We're turning to 1 Timothy chapter 3. 1 Timothy chapter 3, and we'll read the first seven verses of the chapter. So let's listen to God's word as it's read. 1 Timothy chapter 3, verses 1 through to 7. Let's hear God's word. This is a true saying. If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach, not given to wine, no striker, not greedy, a filthy looker, but patient, not a brawler, not covetous, one that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity. For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God? not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he falleth into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must have a good report of them which are without, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. Amen, and we'll conclude at verse seven, and let's just pray once again. Loving Father, I pray now for the help of the Spirit of God as I come to preach. Guide us, Lord, as we've been singing. Guide me, oh, thy great Jehovah, pilgrim through this barren land. Oh, how are we guided? Lord, save us from being guided by our own human reasoning. Help us to be guided by thy word. And by the Spirit of God I pray, and so open now the Scriptures, for I cry to thee, and bless our waiting souls, for we offer prayer in and through your Saviour's precious and worthy name. Amen. When the Apostle Paul came to write to Timothy and Titus, young men whom he had saw come, first of all, to faith in Jesus Christ, and then for them to mature in their Christian lives and eventually see those two young men become gospel ministers. Paul gave these two individuals instruction as to the character of the men who were suited to take up the office of eldership within a local church. And he does so in the letters that he now comes to pen to both Timothy and to Titus. Now before we come to consider the character of a man who is to occupy such an office, a matter that I want to preach on today, and also, God willing, next week, I want us to notice a number of things that the Apostle Paul draws to our attention about a man who desires the office of a bishop, as what he comes to write in the verse number 1 of 1 Timothy chapter 3. Because Paul comes to write that this is a true saying, Now there are a number of fundamental key truths that must be spoken upon and must be brought to our attention as we read even these initial words. I want you to notice first of all that Paul is very clear about the gender or about the sex of a person that is to be an elder. Paul speaks of a man in verse number one. If a man desire the office of a bishop. He then comes to emphasize that the gender or the sex of a man, or the individual is to be a man, when he comes in to use the personal pronoun, he, also in the verse number one. This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he, he desireth a good work. In light of this very clear statement that we have in the verse number one, as well as another statement that we come to find in verse number two, that he is to be the husband of one wife, we come to understand that an elder cannot be a woman. An elder cannot be a woman. That is not to say that ladies do not have roles to play within the church of Christ. But when it comes to these offices, the office of an elder and also the office of a deacon, it is never to be a woman, because these are very clear and definitive statements. It is a man, and it is he desireth a good work. The second thing that we come to note from Paul's words to Timothy here is that the office of an elder involves work. It involves work. Paul speaks of it as being a good work. Since being an elder involves work, this office then is not to be filled by someone who has not proven themselves to be a worker. And especially a worker within the church and in the body of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not to be filled by someone who simply wants to be seen, simply someone who wants to be in the limelight, someone who simply craves the limelight, someone who desires simply to hold a position within the work of God. There is work that is involved in being an elder. Difficult, stressful, at times unpleasant, and yet important, rewarding, and blessed work, but there's work involved. The third thing to note is that although Paul does not describe the work of an elder as being an easy work or as a hassle-free work, it is a good work. It is a work of the greatest importance within the body of Jesus Christ and within the church of Christ and is designed for the greatest good. In the eyes of God, the office of an elder is an honorable office for any man to hold. And with that comes tremendous responsibility. Now confining our study today with what we have here in 1 Timothy chapter 3, We want to commence today by looking at what God expects of a man who is to be made an overseer of the flock of God, for that's what the word bishop is, an overseer. And that's what an elder is, they are one who oversees the spiritual work of God within a local congregation and within a denomination. I want you to notice the threefold division that Paul draws to our attention here in these verses that I've read. In the verses 2, 3, and 6, Paul deals with a man's personal character. He deals with a man's personal character. what a man is, who the man is. And then Paul, he casts the net a little further, and in the verse number, verses 4 and 5, he deals with a man's home life. So it moves away from him as an individual, and it brings us into the home life of a prospective elder, or a present elder. And then he casts the net further afield in verse 7, and he then comes to deal with a man's testimony, not in the church, and not in the home, but in the community, in the district. in the vicinity, in the neighborhood, in which that man he comes to live, and in which that man he comes to work in. And so we find he hones in on the man first of all, he then moves out a little into the family home, and then he moves out even further into the community at large. And so we want to think about the character of the elder, and we're thinking about the personal character. Did you know If you'd lean from 1 Timothy chapter 3 and you'd lean from Titus chapter 1 that there are 20, 20 characteristics, with regard to a man who is to hold the office of a bishop or the office of an elder within the church of Christ. Now we're not going to deal with all 20 today. I don't have time to do that. But we're going to deal with them as we find them in the scripture. So we're thinking about an elder's personal character. Let me make this very general and yet this important statement. The office of eldership rises and falls on the character of those men who occupy that office. Let me repeat that. The office of eldership rises and falls on the character of those men who occupy the office. The eldership within the church is only as good as the men who hold its office. Now, listed in 1 Timothy 3, verses 2, 3, and 6, we notice, as I've already said, a number of qualities that a man is to possess if he desires to hold the office of an elder. Firstly, and we're taking them just as they appear to us here, it says a bishop then must be blameless. Blameless. That's the first characteristic. He is to be blameless. Now, if you look at that, you may think to yourself, well, that suggests to my mind that an elder is to be sinless, that he is to be perfect, that he is to have no faults, no flaws with regard to him in any way. He is to be a perfect man. He is to be a sinless man. Now, if that was to be the case, then no one, no man would be eligible to stand for an election, whether that be as a minister, as an elder, or as a deacon. But this is not what the term means. It does not mean that a man must be sinless. Can I say to this congregation, we are not looking for perfect men. They don't exist. We're looking for godly men, spiritual men. But we cannot find a perfect man among us. This preacher is not perfect in any way. And so we must keep that in mind. But let me read to you what this term in the Greek is. This word, blameless, it means one who is above reproach. One who is above reproach. Now, it is a metaphor, this term, blameless. The metaphor is said to be taken from the realm of boxing or from wrestling. I'm sure you've maybe watched a bit of boxing, a bit of wrestling in your lifetime. It simply means this, when a man leaves no part of his body exposed to the attack of his adversary. That's what the term means. When a man leaves himself, no part of his body exposed to the attack of the adversary. A man who desires to be elected to the eldership of the church should be a man against whom no charge of immorality or of holding false doctrine is alleged. He should be a man of irreproachable character in truth, in honesty, in chastity, and in general uprightness. One whose life becometh the gospel of Jesus Christ, one who is not carnal, one who is not worldly-minded. He is to be a man to whom no scandal is attached to, whether that be public scandal or whether that be private scandal. Now notice where God places this, by the Spirit. Where he places this characteristic? He places this characteristic at the very head of this list of 20 qualifications. And it's very interesting to notice that whenever Paul comes to write to Titus, he uses the exact same word at the head of that list. Because in Titus 1 verse 7, Paul writes, for a bishop must be blameless. So this is the main characteristic. This is, as it were, the key qualification upon which all the other qualifications will now hang. That this man is to be above reproach. This man is to be one who is above reproach. And thus, An elder must be above reproach in his marital life, in his social life, in his family life, in his business life, in his church life, in his spiritual life. Such a man, a blameless man if elected, will mean that the testimony of Christ in his church is preserved in this district and beyond. elect a man who is not blameless, elect a man whose question marks over his character, elect a man whose question marks over his conduct, and the testimony of Christ and His church will be tarnished and damaged by such a man within its eldership. And therefore it is necessary that a blameless man or man, men who are above reproach, are elected to serve the Lord in this church in the days that lie ahead. Now let me ask you, are you such a man? Do you, by the grace of God, live a life that is above reproach? While you're not claiming to be sinless, have you, like Paul, a conscience void of offense toward God and toward your fellow man? An elder must, he must, I underscore it again, not for the sake of repeating myself, but because the Holy Ghost puts it here, he must be blameless. He must be blameless. This is not optional. This is absolutely necessary. Secondly, we find in our next statement, he is to be the husband of one wife. The second qualification proves to us again, as I've already stated in my introductory remarks, that the man or the individual who is to occupy the office of elder is to be a man. It doesn't say the wife of one husband. No, it's very specific here, it says, the husband of one wife. I don't believe and church doesn't believe that this implies that a single man cannot be an elder, but rather it implies that if the man is married, then as his statement originally reads in the original, it is that he is to be a one woman man. He is to be a one woman man. An elder is to be a man. to be a man who is single-minded in his devotion to his wife. Now this statement, the husband of one wife, has been debated and discussed down through church history. The Reverend Alfred Plummer, he said concerning this statement, it will probably never cease to be discussed, and that is the case. But this phrase does at least, I believe, two things, maybe even possibly three things. Firstly, it excludes a man who practices polygamy. Now, polygamy doesn't exist very much today. The Church of Jesus Christ polygamy is simply a man married to more than one woman. But at the time whenever Paul was writing these letters to both Timothy and Titus, and don't forget that Titus is now in the island of Crete, and they are a strange bunch of people, so they are. Slow bellies and all of that, we read of that in the book of Titus. But there was a practice of men having more than one wife. And therefore, this practice of polygamy, it was not uncommon. But so Paul, he's setting down a very clear statement here, that the man who is to occupy the office of a bishop, who is to be a teaching elder, who is to be a ruling elder, is to be a man who is only married to one wife. And he makes the same with regard to deacons. This is what makes it sometimes difficult on the mission field. It takes many generations for a church to be established on the mission field. And the reason why I say that is because although this practice does not happen in the West, it does very much happen in African nations. And so you'll find men, and they find themselves maybe married to more than one wife. And as a result, they then disqualify themselves from the office. This also excludes, I believe, the practice of sodomy. Sodomite. He is to be the husband of one wife, not the husband of one husband. You may think, well, surely that doesn't mean much, does it not? In today's society, there are churches and they have elected to their eldership, not obviously in the free church, but they have elected to their eldership, they have elected Sodomites. But it says here that this is to be the husband of one wife, not the husband of one husband. It also encourages the practice of fidelity. An elder is to be a man that is to be faithful to his wife. In other words, he is not to be a womanizer. And he is not to be an adulterer. Dr. Alan Cairns, he said, there must be absolutely no breath of moral sexual scandal against the character of a man in public office. And if there is, then let him go. He is not to be elected to that office. Any man who has a question mark over him morally, must never be elected to the offices of the church. Dr. John Gilley said, this rule excludes all such persons from being elders or pastors or overseers of churches that were polygamous, who had more wives than one at a time or had divorced their wives and not for adultery and married and married others. This qualification I see Christ's likeness. What do you mean? Christ loved his church. He loves his bride, in Ephesians 5, 25, and he loves his bride exclusively. How then can a man love and care for the church of Jesus Christ if he doesn't love and care for his wife? He is to be a picture of Christ's love for his church in his family home. He is to have a love that is undivided with regard to his wife. It is to be a love that is strong. Fidelity in marriage is essential for a man to hold office within the church. In his marriage, as I've said, he becomes a picture of the love that Christ has for his church. Have you vowed to forsake all others? Are you being faithful to your wife? Is it your earnest desire that you'll do so as long as you both shall live? Oh, I trust that you'll be such men. That is what we need to be. in these days when morality and when the scripture with regard to the teaching, with regard to marriage, we must say that we have it here, the husband of one wife. God would have us to love our wives right to the end and our wives to love us to the end of time. And may God help us to do that. In the third place, we're told here that the man who desires the office of an elder, they must be vigilant. The word translates to mean temperate, circumspect, watchful. This quality highlights for us that an elder is to have a watchful eye over his own life, his own conduct, his own conversation within and without the church of Jesus Christ. He is to be on his guard. He is to be on his guard with regard to the encroachment of sin in all of its subtle forms when it comes into the home and into his own personal life. Not only is he to be vigilant with respect to himself, he is also to be vigilant when it comes to his watch for the souls of men and women. He is to care for the souls of those whom God will set him as an overseer. He is to be watchful when God's people start to stray and are absent in the house of God and are elsewhere, are elsewhere on the Lord's day, on a prayer meeting night. He is to be watchful. They're to be watchful, the elders are to be watchful with regard to the man who fills the pulpit, that he's preaching truth, the truth. He's to be watchful with regard to the doctrine that is being taught by the teaching elder. He is to be watchful when it comes to the spiritual state of the church's members. He is to be ever watchful, always on the lookout. And such a watchfulness requires alertness on the part of the elder. He is to be a man with unclouded, unimpaired judgment. He is to be marked with temperance, self-control in the use of anything that might hinder his judgment when it comes to critical matters. He is to be unprejudiced. This vigilance, this watchfulness is essential whenever you come to read about what We believe Paul writes, or the writer to the Hebrews writes, with regard to the role of those who fill the office. You want to turn there to Hebrews chapter 13, Hebrews chapter 13, in the verse number 17. This is a responsibility of you as a church member. Obey them that have the rule over you and submit yourselves For they watch for your souls, that they that must give an account, and that they might do it with joy and not with grief, for that is unprofitable for you. The eldership of this church, they want to speak of every member with joy, not with grief. It breaks our hearts at times. Child of God, this is what you're to do. You are to obey them that rule over you, but notice it says that they watch for your souls. And for them to be able to watch for the souls of the saints, they're going to have to be in God's house. Yeah, you're going to have to be here to watch for the souls. How can you watch for the souls if you're not here? You're going to have to watch for the souls. given account on that great day of judgment and so we are to be vigilant we're to be circumspect we're to be watchful in the fourth place the man who desires the office of an elder he must be sober that's the next statement sober the word in the original it translates to mean of a sound mind someone who's seeing someone in their senses It can also mean this word, it can also mean to curb one's desires and impulses, to be self-controlled, to be temperate, to be moderate as to passion. An elder is to be one who has a sound mind, a sound and healthy mind, one who has his desires and his passions well regulated by the indwelling of the Spirit of God. He's not to be a man who flies off the handle. He's not to be one who would storm out of meetings every week because he disagrees with another brother. He's not to be one who shouts people down. Rather, he is to be sober, one who is self-controlled when it comes to his emotions and to his passions. One ancient writer said, the man who is sober does not have the reputation of a clown. One who is sober does not have the reputation of a clown. He is to be a serious man, a serious-minded man. Now, that is not to say that a man cannot be humorous, and a man cannot have humor as an elder. Sometimes it's only humor that keeps sometimes us sane. We all know that in our lives. But an elder means that there must be a seriousness with regard to how he lives and conducts his affairs in this world. You know, while all of these characteristics, can I just pause there? While all of these characteristics are to be found in the life of a man who desires the office of an elder, brethren and sisters, all of these things are to be evident in all of our lives. You may say, well, over the next three weeks, I'll just sit back and fold my arms and think, well, it's not me, I'm a woman. And so really this doesn't mean anything to me. And you might say, I'm a young person, I'm not a member of the congregation, means nothing to me. You might say to yourself, well, I'm a man, but I don't intend to stand. But brethren and sisters, this is for us all. This is how we're to live. We are all to be blameless, we are to be vigilant, we are to be sober, and so on and so forth. These are characteristics, these are virtues that we could all see in our lives to a higher and a greater degree. And so we find here that while these characteristics are evident in the life of a man who seeks the office, surely they should be evident in the life of every child of God. Every Christian should be sober. One who controls their passions desires in opposition to the uncontrolled passions. They desire to be unlike the ungodly, for they're not controlled, they're not temperate, they're not sober. And so we are to be unlike the ungodly, and such as to be the elder. In the fifth place, the man who desires the office of an elder is to be of good behavior, That will be the case if a man is sober-minded. His life will be marked by good behavior, whereas the word sober, it refers to the inward life of a man. The phrase good behavior speaks of his outward life. The phrase good behavior is one in the original Greek, and it's this word, cosmos. And from that word, we get our English word, cosmos. Now the cosmos is the creation, the created universe. We see in that cosmos, we see order. There is order in the created cosmos. And this is the Greek word that's used, this word of good behavior. It simply comes to translate to mean orderly. A man is to be a man of order. A man who desires to be an elder must conduct his affairs in an orderly, in a methodical, and in a well-arranged way. In 1 Corinthians chapter 14 and the verse 40, we read that within the church all things are to be done decently and in order. And that can only ever take place if those who occupy the offices of the church are orderly in their lives, that they are men of order. Frankly, the eldership has no place for a man whose life is a continual confusion of unaccomplished plans and unorganized activities. I wonder, does your life have order to it, brother? Or are you a disorderly person? Someone who cannot order your own affairs? How will you ever come to order the affairs within Christ's church if you're not able to come to order your own affairs in your own life and also in the life of your home and your family? The phrase good behavior also has another translation. Yes, it can speak of order, And really this is a follow-on because it goes on to speak or can be translated this word, modest, to be modest. When things are orderly, things will be modest. Let me quote Dr. Gill and then move on. Dr. Gill said, the elder is to be neat and decent in his apparel, modest in his whole deportment and conduct, and affable and courteous to all, beautiful in his life and conversation, being adorned with everything that is graceful and comely. Elders, now listen, elders ought to set the standard when it comes to how God's people should appear in God's house. A disheveled, casual look is not befitting the office of elder. that I believe to be so. They are to be modest, orderly in everything. Now in the sixth place, a man who desires the office of an elder must be given to hospitality, fond of guests. That's what the literal translation is, they're fond of guests. And it really points to a man's conduct with his fellow man. The word is a beautiful Greek word, It is the word philezenios. Zenios means stranger. Phileo is the word that means to love or to show affection. The thought is not that the man is hospitable to his friends, because we can all be that. We can all be hospitable to our friends within a congregation. Within the neighborhood, we can all be hospitable to our friends. But rather, the thought is that a man is hospitable to those who are not his friends. to those who are strangers. You see, whenever Paul came to write these words, persecution and poverty because of disinheritance, individuals became orphans, others became widows, it really made it necessary for the church's leadership in the past to show such people, maybe people that they never met before, to show those people Christian love and friendship. And so Paul, he comes to write here that a man is to be given to hospitality. In other words, an elder is to be of a friendly disposition. To be of a friendly disposition. One who makes others feel welcome in the house of God, especially strangers when they come in. that they don't look at them as if they've got two heads, but that they're friendly, that they make them feel welcome. They are to be given to hospitality. The elder is not to be a hermit, hiding away in some corner in the church or in some part of life, but rather they are one who extends to others the hand of friendship. Lovely to see you at God's house today. You're so welcome. Come again. The minister's not here this week, but come again whenever he is. Be kind and courteous and friendly. He that hath friends must show himself to be friendly. An elder is to be someone whose home and whose heart is open to those who are strangers to the grace of God as well as those who belong to the household of faith. They are to be of a friendly disposition. Thirdly, or sorry, we're not thirdly, we're at the seventh. The man who desires the office of an elder, he must be apt to teach. Now I want you to notice, brethren, sorry before I go on, that there's some men and they take only one week at these two passages. And so I'm trying to give the sense as much as I can. I'm trying to perform my duty, my responsibility as a teaching elder. And so we're looking here at number seven, they're apt to teach. You may say, well, that means the man must be a preacher. Must be a preacher. But that's not necessarily the case. That's not necessarily the case. You know, there are two ways that you can teach a person. You can teach a person by way of exhortation, by what you say. But you can also teach a person by your example in how you live. Apt to teach. You can teach by your conduct as well as by your conversation. You can teach by your lips as well as by your life. But with all that said, there is a sense that the elder must be able to instruct those within the church. Now such may happen from time to time from the pulpit. I may turn up or become sick at seven o'clock on a Wednesday night. Well, I'll be ringing some of the elders and ask could they fill in and they'll bring a word. And that might happen from time to time. But more often, this happens within the homes and the family setting of a congregation. When an elder comes to visit, whenever an elder has a private conversation with a person within the church fellowship, the elder is to be a man, then if he's up to teaching, he must know the gospel. He must know the gospel himself. He must know the doctrines of grace. He must be abreast of the Reformed faith. He has to be able to defend that faith when error comes against it, whether it's from within the body of Christ or outside the body of Christ. This thought of being able to teach, I suppose it's brought to our attention there in Acts 20, in the verse 28, Paul meets with the Ephesian elders. And as he meets with them, he speaks to them that they are told what to do. They're told to feed the flock of God. They're to feed the flock of God. And that feeding involves at some level the dispensing of the bread of life, the word of God to the saints of God. Are you a man who reads and studies the scriptures for yourself? Do you know the book? Now there are times that even Myself, I find it a struggle sometimes even to find a passage of God's word. But then I'm always heartened by what we read in some of the epistles. They're not so definitive. The writer of the Hebrews, he speaks about David said somewhere, and that's encouraging. He knew that he said it somewhere, but he just couldn't pinpoint where it was. And that individual said such things, but you know, do you know the scriptures? Let me bring it down to really to the whole face. Would you be able to sit beside a grieving widow and to turn that dear woman to passage of God's word that would just comfort her in her time of trial? Would you be able to do that? Would you be able to take your Bible out in a home that's experiencing trouble and point them to the verse that is, be an anchor to their soul or would you be able to speak to a young person maybe they're going to make an important decision and they come to you and they're seeking godly advice would you be able to take down the word of God and point them to God's word and say use this verse as a guiding light to guide your decision that you'll make the right decision that's the kind of man who's suited for the eldership of the church I hasten on to say that the man is not to be given to wine. I believe that total abstinence is the only safe approach when it comes to the consumption of alcohol today. Our presbytery has ruled that a man is not eligible to stand for election. If he does not practice total abstinence from the recreational, social, or non-medicinal use of drugs, and from the consumption of beverage and alcohol, both in public and in private. So in other words, brother, if there's alcohol in your home, no. No. Total abstinence. Scripture says that wine is a mocker. and strong drink is raging. How can a man be sober? How can a man be of good behavior if he is under the influence of intoxicating liquor, wine? That man's judgment would be impaired in coming to rule in matters of faith and practice within the church of Christ. And so if you're given to wine, you disqualify yourself from eldership. And then finally, A man who desires an office must not, sorry, must not be a striker. No striker is what we read in the verse number three. No striker. It is speaking of a man who is of a peaceable and of a make and of a gentle disposition. To be a striker is one who is quarrelsome. To be a striker is one who is contentious. A man who is a striker is someone who is going to come to blows with those whom God has put under their care. The idea here is of a man who is not of a quick temper, but rather one who is of a cool head. An elder's tongue is not to be a tongue that lashes out. strikes out at his fellow elders or at God's people. Instead in speech, though it may be forceful at times, his speech is always going to be with grace. No striker. If you're a man who cannot control your tongue or temper, how are you going to be able to rule in the church of Jesus Christ? If you're rash with your words, One whose temper rises quickly over which you have no control, it would do well for you to withdraw from the election process. No striker, no striker. But brother, do not remain in that state. Ask God for his grace and the help of his indwelling spirit to deal with these matters where there is inconsistency. Because he giveth grace to the humble giveth grace. And sin shall not have dominion over you. Rise into the victory of the cross, rise into the victory of your union with Jesus Christ, and ask God to give you the grace to have done with these things. And maybe you're saying to yourself, well preacher, there's things here And God has put his finger on it. That's good. God is dealing with you. God is maturing you. Or you may not be elected this time. But as God matures you and develops you, maybe on the next occasion, or sometime well down in the future, God may have a role for you to play. Maybe not as an elder, but as a minister of the gospel. or simply as a member of a congregation living out a good and a godly life. Time's gone, it's ten past. We're going to return to this passage. As you see, we haven't been able to deal with all of these matters. And we'll also turn to Titus chapter one, but I trust that God is guiding, God is leading you as a communicant member as to who you should vote for in the forthcoming election on the 3rd of October, Thursday, the 3rd of October. But I want to leave you with one thought, I want you to listen. And I want to leave this thought with you to impress upon the minds of all who will be involved in this process about the importance of the decision that you are going to make. And you're going to have to make this decision. You can't abscond from this. If you're a member, you must be present. You must make your vote. Do all you can to be present on this occasion. But this is a thought I leave you with. The man or the men, you choose. You choose. The man or the men you choose to serve as elders in this congregation will be here longer than any minister will be. Ministers come and ministers go, but the elders remain in the congregation. And they do so for life. This is a serious matter. This determines the health and the testimony of Christ's church in this community. And so, I trust you feel the gravity of it. I trust you're aware of it. I trust that you'll not simply look at this lightheartedly. I know you're not. I know that there is a seriousness among us in these days, and there ought to be. And there ought to be a prayerfulness among us. And that we would say, the Lord's will be done. The Lord's will be done. Oh, may God help all the members of this congregation to approach this matter in a spiritual and in a prayerful way, as I know you want to, as I know you desire to, and that God will be glorified in it all. May the Lord continue to guide us in the days that lie before us. Let's seek the Lord together in prayer. Our gracious and loving Father in heaven, we come into thy presence in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We're thankful for the opportunity to preach the word and to guide the congregation. And Lord, we pray that thou will continue to guide in all things and all matters. We pray for those who are eligible to stand, that thou will guide them. And Lord, we pray that thou will guide the congregation, this communicant membership, and Lord, that every friend of this congregation who know and love the Savior, that they'll continue to leave this matter before the Lord, and that we'll see God leading and guiding in the days that lie before us. Now bless us and part us with thy favor, and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all, both now and forevermore, all those who love thee, and all who are redeemed by blood, We pray this in our safe.