67 Acts 18:18-28 The Fruit of the Second Missionary Journey

January 26, 2025

Chris Freeman

Title: The Fruit of the Second Missionary Journey Text: Acts 18:18-28 FCF: We often struggle recognizing God’s providential hand in ministry. Prop: Because God supports and perpetuates the work of the ministry, we must trust and obey the Lord. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Acts chapter 18. In a moment we’ll begin reading starting in verse 18 in the Legacy Standard Bible. You can follow along in the pew bible or in the version you prefer. We left Paul in Corinth, having been delivered from the persecution of the Jews. This fulfilled the Lord Jesus’ promise to Paul that he would be protected in the city of Corinth. But now, as we close out chapter 18, we also close out with it the Second Missionary Journey of Paul. As he heads back to Antioch of Syria we might be tempted to think that the ministry of the gospel will pause while he is away. But instead, Luke will show us how the Lord continues to support and perpetuate the work of the ministry to the uttermost parts of the earth. Please stand with me to give honor to and focus on the Word of God. Invocation: Omnipresent Creator, You are every where and You are every when. There is no where we can go to escape Your presence. And You have promised to be with Your church until the end of the age. Such a promise doubly reassures us that You are watching over us and caring for us, Your flock. Lord we know that You have kept us here to be salt and light to the world. To proclaim to them the glorious first coming of Your Son and announce to them His impending return in glory. Such a calling is too great for us. Though we all be rallied to its cause, we would expire before it would be complete. Your promise to be with us, to sustain us, to keep us, and to call more into service is our hope and our confidence to trust You and to obey You still. Teach and reassure us of these things in Your word today, we pray in Jesus’ name… Amen. Transition: Let’s get right to the text this morning as we close out the second Missionary Journey of Paul. I.) God is faithful to guide and keep His people in His service, so we must trust and obey the Lord. (18-23) a. [Slide 2] 18 - And Paul, having remained many days longer, took leave of the brothers and put out to sea for Syria, and with him were Priscilla and Aquila. In Cenchreae (Sen-Kree- UH) he had his hair cut, for he was keeping a vow. i. Here we see the beginning of the end of Paul’s second missionary journey. ii. First, he spends many more days in the city of Corinth, preaching the gospel and discipling new converts. iii. No doubt he is appointing Elders over the church in Corinth – perhaps this is the reason Luke mentioned Titius Justus and Crispus, being the first Elders of the church there? iv. But having discipled them for many days and having appointed Elders there, it is time for Paul to go back to Antioch of Syria. v. Why? 1. Paul is a missionary. It is his responsibility to report back to his sending church to inform them on what has happened so that they may continue to pray and rejoice over God’s gospel going forward. 2. Paul is also, probably, due for a rest. He has been on the go probably for around 2 years. It is time for him to return and recuperate. 3. He is also probably out of money again. And rather than continue to rely on unpromised provision, it is time to return and recharge his resources. vi. So, Paul sets out for Syria. Antioch of Syria to be precise. To sail across the Mediterranean Sea directly to Israel would not have been an option. vii. Luke records some of the connections Paul has to make to get back. In this process he also expands upon the development of ministry partners Paul has made and what their role will be while Paul is away. viii. Cenchreae (Sen – kree – uh) is a port city just east of Corinth. ix. Luke tells us that Paul stops here and while at this port city, he has his hair cut. He does this because he was keeping a vow. x. We have two questions concerning this and the second question depends on the answer to the first. What is the vow and what is the significance of Luke telling us about it? 1. What is this vow? a. Many suggest that this is a Nazarite vow which Paul takes in order to set himself apart unto the Lord. i. If it is, then this must be the end of the vow for shaving the head would have occurred once the vow was fulfilled. ii. However, if this is the Nazarite vow, there is much in Numbers 6 that Paul is playing relatively fast and loose with. The consecrated hair needed to be burned on the fire. He needed to come to the temple and offer an additional sacrifice. iii. Paul is a good distance away from Jerusalem at this time. iv. According to Josephus, as a concession to the Diaspora Jews, he would technically have 30 days to make the sacrifice after the Nazarite vow was completed and this would explain Paul’s haste in getting back to Israel, and his going to Jerusalem. b. Others have suggested that this was a Greek vow for sailors. But the only examples of this are of sailors shaving their head after having passed through a dangerous journey. Certainly Paul has passed through some danger – but he has not yet sailed for home making this unlikley. c. Others have suggested that this is a private vow of thanksgiving for the Lord delivering him unharmed through his stay in Corinth. i. Paul would have made such a vow after the Lord appeared to him. ii. Again, shaving his head would signify the end of the vow and not the beginning. iii. But if this is the case, we might have expected Luke to make this more obvious by stating the reason for Paul to have taken the vow. d. When we assess all these options, it seems best to see this as the Nazarite vow. Therefore, the completion of his missionary journey coinciding with the fulfillment of the vow. Perhaps Paul made such a vow in Corinth, perhaps he made it in Troas before setting out for Macedonia, perhaps he made it before he even left Antioch of Syria although growing his hair out for 2 years does stretch our imagination a tad. e. In any case, Paul consecrated or set himself apart unto the Lord for a specific purpose, which he now considered completed. He needed now to return to Jerusalem to make the appropriate sacrifice. 2. What is the significance of Luke telling us this? a. Is this communicating something about Paul? About God? About the mission? b. There are several thoughts i. It could be that this signifies the official end of the missionary journey. ii. It could be that Luke is telling us this to show how Paul needed to be set apart for his missionary service. iii. It could be Luke portraying Paul as still retaining his Jewish roots and not abandoning the law. iv. It could simply be Luke’s way of explaining why Paul goes to Jerusalem before he goes back to Antioch of Syria. 1. We’ll talk about this in more detail when we get to verse 22, but if Paul’s only destination is Antioch of Syria, the port he sails into is pretty far away from that city. 2. By expressing in verse 18 that Paul’s destination was Syria, Luke may anticipate the question for why Paul sailed into Caesarea and traveled in the opposite direction of Syria before heading there. c. As ho hum and seemingly insignificant as it is, it seems like Luke’s point in this verse is to account for the travels of various missionaries in this region. And part of that itinerary is explaining why Paul would shoot for Syria and miss on purpose. b. [Slide 3] 19 - And they arrived at Ephesus, and he left them there. Now he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. i. Priscilla and Aquila join Paul as he sails to Ephesus. When he arrives, he intends to leave them there to begin the work of the church and prepare the city for his next missionary journey. ii. Paul has had good success focusing in on one major city as he spent the majority of the mission in the city of Corinth. So, in planning the next trip, Paul intends to do the same in the major city of Ephesus. iii. Priscilla and Aquila are tasked with preparing the city for this mission. iv. Before he has to shove off again, he enters the synagogue and begins to reason with the Jews concerning Jesus as their Messiah. v. In this process, we do not see the Jews adequately understanding what he is teaching just yet… vi. How can I be sure that is true? vii. Because… c. [Slide 4] 20 - When they asked him to stay for a longer time, he did not consent, i. They wanted him to stay. ii. In the very next chapter, we will see the Jews in Ephesus follow the pattern of Jewish resistance to the gospel that we have grown so accustomed to. iii. But for now, it seems that time being short, the Jews are not understanding fully what Paul is saying. iv. But Paul doesn’t refuse outright… d. [Slide 5] 21 - but taking leave of them and saying, “I will return to you again if God wills,” he set sail from Ephesus. i. Paul has wanted to go to Ephesus since the start of the 2nd Missionary Journey. ii. For several reasons, he is not able to devote the time at this point. iii. But he does leave it up to God. iv. If the Lord wills, he will return again someday. e. [Slide 6] 22 - And when he had landed at Caesarea, he went up and greeted the church, and went down to Antioch. i. Since Jerusalem was a city on a hill, and since it is a church that would need no real city designation since it was the ground zero for the church, it seems almost assured that Paul goes up to Jerusalem first. ii. He fulfills the sacrifices necessary for his vow and after that greets and fellowships with the Jerusalem church. iii. Finally, Paul goes on to Antioch. iv. But even that wasn’t the final destination that Luke wishes to report for Paul. f. [Slide 7] 23 - And having spent some time there, he left and passed successively through the Galatian region and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples. i. After spending some time in Antioch – how much – we don’t know. ii. But enough time to rest, recuperate and gather more resources, this is likely. iii. He then retraces his steps through Galatia and Phrygia to strengthen those churches established on the first missionary journey. iv. Luke actually records for us the beginning of the third missionary journey of Paul before he leaves the subject to follow Priscilla and Aquila’s work in Ephesus. g. [Slide 8] Summary of the Point: Luke quickly draws to a close the 2nd Missionary Journey of Paul. In its conclusion he reveals God’s faithfulness to guide and uphold Paul through various trials and difficulties and delivering him safely back to his sending church while reaffirming and upholding his Jewish heritage by fellowshipping with his co-laborers in Jerusalem and fulfilling his Nazarite vow to the Lord according to the law. The faithfulness of God results in the enduring trust and obedience of Paul. As such our lesson is that the Lord’s faithfulness to keep His promises toward us and to work all things according to our good motivates us to endure to the end of what He has called us to do and to trust Him. Transition: [Slide 9(blank)] But what about while Paul is away? How will the ministry fare while he rests and recuperates? Will it all fall apart? Or will the Lord make sure it is sustained? II.) God is faithful to raise up new laborers in His service, so we must trust and obey the Lord. (24-28) a. [Slide 10] 24 - Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, arrived at Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. i. Luke introduces us to yet another major player in the ongoing drama of the kingdom of Christ expanding throughout the world. ii. Apollos, a VERY Greek name, with a Jewish heritage being from Alexandria which would have been a city known for learning and culture… arrives in Ephesus. iii. Unfortunately, the vast majority of what we know about this man is found right here in these verses at the tail end of chapter 18. iv. And also unfortunately for us, the status of the man Apollos, at least initially, is somewhat of an enigma to us. v. The question on many scholars’ minds is whether or not Apollos was a Christian when he arrives at Ephesus. vi. I am going to virtually ignore this question this morning for two very big reasons. 1. There is not enough evidence to conclude one way or another whether Apollos was saved or not when he comes to Ephesus. 2. Secondly, and most importantly, it does not contribute to the greater point of the chapter, so spending a lot of time discussing it is at best a distraction. vii. If you want to talk about it more – come on Thursday Nights to our bible study and prayer group. We can really hash it out then. viii. For now, let’s just focus on what Luke tells us and not stray from that. ix. So what does Luke say about this man? x. Luke records that he is eloquent in speech and mighty in the scriptures. xi. Apollos was a man who knew the Word of God and knew it well enough to speak it clearly and capture the attention of his audience. xii. No doubt he had memorized large portions of the Torah and could sing to you the psalms and recite the words of the prophets. xiii. So why is he in Ephesus? xiv. Great question… let’s keep reading. b. [Slide 11] 25 - This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John; i. What are we to make of this? ii. First, we understand from this that Apollos is in Ephesus as an evangelist or missionary. He is here to preach a message to the Jews. iii. What is that message? iv. Apollos had been instructed in the way of the Lord. What does that mean? 1. Older commentators point out and it probably true, that Apollos was Catechized from a young age concerning the things of Christ. 2. The beginning of Jesus’ ministry was 20 years earlier than the events Luke records for us here. 3. It is likely that Apollos’ parents or at least his father had come to Jerusalem during a feast celebration and encountered John the Baptist. 4. Returning home, he began teaching his children the scriptures especially the scriptures concerning the Lord Jesus as the Messiah in order to prepare them for the coming Kingdom. v. Luke tells us that Apollos was fervent in spirit. 1. Though many commentators wish this “spirit” to refer to the Holy Spirit, I remain skeptical of this conclusion. The overwhelming majority of English translations do not conclude that it is the Third Person of the Godhead supplying his zeal or passion. 2. Rather most translations assume this is speaking more about the man himself and his passion to preach the message he had believed. 3. He spoke not only eloquently… but passionately. 4. An engaging preacher that also knew His subject matter well. vi. He was teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus. 1. More than likely this means that Apollos had and astute understanding of the Old Testament, he knew the teachings concerning the Messiah, he recognized the identity of Jesus as that Messiah, and even preached the need for the Jews to repent because the Kingdom of heaven was at hand. 2. But this does not mean that he was teaching everything about Christ there was to teach. 3. Indeed, the next statement further explains what Apollos was probably teaching about Christ… vii. He had been acquainted only with the baptism of John. 1. “The baptism of John” is a euphemism to refer to the entire teaching corpus of John the Baptist. 2. John the Baptist’s mission was to prepare the people for the coming of the Messiah and along with Him the Kingdom of God, even revealing that Jesus was the Messiah when He came to be baptized of John. 3. So what would Apollos’ message have looked like? What was he preaching exactly? 4. It is somewhat speculation, but here is what I think… 5. Apollos was so close to understanding the fullness of the gospel message but did not have access to the teaching of Christ through the faithful transmission of His apostles. 6. It would be like reading the bible, including the gospels up to the point that Jesus is baptized and that’s all you have. 7. So, what was Apollos missing? a. Probably he did not have any understanding of the global nature of the work of the Messiah. That it was not to the Jews only but to the uttermost part of the world. b. Secondly, he probably did not recognize the spiritual emphasis of Jesus’ first coming and as he preached the kingdom he no doubt expected, as John the Baptist did later, that Jesus would be an earthly King over Israel. c. Thirdly, probably he did not understand that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus, which is made possible because of His death and resurrection. d. It seems hardly possible that he could have been ignorant of the death and resurrection of Jesus. e. But he probably did not recognize its significance for the spiritual freedom of His people. f. If this is so, perhaps he concluded that Jesus would return in a short time to set up His earthly Kingdom and his job was to continue John’s work to prepare people for that. g. In other words, I think the spiritual significance of Jesus’ coming had been lost to Apollos. h. He is still telling people to prepare for the Kingdom… when the Kingdom was already here, and Christ had begun gathering citizens from the uttermost parts of the earth by grace through faith in Christ. viii. In short, Apollos is passionately preaching an incomplete gospel message. ix. So, Apollos comes to Ephesus as an evangelist to preach the message of repentance and preparation for the earthly kingdom of God. c. [Slide 12] 26 - and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. i. Again, the providence of God is on full display. ii. Why did Priscilla and Aquila come with Paul to Ephesus? Why did Paul leave them there? iii. They hear this man who is mighty in the scriptures teaching fervently a gospel that is… almost the gospel. iv. What do they do with such a man? v. Seeing his zeal and passion, they do not correct his doctrine publicly, but privately they instruct him more accurately in the way of God. vi. Their instruction is so broad “the way of God” that we must conclude that Apollos had some foundational truths missing from his preaching. This is some of the reason I have concluded what I have about Apollos’ message. vii. Notice that both Priscilla and Aquila correct him. 1. Some take issue with Priscilla being a part of this, but in reality, there are two very important details to note here. a. First, this is private exhortation. All Christians are called to privately evangelize, teach, exhort and instruct others. Regardless of gender. Priscilla is not crossing any lines here, especially since her husband is with her. b. Some commentators assume that Priscilla is the primary teacher because her name is mentioned first. i. However, as we discussed earlier at a bible study and prayer group, there are other explanations for why she might be listed first, 1. Including the possibility that she was of a higher social status than Aquila, 2. And/or because she was much more well-known to Theophilus than her husband for whatever reason. ii. In any case, the governmental order within the church is not compromised here by Priscilla being a part of this correction. viii. So, they pull him aside and fill in the pieces he was missing. ix. The implication here is that he received this more accurate understanding of the gospel with joy and full submission. x. Does this mean he gets saved here? Was he already saved? If he gets saved doesn’t that mean he should be baptized? xi. It is very difficult to determine any of this. What we do know is that Apollos is a believer with many gifts. xii. So, what is next for such a mighty preacher as Apollos? d. [Slide 13] 27 - And when he wanted to go across to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace, 28 - for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating by the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ. i. Again, we are not given any time values here. Was this immediately after this event in Ephesus that he desired to go to Achaia or is this some time later? It is difficult to know for certain. ii. More than likely there was some time between his correction and him wishing to go, but because he was who he was the other believers in the church in Ephesus did not have any issue sponsoring him to go to Achaia and preach the gospel. iii. They even wrote to the church in Corinth to receive him there. iv. Luke tells us that he refutes the Jews in public demonstrating from the scriptures that Jesus is the Christ. v. So, it seems that Apollos is not only an evangelist but an apologist as well. vi. And this is a little freebie. Given all that has been said of Apollos here, and having read through the book of Hebrews several times – I am fairly convinced that Apollos is the unattributed author of the book. I am like 70% sure. 😊 e. [Slide 14] Summary of the Point: Just as God is faithful to guide and support His people who serve Him, He is also faithful and good to raise up more of His own to continue and expand the work of His gospel. God raised up Apollos, providentially leading him close to the truth and then completing that truth through the discipleship of Priscilla and Aquila forming him into a powerful preacher and apologist for His Kingdom. Apollos is humble enough to receive the truth of God from His servants and obey His call to go to serve Him where Apollos is needed. In this point our application is the same, we must trust and obey the Lord but the motivation is not so much the faithfulness of God to guide and support us as it is the faithfulness of God to continue to raise up more people in His service. Conclusion: So CBC, what have we learned today and how shall we live? Doctrinal Takeaway: [Slide 15] The concluding thoughts of this chapter point to the faithfulness of God to His children in His service and to raise up more for His mission. Combined these points emphasize to us that the Lord is actively guiding, keeping, preserving, empowering, sustaining, expanding, and enlarging His gospel primarily through the ministry of His church. In essence, it is the primary theme of the book of Acts. God uses and preserves Paul. God uses and blesses Priscilla and Aquila. God raises and graces Apollos. In this we see the same response from God’s people. They trust Him and faithfully obey all that He has called them to do and to be. For us, we understand that God’s watch care over us and His Kingdom only motivates us more to follow Him and trust Him. We obey because He sustains us. We trust because He is trustworthy. So, although Paul, Priscilla, Aquila, and Apollos are the human agents planting and watering the gospel… God gets the increase. But let me apply this more concretely to our lives today. How must we think and live because of this? 1.) [Slide 16] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must believe that God is providentially guiding and aiding His people in His service. a. Unlike so many false worldviews, our God has not set the world in motion and walked away. b. Our God is not ambivalent toward His creation, much less toward those whom He redeemed by the sacrifice of the Son. c. Christ, as He promised, has never left us or forsaken us. d. He has been, is, and will be with us until the end of the age. e. Not only is He with us, He is fighting the battles we face day in and day out. f. He has tasked us with a mission to be ambassadors for His Kingdom, a holy priesthood, Princes and Princesses in a foreign land announcing the coming of the King. g. Such a mission is fraught with difficulty. There are challenges from men and from principalities and powers who oppose Him. h. But we have such examples in scripture and especially in Acts that God goes with us. He equips us. He protects us. He guides us. He has not given us too much so long as He is with us. i. So what must we do? 2.) [Slide 17] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don’t naturally do or aren’t currently doing?” We must trust God with what He has called us to do and obey His call. a. No Christian is able to look at the commands from the Lord and say, “I can’t.” This is a lie from your flesh or from the evil one. b. Since God is faithful to walk with us and raise up helpers in the cause, we must trust Him when a task is difficult, that He will aid us for its completion. c. We must trust Him when we feel alone, for He is able and can raise up helpers for the work. d. Whether we are talking about living morally upright, taking on a ministry, going on the mission field, or sharing the gospel at the gas station… God is with us. He sustains us. He guides us. He protects us. And He will supply others along the way that will help… Whether we see their aid or not. e. Therefore, we must trust that God is near when we don’t feel He is. We must trust that God is giving us aid when we feel like our strength is about to expire. We must trust that God is guiding us when He providentially places obstacles and opportunities in our path. f. And we must obey what He has said, regardless of how we feel about it. Whether we think we are able to or not, we must step out in faith and obey His call. g. Oftentimes, God only provides His power, His sustenance, His protection, His grace… after we have committed to work. When there is no turning back, when we have had to struggle a little, and fight… then He rides in and supplies His aid. h. How many cities was Paul chased out of before Jesus promised him safety in Corinth? i. Our trust may be more faith than sight and our obedience may seem to be such a struggle… but we can look to our God’s track record and know… that if He has called us to what we are doing, He will not let us fail. So we must keep trusting and keep obeying. j. Shifting gears away from the primary points of application… there are a couple bonus points I want us to see this morning. 3.) [Slide 18] Refutation: “What lies must we cast down” or “What do we naturally believe, or have been taught to believe, that this passage shows is false?” We must deny that zealousness is all that is required for ministry. a. Apollos here was obviously very zealous to share the message with the Jews in Ephesus. b. He was mighty in the scriptures, catechized in the things of the Lord, accurate in all that he taught about Jesus, and fervent in his spirit. c. But… d. He was missing doctrine. e. Ideas have consequences and doctrine matters. What do you get when you have a zealous person who is imprecise on doctrine? A cult leader. A heretic. A false teacher. f. Apollos knew a lot, and was passionate about it. But he didn’t know enough. g. Priscilla and Aquila recognized the danger he posed, pulled him aside and explained God’s way more accurately. h. Because he was raised up by the Lord, Apollos listened with a humble spirit and received the full truth of what he lacked. i. The same is true when we talk about the ministry here. Whether that be the call of the Lord to be an Elder either vocationally or not, to be a missionary, to lead a study or even if it is to be a Deacon, to visit the sick, to teach a Jr. Church class, or simply to serve others… we must not think that doctrine doesn’t matter. j. Imagine Apollos’ bedside visit to a dying saint when he did not know about justification through faith in Christ? What might such a man say to a dying saint with this doctrinal imprecision? k. Zealousness is important… that fire that passion to minister for the Lord… that is important. l. But without doctrine… it is just a lot of noise. m. So what if you are concerned that you are a lot of passion without a lot of doctrinal precision? n. Well, Priscilla and Aquila serve as excellent examples to us… 4.) [Slide 19] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don’t naturally do or aren’t currently doing?” We must correct doctrinal imprecision lovingly and privately at first. a. The church ought to be a safe place for people’s doctrinal imperfections to be adjusted and corrected, privately and lovingly. b. This is why church statements of faith, confessions, creeds, and catechisms exist. c. It provides a short cut for everyone to know what is expected doctrinally of any who might wish to serve in ministry. d. At a basic level, the statement of faith must be adhered to without question if someone is to minister here. e. But beyond the statement of faith, there is the general teaching perspective of the Elders. f. We as Elders are slowly working on defining this teaching perspective for some of the more controversial subjects. Things we don’t necessarily want in a statement of faith to prevent membership, but doctrinal perspectives that might be expected if someone was to teach or serve in ministry in the church. g. But in all of this, there should be great patience and love given to any here to afford them mercy to be doctrinally imprecise. Not mercy in the sense that they can remain doctrinally wrong… but mercy in the sense that conversations come before correction. h. We see this on display with Priscilla and Aquila. They go privately to Apollos and assume he is ignorant of and not actively opposed to the truth. i. In doing this they find this to be true – Apollos is simply uninformed. j. Speaking mostly to the Elders but really to all of us – we too must be loving and patient to correct doctrinal imprecision. Only moving toward more aggressive intervention when it becomes clear that someone is unwilling to learn or submit on an issue that is doctrinally significant. 5.) [Slide 20] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” The Triune God goes with His church. a. We have said this already, but it serves not only as a basis of trust and obedience but also as a great comfort to us all. b. God has not left the ministry of the church to mere humans. c. Instead, He has supplied us with promises from every member of the Godhead that He will not forsake us. He will be with us. He will be in us and work through us. d. Even in a culture like ours, when the biblical brand of Christianity becomes less and less acceptable, we can know beyond doubt, that our God is with us. [Slide 21 (end)] Let me close with a prayer by the English Reformer John Bradford. Holy, righteous, and wise one. Mighty, terrible, and fearful Lord God. Judge of all and governor of all the world. Patient and gracious Father, whose eyes are upon our ways. Wash us from our wickedness and pour out your Holy Spirit upon us. Take from us our hard hearts, our stony hearts, our unrepentant hearts, our distrusting and doubtful hearts. Take our carnal, our secure, our idle and foolish hearts. Take away our impure, arrogant, envious, impatient, covetous hearts. Give us new hearts instead: soft hearts, faithful hearts, merciful hearts. Obedient, pure, holy hearts. True, simple, lowly, and penitent hearts. Give us hearts to fear and trust you forever. Write your law in our hearts, graft it in our minds. Grant us a spirit of prayer and make us diligent and happy in what you give us to do. Take our souls and bodies into custody forever. Take our lives and all that we have, and give us whatever you know we need. Guide us always as your children, so our lives and our deaths will praise you through Jesus Christ. We pray for ourselves, but also for others-those in exile or in prison, in misery or heaviness, in poverty or sickness. If it is your will, send your holy word and faith among us in this place and this country once again. Turn the hearts of those who speak against us. Have mercy on our families and fellow believers, our neighbors and those whose lives you have linked to ours. And for those here gathered in your holy name, grant your blessing and Holy Spirit to dwell in us and set us apart. Keep us as your children, today and forever. Keep us from all evil for your glory, our good, and for the good of the church. Strengthen those who stand, so they do not fall. Lift up those who have fallen, and keep us from falling, through Jesus Christ, our Lord and only Savior, who lives and reigns with you in the Holy Spirit, and to whom be all praise and honor, now and forever, amen. Benediction: May goodness and loving kindness follow you all the days of your life, May His loving-kindness and truth continually preserve you, So that you can say, the Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. Until we meet again, go in peace.