days because Steve is a little bit older than I am actually just barely though just barely I'm catching up I'm 70 okay okay you can you can listen You can listen to his life story and you can... Did you say how old you were there?

No, we were just talking. Yeah, yeah. No, I just turned 73 last week. See? Yeah.

There you go. But you know what's interesting at this, you know, we're getting ready to have our Making Disciples Conference. Uh-huh. Most of the preachers are 25 years younger than us, which is really encouraging. They're probably more than 25 years younger than we are.

Yeah, no, and to me that's thrilling. But here's what happened in the 1980s with Cove, with the Congress for Biblical Exposition. I was one of those young guys in the audience being taught by John MacArthur and R.C. Sproul and Ray Stedman, who really was one of the great expositors of the 20th century. And I used to read all of his sermons, but it's critical that we raise up a new generation of expository preachers.

Steve is the man of the hour for that. I think Steve and John MacArthur are probably the only guys who are really doing this. Only this hour. Only this hour. Only for 60 minutes.

So, but I'm, hey, I'm just saying that to declare how grateful I am that Steve is carrying on a torch he didn't even know that was passed to him by these great men, you know, who are now, you know, going to be passing from the scene. Some have already passed from the scene. Ray Steadman is dead, so is RC Spro. Yeah. Yeah.

I just spent last week with McArthur and we played golf. Fantastic. And he told me, he said, this is my last round of golf he said I can't physically I just can't go anymore right and I said center I played the last round of golf with RC and and so anyway I took a little picture of him on his last shot. Oh, man. Isn't that something?

Yeah. I should have played golf with you. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. Thank you, brother. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

Thank you. Clarity, clarity from the peanut gallery. Hey, I can get this at home, okay? I don't have to be on the road to get this. Oh my.

Well. That's really funny. And frankly, you know, the conference that we have coming up, this Making Disciples conference, Steve will be preaching really about making disciples through preaching and applying the Great Commission. But this conference is a preaching conference. I hope you're signed up.

I know you're, I'm so glad you're here for this conference, but you'll hear some of the great preachers, some of my favorite preachers. They're gonna preach to whole families, large families, small families, but lots of kids are going to be in the room. Steve's going to be preaching to an average age of probably 22 maybe. I don't know what the average age is exactly, but praise the Lord. There are going to be old people and young people in that audience.

We're also having a singles conference that starts this evening. What we found over the years is we'd look around, there'd be all kinds of adult singles, and we really wanna encourage them to squeeze every ounce of good out of their single years and to walk in holiness before the Lord. But this, what we're doing here is really to defend the Church of Jesus Christ and the failure to hold the word of God in high regard is the greatest danger to the Church of Jesus Christ. And that's really Steve's life message and calling. But the greatest safety always has been and always will be the sound of the voice of God in the pulpit.

And when you consider the difference between the voice of authority of the Puritan preachers and their successors and the weak voice of the modern church where men would rather major on smiling and making every everybody happy. This is a great tragedy. The Word of God needs to be declared and Steve is here to help us declare it. One last thought. I was listening to some men talk about what happened to the Young Restless in Reform movement, many of these men falling away and probably never really embraced reform theology.

They were sort of bits and pieces of it. But these brothers were talking about what happened, and I was struck by what they said. I think you'll relate to this. One of the brothers said that there are two kinds of preachers and there are two kinds of churches. There are the doctrinalists and there are the culturalists.

And we're the doctrinalists. The doctrinalists hold fast to the doctrine. The culturalists move with the culture. But the Church of Jesus Christ is always and only protected to the degree that it maintains its distinctiveness in the world. And that distinctiveness is maintained by the preaching of the Word of God that's applicable.

And so I'm so glad that you're here. I wish there were more young men. I wish there were more men in their 20s here in this room just like I was back in you know back in the in the early 1980s hearing these great expositors. So the baton is being passed brother you're the man. Who's gonna replace you?

You're so old now. I don't. You know, you've probably got, you're pretty energetic. You've probably got another 10, 15 years left, don't you think? Yeah, I'm counting on it.

I really am. Hey, let's go for it. Yeah, yeah. I had my heart examined not long ago and they said, wow, you've got the heart of a 40-year-old. They said, you must have played sports and I said, yeah, football, basketball, baseball, ran track.

So I'm counting on long haul. That's great. Well, it's good to have the heart of a 40-year-old and the face of Steve Lawson. Oh, no, I need to pray. Sorry.

Father, We're just so grateful for what we're about to hear. To be encouraged to do what is good in your sight. To be encouraged to uphold the only truth that is capable of saving a soul for all eternity. Oh, God, pray that you'd bless. Steve, help us.

Help us to grasp every good thing take it with us and Raise up a mighty army of preachers who would defend the greatest and sweetest and most wonderful message of the gospel. Amen.