The sermon, titled 'Boast in the Cross, Not In The Flesh' by David Green, focuses on Paul's letter to the Galatians, specifically chapter 6, verses 11-16. The speaker emphasizes that Paul wrote this letter by his own hand to underline its authenticity and urgency. Paul addresses the issue of Judaizers compelling Gentile converts to be circumcised, emphasizing that such rituals are irrelevant for salvation, which is through faith in Christ alone. The sermon highlights that boasting should only be in the cross of Christ, not in legalistic practices or outward appearances. Paul argues that the new creation in Christ, not adherence to the law, is what matters for salvation. The speaker warns against legalism, emphasizing that salvation is a gift from God, not earned by works or rituals. The sermon concludes by encouraging believers to glory in Jesus and the cross, rather than in fleshly accomplishments or traditions.

Y'all pray for me. Anyway Galatians chapter 6 and And we were going to be Almost Finishing up the chapter and the book today. We're not going to quite get through it, but we're going to get close. We're going to read as our text verses 11 through 16 this evening. So Galatians 6 beginning verse 11 11, going down to verse 16.

See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand. As many as are wanting to make a good showing in the flesh, these are trying to compel you to be circumcised, simply so they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. For those who are circumcised do not even keep the law themselves, they want to have you circumcised so that they may boast in your flesh. But may it never be that I would boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world for neither is circumcision anything nor uncircumcision but a new creation Those who will walk in step with this rule, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God. Let's again go to the Lord in prayer.

Our Father in heaven, we are thankful for your blessings. We thank you for your word, the truthfulness of it. Lord, even now as we continue in worship, Lord, I pray that you'll open our hearts and our minds. Clear those things from our minds that may distract us and Lord help us to be able to have what you would have for us. Lord, speak to us through your word.

Be receptive to those things that you would have us to receive. And Lord, I pray that you'd help us to grow. Lord, that your people be strengthened and edified and even encouraged this evening. Those who know you not that today may be the day that they come to know you as their Savior and Lord I pray that you'll be with us be with those that have requested prayer. Lord, I pray that you'll be with my aunt Connie this evening.

Lord, I pray that you'll guide the doctors as they work with her. I pray that you'll be with Brother Sam's friend Eli. Lord, I ask that you'll be with others. Their health, their other situations that are going on. Lord, you know, even unspoken requests May be on our hearts and our minds Lord.

I pray you'll just be with each one of us Lord You know it's better than we know ourselves I pray that you'll forgive us for our sins and our shortcomings Forts in Jesus, and then we pray amen As we continue on in our study here in Galatians, we're getting close to the end of this of this epistle this this letter that he wrote verse 11 paul brings attention to them and reminds them that This has been written by his own hand. You know these these letters these epistles these These things would have originally perhaps been written in a scroll format You can imagine maybe as I do as they were opened up, you know at the very beginning of the of the epistle at the very beginning of the letter as they opened it up they could see it was written by Paul you know there in verse 1 Paul an apostle chapter 1 verse 1 Paul an apostle not sent from men or through man, but through Jesus Christ. And so when they opened that up, they could see that and they could read that. And now as they're getting to the end of it, And they've got some good instruction, they've got some hard truth that he's given to them.

Paul draws attention to them, to remind them that it was indeed written by his own hand. I believe he was doing this so that they would be reminded of the genuineness that he had in writing this letter. He didn't use a scribe. He didn't have a secretary write this. It This was genuinely Paul's letter.

There are many theories about this. One commentator wrote that some have conjectured that he was not accustomed to writing Greek, so that his characters would have been largely and rudely formed, very different than the neat manuscripts of the others. It's been supposed also that at the time of his conversion, when he was struck to the ground. You remember there at the road to Damascus when he was saved that he was partially paralyzed and his eyesight may have been impaired. His nerves shaken to such a degree that it made him unfit for writing and it may have harmed his eyesight.

And Be that what it may, whatever the case may be, it was apparently his custom, and this is one of the earlier of his inspired letters, but it may have been his custom to dictate his epistles. Go with me to Romans chapter 16 for instance. Romans chapter 16 and verse 22. You can hold your place there in Galatians if you haven't already done that. But look there in Romans chapter 16 and verse 22 there's a little nugget that sometimes gets missed in this letter from Paul here to the church or churches of Rome.

Romans 16 and verse 22 it says, I, Turchius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord. That's kind of interesting, isn't it? So we know the the Book of Romans, this epistle, was written by Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, but here it says, Turchius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord. He apparently spoke, and this man wrote what Paul said. Over in 2 Thessalonians chapter 3, 2 Thessalonians chapter 3.

Verse 17, 2 Thessalonians chapter 3 in verse 17 it says the greeting is in my own hand Paul which is a distinguishing mark in every letter, this is the way I write. Paul apparently had a postscript that authenticated his letters with his own hand. He wrote something in the letter to authenticate that it was really coming from him. Over in 1 Corinthians chapter 16, we're going through the Letter to the church at Corinth and maybe in about six years. We'll get to chapter 16 Probably not that long, but hey you know I'm always fascinated with those preachers who can say we're planning for 2025 and we're gonna have this many sermons on this book and and we'll be done with it in this year.

I'm not that good at planning ahead. I start a book and think well maybe I'll finish in a year it might be three years but in 1st Corinthians chapter 16 and verse 21 It says this, the greeting is in my own hand, Paul, remember my chains grace be with you. Well, what am I pointing out here? Well, I'm pointing out that in these postscripts, he's authenticating it. He didn't write the whole thing.

He didn't pin it. It would seem as though He is giving his own signature, so to speak, if you want to think of it that way, in order to let the reader know, the original recipients to know that this is really his. And so that is pretty interesting, but in this letter to the churches of Galatia, it is so severe, such a pressing issue, so urgent in its topics, in its content, that Paul wrote the entire thing. He didn't dictate it to somebody else. He sat down and he pinned the entire thing.

That's what it seems to me is going on here. And so that's something that you might miss just reading through Paul's epistles. But We see as you read through this and as we've studied this together that this was a very urgent issue to him and of course the entirety of the Gospel was the problem. The doctrine of justification by faith essentially not only were these doctrines, these foundational doctrines, but also the lives of those in Galatia. Because if you don't have the gospel right, then people, lost people, will think that they're saved.

You'll have people who are coming into the churches thinking that because they've been circumcised they're going to heaven without Jesus Christ. And that's a problem. That's an eternal problem. And Paul knew that. And so he sat down and wrote this letter.

In fact, when you look at your New Testament, you read through it, understand that the order of the books is not the order in which they were written. So James and Galatians are the two earliest books of the New Testament. And when you read through the book of Acts, you read and you understand and you see that there were things that were happening within those churches and this is why Paul was writing this. Anyway verse 12 in Galatians chapter 6 and verse 12, he says, As many as are wanting to make good showing in the flesh, these are trying to compel you to be circumcised, simply so they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. Their focus, those who had hijacked true Christianity, those who had come in and begun teaching this perverted gospel, these Judaizers that had come in, they were focused on the outward life.

They were focused on outward things rather than an internal change. They were not focused on Jesus Christ. And so outward life was their focus and Paul calls it the flesh. Ritualism in tradition was what this was all about. And so, these Judaizers, they said, well, we're Jews.

We were circumcised at a very young age. Now there's Gentiles being saved and wanting to join the church. They were then compelling or trying to trying to make to make the Gentiles to be circumcised as well. Make that a gospel issue. Telling them that without it there's no salvation.

Telling them that without it there's no salvation. Telling them that without it there's no justification. That without circumcision there's no sanctification. All this was happening so that they could avoid the persecution that comes to those who forsake the law of Moses to follow Christ. They feared men rather than God.

You've seen it all come down to things like this. Well I'm a Jew, now I'm saved, and I'm a member of this church. We're over here, and I mean it sounds silly to us, but it's a reality. Now I'm over here in this church, this new concept that my Jewish family don't have any idea about. We're over here, we're doing things like sitting down to a meal with pork chops you know and my family's over here and they're they don't like it very much and I'm over here hanging out with some Gentiles in the same church, they're uncircumcised, and all of these things.

And so now Paul is saying, here in verse 12, as many as are wanting to make a good showing in the flesh these are trying to compel you to be circumcised simply so they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. Now they don't have to say to their friends hey my church I don't know what the churches are doing down the road over in Corinth or up in Ephesus or whatever, but my church, the church where I'm at, they got to be they got to be circumcised, you see. We're not gonna forsake Moses. Paul says, in verse 13, again, he's writing under inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He's not just making these things up off the top of his head, but he says, for those who are circumcised, do not even keep the law themselves, but they want to have you circumcised so that they may boast in your flesh." He says these are not keeping the law themselves.

They're not zealous keepers of the law like they may make it out to be. They're pretenders, they're hypocrites. They're only wishing to boast in the flesh of the Gentiles. These would be converts not to Christ, but to Judaism. You see, they've missed the point of Christianity.

And a Christless Christianity is not Christianity at all. And so it is in our day. There are countless churches all up and down and all around our world. They're more interested in the outward flesh, more interested in the show, whatever it may be. People joining their church, their cause, their circle, whatever their pet doctrine is, then they are about following Christ.

It's not enough for them that a person is a follower of Christ if they're not in whatever bubble that they have. In fact, for these folks, if a person was a follower of Christ and not circumcised, there was no rejoicing. The circumcision became where the rejoicing was at. And so it is with some people. If you don't have the baptism, if you don't have the name right, if you don't have this right or that right, the right length of hair, the right dress, the right this or that.

Legalism is a terrible thing. It will either make you very arrogant or crush you so hard. Get them circumcised, get them baptized, get them to join the church, to read the books, to join the circle, to glory in the flesh. But, oh beloved, all these things have their place and they are important, But Christ must be first and foremost, you see. Christ has got the behind lifted up above everything else.

And in fact, when we look at the text and in the context, we know. And even medical profession will tell you there's a good reason to be circumcised. And in its proper place, circumcision was good. Paul even took Timothy and had him circumcised, but he wouldn't tie this. And he knew that this was wrong.

Paul says in verse 14, But May it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. May it never be that I would boast. Oh beloved, the law is good. God's Word is good in all of these things that I've mentioned. Baptism, the church, the books, all of these things.

Proper dress is good, but may it never be that I would boast, save, accept in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. I love this verse. I've preached from it multiple times. I've been preaching for well since I started when I was 16 17 years old so it's been a while And right away you notice that in the King James it reads, But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world. Similarly in the King James, other passages read very very similar.

In Romans chapter 3 for instance. Romans chapter 3 in verse 4. Here in the legacy standard it says, may it never be, rather let God be true and every man a liar. As it is written, that you may be justified in your words and overcome when you are judged. In the King James it says, God forbid, yea let God be true but every man a liar.

Chapter 3 and verse 6 here, LSB says, may it never be for otherwise how will God judge the world? The King James says, God forbid, for then how shall God judge the world? While we're here in chapter 3 verse 31, do we then abolish the law through faith? May it never be. On the contrary, we establish the law.

But in the King James it says, Do we then make void to law through faith? God forbid, yea we establish the law. There are several examples just like this. I bring this up because of the difference here. It is a difference and it does come up.

Paul used this phrase multiple times. Interesting in the Greek. In the Greek, there's no, nowhere did Paul use the word God. That intrigued me because, like I said, I'm very familiar with this verse in verse 14. Dealing with this issue, James White in his book, The King James Only Controversy, he wrote, the Greek text nowhere has the word God in any of these passages.

Instead, Paul is providing a very strong statement of denial. May it never be or by no means. And while God forbid surely is a strong negative statement, it is hardly an accurate translation of the Greek phrase Paul used with such frequency. Surely White goes on to write, if a modern translation used a similar phrase, KJVO advocates would jump on it immediately and with unparalleled fervor. Now I'm not picking on King James here, but I'm just pointing this out because when you come across it, you may know what's going on.

Paul did use this multiple times. What were the King James translators doing? Were they wrong? No. They were just taking, when they saw that Greek phrase there they said this is a very strong phrase Paul is saying no way Jose it ain't gonna happen right and they said what's the strongest way we can put this?

And they said, God forbid. And that's what they put in the English in their translation. The expression, may it never be, is always employed by the apostle to declare his horror, as one as one author put it, or repugnance to some doctrine or act. And so here in Galatians chapter 6 and verse 14, may it never be that I would boast God forbid over my dead body. You know, this is the thought in glorying in anything save in the cross of Jesus Christ is represented as something that is shocking to his mind.

And so when you read through the writings of Paul, You see this phrase used over and over. I mean we saw it in Romans but it's repeated several times in Romans, it's repeated in 1st Corinthians, it's repeated In Galatians a few times we've come across it, but I mention it because These things come across and people scratch their heads and say why is it different? Why is it a different translation? Why does it look different? This is why this is why May it never be that we would glory.

You know, When Paul had this idea, may it never be that I would boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. By the cross of Christ, he did not mean some trinket on a piece of jewelry. He didn't mean something hung on the wall. He didn't mean some piece of wood that came from the Middle East. No, no.

He certainly means the propitiary death of the Redeemer. That's what he was going in. The death of Christ. He was ready to glory and exalt forever in that and nothing else. In that was to be found pardon and peace, victory over sin, and eternal life in the age to come.

Over in 1 Corinthians chapter 1. 1st Corinthians chapter 1 verses 27 through 29 we read this not too long ago on the Lord's day, but look at it here with me as he said, But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world, and the despised. God has chosen the things that are not, so that he may abolish the things that are so that no flesh may boast before God. We really have nothing whereof we can boast.

You and I, we have we have nothing. Our pedigree, we've got a great pedigree. Our ancestry, I'm sure we all have good ancestry. Our baptism, our church, our keeping of the law, our Bibles, our whatever it may be, we have nothing we're of to boast. In fact, where are we?

Regardless of where we think we are, we are. Well, let's just think about this for a moment. Where were we when the Lord found us? We weren't... We weren't sick and doing our best.

We were not dying but trying to hold on. No, no. We were dead and in need of life. And even now, even now, we're nothing before God. He's the hero.

Over in Ephesians chapter 2 Ephesians chapter 2 beginning verse 1 beginning verse 1 and you were dead in your transgressions and sins in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all also formerly conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, among the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ. By grace you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus so that in ages to come he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and Kindness toward us in Christ Jesus for by grace you have been saved through faith and this not of yourselves It is the gift of God not of work so that no one may boast For we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

You and I, We have nothing whereof we could boast. God is the hero of our story. It's by His grace, His mercy, where we are today. It was the same with Paul, And it's the same with us. And when he says, there in Galatians chapter 6 and verse 14, But may it never be that I would boast, Except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, We ought to say the same thing.

He says, through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. What's he mean there? Well, it was through the death of Christ on the cross that Paul felt himself to be dead to the world, the world dead to him. By this double expression, He sought to emphasize his utter abandonment of sinful aims, his separation from all that does not belong to Christ, his indifference and even opposition to every ceremony, every sin that turned him away from the Lord Jesus Christ. He wasn't interested in this Judaism, this Legalism, this circumcision which took away the glory from the Lord Jesus Christ.

No, He wasn't going to have anything to do with it. In fact, as he writes on, he says in verse 15, For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. Jew, Gentile, circumcised, uncircumcised, Beloved, it doesn't matter one way or another. Without Christ, you're nothing. If it doesn't matter one way or another, then why was he so opposed to it?

Some people might argue and say well if it doesn't matter then why not let the church of Galatia go for it? Why not allow those churches? They're independent if they want to go on and have these things then why not let them? Why does he want to get involved? The reason, beloved, is because they were elevating it to a point that it became divisive, that it became an issue of salvation, that it became an issue of justification, that it became an issue of sanctification.

And because they elevated it to that point, that's why he was opposed to it. And so it is. Anything that gets elevated to that point, it must be opposed. It has to be opposed. And legalism can take and make anything wrong and bad.

It is indeed a great thing to teach and preach baptism, to teach and preach modesty, to teach and preach fill in the blank. But when you take that and elevate it and make it into something like what they were doing here, it's wrong, you see. Here. It's wrong, you see. Lord willing, After we complete this study of Galatians, I want to go all the way back to Genesis.

Genesis is a very important book of the Bible to study. I believe Genesis is to be taken literally. I believe that God created this world in six literal days. I believe that That happened about 6, 000 years ago. But it would be wrong of me, very wrong of me, to take that and to say, if you don't believe this, you're not going to heaven.

It would be wrong of me to take that and to make it an issue of salvation or justification. Good men have disagreed on this subject, even some good men that we know. Oscar Mink, Milburn Cockrell, A.W. Pink, just to name a few. Do you see?

We could say, well, even baptism, we believe that in order to be baptized, You need to be immersed. There are groups out there today who have taken baptism by immersion and they said well in order to be Saved you've got to be immersed That's wrong Dead wrong There was a reason why God told the Jews that they needed to be circumcised, But it was never in order to be saved. When Yahweh told those Old Testament Jews that they needed to be circumcised, it was never in order that they would be saved. And these Judaizers had taken that, and they had gotten the wrong idea about it. Paul says, for neither circumcision anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creation those who are who are Whether you're circumcised or uncircumcised you've got to know the Lord.

You've got to be saved in Jesus Christ And he says in those verse 16 those who will walk in step with this rule, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God. The Israel of God. Everyone who walks like this to the end, peace be to them in mercy. That walk in step from Greek word, I'm not even going to try to pronounce it because I'm terrible with Greek. However, it was used earlier in Galatians chapter 5 in verse 25.

Galatians 5 in verse 25. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk in step with the Spirit." So you see there as the translators took this and they translated that walk in step in verse 25 they did the same here in chapter 6 and verse 16. Paul used the same words in both of those passages. There he was encouraging believers to walk in conformity to the standard of living defined by the Spirit and His fruit in their life. And here in chapter 6, Paul uses it in similar fashion to encourage the Galatians to conform to the principles of boasting only in the cross of Christ and the new creation that Christ brings about.

He says, those who walk in step with this rule, this rule of neither circumcision nor uncircumcision. It's not for salvation. It's not for justification. It's not for sanctification. Those who walk in step with this rule of a new life, peace and mercy.

Peace. Does this mean when you're saved that everything's going to be peaceful, smooth sailing, no rough waters. No, not at all. In fact, in fact, you only have to know the Lord for just a few minutes before you find out there's still trouble. There's still trouble, but let me tell you, better to have trouble in this life the Lord be with you all the way dying going to heaven and to go through life without the Lord, have trouble, and then die and go to hell.

And that's the reality. What's he talking about, peace, then? Well, in Romans chapter 5, Romans chapter 5, In verse 1, notice his wording here. Romans chapter 5 in verse 1. Therefore, having been justified through circumcision, no, not at all.

Therefore, having kept the law perfectly, we have peace with God." No, that's not what he says either. He says, therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. He goes on to say, through whom? Also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand and we boast in hope of the glory of God." What's he talking about peace then? He's talking about our relationship with God.

It's not about you, your ability to keep the law, it's not about your circumcision, it's not about whether you've got everything lined up perfectly. What a terrible thing that would be. Lay down in night and think, well I hope I've got, I hope I, I hope I did this right, I hope I did that right, I hope I, I hope I've kept this law right and done this right, and what about this and that? That would be a terrible way to go through life. I rest at night on the finished work of Jesus Christ.

That's my hope. That's my peace. Romans chapter 8 and verse 6. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace. Oh beloved, we have peace with God because of what Jesus has done, because we're safe and secure in Christ.

It's not about the works of the flesh, it's not about circumcision, it's not about, did you get this checkbox done, that check, check, check, check, No, no, no. It's what He has done in mercy. He says, peace in mercy be upon them. Mercy the forgiveness of sins. Not just some sins, but all sins.

But not only that, this includes the setting aside of God's judgment. Over in Titus chapter 3. Titus chapter 3, verse 5. Verse 5. He saved us not by works which we did in righteousness, but according to His mercy, through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that having been justified by His grace we would become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

You see, He saved us not by works that we've done but according to His mercy. What a joy it is to have a God, to have a heavenly father. You think of it this way. It's not like some religions. We do something wrong, you think, oh no, I hope my dad don't kill me.

We do something wrong. He's faithful and just to forgive us, you see. That's what we're dealing with here. This is the God that we serve. This is not the God of legalism that we serve, not the God that says you've got to do this this and this You see For neither is circumcision anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creation Those who will walk in step with this rule peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God." What's he mean the Israel of God?

What's that all about? Well I'll tell you, I'll tell you something about this. This is so cool because here's these Judaizers. They come into the churches of Galatia and they said, You're not in the kingdom. You're not in...you're not part of God's family, unless you've been circumcised like Abraham was, like Moses was.

If you're not following the law of Moses, you're not good enough." And so they took the old covenant law and they said, we're gonna add some stuff to it and this is what we've made as our church rules. God's Word says, hold on a second, God says, time out, time out. It ain't circumcision that gets you in heaven. The Israel of God is all Jewish believers in Christ. Actually, all believers in Christ.

Those who are physical and spiritual descendants of Abraham. You see, go with me to Romans chapter 2. Let me show you this. Romans chapter 2. Two.

We kind of bring this to a close. Verses 28 and 29. For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is that which is of the heart by the Spirit not by the letter and his praise is not from men but from God. The Judaizer comes along he says all right I'll let the Jews in but you've got to be circumcised and you got to be circumcised and you got to be circumcised, because you're a gentile, and guess who gets the praise for that?

God doesn't. The flesh gets the praise. The legalist has the said rules and says you've got to do this, you've got to do that, you've got to have have this and that and you've got to follow these rules and that it's all extra biblical and hold up a second what does God say God says it's inward it's the heart It's inward. It's the heart. Circumcision is of the heart.

God says, men. In the case of the Jews, many of them got very very arrogant, and indeed some of them are still very arrogant. Not all of them are saved, and not all of them are going to heaven. It was not ever their circumcision that made them right with Yahweh. The Judaizers had it all wrong.

It's the cross. It always was the cross. It's always Jesus. Don't glory in the flesh. Regardless of whether it's the keeping of the law, the holding on to traditions, or whatever it may be.

Glory in the cross. Jesus is the one who has brought us all together, and that's the message that Paul had for them. Circumcision or uncircumcision, it doesn't do anything. It's the cross. Jesus is the one who gets all the glory.

He's the one who gets all the praise. He's the reason why we go on to be with the Lord. If you're here today, whether you're Jew or Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, He's the reason why we have a hope in heaven. He's the reason why we'll go on to be with the Lord. Don't glory in the flesh.

Glory in Jesus. And if you're lost today, if you don't have any idea, If you've never trusted in Jesus, He's the one that we point to. And when we talk about the cross, understand something. The cross is empty. Jesus died.

He was buried, but the tomb is empty as well, because He rose again, conquering death, hell, and the grave and he's alive right now and make an intercession for his people in one of these days he's coming back for us I point you to him It's the only hope that we have. And so trust him. Trust him. Believe in him. May God add the blessing to the preaching of his Word.

Let's have a time of prayer and then we'll dismiss. I believe there might be some brownies too, right Leah? Okay, so there's some brownies afterwards if you want to stay and fellowship for a little bit. It's been good to see everybody here. I'll ask Brother Barry if you'll start us out, and then Brother Sam, and then Isaiah, and then I'll close.