the epistle to the Ephesians chapter four. And we'll read from verse one. I therefore the prisoner of the Lord beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation wherewith you are called, with all lowliness and weakness with long suffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in you all. But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men. Now that he ascended, what is it? But that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth. He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things. And he gave some apostles and some prophets, and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. Till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect or a mature man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. That we henceforth be no more children. tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie awake to deceive. But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body fitly joined together, and compacted by that which every joint supply it, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. May God add his blessing to the reading of his own precious word. Yesterday morning we intimated that during this week we would like to look at some of the great symbols of the Church of God. But about half a dozen of them all together in the New Testament, and I thought that we would like to choose some of them, some of them more important, and draw some lessons from them. Yesterday morning we were speaking about the building. The very first time we get the word church mentioned in the New Testament is in the ministry of Christ. At the Greek crisis in his ministry, when he had been rejected officially by the nation, And he takes the disciples out to Caesarea Philippi, and there he gives that great revelation to Simon Peter. And I also say unto thee that the heart Peter, and on this rock I will build my church. And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. There we get a building and a battle. And yesterday morning we were looking. At least on Lord's Day morning, we were looking at that building. It's called a building. It's called a house. It's called a temple. And there are some tremendous truths connected with the building. We were pointing out that it's not a material building at all. The word church today in many people's minds gives the idea that it is an ecclesiastic of structure. place with a spire and stained grass windows and ecclesiastical furniture. You never got that idea in the Bible. A church is composed of people. It's not a material building at all, but it's living stone that have been quarried out of nature's quarry and then brought to the building and built upon the foundation which we believe is our Lord Jesus Christ. So we have been looking at the building. And this morning, I thought for a little while, I want to look at a second lovely picture of the Church of God. One of the most important in the New Testament, and that is the body. The body of Christ in the New Testament is only mentioned by the Apostle Paul. It's something that is confined to his ministry. It's something that had been imparted to him by the Holy Spirit of God. And there are four great epistles in the New Testament where we find the body mentioned. I want to outline them briefly and I want to confine myself particularly to three of them. The first time we get the body mentioned in the New Testament is in Romans chapter twelve. Do you remember the apostle after giving that magnificent outline of the gospel in chapters one through eight in the Epistle to the Romans? After he gives us that great doctrinal section connected with teaching, the teaching of the gospel, then he gives us a dispensational picture of Israel and her relationship to the Lord and also to the different dispensations. And then in chapter twelve, there's a practical application of what he has been teaching. First of all, it's doctrinal, then it's dispensational, and from chapter twelve to the end of that red epistle, it is devotional. And one of the first things he teaches is there, in connection with the devotional life of the believer, is first of all, that sacrifice of the human body. He said, I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your body a living sacrifice wholly acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. First of all, it's the relation of the believer to God. And then secondly, he mentions the body. It is a very, very lovely passage. It's the first time in the New Testament that he mentions the body of Christ. I think possibly I should read the passage just to get it clearly in our mind. This is what the Apostle said. But I say, through the grace given unto me to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members of not the same office, so we being many are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another." And then he gives us a sevenfold ministration in the body. Now this is the first time that it is mentioned in the New Testament. And again, it's linked with the gospel, and it's a part of the ministry of the Apostle Paul. Now the only reason that I want to emphasize that is this. Many years ago, there was a servant of God called E.W. Bollinger. On E.W. Bollinger, he said that the only time we get the body of Christ mentioned in the New Testament is in the prison epistles of the Apostle Paul. Now that is just not so. On anyone who would look at this passage, Long before the prison epistles of Ephesians and Colossians, we get the body of Christ mentioned. Of course, there are theories that are built on the idea that it was only in the prison epistles of the Apostle Paul that we get the body of Christ. But here we find it linked with the Gospel in this tremendous doctrinal epistle of the Apostle Paul. I'm not going to pause this morning to look at the seven-fold ministration. that we find in the body of Christ and the members of the body that we find in the epistle of the Romans. But just to emphasize the fact that here, linked with the Gospel, we get the body of Christ mentioned. Now the second great epistle where we find it is in the epistle to the Colossians. In the epistle to the Colossians, the emphasis is upon the head. And I want to look at that in a moment or two. The head of the body is Christ. And this is the emphasis in the epistle to the Colossians. Then, of course, there's the epistle to the Ephesians. That is the epistle that we have read here this morning. And here it is the body itself. And we find the unity and the maturity of the body in the epistle to the Ephesians. And then the fourth epistle is the first epistle to the Corinthians. And in chapter twelve, we find how the body is formed. You remember that tremendous passage, one of the most important connected with the body of Christ in the whole of the New Testament. First Corinthians twelve, verse thirteen. For by one spirit were ye all baptized into one body, whether you be Jew or Gentile, bond or free, and have been all made to drink into one spirit. That is how the body of Christ is formed by the baptism in the Holy Spirit. And notice there, it is inclusive of every believer. For by one spirit were you all baptized into one body, whether you be Jew or Gentile, bond or free, and of an all made to drink into one spirit. The inclusiveness of every member of the body we get there in that tremendous doctrinal passage. And then, of course, in First Corinthians chapter twelve, the great outstanding truth there is the members of the body in their variety and their function in the body of Christ. I want to look at the particularly the last three passages, Colossians, Ephesians and First Corinthians. And again let me repeat, in Colossians it is the head. In Ephesians it is the body. And in First Corinthians it is the members of the body. And when we take these three tremendous passages and put them together, We get a complete picture of this lovely symbol of the Church of God today, one of the most important in the whole of the New Testament. I should say again that Romans is an introduction and a summary of what we get in the other passages. The first time it's mentioned, introduced by the Apostle, he summarizes the great truth concerning the body of Christ. The Apostle Paul in his ministry among the churches had a good deal of controversy. He ran into difficulties and problems in his ministry as any servant of God will. Now there were three outstanding. The first one in his early ministry was legalism. You remember when he went on to Galatia in his first great missionary journey, There were people followed in there that said that all believers must be circumcised and they must observe the law of Moses as the one to be Christians. It was one of the great controversies in the life of the Apostle. The epistle to the Galatians is written to counteract that. You know, we find this in some of the heretical cults today, Seventh-day Adventism, for instance. Legalism. You must observe this and you must observe that. It's the grace of God plus for salvation. Now the epistle to the Galatians that deals with that great matter, the foundation of the gospel, that salvation is by the grace of God alone through the work of Christ upon Calvary's cross. The second controversy in the ministry of the Apostle Paul was what has been called antinomianism. And we find that in the epistle to the Corinthians. There we get the other swing of the pendulum. Paul, of course, had been teaching that we were delivered from the law by the body of Christ. And they said, well, if that is so, then conduct is not important at all. And when we look at that great epistle, the first epistle to the Corinthians, apparently, this idea of being without law. It had developed into license. And in that epistle we find a case of gross immorality that the apostle has to deal with at the commencement. And then at the end of the epistle there's a very serious departure from fundamental doctrine connected with the resurrection body of the believer. The second great controversy in the ministry of the Apostle Paul had to do with conduct and behavior. And he deals with that in that epistle. Now the third controversy was in connection with the person of Christ. And beloved brethren this morning, I want to say that that is the day in which we live. I think today, I believe the attack is against that one holy head of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is the epistle to the Colossians. At that time there were some who had infiltrated into that little church, possibly quite small, in Colossae, and there were teaching certain things that undermine the doctrine of Christ. On the Apostle, he has to counteract it. And on that tremendous epistle, where we find, I believe, the highest teaching concerning the glory and the majesty and the dignity of Christ we find in the epistle to the Colossians. There are certain statements that the apostle makes there concerning the person of Christ. And one is that in all things he might have the preeminence. In all things that he might have the preeminence. Another statement he makes there is it pleased the Father that in him that is in Christ should all the fullness dwell. On the third statement he makes on that great epistle is this. He said, For in him dwelleth present continuous tense. For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead in bodily form. You know, I don't think he can get beyond that. These are three tremendous statements concerning the person of our Blessed Lord. And then surrounding this, we get the headship of the Lord Jesus. He mentions the body again and again and the epistle to the Colossians, but he mentions a three-fold headship of our blessed Lord. In chapter one, he says he's the head of all creation. Then the second headship that he mentions there is the head over all things to the church. And then thirdly, he's the head of all principality and power. My beloved brethren here this morning, as we look at the epistle of the Colossians, it's all about the glory and the majesty and the dignity of our blessed Lord. It is the head that he's speaking about there. The head, Christ is head, first of all, of creation, and then of the church. and then of all principality and power. When you get that term, principalities and powers, of course, it speaks of those great created intelligences that we find in Holy Scripture, angels, the archangel, seraphim, cherubim, these great created intelligences that God has made and that serve him from day to day and will throughout eternity. So here we get a three-fold headship of the Lord Jesus. Now I want to concentrate just for a moment or two on the head of the body. There's only one head of the church. And this is what we find in the epistle of the Colossians, emphasized again and again. You know, as we look at the Christian world today, the religious world, some would say that the head isn't wrong. Others will tell you that the head of the church is in Canterbury. And others have their own ideas just where the head of the church is. Who's the head of your church? Well, it's so and so and so and so. But, beloved brethren, there's only one head. And we want to emphasize this, and we want to be absolutely dogmatic about it. There's only one head. of the body, the head of the church, and that is our Lord Jesus Christ, and it's no place here on earth, but it is in heaven. I think the last time I was here last year, I mentioned the fact that during the past few years we've had the opportunity of going back to our native land. I happen to be an Irishman, and I've gone back there several times in recent days. I've been very much exercised about my own people. not only in Northern Ireland, but in the South as well. The South of Ireland is more than ninety-five percent Roman Catholic. And I've been very much exercised and burdened about going over there and trying as far as we possibly can and give the Gospel to our own people. Now, I was over there three years ago, and I occupied a good deal of time in doing some investigation and research into the early days of so-called brethren. I went to Dublin. I went to a little place called Calary in County Wicklow, outside of Dublin, where a young man many years ago was the Episcopalian minister in that little church. His name was John Nelson Darby. He had been born of a noble family I saw his old home, Leap Castle, in the centre of Ireland. Very, very old ancestral castle where he was brought up. But in any case, Mr. Darby, after graduating from Trinity College in Dublin, as a classical scholar, he first of all decided to go into law. but the Lord had reached his heart and he had been truly born again and he decided to give his life to the church. He became an Episcopalian minister in a little place called Calvary and it's only about one third the size of where we are here this morning. I went down to that place and going inside into that little church on the desk in the pulpit there's a little brass plate and on that brass plate are the words Sirs, we would see Jesus. I wonder if it was Darby put that there. Sirs, we would see Jesus. He was a very sincere young man, twenty-six years of age, and he and another group of young men, among them John Parnell, who later became Lord Congleton, a lawyer called John G. Bellitt, and others they gathered together in the home of Lady Parscourt to have some Bible readings. Now Mr Derby was very much disturbed about some things that were happening at that time. The bishop from whom he had to take orders was a whiskey drinking fox hunting person who spent this time on Sunday in hunting foxes. And he had to take orders from him. And at the same time the head of the church at that time was the King of England. And Mr. Darling, in reading his Bible and going through it concerning the great doctrine of the Church, the first truth that he learned was that the Church is a body. And there's only one head of that body, and that is Christ. And you know, it made a tremendous impact on his mind. This may be something that is very, very familiar. It may be elementary to us here this morning, but it was a revelation from God to his dear servant. And one Sunday he preached his last sermon, and he walked out. And an old gentleman that I met over there, he told me that sitting on the ditch outside that little church with a pad on his knee, he wrote that lovely hymn, This world is a wilderness wide. I have nothing to seek or to choose or so on. Mr. Darby was not only a theologian, but he was also a poet. And some of the most beautiful hymns that we have on the language were written by that man. It made a definite impact on his life. And beloved brethren here this morning, if we only got hold of that tremendous truth, that there's only one head, only one head of the church, And the snowman down here, it is our blessed Lord, is the head of creation, is the head of over all things to the church, and is the head of all principality and power. Now, that is the epistle to the Colossians. The Apostle, he has to warn them there about not holding the head. And you know, there's some people who are today, they may know the truth, that Christ is the head of the church, but it doesn't have an effect upon their hearts and lives. You know, when you think of the idea that Mr. Darby had a combat, that the head of the church was the queen or the king of England. Now, we have every respect for the royalty in England. I still happen to be a British subject. And every time I hear the name of Queen Elizabeth, I say, God bless her. I hope she's a real believer. I've heard some things about her son, Charles. And I think that recently he has come to know the Lord. I hope that that is true. Sometimes rumors float around. But in any case, it is very likely that the man who is the heir to the throne today in England is a believer. I know that Mr. John Statt, who has been called in as the chaplain to the royal household, is a true believer and has had the opportunity again and again of sitting down with that boy and instructing him in the word of God. I do hope that this is true. But while we have every respect for Queen Elizabeth, she is not the head of the church. And I want to emphasize that on certainly the man in Rome. The man with the triple crown upon his head with all his claims and all of the things that he proposes and that he claims to be, he is not the head of the church. There's only one head, and that head is the one who sits at God's right hand today. He is the head of the church. And we're told to hold the head. That is to make it practical in our daily testimony and our lifetime here. Now coming over into the Epistle to the Ephesians, here it is the body itself. And the outstanding truth in the Epistle to the Ephesians is the body. It's mentioned nine times. And in the passage that we read together this morning in chapter four, the body is mentioned four times. Now it's perfectly obvious. that want to have time here this morning to go into all the different references that we find in the epistle to the Ephesians concerning the body. There's just two things that I want to mention connected with it. And the first is the unity of the body. And secondly, the maturity of the body and how that is attained. Looking at the epistles of the Ephesians, the unity of the body of Christ is mentioned in the first five chapters. Now, in chapter one, the unity there is a cosmic unity. You remember in chapter one, the apostle in dealing with the three members of the Holy Trinity, he mentions there that in the dispensation of the fullness of times, it's God's great purpose that all things may be headed up in Christ. That is a cosmic unity. It's the widest and the fullest aspect of unity anywhere in the Word of God. As we look at the unity of the body, this is the fullest, the deepest, the widest application of it. It's God's purpose, but in the dispensation of the fullness of times that all things would be headed up in God's beloved Son. This is a cosmic unity. In chapter two it's a racial unity. We read here about the Jew and Gentile that formerly up until this time had been divided by the wall of separation. That wall has been removed and at the foot of the cross both Jew and Gentile have been reconciled not only one to the other but also to God Himself. In chapter two, it is a racial unity. Now in chapter three, we get the great mystery of the body, possibly one of the most important in the whole of the Word of God. It's God's purpose today that both Jew and Gentile are brought into the body. They're made fellow errors. They're made fellow partakers of the promise in Christ. And as we look at the organic unity in chapter three, this is the mystery of the Church of God today. You know, sometimes people think that it is the Jew and Gentile merely that have been put on the same footing. But it's something even higher and deeper than that. All distinctions have been removed. And in the body of Christ today, every true believer, All distinction has been removed and we're made fellow partakers of the promises with everyone that knows and loves our Lord Jesus Christ. It's a vital unity. We've been linked to Christ and we have been linked to one another. Now in chapter four, the passage that we read together, it is a spiritual unity. We want to look at that in a moment. And then finally, in chapter five, it is a marriage unity. There it is Christ who is linked to his bride, and it is an eternal marriage union. So in these first five chapters of the Epistle to the Ephesians, we get the unity of the church. Now the apostle in chapter four, this is the exhortation that he gives, that we read at the commencement of the meeting. He said, Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace. And then he gives us a seven-fold example of what that unity really is. There is one body and one spirit, even as you're called in one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in you all. Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace. Now this is a unity that has been made. We can neither make it. And thank God we have a responsibility connected with it. But it is an impact in God's hand. When we look at the condition of the church today, we feel awfully sorry for the weakness and the failure that we find everywhere. But as far as that ideal unity is concerned, God has it in his hand and it is completely intact. But is it endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace? I've made up my mind about one thing in connection with the Church of God. And God helping me, I will never be responsible for introducing anything that would divide God's people. I believe one of the greatest crimes, one of the greatest sins that a person could commit is to introduce a wedge among the people of God that would divide them, split them up, and destroy that unity of the Spirit. And the Apostle here, he gives this exhortation. You know, sometimes some people don't seem to have any conscience about it at all. And when we look at the condition of God's people everywhere, I think we need to take heed to the exhortation we get at the commencement of this room, very, very great chapter, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit and the uniting bond of peace. And then the apostle, he holds up a sevenfold example of that unity. Notice that in the center... Of these seven items, the three members of the Godhead are mentioned. First of all, we read about one Spirit, then one Lord, and then one God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The great example of unity in the body of Christ is the unity that exists in the Godhead. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. You may remember that Our Lord, in his great high priestly prayer, three times, John chapter seventeen, he says, that there may be one, that there may be one, that there may be one. Now, looking at that passage, you find that, first of all, it is a divine unity, and it's based on the unity between God the Father and God the Son. As thou Father art on me and I on thee. That is the first great example of unity. It's a unity of life. It is an organic unity, and it's based on that unity between God the Father and God the Son. Now, secondly, it's something that can be visible. It is that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. I don't think that there's anything more delightful, anything more beautiful than to see a company of God's people manifesting this unity of the Spirit. It's the basis of everything. As a matter of fact, it's the basis of Christianity where you find love and affection among God's people on fellowship, affection and love and kindness among them. This is the basis of all blessing. But if you find friction, if you find division, if you find envy and jealousy among the people of God, this is something that will completely destroy any blessing among the people of God. Something that is visible, the Lord, that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And then thirdly, he speaks about a unit, a perfected end to one. That is that day when Christ shall come, on every division, on everything that is divided the people of God. will be eliminated and will be brought up into his presence. Caught up together. Caught up together to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. So here is this unity that we're exhorted to keep. And then the sevenfold unity is based on the unity of the Godhead. The one Lord... the one Spirit and the one God and Father of all. And then associated with that are four great truths. One body, one hope, one faith and one baptism. And I would suggest that these are the things that have divided God's people. Today in the United States there must be about four hundred different denominations. Do you mean to tell me that that's according to the mind of God? I don't think it is. I think that when Martin Luther, responsible for that tremendous revival in fifteen-thirteen, when he nailed his ninety-nine theses to the door of the church in Wittenberg in Germany, and that tremendous revival took place, I don't think that he had any idea that he would lend his name to a division among God's people. I don't think that he had that in mind, but that is what happened. I don't think that dear John Wesley, that great eminent servant of God, ever realized that his name would be attached to a denomination to divide God's people. into a second. I don't think that he... That would happen, but it has happened. And you know, the way that the devil works, outstanding servants of God, sometimes their names are used for dividing the people of God into watertight compartments. And that's what we find in the world today. The one body... The unity of the body is what is taught in the New Testament and we're told to maintain it. Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit and the uniting bond of peace. And then the one hope. Sometimes people come to me today and they say, are you pre-millennial, post-millennial or a millennial? Are you pre-trib or mid-trib or post-trib? The one hope. And you know, if there's anything, should unite the people of God as the fact that Christ is coming back again. And yet, outstanding servants of God, they've argued and they've fought over the interpretation of the prophetic scriptures. You know, this is the way the devil works. As far as I'm concerned, I'm pre-Trib and I'm pre-millennial. And I think I could offer some reasons why I believe in the pre-millennial coming of the Lord Jesus. And not only that, but he's going to come before the tribulation. We're not going to argue that point this morning. But these are the things that men have used for dividing God's people. And then the next thing is the one faith. And oh, as we look around us today, that body of Christian doctrine, that fundamental doctrine is being split up by liberal theologians. On the grid, fundamental truths are denied on every hand. And then finally, we get the one baptism. This is a controversial thing. What do you think it is? Oh, I hear somebody say it's the baptism in the Spirit. Personally, I don't think so. Personally, I feel quite sure that the one baptism here is believers' baptism. And I have some reason for that. I think it was F.F. Bruce some time ago, he said this. He said, wherever you get baptism without a qualifying phrase, it means believer's baptism. But when it is baptism in the Spirit, it always says so. Now that cleared up the difficulty in my mind. But can you think of anything that divides God's people right around Christendom today? than the method or the meaning of baptism. Why they talk about sprinkling, immersion, three-fold immersion, baptismal regeneration, and the talk about effusion and so on, different forms of baptism. This is what people have divided over. But if there's anything that should unite the people of God, It's these great truths that we find held up to us here as the picture of what the unity of the Spirit should be. Now, God has given gifts today, the Apostle, the Prophet, the Evangelist, the Past and the Teacher. And I believe that these gifts are given, some of them in the early days of the Church, the Apostle and the Prophet, in the Foundation, and today the Evangelist and the Past and the Teacher. They have been given with the specific purpose to carry out this great truth of uniting the body of Christ and the members of the body. And then at the end of this magnificent passage, we read about the maturity, the maturity of the body, until we all arrive, until we all arrive at the perfect man. Now the perfect man, that is not moral perfection, but it is maturity. people that know the word of God, people that are instructed in the word of God, the perfect man, the mature man, and built up in the body of Christ, and all compacted together with the object that the body may function as God intended it down here. So we get the two things here in the epistle to the Ephesians, the unity of the body, and then finally the maturity of the body. Now, just a word. My time has gone, but just a word about the members of the body in First Corinthians chapter twelve. And again let me say that one of the most important truths connected with the body of Christ in the New Testament is First Corinthians twelve thirteen. For by one spirit were ye all baptized into one body, whether ye be Jew or Gentile, bond or free, and have been all made to drink into one spirit. The charismatic movement today would say that believers are divided into two categories. Those that have been baptized in the Spirit and those who have not. That is one of the fundamental tenets of the charismatic movement. But that's not the teaching of Paul. For by one Spirit were you all baptized in one body. All kinds of problems and difficulties at Corinth. There are about eleven of them altogether in the epistle, but it is inclusive. It was historic. It took place at Pentecost. By one Spirit were ye all baptized. That is that the origin of the church, the birthday of the church, it was historic, it was inclusive, it was corporate, and it was final. That was how the bodies formed. And then there's a lovely, lovely... exposition of the members of the body in First Corinthians chapter twelve. Beloved brethren this morning, we are members one of another. We are members of Christ. We are members one of another. And thank God we have an opportunity of cooperating in the body of Christ for the development of it. The great truth we find in First Corinthians chapter twelve is the fact that there's a variety in the body. And every member of the body has a gift. God has conferred that gift upon them. There's no such thing as a member of the body that doesn't have some specific function to perform. And the Lord help each one of us to find out what it is and then to develop it and to carry out the function that God has given to us. while we remain down here. It would be interesting to look at the seventeen different gifts that we find in the New Testament. Possibly we'll have an opportunity of doing that later. But in any case, every member of the body has a gift. I have no desire whatever for these spectacular things. But this one little gift, I really covet. And you find it right at the end of the list in First Corinthians chapter twelve. It's that little word helps. Helps. You know, we can all be that. The Lord has given you an opportunity of exercising some gift that you have, some talent that you have in the body of Christ. But I think that the simplest, and to me the best, is this little word to be a help to the people of God. The word, it actually means to put your arms around a local church and to hold it together. You remember in Acts chapter twenty seven, we read about the ship and the storm. It was going to pieces. They had thrown the cargo overboard. All the navigational helps had gone over the side, but we read that they used helps undergirding the ship. I would like to have that gift. When you see a little assembly, a little company of God's people going through the storm, and it's liable to go to pieces, you know what a wonderful thing it is to see some good man come along and put his arms around it and hold it together, instead of splitting and dividing, to hold God's people together until it safely arrives at the harbor. May God bless His word to each one of our hearts. And may each one of us here this morning realize that we have a function to perform in this great symbol, the body of Christ, holding the head, and then the unit of the body, and then finally the functions of the body. May God bless His word. Or shall we pray? Our God and Father, we do thank thee again this morning for this quiet hours spent together around thy word. We thank thee for the opportunity of being of mutual help and encouragement to each other. And Lord, thou knowest that in so very much we fail, but, O Lord, we do pray that we may not only know these great truths in thy word, but we do pray that we may be able to put them into practice. we do thank thee for men among us today that have been a help in the exposition of thy word and not only that who have been an example and our father we pray that we may follow their example and we pray that from day to day in all our relationships with thyself and with each other that our great desire may be for the benefit and the edification of thy beloved people. Now we commend this to thee. Help us, we pray, in all that we seek to do, or wherever we go today, in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen. Thank you. you