encourage you to take advantage of the opportunities that Lord will be bringing to us for fellowship and service. And this morning, I'm going to ask you to turn back with me to First Thessalonians chapter five. We've reached a milestone in this particular book. We've reached the end of it. Our text will be verses 25 through 28. And I believe that the Lord has used these verses to really encapsulate for us the entire book. Sometimes when we come to these ending verses, we just sort of gloss over them. We kind of skip through them. It looks like he's just writing a P.S. at the end of a letter. But the Bible says that all Scripture, or every Scripture, is given by inspiration of God. Even these last few verses were inspired by God, and it is important for us to dig into them and see what God, through inspiration, is trying to teach us, especially in the light of all that we've seen throughout this book. And so this morning we're going to come to these few verses. Verse 25, Paul begins to say, Brethren, pray for us. And then he adds, greet all the brethren with an holy kiss. And then verse 27, I charge you by the Lord that this epistle, 1 Thessalonians, be read unto all the holy brethren. And then these final words, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. I believe through these verses Paul is teaching that we need to move forward in our Christian walk through fellowship. Have you ever named a plant or a tree? Some of you might do that. I've never named a plant or a tree. Usually when we name something, it's something that is valuable and important to us. We name our children because that's important. Unless you're the head dolls and it's been a little while after Elise, wasn't she the last one that was born and it took them a little while to come up with a name. Isn't that right? It didn't really matter. But we come up with names for our children because we want to call them something. Because they're important to us. We name our pets, right? Even if they don't know that name is theirs. My mother-in-law just got a new dog. And this dog had a name and she didn't like that name. And it's been, I think, a four or five year old dog. And I said, why don't you just change the name? Well, I don't want to confuse the dog. I said, I don't think the dog is going to be confused. It's not like he knows that that's his name. He just comes by that name because he likes to get the praise and the food that comes along with it. Change the name. And we change these names to animals because we love them and because they're our pets. Sometimes we give names to other things that are important to us, like cars. You know, Bertha or Bessie named our GPS guidance system. Lola, she guides us to wherever we need to go because they're important. But naming a tree, it just doesn't seem all that important to put a name on a tree. There's probably only a handful of trees that are notable and worthy enough to have a personal name. And one of those trees is named Methuselah. And we all know the name Methuselah from the Old Testament. He was the man that lives the oldest in all history. So 969 years, I believe it was. He was a very old man. And sometimes we'll hear described that person as old as Methuselah. Well, there was a tree. There is a tree, I should say, that has that name Methuselah. In fact, Methuselah is a bristlecone pine tree that is found in the White Mountains of California. It is the world's oldest tree. with a confirmed age of, as of this year, 4,770 years. That is an old tree. And they confirmed it. In fact, you can find it in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's oldest tree. How long Methuselah has grown is absolutely remarkable. But it is even more remarkable when you consider where it has grown all those years. There in the White Mountains in California, the altitude in which Methuselah grows is just 2,000 feet from Timberline. And I remember when I lived in the Rocky Mountains, we would go there as a family, and we would go to the highest elevations in the Rocky Mountains, and my dad would say, look, there's Timberline. And I asked, well, what is Timberline? It is a place, there is a point in elevation where trees cannot grow anymore. because of the climate, because of the atmosphere, because of how high it is. Trees just cannot grow. And it's an amazing thing to see where there's all these pine tree forests throughout the mountains, but there is a line and you can see it all throughout the mountains where those trees cannot grow. And Methuselah, that bristlecone pine grows just within a few thousand feet of that place. It is one of the harshest environments for a plant and a tree to grow. And yet, it has thrived for over 4,000 years. There, the climate is cold all year round. There's only about six weeks of warm enough weather to grow in. So the growth of that particular tree Methuselah has had over these 4,000 years has only been in a period of about six weeks every year because of how cold it gets up there in those mountains. The soil in which this tree grows is mostly made out of limestone. It's not like the good dirt that we find here. It's not even clay that we find in our backyards. It's limestone where there's very few nutrients for it to really get and to grow from. And yet it has thrived for nearly 5,000 years. It's a very arid place. It receives less than 12 inches of rain each year. It's almost a desert. And yet it has enough water and has had enough water for 4,770 years to become the world's oldest tree. One scientist has said this about Methuselah, that it lives in quote, one of the most flora unfriendly environments on the planet. And yet it is there. that you will find Methuselah. Even with everything against it, yet for those many years, 4,770 years, this tree has stood firm. Now, Methuselah is in a grove of trees. It is the oldest, but there are other old trees around it. And you can go through this forest and they have thrived there for thousands of years. This tree has stood firm the longest. I believe that is one of the reasons why Paul wrote this particular book, 1 Thessalonians, to that church. Because he wanted those Christians in that day, and he wants us Christians today to be like Methuselah. Not Methuselah back then, but Methuselah the tree. He wants us to be strong through whatever circumstance we face. Even if we live in the most spiritually harsh environments, God, through the Apostle Paul, wants us to remain firm. And I believe this theme is found in chapter 3, verse 3. If you turn there with me real quick. What is Paul talking about? We learned over the course of the last several months that the book of Thessalonians was written to a church that was just founded. It was a very young church, but it was facing persecution from Jews. And they were trying to get the Thessalonian church to be extinguished. In fact, the Thessalonians told Paul to leave when the heat got really hot. And so he had to leave and escape, perhaps even with his life. And so this is the furnace in which this church was founded. And so Paul, in writing this letter, tells them in verse 3, that I do not want any man to be moved by these afflictions. This is why he sent Timothy. This is why he wrote this book. That no man should be moved by these afflictions. For yourselves know what you, or what we, are appointed thereunto. He does not want you, or me, or them back then to be moved by the afflictions that we face in this life. Whether it's afflictions from within, or afflictions from without. Just last week it was where that tree was hit by that car. And of course the car took the brunt of it and killed those three young people. What happened to the tree? Of course it's chopped down now, but the tree stood firm. It stood firm. even though a tremendous impact was against it, yet it still stood. And that is what Paul desires for us as Christians to be like. And that's what he teaches us throughout this book, is that you, as a believer in the grace of God through Jesus Christ, you can be like a tree planted by the rivers of water. Where you can be like Methuselah, a tree that has lasted thousands of years. No matter what storm you're going to face, you can through God remain strong and faithful and persevere in spite of them. His desire was that you and I should not be moved by afflictions. So how can you and how could they persevere? How can anyone remain faithful in the most church unfriendly environments on the planet? I'm sure every church that has existed on the face of this earth has felt like they are living in the most church unfriendly environment on the planet. The Thessalonians probably felt that way. Maybe you feel that way within our church. And I know there are other churches throughout the world that feel like they are in the most unfriendly environment for a church. Why is that? because the devil wants to destroy the church. And so he will unleash anything and everything that he possibly can to impact this church, to cause us to move, to cause us to fall over, to cause us to be destroyed. And that is why every church can say that they have been in the most church-unfriendly environment on the planet. But how can we persevere? How could they persevere? How could any church persevere when the devil himself is against us? Paul wraps up this letter with some very significant and important final words that we just read. Now, final words are important, aren't they? How many times do we wish we could remember the last words that someone said to us, someone that we loved? I remember the last words of my dad to me before he passed away. I went to the hospital room there in Binghamton, New York, and I stood there at his bedside. And I wasn't sure if he knew who I was at that moment. It was just a few days before he slipped into a coma and eventually died. But I remember that as I was leaving, I didn't know if it would be the last time I would see my dad. Turned out that it was. But I said, Dad, goodbye. I love you. I'll see you later. I remember his last two words to me was, Goodbye, son. He did recognize me. And to this day, I can remember exactly how he said it, when he said it. I can visualize everything because that was important to me. Final words are very important. And that is why it is not something that we gloss over when Paul, who could have thought this would be the very final words that he ever says to this church, you know, any words that we say to someone could be our final words. That's something to remember, right? The final words that we leave with someone, they could be our final words. What kind of words are they going to be? Are they going to be positive words or negative words? Are they going to be words of destruction or words of edification? We need to think about that. As Paul thought about that, he was trying to say, this is what I want you to know as I wrap up this letter. I may never be able to see you again. I may never be able to talk to you again. I may never be able to write another letter to you again, even though he did. But he didn't know that he was able to do that, so he picked his words carefully, with great importance, with great meaning. And through these words... He teaches that they need to be like Methuselah, the tree. They need to persevere and remain faithful in spite of what they face, and He tells them how. And this, I believe, encapsulates in these verses how we can remain faithful in the midst of persecution, in the midst of affliction, in the midst of problems, in the midst of the most church-unfriendly environments in the world. And this is it. Fellowship is the fuel for faithfulness and perseverance. Fellowship is the fuel for faithfulness and perseverance. Faithfulness is what will keep you going and keep you moving forward. If you don't have gas in a car, you cannot go anywhere, right? You cannot go very far. And even if you have the wrong kind of gas, like the Andes has had, you may not be able to go very far or very well. It's important for us to have the right kind of gas and to be full of gas if we're trying to go somewhere. I was driving home yesterday from the kids. We took a little bike ride. And I drove to some paths, and as we were driving back, my daughter said, Dad, do we have enough gas? She could see my little gauge, and she could see that the gas light was on. And I just was kind of teasing her, and I said, oh, yeah, I think so. I think so. But Dad, the light's on. Oh, I know. I know. That doesn't really mean anything. But Dad, how many miles do we have to go? Oh, maybe 10 or 15. But are we really going to have enough gas? What's going to happen if we run out of gas? I said, well, I guess you and Brayden will have to get out and push. So finally I stopped and got some gas because we needed gas because I knew I didn't I didn't think we would be able to make but we need gas. When we as Christians want to be a Methuselah, and I hope that's your desire, I want to stay firm and faithful for God. No matter what I face, I want to right now be that way. Now, there are other times in my life where I might feel like, boy, is it really worth it? It's hard, Lord. But we all at times in our life say, I want to be faithful. I want to be true. To my God, because he's so faithful to me. And then the Lord says, here is how. Here is how. Be faithful in some things. He's going to list these things because faithfulness is a fuel for us to persevere. These three areas of fellowship that we're going to be looking at are the fuel for our faithfulness. If you are faithful in these areas, you can become a Methuselah for Christ. You can be a Methuselah for Christ even in the worst possible environment. The first primary area of fellowship is fellowship in prayer. We see this in verse 25 where Paul says, Brethren, pray for us. Brethren, pray for us. He needed prayer just as much as they needed prayer. He recognized that there was a mutual dependence on each other for prayer. Paul, the great apostle, the great evangelist, the great preacher, the great church planner. We think he wouldn't need that kind of prayer. And yet he goes to this church who is struggling through all their persecutions after telling them that he was praying for them. And he says, Brethren, pray for me, because I need it. Now, one of the reasons that Methuselah became the world's oldest tree is because of its roots. That's one of the reasons as they've been researching and studying the sciences that have been going up there. And one writer says that Methuselah can liberally spread their roots in that limestone soil to maximize the intake of the scant resources that are available to it. The roots of Methuselah, if you were to take it apart, which they have some laws against that, as you can imagine, if you were to take it apart, they run deep and they run broad. And even though if you were to look at the picture of Methuselah, the tree, if you get on the Internet or an encyclopedia, look at it. It doesn't look like a whole lot. kind of short and stout, but underneath there is a vast network of root systems that is trying to get every last ounce of nutrients out of that rocky soil so that it can become and could become the world's oldest tree. Now, we need to realize that prayer to us as believers is like the roots to a tree. Our prayer network and our prayer life needs to run deep and it needs to run broad. And this is why it is essential to us, because if we want to be in Methuselah, it's going to come through the fellowship that we enjoy in prayer with God. Our prayers must run as many and as deep as the roots of Methuselah. We see in these verses that prayer is essential. He gives an order to the people there at Thessalonica. Brethren, pray for us. Prayer is essential. It's a command here. Without prayer, we cannot grow. Just like a tree without roots cannot grow. Paul knew this. So he prayed for them. In fact, in chapter 1, verse 2 of the same book, he says, We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers. Paul was praying for them. In chapter 3, verse 10, Paul says this, Night and day, praying exceedingly that we might see your face and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith. Paul understood the essential nature of prayer, so he was praying for them. Paul even commanded them to pray. In chapter 5, verse 17, he says, pray without ceasing. And now, Paul is asking for prayer. Why? Because prayer is essential to us in order to grow. And prayer is essentially fellowship with God. Prayer is fellowship with God. And the deeper our prayer life becomes, and the more people that we have praying with us and for us, The greater that network of prayer, the stronger that we can be as Christians before God, and the more that we can be faithful, and the more we can persevere. Prayer is essential, just like the roots to the tree. But also, prayer is edifying. Prayer builds up. Roots of a tree are what creates that stable ground so that tree can go up very high. Without the roots, it would just topple right over. How many times do we see telephone poles having to be replaced? Why? They don't have roots. They try to dig them deep, and they set them in there, and they try to keep them as straight and as strong as possible. But if a car hits a telephone pole, the telephone pole usually moves and gives some. Sometimes they have to replace it. But a tree can weather any kind of storm, even a great impact like from a car, because it has a strong foundation, has a strong network of roots. Prayer is that root system for our lives as believers. Prayer edifies. And Paul recognized that not only did they need prayer, but Paul recognized that he needed prayer. That's why he says, pray for us. He needed prayer. Timothy needed prayer. Silas needed a prayer. Those are the ones that gave this letter to this church. They all needed prayer for the same reasons and for the same potential. You know, Paul was going through afflictions just like the Thessalonians. Paul needed to grow as a Christian, just like the Thessalonians needed to grow as Christians. Paul had issues with relationships just like they had issues with their relationships. Remember the situation with Paul and John Mark? Paul needed prayer for the opportunities that God would provide before him and as well as they did. So they needed prayer and Paul needed prayer. Prayer edifies. The network of prayer strengthens and encourages every Christian and every church in which it takes place. That is why prayer meeting is so important. Because through the network of believers praying together and praying for each other, this church will become a Methuselah for God. That is why it needs to be the engine of this church. As we come and we pray with each other and for each other, it is absolutely essential because it's edifying. The more that people pray, the stronger the spiritual roots become. That is why we do have missionaries that come in. And sometimes I'll explain to missionaries as they come in that we really aren't in a position to support every missionary that comes by. We really aren't in a position to support you right now. And they tell me and they assure me every time they say, brother, that is OK. We're not just in it to get financial support. We need a network of prayer partners. That is why they're here. Yes, of course, they would appreciate to have some financial support. But to them, as Paul said here in this verse, that fellowship in prayer is more important than anything. If we pray for one another, God's going to take care. of the finances, right? God's not going to leave them forsaken on a foreign land. God will provide for their needs and their families' needs. God will provide their financial resources, perhaps through us, perhaps through other churches. But the thing that they want most and they desire most is prayer support. Because then, with that thick root system, their tree can grow. Prayer is edifying. Prayer is essential. But also, prayer is effective. He says, brethren, pray for us. We need to know that in fellowship and prayer with God and with God's people, we're not just praying for someone. We're not just praying for someone. Why is it that Paul encouraged them and told them to pray for me? Pray for us. It was because when you pray for others, you're not just praying for them. This is something we need to realize whenever we pray. Whenever we pray for someone, whenever we intercede for someone, you're not just praying for them, you are literally partnering with them. Not only are you a partner with them, but you are in fact participating with them in whatever work that God has for them to do. You are as much of a part in their ministry as they are when you pray for them, and that is the reality. In fact, if you look at the other times when Paul says, pray for me, He uses these verses to teach us that we're not just praying for Him, we're partnering with Him, and we're participating with Him. One of those verses is found in 2 Corinthians 1.11 when He says, You also helping together by prayer for us. When you pray for us, you are helping together with Me. You are a partner with us in ministry, and you are a participant in ministry with us. Isn't that incredible? We don't have to go overseas in India to help the Haganals with their ministry. We can pray for them here. And that is just as essential a ministry. We have just as much of a part of their ministry as they do. Praise the Lord for that. We need a network, a strong network, a strong root system of prayer through which our Christian lives and our church and our various ministries will grow into a Methuselah of a tree. That is why we need prayer support for our Good News Clubs. This is why we need prayer support for our Vacation Bible School. This is why we need prayer support for our Sunday school. This is why I need your prayer support. If you're praying along with me, it's not just me preaching, it's you preaching through your prayers through me. And we need to realize that we have this incredible root system that God has provided, fellowship in prayer. Now, we need to understand, too, that prayer is effective only because it's Jesus Christ that has opened the way for you and for me to pray. It's not a prayer so much, it's not an act, it's not a work, but rather, it's that fellowship with God made possible by the Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 8.34 says that it is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. He is the one that has paved the way for you to pray, so that you can be strong. We need to understand that fellowship and prayer is the fuel for faithfulness. We need a prayer network within our church and within our lives. We need this root system of prayer, prayer for others and prayer for ourselves. That's why when we have problems, we need to share it with each other. It's not burdening other people with my problems, but rather it's creating a network so that through their prayers for me about this situation or about this problem, you know what's going to happen? I can become a Methuselah for Christ and in Christ. We need to pray for one another. Fellowship and prayer is one of the fuels for faithfulness before God. And the second is fellowship with people. Not only does he say, brethren, pray for us, but then in verse 26 he adds, greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. You know, Paul had a care and a concern for these people in this church. He loved them very dearly. And we've seen that concern, that love throughout this book where he said he labored not just with his hands, but his own soul. He gave his whole heart and soul for them. He wanted to enjoy fellowship with the people of God. There's another reason why Methuselah became the world's oldest trees because of its canopy, because of its crown. They don't grow very high, but they grow out very large. Now, the redwoods and the sequoias not too far away grow very high, but these grow very wide. If you do this for a reason, remember there's only about six weeks of warmth and enough sunshine for it to grow during that period of time. And so the more greenery that they have outstretched, the more nutrients and vitamins they can get from the sun in order to continue to grow. And so they grow wide, not just in their root system, but in their canopy. And they do this so that it can grow and they open up wide. and strong. It is only through the dense and wide crown of fellowship with God's people, the church, that we also can remain faithful through the strongest storms. We need to realize that we are not islands as Christians. We are not independent. We must be interdependent. We need each other. We need to be with each other. We need to be hospitable to each other. We need to tarry for each other. 1 Corinthians 11.33 teaches that. Tarry one for another. In order for us to grow as Christians and as a church, what do we need to do? We need to fellowship with the people of God. And that's what he's saying here. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. This is enjoying fellowship with people. It's hard to kiss someone if you're not next to someone, right? You can't greet someone with a holy kiss if you're not present with them. There's an implication of close personal care and fellowship with each other. And we see, first of all, a fellowship that is affectionate. The greeting of a kiss was an expression of honor, respect, and affection. Do you realize that it is an honor when anybody recognizes and identifies you, showing that you are important to them, or you are showing to someone that they are important to you. That's one of the reasons why we have the greeting after that first song, where we shake hands. It gives us an opportunity like they did in the early church, only they did it according to their custom of kissing each other on the cheek. Men would kiss men on the cheek, women would kiss women on the cheek, and they would do that in the form of a greeting. We shake each other's hands. If you go to Russia today, you will find the greeting of a kiss still. as a custom, as a present custom. And boy, those men will go right for you if you're not ready for it. They'll plant one right there. They don't do it on a list. I've been to a Russian service and that really shocked me when they did that. They took this literally. But the fact is, they did it because they were affectionate toward each other. They loved each other. It was a holy kiss, a holy kind of love, a holy kind of affection, but it was affection nonetheless. If you are going to fellowship with people, it's going to take time. It's going to take care and closeness, and it's going to take interest in each other. This is what is required for us to remain strong and faithful to the Lord. The early church used this greeting in their services, and we do the same here, just in a different manner. But we need to understand that that's just a start. Greeting each other with a kiss is just a preliminary identification, a preliminary greeting. But it ought to go beyond that. It ought to be a hospitable spirit toward each other, a love for each other. The kiss was a physical gesture of affection and honor. But in reality, it was an application of loving, not just in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth. And that's what he's getting at. Don't just greet each other with a kiss as a superficial way of saying hi, but rather get to know them. Be affectionate toward each other. have fellowship with each other because this is the fuel for continued faithfulness. It's a fellowship that is affectionate and a fellowship that is comprehensive. He says, greet all the brethren. Don't leave anybody out. Is there someone even in this small church that you don't know by name? You need to go to that person and say, you know what? I apologize. I have not known your name for this many times. You get to know each other by name. All the brethren within Holy Kiss with this is something that shows everyone is important. The Bible says in First Corinthians to tarry for each other. It's hard to get to know someone when you come in late and you leave early and you don't greet anybody and you don't shake hands with anybody. You don't get to know anybody. And you're never going to grow. This is the fuel to continual faithfulness before God. It is a comprehensive fellowship stressing the interdependence of the church. In the book of Romans, 1 Corinthians, Ephesians and Colossians, it always teaches that we are one body. We are one body. And each member is a different part. We are all important. We all have use. We all have needs. And that is why we must have this comprehensive fellowship. But it's also a fellowship that must be appropriate. It's a holy kiss. It's not just any kind of kiss. It's a special, distinctive, holy kiss. What does this mean? It needs to be appropriate in the practice of it. I'm sure that there are people, and you've seen these, where they would kiss each other on the cheek and they really think inside, I can't stand you, I wish I was even near you. Sometimes we see this in handshakes, right? We watch our president meeting with some of our some of our allies or maybe some of our enemies, and they're shaking hands, and I can imagine what they're thinking in their head. I really can't stand you. It's not very sincere, is it? It's a handshake, but they really don't mean anything by it. He's saying here, it's a holy kiss. It needs to be distinctive. It needs to be appropriate. Don't give a kiss that is as fake as Judas. Don't give a handshake that is as fake as Judas' kiss. Don't give a greeting where you really don't care anything about the person that's only going to go that far. That is not real fellowship. And you will not be faithful through it. But also it needs to be appropriate in the purpose of it. In the early church, there came a point where they did have the greeting of the kiss with men and men and women and women, because as you can imagine, it kind of got out of hand. And it had to be appropriate in the practice and the purpose of it. This kiss wasn't for yourself, it was for the other person. It was fully for others, and ultimately for God's glory. That is why we greet each other. That is why He's saying this to us. It's because we need to love each other, not trying to get things out of each other. We need a fellowship that is affectionate, that is comprehensive, that is appropriate, because fellowship with God's people is the fuel. for faithfulness. And a third we see is the fellowship through the proclamation of God's Word. Verse 27, he says, I charge you by the Lord that this epistle, this particular book, First Thessalonians, be read unto all the holy brethren. Another reason that Methuselah is a world record holder is because of the nutrients that it does receive. We've already talked about its roots. We've already talked about its crown. It reaches out as far and as wide as possible to get all the nutrients that it can possibly get. And that ought to be a lesson for us as Christians. Only through the nutrients that we receive through the proclamation and the preaching of God's word can we grow. This verse is not just talking about personal devotions. That's important. We need to have personal devotions. But it's also here primarily talking about the public reading and proclamation of Scripture. God has promised a special blessing on the preaching and proclamation of the Word of God. And there are many people that say, well, I don't need to go to church. I don't need to go to church because I can stay at home and read my Bible and grow. And that's false. You can't. Because without the fellowship with God's people and with God's Word, sitting under the teaching and reading and preaching of the Scripture, you cannot grow to maturity like Methuselah, like God would have you to grow to maturity. God has given us these means in order to grow, and we must apply to them. Only through the nutrients that we receive through the proclamation and preaching of God's Word can we truly grow. We need to be present when the Word of God is opened, and read and taught and preached. Why? Because we see that the proclamation of the Word is powerful. That's what Paul knew. In fact, that's why he says, I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read in all the churches. This is a charge. Literally, he was putting them under oath before the Lord to do this. Maybe this is something we need to do. It is so easy to get up on a Sunday morning and say, I really don't want to go to church today. I really don't want to go listen to the word of God today. It's so beautiful today. There's a big race on today. There's all these other things that I can do today. Yet Paul says, I charge you. Maybe we need to make an oath before God and say, God, we don't make a vow lightly. God, I am going to vow that whenever the word of God is preached, I'm going to be there unless I am providentially hindered. And you know what? You're putting yourself in a place to grow. You're putting yourself in a place where you can become a Methuselah for Jesus Christ. The proclamation of the word is powerful. And Paul realized that this was no ordinary epistle or letter, because even in chapter two, verse 13, he commended the Thessalonians because, as he says in verse 13 of chapter two, for this cause, we thank God also without ceasing, because when you receive the word of God, which he heard of us, he received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God. which effectually worketh also in you that believe." This is God's Word. That is what makes it powerful. That is what makes it effective in our life. And if you fellowship with God's Word, it will change you. Do you believe it? It will change you. It will change the lives of others. It will strengthen you. It will make you a Methuselah. The proclamation of the Word is powerful, but the proclamation of the Word is profitable. And Paul knew that too. And that's why he said, it needs to be read unto all the holy brethren. Not just a few. Everyone, everyone that considers himself to be part of that church needs to hear the preaching and proclamation and the reading of the Word of God because it's profitable for all. It's profitable in every way. Second Timothy 3.16 puts it this way. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God. And because it is, it is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. We need to fellowship. with a proclamation of God's word, because fellowship through the word of God is the fuel for faithfulness. There are many that are not here today. They need to get the proclamation of God's word as well. That's one of the reasons why we do the sermon audio is so that others can come and to listen to the word of God as it's preached. We need to perhaps start giving discs out where people can hear the word of God that aren't here. There are other ways that we can share the preaching and the proclamation of the Word of God which will impact their lives. If we really believe that God has given to us through His Word all things necessary for life and godliness, we would be here every time this book is opened. It's important. The public proclamation of His Word. I want to get back to Methuselah. We saw its roots. We saw its crown, we saw the nutrients that it was getting, even a small amount of nutrients for it to grow. But what is the real reason that Mephusa is living as long as it has? What's the real reason? I think God addressed this when he spoke to Job in Job 39 verse 25. You don't need to turn there, but listen very carefully. Remember Job, as he was suffering, he was starting to blame God. God, really, why am I suffering through all these things? And God is saying to Job now, do you really have any idea of how I'm in control of things? And God says this, who has divided a water course for the overflowing of the waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder, or to cause it to rain on the earth where no man is? on the wilderness wherein there is no man to satisfy the desolate and the waste ground and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spray forth. Basically, the Lord is saying to Job, who is the one that makes all things grow? God. The real reason why Methuselah has lived 4,770 years is not because of its roots. It's not because of its crown and canopy. It's not because of the nutrients that it's derived from the soil. It's ultimately because of God. Because God has allowed it and enabled it to last that long. So it is with every Christian and every church. It is only by God's grace that you can persevere and remain faithful. We need to fellowship in prayer through our roots. We need to have fellowship with God's people as our crown. We need to have fellowship with God's Word, which is our nutrition. But ultimately, the way that we remain faithful is by relying upon the goodness and the grace of God, because He is the one that does it. We need His grace, and that is why Paul, in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1, verse 1, starts his letter with God's grace. Turn there for a moment. Chapter 1, verse 1, he says this, Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians, which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be unto you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. He starts this book, this letter, with grace. Grace from God. Do you realize? that you can go through chapter 1, chapter 2, chapter 3, chapter 4, and all of chapter 5 until we come to the last verse and not see the word grace again. Until we come to verse 28, where Paul ends his letter with God's grace. He says, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. I think we have here a vivid illustration of the necessity of God's grace. Only in two places in this book do we find God's grace. I like to call it a sandwich of grace. We all like sandwiches, right? Some more than others. But a sandwich, in order to have a real sandwich, you need two pieces of bread, right? Two pieces of bread. If you only have one piece of bread, you don't have a sandwich. You've got a pizza. If you take away the other piece of bread, you don't have a sandwich. What do you have? Maybe a salad. In order to have a sandwich, you've got to have two pieces of bread. In order to be faithful, you need God's grace completely in your life from the very beginning to the very end. You need the sandwich of God's grace in order for you to fellowship in prayer, in order for you to fellowship with God's people, in order for you to fellowship with God's Word and the proclamation of it. You need God's grace because without it, we don't have a sandwich. We cannot persevere. We cannot be faithful. The storms will blow us over if we don't have God's grace. From start to finish, they needed and we need God's grace to sustain us in the harshest spiritual environment in which we face. Without God's grace, from cover to cover in this letter, nothing that we found in 1 Thessalonians could be accomplished. God's grace is what makes the difference between development and decay. In Methuselah, without God's grace and intervention, it would be nothing but a pile of dust and ashes. Same with us. And same with our church. It's God's grace. We need to rely upon it. We need to trust in it. We need to ask Him for it. That is what He is essentially doing in verse 28. He's asking that they might enjoy the fullness of God's grace. May it be with you in all its fullness, in all its greatness. We need God's grace from cover to cover in our life. And we get it from his hand. You ask him for God, I need your grace in this area. I don't deserve it. I deserve to be smashed to smithereens when that storm comes. But by your grace, I can withstand it through the fellowship that he gives. He provides the opportunity for fellowship and prayer with his people and through the proclamation of his word and through it, we can be faithful. In fact, You can be a Methuselah. By God's grace and by God's use of fellowship in these areas, in prayer, with His people at church, and with the Word, you can be a Methuselah. Listen to what Psalm 1-3 says. You can be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth his fruit in his season. His leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. You can be a Methuselah. You can be as a tree, as it says in Jeremiah 17.8, a tree planted by the waters that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when the heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green, and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. God has given you all that is necessary for you to grow. He has given to you His grace and He has given to you His fellowship and prayer with His people and His Word. Now, we are to avail ourselves and apply ourselves to God's means of grace and God's means of faithfulness and fellowship. Are we? Do we rely upon God's grace from cover to cover in our life and then avail ourselves of His gracious gift of prayer? His gracious gift of His people? And the gracious gift of His Word? This is how we can become a Methuselah for Jesus Christ. Let's close in prayer.