Why Pray for Preaching

Thank you.

Should I tell the same one again?

Okay.

Okay.

There was this little baby that had come into this family,

and Johnny was just not entirely ready to kind of adapt to this little baby.

And the thing that was really just irking him was that the baby,

when the baby was dirty or the baby was hungry,

the baby would just, you know, bellow all the time.

And one day when the baby was just carrying on like whoever,

you know, Johnny says to Mom, where did he come from?

Mom says, well, heaven, of course.

And he says, well, I can understand why they kicked him out.

Okay.

There's a third joke.

Pastors don't tell jokes.

And that's not an accident.

I have a couple kids that are supposed to come up on cue,

and they're kind of stunned by the drum roll.

Doug, we should have practiced that a little bit more.

Push it out.

Right over here.

Go slowly.

Don't tip it over.

I'll be in trouble with the sound guys.

Thank you.

Truth of the matter is, I didn't know if I could pull it off.

But I did want you to remember it.

I never want you to forget it.

It's not an accident that the pulpit is in the center of this room.

And regardless of the man that stands at it,

what you hear from it must be the same.

And the day will come that I am no longer here.

And you must guard the pulpit.

I think there's a place for humor.

I enjoy a good laugh.

And thankfully, progressive sanctification has kind of narrowed the circle of things that I laugh about

and brought some of the things that I think are humorous into a more focused text or context.

But I have to tell you, when I come to the pulpit or when I see a man come to the pulpit,

I understand that he is coming to that place to preach.

And truthfully, preaching is not an exercise in entertainment.

Preaching is really nothing other than a call to worship.

I want you to have that fixed in your mind.

Preaching is nothing other than a call to worship.

Martin Lloyd-Jones, who I have to confess has become one of my favorite authors,

was asked, he preached, he actually was a surgeon that went into ministry.

He resigned to his ministry.

He died.

from perhaps one of the finest

of interest in interest in interest

of interest in interest

interest interest

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And second is the place and work of the Holy Spirit in preaching.

I want us to stop for a moment and ask God's help yet again.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

that the preaching of the Word of God would be marked by the evidence of the Spirit of God's presence and enabling,

that Jesus Christ might reign supreme in the hearts of His children,

and that those who do not know Christ would be drawn from the desperation of their sinful state to become worshipers of the King of kings and the Lord of lords.

We ask this in Your precious name. Amen.

Well, context is important, so I want to begin by looking at this passage and recognizing the context of Paul's lesson

that we are looking at, and we mark there in 19, that he is actually very, very close to the very end of a book.

And sometimes when we come towards the end of the book, the tendency we have is to kind of,

okay, fast forward, get it done, move on, we've got it covered.

And I have to tell you that being as redundant as I am to always say this is the best text,

it is, I will say, a very, very important text, and it's important for us to pay attention and not blow past it.

I want you to understand that what Paul does in this case is he pled with people that they would pray for his preaching.

That's what this is all about.

He's bringing the letter to the Ephesian church to a close, and he says,

and by the way, in addition to praying for all these other people, I want you to do this for me.

I want you to pray for my preaching of the Word of God.

Now stop and think with me just for a moment of where Paul was at that time.

He was in prison.

And we're not talking about club fed.

We're talking about a miserable, despicable condition in which he was waiting for all practical purposes

for execution because, for the most part, prisons were not used for incarceration on long-term basis.

They were simply used to kind of keep a person in a holding cell until the time of execution.

And so here was Paul in prison, miserably treated,

and yet he didn't say to people when he had an opportunity to write,

would you please pray about me getting out of this mess that I'm in?

We also know that Paul's health was not very good.

And yet when the opportunity came for asking for prayer,

he didn't say anything about the condition he was in,

nor did he ask people to pray about his physical condition.

What he said is this, there's the one thing I want, there's one thing I'm interested,

there's one thing that I want you to keep before the Lord.

It is this, that in those opportunities that God would give me,

that I would preach the Word of God clearly, according to his direction and his will.

And so when you stop and look at this passage,

you have to recognize that the apostle is making something rather clear here,

that we have a tendency to overlook.

Believers should pray incessantly for the preaching of the Word of God.

And I want that anchored in your mind, regardless of who comes to this pulpit.

One of the things that should be fixed in your heart as a believer

is that the Holy Spirit calls you to an awesome task of doing something

while the preacher is preaching, and it's praying.

It's praying.

We're going to consider two reasons why that is so important.

One would be that preaching is important.

As we take up verse 19, you would have to recognize that in 19,

there is no real indication of the word preaching.

And I have taken, to a certain degree, an amount of liberty

in putting together what Paul is saying with other places where he says similar things,

when he says there in verse 19,

and also for me that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly

to proclaim the mystery of the gospel we understand from other places,

that what he's referencing is not just his having little anecdotal conversations

with the guards, but he's talking about those moments where he has the opportunity

of proclaiming the glory of Christ and the supremacy of God.

The word preach is one that today actually has fallen to a certain amount of disfavor.

It's amazing how easily we take something that the Spirit of God sees as supremely important,

and we kind of relegate it to something less than it should be.

And here is Paul referring to this work that God has appointed him to do of being a preacher of righteousness,

and he asks that those who care for him and are interested in his effect in doing so,

he says, I want you to pray for me.

Now, I actually understand that this word preach is a word that in the ancient world referred to someone who was a herald.

And a herald was someone who, prior to having a lot of written communication,

and they certainly didn't have Facebook or whatever else to rely upon,

when you wanted a message communicated accurately and carefully,

you would hire someone to go into the center of the town,

and he would blow a trumpet or he would beat a drum,

and he would say, hear ye, hear ye, thus saith the king, right?

He was a herald.

And as a general rule, heralds were hired because they had clear voices.

But they were also hired with the expectation that they would communicate passionately,

and they would communicate with energy and enthusiasm the message of the king.

I have always kind of Jim Carney.

How many of you know who Jim Carney is?

He was the press secretary for President Obama.

And I have to tell you, I have, with mixed adoration,

appreciated the fact that he is such an adept prevaricator.

Do you understand what I mean?

He, everything he says, he can say with sincerity and with enthusiasm and with passion,

like it is the gospel truth.

A herald had the responsibility of communicating both authoritatively and passionately.

And so I want you to understand that preaching is important because it is the passionate heralding

of the king's message.

And if you would turn to a passage where I want to kind of flesh this out a little bit further,

I want you to take the time to turn back to 1 Corinthians chapter 1, verse 17 through 23.

1 Corinthians 1:17–23

Let me explain to you as you are going there that actually a fair part of 1 Corinthians is taken up with this business of Paul

explaining his ministry to a people that were not overly persuaded.

Paul, for one thing, was not a Joel Osteen handsome or slick.

Do you follow that?

I seriously thought about coming out here and saying,

Hi, how y'all are you doing today?

And I thought, I can't pull it off.

You know, I was like, okay, don't do that.

But Paul was kind of a dumpy little guy.

He had bad eyesight, probably squinted.

And while he was a profoundly educated man,

and he could have wowed the crowd with his brilliance and his logic,

he relied upon simplicity and clarity in announcing the truth of God with the power of the Spirit.

And we're looking here at 1 Corinthians chapter 1, verse 17, where he explains his ministry.

1 Corinthians 1:17

He says,

For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to what?

Preach the gospel.

And not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing,

but to us who are being saved, it's the power of God.

For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,

and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.

Where is the one who is wise?

Where is the scribe?

Where is the debater of this age?

Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

For since in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom,

it pleased God through the folly of what we, what's the next word?

Preach to save those who believe.

And so as Paul, over in Ephesians chapter 6, says,

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

Hey, listen, I want you to pray for me,

that the words may be given to me.

He is referencing the issue of preaching, and he's saying,

I want you to have a part in what I do in proclaiming with authority and with passion

the express word of God.

There are several different passages that my heart is drawn to this morning,

and over the years of ministry have been framed clearly in my mind

in relationship to the sober responsibility of coming to stand here

in front of God's people and proclaim the word of God.

One is Malachi chapter 2, verse 7.

Malachi 2:7

Now I want you to turn back to that passage, if you would, please.

Malachi chapter 2, verse 7.

Malachi 2:7

For the lips of the priest should guard knowledge,

and people should seek instruction from his mouth,

for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.

The priest's lips should guard knowledge,

and people should seek instruction from his mouth,

for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.

The second passage that comes to mind is over in 2 Timothy.

And I want you to look, if you will,

at what we find at the very conclusion of 2 Timothy,

and let me give you a broad meta-picture of this.

You'll remember that 1 Timothy is written predominantly to Timothy

regarding what needs to take place in the church.

2 Timothy is written with a focus on what needs to take place in the pastor.

And in that context, towards the very end of the book,

we come to this absolutely sober charge that is given.

And it is given in a series of imperatives.

The word imperative means commands.

It's given in a series of this you must do.

Listen to the windup.

I charge you in the presence of God in Christ Jesus,

who is to judge the living and the dead,

and by his appearing and his kingdom,

preach the word.

In one sense, this passage makes it clear

that the one audience that counts is not sitting here in front of me,

but is unseen,

and is the one who will someday call me to task

for the fidelity of my preaching of the authoritative word of God,

and doing so under the enabling and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Do you understand that?

Preach the word.

So when a man comes to the pulpit,

he really comes to speak as a herald

or as an announcer of the king of kings,

and he comes to passionately announce truths

that are matters of life and death.

So let me kind of summarize this for you a little bit

by pointing out that the king's message, for one, is convicting.

In Romans 3.23,

a passage that many of you are familiar with,

I want to remind you that Paul says this.

He says,

All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Let me help you understand that in one sense,

part of preaching is calling people to repentance.

And you can't call people to repentance

so long as you're soft-pedaling the reality of the condition of their soul

and the bankruptcy of their state

and their desperate need for coming to grips with the heart that they have.

Do you follow that?

I'm reminded of something that took place not too long ago.

I had an individual come to me.

He was in a spiritual kind of a fog

and very, very kind of discouraged and brokenhearted.

And as we were kind of talking through things,

he explained to me that he was deeply convicted

because he was living with this woman.

And practical question, you know,

forget the fact that I'm a Baptist pastor.

You know, I said,

So why are you living with her?

You know, without thinking, I thought,

you know, the reasonable thing to do

if you feel bad about living with her is what?

Huh?

Move out, that would be one practical thing.

But what would be another one?

Well, marry her.

And so I said,

Well, why haven't you gotten married?

He says,

Well, my first two marriages ended in divorce.

Duh.

And I figured that if I don't get married,

I won't get divorced.

Now, that is practical math.

Do you understand that?

I connect the dots.

It's like, duh.

I shouldn't have asked.

That was just absolutely brilliant logic.

I remember subsequently as this man

and his partner started coming sporadically to church,

he made an insightful statement.

He says, I got to tell you,

we started coming to church,

but every time we left,

we felt worse than when we came.

I thought, really?

I'm not trying.

But when a person with the passion

of the Lord Jesus Christ

pleads with people to come to grips

with the sin of their soul

because heaven and hell is at risk,

you can understand.

If he continued living in sin

and didn't walk home feeling bad about it,

then I failed.

Do you understand that?

So one is the king's message is convicting.

Number two,

the king's message is converting.

One of the things I love to say to people,

not just in church.

You guys have heard me say this so many times here,

but particularly when I am in my non-Baptist regalia.

Do you know what regalia means?

It's the robe I wear, you know.

It's the thing that when you look at me,

you can say, he's a pastor.

And when I am in shorts and a t-shirt

and visiting at the nursing home

with my dad and my mom,

it's taken months for them to figure out

that I am who I am.

And in the meantime,

I have been able to creep up on them

and let them know

the absolutely wonderful news

that Jesus saves sinners,

and I'm one of the examples.

Acts 16, verse 31,

Acts 16:31

the apostle Paul said to the Philippian jailer,

believe on the Lord Jesus Christ

and you will be what?

Saved.

Does it get any better than that?

And I got to tell you something.

The truth of the matter is,

is that apart from preaching,

whether it is a mother

sharing the gospel

in simplicity at home,

or Jonah stomping through

a rebellious city,

God has always used preaching

to call broken-hearted people

to repentance

and to redemption.

The king's message is conforming.

2 Corinthians 3, verse 18,

2 Corinthians 3:18

Paul says this,

and I want you to look at it

and let your heart just

grasp and soak

and enjoy the sweet truth

that not only does preaching convict

and not only does preaching convert,

but preaching also

is part of the work of God

in helping the Lord Jesus' children

conform.

And we all,

with unveiled face,

beholding the glory of the Lord,

are being transformed

from the same image,

from one degree of glory to another,

for this comes from the Lord

who is the Spirit.

Listen to me carefully.

Preaching

that is received with prayer

and is empowered with prayer

and that is governed

by the authority of the Word of God

does a work

in the life of the believer.

And it brings about

progressive sanctification.

One of the blessings

that I know to be true

in my life

is that because of His salvation,

I am not obligated,

nor can I stay the way

I used to be.

The Spirit of God is at work

and the way in which He works

is principally through

the preaching of the Word of God

and the exposure of the heart of man

to the authority

and the supremacy

of the glory of Christ.

Now,

understanding the importance

of preaching,

we come to a truth

that makes preaching difficult.

God has chosen

to use the voice of a man

to touch the heart of men.

Because God uses the voice of a man

to touch the heart of men,

He has ordained prayer

for the preacher.

And so,

I want us to come secondly.

First is,

preaching is important.

Secondly,

your prayers

are important

to preaching.

And I want you to understand

as we look at this passage

and break it down

into practical statements,

first of all,

you understand here

that it's the Holy Spirit

that calls you

to pray

for preaching.

Don't miss the truth.

The preacher may forget

to remind you.

The preacher may not necessarily

be persuaded

of the importance

of praying

in relationship

to preaching.

I graduated from seminary

before I came

to understand fully

how significant

and important

praying was

to preaching.

I can tell you

where I was sitting

when I was first convicted

of the importance

of Tim Knoyer

sitting way back there

almost where

Mark Holopeter is.

And Judith and I

were sitting there

back in 1980

when after Pastor Brock

announced his resignation

and that he would be

leaving in two weeks

or whatever it was,

he then took time

to preach

on how people

could help

their next pastor

whoever he would be.

after a five-year

hiatus.

I remember

Pastor Brock

making it

undeniably clear

from the authority

of Scripture

that God's people

had a responsibility

to pray for the man

who would preach

the word of God.

I'm not sure

what you will

ultimately remember

about me.

but one of the things

that I hope

you have heard me

say enough

that it's somewhere

high on the list

is pray for me.

I have to confess

that there are occasions

where people

who love me

a great, great deal

will let me know

that I am

overly redundant.

Same, same.

Same, same.

Do you follow that?

But if there is anything

that I have small hesitation

about being redundant about

it is about the importance

of asking for prayer

in the preaching

of the word of God.

I remember at one point

where I was asked

if I would consider

being the president

of a Bible college

and as I deliberated

and prayed about that

the one thing

that I wrestled

with the most

is if I do this

who will pray

for me?

Do you follow that?

Who would pray?

And I couldn't come up

with a clear answer.

So we recognize

that the Holy Spirit

says hey

pray for the man

who's preaching.

Secondly

just mark how often

Paul asked people

to pray about this thing.

Let's do a little journey

and I'm not going to touch

on all of them

but Colossians chapter 4

Colossians 4:3

verse 3

just tag this.

And by the way

I don't want to argue

that in every case

the amount of repetition

is an automatic guarantee

that it's oh so significant

but it does teach us something.

Chapter 4

verse 3

of Colossians

at the same time

pray also for us

that God may open

to us a door

for the word

to declare the mystery

of Christ

on account of which

I'm in prison.

He says hey

pray.

1 Thessalonians

1 Thessalonians 5:25

chapter 5

verse 25

and by the way

the church at Thessalonica

was a solid

good group of believers

and he says hey

brothers pray for us.

2 Thessalonians

2 Thessalonians 3:1

chapter 3

verse 1 and 2

perhaps the one

that I have recited

most often

would be this

brothers pray for us

that the word of the Lord

may speed ahead

and be honored

as happened among you.

In other words

pray that the word of God

would bring life

transforming change

into the lives

of those who hear it.

And then verse 2

and that we may be

delivered from wicked

and evil men

for not all have faith.

And I got to tell you

some of the times

where I have faced

wicked evil men

have been some

who have sat

in our congregation

with a heart

that is perverse

and against God

and have actively

resisted

the teaching

and the preaching

of the word of God

and have let me know it.

Third

your prayers

respect the plan

of God

and the frailty

of the instrument

He has chosen.

Over in 1 Corinthians

and also in 2 Corinthians

Paul wrote about the fact

that God had ordained

to bring salvation

through

the perceived foolishness

of preaching.

And can I tell you

that if preaching

was perceived

as foolish

back in the first century

it is even perceived

to be more foolish

today.

But when God

wanted to touch

the city of Nineveh

He didn't send a band

and He didn't send

a drama team.

He sent one

crotchety

low life

to do one thing

repent.

repent.

Repent.

Repent.

And there's a reason

why when you work

your way

through church history

and mark this carefully

if you sit here

with a little bit

of hesitation

in your soul

towards the truth

there is no illustration

there is no single

illustration

in all of

recorded church history

of over 2,000 years ago

where anything

but the authoritative

preaching of the word

of God

ultimately bought

transformation

to the hearts

of people

and to nations

and cultures

families

homes

everything.

But there is a problem

with preaching

because it has the treasure

in an earthen vessel.

I thought

seriously

about having

a broken clay pot

up here

but I thought

you'd had enough

illustrations

with the pulpit

over to the side

and that's probably

unnerving for some of you

and I thought

the clay pot

would just be over the top

and so just forget it.

You see the clay pot.

And here's what it says

in 2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4:7

chapter 4

verse 7

it says

for we have this glory

this treasure

in an earthen vessel

that the glory

may be of God

and not of us.

Now listen to me

I don't go out

of my way

to look stupid

or do things

that are ill suited

but you who know me

know the clay

earthy

pot

and one of the things

that I pray

I pray

I pray

would be that

the thing that would

stand out

is the authority

and the sufficiency

and the supremacy

of the word of God.

Earthiness is not an excuse

for persistent sin

but it is a reflection

of the temporal

fragile nature

of the messenger

and the weakness

of the vessel.

Fourth

your prayers

respect

your own

need.

Why should you pray?

Holy Spirit

tells you to.

Why should you pray?

Because Paul

asks all the time.

Why should you pray?

Because the man

who preaches

the word of God

is pretty frail.

Why should you pray?

Because you desperately

need help.

I can't tell you

how often

I have sat

listening to another man

preach

and found that I had

failed in that

very fundamental

exercise of asking

the Spirit of God

to do something

with this crass

surly

judgmental

dissatisfied

moody

spirit.

I can't tell you

how many times

that humility

and prayer

has brought fire

down from heaven.

Am I responsible

to preach

the word of God?

Yes I am.

Should I preach it

with the enabling

of the Spirit of God?

Yes I should.

But not all

the problems

with the sermons

that you have heard

have had to do

with me.

Some of them

have been you.

And so it is

appropriate for you

as you come

to listen to the

preaching of the

word of God

to have the

humility

and brokenness

that we find

in Psalm 119

where the psalmist

he says this

he says

bear with me

King James

here we go

open thou mine

eyes

that I might

behold

wondrous truths

out thy law.

there was a time

in my life

where my devotion

for the most part

were fairly

methodic

and kind of

marked by

grudging obedience.

Does anybody

kind of

feel my pain?

You ever been there?

Now it wasn't

like I

you know

kept a check

mark

so I could

say to people

I had devotions

for 17 minutes

and I read

nine verses

and I prayed

for four different

people in the

church

and a changeover

began to take

place when

Tim Kenoyer

began praying

almost every

single time

I sit down

in my living

room

or actually

family room

to begin

my time

with God

my prayer

is

Holy Spirit

by the way

I don't mind

praying to the

Holy Spirit

I don't know

if that bothers

you but

he is one

of the triune

God

Holy Spirit

would you

help me

this morning

I gotta

confess

I would have

liked to have

slept a little

longer

but

you know

what

I wanna

have a heart

that's tuned

towards you

and I need

your help

I gotta

tell you

he delights

to answer

that prayer

he delights

to answer

that prayer

and so

I have to

say

if you're

gonna show

up

and sit

here

it's

intelligent

to pray

for me

right

now by

the way

one of the

things that

we as

Baptists

don't do

is we

don't say

amen

out loud

and I'm

not bothered

by that

but you

ought to be

saying amen

in your heart

do you know

what amen

means

does anybody

know what

amen means

it means

this is

true

it's like

right on

you know

if you're

from the

70s

like I am

preach it

brother

I gotta

tell you

some of

the most

fun

I've

ever

had

preaching

was to

a group

of

African

Americans

that

were

a little

more

enthusiastic

than

most

of

you

I gotta

tell you

I

probably

played

to the

audience

a little

bit

but

I

loved

it

now I

love

you

too

so

it's

alright

you

be

who

you

are

okay

but

here's

the

deal

we

need

to

hear

from

God

and

we

will

not

hear

clearly

if

our

hearts

are

sullied

by the

things

of this

world

and

if

you

sit

there

and

struggle

week

after

week

with

hearing

much

of

anything

it

may

be

that

part

of

the

problem

is

your

lack

of

prayer

I

love

the

quote

that

John

Piper

recites

in his

book

on

the

sufficiency

of

God

in

preaching

and

I'll

tell

you

a

little

story

on

that

book

number

of

years

ago

I

was

in

the

midst

of

reading

it

any

of

you

know

me

I

hate

to

be

late

to

an

appointment

and

so

I

had

I

do

I

will

sit

near

a

driveway

if

I

happen

to be

a little

early

so I

don't

show up

too

early

and

sometimes

I

will

drive

around

the

block

three

or

four

times

and

park

somewhere

where

I

hope

people

won't

!

call

the

police

at the

Mansfield

exit

on

71

I

was

reading

that

book

on

preaching

I

sat

there

in

McDonald's

weeping

not

for

sorrow

but

because

of the

significance

of what

a preacher

does

here's

what

John

Piper

recorded

he

said

I

wake

up

in

the

morning

of

the

Lord's

day

and

I

can

smell

the

sweet

breezes

of

heaven

and

I

can

also

catch

the

whift

of

the

sulfuric

heat

of

hell

and

I

realize

that

with

soberness

I

go

to

plead

with

men

who

are

dying

so

you

can

understand

why

I

cried

right

here's

what

he

recited

from

Cotton

Mather

in

some

!

the

office

of a

Christian

preacher

is to

restore

the

throne

and

dominion

of

God

to

the

souls

of

men

a

preacher

announces

our

God

reigns

so

here's

the

question

how

often

do you

plead

with

heaven

that the

man who

stands

before you

appointed

with the

task of

holding up

the word

of God

who you

know to

be an

earthen

vessel

would be

enabled by

the spirit

of God

that through

his power

and for

the glory

of Christ

the word

would have

free course

to bear

fruit

in your

life

how

often

as we

have the

invitation

do you

find yourself

praying

oh

Lord

work in

the lives

of those

that are

here that

do not

know

Christ

that

they

would be

terrified

at the

prospect

of an

eternal

judgment

that

they

would be

overwhelmed

with the

sweetness

of the

offer

of salvation

through the

finished

work of

Christ

that

they

would be

drawn

by the

spirit

of God

to plead

with

him

to save

them

that

Christ

who

enjoys

the

adoration

of angels

would be

adored

and worshipped

in your

life

this

morning

let us

pray

father

god

i have

no doubt

that there

are those

who are

here

today

that need

the lord

jesus

christ

and my

plea

would be

this

that

while

our

conversation

and our

preaching

has been

predominantly

to those

who know

the lord

jesus christ

and it

has been

the

authoritative

declaration

that god

wants people

to pray

for preaching

that

nevertheless

your spirit

would work

to draw

those

people

who are

here

that

need

christ

as their

savior

to the

cross

and they

would call

upon the

name of

the lord

and say

i am a

sinner

who stands

justly

condemned

and i

need

jesus

to be

my

savior

today

now

i pray

also

for those

who are

part of

the

family

of god

believers

who have

enjoyed

the effect

of the

preaching

of the

word of

god

in their

life

but have

allowed

a loss

of love

and coldness

of heart

to distance

themselves

from the

beauty

of the

lord

jesus

christ

that this

morning

they would

humble

themselves

yes

be broken

and restored

and renewed

and we

ask this

because of

the lord

jesus

amen

going to

ask that

as we

sing this

song in

closing