Good morning. It is an incredible privilege and honor for me to be back here in our home church, our ascending church, to see that I don't recognize over half of you. And we praise the Lord for his growth and the way that he's been working here over the past four years since we've been in Ecuador. I want to invite you in your Bibles to the book of 3 John. Don't miss it, it's easy to miss. Maybe those pages in your Bible are still stuck together. In my Bible, 2nd and 3rd John are just one page, both sides. Those small? I believe this text is going to give us some keen insight into the life of the body of Christ, into the life of missionary work, and the partnership that missionaries and churches have together. We're going to focus our attention on verses 5 to 8, but I'm going to read from verse 1. The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth, Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health as it goes well with your soul. For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are. who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore, we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth. Let us pray. Oh Lord, we thank you for your grace that we do not deserve. This incredible privilege of knowing you. Oh Lord, what things in this world could we glory in, could we rejoice in more than this? That we know you and that we are known by you. And that you have brought us into fellowship with yourself and you have even included us in partnership with you. So let me work together for your glory the advance of your kingdom, the salvation of your chosen people, and the blessing of your saints. O Lord, use this text this morning to encourage your people to have a perspective on their lives, on eternity, that would fuel them in everyday life, and that you might help us to walk in unity and in partnership and in true fellowship as we serve you and your kingdom. In Christ's name. Amen. Sorry for the little bit of echo there, but I want to encourage you this morning with this text. And first of all, I want to say that there are no small Christians. There are no small Christians. As a missionary and serving in missionary service for about almost 10 years, about nine years, I have heard many times people say things like this. If only I had the opportunity, if only I had the gifts to serve the Lord like you do. You get to go out and you are serving the Lord, and you're so clearly serving the Lord. I wish I could serve the Lord like that. I wish I could have a life, in other words, I wish I could have a life that was as important for the kingdom of God as yours. But this has always saddened me. It's always given me a heavy heart to think about how people think of their role in the church, their role in the body of Christ, and the fact that they are placed there by God, brought into partnership with him for his glory and the good of others. So I want to encourage you with this passage that gives us a perspective on every individual in the church. And that the mission of the church does not start nor stop with the pastors and preachers and missionaries. But it is a work in which every member of the body is included. And in fact, I want to give you an even bigger perspective than that. Because we can start thinking about this, the mission of God, the faithful, the work of God, the advance of His kingdom, we should start in eternity past. Before the foundation of the world, the Father, Son, and Spirit planned a perfect plan of redemption, covenanted together in order to redeem a chosen people that the Father had given to His Son. And in time, The Father revealed this work, gave types and shadows and promises of the coming of His Son, who would secure this people and redeem them from sin and the curse. And then, in the fullness of time, He sent that Son, anointed by the Holy Spirit, conceived of the Holy Spirit, to come to live as men, to live in this body, to live among us. to suffer so that he might know our suffering, to die so that he might die our death, carry our sins, and save our souls. And then he ascended and sat on the right hand of the Father. And he and the Father have sent to his church the Holy Spirit to fill his people, to sanctify and regenerate his people, to resurrect their souls and preserve them and seal them unto the end. And this work of the Holy Spirit, of saving souls, of expanding the church, of bringing souls to Christ, is a work that He has included the saints. He has included us, the people of God, in this incredible work, this incredible plan of redemption that began in the eternity past. We are not only the wonderful beneficiaries of this plan, But in God's infinite grace and mercy and through the power of the Holy Spirit, we become co-laborers with Him. Co-laborers together and co-laborers with God. Wow! Maybe as a child, You enjoyed going out to work with your father. I remember my dad, he used to work on cars and sometimes we would, maybe you don't know this about him, but sometimes we would go out on Saturdays and go to the racetrack and he'd race one of his cars that he had. And going out there and helping him, finding the tools, was always a special time to be with dad, to work with him, to get to know him, to enjoy something that he enjoys and learn from what he knows. But what an incredible thing that we get to be children who work alongside of our Heavenly Father. He's included us in this work. And that's what I want to present you from this text this morning, that we are fellow laborers for the truth, fellow laborers with God and for God. In this passage, in this short little book, We have an incredible perspective that John gives us on the life of the body. This letter written by John is one of two that he is writing to a member of a local congregation, maybe a leader, a gaius, we're not exactly sure what his role was, but we know that he was active in receiving men and others and Christians who had gone out from other churches and were serving Christ. There were a type of itinerant missionary preachers who would go around and would maybe go to new cities like Paul did, to try to plant churches, ordain elders, to preach the gospel of the good news of Christ. And there were certain men who had come to Gaius. Maybe they had come from John's church, and they went to Gaius' church, and Gaius received them in his home. He received them, he loved them, he helped them. And John here is giving him encouragement to continue doing that. And in fact, he's encouraging him and praising him because he's already heard that he has been doing it. He's received report from those brothers that had returned back maybe to their sending church to say, look how God has received us, how he attended us, how he cared for us, how he loved us. And so this is a wonderful passage here that shows us the glory of being supporters of missionaries, the requirements for missionaries, and the nature of their partnership. So let's look at that first point that we see in verse 5 and 6, the encouragement for supporters. And I say this to you as our supporters to encourage you, to praise you in a similar way as what John is doing to Gaius. I rejoice to hear that you are walking in truth, I love to hear the work of how God is working in your midst, how souls are being saved, new Christians are being baptized, and new members are added to the church. I rejoice to hear of men being trained for ministry, for a new church plant that is going on. I praise the Lord to hear that the gospel is prospering among you. And he praises Gaius in several ways. First he says, beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers. John praises Gaius saying that this is an evidence of faithfulness. This type of receiving, supporting, encouraging these men who have gone out for the sake of Christ is a witness to his faithfulness. The fact that he is genuine. That he truly loves the Lord, and he has truly believed the gospel because it is evidencing itself in his life. It is evidencing itself in the way that he is treating others. It is a faithful thing, and that's important for the letters of John. Because if you've read 1 John, maybe you've read 2 and 3 John, but most of us have probably read 1 John, but he has a clear emphasis on the fact that the truth that we believe, the gospel that we confess, should have fruit in our lives, should evidence itself. Because what does he say in 1 John 1? If we say that we know him, he who is light, in whom is no darkness whatsoever. If we say that we know him, but yet we walk in darkness, What? We're liars, and the truth is not in us. Because it is that fruit, that evidence, that manifests that it is genuine what we believe. And so here he's pointing out the fruit of his hospitality, of his love towards these brothers, and saying, this is a faithful thing. John, in all three of his letters, has two terms that summarize the Christian life. Truth and love. Truth and love. It's similar to what the Apostle Paul says whenever he summarizes the Christian life in Ephesians chapter four, verse 15, whenever he says that we should be speaking the truth to one another in love. Truth and love. And this is constant throughout the letter of John. You hear, beloved, I love you in truth, he says in verse one. And he says, I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. Or in 2 John, he says, the elder to the elect lady and her children whom I love in truth. And not only I, but all those who know the truth. Because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever. Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father's Son in truth and love. These are key ideas for John, and they are here, the evidence in the fact that Gaius is receiving these brothers who've gone out for the sake of Christ, receiving these missionaries, receiving other believers into his home and loving them. This is an evidence of faithfulness. And note one of the evidences, or one of the realities that shows that even more. He says, strangers as they are. These were not friends of guys, these were not people that he knew, oh, these people are gonna be able to offer me something, give me something in return. These were people that simply were sent by John, he heard the testimony that John had given of them, and he rejoicingly received them into his home. He didn't know them, he had no prior relationship with them, but simply received them upon the word of John. Though they were strangers. This is a beautiful idea that the Bible tells us, in many cases, the importance of receiving strangers such as this. People who have the testimony, have a good testimony, but though we might not know them. Think about Hebrews chapter 13, whenever it says, do not neglect hospitality and showing love towards others, because some, doing so, have entertained angels, though they were unaware of it. And I think there, the author of Hebrews is referring to the story of Abraham. I'm going to return to this later, but Abraham in Genesis chapter 18, he's out in the field sitting underneath the tree in the mountaintops one day. And then all of a sudden three men walk up and he, quick, let's kill a calf, let's prepare some cakes, let's make some food for them, let's receive them and love them. And the patriarchs left this indelible mark in the life of Israel of the importance of hospitality. The importance of receiving, even though these men at first were strangers, but later he found out that they were angels of God, and even one of them is identified as God himself. And I think, keep that idea in your mind, because it's going to come up here in a moment. Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, who testified to your love before the church." So apparently these brothers who had been sent out by maybe John's local church, went to Gaius, maybe went to a few other places, and then returned back to John. and gave public report of how it went in the other churches, how the other churches had received them. And they gave testimony of his truth and of his love. Here in verse six it says, who testified to your love, but in verse three it says, for I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in truth. Here, sorry, verse six, who testified to your love, and in verse three, who testified to your truth. So these brothers gave report, they gave testimony of Gaius and his love. And I want to do in a similar way for you. It is a faithful thing that you are doing, supporting missionaries. I say that on my own behalf to thank you, but also for the other work and the other ministries of the church here. It is a faithful thing. It is an evidence that the truth has had an impact in your hearts and lives. It is an evidence of faithfulness to Christ, and He is glorified in such things. But this goes beyond just mission support, but even loving the poor and needy, loving those, other believers in the church, loving and showing hospitality to one another. It is a faithful thing. It shows love. It evidences a genuine conversion. And let's consider that reality now. It is a faithful thing. It shows glory to Christ because, in a way, the gospel itself is a picture. Hospitality is a picture of the gospel itself. Think about the gospel. We were sinners, we are sinners, estranged from God, alienated from the promises and the covenant and the family of God, rejected, enemies of God even. But God in his infinite mercy sent his son so that enemies, sinners, might be received into his home. Of course, the gospel goes much beyond, far beyond mere hospitality. and even receiving not only into their home, but even into his family as one of his children. And that is what we get to exemplify in our life. Whenever we show such love and hospitality to a brother, whenever we support a missionary in a way we're doing something similar, we're exemplifying the gospel, living in a tangible, physical way the gospel, reenacting the gospel. Because as God has received us, as God has so loved us, even so we ought to love one another. Or as Christ said, love one another as I have loved you. Everything in the Christian life flows from the gospel. And that's one of the reasons I said that there is no small Christian, because we believe in no small gospel. And the Christian life is a constant display of that gospel as we are seeking to live in truth and love. As truth and love evidence itself, the gospel, the glorious and eternal gospel of Christ is on display. That is not a small thing. We may be just vessels of clay. but there is a treasure inside of us. And it is God himself who has decided to put it there. It is God himself who has prepared us to be those who carry this glorious gospel and get to proclaim it, live it, display it, and show it to others. So as you think about your love towards others, as you think about your fellow church members, think of this reality. The gospel is here put on display. As we receive someone else into our home, this is no small thing. I don't say that to discourage you, to put pressure on you, but to show you the glorious privilege of loving someone else. The glorious privilege of participating with Christ, of being able to show the love of Christ that I have received and how He has received me, and be able to express that to someone else. What a glorious privilege. I'm not saying that to put some high standard, you have to have the cleanest home, you have to have the best meals, that's not the point. But loving and receiving someone else, even with meager means, even in a small house. One of the most glorious privileges that I've ever had was when I was in Cuba. I was invited on Sunday morning, to go to one of the pastor's houses to eat breakfast. And we ate crackers for breakfast and coffee. And he and his wife loved me, thanked me for coming, for showing love for the island of Cuba, for being there and being willing to serve in his church and preach that Sunday, and told me stories of how the Lord had worked in his life, worked in his wife, worked in their local church, worked in his partner, Ariandis. What a privilege. What an honor. He didn't have much to give, but of the little that he had, he was able to share with me. And it was a glorious privilege. and a special, special opportunity to witness the love of Christ. So don't be discouraged by not having the biggest house, by not having the best things to offer, by not having much money to give to missions, not much time to dedicate. But with what Christ has given you, be faithful. With what Christ has given you, love. Love others. Love covers the multitude of toys thrown around the house. of maybe a meal that is slightly overcooked. Because the gospel is glorious. And the love that penetrates a heart and changes and transforms souls is glorious. And let that be the glory of your home. So I want to encourage you with these things. He says, it is a faithful thing. It is a testimony to your love. And then he says, you do well. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. Here it says, you will do well. And in other words, he's just saying, please, please do this. It's a good thing for you to do this. But he says, to send them on their journey. This is a kind of a technical term, to send them on their journey. Sometimes in the book of Acts, it's someone who's giving resources so that they can carry their journey. Sometimes it's actually a literal accompanying them in their journey, where they went out, they wanted to start them on their journey, but they went with them, the first leg of the journey. They left their houses, they went out with them up to the boat, to the harbor where they were getting on their boat to leave. This is a word where it is, do whatever it is that you can to make sure that they can continue their mission, that they can get to where the Lord has called them. "'Do your best,' Paul said to Titus. "'Do your best to speed Zenos to Logion and Apollos on their way. See that they lack nothing.'" And what Gaius did is what he is encouraging us to do. Gaius had already done this, but he's saying continue doing such things. You as well as a church have already done this. Stay faithful, persevere in righteousness unto the end. Persevere in this manifestation of truth and love. Because it is evidence of the gospel that we have believed and the gospel that we preach. Let's consider this word here. and send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God." Wow, that's a big calling. That's a big calling there. He said, in a manner worthy of God. And I want to point out two ideas that I think are behind this text, in a manner worthy of God. First of all, I think we should do it in a manner that is fitting for those who have been called by God. that we represent God, we have been saved by God, we have been chosen by God, we are God's people, and he has so loved us, so it's fitting, right? It's fitting, it's proper. It's to be expected that we would show that love to others. Because like 1 John 4 says, this is in a way, 3 John is kind of a practical application of the book of 1 John. When 1 John says that if God has so loved us, we should also love the brothers. And he who says he loves God but hates his brother, doesn't know God. This is kind of what that looks like in the real life. It looks like you might not know this person, but because you have been loved by God, and because you love God in truth, truly, you want to love others. You want to love others. So evidence the fact that you are God's people. Evidence, live up to this calling that Christ has given you by being faithful in this calling. This is a glorious thing that the scriptures often use to describe the Christian life. For example, in Ephesians chapter four, in Philippians chapter one, and several other passages of the scripture in the New Testament, First Thessalonians chapter three, you have this idea of walk in a manner worthy of your calling. Walk in a manner worthy of your calling." What calling have we received? He's not talking about being a mechanic or being even a doctor or any other type of thing. He's talking about being called as the children of God, being called as saints of God. Live in a manner worthy, in a manner consistent with that calling. Walk in such a way that whenever you preach, whenever you speak of Christ, of the gospel, of scripture, it's not contradicted later by your life. Live in such a way, act in such a way that evidences that truly you have experienced the love of God, because that love is testified in your works. I think that's the first aspect. But the second reality that is behind, in a manner worthy of God, I think is something that we can see in Matthew chapter 25. Matthew chapter 25 is that wonderful parable of the Lord Jesus whenever he talks about the sheep and the goats. He talks about the righteous and the wicked. And whenever the righteous get to heaven, get to the day of judgment, He will say, welcome, come into the kingdom prepared for you by your father. Because whenever I, he says, then the righteous will answer him, Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you as a stranger and welcome you? Or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you? And the king will answer them, truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me. What an incredible reality. As I said at the beginning, there is no small Christian. And I want to affirm that in two ways. One, there's no small Christian because even though we might have little, being faithful in what we have is a big thing to God. God sees our small contribution to His kingdom, to the good of others, as a glorious thing as a glorious thing for which he stores up heavenly and eternal treasures for you. And there's no small Christians in that there is no small Christian that you can serve, that Christ himself does not see that act of service to the smallest of Christians as an act done to himself. There is no small Christian. Because though we think, oh, this is a small deed to a small person who can't really do anything for me, but because you've done it to one of the least of these brothers, you did it unto me. Christ so loves his people, so cares for his people, that whenever someone else does a small act of love to one of his children, it's as though they did it to him. So in a manner worthy of God, we could translate it maybe like this. In a manner worthy of, as if it were God, as if it were Christ himself who came unto them. Because that's the way Christ is teaching us to view it. This person is Christ's. This person has been chosen by Christ, redeemed by Christ, purchased by Christ, loved by Christ, is being preserved by Christ for Christ, and to love him is to love Christ. To show a small act of love to this person, though it be a child who recently believed in the Lord, though it be an elderly lady in the church, Christ himself gives you thanks. Christ himself receives it as done unto himself and takes note of these small things that might be by many considered as insignificant. He views it as service performed to him, to the king, to the one who later receives you and rewards you. I believe that this is part of the idea because he later is going to describe these men as those who went out for the sake of the name. They went out bearing the banner of Christ, representing Christ. So they should be received as Christ. And as I mentioned in Hebrews chapter 13 or in Genesis chapter 18, The whole hospitality in the Bible has been marked by that first example of whenever God himself came to Abraham's house. And so, it's not too far-fetched to think that Christ might come to you. That Christ might come to you, and he comes to us in the form of his needy people, who need to be loved, who need to be cared for, who need to be supported and encouraged, and admonished. And then he goes on, in the end of this verse, in verse seven, in verse eight, he says, for they have gone out for the sake of the name. It's good to do these things, and here are the reasons, because he gives some characteristics of what these people look like. They have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing of the Gentiles. Therefore, we ought to support people like these. Now, I'm talking about some requirements for missionaries for this type of love, but I'm not doing so to talk about myself. I'm doing so, one, because the text does, and two, because there may be others. And with the seminary, we hope that the Lord will raise up others. And so I want to give encouragement to those brothers who are considering missionary service, as well as to the church guidance on how to consider this, as the Lord continues to advance His kingdom through His local church. For they have gone out for the sake of the name." Note this reality. These people who have gone out have identified themselves, have taken on the name of Christ. They bear His name. As in Antioch, they were called for the first time Christians, those who belonged to this Christ. They bore His name. We think of the book of Acts and many times how the apostles, for example, in chapter 5, rejoiced to be counted worthy to suffer for his name. And other times, it talks about the Christians as those who suffer for, who serve, who have identified themselves with the name of Christ. And it is that name, that name that has been exalted above all others. that has been put above every name that is named in heaven or on earth. It is that name that they bear. And so they should walk in a manner worthy of that name, in truth and in love. In truth and in love. In truth, first of all, by professing the truth. By proclaiming the truth of God. And they should be examined in accordance with their doctrine. As in 1 John, in 1 John chapter 4, it talks about testing the spirits. Because those who say that Christ has not come in the flesh, do not have the spirit of God. And so he's not just saying, receive whoever you want, receive and love everyone, give money to all the different ministries that you see on TV. He's not doing that. But he's saying, in 2 John, he says, do not receive them if they do not profess that Christ has come in the flesh. Do not receive them into your house. Do not even greet them, he says. So he has some requirements here. But of these brothers, he has full awareness of their doctrinal standing because they came out from him. But he says, they've gone out for the sake of the name. And that profession of faith, that doctrine that they preach, is accompanied by a godly life. They're not contradicting that in the way that they live. To do so would be to blaspheme that name that they bear, right? They say that they are of Christ, but they don't look like Him. They look more like an enemy of Christ than a Christ. And so they should be examined with respect to their character. And third, this shows us their motivation. Their heart is not the glory and fame, so-called, of being a missionary, or money, or recognition, or being first. as deatrophies later in this book, wanted to be preeminent, wanted to be chief, wanted to promote himself, was going out to seek a ministry for himself, for his own name, but these wanted to exalt the name of Christ. They went out for love of Christ, in love of his people, in love of the lost who need him. They wanted to heed his call, fulfill his command. And then it says, accepting nothing of the Gentiles. Accepting nothing of the Gentiles. And this refers to their relationship with money. As we've seen in many in our day, how money has become a deceiver. People seek ministry for money. They use their ministry to obtain money. Money is a deceiving thing and quickly can become a motivator. But no pastor, no missionary, no minister should be motivated by money. No pastor, missionary, preacher should do their ministry because someone has paid them, nor should they do it so that someone might pay them. That is not our motivation. Rather, it is because of Christ. It is Christ and His glory that is at stake. It is Christ and His kingdom that we are seeking to advance. It is Him and His glory, not our temporary glory. Because reality is that all that we have soon will go away. Our time will soon come to an end. Our money will soon be burnt up. But there's a way that all of those things can obtain eternal value. that never ends, that never inflates, that never crashes, and it's by investing those things in the good of others, in the glory of Christ's kingdom. Otherwise, it is all at a loss. We are reminded of the instruction of Christ to his disciples here. You received without paying, give without pay. The gospel you have received was free. The grace you've received from God is free, so do not give an invoice after preaching the gospel. Do not write them an invoice so that they might pay you, but do so freely as you've received. As you have received from others, you have received grace, you've received support, you've received encouragement freely from others, do so as well. So we have seen these two realities. For the supporters, for those who are sending out and receiving, it is a glorious thing, a faithful thing that Christ sees as done unto himself. For missionaries, a calling to truth and love, to sound doctrine, to godly living, and to faithfulness with respect to money. But then, the very final words with which we want to end the sermon this morning are there at the end of verse eight. Therefore, we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth." That we may be fellow workers for the truth. The work of Christ is not that of the preacher, pastor, or missionary. The mission to which the Lord has called my family is not my mission. It's not mine. The church has been given a mission by Christ, a single mission, to expand His kingdom through making disciples and baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This is our mission. There are various aspects to that mission, true. There is a vertical aspect of the glory of God. There is an external reality of seeking the lost. And there's an internal reality of building up the saints. It's a complex mission. And there's various giftings for each part of that. But it is not mine. We are seeking the same goal. We're serving the same Christ. And we're doing so in partnership together. Those who support and those who go are going hand in hand, though some stay behind. Though some stay here at home, whenever someone is sent out, they go along with him. They're carried in the heart, and they are seen together. They serve Christ together. James Boyce says, with respect to this text, here's a great word for those who would love to be engaged in frontline Christian work, but who cannot be, owing to ill health, circumstances, or other pressing obligations. In God's sight, those are fellow workers who merely support others by their gifts, interests, and prayers. So as Christ sees a small work of service to one of his children as done unto himself, in a similar way, Christ here paints the picture for us that whenever you are supporting a missionary, whenever you're supporting a fellow preacher, pastor, person who's serving Christ, it's as though you yourself were doing that mission. You are a fellow laborer in that mission. That becomes your ministry. And so you can imagine why 2 John is so clear on why you should not support false teachers, right? Because if you're supporting them, encouraging them, giving them money and giving them resources, you can't say, well, at least I wasn't preaching heresy. He was doing it, but I was just funding him. You can't do that. Because that becomes a partnership. That becomes an alliance. And you become co-laborers. But for those who should be sent out, according to this text, to support them, to encourage them, to pray for them, you become fellow laborers on the front lines for the glory of Christ and the advance of His kingdom. Though you might not be a gifted preacher, though you might not be a seminary student, though you might not be a pastor, a deacon, or someone who has a lot of gifts, external gifts to offer. You can do an incredible work for the glory of God by being faithful to pray every day for your missionaries, to give regularly, even though small, to those who are serving Christ in your local church and beyond. Christ sees that as a work done unto himself, and though you yourself were there on the front lines with that missionary doing the work. What an incredible privilege That we get to partner together. And that as I go, I get to represent and serve on behalf of those who are supporting. And that as though you stay here, you are active in Ecuador. In a mystical and mysterious way, you are active on the other side of the world through your prayers, through your support, through your encouragement. So think about this whenever you think about us, whenever you think about other missionaries supported by the church, other missionaries not financially supported but that we pray for regularly. Think about these things. Seek to reach out to them, to encourage them. Take stock in the missions that you pray for, that your church supports. As if you were to invest in stocks, what would you do? You would hope that that business goes well, right? That it prospers, that it has new products, that their new innovations go well. And so take personal interest in these missions because you're investing in God's kingdom in these ways. You're investing and it is a personal work. There is a personal relationship, a personal involvement of the people of God in the missions supported. This word is the same word used of Paul's companions. Paul's companions who went with him, encouraged him, and helped him. They were fellow laborers with him. They even wrote some of the Bible. Many of the books of the Bible were written not just by Paul, but it says Paul and Timothy, Paul and Timothy and Silvanus, and sometimes others. What a glorious privilege to be the companions of the Apostle Paul. Now, I'm no Apostle Paul, by any means. But think, I want you to have this reality, that the work that we are doing in Ecuador is not, wow, Taylor's doing such a great work. We are doing a great work. We, us and you, together. This is a fellowship, a partnership. Because you support us. You pray for us. And as I mentioned at the beginning of my presentation this morning, the fruit that you might have seen in my presentation is a direct result of God answering your prayers. You are missionaries in a way. Though you have not been the ones that have gone out, and that requires certain things, certain requirements here. But you can be active, you can be involved, and you can do great things for the glory of God in your closet at home, in a way where nobody else might see it. But Christ takes note of every small deed. He does not neglect the day of small things. He does not look over these tiny services of giving a cup of cold water to one of his people. Imagine something so small, as giving a cup of water to one of his children. Even that he takes note of. And he receives it as though it were done to himself. So, my dear brothers and sisters, I pray that you would be encouraged with this truth, that you would see us and see the relationship that we have, that you have with other missionaries that the church supports, and that of this new mission that's being sent out to Choctaw. That is the same thing. Think of it in the same way. We are fellow laborers. This is not an amputation, but rather an extension. an extension of the same work, the same mission that we're seeking to accomplish here for the glory of Christ. We are being able to extend that work through our support, through our prayers, through our encouragement, through sending some of our people. We are serving Christ and His kingdom. And this is the same work that God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit planned from before the foundation of the world. And with your small contribution, with your small, your faithful prayers, your texts of encouragement, your calls to see how they're doing, with your financial support, with your faithfulness in receiving other Christians, you are participating, being fellow laborers with God, with the triune God in an eternal work of the establishment of His kingdom and the proclamation of His glory. What a privilege, what a calling, My dear brothers, let us walk in a manner worthy of the calling that Christ has given us, so that He might be glorified, His church might be expanded, His kingdom advanced, the souls of the needy, the souls of the lost reached, saints built up in love and in truth, and the glory of our triune God proclaimed in every inch of this globe. Let's pray. O Lord, we thank you for your grace that has included such weak, frail sinners such as us in such a glorious and magnificent work. Truly, O Lord, we are not sufficient of these things, none of us, but Christ, the exalted King, has given gifts unto his church. Christ, the exalted King, has sent his Spirit to us so that the power might not be of us but of you. Work, O Lord, through your people. Encourage their hearts. May they be faithful in what you have called them to. Though it might be small in the eyes of others, may they see that your glory is never a small thing. Faithfulness to you, living the gospel is never a small thing. And may you use it, O Lord. Use our small means, our small efforts, our small time, our small strength to do things that are glorious for your namesake. We pray these things in the name of Christ, which we gladly bear, and we rejoice to know and call our own. Amen.