Helping People

The title of the message is helping people. Helping people. As many of, our purpose statement, and you see this on the hard copy of your notes. our purpose statement as a church is helping people journey from brokenness to wholeness through the gospel of Jesus Christ. And I want to take the opportunity this morning to focus on the first two words of our purpose statement. And to give you some truths that I think can help you help others in that particular journey. We're gonna be looking at several passages of scripture as I've already alluded to and And please use the notes if you would find that helpful. the night of New Year's Eve, just a few weeks ago, my wife and I went out to Cabazon for dinner and to do some shopping, and while we were walking through the outlet mall, we went into the Nike store. And once inside the store, my wife saw a shirt that she wanted, so she headed toward the checkout counter to buy it. While she was in line to make her purchase, I stood near the front entrance of the store and waited for her. It did not occur to me what I must have looked like standing near the front entrance of the store with my arms folded. But while I was standing there, a young lady had finished with her purchase. And was walking toward the door with her items in a bag. She must have thought I worked for Nike. Because she opened her bag toward me to show me what was in it. And held out her receipt for me to see. I was not expecting her to do that, so I had no idea how to respond. All I knew is I didn't want her to feel stupid for mistaking me for an employee. So I just took a quick glance inside her bag. And then gave her a nod that let her know that she could leave the store. I'm not sure if that was the right thing for me to do in that moment, but it did make me feel useful. While I was waiting for my wife. I begin with this story this morning to tell you that what this young lady assumed about me is what we are going to assume about you here at Cornerstone. If we see you standing around here for too long, And especially if you are a member of Cornerstone. We will assume that you are one of Cornerstone's helpers who are here to help people in their journey from brokenness to wholeness through the gospel of Jesus Christ. And this morning's message is intended to give you some things to think about to help you, to do just that and to be a good helper. And so to that end, with the time that we have this morning, I'd like for us to look at 6 truths, 6 truths that give us perspective on our ministry of helping people. In their journey. Truth number 1, you can fill in the blank. God delights to bless His people by providing them helpers. God delights to bless His people by providing them helpers. We actually see this, guys, in the Bible as early as Genesis chapter 2. In fact, here's a Bible trivia question for you. What was the last thing that God made during the creation week? In Genesis 2:18, God says, I will make a blank. And then he makes the very thing that he had resolved to make. What was that thing that he made? The answer is A helper for Adam, a helper whom Adam later named Eve. And here's what's fascinating to me. God created a perfect world. Of lavish provision for Adam in which Adam could walk with God and unhindered fellowship and enjoy the bounty of what God had made for him. And yet in that perfect bountiful world of perfect fellowship with God, Adam was left looking for something that he could not find. As Adam was sorting through the animals and naming them, Genesis chapter 2 verse 20 tells us that there was not found a what? A helper suitable for him. So here we have Adam looking for a helper for himself. Was God offended that Adam was looking for a helper? Did God say, what's the matter with you, Adam? Am I not enough for you? Why are you looking for a helper when you have me already? No, God did not respond this way. In verse 18, God Himself looked at Adam and said it is not good for the man to be alone. God created Adam to need a helper, and in verse 18, he resolves to make a helper suitable for Adam, a helper who would display God's image and serve as an agent through whom God would provide for Adam, the help that Adam needs. So God made Eve. God's creation of Eve reveals many things about God, but fundamentally it shows that God sees when his people need help. And that he delights to provide them help in the form of a human being when that is needful. In Genesis 2, he provides a human helper for Adam. And in the New Testament, we see God providing A human body for his son, so that his son could take on human flesh and be our helper. And we know that God sent Jesus to be our helper because in John chapter 14, verses 16 and 17, Jesus himself said to his disciples before he went away from them, he says, I will ask the Father and he will give you another helper. That he may be with you forever, that is the spirit of truth. So in the mind of Jesus, he is a helper to his people, and in his mind, the Holy Spirit is yet another helper whom the Father sends to us. In fact, if you read the Bible, the Old and the New Testaments, you learn that in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, you have three wonderful helpers every minute of every day. And then beyond that, this triune God saves and empowers and gifts his children. In the church and then gives us to one another so that we can be helpers to one another. This is the heart of our God. So God delights to provide us helpers including Himself, but how do we go about helping one another? Well, this brings us to the second truth that provides us perspective on our ministry of helping people. Number 2, we best help people when we point them to God as their ultimate helper. We best help people when we point them to God as their ultimate helper. If you see somebody who is struggling with weakness, help them and pray for them, but make sure you tell them how the spirit was given to them to help them in their weakness, and he intercedes for them with groanings that are too deep for words. If you see someone struggling with temptation, come alongside of them and help them and pray for them, but make sure you point them to Jesus Christ and tell them how Jesus suffered all that he suffered so that he could free them from sin and help them in their moments of temptation. If a fellow Christian is struggling under a spirit of condemnation, don't try to help them merely by telling them how much you think they're awesome. Tell them who God says that they are. Tell them what God did for them through Christ at the cross so that there would now be no condemnation for them who are in Christ Jesus. If you see a brother or sister struggling with discontentment or with fear, Point them to God as their ultimate helper. The writer of Hebrews does exactly this in Hebrews chapter 13. Listen to what he says to those who are struggling with the love of money and with fear and discontentment and notice how he points his readers to God as their helper. In verse 5, he says to them, make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have. Let's stop right there for a moment. The love of money can manifest itself in a variety of ways in our lives. You can love the money that you don't have yet. To such a degree that you make an idol out of obtaining it. You can also love the money that you do have to such a degree that you won't share it with others and meet the needs of others. Either way, what often lies at the bottom of our love of money is fear. A fear of facing some circumstance in which money might not be available to be our helper in our time of need. Whatever the reason for their love of money may have been, the writer of Hebrews calls upon his readers to have a character that is free from the love of money, and to help them do that, he counsels them, look at the text, to be content with what you have. And upon saying that, guys, he then points them to the most important thing they have, which is God. Listen to what he says as he continues in verse 5 and into verse 6. And notice how many times he refers to God. I underlined these in the hard copy of the notes that you have. He says, being content with what you have, for he himself has said, I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you, so that we confidently say the Lord is my helper. I will not be afraid. What will man do? To me, The writer of Hebrews wants his discontented readers to know that whatever their circumstances, their greatest possession is God. Who is your greatest possession too, if you belong to him through Christ. And you don't just have God in this hour. You will have him with you always. And you don't have to guess about that because he himself has said, Look again at the text in verse 5, I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you. And we missed this in the English translation, but there is a triple negative in the Greek text of this promise here which causes the amplified Bible to translate God's promise to us in this way, and this is in your notes. It translates God is saying, I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless. Nor forsake, nor let you down or relax my hold on you assuredly not. How's that for assurance? It is because you have such a God who is so committed to you. That you can have contentment in your circumstances, whatever they may be. You may not have that much money, but if you have the one who owns the cattle on 1000 hills and he promises that he will never leave you or let you down, then you can be content. You may not yet have the answer to some prayer that you have been earnestly praying for years, but you do have God. And no one can ever take God away from you. And he is with you to be your ever-present helper, such that you can boldly say in every circumstance, the Lord is my helper. I will therefore not be afraid. What will man do to me? The writer of Hebrews is reminding his readers and reminding us that money is not our ultimate helper, but God is. And if we truly want to bring help to other people, we should follow the example of the writer of Hebrews and point them to God. As their greatest possession. And teach them what it means to say, the Lord is my helper. I will not be afraid. What will man do to me? Tied to this idea is a 3rd truth that we would want to keep in mind if we want to be an effective helper to other people and their journey. Number 3, fill in the blank. We help people best by evangelizing them. We help people best by evangelizing them. If you came to the apostle Paul, And asked him, Paul, what is the most important way that you help people, Paul would say, I evangelize them. And we actually see this on display in the book of Acts. In Acts 16, Paul is on his second missionary journey and he finds himself in the coastal city of Troas just across the sea from Macedonia and observe what happens one night while Paul was trying to figure out what to do next. Verse 9. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A certain man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him and saying, come over to Macedonia and what? Help us. Verse 10, and when he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel. To them The Greek word translated to preach the gospel is one word. It's the word evangelize. Paul sees this vision and hears this call for help. And interprets it to mean that he is to go to Macedonia. And to declare to the Macedonians the good news of what God has done for them through Christ to bring salvation to their souls. So notice the connection here. The man from Macedonia says in verse 9, come over and help us, and Paul concludes in verse 10 that God had called him to preach the gospel to them. So in Paul's mind, help equals evangelize. And how could Paul think otherwise? According to Romans chapter 5 and verse 6, the gospel is the message that while we were still helpless, Christ died for the ungodly. That's the gospel in a nutshell. We were lost in our sins, we were helpless to save ourselves, but God sent Jesus into the world to live the life that we were helpless to live. And then die on the cross to give us an atonement that we were helpless to provide. And if we call upon the name of this divine helper named Jesus and believe in Him, we will be saved by Him. If you are not yet a follower of Jesus and a believer in Him, I'm here to tell you that your greatest need is that you are helplessly lost in your sins. But you are not hopelessly lost in your sins. Christ can rescue you if you will believe in Him. And call out to him. To save you. All he requires of you is that you admit your helplessness and put your trust in Him. And he will be delighted to forgive you of your sins and give you the gracious gift of eternal salvation. If you keep reading in Acts 16, you see that the apostle Paul obeyed his call to help the Macedonians. He went across the sea. And he encountered a woman named Lydia and some other women who were by the side of a river, and he preached the gospel to them, and Lydia and her household believed and with that, the Church of Philippi was born. And this was Paul's pattern everywhere he went, evangelizing people with the gospel of Jesus Christ. And he didn't just evangelize the lost. He also evangelized the saved, reminding those who are already saved constantly of the blessings of forgiveness and redemption and relationship with God and freedom from condemnation and sin that now belong to those who are in Christ Jesus. In Paul's mind, The most helpful thing you can do even for a person who is saved is preach the gospel to them, to evangelize them, to give them gospel truth. And this is why Paul spent so much of his letters evangelizing Christians with gospel truth. That's what Paul is doing in Romans chapters 1 through 11. That's what he's doing in Ephesians 12, and 3 and even beyond. That's what he's doing in Colossians 1 and 2 and in many other places in his epistles, evangelizing the saints and teaching them how to reason from gospel truth. To every area of their life. And you and I need to help people. In the same way, declaring gospel truth to them, reminding them of gospel truth that they may already know but have forgotten in the moment and helping them to think gospel and then to reason from the gospel to every area of their life. This is why our purpose statement begins with the words helping people and ends with the words through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Because giving the gospel to people is the most helpful thing. We can do for them. In Romans chapter 1 verse 16, Paul states that the gospel literally is the power of God into salvation to everyone who is believing. God's power in its thickest density resides inside the gospel. So if we keep preaching it to the lost and keep declaring it to one another. And preaching it to our own hearts, our lives and our ministries will never lack for the power of God. Amen. So let's embrace God's call to share the gospel with the lost and then after they get saved, let's keep evangelizing them and helping them to understand the fullness of what is now true about them in Christ. But let's not stop there. Let's help people in other ways too, and this leads us to the 4th truth that we should know about helping people in their journey to wholeness. Number 4, we should help the weak. We should help the weak. In 1 Thessalonians 5:14, Paul speaks to all believers and says, we urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the faint-hearted, help. The week Be patient with everyone. So if you are a Christian, based on this verse, you have many jobs to do. One of them is to help. The week The word that is translated weak here literally means without strength. So this word could speak of those who are without physical strength in the sense of being physically sick or diseased. In fact, this word is translated sick 19 times in the New Testament. Speaking of physical sickness. This word weak also could speak of those who are without spiritual strength. And these could be immature Christians who have become weakened by sin, or it could include mature Christians who are worn down from their suffering, their circumstances, or persecution. Or maybe even worn down by the rigors of ministry that they are engaged in. Or this word translated weak could speak of those who are financially weak. Due to impoverishment, or this word could speak of those who are left in an emotionally or mentally weakened condition because of traumas that they have experienced in their life. Or even from the diminishments that come from aging. Beyond these possibilities, in Romans chapter 14 verse 1, Paul speaks about the brother who is weak in faith, whom we need to try to build up rather than tear down through the choices that we make. So as you can tell, this word weak has a wide breadth of meaning and Paul calls upon all believers to make it their ministry to help the weak in whatever ways. Might be needful. Getting under the load. Of the week to help them carry that load or lifting them up to help them walk with your assistance. Thankfully, Paul did not just teach this, but he lived what he taught. In Acts chapter 20, Paul is speaking to the elders of the Ephesians Church and he reviews how he behaved while among them for 3 years and listen to what he says starting in verse 34. He says, you yourselves know that these hands ministered to my own needs and to the men who were with me. And everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner, you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus that he himself said, it is more blessed to give than to receive. So just from looking at These two verses here in Acts chapter 20, we see that helping the weak can involve working hard at an occupation so that you can meet your own needs and have financial resources left over to give to those who are financially weaker than you. Paul himself set an example of this lifestyle as we see here in verse 34. And as he did so, he exemplified a happy mindfulness of the promise of Jesus about the blessing experienced by those who help the weak. By his own example, he encouraged others, look at verse 35, to remember the words of the Lord Jesus that he himself said, it is more blessed to give than to receive. We have so many in this church body who live by the same ethic. And that help others in countless different ways. Providing comfort for those who are in sorrow. Providing housing for those who need a helping hand. Providing gospel counsel and encouragement for those who need the wisdom of God and their current Temptations and trials or providing financial assistance to those who stand in need of that. Or providing a meal for someone who is going through a hard time. And so many of you do these types of things with joy, believing the words of Jesus that it is truly more blessed to give than to receive. I encourage you all to keep exploring how God might want you to help the weak. And thereby keep experiencing the truth that it is more blessed to give than to receive. And before I move on to the next point, let me just say a word of advice about helping. The weak because we might read that and then immediately try to divide up the congregation. Well, who's the strong and who's the weak? we're gonna have to do that. If I'm gonna help the weak, I gotta know who they They are, and that can be confusing, right? That's not so easy to decide. As you think about helping the weak in the local church. Don't be surprised at who it is, who may be weaker than you. Sometimes the weak just might be someone whom you think. is supposed to be stronger than you are. I'm gonna take a risk and share something with you guys, As many of you will recall, the 3rd Sunday of November, I had a shortness of breath episode. During My sermon and I just have to admit to you guys that I was terrified when that was happening. And profoundly humbled when I became short of breath. But in the moment, admitting that to you and telling you what was happening and then asking for your prayers really helped me to continue my sermon that morning. You who prayed for me in that moment may not have thought of it this way, but you helped the weak. That Sunday And I should also admit to you that What had happened that Sunday messed with me every day of the following week. And the following Sunday before our afternoon Thanksgiving service, I was feeling waves of anxiety about just the 7 minutes of speaking that I was supposed to do to introduce the testimony time in our Thanksgiving service. That Thanksgiving service was my first time speaking. To you after what had happened the prior Sunday. And I was lost inside my head and experiencing waves of fear that this might happen to me again. I encountered Ronnie Kneiser in the auditorium before the service and he, I think just casually asked me how I was doing. And I just said, can you pray for me right now? And so, Ronnie put his arms around me. And he prayed for me And shortly thereafter, God answered Ronnie's prayer. And help me to get up and speak to you for 7 minutes. I'm pretty sure looking back on that moment that Ronnie was not thinking. Well, God calls me to help the weak, so I'm gonna go over to Pastor Milton. And help that weak man. Right now. Maybe he thought that, but probably not. But that's what he did. He helped the weak In that moment And I share this to remind you that every Christian, every Christian, Experiences many moments of weakness, just as Paul talks about in 2 Corinthians chapter 12, which means that you can apply this call to help the weak to anyone that you seek to minister to or encourage in any way because we are all so beset. By weakness And I suspect that when you get to heaven and Christ points out all the times that you help the weak. You will probably be surprised who those weak persons really were that God used you to help. You will realize then that those Christians that you always thought of as strong were actually much weaker than you realized and they were greatly helped by your encouragement and your prayers and your ministry in a given moment. So I say all this to say that while you are trying to help the weak, Try also Helping those that you think are strong. Because chances are they're weaker than you realize. And your ministry will be hugely helpful to them. Well, there's another truth that we should keep in mind if we want to truly help people in their journey, and that is 5, we should Help those experiencing relationship conflict. We should help those experiencing relationship conflict. In Philippians chapter 4. Verse 2, Paul gets surprisingly personal and makes an appeal to, to women. In the church, saying, look at the text, I urge Yodia and Sentiki. To live in harmony in the Lord. And then in verse 3, he says, indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel together with Clement, also and the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the book of life. Now, some of us, I am sure would love to know the juicy details of the conflict between these two women. But there are a couple of things that we can know for sure. we know that these women were godly Christian women. And we know that their disagreement was not a disagreement about a critical doctrine. Otherwise, Paul would have sided with one of the women over the other, I suspect. But I want you to notice how Paul treats these women with equal care and urgency. Look at his language in verse 2 and notice how he uses the verb urge twice. I urge Eodia and I urge Sentiki. Paul is being so careful not to side with one woman over the other, but he appeals to both women with equal urgency and letting both of them know that they have a role to play in the resolution of their conflict. And based on the literal meaning of the Greek word that is translated urge, Paul is coming alongside of each of these women and individually calling them to live in harmony in the Lord. But then amazingly, Paul seems to know that his own inspired scriptural appeal is not gonna be enough. So in verse 3, he says, indeed true companion, I ask you also to help these women. We don't know who this true companion is for sure, but whoever he is, Paul is telling him to help these women resolve their conflict. And noticed that Paul wants to make sure that his true companion remembers the genuine good in both of these women. He tells his companion that Yodia and Seike were women who shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel. Paul has not forgotten about the blessing that these women were to him, nor has he forgotten about when they were both unified with each other. As they shared Paul's struggle and the cause of the gospel. In saying these words, he wants these women to remember their former unity and he wants his true companion to remember these things about these two women as well. Notice also that Paul says in verse 3, together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers. This phrase could be understood in one of two ways. It could be that Paul is describing the people whom these two women had labored together with in ministry with Paul at an earlier time. But some commentators take this phrase as modifying Paul's command to help. And these commentators would translate Paul as saying to his true companion, Help these women together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers. And if this is Paul's meaning, then Paul is not just calling upon his true companion to help reconcile these women, but he's calling upon his true companion. To do this work of helping these two women in community with others who are helping or involved in this work of reconciliation. However you choose to understand this, what I want us to take away from this passage is the fact that sometimes genuine godly Christians experience relationship conflict that they can't seem to resolve on their own. And they need another brother or 2 or 3 or more to step in and help resolve that conflict. So if you ever find yourself Having such a relational conflict, don't be ashamed of that. We see this very thing happening in the first century church of Philippi. Among two godly women. In fact, I think it's true sometimes that God doesn't allow people. To resolve. conflicts on their own because he wants to do a deeper work of humbling them and getting them to reach out and receive help from others. And he wants to give others the blessing of helping them. Which often will result in a closer relationship with them as a result. In fact, being a pastor here for 33 years, I can say that over the years I've seen it happen that some of the richest friendships in our congregation are among people who once were in a relationship crisis who reached out to others for help. And now the crisis is past. But a beautiful friendship. Between the helpers and the ones they helped stands in its place. And that deep friendship may not have happened were it not for the relationship conflict that brought them together. God is always doing a million things. You might say, well, I'd, I'd, I'd like to truly help people by helping them reconcile, but how do I go about doing that? Well, I would encourage you. To attend Pastor Carlos's counseling. class in our equipping school hour. and there's other resources that we provide here in our women's ministry and elsewhere that you can explore. But in the meantime, I would encourage you to just spend some time reading Philippians. Studying Philippians 1 and see Paul's expressions of affection for these Philippians and his confidence regarding the work that Christ is doing in them and will complete in them. And observe how it was that when Paul saw the Philippians, including the two women who are in conflict, he didn't just see them as they were in the moment, but he saw them as they would be in the day of Christ. Perfect. And completed I would encourage you to read Philippians 2:1 through 11 in which Paul delivers some earnest appeals for humility. And unity and then points to Jesus Christ, to the example of Jesus Christ to inspire people to be humble and selfless. And considerate in their relationship with others. Read back through those earlier chapters of Philippians and realize that Paul was already talking to these two women. In Philippians 12 and 3, and he was already talking to everyone who would be helping them in those chapters. Giving them gospel-centered material to use to help them to reconcile. And then when you are helping fellow Christians reconcile, I would encourage you to do your best not to take sides, which is so easy to do. Just as Paul is careful to avoid taking sides here in this passage. You should always keep in mind the words of Proverbs 18:17, where Solomon says the first to plead his case always seems right until another comes and examines him. If I ever come to you to complain about someone in the church, and I'm giving you an earful of my side of the story, don't take my side. You don't just want to hear one side in a conflict and then conclude that, well, yep, it's clear enough from The time I've invested that all the fault lies with the other person in this conflict. You want to give a fair hearing to both sides of a conflict and genuinely seek the good of both parties and not just one. And if you find yourself in a position Where you are not able to hear both sides of a conflict, be supportive of those who do know both sides and pray for them as they serve those who are in conflict with one another. All in all, be a helper to people in their relationships, including their conflicts. Be a peacemaker who helps people to reconcile rather than a troublemaker who creates conflicts or who throws gasoline on conflicts and makes them worse. And if you yourself need help in reconciling, do your best to pursue reconciliation with the other person. And once you've exhausted All your efforts to do that, reach out to others for help. The Christian community in the local church should be a place where help for such things is freely sought and freely given. Amen. Well, there's a 6th truth that we learned in the New Testament that gives us perspective. In our ministry of helping people. And that is number 6, we should help those who help others. We should help those who help others. In Romans 16, Paul speaks about at the beginning of the chapter, an amazing woman named Phoebe. Who was the carrier of Paul's letter to the Romans. You and I have never met Phoebe. But we are all beneficiaries of her faithfulness to deliver Paul's letter to the Christians in the church of Rome. Imagine if Phoebe had failed to deliver that letter or if she had lost it. Imagine the fruit that abounds to her account because she was faithful to help Paul and to help the Romans, and to help us by delivering Paul's letter faithfully to the Christians in the Church of Rome. Listen to what Paul tells the Roman Christians to do with Phoebe when she arrives with the letter. Verse one, he says, I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church which is at Centura, and that was an eastern port city of Corinth. That you receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and that you help her in whatever matter she may have need of you, for she herself has also been a helper of many and of myself as well. Paul describes Phoebe as a servant. Of the church. The word translated servant here is the word we get our word deacon from. She was probably a deaconess in that church who had done much to meet the needs of the saints in the Corinthian church in a variety of practical ways, and beyond that, Phoebeus serving Paul and the Romans by delivering Paul's letter to them. And notice how Paul describes her as one in verse 2, who has been a helper of many and of myself as well. This is a woman who lived a lifestyle of helping people. Including Paul. And Paul now calls upon the Romans to help her as she lives this lifestyle of helping others. All I want to draw from this passage is an encouragement for Each of you to not simply be a helper to others who are in need of help. But to also encourage you to be a helper to the helpers. Look around you in your home. And in the church. Is there someone who is engaged in a ministry of helping others? Is there some way that those helpers can use your help as they help others? Can you come alongside of them in some way? To carry some of their load. Or to make their burden of helping a little lighter or a little less lonely for them. Is there some resource that those helpers might Benefit receiving from you that you can bless them with as they seek to help others. I would encourage you, even with normal things you do and helping others to try to think of this category. Consider that when you volunteer for the nursery or for children's church, you are not just helping the children, you're also helping those who are already on the rotation of helping the children, making their load a little lighter. When you volunteer to help with Ina, you are not just helping the children that you will be ministering to, you're also helping Seaburn and Cindy Boone and their amazing team of helpers as they are serving these children. If you volunteer to provide a meal to someone in your care group, you aren't just helping the person that you're providing the meal for, you're also helping those who are managing the meal chain. And making their load a little bit lighter. On the home front, children. I know you get served a lot. By your parents, but don't be content to be merely served by them. Be a helper. To them. And husbands, look for ways to be a helper to your wife as she gives her life to helping your children and helping you. You say, well, she's my helper. it's her job. And yes, she is called by God to be your helper, but God calls you in Romans 16 to be a helper to the helper. To be a helper to the biggest helper in your life, and that is your wife. Can I get an amen ladies? OK. The list of opportunities is endless. I've just mentioned a few, but look around you and look for ways that you can be a helper to the helpers, even if it's just simply through your prayers. And increase their ability to be even more helpful to others. Just from the passages that we looked at today, we see that there are countless ways. That we can reflect the image of our helping God and be agents of his help to others, and God stands ready to help each one of us as we seek to do that. And God stands ready to take us deeper into the truth that it is always more blessed to give than it is to receive. God is the ultimate helper to his people. And you are never more like God than when you are helping others in ways large and small. Imagine what God can do through our church in the year 2025 and beyond if every single member of Cornerstone felt called into the ministry of being a helper. To others And then gave themselves to helping the weak. Helping to nurture and even mend relationships when needed, helping other helpers, pointing people to God as their ultimate helper, and evangelizing both the lost and the saved as a way of giving them the ultimate help through Jesus Christ. Imagine what God can do through our little church of 500 people. If each of us made it our job to be helpful in these ways, and then to give God all the glory. For The help that he gives to us as we seek to do that. Amen. I should conclude by Letting you all know that this is Brian and Chris Kearns. Final Sunday here at Cornerstone. Before they commence their move to Oregon. In fact, their U-Haul is in the parking lot. and they are leaving from this service to move up to Oregon. Brian and Chris have been a great blessing to our church since they joined Cornerstone back in 2011. They served together as care group leaders for a number of years and Chris served with excellence and fierce devotion for 7 years on our church staff as Our administrative assistant. But Brian and Chris have served this church in countless other ways as well. I can't tell you how often I have heard. Over the years, someone telling me about their first coming to Cornerstone. And a part of their story is being greeted by Chris and Brian. And feeling loved. And welcomed by them. And how the warmth of their hospitality was one of the factors that led them to conclude that Cornerstone would be their church home. With Brian and Chris's departure, we are losing two beautiful helpers. modeled so much of what we have looked at. In the passages that we have studied this morning. To Brian and Chris, we want you to know that we love you, both, and we will miss you. And we will cherish the marks that you have left on us all, and those marks will remain with us. Through eternity To the rest of you, I say that Brian and Chris's departure leaves us all with some pretty big shoes to fill. But I have confidence in the Lord concerning you. That you can fill those shoes. That you can be inspired by Brian and Chris's example and be just as helpful. As they have been To people and their journey from brokenness to wholeness through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let's pray and let's ask God to help us to To do that. Lord, you give and you take away. And we say this morning, blessed be the name of the Lord. You have given Brian and Chris to us. And today you take them away. From us and you will be giving them to another church. To bless as they have blessed us. We ask that you would bless Brian and Chris. Literally on the road ahead, today and tomorrow as they travel. And bless them. Throughout the rest of their journey in Oregon. And use them to be a light and a blessing. To everyone whose lives they touch. We ask that you would bless us as a church body. You have given us so much, Lord. So many resources and the greatest resource of all is the brothers and sisters that you have brought to be a part of this. Local church and we are rich indeed. I do not take it for granted, Lord, the privilege that is mine to be one of the pastors of a congregation. So wonderful as this one is. And I praise you for all the ways that The brothers and sisters in this body live out the very ethic we see taught in these passages that we've looked at this morning. May you, Lord, bless them a thousandfold. In return for The many ways that they minister your help to others. That they would experience ever more deeply the blessedness. Of giving of themselves. And ministry to others that it is truly more blessed to give than to receive. Help each one of us even People who are seated in this auditorium who may be just attending Cornerstone and haven't really been that involved but may what we've looked at. This morning excite them about the opportunity that they have to just step up and step forward and, and be an agent of your loving help to others. That they would be a participant in moving the ministry of this church forward, Lord, and bringing the The sweet help of Christ. To many others. And Lord, if you do grant this request and help us. To be powerful helpers to others. And use us in great, in, in ways small and great. We promise you now that we will give you all the glory. We will give all the praise. To God the Father and God the Son. And God the Holy Spirit. We ask these things and commit ourselves to you. In the mighty name of Jesus. And all God's people said,